Scarves – The Ultimate Accessory?

Continuing my journey to streamline my wardrobe and look…

Scarves are a definite part of my signature style and look.

Every women probably has at least one scarf in their wardrobe. If you have only one scarf, maybe you´re not so keen on them and were given it as a gift or don´t know how to wear it? Maybe its not your colour or it´s outdated.

Scarf lovers like me couldn´t begin to catalogue them….well, that is an exaggeration, however I have always worn them, from the 90s when when I worked in the corporate world and knotted silk squares round the neck with suits to now when I always carry a long wrap with me to guard against sudden cold, jazz up an outfit or use (currently) as a breastfeeding cover!

My scarves are animal prints, caramels, blues, pinks, greens and purples. I haven´t quite got all the colours of the rainbow as my tastes change frequently. Additionally because scarves are worn so close to the face usually (unless you tie one to a handbag or wear it as a belt), you have to make sure that the colour suits you and doesn´t make you look ill or tired.

I photographed the two I am wearing all the time at present. The purple cashmere/silk ombre scarf I bought at a market in Turkey last year and the pinkish one is a linen mix from Italy. Depending on the weather I will throw either the lighter or heavier one around my neck.

Once I create the wardrobe of my dreams, it is my intention to hang them all up properly so I can see what I have. Though it can be fun finding ones I had forgotten about (trying to be positive about my mess)!

I googled “how to wear a scarf” and there were more sites than I had time to visit, however here is one and another that had some real life inspiration. The way to look modern wearing them seems to be not to try too hard tying them (unlike my 90s days) and drape them casually around your neck and shoulders.

Not forgetting you can also wear them on your head à la Edie Beale or Grace Kelly.

Please post your favourite scarf inspirations or stories!

Filed under: Clothes, Signature Style Friday

Hats, Bags and Sunglasses

So what am I going to add to my basic wardrobe of jeans and black clothes so I don´t get lost in a sea of drabness? The coloured shoes are pretty occasional, usually they are black too.

I love hats and the way I look in them. I have a large collection of winter hats which keep my head warm and the snow off my face and as I am trying to protect my face from excess sun, I also have a number of big floppy summer hats like the one above I was wearing last summer in Turkey (and see black dress too!, though I also have print/colourful ones).

The hat I took to Turkey is black and white and I also have a black one and a white one….hmmm, I think I have mentioned before that I have a problem with buying multiple versions of the same item.

I also love BIG sunglasses. I have really embraced this trend and can´t imagine going back to the small metallic ones I used to wear in my 20s. I am really really trying to be careful with the two pairs I own currently and not lose them!

I don´t like cheap sunglasses only because I seem to break them within days- the arms snap off or the lenses fall out. I have never had problems like that with my indulgently labelled ones HOWEVER I have in the past left them in changing rooms and restaurants . These ones though I have owned for nearly two years, so I am doing well….I also religiously put them put them in their cases when not on my head to avoid scratches.

I have long left behind me the days when I dressed all in black and also carried a black handbag! Not to say I don´t currently own a black handbag anymore, but I realised not so long ago, that its just all too much black.

My current favourite is this mustard yellow bag.

Its my “it” bag for summer and the only one that belongs on this post, which is not supposed to be “RML photographs the contents of her wardrobe”, however about less is more. I made an exception with the hats as they are so important in the fight aganst ageing .

Don´t forgot to check out Kirwin´s Signature Style post too!

Filed under: Clothes, Signature Style Friday

Five Easy Pieces

Like Kirwin, I have been wanting to define a signature style for myself for some time. Currently I am lost in an overflowing wardrobe of things that don´t fit me and don´t suit me – in there somewhere are wonderful items that always get compliments, however how do I begin to weed them out? No, thats the easy bit… finding the things that suit me. The hard bit is going to be letting go of the rest.

My main problem at the moment is I need to lose 15 to 20 kilos post pregnancy. Its obviously going to take some time and it means that I´m not going to adhere to one of the golden rules of wardrobe cleansing which is to get rid of everything that doesn´t fit me now. If I did that I would be stuck with only a handful of stretched out pregnancy clothes!

In our bedroom, I am lucky enough to have two armoires for my very own. So I have decided to use one as my everyday armoire full of clothes that I actually wear/will wear and the other smaller one will have things in it that I just can´t get rid of for some reason (like they are very special occasion) or are out of season (like all my winter coats right now) and my two dirndls for Oktoberfest. Everything else has to go!

Even without fitting into my clothes, I believe I can still begin to declutter my wardrobe- firstly by eliminating anything too old or worn, not age appropriate, doesn´t suit me or clothes that I have ridiculous amounts of duplicates of – like black cardigans and black evening shoes.

Step 1 to building a streamlined wardrobe – Identify 5 key pieces to build my wardrobe around.

Step 2 – Add a new piece (or five?) every week until I run out **** I will be adding pre-existing wardrobe items for some while. Shopping outside of my wardrobe is not part of the current plan until I really identify what my style is.

Lest my stay-at-home-mother wardrobe become flat and boring, like Kirwin I will remember to add colour – mostly in accessories - bags, jewellery, scarfs, even shoes.

Before I started this blog, I had just read a book called Eccentric Glamour which started off all kinds of trains of thoughts. I didn´t want to be boring, I didn´t want to fade away.

I would like to think there is a touch of the eccentric gypsy in me and I would rather be noticed for a little bit of rebellious style rather than being completely overlooked. Stay tuned for big hoop earrings and tambourines!

(Photos in progress- I can´t find the jersey top or the jeans I want to photograph today (which is a reflection of the state of my wardrobe , you might have to imagine).

1. Jeans – bootcut always to balance out my pear shape. Medium rise (hard to find) and dark.

2. Ballet shoes – here are four that I own. From Pretty Ballerinas. Because of my big feet which I am self conscious about, I don´t usually do colour on them and will probably never wear anything except for dark or metallic high heels, sandals or wedges. But wearing these brights with a black dress or my jeans somehow worked for me.

3. Loose Jersey Black Top – back to black- slimming and wears well. I like loose drapey jersey fabric especially. Other colours I might wear if I can find them in the right fabric and cut would be navy, bright pink, medium blues or green.

4. Necklace – I am growing to love big chunky pieces – something I will probably look for more of over time, though I would like to expand my colour range beyond the lots of silver I have now.

5. Cardigan – a classic black shape: I would normally scrunch up the sleeves to highlight rings or bracelets. This is an old favourite I love and have had for years. I like wearing a more fitted cardigan piece over my looser tops. Somehow it works.

This outfit is something I would feel secure in – based on black, but with a favourite handbag in a colour (next week!) I feel ready for anything.

Filed under: Clothes, Signature Style Friday