Summer Trends for 2015!

There’s no denying it – the muggy summer heat is upon us, and even here in Blighty, there are days when I can’t even go out into the garden without breaking into a sweat. Every year we have a new crop of summer trend articles to tell us what’s in this season (hint: usually a combination of safari prints, nautical themes, and neons or brights), but which one of those are actually worth following?

First and most important, let’s not forget hats. Wouldn’t the world be a nicer place if we all wore hats? I have no evidence to prove either way, so I’m going to go with a hearty YES. The boho trend is big this year, and big, floppy hats look absolutely gorgeous paired with floaty summer tops – think cream fabrics, lace and embroidery. I, on the other hand, like to err on the more formal side of the hat equation!

Ascot Hat

Of course, you can also channel the ‘floppy hat’ trend into something a bit more formal too – go for a stiffer material, and something with a darker colour, like this hat from Hobbs I wore to the Coronation Festival at Buckingham Palace:

Buckingham Palace hat

The other great love of my (fashion) life is nautical style, especially Breton tops. These stripy sailor tops have been in fashion since Coco Chanel translated them from peasant garb to couture in the early years of the last century. They’ve been catapulted into the spotlight recently by some high profile appearances in the wardrobe of the Duchess of Cambridge. Kate has been spotted wearing ME + EM’s Breton tops in both white on navy and cobalt on white – it might not be on the runways this year, but you can always count on a Breton top to take you through the seasons year after year. I love J.Crew’s St James top (here) and Joules’ Harbour tops (here), while the ME+EM tops are available here.

Finally, if it’s shoes you’re after, don’t forget that the ghost of ’70s fashion is still haunting the runways. You can channel this with some cool wooden effect wedges – perfect for summer, easy to walk in, and not so ’70s that the ghost of Farrah Fawcett will rise up and snatch them off your feet…

Wedges

I love these two part closed wedges from Next – and if you wait until Saturday, they’ll be half price in the sale!

What’s your favourite summer trend this year?

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Breton Stripes: A Forever Classic

If you describe your style as classic or preppy, you should have at least one Breton style top in your wardrobe! The Breton top is a classic and has been popular with the fashion set for nearly a century, after Coco Chanel introduced the top to her fashion collection in 1917.

The original, classic Breton top was worn by sailors in the French navy, was introduced in 1858, and was supposed to feature 21 stripes for Napoleon’s 21 victories. The lore surrounding the Breton top also states that the stripes were selected so that a sailor would stand out in the sea if he fell overboard! Breton tops are most classically defined as navy and white, although red and white is fairly usual alternative. These tops have been worn by Audrey Hepburn, Kate Middleton, Marilyn Monroe, Coco Chanel, Brigitte Bardot, and Alexa Chung, to name but a few. Taking stock of my wardrobe recently, I realised that Breton stripes had become something of an obsession, so I decided to do a post featuring a few of my current favourites!

Breton Style

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Friday Lust List: Red Suede Heels from L.K. Bennett

Red suede heels have become a point of obsession for me, and once I decided I wanted a pair, I started to get a serious case of The Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon – they kept appearing everywhere, and I found myself pinning, liking and stumbling across dozens of gorgeous outfits featuring them! Then, when I saw a pair on Tatiana’s Instagram, I knew I had to take the plunge!

Red heels

When I saw these gorgeous Fern heels in ‘salsa’ from L.K. Bennett, I had to snap them up right away, especially considering there was limited stock on the site!

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A Month in Pictures: June

June Instagram

Summer’s finally arrived: baby showers in Marc Jacobs from Girl Meets Dress, Mulberry, and Russell & Bromley wedges / ASOS scallop collar shirt and Banana Republic necklace / the Color Run in London / a Westerosi feast for Father’s Day / heating up the summer nights with a neon pink ASOS prom skirt, Mulberry flats, Dior hot pink lips and nails, and Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick in rose / popping into London for an after work party / channeling the nautical trend with Next’s two part flats and striped shopper / admiring the blooms / a mid-week date night with my Mulberry Lily,  Anya Hindmarch purse, Dior nails and lips in 999, plus cute little Etsy bumblebee hair grips and a heart necklace from Accessorize.

Bag ‘n’ Shoes: Next Two Part Pointed Flats and Navy and White Striped Shopper

Yellow two part flats and striped beach bag from Next.

Summer for me is always nautical. I love nautical stuff, as I’m sure you’ve cannily realised from my previous posts. But you don’t have to spend a fortune on trends to get something stylish and practical, and one of my favourite places for affordable fashion is Next!

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Spend or Splurge: Pointed Flats

After I posted a pic of my growing collection of pointed flats, I had quite a few people asking me where they were from, so I put together a Polyvore collection of a few examples at different budgets. A couple of the items aren’t the same as the ones in my picture, as they were last season’s, but hopefully I managed to find some interesting alternatives!

 

Pointed flats: save or splurge

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Bag ‘n’ Shoes: Modalu Crossbody Twiggy in Berry and L.K. Bennett Dale Pointed Flats

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I am all about the pointed flats this year – last year I was dipping my toe in very gingerly, but 2014 is the year I’m going full pelt into the trend!

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Nautical and Nice

It all started with those pointed Dale flats from L.K. Bennett… And then the French Sole nautical collection. And Modalu’s nifty fabric Riviera tote with that amazing navy and white stripe… Pretty soon, I was obsessed with all things nautical, and, well, it was pretty much only a matter of time before this happened:

Nautical and nice

On the top row we have the aforementioned Modalu tote (£75), and next to that, the Soho grab, also from Modalu (£89). If leather is more your thing, Modalu also do this amazing azure blue Artemis shopper, which is one of my favourite colours this season (£199).  L.K. Bennett also have a couple of really cool nautical totes this season – at the end of the top row is the Hoxton canvas tote (£175), and the cool and quirky Lytham St. Anne’s canvas beach bag (£95, one of a series of three) starts off the second row on the left. Save your pennies with the simple chic of this navy striped tote with rope handles from Next (£20), or treat yourself to Kate Spade’s Welcome To Brighton bag (£130). Rounding out the bag selection are two clutches – on the left is L.K. Bennett’s embellished straw Evie clutch (£225), and the right is Kate Spade’s nifty Terrace Drive Abbett clutch (£245).

On to the shoes! On the top row we have French Sole’s red pointed Penelope flats (£180), then L.K. Bennett’s azure Connie espadrille wedges (£160). The L.K. Bennett team are mad for gosgrain this season, because they have several offerings that make use of the striped ribbon in a variety of colours – each of my selections is available in various bold striped patterns. Next to that on the end of the top row of three is another nifty pair of French Sole flats, Henriettas with a rope pattern that dances across the toes (£160). On the bottom row on the left are a pair of slingback pointed toe flats from Next (£26), another pair of simpler Henriettas from French Sole – I couldn’t resist the rope bow! – (£150), and then a peep-toe espadrille wedge from Next (£34). Finally, a Marlene block heel sandal from L.K. Bennett (£175), and those shoes that started it all, the Dale pointed toe flats, from L.K. Bennett (£150) – available in navy and white, azure and white, and raspberry and white, and all in that gosgrain finish I love so much!

Do you like to channel a bit of nautical style in your wardrobe come the sunnier seasons? Without doubt, nautical style is always in fashion during spring and summer, and I’m a sucker for it every time! Considering that it always makes an appearance on the shelves, it’s a smart investment to pick up a few nautical accessories to mix and match – you’ll probably find you end up using them year after year. Do you have an old favourite you like to bring out?

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Sunshine at the Beach

Sunshine at the beach

 

Since I bought my lovely yellow Zara coat, I’ve been thinking of ways to style it for spring. As I’m also slightly obsessed with nautical stripes at the moment, I put together this outfit featuring a striped navy and ecru jumper from Next (£18), striped, pointed Dale flats from L.K. Bennett (and also available from Next… Although I’ve been waiting for mine to dispatch for a month: £150), inky denim leggings from Next (£24), the aforementioned yellow Zara coat (£99.99) and the Mulberry Lily in Emerald (£750).

Bright colours, nautical influences, and a mix of green, yellow, blue and white – what do you think? I have to confess, I’m struggling to come up with bag matches for this coat that go with the rest of an outfit!

EDIT: Grazia magazine UK is currently offering 25% off L.K. Bennett between 1-14 April. Pick up the 7 April edition with Gwyneth Paltrow on the front for your code, which can be used online or in a store!

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