I really have my sister to thank for this outfit. She combined shirt, tie and cardy to create a '1980s preppy' look, and I, her perpetual long-suffering model, actually quite liked it. The shoes I wear very often- a sensible pair of smart-looking brogues are a staple part of my shoe collection, always look good with dark trousers. The skinny black chinos are smart, bordering on casual. The cardigan was a bit of a dark horse. Initially we'd chosen a dark grey blazer to complete the look, but (and not on my recommendation, I must admit) this was replaced by the fuzzy grey cardigan just before I put it on. The messiness of the grey and black always reminds me of the blizzard-like snow screen you used to get on old VCR players, or on analogue TVs when you couldn't connect to a channel.
The relative dullness of the grey and black, which covers almost all of the body, contrasts fabulously with the rich colours of the tartan shirt and broad, vintage style tie. You can't really see it in these pictures, but the shirt, which I found at Rockit in Camden for only £5, is frilled slightly, which looks very snazzy, sort of like (what I have aptly named) 'Highlands meet Disco.'
Another really simple look- casual but smart. It's a nice one to wear indoors on a cold Winters day. The snowy Jumper, which I found for £10 at a local vintage shop, is woolly enough to be warm, and baggy enough to be comfy, but is cut short at the waist via an elasticated waistband so isn't so baggy that it makes you look fat. It's got a kind of chicness to it, particularly when worn with the sleeves rolled up, that prevents it from wandering too far into grandad jumper territory.
The dark colours go together swimmingly; the white print on the jumper really stands out. The burgundy chinos can be found at topman for £15- and I imagine at River Island and H&M for a similar price. I often worry that I rely too heavily on Doc Marten boots, but is that such a crime when they add a sublime touch of class to any almost any outfit? The trick with DMs is getting the colour right. I chose dark green to go with the jumper, and laced up the boots in dark red to match the trousers- just to show that I put a bit of thought into them, rather than just chucking on the first pair I found. I imagine white laces would have worked well too, but sadly I didn't have any to hand.
The necklace is the true party piece of this outfit. It's a beautiful, spike-adorned chain, with exciting cuboid shapes increasing in order of size up to a nice big one, right in the middle, which never fails to catch light at some angle, drawing attention to the necklace. 'Interesting,' 'nice,' 'fancy,' 'lovely' and 'gorgeous' are all descriptors for this necklace that I hear regularly when I wear it to partys, or even just when I go shopping in it. I hope you like it too!
For me, the best part of the year is the very end- that oh-so-familiar post-Christmas period, when there is a bargain to be snapped up around every high street corner and a turkey sandwich to be eaten every lunchtime. It's something of a confusing time for fashion-lovers. A sort of awkward in-between period, the transition from Chrismtas jumper to regular jumper. Fortunately, the Sales provide an opportunity to restock the wardrobe with plenty of fresh winter wear. But this in itself also creates a problem- should you go for the incredibly low priced jeans from last season at H&M, or stay ahead of the game with the inconveniently non-reduced printed trousers from the new clothing range at Topman- for about three times the price of the aforementioned jeans.
The trick is to find the right balance. My suggestion: grab a few timeless items in the sale (eg: patent shoes, coloured skinny jeans, accessories, leather goods, plain leggings etc) then use the money you saved to buy some slightly more risque garments. Personally, I'd head to the highstreet for the bargains, then go somewhere like Camden market to get those fantastic, unique little gems that you never see anyone else wearing. To be honest, there's always a sale on at Camden market anyway- its called haggling!
Anyway, I grabbed a pair of black stretch skinnies at H&M for £10- a very versatile garment, goes with anything light. I found this (fake) Boy London jumper in Camden for £15 (down from £18 after a little persuasion), and got the spiked belt at the same place for £12. The boots I've had for a while, but I know you can get them at Schuh for £59.99 (an excruciating reduction of 40% on the price I paid!).
Altogether the outfits pretty simple- I was forced to throw on a rosary style necklace and colourful bracelets to jazz up the look. Still, I think the grey and black go together very nicely, and the jumper keeps me warm on a chilly winter afternoon. I hope you like it! (here are some more pictures if you do...)
