Blog off...

I switched off a few days back,  life has got more serious, I am back in the world of work and suddenly the blog thing was feeling a bit frivolous and out of step with life back at a corporate pace.

But then I received some emails, an especially lovely one from Darla in Tennessee and a request to reconsider from the strangest of places, my husband, who I always thought had considered this blogging malarkey a bit of a joke.  He travels a lot with work and perhaps quite likes the inane wittering of my posts and the pertinent and thoughtful comments that I am lucky enough to get from people who come for a chat.

And so I am back, I am working a few days a week on the corporate side of a big fashion company, so the dress code is a nightmare, really fashionable and very smart would be the order of the day, but as anyone who has read about my shopping habits knows, I am an avid Ebayer and practical dresser (wedding dresses aside).  I haven't bought 'cool corporate' since 1992. And my wardrobe is evidence of that.

I found a selection that might work as a collection to take to London for the first few days

 The first outfit was a disaster, it was quite an expensive 'treat' I bought it to help out a new designer, Hamish something, I can't remember the surname, the top and trousers are cashmere, the trousers are cut between the butt cheeks to lift and enhance, fine when I was a size smaller, pretty obscene when they are a size too small.  The top is a-symetric and has a huge moth hole in the front, straight in the bin with the top and trousers back to the 'size smaller' pile...

 One of my staple Coast skirts, an old reliable and Nichole Fahri jumper (more moth holes) I love the shape too much to throw it away, but it is on the country weekends pile.

 This dress is quite a special one, it was given to me a few years ago, again I am hopeless at names I can't remember who designed it, but it won dress of the year at London Fashion week, it is meant to be a reverse skeleton with the vertebrae down the front. It isn't a great look on me as I always feel too broad for it, but it was given to me by lovely friends so I have always kept it.  This could be a contender, but I need different footwear.

This Stella MacCartney dress is a great shape, and the only one that has ever given me a waist, except, I can't wear a bra with it, not sure that gives the right impression for the first day.

Uh oh, I look like some strange Muppet human hybrid, this is a big NO....

And so I went shopping and bought some new clothes (and visited the hairdresser!)....
Skirt Club Monaco (new on Westbourne Grove, has it relaunched? I seem to remember from the 80s, but the new shop and collection is fab, perfect smart/cool kit) Jumper is Vanessa Bruno, it's just a jumper, but why is it that it fits in a way that gives me shape without clinging? Necklace a splurge from J Crew (newly opened on Brompton Cross).  Boots are classics from Hermes that I have had for years, they were bought in the sale for about £175, and on a cost per wear basis have to be cheaper than any of my £0.99 bargains from Ebay.

Tan courtesy of St Barts (the bottle not the place) may be next year!
I definitely haven't 'cracked it', but it's a lot better than my earlier attempts.

What are your secrets for foolproof fashion meets serious business person dressing?