Lunch at Gees Oxford

Gees is one of those restaurants that you desperately want to be good as it is such a destination and yet for years has always disappointed.  For a very short 'hey day' Raymond Blanc made it his HQ and it was spectacular, but when he de-camped to the Manoir Aux Quat' Saisons, what followed was a poor imitation.  I read that it has been 'made-over' and everything has changed from the 'trying to be fancy' food to the 'trying to be fancy' interiors.  So we decided to check it out (I still wore some 'trying to be fancy' clothes, as there is little opportunity to dress up in Oxford)

Fabulous flowers is next door to the restaurant, and everyone stops for a bit of a browse amongst their beautiful blooms....

They can be bought online from fabulousflowers.biz and with prices around £30-£40 for a bouquet, they are just as lovely, but a lot more value than the more famous equivalents...

 These jam jar arrangements come in sets of 4 for just over 30 quid!

I wore my nude Valentino pumps, white denim leggings, silk Joseph blouse, there is one here for only £7.99, it is from the White Company and very similar, just badly displayed, so a bit of a steal.  The raspberry pink jacket is from the Helen Hospice shop, they have some beautiful proper vintage finds and since the hospice is for terminally ill kids, any purchase is justified...

My favourites were the jam jar flowers, if we could count on the weather, I would buy for an outdoor party...

And this is Gees, notice all of the bikes chained outside, you know you are in Oxford, and see a very hungry boy in a blue t shirt....

This pic is 'pre-makeover'....

Post make-over...

Hungry boy shouting 'come on' or similar as we approach the 'plant library'...

Again, only in Oxford, the plant selection is presented as books in the new lean-to entrance way....

I am taking lots of notes for my own conservatory...

I will buy some personalised planters from here...

There was a wedding in full swing at one end of the restaurant....

The bride looked beautiful in a simple silk number...

This is a wedding designed by Fabulous Flowers...

We ate burgers from the grill...

 I did the 'healthy' version and had slow roasted beetroot in place of chips...

And I am happy to report, it was DELICIOUS, back in the cottage a very full tummy later...

The ONLY fashion item you'll need this Summer...

It's raining again, this was about to hit the Ebay pile, it is a very old, unworn Sonia Rykiel mac. The quality is beautiful (much better than my Burberry I hate to say). I don't really get on with this flared shape in dresses as my thick waist, huge shoulder combo make for a bit of a Grayson Perry look. But in a coat with something skinny on the bottom it seems to work quite well.
I'm trying to 1. stop buying stuff just because I fancy it and it is cheap 2. Start wearing some of the beautiful quality clothes that are languishing in piles in wardrobes, suitcases and boxes.  Tomorrow is another full day of outside picnicking and clearly the forecast is for rain from 7am to 7pm , so yet again I'll be slapping on a tan and a smile and possibly a silk, halterneck Valentino number from about 1985....the trouble is now that my shoulders are as defined Arnold Schwarzennegger at his peak, it might just scare the natives...

Pink Kameez

This was the second wedding Kameez the first one is here and not so good on  me. Normally I looked washed out and grey in pastels, but I really love this, the workmanship is incredible and it feels beautiful to wear, like something Valentino might have in his haute couture collection. I can imagine wearing with a cardi until I am 80. The skirt is so heavy that is sways independently when I walk, couldn't be more pleased with my 50 quid Ebay find!

How I know I am rubbish at fashion...

Looking at these photos I can see that everything about this outfit is wrong. On paper it should have worked,  Valentino suede trousers (TK Maxx), Ralph Lauren coat (TK Maxx), a touch of cashmere (Uniglo)and 'Chanel' style boots (Calvin Klein). All in my favourite neutrals grey and olive and yet.... trousers are may be a touch too big and I STILL have a camel toe, jumper pure Grange Hill and the coat says panto audition for principal boy here I come.
I actually went out wearing this, I was meeting one of my Bootcamp ladies for coffee at a very chichi garden centre near Windsor, I thought this might be green chic but it is an eco disaster.
May be this blogging malarky will be quite useful, even if it is simply to work out what NOT to wear.
On the upside, fake tan looks pretty good.... more on that later!
Do you spend time 'putting' things together or if you are dressed does it just have to do?