Falling Back To The Cold

It's the 25th October and the clocks have gone back by an hour today.  Gosh, it's going to go dark so early.

This time of year sees me reaching for some trusty style favourites, plus I always manage to sneak some new items into the wardrobe.  One example being the leather effect coat from River Island which arrived last Wednesday.  It had an orangey-tan fur collar on it, which was a bit mad.  I've swapped it for the black one off my shorter leather jacket.  It was easy to switch them as they were detachable and the buttons were a good match up.

I have to admit that I am a sucker for a rock chick come biker look.  It's a legacy from my teens, when I had biker neighbours and my musical taste was in the rock, metal and goth arenas (it still is!).

I am hoping to get to a major shopping centre in the next couple of weeks.  I need a dress for my dad's blessing (he remarried in September in the US) and there's a couple I have seen that might fit the bill.  I can see Miss Selfridge, Zara and Primark will be top of my visit list.  If I get the right style, it can double up for Christmas parties as well.

Happy Halloween to you all - the next big holiday for me will be Christmas, so I am sure a blog about that will be on the cards before long!

It's All Gone Bonkers!

Gosh, sorry it's been so long since my last post.  As my Insta-followers know, I just spent 9 nights in Italy, travelling around the Bay Of Naples and the Amalfi Coast.  The holiday was amazing and the sunshine has made me feel on top of the world.  I promise to sort my photos and blog all the highlights soon (thinking uktravelchicky could be my holiday alter-blog?)

Since being home, I have faced the ongoing building work in my home - yes, I bought a brand new house and I'm already breaking it! We're having a conservatory built and knocked the wall out so the kitchen can be expanded.  The space will look fantastic, but sorting out the building work and cleaning up every night eats into my time.  I promise to be back with you at full strength in a couple of weeks and I promise to read all the blogs I have stacked up ready.

But something I did manage - car was in for a service, so what's a girl to do when she has a couple of hours on her hands.....? Well, there was the cute breakfast I had in Frankie & Benny's for a start, then there was a quick trip to the retail park where I ended up in Next and bought some new socks and boots.  I also can lay claim to buying my first Christmas present! My niece will love these doggy bed socks.

Watch out on Instagram for my next post, along with an option to read about my holidays once I get round to things! Catch you soon.

Packing - How Do You Do Yours?

Next week it is my annual holiday with my friend, which we have gracefully nicknamed 'Grumpy Girls On Tour'.  This year, we're off to the Amalfi Coast and plan to visit Pompeii, Herculaneum and Vesuvius.  We'll be staying in both Sorrento and Amalfi, so there'll be lots of walking to be had, too.

Now, I don't know about you guys, but I'm a 'lister' so I am always making lists of things I need to remember; passport, tickets, money, knickers!!!!  Î have my suitcase out for almost a week, then I plan all my outfits and photograph them so I remember what goes with what.  I've found outfit planning to be invaluable, often I end up with items that don't match by the end of the week which is very poor form indeed.

I also love the mini travel versions of my favourite products.  It also gives me a chance to try new items to see if I like them.  I end up wrapping them in lots of little carrier bags so they don't leak in my case.

The there's the tricky decisions of what to do while on the plane.  I have music on my iPad, plus I get a bit obsessed with Tetris.  It keeps me busy but sends my eyes square.  I have a couple of puzzle books to while away the time.  I'm a sucker for crosswords.

So, when I go away my Instagram feed will be quiet but hoping for lots of opportunities for my friend to take photos of my outfits while I am standing next to awesome sights and scenery.  Until I return, be safe xxx

What Goes Around Comes Around!

One thing my fellow instagrammers will have seen is my recent purchase of some lace up flat shoes.  Well, funnily enough these were the height of fashion back in the eighties (and were probably a resurgence from an earlier period!).

I found a picture of me back in 1988 with my version of the shoes, as a snappy twanged 18 year old.  The picture is a little grainy, but you can make the laces out.  I loved them so much that I had 2 pairs.  They used to make up my summer goth metal look!

Next to them are my Zara versions, which I think have a rock chick throwback vibe.

Let me know if you've ever had a similar throwback situation occur in your wardrobe - I'd love to hear about it.

Zoe xxx

Cheshire Oaks Haul

On Monday 24 August I had a day off work and headed down to Cheshire Oaks, an outlet village on the outskirts of Chester.  The Blue Planet Aquarium is next door, there is also the Coliseum shopping area, plus Vue Cinema, a range of eateries and a large Marks & Spencer.  You could easily spend all day here if you felt inclined!

The stores I had the most success in were Gap, Karen Millen and M&S.  I almost bought a new handbag in Fossil, but they didn't have a good neutral colour.  In Gap, I picked up a couple of vest tops, a long sleeve tee and a casual cardi.

In Karen Millen, I picked up the most amazing animal tshirt, plus a beautiful pleated skirt that will look great at a wedding, I reckon, or a smart work look.

In M&S I got a pack of 2 bras and a couple of pairs of cool shades.  I can't decide what I like more, the shades or the little pockets that come with them!

I wandered over to the Coliseum and into Debenhams, where I picked up a cute little bag.  Then I wandered into Outfit and grabbed some shorts for my holiday, plus a lovely shawl from Miss Selfridge.  The photo doesn't do it justice, plus I can't share with you it's lovely soft chenille feel.

I did see some lovely items in H&M but by then I had blown my budget, so they will have to wait until next time (boo).

http://www.mcarthurglen.com/uk/cheshire-oaks-designer-outlet/en/ 

Catch you soon!

Good News & Bad

This week I am returning to exercise at full pace.  I've been running, spinning, lifting a few weights and doing some yoga.  It's amazing how refreshing you feel after exercise, isn't it?  Ok, after the shower you feel amazing!!!!

I do most of my training at home.  There is a gym at work, but I tend to find I like to run when the weather is good so I'm not a member.  I should join really as it's only £12 a month and there are free classes included in that price.

Thè DVDs you see here are from a range called Spinervals (easily found on Google) and I love them because they are focussed on developing you as a mini athlete! They focus on triathlon style training, so you can do running, weights and yoga.

I have to temper the good news with a little bit of sad news.  My beloved little boy cat, Scooby, was taken from us last Friday.  He had suffered a stroke and lost sight in his left eye, after a 24 hour assessment he started to lose feeling in his left side.  He was 17, so he had had a long and hopefully happy life.  My husband and I miss his presence dearly. Bo kept looking for him and looked sad that she can no longer find him.  He has pride of place in the garden, where the summer house will be, as we know he would have loved to survey his domain from the rooftop.

My Verdict On Shampoo & Conditioner For Blonde Hair -John Frieda Range

Anyone who follows my Instagram feed is aware of my recent hair colour change.  After years of being varying shades of black, purple and red, I decided it was time to head back to Blonde.

This creates the usual conundrum - how to keep blonde hair in good condition?  I've decided to try a shampoo and conditioner dedicated to this quest.

The John Frieda Sheer Blonde range had an alarmingly large range of products for blonde hair, I didn't really know where to start!  After a good scour of the shelves in Boots, I came across the highlighting shampoo and conditioner, which I thought would help make my highlights stand out. 

To be fair, the first wash was excellent and my hair feels lovely and soft.  I applied a Euro/Pound sized blob of shampoo, mixing it into a mild lather, then washed out.  I then applied a similar amount of conditioner, but concentrated on the ends of my hair more than the top.  I left the conditioner in while I showered, then rinsed it out.  After loosely drying my hair, I left it towel dried for around 30 minutes, then applied the styling oil and blow dried the hair.

At this point in time I am very happy with these products.  The blonde highlights look as wonderful as day one and my hair is very soft to the touch.  I will monitor the situation over the coming 4-6 weeks and report back if the situation changes, so you can decide for yourself if this product is worth pursuing.

You'll note that the photo shows some Imperial Leather shower gels - unfortunately I haven't tested them yet as I'm using up my Original Source Mint gel.  It's almost empty, so I can let you know about this product when I have started to use it, just let me know!

Thank you for reading my blog today, have a lovely rest of your day and catch up with you all soon.

@ukstylechicky #ukstylechicky