Paisley Love

Posted on February 3, 2012 by admin

Scarf – Oxfam
Top – second hand from a friend
Skirt – Gringo
Necklace – Swarvoski Crystallized

I love most patterns and prints but paisley is one that I have had a long standing love for. It was definitely a favourite during my teenage years. I was pleased to see that paisley is on trend for SS12 (not that I wouldn’t wear it either way) but current trends often inspire me to wear something that I already have in my wardrobe. I loved the paisley prints at Jil Sander, Emilio Pucci, Stella McCartney, Matthew Williamson and Paul & Joe but they are all way out of my price range (and I only buy ethical!)

The great thing about paisley though is that it has been around for years making it prime for hunting out in charity shops. Paisley is the term used to describe the twisted teardrop pattern that is Iranian and Indian in origin. The patterned fabric also has associations with the summer of Love in 1967 when it became associated with the psychedelic style of the hippie movement and there was an increased interest in Indian spirituality in the West.

The skirt I am wearing isn’t actually paisley but reminds me of it. The scarf is. Here are some more great Paisley pieces that I found on Oxfam.

oscar b jacket Paisley Love

Oscar B Paisley Jacket

tom wolfe paisley top Paisley Love

Paisley Pattern Silk Top

Paisley Viscose Next Top

Handmade Blue Paisley Dress

Boden Paisley Dress

There are loads more amazing paisley pieces on Oxfam here. Will you be wearing Paisley this spring?

I hope you have a lovely weekend. I have just got on PInterest so will be spending the weekend pinning away like a crazy women. If you are on PInterest, please let me know so that I can follow you.

With warmest wishes

Ceri X

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Tuesday Treats – Ethical Knitwear

Posted on November 29, 2011 by admin

Yesterday it was so cold I had to give in and put the heating on. I usually try and last as long as possible by layering as many knits as I can. Mr Style Eyes likes to have a good laugh at me wrapped up in my scruffy old Grandad cardigan and has suggested perhaps I ought to get something a little more stylish. So here are just a few of the most stylish pieces of ethical knitwear that I have spotted recently that also look like they would keep me extra toasty warm.

Fair Trade Shaggy Cardigan Coat by Gringo

Pixel Fairtrade Wool Stripe Dress by Komodo

Bamboo Cashmere Silk Drape Front Sweater by Viridis Luxe

241481 ian snow patterned cardigan Tuesday Treats Ethical Knitwear

Fair Trade Multi Coloured Grandad Style Cardigan By Natural Collection

Rekindle Jumper by Seasalt

preview 1cc0d9b7f989475abe603eb061d0483e Tuesday Treats Ethical Knitwear

Monsoon Vanilla Soft Lambswool Blended Knitted Jumper at Oxfam

People Tree also have some amazing Fair Trade knitwear like this pretty flower cardigan with up to 40% off knitwear until midnight Friday.

What do you think? do you like any of these ethical knitwear pieces?

Tommorrow I will be announcing the winners of my ethical outfit competition – I have some very tough decisions choosing the winners.

With warmest wishes

Ceri X

Tuesday Treats – Ethical Red Dresses

Posted on November 1, 2011 by admin

Red dresses are really on trend at the moment and so perfect for the festive season. Red is definitely one of my favourite colours and doesn’t ever go out of fashion, so for this weeks Tuesday treats, I thought that I would share my favourite ethical red dresses.

kilele dress Tuesday Treats Ethical Red Dresses

Kilele Dress by Johari

satin sweetheart 686x1024 Tuesday Treats Ethical Red Dresses Satin Sweetheart Dress by Tara Starlet

red maxi dress Tuesday Treats Ethical Red Dresses Vintage Red Maxi Dress from madam Popoff Vintage on ASOS Marketplace

Red Vintage Dress from Reddyroad on ASOS Marketplace

Military Red Ophelia Dress by Nancy Dee

Red Laura Ashley Dress – Oxfam

red tiered dress Tuesday Treats Ethical Red Dresses

Vintage Red Tiered Dress – Oxfam

What do you think? will you be wearing red to any Christmas parties?

I hope that you are having a good week.

With warmest wishes

Ceri X

Charity Shop Chic AW11 – Monochrome

Posted on October 17, 2011 by admin

I hope that you had a lovely weekend. It was amazing to have such unexpectedly warm weather. I managed to put together another outfit for my charity shop chic series, which includes a sixties vintage dress (by Lerose) which I bought from Oxfam online. If you haven’t checked out the Oxfam online shop yet, I would definitely recommend it. They have a whole section for vintage clothing. The red shoes were given to me by a friend as they didn’t fit her, they are brand new. The belt was handmade by Emma of Style to Wear.

As far as I am concered monochrome outfits never really go out of fashion. But for Autumn winter 2011, they featured heavily at Marc Jacobs, Giambattista Valli, Chanel and Phillip Lim.

Apart from putting together my outfit, much of the weekend was taken up with tackling the huge pile of ironing that seems to have mounted up. I did find a bit of time for relaxing and went into to town with Mr Style Eyes and the girls for dinner and also did some cooking with the girls. My mum gave me a great big bag of cooking apples from her tree and we also had piles of tomatoes so we made toffee apple muffins (just used a normal muffin recipe and added cubes of apple and fudge), apple crumble, fresh tomato sauce and Normandy chicken pot roast (the recipe was in the Tesco magazine, you can find it here) which was very yummy and surprisingly easy.

Mr Style Eyes was busy putting up his new green house, I wonder if that affected his choice of outfit (green t shirt, green short and green boots!) Here are a few random instagrams from the weekend.

tomatoes Charity Shop Chic AW11 Monochrome apples Charity Shop Chic AW11 Monochrome

cooking Charity Shop Chic AW11 Monochrome

toffee apple muffins Charity Shop Chic AW11 Monochrome

Did you do anything fun this weekend?

With warmest wishes

Ceri X

Charity Shop Chic AW11 – The Classic Shift Dress

Posted on October 13, 2011 by admin

Dress - Oxfam (Originally Laura Ashley)
Tights – Henry Holland for Pretty Polly
Boots – Dream in Green (at Spartoo)
Necklace – a present

For todays Charity Shop Chic, I decided to feature one of my favourite pieces of clothing, the classic shift dress. I love this style as it is both flattering and slimming. I found this cord version recently in Oxfam and I wear it loads because it holds its shape so well. There are also so any different ways that you can accessorise it for different looks. The shift dress was a key shape throughout the forties, fifties and sixties, all of which featured heavily on the catwalks for autumn and winter 2011.

I treated myself to some new tights for autumn from Tights Please, this pair by Henry Holland being one of them. As I wear dresses and skirts most of the time tights are pretty much an essential for autumn and winter and I also love using them to add a bit of colour and pattern to an outfits. I haven’t yet discovered an eco/ ethical option for tights (please let me know if you happen to know one) but kind of justify buying them with the following. A pair of tights is a small addition to my wardrobe that can be used to update numerous outfits for the season. This pair were also made in the UK. That doesn’t change the fact that most tights are made from nylon which uses non renewable resources (coal and energy) and lots of chemicals to make. They also do not biodegrade. It’s a difficult one. I want to minimise my impact on the environment but I also need to keep warm.

I have in the past also talked about difficulties in finding ethical shoes. I am pleased to say things are improving all of the time and this pair of boots is my latest discovery by Dream in Green at Spartoo. They are made in Spain from vegetable tanned leather.

I hope that you are having a good week.

With warmest wishes

Ceri X

Charity Shop Chic AW11 – Tunic and Trousers

Posted on October 10, 2011 by admin

I seem to have been having a bit of a charity shop splurge recently, but I can’t help myself when I see something amazing that fits. Still at least I am not spending loads of money and charity shopping has a relatively low environmental impact. This weekend I have been clearing out my wardrobe to make space for all of the charity shop updates I have bought for autumn. As most of the stuff that I clear out ends up going to the charity shop too, I can feel good that I have done a bit for charity as well as having a much clearer cupboard.

One of the trends for AW11 that I spotted at Oscar De La Renta, Alberta Ferretti, Michael Kors, Osman and Ermanno Scervino, amongst others and wanted to try out was tunics and trousers. I love the way that this look covers all those lumpy and bumpy bits (of which I have plenty) and the proportions also seem to work well for me being only 5ft 2. I found this beaded tunic at the local Oxfam shop and though it would be a great alternative a dress for a night out. The beading also reminds me of spiders webs so I might even wear it for Halloween. If you like this look, you can also trend out for any short shift style dress to wear with trousers for a similar look.

I hope you have had a lovely weekend. I am suffering today as I woke up with a very sore back, I have been taking Nurofen and Parecetomol and I am currently sat with a hot water bottle on my back. Fingers crossed it is better tommorrow.

Look out for the next post in my Charity Shop Chic Series for AW11 which will feature the classic shift dress.

With warmest wishes

Ceri X

Tuesday Treats – Leather Pencil Skirts

Posted on September 20, 2011 by admin

I have noticed plenty of leather skirts on the high street for autumn and winter. I particularly love the pencil skirts as they can be worn with a t shirt for a rock inspired look or a blouse for a more feminine seventies inspired ladylike look.

The longer length means that they are more classy than trashy but I would also wear these skirts with high cut and slightly loose tops tucked in to balance the look out. They are also great for the evening with a vest top or camisole.

If you fancy treating yourself to a leather skirt, it is well worth considering a second hand or vintage one. Leather is one of the few materials that can actually improve with age, so you can get yourself a beautiful and on trend piece of clothing and also save yourself a few pennies or pounds. Here are some that I have found. penny Tuesday Treats Leather Pencil Skirts