high summer holiday wear!

Now that our little French mini-break has been and gone I'm ready to throw myself into thinking ahead and about what I might pack for our French campsite holiday in August. I was hoping that my recent trip would give me a few clues as to what to take and buy for the trip. It's going to be a whole lot more casual than the trip I've just done, I've been doing a bit of Pinterest research and I am really feeling the love for printed shorts which are great for pulling up over a swimsuit or bikini and pairing with a plain tee or a strappy camisole. As luck would have it a trip to a local retail park the other day meant I wandered into New Look and they have some fab holiday bits. See my Pinned inspo first...then I'll show you what I've been eyeing up!

I know there won't be a lot of call for dresses and heels on this holiday! Apart from a spot of sight-seeing in St Tropez I doubt we will leave the campsite as there is loads for the DD to do. I think these shorts are perfect for seeing you through daytime to evening. Just worn with a vest or tee and flip-flops for around the pool but then a quick change into pretty cami and denim jacket or a fine knit for evening with some pretty flat sandals. 

New Look white cami (reduced, also comes in mint green)

New Look black cami (comes in mint green, white, bright blue and mid pink)

New Look white shorts

New Look red shorts

New Look black shorts

As I mentioned above I'm going to pack some plain v-neck tees, I have these Zara ones in black, white and grey. I'm also going to take a black Topshop cami, a Warehouse cold shoulder top like this and also my recently purchased lace insert cami from H&M, here. 

I find separates easier to pack as you can ring the changes but I have a couple of brilliant strapless playsuits that are great if you are not quite brave enough for walking around in a swimsuit or bikini. Again New Look have done this in a few different colours 

New Look bandeau playsuit (also comes in lime, yellow and black)

I love this playsuit too....great to go from day to evening too!

New Look black embroidered trim playsuit

One other item that I am going to invest in is the gorgeous oversized stripe shirt. Fab with flat tan sandals and a straw bag if you want to fit in with the locals! ;0) 

New Look beach shirt

That concludes the holiday shopping wish list from New Look. I'm yet to check out anywhere else on the high street.....though I shall be continuing the research forthwith! I will share the contents of my suitcase nearer the time. If anyone has done this kind of camping holiday before and you have any clothing tips, any advice would be gladly received!

Onto my outfits from the past few days, we've been lucky enough in the South West to have some lovely weather....shame it doesn't look like it's hanging around for the whole of half term! :0(

Whistles t-shirt, ancient this Mint Velvet one looks like a lovely alternative

Zara jeans, similar here

Office Dapper loafers, here

Mango gold tote, ancient similar here

Part Two dress, via Hi*Hi store (you can buy here online)

Office Dapper loafer, here

Mulberry bag, ancient similar here

Pull & Bear dress, past season, similar here

Office Dapper loafer, here

YunionT white t-shirt, here

Jack Wills denim skirt, past season similar here

Office Dapper loafer, here

Now for something exciting to share with you! Your chance to win one of the gorgeous YunionT t-shirts like the one I'm wearing in the picture above. All you have to do is find this image of me on Instagram here 

• Like the YunionT facebook page
• Follow YunionT on Instagram
• Tag a friend who you think would also like to enter
• Like my Instagram competition post.

The lucky winner will be chosen at random and can chose one of any of the 5 styles you can see here on the YunionT website. Good luck everyone...it's such a lovely quality t-shirt and retails at £45.

I think I will be looking at rain macs this week if the forecast is anything to go by.......be back later in the week!

whilst there is a discount about......

.....well it would be rude not to snap up these Gucci tributes from Office wouldn't it?! There is 20% off using code OFFICE20 online and I popped in to a store yesterday where they also had 20% off selected styles.

Office Dapper white loafer

These are £52 after discount and free P&P! They come in 2 other classic colourways, black and red! I would love a pair of each but I've gone for the white.

Office Dapper red loafer

Office Dapper black loafer

I ordered on Tuesday...they arrived yesterday and are gracing my feet today! 

Office Dapper white loafer

Just a quick post from me today to share the new shoes so you can take advantage of the discount too!

My outfits from the past couple of days......

H&M shirt, sold out, similar here

Topshop Cain jeans, here

Topshop sandals, sold out, similar here

Louis Vuitton speedy bag, ancient similar here

Topshop sweatshirt, sold out similar here

Topshop trousers, here

Converse, here

Furla bag, ancient, similar here

H&M top, recent sale purchase instore, similar here online

Gap real straight jeans, I cut and frayed the hems off similar to these

Topshop Fig sandals, past season similar here

The Jacksons London bag, similar here

So....have I tempted anyone with these Gucci-esque shoes??

Happy bank holiday weekend everyone! :0)

Back soon!

a shopping treat ~ hi*hi

This weekend I had the opportunity to join my lovely friend (thanks Andrea!) for a little road trip to Oxted in Surrey for a spot of shopping in Andrea's sisters boutique which is called Hi*Hi store This isn't my first visit....so I was just a tad excited as I knew exactly what I was letting myself in for! This gorgeous store is full of fab treasures of the clothing, shoes, accessories and not to mention homewear variety. Lisa, the proprietor is so friendly as well as being super stylish. She does offer a wardrobe detox and styling service too! Hi*Hi has been open for about 10 years now and for those of you familiar with the area it's on Station Road in Oxted, very easy to find! It's home to brands such as Part Two, Culture, Denim Hunter, Hod, Gestuz, Twist & Tango, Just Female and Maison Scotch to name but a few (though there are many more!). You can check out what's new instore and buy online here. Just to give you a flavour of the store I took a few snaps to share........

I have been frantically eBaying again as I knew I wouldn't be able to resist a purchase or two! The first thing I tried on I wanted to wear home!....I love these Culture black trews.

Culture trousers, £65 instore

Loving these so much  I wore them today! I predict you will be them a lot!

Mango jacket, here

Hush t-shirt, here

Culture trousers, HiHi store as above

Hush Brogues, here

Next up I tried on a couple of dresses. This first one is a shirt dress by Just Female. You could wear it open as a long waistcoat over something else....though for me this is perfect as is with white Converse.

Just Female dress, £95 here

Then I tried on this fab (to coin a phrase from my lovely mate @susiesoso, a buffet) dress. This presented me with a right old dilemma as I wanted both!

Part Two dress, £90 instore

I was torn between these two but I went for the stripes in the end....no surprise there really is there! I thought would be perfect for our main high summer holiday in France. Though I know Andrea is off to Oxted again in half term so I could indeed end up with both! ;0)

Next up I tried on this amazing Hod blue jumpsuit.

Hod jumpsuit, £90 instore

I have found myself craving a bit of colour lately and this is such a gorgeous shade of blue, not too in yer face for me but I really fell in love with it. It has a racer back and looks fab with a white vest underneath and my tan sandals.....as you can probably already tell....I am now the proud owner of it! I was like a kid in a toy shop, there were so many lovely things, here are a couple of things that I am still hankering after.

Gestuz fringe jumper

Samsoe Molly spot shirt

Maison Scotch preppy cardigan

Do you shop in independent stores or do you prefer the High street....maybe you like to mix up both! I would love to hear!

The usual outfit round-up!

Zara sweatshirt, here

Gap original straight jeans, similar here

Converse, here

Mango jacket, here

Zara t-shirt, here

H&M jeans, past season similar here

Converse, here

Furla bag, ancient this one here is a gorgeous alternative

Primark scarf, instore recently

Mango jacket, here

Gap top, sold out similar here

Topshop Jamie jeans, here

Topshop sandals, sold out similar here

Mulberry bag, ancient

Mango jacket, past season similar here

Topshop t-shirt, past season similar here

Zara jeans, here

Topshop Fig sandals, past season similar here

Mango bag, here

Primark scarf, instore recently 

Stradivarius jacket, sold out, great alternative here!

H&M Breton, similar here

H&M jeans, past season similar here

Nike Blazers, similar here

Mango jacket, here

Zara t-shirt here

Gap trousers, here

Topshop sandals, sold out similar here

Jigsaw bag, similar here

So now I've well and truly blown my clothing budget for the next month, though I'm still currently researching some high summer holiday stuff......I will be back to share all with you shortly. ;0)

Wishing everyone a fab week....be back again soon!

p.s this isn't a sponsored post....just somewhere I'd love to shop all the time if the budget allowed! You can follow Hi*Hi on facebook here and Instagram here Happy shopping ;0) xx

more holiday capsule suitcase sharing!

So...I'm just back from a grown-up mini break to France with the DH! Five days of golf and cricket for the boys..... a spot of spectating for the girls. There was plenty of wine tasting over a leisurely lunch or two ;0) We did enjoy a day of sightseeing around St Emilion and a vineyard stop to finish our trip off.  To round off our fab few days there was a gala dinner on the last evening. As lovely as this all sounds and as much as I was looking forward to it.....it gave me nightmares of the packing variety!! Mainly because I had no idea what to expect....the weather forecast looked decidedly iffy and this trip called for smarter stuff than I would normally wear on to a day to day basis! It sent me into a spin I tell thee!

Source - St Emillion

We decided on carry-on luggage only so space was tight....but I do love a packing challenge so here's what I packed. I tried to keep to a rule of three of each thing, but ended up with 5 dresses and 4 tops. I found footwear the trickiest as there was some rain forecast (though it never materialised).

I'll start with the jackets, because of the aforementioned rain I decided on my DKNY leather biker jacket to wear to the airport. I also took a recent purchase, this Mango red jacket and my cherished Zara quilted jacket. I did wear all the jackets but unfortunately there is no pictorial evidence! These are the only colourful items to make the cut....more on that in a minute!

Zara quilted jacket, past season this alternative is gorgeous here

Mango red jacket, here

DKNY leather jacket, past season similar here

For me, the key to easy packing is keeping the colour palette minimal.....so be warned there is a lot of black here. Well......it's good enough for those Parisian chicks isn't it! ;0) 

I took a couple of smart dresses for evening attire. I took two because I just couldn't decide what to wear for the gala dinner.......and I was secretly hoping the opportunity would arise to wear both at some stage! That said, once we got there I made up my mind the Zara midi was just a bit too much for the event once we got there.

Zara midi dress, here

Topshop Daisy dress, similar here

For daywear I went for one short sleeved dress, which was perfect for the cricket match as luckily that fell on the best day of sunshine. I also took one with a bit of a sleeve and a maxi, the latter two could easily be worn for dinner. Phew, I managed to cover all the bases here!

Whistles black cotton dress, ancient similar here

H&M black jersey maxi dress, similar here

Mango dress, here

As for tops, I went for things that would double up as day or evening wear. I bought a lace bell-sleeve top in the sale in H&M which turned out to be perfect for a welcome meal and wine tasting. I had also purchase a lace-insert cami from H&M which was just right under the Mango red jacket and jeans for a more laid back evening look. The Mango peasant top was great with my Zara ripped jeans for a leisurely lunch on one of the days. The Dorothy Perkins shell top was spot on for travelling both ways. If there was anything missing here it was my Zara black v-neck t-shirt as it would have been another option but I managed without it!

H&M cami, here

Dorothy Perkins top, here

Mango top, past season similar here

H&M lace top, here

Bottoms! The Uniqlo (extremely comfy) wide pants to travel in and blue and black skinnies.

Uniqlo wide pant, here

Zara jeans, past season similar here

Topshop jeans, here

This little gem comes on every trip with me as it's perfect as an extra layer under a jacket if it's chilly.

Whistles cashmere blend cardigan, ancient similar here

The headache bit here....shoes!! I'm didn't want to go for a towering heel and it was just as well I didn't! We were staying at a golf resort and there were a lot of gravel pathways and uneven terrain. Fortunately Kurt Geiger Kads with their more manageable block heel and were perfect for the dressier evening events. To travel in I wore my Kurt Geiger Madison espadrilles, these turned out to be brilliant for walking around St Emilion which is very hilly! The New Look Chanel dupes broke up one of the all black outfits and the Topshop tan sandals also came out to play on the sunnier days. As it turned out I made exactly the right choices here!

Carvela/Kurt Geiger Kad sandals, past season similar here

Carvela/Kurt Geiger Madison espadrille similar here

New Look two tone pump, sold out similar here

Topshop tan sandal, sold out similar here

Bag-wise. The Longchamp bag is super light is great for toting stuff around and it came in handy for sightseeing!  The Mango bag was a present from the DH from a recent business trip (he is good isn't he!) and being suede it was great for day or evening.

Mango suede bag, here

Longchamp Le Pliage bag here

All that's left to share now is the accessories. I picked up both scarves in  Primark for £2 each, one is oversized so I thought another handy little extra layer for a chilly day/evening. The straw hat was just in case the sun came out to play.

H&M straw hat

Primark scarves instore

Topshop tan belt, ancient similar here

Gap black belt, similar here 

Dorothy Perkins top, here

Uniqlo wide pant, here

Carvela/Kurt Geiger Madison espadrille similar here

Mango suede bag, here

DKNY leather jacket, past season similar here

Primark scarf, instore

H&M lace top, here

Topshop jeans, here

New Look two tone pump, sold out similar here

Mango suede bag, here

Mango top, past season similar here

Zara jeans, past season similar here

Topshop tan sandal, sold out similar here

DKNY leather jacket, past season similar here

Dorothy Perkins top, here

Topshop jeans, here

Carvela/Kurt Geiger Madison espadrille similar here

Longchamp Le Pliage bag here

Whistles black cotton dress, ancient similar here

Topshop tan sandal, sold out similar here

Mango suede bag, here

H&M black jersey maxi dress, similar here

Topshop tan sandal, sold out similar here

Topshop tan belt, ancient similar here

Topshop Daisy dress, similar here

Carvela/Kurt Geiger Kad sandals, past season similar here

Mango suede bag, here

DKNY leather jacket, past season similar here

All-in-all I was happy with what I'd packed. It all mixed and matched and the accessories were great for ringing the changes. Had there been promise of some better weather I might have added a bit more colour but I played it safe with the black.

How would you tackle your holiday capsule packing.....I would love to hear!

Now this little break is out of the way the high summer wardrobe planning is underway! I'll be back soon with gorgeous holiday clothing I've spotted today.