WIT or Wisdom? Who cares... the festive season is nearly upon us and one thing is certain: Avidity is the new black.

[LetThemEatCake]

Trick or treat! [hsmile]

I love the 1940s look, Yangy.

Tracey, I like the Gap tops, may get another next week. I am wearing the WC one today and it is very nice, if I do say so myself!

Esher, hope you have a nice afternoon. I would have come to meet you if I'd seen your post earlier.

Just met a friend who is 6 months pregnant and looks amazing, very slim apart from a little bump. She said an acquaintance told her, "your bump is tiny, you put all the weight on your bum" (she hasn't!). Why do people say these things?!

blossoming Can imagine that dress is great if shorter. Do you think colour would work for summer palette too?

No time to catch up properly but just wanted to say that its blowing a gale here (30mph winds) and I have to go on a boat tonight! . Yikes!

Plum - had already got the ikea gift tags but loved the twine so will pop back and get some of that - thank you. Thought your jars were fab.

Those of you with DSs or DDs who love Deadly 60 - they are going to do a theatre tour early next year and are releasing tickets in time for Xmas. My sister sent me details but didnt include any website links but maybe google to find out more?

Will be back on Monday with news (hopefully) of new purchases!

Have a great weekend ollie. At this rate I'll be needing a boat to get down to school tomorrow. Hope your journey is not too bad. (Turning green remembering an ill advised Holyhead Dublin crossing In similar weather once!)

ollie Have a fab weekend in London!!! And for your boat trip tonight: Goed geluk!

good for fans of 40s styling

Love your 40s vibe outfit yangymac!

As part of the Phase Eight love-in, may I draw attentions to www.houseoffraser.co.uk/Phase+Eight+Sequin+stripe+dress/141842674,default,pd.html?cgid=301this.
Sequins. Navy. Stripes. That's three wishes in one, no?

ps. New blog entry here, for those not on FB.

DD started to cry before bedtime and told me that she got "punished" at kindergarten today for pushing a girl who said that DH and I are "stupid". Apparently DD was not allowed to explain and had to sit at a table without being allowed to play or draw or look at a book. Cannot believe they even use the term "punishment" to explain their actions to kids. And why did nobody tell me when I picked her up today? Just held DD until she stopped sobbing and fell asleep. This is not the first episode of things like that happening and I am so furious I could burst. Sorry rant over...

Thanks plum, your blog is great! Will go to the nearest counter tomorrow asap and get something to make myself look and hopefully feel better.

Oh Fritzi - thats so hard. If I were you - I'd say when you drop her off next that she was very upset by what had happened today and let them give their version of what happened.

Are there any other kindergartens she could go to though if you're not happy with your current one?

Nice blog Plum as always - and love the images you choose to accompany them

How upsetting for you fritzi. It's so damn hard sometimes isn't it?

I enjoyed reading your blog too plum.

I'm off to shred then it's wine time! Yipee.
In fact I'm a bit worried about dh. On the weather there was a huge green blob over Snowdonia indicating severe weather. Well I know that, but dh will have to drive through it after dinner with vips (apparently), and it will be late tonight. There's already so much water on the road and fallen leaves.

tracey and bloss thanks for your support! Will do just as tracey has said. We have already started looking for an international school where she can start after next summer hols. Otherwise it would be another year at the kindergarten until she is six. Sorry to hijack thread but I meant to ask you tracey if you know a SABIS international school in/near Bath? There is one here too and I was wondering what kind of reputation they have in the UK.

I LIKE this!

Looks gorgeous notyummy, but (sorry to spoil your enthusiasm): It is 100& polyester and looks very very clingy and long. What kind of shoes would you wear with it?

Hello all
FIrst of all thanks for your kind words about our choking episode - that support from my imaginary friends made me feel much better!

I've come back from my colours day and it was very interesting. I may start another thread so I can ask questions without boring the pants off the non-colours people on this thread! But here is the gist of it:

I suspected I might be a Winter as I look good in and like magenta. My friend I went with was a definite winter, it took no time at all to decide as all the other seasons looked fairly rubbish on her. I was more complicated (the analyst said she knew I was going to be). After much discussion we decided that I was an autumn and when we went thorugh all the autumn colours I had a huge number of Wows, and they do look great. I am a Blue Autumn apparently. Some colours I never would have though of either, like mustard. (FYI I have chestnutty hir, quite dark, and hazel eyes, very fair skin)

Where I am sceptical is this: I have a feeling if you went all the way around the colour wheel you would hit some wows in every season, but with the most wows in your own. I think, for example, that magenta is fab on me and I get lots of compliments on it, and from people who are great at colours too (ie, the compliment is not about the colour but how it suits me). I also don't believe that I can't wear black, even though there are other colours that look good too (ie, I think it's probably a 1 star colour). Finally there are colours in the autumn palaette that make me look like puke and are 'bottom half' only - although not that many. My friend had a ton of her winter colours which didn't suit her but tons that did).

I also think the makeup is a bit silly- some is gorgeous, I got a red lipstick that really suits me. But my eyes really suit all sorts of colours that are not 'autumn', probably because they are hazel, and I've had makeup artists tell me so. But I think it's a good guideline and I do have feeling that I was so complicated because my colouring is more neutral and I can wear more colours - it was amazing how much more obvious my friend was.

Phew, that's a long post!! One question for the colours ladies: is a 2 colour at 50% a better colour for you than a 2 at 75%?

Bloss, hope your dh is ok!

Fritzi, that really is very crappy.

I think if I were you, I would go in and ask what happened today first, then explain that DD was distraught. I would also impress upon them that while a zero tolerance stance on hitting etc is good, the 's' word is also unacceptable.

Had your DD been given the chance to explain, and then given a 5 minute 'time out', when she just sat quietly on her own, I think that would have been fine. Even if she was only sat alone for a few minutes, it was obviously made to be a huge deal to her, or else she would not have been so upset.

Poor wee lamb. xx

Fritzi - that school is incredibly close to me but I've never heard a word about it - but I suspect its boarding??

Fritzi - forogt amid the marathon to say that I also think it is worth talking to the school - she wouldn't have been that upset if it weren't a big deal, but maybe she didn't let on to the teachers how bad she was feeling. IT does sound like they dropped the ball in a big way.

LTEC - Thank you soooo much for the kind offer - I am sure dd would love a sleepover too! The problem is even getting there remotely on time in the first place. It is an early start, and I can't do it without taking her out of school - and I don't want to have to fib as to why, as she would likely tell the truth (quite rightly!) So, alas I think this time it just isn't to be. If it had been on a saturday, or an hour and a half later then I would probably have taken you up on the lovely offer!

OWW - Hope you have a great trip.

Fritizi - Sorry to hear about what has happened with your DD. It doesn't sound like a 'fair' thing to be happening to someone so little. I also hope your job settles down soon.

Yangy - The three dresses you linked to seem like good deals. I like the print on the first, but the top/neckline looks slightly odd? The second looks pretty - maybe wedding guest style? The last looks great, although I notice the review not positive...although only one review, so I think worth a punt!

HF - Were you talking about the naughty Army officers that made it into the Sun?? Years ago DH was involved (in the sidelines!!) in something similar in the RAF - involved one of the few female fighter pilots at the time and the press would have LOVED it if they had got hold of it. They didn't! It meant that he had to go the Falklands for 4 months when it wasn't his turn, as the people involved couldn't be sent anywhere together because of their naughtiness. I was at the time!

Ladies - two queries for you. I have the stripey dress listed as sold out on this page. Some of the stripes look black but are actually grey. Because it is already so multi coloured, I thought I should probably get footwear that vaguely matched one of the colours. For work I would like to wear it with charcoal opaques...but what on my feet? Was toying with these. Fancy a bit of a heel...however do you think they would be better with ballet flats or brogues? I have to admit the brogues thing has passed me by as I am a bit unsure about them.

Second question - those of you with DDs. DD has asked for a 'dolly that she can dress up' for Xmas. Def not a baby doll. I want to avoid Bratz and Barbie, as she is clueless, and would like something that is slightly less scary looking! Any ideas??