Avid and Wise, up to our eyes in new summer buys!

[blossoming]

Where is everybody???

I will be back later with an update but I am presently on the motorway heading home from the airport (not driving). Feeling very hot in my black jbrands. I fear you may have had better weather than we did! Going home via mil's, then my mum is cooking us tea. Anything but pizza...

Hi Bloss, hope you had a fantastic time in Rome - where did you get to?. Are your Jbrands the 912s? They are sitting in a basket ATM - are they worth it?

Dolcee sounds like a lovely holiday.

Ants, Warehouse top is gorgeous - would it work on the large of chest (can't remember your stats)? Really like the Jigsaw dress, but the length looks tricky.

NY I also like the Jessies.

Think I might get a red pair of Lottas - am hammering my tan plaited ones. Am also toying with this dress. it would mark my first NAP purchase.

Have just returned from DS' Royal Wedding themed nursery party which was the little bit of joy I needed after a long discussion with D(or not so)M in which she told me I'd lost my spark and should be returning to work asap in order to regain it. Just what I needed to hear...

Welcome back Bloss! Glad you had a great time - you too Dolcee; sounds great!

Red - sorry to hear about that conversation with your mum. Do you think she meant it with the best of intentions, or has she a history of less than helpful 'interventions'? It is certainly a blunt thing to say someone. You don't come over as someone who is less than sparkily to me!

Have done a loonnnggg run today as I am working from home. This was all part of warding off a huge and boring job that I have to do that involves transferring zillions of emails from one work system to another.

Thanks NY, she has a history of this; she was on her own with the three of us and thinks that financial independence at all times is very important. She also has issues with DH and thinks I am a bit of a 'little woman'. Which I'm really not. I've really struggled to put aside my own concerns about being at home and out of the workplace for a while, but this is my choice which she really doesn't get. She was also commenting on my appearance - I shouldn't be exercising whilst bf'ing, I shouldn't be bf'ing as my hair is thinning slightly and I look 'haggard'. She pounced on all of my weaknesses!
Sorry, a bit of an outpouring, but that feels better.

Sounds like a horrible task - some music to perk things up a bit?

I heart a sundress I tried on in Joules today.But...

• my usual size doesn't fit. It just about zips up, but it's tight on the bodice and my bust is a teeny bit squashed. I have a big bust and often princess seams are not friends with it. It looks OK without the straps on, if still noticeably fat-flashing underneath, but I do like the strap detail.
• the next size up has enough fabric, but will need some alterations (a dart putting in at each side mainly) because where it fits on the bust it gapes at the top at each side. This should make it fit nicely - because I am a weird I had a dressmaker's pin with me. Normally this is the size I'd choose at New Look etc for something strapless or fitted on the bust.

However, I was planning on losing a bit of weight, so I wonder whether to get the regular size and wait for it to fit. Or is this a fool's game, and I'd be better off having something I can wear now and alter more later?

Hello

Hope everyone enjoyed the long weekend. Looking forward to the next one too!

ny I liked both of those TS flares and agree zembo's looked fab but one of them comes in a standard 32 leg and the other also comes in a 34 so that might make your mind up for you as I'd imagine you'd need the longer length, especially with wedges etc.

Glad you had a lovely holiday dolce and a fab trip wideawake. Was Rome fun bloss?

llama Mums seem to have the knack of making one feel as rubbish as possible. Rudeness! Please don't let it get to you if you're happy as you are - you don't have to live 'her' life! My mother always disagrees with me if I don't make the exact same choices as she would have in my shoes. She thinks it's great that Dh works p/t but thinks I shouldn't work at all, failing to grasp that my earnings make up the shortfall and if they weren't there, DH would have to work f/t! She even cut an article out of the paper the other day about how Dutch women rarely work Anyway, glad you're feeling cheerier.

mippy I'd get the next size up and have it altered. Even if you do lose weight, there's no guarantee your boobs will downsize.

I like the C&P dress, especially belted although I'd have pushed the sleeves up.

Have pasted half of this from another thread - there are two A&W at the mo!

Welcome home Bloss - looking forward to hearing details of your hols - esp any shopping related ones!

Not sure if you have been keeping up - Portia4 and Verity had an unplanned mini meet-up in H&M (both buying Hasbeens); Dolcee, NY, Pickled and RedLama had lovely sounding holidays and the rest of us have been enjoying the sun and skipping around wearing maxis/white jeans/houlihans/wedges with smiles on our faces (whilst scoffing chocolate eggs obviously!)

Who is it on here who likes bright blue or green? Saw these bargainous summer day/beach dresses and quite liked - esp the green one.
DP green dress and strapless beach dress in blue

Mippy - agree with Fleecy - my boobs never seem to change regardless of what the rest of me does! B
The code BRAVO gets you 10 pounds off a 50 pound spend if that helps? Maybe you could pick up the smaller size in the summer sale if you know by then your shape has changed and then ebay the bigger one??

Hello. Welcome back Bloss!

Oh dear have broken the self induced wine ban as v stressful day - much of it spent looking for house/car keys, which turned up in DD2s playhouse, of all places....tsk! At least it's Chablis...dh will think it's a waste, bless him. He likes to 'keep' wine rather than guzzle it.

Nippy...if you are planning to lose a little bit of weight I would slim into it. But that's typically me.

Fleecy - hope you are feeling well. I think the 2nd trimester is a nice time.

sorry ...mippy ...jeesh......

Oh and Red...Fleecy is so right. Mothers have a knack of saying the wrong thing sometimes. My own DM tries to be subtle, but most of you will know we've taken an age to find a house which is suitable (and yep, still looking), yet she questions me almost daily to see if anything has come up. I dread it. Then a couple of weeks ago she sniffily said we should lower our expectations....Hmmmm. Red Flag and Bull. I let it pass. It felt good.

red I am a 34F. So ample boosems and warehouse top still looks good. Sorry to hear your mum has been pressing all your buttons. If it is any help mine is the same.

Welcome back bloss.

I have been a bit too avid over the last couple of months so I am going to have to reign it in over May. Sigh. Still at least I have some lovely things to show for it!!! I can live vicariously through your purchases right?!

Phew, home at last. Good to be back as usual! I have so much space at home, my own bathroom (that's what you get if you move here!) etc, that being in a caravan for a week, after the first few 'show willing' days is helldifficult. I have eaten pizza and pasta and drunk a bottle of wine (almost) every day and broke my sugar diet for tiramisu twice. I can barely fit through the door.
We had a great time though. Dh loved the Wrap shorts and declared them fit for school run. The blue and green Boden dresses were also a hit. I wore my bandeau bikini one day (day 2), and felt good. I did not have the biggest belly in town then.
I saw the most hideous crimes against style though as you would expect on the tourist trail. I think I have the definition of 'mumsy': overweight (as notyummy has pointed out before), three quarter length trousers, t shirt, bum covering sleeveless cardigan, and
trainers, or terrain sandals.
No stylish Romans to report either. Podgy of
belly and arse, and always in dreadful hip hop
trainers. Disappointing!
Luckily I got through the door and intercepted my packages before dh saw them. I'll report back later.
Thanks for the recap ollie. I have read back. So funny about the Dublin meet up. Hope your work is almost done verity.
I love crocs on kids! Glad you had a good time dolcee.
redllama, I have jbrand 912 in Shadow. So comfortable.
Dh on warpath. Back later.

Evening everyone. I'll try and get the other thread deleted that I started earlier.

Welcome back to Bloss, hope you had a good time, looking forward to hearing how your capsule wardrobe worked for you.

red Sorry to hear about your Mum and her remarks. It's awful when some people seem to be able to pin point the things that mean so much to us, and make hurt us with them. If it's any consolation, my DM thinks I am a slack mother for returning to work and putting DS in nursery...you just can never please them can you?

Well, arrived back home after a 6 hour drive. Now washing and ironing same clothes for our trip to Cardiff tomorrow. It has been so lovely having lots of trips and things to look forward to, suspect that I'll come to earth with a bump next week.

Had to pop to the shops briefly for a birthday present this evening, and bought this scarf from Gap. Thought it would be good with the Houlihans as it's slate grey rather than the advertised blue.

Might try and pick up some cheap sunglasses tomorrow before we go, no point in getting £££ ones, as I am bound to lose/break them.

Sorry wideawake I couldn't see another thread when I started this one.
I laughed at your alcohol poisoning story too. Enjoy Cardiff!

Enjoy your Chablis guilt-free Dolcee and have one for me please.

Glad you had a fab time Bloss - your wardrobe sounds perfectly constructed - I shall come to you directly for tips next time I travel.

Thanks Ants - I may give that one a whirl; think it would look good with my wide-legged jeans and Lottas.

Wideawake the Gap scarf is beautiful and think it'll lok great with Houlihans. Hope you have a lovely time in Cardiff.

Thanks for all your wise words; I was talking to my Sister about it and we agreed her words are well-intentioned in that it comes from a genuine concern for me, but badly phrased. The problem lies in the fact that I do feel I look haggard, I know my hair has thinned, I'm fed up with bf-ing round the clock still and I do worry about how easily I'll get back into work, which needs to happen in a year or so. I just don't need someone else reinforcing all of my anxieties. She did say a couple of things that were incredibly hurtful, but I'm trying not to let her have such a hefty impact on my life ('Why on earth did you have two children so close together, look at the toll it has taken on you').

Glad you had a good time Bloss! Sounds great.

Btw- in case anyone is reading this thread who doesn't 'know' me, thinking I am a body facist- I'm honestly not!! I will admit though that as Bloss says- I think it is definitely harder not to look mumsy if you are overweight- obviously it can be done, but it is much more tricky. Sounds like there was a bit of shortage of style in Rome- how disappointing.

There was a touch of romance round here today! I helped my neighbour wrestle LOADS of helium balloons into his house for his wedding anniversary. He decorated the outside of the house as well. Bit cheesy, but after some of the threads on here where some men barely seem to acknowledge their partners existence, I thought it was quite sweet to see him making such an effort.

notyummy, I have 2 Biggest Losers and a gallon of water to get through tonight!
redllama, sorry your mum's upset you. My mum can still make me feel like a child, and I'm 40. It can be so hard.

Oh red that is rubbish..what your mum said. If it helps I think it is lovely to have a small gap. I have 4.5 years between my two ( not through choice) and I'll always have a little pang that they are not closer in age. So well done you I say for having a small gap! You need warehouse top and large glass of wine to cheer you up, and perhaps a hug from DH. Sounds like your sister has your back too.

not yummy your neighbour sounds lovely. Who cares about cheesy. Its the thought that counts. Bet his wife was thrilled. What woman does not want an over the top declaration of love!

Lovely lovely scarf wide-awake. Off to hide credit card in freezer. It's so hard not to use it with so much temptation everywhere!

Oh, there you are. Posted on the other thread earlier but forgot what I wanted to say...

Welcome back blossoming! Glad to hear you had a good holiday. Don't worry about impact of red wine and pizza. A few days of shredding and you will feel better . Very good round-up from ollie!

red My DM also makes badly-phrased remarks that make me feel all insecure and angry at the same time. I have agreed to go on a spa weekend to celebrate her birthday this autumn. It was my sister's idea and I couldn't find a reason to say no. Except: I don't want to go!!!!!

Went for a mani and pedi today which was great but the nail varnish is already smudged although I wore flip flops for almost two hours afterwards. Taking DD to the hairdresser's to have my hair coloured was ok for the first 90 minutes but after that she just couldn't sit still and neither could I. Can you believe it took them 2,5 hours to do my roots (no highlights!)?!?! I called them in advance to check how long it would take and if it was ok to bring DD. They said 90 minutes max. Sorry, rant over. Maybe I just tried to pack too much beautifying into one day

notyummy Ahhh how sweet, hope your neighbour's DW was pleased when she came home to helium heaven!

mippy Can you find a dress with a similar style but a better fit?

dolcee Enjoy your lovely and relax from hunting for keys and other stress!

wideawake Have a good trip!

Bloss - Your description of Mumsy is spot on. It's my worst nightmare! Glad to hear the wrap shorts worked well, they are on my wish list if we get away to Cornwall in June.

red - My mum's words are often meant in good faith, doesn't make them any less hurtful though. Sorry to hear that you you feel you are not looking your best, although I am sure you are being far too critical of yourself. This is probably totally unhelpful, but would a good all round vitamin supplement be of any use to you at the moment?

NY I totally get what you mean about the overweigh issue and Mumsy-ness, you are not a body facist at all! Lovely to hear that your neightbour was doing something special for his anniversary - quite impressive.

Dolcee Enjoy the wine, personally I can even look at the stuff at the moment after Monday night...my alcohol poisoning started with some wine tasting before dinner. Although saying that, there was a cheeky G&T on the train and some strong Scottish cider along the way too. (Artisan-organic cider though and not White Lightening despite being in Edinburgh ).

Oh I have just received Boden slouchy bag in tan. Here. www.boden.co.uk/en-GB/Womens-Accessories/Bags/AM137/Womens-Slouchy-Buckle-Bag.html. There have been some bad reviews saying straps are not long enough. Well they are plenty long enough for me. It's deceptively roomy. I got my laptop in it this morning and an A4 notebook. I am loving it so much will look out for the metallic one on the sale.

llama don't take your mum's comments too much to heart (I know that's easier said than done). My mum has this knack of pushing my buttons too. For a while I worked from home, and through the 18 months that my contract lasted, my mum refused to accept that I was working. In her world if you don't go to an office, you are only pretending to work . Now that I'm home full-time, she really cannot bear it and keeps making obtuse comments about women "needing to work"

Ants I really like that Warehouse top. I'm ample of boob too and blouses are hard work! I might give that top a go.

bloss welcome back. Love your definitive characterisation of "mumsy"

wideawake I hope you enjoy Cardiff. There's lots of really good shopping here, so do give it a whirl.

ny I totally agree that it is much much harder to avoid the mumsy look if you're overweight. Another factor is boobiness (if that's even a word). I've always had a big bust, but they were easy to dress when I was young. Now I find that many styles of dresses are a no-go because my breasts push it from svelte to mumsy territory .

Am watching an utterly awe inspiring programme about multiples and can't believe what these parents are doing. One family has twins ..... And then triplets 10 months later. They are all in reception in the same class!!

Makes me think of the lovely Bunny. Hope you are well.

NY what a lovely neighbour. Cheesy yes, but lovely nonetheless. The occasional overblown romantic gesture can't go amiss in anyone's life. And yes on the mumsy front. I am with Nan on the addition of bosoms making for a borderline mumsy look if in a poorly executed outfit. I'm struggling with this very much. All the more reason to invest in the Warehouse top.

Fritzi, hope you feel suitable beautified - although it can't have been easy to relax into having your hair done at all. I can't remember the last time that having my haircut felt like a treat! BTW I really, really liked the top you linked to a few days ago (Michael Stars?). Am looking for almost exactly that.

Wideawake - a vitamin supplement is more than a good idea; will get on to it tomorrow (no idea why I'm not taking one actually).

Ants Boden bag is very, very lovely. Looks like it will be mega practical as well.

Thank you again all of you for your supportive words. They offer much consolation.