MN Vogue - the 20th anniversary edition

[shopafrolic]

All welcome for lighthearted chat about fashion and beauty - but bring your links!
Continuing on from Vol 19 here

Oh go on Shop! Mine is loads.

I separate the cut and the colour because I can't bear to pay all at once.

Amber and QueenC my hair cut is so simple it hurts to pay the above. All one length, slightly shorter at the back as heavier there.

Novice sounds fabulous.

Oh and school gate. The scene has changed a bit. At the last school the fashion was tops. Marant, vintage, big on style, really lovely. This one is a bit more every day.

Have fun, Shop.

Lots of designer jeans, Boden, Anya Hindmarch and Mulberry bags on my school run, quite a few in yoga or running gear.

I love capes.
I've got an ancient grey Reiss woolly one with buttons up the front.
An even older m&s cable knit.
And the grey merino one I got from Banana Republic a few weeks ago.

My school is a mix of too short mum jeans with fleeces.
A few skinny jeans, converse etc.
And one mum who likes the sequin Uggs.

The only designer bag I've ever seen at school, was an ancient Versace one that I'd donated to the local charity shop previously.

queen,our school gates varies,the majority are smart dressed working women,the rest are in gym gear,or casual luxe, but i must say lots of judging goes around there,guess its the same everywhere.

marsha hair is the only thing i dont compromise with,im even too scared to switch shampoos,and that alone is more than i want to spend on,but i think its worth it,

enjoy your evening shop your outfit sound great.

Great outfit Shop.

Thanks for the pin compliments Sleep.
How are you feeling about your hair now?

Good evening, O Doyennes of Style. Our school is quite a mixture - from glamma mammas to some who look as though the last time they shopped for clothes was in 1983. There are a couple of very stylish types - simple but well put-together. I can only gaze on with .

Quick run down of my recent purchases:

Leather Oasis skirt - soft, pliable leather, fits like a glove, beautiful and you'd never guess it wasn't 'high end'.

Zara tartan trousers - the small were waaaay too loose and fit nothing like the picture. Felt like something MIL would wear. Returned immediately.

Hobbs Ada dress in orange - Really wanted to love it, but it was just a bit too big all over. And as size 8 is the smallest they do, no possibility of replacing it so another return.

I have ordered this jacket and skirt as replacement racewear as I feel I could style it up a bit and I like the look of the fit. Also looks as though it could fit neatly under a winter coat.

Bought a few bits from the new Jack Wills AW collection including a gorgeously fluffy baseball-style sweatshirt which appears to have sold out already, hence lack of link.

Still waiting for shop's Vince sweater to suddenly appear in a small. Have you had it yet shop?

Evening all.

Busy day, work then showrooms.

1.Oak flooring.
I went with my plank under my arm ( plenty of wood/plank jokes from my colleagues ) to match.
Me " I'm looking to match this"
Him. Rummage,rummage, finds a good sample.
Me " yup, that looks good. Can you give me a price per mtr?"
Him " I'll have to check"
Me " I've been quoted xx a mtr true don't want to pay more"
Him " no it will be more"
Me " ok, thanks "
Crap salesman, didn't even ask how big my floor space was......I could be living in a mansion!!!

1. Bifolding doors.

Have found them! Amazing things. And get this, little slatted blinds between the panes so no need for curtains in kitchen a bug bear of mine,there are many controlled by a solar powered touch pad!!!! for ££££ extra . DH says no .

Style and beauty news.
this dress arrived. Despite black ban I couldn't resist it . Fab from the front, horrid from the back admittedly was wearing bad pants . It's going back, I now like my body, don't need a garment that will reverse those feelings.
My lovely friend came round and gave me 400ml Lancôme toner and cleanser shed been given but a Dermalogica only woman. Love Lancôme.

QueenC I channelled on of your colour combos today....navy and pink, lovely.
Sleep when I had my hair bobbed DH said it was nice but "I'd like to see it long again one day" when? Before we die?!!! I like it, won't be long again. Let it bed in for at least a week, if you still don't feel like you then you can change it, that's the great thing about hair.
I love red lipstick, matt. Looking for a rusty red, can't do pinky reds.

Oh, did I mention I have no hot water for 24 hrs? Not the end of the world......will teach my teens that you don't need continual power showers. Nothing like a cold wash with cold water to wake you up

I have a plan.....you all need to bring your DCs to my school !!!!!
Novice I would approach you and your DC and subtly, without you even noticing , take her book bag and the Marcie too fab school gates outfit.

I vote coat number 2 MrsR.

Shop nothing better than a catch up with a girl friend. Hope it's going well.

Dry I confess to a weakness for Lancome also. Went into Boots last week as I needed to replace my Visionnaire serum, saw the 'free gifts' offers....ended up spending £140 on serum, blusher and cleanser but came away with an absolute shedload of freebies - estimate about £100 worth! Including the loveliest exfoliator which leaves my skin as silky as anything could. Obvs smuggled the bag in from the car - wouldn't want DH asking awkward questions.

Hi - getting used to the hair but still not sure its really me. Tried to upload some pics but for some reason it wont work . Will try again in the morning.

I have 3 DC's at 3 different schools...

DS1 lots of undoubtedly expensive clothes, not a lot of it stylish , but there are one or two that stand out as relaxed and stylish, one in particular loves her higher end but relaxed designer stuff, think Balenciaga bg, LV scarf, Dries and a bit of Marni. She always looks cool. Lots of Jewish mums but not the rarer (or not, around here), immaculately groomed and sharp elbowed kind, more the slightly rumpled, exhausted by their family kind. Pretty dull.

DD - every style you can think of - the odd very smart woman on her way to work in lovely trouser suit (think Novice type career), one, my good friend, who dresses in a similar way to me but slightly more androgynous, Kooples type way, also slightly smarter as she runs her own beauty business. Then hippy style, eccentrics, mumsies, or Uggs and Paul and Joe parkas, you name it.

DS2 - the most fun - if not gym gear then the mums here are mostly understated, casual dress - typical outfit would be cashmere, skinny jeans, Lanvin flats, lovely bags. There are two or three mums who work in fashion and they look great. One is very quirky and cool but the one I am most of is typically to be seen in skin tight J brands, Marant blouse, big (cream ) Celine phantom bag. Best seeing her when she is on her way to work rather than at home , she always looking fabulous. Probably the closest thing I have to a style crush .

Marsha - I go to Mowgli, the Aveda Concept salon in Primrose Hill, its lovely no mention of prices from me either but after years of the same stylist, who then became Creative Director, I switched to a level or two down. It was a slightly awkward conversation - felt like cheating on a boyfriend in front of him , but he was great about it. I just couldn't justify going every six weeks for a colour as I wanted to. I get it cut every other visit. It was switch or change salons...

Dry wood flooring can be horrendously expensive. DH fell in love with the floor in the lobby and bar of the Charlotte Street Hotel. It is reclaimed oak, varying widths and lengths, the effect is gorgeous. He nearly passed out too when we found a supplier and got a quote. Even when we found something at an acceptable price (not reclaimed, for a start ) it cost twice as much as the other 2/3 of the house that is carpeted or tiled.

Clarins is my big weakness, beauty wise, love it.

santa hope you didn't think I was judging people. I'm not. It's more that I find it mildly depressing that a lot of people seem to end up wearing the same sort of uniform of white stuff/cath kidston and i would just like for more people to break free. Maybe one day I'll turn up to toddler group in red lippy and heels . Seriously though, I think I look at too much Pinterest and see these fabulous looking off duty models whereas the reality in the surburbs of bristol is much different!

DCs primary school fashion camps mine have left now

1. The Boden clones....+ obligatory Mulberry bag.BMWs.
2. The Ash cool Mums.....Botox,blonde, skinnies,Ash trainers,Range Rovers, little dogs, Mulberry or MJ hand bags.
3. The 20/30 yr olds dressing like 60yr old no hopers...MPVs.
4. The Per Unas
5. A few chic business women
6. Gym bunnies......sweaty Betty, no cars obv....running.
7. The dog walkers.....Hunters or novelty Wellies,ugg jeans, Barbours...black labs with red collar/lead combos.

Just having a trawl around various websites - why is the photography at Cos so bloody awful? What about this picture would encourage anyone to want to recreate the look? I know I'm just thinking 'if it looks that bad on the model, what on earth would it look like on me?'

Grumpy that looks like something I'd expect an OAP to be dressed in! Even my 86 year old Nanan was more stylish than that!

Needsa think our DDs are the same age (12/13) buying clothes is trick, I agree. My DD has similar taste to yours....skinny jeans, now bf jeans, hoodies, converse, loves JWills/Hollister/A and F I don't we try to copy that look. Are you listening to One D and Taylor Swift all the time too?

Agree Grumpy can't decide whether Zara or Cos models look more miserable!

The Zara models used to look great. Then they went all Cos-like. Not sure why.

I love THIS
think it's the purple that does it for me, I love purple

Haha Sleep I need to get highlights once really quickly and couldn't get regular guy so booked someone else and he bounded over and said hi, I felt disloyal. I was .

I love reclaimed floorboards, they are very ££.

I should take more notice of what everyone wears at new place. I haven't noticed anything really, lots and lots of skinny jeans, ankle boots and the odd gym gear and quite a few dogs on leads. At the old school I could see all the French designers. Lots in fashion and stylists, that kind of thing and we'd all compliment each other like mad.

That is very pretty One.

I love that you have three different schools btw Sleep, much more fun to compare!

I often slink off to the coffee shop to people watch. I have to say, there's not much style here. The town I live in is or was offcially the fattest town in England and I have to say, I might be overweight myself but I don't look as heavy as I am. Some of the sights though, women size 20+ bulging out of booty shorts and crop tops and polar opposite, teeny tiny slender girls dressing 20 years older than they really are. It's very bizarre

OK - I have uploaded some pics to show hair for mnmates (I have tried to add the more recent MNV joiners!). Not sure hair before/after actually looks that different on the photos though - but it is, honest! Those who have met me might see the difference more.....