How to look 'expensive' 2

[IkeaGoddess]

(old thread got to 1000 posts)

At the risk of also having deja vu, Bunbaker, I did say : "If you're dressed elegantly and channelling your inner chic whilst meeting a friend for lunch, this is the fastest way to look utterly nasty and undo all the good grooming."

So I am not advocating this behaviour for a TV dinner at home, necessarily!

Back on topic, thank you to PP who posted link to glossy hair product - I have purchased!

I am also focusing on nails, and I would highly recommend this product for lasting a good long while and looking professional if you apply correctly:

www.barrym.com/product/Sunset-Gel

The colour range is limited but I recommend "vengeance is wine" for a nice dark colour. I've also bought "Do it like a nude" and will be trying that next, to see if it's ok as a chic neutral! Quite cheap, so no expensive mistakes here. Boots stock it.

Our dress code at work is very vague. It states that you should dress for an interview less 20%.

I have a "uniform" of smart black trousers /skirts (increasingly difficult to find ones that fit well) silk t-shirts, fine knit cardigans, scarves and leather shoes or boots. I find it so much easier to dress for work when I've got a capsule wardrobe.

My plan for maternity leave is to revamp my entire wardrobe - I am aware that this may not be entirely feasible!

Whoever gave the tip on the last thread about searching TK Maxx for 'camp cashmere', thank you! I checked out the men's clearance rack today - didn't find cashmere, but got a lovely DKNY 100% merino wool grey v-necked sweater for £17! I will be going back for more...

Dowager, in Germany only the peasants rip their bread apart, and the patrician classes cut it neatly in half. Partly that is because the bread rolls often have quite a hard exterior and this is more practical, demonstrating better levels of efficiency

So table manners can be culturally specific and people need to watch what other people are up to.

I don't think men order for women any more unless the woman advises the man to for reasons of simplicity/speed as in 'we'll both have the soup'.

Typing that made me think of Julie Walters and 'Two Soups?' Sooooo funny.

A final post before I collect DS3. Does anyone know of a place where I can get a good quality steel blue coloured vest or t-shirt to go with a particular skirt and make it look classier? I tried Kettlewell Colours but I am not paying £32.50, seriously.

Well I like it when DH says "what do you want darling" and then says "my wife will have ....." Fully accept that we are a pair of old fogeys though. Luff it when we walk into our local "thinks it's posh" restaurant - usually looking fairly scruffy and look at all the poshed up people - especially the older ones who we think might be on a date

boff sounds like the sort of thing you could spends forever looking for and then happen across it when you least expect to.

My husband might order for me if he were feeling particularly gallant, but only if we were dining au deux and only at a certain kind of place.

So, having just discovered I'm pregnant, this is my next sartorial challenge. I think maybe we need to start a pregnancy style thread.

aw, Apple! congratulations

I always find myself drawn to clothes in Topshop only to find that they're maternity

I always order for my dh at Wetherspoons. There isn't much point in both of us queueing at the bar.

Oh no, thanks to this thread I have been shopping ALOT and am now in the process of throwing out most of my bloody( very brightly coloured )wardrobe!

I order for my beloved at the kebab van. A lofty wave of the arm and a 'my gentleman companion will have a gut buster special' imparts a certain worldly air.

mitzy

Dh always orders me a drink at the bar because I need to settle the dog...and according to the dog - I'm in charge!

Apple congratulations. I have a blue and white striped top by FatFace that I thought was very flattering when I tried it on. When I got it home I noticed it was "maternity". Had it for years now. A zillion years ago it was Mother Care, Blooming Marvellous or a second hand M&S smock. There was a very expensive shop in Knightsbridge where I bought a pair of trousers - it was called Formes. Friends and I used to lend and borrow. I think things have improved.

BeaufortBelle that sounds to me like your dh is saying "no strange man should speak to my wife except through me"....if you enjoy that sort of thing, knock yourself out but it certainly doesn't come across as classy, expensive or impressive - imo it's a bit weird and I expect the waiter does an inward eye roll.

I think you are overthinking it higge but thank you for sharing your opinion.

"in Germany only the peasants rip their bread apart, and the patrician classes cut it neatly in half."

Ah, that explains it BoffinMum. I was never brought up to tear rolls up, but to slice them in half and butter them because that is what my German born mother did. I could never understand, and still can't, why it is considered proper etiquette to tear a bread roll.

In fact I only learned about this little affectation on a foodie forum.

Things like how to tear your bread roll or laying down your cutlery while you chew are just social convention. They're a very different thing to etiquette, which is essentially good manners and striving to make other people feel comfortable in your interactions with them.

at a high end restaurant the waiter will turn to the woman to take their order first or the kids if they come with us! They will and should offer the wine to whoever chose it

Absolutely. I always order the wine as I'm a wine snob and it really bloody annoys me when they offer it to DH to try only ever happens in the not so nice places.

Honestly I actually find it quite rude when the man says "what would you like darling" when the waiter is stood right there. My husband did that once, note once and I swiftly told him under no circumstances to ever embarrass me like that in public again. I am not some meek, demure maiden and am perfectly capable of speaking two sentences to an adult male other than my husband without needing to reach for the smelling salts.

Would you be one of those feminists I've read about in The Lady Boo?

Abso fucking loutely

well that was a fail, thanks autocorrect

Does anyone know of a place where I can get a good quality steel blue coloured vest or t-shirt to go with a particular skirt and make it look classier? I tried Kettlewell Colours but I am not paying £32.50, seriously

Me too! I'd like ice blue and/or ice pink long sleeved t-shirts for layering, no one seems to do them. I ordered what I thought was an icey pink t-shirt from H&M but had to return it, because it was more of an orangey brown colour which doesn't suit me. Kettlewell Colours do have an excellent range but they are pricey.