Toasties consider mushroom foraging, librarianship or simply handing back our purchases for resell. Or not.

[ilovecherries]

New thread

@faustina Yup, yup - I mean Stevie is the goddess

Penelope chilvers used to do ( possibly still do) some fabulous steve nicks boots

I love the SM shop @faustina - looking at the pics again, (which I took in a massive hurry), I can see that I missed a gown that matches my dhuggie 😱. Also, Geoffrey’s Dibber is there - how did I miss that? I keep threatening to buy it for my sister - can’t believe I took a picture of it without noticing!

@Saurus72 - the dress will look great styled that way.

I bought the pleated dress last year in the same material- the colour is sumptuous.

@Dee1224 - I can't believe you missed Geoffrey's Dibber. Would love someone on this thread to have bought one.

I still chuckle whenever I see the Neverending Raspberry JL Dress on eBay.

Will check the price if it’s there next week @Stoic123 but if still only reduced to £15 that’s too much for me to pay for a stick😂.

It’s so funny how certain items keep cropping up!

That’s a great repair @stoic, the repair service is such a big plus.
I couldn’t have passed the olive scarf either, such a beautiful colour.

@Stoic123 that's a great repair!

@Dee1224 I've never been to SM so great to hear about it. Makes me want to go but we never seem to head to that part of the world. I must cook up a plan! Lol

@Saurus72 that dress looks lovely. Do you think it's lower than the previous maya versions? I have the very first dress they did in the maya style and I do tend to put a little cami or slip under it.

@ToastCosILoveIt My first chance at being able to catch up a little but I still need to read all the latest postings ! Thank you for providing feedback about the Suki and new indigo trousers. I’ve decided to keep the Sukis as your good point about possibly needing more fitted tops to wear with the baggier indigos resonated. I have mainly oversize/long/ roomy tops and I can’t pull off baggy top/bottom look, have never been able to pull it off and feel comfortable with it although I appreciate other people can and do look fabulous. I think I will get more wear from the Suki’s too. I was in the Toast shop and held a pair of the indigos - beautiful shape and colour - didn’t dare try them on in case I loved them as I can’t have both , so it came down to making the decision on cost per wear basis - how very sensible of me !

Hello, the Suki’s arrived yesterday in a Small , they were ok but a tiny bit snug so I returned them at the shop and bought the medium instead which are just right. I needed to try the small for peace of mind as I was a bit concerned the medium could end up being a bit baggy on the bum. I’m also a high street 12 . The Small fitted to a degree but was a little tight in places (but not on the waistband) - they looked more fitted than they should be - they are supposed to be a bit relaxed and slouchy without being oversized.

Can anyone share their ideas as to how/why some oversized top and bottom looks work so well together yet other times can look terribly bag lady/frumpy? I’m guessing it’s all to do with proportion/length/rule of one thirds/colour etc. I haven’t cracked the code. I love wider trousers but feel uncomfortable wearing with more fitted, shorter tops because I don’t like my bottom ( nothing terrible about it, just not as peachy as it used to be ). Don’t like my tummy either - perhaps I over think how to put outfits together and need to work on how embrace and accept my own shape more instead.

@dudsville udsville love the folding tip, I hope it looks as neat with my odd-shaped handknits!

I went into Toast yesterday and tried on a load of stuff mainly to get a handle on their sizing -- in conclusion, where previously I was either of 2 possible sizes for a 'standard' fit, now I could be any of 3 sizes. 🙄

Did manage to whittle my wishlist down to this:
I also really loved the shape and feel of the wool cashmere cardigans but none of the colours were quite right. The sizing on these was also very strange, the new XXS fitted comfortably over a voluminous sleeve shirt in an old size M.

@clowniform that is a gorgeous 😍 combo.

That model is fabulous and would look good in absolutely anything, wouldn't she!?

Oh that's interesting, after a trying on session I've found the M are coming up baggy on my thighs and very high on the waist. I can't decide if that's how they're meant to look so I've ordered the S to compare.

I think they are meant to be versatile as to where you want the waistband to fit. It definitely helped me to try both sizes to compare.

@Theteapotsbrokenspout I think they are supposed to be a bit baggy without losing shape. The medium on me is a bit baggy with a low slung crotch ! They look great on the model - see how they fit on her

@Noeggsontoast Ah sorry can’t help, I never tried previous versions. It’s noticeably low cut though -cleavage a-go-go.

@Noodle421
Firstly I came to the conclusion that disliking individual body parts isn't healthy and is internalised misogyny, a way of undermining and controlling women and girls.

It's a bottom and a tummy nothing more.

Either accept or do something positive/ healthy about it.
I focus on health always rather than focusing on what's " wrong" with me, the end result is despite being post menopause I'm in a good shape mentally and physically.
I'm tall, long arms, legs, neck but curvy, flat stomach, small waist, generous bottom.
I look like a sack of spuds in a standard baggy top and bottom,nothing wrong with that as sometimes clothes need to be practical.
Things that work for me.
I like a wide leg with a fitted waist, hips rather than big and baggy bottoms.
A fitted top with a curved or split hem
Sweaters always a roll neck or the dreaded envelope neck .
A plain sweater looks fine if I'm wearing something at my neck , chunky necklace or scarf.
I aim for feeling good and comfortable, putting things on that look right to me.
That might be really different to what someone else is wearing.

@Saurus72 thank you. My first Maya is on the cusp of what I consider too low. I'd have to try the new version.

@clowniform that's a fab coord! It's odd as I haven't noticed any difference at all in what sizes I purchased pre and post the sizing changes. Maybe I just haven't tried enough on (need to get to a real shop!)

@Noodle421 That’s an interesting question and I look forward to learning how others solve it.
I suppose it depends on how voluminous pieces are, in the recent Live the person was pairing huge volume together and kind of looked good IMO because of her youth . I
I can’t give a straight answer , I have a very critical eye when it comes to myself which I suspect goes all the way back to the more self conscious self of my twenties when I didn’t appreciate my own shape.
For example I bought the striped crinkle poplin skirt to go with the Reed seersucker white shirt and the dark tie neck poplin top …both combos modelled on live by Nikki and Evie.
For some reason I feel gawky and unnatural in those outfits , but with the linen balloon trousers which have volume the tops feel lovely and I feel like ‘me’

I’m beginning to trust my instinct and pay more attention to how I ‘feel’ in something, rather than ‘look.’ For eg the issues with my rear end and stomach are not an issue at all if I feel great in a dress, so I’m paying more and more attention to that aspect of how clothing makes me feel which is healthy I think. I’m still interested and trying to work out proportions. I think even a slight difference in a hem length can make such a difference to whether an outfit works and comes together but it’s not an observation that comes naturally to me. Similarly, working with combinations of tonal colours. Can look really bland and meh but stunning if done well. I’ve spent many years not really thinking of what or how I wear something, so this is all new territory for me. It’s hard to override years of slight insecurity with looks but I’ve had several close friends with recent serious health concerns which puts it all into perspective.

I agree, I’m guessing it’s about developing a strong sense of style, what suits and what doesn’t and avoiding wasting time thinking about anything else. I’m quite early on in this process and I’m finding it quite helpful to think it’s the dress or trousers that are not right for me, look for another style - rather than spiralling into unhelpful ‘there’s something wrong’ with my shape thoughts which is often the default instilled from a young age.

I’m quite early on in this process and I’m finding it quite helpful to think it’s the dress or trousers that are not right for me, look for another style - rather than spiralling into unhelpful ‘there’s something wrong’ with my shape thoughts which is often the default instilled from a young age.

Totally this!!
I agree about things that make you feel good but also ditching words like frumpy about other women's choices and ourselves.

@Noodle421 - It's proportion and, for me, colour too (darker on top).

I am broad hipped and very short waisted. Short/tucked in tops, belts or cinched waisted dresses just don't look good on me. They didn't when I weighed 8.5 stone.

I do like baggy/wide trousers. I wear these with reasonably relaxed fitting (but not oversized) tops/tees down to below bum. A shorter jacket or cardi over the top seems to balance things out.

I have several of these: https://roake.studio/shop/customnicolejacket which go brilliantly over Toast dresses too.

Oooh, that’s really helpful. You could be describing me. So it’s all about compromise, you can have relaxed tops that are still neat without being fitted. This all sounds so obvious when I type it out !!! I was thinking the new neat wool cardigan would not work with the indigo trousers on me but I then couldn’t think of anything else to pair it with without it being too voluminous everywhere. I suppose something similar in shape to the Oxford easy shirt in blue might work as a compromise. I can see why the jacket you tagged would work well with so much Toast, it’s beautiful !! Relaxed and softly tailored.