Tried & Tested: Panty By Post

If you’re a longterm reader you’ll know I write loads about underwear. I think all good outfits begin with the right foundations, so I love browsing the web for innovations in lingerie. Panty By Post is my latest discovery, a Canadian company which sends out monthly lingerie treats to subscribers across the world.

This is definitely not the first company to offer monthly pants by post. A few years ago I won a competition to get a year’s worth of Coco Ribbon pants by post. But they were rather dull one-colour thongs. Where Panty By Post excels is in the styles that are available and the quality of the knickers themselves. The company imports French lingerie, so it’s incredibly well-made and there are lots of style options, from frilly thongs to hipsters and classic briefs and boxer-esque French knickers. Some items are even photographed alongside suspender belts. I’m not sure if you get the whole set as part of your subscription, but if you do I think that’s pretty fab!

Window shopping: Top Summer sale fashion finds!

It’s Summer sales time, and this year’s bad weather means there are even more items to choose from as people are a bit cautious of spending too much on flippy Summer dresses and strappy sandals when most days are still spend in tights and coats! It’s a great time to stock up – particularly if you have a Summer holiday coming – so I’ve picked some of my favourite sale finds to help you along. There are loads of lovely shoes and some fabulous Summer frocks, and nothing on this page costs more than £35 (except one pair of fabulous Carvela shoes I couldn’t resist including). Personally, I’ve got my eye on a pair of fabulous wedges that’ll give height with a bit of added comfort, and a really nice bright 50s dress to wear for my birthday in August. What’s new, eh?!

5 fab online shoe shops you may not have heard of…

If you’re a huge shoe fan, you’re probably well aware of the sites I’ve listed here. But if your online shoe shopping is usually restricted only to old faithfuls like Office and Schuh, or if you tend to buy everything offline, you may not have stumbled upon these great footwear emporiums yet. But trust me when I say they’re all worthy of your time, whether you want the perfect pair of brogues, a bargain on a boutique brand, a pair of knee high boots that actually fit, or someone to take all the hassle out of shoe shopping and pick the styles for you. These are some of my latest favourite shoe shops for easy online shopping and great choice…

In My Wardrobe: Birds & Cherries

Look at me, managing outside photos three times in a row! You can thank the lighter evenings, and the fact my camera really doesn’t like the peachy light in our flat. The only problem is our postage stamp of garden is ‘shared’ with the downstairs neighbours (in that we own some of it but their bedroom door opens out onto it…) so I never feel comfy going down there and setting up camp. Praise be, then, for the balcony. Mine, all mine! It’s just a shame we back onto the train station, and the platforms look out directly onto it! I apologise if you’re one of the people forced to watch me posing like a loon whilst balancing my camera on a dustbin, but there are outfit photos to be taken and shoes to be saved…

Tried & Tested: Dee.V by Diana Vickers for Very.co.uk

Diana Vickers’ husky voice and propensity to yelp may be something of an aquired taste, but her new clothing range for Very.co.uk is a bit easier to fall in love with. A capsule range of vintage-inspired florals, fities skirts and 60s-inspired separates, it appealed instantly to me, so when Very got in touch to offer an item from their huge range for review, I knew I had to go with something from Diana’s collection.

I picked the Contrast Collar Printed Dress (£49) which I thought was very cute with its big pink buttons and collar. I’m getting to the point where I’m far too old to pull off anything this twee, so let’s call this my last hurrah. I can’t resist anything a bit childish!

More tea, vicar? Host a tea party in a retro frock!

I’ll let you in on a little secret. I don’t like tea. I know this is sacrilege given how terribly English I am in every other way (*joins queue to buy fish & chips*) but I just can’t get my head around a drink that takes so much effort; you have to brew it, work out the right milk to sugar ratio, let it cool a bit, then sip it for the next fifteen minutes. Just gimme a diet coke I can down in 20 seconds, please. I like my caffeine fix straight from the fridge (and I don’t drink coffee either).

However, what I do like is afternoon tea. Give me tiny little sandwiches, ridiculous miniature cakes and macarons that smell like perfume and even I can choke down a cup or two of green or peppermint tea for the sake of appearance. Or just order the champagne….

In My Wardrobe: A day at the Races

It’s been a busy few weeks since I got back off holiday, so I haven’t really been able to take as many outfit pics as I’d like. But I did get pics of a couple of looks. I was invited, somewhat last minute, to the Investec Derby at Epsom, and had 48 hours to put together a races-friendly look. Now there’s nothing I love more than a girly dress, some OTT headwear and slightly matchy-matchy accessories, so I had great fun putting this outfit together and only had trouble choosing the exact dress to wear. In the end I went with the hot pink Escala prom dress by Fever. I was also lucky enough to have someone with some photography skills and a decent camera along for the ride, so thank you so much to Natalie for making this outfit post a little bit more fashion blogger-y than usual…

The retro swimwear rundown: my top vintage inspired swimsuits and bikinis

If you’re a longterm visitor to the site (or indeed, a friend) you’ll know that vintage inspired swimwear is a huge passion of mine. I’ve yet to venture into proper vintage (it’s the fear that it’s been a bit to close to someone else’s ladyparts that stops me!) but I do buy a lot of retro stuff. If it’s polka dotted, ruched and contains the same amount of fabric as at least a dozen tiny triangle bikinis, it’s likely to find its way into my swimwear ‘wardrobe’. I must have about 20 bikinis and swimsuits by now, which is a bit ridiculous given that I don’t go swimming, am not a member of a gym, and have only had one beach holiday in the last four years.

The Campaign for Clearer Clothing Sizes

Forgive me for constantly banging on about dress sizes and sticking up headless photos all the frickin’ time, but when I saw the campaign that Gemma at Retro Chick had set up, I knew it was something I had to get behind. As well as sharing a first name, Gemma and I share very similar views when it comes to UK clothing sizes. We’re fed up of the huge variations, vanity sizing, and obsession with numbers. And what is even worse that obsessing over the label in your clothes is walking into a shop and having absolutely no idea which size to try on in the first place…

A trio of New look shoe saves (finally!)

You’d be forgiven for thinking I’d given up on Shoeperwoman’s Shoeper Challenge, as it’s been ages since I’ve snapped myself wearing a pair of shoes from my collection and officially ‘saved’ them from being ditched when the challenge ends next Feb. But I am planning on sticking to my guns, I’m just rubbish at remembering to take photos when there’s any kind of natural light (you’ll see from the below pics how much my camera hates the soft orange light in my flat – fuzziness ahoy).

But I’m keen to get back on track and work my way through my hundred or so pairs of shoes as quickly as I can, starting with three pairs from New Look…