Layered up
Winter is by far my favourite season to dress for, for two reasons. I love playing with colour and I love mixing textures. Playing with these two aspects of a winter outfit brings me (a disproportionate amount of!) pleasure. Quite a few clients say that layering, particularly when it comes to colour, can be a challenge. I won’t get bogged down in the science of ‘primary’ and ‘complimentary’ colours - (namely because i’m none the wiser myself) - but as a rule of thumb try to stick within a colour palette . For example, my coat, boots and clutch bag are all within the same family of colours, and then I have kept the rest of my outfit neutral with complimentary blues. Mum’s jumper and coat are tones of green with neutral trousers and boots, whilst her bag is a completely different colour - burgundy - which is in fact a complimentary colour and adds a pop of something different, particularly if the overall outfit is quite dark.
As always though, this is just a guideline should you be looking for help, and rules are always there for breaking!
The shirt that you can see poking out from under mum’s jumper is a pale blue, oxford from Toast. It has a pie crust collar and is long in the body. If, like mum, you appreciate tops that cover your bottom then this is the shirt for you! I love the combination of pale blue and dark green, which brings out the strength of colour in each garment. Mum’s trousers are wonderful too. They are a flat fronted, cropped culotte and have been made with an abundance of material, so much so that at times they look like a skirt. They would be easy to dress up for the evening with a black fitted roll neck or a white blouse and statement earrings (something like these for instance). A red top or emerald green top would also look fantastic.
What makes our jumpers (mine navy, mum’s in dark green) is the neck. SO many roll neck jumpers have these depressingly limp collars that don’t stay up and just look a bit sad. The thick, ribbed knit works wonders in holding up the neck, which not only feels cosy but looks very elegant. I should actually divulge here that these are not jumpers but vests (see picture below) - they have no sleeves. We are both wearing shirts underneath but a fine knit/cotton tight polo neck would look great.
I have some other information to divulge too….. I’m pregnant. Yes, number two is on it’s way! Gulp. This of course makes dressing that much harder, especially as I am reeeeally keen not to have to buy specific maternity clothes. So these jeans are maternity jeans from Topshop but everything else is ‘normal’, just in bigger sizes and forgiving shapes. So expect my clothes to get roomier and roomier in style and shape!
My coat is from a gorgeous boutique called Wild Swans. There is one in Islington and one in Chiswick, they are London based but for those of you who live outside of London fear not! They also have an online store. Wild Swans’ lovely owner, Caroline, is originally from Denmark. Having worked as a film producer for many years, she decided to start a boutique, stocking predominantly Scandinavian brands. Of course the success of Scandinavian labels has gone from strength to strength and Wild Swans now stocks (and has done for many years!) some of the hottest tickets in town.
SUE
Shirt, Toast . Vest, Arket (in-store but not online, sorry!) . Coat, & Other Stories . Culottes, Jigsaw . Boots, Topshop but old (alternative here). Bag, Zara .
HANNAH
Shirt, Arket . Vest, Arket (in-store but not online, sorry!) . Jeans, Topshop Maternity . Coat, Levete Room @Wild Swans . Clutch bag, Aspinal but old (great alternative) . Boots, Arket .
PHOTOGRAPHY & ARTWORK by Alexandra Mooney
-SHOPPING EDIT-
And keep scrolling for video……!
CLICK ON BRAND NAME TO TAKE YOU STRAIGHT TO THE ITEM.
Wool and Yak dark beige jumper, Arket
Beige jumper, H&M
Cream cable knit vest, COS
Grey wool jumper, Olive
Sky blue wool jumper, Olive
Claret red ribbed jumper, & Other Stories
Fitted roll neck (perfect for an under layer), M&S
Fitted roll neck (as above, comes in many different colours) M&S
Striped shirt, & Other Stories
White cotton shirt (mum and I both have this shirt and it is SO useful and lovely quality) & Other Stories
White over-sized shirt, French Connection
Pale blue smock shirt, French Connection
