We spent the day in St Albans last week in order to shoot our latest collaboration with Plumo. For those of you that have recently joined our Graham St community, Plumo is an online shopping boutique with good values at its core. Started by two sisters (Esther & Verena), the platform stocks their own in-house collection called Plumo Studio as well as other ethical and sustainable brands sourced from across Europe. What I particularly love about Plumo is that you will find pieces on their site that you will not see anywhere else - a feat that is becoming more and more rare.

Mum came down from Northamptonshire and Alex came up from Barnes and we met in my relatively new home town of St Albans. For those of you that don’t know St Albans, it is a very pretty Cathedral city which lays claim to one of England’s oldest pubs! Our last shoot with Plumo was shot in Richmond Park, so we thought it would be a nice contrast to shoot in a more urban environment. You can also track down a great coffee very easily which is the marker of a good start to any day in our book.

The trousers that mum is wearing have an elasticated high waist with a draw string tie for maximum cinch! Unlike most elasticated waists (which can be a little unsightly), these are gathered at the top for a ‘paperbag’ effect which looks pretty and flattering- with the added bonus of being as comfortable as a pair of pyjama bottoms! Mum started the day with her persimmon coloured cardigan around her shoulders but as the weather cooled down she put it on and tucked it in. The beauty of the these trousers is that you can comfortably tuck anything in. I also love the look - a cardigan worn as a jumper, it feels so chic to me.

As a side note, the cardi is 100% lambswool (made in Scotland) but being quite so soft, we found ourselves delving out the label, just to check that I’d got that right and it wasn’t infact cashmere….it would be perfect for a cooler summer’s evening outside - the colour is magnificent.

I’ve said it before but a well placed piece of jewellery can completely make an outfit. A pair of beautiful earrings or a bold, chunky necklace can transform something really quite simple into a very striking outift. In my opinion, there are four factors which elevate mum’s outfit into more than just trousers and a jumper. The perfectly matching stripy t-shirt with the cardigan in a wonderful vibrant colour, the interesting and well cut trousers and the bold choice of earrings. Each factor plays its part in raising the look into something a bit more special.

Dungarees and jumpsuits will always play a big part in my sartorial life. It has been a longstanding love affair that I know will continue well into my 80s! This pair are made from a lovely, heavyweight cotton which gives a utilitarian feel to them. The indigo blue coupled with the crisp white of the shirt is a colour combination that I love - it feels so crisp and clean. The blue and white striped top pulls the two colours together but just to avoid the outfit becoming too ‘matchy matchy’ I threw on a pair of tangerine coloured socks for good measure.

A commentary on these outfits would not be complete without mentioning HOW comfortable these plimsoles are. They are by a brand called Novesta and I have worn a pair before but not for a whole day. I generally find new shoes uncomfortable, even trainers sometimes, but these were a dream! If comfort is what you are after-with a touch of cool-then these shoes are the ones for you.