We’ve talked about the dominance of vivid scarlet in this autumn’s colour palette but there is another seasonal theme coming through and it reminds me of the colour of toffee apples. Reds and greens are often associated with Christmas but if you think about it, they feel right now too, as we approach bonfire night. I’ve put together a selection of easy pieces to inspire you (and me – when I tried to put an outfit together to show you, I realised I don’t have very much green in my wardrobe). They’ll take you all the way through from now until March.
Knits and blouses in toffee apple colours
Wear these as an accent colour to lift jeans or winter neutrals (navy, black, camel and grey)… or create a seasonally coloured outfit by pairing them with the bottoms below.
Top to bottom, L – R
Green ribboned blouse also available in scarlet. This follows the trend for modest, buttoned up fashion and is great for tucking into wider trousers or a pleated midi
Claret wrap blouse, the classic – particularly useful if you are a skinny or tailored trouser aficionado
Claret balloon sleeve jumper – the key shape for knitwear this year, great for wearing with jeans or over a dress with a fluted hemline
Green balloon sleeve jumper – the green partner to the claret, a great price in an easy to wear cotton viscose blend
Claret cocoon jumper, also available in green, a chunky wool and mohair blend. With its deep ribbed waist it will look great teamed with a pleated midi.
Skirts and trousers in toffee apple hues
We’ve already talked about pleated midis being easy to wear with tights and boots, a great winter combination. I’ve added three pairs of trousers in differing widths to suit all tastes.
Top to bottom, L – R
Claret coated midi – a sharper cut than velvet for people who prefer a more defined shape. The metallic finish means it will work well for night as well as day.
Gold pleated midi – I know this isn’t a toffee apple colour but I’ve had one for a while and I’ve been struggling to know what to wear with it other than black. Now I am inspired to team it with rich reds and greens – it will be great for Christmas so I’m including it here because although it has sold out, a new delivery is due to drop in 13 days and pre-orders are being taken now.
Green coated midi – the non-identical twin of the claret midi and good for all of the same reasons
Leather leggings – these are available in both green and claret, an investment but lovely to wear and a classic that you’ll pull out every year
Claret velvet wide leg trousers – a great price AND machine washable – what more can I say
Pleated tapered trousers – from the committed range so made partly from recycled wool – clothes with an easy conscience
Shiny boots
It’s amazing how a pair of oxblood coloured boots can work with most winter colours to lift an outfit
Clockwise from top
Leather slouch boots – glossy boots that can be pulled up to the knee or worn in this season’s slouchy style, also available in black suede
Patent ankle boots – patent is coming back in which is a relief because it’s so much easier to care for. These are currently discounted and are also available in black.
Slim heeled ankle boot – ultimate elegance, these would go from boardroom to bar in a flash.
Over the knee suede boots – these boots have a block heel and an almond toe making them comfortable as well as glamorous, also available in black
Block heel ankle boots – simple ankle boots with a great heel height, these are a slightly darker shade of burgundy so should weather well
Supremely comfortable slouch boots – I was surprised to find these but they’re bang on trend and are pretty much guaranteed to be comfortable. Lovely boots, also available in black leather and a great leg height for midi skirts and dresses
Autumn dresses
Ok so these are not all toffee apple colours but they’re rich winter patterns. Dresses like these are great for evenings out as well as during the day. The new trend for modest fashion is so much easier to wear than the bodycon we’ve been used to. With its ruching, draping and longer hemlines, it really flatters midlife bodies. If you haven’t tried a midi dress, do, you’ll be surprised – especially as they are not expensive. Don’t forget you can wear a neat fit jumper over the fluted styles too.
L – R, top to bottom
Cherry print dress – a lovely asymmetric hem which is slimming – I don’t know why but it just is.
Claret fitted dress (also in forest green below) – I’ve included this as an example of the way that tailored dresses are moving on. It looks great although the reviews are saying there is a problem with a dart at the back. It might be worth trying though because it looks like a Victoria Beckham dress if you can get the fit right.
Chinois print dress – this has such a retro feel about it and it looks so much more expensive than it is. Ignore the way they’ve styled it on their site though.
Embroidered net dress – diaphanous and lovely for parties
Poppy print dress – very topical for the time of year. I love this dress so much and would have bought it but it is too similar to the one I got for my friend’s wedding (also available in black).
New in at Hush
Moving on, Hush have had a new drop of stock today and so I just want to alert you to the best pieces whilst they are still available. I’ll start with the ones I’ve ordered:
The Cosmos dress
I can’t helping thinking that this would be great for Christmas Day so I’ve ordered it to try – I just wish it wasn’t black. I’m trying hard not to wear black near my face, especially in winter but I really like the cut of this. I won’t be pairing it with those boots though…
The velour joggers
I have also ordered these velour joggers which not everyone will like but I do. I’ll be wearing them dressed up with a blouse in the office and dressed down with a sweatshirt when I get home. I’m just hoping they won’t be quite as short as they seem to be on the model.
Velour skinnies
If you prefer something fitted, Hush have repeated their velour skinnies which sold out in a matter of days last year. I have them, I wore them a lot and I have kept them for this year because they look great with heels for parties. Last year they came up small so it might be worth ordering two pairs to try just to be sure.
The Rock n Roll jumper is in – such a great statement for a midlife woman to wear across her chest
And how about pairing it with these glitter boots..
The full new winter collection from Hush is here.
New in at Sézane
Sézane is another of those brands that sells out in a day. They are launching their winter collection of lovely Parisian chic tomorrow morning and you can see the full lookbook with prices here. Have a look through and decide what you want to order in advance because most things will be gone by tomorrow night.
GymCube update
There is less to report on GymCube this week because as you know, I had to stick to cardio only last week whilst my shoulder and lower spine settled down. I suspect I had moved onto heavy weights too quickly in an attempt to feel as though I was making progress. However, the focus on cardio has meant that I am feeling fitter. I love the MyZone belt that monitors my effort. It displays my output on my phone whilst I’m working out and I push myself into its red zone to make sure that I’m getting the maximum benefit from my sessions. It really is quite addictive.
I’m sticking to the eating plan nearly all of the time although I did veer off at the dinner on Friday – not in terms of food because they were what everyone termed ‘London portions’ – but I did imbibe quite a few calories in wine. However even though I really didn’t feel like it, I still made it to the gym with the middle son the following day to try to burn it all off.
I have managed to avoid weighing myself but when a delivery of size 12 Christmas party dresses arrived this week for me to shoot, they were too big! Now I have to admit that they were from JD Williams and their sizes are a little more generous than other brands however I do think I have dropped half a normal dress size in the last four weeks so that’s progress.
Now, we could catch up on midlife lately – I have lots to tell you about the dinner on Friday (and more reasons why I shouldn’t drink wine) but I’m going to dash off. I’ve told myself that if I don’t get on with organising my blogger sale, we will be living with a rail of clothes in our bedroom until the new year. It’s driving me mad so I’m drafting in some help (sadly not free help, the boys haven’t broken up for half term yet) and I’m aiming to run another blogger sale this Saturday (28th October).
Once again it will consist of lightly worn clothing, mostly in a size 12 that has either been sent to me as a PR sample or that I have bought myself. It makes sense that I share these lovely things with you and once I have covered costs, I will be sending another donation to Bloodwise to help fight blood cancers. I will let you know on Friday if I have managed to make it happen. In the meantime, have a great week.
Stop Press – please vote for me!
I’ve just discovered that I have been shortlisted for Blogger of the Year by the lovely people at WeAreThirtyPlus. It has been a complete surprise because I didn’t submit an entry but it has very much made my day. WeAreThirtyPlus is a very supportive group of bloggers aged over 30 as you can probably guess but even so, I suspect I am by far the oldest in the category. As I understand it, it is the reader vote that decides the winner so please could you spare 30 seconds to vote for me here. It would be lovely to fly the flag for our Midlifechic community. Thank you so much in anticipation of your support, I really appreciate it.
Recent posts you may have missed
Side stripe trousers and a midlife wedding
Leather leggings for women over 40
A cornucopia of recent outfits
Launching the Midlifechic Boutique
On children growing away – how a stair carpet floored me
How many pairs of shoes do you actually need?
The relaunch of iconic label Issa
What to buy from Hush’s Autumn collection
A guide to AW17 – the shapes and colours to look out for
Back to work – a desk to dinner project
Inès de La Fressange at Uniqlo – exclusive launch with Midlifechic
A family holiday in Kalkan – and what mattered most
