The Basics. #capsulewardrobeseries

The next installment of this capsule wardrobe series is about the basics that can kick off a cohesive wardrobe. We all have those pieces that we would happily live in and go that one extra day without washing it because we're so desperate to wear it. In my last capsule wardrobe post I said I would write a something about getting the basics of a capsule wardrobe together. Before I get into it, I'd just like to point out that these are items that suit my style. In my previous posts I explained how the fantastic book, The Curated Closet, gives step by steps to really understand your own personal style and how your wardrobe works for you -- although I think these items would be great for anyone. It's so important to have feel comfortable in your own skin. If your basics are trainers and leggings, then that's great, whatever works for you.

As I'm starting with the basic, I made sure that the pictures really represent my wardrobe -- me with no make up, in a jumper and jeans. It may not be exciting, but that's what I wear. When I started planning my wardrobe, I thought about what I wear everyday and the things I feel comfy in, because I wasn't about to get rid of all my clothes and start again -- that would be expensive and wasteful. These are items that I already had that have formed the foundation for the rest of my clothes, so this is also a little nod to doing a capsule wardrobe on a budget.

Instead of going through item after item, I thought I would put them together in outfits to show why they are my basics. My casual every day outfit is a pair of jeans, a stripy t-shirt and my Converse. I love both black and blue jeans, and as I live in both and it wouldn't right to not include one. There isn't anything particularly interesting about jeans except knowing what fits. In most shops, jeans come in your usual 8s, 10s, etc., but that doesn't mean the size you usually go for will fit perfectly. I've been buying my jeans from Asos for years now so I can get my waist and leg length correct. I have the problem that so many people have: it will fit my waist but no way are they going over my bum, so I have to resort to getting a size to go over my bum, but it ends up being too big around my waist. I'm a pretty average height at 5 foot 5, which isn't tall but not short enough for petite jeans, so Asos lets you chose the length of your jeans which is one of the best things I have ever discovered in the fashion world. I no longer have the baggy ankle look and I think clothes that fit well can often look more expensive. I know Topshop do the same thing, but Asos are nearly half the price.

My Joules Harbour tee is such a weekend item, in my opinion. It encapsulates relaxing days out and having pancakes for breakfast. I can't wait to write about this gorgeous brand when I visit Cornwall next month -- it definitely suits the countryside and coastal towns of Cornwall. I don't think I could ever be without a stripey t-shirt because I don't think they will ever go out of fashion. Prints come and go, but you will never look bad in stripes. I'm adding to this outfit with my cosy grey jumper that I can wear with skirts, jeans, and cigarette trousers. I really recommend looking for jumpers in H&M because some of their jumpers are as soft as cashmere, like I said, we're on a budget! I've previously written posts about both my Converse and black Chelsea boots, so I wont bore you and repeat myself. I wear them all the time  -- that sums everything up.

My next outfit is called 'I actually want to look put together'. This outfit gives the impression that you've got your life together when you really just want to go home and watch Bake Off in your pyjamas with some chocolate. My navy cigarette trousers were in my spring favourites because I have been wearing them every week without fail. My favourite thing to pair them with is a simple white blouse and leopard print shoes, to mix the plain and interesting. The theme with my basics is that they will never go out of fashion because they are more of a style than a trend. That sounds really pretentious, but I purely go for that because it saves a lot of money.

This outfit is for those 3 day summers that we get here in England. A button up denim skirt and a classic short sleeve tshirt. I surprised myself when I wrote my list of basics because I used to wear skirts all the time. I didn't feel comfortable in trousers until I found ones that really flattered me. Trousers are much more practical when you're a busy person, however, I always need a skirt in my life. I keep to plain, A-line skirts that come in at my waist and skim over my thighs. In the summer, I live in a denim skirt, which were really popular a few years ago. I'm not ready to let it go yet because I think it has gone from a trend piece to something a lot of people own -- probably because it goes with so many things and denim can take a little wear. It can often improve the look, so we're not held back at any point. I included this skirt over the others because, apart from a couple of dresses, it is my most worn item in the sunshine and since we had a ridiculous heat wave last week, I remembered how much I love it. I loved the heat wave until I had to go to work, because I have never resented wearing trousers more in my life. Also, getting a classic dress that you can pull out whenever is the best thing! In the future I'm going to do a post about formal dressing with a capsule wardrobe.

I hope this post has given you a little idea of how to start off and build on what you've already got. There's no need to spend a lot on these items so I like to shop at Asos, H&M, Joules and Primark. You can pick and choose where you spend more money, depending on your day to day life. For example, I'm quite happy with £3.50 t-shirts from Primark, but I do like to spend more money on my jeans, so they fit really well.

I thought I would include a list to make the items clear if you feel inspired:

• Black/blue jeans
• Grey jumper
• Denim skirt
• T-shirt
• Converse
• Black boots
• White shirt
• Striped t-shirt
• Classic dress

My Brow story.

I thought this week I would do a little story time. I started talking about my brows in last weeks post when telling you all about my current favourite brow product, but we will get to that later, and it got me thinking about my brow evolution. And how I got the point of today where I like them.

So many of us can relate to feeling like we should do something to our brows and maybe we should do less as the in the last 8 years or so brows have really become a 'thing'. Like everything else brow stles have come in and out of fashion from the leave them alone bushing to the drawn on line. I'm sure each had their good points, but we have all seen that person who took it too far. But then again scouse brow as I have heard been called is a 'look'. Most people have a complex relationship with theirs brows especially when we look back at old photos and think why did we do that?! I think our brow thoughts have intensified buy the beauty industry who have filled the market with products over the past few years to saturation point. There are products everywhere now that didn't even exist 10 years ago. 

My story starts out like my people's; I had no thoughts about my eyebrows as a child. Why would I? But then as I grew into a teenager I started to notice that lots of girls were doing stuff their eyebrows like plucking or filling them in and as a naive girl I thought I should join the crowd. It was either year 7 or 8 that I found some tweezers and went to work and basically had Angus Thongs and perfect snogging moment. (Where she accidentally shaves half of it off). It wasn't that bad but I remember trying to get this one hair and failed to notice that I was taking more and more hairs out. It looked terrible. 

Instead of helping me or explaining what to do next time because I was only 11 so how was I supposed to know anyway, the people around me made sure I felt extremely embarrassed and miserable about the situation, so I didn't touch my eyebrows for 7 years! Apart from brushing them so they were neat and filling in the sparse areas for a presentable look. Luckily bushy brows have been in thanks to people like Cara Delevingne and Amelia Clarke, but those little hairs still annoyed me. Luckily my best friend is an export on the whole plucking brows thing and went to work on mine. After she finished one she said 'now I know what I'm doing' which made me laugh so much, because that is not something you say to someone as you pluck their eyebrows. She just meant that was getting used to someone else'es brows, but it was funny no the less. 

The ulimate brow product that topped all others is the Benefit Foolproof brows and it does what is says on the tin. It is a natural looking powder with two shades so you can get the perfect shade for your brows. The best thing about Benefit is that you can take a quiz on their website so if you really don't know where to start with the millions of brow products you can answer questions about your current brows and what you want them to look like. They will tell you what you need and also have a really fun virtual brow try on which is so helpful and funny to do at the same time. My brow routine after plucking now consists of brushing them through then using a really the Benefit brown brow powder to gently fill in any sparse areas as I found pencils look way too strong on me. Its another situation where less is more

The transformation is complete and I am so happy with my eyebrows, so please learn from me.

Don't feel pressured to touch your eyebrows because everyone else is doing it. You probably have great eyebrows. I know my sister never needs to touch hers because they are naturally good. 

And if you do want to change them then get someone else to do who knows what they are doing. Skip the embarrassing part and go straight to having good eyebrows. Its more fun that way. 

Spring favouites.

I know a lot of people do monthly favourites, I for one love to see what my favourite Youtubers are loving for inspiration and recommendations, but for me I'm too committed to change it up every month. I've decided to bring together all the things I have been loving this season. My everydays and the things I've almost used up. This will be an on going thing through at the year so I hope you enjoy my seasonal round ups.

I think I'm going to start with a thing that represents a lot of other things. I have been loving reading 'The F Word' by Lily Pebbles. I don't always buy Youtubers books, because I'm not always interested about the subject even if I love them as a person. And if I bought every book that a youtuber brought out then I'd be a little poor. However, 'The F Word' really intrigued me. Female friendships are amazing. I know I rely on them everyday from my best uni friend to my sister. They are are not given enough credit, so a whole book to celebrates this is fantastic from my view. And you can't go wrong with some fun anecdotes on how she met her friends. They're pretty funny and I'll go into it more in my next book review post to round up my reads.  But this book also represents how much I have loved reading this year. I have really kept with it and I am determind to finish a New years resolution. Plus, keeping you updated here makes me wants to do it even more, because I don't want to have write in a post;"I failed". We can do this!

Okay, don't judge me but I got my eyebrows plucked for the first time a few weeks ago. The idea of someone plucking my eyebrows into oblivion has always put me off because I love my thick eyebrows and I'd look silly with the classic 90s look that other people can pull off. My uni best friend was the person I put my faith into. (See, female friendships are amazing) and poor her. She had a job making my brows look presentable, but she achieved the impossible. I am now far from Yetty land. But the thing that makes them presentable for the outside world is the Benefit foolproof brows. My brows are thick, but sparse so I use the lighter shade to fill them in. I love them! I think this is perfect for a brow novice as the powder is so natural and as long as you don't go in too heavy handed and its super easy. None of this precision faff stuff. I've never been this happy with my brows and I now 

depend on this product which speaks volumes. 

Winter is the time for many things. Jumpers and hot chocolate, but for me its the coming of the dry skin plague. I moisturise intensely  until the cows comes, but still those cold dry days will get me every time. I got this Lush moisturiser as a Christmas presents and I finished it last month which was so sad. This is a creamy moisturiser that is full of hydration and perfect for sensitive skin. I lathered this on everyday and it left me with soft moisturised skin. I've said the word moisturise too much, sorry. Anyway, I have been so impressed as a dedicated user of heavy duty coco butter. I definitely want to get more next winter.

On to style favourite. I've always been a little wary of trousers because I though for some reason that they wouldn't suit me, I don't know why. I bought these Asos Cigarette Trousers because they were navy and highwaisted so I eased myself in with my safety nets. I wear these every week! They were exactly what my Capsule Wardrobe was missing and the amount I wear them shows this. How did I live without these for so long?! They feature on my Instagram, so pop over there if you want to see how I style them, especially the Insta highlights that I have saved. I am going to do a whole post about them soon, because they deserve a whole post. Nothing sums up classy and chic like cigarette trousers and I am honestly obsessed with them to the point where they really need a wash, but I want to wear them again. I can't let go!

The last two items are a but random, but they deserve to be included. the first is this little cute postcard from Paperchase which represents how much I loved International Women's day. People really loved my Girl Power Post which made me so happy and humble. I have really learning how to feel confident about my self and have healthy view points. I have worked really hard and I'm excited to celebrate myself and all my amazing girlfriends who inspire me. Current affairs at the moment are miserable and very intimidating, so if we can learn to stand together and love each other then bit by bit we can make a positive contribution to the world. 

The second random thing is very random, so i'll keep it short. I am planning on doing a whole post on my house plants, (Yes, I am 70) about where I get them from and how I keep them alive. To be hoest I'm surprised I have kept them alive and that I've only had one casualty along the way. Minute of silence for the succulent I over watered.....My Swiss cheese plant has brought me so much happiness, because its beautiful and it represents a little achievement. (That its not dead). I know these are really popular at the moment, but I don't mind because they should be. I'm thinking about naming it so I'd love to hear any suggestions. 

And thus rounds up my Spring Favourites. I'll check in again in a few months with my next round of favourites, but for now here a few of my favourite blog posts from this year if you fancy a read. 

More Girl Power Please. 

A Fresh Start

The Start of my Capsule Wardrobe series. 

My Valentines day post. 

My (pretend) Shoe Capsule Wardrobe.

So you will all know by now that if you've been keeping up with my blog that I have begin the adventure that is having a capsule wardrobe. I've gotten rid of clothes that don't fit, things I'm never actually going to wear and items hat I have held on for too long. I kept my favourite items and slowly added items that almost all go together. I've found my style and I'm really happy with how thought out my wardrobe is now. I can now start putting those winter things away and go into full on Spring/Summer mode. I'm looking forward to having a smaller but more edited collection of clothes. No more hording. Oh wait. 

Something I am yet to tackle, is my shoe collection. I've mentioned before that I like a have a lot of shoe variety and when my boyfriend said that I only have two feet. I answered; "my feet go to lots of different places." Which in my opinion is a fair answer. 

However, I really do want to make my shoe collection more edited and think about what shoes I wear the most so this is post is all about my most worn shoes and basically if I had a gun to my head, which shoes would I pick? This are my top picks, not including rarely worn yet necessary shoes like wellies or waking boots. I've tried to pick from each category like boots, flats, heels, and shoes I wear nearly everyday. 

I have spoken about Chelsea boots a million times on this blog. They're my extra limb. My constant. My rock. Yep, I wear these so much! As soon as I have worn through and wrecked a pair I buy another. If I was to ever buy a designer pair shoes, (The kind that costs more than my monthly rent)it would be these beauties because we go together like cheese and chips.  (Please don't judge my love of cheesy chips). These will definitely be my first capsule wardrobe pick if I ever make myself do it. 

I've written about the wonderful world of piratical converse recently in this post, so I wont go into too much detail. Basically, they are not the cheapest shoes on the high street but I'm pretty sure I have got my moneys worth already, 4 months in. 

These are my summer shoes and I really hope they will last. These are from Primark so they were a bargain, but may not last a long time. (I'll let you know after summer) I try to stay away from trends, because surely they can't be classic if they're a trend, but I've made an exception as these are so pretty! In my defence they are a classic shape and are very comfortable. These are going to warm weather shoes and realistically I only need one pair of summer shoes living in England. You know, for those 2 weeks of hot weather. 

I have had these for years now so these had to be included in my fantasy capsule shoe collection. These are my 'out there' shoes which will seem silly for some people. But Leopard print is the only pattern I own apart from a floral dress. This is definitely my wild card item. I have found with these shoes that paying a little bit more for a brand that isn't Primark, New Look etc has really payed off. Kurt Geiger has really impressed me with the quality of these and there is nothing better than the proof of time to show how good they are. 

A nude court shoe should be in everyones' capsule wardrobe. Believe me it will go with everything at every event. Got a wedding? Sorted. Graduation? Sorted. Any party? Sorted. Kate Middleton really made these popular because who doesn't want to be classy like a Duchess? Also, they are very aesthetically pleasing. I think BooHoo is underrated as brand when it comes to shoes because I have some great pairs that I still haven't worn through and I am pretty heavy on my feet and also, very clumsy. 

Maybe one day I'll be able to say my shoe collection is a little thin on the ground, but until then I'll keep planning out the pretend capsule wardrobe and maybe try experimenting with putting my rarely used shoes away to see of I would actually miss them. In the future I am planning on re creating this post to see if I would swap anything or add to it. I'd like to give an honourable mention to some other favourites; my vans which are currently my work shoes, my joules trainers that I am very protective over and my flat Chelsea boots that are classic and practical at the same time. Whats not to love? 

Wish me luck my newest venture.