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Summer Accessories For Rainbow Lovers

Nothing says sunshine like a bit of rainbow print. I have rounded up some summery fun rainbow clothes and accessories today, so if you are a rainbow lover – come and find that pot of gold with me!! (Scuse the cheese – it’s the hot weather…)

Scoop Neck T Shirt £30 Neon Marl

This is a great T shirt to have in your summer capsule wardrobe – works on the beach and the school run.

Rainbow T Shirt

Sequin Tote £65

Sequins in a rainbow print? It must be Christmas.  This handy tote is big enough to carry your phone, wallet, keys, make up and sunnies but small enough to use in the evening too.

Sequin tote

 

Urbanista Earphones £19.99

The more I listen to podcasts the more buying earphones moves up my to do list. These are the top of my earphone list.

earphones

Rainbow Coin Purse Keyring £10 Millie Pink

Millie Pink is perfect destination for summer accessories and this coin purse would be super useful to put your spare euros in on an ice cream run!

Key purse

Rainbow Polarised Sunglasses £30 TLM Edit

You can instantly add colour to your outfit with these transparent framed sunglasses. With polarised lenses, there is no squinting in the sun either.

Rainbow Sunglasses

Bright Sunglass Chain £22

If you are active and constantly on the run, prevent your sunnies going awol with this colourful sunglass chain. Wear on your head or around your neck.

Sunglass chain

 

Beaded Hoops £20

Want a little bit of colour but still understood. These beaded hoops are pretty. Hoops are THE style this summer, so grab some now.

Rainbow Hoops

Rainbow Silicon Laces £12

Update your trainers and replace the laces with these colourful silicon laces.  No bulky laces and no tying to do either. Fab for a busy mum on the run or a child who is mastering their laces.

Rainbow Laces

Colourful Gold Studs £32

Not into statement or chandelier earrings but still want something fun for your summer holiday? These small studs are perfect to keep in day and night June – September!

Rainbow Studs

Kurt Geiger Envelope Clutch £89

Add some glamour to your look with this rainbow clutch.

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Water Resistant Transparent Watch £24

We all need a summer watch and this transparent watch with a striped face will go with everything.

Rainbow watch

 

 

Espadrilles £52 Office

If you like funky feet, these will do nicely.

Rainbow Espadrilles

Let’s hope this weather continues and we will be wearing rainbows all summer! xx

Big Fashion

Keith Scarrott Footwear : From Espadrilles to Heels

I love discovering a new brand and was delighted to discover Keith Scarrott by stylist Kate Evans.  Establish in 1975, Keith Scarrott is a stand alone shop in Cheltenham, specialising in handmade womens shoes and boots. They also know the power of being online and have a clear and easy to navigate website, that displays their beautiful footwear.

Keith Scarrott

I can vouch that the shoes are well made and comfortable, so all you need to do is choose which ones you like (and use LONDONMUMMY for free shipping)

We always need a pair of shoes, don’t we! These white Edera espadrilles served me superbly in Portugal.

Flatlay

Here are my top picks for summer…

Belice : Pewter £99.95

The Belice pump has been expertly crafted for maximum comfort and style. The elasticated leather upper hugs the foots, whilst the flexible flat sole ensures all day wearability. Belice’s colour pop metallic toe caps and heel panels in colourways including blue, pink and camel add interest and fun.

Why not carry them in your handbag and swap your heels for them after  long day!

 

Pewter

 

Crisanti : Multi £119

Featuring an eclectic mix of eastern-inspired pattern and texture, Crisanto’s appeal is its exotic charm. Slip-on in style, with flattering lines around the foot, the Crisanto mule is easy to wear, comfortable and stylish.

They would look tres chic on the cobbled streets of the Mediterranean.

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Ornella : Blue £139

A modern twist on classic loafer styling which is VERY 2018, Ornella’s luxe metallic finish and decorative multi-colour jewel detail will add a splash of fun and colour to your Spring/Summer wardrobe.

Supple leather lining, hand-finished edges and a flat sole ensure maximum comfort, Ornella will work with white jeans or a long floaty skirt.

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Narciso : Fushcia £79.95

The bright vivid metallic fuchsia makes these espadrilles one of my top picks for the summer. I love the extra layer of base to give you a bit more height too.

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Edera : Black £79

I love a rockstud on either my shoes or handbag and these soft black leather espadrilles would look fantastic with a pair of black skinnies.

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Danza : Blue £179

Not only are the shape of these peep toe heels gorgeous, the slightly wider heel is practical so you don’t sink into the grass but smarter than wedges. Perfect for a smart event this summer.

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Iris : Tan £89.95

Every wardrobe needs a pair of tan wedges. I have a pair similar to these and have worn them year in year out as they go with everything!

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Fiora : Taupe £179

These kitten heel slingbacks are very elegant and the glitter down the side makes them unusual.

TAUPE

I hope this has given you some good ideas – it sure has inspired me. Keith Scarrott is a one stop shop for beautifully designed shoes that are slightly different to the high street but will last a lot longer.

I haven’t had an occasion to wear my new silver Discoteca yet, but someone has taken a shine to them!

Discoteca

Don’t forget to use LONDONMUMMY for free shipping xx

keithscarrott.co.uk

Big Fashion Spotlight

Up Close with Ruth Green

Whenever I walk down the Fulham Road, I make it a priority to pop into Indian Summer. Not only is the interior of the shop beautiful, all the items that Ruth Green buys for the shop are spot on. From new baby presents, to interiors and fashion and accessories, it is a gorgeous lifestyle destination to buy something for yourself, a present for a host or a gift for a friend.

image2

What is your business?

I have a lifestyle boutique in Parsons Green called Indian Summer.

What’s your secret to working whilst raising a family?

Getting the best support around you that you can and accepting early on that you can’t do it all.

Ruth & family

What advice to you for people who have a business idea?

Go for it, it is the best feeling starting something yourself, working hard and seeing it grow. I think you need a plan and a lot of faith but trust in yourself and go for it!

What’s your favourite item in Indian Summer at the moment?

Our Daisy Navy Blouse. I live it in.

Daisy Blouse

What’s your fashion style?

Relaxed and comfortable, I definitely seem to have day to day uniform of skinny jeans, pretty blouse/ t shirt and cashmere jumper and the a lot of jewellery!! I have a slight obsession with hoops, necklaces and all things sparkly!

Ruth

3 favourite small clothing brands

Samsoe and Samsoe
Indi and Cold
On the Rise Jumpers

Top 3 go to items in your wardrobe when you are in a rush

Ripped skinny jeans, white linen T shirt and my Rosie Indian Summer Cashmere jumper.

Rosie Jumper

3 items that make you feel a million dollars

My biggest Indian Summer Hoops, my new wooly sheepskin bag and my sparkly P448 high top trainers.

Sparkly Trainers

1 item that everyone asks where you got it from

My fur-lined parka from Berenice from a couple of years ago, it has embroidery down the arms and is very pretty.

Biggest purchase mistake ever

I bought two pairs of court shoes with thick heels when I was pregnant and they are pretty awful and have never been worn!

Best return of investment on a wardrobe item

All my jeans and boots get worn to death.

Boots or trainers

Anything by Alpe especially my Star boots in Castor at the moment.

Star Boots

Favourite fashion bloggers

The London Mummy (obvs)
The Glam Mummy
Mothers of Daughters

Interior style

Pretty eclectic, a real mix of things from the shop so quite feminine/ bohemian with quite a lot of neon in the mix too!

Interior tip

Simple base i.e. a lots of white and grey and then add the colour so if you change or mind or hate it, it’s not hard to change.

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Where do you get your interior inspo from?

Love a bit of Elle Deco and Living Etc and lots of friends lovely house!

Bare faced or full face?

Somewhere in-between, not into foundation but can’t leave the house without a bit of bronzer and smudge of eye liner.

Best beauty buy on the market

Quite into my Obagi skin care at the moment also I will forever by obsessed with my 8 hour cream from Elizabeth Arden, it’s a classic.

3 items in your make up bag

Eye liner (always black), under eye concealer and bronzer all by Bobbi Brown.

Hair tip

Don’t wash it too much!

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Life saving hair product

I adore anything by Kerastase especially the hair mask!

hair mask

Silver or gold jewellery?

Gold

Favourite Jewellery brand

Kirsten Ash

Kirsten Ash

 

Most romantic restaurant in the world?

Villa Magia in Positano.

Best hotel with kids?

Kelly’s Wexford, Ireland.

Kellys

Last supper meal?

Ohhh hard one… Steak, rare with yummy red wine and anything chocolatey for pud.

Default kids supper

Gnocchi and pesto.

Hangover cure

Coffee and an almond croissant.

What you do to relax?

Wine, bath and good book

Favourite film?

True Romance

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Last book you read?

The Tea Planter Wife by Dinah Jefferies

Tea Planters Wife

Favourite box set

Billions

Billions Cast

The song you pelt out in the car?

Fast Car by Tracy Chapman

A quote you try and live by

 

What is meant for you, won’t pass you by.

 

What tests your patience?

Trying to answer e-mails with screaming children pulling at my arm

3 words to describe yourself

Bubbly, Bossy, Blonde!

indiansummerlondon.com

Fashion Little

5 Ways To Buy School Uniform On a Budget

The days, weeks and months fly past faster with each year that passes. How can it we be approaching the end of the school year already? Not one to wish away the holidays – before we know it we will be scrabbling around in September trying to piece together their school uniform. Not this time. I am going to get their uniform ready for September in the next few weeks before they break up as I know once that bell rings – the days are not our own for a good 8 weeks.

So, how to do this?

1) Are their any families leaving the school who might want to flog you their uniform. Approach them.

2) Are there children in your oldest kids year that don’t have younger siblings? Ask their mum if they want to sell their old uniform to you for your younger ones.

3) Head to that second-hand sale and make sure you go with a list!

4) Book an appointment with the uniform shop and ask for a discount if you are buying a quite a bit. It’s worth trying!

5) Put a message on your local area’s Facebook page and see if anyone is selling any?

Once you have all these bits in place – get the basics like socks, underwear and vests from your trusty Marks and Spencers.

They currently have 20% off school uniform at present.

I have never thought of heading to Marks for school shoes, but after a quick peruse – you can definitely cover the basics with their selection.

Check them out…

Leather Cross Bar Shoes : Sizes 8 small to 1 £20

Leather T Bar Shoes

Ballet Shoes : 5 Small – 4 Large £10

Ballet Shoes

Riptape Trainers : £14 5 Small – 12 Small

Riptape Trainers

Astro Trainers : £16 13 Small – 7 Large

Astro Trainers

Leather Shoes : £30 13 Small to 9 Large

Freshfeet

Don’t forget to go up a size as there trotters will no doubt grow over the holidays with all the 99ers they will eat!

Lots of love
Lucinda x

Big Fashion

Be Quick! This £19.50 Maxi Dress is Selling Fast

I recently spent £90 on a V neck jersey dress. To be fair, it is lovely – double lined and well cut, but still, it’s a jersey dress for the holidays. Wanting to replicate the style but in a different colour and price point (lower), I explored the world wide web but to no avail.

Until the latest press release from Marks and Spencer popped into my inbox alerting me to the £19.50 Maxi Dress.

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Now we are talking.

Initially drawn (obviously) to the traditional black, staple navy and racy red.

They could all be dressed up or down and take you from the beach to sundowners.

Having read the reviews on the website – the main gripe is that the side split is slightly too high – which I think is a good thing. It stops it being in anyway mumsy!

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There is also a summery electric blue and aqua green which are pretty.

The patterns aren’t really my thing but if you are looking for some – they have these maxi’s in a plethora of crazy prints!

Any take your fancy? I am thinking red, but will size up so it’s not too clingy.  All the calamari and sangria need some space to go (not that I will be eating that this summer – more like 99ers and fish and chips from a brown paper bag!)

When M & S gets it right, they really get it right – go grab one now! x

Big Fashion

4 New Brands at House of Fraser

There are 4 relatively new brands at House of Fraser (well knew to me) that I wanted to draw your attention towards. If you have found yourself at the school gates realising that you are merging with the other mothers and want to redefine your style but not sure how – check out these reasonably priced labels that have some great items this season.

Fabienne Chapot 

Great For… Shirt Dresses 

Lobster Shirt Dress £99

Not for everyone but with neutral sliders, minimal make up – this would turn heads. Just fingers crossed that no one else IS wearing it as a pair of lobsters – you would never be forgotten!!

Lobster Shirt Dress

Leopard Shirt Dress £99

Leopard print has become as mainstream as navy (oak not quite but gone are the days of it being linked to clichéd barmaids). The colours also suit nearly all colouring.

Leopard Shirt Dress

Another Label 

Great For … American Vintage 

Just Sweatshirt £80

I love a slogan sweatshirt and it doesn’t seem to be tiring. Avoid anything that says LOVE or similar and you should stay one of kind, especially with Amsterdam across your chest.

Just Sweatshirt

Eames Bomber £180

To avoid looking to military, wear unzipped over a white T shirt. Very patriotic.

Bomber

Twist & Tango 

Great For… Statement Blouses 

Savannah Cheetah Blouse £119

We will be seeing more and more animal (littoral animals) print over the next year. Embrace your inner animal and get ahead of the curve with this cheetah blouse.

Cheatah Blouse

Natalia Blouse £99

I can almost smell the clean laundry just by looking at this fresh and crisp blouse. I love the tied wrist detail too.

Natalia Blouse

Maison Scotch 

(This is Scotch & Soda’s label for House of Fraser)

Great For… Patterns 

Tiered Printed Maxi Skirt £125

This will transition you from Summer to Winter so despite being over £100, it is investment.

Tiered Printed Maxi Skirt

Embroidered Top With Stud Detail £120

Very Isabel Marant without the price tag.

Stud Blouse

It’s impossible to keep up with all the emerging brands but I love hearing about them – let me know if there is a brand London mums would like!

Have a great day, Lucinda x

Big Fashion

6 Versatile Jackets For Cooler Summer Nights

Other than being met with thousands of denim jackets or pale coloured leather jackets, it is impossible to find a non statement cover up for warmer evenings. Don’t get me wrong, I love denim and leather (and if I wanted a denim jacket it would be this one with epic puffed shoulders), but in the summer I want a little versatile cover up to throw on once the sun has gone down, that will go with patterned and coloured dresses/tops.

So, what am I looking for? A pale cotton/linen/rayon cape or jacket that will go with everything.

Perhaps a tiny bit of embellishment/colour.

Can I find one in the shops? No! I’m just met with boring cardigans, floral kimono’s and patterned capes. It’s so frustrating.

So, what’s the only thing to do…

Head Online

Bingo!

Good old Zara haven’t failed me. They know what women need!

Zara Cutwork Overshirt £29.99

Cutwork Overshirt

Zara jacket with Contrasting Cut Embroidery £49

Zara

 

Zara Jacket With Tassels £69

Zara

I particularly like the last one as it is so neutral. Be quick though as items as versatile and rare as this won’t stick around for long (they have just landed)

Whistles Embroidered Jacket £119

Ok, double the price but fingers crossed double the quality?

Whistles Embroidered Jacket

River Island White Wrap Blouse £28

I have seen a few little wrapped blouses that would look lovely over a dress. Definitely worth investigating.

River Island

Monsoon Alana Embelished Jacket £99

I almost can’t resist this.  This is fabulous. Understated statement!

Monsoon Embelished Jacket

If you are on the hunt for some new clothes, have a look at my latest posts on maxi skirts and dresses for sports day!

Enjoy! x

 

Fashion Gift Guides

Fathers Day Gift Ideas

In an ideal world, most Fathers wouldn’t want a present – they would want an act of service (I am not suggesting that ladies, more along the lines of a cooked breakfast!) I think Fathers Day is a great time to buy him something for his summer wardrobe. Do they really want a mug that says ‘Best Dad?’ I think not.

Fathers Day falls on Sunday June 19th this year so plenty of time time to justify summer shopping. So, with summer holidays knocking at our door, this gift guide is geared towards their holiday wardrobe!

Kicking off the list is the obligatory summer shirt. If you want something a bit different but not too crazy Indigo Island have some wonderful shirts.

I have ordered Zakynthos (trying to move away from pure pale blue… )

Zakynthos

I also have my eye on the Koh Samui if I can persuade him that pale pink is cool.

Koh Samui

Upgrade their swimmers with these Big Cat Clothing trunks. The green shells are fresh and different and the quality is good so no see through trunks after a drop in the pool!

Shells

Enter FATHERSDAY at checkout for 20% off!

If the old boxers are fraying, upgrade to some of Pandora’s Boxers The patterns are cool and the design is well cut. They also arrive in a lovely matching bag (perfect for all their odds and ends) and they wash beautifully. I love the palm ones.

Pandora's Boxers

Give him a gift that will last a lifetime whilst also benefiting workers in the Massai with a Manyatta belt. In the Household Division? He will love this one. MCC Member? This is for him!

Manyatta

I have recently discovered My Odd Balls where all profits go to men affected by testicular cancer. I love these magenta striped sport socks

magenta

am also tempted by the rainbow ones for myself too. All that sport I do… 😉

rainbow

Now, mens summer shoes. It’s a tricky one. Like a bad coat, bad shoes are sackable (when I was a youngster!)

I have done some investigating and listened to my heart rather than fashion telling me what to like and I do think these Castaner’s work for men in the summer.

Loafers

Like loafers but with an espadrille base. I am not saying mine would wear them as he is a flip flop kinda guy (perhaps I shouldn’t admit that) but I would love to force him into some of these!

These light tortoise Bowery sunglasses (like a modern day wayfarer) from Finlay & Co would suit most shapes and colouring.

Bowery

The beauty of them is you can personalise them and put their initials on the arm.

Engraving

If you have a sporty other half and are over seeing him carrying his trainers around in a plastic bag, why not give him the gift of a NEW sports bag from Apatchy? He would never buy one himself but it sure will make heading off to five aside in the evening with all his kit in one bag!

Sports Bag

Hope this gives you some good ideas. Don’t leave it too late or they will be getting that mug…

Lucinda xx