What I’m Buying This Month

Hello lovely humans.

We're only five days into March, and so far, two things have happened. One: I decided (and Keir then concurred) that we should swap the dining room and living room around, creating a cosy snug for TV-watching and allowing more space for when we have people over for dinner (*cough*pre-drinks*cough*). Two: I've been shopping - a lot.

Praise be the higher powers which finally opened the flood gates for all of the S/S18 collections to start dropping, although my bank balance is decidedly less grateful than me. As much as I love knitwear (and I really do love knitwear), there are only so many fluted sleeve jumpers a girl can look at before she really starts to question the choices she'd made in life. Nobody needs that many soup-danglers, I'm sure.

If you've been keeping up with all of the Fashion Week hysteria, you'll undoubtedly have witnessed a slew of old and new trends hitting the catwalks once again. Unfortunately I'm quite possibly one of the lousiest fashion bloggers going (I tend to refer to myself as a Personal Style blogger as opposed to fashion, but that does sound a bit like "I'm not a postman, Janine, I'm a mail connection representative"), so I haven't caught up on a single show and I don't have a clue what's next on the Hip List. I do, however, know what is tickling my fancy right now, so I thought I'd share my shopping list with featuring a few bits I either have bought or will be buying this month.

Whilst we're talking about trends, something to note: whilst trends are often given a bad rap, experimenting and expressing yourself with style is precisely what fashion is about. Every day you have the opportunity to create this interpretation of how you're feeling and thinking, and whilst for some the delivery is something more regular or coherent, for others, personal style changes with the wind. There's an elitist attitude attached to "never following trends and staying true to yourself", but it's snobbish bollocks. Wear what you want, when you want. Pep talk over.

Blazer - Zara (old)

Dress - Reformation

Headband - Amazon

Trainers - Fila

Bag - X Nihilo

Big, Ugly Trainers

"Hello everyone, my name is Chloe and I'm addicted to ugly trainers."

If you haven't already been pulled into the bulky trainer black hole, hold on to your seat because this may just be your initiation. People have been losing their shit for big, ugly trainers ever since our favourite Instagram It Girls started sporting those now perpetually-sold-out Balenciaga Triple S sneakers. Now you can't move for chunky trainers, and you know it's legit when Zara are pulling out their basic bitch high-street alternatives (the likes of which I always buy in droves, FYI). Hate it or love it, much like the Doritos packets that Keiran insists on leaving on the floor, ugly trainers are here to stay. I've been teaming my Fila Disruptor IIs with suits and tailored trousers for that ever-elusive cool girl vibe, but I'll also be sporting them with dresses and culottes once the temperatures start to pick up. Colour wise I already have a fair few pairs of white trainers so these ~ need ~ to be my last, but as for the camel/nude shade? Well, let's just say I'm hungry for caramel and this time, a Twix ain't gonna cut it (okay fine I'll take a Twix too).

Preppy Hair Pieces

I've never watched Gossip Girl, but I've received enough Blair Waldorf comparisons over the past month or so to feel like I might as well have. Hair accessories are well and truly back on my radar, and the preppier the better. Unsurprisingly I have spiralled from purchasing "just one staple item" to ordering hair ribbons in every shade of the rainbow, but the pursuit for that perfect 60s retro style has begun and I'm far too involved to call it quits now. Clearly I'm not pulling it off in these pictures because I really could have done with a brush, but hey, it's progress. As well as teaming the headbands with knits and dresses for a more 'lady-like' approach, I've also been loving them teamed with oversized borg coats and trainers for a little bit of a juxtaposition of styles. If you fancy joining me in my quest to look much richer and more refined than I am, then go padded and chunky with the Alice Bands and soft and silky for the ties. Need inspo? Alice Catherine nails it every time.

Old professor suits

Okay, I couldn't quite fit all of my favourite trends into one outfit, so you'll have to use your imagination a little with this one (although the look featured in this blog post should help you out). When it comes to a tailored suit I've always been a big fan, but weirdly I've never taken the plunge into actually grabbing one for myself. This is likely down to the price (when you're buying a blazer AND a pair of trousers the cost quickly shoots up, especially if you're looking anywhere other than the likes of New Look and Boohoo), but also because I've never found anything which is as timeless as, but more interesting than, a classic black co-ord. With the arrival of brown checks, however, everything changed, and I'm now the proud owner of multiple boxy blazers, plus, more importantly, one full-on, old-man professor suit. It's big, baggy, bougie, and I love it. Honorable mentions also go out to this new Zara Blazer, this old Zara blazer, and this & Other Stories number which may not be brown-toned but is still cute af.

Green (at least kind of)

First mustard, then rust, now green - well, at least kind of. This season my colour palette of choice is centering around soft, sage greens and is-it-green-or-is-it-blue duck egg hues, the kind of colours that you'll get bonus points for not wearing black or beige in, but also the kind of colours which are basically the second-cousin-removed of your usual natural tones. Side note: when I had my blog redesigned last year I chose this soft green shade as my accent colour, so if that doesn't scream trendsetter to you, then I don't know what will (kidding, of course). Whilst I've been coveting this flavour of the moment in the form of transitional knitwear, my beady eye is well and truly set on this beautiful suit from Mango and this Instagram-girl-on-holiday-in-Italy Topshop dress, the likes of which I would love to wear but I fear may be too long on my petite bod. Nonetheless, the spring 2018 vibe has been established - if I don't look like a walking herb garden, I'm not doing it right.