Outfit Post + Other Interesting Things

Hasn't the weather in the UK been wonderful recently?! I have this week off work, and for once I've timed it to coincide with this glorious weather so that I can enjoy it rather than be stuck indoors the whole time.

First outfit post in a very long time, it's been a chore getting into the habit of taking them now I'm back at work. I'm going to try to do them on a slightly more regular basis, and I have no excuse now that the evenings are lighter (British Summer Time ftw).

Hat: Matalan // Dress: Tesco // Sandals: Primark

I wore the above for a short trip to East Riddlesden Hall, a manor house not far from me. Just a simple floral dress - one of about 20 I have in my collection, no kidding. I really love these sandals that I got from Primark last week; I've been looking for a kind of simple, rustic sort of pair for ages, and once again good old Primark came up with the goods. They're real leather, and although at £12.99 they're not cheap by Primark's standards, I was prepared to pay that princely sum - we'll see how long they last though, I am pretty brutal to my shoes!

East Riddlesden Hall wasn't the most interesting of places to visit, though it was very pretty; on a day like today, it was worth the entrance fee just to walk round the grounds and get excited about green things growing (I get that excited about springtime). 

Ta-Dah!

Woohoo, no stupid shoe to wear any more! I am free to walk around normally, though I can't get back to my horse riding for another two weeks just to be on the safe side. It's really strange walking now, my hips feel unlevel as the shoe I had to wear had quite a high wedge. There is also no strength in my calf whatsoever, I am actually having to learn how to walk all over again! It's quite bizarre, I find I'm paying much more attention to the biomechanics of simple things like going upstairs because it feels so alien!

To celebrate my new freedom I went out for a drive and a short walk - hence the stompy walking boots above. I bought them yesterday, straight after my final appointment at the hospital, and they were nicely supportive for my little sojourn to Sandal Castle.

Also, the hat is pretty awesome, no? I love how ridiculous these animals hats are, and I don't care if they look a little childish, I had to have one. :D And I certainly couldn't say no when it was only £3 from a charity shop!

hat - charity shop // jumper - Primark // jeans - Topshop // boots - Go Outdoors

In the interests of something none foot-related, here are some pictures of Sandal Castle - it's not the most exciting of castles I've ever been to, but I'd never been before and that's as good a reason to go to something as any, in my book.

An Afternoon in Haworth + What I Wore

A brief drive out to Haworth today, birthplace of the Bronte sisters and the setting for all my Wuthering Heights-esque fantasies. I'm pretty sure I would be shot for admitting this as a relative local (I live 5 miles away), but for all its touristy clichéd-ness, I do actually like Haworth a lot. It's super-pretty, has gorgeous wild countryside all around, and has plenty of cute little shops - and, of course, a sense of history. 

I took both my digital camera and my Diana with me, photography poseur that I am, with the intention of wandering down the main street and taking some pictures. Unfortunately, the heavens decided to open the minute I stepped out of my car, and Haworth itself was practically dead, and only a handful of shops were open. Who knew that Haworthians (I just made that term up) have Christmas holidays that last until the 13th of January? So, I only took a few small snapshots on my phone in the end.

 

A fantastic second-hand bookshop crammed with books on all sorts of categories. This shop would have been absolute agony for me, on my no-book-buying kick, but I didn't have any money on me anyway so temptation was removed, thankfully. Though they did have a beautiful encyclopedia on horses from the 1950's which was beautiful, and I'm tempted to go back and get it - I've decided I'm allowed to buy non-fiction still!

On to a cafe for hot chocolate with a book from my reading list (The Unconsoled by Kazuo Ishiguro); pretty items in the only vintage shop that was open; the main street in Haworth.

striped body: George at Asda // cardigan: H&M // belt: Next // skirt: Boohoo // bag: H&M // right shoe: can't remember! A cheap and tacky shoe shop I think

I wore this belt for the first time today, which I feel a bit bad about because it was a birthday present from my parents and I'd wanted to make use of it sooner than I have. As I mentioned when I got it, I wasn't quite sure how to wear it; it's so precious I wanted an outfit to show it off. Don't think I quite managed it here but it's a start. I think I need to maybe wear one plain colour with it, for example a plain black dress. I just don't like wearing plain colours!

a nice way to spend a bank holiday + what i wore

Even though every day feels like a bank holiday for me, I've been off work for a month now.

I went to an antiques and collectibles fair in Halifax today. I've never been to one before but I would like to start collecting a few bits and pieces at some point - especially when I eventually have my own place. I loved it; I adore car boot sales, so this was basically an upgraded version, and indoors as well so no freezing my socks off/getting drenched. I was expecting a lot more high-end stuff but there was plenty of random tat, just the way I like it!

Here are some photos of a few things I was drooling over.

pretty jewellery

 

 cute typewriter

vintage sewing magazines

I didn't have much of a budget today, having bought a new laptop as a Christmas present to myself I am having to be strict with myself until the end of the month. However, as I said above there was a surprising amount of affordable items, so I was able to buy a couple of things. I of course homed in on the bargain £1 boxes of jewellery like the bargain-hunter I am!

'pearl' ring, £1

bangle, £1

bangle no. 2, also £1

my favourite purchase of the day, this ladybird purse! It has a little zip on the other side of it, but I'm not going to use it; it's too delicately beaded for that. A bargain at a mere £2, and I shall add it to my growing collection of ladybird-related objects.

dress: George at Asda // belt: Primark // right shoe (!): H! by Henry Holland

wish my spots would go away!

The dress has such a pretty print, I love it; easily the nicest thing I've seen in Asda in a long time. I dyed my hair red yesterday; I've had blonde highlights for many years and before that I was my natural colour (medium brown), so it was a big change for me! Unfortunately my hair is so long and thick there wasn't quite enough dye to evenly do all of my hair (or maybe my mum did a rubbish job for me - I got her to do it seeing as I'd never dyed my hair before, perhaps it serves me right!) so the ends at the back of my head are more brown than red. But it's only semi-permanent so it won't be too long before I can re-dye it. And, as shown above, I can still wear my beloved red lipstick (something I was a bit worried about)!