I know, there wasn’t supposed to be a post this week but just as I was about to log off for our holiday, one last interesting opportunity dropped into my Inbox. But this time it wasn’t for me, it was for the boys which made such a nice change. So often I see mummy bloggers doing posts with their little ones and wonder what it would have been like to work with mine when they were little and pliable. Poor old teens don’t seem to be very high on the popularity scale.

Of course when I announced at the dinner table that I had an exciting project for them focusing on ‘back to school for teens,’ I was met with the single sardonic eyebrow that they’ve both mastered so well over the years. Until I revealed that it involved choosing something from Superdry and they were suddenly on board. So, their brief was to put something together for their respective returns. It was a strain for their poor brains in the first week of the summer holidays but they managed the task nevertheless.

The youngest is still in uniform for one more year and his school is very strict. The only opportunity they have for any individuality is with a coat which has to be black or navy and have minimal branding, and a bag over which they have free rein.

Back To School for Teens

Military parka jacket

They both really wanted this fishtail parka but the middle son conceded gracefully because he knew he had so much more scope to choose from. It’s going to be absolutely perfect for a Fifth former who wants to assert his personality without any comeback during the uniform inspection. It has a half fleece lining and is relatively light so it won’t be too much of a nuisance to carry around school on warmer autumn days.

Back To School for Teens

Military parka; Backpack

His choice of backpack was less minimal than the ones I usually buy but still within regulations.

Back To School for Teens

Backpack

The middle son is going into his last year of Sixth Form (how can that be true) and his school is much more relaxed. They have to have a shirt, trousers (not jeans), a jacket and shoes or boots rather than trainers but within those parameters, they can choose what they wear.

Now I was impressed when I saw his selection. We’re going to be talking a lot about colours in September because the biggest change next season is to the colour palette. To my great joy, brown is back along with all of the tonal rusts and oranges that go with it.

Back To School for Teens

Down hooded jacket; Ultimate University shirt; Slim chino pants; Mesh tarp backpack; Chelsea boots

So he did well, basing his selection around a very on trend pair of rust coloured chinos which were complimented by orange accents in the bag and jacket. His tan Chelsea boots are tonal as are the khaki panels on his bag… that’s my boy!

Back To School for Teens

Down hooded jacket; Slim chino pants; Mesh tarp backpack; Chelsea boots

The jacket packs down (although it doesn’t have a stuff sack) so he’ll be able to put it in his bag when he’s inside. Of course it will also layer well when the weather gets colder. The quality of the chinos is really impressive. The ones that I’ve been buying up to now never seem to last longer than a term but it feels as if these will. He also mentioned quite a few times how comfortable they were because they have a good amount of elastane in them.

Back To School for Teens

Ultimate University shirt; Slim chino pants; Mesh tarp backpack; Chelsea boots

As those of you with teens will already know, it’s difficult doing Back to School at this age and it would never have occurred to me to look at Superdry for school clothes. So, if you have similarly hard to please offspring, you may find that you’re greeted with more enthusiasm if you turn to them than anywhere else.

Back To School for Teens

And there you have it, the first thoughts about new season on Midlifechic with a taste of the new colours to come.

Behind the scenes

And just in case it seems that the boys were too compliant to be true, they weren’t. As always, Mr MC just keeps on snapping and this is what happens behind the scenes…

Back To School for Teens

… there was a lot of messing around going on…

Back To School for Teens

… until I had to do this…

Back To School for Teens

… but as always when I’m getting cross they have a method of working their way round me…

Nikki Garnett

… a skill they seem to have acquired by observing their dad.

Midlifechic

I just want to thank Superdry for solving a headache for me in advance… and for enticing the boys away from their consoles for a day last week. And with that I’m off to jump into the swimming pool and enjoy the Turkish sunshine while I can. It won’t be long before our mornings are back to this.

Back To School for Teens

Disclosure: Back To School for Teens is a post in collaboration with Superdry and I’d like to thank them for the clothes they provided. The outfits were chosen by the boys themselves and duly tried and tested by them. Thank you for supporting these occasional collaborations with brands, without them I couldn’t continue to publish Midlifechic.

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