How to wear Hush when you don't do slouchy

I’m really pleased that so many of you said you enjoyed my edit of the Inès de La Fressange at Uniqlo collection because I have a few more reviews of individual retailer collections planned over the next few weeks. Today I’m looking at Hush and I’m working in exactly the same way, in a collaboration where I’m free to style the clothes as I want to and talk to you about how they feel to wear. I know quite a few of you read Midlifechic because you have a similar ‘neat’ style to mine and I often get emails saying that you find it hard to make Hush work for you. So the approach I’m taking today is how to wear Hush when you don’t do slouchy.

But first, let’s have a recap on Hush as a brand. Although some retailers are starting to catch up, I do believe that Hush led the way when it came to the concept of ageless style. I’ve been building my relationship with them for over four years now. I’m one of the older bloggers that they work with but they’ve never once made me feel as though that’s a negative and as you know, some brands do. Whenever I meet with them, they always listen to the feedback I give them, not only from my own perspective but from you too as a collective of readers. As you know I will always prioritise the brands who hear us and think about what it means for their ranges.

Not everything from Hush works for me but about half of it does. I can appreciate the aesthetics of their looser, slouchy numbers but they’re just not my style. However there’s still plenty of choice in the range. Once you understand their sizing, you can adapt it to your own look – it works best for me when I size down. And when you find your fit, their pieces are youthful (makes me sound ancient but I can’t think of a better word) and they inject energy into your wardrobe. So here’s my edit of the current collection along with a guide to size and fit.

Midlifechic edit – how to wear Hush Autumn 2018

As the heatwave blazed down upon us in June, Hush gave me the run of their autumn lookbook. As I do every season, I wanted to see if I could build a capsule from their collection to meet the three facets of my life: work, weekend and night out. One of the liberating parts of this exercise is that prices are not attached and so the only steer I’m working with is a creative one.

Hush capsule wardrobe, Autumn 2018

So this is the Hush capsule wardrobe that I put together. Not everything mixes and matches because I’ve chosen to work with two neutral bases (black and navy) to add some contrast but there is plenty of outfit versatility to play with.

Workwear – Hush AW18

The checked suit

This was my first weekly catch-up meeting after our holiday. I was finding it really hard to get back into the swing of things so it was great to have a suit to pull on. I love wearing trousersuits, they take me right back to my Selfridges ‘power’ heyday. I had a number of them, mostly from Calvin Klein and I simply used to throw one on with a simple white t-shirt each day. Worn with a pair of neoprene ankle boots and my Mulberry briefcase, I felt ready for the many meetings with the very different brands that I had to go to.

As you probably know, this kind of check is a big trend at the moment (I just thought I should add that because a colleague clearly hadn’t got that particular memo and commented that it was very retro).

Checked jacket; Cropped check trousers; T-shirt; Boots

You could still wear this suit with a white t-shirt but of course the look of the moment as we transition from summer to autumn is a slogan or graphic tee. It works because it ticks off the ‘conflict’ rule that sits at the heart of every chic wardrobe. Always have a clash in your outfit if you want to stand out, something that confuses people so that they can’t quite sum you up. In the workplace this usually consists of high:low – conformity:rebellion.

The jacket and trousers are both a size 12 and true to size. The fabric is quite light so good for this transitional season. The jacket is a looser cut than I would usually go for but it means that it will work as well with jeans and a jumper as with the matching trousers.

Checked jacket; Cropped check trousers; T-shirt; Boots

Carpe diem t-shirt

You can’t see Carpe Diem without thinking a little sadly about Robin Williams can you? Still it’s always a good motto to live your life by and I’m thinking that if a meeting goes on too long I can just get up and leave saying that I’m living by my t-shirt. The nice surprise is that the logo is in a deep red flock so it feels very luxe. A seam down the back of the t-shirt elevates it further. In terms of fit, I’ve sized down to a small as I almost always do with Hush t-shirts which gives me a neater shape.

Cropped check trousers; T-shirt; Boots

Metallic red boots

And that brings me on to the boots. Be still my beating heart! I love these and they just seem to make everybody smile – and of course they give everyone (yes everyone) the opportunity for a little Wizard of Oz joke which pleases them no end. They are my usual size, they fit perfectly and despite being very pointed, the leather is soft so they are comfortable. Apart from giving them this outing, I’m refusing to let myself wear boots for at least another month but I find I’m having to hold myself back from these in the mornings.

Kitten heel Chelsea Boots

Weekend wear – Hush AW18

Jeans

Let’s move on. I know autumn is coming when Mr MC and I start our weekly cake habit again, going down to the farm in our village that sells the best cake in the world. I really mean that. When I put this outfit together, there were no jeans in the lookbook so I suggested that Hush send whatever they thought would work best. My only condition was that they were not distressed. I was surprised when I opened the box and saw they were skinnies. Apart from the black ones I wore with Uggs when we were at the Ice Hotel, I haven’t worn skinnies for over a year. I’d forgotten how easy they are… and comfortable – there’s just so much stretch in them (perfect for eating cake). I’m wearing a size 12, they’re a good high rise and true to size.

Rainbow jumper

I’m slowly building a collection of forever jumpers and this is one of them. It’s made from a supersoft alpaca blend so it doesn’t itch and I know it’s one of those pieces that I’ll turn to on grey days, just to cheer myself up. Rainbow colours and motifs continue to be strong this season. These colours are warm and so they will brighten a winter complexion and they include this season’s paprika and turmeric shades which make it look more on trend than a lot of the other striped jumpers around. I sized down to a small for a less slouchy fit.

Alpaca blend striped jumper; Skinny jeans; Block heeled shoes

Long cardigan

More comfort zone dressing for me – from the end of October until April I live in long, cosy cardigans. They draw the eye down to the knee and so you appear slimmer, even if you’re wearing layers. The cocoon shape that Hush does always looks contemporary rather than ‘lunch at the garden centre’ (or cake at the farm) if you know what I mean. Again I’m wearing a small so that it doesn’t swamp me.

Alpaca wool mix cardigan; Alpaca blend striped jumper; Skinny jeans; Block heeled shoes

Block heeled shoes

And the shoes – for anyone deterred by the pointed toes on the boots, these are utterly comfortable. You may have noticed the square toe trend for sandals that started coming through from the catwalk this summer. It’s now just beginning to appear in shoes so these are slightly ahead of the curve. It’s great when the fashion gods align with the need for space for all five toes isn’t it?

Skinny jeans; Block heeled shoes

Night out – Hush AW18

And so this brings us to Saturday night when we were going out with friends. As you may have seen from Instagram, my main aim was to cheer them up because they’re facing their first university drop-off with their eldest son and it’s hard. They both seem to be fighting their feelings but sometimes you just have to lean in and go with your emotions until they pass. As Walt Whitman said, “these are the days that must happen to you.” However it’s also a good idea to allow a friend to ply you with wine every so often so that you can forget everything for a while! If you’re going through the same thing, I’m sending you a virtual hug and one of those glasses of wine to go with it.

Anyway I digress. The unfortunate part of being my friend is that because my life is so intertwined with Midlifechic these days, you often have to hang around for ten minutes while we take pictures and this was one of those occasions. I could have worn this coat with any of the outfits I’ve shown you but actually I wasn’t sure how cold it was going to get on this evening so I added it to this one.

Snake print scarf

I’m now going to be doing a bit of a striptease because there are so many pieces I wanted to show you so let’s start with the scarf. When I ordered from the lookbook of course, I couldn’t tell that it was cashmere but, as we’ll go on to discuss in the trend posts, animal print is a big deal this season and I prefer the greys of snake print to the black and tan of leopard. As soon as you see this one, you can tell it’s cashmere – it has the same lustre as a good quality pashmina and although it’s an investment, it’s something you’ll have forever.

Red coat; Cashmere scarf; Metallic crossbody bag (styled as clutch); Asymmetric satin skirt; Boots

Red cocoon coat

Now I’d asked for a medium in the coat and at first when I put it on, I thought I’d made a mistake because it felt huge. However now I’ve seen these photos I like it and as most of my coats are fitted, it will add some contrast to my winter wardrobe. It isn’t a very heavy coat and so when it gets really cold, I’ll layer it and there’s plenty of room underneath for that.

Red coat; Metallic crossbody bag (styled as clutch); Asymmetric satin skirt; Boots

Red metallic bag

The bag is a crossbody although the strap tucks in nicely if you want to use it as a clutch as I’m doing here. It matches the ankle boots that I was wearing earlier and as we approach Christmas I may style the two together. For now it gives a good contrast to the flat red of the coat

Rock ‘n’ Roll jumper

I had this Rock ‘n’ Roll jumper in the heavy knit polo-neck last year and I loved it but it was so thick that I wasn’t able to wear it as much as I wanted to. I’m really pleased that Hush have reissued it in soft cashmere – it will be my go-to ‘popping out for brunch or a drink’ weekend jumper. I sized down to a small which once more, gave me the neat fit I wanted.

Rock ‘n’ Roll cashmere jumper; Metallic crossbody bag (styled as clutch); Asymmetric satin skirt; Boots

Graphic t-shirt

And down to the final layer – I had to keep moving around to stay warm while Mr MC fiddled around with the aperture so you have a little dance going on. I’ve worn this t-shirt a lot since it arrived… to me it says Wonder Woman. The boys see the Netflix series GLOW but seeing as that stands for Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling, I’ll go with that! Why do I like it so much? It’s made from the softest cotton and it just makes me smile. Again I sized down to a small.

Asymmetric slip skirt

The trend for slip skirts cut on the bias takes me straight back to the 90s and I was worried that the satin would catch the light as it skimmed over the wine and ice cream curves that came back from holiday with me. Luckily it didn’t which means I can recommend it. The asymmetric hem updates it and stops you from feeling as though you’ve worn it before. I’m wearing a size 12 and it’s true to size.

Calf length slouch boots

And finally the boots. Slouch boots are everywhere this season. I tried an over-the-knee version with my asymmetric hems last winter but they were just a nuisance because they wouldn’t stay up. In fact at one point when I was rushing around London going to lots of meetings I had to nip into John Lewis and buy safety pins to that I could attach them to my tights! These are a good alternative – you have the slouch effect but because they grip your calf, they don’t slide down your legs. The upper part is synthetic but the ‘shoe’ is suede. On these I would suggest you size up though. I was wearing my usual size and there is no room to spare. They’re very pointed and although they felt fine at first, by the end of the evening I was ready to amputate my big toes.

W T-shirt; Metallic crossbody bag (styled as clutch); Asymmetric satin skirt; Boots

So, there you have it, my personal edit of the new Hush collection. It’s a brand for everyone, all you have to do is select the right pieces and then adapt them to your own style. I often smile when I read the onsite reviews because so many seem to say that they sized up for a more slouchy feel. Almost every time, I size down for a neater look and just by doing that it changes from a range that I’d like to wear but can’t to a range that makes me feel great. It may not be how the designers intended it to look but that’s the great thing about being a midlifer, you know how to dress your body and wear things your own way.

Hush are offering free delivery and free returns with code AUTUMN18 at checkout.

New launch today

As you may have seen, John Lewis have celebrated the launch of their new identity today. I’m thrilled to say that they’ve also released a new range for women. It includes some of the perfect pieces that we asked them for back in the spring – and not a pattern in sight! Brands are listening to us my friends so let’s keep on being vocal. I’ll be bringing you my review next week so you can see what it looks like on me but it’s selling very fast. If you can’t wait, you can see it here.

Disclosure: ‘How to wear Hush when you don’t do slouchy’ is an unedited collaboration with Hush. All styling, sizing, thoughts and pictures are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that help me to keep on putting my time and resources into Midlifechic.

How to wear Hush when you don’t do slouchy