And here we are, arriving at the very last try-on post of the year. It makes sense, therefore, to do a recap of some of the winter styling tips that we’ve been discussing in the build-up to the low light days that have now arrived. Let’s think ahead to dressing for Twixmas and the January days when the illumination of Christmas is over and we need to bring light into our lives on our own. Now is the time to prepare for it because in the dizzy world of retail, spring is already on its way. Quite a few early spring drops are landing and that includes Boden’s. Last week they released their ‘Pre-Spring collection,’ the first palette cleansing look towards the new year. It means that if you have a gap in your winter wardrobe you need to address it soon – there are still months of cold dark days ahead of us that will feel better for being uplifted by cheering clothes. Proper wind-howling, teeth-chattering, rain-lashing winter doesn’t really start until January and yet by then the brightest, warmest of clothes will have been cleared to make way for the blush tones and soft greens that will be filling the shops. So today I’m wrapping up winter brightness – clothes for the cusp of the year.
Winter brightness – clothes for the cusp of the year
Casual layering – Winter brightness
The stormy weather we’ve been having is apparently thanks to it being a La Niña year and at the moment there’s a very cold forecast for the months ahead. Right now that feels appealing, it’s been ages since we’ve had a truly cold winter – 2009/10 as I remember. I know it was a winter when the eldest was having a birthday sleepover on 21st December and we had a houseful of 13 year old boys begging to be allowed to go out sledging at midnight – which they did and it was magical. I remember walking on the frozen canal with Nicky and her boys playing hare and hounds on Boxing Day. The dads went ahead with bottles of water dyed with red food colouring, leaving arrows in the snow so that we could hunt them down… and how surprised were we when we tracked them to a pub a few villages away?!
Anyway this is the sort of outfit that makes me think of that, layers of warmth that can be stripped off when you reach a blazing fire. I already have and love the coat version of this jacket so I was keen to try it. I can’t help wondering why they haven’t made it reversible – it’s perfectly made for wearing the other way round as well but they’ve stitched the labels in – they could be cut out though. It’s just the right kind of short boxy fit for layering over other pieces and adding a bit more panache to your winter days than the ubiquitous puffer.
Faux shearling jacket; Toggle cardigan; (jeans and boots Boden past season)
The cardigan has just arrived and it’s the sort of thing that you find yourself living in in January. Toggles are another big trend this winter, you’ll have seen lots of versions of cream bouclé coats with toggles around that look like this and now Boden have cleverly brought them into daywear. I know this will be on and off the back of my chair in the office as I go through my daily routine of throwing the windows open until I shiver and then sitting up close to the radiator. And it will be a great piece to layer over pyjamas too – I’ve never seen a good looking dressing gown so this is the sort of thing I wear in the evenings instead. The one thing I will say though is size down if you like a neater fit, it’s designed with lots of layering space underneath.
And scarves work hard to add colour to outfits at this time of year, especially if you wear plain coats. This one is heavy and warm but the colours will be just right for the spring palette. The zig zag has a touch of sparkle, not too much – just enough to elevate it.
Toggle cardigan; chunky scarf (jeans and boots Boden past season)
The jumper is cotton so it’s breathable next to the skin. There’s plenty of room for thermals underneath for anyone who doesn’t live with post-menopausal body heat and the stripes are sporty, adding a youthful blast of colour. Or should we say ‘lifeful’? Have you seen that Helen Mirren is campaigning to subvert the use of youthful and replace it with lifeful for our age group? She says it would be the perfect recognition of a midlife woman’s adventurous spirit, compounded by a life lived to the full. I have to say I like it – what do you think? Should we use it and introduce a new word into our midlife idiolects?
Faux shearling jacket; striped cotton jumper (jeans and boots Boden past season)
So – style tips recap:
- Colour – it can be very hard to wear white, especially at this time of year when winter skin is at its most sallow. You can see that the ‘red thread’ in this outfit is cream which makes all the difference unless you have a very cool skintone. It’s a good idea to avoid navy and black for the same reason – use warmer, lighter colours to lift rather than subdue your outfits.
- Texture – work it as hard as you can. I’ve been banging on about this all season so I’m sure it’s coming as second nature to you now but in the run up to Christmas we’ve been looking at contrasting shine with soft. If you’ve had enough of it by new year (hard for me to imagine but…) try working with different contrasts of soft instead – cottons and cashmeres with bouclé and tweed for example. Remember that denim is always a texture of its own and will work much harder for you than a flat, solid coloured trouser or skirt.
- Layer – you don’t need me to tell you about the temperature benefits but there’s a visual advantage too as it gives a 3D effect to your outfit, making it more interesting.
Fit details – jacket 12 true to size, cardigan M oversized, jumper M true to size
Out Out – Winter brightness
January can be a bit of a lost month as we all recover from Christmas can’t it? But how many Januarys do we have in our lives? And how many more are behind us than ahead? With that in mind I’ve already put an uplifting weekend in the diary… nothing special, we’re just going over to Newcastle but in the right (lifeful) frame of mind we can make it fun. I think it’s worth having something like that to look forward to on 5th January when all of the decorations come down.
So here’s a suggestion for a date night outfit that would work for you now too if you’re somebody who wants to feel Christmassy but doesn’t like sparkle – go for colour instead. Or think about Valentine’s Day which is a particularly special time of year if you work for yourself. Not in a romantic way, it’s the day when your January 1st Corporation Tax bill, the January 31st Self-Assessment bill and the February 8th VAT bill have all been dealt with (HMRC is brutal with its timing to the self-employed). When we chose February 10th as our wedding date we had no idea what a very relieved day it would be in our calendar every year!
Anyway, I have a few of my favourite colours going on in this outfit. The red version of the navy jacket that I love so much, worn in defiance of the winter gloom. It’s a slightly softer shade of Boden’s usual postbox red, just a little knocked back which really gives your skin a boost. A few of you will be pleased to see that it isn’t too cropped which makes it easy to wear with both wide and slim leg jeans. I’m wearing the wide legs that you’ve seen a few times before, I’m glad that solid indigo is having a strong fashion moment, it’s the shade I always veer towards anyway so I’m pleased to see a backlash against the very pale washes that were everywhere last summer.
Red wool jacket; Paisley blouse; Wide leg jeans, Gold belt
I’ve added a little bit of shine with a gold metallic belt – you don’t have to of course but I find it makes an outfit more interesting. The statement necklace has obviously been designed with Valentines in mind but it’s something you could wear all year round. I wore it over a red crew neck cashmere jumper for our first village choir performance on Friday night and it made all the difference to a simple outfit. It isn’t too heavy so if you’re just starting to make the move away from more delicate necklaces it’s a good and very affordable way of edging towards it.
Red wool jacket; Paisley blouse; Heart statement necklace; Wide leg jeans, Gold belt
Fit details – jacket M true to size, blouse 12 true to size, jeans 28 slightly generous (they have stretch); belt M true to size
So – style tips recap:
- A blouse with volume is often easier to wear in a fabric that drapes (this is viscose) than a stiffer fabric such as cotton which can look bulky.
- Avoid dark outerwear at this time of year if you want to stand out – if you glance around a crowd you’ll notice that people look like ants in all of their dark tones.
- Waists are having a moment – after years of not being worn suddenly belts are back. You can create the illusion of a waist by playing around with the tuck of your top – use a French tuck to just tuck the front in and let the rest drape more loosely. Remember that outfits often look best when horizontal lines are avoided.
Winter day outfit – Winter brightness
This is my winter uniform for meetings – either with work or with friends, any time when I’m away from muddy paths. Let’s talk about the skirt first. I would never wear a plain skirt of any kind – or trousers. In my mind they’re just such a wasted opportunity, it’s a large part of your outfit so don’t dedicate it to a dull, flat surface. Metallic makes all the difference, regardless of the time of year – it works as well in summer with sandals and a t-shirt as it does now in the depth of winter. And when it’s pleated it flutters as you walk, catching the light in all kinds of ways so it’s constantly working hard for you.
Purple cashmere jumper; Silver pleated skirt; Silver boots
Purple is new to me this season. I’ve banned myself from adding any new blue, red or green jumpers to my wardrobe so this is a great find. Purple is one of the ‘true’ colours that suits almost any skintone. You can wear it with something dark like black and being closer on the colour spectrum the contrast isn’t as harsh as red. Or you can wear it more tonally with corresponding shades of deep blue. This jumper is a warm, heavy gauge cashmere with a usefully split, deep ribbed hem that makes it easy to tuck casually at the front like this.
The boots are the ones you saw last month and I’ve worn them even more than I thought I would. They’re so comfortable because they have subtly elasticated vents at the back, a solid low heel that’s easy to walk in and a gently shaped chisel toe.
Purple cashmere jumper; Silver pleated skirt; Silver boots
Fit details – skirt 12 true to size but no stretch – size up if between sizes, jumper M true to size, boots true to size
So – style tips recap:
- Wear colour – it’s easy to slip into a rut of navy, black and grey in winter but colour will uplift you and everyone who sees you
- Don’t forget the unexpected item – midlife women often complain about feeling invisible but if you wear something a bit unusual it will catch eyes and open conversations
- Texture is everything – make sure your outfit works hard all over. Before you put something on, consider what it’s bringing anything to your look – if it’s flat and absorbs the light then it isn’t earning its outfit keep.
So that’s it for this year in terms of Christmas posts and style posts – they’re all done. I’ll be back on Friday with a catch-up on what I’ve been doing and wearing then there will be one last post next Friday before it’s over and out. After some of the feedback you gave me in a survey earlier this year I’ve included more style tips than I have before. If you have a moment it would be really useful to know if they’ve been helpful.
Like most people, over the Christmas break I’ll be starting to think about next year and what to do. I’ve been playing around with Instagram and Facebook a bit more this month but I notice that every time I write something there, Meta sends it to fewer and fewer people (a thousand less each time)… unless I pay! My instinct is to continue writing this blog but I have choices to make and your feedback would help me know which way to go.
In the meantime I want to thank Boden for their support this year. I’m lucky to have a few brands around me who continue to value blogs and I can’t keep bringing Midlifechic to you without them. The associated costs are just too high but their back-up means I can keep on writing it. So thank you for supporting them in return – your clicks and comments show them that you’re interested in what they have to offer and give them valuable feedback on what’s working well.
I’ll see you on Friday and in the meantime I hope you have a very happy, Christmassy week with time to pause and enjoy the build-up.
Disclosure: ‘Winter brightness – clothes for the cusp of the year’ was commissioned by Boden but as always, outfit choices, words and thoughts are my own
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