Style Theory: Capsule collection = chic and timeless items you can wear season after season, year after year.

The second instalment in my capsule collection of elegant basics for your wardrobe is: The Chambray and Denim shirt

What is Chambray? 

The official definition is: A fine, lightweight fabric woven with white threads across a colored warp. 

My definition: Think of a mans, casual, blue 'weekend' shirt, slightly heavier in weight than a work shirt, it is a mixed weave so you can see both the pale blue and white threads. As a result the shirt hangs well, looks fab with collars 'popped' up and is fine enough to sit under a jumper. 

The Denim shirt is an absolute classic and a 'must have' in your wardrobe, it can be doubled up with blue denim jeans/ coloured jeans/ shorts or dressed up with midi/ mini skirts or patterned trousers...a truly versatile capsule collection item.

Here are some streetstylers perfecting the art of wearing the denim/chambray shirt:

Love the loose denim shirt over black leather trousers

Wear your fine denim/chambray shirt under a dress.

Dress up your shirt with a sequin jacket and skirt. (love the Tshirt underneath too)

Layer up with cream jumper, camel coat and biker boots.

Dress down leather leggings with denim shirt and jumper

Completely casual...boyfriend jeans and trainers

wear under your Breton top **remember to cuff your sleeves so the denim sleeve is visable.

Love with a blazer, skinny jeans and converse

Smarten your shirt up with a midi skirt

I am loving the bellbottom jeans-this inspired me in 'my style' below

Denim shirt tied at the bottom with fab fringed boots..gorgeous.

All images from Pinterest

Here are the best shirts from the high street starting with chambray shirts:

J Crew Keeper Chambray Shirt £78
J Crew are the leaders of the shirt/jumper combo and no doubt this one will be beautiful  on. It is expensive but this style will last for year after year.

Joules York Chambray Shirt £49.95
This shirt would really work with paler blue jeans for the denim on denim look or perhaps with a  black leather mini/midi skirt, opaque tights.

MiH Sleeveless Chambray Shirt £50.40 (from the Outnet)
Love, love, love this shirt, this is chambray perfection. It has no pockets  so no bulkyness under jumpers, it has a beautiful collar would look fab 'popped' up. The shirt would tuck smoothly into a pencil skirt and would work in the summer beautifully. I have in my online basket ready to buy!

Jack Wills Holecroft Shirt £59.50
This is a fab capsule basic, the shirt hangs well and is cut beautifully so flatters the figure.

Gap Shrunken Boyfriend Shirt £29.95

I have this chambray shirt in pink, it is a great basic but does crush very easily.

Topshop Blue Oxford Denim Shirt £32

A great basic shirt, love the collar.

And now for the denim shirts:

Moto Denim Oversize Shirt £34
This again is a great basic and is cut oversize so fab to wear as Streetstyle image no.1 over a pair of black ankle length trousers/leather trousers.

Gap 1969 Western Shirt £34.99
I have this shirt, it is great a lovely shade of blue, looks great with paler/darker blue jeans and a blazer/camo jacket. However, due to the pockets it cannot be worn under a jumper as it makes the jumper lumpy and is therefore not very flattering.

Forever 21 Camo Denim Shirt £24.75
Not quite with the theme and more of a 'fashion' than capsule item. I saw it and thought it was cute and very 'on trend' Stick on with a pair of black skinny jeans and heels and a camel coat and it will look fab.

So there you have it a rundown of my favourite looks and high street finds of the chambray and denim shirt!

My Style:

Spotty Chambray Shirt: Primark £13

Jeans: J Brand

Coat: M&S 

Boots: Aldo

**apologies for the posing had two seconds to get a photo and it went wrong (obvs)

Hoody: Primark
Jacket: Zara
Black Jeans: Oasis
Trainers: New Balance

Blazer: Zara
Denim Shirt: Gap
Scarf: Becksondergaard
Jeans: Gap
Animal Print Belt: Primark
Boots: Aldo

What do you think of the chambray/denim shirt, is it part of your capsule collection already, do you have any recommendations?
Thanks for reading x

The Leather Look

Style Theory: Dare to defy your age = Leather/pleather jeans or leggings, they can be a statement item in your wardrobe but dressed down can make everyday wear look cool...

I have been debating the leather/pleather jeans look for what seems like my whole life. In the nineties I bought a pair, I wore them once..they were cheap pleather and super hot. However, leather look has moved on a lot since then, it now it looks identical to the real thing and no longer acts like cling film on your skin. In an ideal world you would buy real leather but as this trend has been bubbling on for a couple of years now and if, like me, you are jumping on the bandwagon slightly late, then I would buy cheaper than blow the budget. Here are some street stylers showing leather trousers at their best:

Adore this look with the grey coat and trainers.

Leather trousers look perfect cropped at the ankle with trainers and a grey sweater

Adore the biker style trousers with converse and denim jacket round the waist

Leather panel leggings with leopard print slipper  style shoes and neutral top looks super stylish

Love them with wedge trainers boho top and a camo jacket

White tee and zips at the ankle - perfection in simplicity

Adore this cool look - there is a jacket like this in Monsoon..gorgeous,

I have been trying these on for a while now and have developed my own set of rules for these:

• They are definitely more flattering tighter especially round the thigh area.
• Past a certain age.... erm mid 30s...I would keep tops long...mid thigh for most flattering.
• I think they should be ankle length, this is more flattering and then looks fab teamed with ballet pumps/boots/ heels or trainers.

Styling rules....style leather leggings/trousers with:
Denim shirts and a chunky jumper over the top
Short dresses and wear with ballet pumps, voluminous dresses also look fab with them
Shirt dresses look chic with them but make sure they are not too long.
A grey hoody and pair of bright trainers for a 'street' look.

Now for my pick of the best on the high street:

Hallhuber Leather Effect legging £69.99 (from House of Fraser)
I have these coming to me in the post, they look fab online will report back to you on how they fit.

Topshop Leather Look Skinny Treggings £38

These have been very highly rated in the reviews and look great online.

Zara leather look front motorbike leggings £25.99
Zara trousers are great for those blessed with height,  unfortunately being super short they tend to be 1 metre too long!

Topshop Leather look front leggings £28

These look great on and are good as they are stretchy jersey at the back so not so hot on your legs and can be easily dressed down or up. Remember if buying leather look leggings keep tops, jumpers and cardigans super long as they are far more flattering.

Topshop leather effect leggings £22

I have these ones and love them, they were the best I tried on. They are tight and flattering and at £22 not a bad price. This photo does not do them justice and I would not recommend with a short top....

H&M leather look trousers £24.99

Alternatively you could go for the coated jean option which has a leather-ish effect but not so dramatic and can easily be worked into your daytime wardrobe. Also, these can be worn with shorter jumpers as they tend to have a jean-like top and pockets.

Zara coated jeans with zips £39.99
These are gorgeous and look great on.

Topshop coated skinny jeans £42
Again fab for those Topshop jean fans, a great black jean with a twist.

Zara 5 pocket coated trousers £39.99

M&S Collection Leather Look Ankle Jeggings £25

I tried these on, they are great if you have a curvier figure, are soft, comfortable and high waisted.

A couple of my outfits from this week:

Wearing:
Shirt: Gap
Jumper: Topshop
Leather look leggings: Topshop
Boots: Aldo
Shirt: Hollister

Coat: M&S

Cable knit jumper: Boden

Jeans: Gap

Trainers: JL

Bag: Topshop

So are you into the leather look? Is it something you would wear?

Next time some super capsule basics for your wardrobe and a sneaky peak into Boden Spring/Summer 14 collection. (I am still working on boots!)

Thanks for reading x

Time To Shine

Style Theory: Christmas sparkle = the embellished jumper, a versatile and subtle way to introduce sparkle into your winter wardrobe....

Embellished jumpers can make any outfit look slightly indulgent, they look fabulous dressed down with distressed boyfriend jeans and a pair of courts/shoeboots or worn with straight black jeans/trousers and a pair of heels for a evening out. They make a statement without looking too 'mumsey', you can look cool whilst rocking some glitter.  I would recommend sizing up when buying an embellished jumper as they look better this season slightly slouchy.
Here are a few street stylers working the look:

The jumper looks great teamed with distressed skinny jeans

A jewelled sweatshirt, a great way to dress down jewels.

A serious statement jumper....looks fabulous.

I love the tartan shirt underneath, a great styling tip.

Subtle embellishment on the shoulders, the cigarette trousers and plain black courts look so chic.

And now for my favourite high street finds:
J Crew: This is the jumper I fell for....

Jewelled Chandelier Jumper £168 

I love the way that this has been styled with a chambray shirt underneath and distressed jeans, it looks super stylish although the jumper itself is pricey.

Bib Necklace Sweatshirt £98

Fabulous sweatshirt, I love the turquoise jewels this could also be worn in the summer with a pair of boyfriend jeans and flat neutral coloured sandals.

Topshop: 

Knitted Crystal Stud Jumper £48

I have this jumper in pale grey and I love it, it is so soft and hangs well. I would size up as Topshop knitwear, especially when containing angora, always tends to shrink a little.

Mint Crystal Stud Jumper  £48

Looks fabulous in the mint colour too.

Knitted Crystal Jumper £45

This is the nearest I could find to the J Crew jumper above, the fit is true to size, if in doubt size up for a slouchier look.

Jewelled Collar Jumper £80.10

Fabulous Boden jumper, this is a more fitted shape so would be a 'going out' jumper, it has a beautiful deco style jewels at the collar, I would style this jumper with black cigarette trousers and flat pointed pumps.

Pearl Collar Jumper £45.99

Zara: I love the elegant pearls around the neck of this jumper, it would look fab dressed up with a midi skirt but equally as good with jeans.

Marks and Spencer V Neck Embellished Jumper  £45

I have not seen this in store but I like the V Neck option and the J Crew style of the embellishment.

River Island embellished geo £40

River island: this is slightly 'out there' but I love it, it is a statement jumper with a cool edge.

I would pair the embellished jumper above with these styles of jeans/trousers and shoes:

I always end up being lured into sparkle in December, literally just before Christmas, so this year I decided to buy a little sparkle early so I can get lots of wear out of my jumpers this season.

Embellished Jumper: Topshop
Jeans: Gap
Coat: M&S
Shoes: M&S

Embellished jumper: Topshop
Jeans: 7 For All Mankind
Trainers: John Lewis

Are you ready to indulge in sparkles yet or am I feeling too Christmassy too soon?!

Thanks so much for reading..... next time some fabulous boot ideas....x