Midlife Loves

"Timeless everyday style"

Midlife Loves

Updating A Classic

So following on from my recent sales post on navy blazers (see here) & my light bulb moment of adding brass buttons to my existing navy blazer, I thought today I'd update you on my little experiment of updating my blazer.

Now for most of us January can be a pretty frugal month as we try to recover from the expenditure & excesses that December brings & whilst I would love to purchase another navy blazer in the sales with brass buttons it seemed ridiculous to invest in yet another blazer (of which I have my fair few!!) just because I now prefer brass buttons to the plain navy ones on my existing & as good as new blazer sitting in my wardrobe....hence the lightbulb moment of swapping the buttons!!!

First up here's a picture, which ok is never going to win any photography awards of said blazer.  As you can see a great classic single breasted number but a little on the plain/office wear side for my liking.




And here's a picture of me wearing said blazer styled with a simple cream polo neck, boyfriend jeans and my new tan boots.




Now being the lazy & impatient thing that I am, I couldn't be bothered nor could I wait until I went 'real' shopping to look for some new brass buttons....as hubby will tell you & no doubt roll his eyes at the thought, once I've had an idea & set my mind to something I generally want to get on & do it straight away.....oh how he loves to come home to the words 'babe I've had an idea.......' NOT!!!  So with said idea fully in mind I decided to go 'virtual' shopping in the wonderful world of eBay, after all if eBay doesn't sell it, it's not worth having!!!

So after a good half an hour or so trawling through the offerings & checking sizes of buttons, number required, plastic or brass & most importantly checking I'd got the best price I had sourced & brought my new shiny buttons....all I had to do now was the hard bit.....wait for said buttons to arrive!!!

But thanks to the magic of eBay and the efficiency (well sometimes!!) of Royal Mail my new shiny buttons arrived within a couple of days :-)




Brass buttons brought from eBay for £6.16 including postage


So after half an hour of cutting off my old buttons & sewing on my new ones here's another award winning picture of my re-styled blazer.




Together with a picture of me wearing said blazer with the same clothing as before.  




Blazer - Zara
Jumper - Zara
Jeans - Zara
Boots - Zara


Now it might just be me (after all I'm not sure about you but I hate admitting if I'm wrong!) but personally I think my blazer looks miles better with it's shiny buttons & that the buttons have really helped take it to 'another level' (another term I may utter to hubby on the odd *many* occasion when trying to persuade him my latest DIY idea is a goer!!!).

So what do you think?  Do you agree with me & think the buttons have helped transform my blazer into something a little smarter & more chic?  If so have you got a jacket/blazer sitting in your wardrobe that's never felt right to you & that perhaps a simple change of buttons could be the way forward?   After all you can get some stunning buttons these days which can really transform an outfit.  I'm thinking I might swap some buttons on a plain shirt next....although that's a lot of sewing to do so will need to have a good chick flick to get me through the boredom!!!

Finally a quick round up of what I've been wearing since Sunday & as you'll notice in outfit three my wish came true & I indeed had a 'Cinderella' moment when the Mint Velvet ballet pumps arrived...I'm so in love with them it's untrue!!


Outfit One




Necklace - Brought in Majorca
Fluffy Jacket - H&M
Bracelet - J Crew
Jumper - Gap
Faux Leather Leggings - Zara
Biker Boots - M&S


Outfit Two





Necklace - Zara
Shirt - Zara
Waterfall Cardigan - ASOS
Leather Cuff - Banana Republic
Skorts - Zara
Boots - Zara


Outfit Three




Pearl Necklace - Zara
Shirt - M&S
Bracelet - J Crew
Jeans - Zara
Ballet Pumps - Mint Velvet


So have you been inspired to dig out the old needle & thread & start swapping buttons on your blazers?  Or perhaps you've made simple changes to other items that you'd like to share?  I'd love to hear what you think of my new buttons not to mention any other tips you might have for transforming an outfit to another level so please share!

Hope the rest of the week flies by & as Arnie would say 'I'll be back!'  See you at the weekend.

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31 comments

  1. Check you out with a needle and thread - it looks 100x better!!!!!! I couldn't do this - I know it's only sewing a button on by right now I have 2 jackets that are missing a button (I have the buttons) and I still haven't sewed them back on!

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    1. Lol Fiona, I must confess to absolutely LOVING hand sewing...I'm currently doing some patchwork, I just need more spare time in which to finish it off!! Jane xx

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  2. Great minds Jane....I have just done the exact same thing!! Ordered the gold buttons from eBay to replace some silver ones on the Mango blazer I bought a couple of months ago! I know I will get more wear out of it with the new buttons! Fab post! Just goes to show what a difference a button makes! x

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    1. Thanks Michelle, looking forward to checking out your Mango blazer soon. Jane xx

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  3. Wow - what a difference - looks so much more polished! Good job! x

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    1. Thanks Joanna, hubby's delighted it's stopped me purchasing the Zara one lol!! Jane xx

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  4. It's kind of taken a plain blazer up a notch or two. It looks great Jane. Donna x

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    1. Thanks Donna, I have to admit I much prefer it now :-) Jane xx

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  5. Hi there! Haha I was just sewing on new buttons this afternoon onto my latest thrift find! Your brass buttons have totally transformed your jacket and looks so much better, a good job done! Xx

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    1. Hi Sharon & thanks, it's amazing what a set of new buttons can do. I'm now looking at my wardrobe and wondering what else needs the buttons changing! Jane xx

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  6. Lovely jacket and it looks great with the new buttons. I really like the cream polo too. xx

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    1. Thanks Helen, thought you might like the polo neck ;-) Jane xx

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  7. Well done lovely! The jacket looks fab with the update x

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  8. Great idea, Jane. I much prefer it with brass buttons! Clever you. Lynne x

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  9. Hi Jane, I have recently found your blog (through Not Dressed as Lamb, bloggers over 40 post) really love your posts and style. I have just started blogging myself bestfriendstyle.com, looking forward to reading more of your posts

    Sue

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    1. Hi Sue thanks for the lovely compliment & I hope you enjoy blogging as much as I do but be warned it's lethal on the old bank balance ;-) I'll take a look at your blog now Jane xx

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  10. the gold buttons have added £££ to the jacket.... well done you!! xx

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    1. Aww thanks Annmarie, have to admit I'm pretty chuffed! Jane xx

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  11. The buttons set the jacket off superbly and bring it to life. It looks really eye catching. The outfit with the jacket, polo neck and jeans looks really cool

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    1. Hey thanks Paul. I have to admit to loving my cream polo neck with my blazer as it means I'm nice & warm even in these cooler months :-) Jane xx

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  12. Nice jacket and suit :) By the way, maybe we could follow each other on Bloglovin and/or GFC, Facebook?

    Please leave me a comment on my blog and follow by blog!

    http://kstylick.blogspot.com

    You can also like my Facebook page.

    https://www.facebook.com/Kstylick

    I will follow you back! :)

    Korean Fashion

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    1. Thank you, I'll certainly check out your blog Jane xx

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  13. That's amazing - such a simple thing yet it transforms that jacket! Well done you - I feel inspired! Also I'm loving that M&S blouse you're wearing with your pearl necklace...stunning colour. Ax

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    1. Thanks Avril, nearly chucked the shirt in a moment of madness...so glad that I didn't!!! Jane xx

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  14. Gosh, the new buttons make such a difference. Such a good idea. Love Liz xxx

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    1. Thanks Liz, I'm definitely pretty pleased with my little project! Jane xx

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  15. Wow, wow and wow! I am LOVING those ballet pumps and I can't believe the difference actually wearing that blazer makes - looks so nice with the polo neck jumper :) New visitor from Mumsnet here, shall be returning!

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  16. Hi Suzanne lovely to meet you & thanks for the lovely comment. I have to admit I'm totally in love with my new ballet pumps I keep thinking of different outfits to style them with! Jane xx

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  17. Hi Jane! Its looks so fab! Well done you! I'm all up for recycling old clothes & this was a job well done! Ax

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    1. Thanks Andrea, I'm pretty chuffed & hubby more so lol! Jane xx

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