Midlife Loves

"Timeless everyday style"

Midlife Loves

The Fab 40s - Styling Menswear

Happy Bank Holiday Monday ladies, doesn't Monday feel that much better when it's a three day weekend?!!

So today it's time for another fab 40s post & after each of us having picked a theme we've decided to add a different element to out monthly posts & each month feature a guest blogger.  This month it was back to Sheela to pick a theme & blogger & she choose menswear & invited Jennie from A Pocketful Of Polka Dots to join us.

Now I have a couple of items in my wardrobe that could be classed as menswear - boyfriend jeans & the oversized shirt.  So for today I've decided to go with the boyfriend shirt, a great wardrobe staple that's never going to date & is perfect for breathing new life into your wardrobe.  Timeless & elegant it can so easily be dressed up with leather leggings as it can be dressed down with trainers & distressed denim.

For today's post I'm teaming it with another wardrobe staple the biker jacket & this one from Marks is  simply stunning.  Now after a fabulous night out last night, which involved cocktails, bubbles & plenty of laughter you'll be pleased to know this picture wasn't taken the morning after the night before......I wouldn't subject you to that!!


My Midlife Fashion, Marks and Spencer Quilted Faux Leather Biker Jacket, Tan Mango Court Shoes, Oversized White Shirt, Distressed denim skinny zara jeans


Biker Jacket - Marks & Spencer
Shirt - H&M
Bag - Zara
Bracelet - Pia Jewellery
Jeans - Zara
Shoes - Mango


And here's everyone else's take on the theme.




Inside Outside Beauty and Style


Waistcoat - 3.1 Phillip Lim
Top - Gap
Trousers - American Eagle Outfitters
Shoes - Sam Edelman
Sunglasses - Ray Ban


Dawn Lucy At Fashion Should Be Fun


Fashion Should Be Fun


Waistcoat - H&M
Necklace - Happiness Boutique & Lucky Brand
Sunglasses - Derek Lam
White T-Shirt - Old Navy
Jeans - Gap




Kremb de la kremb


Top - DIY project from charity shop, inspiration from Geneva of a Pair & a Spare
Sunglasses - Daughter's
Necklace - Market in Shanghai
Earrings - Market in Hong Kong
Jeans - Zara
Bag - Zara
Shoes - Mia




Sheela Writes


Shirt - Vintage from Hong Kong
Top - Forever21
Necktie - Vintage
Jewellery - Etsy
Skirt With Leggings - Herban Devi
Boots - Bakers




A Pocketful of Polkadots


Shirt - Worthington
Tie - NY&Co
Shorts - NY&Co
Shoes - Bandolino


Finally here's where you can 'shop my look' if you want to have a go at reproducing it - if you're after a biker jacket I really can't recommend the Marks one highly enough plus it's now available in tan too!


Styling A Boyfriend Shirt, My Midlife Fashion, Quilted Biker Jacket, Skinny Distressed Jeans, Boden Boyfriend Shirt, Mango, ZARA, Marks and Spencer


Biker Jacket - Marks & Spencer £59
Shirt - Boden £59
Jeans - Zara £39.99
Shoes - Mango £59.99


So are you a fan of menswear & the oversized shirt?  I'd love to hear your thoughts not to mention how you style yours.

Right I'm off to crash on the sofa after waking up bright & early & seeing the weather we've ditched our original plans of hunting down some bargains at the antique fair & instead are bunking down for a quiet one indoors.....bliss :-)

Have a lovely Bank Holiday Monday & see you in the morning.

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Capsule Holiday Packing & WIWT

So the holiday is already feeling like a distant memory but before it disappears completely I thought I'd do a round up of what I took with me & my thoughts & rules on packing a capsule wardrobe for your hols.

I've previously written a couple of posts on this subject here & here & if you're anything like me you'll hate packing with a vengeance.  Trying to decide what to take used to take me ages with trying to work out how I could take all my favourite pieces, which tops would go with which bottoms, what shoes, bags & accessories would go with which outfit until I'd not only totally confused myself but worn myself out in the process.  

Then last year I had a bit of a lightbulb moment & decided to take just one pieces - dresses & jumpsuits in mainly neutral colours with a selection of brightly coloured jewellery & bags to help accessorise the outfits to create different looks.  

So with these rules in mind when packing this year I managed to get myself done & dusted in less than 30 minutes, which has to be a world record for me!

This year I not only kept to one pieces I've also stuck to a colour palette of creams & blacks, the only exception being my denim shorts & striped top & navy maxi which I just couldn't resist packing.

So what did I take for a two week holiday, well here's the list:-

Day Wear:-
1 maxi dress, similar here.
1 pair of shorts, similar here.
1 off the shoulder top, similar here.
4 dresses, similar hereherehere & here.

Beach/Pool Wear:-
6 kaftans (which I'll admit I could easily have lost one or two but hey they don't take up that much room do they ;-) ).  See herehere & here & similar herehere & here.
3 Swimsuits, see herehere & here.
2 Biknis, see hereherehere & here.

Evening Wear:-
2 cream knee length dresses, similar here & here.
1 cream maxi dress, similar here.
2 black knee length dresses, similar here & here.
1 black maxi dress, similar here.

Accessories:-
Sun hat, similar here.
Sunglasses, similar here.
5 statement clutches (again this could have been reduced), see here & similar hereherehere & here.
A selection of jewellery, this necklace would be perfect for being a great multi tasker.
2 pairs of flip flops, see here & here (again I could easily reduce this to 1 pair).
4 pairs of sandals, see here & similar herehere & here (whcih could also be reduced probably just to 2 pairs if I was being strict!).

And here's a round up of my outfits from the holiday.


My Midlife Fashion, Zara, Summer, Holiday Outfits, Coco Bay, HM, Mango


My Midlife Fashion, Zara, Summer, Holiday Outfits, Coco Bay, HM, Mango


My Midlife Fashion, Zara, Summer, Holiday Outfits, Coco Bay, HM, Mango


My Midlife Fashion, Zara, Summer, Holiday Outfits, Coco Bay, HM, Mango


My Midlife Fashion, Zara, Summer, Holiday Outfits, Coco Bay, HM, Mango


My Midlife Fashion, Zara, Summer, Holiday Outfits, Coco Bay, HM, Mango


My Midlife Fashion, Zara, Summer, Holiday Outfits, Coco Bay, HM, Mango


My Midlife Fashion, Zara, Summer, Holiday Outfits, Coco Bay, HM, Mango


My Midlife Fashion, Zara, Summer, Holiday Outfits, Coco Bay, HM, Mango


My Midlife Fashion, Zara, Summer, Holiday Outfits, Coco Bay, HM, Mango




My Midlife Fashion, Zara, Summer, Holiday Outfits, Coco Bay, HM, Mango


My Midlife Fashion, Zara, Summer, Holiday Outfits, Coco Bay, HM, Mango


My Midlife Fashion, Zara, Summer, Holiday Outfits, Coco Bay, HM, Mango


Obviously I could of managed without a couple of dresses & a few less pairs of sandals too but on the whole it seemed to work & be about the right balance.  Although next year I shall only take one day pair of flip flops & 2-3 pairs of evening sandals, as hubby was breaking into a small sweat at check-in on the way home that our existing clothes & holiday purchases might have taken us over the allowed allowance!  Luckily we were fine & even had a few kilos to spare :-)  

For those of you who have asked how I've found the Charlotte Tilbury Beach Sticks (see my post here) I absolutely loved them & would highly recommend.  I wore them as I'd planned in my post & found them to be really easy to blend.  They go on really smoothly & you just build colour to suit, the only negative I can think of is they're addictive so you have been warned!!  

Back to today & here's what I'm wearing.  So what had planned to be a very quiet day in loading up on carbs ready for a night on the town with some friends has now turned into a mad dash trying to finish off the painting we started yesterday & tidy the house.  As usual my time management leaves a lot to be desired & I have SERIOUSLY underestimated the time it would all take but hey ho we've got bubble o'clock to look forward to :-)   To say I'm a teeny weeny little bit excited is an understatement, although we're supposed to be up bright & early tomorrow morning to hit an antique fair which could be interesting!!


My Midlife Fashion, Rachel Wears, Oversized Cardigan, Denim Pencil Skirt, Zara, Seven Boot Lane Dakota Shoes, Pia Jewellery Gold Star Pendant


Cardigan - Rachel Wears
T-Shirt - Zara
Necklace - Pia Jewellery
Skirt - Zara
Shoes - Seven Boot Lane


Grey and Denim, My Midlife Fashion, Mint Velvet Button Through Denim Skirt, Zara,  Boden sparkly slip ons, Rachel Wears Oversized Merino Wool Cardigan, Mango Grey Marl T Shirt


Cardigan - Rachel Wears £135
T-Shirt - Mango £17.99
Necklace - Pia Jewellery £70
Shoes - Boden £49


So what do you think, do you think I managed to travel light for our hols or did I over pack?  I always like to dangle the carrot of potential holiday purchases when packing, let alone the thought of having to unpack it all & wash & iron it when I get home so I always try to keep room in the suitcase.  How about you how do you go about packing for your holidays?  Any tips you'd like to share?  I'd love to hear your thoughts.

See you tomorrow & if you want to see what I'm wearing tonight I'll be posting a picture on Instagram later (follow me here) there may even be a sneaky holiday purchase or two coming out to play.

Hope everyone has a fab Sunday & don't forget you've got until tomorrow to get 20% off all purchases with Coco Bay use code MIDLIFE20 at checkout.  I seriously can't rate their swimwear & accessories highly enough, it's amazing quality & seriously didn't budge an inch, even with out the straps!

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New Outfit Post - All Blue

Happy Saturday....gosh don't you just love a Bank Holiday weekend?!!

I've decided to go with a bit of an all blue theme today & have teamed my new Marks & Spencer dress with my mango quilted jacket.


My Midlife Fashion, Mango Quilted Jacket, Boden Ghillie lace ups, marks and spencer drop waist dress


Jacket - Mango
Dress - Marks & Spencer
Shoes - Boden


All Blue, My Midlife Fashion, Boden Ghillie Lace Up Shoes, Quilted Mango Jacket, Denim Dress Dropped Waist John Lewis Collection Weekend


Jacket - Mango 29.99
Dress - John Lewis £65
Shoes - Boden £69


Bit of a busy day today with a few errands this morning then hoping to freshen up the paint in the kitchen & son's bedroom & re-arrange the furniture in a few of the rooms.....you can imagine the hubby's delight can't you when I told him of my ideas!! ;-)

Then this evening we're aiming to keep our holiday memories alive by having a tapas night.  I don't know about you but when we're on holiday we always vow to not get caught up in all the little things of everyday life but after a few days we've soon slipped back into normal routines.  After an amazing meal of tapas & cocktails in Palma whilst on holiday we've vowed to try & do the same at home once a week.  So having ordered this Lazy Susan from John Lewis  & stocked up on food & cocktails with plenty of board games at the ready we're good to go & I can't wait :-)  After all holidays are such precious times that if you're not careful once you're back home & normal routine re-commences it's so easy not to make time for the simple things isn't it?!

Of course I quite fancy the holiday routine of bubbles with breakfast each morning & a couple of cheeky siestas during the day but I'm guessing the bubbles at least wouldn't be a good idea so I'll stick with the weekly tapas instead ;-)  

How about you is there anything you try to incorporate into everyday life on your return?  I'd love to hear if there is.

Have a lovely Saturday & don't forget there's still 10% off plus free postage & returns at Hush Homeware click here to get the discount & use code AWXX15 at checkout.

See you tomorrow.

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TGIF - WIWT

Whoop whoop there's no sweeter feeling than a Friday morning with a whole 3 day bank holiday weekend ahead is there ladies?!

I'm keeping things nice & simple & teaming a grey marl tee with some off white cigarette trousers & grey flats.


My Midlife Fashion, Grey marl t-shirt, zara, cigarette pants, capri trousers, ballet pumps


Necklace - Pia Jewellery
T-Shirt - Zara
Trousers - Zara
Ballet Pumps - Zara


Grey Marl T, My Midlife Fashion, Boden Bistro cropped Trousers, Mango patch pocket t shirt, Boden isabel bow point


T-Shirt - Mango £17.99
Trousers - Boden £59
Shoes - Boden £69


Right before I love you & leave you a couple of discount codes, firstly 30% off all dresses, coats, jackets, knitwear, shoes & boots at Wallis (click here) plus there's 20% off all beauty, dresses & Per Una at Marks & Spencer see here.

I don't know about you but I can almost taste wine o'clock.....have a good one!

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WIWT - Monochrome

Gosh this last week has flown by, I can't believe it's been a week since we were nervously taking our son to collect his GCSE results!

Before I get on to today's outfit there I was minding my own business & getting a link for today's post when I spotted this stunning jacket.  How lovely is this?!!  Can someone please tell me I don't need this in my life as I can't get it out of my head!  I think I may just have to click the button as it looks stunning teamed with the breton......writing this blog has a lot to answer for lol!




Mango Buttoned Jacket, Military Jacket


Back to today & another busy one at work for me so I'm keeping things nice & simple with a monochrome theme & hoping that the knitted jacket can be discarded sooner rather than later if the sun stays out.


My Midlife Fashion, Knitted Jacket, Embroidery Anglaise, Distressed Denim, Trainers, Mango, Zara, Mint Velvet


Knitted Jacket - Zara
Top - Mint Velvet
Bracelet - Pia Jewellery
Jeans - Zara
Trainers - Marks & Spencer


Monochrome, Mint Vellvet Embroidery Top, Mango Medium Rise jeans, Mango knitted biker jacket, Next White trainers My midlife Fashion


Knitted Jacket - Mango £59.99
Bracelet - Pia Jewellery £30
Jeans - Mango £39.99
Trainers - Next £26


Happy Thursday ladies only one more sleep till the start of Bank Holiday weekend :-)

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Taking A Look At Pia Jewellery & WIWT

You may recall that last year I was asked to style a necklace from Pia Jewellery (see here).  It's a stunning necklace, something that little bit different that helps transform the simplist of outfits & is perfect to add when I need something that's not too delicate or too much of a statement either.

So I was delighted when I was recently contacted to see if I was interested in working together again.  Naturally I didn't hesitate in saying yes having being so pleased with my previous necklace.

The great thing about Pia's site is that they cater for all styles, tastes & budgets so if you're looking for a treat for yourself or a present for a friend they really do offer a great selection & I defy anyone to say they can't see anything that they loved.

I firmly believe that the right jewellery can make an outfit & I really love pieces that are that little bit different.  Plus of course you can never go wrong with jewellery that holds a special meaning.

With this in mind I chose the following three pieces.

Firstly this lovely delicate gold star necklace.  As I've mentioned in the past having read the 'Guess How Much I Love You' book to our son from birth, we've adopted the saying 'to the moon & back' as our family saying.  This coupled with the fact hubby is a frustrated wannabe astronaut means that anything featuring stars or the moon remind me of my two wonderful boys & how lucky I am to have them in my life so as soon as I saw this necklace I instantly fell in love with it.  I also love it's simplicity & how it will be perfect for layering with other gold chains already hanging on my wardrobe door.




Pia Jewellery Gold Star Pendant


The next piece I chose was this stunning sapphire ring as it's something really unusual & is the sort of piece you see someone wearing & long to know where they bought it.  Plus I love how it features siver & rose gold tonnes, making it perfect for wearing with either silver or gold jewellery alike.  




Brand Sapphire Ring From Pia Jewellery


And for my third item I picked this simple, elegant & timeless silver heart stretch bracelet.  Something that looks lovely on it's own but can also be teamed with other bracelets to create a real statement.




Pia Jewellery Silver Heart Stretch Bracelet


As part of working with Pia they invited me to be a guest pinner & create my own mood board on Pinterest featuring these three pieces.  An idea that really appealed to me as I love Pinterest & could happily spend a lot of time whiling away the hours getting lost pinning ideas & inspiration.  To see my board click here.

In the meantime I just had to wear my new jewellery today.



Styling a Maxi Dress With A Biker Jacket, My Midlife Fashion, Pia Jewellery, Maxi Dress, Mango, Hipanema Bracelet, Kurt Geiger Sandals, Marks and Spencer Biker Jacket


Styling a Maxi Dress With A Biker Jacket, My Midlife Fashion, Pia Jewellery, Maxi Dress, Mango, Hipanema Bracelet, Kurt Geiger Sandals, Marks and Spencer Biker Jacket


Styling a Maxi Dress With A Biker Jacket, My Midlife Fashion, Pia Jewellery, Maxi Dress, Mango, Hipanema Bracelet, Kurt Geiger Sandals, Marks and Spencer Biker Jacket



Biker Jacket - Marks & Spencer
Dress - Mango
Necklace - Pia Jewellery
Ring - Pia Jewellery
Bracelet - Pia Jewellery & Coco Bay
Sandals - Zara


Styling a Maxi Dress With A Biker Jacket, My Midlife Fashion, Pia Jewellery, Maxi Dress, Mango, Hipanema Bracelet, Kurt Geiger Sandals, Marks and Spencer Biker Jacket


Biker Jacket - Marks & Spencer £59
Dress - Mint Velvet £119
Necklace - Pia Jewellery £70

I'm absolutely delighted with my new pieces of jewellery & can highly recommend Pia Jewellery in terms of service, products & most importantly pricing.  They really do have some stunning & unusual pieces at great prices.  Plus you can currently get 10% off with discount code AW1510 :-)

I'd love to hear if you've bought from Pia before or if you've just taken a look & something's caught your eye.  Also don't forget to check out my pin board & let me know what you think.

Have a great day & see you tomorrow.

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New OOTD - All Black

Today I'm going for all black & bringing out my Zara leopard print bag to play :-)  I'm also hoping that it doesn't rain too much & I don't regret wearing sandals, although so far so good!  Luckily I'm mainly going to be in the office catching up on work so I'm hoping I should be ok.  I'm also keeping everything crossed that workwise today is like yesterday & not too manic but just nice & steady!


My Midlife Fashion, Leopard Print, Animal Print, Leather A Line Skirt, Zara Draped Top, Studded Sandals, Mango


Top - Zara
Skirt - Zara
Sandals - Mango
Bag - Zara


All Black, My Midlife Fashion, Zara Draped T Shirt, Faux Leather A line Skirt, Mango Animal Print saddle cross body bag, Dune studded cross over sandals


Top - Zara £22.99
Skirt - Zara £25.99
Sandals - Dune £115


Happy Tuesday, hope everyone has a fab day & if you've started the back to school shopping hope it's going well & not too painful...can't believe I'm not having to buy uniform this year or be aware of term dates!!

See you in the morning.

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New Outfit Post - Back At It

Morning ladies, it's my first day back in the office after just under three weeks away, which means its going to be a busy one.  Luckily I've already dealt with the many, many emails that were clogging up my inbox so that's something at least!

I'm keeping things nice & simple & letting my top do all the talking by pairing it with a simple pair of jeans & studded sandals.


My Midlife Fashion, Zara Draped top, Distresed cigarette jeans, leopard print studded sandals


Top - Zara
Jeans - Zara
Sandals - Zara


Simples, My Midlife Fashion, Dune studded cross over sandals, mango boyfriend jeans, zara draped cross over top


Top - Zara £49.99
Jeans - Mango £34.99
Sandals - Dune £115


Hope everyone's week gets off to a great start (there's an extra 10% off French Connection's sale if you're interested - click here & use code EX10SALE at checkout).......wish me luck I'm going in!

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Style Steal - Laura Fantacci & WIWT

So for this month's style steal I couldn't resist copying this stunning outfit from Laura over at Wearing It Today.  Not only do I love everything about this look, I possess similar items, which means I can interpret the look without having to spend a penny so hubby's delighted!

Firstly here's Laura looking absolutely stunning.


Laura Fantacci Wearing It Today My Midlife Fashion


And without further a do here's how you could steal her style with finds currently available on the high street.

Starting with this fab simple shirt from Mango for the fantastic price of £19.99.  Now if you don't already own a similar style then seriously consider purchasing this or similar as it's a great multi tasker for dressing up or down.




Mango Flowy Shirt


Moving on to the skirt next & this one from Zara looks extremely similar to one I bought this time last year & have found incredibly useful.  In my book another fab buy for Autumn.


Zara Faux Leather Skirt £25.99


Zara Faux Leather Skirt


One style I haven't dipped my toe into yet is the tasseled bag but this Oasis bag would make a great statement to many an outfit & not a bad price if you fancy giving the theme a try.


Oasis Tasseled Shoulder Bag £34


Oasis Tasseled Shoulder Bag


I firmly believe that you can never go wrong with a classic style of black sunnies & these Marks ones are perfect for wearing & not worrying about.




Marks and Spencer Oversized Sunglasses


And finally I've swapped the sandals Laura's wearing for strappy ballerinas as they'd be perfect for Autumn & let's face it its a trend that's not slowing down.  Plus these ones from Mango are a great price.




Mango Strap Ballerina


For today's outfit I just couldn't resist re-creating the look.


My Midlife Fashion, Zara, Ghillie Lace Up Flats, Pleather, Leather A Line Skirt, Silk Blouse, Leopard Print Clutch


Shirt - Zara
Bag - Zara
Skirt - Zara
Shoes - Zara


All Black, My Midlife Fashion, Zara faux leather skirt, Mango flowy shirt, marks and spencer oversized sunglasses, oasis tassel bag, mango lace up shoes


Shirt - Mango £19.99
Sunglasses - Marks & Spencer £10
Skirt - Zara £25.99
Bag - Oasis £34
Shoes - Mango £29.99


So what do you think, is it an outfit that ticks your boxes?  I have to admit I love the idea of throwing a classic trench over this look come the Autumn or adding a splash of leopard print in the accessories to create a different look not to mention swapping the sandals for ankle boots once the weather gets cooler.  I reckon this is a great look that can be adopted many ways & would be a great basis for a few different looks.  What do you think?  I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Happy Sunday ladies, I'm off to make the most of my last day of freedom!  Have a great day & see you tomorrow.

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