See The Sun Or Be The Sun

Spring can be cool in more than one way. When it gets unpredictable, uncomfortable, even gloomy, many of us try and lose the blues by stubbornly sticking to weather-inappropriate clothing.

Some will even take that to the next level, pretending it's high summer.

However, there are those who cannot stand the discomfort of bare skin anywhere south of 27 degrees - must they risk dressing like it's winter all over again?

Here's my compromise: cover up good, and trust your mood to colour. Even those around you may thank you for it.

OK, fine, the neoprene parka is optional, reserved for the very worst of what spring has to offer.

Leather trim dress, premium parka and platform heels: Asos

A bit of fun comes in all shapes and sizes. Cameo brooch: a gift

Give Lace A Chance

I never thought  I would ever wear anything you could remotely classify as a bodycon dress, let alone a lace bodycon dress. I looked on all-over lace dresses as in-your-face and try-hard, for girls who want to be ladylike and sexy, thinking they are being subtle about it.

Still, a certain Erdem dress in navy lace with a nude underlay caught my eye sometime in the last warm season. Somehow, it seemed simpler and just a bit edgier than any other lace dress, almost a natural choice, to wear instead of a shift dress or a LBD. It got me wondering... So, when I saw this petite exclusive dress on asos.com, I thought it was time to give lace a chance and see what happens.

I kept it simple, as usual. First, to enhance the spring/summer feel of freshness, I chose chunky-heeled but still delicate nude leather platforms - they don't distract from the general colourway, and do a bit of leg-lengthening as a plus. To accessorise, a suede clutch bag seemed just appropriate (instead of black, you could go for nude or pearl grey or some other colour, as long as it's a classic style and about this size). The only piece of jewellery I'm wearing is a fine gold bracelet, but a really delicate gold necklace with a tiny locket or  something along that line should look right too.

Next, since I really liked the dress on (it's not too tight or clingy as I thought it might be), I knew I wanted to give it a go at work, hence the second outfit. Here, I added black opaque tights to avoid having to explain I'm in fact not naked underneath the dress; a pair of this winter's staple ankle boots, and a navy velvet blazer for a boxier look and the extra warmth.

Dress: ASOS, nude platforms: Mango, boots: ASOS, suede clutch: Mum's stuff
from the early 1980s, velvet blazer: Zara

Little Red Dress

I've been wanting to get an LRD for some time now, but I couldn't quite decide between the smarter, tailored ones (you know, clean vertical seams, little buttons or bows, tulip shape, straight line, no stretch), or the more relaxed types like skater, or the not-too-smart A-line, sleeveless, short or three quarter sleeved - and who knows what else. I only knew it should not have any contrast details.

Finally it came to me that I very rarely wear red because it's so in-your-face, a constant reminder that you're walking the very wildest of the wild side (at least, that's what it feels like). Now, if you choose a really smart dress, you will want to wear it for smart occasions, but the colour will stop you in the last minute of every attempt. So, you will end up not wearing it at all. If you're like me, make sure you pick a strictly neutral or somewhat relaxed piece that you can just pop on and go, and have fun with dressing it up or down. That way, the dress will sooner or later find a way to take you for a walk.

This shift dress by Asos is in ponte, which is a lot more easier to wear than plain or even textured cotton, which tends to crinkle somewhat while hanging in the wardrobe, very badly when on, and worse during washing. Ponte is not smart, and not considered a quality fabric, but boy, it's made for wearing - and that's just what it'll do.

How to wear your block colour dress

In four ways, basically. Classic Contrast: pick one colour to complement red in a classic way, say, cream, biscuit, white, camel, or black. Wear opaque tights and a top or blouse in that colour. Then, you can choose to match your shoes to your opaques for a leg-lengthening, paired-back effect, or create a contrast  by wearing red shoes (loafers or Mary Janes) and turn into Little Red Riding Hood.

Next, you can go for Bold Colour Blocking, and mix & match primary or jewel colours... red with electric blue, emerald green with yellow, orange with teal. If you want to tread cautiously at first, accessorise with a flash of colour, a scarf, a bag, or a belt. If, like me, you are drawn to trying the Total Blocking, combine pieces in similar colours in a single outfit and go all red, blue, mustard or green. To finish the look, I chose a navy and blue coat when I could have gone with berry, which reminds me: do draw the line somewhere.

Dress: Asos, long sleeved top, heeled loafers and coat: New Look, tights: Calzedonia

And four is Minimal, for when you prefer the little red dress to do all the talking: bare legs or sheer tights, ankle boots and socks. As zips are big for both autumn/winter and spring/summer, and apparently, this dress doesn't have any, choose a minimal cover-up with some prominent zips. Mine is a loose, ribbed fine-knit cropped cardi with collars, but a boxy cropped blazer with extra large buttons should make the look even more office-friendly if that's what you're after.

Dress: Asos, zip cardi: S. Oliver, 60s ankle boots: Asos, socks: Falke

Sweet Surrender

As mentioned in this catwalk report, I was inspired to switch back to blogging mode by a single still image from the Philosophy di Alberta Ferretti show packed with pastel candy colours (click here for flash report and pics) to throw on a few pieces shiny and new, trashy and plain, retro and vintage - you will easily tell which is which.



One thing is for certain,  I dare not call this experiment a re-creation of looks from Alberta's collection. This is merely an homage to all things 1960s sweet and cute, lying untouched for years and years in our wardrobes, still impossible to part with. At first, I was only going to show you the blue dress for fun, but ended up snapping a few more to home test the basic Philosophy concept for autumn/winter and style a couple of outfits in pastels. Very nearly all a big no-no in real life for this tomboy.

The verdict: the simplest things with a great cut and a near-perfect fit just work, no matter what. The rest - too big, too creased, too forced, wrong length, will not. A no-brainer, then, for today. OK, here's one: don't fear sweetness. The devil is not in pastels and too-cute cuts, but in ill-fitting pieces, and in your head.

P.S. I do appear to like sporting two bags at a time.

dress and tie/belt, worn as headband: vintage, top: Promod, mocha tights: Dorothy Perkins,
shoes: New Look, sunglasses: C&A, lady bags: vintage

textured fabric, 1960s

structured dress: River Island, shoes: Mango, coat: C&A

skirt: Terranova, lemon knitted top: 1970s, knitted dress: charity shop, nude platforms: Mango,
gold jive t-bars: Topshop, stone tights: Dorothy Perkins