Second time around

So, lockdown 2.0 is upon us, but surprisingly life still goes on regardless, with hardly any changes in our routine. I'm still going into work two days a week - as safe as can be as I'm still on my own in the office - while my five days at home aren't nearly as restrictive as they were back in Spring. 

We are allowed to move around freely. We can drive anywhere we like and go for walks and outings. And while only non-essential shops are open, this time these include bookshops, garden centres, DIY stores, haberdashery shops and shops selling hygiene and personal care products.

Not being social butterflies at the best of times, we aren't too bothered about not seeing people, although I would have liked to be there in person for my friend Inneke, who sadly lost her Dad last Sunday.

The only thing we have to scrap are our weekly wee charity shop trawls, but I'm sure we'll survive. Especially since our last trip, on Friday 23 October, was hugely successful!

With unseasonal highs of 18° Celsius, and intermittent sunshine throughout the day, it was the perfect opportunity for wearing this long-sleeved but lightweight frock. 

A Think Twice sales bargain from last Autumn, I was so bowled over by its jungly flower and foliage print that I only noticed its precarious condition after I brought it home. Not only did it need its zipper reattached, there was a plethora of split seams which needed to be redone, as its previous owner had made an attempt to repair them using unsightly and unfortunately very visible darning wool.

As a result, it languished in my mending pile until a morning's worth of sewing back in January finally put it right.

I made use of both the chartreuse and cobalt blue in the dress's print for my opaques, cardigan, belt and ring, while I added more foliage in the form of my Autumn leaf brooch and my filigree leaf necklace. 

On my feet, a pair of moss green wedge-heeled ankle boots, a charity shop find, as were the cardigan, belt, brooch and necklace.

That particular Friday, we visited two of our favourite and safe shops and struck gold at both. 

Here's a little taster of some - but not all - of the stuff I found. We'll be having a more detailed look in a minute, although I did forget to photograph the blue woolly thing peeking out from the bottom of the pile. This is a another fluffy cardigan for my growing collection.

First up are two skirts, both unlabelled and in a soft and stretchy jersey material. 

The top one reaches just below the knee, is fully lined and its zig-zaggy print features leaves and tiny squares in bottle green, ochre and reddish brown.

The second skirt, which has a floral print in pink, orange, purple and blue on grey, is calf-length and high waisted, but sadly unlined and thus requiring the wearing of a half-slip.

I broke my self-imposed rule of No More Coats or Jackets when I laid eyes upon this super soft biscuit coloured cord jacket. It's from the Belgian Xandres label and, even if I wasn't able to find the exact style on their website, their blazers do seem to retail at around € 250. I paid € 8 for mine, which I'm sure you'll agree is a steal.

The annual Day of the Charity Shops had taken place the week before but, obviously, we weren't keen on joining the unavoidable crowds these events attract, even if the necessary precautions had been taken to make it as Corona-proof as possible.

Judging from the tables of leftover vintage, including the inevitable orange housewares and nondescript dinner services, we hadn't missed out on much, but I was more than happy to unexpectedly find two vintage gems on the clothing rails. It goes without saying that this fabulous Diolen skirt and funky short-sleeved dress had to come home with me!

With its retro-inspired geometrical print, this shirt dress could have been vintage, but isn't. It's by Nathalie Vleeschouwer, a Belgian designer who started her eponymous clothing line back in 2011. The dress, which looks almost unworn, was just € 6, while its retail price must have been around € 200. I'm thinking of styling it with a long-sleeved top and opaques, so watch this space!

The second shop we visited has come up trumps on the footwear front quite a few times before. 

Again, the slightly slouchy, tall blue boots look largely unworn, while the ankle boots only show very little wear. I actually gasped upon spying the elusive burgundy ankle boots I had been looking for in vain for many years. This pair had the addition of buckles and a turquoise trim. Be still my heart! I hardly dared picking them up, fully expecting them not to be my size, but oh miracle of miracles, they were! They are Fly London, which was another pleasant surprise. 

Both pairs were priced at a very bargainous € 4.

Fast forward to Saturday, 24 October, and here I am, wearing Friday's final find. This crocheted 1970s style jumper was definitely love at first sight. Initially I presumed it was handmade, until I discovered a label from the German S. Oliver brand inside.

The label's washing instructions claimed it should be washed by hand, so I put it in a sink full of soapy water minutes after we came home and hung it up to dry overnight. Once it was dry, I decided to wear it immediately, paired with the denim skirt - another holy grail - I found a couple of weeks back.

I'm sure I wore a similar outfit as a teen back in the 1970s, so this was a veritable trip down memory lane. However, I'm equally sure my footwear wasn't anything near as funky back then!

I picked up the necklace in Oxfam on the same day as the skirt, while the bird brooch was an old flea market find. Remember flea markets? I really miss the indoor ones which would have been in full swing by now ...

As you can see, I've been a good girl and filled three more bags for charity as I continued with the seemingly never-ending wardrobe changeover.

This episode included folding away the Spring and Summer skirts in favour of the Autumn and Winter ones. That only leaves the heavy woollen skirts, which will only see the light of day when the temperatures drop to freezing point. 

Until then, the garden is still walking a fine line between Summer and Autumn. 

The Virginia Creeper covering the shed is slowly but surely changing colour, its tired leaves starting to drop and carpet the ground, the gaps they leave offering a view of blue berries suspended from reddish stalks.

All our annual Geraniums are still producing flowers and even the pink pot of pinks, which we bought on our very first trip to the garden centre back in April, is still refusing to give in to the inevitable.

Our day ended in front of the telly, watching the first episode of Season 7 of Endeavour on DVD. Ending with the quintessential Morse theme, it always makes me a little teary-eyed, as we had the soundtrack on repeat during our holiday in Oxfordshire back in 2006, conjuring up a sun drenched Oxford and a legendary walk along the River Thames on which we got lost before we even started.

Sunday, 25 October was a grey and dismal day, made worse by the fact that overnight we had changed to the dreaded Winter Time (I refuse to use the ridiculous Daylight Saving term) so that it now started to get dark well before dinner time. The only advantage was that I did get to sleep just that little bit longer.

After boiled eggs and soldiers for breakfast, I dug out the rest of my long-sleeved dresses, leaving only a bag of things I’m not sure I'll be keeping and a bag of the very warmest frocks.

My journal says I caught up with blogland and fiddled around with collages for my next post.

Only a tried and tested favourite would do on a day like this so out came what Sheila would be calling a jammy dress. 

I'm sure it won't come as a surprise that this blue and white diagonally striped Diolen Delight came from Think Twice. It's been with me for eons and has been on the blog several times, making its debut in April 2016 when my blog was barely one month old.

Unlike four and a half years ago, I did not use red as an accent colour, although I do think those red boots are long overdue an outing. 

Instead, I opted for a chocolate brown moc croc belt, a long beaded necklace in blue, green and brown,  a green plastic ring and ditto brooch to reign in the dress's decolletage. Oh, and I wore blue opaques instead of nylons!

We were able to hop out into the garden for outfit photos just in time before it got too dark!

I will be wrapping up the final days of October in my next post. About time, I should think!

In the meantime, lockdown or not, do stay safe, sane and fabulous!