MayDay

I feel like I'm constantly publishing all white inspiration pictures at the moment, but there's just something so refreshing about it as we move head-on through spring and into summer. 

I'm currently coveting everything head-to-toe white - and then perhaps a pause in rainfall in which to wear it. 

Weekend Escape : The Grove

There's nothing like throwing everything into an overnight bag, jumping in the car and driving off for a weekend in the countryside with the one you love. Especially if there is sunshine forecast and the destination of your weekend away is a luxury 5* spa and gold hotel only half an hour from London.... with a beach!

The Grove Hotel in Hertfordshire is a beautiful old country mansion, restored with a contemporary (yet tasteful) elegance, which had me lusting over it's beautiful interiors - making notes at every turn for my own home renovations. 

We spent the weekend lounging on sumptuous velvet sofas in the library drinking tea, playing giant games of chess on the lawn, dining in converted stables, wandering through the secret walled gardens and reading the Sunday papers on The Grove's home-made beach (then moving to sit by the swimming pool when we fancied a dip). 

There was so much more on offer we didn't have the time (or the energy!) to do; take their bikes out and cycle the acres around the hotel's grounds, play a round of croquet, make good use of the spa or the golf course, or even visit the local Harry Potter studios round the corner!

I guess that simply means we'll have to go back soon....

Stylist Shops : Topshop

Hello Topshop old friend. Haven't seen you in a while. Not since you scared me off a few years back with your body con dresses and up-the-bum-denim shorts.

But now I'm ready to re-visit and see if you have anything left for me, a girl in her 20s seeking clothing that looks individual and, at least a bit, expensive.

After a trawl around the Westfield Shepherds Bush megastore and a lot of success in the 'Topshop Boutique' section, I managed to find the following...

From top left: gingham dress, pineapple jumper, black vest, white fringe vest, floral culottes, red skirt, black shorts, white dress, stripe jumper.

And so we begin....

First up, the Boutique print clash. 

This dress (£65, size 10) is AWESOME. It's even better in real life. It's 100% silk, cut perfectly and it doesn't cling to those places you really don't want it to. I love it with this sweater (£45, size 10) also from the Boutique range which looks just as good tied round the waist to give the dress shape. 

This sweater (£38, size 10) is slightly cropped so I'd recommend buying it in a larger size for stomach covering purposes, or else pairing with a higher waist jean / short if that's your sorta thang.

These faux leather shorts (£34, size 10) are just the right side of sporty for a person that doesn't believe in going to the gym.  

ps. I would suggest this hairstyle whenever wearing the sweater out the house. 

Next up is our trickiest trend to date. THE CULOTTES. Please note that if you wore these in the 90s, you simply can't pull them off a second time around.  

So, for these printed culottes (£40, size 10) I've gone as simple as possible up top with a black cashmere blend vest (£20, size 10) which Topshop do incredibly well. Stock up on those bad boys. 

I am not, as you may think, dressed up as a Moroccan souk, this skirt (£36, size 12) is straight off the Topshop rails and I kinda love it. They didn't have a size 10 so it's slightly too big, but it would look amazing with tan leather sandals and a white tee (instead of this fringed top £26, size 10) for a summer work outfit. Plus if you have a trip to Morocco planned....

This dress (£85, size 10) is from the Kate Moss for Topshop collection which there was a significant amount of left in the store this week - almost a month after it was released. 

It's a really nice collection and I would have bought half the rail - but it was so overpriced I didn't - which is probably the same thought everyone else had - and the reason so much of it is left. 

The dress was a little too sheer for my liking, you'd need to wear a slip underneath, but the embellishment and embroidery was great.

 I actually saw a woman today wearing the top in black looking totally cool, and had major clothing envy. So this may be a good alternative to the sheer dress, plus it's £25 cheaper.

Happy bank holiday shopping!