Menopause Matters Forum
General Discussion => This 'n' That => Topic started by: Pennyfarthing on October 27, 2016, 07:41:46 PM
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Went out clothes shopping today and I was going to REALLY treat myself to some new clothes for winter. I came home with one top and some new buttons for a cardigan I'm knitting for myself! ;D
How come when you have the money you never see anything you like yet when the kids were small money was very tight and I just about lived off market stalls and factory shops yet the shops were full of lovely stuff.
I have never seen such drab and uninspiring stuff as I saw today. I spent nearly all day wandering from shop to shop .... White Stuff, FatFace, M and S, Monsoon, House of Fraser, Debenhams ... all awful.
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Oh Good Thread - I HATE clothes shopping ::)
What were you looking for? I do most of my clothes shopping via Catalogue or Charity shops ……. some Charities have 'designer' outlets but I believe they are in the Cities or work as 'pop up' shops.
I tend to buy in the sales although a few years ago the rails in Next were so crammed I lost interest almost immediately ::)
I did buy 2 pairs of Hotters yesterday - in the same colour despite the assistant wondering if I really wanted 4 shoes the same colour :D
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I find a lot of clothes shops aim for a young market and have forgotten about everyone else, even marks and spencer have moved towards trendy clothes that end up on the sale racks in my home town.
Shoes is another story, either totally flat or 6 inch heels :-\
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Excellent topic! I absolutely hate shopping for clothes and shoes.
I never find anything I like and when I do it looks awful when I put it on!
I have great difficulty knowing which shoes go with what clothes and most of the things I order online gets sent back!
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Know exactly how you feel pennyfarthing , it was my birthday a couple weeks ago and I received money I have been unable to spend due to my not liking anything in the shops! I ended up spending some of it on a,rug today , which I know I will regret as every rug I buy my dog wees on and ruins !
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Our local M&S seems to cater mainly for auld wifies! But when I was in Nottingham in the summer they had much more choice. Maybe they buy in stuff based on age of general population.
I used to take great pleasure in clothes shopping, back before the kids came along. Now it's a real chore. It's got to jump out at me or I'm not interested.
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Cubagirl , so glad its not just me and the MS old wives clothes ! I know I'm not 20 but I have my own image /style in my head and its difficult to find not that I'm alternative in my clothes, I just dont want look like an old wife !
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Me neither. ;D
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CLKD just love Hotters they are so comfortable. Bought their Helsinki boots a couple of years which I adore and fit perfectly ( I have narrow feet) Wrote to them to see if they would produce them again. They admitted they were great sellers but wouldn't be producing them in the near future as they like to change styles. And this is my gripe you often get something that suits and can never buy it again. They dictate what we wear and don't listen.
Does anyone know where I can buy straight leg denim jeans that sit on your waist, so no muffin top. M&S now have mid rise >:(
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Lands End do fantastic high rise jeans. Bit expensive but lovely fit, great quality and wash extremely well. Never faded
PN x
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Why, oh why do they produce clothes in dull, depressing colours, when the weather is dull and dreary? Why do we need to blur into the general dreariness? I want to look cheerful. Every year I look at clothes at this time of year with dismay. I know some people look fantastic in these colours, but if I wear them, they make me look dull and dreary and drained of colour. Great for a Halloween party or if I want sympathy! These colours make me look ill. I look best in spring colours.
Earlier this year, I went shopping in an outlet centre near my son's home in the USA. One of the shops stocked lovely clothes in my colours. I was spoilt for choice and spent a lot of money. I have been enjoying wearing these clothes ever since.
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I did order a few tops online for my recent holiday and they were OK and I also ordered some shorts but sent them back as the quality was very poor.
I've lost over a stone and just felt I'd like some new clothes for winter. I bought lovely new boots a couple of weeks ago. I wear quite a lot of tunics and legging or jeggings but all I could find in M and S were Long ones and I need regular. Every colour, every design were all Long.
I did buy a nice Sea Salt top in turquoise from an Independent shop. They also sell a lot of Adini and I also like them and have several tunic tops.
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Pennyfarthing, talking of leggings and jeggings, I know many people think Bonmarche is a bit old fashioned, but you should take a look at their leggings and jeggings.......I am only 5-1 and got fixed up. I did need to turn the regular size up slightly, but they look good under my ankle boots.....
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Many shops seem to have taken on what I would call the 'crimplene' look of the 1970s. It is the sort of stuff my grandma would have thought smart :-X In fact, some of them seem to have taken it far too seriously.
My daughter is working in a clothes shop and we have managed to find a 'crimplene' dress that she looks nice in, but she is having to get used to the leg-coloured tights (and the fact that they cost a lot for something that you can put your fingers through in five minutes ::) ). She looks lovely but she is slim and young and looks lovely in everything (no bias there 8) )
But I would not be seen dead in it. ;D
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LOL!! I didn't ever like the crimplene look, funnily enough I was looking at clothes the other day and told my husband that I couldn't understand anyone wanting that look back!!!!
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I did order a few tops online for my recent holiday and they were OK and I also ordered some shorts but sent them back as the quality was very poor.
I've lost over a stone and just felt I'd like some new clothes for winter. I bought lovely new boots a couple of weeks ago. I wear quite a lot of tunics and legging or jeggings but all I could find in M and S were Long ones and I need regular. Every colour, every design were all Long.
I did buy a nice Sea Salt top in turquoise from an Independent shop. They also sell a lot of Adini and I also like them and have several tunic tops.
So why can't I find all these long leggings and jeggings when I'm looking? They all seem to be short and regular in length when I look! It's funny how you find something you really like in every size, but yours!
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I always worry about the 'Gloria Hunniford' look. All smart bright jackets, perfect but rigid hair and large accessories. I still want to look a but funky...
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Sparkle -just seen one of these on Amazon and I like it - I usually get a 12 as I have broad shoulders but other than that am a standard 10 - do they come up large?
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Some John Rhocha (SP) is nice. Fits well. Lasts ages.
Cotton Traders 4 jeans which eventually get used in the garden. Same with slippers. On dry days slippers do well enough when I'm weeding.
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I luurrrrrrrrrrrve stripes :wub:
They have to be right though. Some are just not right at all, and some are just so perfect. And some get better the more you wear them.
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Thanks purplenanny and CKLD for jeans advice will be checking them out.
I'm a stripy person too definitely wearing them on top half makes me feel less hippy. Flutterbyx
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Oh dear........more hopping possibilities!
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M and S had lots of high rise leggings and jeggings yesterday which come really high up. Some had a big wide band of same coloured elastic .. probably about 5" wide at waist which I am sure would hide any muffin tops.
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I love Seasalt Breton striped tops - the family think its hilarious as each day out comes a different stripe. Mind you one of my daughters is the same with striped tops. Now into my long sleeve Gap t-shirts. It's the bottom half I find tricky - I have to do the sit-down test in any pair of jeans/trousers I buy - they can feel great standing up but if they cut me in half when I sit down that spells trapped wind and heartburn for me. There aren't many makes that fit the bill on that one hence a lot of returns! Oh, and don't get me started on my awkward feet ....
S x
Summer 2015 I bought a sea salt tunic top. It was lovely. Navy with a nice geometric print in white and pink. I wore it a few times and thought the pattern was pegs until someone pointed out it was synchronised swimmers! ;D
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M & Co have done me OK with brightly coloured jeans in the past, this Autumn however ::)
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I'm wearing Donna heels from Hotter to son's wedding in 4 weeks time. Hopefully good for dancing in. ::)
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Wear them in first ;D
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I've been practising! ;D
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I wish Hotters sold AAs, then I could afford more 👠s! Though maybe not ones with high heels! The latest shoe catalogue for AAs has made me gulp at the increase in price. Much, much more than double for equivalent style shoes, plus the cost of post and packing and if they don't fit....... one American firm charges over £200 for everyday shoes that aren't that special. I think I shall have to make do with what I've got.
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Ju Ju, have you heard of Special Feetures, a narrow shoe online retailer? I have a B fitting, which is a complete pain as the average shoe width in the UK is an E and I'm forced to buy my shoes in the US. However, occasionally this company comes up trumps! They have a website and send out a catalogue if requested. They changed ownership a few years ago and I'm not sure the offer is as good as it once was, however, they have the occasional pair that I like (they can be a bit granny like! ;). I managed to buy two pairs this season with another on order.
My feet are a nightmare as they are narrow and also very shallow and I've also had Morton's neuromas surgery on both feet (ballet and also probably because I've had a lifetime of ill fitting shoes!). Sometimes I'll find a pair narrow enough but too tight for the Morton's Neuroma sites.
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Yep! Rely on companies like these. Also James Inglis and Medissa Shoes. I have long, narrow AAs shallow feet, one 1/2 size longer, which means I can only wear low heeled shoes with straps, laces. Styles incorporating these features tend not to be glamourous. Fortunately I don't lead a glamourous life style! But it would be nice to be able to wear slip on shoes or wellies! I remember trying to source white shoes or sandals for my wedding many years ago. Mind you I made it more difficult by getting married in December. I ended up wearing ill fitting white Greek dancing shoes. At least I don't have painful issues like you poor ladies, other than ingrowing toe nails, caused by shoes that haven't fitted properly.
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I had never heard of Mortons neuroma until I was told that what I have in both feet, mine has been caused by back surgery making me walk differently...Long story.... The pain is just dreadful and you are right ladies, buying shoes a nightmare..
I would love to hear from ER and Sparkle as I think more surgery is my only option.....
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I had never heard of Mortons neuroma until I was told that what I have in both feet, mine has been caused by back surgery making me walk differently...Long story.... The pain is just dreadful and you are right ladies, buying shoes a nightmare..
I would love to hear from ER and Sparkle as I think more surgery is my only option.....
I've never heard of this either ... what is it?
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It's all to do with tendons, caused my different reasons for different people....Mine has started after back surgery making me walk differently and making my arches drop, that caused my instep tendons to tear and then the thick tendon between toes....Horid and very painful....
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Sparkle are you a stalker?!! :o Are we separated twins? ;D
I had surgery on my left foot about 18 years ago and it was a huge success. They tried the steroid jab first of all which was ok but a day latter sent the neuroma into excruciating spasms, surgery was the only alternative. It was painful afterwards BUT it was worth it and it was so much easier after it all repaired. However, I had the right one done about 3 years ago and that wasn't a walk in the park!
By this stage I was suffering with the migraines and boy oh boy the nerve pain was not pleasant. When in migraine the nerve pain at the op site was horrible. Trouble is, as you know, I'm in migraine a lot!! The results from the op were not the same as the first surgery and a different consultant suggested that it was possible that nerve had been left. Certainly I didn't have nearly the same numbness in the area I had from the first surgery. Worryingly I occasionally suffer excruciating pain stabs in the site, so have to be really careful with my footwear. Revision surgery is really not terribly successful with this.
If I had my time again I would still have it done as the pain before surgery had become awful and disabling BUT I would be wagging my finger at the surgeon second time round, insisting he thoroughly excise the area!!
Ellie I've just seen your post and I'm sorry you're suffering too. I would recommend the surgery however make sure you find a decent surgeon. The same chap did both of mine and he has a fantastic reputation and I don't think anyone was at fault with my second op it was just one of those things. The foot is still a million times better than it was despite the issues! Good luck to you x
Ju Ju, I feel for you, such a pain in the ____! When wearing anything other than comfortable walking type shoes my feet are covered in Compeed plasters, I think I keep the company afloat!
These old bones!!! >:(
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Thank you ER, :thankyou:....please what are compete plasters, think I need a bucket full......
I have had every sort of insole from the podiatrist and nothing helps a lot. The only shoe that are remotely comfy are trainers, so I feel a mess all the time 🙁
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Oh Ellie, i really feel for you, there is nothing worse than uncomfortable feet. I am quite convinced I have the feet of a ninety year old!
My feet have been affected by ballet and never being able to find well fitting shoes and have very very weirdly become desperately sensitive in recent years. EVERYTHING rubs them raw even when there is no obvious reason! Compeed are a range of plasters for different uses. There are blister plasters, bunion plasters, callous plasters, check out the range. I don't have obvious bunions but the area is painful in most shoes but the Compeed make it bearable. I find I develop blisters on the soles of my feet which the callous plasters prevent. They also sell a wax type stick that you rub on toe joints etc which prevents rubbing and blistering. You can buy this range online where there is a more comprehensive collection that in Boots. They are expensive but do tend to stay on a couple of days. If I'm going to an event they are part of my getting ready routine, like cleaning my teeth! I would be crippled without them and I'm not talking about me wearing towering Widow Twankey heels, I am a flat's girl and pretty much have always been.
As far as finding anything to stop the MN hurting I can't offer any valuable advice I'm afraid other than to buy shoes with cushioned inserts. I live in comfy (as stylish as I can find them!) walking type shoes, I thank goodness that they are trendy at the moment so there are lots around. Trouble is my feet are too narrow to fit 99% of them! Try to find shoes with a wide toe area so the tendons are not too compressed. The Compeed callous plasters sit directly on the area where the neuromas tend to occur so can offer some relief with hard soles shoes when necessary.
I feel for you. Shoes are the first thing that spring to mind when I have to dress formally, it's such a pain! x
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My feet are probably not as narrow as yours Juju but they are also shallow. Why is it that the majority of narrow shoes are cheap and uncomfortable. Hotter did do a narrow range ( a whole 3 styles I believe ). My toes are quite bent and a bit arthritic with trying to keep on court shoes when I was younger. Husband makes several rude comments about them. No bunions thankfully but a 15 year old verruca that all sorts of treatments and 5 podiatrists have failed to get rid of. It is on the ball of my foot in the middle of hard skin. I sometimes feel a nail is being driven through my foot, I seriously think that the treatments have done more damage than the verruca.
Not so long ago I was told I wasn't walking properly as the skin on my big toes was brand new! Pity I can't get it transplanted to my face :rofl: Flutterbyx
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Haha, that is so funny flutterby! The skin over the whole of my foot is brand new - no hard skin anywhere, I think I must be hovering! (I really wish I could!!)
My husband has always taken the Mickey out of my feet too, he pretends to retch when I tuck them into his lap whilst watching TV. (That's before I slap him round the head of course!!) ;)
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No feeling of coldness at all Sparkle but of course that's not to say that someone else wouldn't experience it. The 'signing off' surgeon who discharged me 6 months after the second op suggested that either a little nerve had been left or that there was a possibility of a second neuroma tucked away. It only occasionally rears its ugly head so I leave well alone!!
I had both surgeries done under local and the cheeky surgeon during the first delighted in dangling the cut off neuroma in front of me :o (I had asked!!) It was like a very large gobstopper dangling on a cord!! :o
I had Mark Tagoe, I don't know if he is your chap Sparkle. Cryosurgery was never mentioned to me. x
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My feet have spread because they have gone flat, and now I need extra wide shoes, and once I put the inner sole in (provided by the podiatrist) they are too tight, especially my right foot as the toes are being forced up. Anything slightly tight makes my foot cold and numb, and I have tingling under my toes all the time. Next week I am seeing the surgeon that did my back surgery last year (my second back surgery) . Things have been so much worse since the surgery, and now this added complication with my feet.....I knew when I had the surgery there was a 5% chance of it going badly wrong, but you just don't think it will be you :'(.........When asked ' How are you ' next week, I feel I will just break down........Heindsigh is a wonderful thing, isn't that the saying......Oh sorry I am moaning again :-X
Mustn't get started about my knees 😱
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Oh Ellie, poor you, don't apologise, you just moan away!!
Good luck when you see your surgeon next week, maybe there's a possibility of them resolving your back problem? I do hope so, back pain is the pits!
I had orthotics made up years ago that fit the arch of my foot which prevents the foot from pronating which is thought to help the Morton's neuroma. I didn't find they really helped though. I wonder whether there's a light weight thin gel pad that could sit under the area that is narrow enough not to compress your toes? My husband has a real problem with this in his ski boots and know he bought something. He's out walking at the moment, I'll ask him when he returns. xx
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My feet are probably not as narrow as yours Juju but they are also shallow. Why is it that the majority of narrow shoes are cheap and uncomfortable. Hotter did do a narrow range ( a whole 3 styles I believe ). My toes are quite bent and a bit arthritic with trying to keep on court shoes when I was younger. Husband makes several rude comments about them. No bunions thankfully but a 15 year old verruca that all sorts of treatments and 5 podiatrists have failed to get rid of. It is on the ball of my foot in the middle of hard skin. I sometimes feel a nail is being driven through my foot, I seriously think that the treatments have done more damage than the verruca.
Not so long ago I was told I wasn't walking properly as the skin on my big toes was brand new! Pity I can't get it transplanted to my face :rofl: Flutterbyx
Cheap narrow shoes.......where?!! Very few shops in the U.K. stock AAs. Just think! Some poor people have AAA or even AAAA width feet! I was once told my feet looked like combine harvesters! DH wouldn't dare give rude comments though. I'm quite capable of using my feet to good effect! :bounce:
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Haha, glad to hear it Ju Ju!
Getting back to the original topic of this thread - I am loving these scarf/shawls that seem to be everywhere this season. They are perfect for hot flushes!
Unlike some of you ladies I adore the autumnal colours and blacks and greys etc. I'm very much a winter person and pretty much love everything about it especially the clothes!! I'm really fair skinned and virtually aways wear scarves of varying weights twisted around my neck as it's a way to introduce sympathetic colouring to my vampire type colour tones and also to hide my skin from the sun! I bought two wonderful green and orange cashmere scarves from JL, really rich and vibrant, and have been wearing them with my waterproofs in Cornwall this past week or so. I've been stopped twice by women asking where I'd bought them despite looking like I've been dragged through a hedge backwards with the wild weather we've had.
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Haha, glad to hear it Ju Ju!
Getting back to the original topic of this thread - I am loving these scarf/shawls that seem to be everywhere this season. They are perfect for hot flushes!
Unlike some of you ladies I adore the autumnal colours and blacks and greys etc. I'm very much a winter person and pretty much love everything about it especially the clothes!! I'm really fair skinned and virtually aways wear scarves of varying weights twisted around my neck as it's a way to introduce sympathetic colouring to my vampire type colour tones and also to hide my skin from the sun! I bought two wonderful green and orange cashmere scarves from JL, really rich and vibrant, and have been wearing them with my waterproofs in Cornwall this past week or so. I've been stopped twice by women asking where I'd bought them despite looking like I've been dragged through a hedge backwards with the wild weather we've had.
A few years ago I knitted myself a lovely long shawl and just realised it perfectly matches my new boots. Two people have already asked me where I bought it and I took great pleasure in saying I made it myself. :)
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Haha, glad to hear it Ju Ju!
Getting back to the original topic of this thread - I am loving these scarf/shawls that seem to be everywhere this season. They are perfect for hot flushes!
Unlike some of you ladies I adore the autumnal colours and blacks and greys etc. I'm very much a winter person and pretty much love everything about it especially the clothes!! I'm really fair skinned and virtually aways wear scarves of varying weights twisted around my neck as it's a way to introduce sympathetic colouring to my vampire type colour tones and also to hide my skin from the sun! I bought two wonderful green and orange cashmere scarves from JL, really rich and vibrant, and have been wearing them with my waterproofs in Cornwall this past week or so. I've been stopped twice by women asking where I'd bought them despite looking like I've been dragged through a hedge backwards with the wild weather we've had.
I love all the autumn shades too as they suit my colouring .... I can wear corals, rusts, browns but I cannot wear grey at all. I have had two beautiful grey coats which I assured myself I could jazz up with bright scarves etc but I look and feel terrible in grey.
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My ballet teacher wouldn't allow en pointe unless the pupil was going on to College. Three girls did - wonder what happened to them ::).
I never have problems in a garden centre - I bought a fox glove yesterday to fill a space ;D
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Isn't it weird the way we all feel so differently about colours, you clearly like grey to have splashed out on two coats?! It may be one of those colours that just doesn't work on certain colourings. My hair has deepened as I've aged to an auburn shade (as a child the colour of a carrot! :o ) so there are masses of colours I can't wear, (pinks, purples, burgundy, beiges) but grey really works for me and I wear it often, just bought a little ribbed poncho from Jigsaw, all soft and snuggly!! My mother has dark hair (still!) and wears beautifully all the colours that look ghastly on me but she NEVER wears grey, she says she feels diminished in it!
Nobody would ever compliment anything I ever knitted!! ;)
Bet they have dodgy feet now CLKD!
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I would love to know whether they progressed :-\
I wear block colours. I like black/green/grey/bracken-coloured roll neck tops so that I can wear denim or clashing coloured jeans with a bright coloured coat over the top. I have several purple cardies as well as two in oat-meal which are ideal for Autumn days that aren't cold. As the weather gets chilly I have a bright red coat, a black with faux fur collar and a John Rocha dark green 'jacket'-type cardigan. I can then wear bright jeans plus lots of jewellery pinned onto the various coats/hats.
Shoes are my boring part …… I love my wellies ;D and am now cultivating Hotters ……….
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You sound like a vision of loveliness!!
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:wub: - sometimes I even leave the house in my garb ;D. However, when I'm in the garden I wear the oldest, grubbiest slippers etc. unless it's really, really wet ::).
I have tried to hang my jewellery in small net bags with the appropriate clothes but as I'm lazy at putting things 'up' rather than laying them down anywhere :D.
Anyone love buying jewellery?
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Me, I have tons of it! Only a few classic real pieces, pearls and diamonds etc but lots of fashion jewellery. I'm looking to replace a couple of Hobb's beaded necklaces I've been wearing for years (love them!) that recently died a death but haven't found anything as nice this season. I will continue looking. I'm dead boring really as I stick with just a handful of stud earrings and just my wedding ring but have lots and lots of necklaces.
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Antique Fairs?!? …….. auctions are good places to buy nice pieces.
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Yep always looking!
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I like blues, navy, berry and greys, I don't own anything brown or mustard colour.
I have small feet with a high instep and get trouble getting boots and strappy sandals to fit.
I love jewellery, especially brooches.
Reading all our different sizes and tastes you'd think one of us would find shopping easy ;D
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Sorry Juju the cheap shoes aren't as narrow as a AA. Many years ago my friend who had just started as a podiatrist gave me some details of a supplier of AA shoes which were too narrow for me. I've been racking my brains to think where it was. I should imagine you've trawled the Internet ad nauseum anyway :(
Getting on to the subject of colours, I had my colours done quite a while ago. It brought up a few surprises and I tend to buy less disasters now. Flutterbyx
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I wouldn't buy lime or that bright orange or mustard shades, although I was tempted in a Charity Shop recently where a Ted Baker jacket was being sold for £69.99.
Off to a garden centre later ;-)