Firstly, Happy Mother’s Day to all you mothers out there. For me, long gone are the days of cute, handmade cards and a sub-standard breakfast in bed, so this year I have taken matters into my own hands and booked a family weekend trip to Rome instead. It’s my second-favourite city in the world (after London, obviously) and I hope that while you’re reading this I will be having either a coffee or a cocktail in a cool backstreet bar/café. Depending on what time of the day you’re reading this, of course. But, on holiday, all bets are off…
I’ve gone for another round-up of outfits to wear this coming month. April should be getting a touch warmer, but you never really know. However, I have based these looks on not having to wear a big coat or some thermals. It’s also, selfishly, styling ideas for me as I tend to base these monthly round-ups on things I already have in my wardrobe (or am thinking about adding). Let’s have a look at what I’ve come up with.
LEOPARD TROUSERS & DENIM
I wore my leopard jeans a lot last year, and I shall continue to do so this year. There’s now a whole load of animal-print-trousers options to choose from on the high street, and you can find a pair for every price point. Typically, the ones I like the look of the most are at the higher end of the scale, but there’s something about the Ganni leopard print that just works. For April, I will be wearing mine with a denim shirt and a bomber jacket. You may wonder why there is a random bra here. I just wanted to show it as I bought a couple of these bralets from M&S to wear under shirts, so there’s a nice bit of lace on show instead of a terribly ugly flesh-coloured sports bra – which has been my underwear of choice during the winter months.
- Mango Oversized denim shirt
- YAMEIZE 70s Retro Pilot Sunglasses
- M&S Lace Non Wired Bralette
- Miu Miu Leather Wander Top-Handle Bag
- M&S Cotton Rich Lightweight Jacket
- Ganni Leopard-print barrel-leg jeans
- Adidas Handball Spezial Shoes
NAVY & GREEN SHOULD ALWAYS BE SEEN
There’s a bit of a preppy vibe to this one, a look that I’m increasingly keen on as we get into real spring. As opposed to ‘pretend spring’ that can change to winter again over the course of one day. I love green with navy, and with the weather getting better (hopefully) we can shun our knitwear and wear our crisp, white shirts under our jackets instead.
- Boden Sienna Cotton Shirt
- Zara Check Scarf
- Sezane Dany Earrings
- ME + EM Sharp Shoulder Pinstripe Boyfriend Blazer
- Boden High Rise Straight Cord Jeans
- Sezane Justine Basket Bag
- Liberty Iphis Travel Card Holder
- Adidas Handball Spezial Shoes
A PRETTY BLOUSE & A TRENCH
If white shirts are a bit too ‘business’ for you, try a pretty white blouse instead. Surely we all have one of these lurking in our wardrobe somewhere? Go for the full Sienna Miller look and wear yours with a trench coat and a really good pair of jeans. I have increasingly seen ladies carrying their Mulberry Bayswater bags around town again of late. If you think about it, they’re basically the same as a Birkin, aren’t they? Or at least very similar. I now have regret that I sold mine. It was the first designer bag I ever bought but I didn’t really use it enough. I don’t tend to cart a lot of stuff around so prefer a smaller handbag. But if you still have one, get it out!
- & Other Stories Embroidered Puff-Sleeve Blouse
- Louise Wade Whippet Pendant Necklace
- Monica Vinader Siren Muse Mini Huggie Earrings
- Boden Windsor Heritage Mac
- Mango Suede belt
- ME + EM Blue Patch Pocket Engineered Jeans
- Mulberry Bayswater Bag
- Jeffrey Campbell Yachting Day Boat Shoes
MIU MIU ON THE HIGH STREET
A caramel pencil skirt, pale blue knit, barn jacket and bowling bag is straight off the Miu Miu A/W 2024 runway. Now it’s trickled down to the high street and this colour mix is right up my strasse. If a brown plastic skirt isn’t to your liking, you could wear this outfit with some brown jeans or trousers instead. Which is what I will be doing.
- & Other Stories Stone Stud Earrings
- Anthropologie Pilcro Faux-Leather Collar Barn Jacket
- M&S V‑Neck Jumper
- Anthropologie Melie Bianco Natasha Travel Bag
- H&M Coated pencil skirt
- Sezane Paula Babies Shoes
THE CREAM SKIRT
Another trend that I’m happy to buy into is the cream midi-skirt look. Again, there are loads to choose from, and this style can take you right into summer and through to early autumn. You might need to get the fake tan out first, though: pasty legs and a cream skirt are not a winning combination. I still stand by Tan-Luxe ‘The Gradual’ tan lotion as being the best fake tan I have tried, and one bottle will probably last you all summer.
- Daisy London Shrimps Acorn Charm Necklace
- Le Specs Tragic Magic Aviator Sunglasses
- Sezane Will Suede Jacket
- COS Relaxed Cotton T‑Shirt
- Toast Ecru Denim Skirt
- Anya Hindmarch Perello Raffia Tote Bag
- H&M Deck Shoes
MY FAVOURITE SPRING JACKET
It has to be a denim jacket. I’m sure you have your own favourite one. For me, it’s this shirt/jacket from Sessun. I bought mine two years ago and it’s the perfect layering piece for this time of year. Wear under your barn jacket now and wear alone when the temperature dictates you need only two layers rather than four.
- ME + EM Soft Cotton Poplin Contrast Stitch Top
- M&S Oversized Preppy Sunglasses
- Sessun Leone Denim Shirt Jacket
- Ralph Lauren Cropped Cotton Wide-Leg Trousers
- Vintage Louis Vuitton Speedy leather handbag
- Adidas Handball Spezial Shoes
THE CUTEST BAG I EVER DID SEE
This is a bonus look, just because I wanted to show you this bag from Staud. I mean, how cute is it? I feel like it’s the perfect going-out-bag as a talking point. If you have a talking-point bag, no one really notices the rest of your outfit so you can keep it simple.
- Simone Rocha Embellished tulle and jersey top
- Sezane Carmine Flora Hoop Earrings
- ME +EM Brown Oversized Blazer
- Arket Lupin Flared Jeans
- Staud Juliet Small leather tote bag
- Schuh Lorella Point Flat Shoes
As promised, next week I will try and focus on skirts for you.
K x
