Sunday Best: Leather and Knit

Car Coat - Topshop, Sweater - H&M, Umbrella - Orla Kiely, Leather Skirt - River Island,
Nail Varnish - Models Own in Moody Grey, Patent Satchel - Cambridge Satchel Co. at Asos.

Little by little autumn is creeping in ready to banish summer for another year. I love living in a country with such distinct seasons (well, maybe not in the case of summer) and watching them change around me
but the next few months are my favourite time of year. Blustery days filled with romantic expectations for the coming season without the dreary reality of the long harsh winter. Hopefully there will be a few more warm days before summer bids us adieu but this weekend has been distinctly chilly. Not that I am complaining, it has given my an opportunity to wear some of the autumnal pieces the I've been gathering.

Quite uncharacteristically I've been buying basic, especially these huge jumpers from H&M. The shape is so simple that they are easily thrown on over frock which is pretty handy for surviving the fickle temperatures of late summer in Scotland. I won't lie, they are pretty much a blanket with sleeves (see funny arms shot) and oh-so-cosy for it.

I'm not sure how the leather skirt came about but all of a sudden I needed one, my life/wardrobe just wouldn't be complete without it. Not exactly in keeping with the rest of my attire but it has settled in reasonably well. I think I'll fashion a Louis Vuitton style leather collar to wear it with next and a big grey jumper for a not-actually-going-back-to-school outfit.

P.S. Thank you to everyone who has entered The Vintage Tea Party competition, keep the entries coming!

Giveaway: The Vintage Tea Party

When it comes to cookery books, I have a bit of weakness. The allure of a crisp new book is something that I cannot resist, so it was a lovely surprise Tesco Books offered to send me a copy of a book that I hadn't heard of.

The Vintage Tea Party by Angel Adoree is far more than your average cookery book, alongside recipes for Earl Grey truffles, afternoon treats and boozy cocktails are tutorials on how to sew an apron and amongst others, a step by step guide to a classic roller set. It's far too nice not to share so I'm giving away a copy to one lucky reader.

The competition is open to everyone, all you have to do is leave a comment with your name and a means of contact (please only one comment each, it makes choosing the winner a lot simpler). Entries will close one week from now on September 3rd. Good Luck!


Edit: The competition is now closed.

Make Yourself at Home: Girl Cave

No Sunday Best this weekend, I'm afraid. Truth be told, I've spent my whole weekend in jeans (yes, jeans!) busy with an exciting project. Ever since I started on the road towards opening Wayward Daughter I've been working out of our little study, which is little more than a broom cupboard and was actually supposed to be Adam's Man Cave... a silly name drafted up on a gin fuelled evening with friends. Only since Wayward Daughter is already off to a flying start, I thought it was time to set up WD HQ... so to speak.

 On Friday I recommissioned our sparsely used dining room, made a trip to Ikea and then spent the whole weekend priming and preening. Its not quite there yet but it already feels like home. Adam has already christened it my Girl Cave, which is really quite fitting. There are so many pastel colours, the room is practically oozing Estrogen.

My guilty pleasures thus far have to be sticking pretty pictures on the wall under the guise of inspiration and bulk buying stationary. This is the beginnings of my wall of Wayward Daughters - As you can see Z Berg, Annie Monroe, Megan Fox and Françoise Hardy have already made the cut.



Would you believe if I told you all of those note books came to £2.25? I nipped into Asda for a pint of milk and there they were, 25p for a pack of five!

Sunday Best: Duffle Cape

Every girl has a sartorial weakness, some hoard shoes, others cannot resist bags but my frailty will always be the winter coat. When I say winter coat, what I really mean is any outdoor garment that can be worn between September and April. Peacoat, Mackintosh, Princess Coat, Swing Coat, Car Coat, Cape, Found in a thrift store resembling a school blazer... I have one of each but what I do not own is a Duffle coat. I've always though them a little frumpy, that is until I found this little darling, just waiting for me in the clearance section on Asos with a rather nice discount. After quickly confirming with my GBF (He owns twice as many coats as me and is always goading me into buying more) that it was acceptable to commence coat buying in August. He informed me that he is already ahead by two purchases and I clicked 'buy now'.

When it arrived I hung it gleeful in my wardrobe with all my other hoarded woollens, ready to pull out when the leaves begin to fall. Only then Monsoon season hit Scotland and I discovered that it is actually the perfect raincoat. The big hood keeps me safe and dry but it is breezy enough under the cape to remain cool in the muggy weather. I'm entirely converted to the Duffle, intact I've already picked out my first winter coat - A toffee coloured Duffle with a back pleat to avoid all frumpiness!

Wayward Daughter: Online Boutique

If you follow me on Facebook or Twitter you might have already heard that at very long last I have realesed Wayward Daughter's debut mini collection, which can be found in the WD online shop. In celebration of this I am offering a 25% discount to all Wayward Daughter readers until Friday 12th August, simply enter 'LOVEWD' at the checkout.

I won't inundate you with pictures of frocks and pretty collars, you can see all that in the shop, for now I would like to show you my second favourite part of setting up the label. My first was of course designing and making the clothes but I also loved working on the branding. While I work on all the blog's day to day graphics and photo editing myself, I'm very luck to have a graphic designer at my beck and call which is pretty handy as I just about know my way around Illustrator but I'm certainly no typographer.

Together Adam and I worked on branding ideas, early on we decided to continue with the same fonts from the blog - Bullion an original Wild West press font and Learning Curve a modern script. Adam reworked the 'WD' to mirror the original printing block and after many samples and much debate I decided to embark upon the labour intensive task of printing each tag by hand on 100% cotton paper, which thirstily soaks up the ink showing off the textured grain. I'm so glad that I decided to put in the extra time because they turned out exactly as I hoped they would.

All items are from a limited run of late summer pieces and sizes have already begun to sell out. If the size you are looking for has sold out already but you would like to make a purchase, please email me to discuss a custom made piece. I would love it if you would have a look and tell me what you think. On that note, I would also like to thank everyone for their lovely comments and encouragement, I couldn't have asked for a warmer response. Not forgetting all the Wayward Daughters who have already purchased, your orders will be with you soon.

Love at First Sight: Penny Lane

I've been swooning over Jeffery Campbell shoes ever since I started this blog but it wasn't until I was in San Francisco last year, I actually tried a pair on. I must have tried ten pairs, mostly Lita's but I couldn't find a love match so I returned home with a size 6.5 wooden heeled space in my heart resigned to pay extortionate shipping and taxes or just live without. That is until I discovered that Zalando stock a wealth of JC woodies, oxford and platforms. It is only a matter of time before Penny Lane and I will be strolling through fallen leaves together.