Urgh February – the month of love and, it would certainly seem, the month of endless rain and grey days. Everything I’m shopping, eating, watching, reading and wearing from comfy undies, the cosiest little affordable restaurant, an excellent tv show to binge under a blanket from the comfort of your couch, a ‘pinch me’ moment in a magazine and, finally, a suspicion of spring to put a spring in your step…
SHOP
I tell no lie when I say that I have OVERHAULED my underwear drawer. So deep is my love for these Stripe & Stare smalls, I have fully invested and removed everything else. The brand sent me a multipack towards the end of last year and, such a revelation they were, it prompted me to order more and bin all my oldies.
The fit is great, sure, but the fabric is the real winner here; 95% tencel which is sustainable, super soft and extremely breathable – let’s just say you can wear these all day under leggings, play sports, and still feel fresh. Slightly more than your average high street multipack but 100% worth it.
I need to also give a quick shout out to this jacket I bought on sale from Lululemon.
After spending the last five years with their Snow Warrier glued to my back, I had little hesitation about buying another practical jacket from this brand. Now, whilst I love this coat with all my heart (full length, the warmest thing ever, great hood and TOTALLY waterproof), it’s also a huge investment. Cost per wear is working out well for me, truly, but I couldn’t help feeling it sure would be nice to have another option.
The Wunder Puff has many of the same great features, although water repellant rather than proof, like the warmth and the fit and the great hood but it has the added bonus of a cinchable waist and hem – this allows you to create different silhouettes and I LOVE that. It also happens to be on sale in some colours so, naturally, I bought one of those – the Forest Green (be sure to size up – I wear US6, UK10 – here it is on).
EAT
We’ve been paying customers at 111 by Modou so when the invite came in for Studio Modou, the chef’s new addition to the South side, I rsvp’d fast. A wonderful celebration of humble ingredients, wrapped up in a series of delightful, little, fine dining plates – the ham hough ‘sandwich’ was a particular highlight.
My top tip is to book for a Sunday when, at £25 pp for 10 plates between two, this is makes for a beautifully elevated dining concept at a very accessible price.
WATCH
I’ll confess, we totally slept on series 1 of The Night Manager – it aired ten years ago but made a long overdue comeback with season 2 this year. The basic story might not be hugely different from one decade to the next but this is a spy thriller we couldn’t wait to turn on each night.
Season 1 is still absolutely relevant and I would urge you to watch both seasons back to back (avail on BBC iPlayer).
FYI the full list of binge worthy tv can he found right here.
READ
In another life, many years ago, when I worked in marketing at Bluebellgray, a feature in House Beautiful magazine would have been cause for celebration in the studio, so to see an eight page tour of my very own home in the March issue is definitely something of a ‘pinch me’ moment. Alison and Douglas Gibb did the most wonderful job of styling, photographing and writing about our spaces – I will cherish this forever.
WEAR
Endless days of rain are lifted by a joyful injection of red with my new kicks. Thinking back to everything I said in this post, I can’t help feeling that these sneakers are just perfect for me with their little nod to retro styling and the fact that they are practical for everyday wear.
It’s no secret I have long been a fan of Fitflop – if you didn’t know, their shoes are engineered to be super comfy and they never miss the mark (even their wellies are a treat for your feet). These sneakers are no different and come, very handily, pre-treated with Scotchguard.
Roll on brighter days but, until then, no harm injecting a little shot of fun in the footwear dept.
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