In The Bleak Midwinter- Silk layering

It's finally snowed here in the Midlands, although there has only been a sprinkling over the gardens and nearby hills. But there was enough to get outside with a camera!

So, now to the title. Today is the 21st of December, making it exactly midwinter. Or the winter solstice, whatever you want to call it. And it was certainly the weather for the day.

Not too far away are two beautiful lakes that make for a wonderful walk. And on a day such as today, we had to take advantage of the amazing conditions. Though just for the record, no, I don't actually tramp around the countryside in high heels and floor length dresses! My trusty rucksack filled with vintage goodies and other niceties is dragged along too.

The particular things taken along today were lots of lovely silk items. The cream dress is silk (I think) from a flea market, the long shirt dress is a silk Laura Ashley piece that my mum found in a charity shop ages ago. The cream blouse was my 92 year old great grandma's which she had when she was young. It was then passed on to my mum when she was in her late teens, and then it finally found its way to me about 2 years ago. The brown leather belt is a Hilfiger found in a charity shop a couple of days ago- I love the stitching detail around the edge.The boots are brown suede ones that used to be my mum's. The furry hat is making another guest appearance after featuring in my coats post. The necklace is a thrifted one, the silk scarf too. I know that these layers of silk don't look very warm. But underneath that I had another 4 layers, including skinny trousers and tights!

The lake was completely frozen over apart from a patch where all the swans were happily sitting so I managed to got some lovely pictures of them afterwards.

I realised its been a while since I last started a debate, so I've decided to start one inspired by a question posed by Tavi from Style Rookie. She asked about what kept you inspired and made you love fashion.

This started me thinking. I feel that being more confident in fashion has made me an all round more confident person. That's one of the reasons (among many) that I feel that fashion, in its many forms is a definite and strong part of my life. I have no problem walking down a rural high street in a fifties tea dress, a vintage coat and a big floppy hat. I don't mind what people think of the fact that I read classics, spend my spare time doing creative projects and don't watch TV very often. Being confident in one area of life has increased more confidence in others.

I also realised that fashion is something that can let you blend in with the crowd or completely stand out. And for some people, either approach can give them more confidence.

So what do you think? Has fashion increased your confidence or taught you something? What's your general opinion on this topic? I'd love to hear about your views and ideas.

Thanks to dad for wielding the camera.
And a final thanks to those who commented and responded to my latest installment of blogger designs, I really appreciated it!

In The Bleak Midwinter- Silk layering 2009-12-21T14:41:00-08:00 Rating: 4.5 Diposkan Oleh: Unknown