Happy Sparkly New Year - Chic & Stylish Linkup.

Hello and welcome to the blog which is my first one of 2025!

How did your Holiday festivities go? Did you have a wonderful time seeing in the new year?

The last few days were typical “twixmas”, with me not quite knowing what day it was!! David has been off work which has been lovely & I’ve not been to the gym or any classes so everything has been upside down, I love having David at home but can’t wait to get back to my gym classes and I’ve got my first booked next Monday. I’m also undertaking Dry January. I did it last year and surprised myself at how easy it was. I’m hoping this year with be the same, so I’ll be getting the Nozeco in for starters!

Items marked with * have been gifted to me, however these are 100% my own honest comments.

 

A Wrap Dress from Jenerique.

Morning all. 

How are you my friends?

I’ve blinked and missed the weekend! Surely it’s only Friday? Ha ha, I’m joking really but to be honest with you my weekend was so busy it came and went in a flash!

Friday night I was back to ballroom. We took on a jive and as usual I picked it up quite well and throughly enjoyed the whole dance, well we only learnt half the routine and will finish it off next week. 

On Saturday morning I helped my eldest daughter out and took one of her boys to football. After a last minute change of venue the game started in the rain, and fortunately I anticipated the wet weather and took my rain coat and umbrella. Alas it turned chilly by the end of the 40 minute game and I was rather happy to get home. 

I soon warmed up as I went to my daughter’s house, the one who’s living with me whilst her house is extended, for a day of painting. We started with a base layer of mist spray which was the worst part of painting. Once all the upstairs rooms had one coat of the mist spray we started on a proper coat of paint, we went round all the rooms before returning home for an Indian takeaway and a much needed glass of bubbles. 

The following day, after doing a clean for my daughter at her Air BNB, I went back to paint again, this time after finishing the landing I started on the downstairs. Another mist coat which is a watery half mix of paint was applied. It’s a big room with the kitchen, dining area and sitting room all in one place and although it took ages, we managed to get it all done. We’ll tackle that room in the week with proper paint and hope to see the difference in no time, painting a room really starts to make a room more like a liveable room doesn’t it? After a busy weekend of hard work it was wonderful to come home to a home cooked dinner of chicken, mushroom and leek pie served with baby roast potatoes, tender-stem broccoli and peas. Isn’t it nicer to have dinner cooked for you?

As you can imagine I didn’t have time to take photos, which is a real shame - I’ve been wearing so many wonderful autumnal outfits since I came home, so I’ll share a cute dress I took away with me to Sicily. 

Items Marked with * have been gifted to me, however these are 100% my own honest comments. 

Mixing a Slinky Skirt with a Casual Tee!

Hello and thanks for joining me today.

Here’s one I made earlier!

I’m away for a couple of days visiting my uncle in Cornwall as it’s his birthday. I’ve come down with my mum and sister on a 5 hour car ride to stay in a local-to-him hotel which is in Liskerd, I’ll share on IG stories what I get up to. 

It’s been a worry as to what to pack as the weather has been all over the show again, so as we’re driving I’ve packed to cover all eventualities … lol. I’ve got four dresses, and some wide leg trousers, sandals and trainers along with my new jean jacket. Please do have a look so you can see my new pieces. 

Ballroom on Friday was wonderful, I’ve really nailed the waltz routine and am “banana-ing” rather well even though I say it myself.  I really wished I’d learnt years ago! To be fair I love any kind of dancing and have a sense of dance that comes naturally, although some of the new faster styles are a bit too faster for me, I’ll leave that to the young ones - lol. 

Today I thought I'd show a more younger style that's trending at the moment.  I think it looks great, but you'll have to let me know your thoughts.  Is this a style you'd wear?

Items marked with * have been gifted to me, however these are 100% my own honest comments. 

My Holiday Edit.

Morning all!

How’s it going?

Sorry for the late posting, with one thing and another this blog got put to the bottom of the pile!

Back down to earth with a bump afternoon a fun filled fab 10 days in Majorca with my eldest & her family. It was really nice to stay for the extra couple of days, and had I only stayed for a week I'd have encountered disruption at the airport as it was flooded!  I had a couple of bad days with rain and clouds, although it was still hot and I managed to have a great time with the kids at the go kart track and in Alcudia. I've stayed at the hotel twice before once with all the family and the time before that with my eldest daughter again - obviously the children were much younger then so it was nice to watch them having a bit more freedom and enjoying the whole hotel much more.  

I always love to hear what people pack for their holidays so today’s post is all about what I packed!

I’ve been lucky enough to have been gifted some lovely dresses and sandals recently, and also some swimsuits that I’d also like to share with you today!

Items marked with* have been gifted to me, however these are 100% my own honest comments.

Jenerique Culottes with White - #Chicandstylish #LINKUP

Hi there. 

How are you all doing?

As you know I’m away this week, so have planned in advance. I’m on my last day here in Majorca, and for the last couple of days has been raining and cooler temps so I went to Alcudia on the bus. It was really pretty there walking around the marina, browsing a couple of shops and have a drink and slice of pizza. The sun eventually decided to make an appearance so I headed for the bus … along with everyone else! The queue was horrendous with no visible queuing system and signs to say what bus stopped where (they all stopped in the same place) so David and the rest of us decided to take a taxi. Much quicker and so much more interesting, the driver chatted about his country, where he lived and his family. It was nice to hear more about the town from a local and he suggested visiting the old town of Alcudia, this I’ll have to do on my next visit as I’m home tomorrow. ☹️

Who else hates having sticky legs in summer? Chaffing can be a real problem and there’s all sorts of creams, powders and underwear on the market to help. 

This is when wearing culottes and more importantly lightweight culottes comes in handy!

Items marked with * have been gifted to me however these are 100% my own honest comments

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What to wear with a Black Maxi - Chicandstylish #Linkup

Hi there everyone,

Thanks for joining me today. 

How’s your week gone? Did you join the late linkup on Monday? Don’t worry if you missed it, you can join today’s which is linked below. 

Weather wise it’s been a mixed bag here in Kent. I managed to take full advantage of the sunshine on Monday and got a few photos that turned out really well.  Today I’m sharing an outfit from Jenerique with photos I took a few weeks back when the weather was bad.

I do wish the weather would make up its mind and stay fine or wet, all this changing is driving me mad and making outfit decisions really difficult!  How’s your climate been? Talking of climate, I’ve found the perfect maxi dress for my upcoming holiday. This stunner from Jenerique will soak up some attention hopefully, especially on my forthcoming holiday to Majorca with my eldest and her family.

Items marked with * have been gifted to me, however these are 100% my own honest comments.

My weekend on the Isle of Wight - Chicandstylish #Linkup

Good morning. 

Welcome to the blog. 

Big apologies for being so late with Thursday’s post, various reasons that I won’t go into now have hindered publication. 

So good to have you here, I’ve got lots to tell you about the weekend.

You may recall I’ve been away for a long weekend to the Isle of Wight. Today I’ll share what I got up to with some photos thrown in too!

On David’s 60th birthday celebration our good friends gave us both a present (we are both 60 this year). They’d booked a long weekend on the Isle of Wight the following weekend! I was shocked and immediately told them I couldn’t make it as I was baby sitting Max for the night! Little did I know it was just a ploy for us to keep the weekend free! It had all been planned in advance in secret! I wasn’t looking after him but going with David and our friends for a weekend of laughter, food, drinks and fun! I was very excited and planned my clothes making sure I’d cover every weather system we could possibly encounter.  (We have to do that in the UK don’t we!)

This was the outfit I wore on Saturday night. I’m chuffed with this jumpsuit from Jenerique. 🖤

Items marked with * have been gifted to me, however these are 100% my own honest comments.

 

Bold Leopard Print Dress - #Chicandstylish #Linkup

Hello and welcome to the blog.

Hope you're week is going well.

The weather has been pants here recently. It’s been so windy any photo opportunities have been well and truly scuppered! 

I’ve got the run of birthdays starting next week so it’s going to be busy and rather expensive! David’s big birthday is the weekend after next and we’re having a few drinks & nibbles to celebrate it. Mine is 18 days after that and I hope to have friends round to help me get through it! Unlike me as I usually face everything full on but if I’m honest I’m not looking forward to this one at all, 60 seems so old (no offence to anyone already there) and my aching joints confirm the advancing years. I know once it’s been and gone I’ll be fine and in the words or my best friend’s late mum … “I don’t fancy the alternative”!

So let’s put that talk away and concentrate on my latest dress from Jenerique London. 

Items marked with * have been gifted to me, however these are 100% my own honest comments.

Wearing a Jenerique London Floral Dress.

Good morning. 

How’s your weekend gone?

Mine has flown by as per usual, it seems one minute it’s Friday evening and the weekend is stretched out in front of me and the next it’s Monday morning. But on the plus side it does mean I get to spend it with you!

Now don’t get too excited but ‘news flash’ I actually went out on Saturday night! I know, I know out two weeks in a row! It’s been ages but worth the wait. We celebrated St. Patricks day with four friends in our local pub. The drinks were flowing as were the laughs. I even had two or three shots of baby Guinness! Which were delicious and very ‘moorish’ so as you can imagine it was a slow day on Sunday with me not wanting to get out of bed to go watch my granddaughter play football. I’m pleased I did because it made me feel so much better and even though they didn’t win, Amelia managed to get another hatrick! Very proud Nan moment I can say. Home to a roast dinner for … wait for it … three! Yes not the usual riotous Sunday dinner and somewhat quieter than normal & all finished by a reasonable 4pm!! It was nice to have a bit more evening so I could slump in the chair and catch a few zzzz’s .. lol!

I’ve been starting to think about Spring weddings and special occasions and wanted the share this beautiful floral with you, even though I’ve not got any weddings this year, but if I had this would be top of my list! Do you have any events that this style might be suitable for?

Item’s marked with * have been gifted to me, however these are 100% my own honest comments. 

Styling The Mesh Dress - Chicandstylish #LINKUP

Hi there, welcome to the blog today. 

How’s life treating you?

Been a fairly busy week for me, although I’ve not actually done much! I had a super evening out on Sunday followed by a week containing a birthday party for a couple of extended family members, watching my grandkids whilst mummy and daddy went to parents evening, lunched with a friend and had dinner with my eldest daughter, so along with a trip into town and my gym classes the week has been quite busy!

I thought Spring was about to arrive with warmer weather and sunny days recently but as expected the nicer days have been replaced with rain and cooler temperatures! Plays havoc with our Spring outfits doesn’t it? - how do you feel about it? 

Today I thought I’d share this stunner with you and when the nicer weather arrives I’ll be ready and waiting!

Items marked with * have been gifted to me, however these are 100% my own honest comments. 

Monochromatic Tweed Jacket - #Chicandstylish #Linkup

Hi there, how’s it going?

Have you had storms where you are?

We’ve had two in the past week, Storm Isha and Storm Jocelyn have been battering the UK making everything so much harder! Things seem to have quietened down now so I managed to get these photos taken yesterday albeit slightly overcast. 

I’ve had a great week for dinners. My youngest daughter cooked on Monday, my middle daughter prepared another super meal on Tuesday and last night I was out for food at my eldest daughter’s house. As usual it was good to be around the grandkids and even better that I didn’t have to do any of the preparations.  But even better than that, I’m out with my old work colleagues tonight, ☺️ so no kitchen duties for me this week …. result!

My outfit today is based around this stylish blazer I was kindly gifted from Jenerique London. 

Items marked with * have been gifted to me, however these are 100% my own honest comments

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Styling my Jenerique Dress - #Chicandstylish #Linkup

Morning everyone. 

How are you?

Hasn’t it been cold! I’m not really a Winter person unless I’m skiing so the recent cold snap has been awful! I’ve been taking full advantage of this padded maxi coat at every opportunity. It’s so warm and cosy and it’s still available so if you’re in need of a suitable coat for this season I’d definitely recommend this one!

Dry January is going well as is the calorie counting. Both have actually been quite good and I’m pleased to say I’ve stuck to them! Yay! 🥳  It’s been easier because all the family are committed which has made dinners so much easier, we’ve all been contributing to the menus and have been planning the meals in advance. It’s not been hard at all and if I feel hungry I grab a glass of water. Calorie counting is more about what you can have rather than what you can’t like lots of diets, so long as you include ALL what you eat (I have an app to keep a track of everything). I’ve been having chocolate, crisps and bread along with Nozeco which is a delicious alternative to my favourite tipple - Prosecco. 🍾 So wish me luck with this and hopefully you’ll be able to see the results for yourself soon. 😁

New Year’s Eve seems a long time ago and I neglected to share my dress with you, which is just as well because you’ve seen it before. Today I thought I’d share what was a possibility for the occasion - a very fitted purple dress from Jenerique that I’ve got other ideas for. 😉

Items marked with * have been gifted to me, however these are 100% my own honest comments. 

Showing Off on Repeat - #Chicandstylish #LINKUP

Good morning my friends.

Hoping you are enjoying the week.

Has it turned Autumnal where you are?

Rain today after a few nice days that were quite hot!

Yesterday after the usual gym sessions I came home to tackle to bedroom. My second eldest daughter her husband and son are moving in whilst their bungalow's extended and made into a house, so her old bedroom (my room for my dresses) had to be sorted and found new homes for everything in it! 😱 Yes that’s been very hard to do. With the help of two of my daughters we went through the rail of dresses, separating them into piles keep, charity. Vinted and ditch. It was actually rather therapeutic and I returned from the charity bin feeling like a weight had been lifted off my chest! I’ve already added the pieces to Vinted and within an hour had sold three items! 

It’s been really good to go through the dresses, remembering when I wore them, how many times and would I ever get into some of them again! Lol. 

So the room is almost empty now, I've got parcels to post and a run to the tip but I’m exciting see it filled mainly with Max ❤️

So you can imagine I’ve not had much time to get blogging, hence this late post and the dress I’m sharing today is a ‘just for fun’ look.  You might have seen this last year when I was debating wearing it for Christmas and since then haven’t had the opportunity to don it. It’s waiting patiently for its outing and I’ll be sure to let you know when I do. But just for now let’s enjoy the colours. 💕💙

Items marked with * were gifted to me, these are my own honest comments. 

Another Vibrant Dress from Jenerique - #Chicandstylish #LINKUP

Morning all.

Hope all is good with you.

Did you catch me and my four friends on Monday?  We styled our jumpsuits for the monthly challenge and you can view mine and find out my reasons for not keeping the 60's inspired abstract all in one!

As you can imagine it's been a quiet week so far (my two daughters and son are away with their families) so I've been getting on top of a few jobs that I've let slip.  I've been sorting through my dressing room and putting things away and making piles for the charity bin and for adding to my Vinted account!  I'm such a hoarder and keep nearly everything.  I'm trying to go through my things and ask myself do I really need it and will I wear it again!  Chances are if it's not been worn for at least a year (yes I keep things for longer than that .. lol) it's probably not going to get worn again.  I just find it so hard to get rid of anything, especially if it’s a loved item that I've worn for a special occasion!  

I've also been trying to up my Reel game on Instagram, and even though I say it myself, produced an enchanting reel featuring some gifted perfumes ... have a look on my page and let me know what you think!

So whilst clearing up I noticed a dress that I've not shared with you and today is the perfect opportunity to feature it on here.

Items marked with * have been gifted to me, however these are 100% my own honest comments.

January Review

Welcome everyone, it's lovely to have you here.

Is your month going to plan, what are you up to?

I'm in Les Arcs in the French Alps skiing at the moment, so I'm hoping this post actually publishes!

As it's the first Monday of the month It's time to share what I wore last month, so without any further ado let's get the ball rolling and start my January Review.

I started the month off with a super duper patterned dress that really filled me with happiness and thoughts of Spring.  This will be one to turn to quite often when the weather improves, it's just one of those dresses that ticks all my boxes.

Cross-Over Maxi from Jenerique - #Chicandstylish #LINKUP

Morning all.

What's been happening?

Been a normal week for me since going to London on Sunday to see Frozen.  I've been seeing the kids, going to gym classes and thinking about getting back into blogging and Instagraming like normal.

The gym classes have been going well and even though I'm exhausted when I've done them I feel 'good' too!  It's kind of a 'good' ache rather than just aching ... ha ha ha! How's your gym activites been? Are you a regular or just started on your fitness journey?  I hate not going to work-out classes and need to get fitter for my up and coming skiing holiday in February.

The weather has been cold here of late and it's been hard to get into the swing of things.  Photo taking has been non existent, so today's post has been a difficult one to sort out.  It's either raining, cloudy, too cold, windy or too dark.  Having to resort to old photos today, well not old they were taken before Christmas in my dressing room, let me know what you think of my stunning cross-over maxi dress.  

It's from a selection from Jenerique and you can see some other items I've styled from them here (this stunning jacquard blazer) and here (my stylish khaki coat).

Items marked with * have been gifted to me, however these are 100% my own honest comments.

December Review.

Hiya, and welcome to Mummabstylish and welcome to the first post of 2023!

How did your weekend go?

Mine was both chilled and busy.  Nothing much happening on Friday as dancing isn't on until next week and I'm going to be ready for it.  Saturday was my grandson's birthday, so we went to see him after he'd been out for the day with my daughter and her family.  We stayed for a take out pizza and returned home to watch Maverick and see in the New Year.  It was really chilled and relaxed and just what we needed to be honest.  

On Sunday we had a roast with some of the kids and my mum.  A normal hectic day which was wonderful as always.  The weather has been pants here, tipping it down one minute and dry the next, typical British weather eh!

Today I'm sure I'll be getting ready to get back to normal and hopefully get some classes booked at the gym as I'm starting my diet this week, wish me luck!  I'm looking forward to styling and using some of my Christmas presents, I got a couple of nice pieces along with some new lighting for my dressing room.  I'm hoping my photos indoors will be much better using it.  

Have a chilled day and I'm excited to see you on Thursday for the first #Linkup of 2023.

It's the first Monday of the year and can only mean it's also the first Monday of the month and that can only mean looking back at December for the ....

December Review.

What to wear with a Jacquard blazer - #Chicandstylish #LINKUP

Hi there my friends.

Hope you are well.

Big apologies for being a whole day late, I have no excuses!

I'm still feeling tired, probably just the fact I'm doing something everyday trying to get everything ready for next week!

How are you all?  Have you been affected by the weather?  It's so cold here in the UK with freezing temperatures and some snow, as you can imagine here in the UK everything comes to a standstill . Main roads were closed and people were stranded, my son stayed in a hotel instead of coming home, he didn't want to spend the night in the car and I don't blame him! But we're just not used to it are we!  I need to be skiing when it snows, not trying to get to the shops and running errands .. lol!

I did a stupid thing when I went shopping though, I cleared the snow off of all the car windows except the rear glass so when I went on my way. I wanted to put bits in the boot so I opened it and all the snow, which was melting, slipped into it! I was furious and had to scrape it out with my hands which were freezing.  I came home and took the carpet out to bring in doors and dry off in front of the radiator.  No problem it dried by the next day so I replaced it on my next journey out.  I placed everything back in which included a plastic bottle of screen wash - next time I opened it I found the bottle had tipped over and it had a hole in it meaning half the contents were in my boot!  It's now drying, again, by the radiator!  Fuming wasn't the word. Grrrr!!

Last week I went to Bluewater which is about 3/4 of an hour away, I had an appointment for a fitting and will be sharing my afternoon with you soon. I did a bit of shopping and got a couple of gifts, it's a good way to spread the tiring job of present buying - little and often it my motto!

Anyway I wanted to keep warm but still look chic and elegant when I went so wore this classic outfit.  What do you think, did I succeed?

Items marked with * have been gifted to me, however these are 100% my own honest comments.