"". Red Bombshell dress and a night at Heston's | Is This Mutton?

Fashion for the over 50s with books and beauty

Sunday 12 November 2017

Red Bombshell dress and a night at Heston's

Image showing a 50 plus woman in the garden wearing a red Bombshell dress

I have always wanted a Bombshell dress. They never fail to make the wearer look curvaceous and confident, whether it's Nigella Lawson, who bought 12,  or blogger Nikki Garnett (scroll down to see her in a full-length gold Bombshell dress). So when I heard, three months ago, that I'd succeeded in getting a fab new job at my advanced age, I decided to treat myself to a red Bombshell dress.

Image showing a 50 plus woman in red figure flattering dress and quirky red and black shoes decorated with cherries

It got its first outing at the weekend when Mr Mutton and I went for dinner at the glamorous Dinner by Heston Blumenthal in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel.  It was my post birthday treat. 

I find it hard to find the right shoes to go with occasion wear. If I was able to wear high heels, finding a fabulous pair wouldn't be a problem. But I literally can't walk in them so I have to find kitten heels or low block heels. They don't always look very fashionable. The model on the Bombshell website was wearing nude high heels with her red dress but that's a bit too "Middleton" for me. I found a suitably quirky and cute pair of shoes at one of my favourite brands, Poetic Licence. I teamed them with nude fishnets.


Image showing a woman in her 50s in a red dress standing by the bar of a luxurious London hotel
First stop, a glass of Champagne at the bar. 


Dinner by Heston is not to be confused with his eponymous restaurant The Fat Duck at Bray in Berkshire. I went there a few years ago and it's a fabulous experience, working your way through the experimental and stunning tasting menu.

The Dinner restaurant, overlooking Hyde Park, offers modern dishes, inspired by historic British gastronomy. The menu shows the year when each dish was originally to be found. We love this restaurant because it's got such a great vibe. The staff are very friendly and enthusiastic without being pompous or overbearing. I realised I was done with Michelin starred fine dining when, at another famous London restaurant, a waiter said snootily "I'll ask the water waiter" when asked for another bottle of water.


Image showing a man in his early 60s at a restaurant in London
Mr Mutton gets his close-up 


The last time we were here it was in June for our wedding anniversary. We had a table looking out at the park and the light was fantastic. Last night, it was dark outside and more atmospheric inside, but it didn't make for great photography so I won't share all the photos we took of our food (sorry Nancy!).  I was seated with a great view straight into the kitchen. One guy spent the evening grappling with the flames of an oven that was searing pork chops. Another was painstakingly cleaning and trimming mushrooms individually.


Image showing Meat Fruit starter where chicken liver pate is made to look like a mandarin with leaves. At Dinner by Heston Blumenthal


Mr Mutton had the famous "Meat Fruit" (c.1300) which looks just like a mandarin but is in fact chicken liver pate. I had a starter called Salamagundy (c.1720): chicken oysters, salsify, marrowbone, horseradish cream & pickled walnuts. The combination of different textures, and the powerful flavours, were divine. We didn't choose Savoury Porridge (c. 1660) - snails, girolles, garlic, parsley & fennel - because neither of us like snails.


Image showing a dessert called sambocade at Dinner by Heston Blumental featuring a goats milk cheesecake lderflower & apple, perry poached pear & smoked candied walnuts

For the main course I had Powdered Duck Breast (c.1850), braised & grilled red cabbage, spiced umbles (whatever an umble is....!) and pickled cherries. Mr M had Cod in Cider (c.1940), with chard and flamed mussels. All tip top! I was too stuffed for pudding or cheese but Mr M managed to push down Sambocade (c.1390) which came with a goat alert: goats milk cheese cake, elderflower and apple, perry poached pear and smoked candied walnuts.

The final flourish was a sweetmeat presented to me on a plate with "Happy birthday Gail" in ganache.


Image showing a 50 plus woman in a white conservatory wearing a red Bombshell dress, nude fishnet tights and red and black Poetic Licence shoes

Image showing a close up of a woman wearing a Pandora rose gold bracelet with charms
I kept the jewellery simple with a rose gold circle necklace and rose gold charm bracelet 


Outfit Details

Red Bombshell dress from BombshellHQ;  Shake It shoes by Poetic Licence, Amazon

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25 comments

  1. Fantastic! What a wonderfull place to go out for dinner. I want to eat at Jonnie Boer s restaurant. Dont know if you ever heard of him. And your dress is absolute stunning! What a fantastic design!

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    1. I've never heard of Jonnie but it sounds like one to add to the list!

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  2. Oh Gail, may I say "Wow"!! What a special dress, pure Nigella. What a lovely treat you gave yourself. Happy belated birthday. Hugs, x.

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    1. Thanks Mary - if only I had Nigella's money I would buy the dress in many different colours and designs!

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  3. Wow! What a wonderful dress and the colour is absolutely right for you! I share your challenge re: finding dainty shoes for dresses like that. I can only wear ballet flats as any heel is a complete no-no for me. The ones you chose are lovely. And again, wow, re: your dining experience. Looks just amazing!

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    1. Aww thanks Penny, and I'll keep my eye out for cool flat shoes! I need them too.

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  4. What a beautiful dress and intriguing restaurant. Thank you for telling us about those food choices. Good to see Mr Mutton. So we were deux moutons en rouge last week.

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    1. Thanks Anna - fortunately there was no "mouton" on the menu, though I did have some last night!

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  5. What a lovely dress that really could take you anywhere. #CreativeMondays

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  6. Looks like a lovely meal. Beautiful dress :)

    Thanks for sharing at Creative Mondays. Hope you can join us again soon.

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  7. What a fabulous dress for a fabulous night out Gail. Belated birthday wishes to you - 21 again? As a latecomer to the Red party I'm certainly in need of something stunning like this. I fancy it may have to be found on eBay after our recent spending spree in London - I swear I was leaving a trail of £20 notes behind me wherever I went!

    Anna x

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    1. London shops have that effect - that's why I rarely go "up west." I spend too much as it is on online purchases!

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  8. You look smashing for your meal in that wonderful restaurant - I bet you had a super time. Love the dress and the bracelet too. Have a super week my dear. x Jacqui
    www.mummabstylish.com

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  9. Such an elegant look…I love the dress! Beautiful look!

    http://chicglamstyle.com

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    1. Thank you Rachel for the compliment and the visit!

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  10. Looks like an amazing night out Gail. I always feel special in red too. You are a bombshell in this dress! I love the classic style and the fit is gorgeous.
    Thanks for linking!
    jess xx
    www.elegantlydressedandstylish.com

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  11. You are a bombshell no matter what you are wearing. But this dress is so sassy, and so classy!!! You and Mr. Mutton are such a handsome couple.

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    1. Back to revisit this post, this dress and those quirky, incredible shoes. Yes, I do need a pair in 2018. Off to 'shop'.

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  12. You look absolutely stunning Gail! You can't beat a little red dress for instant glamour! Thanks for linking up!

    Emma xxx
    www.style-splash.com

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  13. You look lovely in this LRD. Thanks for linking up to the Top of the World Style Linkup party

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