Nothing to Wear!

And #TuesdayTwirl

Dear friends. I'm sure we've all been there. A wardrobe full of clothes and an event to attend. But suddenly you can't find anything to wear.

This happened to me on my birthday. We were going out for dinner followed by the theatre. Originally I'd planned to wear purple. One of my husband's presents was a gorgeous purple bag.

But I'd worn purple at a pop concert the week before and wasn't motivated to wear it again.

I tend to prefer to put distance between outfits, so I rejected my tartan and teal dresses too. Wore them recently too.

It's very mild for November, too warm for winter coats, sweaters and roll neck, so a couple of sleeveless dresses were also ruled out.

I don't have enough "bottoms", which led me to the realisation that I've become a bit of a slave to my colours.

Let me explain. As you know, I've been seasonally analysed as a Spring. Our neutrals (for bottoms) are supposed to be bright navy, chocolate brown, camel, light grey or cream. Black, dark navy and burgundy are cool toned generally, so don't go well with warm brights.

I like to wear colours such as red, yellow, kelly green, purple and turquoise in trousers or skirts but finding them in a winter weight is challenging to say the least.

The only trousers I have which are perfect for winter are:

A pair of brown velvet trousers, OK, but not a great fit;
Purple patterned trousers, seen here;
Purple wool straight leg wool trousers which I bought in a hurry for a trip to the Lake District. They're just not very flattering. The rise and shape of the leg, with a central pleat, is not good on me;
Jeans in blue, black cream and sage green. Plus barrel chinos (casual) in brown and light grey. These are all fine, but I like to dress up when I go on outings.

For skirts I have a few options, but my skirt choices are usually dictated by footwear. If I'm going to a dressy occasion, I'd rather wear boots than trainers, but if walking is involved, or it's raining, some of my boots (eg gold ankle boots) are ruled out. Trainers look good in summer but not so good with opaque tights and a long coat in autumn/winter.

So What Did I Wear?

The outcome was that I chose a green coat that I haven't worn for a while (top pic, outside the restaurant at Fortnum and Mason). It's not particularly heavy or warm so it works well for this time of year. See it worn another time below.

I wore it with a retro patterned top, bright navy tank, navy tights and navy boots. My "bottom" was a navy cord skirt, old. It should be perfect but it's uncomfortable to wear. The waist and hips don't fit well, so it rides up and bags around the waist. One for the charity bag.

Going Through a Green Phase

I went with green again on Sunday when we went out with John's children and the grand kids on Remembrance Day. I seem to go for one colour at a time! It was warm enough to wear a short moto jacket in lime with a top and scarf. The trainers are new, they were a birthday present (Gola x Oliver Bonas).

Over 60s blogger Gail Hanlon from Is This Mutton in lime green

How to Resolve the Bottoms Problem

I need to overcome my aversion to black and buy some black trousers! A pair of navy trousers would also be a good idea. I've convinced myself that navy is so dull I never buy it....but needs must.

I went into London today with the aim of trying on a few pairs of trousers but forgot my phone, and wasn't convinced I'd buy the right pairs without seeing myself in them in photos. Ho hum.

I'll try to find some more skirts on ebay. The knee length I prefer is currently impossible to find in the shops. I'll also carry on looking for purple trousers that are a better shape.

MORE GREEN - IT'S A THEME

Have you got a bottoms problem as the weather cools? Or is black a perfect solution? Do tell in the comments.

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