Dorian by Will Self
I picked this up at the V&A shop after having whizzed through the Cult of Beauty exhibition. It is wicked, full of sex and drugs and highly enjoyable. Will Self always makes me feel a bit thick, and I always… Read More
Mr Chartwell by Rebecca Hunt
This is an accomplished and original first novel by Rebecca Hunt. It’s about loss and depression, but is actually quite uplifting, it was of interest to me because of the insights into the condition.… Read More
Boden’s silver sneakers
Recently, Amanda has had a thing for bling. Silver is a fabulous alternative colour to lift a tired wardrobe, either a simple T shirt, like the COS one currently in stores, or a pair of sneakers, such as these lovely… Read More
Rae Jones bags
We love Rae Jones’s bags and shoes, she makes such nice quality leather things with slightly retro styling. This one is a classic, the Mio Frame handbag at £349, which would work with both smart work looks and scruffing around… Read More
A thing for bling
I don’t know what is happening to me, I seem to be attracted to all things silvery. It started with the Whistles ‘antiqued’ printed silver jumper bought last season, I fell in love at first sight with this and wore… Read More
We love: Salesgossip.co.uk
Shortly after I wrote about sales starting on Monday’s post, I got an interesting email from the team who run Salesgossip.co.uk letting me know that there was a Hobbs seasonal sale on from 28/05 to 5/06 (in case I wanted… Read More
Lucza maxi dress
Maxi dresses are still on trend, and this lovely one from Lucza is a very grown up one which is perfect for holidays and hot summer days. We talked about Lucza here so check out why we liked it, and… Read More
The Second Half of your Life by Jill Shaw Ruddock
The Happy Hoofer by Celia Imrie
Ok, so we haven’t actually read Celia’s book, but we did hear her discussing it on Radio Two’s Bank Holiday Monday programme with French and Saunders. It sounds great, she’s so funny (did you know she was once kidnapped?) and… Read More
Norma Kamali Swimsuits
We are seriously indebted to TWR reader Sandra Halliday, Editor in Chief of trend forecasting website WGSN, who has told us about the Norma Kamali range of swimsuits at Net-A-Porter. Sandra is a very stylish Editor in Chief, she is… Read More
COS orange trousers
We promise this will be the last post on coloured trousers for a while, we have rather gone on about them this week. But I thought you might be interested to know where I ended up buying mine from. COS… Read More
A lovely denim skirt from Hobbs
I have hardly ever been into a Hobbs shop, heaven knows why, they are nice enough. Last week I went into the Covent Garden store, which is a great place to shop, nicely laid out stock, attractive surroundings and good… Read More
Smut by Alan Bennett
It’s a new Alan Bennett, featuring middle age women and their views on sex, what more do you need to know?… Read More
Auntie Mame by Patrick Dennis
Completely hilarious novel about the sort of aunt you SO wished you’d been blessed with. A must, the fashion references are a joy.… Read More
Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty
It’s almost worth buying this for the lenticular cover that flips between a fresh faced picture of Alexander McQueen and a silver glossy skull. The contents, however, do not disappoint; beautiful photography of McQueen’s amazing clothes seen altogether make you… Read More
More garden snooping: Chiswick Mall open gardens.
Chiswick Mall is one of the most beautiful, hidden bits of residential London, with The Thames on one side (most of the gardens have a riverside section) and the M4 on the other. Many of the houses were built in… Read More
I Love Your Style, by Amanda Brooks
There have been a number of these style definer books recently, most are a bit rubbish, but this ones good. Great retro pictures and good advice, although remember we are in the world of American Vogue here, where being slim,… Read More
Harper’s Bazaar Fashion by Lisa Armstrong
it’s Lisa Armstrong, so a cut above the rest of the ‘personal style’ development books. Nice gold cover too… Read More
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
Yohji Yamamoto, Ligaya Salazar ed.
This book accompanied the V&A exhibition Jane and I went to and loved this year (2011). A must for all Yohji fans.… Read More
Perfumes: The Guide by Luca Turin and Tanya Sanchez
Quite the best book you will ever find on how to buy perfume. The essays at the front are entertaining and informative and once you’ve read the reviews, you’ll never buy perfume without consulting it first ever again. Amanda has… Read More
Etcetera by Sibella Court
Dress your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris
Hilarious, I am a David Sedaris groupie.… Read More
Just Kids by Patti Smith
Our favourite book this year. Surprisingly engaging account of Patti Smith’s arrival in New York, meeting Robert Mapplethorpe and her first taste of success. After reading this, both Jane and Amanda wanted to BE Patti Smith.… Read More
Hitchock Style by Jean-Pierre Dufreigne
Gorgeous book with great photos, essential for any fashion Hitchcock fans. Excellent reference book for designers who are looking to 40s, 50s and early 60s tailored styles. Great stories concerning the making of the costumes for the movies and there’s… Read More
Style Icon: Diana Vreeland
No one who loves fashion can ignore the influence of the extraordinary Diana Vreeland, American fashion editor and style doyenne who reigned first at Harper’s Bazaar magazine in New York (for a quarter of a century) and then at US… Read More
We love: Italian style
We’ve mentioned The Sartorialist before on The Women’s Room, a wonderful, high quality pictoral blog that is heavily used by fashion insiders for inspiration. This week the blog’s author Scott Schuman, has been photographing in Italy Florence and Milan to… Read More
Marks & Spencer Portfolio arrives Feb 3rd
As promised in our previous post, we are able to provide you with pictures of the new Portfolio range, designed for women of 40plus, from M&S. The range launches in larger stores on Feb 3rd, so keep an eye out… Read More
We love: WoWoWoW
Eleanor Roosevelt (left)
It’s a big week for Americans. The promise of change and a new President in Barack Obama and the chance that we might also have a really interesting and stylish first lady in Michelle is cheery news… Read More
We love: Older women leading the Brazil carnival
Luma de Oliveira
Youth is almost a religion in Brazil, so it is truly a paradigm shift in attitude when the hotly contended position of carnival queen goes to not one but two women in their mid forties this… Read More