This month I decided to share my new favourite place for Sophie's Show and Tell. My new office. I started to decorate in June and only moved in and started working in it a few weeks ago. There were many stops and starts, with interruptions and loss of enthusiasm. The prep work took such a long time and that's the bit I really don't enjoy so to start with it felt like a long, boring slog.



But once the paint was on the walls and the stain on the floor I got to do the bit I love - filling it with loveliness!

I'd been pinning inspiration for ages and I've still got some things left to do but the main thing is I'm in and I love it. Even Mr WOJ said 'it's nice in here, isn't it' - believe me that's glowing praise!

I received the rug I'd hinted about for my birthday (is sending a direct link to someone considered a hint?), it seems to be a blogger favourite as I've seen it on many blogs and Instagram feeds, but I love it and think it work perfectly in here.


I used the shelves I already had and my desk used to be our kitchen table, but I jazzed up the legs a bit. The Eames style chair used to live in my bedroom - it was the home of mounds of clothes, which now live on the floor, but I had always intended to use it at my desk. My cats seem to like it, every time I get up and leave the room I return to find one of them curled up on it.


The curtains and curtain pole were kindly sent to me by Dunelm - a place I have been known to shop once or twice... ahem! I wanted a neutral base to build upon so these voile panels were perfect!


This chest of drawers was here when we moved in, it's nothing special and I'd like to replace it with a sideboard at some point but it's the perfect place for my printer and offers some much needed storage. I have to put this basket of bits and pieces on top other wise this happens...


The chair is one I've had since I was a baby, it's an old school chair that my Dad painted pale pink for me. My brother had one in blue. When I was at college I decided to strip off the paint and varnish it, which is a shame really as by now it would be wonderfully battered and aged.


The mirror belonged to Mr Woj's Grandma, it's easily the oldest thing in the room and I love that I can have it in here. Eventually I'll hang it above the ficus plant and think of her when I look into it.


I also want to create a picture gallery on the wall behind my computer. I have collected a few bits and pieces to go up but need a few more - almost anything from here would do just fine.

The shelves and surfaces are looking a little sparse but I like the idea of finding bits and pieces to make it cosy and personal. I have the essentials covered though - pen pots, a place for business cards and a good diary to keep track of everything (with which the iPhone also helps).


I don't really want to put anything on my top shelf though because... how cute it this?


I'd like another chair in here and a non office looking filing cabinet to keep all the papers and officey stuff out of sight but that will happen in time. I'm also planning to make a clock and a waste paper bin, I just need to find a few spare minutes...

Linking up with Sophie's (final *sob*) Show and Tell Photographic Challenge.

Day 34 and I'm free! The past 33 days have gone by so quickly, I can hardly believe that the challenge is over. It was relatively easy to stick to, most mornings I had only one real option - the one that I hadn't worn the day before and the one that wasn't in need of washing or ironing. I have done rather more ironing than I'm used to, the denim and blue dresses both require a good press to make them look their best. The green one is a godsend - just hang it up and I'm good to go (no wonder I like it so much!).

The blue one has started to show some signs of wear, which is a real shame as this challenge cemented this as one of my absolute favourites. When the time comes I've decided to take it apart, brush up my sewing skills and use it as a pattern to make another one (or four). It's such a lovely shape and so easy to wear, and I should give special mention to the huge pockets - I do like a good pocket. AND it fastens down the back with big buttons, ticking yet another box!

The denim dress is one I tired of quickly. I like to wear it with little else, as a casual day dress but at this time of year I needed either a t-shirt underneath, which felt bulky, or a cardigan over the top, which often didn't sit nicely with the neckline. So, I'll be popping this one back in the wardrobe for summer. In fact I can't wait to get all of these out in the summer and wear them in their simplest form - with nice sandals and some sunglasses. I think that's the reason I always look at dresses and think 'that'll be nice in the summer with some cute shoes' is because I prefer them unencumbered by layers of clothing. This also explains why I have so many summer dresses!

Here are all 33 outfits. Somehow I managed to wear all three 11 times - quite by accident rather than design.



Before I was even half way through my 3 for 33 challenge, I'd already figured out my next challenge - something similar but with more dresses and freedom. However, before I set about that I want to wear the clothes I bought on a recent shopping trip.

I came home with 12 items, sent three back to the charity shop and now the remaining nine need wearing! My favourite kind of blog posts are ones that show an item worn in different ways. I dislike the term 'recycling' that the media have dubbed what is actually just wearing a piece of clothing more than once, but I love to find inspiration on how to style things differently.

I have to admit it was very easy for me to settle for cop-out outfits during this challenge. Working from home, alone, meant that I could live with a crappy outfit, knowing that no one was going to see it. Apart from Mr WoJ, of course, but he hardly notices what I wear most of the time anyway. He has become so accustomed to coming home and finding me with my PJ bottoms on under my dress "because I got chilly" that he hardly bats an eyelid now.

So, over the next few weeks I'm going to wear my new charity purchases in as many different (and lovely) ways as I can - no PJs bottoms allowed (unless it's really, really cold). What am I wearing today? After 33 days of dresses I'm in jeans, just for today.

Do you, like me with my dresses, find that you buy any particular item for just one season?

Keeping up with my 3 for 33 challenge has been reasonably easy but wearing just three dresses is starting to get boring. I thought that it probably would but today is the 29th day, so I only have four more outfits to go.


Today is Wear It Pink for Breast Cancer Campaign Awareness Month, I've seen some wonderful tweets today, people are really getting behind it, which is great to see. My favourite so far has to be this chap dressed in a bunny suit, on his bike with his son.

I've been saving this cardigan and necklace to wear today. I couldn't go all pink but I really wanted to join in.




Here are some of the others outfits I've been wearing. The weather has been a strange beast recently which has meant some days going with bare legs and others wrapping up in layers and scarves.


I got to wear one of my newest scarves for the first time. I bought it at a carboot sale, for £1, in the middle of the heatwave. It has pom poms so I couldn't resist - pom poms people! Not only that it has tartan one side and an alpine design on the other - this is all kinds of awesome!

What have you been up to? I hope to catch up with some blog reading this weekend, it's been another busy week but I did take last weekend to relax so it's all good.

This weekend I hope get around to making these Iced Gems, I've been meaning to for ages and I want to take my Show and Tell photos too. I have to get organised as I've signed up to Blog Every Day in November. I tried it in May but failed to blog everyday, so I hope to improve this time around.

What are you up to this weekend?

Hello! Just a quick update on my 3 for 33 challenge. These are just some of the outfits I've worn so far but I'm over half way now, just 13 days remain.

I've keeping it really simple, just adding a scarf for example.


I find this the easiest way to instantly create a different look for an outfit... and the fact that I have a ridiculous amount of scarves means I can just keep doing this over and over...

Or I just pop on a cardigan...


I find it's the simpler outfits that I like the best. Working from home means it's easy for me to put up with an outfit that I don't like - I just avoid mirrors - but if I was out in public I think some of the outfits I've worn wouldn't pass muster (above right for example... boring! I was just keen to wear my new-to-me cardigan).


Or I add a necklace. So easy.


The weather seems to be shifting between warm enough for bare legs and cold enough for tights, which means my outfits look different but it would be nice if it could make up it's mind now. I'd like to put my summer clothes into hibernation and get into the swing of winter woolies and boots.

Things have been busy again, with no end in sight really but I do plan to take the weekend off to relax and catch up on some much needed housework! I also need to get a few runs in before next Thursday as I've entered a triathlon. Now, this isn't as drastic as it sounds - it's a charity fundraiser and I will be part of a team of three. My role will be to sprint 800m, which just the thinking about it brings me out in a cold sweat! I just don't want to come last. Or fall over.

On Saturday I met up with Sophie in Bury St Edmunds for an afternoon of charity shopping and lunch, in that order. Although once we'd eaten and restored our energy levels, we shopped some more!

It was a good day for charity shopping, both Sophie and I came away with bags of stuff. Apparently I'm to blame for one of the tartan skirts Sophie bagged. I'm pretty sure she would've seen it and bought it anyway - happy to take responsibility though!


For me, the day was further proof that you can find some great pre-loved bits and pieces if you're prepared to rummage and put some effort in. I'm really pleased with almost everything I bought, but I did buy rather more than I expected to, so when I got home (after a restorative cup of tea and a bit of a nap) I tried everything on and evaluated my purchases. I chuckled at the shorts I'd picked up. Even the most discerning shopper can sometimes make a 'what was I thinking!' purchase and I am no exception. I know they're called shorts but, seriously, what WAS I thinking?


I also decided not to keep a dress, it was a bit young for me, in style and length, and a sheer top as I couldn't make it work with anything else I own. I'm also a little undecided about a cape (it's lovely but the arm holes aren't very well finished and look tatty) and another of the tops which is a bit see through, I need to work up some outfits and decide it if stays...



I eyed my wardrobe and put my one in, one out rule into action. If I hadn't all these new things would've had to live in the plastic bags they arrived in, it was as simple as that. I tried to swap like for like and think I did pretty well. When I was finished it struck me as such as obvious thing to do - swapping something unloved and rarely worn for something new (to me) that I'm excited about wearing!


The frustrating thing is that I won't get to wear most of this until my 3 for 33 challenge is over, but today I was determined to wear this cardigan. It doesn't really work with the dress and could be styled into much nicer outfits but for now, this is good enough.


I do keep thinking about the most amazing pair of Geox ankle boots I saw in TK Maxx (the only non charity shop we went in - hello David and Goliath PJ bottoms for £9.99) - anyway the boots - high wedges, pointy toes, suede, burgundy and gorgeous! Am I the only person who gets buyers remorse about things I didn't buy? Still, they weren't nearly as amazing as the boots Sophie tried...


Any great charity shop purchases recently?

I've been enjoying this challenge so far. I'm wearing three dresses for 33 days and it's so nice not to stand at my wardrobe in the morning and wonder what to wear. Admittedly, these early days will be the easy part, I'm just wearing each dress in it's most simplistic form and will take it from there.


Day 4 - A simple addition of a long cardy and contrasting belt.

Day 5 - The t-shirt under my blue dress is a dark purple but the photograph hasn't captured it at all. As I slipped on these blue plimsolls I smiled to myself as I'll soon be wearing this dress with some fabulous heeled sandals for a wedding reception. Today though it had the rather more mundane task of being what I wore to a committee meeting.

It turned chilly so the addition of a long sleeve t-shirt was a welcome one, but I resisted tights for just one more day - I'd shaved my legs, wouldn't want my efforts to go to waste, hehe. BTW Caudalie Divine oil... very nice - divine in fact.


Day 6 - I like the contrast of this t-shirt underneath and it was most welcome as it was decidedly chiller today. I think the necklace added a little zing!

Day 7 - Today was definitely a three layer day, tomorrow I predict the hosiery will make an appearance. When wondering how I was going to style this dress I remembered a wrap cardigan that I used to have several years ago that would have been perfect. It didn't take long for me to find this dark green version on eBay. I won it for £1.04 - can't argue with that!

How would you style any of these dresses?

Love

This month I have been spending time out in the garden, enjoying the last of the sunshine and seeing things start to change for the coming season. We haven't done a lot to the garden in terms of planting, so all of the colour comes from wild flowers or plants that were here before we moved in.

It's amazing what you can find if you really look, most of these plants are tiny little things that could easily be missed. We've had some spectacular early evening skies recently I have taken loads of photographs but the one shown here is my absolute favourite.

And finally, a photo of my boy cat. I often find him asleep in a sun spot in my greenhouse, I love the blissed out look on his face as he wakes up and stretches, and decides whether or not to sleep some more or wander off in search of some grub.

I can't believe we're in October already but I do like this time of year as plans for Christmas start to take shape in my head and it's still warm enough to enjoy being outside without too many layers on.















See all of the Show and Tell entries here.

Love