But doom and gloom descended after the nail biting final at Wembley turned into a loss for England. There were scuffles and fights, with families fleeing to safety, and an outpouring of racist bile online.
On the Covid front, the scientists are increasingly worried about the possibility of up to 200 deaths a day once people stop wearing masks and social distancing.
I'm not going to dwell on any of that except to say: in 1996, when England failed on penalties to reach the semi-final of the Euros, there was an actual riot in Trafalgar Square and over 200 arrests were made. Unfortunately the hooligan element of football is not new, and not unique to England. Back in the 70s and 80s, England's hooligans were routinely banned from many grounds and tournaments.
It seems from an eyewitness account in The Times that a stadium disaster was only narrowly avoided. Somehow thousands of thugs without tickets managed to get into Wembley. If it weren't for Covid and the seating restrictions, the stadium may have been overcrowded. Police were not much in evidence, and I wager it's because Boris was still trying to toady around FIFA and EUFA with a view to England hosting the 2030 World Cup. Fat chance!
The racist element does appear to be a new and toxic ingredient in the mix, but unfortunately the emergence of the ultra right is also a global trend and the UK is following in the footsteps of post-Trump America with a rise in racist sentiment.
I do think the police need to make online hate crime more of a focus, and prosecute more visibly those who do it. The social media platforms are shameful for the way they resist taking action.
As far as Freedom Day is concerned, the majority of people in the UK is conscientious and will carry on with the precautions. Yes, we'll see reports of people throwing caution to the wind and having parties, but in the main, common sense will prevail. We have to learn to live with Covid and accept that what we regarded as normal life is now something in the past.
It's been a while since I did a "what I've been wearing" round-up because I still spend most of my working-from-home days in fitness attire. Sometimes I go through a spell when I up the ante, and last week was one of them. I had my hair done, which is always a spur (even if Mr Mutton did say I looked like Vera Duckworth - a character in a UK soap opera from a few years ago). (How rude!).
Top pic: Mole as a colour is a neutral between grey and brown, and the only one of its type in the Winter seasonal palette. I didn't think it would suit me but wearing it with brights - in this case a Sangria top, bright fuchsia lipstick and fuchsia sandals - gives it a lift.
Above: the Kettlewell v-neck supersoft sweatshirt is a very light sweatshirt and has been perfect for the bad summer weather this year. This one, in Mint, is brightened with a fuchsia ice scarf and bright pink crops from Roman.
Pairing my Oasis olive green skirt with a Paradise Green linen top - the first time I've worn linen for years - and fuchsia short tie wrap.
Beauty Update
I've been using a couple of new beauty products. A small UK firm run by sisters Sarah and Emma Cross, CodeBeautiful, kindly sent me their Lid Lift Enhance and Volumising Lengthening Mascara to try.
The eye lid product, in shade Fairer Soul, is a champagne coloured concealer, primer and natural eyeshadow in one. Hooray to that. It takes away the dark, tired tinge from my eyelids and the moisturizing properties provide a smooth and radiant base. It's fine to wear on its own, which is great because I can't be bothered with eyeshadow.
The mascara has a no-clumping and no-smudging formula, which was music to my ears because these are my two biggest issues with most mascaras. Pleased to report it lives up to the claims.
CodeBeautiful create ethical vegan products based around an ethos of doing things differently to the rest of the beauty industry. By simply asking, listening to the feedback and then committing to creating products of uncompromising quality, CODE Beautiful was born.
In the picture above I'm wearing Clarins Everlasting Beauty Fluid foundation, Guerlain's Rose Indien lipstick (tracked down on eBay), CodeBeautiful Lid Lift Enhance and Volumising Lengthening Mascara, Eye of Horus eye pencil in Purple and Lisa Eldridge's new Elevated Glow in Crystal Nebula. This is a smooth highlighter which brings the skin alive. I dot it down the centre of the nose, on the chin, along the cheekbones and along the cupid's bow of the lips.
Packing a Capsule
I'm not noted for ever travelling light. Business trips for me used to be a nightmare when colleagues took "carry on" and didn't want to wait at the conveyor belt.
For our upcoming holiday I'm going to break with tradition and try to take a "capsule wardrobe." Now that I've accumulated quite a few pieces in my Winter palette from Kettlewell Colours, this is a whole lot easier because all the colours work together, either with contrast or tonally.
It's a walking holiday so during the day I'll be wearing gym tops with hiking trousers or shorts, adding fleeces and a rain jacket if needed. You never know what the UK weather is going to throw at you, and usually it's everything.
In the evenings the hotel does a lovely, formal dinner service. I'll take my polka dot black and white trousers, purple trousers and white trousers, and ring the changes with different tops, wraps and scarves. I won't need the many pairs of shoes I used to take.
I'm even attempting to go "lite" with my beauty products. I've ordered a few of the Trinny London Stacks - a concealer, foundation, blusher that doubles as a lipstick and lip gloss, to eradicate the need for multiple jars and bottles. I've accumulated quite a few samples of skincare products which I will take.
I'll let you know how it goes!
None of the products in this post were gifted, except the two products from CodeBeautiful. No affiliate links were used.
Sharing this post with: Beauty by Miss L, Top of the World Style at High Latitude Style, Chic & Stylish at Mummabstylish, #SpreadTheKindness at Shelbee on the Edge, #AnythingGoes at My Random Musings, Thursday Moda at Elegance and Mommyhood, Turning Heads Tuesday at Elegantly Dressed and Stylish, Style with a Smile at Stylesplash, Style Six at Coast to Coast, TFF at Doused in Pink, Lizzie in Lace, Confident Twosday at IDoDeclaire, Rena at Fine Whatever, Fabulous Fridays at Lucy Bertoldi, #Neverendingstyle at The Grey Brunette #TheWednesdayLinkUp at Claire Justine, Fancy Friday at Nancy's Fashion Style
Last Week's Favourites: Most Clicked
Hilda from Over the Hilda scored a hit with The Merrion Hotel Dublin A Review, and very sumptuous and luxurious it looks too. I might book Mr Mutton and me into it for my next birthday, seeing as I missed out on any celebrations for last year's milestone birthday.
Suzy from The Grey Brunette has found a top she loves - "This black, purple and green top is so me!"
Is This Mutton's Pick
I've chosen this post from Curated By Jennifer, "The 7R's in Fashion." It's so important to do our bit to try to cut down on the giant mountain of cheap clothes that goes to landfill every day. Jennifer's post covers seven ways we can contribute, including repairs and washing clothes in ways to make them last longer.
I think the UK did a great job at the finals, it was super exciting to watch. Its a pity they didn't win, but they were good, very good! Those die products sound great, might have to check it out. Love that olive skirt, it really is gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteI love the purple outfit with the blue scarf - aqua really pops on you! :)
ReplyDeleteIt's nice that England is joining the rest of the world with relaxed restrictions - although in saying that we are back to masks at the moment and can only have parties up to 100 people, haha! We have a flight attendant who was contagious as they worked so the masks are back for another week. Lucky for us we haven't had the explosion of cases Sydney has, they are in lockdown again sadly.
Hope your week is going well :)
Away From The Blue