Coronation Ready with Cotton Traders

& #WowOnWednesday

Is This Mutton prepares for the Coronation with his and her outfits and picnic ware from Cotton Traders in a gifted non-paid collaboration

Are you among the millions of people worldwide who'll watch the Coronation of King Charles III? It's a big event here in the UK with an extra public holiday and three days of festivities, including a star-studded concert and street parties.

My friends at Cotton Traders have some great buys for your picnic or street party plus the attire to make sure you're Instagrammable! Here are my picks for Hosting and Toasting.

I chose a green dress with a flattering elasticated waist, a device we don't see often enough in my view. It's magical in creating a waist for those of us with a straight or column shaped body, and if you're a curvy hourglass, it will give you even more va-va-voom.

I added some bright red to the outfit with espadrilles (bought last year) and a necklace from Eternal Collection (old). This style of maxi dress can also be dressed down for a casual vibe with trainers.

J is wearing a short sleeve soft touch shirt in lilac, a colour that suits him very well. It's very good quality for just £24. He's very pleased with it and it will be accompanying him on his upcoming bike holiday in Portugal.

You may be surprised to know that Cotton Traders also have a great range of picnic wear. The dimpled wine glasses, which come in a pack of four, look like real glass until you pick them up and realise they're a very light plastic. Perfect for street parties, picnics and family gatherings. There are matching tumblers and a jug.

Melamine tropical design dinner set for two from Cotton Traders

J was instantly taken with the melamine 2 person outdoor dinner set and could see himself using it all summer when he's out reclining in the garden watching cycling on his tablet (it's a hard life). In a lovely tropical design, it consists of two x 11” dinner plates, two x 8” side plates and two x 6” bowls for £17. I try not to buy plastic items if I can avoid them, but I can see us using this dinner set for years, and it's far more stylish, and easier to use, than bendy paper plates and bowls.

Over 60 style blogger Gail Hanlon in bright green elasticated waist print dress from Cotton Traders

Is This Mutton blogger Gail Hanlon prepares garden party for the Coronation of King Charles III

My Coronation Highlights

I'll be keen to see what the female members of the royal family are wearing and in particular their tiaras and jewels. It's rumoured that the Princess of Wales won't be wearing a tiara (gasp) but a headdress made of fresh flowers instead. We're expecting to see Lady Louisa Windsor, daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, wearing her first tiara. Visit this fascinating site to see the tiaras which could be chosen by the royal ladies.

I'm also weirdly fascinated by the Stone of Scone (pronounced: Scoon), also known as the Stone of Destiny. This travelled in secret from Edinburgh to Westminster Abbey at the weekend. It will be placed under the Coronation Chair as it has been for many centuries.

This historic relic, part boulder, part treasure, was moved to London after King Edward I conquered Scotland in 1296. In 1950 the stone was kidnapped by four students and taken from London to Arbroath. It was moved to Edinburgh Castle with the promise that it would return to London for a coronation.

Do you have any plans for the long weekend? Do share in the comments.

Disclosure: I was gifted with four items from Cotton Traders in return for a blog post. My editorial opinions are my own and I don't allow copy approval. I only ever accept gifted products that I would use and am happy to recommend.

Passionate about gardening or visiting gardens?

Share your passion in the May Tell Us About challenge! This month's prompt, set by Penny of Frugal Fashion Shopper, is Gardens and Gardening. If you have a blog or website, interpret the challenge in your way: writing, a graphic, photos, video, poem. It's up to you. Posts will go live on May 18 and the link-up will run until May 25 - find it on this blog from 18 May.

WOW ON WEDNESDAY

Now it's time for the #WowOnWednesday link-up, where readers can find new blogs to read and bloggers/vloggers can find new followers! I feature the 3 favourites each Wednesday on Instagram, and my five or six top picks at the weekend on Twitter and Facebook.