Shimmer and Shine

 & Wow on Wednesday

Dear friends. Iris Apfel famously said "More is more, and less is a bore." It's not an edict I take to heart except at this time of year.  

Normally I wear maybe two or three Georgian crystal necklaces, and wouldn't dream of adding extra bling.  But the festive season calls for a bit of dazzle, and sequins, bad though they are for the environment, will never go out of style.

The secret with feeling good about sequins is to try to find them pre-loved, or, failing that, to buy something sequinned that you will wear many times over the years.

This is my new gold sequin top from M&S, which I'm sure will fall into the latter category. It unusually has long sleeves - most of them are short sleeves, or sleeveless. 

Rather like pearls, the right colour of sequin for your skin tone will illuminate your face and make it glow. I prefer gold jewellery (and sequins) to silver for this reason.  I'm warm toned, and yellow gold is the most flattering metallic for me.

The top is £39 and still available. There are also matching sequin trousers.  I'm wearing it with my ruched skirt  (pre-loved; Kettlewell has these in several other colours) and gold boots (Oliver Bonas, last year), plus nude tights. I wish I could remember where I bought them as they're very good. 

My lime green sequin top, also from M&S  (last year) has had quite a few outings, including a trip to Skiathos. Wearing it with vegan leather skirt from Never Fully Dressed.  Sizes 20 - 30 are still available from this very inclusive brand. They have lots of other yummy sequin goodies.

I added my rose gold boots, old, as the yellow gold would have been a bit too predictable. The bag is very old, from Coccinelle. 

Finally I recently found a purple sequin top in a charity shop in Plymouth.  A unicorn item!  I styled it here with purple trousers (Jigsaw, via Vinted) for a low-key look. I might have worn this to the office when I was working.  On balance I think the purple needs lightening up, so I'd probably wear it in future with cream or white trousers, or the gold skirt. 

I'll wear one of these outfits when we go out for a family lunch on Boxing Day. Christmas is, as I wrote here, a poignant time for me, but my late brother loved Christmas, so I will raise a glass to him, and maybe watch one of our favourite Carry On films.

Do you wear anything glitzy over the festive period? Do tell in the comments. Scroll down below the link-up to see the comments box.

WOW ON WEDNESDAY LINK-UP

Not only is this the last link-up of 2024, it's the last one ever.  

I started it in 2019, and it's sobering to see all the blogs which have fallen by the wayside since then.  A big thanks to the following, who took part in the very first Wow, and still link up:  Nancy's Fashion Style, Frugal Fashion Shopper, Style Yourself Confident and High Latitude Style. To thank you for your friendship and loyalty, you are my featured 4. And a big thanks to all of those who have supported the link-up in the last 5 years.

The Future of Blogging Looks Tough

Google is making it difficult for bloggers.  Their search algorithms favour places like Reddit, YouTube and TikTok  (not exactly scions of accurate information) as they attempt to court young people.  They are adding AI to the mix, as you may have noticed. Many small businesses who can't afford advertising have gone out of business because their sites aren't discoverable.

For these reasons and more, I've decided to take a break from the fashion posts, and to stop the weekly link-up.

I feel I've taken "fashion" as far as I can, although I've never really identified as a fashion blogger. I  prefer instead to  enjoy clothes and colours that suit me, and adapt the odd trend if it works for me.  

Taking the pictures, which I've always done on my own with a tripod, has become something I don't enjoy very much, particularly in winter. Plus I feel under obligation to show new outfits, or different styles, which means I buy rather more than I would like, even if it is often pre-loved.  

I don't have many occasions on which to wear all these outfits, to be brutally honest. I'm not Trinny Woodhall, who tells us in her latest sequin filled extravaganza, of a frantic social life. But then, she is a global businesswoman and style inspiration.

I'll still be posting book reviews and probably the review of the month  (last Friday of the month). And who knows, I may be tempted back for the occasional style or beauty post. 

With my newly acquired spare time, I'm compiling a list of places I want to visit, and I'll be doing more art gallery trips and Meet Ups.  Plus a possible trip to Japan next year. 

"The pain of parting is nothing to the joy of meeting again" – Charles Dickens

There are 3 more posts to come in 2024:  my last Tell Us About challenge tomorrow;  December in review (27 December) and my last Style Not Age challenge  (30 December). Hope to see you then. 

THE FEATURED 4 

(In no particular order)

REVIEW OF THE YEAR 2024 by Penny at Frugal Fashion Shopper. What an inspiration Penny is. I am honoured to say we have become friends IRL  (in real life). We'll be meeting up again in January, this time in her hometown.  Below: Penny with Mr Frugal  (I won't call him Mr FFS!). 

Creative Ways to Tie Scarves by High Latitude Style 

Nicole from High Latitude Style is also very inspiring, an engineer living in one of the most hostile climates, Alaska, who never fails to impress with How To guides, ebooks and what to wear for different situations. 

Pink and Burgundy, Colour Palette for Fall and Winter by Nancy of Nancy's Fashion Style. Nancy is so much fun. She often bravely revisits the clothes she didn't like much, having another go at styling them, and she'll often confess to impulse buys which have not worked out. I greatly admire Nancy for being as regular as clockwork with her posts and link-up.  You would never know she has a serious health condition which takes a lot of mastering, although she has written about it to raise awareness. 

Silver or Gold? What's Your Choice? by Pamela of Style Yourself Confident

Pamela runs an independent colour and style analysis business, and is a regular in the link-up.  Although I'm a big fan of colour analysis, I am not too keen on the evangelical approach which some consultants adopt, where it's forbidden to wear the wrong colours. Pamela is totally the reverse, very easy going and accommodating. She also provides an excellent online analysis! 

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