Do you know what I'm a big fan of? Scouring Etsy and finding hidden gems. Whether it's one-of-a-kind jewellery or unique pieces of clothing, I like having things that are a little different. Having things that you're not gonna see on everyone and their mum when you scroll through Instagram. And that's why I enjoy spending so much time finding boutique stores. Because not only that, you're supporting small businesses! Start-ups or 10 years old, small businesses are where we should be putting so much more of our money! Support those who aren't guaranteed substantial bonuses every Christmas! Support those wanting to make a dream a reality! Support creatives! 
So when I got an email a couple of weeks ago asking if I'd like some pieces from new jewellery brand Worry Knots sending over, I leapt at the chance! This isn't sponsored, I was gifted the pieces in return for an Instagram post only, I just thought it would make the perfect opportunity to talk about why we should shop small this Christmas, and all year round.

Worry Knots is run by Victoria and offers handmade jewellery via an Etsy Shop. She's very new to it, but the pieces are fabulous quality. She very kindly sent me 3 pairs of statement earrings, all autumnal themed because she knows its my favourite time of the year, and I really love them! Statement earrings are a piece of jewellery that I'm fully on board with; they can transform an otherwise boring outfit, add a pop of colour or completely make an outfit. And so easily! So here's the 3 pairs and 5 reasons why I love buying from small businesses.


















Supporting Dreams
Not only are you supporting someones dream when you buy from them, but you're helping support them/their family. You're not funding bonuses for an overpaid board of directors, you're not funding dividends for the big bosses who are trying every way possible to avoid paying tax. Your seemingly small purchase can make a real difference to someones day/week/month/life. 
Worry Knots was started when Victoria was struggling with her mental health. It's given her a focus and a creative outlet, why would you not want to support that? For this reason, 10% of the profits go to Mind so here's an extra added reason to treat yourself to some bold and bright earrings.


Attention To Detail
Every time I've ordered from a smaller store previously, the attention to detail has been wonderful. Whether it's the little sweets added to your parcel, the branding and packing that's so carefully thought out or the little care notes added to your items. I once purchased a wall print from one store (I forget the name, sorry!) and they added a surprise second print with a little note saying it was a promotional offer. How sweet!
When my earrings from Worry Knots arrived, they were in a slim cardboard box and the branding was just all so perfect. The tagline is 'Wear your uniqueness without a worry' something that I am fully supportive of, and the packing tape, stickers, tissue paper, everything had the 'Worry Knots' logo and colour scheme which just gave it the extra touch.


Customer Service
When you're dealing with small businesses they tend to care much more about their image. They want to grow, they don't want to hinder that, so they do everything they can to help you. I once ordered some vintage clothing from a boutique store on ASOS Marketplace and, because they were overseas, they emailed me beforehand to confirm the sizing to try minimise my need to return things. I've had another store email me personal updates about my delivery, apologising that my order was late dispatching. There's a little boutique store near my village that me and my mum love visiting and the woman that runs it always so friendly, can't do enough to help you and it really makes a difference. Good customer service goes a long way!


Better quality
Largely, independent businesses offer handmade items. Handmade items that are far better quality than something produced in a factory chain that you've got for half the price on ASOS. You'll get pieces that will last longer, pieces that will serve their purpose time and time again, pieces made with love.


Who doesn't like having unique pieces?
I've said this before and I'll say it again, I love having ~different~ things in my wardrobe/home that not everyone else will have. How many people will have a pair of monster earrings like these, compared to how many have that gaudy silver Topshop pair?

I've had this post sat in my drafts for a while now waiting for me to just finish and proof read but, following on from Stacey Dooley's documentary on Fashions Dirty Secrets and all the talk about fast fashion at the moment, it seems like the perfect time to offer up some advice on other ways to shop.

The easiest (I think) way of shopping most ethically, is to shop second-hand and vintage clothing. Whether this is going to your local charity shops, scouting out vintage stores (either online or in your favourite town) or simply buying on the likes of depop; you're purchasing clothing that has already been loved once and is not being newly produced, therefore not contributing to more environmental harm! You're preventing (some) unnecessary build-up of clothing on landfill sites and stopping the waste of good clothing, so whats not good about that? Plus, you can find true hidden gems and who doesn't love having unique pieces in their wardrobe that isn't gonna be flooding your instagram feed on every single blogger next week? (I don't know about you, but I'm practically bored to tears of literally everything that Topshop have to offer because I've seen it EVERYWHERE.)

Now I know that vintage shopping (and sustainability in general, tbh) is somewhat of a luxury to be able to do. Your high street charity shop is going to have a plus size department, it won't have tall or petite ranges and finding things to fit won't be easy. I'm aware of that. But if you can then you should try. If nothing else, the rummage in a vintage store could just give you more inspiration for your existing wardrobe. And remember, things can always be cut up and taken to a tailors (or you might be handy with a sewing machine yourself, who knows!). You could make something from that maxi skirt that won't fit you even though you love the fabric; I once made a handbag from a pair of denim cut-offs! Think outside of the box.

I'll be honest, I'm not a pro at vintage shopping, but I'm trying to get better. So it only seemed right to share my ~journey~ and what I'm learning. My favourite ever find (that I will never stop mentioning, ever) is the 90s Burberry jacket in the above photo, which I found on the Oxfam website a few years back for a mere £50. Yep! So here's a few things to note:

1. Never write off charity shops
If you're looking for the best bargains, definitely hit up your local high street and get into that British Heart Foundation/Oxfam/Mind whichever charity shops are there! Everything is priced reasonably low (in my experience) and you have the extra added bonus of contributing to charity. You might not find the best vintage designer numbers, but in terms of second-hand Topshop or a 90s silk leopard print shirt, you really can't go wrong. As I mentioned before, I've shopped Oxfam online too, but not all charities do online shops. So do some digging!

2. Don't search by size
When looking online, whether it's the likes of Rokit Vintage, Oxfam or just on Depop, never limit your search by looking for only 'size 10' (or whatever size you usually wear). This is for 2 reasons: firstly, when there's a mixture of clothing for so many different brands, the fit of sizing will vary greatly (hello, we all know a size 10 in H&M is actually a size 6) and some things you might want more oversized and some tighter fitting. Also secondly, everywhere labels clothing differently so some may be defined by only S/M/L, some in UK sizing and some in European sizing. So you could be excluding a whole range of items without knowing it!

3. Always look past what you see
This sounds like some kind of grandious life lesson, but I just mean try to see how the items will work with your own wardrobe. Much like when you're moving house and you go to viewings and try and picture the rooms with your own furniture instead of that gross beige sofa! This is especially important for depop where people seem to be unable to take a decent photo; those striped trousers might not look great lazily draped across the sellers bed, but try and picture them on and with that nice red top you've got. 

4. Know where to look
I've done a fair bit of browsing, so I thought I'd share the best places I've been finding some good little gems. In the way of vintage stores online: Beyond Retro, We Are Cow and Rokit are the best that I've found so far. They also have stores you can visit, so check out the locations! And if you're in Leeds, I can recommend Blue Rinse Vintage (which is next to the Corn Exchange), Ryan Vintage (on Duncan Street) and the Sue Ryder vintage & retro store in Headingley. But there are so many more that I've just not explored! The Oxfam online site is worth checking for hidden gems, and a few of the sellers I'm always lusting after on Depop include: Boo Tack (@bootack); As If (@asifvintage); The Mighty Junkyard (@inthejunkyard); and Jodie Rockett (@jodierockett) so go have a browse!

Also, don't forget there's ASOS Marketplace, which not only has boutiques but vintage sellers too; along with Etsy & eBay, but just avoid all of the cheap knockoffs coming from China!

If you've got any vintage recommendations, hit me up in the comments below!

I mean, the blog name makes it kind of obvious, but if you didn't know, Autumn is my favourite of the seasons. It signifies the end of summer (my least favourite time of year), there's crunchy leaves making everything look pretty, it's getting darker for cosy evenings with cosy blankets, good TV series start up again and it's just WHOLESOME. We have Halloween and Bonfire Night (questionable though it's reasons) and the build up to Christmas begins; I mean, what's not to love? I wrote a post last year on my favourite things about Autumn and it still remains one of my favourite posts that I've put together. I remember I'd just got the 45mm lens for my Olympus Pen and I went down to the park with my tripod and just spent ages playing around, getting the shots that I wanted and trying new things. So please revisit!


Amongst the many reasons for this being the best time of year comes the fashion. I am certainly not a fan of summer fashion, as I have written about many times before. Winter is arguably Autumn but with gloves and more layers. Spring is ok, but nothing beats an oversized jumper and chunky boot combo. Berets or baker boy hats; Faux fur coats or trench coats; there's just so much comfort in Autumn fashion and if you're not comfortable with skin on show or clingy clothes, it is IDEAL. I picked up this jumper along with another one when F&F at Tesco had 25% off and honestly, if you don't look in there for clothes then you're missing a treat. As much as I love chunky knitwear, I'm trying not to buy more this year. I already have plenty from previous years and it seems excessive to add to the stash! I do, however, want a new pair of OTK boots as mine constantly slip down the leg. So if you have any recommendations, leave them in the comments! (Stuart Weitzmans, I can not afford.)


So to express my love for all things autumnal in the best way, I roped my mum along into a trip to Farmer Copleys pumpkin festival. It's actually the first time I've been to a pumpkin patch and not just picked one up from the supermarket, and honestly, why has it taken me so long?! There were fields upon fields of pumpkins; big ones, small ones, green ones, white ones and warty ones, they had everything. There were tractor rides for kids and wheelbarrows for carrying your pumpkins (or again, kids) but we didn't bother with those. We just wandered the fields, looking at the different pumpkins and enjoying some autumn sunshine! There were animals on site too, a fancy farm shop and a lovely little cafe too.



Wearing:


Jumper, F&F at Tesco (not online)


Beret, Primark 


Jeans, H&M (old)


Boots, Dr Martens











I've never actually tried pumpkin in the form of eating it, (maybe I should, because I love squash and it's much like that, no?) but I am a big fan of carving pumpkins for Halloween. An afternoon spent watching Hocus Pocus and carving a villain of choice into a pumpkin is an afternoon well spent to me! Not to blow my own trumpet, but I'm rather good at carving and have previously done Scar from Lion King, Maleficent, The Joker and Gremlins. This years is still undecided so if you have a favourite bad guy who you think would make a good pumpkin (not Trump, please) then I'm all ears.

So back in July, I did my first 'Week In Outfits' post and really enjoyed sharing more of my day-to-day outfits with you all. It's not the easiest of posts to do, however, because making time to get a photo in a morning before work is much easier said than done, and if I'm going out after work or straight to the gym, I just forget about taking a photo altogether. So I haven't made time to do one since! But I decided to plan a week to do it again, which was technically the last week of September but we're still going with October in the title because otherwise I look very slack and we don't want that, do we!

Sunday

Wearing:


Shirt, New Look 


Jeans, Next (similar) 


Cardigan, Boohoo (no longer available)


Sunglasses, Ray-Ban 


Bag, Carvela 

Much a typical Sunday, I did the food shop and visited my Grandma, before heading into town for a little cinema trip (Mamma Mia 2 again, of course) and a visit to Pizza Express. Bold choice wearing white jeans to go for pizza but I (somehow) managed to not get a drop of tomato sauce on them! Go me!



Monday
Wearing: Jeans, Topshop - Shirt, ASOS (similar) - Belt, River Island (similar) - Boots, New Look (similar) - Jacket, vintage Burberry

After falling further in love with Lily James in Mamma Mia, I dragged the flares out of my wardrobe and made them more office friendly with a simple white shirt, old brown belt and some leopard print boots. Fun fact: we went down the lanes by my home to get this shot after work and a dog walker was coming out of the field. We stopped to let him pass but he decided he needed to sit and catch his breath so just watched us instead. How bloody lovely. Ugh.

Tuesday
Wearing: Playsuit, Topshop (no longer available) - Boots, New Look (similar)

I found this playsuit in my wardrobe and realised that I hadn't worn it in months, so obviously that had to change! I went for a simple black and white look all round and it was FAR too windy to even attempt getting a picture outside.

Wednesday

Wearing: Trousers, H&M - Jumper, Romwe - Boots, Zara (similar)

Wednesday was another wet and windy day, so I played it safe with another mirror selfie. I'm thinking of bring the mirror selfies back to instagram in a bid to enjoy it a bit more and make it less ~polished, if that makes sense? Anyway, stretchy trousers like these are perfect officewear for me and teaming yellow boots and jumper is just ideal, no? I'll bring my own sunshine kinda vibes.

Thursday

Wearing: Trousers, Zara (no longer available) - Tee, New Look (similar) - Jacket, Zara (no longer available) - Boots, New Look (similar)

For some reason, I thought the top of a hill would be a great place to take an outfit picture on a rather blustery day? The views are good but not the view of me with hair in my face! Anyway, who else is loving cords this season? These are actually from last year when I found them in the Zara sale, but I have refound my love for them and want everything corduroy now!

Friday

Wearing: T-shirt, People Tree - Jeans, Topshop (no longer available) - Trainers, Topshop

I actually had the day off on Friday and it's actually when I went to Tropical World to shoot the photos for my latest Sustainable Series post! So you should've already seen this outfit, meaning I don't need to talk more about it? I will say though that these jeans are just as uncomfortable as they look. Especially for sitting down for long periods of time, eek.

Saturday
Wearing: Jumpsuit, New Look - Hat, New Look - Trainers, Reebok Classics 

Saturdays are usually my 'do something fun' day, but on this occasion it was more of a 'get things done around the house' day. So I went for the comfiest jumpsuit ever paired with my new favourite baker boy hat for a trip to the farm shop, a few hours of ironing and some baking. I'm a big fan of a baker boy and a big fan of tartan so combining the two is the dream!

So far in this series, I've only discussed one sustainable clothing brand: Armedangels, who were the focus of my first instalment. And considering this is a largely fashion focused blog, I thought it was time to share another brand who can fill your wardrobe with ethical goodness! This one is more likely a brand you've already heard of? People Tree are one of the most popular suggestions when searching for sustainable fashion and are even available on ASOS for ~easy access~. 

I've been aware of People Tree for a while; aware that they're more ethical than a lot of clothing brands. But it's only the past year or so that I've a) been trying to buy more ethically, and b) been focusing on investing in better quality pieces for my wardrobe. It's no secret that ethically sourced clothing costs more, but it doesn't break the bank tbh. Invest in quality over quantity and you can't really go wrong can you. I've stopped buying lots of cute slogan tees at £8 and started buying better cute slogan tees for £30!




This is my first People Tree purchase and I was originally torn between this t-shirt and this one, both of which I'm a big fan of tbh. But in the end I chose this one because who doesn't love stripes? You can never have too many stripes in your wardrobe, and if they have a cute little smiling Earth on the front then that's just an added bonus isn't it! It's 100% organic cotton (as is every cotton that People Tree use) and it's super soft and comfy. I do usually prefer t-shirt sleeves to be a little longer, but I guess I should've maybe sized up for that! The quality is clear to see in how thick this is, it's definitely not your cheap fast fashion t-shirt, that's for sure! And I think I will definitely be looking at People Tree for more purchases in the future. I'm especially intrigued by the activewear now that I'm both going to the gym and practising yoga regularly, so that may be another post in the making!



When it comes to showcasing sustainable clothing, I like to find locations that seem well matched. For Armedangels I went for a nice, big, open field and now for People Tree I dragged my mum along to Tropical World! I say dragged, she was a very willing photographer. She didn't have to pay, she got to see cute creatures and spend the day with me, so what's not to love? I couldn't not share some of the other photos I got whilst there, so enjoy startled meerkats, gormless fish and an array of birds. Turns out butterflies are rather hard to photograph but I managed a couple! 
I know there's the whole issue of it technically being a zoo; it is a place that keeps animals in captivity and I'm normally all against this. Animals should be free to roam in the wild! But it's more of an educational place than anything else, and tbh I just wanted to see what it was like as I haven't been since I was a young child. There were clear issues! 
And I just wanted to mention this because we're not all perfect and please don't hate me for visiting.





Who Are People Tree?

People Tree are a brand recognised by both customers and the fashion industry in general, as a pioneer in ethical and environmentally sustainable fashion. Operating for over 27 years, People Tree developed the first integrated supply chain for organic cotton from farm to final product and were the first organisation anywhere to achieve GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) certification on a supply chain entirely in the developing world. It's easy to see why they are the winners of numerous awards from 'Eco-Warrier' to 'Best Ethical E-tailer'.

"When you shop with People Tree, you can trust that your goods were made ethically and sustainably."



Where can I buy it?
The People Tree website is the best place to go to, you can browse their whole collection from knitwear and activewear to jewellery! As I previously mentioned, you can also find a selection of their pieces on ASOS too.



















Wearing:


T-Shirt, People Tree


Jeans, Topshop (no longer available)


Trainers, Topshop


Bag, Kate Spade (no longer available)









Top picks

Well hello! I've fallen off the path of regular posting (again) lately, because as much as September has been a fresh start full of motivation, I haven't had any energy or been able concentrate! And I know it's all because I haven't been doing my yoga or going to the gym, my diet has been terrible and it all has a massive effect! I've had so many ideas, planned multiple blog posts, shot photos for them, but then got no further. When it comes to sitting down and editing, I get distracted and end up playing The Sims 4 (a recent rediscovery and a downfall of productivity!) and when I set time aside to write anything, the words don't flow. So instead of trying to force things, I spent the last week focusing on me. I read a lot more, dug out the old colouring books, did a lot of cleaning (I find it therapeutic, ok) and switched off of social media. It was exactly what I needed! And now I'm writing this post-workout feeling refreshed and ready to go.

So we're back now with a chat about styling up your favourite pieces from your summer wardrobe for the colder months. Because not everything has to go away into storage! Summer may well be my least favourite season for all things ~fashion~ but that doesn't mean there isn't items in my wardrobe that I love to wear when it's sunny and warm. And it's much easier to make a summer dress work in autumn than to make a cable knit jumper work in summer!


The Playsuit
You can see how I styled this playsuit for summer in this post, when it was warm enough to go without tights, polo necks and cosy coats! There's really only one piece of advice for dressing in autumn/winter and that is LAYERING. Add a top underneath, throw a jumper over, chuck on a pair of tights: watch your outfit transform.



I went for a subtle print clash here, with the striped polo neck against the check playsuit because I'm just loving everything clashing at the moment; whether it's prints, colours, textures, whatever! I kept the rest of the outfit pretty simple, however, with plain black tights, black ankle boots, and a faux leather/faux fur coat! I bagged this coat in the Debenhams sale a couple of years back, it's H! by Henry Holland, and is one of my best bargain finds to date!


Wearing: Playsuit, ASOS - Boots, Topshop (similar) - Polo neck, Primark - Jacket, H! by Henry Holland (no longer available) - Bag, Coach


The Boiler Suit
This might not seem a typical ~summery~ wardrobe piece but I think it is, and you can see it styled for summer in this post. There isn't much styling to be done with a boiler suit because it kind of does all the talking anyway, so I wanted to changed that for autumn/winter. Add some colour and make it bold.



So much like with the playsuit, I added a stripe polo neck underneath, but this time it was much more colourful! I went for my favourite chunky OTK boots tucked underneath, a thick black waist belt and my trusty baker boy hat. Because what is autumn/winter style without a baker boy hat and chunky boots? It's what I live in for 6 months of the year (probably more than that, tbh). 



Wearing: Boiler suit, New Look - Top, Topshop (no longer available) - Hat, ASOS - Belt, eBay - Boots, ASOS (no longer available) - Bag, Coach