Slow Styling: a secondhand shirt and sassy skirt

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I honestly forget how much of my wardrobe is secondhand until I start typing out outfit details and realise more than half my outfit is from a vintage shop.

This year I’ve really tried to cut down on buying new clothes for a number of reasons. Not just for the environmental and ethical reasons, but also because my wardrobe is quite literally bursting at the seams.

When you find an incredible secondhand or vintage find, that item of clothing definitely gets treasured more. There’s an element of excitement about finding it and handing over your pennies to own it.

This blouse is from Sparrowhawk Vintage – my local vintage store. They had to shut up shop during lockdown, but owner Rhi continued posting pieces to her Instagram stories for customers to snap up. She’s since set up a website where a limited amount of items are displayed.

This secondhand fuchsia blouse is originally St Michaels, which is old M&S. It’s a brand I will always try to hunt down when vintage shopping because I know the quality is second to none. The blouse is a size 14 in old sizing, so more like a modern size 10. This means it fits my size 8 frame beautifully, with a little extra space under the arms as I like to be able to move freely. It has four buttons (one which needs another quick stitch to secure it), and a previous owner has added a small press stud above the top button so it’s less revealing. I really like where they’ve added it, as it gives a more structured lapel. It also has two faux pockets which give it a tailored look. It looks amazing tucked into anything.

I’ve tucked it into a skirt I picked up from Everything5Pounds.com. It’s originally from the high street store New Look, but at a lower cost. Everything5Pounds buy old stock from several retailers to prevent it heading to landfill, and sell it at a snip of the price. This pleated silk leopard print skirt is dreamy and I love floating around in it. I absolutely love pairing a bold colour with a print for a show-stopping outfit.

To tie in with the blouse, I colour co-ordinated my bag, which is from Primark around three years ago. This can be used as a clutch by tucking in the gold hardware, or worn as a shoulder bag. If my memory serves me correctly, it was about £3 in the clearance.

Since I’d gone for quite a statement shade of pink with leopard print, I kept accessories fairly simple. I went with a black leather bakerboy cap and black leather Wrangler boots. These were both from Sparrowhawk – the hat £12 and the boots £15.

Last but not least, I’m never fully dressed without a pair of earrings. These resin pink glitter stars are from Staffordshire-based artist Liv at From The Ether. These are the ‘Hot Tramp’* version of her star earrings, but you can have them custom made in any colour to match your wardrobe’s colour palette.