Being fifty and fab .... in March

How are you all getting on?  How are you coping with staying at home?  When I started making notes for my 'being fifty and fab' post earlier in March I never imagined how much our day to day lives would change in such a short time.  It seems a bit odd to be talking about the outings I had earlier in the month! But I am so glad that I did manage to fit in some of these things.

My days now consist of tidying up after my family, wondering if I can log onto Ocado and update my shopping list, getting out for my daily walk, deciding what to cook for dinner, and have I got all the ingredients.  Oh and trying to escape the noise caused by my husband running his business from home and the constant telephone calls.  But I am still very busy, I've not yet had time to sit and watch TV or read the books I have piling up.

My 'London' jumper is from Boden and my leather look trousers are from Winser London. My gorgeous tassel earrings are from Toria Lee Accessories

Exercise and self-care - so along with everyone else in the UK I have been trying to find the best home workouts.  I am planning a more detailed blog review on this next week but for now what I will say is that I am enjoying having time to do my workouts.  I favour weights and strength training and I am lucky to have some space in our log cabin for my gym equipment.  I had a good clean and sort out and although I am now sharing the space with my son (obviously working at home, he is a videographer in the music industry and needs a lot of space), I am lucky to be able to have a dedicated area and have a good selection of weights, a bench and barbell.  I am loving my daily walks too.  We live in the woods so it is easy to walk out of my back door and be able to access nature and have me time without seeing anyone else.  I have also had to cancel my pampering appointments so I am needing to find the best home options for hair removal, hair colour and pedicures!

Below (top) - walks around the woods outside my house, wearing Varley jacket from Odette in Old Amersham.  Below (bottom) - before lockdown, enjoying the grounds at our local National Trust House.

Reading - well I will be honest, I have been so busy, I've not started a new book yet!  I have been too glued to the news updates!  I am trying not to be worried, but it is hard not to be. 

Doing - I was really busy in the first two weeks of March, then it all changed and I had to stop everything and clear my diary.  Although I think I was luckier than some as I didn't have any holidays or special celebrations booked in this year.  Which is unusual, normally I have booked our holiday by January and planned one or two weekends away.

So what did I fit in before lockdown?

The 1st March was a gorgeous sunny day and we went for the snowdrop walk at our local National Trust property.  We didn't actually see many snowdrops but the daffodils were looking amazing and the sun and blue sky reflecting on the lake in front of the house was stunning.

I went to an anniversary event at Odette in Old Amersham, this is a beautiful lingerie shop and popular instagrammer, Hayley 'Lady of the Manor' was sharing her seasonal picks of swimwear, activewear and beachwear.  Not sure we will have much use of beachwear but I think activewear could be selling out fast.  Odette are stockists of Varley and I purchased a jacket, really stylish and good price point (comparable/cheaper than Sweaty Betty).

I also managed to fit in a few trips to London.  I went down to the Winser London pop up shop and anniversary event in Mayfair.  That was a lovely sunny day, cold but sunny and I purchased a red blouse and their leather look trousers (it'll be ages until I can wear that outfit now)!

I think the highlight of the month though was formal dinner in the dining hall at Worcester College, Oxford University.  I am so glad we were able to go before lockdown was announced.  My nephew is a scholar at Worcester College and we are so proud of him. All of us went - me, my husband, our daughter, our son and his girlfriend and my younger sister and her husband.  The food was excellent, we took our own wine and the atmosphere was fantastic.  What an opportunity!  And yes it is like the dining hall at Hogwarts!  We had drinks after in the college bar and had so much fun.

Another fun night out was seeing Michael McIntyre at the London Palladium, I booked tickets for the live recording of his new Netflix show.  He is (for me anyway) simply hilarious, I love his take on day to day life, and the laughter did me so much good.  It was one we fitted in just before life changed.

I had a night out at Cliveden too for a social evening with a new membership club, The Big Little Club, it was their launch night, what a superb location, we were treated to an 'in conversation with ... Rosie Green'.  Rosie is a journalist and blogger at Life's Rosie and all round lovely lady, inspiring and genuine.  

Then my final London trip for a while ... I drove down to Covent Garden (decided to avoid the tube) and went to the ME Hotel in the Strand for a Maidenform event.  You can read all about this on my blog post here.

​Mother's Day was spent at home, we got a takeaway roast lunch from our local pub!  Still a massive hug to my two children for spoiling me.

Wearing - so what did I wear?!  Well for the past two weeks either workout gear or jeans but before that I did dress up a bit!  You see my post about my new sustainable jeans from White Stuff here.

My red and black dress (above) is from Wallis and is a mock wrap style purchased back in November, I can't find it online any more but there are some similar ones here.  I wore it for formal dinner at Oxford University.

This is the outfit I purchased from Winser London which I won't get to wear for a while but I did try it on for photos!  The red georgette blouse is super gorgeous and the tie neck can be worn loose or done up for more a more formal look.  The trousers are their faux leather style and a slightly different cut to my usual skinnies.  I am wearing with Forever Comfort Court Shoe from Next (similar here).  This was an investment outfit as Winser is higher end but in an effort to reduce my fast fashion consumption I am trying to buy less but buy better.

This is what I wore when I went to the anniversary event at Odette in Old Amersham, it was a really wet, cold day, it was pouring with rain and windy and I regretted not wearing a more suitable coat!  My skirt is from Warehouse and the necklace is from Mooch in Marlow.

The above dress was gifted* to me from Roman Originals and it is a lightweight jersey, midi length (long on me) and features a really flattering waist and sweetheart neckline.  It has the all important sleeve and is a really great fabric for spring.  Dress up with shoes or boots or dress down with trainers.  Add a biker jacket and scarf or wear on its own when it gets warmer.  Really happy with this one and it is only £40 - Ditsy Floral Ruched Midi Dress from Roman Originals.

Wearing my London knit from Boden again here for a day at home!  I favour wearing trainers at home rather than slippers, I just prefer dressing up a bit and making a proper outfit.  These are the Codie casual trainers are from Vionic (previously gifted *) and they currently have 20% off - use the code EVERYTHING and you will receive free delivery and free returns too.

​And that's me for now!  I am so relieved to be over my low period of depression, I would have really struggled to cope if this had been much earlier.  As I said in my previous blog post here I quite like being at home but I do also love time to myself and that is proving quite difficult with my husband and family all at home for the foreseeable future.  

What am I missing most?  Me time and days in London with friends.  Makes us appreciate it all the more though I guess.

Stay safe and lots of love.

Michelle xx

Disclaimer: some of the items I am wearing are gifted * I no longer use affiliate links on my blog.

My March blog posts in case you missed them:

What supplements do I need in midlfe?
London, a cool rooftop bar and reviewing shapewear from Maidenform
White Stuff | A sustainable range of jeans with a conscience
Finding the positives of staying at home during the coronavirus / covid-19 pandemic​

​I link up with:

Is This Mutton
#WowOnWednesday 

Mummabstylish
#Chic&Stylish

Not Dressed as Lamb
#ShareAllLinkUp