Bright Eyes, Blue Denim

"Blue-gray eyes, they change with the colour

Change with the sun, they run with the sight

They change with the wind but they're always bright

Bright eyes, blue denim

Bright eyes, blue denim"

~ Stevie Nicks

Denim is set to be a big trend for SS15 & when I say big I mean BIG! Denim has graced every catwalk this season, it can be seen in every high street store and I promise you, we will all be rocking something denim this Summer; not just jeans, we'll be wearing denim skirts, shorts, shirts, shoes, bags, dresses, even dungarees.

One of the big denim stories recently was Alexa Chung's fantastic range for US brand AG Denim. It was one of her cool designs that actually inspired this blog post; the beautiful 70s-esque 'Pixie' denim shirt dress. Oh I wanted it so much and I tried so hard to get it but alas, it sold out almost immediately.

As I was lamenting the fact that the dress would never be mine, my Husband reminded me that once upon a time, I'd actually owned a very similar dress. He suggested that as I seem incapable of getting rid of my old clothes, it might still be lurking somewhere in the dark, murky debts of my floordrobe. I went rummaging and believe it or not, I found the dress! I'd not worn it for at least 10 years so of course it didn't fit me anymore, the zip wouldn't even close over my chest, but inspired by a terrific up-cycling job my trusty Tailor did for me a while back (see here), I decided to take the dress to him to see what he could do with it.

And this is the fantastic result! The dress was shortened by about 10 inches and from that excess material, panels were added to both sides to give me all the room I needed to do up that all-important zipper. The alteration only cost me £25; the Alexa Chung dress would have cost me about £300!

My old denim dress has a bit of a Country & Western vibe about it so I styled it with a great pair of ankle boots from Ash (the closest thing I have to cowboy boots) and, the pièce de rèsistance, a super cool Buffalo Skull bolo tie.

Get The Look:

Dress: Vintage Denim Shirt Dress (similar)

Shoes: Ash 'Jalouse' Ankle Boots in taupe

Necklace: Bucklebox Buffalo Skull Bolo Tie (similar)

Snapshot: Natalie B Coleman

Snapped Wearing:

Dress: Natalie B Coleman Navy Silk Dress 

Necklace: Bucklebox Buffalo Skull Bolo Tie

Boots: Topshop 'Ambush' Ankle Boots

Sunglasses: Ray Ban Aviator sunnies

Bag: Chloe Mini-Paddington

Note: Photos taken with the Hipstamatic App on my iPhone

Bolo Tie

This is one of my favourite outfits, it is 100% me and I wear this kind of style a lot. The shirt is my very first purchase from French brand, The Kooples, a very rock & roll fashion label with quite a British edge. The silk shirt feels so luxurious to wear and I absolutely love the masculine cut, the great burgundy/wine colour and the cute contrasting collar.

The tailored shorts were a fantastic find. No-one believes me when I tell them they are from Miss Selfridge & cost only £38! They look and feel so expensive. They have a gorgeous faux leather trim detail at the pockets & the cute belt actually comes with them.

The pièce de rèsistance for this outfit however, is the Country & Western Bolo Tie. My inspiration for this came at a recent gig when my band had the very great pleasure of sharing a stage with American music legend John 'Rabbit' Bundrick (he has played & toured with The Who & The Rolling Stones to name just two of the legendary bands he's been associated with over the years!). 

Rabbit, a true Texan gent, was wearing the coolest Bolo Tie & the very next day I was straight onto Google to find one of my own. There are countless styles, designs, colours & prices available out there. I chose a simple white Buffalo Skull, to compliment the white collar on my Kopples shirt. It looks equally good with a denim shirt or even with a plain, collarless t-shirt. 

I finished the outfit off with my 'go to' Topshop shoe boots & a sweep of MAC lipstick in 'Red Dwarf', such a perfect match for the rich burgundy colour of the shirt. My Husband laughs every time he hears that lipstick name; he thinks it's the perfect lipstick for his teeny weeny short Wife! 

Get The Look: 

Shirt: The Kooples Contrast Collar Shirt (similar)

Bolo Tie: Bucklebox Buffalo Skull Bolo Tie

Shorts: Miss Selfridge Leather Trim 'Naples' Shorts

Boots: Topshop 'Adina' Shoe boots (similar)

Lipstick: MAC Pro Longwear Lipcreme in 'Red Dwarf' (similar)