Unplug Your Iron Take The Battery Out Of Your Mobile And Have An Adventure!

                                    

Dear Gals,

If today has been one of those dull, boring, stressful days, where you feel like nothing has quite gone as it should, chances are your in need of a little magical moment in your life, how does a road trip in a Cadillac sound? Thelma and Louise style. Or perhaps clutching onto the luxury pile of a Persian carpet while you do a little freewheeling up in a cloudless blue sky, imagine your favourite city or landscape laid out before you begging you to land where ever you choose. Ok so this might be a bit of a tall ask, after all flying carpets only exist in fairy tales right? Well yes, but how about the next best thing, the eastern mystery of a carpet bag made from Persian carpet to inspire a new adventure every day, just looking at these authentic Persian prints on the glossy pile of these carpet bags from carpetbags.co.uk gave me the chills!

If you need tempting any further to join the Kingdom of a Persian princess Carpet Bag are offering this trio of Persian purses to choose from, all hand made in the UK where they are designed at a discount, perfect for carrying lucky coins to throw into your favourite fountain or wishing well.

If like me you feel that filling your luxury flight bag with any less than the choicest travel companions might throw you off your sartorial stride, cowsheds online store, carries the perfect cashmere set for those serious about a relaxing travel experience, contents include, cashmere mini hot water bottle, blanket, eye mask and socks.

So what of those spontaneous, gals, who like high style but with plenty of low maintenance attitude out there? Well the Cadillac might just need to be traded in for a four by four for your road trip depending on what part of the world you live in. If you heading to Cuba or the US you might strike lucky,but if not, here's the next best thing to riding in a Cadillac a sleek shoulder bag by Kim White, that has all the charm of a Cadillac without the price tag, puzzled as to the connection, Kim's Whites ethically designed bag's are made from reclaimed vintage automotive textiles.

1980s Ford Mustang - Blue and Black optical small shoulder bag

 Great for swinging over your shoulder as your saunter into roadside eateries with the gal's and explore the outback that is your own private adventure. I felt dizzy with excitement at the texture, pattern and colour that this unusual source of fabric's brings to Kim Whites unique designer collection. A little squirt of 70's style, engine oil, never hurts to bring out the bohemian in us all!


1978 Ford Mustang - red stripe large shoulder bag



Now that your getting close to mother nature and all that she has to offer, how to hold onto this newfound carefree feeling for as long as possible?

 Number one consign all said travel iron's to the boot of your car (the locals all drip dry their clothing on bushes, its much kinder to the planet and the baking heat will see they speed dry and are fresh as a daisy) number two, stylish casual clothing made from fibres that don't crease and resist perspiration are pretty much a major priority when you and three gals are holed up in your car together whilst you hunt down that perfect roadside stop off, not on your map! Smelling like a rose takes on fresh importance believe me! Scratching your head on where to find this elusive easy wear that is not made of synthetic fibres that pollute the environment or need ironing or dry cleaning?

 Visit natureshop.co.uk and go to the versatile Merino Travel Wear from their super fine range (Nature Shop are currently offering a 20% discount on this range and keen and Simple footwear, but only till the 29th of May 2011) layer up for extra warmth,when those cold night's draw in and your huddled around the campfire, listening to the crackle and smelling the woodsmoke, playing that harmonica you brought just encase or perhaps guitar is more your style ....

Nature Shop Designs For Life

Like most women  I appreciate quality, comfort and well made pieces of clothing that can do double duty in my wardrobe. Ok I will amend that to, I can be a little fanatical at times about these issues with regard to my wardrobe, quality fabric and dressing other women! I don't know about you gals but on really busy days spent styling other women my work out is often my walking time! So when I had the opportunity to review a pair Keen sandals from ethical company Nature Shop and a Icebreaker vest and pant set made from natural fibres  I jumped at it.

 First impressions

It's not often that you find a leisure wear company that offers the kind of attention to detail, level of service and standard of ethics that I found Nature Shop offers. Let's face it how many stores offer a 365 day return policy, free returns and 100% biodegradable packaging?! Often when stores talk about bio degradable packaging, we don't associate biodegradable with the kind of pretty packaging that will have us salivating about the goodies inside. So I was excited to

discover that the packaging I received my vest and pants set in from Nature Shop  had broken that sometimes frumpy mould and was really elegant with clear information, that I did not need to squint at to read..

 

 

                                       

The pant and vest set by Icebreaker, in Snow -Sahara,  a warm ivory shade are part of a much wider range of underwear by Nature Shop, made of fine pure Merino wool, both the tank top with a flattering scoop neck and the hot pants feature a pretty ice blue floral design. Soft and light to the touch the gage was so fine I could see my fingers through the vest fabric!  Working as a personal stylist, VPL is an absolute no- no whatever the occasion, so I was pleased to discover that the pants had nice flat seams, that did not show when I slipped on a pair of yoga trousers or under my favourite clingy dress. Even more impressive was the invitation on the clothing labels to trace the sustainable nature of my pants and vest set back to its origins in the southern alps of New Zealand, by taping in a bar code, now that is what I call attention to detail!

Comfort Versus Style

With British weather being so unpredictable  natural fibres feature big in my wardrobe, as they are cool when it's hot, but  warm when there is a chill. It was great to have an opportunity to test my Icebreaker set out and after walking briskly for an hour( and at the risk of sounding like the weather man I encountered plenty of high winds and a few sunny spells) did I manage to keep my cool ? Yes, beautifully, I would quite happily stock up on this premium quality panties and vest set in a variety of colours as they wash perfectly and leave me with a squeaky clean conscious.

The  La Paz moulded sole sandal in bronze green by Keen, provides a great solution for someone like me who does not want to sacrifice style for comfort  when wearing these for what I imagine to be their most popular use of walking.The sandals have ultra fine woven straps and a contemporary gladiator feel, teeny tiny functional fastenings in black plastic, which make them a breeze to get on and off in a hurry and feature pretty zig zag stitching in pastel pink and wheat on the olive green straps. Even better, these elegant but casual walking  sandals would work just as well with my floral maxi dress in jersey or some crisp cotton city shorts from my spring wardrobe. Extremely light weight with a moulded sole and cushioned foot bed, strong supportive heel backs, comfortable and versatile, I think they offer great value. My only niggle from a design point of view is that I would have preferred the sandal fastening to be in olive green in keeping with the rest of the sandal rather than black, but that's just personal preference. Bring on the festival season!!

If you want to check out Nature Shops green credentials and ladies clothing range go to

http://www.natureshop.co.uk/

Disclosure: I was provided with a Icebreaker vest and pants set and pair of Keen sandal from Nature Shop for the purposes of this review.