Sometimes there is a season, shop or trend that suits exactly you're looking for. The sway towards structure and the 1950s silhouette did it for me, the same way that Whistles did last autumn. This time around it's Zara, the Spanish retail giant which I have previously moaned about (the stock turnover is famously quick) and now which I can't walk into without walking out with a logo'd paper bag. I visit Zara from time to time to see how they take on the trends once they leave the catwalk. I wasn't happy last summer when it seems to go to sharply towards voluminous shapes and the harem trouser, but this season they have it Spot On for my wardrobe wants and desires.
On a visit the other lunchtime (The Kensington branch is dangerously close to my office) I came across an armful of outfits I wanted instantly, and another bucket-load that I'll have to go back for. On that occasion I left with a pair of zipped-ankle jeggings (they fit my calves - hoorah!) a sheer black shirt with studded collar (referencing the vampy fetish trend of AW11) and a slim knit cardigan that I could have had in eight different colours. Although the sizes can be a little off; finding that I was a 'small' in the cardigan but a large in another top I tried on, the cuts are often flattering and easy to deal with. One tiny niggle would be that often the finishing isn't that great - loose threads on the zips, buttons hanging and seams that could be neater, but in some cases you get what you pay for and Zara certainly doesn't break the bank, but feels more 'right' than Warehouse, Dorothy Perkins and their ilk, which I already feel I've grown out of.
I was so happy to find the perfect mink silky maxi skirt in there the other day that if I'd written this piece then it probably would have been full of unbridled gushing, but as it was I paid another visit the following day (in the name of research, naturally) and found I was still finding treasures among the rails. Plus, a little overlooked section of Zara is the shoes - have a look if you need some office-evening-weekend heels, they have a great range. Snakeskin, studded, two-tone and sky-high, definitely of the moment and bang up to date.
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