Sequins on Sequins and Triple Pattern Mixing at an Awards Night #iwillwearwhatilike

What should you wear with sequins? How about… even more sequins?!

With the exception of some of the jewellery, everything I’m wearing here has been worn before (some many times before). Having been invited to the Specsavers Spectacle Wearer of the Year (SWOTY) Awards for the third time, I knew that it was an event where almost anything goes in terms of the dress code. I could do a dress, a jumpsuit, sequins, a cool co-ords suit.

Rather than buy something new, I went through my wardrobe and picked one item I wanted to wear, and worked around that.

The piece I started with was the sequin kimono I’ve had for over five years (see here and here for other ways I’ve worn it) as it can be worn indoors and outdoors – it’s not a coat that ruins a look if you keep it on, but it also provides some warmth for your journey to your evening out. As it happened, the venue at 8 Northumberland Avenue where the awards took place (the beautiful marble lobby can be seen above and the bar is below) was right next to Trafalgar Square where the Extinction Rebellion protests were taking place, so a cab was out of the question – the roads were closed.

It meant walking the 10 minutes from my hotel in flats (I wore my foldaway Cocorose ballet flats*) and doing that oh-so-undignified thing of nipping into the ladies’ loos and swapping flats for heels as soon as we arrived. It was worth it though as I still love my very flattering nude d’Orsay heels…!

 

Disclosure: I was paid by Specsavers to promote the event on Instagram but was not obligated to write this post (all content is original and opinions are 100% honest). This blog uses affiliate links – at no cost to you – and any items listed as* were gifted within the last 12 months. Full disclosure

Thank you to @singhgentry for taking the first and second photos

 

SHOP THE LOOK:

 

London is often still reasonably mild at this time of year so the kimono provided just the right amount of warmth for the walk to the venue.

And as already mentioned, what did I pair it with but, well – more sequins! The Breton striped sequin top is one I bought in Paris several years ago and still ADORE. It was pricey (about £150?), but I’ve worn it loads. It’s totally classic and can be worn for daytime or evening.

The bottom part of the outfit was where I got a bit stuck. Jeans? Just not cutting the mustard for this event. I tried different block colour trousers but none were the right colour UNTIL my eyes landed on the unlikely offering that was my pair of Prince of Wales check trousers. Although a print that’s entirely suitable for the office isn’t something you’d necessarily think to wear to an evening event or paired with sequins, the tones of the check worked perfectly with the tones of the palm print in the kimono.

Then nude heels, because anything in a colour just detracted from an already-busy jacket/top/trousers combo.

Finally I added my stunning gifted Toolally crescent earrings* and, of course, a pair of Specsavers glasses* (these had plain lenses so I could walk around and be able to see – my prescription glasses are for reading only. If you attend the event you’re expected to be wearing your glasses at all times of course… I’d like to get prescription lenses put in these ones as I adore them)!

 

The Specsavers SWOTY Awards and its fundraising

The SWOTY Awards aren’t just for fun and to invite celebs along (Joan Collins and Gary Barlow were the two best celebs, most were soap and reality TV stars that I just don’t know) – it’s an important event that raises money for the anti-bullying charity Kidscape. As well as donating £1 for every entry to the SWOTY Awards, there’s a fundraising raffle on the night, and this year over £100,000 was raised from the raffle alone.

PLEASE direct anyone you think might need help with bullying towards this incredible charity – they also have a Parent Advice Line you can call: 020 7823 5430. I’m SO proud to work with Specsavers and support them when they do so much to support such a worthy cause.

Plus my glasses – designed by Kylie Monogue especially for Specsavers – are pretty darn funky, don’t you think…?

What style frames are you loving at the moment? And would you ever do sequins on sequins (or pair sequins with checks)? Comment below…!

P.S. Do add your outfits to this week’s link up – and if you’ve added a link to here or my button to your post you may be featured in my bi-monthly Women Who Wear What They Like post!

Kimono: Topshop (love this one, this one, this one and this rainbow cape)
Top: Les Petites (love this striped sequin top and this long-sleeved version)
Trousers: & Other Stories (similar)
Heels: Aldo (similar)
Bag: House of Fraser (similar UK, similar US)
Earrings: Toolally*
Glasses: Specsavers*

 

OTHER SEQUIN TOPS AND KIMONOS YOU MIGHT LIKE:

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Thank you for joining the #iwillwearwhatilike link up! This started as a campaign on Instagram in August 2015 where women over 30 wore everything on a journalist’s list of “inappropriate” items for 30+ women (including leopard print, short dresses and oversized sunglasses. Yes, really). It was so popular that I decided to carry it on weekly where women of all ages link up their fabulous style, never mind what anyone tells them not to wear!

The link up goes live every Tuesday at around 3pm UK time and will stay open for a week. Whilst the original article was of course aimed at the 30+, you can be ANY age to link up. The only prerequisite is that you’re wearing whatever you damn well like!

Click here to receive an email reminder for the next #iwillwearwhatilike link up as soon as it’s live!

Linking up etiquette…

CLICK HERE to read the rules of linking up (and to grab the #iwillwearwhatilike button). Basically it’s just good manners to link back to here – to leave a comment is even nicer!
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