I'm currently sat on my bed, typing this post out and feeling a little unsettled as we all brace ourselves for three weeks in lock down. Despite the current circumstances or possibly in spite of them, posting on my blog will resume as normal because I think a little normality is exactly what we all need for peace of mind (see my last post for further details on this), I hope you guys agree? So let's keep on keeping on and forget about lock down for a few minutes at least. One wonderful thing I have noticed over the past few days is how much Spring has sprung especially when you take into account how bv non-existant this season has been over the last couple of years (who can forget our long lost pal, the beast from the east?). The mornings have a golden glow, the temperature is mild and sunshine is sticking around well into the early evenings, let's try and be thankful for as much of spring as we possibly can this year. With this in mind I'm eager to celebrate the most joyful of seasons to dress for and have a little chat with you guys about some delightful spring style. 

I completely appreciate dressing to impress has probably fallen to the waste side a little at the moment, believe me I'm on the same train of thought too! But I'm hoping it's style notes like this one which can be used for future reference especially as a lot of my seasonal dressing tends to be repeated year after year with just a few "relevant" tweaks depending on which trends take my fancy. A great example of styling I consistently love year on year is a statement collar and funnily enough this is a trend I've seen make a BIG appearance in a lot of spring collections... Literally! Oversized, frilly and/or embroidered collars are cropping up all over the show at the moment whether thats via high street brands, designer labels or on the silver screen in films such as Emma and Little Women. There's a lot out there to take your fancy and have you utterly inspired to pop your collar and super size it too.

I couldn't be more thrilled (no frill pun intended, but glad its there all the same) with this ultra feminine trend currently at large (whoops, I'm puns a plenty today) as collars have always played such a huge part in my personal style and are possibly one of my all time favourite accessories... And yes, they most definitely are an accessory. I've been a fan of teaming a pie crust collar under overalls or a pinafore dress for a while, it instantly adds a sweet touch to the ordinarily androgynous dungarees and it's a sneaky way of looking like you've made a little more effort than you actually have. Another style favourite of mine is a pretty, often vintage and possibly scalloped collar underneath a boyish sweatshirt for a preppy, "butter wouldn't melt" kind of look. I often find vintage blouses have the best embroidered collars and a great little hack to take from this styling is that the fit of the preloved blouse in question and it's overall condition isn't really a priority. Hide the blouse under a jumper, pop out that gorgeous collar and you've instantly breathed life back into both a simple piece of knitwear aaaand a wonderful piece of vintage.

In this post I'm wearing one of my top picks this season, an almighty Warehouse blouse with an almighty collar to boot! I adore this piece, so much so I bought it in two different colour ways- the dusky pink you can see here and a more classic, crisp white. Warehouse is generally has been a firm favourite of mine for the past few months as they repeated hit the nail on the head with amazing seasonal pieces which are both wearable, beautifully designed and reasonably priced. My blouse doesn't just cater to your oversized collar needs but the detailing alone had me sold (twice over) with it's pin tuck pleats, broidery Anglaise frilled cuffs and crochet insert in the collar itself. Off the record this is possibly one of the best oversized collars I've spotted but don't tell all my other lovely blouses that please. I've teamed my dusky pink shirt with a perfectly coordinated camel jean from Alexa Chung as a very spring appropriate twist on a classic indigo denim. I've then completed my look with another top buy of mine, my Idee Fixe cream pumps which you've seen crop up on my Instagram feed countless times, because a big collar is sweet but teamed with an adorable pair of Mary Jane it's even sweeter...  

Wishing you all a wonderful week. Stay safe.

Sophia x

Outfit Details: Pink Oversized Collar Blouse- Warehouse, Camel High Waisted Jeans- Alexa Chung at Net-A-Porter, Cream Mary Jane Pumps- Idee Fixe, see similar from ASOS, Blossom Mother Of Pearl/Wooden Earrings- Wolf and Moon

Photography by Catherine Booty

Location- Whitworth Locke