Are you struggling in the mornings to select an outfit appropriate for the current shifting weather patterns?

Getting dressed in the mornings during this transitional weather seasons is at best ‘a challenge’ and at worst thoroughly frustrating, especially if you don’t have a few basic layering items included in your wardrobe. I have found myself dipping between my summer and autumn clothing daily recently, and then sometimes finding I still made the wrong choice later in the day.  Although we have had some pretty wet weather in recent weeks, the temperature is neither summer dress nor warm trouser weather for the complete day, so getting dressed in the morning has really turned into a bit of guesswork. Read on for some wardrobe suggestions….

Layering is the secret to our autumn comfort

My suggestions for coping over the next few weeks is to dress with several thinner layers rather than on thicker one. Layering gives you the opportunity to ensure your comfort, especially if you are going to be out and about for much of the day. You can peel off or add layers as the humidity or temperature rises or falls. Oh and don’t forget your umbrella!!

Suggested combinations to consider that work well are:

— Long summer maxi dress - add a denim jacket and trainers. (Left: our glamerous model is ‘rocking’ the look this week. Both dress and jacket from Beautifully Different Brackley.)

— Summer short sleeved dress, jumpsuit or top – pop a corresponding colour fitted long sleeved plain T-shirt underneath, having a few of these in your wardrobe will give you weeks more wear from many of your summer garments.

— For many summer dresses – add a pair of leggings, obviously tights work too but I personally find leggings more comfortable, and they look super young and funky with trainers or sandals. I would choose tights for a more polished or professional look when required, and many dresses also work well with knee high or ankle boots for a warmer solution.

— Pack a poncho -There is nothing as useful as a plain colour poncho – excellent for an evening in a pub garden, or just to keep you cosy when the days temperature drops.  It’s better than a cardigan as it makes you feel cosy like you have a blanket around you, and they look super stylish as you can wear your necklace or scarf over the top plus wear it all day long indoors if required. This makes them way more versatile than a coat for comfort whilst travelling too.

— Thin Scarves are great in autumn to add to almost any outfit – adding and taking off a scarf can make a dramatic difference to your personal warmth and have the bonus of being able to be tied in so many different ways. Adding a scarf also suggests an unspoken level of intentional stylish dressing.

If you are having difficulty with your clothing around the changing seasons and would like an informal chat and/or some advice on what basics would be useful in your wardrobe, then do pop in for a discussion or book a personal shopping experience and we will be happy to offer suggestions to increase your options without you needing to buy a whole new wardrobe for this transitional weather season.

 Call the boutique to book a personal shopping session on 01280-700111 or 07856-207999

Beautifully Different Brackley - 48 Market Place - Brackley - South Northants - NN13 7DP

We look forward to welcoming you into our store very soon. Liz xxx

A little insight into Liz, Owner at Beautifully Different Brackley

Irrelevant of what inspires us many of us get carried along in life by the need for a steady income and our passions get overlooked.  Others of us are unsure what it is that genuinely interests us, or it takes time for us to trust in ourselves to make the big step towards our dreams.  I have ticked all these boxes.

Image: My Trusty Old Sewing Machine.

My younger years…

As a young girl and into my early teens I was surrounded at home by fabrics and sewing machines.  My mother was a curtain-maker. I loved the fabric offcuts with their diverse colours, weights, piles and finishes and I would make dolls clothing for my Pippa dolls from them. 

  I didn’t really like the ‘dolls’ for dolls sake – I just loved making chic outfits for them with unusual seams, necklines etc – and I made loads! I have always loved luxurious fabrics. It gives me immense enjoyment thinking about the design process that went into producing a beautiful fabric, along with the pleasure that they can bring when coupled with a unique fashion style or soft furnishing.

By 12 years old, I had moved onto cutting up and dying old sheets to make clothing for myself along with individualising clothing purchased from charity shops, and I was having loads of fun.

Following a career in IT in my younger years I returned to my love of all things tactile and sparkly in my mid 30’s by setting up a new business designing and producing sterling silver and costume beaded jewellery. I would travel to local independent boutiques to wholesale my designs and became great friends with many of my shop owner clients, who I am still incredibly happy to call my friends today.

How Beautifully Different Brackley was born…

Image: The store today

Triggered by a lack of variety and interesting styles available in shops on the high streets, in 2015 I finally followed my passion for clothing, fashion, and anything sparkly, and ventured into the business of being an independent boutique owner.  I merged my thriving wholesale business with my wonderful friend and then client Kim, who had a retail presence in Winslow.  Together we were driven by the desire to bring an opportunity of uniqueness and individualism to the ladies within our local community and in 2016 we were excited to expand Beautifully Different into Brackley.

As you will all be aware, the various lockdown situations put many pressures on small high street retail businesses and in August of 2020 Kim and I made the decision to split into two independent boutiques with total ownership and control of a single shop each.  So, I am now the owner-proprietor of ‘Beautifully Different Brackley’ – an independent boutique, supplying unique ladies’ fashion and accessories to Brackley and the surrounding community.  I have been making changes in the shop and recently launched an ecommerce website www.beautifullydifferentbrackley.co.uk .

Our community…

In lockdown we all needed connection, friends, fun, laughter, and little treats to make us feel human and to raise our spirits.  Thank goodness you all wanted to look ‘Beautifully Different’ when taking your daily exercise be it across a field or down the High Street!  Thank you so very much for your support.

I am very much enjoying my boutique being back open once again so you can visit, and we can catch up in person.  Julie and I love taking time to assist you with discovering a new style in store. We ladies, me included, can sometimes have the most ridiculous limiting beliefs for ourselves, and these can extend into our wardrobes.  Sometimes it just takes someone else’s viewpoint or suggestion to boost your confidence and for you to push your boundaries for a little sense of fun and change in style. 

If you are struggling with your wardrobe, a new top or knit could be the very thing that helps your confidence for that Zoom call or Facebook Live this week.   My suggestion is, take a good look into your wardrobe, believe in yourself and be bold – you should enjoy your clothing. ‘Play’ around with how you wear things and think outside the box – you will surprise yourself when you allow yourself to let go of age and colour limitations that you may have set for yourself.

Sparkle, Sparkle, Sparkle….

It goes without saying that I LOVE anything that sparkles – this goes for jewellery, clothing, footwear, and I have even had strands of sparkles in my hair.  I have a sign on the wall in my boutique which I truly believe we should all live by which states, ‘Don’t let anyone dull your sparkle’.  For me being confident and happy with the way I look on the outside can really help me feel my ‘sparkle’ on the inside.  I’m in the business of helping you to feel great and enjoy your own sparkle.

Don’t you just love to see others sparkling? I do!

Liz xx

A Little History of Brackley Town

Beautifully Different Brackley, our gorgeous clothing and accessories boutique, is now well established within Brackley town centre – a ‘beautifully different’ market town itself! We are soon to celebrate 5 years of success within this friendly community and look forward to many more fun years to come.  To introduce the area where our boutique is located we’ve been digging about into the fascinating stories that lie behind this pretty town…..

Image of Brackley facing up the hill taken from The Market Place - a leafy open road in the summer sunshine.

 Brackley appears in the Doomsday book in 1086, when it was held by a Saxon earl called Alberic. Its name comes from the old English for ‘woodland clearing’ and it was originally known as Brachelai or Brackele. Its history however goes even further back as a large Roman settlement was unearthed in Brackley in the 70s.

 It was an important place for a couple of well-known monarchs; King Richard the Lionheart designated it as one of five places in the kingdom that could officially hold jousting tournaments and later it hosted a pivotal meeting between English barons and representatives of King John, during the negotiations to agree the Magna Carta. It was due to be the venue for the signing as well but for some reason they decided to do that at Runnymede instead!

Brackley developed a strong wool making industry until the industrial revolution saw much of that specialism move up to the northern towns. Lacemaking and boot-making also flourished, and because of its geographical position, it also became an important staging post. At one time there were 28 hostelries and public houses along the High Street! Several breweries also sprang up to meet demand and, while all of them have now closed, several coaching inns remain such as The Crown and The Plough.

 The town has seen a population explosion over the years, with its 2,467 residents in 1901, swelling to over 15,000 today. We’re very proud to be part of a thriving community which supports some fantastic local businesses, and which, in a typical year, boasts a full calendar of festivals and community events.

 Look out for next months blog when we will be introducing you to the individual characters within our fabulous and helpful team at Beautifully Different Brackley.

 Until then, feel free to drop in to our well stocked Brackley store at 48 Market Place, NN13 7DP and experience for yourself a little of what the Brackley Market Place has to offer in 2021!

 Liz xx

What’s your denim item of choice on Denim Day?

Denim is a worldwide favourite fabric

Did you know that at any one moment in time over half of the world’s population will be wearing denim? Yes, that is a fact! And Wednesday 28th April is ‘Denim Day’ if you needed an excuse to wear this fabulous fabric!

However, in lockdown you might have questioned the classic jeans as not quite the most comfortable offering from your wardrobe – or might they actually be just that?

Traditionally denim jeans were a thick inflexible fabric, designed for durability during a highly physical working day, but today many jeans’ designers have taken a more comfortable approach with high waisted, stretch denim, wider leg and even pull-on offerings that make selecting jeans, in this latest fashion season of ‘post lockdown and home working’, an easy-wear clothing item of choice for many. 

Demin is claiming its place in the comfort stakes these days and is fending off the threatening competition from the humble ‘jogger’. Denim, from the fashion world sales figures, continues to be our  legwear of choice in these less-dressed-up times that we find ourselves within currently.

Unlike the jogger, investing in a comfortable quality pair of denim jeans ticks many current lifestyle trend boxes therefore adding some future proofing to your wardrobe. At Beautifully Different Brackley we offer instore both the comfort renowned Robell styles along with the Joya bottom-lifting jeans. Comfortable jeans offer versatility across uses, working from home, shopping, popping the bins out, dancing in the kitchen with the dog or walking the local fields!  And these very same beauties will soon be a trusted go-to when we are once again able to frequent our favourite social abodes.  Can you honestly say that about your lockdown joggers?  Ok, so you might get away with it now – but in 3 months’ time would you don your joggers to meet friends and pop to your local pub – well I could be wrong, but I am guessing that most of you would not!

Not only are jeans known for being timeless investment pieces but for years they have also been a desirable pass-me-down item from virtually any wardrobe - sometimes the more worn and ripped the better, plus even oversized jeans with a chunky belt can be a super stylish look. So along with offering so many varied uses these durable garments benefit from great cost-per-wear within anyone’s wardrobe.

With fashion trends so varied you can easily embrace whichever leg cut is your preference, basically anything goes but I look for the cut that I feel flatters my body shape best – I’m personally not one for following a fashion just because it’s the latest thing, I need to feel happy with how something looks on ‘ME’ for it to generate within me the self-confidence that I’m looking to gain from my outfit!  That said, current high fashion trends are luckily the high waisted, mom-jeans with a wider leg silhouette that skim and not hug therefore providing the enhanced comfort expression of current ‘home living & working’.

And it’s not all about legwear

Of course, denim is not just limited to jeans, if you are more of the dressier type then the perfect way to dress down your smarter wardrobe pieces for these more relaxed times is to layer a fitted denim jacket over your dresses and pretty tops.

Many designers have thankfully also adopted the more comfort approach into their recent seasonal ranges and now denim jackets and skirts are widely available in soft and tensile stretch denim versions. 

These are more practical as they feel more like indoor clothing rather than the traditional, more utilitarian, denim offerings  – cosy for any cooler days at your home-desk but also a go-to for outdoor evenings at the pub.

These developments in recent years into softer denim fabrics makes the denim choice a win win from every angle.

For our current denim offerings at Beautifully Different Brackley click the link below and type ‘denim’ in the search bar, or pop into store at 48 Market Place for a more extensive ever-changing range.

https://www.beautifullydifferentbrackley.co.uk/

I wish you a great week and look forward to seeing you soon.

Liz xxx

Welcome to our new shop!

We are so delighted to have launched our new shop. Thank you for visiting. We’ll be uploading lots of new stock and sale items over the next couple of weeks, so keep coming back to see what’s new.

You can still visit our shop in person (when open, depending on Covid restrictions) and if you have any questions about products on our website please contact us and we’ll be delighted to help. We are still working behind the scenes!

You can send an email to info@beautifullydifferentbrackley.co.uk - alternatively you can send an enquiry using our online form, call the shop during opening hours on 01280 700 111 or message Liz on 07856 207 999