I just want someone to talk to!

I am a 45 year old woman who two years ago found myself without my job of 18 years. After battling my way through a nervous breakdown, chronic depression and anxiety I now find myself working full time in sales (eight hours a day on my feet, five days a week!)  and running two business’s of my own. I am an Independent consultant for Arbonne, a beauty, health and well being company and also my baby Hat Attic, a fashion accessories and gifting eccommerce site I set up to help women like me! In that I mean women without the time or quite frankly the patience to be running up and down the rather repetitive high street, where there are no hat departments, looking for that perfect gift, hat, scarf or necklace – YOU in other words!

I would like to share the ‘wealth’ of the wisdom I have picked up over my career with you and will do in a series of blogs and newsletters, subscribe on the home page and make sure you don’t miss any of these pearls. Or please get in touch at hello@hatattic.com if you have any particular questions or quandaries that I can help you with. Maybe you want to pick my brains about your skincare, what sort of hat you need for a particular occasion or are looking for a particular gift, or maybe you just want to say ‘hello’.

I am waiting and looking forward to hearing from you.x

Goodies for sale!

Yesterday I gave you five reasons for shopping at Hat Attic, today I am going to give you more of an overview of what we do, it’s not just hats you know!

Chimeera String lady in red and green

Fabulous scarves and shawls.

Some classic very fine knit shawls by Travelwrap. Great to take on holiday for the flight and those chilly evenings.

Beautiful woven and elegantly tasselled shalls by Cocowai, we donate 10% of each sale (and Cocowai match it) back to the families who actually made them to help get them back on their feet after the recent earthquake.

Simply stunning digitally printed silk crepe de chine scarves and canvas clip purses, with original artwork from the gorgeous Carol Anne Scowcroft.

Artisan leather bags and jewellery by Sardinias own Andrea Masia.Each item lovingly designed and made by his own fair hands in his sunny Sardinian studio.

Sparkling and mindful jewellery.

All that glitters is Amadoria! Inspired by tradition and crafted in amazing technicolour and sparkle.

A gift from the heart are the sentiments in the silver bangles and semi-precious stone bracelets with meaningful emblems.

Non- toxic nail polish by Mint, five carconogenics free, clean colours for your nails.

The cutest kiddies range from Catherine Tough, although I defy any grown up to resist Ellie or Flamingo!

And lets not forget the simply gorgeous collectable handmade dolls from the lovely girls at Blackbird Secrets. All made with vintage fabrics and accessories and hand painted faces. Every girl should have at least one of these beauties.

Blackbird Secrets, Amy.

There are lots of other weird and wonderful things that you need in the shop, like Sushi socks or hairbands that don’t pull or kink your hair and lets not forget all of the wonderful hats, by leading designers. The fun doesn’t stop in the Attic, I need you to shop, and photograph, blog and generally keep in touch. Come and subscribe to the newsletter so that you can keep up to date with what we are up to.

Five great things about Hat Attic and why you should shop there!

I started Hat Attic with a particular purpose in mind, to fill your world with beauty and make you smile. Here are a few other good reasons for you to love it.

1. There is a great mix of fashion accessories ie.jewellery, cashmere and silk scarves, leather bags and purses, toxin free nail polish, hair accessories and quirky gifts ie.collectable dolls, sushi socks!, books and baby bits and of course beautiful hats!
2. You don’t have to leave the house or run up and down the high street (only to find exactly the same things in every store).
3. Some of the things are exclusive and you will not find them on the high street. eg. Mint polish, Blackbird Secret dolls.
4. Delivery is cheap and quick, in most cases 1-2 days (UK). Designer hats being the exception, they are made specially for you so we need at least two weeks.
5. We can ship all over the world!

Test me out, start shopping now.

Stop life and shop!

I have been asked to write about what I do if I have a block or a lull in my business.It’s quite simple I go shopping, quite literally!
Any shop whether physical or on line needs to keep it’s customer interested. In an actual store you re-merchandise, move the stock around with the view that people see things in a different light, see things that perhaps they hadn’t noticed before. On line it is similar in the fact that you have to change the visuals and message of your home page, maybe a seasonal or weather purpose, or an event or holiday, Mothers Day or Halloween. Or sometimes I have to literally drop in a new collection, to add a new dimension.
My most recent new pieces have been some wonderful paper panama trilbies and fedoras in classic colours and a stunning summer blue, the colour of the ocean. This was in conjunction with the heatwave and my Know your UVB’s from your UVA’s blog. Which is an information piece about summer protection essentials like sun cream, sunglasses and sunhats.

We are in the process of completely re-designing www.hatattic.com  with a fantastic photoshoot that we did with my incredibly creative photographer friend Mark Basten.

So in conclusion you need to put us in your address book and check in to see what we are up to, it will be all sparkly and new any day/week/month now!

My hat of the moment.

I have a real passion for hats, beautiful, unusual occasion hats and everyday practical ones, I very rarely leave the house without one. This is one reason I created my website www.hatattic.com, due to a shortage of creative hat departments with a wonderful varied selection, I wanted to take the department I was known for online.

My plan is to share with you a selection of my favourite milliners, many I have worked with for many years and add some new designers that are breaking through. I aim to have both quirky and classic occasion pieces and some fabulous easy to wear, practical everyday hats. The designer hats will all be made specially for you so you will need to give us at least three weeks to make and ship to you. We can ship all over the world.

On of my favourite pieces this summer is the gorgeous little mini boater by Lizzie McQuade.

I am interested to know your view on the subject. Do you wear hats? Do you wear them everyday or just on special occasions? Please feel free to send me pictures of your favourite hats, maybe you make them yourself? Whatever your reason I would like to know.

An InLinkz Link-up

Help the Nepalese family that made this.

Clothes come in sizes not ages (unless you are under fifteen).

There have been a lot of ‘news’ reports on scandalous body image advertising and ideals recently. The most notorious being the Protein worlds  “Are you beach body ready” which leads my nicely to Janet Street Porters piece about not wearing a bikini after the age of 20.

I do understand Janet’s argument and that is what works for her but I think it’s outrageous to start putting these ideas into women’s heads and start putting age restrictions on clothing. We have enough subliminal confidence thrashing as it is. If you have the confidence in your mind and body and are comfortable with yourself then you shouldn’t be put off from wearing whatever you like – I do however draw the line at a thong, that is a garment that is friend to no one!

Janet claims that ” A bikini simply makes all women over the age of twenty feel exposed, vulnerable and a little bit ridiculous. Put one on head to the pool and there is always going to be a teenager looking 200 per cent better than you.”

I would like to argue that teenagers do not always look better or certainly not sexier than a confident, curvy, real woman, and I am not just talking bikinis either!

I am definitely a bikini girl and I’m nearly forty six. i actually find swimsuits a bit claustrophobic and too hot. I take regular stabs at looking after myself and always look after my skin, so I know I do not look my age, but I have never consciously tried to be bikini ready. Neither have I fallen foul to Janet’s ” Temporary insanity that comes with trying to keep up with a much younger partner.”

My partner is 29 and he loves me the way I am, that is why he is with me. I don’t understand why you would try and change what he was attracted to in the first place. Yes I agree maintenance is required but not actually time turning!

What do you think? Has Janet toughed a raw nerve with you? Do you draw the line anywhere, believing you are too old to wear a particular garment? I am really curious, so let me know.

What to do when the dogs are seriously barking!

I think I have the remedy for really sore aching feet!

As you know I have just gone back to full time work, so that means being on my feet for eight hours everyday.This is taking a bit of getting used to. I love walking, for exercise and would ideally like to be doing at least 10,000 steps a day, but this doesn’t happen when you are working in a shop, I average 4,500 a day. Standing actually makes your feet hurt a lot more than a good hike.

I’m sure I will get used to it again after a while but in the meantime I am subjected to extreme night time aching all over, not just my poor tootsies. So tonight I have a cunning plan involving some Arbonne products, I can’t wait to start!

I shall let you know tomorrow how I get on and whether I have found the answer to the age old problem of ‘barking dogs’.

I am keeping it short and simple today and letting the visual do the talking!

Look I’m a pin up! Put me on your fridge or near your desk so you remember you don’t have to run about  searching, I’ve already done it for you, I’m just a click away!

Shake it up baby !

Amazing how a new job can put you off your food! Well as from day one back on the 10-7 treadmill I am determined to kick my sugar habit and be eating clean.
So after my fresh lemon & ginger tea fix this morning I had homemade cereal, of brown rice flakes with nuts and seeds topped with berries and coconut yogurt.
Lunch is a salad of spinach and cucumber with carrot and celery sticks (funny thing celery).
Dinner, a little something I made earlier, a coconut chicken and courgette pasta (brown rice pasta).
I discovered I have Candida Overgrowth about six months ago, I also have a sugar addiction which is really not helpful at all.

I have decided I am going to get healthy in the right way, not by dieting but by eating properly and cleanly.

Another treat I give myself which although it contains a very small amount of sugar is a meal replacement shake by Arbonne.If you blend it up with plenty of ice and water it’s like eating ice cream! I recommended it to my friend Dawn Lowe who is an actress, model and singer plus Ms London Galaxy 2015/16, this is what she has to say :-

My good friend Lecia Finch, who is an Arbonne Distributer and suggested I try Arbonne’s Essentials Chocolate Flavour Meal Replacement Shakes to help with weight loss and to replace any nutrients I’m losing through my thyroid malfunction.

The instructions tell you to replace breakfast and lunch or breakfast and evening meal with the shake and have a proper balanced meal each day.

I have to say the shakes are amazing. Not only did they taste delicious but I was also never hungry on them! I managed to lose the weight I needed to in record time too for my fitting model job and I also felt a lot healthier.

Thank you Lecia for your brilliant recommendation – I will continue to use and recommend them to others.

So you see losing weight and being healthy is not as awful as it sounds, it’s not just about mourning the things you shouldn’t eat it’s about discovering new and yummy things you can.

Now if you will excuse me I have some blending to do!