Review: The House of Foxy shawl collar blouse

I’ve been experimenting a bit with fashion lately, so when the lovely team at The House of Foxy asked me if I would like to try one of their shawl collar blouses, I was very excited.

The blouse is 1930s inspired, and is designed to be tucked into things (skirts, shorts and trousers mainly, although given my clumsiness, I could very easily see myself tucking it into drawers, doors and gates too).

With the style in mind, I decided to pair it with my bottle green Katharine trousers from Vivien of Holloway (like I said, I’ve been experimenting with my fashion choices), which fit nicely, but needed some serious hemming up (for reference, I’m 5″1).

I’m wearing a size 18 blouse, which gives a nice, blousy look (without being too flowing) when tucked into the trousers, and it fits my arms well.

I’ve accessorised the outfit with a vintage bag from Jools the Vintage Bag Lady (it’s so unusual, I’ve never seen another one like it), and a vintage hat from Greyhound Vintage’s sales Instagram.

I set my hair using a heat set and a Lauren Bacall setting pattern; it gave a nice, soft curl, but dropped really quickly; I like the style, so I think I’ll use a wet set instead next time.

Overall, I really like the blouse; it gives a nice shape when tucked into things, without being too floaty (I’m not a fan of the ‘Michael Bolton on a beach in a music video’ look. Do I mean Michael Bolton? I have a vague memory of a man singing on a beach, wearing an open shirt that’s blowing in the wind. Wondering who this is will drive me mad). I like how it fits on my arms, but if you have smaller upper arms, it’ll be a bit roomier, adding to the blousy effect.

All that makes it easy to style with a range of outfits, and I’m looking forward to mixing up my eras; I think it would look rather lovely with a tartan circle skirt, or even under a pinafore.

The blouse is available in sizes 8-18, and is true to size. If you like a really flowing look (apologies, I meant no offence with my Michael Bolton comment), I’d recommend sizing up.

And finally…

Sometimes my husband likes to photobomb me. He thinks I don’t notice.