Bold prints and bright colours; two common features of my wardrobe and subsequently the majority of my outfits. It’s very rare for me to choose an outfit with no colour at all, but I felt that the simple cut of this Lipsy dress along with the black bead embellishment was the perfect base for a purely monochrome ensemble.

During our adventures in London I wanted an elegant outfit for evening drinks and this proved to be the ideal choice. I’m a big fan of shift style dresses, not only are they flattering, but they’re also comfortable - an important consideration when you’re trekking round London on the tube. I’m also pleased to report that the beading along the front of the dress remained perfectly intact, which has not always been the case with some of my dresses in the past.

Lipsy is not a brand that I've bought much from in the past, but since discovering this dress that all might be about to change! For this evening look I teamed the Lipsy dress (similar styles here and here) with a black chiffon and sequin cover-up from Topshop, my grey Mango shoulder bag and simply black pumps from Dorothy Perkins.

Ever since I saw Briony (A Girl, A Style) wearing hers, I've wanted to own a Whistles leather jacket. At £295 they’re certainly not cheap, but they are an investment piece and the quality is second to none. I finally got my hands on one when we visited Chester a few weeks ago. We stumbled across the store by chance and since it had only been open a month, I decided it must be a sign.

I’d never really considered wearing a biker jacket before. Not being a cool, ‘I spend my weekends cruising on my Harley’ type of girl, I just didn't think they’d suit me, so I never thought to try one on. But seeing how Briony had paired hers – with a cute white dress and pearls, made me realise that I didn't have to resemble a member of Hells Angels to don a biker jacket. 

I've subsequently found teaming it with dresses and skirts to be my style of choice – it adds edge to a girly ensemble without making me look like I'm auditioning for the role of Sandy in a remake of Grease. And as soon as the cooler months arrive I'm looking forward to wearing it with my long faux fur gilet from Topshop, which I think will look equally great with both jeans and dresses.

For anyone struggling to justify purchasing a leather jacket, allow me to introduce you to the marvellous cost-per-wear gauge (which is how I justified this extravagant purchase to my husband). A quality leather jacket will last for years, meaning that your initial upfront splurge will, over time, become entirely inconsequential... Finally a maths lesson I both understand and appreciate!

I’m a fad addict. No, I’m not getting confused with the vernacular alternative for cigarette; I simply mean I go through shopping fads – like many women I imagine. Earlier in the year it was Zara, prior to that it was all about Topshop and during the sales, I’m obsessed with French Connection.

My current fad is slightly different; gone is the needy desire to own an item from every different trend regardless of fit or style, instead I choose pieces that I think suit me and my body shape. This recent epiphany has led me back to one of my childhood shopping haunts, namely, Marks & Spencer.

Never cast aside totally from my shopping sphere (every woman knows to get her knickers from M&S), but never visited regularly, Marks & Spencer seemed forgotten about by my generation of 20-something wannabe yuppies. But how the tides have changed, I no longer deem a shopping trip complete without a trip to my local M&S store. Why all this new found enthusiasm for a store that I once coined ‘Mums & Spencer’ – I simply can’t get enough of their Limited Collection.

Over the past three months I’ve bought no less than four dresses from their Limited Collection – all flattering and all true-to-size. It’s an obsession that has clearly been noted by my friends and family if the amount of M&S gift cards I received on my birthday is anything to go by. And it’s not showing any sign of waning – I’ve already been on their website twice today to check out the latest arrivals.

I don’t wish to bore you to death with an essay discussing my new Limited dress collection, so in true fashion-blogger style here are some outfit photos instead.

• Dress number one was a birthday present from my wonderful parents, the cardigan is also from M&S (albeit not from their Limited Collection) and the wedge boots are last season from Oasis.
• The second dress was actually my second ‘Limited’ purchase and I’ve paired that with some black suede boots, my favourite necklace and a decorative jacket from Sainsburys.
• Dress number three is the most recent addition to my collection and is a replica of the previous black dress in orange. The top I’m wearing over it is from Zara and my necklace is from designer Anton Heunis.
• Last in this line up, but actually bought before any of the others is my favourite printed garb. The cardigan and boots are the same as before and the necklace is from Mimco.

In addition to the dresses above I'm also the proud owner of a pair of ‘twinkle’ jeans. I wanted to keep this post focused on the dresses, but I have filmed a video showcasing all the items I own from the Limited Collection, so keep a look out for that over the next couple of days.

I think this particular fad might be here to stay.

This is my video diary from my recent trip to London. I've included a review of the apartment that we stayed in as well as several clips from the weekend. Not to mention showcasing my outfit choices and my attempts to get everything to fit in my suitcase!

The reason for the trip was for my Mum's 60th birthday. I'd organised it as a surprise with my Dad and brother and she was delighted when she found out.

We spent Thurs evening enjoying our apartment and my brother and his wife cooked us dinner. Friday morning was spent wandering around Westminster Abbey, which was amazing, followed by a pub lunch and a stroll along the river. On Saturday we headed to the London Eye at lunchtime and then in the evening we had a meal at Rocket in Mayfair, before heading to the Palladium to see The Wizard of Oz.

It was a great weekend, I know my Mum had a great time and we did too!

This is a combined haul video featuring my purchases from the Clothes Show Live and a few items from Zara and Topshop that I've bought over the past few weeks. And despite trying not to ramble on for too long, I failed miserably, so apologies for the length of this video!

Clothes Show Live Purchases:
Me Me Me Cosmetics - http://bit.ly/tv1dXT
Barry M Instant Nail Effects - http://bit.ly/vRCL1J
Barry M Croc Nail Effects - http://bit.ly/vzgocQ
Elemis Skin Brilliance - http://bit.ly/vXt9ss
The Sultanesque doesn't appear to be live yet.

Zara Purchases:
City Bag - http://bit.ly/vLO6Tj
Shiny Knitted Top - http://bit.ly/tZUgTF
Chunky Knit Dress - http://bit.ly/vgC0R2

Topshop Faux Fur Gilet - http://bit.ly/usTeD6

My fashion bloggers wish list post - http://bit.ly/ugoEmA
My New Favourite Thing - http://www.newfavouritething.com
The Online Stylist - http://www.theonlinestylist.co.uk