Rose-Tinted Retro: Chunky Boots and Pretty Frock Combo

I love a chunky-boots-pretty-dress-combo. I’m certain it’s because it takes me back 25 years to when life was at its most exciting and I had the world at my feet. A time when I had no mortgage and no children. A time when Cigarettes and Alcohol fuelled the nation’s psyche and all I had to think about was student-life and alcopops. I was carefree and fully immersed in university life, loving every moment.

I had a pair of green Doc Martens that I wore with everything from tie-dye dungarees to floaty tea dresses. My mum hated them. I adored them. A generation later and Poppy, also at university, has asked for a pair of Docs for Christmas. I’m proud of her.

This outfit therefore is a throwback to the mid nineties when my Docs and my legs were in their heyday. This is a little rose-tinted retro.

Chunky boots with a pretty dress

This pair of chunky boots is the Elena from Lotus. They are made all the more fabulous by the black patent, the stud embellishment and my favourite animal print, grey leopard. As well as the laces, they have a side zip for easy donning and doffing- they’re a practical chunky boot.

In common with every pair of Lotus shoes I own, (and I do own quite a few), they’re supremely comfortable. The same could not be said for my green Docs which gave me horrific blisters for the first few weeks of wear. My brother and I in our infinite teenage wisdom wrapped them in a tea towel and bashed them with a mallet, to try and tenderise the leather. I don’t know if it worked, but they did end up feeling soft and easy on the ankle.

My teal tulle tiered dress is as beautiful as it is alliterative. It’s another gift from Coast and it also comes in forest green, berry red, navy, blush and silver. (As I write, it is available in most sizes and is half price).

Teal belongs in my colour comfort zone; it’s a colour that always gets my attention and one that works with a multitude of other colours particularly oranges, coppers and bronzes.

I don’t know if I’ll actually go out in this outfit, but it makes me happy, so that’s justification enough to change my mind. The dress is on my shortlist for my Christmas Day outfit though, perhaps with sparkly shoes instead of the chunky boots. I’ll see.