What to wear for a winter weekend: My pick of this season’s key pieces

While I love my work, it can’t compare to those moments spent with my family – creating leaf paintings after a morning at the park, walks together with the dogs, wrapping up and building snowman, making popcorn and watching a movie. Those simple moments at the weekend are the ones to cherish.

So, in honour of family life, I thought I’d bring you a fashion post that looks at what to wear at the weekend. Because, off-duty wear doesn’t have to be about jogging bottoms and trainers. You can have fun with the kids, and look good doing it. So, here are my 5 picks to wear for those little family moments this fall/winter season:

 

We’re creatures of habit in our family – and tend to go to our favourite friendly Italian every Sunday, where the staff greet us as if we’re members of their own family and direct us to our usual table. I like to look smarter than if we were staying at home for lunch, but not too dressy. So, this plum-hued lace peplum top from La Redoute is perfect. It adds pretty femininity, but you can dress it down with a pair of jeans and ankle boots. Lace is bang-on-trend, with just about every designer, from Erdem to Elie Saab, Valentino to Vuitton sending their models down the fall runways adorned in swathes of lace.

While we don’t get out just the two of us very often, I still love making the effort to look good when we get babysitters and head off for a rare dinner date. After all, I want him to remember why he fell for me in the first place. So, I’m going to treat myself to this sparkly dress from Dillards. It’s perfect for the festive season, but it’s very next season too as lots of sheen and shine was seen from all the big-name designers’ spring/summer 2014 shows. I’ll glam it up for night time with a chunky necklace and skyscraper heels. But you could dress if down with a knitted cardigan and ankle boots for day too.

This season’s must-have knitwear is an age-old classic that’s been brought up-to-date. One of Victoria Beckham’s favourite designers, Isabel Marant created a coral-coloured cable knit that’s been copied all over the high street. But, I think I prefer the simplicity of the cream versions like this Marc Jacobs one, which I’ll wear winter after winter. You can layer a gilet and scarf over the top and wear with skinny jeans and chunky boots.

I love getting back from a wintery day out with the kids, changing into comfy loungewear, getting the fire going and popping some corn before finding a movie we can all watch together. So, I’m going to follow in the cosy sock-clad footsteps of Rihanna, who recently posted an image of herself in a striped onesie, and go for the ultimate comfort of an all-in-one. Star prints are key this season, after Saint Laurent created a fluffy star cardigan with a whopping $1,299 price tag. So I’m going to opt for this star onesie from Macy’s.

While my kids don’t seem to feel the cold, ever, I just have to step outside the door on snowy days and immediately, I can’t feel my nose or toes. So, I’m going to be investing in some extra warm winter wear to make sure I can keep up with their sledging, snowballing and snowmen making. Leather has been big news for the past few seasons – for skirts, dresses, tops and embellishments. And this coat by Maje mixes leather sleeves with a cosy puffer styling. They’re all beautiful pieces that prove weekend wear can be practical, cosy AND stylish.