Elvis might have gone for blue suede shoes but personally I prefer these blue velvet shoes from Jigsaw (£111)
Way before Instagram, way before I started blogging and way before social media even existed (actually even way before I’d even met my husband) I fell in love with Jigsaw.
Silk satin polo dress (with my name on it) by Jigsaw (£200)
I know the exact day that it happened. I was 22 and I had just started at Law School in Chester. There I met Jo, who was way cooler than me, with her second hand 501s, her Clinique lipstick and her Paul Mitchell hair products (don’t laugh, this was 1992 – I don’t think Mac even existed then!) Anyway she took me to Jigsaw for the very first time and there I fell in love with a skinny rib black turtleneck, which somehow my student grant managed to stretch to. I wore that turtleneck to death – in fact until the seams went white through washing. And ever since that first turtleneck in 1992, I’ve never been without one.
Look at those babies! Jigsaw sequin trousers (£120)
I used to keep myself from falling asleep in court by listing in my head all the Jigsaws that I knew in London. For one office Christmas party I bought a pair of slim fitting jeans (this was pre-skinny days), some velvet heels, a brown vest (OK so we’re talking early noughties here – brown was BIG!) and a sparkly shrug – all of which I still have. On the first Christmas Day that I was a Mum, I had a purple duffle style coat as a present. Let’s not forget the red wool suit, several pieces made out of “cotton metal”, wedding outfits, silky summer dresses, gorgeous shoes and of course their lovely lace camis.
Jigsaw faux fur coat £120
We have a fabulous Jigsaw in Birmingham, which has had the same management team since it opened way back in about 2003. I used to spend many a happy lunch hour browsing the rails with friends, whilst planning my escape from the law (not as in hiding from the police, as in my job!) Sadly it’s a place that I don’t frequent as much any more. The arrival of the Bullring with Zara, Mango, Cos & H&M, coupled with the fact that Jigsaw didn’t seem to deliver quite what I was after, meant that my head was turned. But I’m going to change that and today I started this process, by looking on line to see what caught my eye.
No there’s no rhyme or reason to these pieces – they are just things that I love, whether practical or not. Because sometimes a little looking and dreaming is good for the soul!
Jigsaw Velvet V-neck jumpsuit (£144)
Like Jigsaw, in recent years I haven’t seen as much of my lovely (and still as cool) friend Jo as I should have done. But in 2020 we plan to rectify that. Which of your very first loves (shops/friends included!) are you going to make plans to re-connect with next year?
