Archive by Alexa #1 – The Ada Blazer

In the kind of honesty you only really get after having a few glasses of wine, I completely forgot about the launch of Marks & Spencer’s collaborative collection Archive by Alexa. It was only when I was waiting in line for a post-gym coffee scrolling through Twitter to see another blogger tweet “thank god I got what I wanted from Alexa’s M&S collection!” that that lemming mentality ensued, resulting in the biggest dash to work to throw my favourite pieces in the virtual basket and hit check-out before the site crashes or heavens forbid they sell out, a la other designer/celebrity high-street collaborations. But they didn’t sell out – not immediately, anyway. There was no frenzied sense of panic that you get with the completely overhyped collabs at H&M, surrounded by frozen fans (they do always launch in chilly November) who have queued all night all night alongside those types that buy 5 overpriced jackets simply sell on eBay to some poor fashion-lover who doesn’t live within a high-street locale. And there was no stopping of traffic along Oxford Street, unlike when Kate Moss did her latest drop for Topshop two years ago.  It was relaxed, with fanfare done in the most minimal, British of ways – but then how else would it be? It was so very M&S. Understated. Sure, I didn’t have to physically peel anyone off the last Ada blazer in my size after worming my way through a crowd of Alexa fans, but I did have to discuss my purchases with everyone in my office to make sure none of us ever show up wearing the same thing on the same day…

Keep your eye out next week to see what else I picked up from the collection!

I’m wearing: Archive by Alexa Ada Blazer, Topshop T-shirt, Topshop Jeans, Celine Shoes (c/o Bicester Village), VVA Dahlia tote (c/o)