I really enjoy reading other people’s fashion round up blogs as a source of inspiration for my own shopping and styling ideas. I don’t see myself as fashionable but I do like to look nice…not always easy currently when I’m wearing scrubs/full PPE for most of the day.

Apparently ‘How to Wear Scrubs Fashionably’ is a popular search term right now on google. It’s become a bit of a running joke between myself and my friends at work about what scrubs I’m wearing. I often don’t pick up scrubs until later in the day and have to make do with the random colours and sizes that we have left. The small trousers are super short, whilst the medium has a worryingly low crotch.

As I said in my IG post, I think the nurses and health professionals that look cute in their scrubs on IG that are all over my Explore page right now must buy their own scrubs. They certainly aren’t wearing NHS issue pairs!

Things I’ve learned to looking less awful in hospital issue scrubs:

• Try to find a matching pair, navy will get you the most compliments (and show the least sweat post PPE)
• Don’t wear your scrubs with smart shoes, you look ridiculous
• If the legs are too short, roll them up. If they’re too long…roll them up.
• More pockets = more compliments
• Comfy all black trainers are king

There are some amazing initiatives in the UK right now to help sew scrubs for the NHS which are gratefully received, thank you to everyone who is involved. In the US, brands such as Wear Figs are donating thousands of pairs of scrubs to frontline workers. Whilst I realise I’m making fun of the scrub situation at our hospital, I am truly grateful for all the communities and brands supporting us.

Currently I wear sports kit for my drive to work. I change into my work outfit, then if I’m working on wards such as ITU, I change into a pair of scrubs before donning my PPE. I tend to wear my scrubs for the rest of the day (they may not be flattering but they are seriously comfy!). Then change back into my sports kit to go home. The idea is to reduce contamination by not wearing the clothes I wear at work, at home. The added bonus is that I’m in my workout gear when I get home so no excuse not to jump on the bike!

Stitch Fix May 2020 Box Review

I’ve been getting StitchFix for a little while without a huge amount of success in the past. You can read about my first experience of StitchFix here.  This month I changed stylists for the second time, made a Pinterest Board and shared the exact sort of pieces/looks I was looking for and had far more success with this month’s Stitchfix picks!

Stitch Fix is an affordable personal styling service. For a £10 fee (redeemable against anything you keep), you are sent a box of clothes (5 items) to try on, keep or return. You fill in an online profile to help your stylist understand your personal style. You can leave comments, give example looks a thumbs up/thumbs down. And generally give a feel for what you’re looking for.

There’s no obligation to keep anything, and you get 20% off if you keep the whole box. Plus my favourite part is there is no subscription required. You can try it once, monthly, quarterly or as often/little as you want.

This link gets you £15 off your first box (full disclosure it also gives me £15 off). 

I wanted some pieces I could wear for work and at the weekends. Including skirts and trousers that aren’t what I usually wear. The pink top below is from Hobbs and is right up my street in terms of being sleeveless but still work appropriate and I love the colour. The trousers are paper-bag style which I featured on my Pinterest, and although I like the idea, these sadly weren’t quite right. They are a little big and too long. But I’m definitely going to look for another pair of Navy trousers in this style.

I also decided to keep the Whistles skirt in the photo below. I think it would look cute with sandals and a tank for weekends. Heels and statement jewelry for an evening, or with a shirt or t-shirt for work.

I send back two tops that unfortunately weren’t right.

I really liked the navy top below but it felt a little wintery and perhaps not right for spring/summer. It comes in a number of colours on the Hobbs website. So maybe I’ll try it in a brighter colour as it looks cute with skirts, jeans and wide-leg trousers.

Another top that although more summery didn’t feel all that flattering was this white top (couldn’t find the exact shirt but this is similar), and for £59 I didn’t think it was worth it. I increased my budget on StitchFix for this month and think it worked in terms of getting less artificial fabrics. Although this top isn’t quite right, I had a look on the Indi & Cold website and found some really cute tops, dresses and skirts. I love polka dots and this shirt is right up my street.

I’ve actually just ordered another ‘fix’ for this month to capitalise on this new stylist who seems to get what I’m looking for. And am going to add more to my Pinterest Board before then. With it looking like shops will stay closed for the foreseeable future, if you’re thinking about StitchFix for a bit of a wardrobe update, this is the perfect time. They’re offering £15 off your first box here for the next 2 days.