Mexico Memoirs

It's nearly been a whole year since me and my boyfriend went on our holiday of a lifetime to Cancun, Mexico, and to say a lot has changed since we came back, is quite the understatement. What's changed? It turns out that it wasn't just me and my boyfriend enjoying the all inclusive luxurious resort for adults only, we had a 6 week old baby in my tummy with us too! So upon our arrival home, it was a matter of 2 weeks before we found out and 2022 was a year of pregnancy related nausea and pelvic girdle pain - not quite the glamorous world of fashion was being indulged in for well over 9 months.

Now I have a little baby and a routine is starting to be established, enjoying fashion, outfits and shopping is on the cards for me once again, and it feels great! The thing that I enjoy most aside from now being Mum, the thing that makes me G, and the industry I can use as my creative outlet for something I love so much.

So, as we approach the 12 month mark of our incredible holiday, I want to take myself back to those beautiful 10 days of luxurious living, where we sunbathed by a swim up bar, ate our weight in gourmet cuisine and I stepped out of our hot tub featured room in of course, an overly planned outfit, considered down to every detail as always.

Preparing for this holiday, from the moment it was booked, of course meant that I had planned every outfit meticulously using my beloved digital wardrobe app, including travelling outfits, beach outfits and of course, evening outfits, all of which detailed every element from the accessory to the lipstick! So, without further a due, here is every outfit in the exact order they were worn, from days at the beach to the following evening, taken from my calendar within my digital wardrobe for accuracy! Along with the look from my app to see every element perfectly, a screenshot of the packing list is also below - a feature of my app that made planning for this holiday so much easier!

For my first long haul flight out of Europe, I opted for something very comfortable and casual for me. Simple grey joggers with a lilac hoodie and a new beach bag meant I lounged comfortably for all 11 hours watching House of Gucci! Great film, by the way.

The first morning we went for my Blue 'Dubai' bikini from Melissa Odabash - my favourite bikini of the holiday for the fit and fabric which is by far the softest I've ever felt for swimwear. I paired it with one of the oldest items I own, a gorgeous white, lace shacket from a brand I used to buy for that sadly no longer exists, Jacques Vert. Finished off with my Lily and Bean personalised China Grey tote bag, some pearl trimmed seagrass flip flops and a pair of sunglasses!

Our first evening - a classically feminine piece from House of CB teamed with pink accessories including the lipstick. The tie shoulders and thigh split were such gorgeous design details to the shape of this dress.

They've come a long way from the bright bandage dresses of 2013 when named Celeb Boutique, House of CB

The next beach day saw my red 'Maldives' chain trimmed bikini, again from Melissa Odabash, another favourite! This just had to be worn with an oversized straw hat and another personalised Lily and Bean tote in similar, neutral shades. A red, full length sarong also added some drama to this classic Gihan beach outfit!

I love these photos, but I have to be able to laugh at myself here - are you getting red dancing lady emoji, or, Angelina Jolie circa 2012, vibes here? I just can't decide!

The same evening saw a continuation of the red and the drama! A true Gihan shaped dress with the puff sleeve shoulder, fitted waist and skater skirt gave me some more of my favourite colour, while pairing it with layered gold necklaces gave some more panache! Another personalised Lily and Bean bag in straw and neutral tones finished off one of my favourite evening outfits, and, photos of myself!

Here we have some more of the incredible Melissa Odabash in my tiger printed 'Miami' bikini and the black 'Brianna' coverup, the shape of which was versatile enough to be worn un-done and loose, or, done up as a beach dress too! Some neutral flip flops and my Lily and Bean tote finished off the muted beachwear look.

The same evening saw me in a dress suitable for tea and scones in the English Countryside, so, perfect for a night out in Mexico, right?! I probably could've saved this outfit for a more fitting occasion, but I just couldn't wait to wear it so I made it work for a holiday evening!

A luxurious jacquard, floral printed fabric in a mid length, belted dress, featuring a tie up criss-cross back strap and in the most gorgeous summery green - Karen Millen excelled here.

I kept this simple with some small heeled, white strappy sandals, a neutral bag and simple, elegant jewellery!

This matching pair of studs and necklace are from Swarovski and some of the first pieces of jewellery bought for me by my boyfriend - they went perfectly with so many outfits on our holiday evenings and being special pieces made them even more fitting.

Next came a bright blue day, not just the skies and waters of Mexico, but with the outfit too! An embellished bikini from Moda Minx in this Royal Blue matched my new personalised Lily and Bean bag perfectly! Teamed with white sandals and a matching short sarong, and of course not forgetting the sunglasses and white sandals.

Moda Minx are pretty much a partner of Love Island with constantly being sported inside the infamous villa. I used to love this brand for my Ibiza girls holiday days in my mid-twenties, but not so much anymore, and I say that in the most respectful way possible. I can't help but feel they're not quite as suited to a more understated and chic taste in swimwear for a woman in her 30's and over. Having said that, I did buy this particular bikini (and another, upcoming) and matching sarong specifically for Mexico because I thought the colour was truly divine and the perfect match for my new Lily and Bean tote bag. The "bling" felt much more subtle on this style than most of their others too, so I was able to look past the garishness of some of their styles for admittedly, a lovely shape, fit and shade.

Later that evening I went for another blue outfit - a playsuit slightly softer in it's tone of Blue and with a white ground on the print. This is such a playful, chiffon fabric perfect for a holiday evening, and the fit was fabulous! The corset waist hugged me in while the loose sleeves and shorts kept it flattering. Teamed with white accessories and gold jewellery and of course, the red lip!

By day 5 we needed to even up the tan - out came my Melissa Odabash, Gold 'Malta' bikini, made for tanning! The shimmery fabric of this bikini glistening in the Mexico sun was honestly stunning! I just had to pair with a black full length sarong and neutral accessories for a truly sultry Black and Gold look.

My next outfit for dinner and drinks was another from House of CB - a yellow based, pink floral printed dress, with puff sleeves, cups on the breast and a thigh high split. Teamed with pink jewelled earrings, a small pink evening bag and white heels finished off the busy look! Pink and yellow is actually. colour combination I love! It's so bright, fun, unique and it works more than you'd ever expect, so I particularly loved this look!

Another favourite for the next beach day look - we went all out white with a white towelling bikini from Moda Minx and a white chiffon, full length sarong, worn with white pearl seagrass sandals and my Lily and Bean personalised China Grey tote - I felt so chic in this beach look!

This is the other Moda Minx bikini as mentioned - again, this one felt different to the standard overly bright and blingy Moda Minx signature style. In the same shape and style as my blue set, except this one in a towelling fabric, felt really chic and subtle. I was in need of a white bikini and the Moda Minx website had a generous offer on at the time, so this was bought along with the blue and I knew from the offset that this would be worn in an all-white, utterly chic look, and it was actually one of my favourites of the holiday, regardless of it being from a brand I don't particularly love like I once did. From this, I've learnt, be open minded to past brands - most still offer something you'd still wear so they're always worth a look, even if it's just to reminise about old Ibiza holidays with girlfriends in your early 20's!

I went for white again the same evening - an occasion dress from Coast in a luxurious crepe fabric, bow detailed back and feather trimmed hem. I just had to pair this with gold to continue with the chic. I loved this dress so much when I found it online, but mistakenly didn't act quick enough in buying it - when I did, only a size 14 was left, so needs must meant I bought a size 14 and had it taken in. Some say silly, I say, if you like something that much, make it work! It now fits beautifully and is more tailored to my figure than a size 10 would have been - and it feels completely worth it!

Controversially, the next beach day I opted for my high waisted, pink printed River Island bikini. I bought this over 12 months before Mexico was booked from ASOS in the sale - although the sale price was a lovely bonus, I was gutted that I'd missed it as a new arrival on my River Island app as potentially I'd missed more wears out of this gorgeous design! The print, the gold hardware trims and the shape - another River Island beauty! Did I care that the high waist may have hindered my tan? Absolutely not - I love a high waist bikini for poolside style.

Later that evening was another Karen Millen piece - a fun length, a Gihan shape and a perfect holiday shade. It came with a wide tan belt but I switched it for another Karen Millen black wide belt to tie in with my black accessories.

My boyfriend had treated me to the matching sandals and bag before the holiday - I'd had my eyes on them the year before from Dune but they were quite expensive for such seasonal pieces. Completely worth it for their design and quality, but I personally couldn't spend that much on accessories that I saw as such resort-wear limiting. Anyway, 12 months later I was lucky enough to find them on sale at House of Fraser of all places! As soon as Mexico was booked, I thought of them and was so happy to find them at such bargain prices!

I thought they'd go so perfect with this bright Orange and loved the whole feel of this natural look! Although a true "Gihan" shape, the "natural" feel of the accessories made kit a little different for me, not too much of course, but different enough for an occasional style switch up.

This beach look was made up of my Melissa Odabash Safari print "Miami" bikini again, this time with a black sarong and more natural looking accessories - chic and simple!

The evening outfit for my penultimate night in Mexico was one I bought after being truly influenced! Fashion bloggers and You-tubers Amelia Lianna and Sophie Louise had both posted photos in this dress and I just HAD to buy! They both obviously looked stunning in it and although priced higher than I'd usually pay for an item of clothing, I just could not resist!

I just thought it could be so versatile - worn as a holiday evening dress or a beachwear coverup for holidays and sunny city breaks or even summer weekends for brunch with your girlfriends! Paired with my Dune sandals and bag again and of course a white dress for Gihan means one thing for certain - a bright red lip!

The dress was from Majorelle, bought from Revolve. My first piece from the brand and although the dress is highly rated, I wouldn't buy again if I'm honest. Design wise it was completely worth it, but the fashion production coordinator in me knows that the fit and the fabric weren't worth the cost of the dress. The fit wasn't premium, and neither ws the fabric given how it rested after it's first wash. Having said that, I do love the style and design and felt amazing in it!

So as I'd mentioned that my light blue Melissa Odabash 'Dubai' bikini was my favourite of the holiday it should come as no surprise that I just had to style it up again for my last full day on a Mexican beach! Worn with a white sarong this time but the same China Grey tote bag and pearl trimmed sandals!

The last evening meant we started out slightly earlier to make the most of the all-inclusive cocktails - it also meant the outfit had to be super fun and extra floaty! Out came a sateen, pink, floral printed playsuit, with a bardot neckline, pink embellished hoops earrings, a pink bag and a matching pink lip! The hair was bigger than ever, the heels were high and the evening truly perfect!

For my last day on a Mexican beach, after having packed and waiting for our coach to the airport, I went for a beachwear look versatile enough to also wear home and quickly slip out of once on the plane.

My Melissa Odabash 'Keri' short, black beach dress was perfect for this! I wore my Gold 'Malta' bikini underneath and again with my neutral accessories. The perfect outfit for a last poolside cocktail, a hot coach journey to the airport and light enough to slip off to replace with my comfy joggers and hoodie for a long plane journey home to the English rain!

It really was the holiday of a lifetime - so beautiful it didn't look real! I'm talking screensaver worthy beaches, palm trees, blue seas, swim up pool bars and dinners to die for - cocktails that tasted as good as they looked, gorgeous gardens to walk through for breakfast and skies clearer than I'd ever seen before. The perfect runway for my outfit exhibitions and the perfect last holiday before parenthood.