Through blogging, I have had the fantastic opportunity to work with many brands. Some of these I have been familiar with, others have been new to me. Lands’ End is one of the latter.

Before Saturday, I had heard of Lands’ End clothing, but it had never really registered on my radar as a brand I would be interested in. I assumed (not entirely wrongly!) that it was an outdoor specialist, and being one of the least outdoorsy people on the planet, it didn’t occur to me to check out their website. However,  after seeing the collections and finding out more about the brand, I am more than a little bit gutted that I’ve missed out on years of buying some fantastic and extremely high-quality clothing!

Myself and a bunch of other bloggers were invited to spend a few hours at the Lands’ End clothing HQ, in Oakham with Joe Blogs Network. Hannah from Budding Smiles and I had been chatting about how nice it was for a brand to hold an event outside of London. As it turns out, that’s a big part of what Lands’ End is all about – staying true to their nautical roots and basing themselves outside of the major cities.

Oakham isn’t too far from Birmingham – around an hour and a half in the car – and Harrison and I arrived just before 12 pm. We were greeted with a table laden with drinks and cakes. That’s always a good start!

Once the coach of bloggers from London arrived, we had lunch – they certainly fed us well – and mingled. We had the chance to look at the kids’ clothes. Harrison, being the clothes-obsessed four-year-old that he is was in his element!

After lunch, the kids headed off to a room full of fun and games – face painting, games, movies, crafts, not forgetting the all important balloons!

The Clothes

Whilst they were off having fun, we went off and found out a little bit more about the history of Lands’ End clothing. The brand was established in the USA in 1963, and came to the UK in 1991. It is deeply rooted in sailing and the nautical, after the founder’s love of these pursuits. I wasn’t far wrong in my thinking that they are specialists in outdoor wear – their strongest lines are outerwear, including the amazing Squall jacket, and knitwear. However, they are much, much more than that, selling a massive range of clothing, shoes, accessories, and even swimwear and homeware.

We were there to check out the new Autumn/Winter range, which falls into two collections: ‘Quality Time’ which is the more classic, everyday America styling, and ‘A Closer Look at the Land’, which takes it’s inspiration from nature, and is perhaps targeted at a slightly younger demographic.

We had the chance to go and look at some of the clothing in the range. I can put my hand on my heart and say that there was not a single item that I would not wear. I genuinely loved them all! Some have definitely gone on my wishlist for my 30th birthday next month!

As well as being excellent quality, they are all really stylish and practical. I particularly loved the denim dress, which would look great with some flat pumps in the spring, and with thick tights and boots in the winter. One of the Lands’ End girls was wearing it, and she looked fantastic.

Sizing

Being tall and not exactly a skinny minnie, sizing is always a concern for me, especially if I am buying online. Lands’ End has this covered. Their jeans, for example, come in petite, regular and plus size, and in leg lengths up to 34″., and the waists come in a variety of rises, so those of us who want to cover up a mum-tum don’t have to worry about jeans that sit on our hips! I really struggle to find a well-fitting pair of jeans, so rarely wear them – but I will be definitely checking out the ones from Lands’ End. Some of the tailored trousers can be bought un-hemmed, and they offer a free hemming service so they fit to your exact specifications. How amazing is that?

Kids’ Wear

We then took a quick look at the kids clothing. The girl’s clothes had a lovely range, and it as nice to see a change from all the pretty pink princess clothes. The boy’s clothes were fantastic – I know my three would adore the dinosaur ones!

We were then shown some of the features of the fantastic Squall coat. Harrison received one of these coats as a gift from Lands’ End, and it really does deserve a post of its own, along with my lush chenille throw and leather gloves. Watch this space for that!

A trip to Rutland Water

We rounded up the children and climbed on board a coach which took us to Rutland Water. As a company with a sailing and nautical background, it was the perfect finish to a lovely afternoon. The weather was absolutely beautiful, so we sat on the top deck of the Rutland Belle with a coffee, and a lovely little friendship (romance?) blossomed between Harrison and Princess from Zena’s Suitcase!

We had an absolutely wonderful afternoon. It was great to get to know the Lands’ End brand, and from the fantastic treatment we received, and touches such as the hemming service, you can see that Lands’ End really put the customer at the forefront of their business. I know one thing – I am dropping some VERY big hints for my birthday!

A HUGE thankyou to both Lands’ End and Joe Blogs Network for organising a wonderful day, and for our lovely gifts which I will be blogging about later this week.