You got my memo then?


This is Rachel, Bookings Manager for the island and friend of mine. She turned up in the gallery the other day and on seeing her I quipped "You got my memo then, about stripes as dress code?". This started a little flurry of shots of some of the other members of the office team who do in fact have stripes as their uniform.


Rachel joined by Carina ...


Carina and Nikki ...


Rachel with Ruth, the Office Manager.

Those of you who are regular visitors to the island may well recognise these ladies who help organise various elements of your stay, ensuring that everything goes smoothly.


Sasha and I got together after work to add a few more shots for the post. Polly had been poorly for a few days (she's much better now, thanks) and my draft box was getting a bit empty in her absence.


These are the striped culottes I mentioned recently; they're from Primark and I'm afraid I can't remember how much they cost. The striped body was from TK Maxx and I decided to go for stripes overload with the these mules, again from TK Maxx.


Standing, serving at the desk all day long while Polly was away called for some clever/sensible footwear that wouldn't cripple me by lunchtime, and these mules were ideal as they're a lovely broad fit. I have a grey pair and pink ones too which are also equally comfy.


The trousers are a synthetic material, a decent medium weight fabric that reminds me slightly of the crimpelene trousers my mother used to wear back in the day. They're pull on, with an elasticated waist and for that reason I decided to go up a size so that they'd give a sleeker, smoother fit. It's taken me a long time to get over being a slave to sizing; the buzz of fitting into a size 8 means nothing if it pinches and shows every seam of underwear. I know I can vary from anything between an 8 to a 14 depending on the brand or shop, so I take a few sizes into the changing room nowadays, ignoring the size label and relying on the fit as to what looks best. 


As a safety measure, I added this diamante Scottie dog brooch (preloved) to the stripey body as the crossover front isn't stitched together. The black and silver necklace is by Melissa James, the frilled silver and gold ring is by Emily Nixon and the other ring is preloved.


I feel I just have to mention the line of washing hanging in the garden behind me. This is mine and a source of comment from many visitors who see it as documenting how my family as it has grown; the baby grows and terry nappies heralding the birth of my first then second child and thereafter the size of clothes indicated how they were thriving through their school years into teens and beyond. And now that Sasha is home again we just seem to have a constant array of bright and colourful items to entertain the masses. Hanging my washing out is a pretty sociable affair, causing strangers to stop and comment on the weather and if things will dry today, or to say they like that my clothes prop is an oar, or the most frequent thing they say is that I have the best view ever from my washing line. I have a friend who is rather coy about hanging her undies on the line, but not me - I'm pretty sure we all wear these so what's the problem?


I had some technical problems on the blog recently which resulted in lots of comments sitting unpublished for a few days. Hopefully I've remedied this now and can look forward to continuing my dialogue with you once again. I'm heading off to the mainland this week for yet more dental treatment, so do give me a day's grace as I may be a bit worse for wear - I think I'm having an extraction which does fill my heart with dread. Once again, wish me luck!

In view of this, I'm scheduling a post for Wednesday in my absence which is a rather special feature about more friends, but this time swimming buddies. Marilee, I think you will love this one and for all of you, it's another opportunity to see the extensive and rather beautiful swimming pool I have access to every day thanks to Mother Nature. 

Anna x

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19 comments

  1. Love the memo angle! So many of us gravitate to stripes for our day-to-day so this post is so true to life. But your outfit is anything and everything but day-to-day, it's stunningly put together by a stunning lady!
    So glad to hear the beautiful Polly is on the mend. And I do so wish you luck ahead of your dentist visit. No matter what the treatment, it will be over quicker than you anticipated.
    Hugs, my pretty, x.

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    1. Stripes are not a very common choice for me, but that means I view them as a healthy challenge. It's good to see if I can turn the ordinary into quirky and this was fun. I've got some downtime with a friend in London for a couple of days before the dentist which helps soften the blow.
      Have a lovely week!
      Anna x

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  2. Nice outfite and the flowers are looking amazing too. Hope it goes ok at the dentist.I got the memo too! I am wearing Boden cropped cotton trousers light grey small stripe on white. So comfy on a hot day. Its paired with a white top. I went to a print making workshop this afternoon and wished I hadn't worn the white top when I saw the black oil based printing ink. Thankfuuly the outfit is unscathed!
    Tessa xx

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    1. Hahaha I love your optimism at wearing a white top to your workshop - you were lucky to get away with that! Stripes are everywhere, especially at this time of year, but I'm not a natural at styling them. Having said that, these culottes are fun as well as stylish.

      Enjoy your week!
      Anna x

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    2. Haha! I was intending to do silversmithing or sewing but as I hadn't booked in advance there was only one space left for dry point print making so I dived in before thinking about the top.
      xx

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  3. A village of striped delights! It's slways fun when friends wear similar prints or styles and even more fun when we get to delight in the coincidence.
    I really like your combination here Anna. The scale of the stripes offers a new perspective on print mixing. Thanks for remembering my request for a swimming update Anna! I'll look forward to seeing that pool too! :-):-)

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    1. It was lovely how this feature developed organically. My stripes did end up as print play, so thank you for seeing that. The swimming post has some lovely shots and is a bit different to my usual pieces - I do hope you enjoy it.

      Have a super week!
      Anna x

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  4. I didn't get the memo, as I'm not wearing stripes today. But I did go and have a look in the shops in search of a stripey top. Does that count too? Haven't found anything I liked, I must add. I'm loving the Primark culottes, and I love how you combined them with more stripes. Those mules are divine! I have a similar diamanté Scottie! Good luck at the dentist! xxx

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    1. I've yet to succumb to the standard stripey top - I see so many Breton tops here with all the yachties I suppose. Good luck with your search though! Think of me on Friday when I'll be in the dentists chair.

      Have a good week!
      Anna x

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  5. Fun! I love seeing your laundry hanging! What a slice of your life we're seeing and getting to know the other islanders is surprisingly fun. I scrolled through the pictures before reading and thought the stripes were planned on ahead of time and didn't realize it happened so serendipitously! I love seeing your combinations agains the backdrop of your island. Can't wait to see the next post about swimming!

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    1. Yes, wasn't it funny how this feature just unfolded like this? Island life is my favourite topic and so easy for me to write about. I'm so pleased that you find it interesting too!
      The swimming post is all about the visuals, but hey that's probably no surprise!

      Enjoy your week!
      Anna x

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  6. Good luck at the dentist today, Anna! I'm thinking of you!

    Ha ha, I've had days like that in my office, when everyone shows up in the same colour or pattern (usually stripes or plaid). Good for you for letting go of sizing on new clothes - it's often plain wrong or at least misleading. No wonder so many women have issues with their shapes!

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    1. As I write this, the horrors of the dentist's chair are fading fast, thank you.
      Polly and I sometimes turn up in similar outfits, but this was a bit of fun to include some of the office staff as well.
      And yes, the sizing thing can be so depressing if you set too much store by it. I feel much better now that I'm over that.

      Enjoy your week!
      Anna x

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  7. mwhaha, what an adorable bunch of ladies dressed up in stripes!, you totally rock!
    I do love stripes and I think that your friends look particularly lovely in them!
    And I also love your culottes and mules, so cool, and the cute brooch!
    (A line of washing hanging outside is a fabulous theme to chat!, that's Real Life and I love it)
    besos

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    1. Thanks so much Monica! It was indeed a great bit of fun to include all of these lovely ladies on the blog today.
      Anna's Island Style includes every element of my lifestyle here, so I knew that at some stage I would have to discuss my very high profile washing line - it really deserves its own blog I think! Hahaha.

      Have a super week!
      Anna x

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  8. I love how you did stripe overload..you know I am a stripeaholic too. Good luck with the extraction. Ouch.

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    1. Thanks Hilda, I survived that one. I'm in the middle of the treatment plan now so I just have to keep going!

      Anna x

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  9. I love the stripe overload Anna, you do it so well. I saw the mules in TK Maxx and pondered buying them - I didn't!! Thanks for sharing. Jacqui Mummabstylish

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    1. Thanks Jacqui. It was a fun feature with all the ladies contributing to the stripes overload.

      Anna x

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