Borrowed from the boys




Hello and welcome to our monthly gathering, the Style Not Age challenge, where my fashionista friends and I choose a theme to play dress-up. This month it was Emma's turn and she's come up with Borrowed from the boys which has resulted in some fabulous outfits.




Jacqui did actually borrow her son's tee shirt for this challenge. The geometric tee adds pizzazz to the classic combo of black trousers and jacket, all finished off with pink trainers for that ying yang touch. See more on her blog Mummabstylish.




Gail has countered the macho vibe of the theme by playing pretty in pastels. Her penchant for lilac works well here - I just love those lilac brogues! Catch up with her story on Is this Mutton




Emma's bee print jacket is from TK Maxx, a men's jacket it turned out to be too! She's embraced the theme to the hilt with her trilby and white shirt while maintaining her feminine wiles. Catch her back story on the Style Splash blog.




Hilda is another one to raid her family's wardrobe. She's sporting her husband's hat which ties in beautifully with these amazing Paul Costello Oxford bags. Read more about this summery outfit on her post at Over The Hilda.




I found this midnight blue suit in a charity shop in Harrogate a few years ago and decided to ignore the fact that it was on the men's vintage rail. I wear it a couple of times a year and each time I like to style it up differently. Yes, the shoulder pads are huge, but it was surely an 80's stunner at the time.




This time I've opted for a mixture of pale pink and rose gold to compliment the dark suit, rolling up the jacket sleeves to reveal this blush tone which is almost identical to the blouse. 




I've had this sweet pink blouse for years and yet am guilty of hardly ever wearing it. It was a purchase from Tu Clothing at Sainsbury's and a bargain piece at only £5. The pleated sleeves are so pretty and beg to be the stars of the show.




This is the first time I've worn flats with the suit. I usually wear heels to add a touch of glamour to such a masculine shape, but I felt that the rose gold trainers were feminine enough to work.  I've had these for three years now and still love them. (I bought them from TK Maxx for my video interview for the JD Williams campaign - happy days!)




The rose gold belt was another charity shop scoop. The heart pendant was from a little boutique in Truro  and the rings are both pre-loved.




These rose gold mirror sunglasses add the finishing touch to my own Borrowed from the boys look. It was fun to put this together and will certainly be an outfit that I'll wear to work this year. Smart yet feminine and unique too - what's not to love?

I do hope you've enjoyed this month's Style Not Age challenge. Please do pop over to see more from my blogging friends if you get a moment. Thanks for dropping by again.


Have a super week!

 
Share:

Do emerald green and fuchsia go together?




Happy Friday to you all!




Hurrah for Friday and hurrah for the joyful combination of emerald green and fuchsia! It's not for everyone this colour combo, but I'm delighted with today's look. I've worn the jacket and trousers before with black as the complimentary hue - see here




It's not just the wonderful colours that make me smile though. I'm so happy with this outfit because it represents my take on fashion perfectly. I've mixed vintage with pre-loved and high street finds to create a look that is totally unique to me. We're all individuals and I love to see a woman dressed with her own sense of style. For me it's not so much wanting to be noticed, more that I like to challenge myself to wear the same clothes differently each time. I may wear the same dress four times in a month, but each time the jewellery and shoes will be different. God forbid that I find my look boring!




The outfit details are - jacket is second hand, by Autonomy; trousers are from TK Maxx; the vintage blouse is by Shubette Separates, boots are from H&M.




This look is all about fun and oh, how good it makes me feel! The frothy, filly blouse screams glamour and even daytime dressing can be glamorous in my book. Another bookends look is a winner too. 




I paid £15 for these leather joggers and for the majority the price might reflect the fact that no-one surely would want green leather joggers. But hey, I do! I love the funky nature of leather plus joggers and on top of that they're really comfy.






It's great to bring out my Vivienne Westwood orb pendant again and doesn't it go well with this? My rings are pre-loved, charity shop buys. 




Another pair of Quay Australia sunglasses from my stash from this wonderful brand. The sleek black framed mirrored lens glasses top off the look perfectly.




Long live these pretty pink sock boots from H&M!




This weekend I hope to start, if not complete, my wardrobe changeover. It's with a funny mix of dread and delight that I approach this all-weekend task. I'm so ready to pack away furs and velvets and knee high boots, swapping them for lightweight fabrics like cotton lawn, chiffon and summer sandals. The weather is mocking me however, as we have a showery forecast for the next couple of days making me doubt if it's too soon for this. But it's the deed that must be done! We've been having some lovely sunny days lately causing me to struggle to find the right clothes, especially now that I'm back at work. Wish me luck with this!

                                                                       Anna x

Share:

Back to work!




Hello again!




How are you? I hope you're well. So here's me in my back-to-work outfit yesterday. And straight away, I have to tell you that all's well and the transition has been made from housewife to Gallery Manager. It was seamless, much to my relief, as the very act of dressing the part and sitting at my desk and trawling my way through emails dragged me back into the role. All my fears of suddenly finding that I hate my job evaporated as I felt my way through the many aspects of the job, both physical and mental. Phew!




Blue and red isn't a combination I often do, but yesterday this was what evolved on rediscovering these stretch woollen trousers from Tu at Sainsbury's. Sasha had given these to me a couple of years ago and yet, surprise surprise, I'd never worn them. My 12 month shopping ban may be over, but here I am still finding gems like these. Cropped and with pockets the trousers drape nicely and were uber comfy throughout the day. I went for an hour's walk with my dear friend Fiona during lunchtime and only had to change my footwear and was good to go.




The sweater was a TK Maxx purchase. It's a man made fibre that's cosy as well as being a flattering fit. I did pop a thin thermal top underneath as I knew the Gallery would feel chilly after weeks of no heating on. My blogging friend Sheila may well call this a bookends look as the top and boots echo similar prints. Not too samey-samey but delightfully playful I thought.




So here's another new-to-me piece though! This fabulous red leather mini backpack was charity shop purchase way back in 2019. I paid £20 for it and thought it well worth the money. The leather is sturdy and has that reassuring weightiness that says quality. A clasp front and zips make it feel nice and secure too. My rings are both old as well as being pre-loved.




I was really pleased with this back to work outfit. The right clothes really can put you in the right frame of mind, don't you think?




My reptile print cuban heel boots were from Office many moons ago. It was a bit of a shock though to be wearing something other than slippers all day! After my walk I kept on my simple black trainers to ease the strain.




These funky shades are by my go sunglasses supplier - Quay Australia. I'd forgotten about them and found them stashed away in the back of the drawer.




It's a relief to have gotten that first day out of the way. As so often happens, the thought of something is usually worse than the reality of it. I love my job I'm pleased to say and can't wait to open the doors to the public again on the 12th of April.




And here's our Red Cross container almost full after Saturday's collection. Sasha (left) and Hannah were just finishing off the last bit of packing when I arrived. The project was a resounding success and almost an exact repeat of last year when we collected enough to fill a whole container then too. Social distancing was an extra challenge this year, but one that all the helpers managed beautifully.




Last of all, here's my second chair resplendent in it's new covers. My three piece suite has new covers throughout, but I ran out of time and didn't manage to replace the base covers. I'm okay with that and know that next winter I can settle down to that more complicated challenge. Over this forthcoming weekend I'll pack up all of the fabrics and stash them away. I also plan to bring out my spring and summer clothes which is both exciting and daunting!

I'll be back again on Friday and do hope you'll join me again.


Have a super week!

Anna x

Share:

Wide legged jeans for the weekend




Hurrah for the weekend!



This weekend I'll be helping out with the Red Cross collection that's taking place on the island. We have a container in place at our Community Centre and a few of us will be taking it in turn manning this to receive boxes and pack them up ready for shipping to the mainland. This little event took place last year in January and I recall being in the Truro Red Cross shop in February and was tickled to see some of my own donations on display. Well done to Ruth and Sasha for making the arrangements.




Today's outfit brings together a vintage Country Casuals cardigan in this lovely colourful argyle pattern with these new to me wide leg jeans. I bought the Diesel jeans over a year ago and it's taken me all this time to finally take the hems up. A little sewing success in the middle of my upholstery project! 




I added this multi print Boohoo shirt (pre-loved) to further enliven this weekend look. 




The bold blue rings are both pre-loved too. The pop of yellow by way of my Quay Australia sunglasses adds another zing to the look.






Another vintage piece is this gold buckled navy leather belt. I loved the style advice (maybe) from Trinny and Susanna many years ago who advised that if an item has belt loops then you ought to wear a belt to finish the look off. I'm more often a rule breaker, but this appealed to my tidy nature. 




My white leather boots are by Besson from TK Maxx. Steve bought these online for my Christmas under my guidance which was a winning move. I'm planning a trip to the mainland in May for some health appointments and wonder how I'll feel to be out for the first time since the virus took hold a year ago. Will I feel safe enough to go shopping in my usual haunts such as TK Maxx and my favourite charity shops? Will I have had my second dose of the vaccine by then? I suppose I'll have to weigh it up at the time.

Monday is my first day back at work so I'll let you know how that goes in my next post. In the meantime, enjoy your weekend!

                                                                                              Anna x



Share:

Tickled pink




Hello lovelies!




As you can see, normal service has been resumed today. My all black look was a token gesture from me as to what is a very common colour choice for so many women. I remember when I was in Sicily five years ago the streets were full of women wearing black from head to toe, a look that for me seemed very drab and depressing. Their reaction to me was almost a mirror to my confusion. We viewed each other as some strange other worldly vision. 




Today's outfit ties in with an Instagram prompt from my blogging friend Jacqui of Mummabstylish who has been posting #tickledpink over the past week. She's had a brilliant response and has extended this for another week. See some of the outfits here




The pink top was a Zara purchase from a few years ago, but today is its debut on the blog. I bought an identical orange one at the same time, but it too hasn't been aired yet. They are a very fine cotton yarn more suited to the summer, but ideal for this warm spring day.




The oyster satin trousers were gifted to me by my daughter (ages ago). I must admit that I've been a bit biased against them due to the lack of punch colour-wise, but today have discovered the joy of them when paired with this double dose of fuchsia. This is another test drive of an outfit for work next month. I'm quite excited to wear it.




Taking the lead from the oyster shade I've chosen rose gold rings (pre-loved) as my accessories.




I love the contemporary shape of these Quay Australia sunglasses. 




The final flourish has to be my fabulous bubblegum pink sock boots from H&M. 




I hope my tickled pink offering has brought a smile to your face or better still, acts as inspiration for a pink day for you sometime in the future. 


Take care everyone!

Anna x

Share:
Created by bo design