Shopping my closet for a summer's day

Hello again, and how are you? The featured outfit was my Friday work wear, nothing new, but still bright and breezy for the end of the week. I've shopped my closet and come up with a combination that's new which is always a joy to me.

I bought this jacket in TK Maxx in Manchester way back when I was there doing my modelling stint with JD Williams. The size of that store was the biggest TK Maxx I've ever visited and what a great session I had there. The brand is Anja Rock; I do love the retro style, but it's not always easy to incorporate into every outfit. That said, it works perfectly with the orange dungarees.

These fab linen dungarees are by Joss and I fancy I bought them in a boutique in Cornwall, Number 36, a regular haunt of mine when I'm in Penzance.

 

I've paired them with my well worn cream lace bodysuit; I really like the contrast of the slim fitting top and the oversized dungarees. The orange really pops against the cream too.

Nothing new with my accessories either, but that doesn't mean boring does it? The orange perspex necklace was another boutique buy from Penzance a long, long time ago. The colour is a great match though, ideal for this outfit. My sunglasses are by Radley London from a few years ago.

You'll have no doubt seen these rings many time before too, but I won't bother to apologise as that's fine isn't it?

And hurrah for a pair of comfortable but cute summer sandals! These are by Rocket Dog, purchased in TK Maxx a couple of years ago - I bought them in another colourway too as they're so pretty.

Anyway, I've not much more to report this time. Work is ramping up as the holiday season builds which means more customers, more sales and therefore more packing and despatching of artworks. I'm not complaining as this is what we plan all winter for and yet suddenly we're in the thick of it. Rachel, my part-time assistant, is about to return to full-time status tomorrow and it doesn't come a moment too soon. I have lots of admin waiting to be done and it'll be great to do some catching up.

Weatherwise it's a real mixed bag, with very little sunshine and far too much fog this week which has caused a lot of travel disruptions. Thank goodness that I'm staying put for the next couple of months!

                                                                                       Anna x

A complete riot of colours

This was one of my most colourful outfits of the week, worn on Friday as it was such a beautiful, bright and sunny day. I never choose my outfits in advance, waiting instead to see what the day brings, what kind of weather is on the horizon and therefore how I ought to dress to be my most comfortable. I love to mix things up with my outfits, rarely choosing to wear exactly the same thing time after time. 

My vintage Jaeger button front skirt was a wonderful charity shop find from years ago. Best of all it has pockets too! I love the wild pattern of it and was pleased to see the marriage of colours between it and the patterned bodysuit which was languishing in my closet. Pairing these two together tricked many people into thinking this was a dress. 

The red flouffy petticoat came into its own here underneath the skirt, adding volume and of course, a great dash of fun. I chose the red stretch belt to deliberately tie in with the underskirt as the eye travels from one to the other seeing this clever connection.

I didn't manage to get a good shot of my sandals - this was a last minute shoot before I was due at work. The beaded sandals were from TK Maxx and are sparkly and multicoloured which was perfect for the look of the day.

My green jeans jacket is very old, by Benetton and yet is still a favourite of mine. It also has pockets plus stretch therefore is a winner. My necklace is old, not sure from where, and my sunglasses were from Oliver Bonas at Paddington Station last year.

And this pretty much sums up how the outfit made me feel all day long! Dressing for fun, to please myself, to add colour to the everyday - these are all my motivators. How lucky am I that I have the opportunity within my working life to express myself this way and be accepted - this is my norm and thank goodness for that!

                                                                                    Anna x

11 years ago it all started (part 2)

Welcome back to the second installment of my 11 years of blogging (it's a biggie, so bring a cuppa and grab a chair). This was the morning of the 24th of January 2021 taken as I emerged from an early morning swim at Cook's Porth. A morning swim is very life affirming for me, the perfect way to greet another year as I became 63. As always I'll be the first to jump in pointing out my flaws - that long horsey nose, less-than-perfect teeth and so on. However, I do attribute my seemingly fresh looking skin to the restorative powers of an icy dip. 

At the time we were in our third lockdown for Covid19 which meant many of us were furloughed, staying at home to keep the country well. The modern day army that was the NHS were battling away to keep us all safe and alive. This seems like a distant dream now, an absolute nightmare for so many who lost loved ones during that time. I count my blessings that our tiny island was distanced from the epicentre of the outbreak. 

Getting back to the outfit, this colourfest was what I wore on my 63rd birthday, not for any other reason than to capture the day and how I looked. See the full post here. 

Why I swim was a blog post from 2021 explaining this seemingly mad past-time of mine which has been a constant in my life for well over a decade now. Read the backstory of the journey that brought me from illness to adventure here.

By March 2021 Boris had allowed us all to return to the workplace with all of the restrictions and health advice in place to ensure there wasn't another upsurge in infections. Keeping a safe distance and wearing face masks had become our new normal. In the meantime I was having fun mixing colours and styles with this fabulous outfit of the day. Catch the full post here. 

By the summer the nation moved tentatively forward we all tried to establish this different way of living. A July picnic away on our boat to visit an uninhabited island felt safer than ever - see more of that here. 

September 2021 brought A Bit of Hush, a post, once again featuring me in my happy place. 

The end of 2021, and our final Style Not Age challenge of the year. My dress is a fabulous vintage piece styled to the hilt and ready to party or not, as the case may be. Read the full post here as Boris was about to make or break the party season. 

When I'm 64 - that was me in January 2022. Defying convention as always as I wore sequins for a daytime visit to Tresco Abbey Garden for my birthday outing. See the feature here. 

May 2022 heralds my 7 years of blogging, featuring the one and only Johnnie Walker. I was very proud to be considered a friend of both Johnnie and Tiggy Walker who would often visit Tresco to enjoy the escape from their rock 'n' roll lifestyle. Tiggy has continued to holiday here since Johnnie's passing on NYE in 2024. Read the post of my 7 year blogiversary here. 

A height of the summer post next from 2022 and sometimes I do hanker after a time machine to take me back to that place in time - it looked so idyllic! See the feature here. 

Sept 2022 and the Style Not Age challenge was Layered Luxe which, for me, was suitably flamboyant. I wonder when I felt the need to move these trousers on? Aren't they rather fab!

Racing forward now to Jan 2023 and here's another of my birthday posts at 65, but how the heck did that happen? I did enjoy rereading this feature, especially recounting my teenage self and the influences that have formed me. Read that one here. 

March 2023 saw us having a Mother's Day lunch at the Ruin Beach cafe, my favourite eaterie on Tresco. The day was a bit overcast, but we captured a family outing for posterity - see it here.

2023 saw a resurgance of my sewing projects, this time linen dresses were the challenge. This aqua version is the second, meaning I had tweaked the pattern for a better fit - shorter in the body length and longer in the skirt mainly. Showcasing the dress against the backdrop of white sands and aqua sea felt like the obvious place for a photoshoot - see the post here. 

In September of 2023 Sasha and I had a mini break in London to join in the Abba Voyage experiece. I'm such an Abba fan and it really did live up to all of my expectations. The post (see it here) covers my off-island break in London and Cornwall with my sisters. 

The November light in this next post may not be the best, but my fabulous frilled blouse most definitely makes up for that! Call me Sybil features a great mix of old and new pieces brought together to create a super outfit of the day. Catch it here. 

January 2024 was when I turned into an OAP at 67, and goodness, that's a bit of a statement. I won't say that I'm in denial of my age, more that I simply can't believe I've racked up that many years! If society wants to shunt me sideways because of a label, then I'm afraid I'm not going to oblige. This is what an OAP looks like nowadays.

In March 2024 the icon and model Iris Apfel died at the age of 102. In her honour we did a style challenge paying Homage to Iris and you can see it here. I felt a particular affinity to Iris as she had a sense of style that resonated with me, a couldn't-care-less attitude which allowed her to dress purely to please herself, as do I.

At the height of the summer Gallery Tresco was the venue for a fundraiser in aid of the Island Haven. See this July 2024 event in my blog feature here. 

September 2024 was a great month, especially because I was in receipt of some rather special gifts! Catch up on this lovely post - Gifts received with gratitude here.

Christmas cometh was my run-up to the festive season post. Full of island drama and stress, it captures what living on a tiny island is really like - see it here. 

Are you a Lemonader, was a different kind of post from me in Feb 2025, in that I wasn't as ebullient as normal. I'm pleased that I was able to be my true self with you rather than hiding behind a facade of jolliness. Catch the full post here. 

August 2025 and I'm in my element here showcasing a bargain charity shop find - Second Hand Jeans is the post and you can see it here. 

In September 2025 I joined friends in London for a day out and an evening party too. It was a bit of a whistlestop tour but the company made it worth the while and the weather was glorious too. Read the full feature here.  

In November 2025 Claudia Winkleman gave us all lesson in dressing up no matter what the venue during that series of the The Traitors. I was in seventh heaven waiting for each installment keen to mimic her latest outfit. See my post where I copied one of her looks in my own way - here. 

My Festive round up shows a more muted palette than usual for me, but still has a healthy dose of razzle dazzle. Can you believe that was 6 months ago? Catch up on that post here. 

That beautiful Boden suit brings us bang up to date. Featured in March it's one of my most complimented outfits, apart from my Peapod trouser suit that is. If you missed that post see it here. 

Thank you for reading all the way to the end of this mega post. As I previously mentioned I will revisit the two years spanning 2018 and 2019, but maybe you need a break from these long features, so I'll come back to that another time. I've really enjoyed seeing all of these outfits and backdrops again and I really hope that you did too. Please do drop me a comment to let me know if you had a particular favourite post over the years - I do love to have your feedback!

                                                                    Anna x

From spring to summer SNA challenge

Welcome to another Style Not Age challenge! This month I chose the theme and came up with From Spring to Summer, a timely notion, don't you agree? My Lucy and Yak dungarees fit the brief perfectly as I wear them most weekends - they're perfect for wearing to do the housework, go for a walk or just bumble about. 

Jacqui has chosen this lightweight cream lace jacket as her transisitional piece and very pretty it is too! Catch up with all of her week's events on her blog Mummbstylish here. 

A sporty cardi comes from Hilda, again the perfect layer to carry you from one season to another. See more from Hilda on Over The Hilda blog post here. 

Another cardi, this time a short sleeved one, comes from Emma. The cute crochet cardi comes from TK Maxx and I wish I could just pop there now to find it! See the full post from Emma on Style Splash blog. 

This weekend was my big summer clothes changeover and lucky for me it was a perfectly sunny day on Sunday to get them all washed and hung out on the line. My garden is right beside the road and the rainbow collection was the talking point for many passers by. I spent the afternoon weeding our garden wall, cutting back all the wild brambles and unwanted plants. I enjoyed lots of conversations about my colourful clothes, my blog and the day job which allows me to express myself in these bright colours and many a flamboyant outfit.

I did have one woman stop and ask me if I was having a clothes sale and what a unique idea it was for a shop front. I shall keep that in mind for when I finally retire and need to move all of my working clothes along. 

The outfit of the day shows nothing new. The dungarees I've had for few years now, the long sleeved tee likewise and my sandals are by Heavenly Feet - these I can agree are indeed heavenly as they are so comfortable. 

Nothing new with my accessories either - the sunglasses are by Oliver Bonas, gold chain from Accessorize and rings are both pre-loved. This is my ideal outfit for the weekends, easy to wear yet colourful enough to show my personality. Many thanks for joining us once again and I look forward to catching up with you again soon!

                                                                    Anna x