Autumn Hues our SNA October challenge

Hello again! And welcome to our monthly Style Not Age challenge which comes from Hilda this month. Autumn Hues are very much my colours, as in what's recommended for my skin and hair shades but the season of autumn isn't one of my best. I begrude the dimming of sunlight, the shortening of the days and the general decline into winter gloom. But, hey, as you'll see from my shots, the day was golden when we captured this outfit so let's just leave it there shall we? 

Hilda has shopped her wardrobe for this stylish look, one that I'd happily wear myself. I love the pattern clash of cardigan and leopard print pumps! See more from her on Over the Hilda. 

Jacqui too has shopped her closet for this month's challenge, and very successfully I must say! The faux leather culottes in particular are very much to my taste. Catch up with all the latest news from her very busy life on Mummabstylish blog. 

Emma's following the trend of recycling her outfit apart from her new snazzy jacket from Jenerique, a brand I've not heard of. See all the other details on her blog Style Splash. 

Gail has just completed a seven day skirt challenge on her blog and continues to style it up with this cute mini here. Loving the brogues and belt Gail! See her back story on Is This Mutton. 

My outfit comprises both old and new (to me). The faux suede bomber jacket was a recent Vinted find as was the floral turtle neck sweater. I do like a thin knit turtle neck for layering up in the cooler months and this flowery version will be very handy in the months ahead.

The wide legged brown trousers were from TK Maxx many years ago and I was pleased to find that they still fit. The older I get the more I battle with an increasing girth, but I fancy I may not be the only one to struggle this way. To be honest, the latest setback for me has been the influx of purple stinging jellyfish that have been swarming across our shores for almost two months now. 

I'm staying out of the water as their stings have to be treated with a get normally used on chemical burns. I've been walking the beaches to try to find a clear beach to swim in but honestly as the tide washes in and out every six hours, well it's almost impossible to predict where they'll turn up next. That cold water blast to my metabolism has surely helped to keep my figure in reasonable shape but I'm noticing the difference lately. Hey ho!

My cream boots are old, from ASOS, I think. The handbag was a purchase in Rome when we were on a cruise there many moons ago - see that post here. Anyway, the strap broke and only recently Sash borrowed it when she went away for a wedding and very kindly bought a replacement one. 

Suddenly this little bag is back in the mix again! Nothing new jewellery wise though, one preloved ring and the other is an Emily Nixon Scribble ring (see here for similar) and old sunglasses from Radley London.

Steve and I dashed off to capture these shots one evening just before sunset. The golden light is very flattering and ties in perfectly for this challenge too. See below for the view in front of me  - what a fabulous sight that sunset is!

I do hope you've enjoyed this month's challenge! I'll be back next week with another dose of colourplay for you. In the meantime, take care!

                                                                    Anna x

Another blast of colour!

Hello-ha! How are you? As you can see, I'm still holding on to my summer colours and my only concession to autumn is that I'm wearing tights. You'll have seen everything before, apart from my rather fabulous new handbag...

My hand knitted velour handbag is a recent find from Vinted, costing a mere £15! Being orange meant pretty much love at first sight. It's always exciting when parcels arrive and this was part of a rather large influx last week. At this stage I feel it might be fitting for me to say "Hi, my name's Anna and I'm an insomniac shopper!" 

Honestly, I have these spells when I fall into an online retail vortex and can't escape until I feel replete. Currently, I'm over the latest episode, until the next time of course... 

Anyway on to the handbag. When it arrived I discovered that it really would have benefitted from two handles as it didn't hang straight. Customising was the only answer and so started my endeavours to fix it as best I could. The result is that it now hangs fine and looks even more quirky. I threaded a gold chain through the handle and clipped it off to one side to stabilise the balance. The resulting gape in the stitches was covered by my Carmen Miranda brooch.

The tweed shorts co-ord is from Primark, bought last year and the boots are old too, from the MOMA shop, but found on Vinted. Sunglasses are from Radley London. The ruffle front blouse was also a Vinted buy and the orange tights are from Snag.

As you can tell, as long as the sun keeps shining I'll be wheeling out another burst of colour for you. The end of the season is fast approaching so I'll be snapping away at my outfits of the day to store up for the dark autumn days in the hope of spreading some joy via the blog.

I'll add another shot of this from a previous week, taken in the Gallery this time - I think it shows up the vibrancy of the outfit much better. Different accessories and top, but that's only what you'd expect of me isn't it?

Somehow I feel much more in context within the workplace. I may be a bit flamboyant, but against this colourful backdrop it all seems pretty normal eh? My wearable art ties in my surroundings as I'm often told.

                                                            Anna x

Holding on

Hi there! I'm late again with this week's post and have no excuse apart from life in general being a challenge. But hey, here I am, holding on. Holding on? Yes, holding on to my summery looks as I so dislike transisitional dressing aka the changeover into gloomy old autumn and winter seasons. 

The wind may be blowing but at least today the sky is blue and I'm determined to keep turning up in bright and breezy colours, the same colours that lift my mood and garner me compliments.

There's nothing new here, but all of it, every single piece, brings me joy which is pretty much my mantra. 

My life, indeed island life, is seasonal. I work in a retail position which relies on visitors to keep me in employment. By the end of the month the Gallery will be closed and I'll be busy with winter works. And winter works means no daily dressing up for the day job, so I'm making the most of things in this final push.

The majority of what I'm wearing is from Vinted, the second hand site that's helping to change how we shop. Second hand no longer means sad, smelly, worn-out clothes; Vinted allows anyone to move on their shopping mistakes, often never worn at all, to find a happy new owner. Vinted is also helping me dejunk my wardrobe all year round. I'm finally allowing myself to let go of pieces that don't fit or even spark joy as I know I'll be able to find replacements in a heartbeat. Sorry if this is coming across as an advert - it's just an enthusiastic post from a second-hand lover!

                                                                                Anna x

43 years ago

43 years ago on the 3rd of October Steve and I were married. I posted this image on my Instagram last week and it had the biggest response ever so I thought I'd dedicate this week's post to our happiest of days. 

We were married at the Registry Office on St Mary's followed by our wedding reception on Tresco - a half hour boat ride away by open boat.

The boatman of the day was David Stedeford, kingpin of Bryher Boats in those days. He told us that had it not been for the fact of our wedding that they would have cancelled the boattrip as the weather was so rough. This fact was wasted on me as I spent the entire day floating along on cloud nine! 

Steve and I sat under cover with my mother-in-law Kate and sister-in-law Gill with her children, Steven, Kate and babe in arms Gem. I recall that the sun was shining despite the atrocious state of the sea which I viewed as if I were somehow removed from it all. Seemingly it was a hellish trip. My best friend Marjory hung her head over the side of the boat for the entire journey puking her guts up as the waves crashed over her head - poor Marj!

We arrived at Old Grimsby and were met by the pony and trap, the traditional mode of transport for weddings at that time. 

Our wedding reception was at the Island Hotel which was also my place of work. I was a scatty chambermaid in those days. Our photographer was John Davidson a friend and fellow employee from work. 

Steve's fellow gig rowers were waiting for us at the hotel creating an archway with the gig paddles for us to pass under for good luck. Steve had rowed Stroke in the Czar for many years before I turned up on Tresco and he carried on with that for many more after we were married.

No blog post of mine would be complete without reference to my outfit... The wedding gown came from Pronuptia in Truro and was made of the finest Itailian tulle. It cost me £220 which in those days seemed outrageous. The lace was cream in colour and was beautifully weighty. The lace collar however wouldn't stand up as I had hoped despite much pinning and spraying the night before, however once on, I forgot all of that and felt like a princess for the day!

Marjorie has dried off by this time. I don't think she ever forgot that terrible bumpy boat ride where she thought she might die.

The last posed photo of the day. All too soon it was time for us to head off to the airport on our way to Tenerife for our honeymoon.

And this is my favourite photo of the day. The deed was done, the wedding breakfast and speeches over and at last we were able to relax. I was so relieved! In fact, I pretty much look like the cat who got the cream, which I was. Steve was Tresco's most eligible bachelor when I arrived on Tresco in 1978 and some three years later we were married. One or two of the local girls were not impressed that I'd swooped in and scooped him up, but hey, I fancy he had some say in the matter too. 

I do hope you've enjoyed this trip down memory lane with me. Steve and I have been together for 46 years now, married for 43 and can highly recommend it!

                                                                        Anna x