Silver style inspo for Christmas

Hello again!

Yikes, can you believe it's only a week until Christmas?! I'm battling rising panic at how much I still have to achieve between now and then, but also experiencing that flutter of childish excitement at the very thought of Christmas day. I love the moment when the turkey is in the oven and we all get together to open our presents. I've never gotten over the joy of seeing how others react when they open their gifts. Christmas is all about giving isn't it?

So here we have today's Christmas style inspiration for you and it's all about silver and textures. I love the metallic shine of the pleated skirt paired with the heavily beaded top. Too much bling for some? Maybe. I love the extravagant nature of beads and sequins and all things sparkly. Adding fur and feathers brings even more luxury to this luxe look. 

The outfit details are like this: jacket by New Look (a hand me down from my daughter), skirt is from Tu at Sainsbury's (old), beaded vest top from Topshop (second hand), fur scarf (gift from Polly), fishnet tights (pre-loved), pink boots by H&M (old), handbag (very old indeed!).

Both diamante rings are charity shopped.

 The bright pink fishnet tights and toning boots add that much needed pop of colour into what would have been a very monochrome palette. I'm really pleased with how this look came together and do hope it might inspire someone out there.

Before I go, here's a tip for all you mums out there who struggle to find gifts for their grown up sons/daughters. I give a few of these to my son every Christmas for him to redeem over the following year. Last week I painted his new windows and his bathroom when Jamie traded in a couple of his vouchers. I think it's a great idea and means I'm not wasting money on unwanted gifts and he is getting help with a chore he can't find the time to do. A win/win situation I'd say!

And finally, if you're out at the supermarket or local shops this weekend, please keep your eyes peeled for the Christmas edition of Yours magazine. Yes, that's yours truly smiling out at you in the fashion feature, What to wear on Christmas Day. Grab me a copy and post it on please!

                                                                                              Anna x

More Christmas style inspiration

Hurrah - it's only 14 sleeps 'til Christmas!

So, here we have as promised my Christmas styling of the Scottish icon that is the kilt. I bought mine in a charity shop for only £5 and have been mulling over how to style it up for ages. Can you make a kilt funky was my question and hopefully I've answered that with an emphatic Yes!

The addition of the big, bouffant petticoat goes a long way to reinventing the staid image of the kilt, as does the mighty powers of pattern play by way of paisley and leopard print. The red lurex tights pick up the red within the woollen plaid and also connect tonally with the metallic jacket. All in all, it's a wild rendition and I know, not one for the faint hearted!

Piece by piece the outfit reads like this: metallic biker jacket by Missguided, bought from TK Maxx some years ago: paisley print shirt by Lands' End, second hand: kilt by The Tartan Shoppe, second hand: black petticoat from eBay: red lurex tights are charity shopped: leopard print pony skin courts by BCBGeneration from TK Maxx.

Nothing new jewellery-wise - the rose gold necklace was a boutique purchase when I was in St Andrews a couple of years ago: the big jewelled ring is pre-loved and the other ring was a find in a street market in Cape Town.

I'll be back again on Monday with another dose of sparkle and style for your Christmas inspiration. In the meantime, have fun with your preparations and last minute shopping. My shopping has been totally online this year and thank goodness, the mail is still coming through at this end of the country.

                                                                                             Anna x

Christmas fashion inspiration

Hello lovelies! Here I am strutting my stuff on the island catwalk aka The Flying Boat Club slipway. Fiona and I grasped our opportunity of fine weather on Sunday to show you my latest offering of Christmas dressing. 

I promised you fur and lurex and here they are together with these fabulous paisley print flares with gold thread running throughout. The bell bottoms are from H&M and are quite old, but are perfect for festive outings. These hipster trousers have just the right amount of stretch to allow an extra mince pie or two.

Velvet and fur are fabulous Christmas fabrics, beautifully combined in this second hand Karen Millen coat which I bought a year ago when I was in London. If you missed that post you can see it here. The two fabrics combine to say luxury at its best. 

The lurex polo neck sweater is old (from H&M too). It comes out every year at this time and is a real workhorse of a piece. You'll probably have noticed that polo necks are essential winter wear for me. I love the simple figure hugging lines of this kind of sweater which also provides warmth and a physical barrier against the cold. The sparkle yarn of this one lifts it out of the ordinary and works with so many separates, so you'll no doubt see it featured again this month.

I've piled pattern onto pattern with these amazing black and gold brocade platform boots from River Island (old). To say that the colour palette is rather restrained today, the overall effect still delivers the wow factor. The richness of the fabrics counter what could be read as a brown outfit and God forbid I'd be seen in boring old brown, especially as this claims to be a post about Christmas fashion inspiration!

My mirror Quay sunglasses were a gift from a friend a couple of years ago. 

Both golden rings are pre-loved.

Coming up next time will be the second hand kilt that I bought in a charity shop for £5. I'm styling that up for Christmas to add a flavour of festive fun to what might be perceived as rather staid traditional national dress. It really is just a case of our imagination being the only limitation of our style. I do hope you'll join me on Friday for that one.

In the meantime, take care!

Anna x