Another birthday present!

Hello again! Yes, mine is the birthday that goes on and on, but goodness isn't this latest worth the wait? My family clubbed together to buy me this fabulous faux fur coat last month, and after a couple of false starts delaying things (the sizing is very generous, meaning I returned it twice and downsized from a 12 to a 6 eventually) here it is in all its glory! You can tell how excited I am about this, can't you?

The coat is from River Island and I'm a bit gutted to see that it's now been reduced to half price in the sale - see here. However, I can see that it's sold out in a 6 which does help. 

I dragged my son Jamie to the beach in between storms this weekend and elevated him to the role of Blog Photographer and wow, didn't he rise to the challenge? The sun shone and the wind continued to blow, but we made the most of things and I was thrilled to gad about in my new ensemble. 

I've been panicking that the coat wouldn't get an airing until the autumn, but this cold blast of wild weather was the perfect excuse to get out and about on Saturday afternoon. Not a soul was in sight as we dropped down onto Cradle Porth on the low tide. The blond sandbar was the perfect backdrop for this monochrome outfit. It's quite a change for me to opt for such a muted palette, but honestly the look still delivers the wow factor, don't you think?

The camo two piece was also from River Island (see here). The stretch fit makes for easy weekend wear, either for working out or lounging around at home. Oh, and the camo print is fabulous - I've got a thing about camo at the moment. The leggings are sold as bum sculpting with a high waistband and the fit is great, even on my ageing derriere!

A touch more glam comes by way of the Radley sunglasses and two pre-loved rings. 

My favourite boots of the moment are perfect for this monochrome play - they're from Asos and you can find them here. 

I'm in full "cat who got the cream" mode here. This is one of those outfits that I could wear day after day and still feel fabulous. What a joy!

                                                                                      Anna x

My snazzy new co-ord!

Hello again! How's things? Hasn't January just whizzed by? I can't believe we're already a whole week into Feb. So, anyway, here's me in a snazzy new outfit which was Sasha's present for my Christmas. While she was on the mainland in November she had messaged me from Primark to show me this fab co-ord and without a moments hesitation I said Yes! The brown and white colourway wouldn't normally have been my choice but the geometric print and cut of trousers and jacket were a winning combination easily outweighing my reservations.

I hadn't planned on the windswept look for this shoot, but Sasha invited me over when she was staying in Nautilus for her birthday (week) and I'd had this vision of showcasing the suit outdoors on the deck. 

I did also take some indoors shots...

The straight legged jeans work great with the fitted denim style jacket don't you think? I had planned to pop a high neck sweater underneath but it made the whole thing look a bit mumsy. 

Instead I opted for my white ribbed and chiffon sleeved top by Wild Flower, a purchase from TK Maxx a couple of years back. The see-through sleeves lighten the look and are just a bit more fresh and funky. 

I matched the flower motif pattern of the suit with various pre-loved pieces of floral jewellery to give a bit of a 60's vibe. My sunglasses are from Radley London. 

The fab new suit gives me the opportunity to bring out my ecru Chelsea boots which I bought from Asos not so long ago. They're still available here. I've not had the chance to wear this outfit to work yet as I've had a couple of weeks off work spanning my birthday weekend (spent on the dejunking project). However it's just a little over 4 weeks to go now until the Gallery re-opens and I'll be sure to be gadding about in this natty ensemble as soon as I can!

                                                                              Anna x

70's psychedelic flares

Hello again! How are your Christmas preparations coming along? Today I'm making my first batch of fudge which means I'm pretty much on track. I've also started wrapping presents, but that's mainly so that I can check what's arrived and what I still need to order. Writing Christmas cards will be next. The Christmas tree isn't up yet, nor are the decorations, but that's always very last minute in our house. So hey, let's talk about my outfit of the day, shall we?

I've had little online shopping splurge of late and these 70's flares were a wonderfully joyful find on the Asos website (find them here). I'm having a bit of a nostalgic fashion spell currently, revisiting the 60's, 70's and 80's. In my last post I was raving about wet-look boots and now here I am, totally loved up with these fab psychedelic loon pants - another reminder of my teens!

I love the muted palette of this outfit which still has that festive feel thanks to the fun fur jacket (New Look, very old). The trousers are a mix of glorious pastel hues in blue, lilac, aqua and dusky pink. I've revived an old fluffy sweater in pale blue (a charity shop find) and added these chunky heeled Chelsea boots which are also new and from Asos (find them here). These awesome ankle boots in ecru are going to be so versatile, mixing with lots of my existing outfits. I've got a couple of brown and cream outfits in the pipeline which may sound very blah for Anna's Island Style, but with the addition of these awesome boots, you'll appreciate how amazing these colours can look...

Don't these boots and trousers look a dream together? I'm head over heels with both of them and have this lined up for a workday outfit when I'm in the run up to Christmas next week. The gallery is open for four days in Christmas week so I'm trying to plan my outfits ahead to lessen the stress of the day. I'm happy to report that I'm back into my daily swimming routine which has a great knock on effect to my body confidence. We all want to approach Christmas in the best mindset too and that time in the sea helps to calm my mind, helping me enjoy my watery meditation. 

I'm so pleased to have the chance to showcase this icy floral necklace again. I bought it in the Crisis charity shop in London a couple of years ago for only £12. While I was there I learnt a lot about what the charity does to raise awareness of homelessness within the city and it was good to see how my money was going to have a direct impact on the situation. Do check out their website to find out how you can make a difference to someone in need this Christmas. My dear friend Ben gave me guided tour of the finest charity shopping in the capital that day (see here) and he really did me proud. My perspex rings are all second hand too. My old favourite sunglasses are by Quay Austalia.

My thanks to Fiona for popping out with me at short notice yesterday to capture the golden sunshine after what had been a day of mist and rain. It wasn't so much seize the day as seize the moment!

                                                                                               Anna x