Put A Bow On It, our SNA challenge for Feb

Hello again and yes, it's time for our monthly style challenge again! Put A Bow On It was chosen by Emma this time as our theme, one that was indeed a bit of a brain teaser for me. Eventually I remembered this bow tie blouse, added my beribboned boots and that's as creative as I could get this month. I fancy the rest of the style collective might have found this one a tad easier - let's see shall we?

Hilda has shopped her wardrobe for this stylish twist - those trousers are fab! Find the full details on her blog Over The Hilda. 

Emma's opted for emerald green with her bow theme ( a bit of rhyming from me too!) - catch up on all news on her blog Style Splash.

Winter white and mink make for a very stylish soloution to this month's challenge from Jacqui. Read her back story on Mummabstylish blog.

Gail really ramped up the colour fest this month! She found this fabulous vintage bow tie blouse on Esty, shopping her wardrobe for the rest of the outfit. See more on Is This Mutton blog.

Shopping my closet was the way I went too; the leather coat was a find from Oxfam a few years back and has been a great addition to my wardrobe ever since. A leather trench is such a classic isn't it?

My pussy cat bow tie blouse was a charity shop scoop last year. The leopard print cardi is old, from H&M, Levi jeans were a from a charity shop too.

My only jewellery is a couple of rings that are pre-loved, very old.

I've recently traded in my old white patent boots for these Dr Martens. I added vanilla satin ribbon laces to make another bow feature to the outfit.

Things are ramping up this week at work as we open for business again on Friday - EEEK! Ironically, I'm only going to be spending one day this week on my final preparations as I've got training to undertake today and on two other days I'm assisting with the hanging of artworks off-site. I hope be super productive and highly creative on Thursday with the last of my set up, placing glassware, pots and smaller goods and dressing the window too - wish me luck!

                                                                        Anna x

Charity shop finds

Hello again!

It's great to have you join me again today. I've had this outfit sitting in my draft box for a while and thought today was the right time to bring it out. We all know the ripples from the Coronavirus are being felt across the globe and are affecting almost every business now. Yesterday I heard that the future of many charities is under pressure, with the threat of collapse due to their lack of income. Events like the London Marathon produce a large percentage of income for most charities every year and without that and so many other fundraising events it leaves their future hanging in the balance. Small animal charities are the most vulnerable with worries about how they'll feed their livestock within the weeks and months ahead. Such a worrying time. As you know, I'm a huge fan of charity shopping, in fact, it's a mainstay of my wardrobe and I do wonder if the high street shops will survive once Covid-19 has passed. 

My outfit comprises of two items from the Oxfam shop in Truro. The oxblood leather coat is from Next and although not brand new, it shows no signs of wear and is a beautiful quality of hide. I paid £40 for it and see it as a great investment piece. 

The nutmeg vintage skirt is by Mondi, made from wool and polyester, fits like a dream and best of all still had the original tags on it. It cost £19.99 and again is another real investment buy. I suppose the skirt encapsulates all the best reasons to charity shop: it's unusual, stylish and an absolute bargain.

The fabric has a lovely drape, the pleats sit nicely and of course, the bonus has to be these pockets. I do like the button feature down the front too. My bronze and black sock boots are by Zara from a couple of years ago.

These are some of my last work outfits before I was furloughed. From here on I'll be going back through my draft box to find those ensembles which I might have bypassed previously, but beggars can't be choosers now!

Lora did a great job taking these shots on this particular day as I had given her the camera with the setting on the wrong place. When we got to the jewellery shot it wouldn't focus - stupid me for leaving it on the Scenery setting!

Nothing new with these rings as I've had them both for ages. H&M leopard print cardi is old too.

Yet another new pair of Radley sunglasses, (aren't they fab) paired with this chunky tribal necklace from Topshop last year.

A week into my furlough now and I'm still trying to create a work structure on the home front. One thing I've found is that too much news and social media definitely affect my energy levels. It's draining to have the reality of our world events come at you hour after hour. I'm limiting my news updates to once in the morning and once in the evening. The same for social media. And I'm letting the days roll by with less have-to's that I thought. I'm cooking and cleaning and swimming and resting, but not in any of the tight regime I previously would  previously have done.  I'll often find myself looking out at the island view from my window where there's not a sole in sight. Most of the time Tresco is like a ghost town. I expect you're finding life so very different too. Do drop me a line, leave me a comment and let me know how you're bearing up.

In the meantime, I'll be searching for outfits to keep us both entertained.

Anna x

Another reprise on the brown theme

Yes, another dose of brown!

Hello again! I'm not one to take defeat lying down and therefore I'm facing the brown challenge head-on again today, this time by adding a suggested pop of colour by way of my winter coat by Covent Garden. The brown on brown had mixed reviews the other day, both on the blog and on Instagram, so I decided that I'd push the boundaries further by adding leopard print to the mix as well as this mustard coat. Less brown, more print, more fun, more me.

The star of the show today has to be my fabulous new handbag (a Christmas present from my dear hubby). The Paul Costelloe leather and leopard print bag was a happy find in TK Maxx which also means it was a cut price bargain too. (Hubby paid, but I found it). It's my bag of the moment, my latest crush and I'm more than a little in love with it.

The granite backdrop works as a perfect camouflage for this animal print fest, don't you think? The gold flower ring was another Christmas present and the diamante ring was an airport purchase last year. The bangle was a charity shop find for a pound - yes, £1!

The necklace is from Topshop and the cardi is from H&M, although a bit ancient now.

It was another dreich day, but Lora and I dashed outside when the skies opened up momentarily to reveal a watery winter sun. I know I'm not alone in feeling the post-Christmas slump currently, not helped by the dull weather. The rest of the outfit reads like this - jeans are by Zara, as are the boots and I'm layered up with a thermal long sleeve top by M&S underneath the cardi. Sunglasses are by Quay Australia.

So that's it guys. Did I redeem myself? Are we all agreed that a fair old dollop of leopard print has the ability to pep us up out of the brown doldrums? 

Thanks for dropping by. See you again soon!

Anna x

Oh my dimpled arse!

'Scuse the crude title today guys, but sometimes you just have to tell it how it is. This newly-coined phrase was borne from a naive backwards glance in the mirror. Honestly, it had me in stitches as the sight and resulting comment took me by surprise. It wasn't uttered in horror, more disbelief that my 61 years have finally caught up with me. I immediately saw the humour in this and couldn't stop laughing. When did my bum turn into a lumpy, dimpled arse that resembles a badly stuffed bolster? As I surveyed the damage in the mirror I was touched by the sight of this battle-torn feature and felt as if I was meeting an old friend whose predicament sparked a deep understanding for what it's gone through. Oh my dimpled arse, how tenderly I love you!

When Fiona and I met up later to take some photos, I couldn't help but share this comedy moment with her. The rest of the shoot was riddled with laughter as the memory tickled my funny button. She too loved the universal recognition that this phrase conjures up. At 16 this may not be funny, but at 61 it most definitely is!

Let's chat about the outfit now, shall we? You may recognise this buttery yellow trouser suit from an earlier post this summer. It's from JD Williams, though not gifted I hasten to add. I've kept it out for one last hurrah before it gets packed away for the winter. I wanted to see if I could adapt it to autumn wear as I've been doing of late. 

I added black patent boots (Topshop) to dispel any reference to summer sandals which I think toughens the look up straight away. The next step was to throw in some animal print with this H&M leopard print cardigan. The clutch works as an extra punch of print too - this was a charity shop find, as were the two rings. Finally, I've opted for a black pair of mirror sunglasses by Quay Australia. 

I forgot to mention this tribal print necklace from Topshop. I often strike it lucky when I visit the Truro branch as they do a good line in chunky statement necklaces which are very much my thing.

As I waltz off into the weekend, please know that I won't be offended if you feel the need to greet me with this new catchphrase. Oh-my-giddy-aunt seemed to catch on. I wonder if this will too?

                                                                                           Anna x