Ping-Pong Post no12

Hello and welcome to the 12th edition of Ping-Pong post, the monthly collaboration between myself, Samantha of Fake Fabulous and Ann of Kremb de la Kremb. To see the background of this style challenge read here. This month Samantha proffered her black drapey top which almost flummoxed me completely. Despite being simple in shape, it was still one of my least favourite of colours to work with. Let's start with Samantha who certainly didn't seem to struggle -

The black top has a scoop neck and cross over front, but very cleverly Samantha has chosen to wear it back to front revealing a stunning strappy feature below. Wet look leggings, and patent boots lift this plain cotton top into the realms of fabulousness. She has finished this off with a statement bag and necklace leaving no room to doubt that she is indeed a true style icon. Follow Samantha on Instagram here.

Details -

TOP: Yong Kim

NECKLACE: Oliver Bonas

LEGGINGS: Pamela Mann

BOOTS: Vagabond

BAG: River Island

Ann has given the top a more casual spin with her snakeskin jeans, biker boots and striped shirt, but hasn't forgotten a dash of glamour by way of her diy ostrich handbag (see the link below). A roll neck and gloves give a nod to the cooler weather Ann is experiencing in Hong Kong this week when she took these shots. Black doesn't look very difficult to wear when you've got the right hair colouring does it? Fab styling Ann! Follow Ann on Instagram here.

Details -
Outfit Details

Earrings--my guy Ben in Jardines Bazaar, a great ladies market in Hong Kong

Turtleneck--heat technology, Uniqlo

Striped Shirt--Zara

Black Top--Sam's

Gloves--market in Shanghai

Ostrich Bag--Kremb de la Kremb DIY

Snake Jeans--Bershka

Moto Boots--boutique on Houhai Lake, Beijing

Those who know me will recognise my default setting here - when in doubt, dress it up! Glitter tights and glitter boots, seemed like a great way of detracting from the pallor-inducing colour of the top. Adding some softer, more neutral tones against the skin also helped. One feature I did like was the pockets and by adding a belt the tunic took on a bit more shape. A splash of silver jewellery and studded clutch were the finishing touches. Samantha - I gave this my best shot, but heck it's been my least favourite of our challenges so far!

Details -

Top: Samantha's

Dress: H&M

Belt: Dorothy Perkins

Tights: H&M

Boots: Topshop

Necklace: M&S

Rings: old

Handbag: charity shopped

The news on Ping-Pong Post is that having completed a whole year of this style challenge we're going to evolve the series a little next month, so do come along to see exactly how on the 20th of March.

Linking with -

Catherine of Not Dressed As Lamb

Patti of Not Dead Yet Style

Jess of Elegantly Dressed And Stylish

Anna x

Ping-Pong Post no 10

Hello and welcome once again to this monthly feature as you join me and my friends Samantha of Fake Fabulous  and Ann of Kremb de la Kremb in our style challenge where we send our clothes ping-ponging around the world to each other. There's no discussing what we're planning or how it's going, so for us it's also a great surprise to see what the item of the month has spawned. Edition 10 sees us all getting nicely into our strides with this offering for the party season, very nicely I'd say, and in case you don't know how this little venture started off, follow the link here. And with that I'd suggest we take a look at Ann and her rather fabulous sequined top.

Ann's Christmas styling is grown-up elegance; chic and understated (if sequins can be understated). The black cape and trousers constitute a contemporary trouser suit - loving those flares Ann - and her choice of pink clutch ties in with the top as well as adding another feminine touch. And just in case there wasn't enough Christmas sparkle, she's finished the look with these silver glittery pumps. Viola, perfection! 

Follow Ann on instagram here.

Details -

Earrings--Les Néréides (after Christmas splurge last year when Santa didn't bring them... Hehehe!)

Evil Eye Necklace--Science Technology Market in Shanghai

Top--very old from a mall boutique shop in Caracas, Venezuela

Cape--Forever 21

Trousers--Forever 21

Bow Clutch--HM via a swap

Pumps--Kate Spade via Poshmark

Samantha has taken the very classic route with this satin maxi skirt and little fur jacket to accompany the array of colours in the spangly top. She's added a cute mini clutch too, and the pop of colour from those dazzling, green metallic shoes matches perfectly with the sea colours of the top. Cinderella will indeed go to the ball!

Follow Samantha on instagram here.

Details -

Skirt: Vintage (I found it in a charity shop for a pound…yes, a POUND!!)

Top: Annie’s!

Shoes: Martha Johnson (Found in Tkmax’s bargain shelf for a tenner!)

Bag: Tkmax

Earrings: Asda

Whilst my two gorgeous blogging friends have managed to look elegant and composed, my default setting seems to be full on laughter at one of Polly's jokes. Yes, this photo shoot was taken way back in September when she and I were able to take advantage of the late summer evening at our local beach bar.

It's not often that we come up with the same styling, but like Ann I too created an evening trouser suit with the help of these harem pants and my silver grey tuxedo. I much preferred the look without the jacket though to show off the super sparkly top. Polly loved it that my mocktail reflected the colours of the sequins. My item of note has to be the fantastic Jimmy Choo's which were a leaving gift from a previous assistant, Linda who worked for me quite a few years ago. I happened to bump into her on my last visit to Truro which was a lovely surprise. Linda is currently back at college studying art, fulfilling a lifelong dream of hers. 

Details -

Jacket: Whistles (old)

Trousers: Costume Nemutso

Top: Ann's

Shoes: Jimmy Choo

Rings and bangles: charity shopped/gifts

Handbag: old

My next post will be on Friday where I'm going to see if I can style sequins a bit more casually perhaps - is that possible? Please join me to see how that goes.

You can follow me on instagram here.

Anna x

#Ping Pong Post no 8

Welcome to another edition of Ping Pong Post, the feature where one well travelled item of clothing brings me and my blogging friends together for our monthly style challenge. This month I'm delighted to announce two additional guests to the feature by way of fellow bloggers, Sheela of Sheela Writes and Greetje of No Fear of Fashion. Both Sheela and Greetje have followed the feature with great interest since it started (see here) and were very keen to join in for this special edition.

The dress/tunic this month is from my wardrobe and started its journey from the Isles of Scilly to Holland in April, then travelled to Texas, Hong Kong and finally on to bonnie Scotland a couple of weeks ago before heading back home to me. So let's see what this diverse collection of bloggers made of the green shaggy beast shall we?

Here's Samantha from Fake Fabulous, one of our regulars. This shaggy dress caused quite a dilemma for her, but in the best possible way (I think) as it presented so many possibilities. She opted for a simple, neutral palette to offset what is quite a flamboyant, fuzzy top. Samantha has given this green monster a classy, chic look that I wouldn't have thought possible. Bravo, my dear! Follow Samantha on Instagram here.

Details -

DRESS: H&M (Anna’s)

TIGHTS: Levante

BOOTS: Duo (now Ted and Muffy)

CARDIGAN: Urban Outfitters

POLONECK: Redoute

NECKLACE: Oliver Bonas

SOCKS: M&S 

Our other regular, the very creative Ann, of Kremb de la Kremb has done her typical Ann thing and turned the piece right on its head, and oh how gorgeous does she make the shaggy shawl look? (Such glowing skin - it shouldn't be allowed!) I love all of the ornate jewellery she has accessorised it with. Go to the top of the class girl! Follow Ann on Instagram here.

Details -

Sunnies--Forever 21

Earrings--Ben from Jardines Bazaar, Hong Kong

Shrug--Anna's dress

Brooch--Banana Republic

Ring--India

Shirt--Gap

Leather Shorts--Forever 21

Jungle Bag--Louella Odie

Anklets--La Jolla Beach, California 

Booties--DIY on an old Forever 21 pair (http://www.krembdelakremb.com/diy-painting-scuffed-shoes/) 

And here we have the ever so cool Sheela of Sheela Writes. Sheela lives in Houston, Texas where she exploits her stark,urban backdrop to contrast her downright outrageous outfits. My readers may well think I have an extensive shoe collection, but they really need to check out some of the amazing footwear lurking in this lady's closet! Follow Sheela on Instagram here.

Details -

Leather Top - StitchFix

Belt worn as necklace - JCrew

Clutch, Booties, Sunnies & Leggings - thrifted

Ring - a gift from Eve

Yellow Cuff - courtesy of Unearthed

This vision of elegance is Greetje of No Fear of Fashion. Greetje too, has a rather amazing collection of shoes and boots, and these are a particular favourite of mine - those heels are something else aren't they? Greetje features not only her fabulous clothes on the blog, but also the local sights both in Holland as well as on her various trips away with girlfriends that seem to be a regular occurrence (lucky lady). Follow Greetje on Instagram here.

Details

skinnies: Closed, 

booties: Eijk Amsterdam, 

shirt: Marco Polo (old), 

pendant: through Heleen Tuinman.

So here we go with my take on this shaggy beast of a top. These shots were taken at the end of March and seemed to be my typical mix of elements that made the outfit very me. However, the fly in the ointment was when Samantha diligently returned the top last week which was a terrible trial for me. You may well have noticed a couple of pairs of jacquard boots making their debut on the blog recently... Well, I really wanted to re-shoot wearing a pair of those, but time and weather put a stop to that. Maybe another day. In the meantime here's how I styled it -

This extended edition has been such great fun. Thanks to all of my blogging friends for taking the time and effort to present their own version of this crazy green top/dress/shawl. It's been really interesting as usual, and I do hope it was worth a visit for you, the reader. Next month we have an offering from Samantha which is currently under the care of Ann as she considers her options. I fancy her creative juices are already flowing with some marvel or other. If you'd like to, then please follow me on Instagram here.

My outfit details are -

Dress: H&M

Disco pants:H&M

Polo neck: eBay

Shoes: Office

Pendant: Vivienne Westwood

Sunglasses: Quay Australia

Watch: Michael Kors

Rings: old.

I'm asking if I may be excused games tomorrow Miss! Well, what I mean is, I'm having a day off from my regular Friday post, but will be back again on Sunday. Amuse yourself with a dip into some old posts I say, as I'll be setting questions for your assessment soon!

Anna x

#Ping Pong Post 6

Yes, it's crazy I know (where is the summer going?), but here we are already, the three of us with another dose of Ping Pong Post. Ann of Kreme de la Kremb and Samantha of Fake Fabulous are my blogging partners in crime who together over the past six months have been swapping clothes amongst each other. Nothing unusual in that you may say, but when you consider that Ann lives in Hong Kong, Samantha in Scotland and I live on the Isles of Scilly, off the end of Southwest England, then you can see this style challenge has taken some commitment along with a fair bit of planning to make it happen. Read here to find out how this all came about. This month Samantha threw her little shrug into the arena to see how we might style it up and for the first time ever I think we're all singing from the same sheet.

First up is Ann who wears the shrug to top off an utterly feminine, floaty dress with her favourite cowboy boots and leather pouch. This look is perfect for Ann, the tomboy of the group one minute and sexy siren the next. By donning her rough ol' boots she toughens the vibe making it so very Kremb de la Kremb. If you rewind to previous Ping Pong Posts, you'll see that Ann is highly creative with the item of the month and this time I half expected that the shrug may well have been reinvented as a modern day pair of bloomers by her. I think you might have missed a trick there Ann! 

Follow Ann on Instagram here.

Outfit details for Ann are -

Earrings--Boutique in Florence, Italy

Coral Beaded Necklace--made by Venezuelan girlfriend, Mariana Morrill

Evil Eye and Half Circle--Fireworks

Shrug--Samantha's

Dress--Forever 21

Belt Bag--Francesca's

Cowboy Boots--Old West via Zappos

Samantha has chosen to wear the shrug with a print dress too. She is sporting her bolero in a perfectly relaxed style, just popped over as an extra layer to keep her shoulders warm at the end of the day. Her leather clogs add an edge to steer away from an uber cutesy look (it's not Sam's fault that she's so pretty) as does the funky handbag. Samantha always seems to pull out a winning card with these feature handbags of hers and this is one no exception. The finished look is sleek and cool. Full marks Samantha. 

Follow Samantha on Instagram here.

Samantha's outfit details are -

DRESS: Old (new look)

CLOGS: Old (timberland)

BELT: Old (Topshop….there is a theme here :oP)

BAG: Old…actually belongs to my daughter, but she seems to have forgotten that it is hers!

SHRUG: Very old

Introducing a bit of print was my first thought too as this skirt from Jaeger caught my eye when I scanned the rail in my wardrobe. I like the vintage vibe conjured up by adding the big belt and net underskirt. I'm always trying to inject an element of fun into my outfits and the frothy fullness of the petticoat does exactly that. Never one too underplay things, I've added jewellery in lots of colours drawn from the skirt. My shots are looking very cool coloured as they were taken way back in April when the sunshine was a bit weak and watery. I'm also still carrying a bit of winter weight around my middle, a feature I'm only happy to share now that it's all shifted. I did wonder about choosing the shots that don't show my middle ripple, but then I thought it's good for me to show I'm less-than-perfect. I'm no model, nor am I pretending to be, and so it's only fair to show my imperfections to highlight that I'm as ordinary as everyone else. Keeping it real is what they say nowadays isn't it? 

You can follow me on Instagram too, see here.

And my outfit details are -

Shrug: Samantha's

Tee shirt: M&S

Skirt: Jaeger

Underskirt: eBay

Shoes: New Look

Belt and jewellery: charity shopped

Sunglasses: Quay Australia

Anna x

Ping Pong Post 3

Hello and welcome to the third edition of Ping Pong Post. For any new readers, you can catch up on how this feature came about here. Today's outfit is spawned by this wonderful jumpsuit from Samantha of Fake Fabulous. Even though I own a couple of jumpsuits, it's still a great challenge to style up one that I hadn't chosen myself. The fabric is silky, hangs really well, and the cut is quite slim so is very elongating for my short frame. All in all, it was a super piece to style up. 

First of all let's have a look at what Ann made of the purple all-in-one. Ann is the creator and editor of Kremb de la Kremb which showcases not not only her fashion stories, but also her travel tales and imaginative diy projects such as her handbag featured here. Ann lives in Hong Kong, and therefore benefits from a very colourful and highly decorated environment, meaning her photo shoots are always unique. In our first Ping Pong Post Ann managed to find a backdrop which featured all the colours of our jacket that day which wasn't any easy task - check it out here. She has done another great job in finding this beautiful sky blue background to perfectly offset the purple jumpsuit and also to compliment her gorgeous tan.

I love Ann's styling of this. Sleek, elegant and understated. Well played, Ann. The idea of tying up the hems is brilliant and really gives the jumpsuit a very different outline. 

Ann's outfit details are -

Silver necklace and bracelet--Target

Jumpsuit--Sam's

Clutch--DIY by me!

Satin pumps--Goodwill (US charity shop)

Follow Ann on Instagram

Next up is Samantha wearing her jumpsuit in March before she sent it off its travels. In our PPP2 Samantha showcased a very unique looking fishbone necklace which was most definitely the star of the show - see it here. Today's necklace is another made-to-match piece that sets off the rest of the outfit to perfection. Great choice Samantha. And those metallic green pumps are worth more than just a mention too!

Samantha's fashion blog Fake Fabulous is a great source of inspiration to many. She posts three times a week about the latest trends as well as giving fashion advice on all sorts of dilemmas such as her recent piece on How to avoid looking frumpy as a wedding guest. Her style is cute, quirky and constantly evolving. She has a huge following who love her honest, inquisitive and challenging take on the boundaries imposed on female fashion. Can a woman wear...? is a theme which crops up frequently on her blog as she sets out the argument and then steers the reader through the pitfalls of the item in question, inevitably meaning that the answer is ...yes she can!

Samantha's outfit details are

Jumpsuit: I can’t remember!!

Jacket: French Connection.

Vest top: Charity shop

Necklace: Oliver bonas

Shoes: Marta Johnson

Bag: Linea

Sash: Salvaged from another dress

Follow Samantha on Instagram 

So here we are with my spin on this ferocious jumpsuit. I had to don my highest heels to wear it, but the shoes ended up being the linchpin of the entire ensemble. By introducing stripes to the mix I found a lovely collection of pieces which married up beautifully. See what you think.

My regular readers will know that I love to do a bit of pattern mixing and this clash of spots and stipes means I'm in my element. Although I love to mix things up, I never want to look thrown together. My outfits are always well considered, balanced in both colour and shape so that the whole thing is effective. Even though I might wear some pretty way outlandish things from time to time - this red petticoat comes to mind - even the outlandish has to look polished. Dressing up is my daily pleasure, it's what makes me, me. 

My outfit details are -

Jumpsuit: Samantha's

Waistcoat: charity shop

Tee shirt: Primark

Shoes: M&S

Handbag: "Borrowed" from my daughter

Pendant: from New Zealand

Turquoise bangle: old

Gold bangle: charity shop

Rings: charity shop

Sunglasses: Quay Australia

Today I'm linking up with 

Sheela of Sheela Writes

So there we have it. Ping Pong Post 3 accomplished with each of our own personalities shining through. We're enjoying this new feature and I hope that you are too. On the 20th June we'll all be sporting something from Ann. That particular something is currently mid-air between Hong Kong and the UK and I think may well be a dress. Hopefully summer will arrive about the same time it does so that Samantha and I can do a bit less layering up next time. Until then please do drop by on Sunday for my next post. Thank you for taking the time to visit, and I would love it if you could add a comment to my blog if I've inspired you or sparked an interest. Or perhaps you might to prefer to follow me on Instagram

Anna x