Primark suit and Converse boots - a cool and stylish work outfit

Hello my friends, how are you? I'm doing okay, especially as I've got that Friday feeling. No matter that I'm actually working tomorrow - it's all about that end of the week vibe!

This was today's work outfit, a thoroughly stylish suit from Primark that I bought on my recent trip away. I decided to underplay things by adding a shimmering silk blouse in a neutral hue. Yes, you might have expected a burst of pink or orange to jazz up this rather conservative trouser suit, but hey, not today!

My Converse boots add a playful touch and also give a cool, edgy feel to the look. I love the check on check pattern play.

Mixing old and new pieces is one of my favourite ways of putting an outfit together and this is a perfect example of that. The silk blouse is pre-loved as it the elastic belt. 

I must admit, my new hairstyle has restored my self confidence. That long shaggy (non) style was making me feel rather drab, but now I feel all pepped up and ready for fun!

I think this may be the first time I've showcased this bronze blouse. It was a charity shop find from way back when, but at least has been given its moment to shine.

My green pearl necklace has a golden hue which works so well with the blouse. The large ring is a pre-loved piece and the other one was from an airport concession. The rose gold watch is by Michael Kors.

It's funny how a good haircut and decent suit can lift the mood, oh and these new Steve Madden sunglasses help too. I had some lovely comments about the outfit today, one of which was that I looked dapper - I loved that!

I've had a good week; busy at work and I've had some lovely sea swims. On Thursday we also we had our first dinner party in almost 18 months. It's been so long since we had anyone round to our house and yet it felt so easy and natural again. Hurrah for some semblance of normality! 

What are you up to this Bank Holiday weekend? Are you going away anywhere? I'll be working on Saturday and hope to get out on Sunday to take some more photos for Monday's feature. The end of the month signals time for our monthly Style Not Age challenge so I hope you'll swing by to see how that pans out this time.

Have a great weekend!

Anna x

Primark trouser suit; a summer gem!

Hello again my lovelies!

May has arrived and for the past little while it's been glorious weather without that dreadful sharp easterly wind. On Friday I braved it in what is one of my favourite summer trouser suits - I say braved it because it's a lightweight summer fabric and wouldn't withstand a chilly breeze. However, all was good and I even managed to do my own blog photography before I started work!

I bought the checked co-ord from Primark two years ago and it's still looking sharp - see it previously here, here and here. I often get asked where it's from and my response is always met with surprise. The unstructured jacket hangs loose without any buttons making the paperbag trousers the focal point of the outfit. 

The button back sleeves and shorter length trouser work well for my build as I like to show some wrist and ankle. My only minus point would be the lack of pockets, especially trouser ones, but on the other hand it was a brilliant purchase at only £30 for the whole suit.

The Karl tee shirt was a TK Maxx purchase about three years ago. You can't go wrong with a white tee, can you? Sunglasses are from Quay Australia.

My gold coloured chain was another Primark purchase. The rose gold watch is by Michael Kors, worn with my wedding ring and a russian three gold ring. Simple jewellery for this clean cut ensemble.

This is a great outfit for running around. I had to pop out to move art from one holiday cottage to another, so I chose practical footwear by way of these white patent finish Puma trainers. The ribbon laces for once aren't my adaptation, but they do add a touch of femininity don't you think?

It's so lovely to have you swing by again today. My readership is looking healthier than ever, so thank you if you're a regular and a very big thank you if you're spreading the word about Anna's Island Style!

                                                                           Anna x

Check me out! June with the Style not Age collective.

Welcome to our June challenge!

Hello! Can you believe that it's the end of June already? This month it was my turn to choose the theme and I came up with Check me out! I was keen to bring this summer trouser suit out again and threw down the gauntlet to the style crew to see what they came up with.  So let's catch up on my friends to see what they made of the checkered challenge.

Emma from Style Splash has created her own black and white trousersuit by pairing a jacket from M&S and trousers from Zara and doesn't it look fab? I adore the spotty handbag too - what a great style feature!

Another take on the checkered trouser suit from Gail of Is This Mutton? This is pink perfection don't you think? And wowee, I do love those metallic boots!

Jacqui has added a lightweight checked shirt over her summer dress to great effect. Blue and white are a lovely fresh mix. See more of this on her blog Mummabstylish.

This funky young look is brilliant on Hilda. I love the checked trousers paired with these cool trainers. See the full story on Over The Hilda. 

April last year was when I first showcased this Primark trouser suit (see here). I've opted for a total black and white palette this time. The black tee shirt was a sale item from Topshop last spring. Monochrome isn't normally my thing, but sometimes I like to go for a classic look.

The silver rings are pre-loved.

My shoes are by Nine West - a fabulous find in TK Maxx last year.

The mirror sunglasses with white and black frames are by Quay Australia. They're probably my most featured sunnies of all time, but I shan't apologise for that as I love them! The retro necklace was yet another charity shop scoop (£2.50).

And that rounds up this month's challenge. I do hope that we might have given you some new style ideas to inspire you. I'm off to raid my closet to see if I can recreate one or two of these looks...

Thanks again for joining us and I'll be back on Friday with my latest dressing up ensemble.

See you next time!

Anna x

The year of the trouser suit

Hello my lovely readers. How are you today? I do hope you're feeling better than me currently. The photos belie the fact that I'm in the middle of a horrible head cold. I'm surrounded by tissues, paracetamol and throat lozenges as I wallow in self pity. To be perfectly honest I'm really lucky that I hardly ever get colds, but when I do I always feel that it must be worse than anyone else.

Steve took these shots on Sunday during the lovely sunny spell and when I was feeling pretty sunny-natured myself. He steps into the roll of photographer when he can and we always bicker back and forth as I boss him about. My laughing face is preferable to my resting face that's for sure, so I'm happy to have the banter. 

Anyway, this is the year of the trouser suit according to me with this one being the second I'm sharing with you. The first was the glorious pink version I wore on Mother's Day, see here. The white and black checked suit is from Primark, bought separately and as far as I can recall it cost about £30. The fabric is man made and is a summer weight so I expect you'll be seeing it again later with sandals and a colourful tee shirt. Today I'm sporting a simple white tee from Dorothy Perkins from many moons ago.

I'm a big fan of the trend for paper bag top trousers and find them very forgiving with the post lunch tummy syndrome. Sitting high on the waist then that frill plus bow they distract the eye from any secrets that may lie beneath. 

I have a very small weight tolerance allowance which in normal speak means that I only allow 7lbs as my personal fluctuation limit. At the top of that range I'm fat and at the bottom I'm thin. Feel free to call me crazy, but after years of struggling with my weight I've found that this tightening of the belt as it were keeps me on an even keel. Currently I'm at the top of that range, but today in the midst of this head cold I've fallen into that old adage of "Feed a cold, starve a fever". The fruit bowl is my sofa companion - a shrunken satsuma and two wrinkled apples are all that's left.

I chose contemporary silver jewellery to compliment this crisp simple look - silver and onyx rings (old) along with silver chain by Melissa James and my favourite sunglasses from Quay Australia. 

I was torn between wearing my white kitten heel boots or these pink sock boots (from H&M) and decided that pink just added a bit of pizzazz to the outfit. They weren't ideal for traipsing across the boardwalk here though. Steve poked fun at my footwear not being quite the thing for the big outdoors and yes, he was right - this is gallery garb! 

Thanks for your company while I wrote this today. I had to drag myself off the sofa and think of something other than my scratchy throat, runny nose and outbursts of sneezes while I challenged my brain to write a few words. I'll be back on Monday with the Style Not Age Collective as we take on "Pastels". That had me stumped for a while then I remembered a lovely pastel offering for you all. Steve and I had a laugh with the photo shoot for this one too. In fact I can't wait to show you!

Until then, have a great week!

Anna x