Bubble sleeves and scuba skirt

Happy Friday to you!

Yay, it's Friday and I'm ready for the weekend! What about you? It's been a busy week at work and now we've got storm Ellen blasting over the top of us. My photos were taken a little while ago which is just as well because the same view looks like this today -

Island life does mean that we really experience the full benefits of the weather, be it a wild storm like today or a wonderful sunny day. The big outdoors is only a step or a boat ride away and what a joy that is!

I've been delving into my wardrobe again, playing mix and match with skirts and tops, this time coming up with this old scuba skirt (from H&M) and adding the bubble sleeved top from TK Maxx (the brand is By Clara Paris). My silver and white sandals were a hand me down from my daughter (the brand is River Island).

The stretch and leather trim belt was a charity shop find and works a treat to pull the two separates together. The ribbed jersey top is quite thick and does bunch up just by the nature of the fabric, but I find that a snug belt adds a bit of smoothing and control. 

My black pair of Radley sunglasses work really well with the bubble top. See the pretty rose adornments close up here. Cute eh?

Both of my rings are charity shopped too. The rose one is particular favourite.

Weather permitting I'll be going to St Mary's tomorrow to have my hair cut and coloured. This will be the first time I've been since March. We've not had any boating for the past two days however due to the storm so I may not make my appointment. Wish me luck with that! In the meantime, here's a shot of the Gallery from a couple of minutes ago. I was in at work early this morning, but decided to leave when the spray started hitting the gallery windows. I didn't like the prospect of high tide still to come and even more water dashing against the building.

I'll be back on Monday with the Style Not Age Collective, so please do join me then.

Late edit! The Style Challenge is next Monday, the 31st! 

Anna x

Frills and florals

Hello again!

I don't know about you, but it seems to me that August is just rushing past me at a rate of knots. In less than two weeks it'll be September and as so often happens I know I'll feel that summer has flown by without me catching hold of it properly. In that way, life feels just like normal - I know I'm always saying this kind of thing pretty much about now - but in others we're still all floundering about, trying to come to terms with the new normal. At work, I'm coping with the new way of running the Gallery single-handed, although some of my clients don't agree with the rules and restrictions in place. I think this comes from the desire to believe that coming away on holiday equals getting away from COVID too. Unfortunately it doesn't really work like that.

Steve and I wandered off the beaten track on Sunday to take some shots for the blog, ending up here on the walkway leading to the bird hide. There wasn't a bird in sight, apart from me of course!

The outfit of the day comprises of a second-hand linen top from M&S which hasn't been aired previously. It's a lovely tomato red delivering a punch of colour to what was a slightly overcast day. I paired it with these huge swooshy culottes that are a few of years old. I bought them from New Look in the summer sale for £5 and then paid for them to be lined professionally. I bring them out every summer and they always get lots of compliments.

The white leather belt was a charity shop find, as were the silver bangles and silver ring.

The necklace and this ring were also thrift finds. The sunglasses are by Quay Australia.

The wedge sandals are very, very old and were from River Island. They're quite high but the slanted sole at the front means you roll along nicely.

I'll leave you with some shots from our boat trip from Saturday when we went off for a picnic and ended up on Northwethel island. We saw a couple of large bull seals on the way, their massive heads causing ripples as they coasted along. It was lovely to be out on the water on such a perfect day. See you again soon!

Anna x

Hurrah for Dress Up Friday!

Hi there!

Yes, it's that time of the week again! Is it a sign of my age that it always seems to be Friday? The days continue to rush past me with the sudden realisation that it's Friday once again. I recall my mother-in-law saying something very similar decades ago and I always used to be puzzled by the comment, and here I am now, finding the same thing. Anyway, it's Friday and I'm all dolled up for another sashaying session. 

The sunshine dodged in and out from behind the clouds making for interesting tonal variations with each shot of this bubblegum pink dress. I love the deep frill which creates a super swish and flirtiness to this Polo Ralph Lauren dress which was a TK Maxx purchase ages ago. The round neck and sleeveless figure-skimming fit would be classed as a shift dress were it not for the audacious frill. Oh yes, the frill makes it!

If you remember this brooch pile jacket then congratulations to you for being a long-term reader - it was 2016 when I last featured it here. I toyed with the idea of wearing my grey fringed cowboy jacket with this dress, but I think it fell into that dreaded category of Mutton dressed as lamb! The 30 year old that resides in me constantly clamours for a fun and flirty look, but thankfully I still have a cringe radar that sounds when I'm too close to the edge of ridiculous. The Gap denim jacket was a charity shop buy and remains adorned with brooches which I still add and subtract depending on recent finds. The sunglasses are from Sainsburys, again many moons ago and the rings are both pre-loved.

Flashing too much thigh for a bird of my age, but heck, so what!

The two tone suede heels are more pink and red than the burnt orange this shows. Needless to say, these aren't work shoes, but are too pretty not to pair up with this fabulous frock. I bought them from River Island some years ago, but they don't get out much (surprise, surprise!) apart from the odd airing on an exhibition night. 

If you want to check out the other participants of Dress Up Friday then check out the link here. I fancy that by this time next week I'll be back at work, but plan to keep on posting this Friday feature, so please swing by to see what I've been up to. In the meantime, I'm searching for another work outfit to showcase on Monday, so maybe see you then?

Thanks for dropping by and have a lovely weekend!

Anna x

Another summer trouser suit

Hello, and how's your Sunday going? We've had a big gale blowing across the Isles of Scilly over the past few days, but at last the wind is dropping. Polly and I have relocated to give you a different aspect of the island today, showing Bryher in the background, which just so happens to be staging its annual Summer Fete this afternoon. I'll be at work by then, but I'll clip the doors open so that I can enjoy the live music. Fingers crossed for the good weather to hold!

Earlier on this season I declared that this is the year of the trouser suit and here's another one from my collection. Today's outfit isn't new, but is new to me. It's from M&S, but goodness knows how many seasons ago.  I bought it in a charity shop when I was in St Andrews in January with the sole purpose of wearing it on my flight to Cape Town. It's a size bigger than I usually wear which was ideal as I seem to suffer a bloated tummy when I fly. I avoid eating completely and don't drink carbonated drinks, but I still get a painfully tender stomach. Looking back at the photos from the airport in Cape Town, I'd say all of me looks pretty bloated!

Not so much a trouser suit as culottes and matching pyjama top if you wish. The low slung waist and pleated trousers make for a lovely comfy fit. I've added a vest top in similar colour underneath. The label on that says White Stuff which I think I bought many, many moons ago. The button fastening on the top is very clever and well worth a mention. Good ol' M&S have designed the buttons closure to overcome that dreaded gaping over the bust area by adding buttons on the underside of the shirt which don't show through either - how very neat!

All today's jewellery is second hand too. The necklace I picked up in a charity shop when Sasha and I were out shopping together last summer. When we got outside she gently told me that this necklace along with two others were hers, donated only the previous day. I love that we've all gained from this experience: she by getting rid of unwanted pieces and me for finding things that were useful also by putting money into the pockets of our chosen charity. Hurrah! Oh, let's not forget my sunglasses today as they're by Guess, for a change!

These platforms were a River Island purchase, but goodness, that must be at least 10 years ago if not more. I kept them in a box under the bed for yonks and couldn't bear to get rid of them even though I didn't want to wear them. It's funny how you can fall back in love with something after a break isn't it?

I decided to make a concerted effort to avoid any newly-bought-from-the-high-street items in today's offering. My trips to the mainland often result in my being seduced by the latest trends which drags me away from my ideals of buying recycled clothes. I do my best, is all I can say. I bet you're the same.

And finally .... I'm touting a new magazine this week. The Simple Things feels like it's got its finger on the pulse of life currently. The tempo is chilled and all about savouring the moment, whether it's during a camping trip and eating al fresco or how to incorporate mindfulness into our daily life, the mag was a joyful discovery for me.

Some of you may recall me (ages ago) mentioning that I was going to featured in a magazine, and here I am. A big thank you to those involved for getting me into print to showcase my island life. I'm putting a copy of this away so that I can remind myself of my 15 minutes of fame when I'm old and decrepit!

On Tuesday the gallery will be hosting our second-to-last summer show - how did that happen so quickly? Please join me later on this week to see how that one went, along with the outfit of the day. 

In the meantime, have a super week!

Anna x