Wedding weekend

Last weekend saw local couple Andrew and Duffy celebrate their marriage with a blessing on Samson and a festival of fun on Bryher. 

The bride looked beautiful, the groom handsome and the partying went on until daybreak the following day. The Big Hoolie looks set to be replayed every summer with bands, booze and lots of dancing making for a most memorable evening.

Sasha wins the family prize for stamina as she danced until 5am. On an evening where four different bands played sets, once the 11am curfew arrived the revellers donned their headsets and a silent disco continued until daybreak. 

My niece Zoe of Bryher Bakebox fame made the cakes, including her much loved tattie cake.

Steve and Jamie made the wooden cake stand, a rustic take on the standard version.

The marquee was decorated with the help of friends and family alike to create a colourful backdrop for the celebrations. The weather was changeable outside but the huge marquee was windproof and big enough to accommodate eating, drinking and dancing for all.

Steve scrubs up well, doesn't he? My feather trimmed pyjama suit shed forensic evidence all evening, even the ladies loos were documented with my visits.

There is a point where dressing up can be mistaken for fancy dress... A friend, on seeing this photo, asked me what the wedding theme was and I had to explain. The lady on the right had attended the hen do on the mainland, at Rattlerfest for those who might have heard of it. Anyway, the theme for the hens was to wear the worst bridesmaid's dress. This mint green ensemble is the remaking of her hen dress. My feather trimmed pyjama suit cannot be explained away apart from the fact that I always feel I have to try a little bit harder to create the wow factor on these occasions. Dressing up daily for work does set the bar a bit higher than most. That said, I did receive many compliments, one being from a young friend of Sasha's who told me she had been taking in all of the elements of my outfit and had decided that's what she would aspire to at my age. The sandals are from Vinted, the feather trimmed pyjama suit is by River Island but was from Vinted earlier this year.

My one regret of the evening was that I wasn't there for Jamie's speech. Andrew and Jamie grew up together, bonding at the hostel when they were teenagers and having this easy, steady friendship that has matured as they have grown into men. As one of the groomsmen, Jamie had written is thoughts down and somehow managed to reduce the entire company to tears with his story of their lifelong friendship. I've lost count of the number of people who approached us to say what a wonderful speech he delivered. Proud parent moment.

Steve and his sister Gill...

...and with Jo-Jo, one of his great nephews. 

We came home on an 11pm boat, a gentle crossing between the islands on a moonlit evening. It had been a special day, an island gathering for a much loved couple.

On Sunday, we met, a much smaller gathering of family, at the Ruin Beach Cafe for lunch. Somehow Sasha was there despite only having had one hour of sleep!

Oh how I have pizza envy! Even though I can't eat 'em I do love to see them...

Pizza cooked in a wood fired stove - yum yum!

We had a long, lazy lunch and afterwards found the perfect shot to capture my outfit of the day.

Details are: Steve Madden handbag (from TK Maxx), white trousers are a recent buy from Number36 in Penzance, sandals from TK Maxx and top is from Vinted.

The weather was glorious and Tresco was looking pretty perfect in the summer sunshine.

Many thanks to Steve for being my photographer of the day. Despite the heckling, he did a good job. I do hope you've enjoyed the latest catch up from Tresco and the Parkes family. Leave me a comment if you have. 

                                                                    Anna x

New jeans

Hello, and how are you today? Here's a weekend look from me this time. The jeans are a recent purchase and I won't even bother telling you from where... Anyway, I'm really happy with these as a fabulous addition to my wardrobe. I love anything funky and these really do fit the bill!

The fit is high waisted and baggy over the hips and thighs which makes them super comfy and easy to wear, perfect for the weekend when lounging around is top priority. 

The jeans boast every kind of embellishment; from diamante strands and hearts to rough patchwork, bleach splatters and everything in between. It's a retro look that has huge appeal to me. I've cinched the waistband with a bejewelled belt and accessorized with a diamante heart ring, a flower enamel ring and two rose gold bangles - none of them new.

The bright orange jeans jacket is by Forever 21, bought from Vinted, of course. It's a great little jacket that I'm sure will be very handy over the summer months.

One of my go-to pieces this year is a white ribbed bodysuit from Primark. I think I've got three of these, all exactly the same. The best thing about them is the cut around the rear - they don't ride up and are generously cut, almost like granny pants which stay put not matter what I get up to. A thonged bodysuit is my idea of torture!

My new pale aqua sandals with floral and diamante trim are also from Vinted, cost me £5 and were brand new - so an absolute bargain in other words! The insole is padded for comfort - a word I seem to use a lot at the moment.

The rectangular sunglasses are old, from Quay Australia. The gold coloured chain was a purchase from Accessorize last year - it's stainless steel and was advertised as being perfect for everyday wear for swimmers. I've not tested it out as I don't want to find it doesn't live up to the promise.

I was out watching the sunset from this vantage point just above Appletree Bay. We've had a mixed bag of weather recently ranging from scorching sunshine to thick fog with a sprinkling of showers too. I'm making an effort to get out after work and at the weekends to enjoy the lovely weather while it's here.

                                                                              Anna x

The orange linen dress at last!

At last, here's my homemade linen dress and petticoat! After many alterations the dress finally fits, but as you progress through the photos you'll see that the petticoat is a tad too long. This has come about due to the fact that I had to take almost 2 inches off the bodice, hence the length of the dress is shorter than when I took my measurements at the start of this venture. But this too can be altered and will be in due course.

In celebration of the showcase event I decided to add my floral headband - well of course you'd expect nothing less from me eh?

As I'd mentioned previously the neckline of the dress wasn't sitting properly so I took it off to my sewing teacher and she did a fitting on me which revealed that the length of the bodice was causing the problem. After much tweaking and resewing I finally made the adjustments and now it fits like a glove. Dress number two, in aqua linen, is now undergoing the same amendments and hopefully will be ready to wear soon.

I bought these pink suede sandals from Vinted to wear with the outfit - that was £5 well spent! They're very comfy and are a great colour match. 

The only problem with wearing a frothy petticoat is that I want to do lots of swishing it about!

I did a search online for an orange and pink necklace finding this one on the Zara website. I'm having a real thing about pink and orange together at the moment so this will be popping up on the blog often I'm sure! My rings are both old but perfect for today's look. The pink stretch belt is rather ancient too, but does the trick.

I'm so very pleased to have turned this little lot into this - 

Many thanks to those of you who have taken an interest in my first foray into the world of dressmaking. During lockdown I took it upon myself to make new covers for my sofa and chairs which seemed to be an impossible task, but I somehow achieved it. After a lapse of three years I'm back in the sewing groove, living and breathing old reruns of The Great British Sewing Bee and loving the new challenge of dressmaking. 

                                                                                        Anna x