Slowing down fast fashion

Hello again! Today's outfit is all about slowing down fast fashion. Every so often I get an attack of the guilts about fast fashion and so this is my attempt to prolong the life of one such item. The piece in question is this pair of black and green joggers by Shein which I bought in a charity shop, a move that I can of course applaud myself for as this is step one in affecting a change. 

Step two, for me, is to customise an item, hence making it not only more unique and so the very opposite of fast fashion, but also to prolong my love affair with it as it becomes much more individual and therefore more likely for me to retain and love it for years to come. When I bought these joggers (for only £3!) the one thing I found lacking was pockets. After wearing them once I decided to rectify this by adding my own. It was easier than I expected as I first scavenged two pockets of similar material, but beautifully contrasting pattern, from an old silky dressing gown that I keep as best, therefore never wear. I carefully opened the side seams of the joggers and simply stitched the satin pockets in place. I tested the materials on the sewing machine, but they puckered as they are different fabrics so I sewed them by hand in a tiny stitch first one direction and then back the other to give it strength. Et viola! 

The marriage of joggers and boots is indeed a perfect and very happy one. I'm thrilled to find yet another reason to wear these fab, comfy and trendy boots (TK Maxx, but see similar ones here from ASOS). This was a work outfit from last week. I'm currently updating art in many of the holiday cottages and these photos are from a trip out to the Sea Garden Cottages. Check out the view from Nautilus below - 

Stunning eh?

The rest of my outfit is all old, some preloved, such as the roll neck sweater. The studded jacket is by Michael Kors, a purchase from TK Maxx many years ago, but still much worn. We all love a classic jeans jacket and this one simply has a bit more bling than usual!

None of my accessories are new; the sunglasses are by Radley, rings are thrifted and my Vivienne Westwood pendant is quite a few years old now, but more precious than ever since her recent death. 

For my birthday last month I was given this beautifully comprehensive tome of Vivienne's legacy to the fashion world, one that will be a source of inspiration to me especially when I look to customise clothing in the future. There is nothing that she didn't make and no fashion rule that she didn't break. Bold and brilliant, her designs were cutting edge, her lack of respect and perversity were legendary. The most memorable photo I saw of her was outside Buckingham Palace after receiving her OBE from the Queen when she flashed her knickerless parts for the press. The book catalogues her wit, her passion and all of the models who flocked to be part of her world.

Thank you for joining me for this week's round up. I hope you have a great week and look forward to seeing and hearing from you again soon!

                                                                                Anna x

My outfit of the week

Hello again! How are you? I've been busy as ever this past week with some days spent out in the holiday cottages packing art and others back at my desk catching up on admin. This was an office outfit, a new houndstooth check suit, a recent purchase from Primark. The inverted pleat skirt and boxy jacket aren't lined but are a heavyweight fabric which is ideal for this time of year. 

I'm very partial to a suit as you probably know, and this green and black combination is zesty and fun. It's definitely a winter outfit as I won't be wearing it without thick tights due to the length of the skirt. I sounded Steve out at the time of purchase to see if it was okay and it got his approval. 

It's easy to be a bit dismissive of high street fashion, but if you curate the look with some individual accessories you can personalise it to speak your own style. By adding this double buckle and stud trimmed belt the focal point moves, drawing the eye to the waistline. From there the eye travels to my green orb pendant by Vivienne Westwood. My rings are old, preloved and perfect finishing features for the look.

The final flourish has to be these black stretch ankle boots with contrasting green soles. The chunky soles are bang on trend and work to balance the outfit avoiding a top heavy look. I found these in TK Maxx. 

My old black Radley sunglasses finish things off nicely!

This outfit will work equally well when we re-open in March and I'll still be wearing tights for warmth. I can swap out the white body for a black roll neck on colder days and also have a lime green tank to slip on for a different take. 

I've had two trips to the mainland in October, each enabling me to have a few hours of lovely retail therapy. I had time to visit some of my favourite charity shops as well as some high street stores. The spread above is a joyful collection gathered with winter in mind to give my wardrobe a huge injection of colour. The happiest find of all had to be a pink trouser suit, the holy grail of shopping for me. You may have heard me talk of the fruitless search for my perfect pink two piece a couple of years ago and suddenly, out of the blue, I found it! A special suit deserves a special occasion, so it'll turn up at some stage, don't worry.

                                                                                                     Anna x

This Christmas I'll be wearing...

Happy Christmas lovelies and thanks for swinging by at this busy time of year! Without you, my dear readers, it would be a very pointless hobby indeed to run a blog with no viewers, so my sincere thanks go to you for turning up - I'm sending a virtual hug to each and every one of you. For those of you who take the time to comment, I'm indebted to you for the ongoing dialogue that ensues, giving me an insight into your fashion likes and dislikes as well as snippets of your own lives. It's a joy.

A couple of months ago I was asked to take part in a fashion feature about Christmas Day outfits, the resulting effort being here. I was delighted to be approached (forgive my vanity) and am thrilled that the feature is now live in the Christmas edition of Yours magazine. 

Regular reader Phyllis responded to my call out for a copy of the magazine and here it is, just in time for Christmas! We've not had newspapers or magazines in our island shop since March, so can you imagine my frustration to be told I've got a wee claim to fame and yet not be able to buy a copy? 

My spin on a festive outfit is based around these rather fabulous embroidered trousers which I paid £20 for in the Truro branch of Oxfam. Red may be a huge cliche for Christmas day, but sometimes you just have to play it how it feels and this felt right. We normally go out for a glass of fizz at our local pub at lunchtime on Christmas day, but we've decided to give that a miss this year. The ritual of standing in a lovely friendly huddle around the bar as people mill around hugging and kissing as they pass on their Christmas wishes is sadly a step too far now. 

I'm particularly pleased with this look especially as it's mostly created from second hand and vintage pieces. The only thing I bought brand new were the M&S tartan boots which are now two years old. The red duster is a vintage Chinese jacket scattered with sprigs of embroidery, costing the grand sum of £3. The pleated men's shirt was another pre-loved bargain at £4.50. The Tommy Hilfiger belt was another charity shop trophy find showing no signs of wear to the leather at all. 

The cocktail rings are both pre-loved, worn with my much loved Vivienne Westwood pendant and Quay Australia sunglasses.

Do florals and tartan go together? Why of course they do!

I'm counting my blessings more than ever this Christmas that I have my children living nearby. Our Christmas day meal will be the same as ever for the four of us; we all acknowledged our fortune as we shared our Christmas Eve dinner together this evening. How lucky are we to all live within half a mile of each other? Not only that of course, but to be in Tier 1 is what's relevant. 

I must sneak off now to wrap up the last few presents. Do take care of yourselves and I hope to catch up with you again soon.

Here's wishing you all a very Happy Christmas!

Anna x

Gothic Romance, our Style Not Age challenge for October

Hi there! Welcome to the October Style Not Age challenge, set this month by Emma. I'll be totally honest and admit that when Emma announced that Gothic Romance was her theme, well my heart sank. Gothic anything is my least favourite thing in the whole world. The popularity of the Goth trend is something that seems to have eluded me over the years. I'm not sure what the appeal is at all. However, as you can see, I found an outfit of sorts which ticked that box. Sorry Emma, this one is just not for me!

As you can tell, Emma is in her element with this - and why not? She and her hubby travelled to a local beauty spot to capture the right atmosphere for her outfit too. Read all about her back story on Style Splash. 

Hilda looks the part in this dramatic setting too. Also wearing black with lace, she is embracing the seasonal theme. See more from her on Over The Hilda.

Jacqui is looking just a tad concerned at the prospect of something spooky about to happen down in the woods. Find out if there were any goulish happenings on Mummabstylish.

And last, but by no means least, is Gail who looks to be in her element with this challenge. Bravo with your interpretation of this! Check out her story on Is This Mutton.

My Gothic Romance dress was from Zara quite a few years ago, as were the sock boots. The dark green sheer crepe fabric is whispy and feminine. As winter dresses go it's useful to have in my wardrobe, but I seem to have fallen out of love with it. I've kept hold of it for occasions like this - it was the only thing that came to mind immediately and I honestly looked no further. 

Accessories read like this - black mirror sunglasses are by Quay Australia, citrine rings are - small one gifted, large one charity shopped and pendant is by Vivienne Westwood.

The Zara sock boots often give rise to comments about me wearing fishnet tights over my boots. From the close-up you can see they are created from two layers which indeed give that effect. 

Apologies to the ladies of the collective as I just seem to have gone through the motions with this month's challenge. I fancy that I may be suffering from the the winter blahs and this theme didn't bring out the best in me, sorry!

                                                                                      Anna x

Checks, plaid, tartan...

Checks, plaid, tartan, call it what you will, but this pattern is very much my calling card for the autumn/winter months. I love the sock-it-to-me boldness of these trousers which encompass so many of my joys all in one. From the zingy orange colour to the wide cut of the trousers to the obligatory pockets and neat fitting high waist, these new trews are my latest delight. The brand is Collusion and I found them on ASOS a couple of weeks ago, although they appear to be all sold out now I'm afraid.

The outfit is a mix of old, new and charity shopped. The wool roll neck was a charity shop find last year, the fabric boots are by Zara (see them here) and the Michael Kors jacket is a few years old now. 

From the shoes up, this outfit was all about comfort. Some days that's the main focus as I'm getting dressed, but I'm happy to say that I don't think I've had to compromise on style with this luxe look. The trainers have a stretch top to them, knitted in fabric all the way to the ankle and I must admit I felt like that I was at work in my slippers all day long - what heaven!

A little aside here: I just wanted to acknowledge the presence of the storm boards that are now in place for the next few months. I hate to have them in the way of our view from the gallery window, but with the prevailing winds, high tides and storm surges they're a necessary addition to keep us safe. Apart from that they impact on my daily photo shoots, but at least you still get a glimpse of the view beyond.

Today's sparkle comes in the form of rings from Diana Porter and Emily Nixon and orb pendant by Vivienne Westwood. 

I've been gathering a few photo shoots together in my draft box ready for when Polly leaves me. In fact we have our last day of working together tomorrow. Her daily input into my life as well as the business will be sorely missed, but at least I'll see her often as she'll be just five minutes away. I'll be dipping into that back catalogue for a couple of weeks and hopefully by then I'll be back into the swing of my winter shoots with tripod and timer again. Steve and Sasha are both on call too when I'm needing a hand, so hopefully it'll look like business as usual for you readers. Thanks for dropping by and here's to our journey into winter together!

Anna x

Bring on the sparkle

I've promised sparkle and here we have the first offering. My post is a bit later than I planned today, but that was due to the terrible weather this week, right up until yesterday when it poured with rain all day long. Today as you can see was a beautiful sunny day, perfect for a photo shoot by the sea. I've had this dress since January yet haven't worn it anywhere. I'm testing out a few outfits over the next few days so that I can get your feedback about what I ought to wear to the annual island party on Friday. Last year I really pushed the boat out see here, but think that this time I want to be less of the grande dame and wear something more fun that I can dance in too.

So this is no1. Wednesday's post will feature more sequined loveliness for your delectation and Friday's yet more again - all variations on a theme. Please feel free to drop me a line with your thoughts. I love to read your comments and perhaps this Christmas countdown could be your first time to be bold enough to let me know what you honestly think. I'm still waiting for a new pair of boots which will give me another option, but I'm not sure if I'll get the chance to photograph this in time. 

Details - dress: H&M, shoes: Debenhams, tights: old, clutch: charity shop, pendant: Vivienne Westwood, rings: charity shop, sunglasses: Quay Australia.

Linking with -

Catherine of Not Dressed As Lamb

Patti of Not Dead Yet Style

Jess of Elegantly Dressed And Stylish

Cherie of Style Nudge

Anna x