Autumn styling tricks


Hello lovely peeps, how's things with you? You may recall me bemoaning the end of summer in a recent post and the fact that autumn represents a struggle for me style-wise. Well today I've taken the simple approach by following the fashion advice of Red magazine. The feature captured my attention mainly as I could see that I already had similar items languishing in my wardrobe.



There's nothing better than finding all of the necessary pieces in ones closet to make up a brand new outfit. My pale peach utility wear jumpsuit is so comfortable and now it seems I can extend the life of it for another couple of months. I bought mine in Topshop in the summer sale.


I'm a big fan of belts of all widths meaning that I already had this very similar one. I've had it for yonks and have no idea where I bought it. It's a lovely piece made of soft, thick leather which is why I've held onto it. On trend or not, I keep hold of quality items, not just because of the inevitability of the fashion coming around again, but because they're an absolute asset.


The snakeskin biker jacket was gifted to me by JD Williams earlier this year. See it online here. It's a lovely soft fabric, an artificial suede that wears well and hangs nicely. The rose gold necklace is pre-loved, the rose gold edged sunglasses are by Quay Australia.


My snakeskin print ankle boots were from New Look. They have a new version for this season here. This shape of Chelsea boot seems to fit my foot shape perfectly and are all-day comfortable for me - just enough heel, but not too high.


Another quality leather item is my natural leather Radley bag. If you hurry you can catch the Radley half price sale online here. Mine was an snip from a charity shop which won't surprise you. It pays to have an eagle eye, even if you're not that into second hand shopping. The flower enamel ring was another charity shop find and the ethnic ring was from a market in Cape Town (happy days!).



So, what have I learnt from Red's fashion styling tricks? It seems that by simply adding a jacket and pair of boots to summer clothes, well hey presto, that amounts to autumn dressing! I'm going to be applying this to lots of my summer clothes, that's the ones that haven't already been packed away at least. Coming up later this week, I'll be showing you how one of my favourite summer dresses looks when it gets this autumn treatment.

Did you like today's feature? If so, please let me know.

Anna x

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That Friday feeling

Some outfits have that real Friday feeling; that end of the week buzz which sets you up for the weekend. This is mine. I adore this Boden skirt, the shape, the colourway, the print - all of it. It's a great building block that never fails for me. My blue biker jacket is another favourite piece which never lets me down. Put the two together and I feel on top of the world. 












My other go-to item is, of course, a pair of brogues and today's are my mint green lovelies. You may argue that my yellow Candy Bag is not the best partner for this colour of shoes, but I'm not really one to play by the rules. I pretty much do my own thing, my own way, to please myself. And this is the end result. A collection of much loved pieces put together creating a fab look of the day. And so I shall head off into the weekend with a spring in my step. I hope you too are looking forward to some down time, maybe even a bit of retail therapy, over the bank holiday weekend. Perhaps we can reconvene on Sunday over a coffee and croissant?

Jacket: Toxic3 (TK Maxx). Skirt: Boden. T shirt: charity shop. Shoes (currently on offer at £45): Office. Tights: Dorothy Perkins. Necklace: Daisy Dunlop. Candy Bag: Furla (TK Maxx). Sunglasses: Quay Australia.
Anna x

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One simple dress + one red underskirt = Joy!

So this is one of my charity shop finds from my recent jaunt to Harrogate. I mean the dress, which was originally from Topshop before it ended up in someones "to go" pile. The underskirt was my Christmas present to my dear friend Bo a couple of years ago. She lives in Portugal and I don't think has had many opportunities to wear it, therefore she very kindly sent it back for me to wear. And now that I've found the perfect frock to showcase it, I trotted off to work feeling pretty pleased with myself. Vain, what, moi? 











Sometimes an outfit just comes together without much orchestrating from me. A colour starts things off, then one item leads to another, and before I know it, the whole shebang is there. Without the red underskirt this is an OK outfit to my mind, but by adding that splash of red, the whole thing just sings. I feel duty bound to add a bit of joy to my life as often as I can. And the thought that this joy may be spread and shared through my ramblings and colourful blog photos is a real bonus. Life is a gift, and gifts are all the better for sharing.




My early morning sea swimming starts me off with a burst of joy. By the time I get out of the sea, after whatever distance, my mood is one of joy. How can I not feel fantastic after the ultimate exercise in clear, blue sea with only the birds and an occasional seal for company? To experience nature, to be part of this daily wonder, well, I'm forever grateful for that rebirth every morning. I get a chance to count my blessings, say my thanks for all the riches my life offers up, and ask for guidance with whatever challenges may occur in the day ahead. On a much more practical level, I'm always grateful that the icy waters have been good to me; the current and swell not been too overwhelming; and the sea hasn't been too choppy or too plain-old-freezing for me to bear! 

Jacket: TK Maxx. Dress: Topshop (charity shop). Underskirt: eBay. Tights: Dorothy Perkins. Shoes: Boden. Belt: charity shop. Rings: charity shop. Sunglasses: Quay Australia.

Linking with
Jess of Elegantly Dressed And Stylish
Cherie of Style Nudge 




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Heels or flats?

Mornings seem to be such a rush for me. No matter how early I get up, I'm always rushing when I finally get dressed. I wish I could be one of those very organised people who get their prep done the night before. The idea of laying out my clothes in the evening seems like a great plan, but it doesn't work for me. I really like to wait to see the day before I commit. Once I've come back from swimming I have a better sense of what the day ahead will be like weather wise. Yes, I know that British weather can be so changeable, but at least I can make a better stab at it in the morning. 








And this is where the outfit goes wrong to my mind. Much as I love these shoes and was delighted to get the tartan tights out for their blog debut, it didn't take me long to decide I wasn't happy. By lunchtime I needed to get our of these crazy high heels (so impractical for work) and that's what I did.

My gold boots were instantly an improvement, and dispensing with the patterned tights in favour of the block colour also seemed like the right move. In addition, I could actually get up and down the ladder at work which is pretty important when it comes to moving artwork around! Dressing up for work is great, but sometimes I forget the need to be functional. Thank goodness I live only 200m from work making this quick change at lunchtimes an easy task. In fact I sometimes have to change my entire outfit because the temperature has risen so much by lunchtime. The huge gallery windows offer a great view, but can act as a greenhouse too, meaning a cosy outfit for the early morning start can cause meltdown by midday.





On a fine evening this is my favourite spot to watch the sun go down. 





Jacket: TK Maxx. Skirt: Mounts Bay Trading Co. Shirt: gift. Belt: old. Burgundy shoes: charity shop. Tartan tights: eBay. Gold boots: River Island. Cobalt tights: eBay. Necklace: Charlie Dodge. Pink ring: gift. Blue ring: charity shop.


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