And fur coats too!

Hurrah for the joys of dressing up big time! Oh what fun I'm having playing around with lots of fur and sparkly things this month. As ever, I really don't have many going out options, partly because of living on this tiny, but beautiful, island, but mostly because I don't drink alcohol and therefore pub life isn't really my thing. So this was me, on a lovely sunny Sunday afternoon, all dressed up and nowhere to go.

I have maybe half a dozen fur coats, but this is my current favourite. It was from River Island quite a few years ago and I still get excited at the prospect of wearing it. The length somehow adds to the sense of luxury plus it has that reassuring weightiness to it - what a fab fur it is!

The coffee and cream palate is decidedly conservative for me so I thought the best way to ramp things up was by adding as many extra bells and whistles as possible. The satin combat trousers are by Zara purchased from a Truro charity shop recently. They're two sizes too big, but never to be put off by such small matters, I simply added the cow print belt (from Vinted) to tie in with the coat and cinched the waist in as tight as possible.

Next up is the cream blouse with these fabulous frilled arms. These obviously need to be flashed about to gain the full effect. The blouse is from TK Maxx. The pony skin boots again in cow print were a Vinted buy some time ago and work perfectly with the overall look.

The rings are preloved and the sunglasses are by Radley London. 

I'm pleased to say that I've nearly wrapped all of my Christmas presents already and am about to start writing my Christmas cards. Coming up this weekend is the first stint of fudge making for my far-flung relatives. Somehow I've not managed to amass the fancy fudge boxes that I like to use for this sweetest of gifts so I'll just have to get creative with what I can find. Wish me luck with that. 

And that pretty much winds things up this week. I do hope to fabricate an excuse to wear some party clothes soon - I missed our island staff party at the weekend as I was a bit under the weather so that's one opportunity dashed! But never mind, as my husband often has remarked, I'll get dressed up for the opening of an envelope so I'll be turning up here next week in another fancy outfit (as opposed to fancy dress!).

Sending you my warmest festive greetings and wishing you successful shopping in the final run-up to Christmas!

Anna x

Catch up

Hello again and thanks for dropping by! I've been away for a week, primarily for a business meeting but Christmas shopping came in at a close second. I visited the studio of Emily Nixon so that we could discuss an exciting new project. Gallery Tresco has had a very good season selling Emily's jewellery resulting in the team asking me to visit so that we could brainstorm a bespoke range for 2025. 

The studio is like a twinkly Aladdin's Cave, full of all sorts of gorgeous silver and gold pieces just begging to be tried on. And try on I did! The range we're creating will be based on the sea colours around the islands using sapphires gathered from across the globe but always ethically mined from dealers that Emily herself meets to check the authenticity of the stones.

These gemstone rings were hugely popular over the summer which alerted Emily to this new retail opportunity for our Tresco clients. We hope to have the island collection in place by March which will be a great way to start the season.

So apart from this I also had a haircut while I was in Truro. Much as I'm enjoying having longer hair it really was in need of a tidy up. I went to Afina Hair Salon and had an appointment with Billy. See my before and after photos below -

Before...

...and after.

Before...

...and after. I'm very happy with the cut and just wish I could replicate the styling and glossy finish now that I'm home. I have endless products but not a lot of know-how about achieving this level of finish.

And now for my outfit of the week - 

It's turned terribly cold here after being blasted by the recent storm, but this has proved to be a blessing in disguise allowing me to bring out my fur coat from the depths of my wardrobe. This cow print full length coat was from River Island either last year or the year before - sorry to be so vague, but the fact is, I still love it!

I'm wearing an old sweater and new cream jeans from Vinted along with new Zara boots from Vinted too. I paid £10 for these brand new cow print boots - what a great bargain!

The boots almost had an airing with last month's SNA challenge but this was one of the outfits that didn't make the grade. The boots however are definitely winners! (Not that the skirt wasn't - it was simply a styling issue).

My mainland hairdo is a thing of the past already. As for jewellery - the gold coloured chain was a Vinted purchase earlier this year, the gold flower ring was a gift from a friend some time ago and the silver and enamel ring was a charity shop find. Sunglasses are from Radley London.

And that pretty much winds things up for the moment. I'm suddenly in full fudge making mode now that it's December and I've made a double batch yesterday to send to my relatives in Scotland. I'll pack this up tomorrow and get some off in the post before the Christmas rush starts.

Thanks for swinging by! I'll see you again next week - I promise x

Anna x