Sweet dreams!

This is a sponsored post - all text is my honest opinion.

I recently received this gift box,The Ultimate Dream Kit, from TENA Lady to help with a sound night's sleep and very welcome it was too. Like a lot of women I'm trying to re-establish a sleep pattern after emerging from the menopause. The night sweats from those years have taken their toll, disrupting the deep REM sleep we need to process the workings of the mind and rejuvenate the body.

According to TENA 61% of women in the UK admit to experiencing bladder weakness at some point in their lives which certainly applied to me years ago. I wonder how many in that survey declined to admit they did? It's not an easy subject to discuss, but I thought it's the least I could do to be honest with my readers. Childbirth left me with stress incontinence - coughing, sneezing and even just carrying a bag of heavy shopping caused me to leak; I felt at my least feminine and painfully embarrassed too. While I was waiting for an operation to repair what was actually a prolapse, I relied on TENA pads to allow me to carry on with my everyday life. And now they've introduced a range of night time pads which offer all night protection allowing you to have a dry and comfortable night's sleep.

I'm already a fan of This Works as a brand that actually delivers on its promises. After a warm bedtime bath, I've been using the Deep Sleep Night Oil to give myself a lovely massage before bundling up my cosy pj's. My bedtime ritual is to read until I'm drowsy and just before I switch off the light I waft a couple of pumps of the Deep Sleep Pillow Spray across the entire pillow. It has the most delicious aroma of Lavender, Vetivert and Wild Camomile that combine to give an incredibly relaxing effect. I've used it for the past week and it really does work. Previously I'd read until sleepy and then somehow the minute my head would hit the pillow all sorts of unfinished business would start zooming around my brain. No more tossing and turning for me now! Click on the highlighted link below or above to be taken to the Sleep Solutions page of This Works.

The Night Time Pukka tea delivers the same dreamy notes of Lavender and the floral blend was easy on the palate, but I didn't actually drink it at bedtime as was recommended. I cut down on liquids in the evening so as to reduce my trips to the loo - another legacy from having babies or just a sign of old age? Who knows, but bedtime drinks are out for me.

I'm always happy to have a new book to read and this one was a good introduction on learning how to understand the meaning of dreams. "Discovering what the dream is telling you is half of the game; the other half is to apply the insight. A dream is practical and useful-if and only if- you apply its insight. Its application helps you unleash your potential one step at a time and puts the odds in your favour of achieving success, peace and happiness." Some people say they don't dream, but I seem to have my dreams drifting about in my head for ages. Maybe once I've finished the book I'll have a better understanding of what the messages from those dreams are and can work on them. Another of the gifts was a Dream Catcher that you may see in the first shot - said to encourage happy and positive dreams!

  "When you cease to dream you cease to live"

Malcolm Forbes

"Dreams" is a journal that seeks to inspire us to follow our dreams. Whether you've just turned 60 like me or are still in the full flush of youth, there's never a better time to write down your hopes and aspirations. Unless you pin them down, pad them out and map how your future could look you'll never start taking steps towards those dreams. I know this may sound crazy, but turning 60 has taken me a bit by surprise. It's a big number, prompting not just a full stop and a new paragraph, but I think it heralds a whole new chapter in my life. At the moment I'm taking stock and this inviting journal will be most useful for laying out my plans.

Anna x

Ted Baker skirt

Here's another outfit from my birthday weekend. If you missed all the fun then you can catch up on the celebrations here. Just before Christmas I bought this rather splendid Ted Baker skirt that I scooped up in TK Maxx when it was discounted by 75%. Too good a bargain to miss I say! The moment I saw it I instantly knew that I wanted to wear it over my birthday weekend, and this is how I did.

The skirt is the only new piece of the outfit. The red sock boots from H&M have been worth the money already and are still favourites of mine. The shirt was from Sainsbury's last year and is becoming a classic piece for me. 

I added the bright cerise belt to bring out the pink of the blooms. It was an eBay purchase for under a fiver which is another great bargain. I just love that pop of colour!

I had coerced Steve into being my photographer this day and I really ought to have taken a shot of him. Here was I in my flimsy shirt and flouncy skirt braving the elements on this windswept balcony and Steve was bundled up in his winter coat, heavy boots and flat cap - talk about contrasts!

The little row of cottages behind me are called Blockhouse Cottages and this is where Steve grew up and lived until we married. We had a little boat moored in the bay below the house and would spend our weekends buzzing around the tiny uninhabited islands, fishing, shrimping on the low tides and having picnics on deserted beaches. And now that our children are all grown up we're back revisiting those times during the summer months and still counting our blessings for this idyllic lifestyle.

This lovely crystal pendant was a charity shop find, the triangle ring was from Sainsbury's and the oval one was from East many moons ago. 

Looking at this now, I can see that this would make a great outfit for one of my gallery exhibitions. I understand that the fashion for sock boots will fade, but as you probably know I'm not a slave to fashion and will wear this particular trend well past its sell by date. I think that surely has to be one of the perks of being a mature style blogger; I can fall in love with a trend and just add to to my own list of classics without feeling pressured to move onto the next must-have piece.

I can't believe that it's already two weeks since this wonderful party weekend. That wistful look on my face was me trying to capture the moment and hold it dear. Thank goodness I have lots of photos to remind me of those special times with all of the people who helped to make it so. Next month Steve and I have one final joint treat to mark our 60th birthdays. We're off to London to see Paloma Faith in concert at the O2. This will be our first ever concert which is quite funny at our age. None the less, it's an exciting thought and hopefully will be all that we could imagine. We'll be off-island for a week, so rest assured I'll bring back lots of imagery from the trip for you to see.

Enjoy your weekend!

Anna x

Frills and finery

I'm not an organised shopper in the way that some women are. You know that thing when you buy a skirt, the advice is to buy something to go with it too so that you have a complete outfit. I'm always on the run when I'm shopping and therefore I tend to grab what catches my eye and then worry about the pairing up once I'm home. That's how it was with this lovely mesh skirt that I found in TK Maxx, but in the back of my mind were the boots that I'd bought in the Zara sale (grab yourself a bargain here).

I couldn't resist this matchy-matchy look. 

The frilled blouse (charity shop find) was an afterthought, but works tonally I thought. If I'd been at home for this shoot I probably would have added my big leopard fur coat to finish the look off. See that here.

Sock boots were the revelation of the year for me in 2017. I love the fit and the elegance of them, plus they seem to suit my leg shape. My calves are well defined and sometimes can look more so in a bulkier boot. The slim, elasticated shape seem to refine the outline.

The gobstopper ring was a charity shop find, the triangle one came from Sainsury's and the blingy necklace was from a boutique in Truro. The belt was from eBay, a purchase from a couple of years ago, but when it arrived I discovered that it was too big. At Christmas I had a mending day, sewing bits and pieces and came across the belt in my mending pile. I cut the belt at the back, removed a few inches of the elastic and joined the ends together using some strong thread on my sewing machine. You'll be seeing this one again and again I expect.

These photos will be another reminder of my weekend at Nautilus cottage for my 60th birthday celebrations. If you missed that (where have you been?) then see the link here to take you back and for the Abba party see here. 

I'll sign off now and wish you a lovely weekend. As I look out the window the sun is shining and that's surely time for me to get out for a walk. Yesterday I walked for about three miles looking for beach to swim on, but the winds were too fierce. I'll leave you with some island photos I've taken over the past week, starting with one that I actually captured from my kitchen window while I was busy cooking yesterday afternoon. It's a pretty special view at the best of times, but I love to watch this local guy zoom back and forth across the bay between Tresco and Bryher when the winds are fresh. (Note to self - if Gareth is out kite surfing, then it's too wild for me to be sea swimming!)

This view down the channel marks the difference between the summer and winter. If this were summer, there would be no clear water, just lots and lots of boats and yachts moored up making a little community all of its own. We're only weeks away from the new season starting and I'm ready for it. We've had enough of gales and wet grey days. Bring on 2018 summer season!

Anna x

Birthday weekend

So here's the final reprise of my birthday weekend. We had decamped to Nautilus Cottage for a few days which was sheer luxury. The views across the islands stretch out from every vantage point.

I could imagine that this must be a lovely spot in the summer.

The cottage has an upside down layout meaning you can lounge around upstairs all day long as you take in the stunning views. 

See the professional shots of the house here. 

Birthday cards, flowers and presents from family and friends - I felt very spoilt!

A sumptuous photo album.

Personalised gift vouchers.

Sasha gave me this fabulous memento of my blogging days.

The Neil Pinkett painting was a gift from Steve.

He also gave me this silver and gold ruffle ring by Emily Nixon.

My niece Kate gave me the splendid tome from Vogue.

I had arrived before the rest of the family and once I'd set the house up, I decided to do a photo shoot. The light was a bit challenging, especially as I was using the timer on the camera, but at least you get a bit of an idea of what I was wearing to chill out in. The sweater is from TK Maxx, as is the fur coat and the funky trainers. My jeans are pre-loved (by Next) and caught my eye because of the metallic buttons in different colours. Sunglasses are my old faithfuls by Quay Australia.

This cottage is part of the Sea Garden development which was built on the the site of the old Island Hotel, the place that I came to work in all those years ago (40 to be precise). In fact, the rooms that I cleaned were numbers 37,38, 39 and 40, and this cottage sits exactly where they were, so it was funny to imagine myself beetling about making beds, cleaning baths and hoovering in this very same spot during my time as a chambermaid. Myself and the other chambermaids were a scatty bunch, but we worked hard and played hard and we constantly played tricks on each other. One of the favourites was to sneak along the corridor when someone was vacuuming, then switch off their hoover and hide nearby. As they were puzzling over what was amiss the game was to jump out and make them scream. Much hilarity ensued, followed by the housekeeper's footsteps as she came to tell us off. The trick was to make yourself scarce so that you weren't caught as the perpetrator. (The housekeeper just so happened to also be my mother-in-law!)

This was taken in 1986. Myself and the other chambermaids were waiting, nay loitering about, in the hope of seeing Prince Charles who was making a visit to the island for the day. What a long time ago that seems now!

Anna x

My ABBA party!

Yep, here we are, hubby and me having a little pre-drinks party in Nautilus cottage (see here) before we joined the revellers in our local pub for my ABBA party. We moved into this holiday cottage for the weekend as part of my 60th birthday celebrations and invited some of the family around to get us in the mood for the night ahead. 

One or two fuzzy shots are inevitable as the booze was flowing freely!

My niece Zoe (far right here) owns and runs the grocery store on the neighbouring island of Bryher and in addition to looking after her young son, also has a thriving cake making business. My dietary issues mean I can't eat cake and I was worried that I'd miss out on that particular birthday treat, but Zoe delivered this wonderful chocolate cake for everyone else to enjoy.

Zoe copied my pink patent brogues to perfection. They look too good to eat, don't they? Follow the link here to see more of Zoe's incredible cakes as well as seeing her adorable son Emilio. 

And this is Jamie downloading ABBA music at the last minute as plan A had gone awry. He did a fabulous job with only 30 minutes notice, helping with the playlist and putting the sound system in place at the pub in time for the party to start. 

Oh, just one last tweak!

So here they are, all the party goers in their various and splendid outfits -

Ready!

All the shiny, happy people.

All that hair!

All those teeth!

Pucker up!

Ben was a previous gallery assistant of mine, but didn't look half as sexy then!

Have you lost something, Steve?

As the evening progressed, the boys became girls and...

... the girls became boys!

The family photos seemed to be lacking my favourite daughter every time!

Boys in green satin, boys in blue satin - it's not often you see that in our local pub!

  

My poor feet were aching after four hours of dancing in these heels.

Catching up with Polly... 

... and Heather.

And my other gallery helper, Max on the left. What an amazing wig!

Diggin' that man-love!

The smoke machine was working overtime, but that didn't stop them boogying. 

I'm so grateful to everyone who made my evening the success it was. I think about half of the adult island population came and weren't the outfits just fantastic! I'm already thinking that I need another birthday party like this next year - it's the perfect antidote to that post-Christmas slump. Another year, another theme... Any ideas?

I had lots of lovely gifts for my birthday and want to share them in another post. I also managed to fit in a couple of photo shoots while I was in Nautilus, so will feature some of that in my next post later on this week. I gave myself a few days away from work and the usual domestic routines as well as social media, but now I'm back home I need to get back on track. So to my fellow bloggers - I'll be round to see you soon. And to all my readers - thanks for your patience and I hope you thought my ABBA post was worth waiting for.

See you soon!

Anna x