H&M jumpsuit

Hi and happy Wednesday to you!

As the summer draws to an end I'm keen to share as many summery outfits with you as I can. Today's offering is this rich tropical print jumpsuit by H&M Conscious Collection which I picked up in a charity shop in Truro this summer for the grand price of £9.99. I've just done a quick search for this on line and came across it on eBay for £19.99 so it's still around if you fancy it. The fabric is drapey, medium weight and hangs well. The cut of the wide palazzo pants is cool for summer wear too. The crossover front has a hook and eye fastening to stop it gaping open - I suppose you could wear it on its own as the top is quite slim fitting.

The elastic belt is preloved and adds definition to the waist, as is my preference to draw the eye to the smallest feature of mine. I also like the feeling of a comfortable pulled together look that a stretch belt gives me, more than a narrow belt ever could. The rings are both preloved too and the necklace you may have seen before (it's by Melissa James Jewellery).

A jumpsuit is my ideal work wear you know. I love the easywear aspect plus how I can climb a ladder without worrying about a wardrobe malfunction which at my age seems like a terrible gaffe. It's interesting how the act of accidentally flashing a bit of thigh in your twenties seems harmless enough and yet in ones 60's is seen as comical at best, cringe worthy at worst. Am I just becoming a bit touchy now I wonder, or do you agree?

You'll have seen these (New Look) black cork wedge sandals before I'm sure. In fact they're coming to the end of their time as one of the toe ends is becoming a bit worn now. I've bought a replacement pair already, but haven't quite broken them in yet. 

I forgot to mention one of the best features of all - the pockets! I love the slouch factor of pockets, the easy resting place for the hands which helps to relax the shoulders giving a breathing space between chores. Pockets are an irresistible plus point for me when I'm considering a purchase, often tipping me over the edge when I'm in doubt. 

Coming up on the blog soon is the monthly style challenge with my friends from the Style Not Age collective. The subject this month is "Wild about animal print". After a bit of rummaging around in my wardrobe I found a piece that fits the bill. Ironically enough I did find my animal print collection to be lacking in choice, but am also very aware of how high I set the bar for myself. I do hope you'll join us on Monday to see how we all fared. The Abbey Garden is where Sasha and I did the photo shoot so I'll leave you with a small taster of what's to come.

Wishing you a fabulous week!

Anna x

Joie de vivre

Happy Sunday to you my lovely readers!

Today's outfit inspired these shots of joie de vivre. This is my Praise the Lord pose which sets the perfect tone for this post as I prepare for my morning stint at church, assisting the Warden with her duties.

I can't think of a better way to start the day than acknowledging how blessed I am to live where I do, surrounded by people that I love, doing a job which stretches and fulfils me. The sun doesn't always shine on this little island paradise, but that doesn't mean to say I can't start the day with joy in my heart for this wonderful life.

I ought to set these moves to music!

Polly and I spend two minutes every morning trying to capture my enthusiasm for life embodied in the outfit of the day. If I can spread a little happiness through these shots then we've done well.

I'm sure that a good old belly laugh is the best bit of exercise for both heart and lungs!

And so, on to the outfit. These shorts are vintage and have loitered in the back of my cupboard for the past couple of years, taunting me, goading me, daring me to try to style them. I bought these when Sasha and I went to Exmouth where we had a true charity shopping fest. I was drawn to the gorgeous colour of them plus the fact that they're a great vintage piece. However, they're a challenge with those darts and pleats around the tummy creating a bit of puffiness. And the length too isn't necessarily the most flattering. Yes, I'm uber self critical, I know.

I think that one of the reasons I shied away from wearing these is that they remind me of a pair of men's golfing shorts - just add some knee length Argyle socks, tongued brogues with studs on the soles and a cashmere sweater and the golfer in me would be ready to go! So for an old bird who's constantly searching for the glamour in life this was a good challenge.

The best way to glam up an outfit surely has to be to add frills, making this blouse by Jovonna (from TK Maxx) the perfect solution. Cinching the waist in with a smart belt (preloved, Country Casuals) draws the eye upwards towards the waist rather than the tummy which is another good ploy. Adding a fair old smattering of jewellery (all preloved apart from the necklace by Melissa James) is another way to ramp up the glam factor.

These pretty summer sandals were in the Sainsbury's sale last summer at £5, so not only were they a bargain, but are a great way finish to this look. I'm not normally a fan of white shoes, but Sasha, my partner in (shopping) crime, encouraged me to try them, and they have proved to be a very useful summer shoe. I'm delighted to have cracked this, and you never know, I may find another variation on this shorts ensemble to show you if summer lingers on.

I'll leave you with these shots from Blockhouse beach where I had my morning swim yesterday. The sea was calm and not too chilly at all making for a relaxing and energising start to the day. I'm heading off to the beach now before breakfast then I'll be in church by 10. If you see me, do stop me to say Hi!

Have a fab week!

Anna x

Another August party night

Hello from Tom Rickman and me.

Last night was the opening night party of Tom's show at Gallery Tresco with a flurry of excitement that caught us slightly unawares. The team and I had a hectic hour or so when the rush was on, the wine was flowing as fast as Polly could pour it and sales were brisk too. The photo captures Tom and I as we chilled at the end of the night, reflecting on the healthy start of another show. See the full exhibition here.

And here are the dream team (from l to r) Max, Tash, Polly and Ruth who all worked their socks off last night, keeping the glasses coming, topping up canapes and generally rushing around behind the scenes. Thanks ladies for all of your stalwart work. Posing alongside them is the latest addition to Gallery Tresco, our "Scilly cow" created by artist Tania Holland.

My party frock for the evening was a charity shop find saving me more than £100 on the ticket price. Brand new, this dress is from Designers at Debenhams by Jenny Packham, a name I've heard of, but not bought before. 

A bargain for me, but also my money makes a difference to this local charity.

The chiffon frock is hand embellished with beads, sequins and flowers making this a very special dress indeed. I decided to add silver as my accent colour which compliments the pale blue perfectly. 

The vintage shoes came from eBay many moons ago and are just right for this outfit.

The rings and bracelet are all preloved, but the necklace is by Charlie Dodge. If it takes your fancy, then do get in touch as I was only borrowing it for the night - it's £75 on sale at Gallery Tresco.

What do you think of the back view of the dress? Pretty eh? Well, that's actually the front of the frock. I tried it on in the shop and by mistake tried the v at the front, but then noticed the label was sticking up by my cleavage. As you may know, I'm not really a cleavage type of person, but the dress when worn the right way around plus these vintage shoes made me feel a bit granny-ish. So, I snipped the label out and took the plunge, hahaha - sorry for that!

And that's another successful show opened! This is our second to last summer show which alarms me somewhat as to how quickly another summer season has come and gone. So many artists, so many paintings come and gone! The 24th of August will see the team and I front our final summer exhibition and I do hope you'll come along to see how that goes. I'll be back again before that though - drop by when you get a moment!

In the meantime, have a great week!

Anna x

Sunny day pattern play

Hello and happy Sunday to you! 

Today's outfit comes from mid-heatwave last month when those endless sunny days just kept on coming. The change of weather has me searching for a bright and breezy outfit to act as an antidote to the rain, wind and overcast skies we are experiencing on the islands currently and this may be the very thing.

My Pleased as Punch face.

My mission of the day clearly was to wear a rainbow whilst adding a riot of pattern play too. Call me attention seeking if you like, but it's what makes me smile and injects some joy into the day at the same time. The paisley and geometric print top is by Topshop, the culottes are by Bohoo and the coral handbag is by Superbia (all are preloved) and the jewellery is a mish mash of old and charity shopped. My old favourite sunnies are by Quay and if you want to see my wishlist pair from this brand then click here to see them - how cool are they?

The criss cross suede sandals came from H&M earlier this summer and they're still available online here. I love cork wedges as they're light to wear as well as being stable to walk in making a win-win situation, yay!

Mid August seems to signal the last of the summer sales as the autumn fashions hit the high streets. Even the charity shops are changing their displays to alert us to the change in season. As ever, I shall be holding on like grim death to all of my summer finery in the hope of more sunshine on these splendid isles. With two more summer exhibitions to come, you can rest assured that all things floaty and vibrant will be evident in my ensembles for those evenings. Daywear for me won't be taking a turn into the autumnal hues quite yet as I squeeze the very last glint of sunlight out of my wardrobe.

I'll leave you with some shots, one of which I posted on my Instagram feed recently, of a wonderfully inspiring young lady who we encountered whilst out boating the other week. This intrepid traveller had circumnavigated the island of Bryher and was heading South back down the channel towards St Mary's. One backpack was stored on the front of her paddle board and on the back was another. We encountered her again two days later on a much fresher trip when she was crossing from St Mary's to St Martin's and as the choppy swell hit her she would crouch down to recover her balance from time to time. As we watched her nearing the safety of the island Steve and I agreed that this was a gutsy girl. I admire her free spirit, her bravery and thirst for adventure. Hurrah to you, young lady! 

Wishing you a joyful week!

Anna x

Two for one!

This time last week I left you with the promise of sharing my day off with you, including a picnic if the weather was kind. Well, let's start with the day off bit, shall we? I did indeed have the day off and went to St Mary's to have my hair cut. I kinda wish I'd left it now, as I've ended up with a much shorter cut than I planned. My fault entirely as I was a bit vague as to how much I wanted off and maybe ought to keep this in mind for next time. 

The shape of the cut is fine, but oh goodness, what happened to the length? I love my hairdresser, don't get me wrong, I just wish I was able to be a bit more assertive when I plonk myself down in that chair. Is it just me? Anyway, the great thing about hair is of course that it grows! Four weeks down the line and it'll be great!

You'll not be surprised to learn that the rings are both preloved, and even more loved by me!

Today's backdrop is in the Abbey Drive where Sasha and I came across these hydrangeas in full bloom. We'd walked this way from the boat which dropped us at the south end of the island at Carn Near leading us past these gorgeous flowers growing along the roadside. I'm no gardener, but I do love the showiness of these big colourful flower heads.

So, me on a day off looks a bit like this. A much more casual affair than you'll be used to seeing when I dress for the day job, which is why I ought to feature it sometimes. Camo jeans are from Primark last winter but whether they're on trend or not is irrelevant to me. I like them cos they're not just plain ol' jeans and also cos they have a fair amount of stretch too.

The cardi is a couple of years old and is by Rocha from Debenhams. I like how the floral print ties in well with the camouflage of the jeans. Sometimes I impress myself with these little pairing ups that I do!

And here we have the piece de resistance, my new Nike trainers. The babies are so, so comfortable, it's just like being out in my slippers! The fit is stretchy, yet snug and the soles are indeed like walking on air. Oh, and guess what? Yes, they were brand new from a charity shop last month! I paid £17 for them and they're worth every blooming penny.

So the next part of my day off was meant to be all about the picnic, but the weather didn't oblige. However, Steve and I had recently visited Nornour, one of the Eastern Isles which I rave about from time to time. I've had these shots up my sleeve, as it were, for a time just like this ...

This little island on the left is Nornour. It was actually quite a breezy day which worked in our favour as this island is truly like a pardise island when the sun shines and there's not a breath of wind, but that also means it's quite popular with people like us who have a boat and want to get away from it all. The boat trip was quite choppy too, but worth it.

As we got closer we could see that the high tide had pretty much covered up most of the pretty white beach, leaving sun-bleached rocks and pebbles for us to land on. Steve assured me that there was still a slip of sand for us to sneak our way onto.

Tell me that this doesn't look like your idea of paradise. 

As you can see, there was just enough sand for us to dip our sink our feet into. We had our picnic and watched all the sea life round about us.

The big passenger ship, the Scillonian, was returning to Penzance full of day trippers. 

In the distance also leaving the islands was a cruise ship that had spent the day here allowing visitors to discover the joys of the Isles of Scilly. These visitors are vital to the economy of our islands as they are to many others of the British Isles. 

These are our golden times, when it's just us and our thoughts. Time to share plans for the future and remember happy times too. The setting couldn't be more perfect for day dreaming.

There in the middle distance was the snout of a seal, hovering around, maybe watching us, maybe just resting, but a funny sight none the less.

And this is the large cruise ship we saw leaving the islands a little while ago. It had gone out around St Mary's into the deep water as it departed, heading off to mainland UK.

This turquoise water was warm in parts and chilly in others. Steve tells me there's a big current washes through between these Eastern Isles and it can be fast flowing too.

Just above the beach are some ruins of an early settlement. The remains of three buildings are still visible despite the years and years of storms that will have battered this tiny island.

We followed the grassy path up to the top of Nornour and looked across the rest of the Eastern Isles.

And in the other direction we could see St Martin's with the Damart in clear sight.

The tide was beginning to drop revealing more pristine white sand below.

As we stood on the top of the island we looked to the East and could just make out the hazy outline of the mainland. 28 miles away doesn't look too far away.

The main island of St Mary's lies in the distance with our boat below bobbing about as the tide drops. Time to go home as the sun is getting lower in the sky too.

A lovely swathe of sand has been revealed as we castaways drag our dingy across to the shore. We agree that we need to check our tide chart so that we can enjoy this beach in all its glory next time. Our first visit to Nornour certainly won't be our last!

Anna x