What do you wear to work during a heatwave?

What to wear during in a heatwave isn't an everyday problem here in the UK, but golly we're having to consider it now! Lucky for me I've recently bought this large, loose, linen dress which fits the bill perfectly. It's another purchase from the small boutique, Number 36, on Causeway Head in Penzance. 

This lightweight linen dress is a heavenly piece of clothing, perfect for the high temperatures we're suddenly experiencing here on the Isles of Scilly. It's loose and airy, and shockingly for me, I didn't even add an underskirt! The Gallery has been like an oven despite us opening both doors and skylights so cool clothing is the name of the game. 

I love the stripe pattern, I love the side pockets and I totally love the colours - it's a fab find for the summer. Imagine how lovely this would be in turquoise too? Hmmm, I maybe need to search for one.

The free fitting, drapey dress was a dream to wear all day long. I conceded footwear-wise too on Friday, choosing to wear my new white leather Lazy Dogz sandals to complete the comfort factor of the day's outfit. 

This contemporary brushed silver chain necklace was also from Number 36. This will be a versatile piece of jewellery that I'm sure you see over and over again.

The fuchsia frock is another opportunity to bring out my pink Candy Bag. I've gone with pink and silver with my rings too, neither of them new, but both lovely none the less.

So, that was Friday's work outfit. Today, Sunday saw the mercury continue to rise and it was the hottest day so far this summer. Tresco was awash with boats and sun seekers, filling our beaches and enjoying the Jubilee Trophy gig race and live music at the pub. Steve and I however, are still hard at work on the renovations on our boat. I spent the whole day in the shade - 

Yep, here I am laid out under the boat applying the second coat of anti-fouling paint onto the hull. I was grateful of this face guard as it ended up dotted with drips and splatters which otherwise would have dotted my face. Steve is in charge of the the real renovations, all I am able to do is push a paint brush around. After two days the hull is much improved.

I haven't missed out on the lovely weather completely though - each day I've escaped during lunchtime to swim on the high tide. In due course, the boat will be finished and we'll enjoy our away day escapes to the uninhabited islands for picnics and sea swims. I'm not too upset at the delay as I know our efforts will be worth it. I must take some more snaps to share with you too. I'll leave you with a fab beach shot from the other day when Fiona and I had a lunchtime walk at the start of this fab spell of weather.

Cradle Porth is as beautiful as ever...

Anna x

Paisley pattern and lace for a summer's day

Hello lovelies! This week's post is my Friday work outfit (again). Friday seems to be a good day for a stroll after work with my friend and photographer Fiona. We ended up on Cook's Porth, just below the Old Blockhouse castle and settled there for a while. It was a lovely evening as we tucked in out of the wind to take these shots.

You may remember this lace blouse (Zara) that I wore a lot last year. It's become a summer staple - white means it's so versatile. The sandals were from Lazy Dogz and are so blooming comfy. Amazon has some of these on sale currently and I'm keeping my eye on them in case a gold pair comes up. I seem to be lacking a pair of flat gold sandals this year.

The only new item is/are these fabulous paisley culottes that I bought in Penzance from a little boutique on Causeway Head, called Number 36. (The label on them simply says Made in Italy.) It's a gem of a shop, selling lots of gorgeous clothes, as well as jewellery, cards and other lovely goods. I've bought a few things from there this year and will keep dodging in whenever I'm across on the mainland.

Not only do I love the pattern of the culottes, but also the deep shirred band that sits over the tummy and hips. It's a flattering style and easy to wear too. I resisted the temptation to pair them with a figure hugging top and went with a camisole layer under the wide loose blouse. 

Nothing new jewellery-wise, but the blue rings do go so very well with the cornflower trousers don't you think?

I feel I ought to be awarding a prize for those of you who remember the brand of these old favourites. It's Quay Austalia, just in case you've missed that!

I hope this has been a breath of fresh air for you - either because of the outfit or the glorious backdrop. I have a lovely new pink linen dress to showcase to your next week, so do swing by if you have a moment.

                                                                                      Anna x

Our Tutti Frutti Style Not Age challenge for June

Welcome to this month's Style Not Age challenge! We're all very Tutti Fruitti this time thanks to Emma and her very summery theme. I love how we've each interpreted this differently, but oh-so-coulourfully too!

I felt I just had to start with Gail who's set us off in the right vein with her tee shirt which is actually called "Tutti Frutti". The top and skirt both come from Kettlewell, but not from the same years. She has shopped her closet for the rest of her outfit. Read her style story on Is This Mutton. 

Jacqui's rendition of Tutti Frutti comes thanks to her daughter whose dress she borrowed - how blooming lovely is this? Her cute Steve Madden handbag and strappy green sandals finish off the look to perfection. Catch up with Jacqui's news on Mummabstylish.

Emma's fruity shirt and bag are from Fabienne Chapot - a brand I've not heard of before. Paired with zingy green trousers from Asos and lots of bright orange accessories she really has embraced the colourful theme. Find Emma's blog Style Splash here. 

Hilda has opted for this stunning kimono from Zara as her main featured piece, complimented by a Hugo Boss dress and Clark's shoes - none of these are new and yet are all totally fabulous! Catch up with her on Over The Hilda. 

The Tutti Frutti element of mine surely has to be this vintage Jaeger skirt. A customer of mine recently declared this a very Christian Lacroix design, which I suppose you could say is true. I've featured it on the blog before, but that doesn't detract from its charm. It was a charity shop find from a few years ago and gets an airing at least two or three times over the summer months.

The net underskirt is always a bit of fun and works really well with this look, although I must admit it does make me prone to flashing a bit of net from time to time without any warning or particular reason. Not sure if an ol' gal like me ought to do that, but what the heck!

The voile spotty sleeved top (from TK Maxx, old) adds to the flamboyance of the outfit. I have a black version which works equally well with this. 

Rings and pink Candy bag by Furla are all old too, but still pretty as ever. 

My black buckled and studded belt was a gift from a girlfriend many moons ago and is ideal for sleekly pulling a skirt and top together - great for those days when back fat and tummy bulge are in danger of becoming the focal points!

My dear old faithful (H&M) sock boots are still wearing well. Also going strong as these floral sunglasses which came from Sainsbury's years and years ago. This work outfit sparked lots of chats about women of my age making a style statement in the workplace and also earned me compliments from quite a few men too. So far, I'm still not invisible and hopefully never will be!

Thanks for joining us for this month's challenge. Do pop over to read the back stories from my friends if you have a moment!

                                                                            Anna x

This summer's best supermarket find

Hello lovelies! How are you? As you can see, I'm in fine fettle. And yes, can you believe it that this most colourful summer frock is a supermarket find? I happened across it when I was in Tesco's in April. The shirtwaister is such an easy to wear style and this one is in the most lovely of fabrics. It's weighty enough to move in that satisfying flappy way and yet not too heavy for summer wear. 

I've  only worn the dress once, but already it's earned much praise along with comments that it doesn't look like a supermarket purchase in the least. The floral pattern is classic and the shades of cream, orange, pink, yellow and green are all very much suited to my skin tone. I love the sleeve length too. In fact, what's not to love about this whole thing? It cost £25 - well worth the money in my opinion.

Nothing new by way of accessories here. The belt is a charity shop bargain in leather. The rings and watch are all old too. 

My necklace is from Zara and was a present from a girlfriend at Christmas. I like the fact that it's not a heavy gilt piece but is really lightweight and therefore I hardly notice I'm wearing it. My Sunglasses are by Radley, from another girlfriend.

If I'd been organised I could have shown you the orange wedge sandals that I wore for the first half of the day. But instead here's the afternoon's flat sandals in coral which are quite old now, from Primark a few summers ago. I fear that they won't last another year sadly.

Fiona did the honours with the photography at the end of the day. I swished about here and there, talking most of the time and spoiling many shots into the bargain. We meandered off to the beach afterwards to swim and chat as is our habit at this time of year. We are both ever grateful that Tresco life is on this small scale, our wild swimming so accessible, the backdrop to our daily lives so stunningly beautiful. With a post-swim flask in hand we regularly count our blessings.

Sending you lots of love from Tresco!

Anna x

Friday is fun day!

Hello again! This was my work outfit from Friday, hence the handbag-on-the-beach situation which might appear odd otherwise. Fiona and I wandered off to find a quiet corner for the photoshoot, ending up here on Cradle Porth our favourite swimming beach. It was pretty much low tide so we made our way across the sandbar down to the water's edge first of all.  We found ourselves in the teeth of the wind, but the backdrop is pretty idyllic you have to agree.

Just in case you've missed the back story to my over-the-top trouser suit you can see it here. I'm planning on wearing the amazing get-up once a week to showcase it and share the love for this most amazing bit of tailoring. The feedback is wonderful and creates lots of opportunity to share the tale of my luck in securing such a fabulous two piece.

This week's variation has the joyful addition of a satin blouse which my daughter gave to me last month. It's from Zara although I can't seem to find it on their website now. The pink colour isn't an obvious partner to the aqua suit and yet it does have accents in this same shade. I put the two things together as they lay on the bed and it was a beautiful "this works!" moment.

My recent extravagance hasn't stopped at the trouser suit. I've treated myself to this gemstone necklace with silver and gold cowrie shells. It's from a range by jeweller (Julian Warrender) that we stock in Gallery Tresco and it really caught my eye as the sea colour of the gemstones were such a great match for the suit. How could I resist? Both the necklace and trouser suit are investment pieces which at my time of life seem more important than ever. I shall cherish them both while making  point of wearing them regularly throughout whatever remains of my working life.

My other new tweak to the ensemble is this rather lovely pearl belt which is another thing of joy. I found it on Amazon. The rest of my jewellery is old, including the modesty brooch which might have to be a permanent fixture on this low neck blouse. My sunglasses are old favourites from Quay Austalia.

My Replay trainers (from TK Maxx) are still looking smart and are soooo comfy, all day comfort in fact. The River Island handbag (second hand) is a great choice for this outfit with lots of embroidery in gold and aqua. 

My weekend has been a mixture of work and play. I've been helping renovate some of the woodwork on our boat - simple painting and varnishing jobs that I can't really mess up while Steve is dealing with more major things like replacing the floor and fixing outboard engines. We are very late to be doing all of this, but our lives are always seem to be this way. On Sunday Sasha and I spent the afternoon on the beach. We went to Rushy Porth on Tresco, otherwise known to locals as Borough Beach. After a while I remembered to slap on some sun cream, but by bedtime I discovered how haphazard that had been. I've got sunburnt patches on my legs, one knee, both shoulders and even a random patch on one foot - honestly I ought to know better!

Anyway, that's pretty much it for this week. I do hope you won't tire of seeing this suit over the months ahead, although I do think I'll restrict it to only the odd time when a variation merits showcasing. In the meantime I'll leave you with some beach shots from yesterday on sunny ol' Tresco.

Wishing you a great week ahead!

Anna x

The Queen's Platinum Jubilee

Hello lovelies! How was your Jubilee weekend? Did you have fun? It's been wonderful to watch all of the TV coverage showing Great Britain resplendent with street parties and parades. I loved seeing the Party at the Palace - wasn't that a brilliant line-up of performers? Diana Ross was utter class, Queen were amazing and Diversity were very clever. But best of all had to be Her Majesty the Queen having afternoon tea with Paddington Bear! What a brilliant script and what a lovely idea to let us see this humorous side to the Queen.

Celebrations on Tresco started off on Thursday evening with the lighting of our beacon. Steve and Jamie had spent the week building the oh-so-much-more-than-a-bonfire on the top of the island. After a welcome speech to the 500 or so crowd from our Island Manager Nick Halliday, Steve helped local boy Isaac to set the beacon alight. We sang the National Anthem after toasting the Queen with champagne - it was a lovely island moment for us all.

Steve and Jamie did such a great job to the construction that the beacon held itself upright throughout the evening. We were able to see the beacon on St Martin's from this vantage point too and also enjoyed watching their fireworks.

On Friday we held an invitation to Paint the Queen at Gallery Tresco. It was an open competition resulting in a brilliant uptake from all ages, visitors and locals alike. Rachel Young, our Events Manager, organised and distributed the supplies, steered the day, did the judging and generally made the whole thing work - it was a resounding success. That meant the only job for me to do was turn up in my Jubilee outfit. A rummage in my wardrobe resulted in this red, white and blue ensemble with my Lulu Guinness union jack clutch bag.

 

My headdress was a floral hairband that I'd come across in a charity shop on one of my trips to the mainland in April. I knew whenever I saw it that sometime it would come in useful. The belt was a recent purchase from Amazon. Nothing else in the outfit is new and many pieces are pre-loved.

I have to tell you that my outfit caused hardly any comment or eyebrow to be raised all day long. Clearly I have such a reputation as being over the top in my dressing that it as become unremarkable. I found that so funny. 

Anyway, our Platinum Jubilee celebrations continued on Sunday with a bicycle parade from Smith Square to New Grimsby quay. Along the sea front there was a Maker's Market, cake stall and all of the Paint the Queen entries were on display outside the Gallery too.  However Steve and I were absent from all of this as we're busy doing renovations to our boat before we launch it in a couple of weeks. (Launching sounds oh-so-terribly-grand for such a small craft.) I'm in charge of sanding and varnishing woodwork which is painfully slow, but so very necessary after some years of neglect. Steve has lots of mechanical issues to solve in the meantime. Wish us luck with all of that! 

                                                                                                                                      Anna x