Citrus colours for summer

Hi there! Here's my favourite work outfit from this week. The dress you'll have seen before, a yellow linen number (with pockets) that I found in TK Maxx, perhaps last year? I've worn this several times on the blog I'm sure, but that doesn't detract from how sunny and bright it is and such a joyful piece to wear.

I've pepped up the outfit with these fab orange sandals, new from ASOS this summer. They're ridiculously high and I'm only able to wear them for half a day at a time as I've not broken them in quite yet. But heck, aren't they totally wonderful? 

 

The orange elasticated belt is also new, this from Amazon only last week. You may recognise the other accessories here as I wore them with my orange dungarees recently (see here), but they're so perfect for this outfit too. 

I couldn't resist including this photo as I seem to have one like this every time I take my blog photos. I wonder if subconsciously I'm trying to audition for a shampoo advert? Hilarious, eh?

My thanks go to Mel, my seasonal assistant for taking these photos. I hope to feature her and my admin assistant Emily soon as we've got a staff meal coming up next weekend and will endeavour to get a shot of us all together. 

I'll leave you with this beautiful beach shot from glorious Tresco.

I hope you're enjoying this lovely weather!

Anna x

Oh! Orange overalls.

Hi there! How are you? This is another new outfit from Number 36 boutique on Causeway Head in Penzance. The linen overalls called out to me when I was in there during the summer; as you may know, orange is one of my favourite colours. I love the oversized style which is a great contrast to some of my more fitted outfits. I've worn these both to work and at weekends for a more relaxed look, but which says I've still made an effort.

I dodged about in the early morning sunshine trying to showcase the outfit without it being drained in the bright light. My garden wasn't too bad.

This is my go-to jewellery for orange outfits - the perspex necklace is very old, from another Penzance boutique, but which no longer exists, the gold edged bangle was again from a charity shop as were both rings. Sunglasses are from Radley London.

The white tee shirt was also a charity shop find. The classic white tee can always be found in my favourite thrift stores and I do tend to pick up a good quality one when I see them.

My Lazy Dogz sandals complete this easy to wear ensemble. 

A dear friend of mine recently turned 50, so I decided to make this FAB 50 tee shirt for her. I had this pristine white tee from M&S in my cupboard and then cut out the letters and numbers from some leftover fabric. I had planned to hand embroider the edges with some pink stitches but the needle was too big for the fine cotton lawn and broke it apart. Plan B then, or rather Plan C. B was to do a zig zag machine stitch, but for some reason my zig zag didn't work out so I did a simple stitch, twice to reinforce it.

Even though life is hectic as ever, I still have this creative niggle to sew. Another little project I've just managed to fit in was to add some silk flowers to a lovely vintage dress of mine. We plan to have a staff meal this month so I'll probably wear it then. I must say, I'm particularly pleased with the end result and can't wait to waft about in this maxi dress!

Thank you for dropping by again this week. As you'll notice I seem to have no particular posting day now due the busyness of work and life in general, but I do love to hear from you and to read your comments.

Have a great weekend!

Anna x

Kimono My House, our SNA challenge for July

Hello and welcome once again to our Monthly Style Challenge where my friends and I all take turns at choosing a theme. Gail has opted for Kimonos this time, resulting in a lovely variety of styles and colours. Mine is more of an overshirt, but that's mainly because kimonos are few and far between in my wardrobe. Let's see how the four fabulous fashionistas fared, shall we?

Summer is here, according to Jacqui! While the rest of the country is besieged with showers, Jacqui is ready to hit the beach in this beautiful all-white outfit complete with lace kimono. See her backstory on her blog Mummabstylish.

Hilda is showing the local shoppers how to do it in style in her fabulous paisley patterned kimono over her white trousers and mules. Catch up with her news on Over The Hilda blog.

Canary yellow trousers and blue patterned kimono make for a colourful offering from Emma this month. Her eclectic mix comes from the high street, eBay and charity shops to maximum effect. Read more from Emma on the Style Splash blog.

Gail's palette in more understated in soft turquoise, lilac and white. This elegant look comes from the high street aka John Lewis, M&S and ASOS to create a soft summery feel. Find out more on Is This Mutton.

My outfit comes from Number 36 in Penzance, a small boutique that I frequent when I'm on the mainland. The shop is small and beautifully curated to offer unique pieces in fine fabrics, usually holding only one of each style and colour to ensure clients find something special. The prices are good too, given that you end up with an individual garment or outfit that you know won't be seen elsewhere. My white linen trousers have a Made in Italy label as does the cotton kimono/overshirt. 

I'm wearing a white vest top and stretch belt to finish the look off, along with a pair of silver and white sandals. White sunglasses are obvious touch for this summer inspired outfit, although summer is playing hide and seek currently.

My silver and glass bauble necklace as well as both my rings are pre-loved from charity shops over the years, and the stretch belt is ancient, from good old Dorothy Perkins.

Apologies for my absence last week. 5am starts and bouts of insomnia are both taking their toll on me at this time of year, resulting in a mini-burnout situation. I'm trying to take things easy on the home front as that's the only area I can step back from currently, which means minimal amounts of after work chores, including admin. Thank you once again for being there, for coming back to read the blog and for your lovely comments which mean so much to me. I'll finish off with a shot of my back garden and the glorious agapanthus that are in bloom. 

Have a great week!

Anna x

When is a suit not a suit?

Well the answer to the conundrum is perfectly simply - when it's your pj's! Yes, this totally glamorous outfit is actually Karen Millen heavy satin pj's, bought recently, brand new with tags, from Vinted. I challenged myself not to share this info all day, regardless of the fact that I received many compliments on the ensemble, and even my husband who's the first to tease me about my outfit of the day didn't spot this.

The key to dressing up your pj's for daywear has to be good accessories and this gold link belt (Primark, old) goes a long way in the transformation. Another must-do is to add a bit of definition by way of the body hugging vest top (H&M, old) as this sharpens up the look too. The long gold necklace again shows this is very much an outfit rather than you making a sneaky dash to the shops in your jim-jams. 

Pockets too, clearly show that this is daywear not slouchy-at-home wear. I love a pocket for that easy-to-wear casual look and this is the ultimate in smart/casual dressing!

Jewellery can be transformational too and mine today leaves no-one in any doubt that this is serious dressing up not dressing down. The rope necklace was a gift from a friend and the two blue rings are both charity shop finds from long ago.

It's not by chance that today's sunglasses work tonally to pull this look together. These are by Radley London.

Pristine white trainers (by Replay) punctuate the look perfectly. Pj's as daywear, worn by Gallery Tresco Manager, with panache, as on Monday.

Footnote: the good news is that I've found my tweezers, also the lost reading glasses I didn't confess to losing at the same time. Note to self, don't tidy things away in new/better places as you'll never remember! The key from work remains lost however, but has been replaced and put on a very large, clunky keyring making it more difficult for me to lose.

And apologies for the late posting this week. Summer is upon us and the juggling of time and work needs are catching up on me. But thank you for coming back to catch up on my news. I've had a little creative moment sewing-wise, not a make as such, more customising something which I hope to showcase soon.  See you soon!

                                                                            Anna x

July and shopping my closet

I'll cut to the chase and tell you that it's not been the best of days today. I've lost a key at work, an important one, although at least not the only one, but lost somehow. Then later at home I couldn't find my best tweezers - completely gone, not in the usual place, not anyplace in fact. But what really confirmed me having a bad day was on returning home after a day of manning the desk, I'd popped upstairs to spend a penny and when I looked at my reflection as I washed my hands I discovered that I'd forgotten to finish my make-up and had spent the whole day wearing only blusher and lipstick! Not a scrap of eyeshadow or a sweep of mascara!! Maybe not earth shattering for you, but I'm one of those women who won't be seen outside without full make-up on. Am sharing all of this with you in case it's part of a gradual decline into something more ominous and a darned sight less funny. Ever the drama queen me!

But this was funny: me enjoying the fact that a cyclist had just managed to avoid knocking Fiona over as she stood in the middle of the road to take my photos. It was a tad risky on her part, but she likes to live on the edge does Fiona! Anyway, on to the outfit of the day, shall we? The jeans jacket is by Bennetton and must be at least 10 years old. I love the colour, plus it's got stretch, and pockets. Pretty much my dream jacket then.

The jumpsuit is one I bought in Manchester 5 years ago in H&M. I've recently made small alterations to it meaning it fits much nicer now. The neckline was previously too wide so I've added some darts in both back and front for a snugger fit. I've added an orange stretch belt to give a bit of definition to what is quite a baggy outline.

Shopping my closet includes my jewellery, so nothing new with rings (pre-loved) or necklace (from Topshop) or even sunglasses (Radley).

My brocade trainers were from TK Maxx many moons ago, the brand is Replay. Super comfy as all of my Replay trainers are, hurrah!

Let me introduce you to Jill who's my latest sewing friend. Jill and I got chatting in the Gallery the other day after she complimented me on my dress. We nattered on comparing stories and then later that day we met up again and this time she was wearing her new homemade dress. The pattern is from the V&A website and the fabric is from Liberty no less. Isn't it fabulous and didn't she do well with the contrasting sleeves and placket!

Jill is here on holiday on Tresco and is a true vision of loveliness! I'm thrilled at how sewing has brought lots of new people into my life already. It was super to meet you Jill!

                                                                                          Anna x

Jumpsuit June our SNA challenge

Hello again and can you believe that it's the end of June already? Another month seems to have just whizzed past us don't you think? This month's Style Not Age Challenge comes from Hilda and was a great choice for me as I have this new jumpsuit to share with you. But more of that later. Let's take a look at the rest of the collective first...

Emma's hot pink frilly number comes from Zara and oh, how I have jumpsuit envy! Silver sandals and handbag are from Yaa Yaa London - brilliant accessorising Emma! See more on her blog Style Splash.

Jacqui's jumpsuit is from Roman and is totally fab too! I'd wear this in a heartbeat, but she's unsure if this is right for her. What do you think? Hop across to her blog Mummabstylish to let her have your thoughts.

This elegant jumpsuit of Hilda's is by Coast, but not new. Cool and stylish as ever Hilda carries this off with her usual aplomb. See her back story on Over The Hilda blog.

Here's another fab jumpsuit, from Gail this time. I love the double polka dots! This isn't new, but was from Phase 8 and Gail has accessorised it with red espadrilles and necklace. See more from her on Is This Mutton blog.

So here I am in my brand new (not even bought from Vinted) jumpsuit from Onjenu - see it here. I stumbled across this on social media, as you do, and immediately fell in love with it. I've worn it twice already and it's beautiful; so soft and easy to wear and very flattering indeed. No zips or buttons, you simply pull it on and smooth the pleats over the waist and bust to fit. It's soft fabric is lovely and drapey earning me lots of compliments.

And I mustn't forget to mention that IT HAS POCKETS! OMG, there's nothing nicer than a slouchy pocket to make a gal feel cool. That clever feeling of being dressed up but having hands deep in pockets makes it all look so uber casual. I wore this recently to a party evening at work and I felt a wonderful combination of chic and yet comfortable.

My necklace was a Gallery Tresco purchase from jeweller Charlie Dodge, rings are both pre-loved and sunglasses are by Radley London. 

The jumpsuit is quite long so I wore high platform sandals in natural suede from TK Maxx.

My photographer this week was Jodie who works locally in Tresco Stores. She appeared as I was lining up my tripod and camera and offered to do the honours - and didn't she do a great job! Thanks Jodie for stepping in and for making me feel so at ease.

So, here's a rather strange postscript to today's feature...

On Thursday my puffin swimsuit was stolen from my washing line. It was a bit of a shock for this to happen here on our idyllic island paradise as it kinda shattered the dream world I seem to live in. As you'll see from below, my washing line sits next to the main road on Tresco island in full view of everyone. Anyway, I posted about it on Instagram and my son Jamie did a similar post on Facebook.

Fast forward to Sunday lunchtime when the swimsuit was tossed over my garden wall. It begs the question that the perpetrator felt this was too hot to handle and that they might be rumbled if they tried to wear it here. I had suspected that the thief had scarpered to the mainland being a dodgy day-tripper, but now I'm not so sure. Anyway, I'll be keeping my swimsuits indoors to dry in the future.

                                                                        Anna x