Christmas jumper day

Hello again! Did you take part in National Christmas Jumper day last Thursday? Here on Tresco we did and this was my offering. It's not new, but is one of my favourite Christmas jumpers and really, I don't feel the need to keep buying a new one every year.

I think I bought this sweater a few years ago. It's from H&M and maybe needs a bit of debobbling this year. I must admit it was a last minute rush to find it and get an outfit together the other day. My rings are pre-loved.

The rest of the outfit is pre-loved or simply old. The trousers were passed on from my daughter and the white shirt was a charity shop buy many years ago. Sunglasses are old, from Radley London.

What's new however are these rather fabulous cow print boots, a recent purchase from Vinted. The brand is Koi and even though they look massively high the balance between platform and heel make them surprisingly comfortable. I wore them all day without a pinch or tweak.

I topped the outfit off with my oft-seen green faux fur coat, a regular at this time of year. Red, white and green is very traditional, a lovely look for the run up to Christmas. 

How are your Christmas preparations coming along? As usual I'm up to my elbows in fudge making before I can turn my attention to the home front. I've packed up and sent off some boxes to my relatives in Scotland today and will have more ready to wrap tomorrow. We won't be having our Christmas tree until nearer the time; it's down to Steve as to when he can make the time to find one in the woods somewhere. Apart from that we have presents on the way, so I'm poised with fingers crossed that Mr Postman will come up trumps.

                                                                                              Anna x

Dressing up in December

Regardless of the month I'm always prone to a bit of dressing up, so December is no different I suppose. Fur coats are my coat of choice this month and this one, full length and luxurious, is my favourite. It's been hanging behind my bedroom door for weeks waiting for the opportunity to come out to play. Last weekend we had a glorious dry day (for a change) and by the time I had found my photo spot the sun came blasting down too. It was a scorching day for this time of year and an absolute bonus too.

The cream and mocca cow print coat was from River Island, bought by the family for my birthday almost a year ago. I'm not a huge fan of winter, but the upside is to get the chance to wear this fabulous coat again. 

I've opted for a neutral palette for the overall look which is very different for me isn't it? But this kind of neutral works thanks to the glamorous combination of fur and lace. I've shopped my closet for the whole look: lace body and trousers from Zara and boots from Asos.

Nothing new with my jewellery either. The rings are both charity shopped, necklace from Primark and sunglasses are by Quay Australia.

The pleather paperbag trousers are a lovely easy to wear fit thanks to the elasticated waistband. Pockets too make for an ultra casual look.

So, how has your weekend been? I've been busy at home mostly with cooking for the freezer. At this time of year I like to catch up on batch cooking so that I have meals ready to microwave at the end of the working day. Lighting the fire as I come home from work and having a homemade meal ready for Steve makes me feel that I'm making his day more comfortable. I've had a couple of sea swims too, which were good but challenging too due to the recent drop in air temperature. The sea doesn't seem to change much from day to day, but we had a cool Easterly wind blowing on Saturday morning which did make for brisk dressing when I got out of the water. Tomorrow's plan is for another morning swim and then to catch up on some housework and hopefully to get some online Christmas shopping done. Wish me luck!

                                                                                           Anna x

Inspired by Autumn, our Style Not Age challenge

Hello and welcome to November's Style Not Age challenge, chosen this month by Hilda. Inspired by Autumn suited me down to the ground as this was my work outfit from Friday showing my version of autumn delights. Burnt orange is a favourite seasonal choice of mine, but let's catch up with my blogging friends first to see how they interpreted this one...

Well, it looks like Jacqui and I were singing from the same sheet this time with our orange jackets, floral dresses and boots. Her jacket and dress are both from Bonmarche and boots are Clarks, handbag gifted from Teddy Blake. Catch up on her latest news on Mummabstylish.

Emma has shopped her closet for this stylish outfit - jacket and handbag were both from eBay, trousers and boots from M&S and top was from Joanie Clothing. The rich burgundy velvet jacket certainly says autumn to me! See more from Emma at Style Splash blog. 

Hilda's weekend look is indeed in autumnal hues. She too has shopped her closet for the challenge adding the only new item, a bright red scarf to finish her outfit. I love her boots and jacket and will be hopping across to her blog for more details - OvertheHilda. 

Zingy lemon and orange are Gail's autumn colours, and golly how fab they are together! The coat is from ASOS, scarf and top are from Kettlewell, leggings from M&S and boots are from Office. See more from Gail on Is This Mutton. 

Details of my ensemble are: fur coat from TK Maxx, dress from Joe Brown's (gifted), roll neck, old and charity shopped, boots from ASOS, belt from Amazon, gloves (old), sunglasses from Radley London, resin necklace (very old). 

To keep out the November chills at work I donned this extra layer - another autumnal offering by way of this fairisle cardigan (charity shopped last year). A woollen layer is what my mother-in-law always urged me to wear if I ever complained of being cold. It tickles me that I now pass on these wise words to workmates whenever they remark on our draughty workplace.

I'm still breaking in my new orange leather boots (from ASOS), but did manage to wear them all day long this time. The heel isn't terribly high, although the pointed toes do eventually tweak by the end of the day.

No new jewellery here, simply orange rings and necklace from my collection. Stretch belt was from Amazon earlier this year.

Despite the Gallery being closed for the winter, I do still like to make an effort and dress up for work. We have our winter schedule in place which means we have artists' residencies running over the next few months so I do see a steady trickle of them over the course of each week. Me dressing up is another way of conveying the fact that I take my role as Gallery Manager seriously; I do like to still have an air of professionalism about the place. 

Thanks for dropping by for our monthly challenge - I do hope you've enjoyed it!

Anna x

The joys of the utility jacket

Who'd have thought I'd be excited about a utility jacket? I never cease to surprise myself! This beautiful floral jacket is from H&M (via Vinted, surprise, surprise!) and is my latest guilty pleasure. New, the jacket would have retailed at £39.95 and I paid £10 for it. Sorry if I'm beginning to sound like an advert for the second hand site, but honestly it's a source of some pretty amazing bargains. 

As is with all of my clothes, I buy them because I love them and this jacket is my latest new love. Even my husband is impressed by it. I think its appeal for me is the wonderful juxtaposition of a traditionally masculine style adorned with these perfectly feminine florals. This was its first outing, a stroll out on my day off to capture the simple stylish nature of the jacket whilst out in nature. Too cheesy? Sorry.

I've shopped my closet for the rest of this outfit. The shirt is old, from Primark, the fairisle tank top is an old charity shop find, the Levi's jeans are also pre-loved. 

The chunky chelsea boots were from Primark, bought a year ago and are super comfy for yomping about in the countryside. 

The jacket sports four big patch pockets, large and roomy with enough space to do away with a handbag if you wish; phone goes in one pocket, wallet in another, hairbrush and lipstick in the third and tissues in the last - perfect! My only accessories today are my Radley sunglasses and a simple gold chain.

 

I'm pleased as Punch with this new addition to my wardrobe. Winter walks will take on a new stylish attitude with this fabulous jacket.

My new working regime for the next few months is that of a four day week now. I've saved my annual leave up and am taking long weekends off to catch up at home. It also means that I'm able to fit in three consecutive days of sea swimming which is great for me at this time of year. I really do rely on my swimming to help stablise my SAD symptoms and it's held me in good stead for years. I'd love to say that I can manage to swim every day, but the shorter days are a challenge to fit it in either before or after work. In addition, the intermittant storms do impact on when it's safe to swim, but all in all I'm doing well. If you click on the tiny link above, just to the right of the About Me tab, you'll be able to see my latest swimming clip on Instagram.

I'll be back next Monday with our monthly Style Not Age challenge so do pop by if you get the chance. 

In the meantime have a great week!

Anna x