5Over50 challenge round 2

Ding, ding! - round 2 of our style challenge is here. The collective have the joyful task of styling up Marvelous Metallics this month and you won't be in the least surprised to hear that this was my suggestion. Metallics feature heavily in my wardrobe and shoe collection, causing me to have a difficult time in choosing which of these to showcase. 5 over 50 are raring to go so let's get on with it, shall we?

The foundation of my outfit is this silver pleated skirt which I found in the sale at Sainsbury's some time ago. My sandals are a great match coming from TK Maxx - the brand is Xti. The tiny sequin bag was a gift from my daughter and seemed like the perfect accessory for today's challenge along with silver rings and bangle as well as my relatively new silver and gold chain which ties everything together beautifully. The simple black sweater was a good backdrop for all the shimmering metallics, and my sunglasses (another find at Sainsbury's) add just a little pop of colour.

Here's Jacqueline from Mummabstylish blog. In complete contrast to me she's taken the minimal approach to her styling of Marvellous Metallics and I know that this may have a much broader appeal - it's not for everyone to pitch up head to toe in metallics. This nod to the theme is achieved by way of the silver handbag with silver chain and a silver link watch too. Her cornflower blue scarf is patterned in silvery white too. See Jacqueline's blog here and follow her on instagram here.

Gail is totally committed to this month's challenge and I'm more than slightly envious of her outfit. The black and gold skirt is really striking on its own, but by adding a gold clutch and boots Gail is indeed embracing the marvellous of her metallics. Rock and chick come to mind when you clock the single earring, black motif tee shirt and dark sunnies. Follow her on instagram here and find her blog Is This Mutton here.

The normally conservative dresser amongst the group has to be Laurie whose classic styling always has me wishing I could be more elegant too. Today however, Laurie has drawn together gold, silver and bronze for her ode to metallics and the resulting look is pretty hot stuff, don't you think? The plain white shirt shows Laurie's expertise at knowing when enough is enough. Find Laurie's blog Vanity And Me Style here and follow her intagram account here.

Last, but by no means least is Ashley from Lazy Daisy Jones blog. The third pleated skirt of the feature is a pale gold version which she has paired up with these gorgeous silver shoes. Ashley chose her favourite colour of blue for her top and incorporated another splash of colour by way of her cute little handbag. Follow Ashley's lifestyle blog here and instagram here.

We'll be back again next month with another style challenge. I do hope you'll drop by to see what we're up to.

Linking with -

Catherine of Not Dressed As Lamb

Cherie of Style Nudge

Jess of Elegantly Dressed And Stylish

Anna x

Simple summer dress

I'm sneaking in an extra post today as the 5Over50 group will be featuring our next challenge on Monday and I thought you might enjoy a little something in the meantime. June surely means summer and this is the perfect simple day dress with no need to fuss and overdo it. 

Yes, I may have shown you this dress last summer, but not with this cardi which effectively means I'm sharing a new outfit. It's also time to share the fact that I've managed to drop 2lbs meaning I can (just) fit into this slimline dress again. Hurrah! There's no big secret as to how I've done it - eat less, exercise more. The sea is gradually warming up so I'm managing to extend my swims which does make a difference to my metabolism. At this time of year I can sometimes fit in two swims a day and again that helps too. And there's certainly no bigger motivator to lose weight than knowing that I might meet someone on the beach with only my Speedo to give me cover!

In February I featured my efforts to teach myself a better, sleeker freestyle stroke (see here). The main reason for that was to be able to swim longer distances, ie from one side of the island to the other which is a two or three mile swim. One thing that I'd only recently tuned in to about swimming is that freestyle is the most efficient (and obviously quickest) stroke of all and breast stroke is the least efficient (and slowest). All these years of swimming breast stroke meant I was burning up the most calories possible. Speed isn't the focus for me, burning calories is what it's all about and by swimming the least efficient stroke as fast as I possibly could gave the optimum results. But by swapping from one to the other I'm using fewer calories which is a bit of a drag. So now I'm mixing it up by swimming breast stoke in one direction and then swimming crawl on the way back. Wake up you at the back - I'll be asking questions later! Hahaha it's okay, I've finished now x

Outfit details -
Cardigan: Star by Julien Macdonald, dress: TK Maxx, sandals: Refresh, belt, bangle and rings: all charity shopped, sunglasses: Quay Australia.

And here's a few shots of my very large swimming pool.

No post from me on Sunday, but please join me with the ladies from 5Over50 group on Monday to see how we've styled up Marvellous Metallics.

Anna x

Black trouser challenge 1

If you're a regular reader you'll be aware that my favourite places to shop are charity shops and vintage stores. That doesn't mean to say I abhor mainstream fashion, it's more that I enjoy finding individual pieces that make a unique statement as well as getting a bargain. The trousers I'm wearing today are from the high street, from River Island (see here), and to my mind they deliver the individual style that I love. 

Before we go any further let me say that this isn't a sponsored post. I've set myself this personal challenge to justify the £40 I spent on these trousers - not an extortionate amount I know, but still more than I'm used to compared to charity shops. Over the next few weeks I plan to wear them once a week to see how versatile and cost worthy they are. What can I drive the cost-per-wear down to?

I'm not a huge fan of black trousers, particularly in synthetic fibres as they remind me of school trousers or office wear. In fact I don't own many pairs of plain black trousers as frankly I do find them totally uninspiring. I have forgiven them and the fabric here however, because of these fabulous frills. These trousers are ticking a lot of boxes. The fit is great for my hour glass figure with this high waist and the cropped length is also perfect for my height. And last of all let's not forget to mention the side pockets to give full comfort factor.

To complete the look I've added a black retro vibe shirt from Sainsbury's (in the sale, sold out, sorry) and the apple green jacket was a charity shop find (Precis brand) along with my much loved black sandals from New Look a couple of summers ago. I've cinched the waist of the trousers in with a stretch belt to add definition and slipped on a couple of gold toned rings - all of these are from charity shops. 

I fancy that I may be preaching to the converted here as I suspect that the majority of my readers wear black trousers far more often than I do. For you, this feature will be a chance to observe me (hopefully) discover how versatile these will be in my wardrobe. I don't think I could enter into this challenge with bog standard plain black trousers as the very thought of that has me loosing the will to live, but the flamenco frills add fun and hence Anna appeal. 

Linking with -

Catherine of Not Dressed As Lamb

Patti of Not Dead Yet Style

Jess of Elegantly Dressed And Stylish

Anna x

Show time again!

I'm playing catch up on the blog today. It was a week ago that we opened our May exhibition at the gallery (see here for full details) with Polly and the girls in attendance. Amanda Hoskin was the only artist able to be there for the reception party which worked to her advantage as she sold all but one of her originals. We had an exceptionally busy evening which left us all buzzing. 

I wore this dark green beaded dress that's almost vintage now (19 years old) which I bought for my 40th birthday party. It wasn't what I intended to wear, but my jumpsuit failed me at the last minute when the zipper came flying off in my hand as I zipped it up. With only 10 minutes to go, I suddenly had to find something that didn't need to be ironed and that worked. After 4 attempts this came to light as my only choice. My colourful shoes and orange toned vintage necklace brought the look together in the nick of time. My floral clutch lay forgotten on the bed in the last minute rush of things. Hey ho!

Outfit details - dress: Monsoon, shoes: TK Maxx, necklace: Magpie Vintage, rings and bangle: charity shopped.

It was Ruth's turn to have a Marilyn Monroe moment. It does seem to be a tad gusty in front of the gallery this week. Ruth, Polly and Heather did a stalwart job on what was a pretty hectic evening, so thank you all very much. 

Anna x