My trip of a lifetime - part one

In case you're not up to speed with my news, I've been off the radar for most of January, away on the most amazing trip of a lifetime. On Friday the 4th January I boarded a Twin Otter plane flying out from St Mary's to Land's End. As I sat next to my dear friend Kate, I chattered on, bubbling with excitement at the prospect of three weeks off the islands. The purpose of my trip was to travel to South Africa, Cape Town to be precise, with the JD Williams production team to attend a photo shoot for the spring fashion campaign. The three weeks covered a visit to Manchester for the wardrobe fitting primarily and then a trip to Scotland to visit my family until we flew out to South Africa. This was yet another #pinchme moment in my life - I could hardly believe my luck that I was one of only five models being flown out for this event (two models from Cape Town joined us on location).

I felt like a kid let out of school. Excitement mixed with disbelief at my luck!

I left the islands behind, flying in to Land's End on a chilly winter morning. My first two nights were spent at Keigwin House in Penzance owned by friends and ex-Tresco residents Stuart and Fran Brint. They're very well suited to this way of life and are warm and welcoming. The premises are clean and comfortable, as well as being ideally placed for a walk along the promenade and the nearby shops. As you know, I'm not averse to a bit of retail therapy and managed to while a couple of hours away in the town before I dropped in to catch up with a friend who has relocated to Cornwall. Penzance is part of a thriving artistic community which was apparent even within the shopping centre. 

This was in a florist's window - isn't is beautiful?

What a great showcase for the creativity of these youngsters.

I don't drive, and we don't have cars on the island where I live, but if I did, then this baby pink motor would be my dream car. Oh, and doesn't it go really well with my coat?

Have food, will travel. The biggest feature of my everyday life is my food. Clean eating, without any additives, preservatives or nasty surprises is not just important, but is vital to my well being. My health story is featured here in case you think I'm just being faddy. Therefore, when I travel I take what I need to eat on the go. Airports and railway stations can't be relied on for my supplies so I always travel with a plan of where I'll be and what I'll need en route. This little cache is for Sunday the 6th when I was leaving Penzance by train to Truro and then out to St Mawgan where I was spending the night near Newquay airport. Lunch, dinner, breakfast and another lunch are all here which means no stress for me as I book into a guest house to find that they don't have the simple fare that I need. By lunchtime next day I'd be crossing London, food to hand for my meal on the hoof.

Penzance railway stations marks the end of the line in Cornwall for most travellers, but for me this was the first of many train journeys over the next three weeks. 

Ensconced on the train and time to try to get a selfie that captures the grinning excitement of the next stage of my journey. So far, I've travelled by jet boat, Twin Otter plane, minibus, train and next it's a taxi to tonight's destination. My flight from Newquay is at 7.25am with a 6am check in time. My evening comprised of dinner, TV movie and an early night. I wish I could say that I slept well, but the excitement had my mind racing the minute my head touched the pillow. At 5am I was up and dressed, waiting for my taxi to the airport.

What a lovely, joyful meeting this was. This is an Instagram friend, Laura Evans aka St Ives Mermaid and this was our first face to face meeting. Laura and I had tried to meet up in St Ives on the previous day, but she was working and I was short of time, so we decided that the fates were against us. Imagine my surprise when she breezed into the airport lounge, wearing a fabulous flower crown and oozing star quality! Oh, that girl is a living wonder. Neither of us had mentioned our forthcoming flights, so it was a brilliant surprise and boy, how we talked! We're very similar, outgoing types, but our back story is also similar too. During the summer months, Laura attends all sorts of water based events, dressed in her mermaid's tail, swimming up to the beaches and harbours in her corner of Cornwall to the absolute delight of children and adults alike. We chatted about our travel plans - she was on her way to Austria to stay with a friend and was looking forward to frolicking in the snow (snerrr as she called it). I followed her photos with delight as she did indeed have great fun in the flurries of white stuff. Laura and I hope to organise a swim together on the islands this summer - I'll keep you informed when that shapes into a definite plan.

Arriving into Gatwick at dawn was the next stage of my journey. But more of that next time ...

Anna x

January jumpers with the Style Not Age collective

Hello and welcome to our January challenge with the Style Not Age collective. I chose jumpers as this month's theme as I thought it would be our go-to item at this time of year. We've all had a pretty challenging time just getting our shots in on time as the weather seems to have played havoc everywhere this weekend. But hey, here they all are, so let's start with Hilda shall we?

Hilda's sweater is all about the back view and rather nice it is too! The ladder back with a deep V certainly lifts her jumper out of the ordinary. Skinny jeans and heeled boots round things off nicely. See more on her blog Over The Hilda.

Skinny jeans too from Emma of Style Splash and she's taken various shades of yellow as her feature colour for sock boots, hat and that cute graphic print jumper. Do hop across to her blog to read her back story.

When I first met Jacqui she told me that she has a three colour rule when she's putting a look together and today these are black, white and fuchsia which has proven to be a great combination. See more on Mummabstylish.

You could say that I'm following Jacqui's three colour rule too this month as well as taking a leaf out of her book with an injection of fun by way of the brightest of bubblegum pink, surely the perfect antidote to winter. My son Jamie bought me these sock boots for my Christmas and this is the first time I've worn them. They're the same as my beloved red ones and are also by H&M. My jumper is by ME+EM and is pre-loved, jeans are by Lee and are a lovely fit with a touch of stretch.

I've had this suede two tone belt for years now. I bought it from Benetton in Truro, another shop in the city that has recently closed down. However, it has at least been re-opened by another clothes retailer. As my nearest and most favourite retail centre I have a great interest in the city of Truro and it's future. And forgive me, but I'm just gonna have a mini-moan now about my most favourite of shops, TK Maxx. On my recent travels I've been in branches of TK in London, Manchester, Dundee, Edinburgh and Truro and I have to say how terribly disappointing the Truro branch is with regards to shoe stock. Years ago the entire width of the back of the store was full of shoes. Each size had its own rack which spread across the rear of the shop, ranging from 3 to 8. That's at least 6 islands of shoes and sometimes my sizes, a 5 and 6, would have two islands. I was in the shop a few days ago and was saddened to see that their entire shoe stock has been shrunk down to two measly racks. At the checkout I asked the assistant if they were running down their stock completely and was told it's a chicken and egg situation. Seemingly they aren't allowed more stock because their sales have fallen, and yes their sales continue to drop as the selection becomes smaller and smaller. I'm just about to write to them (a good old fashioned letter) to say my piece rather than just rant on to you.

My sweet little handbag was a recent charity shop find, costing all of two pounds. I took it abroad with me and it was the perfect size for keeping all of my valuables close at hand. Not only that, but it was ideal for both daytime wear and evening outings. I took it out to dinner and also to a party in Cape Town and this bag didn't look in the least out of place at either venue. Someone even asked me if it was a designer piece! My other accessories are two pink resin rings, both pre-loved, which my photographer and I omitted to get close-ups of, as well as a silver Tree of Life pendant and of course my obligatory Quay Australia sunglasses.

You can hardly tell from this sunny backdrop at the time that yesterday we had a gale raging across the island, could you? Steve suggested this sheltered spot, the walkway to the bird hide, timing it just right to capture the late morning sun. I'd been up early, keen to unpack my bags and get a sense of order before going back to work today. I also wanted to get back into my morning routine, so after spending some time on my blog, I waited for daybreak and got my swimming things together. I've missed my daily sea swims and am keen to get the old routine established again. I donned fleecy over trousers, big woolly jumper, fur-lined jacket, boot socks, fur lined boots, bobble hat and gloves and jumped on my bike to head to Appletree Bay.

The sea was wild, all white tops and choppy waves. 

The sun was just emerging from behind the clouds as I arrived at the beach. I watched the waves surge in and suck out again. I watched a bit longer. And then I decided that my first swim ought not to be quite so daunting - the tidal run was about 15 to 20 feet, which makes even just getting into the water a scary business. I love sea swimming, but I'm not as brave as I'd like to be. 

So I took a few photos and cycled back home again. In the distance, beyond Cromwell's Castle, I could see the waves pounding over Shipman's Head on Bryher. So no swim today then? Ah, well, maybe not. A couple of hours later when the sun was shining and the tide was high, I did a first swimming wise. I literally ran from my house in my swimsuit, out across the road and into the sea at the slipway below my kitchen window. I swam across the bay towards the quay and back. Not a big swim, but certainly a brisk one, but more importantly, a safe one. The bay was protected from the strong Northerly wind and was relatively calm. Job done!

And that's it for our January style challenge. I do hope you'll take a moment to check out the other ladies in full on their blogs. If you want to see more of these, then the December challenge is here, November here and October is here.

Thanks for dropping by. It's lovely to be home again and I'm so keen to hear from you all. Please leave me a comment to just say hello - it's great to know you're out there!

Have a super week!

Anna x

Mermaid coat

Yes, the wanderer has returned! Hello and how lovely to have your company again. The past three weeks have gone by in a flash, but conversely I feel like I've been away for ages. My huge trip has generated lots of imagery so I'm not going to rush into things, but want to sift through the photos and put together some easily digestible features for you over the next little while. 

Let's go back a bit, shall we, to that crazy flurry aka Christmas when my darling husband bought me this - from here on known as my mermaid coat due to the massive sequins/scales. Isn't it bloody lovely! Yes, I'll admit, he did have a bit of guidance as to what I'd like, but surely that's better than having an unwanted gift? The coat is from Topshop and for those of you who may be drooling at the sight of this completely over-the-top jacket, well it's good news - here it is in the sale.

I can see that the coat will be an absolute asset to my wardrobe - I imagine that I can wear this on exhibition nights as well as the obvious beach shot on a desert island somewhere too. What fun I'll have with this! The subtle iridescent colours are so flattering and lend themselves to all sorts of pastel pairings. Today's outfit features a pale pink cotton roll neck sweater and bleached denim flares with a rose gold belt - all preloved. The silver high heeled leather boots are by Buffalo London, giving just the right edge to the look.

I've used both rose gold and silver as my accessory colours here to great effect, even if I do say so myself. You can see how lots of pastel shades are present in the coat - lemon, gold, pale aqua, pink, peach, pale green - all of them opening up future styling possibilities. I know it's not everyday wear, but goodness, since when did that stop me? As you know, I've just come back from the mainland where I scooped up an orange sequined padded bomber jacket at the last minute and as I couldn't fit it into my already stuffed suitcase, well I just put it on, zipped it up, and travelled home in it from Truro. On the early morning train, waiting at the station for my lift, and at the airport, where I breezed in as if it was absolutely normal to be wearing orange sequins at nine in the morning. Dahling - I've just returned from a fashion shoot in Cape Town, luvvies!!!!!

I've mixed all kinds of textures and colours for my jewellery too - a plastic peach toned ring with another of silver and enamel, both charity shopped, plus the rose gold watch gifted to me by Nordgreen, a gold rose belt (preloved) and the glittery silver clutch which has no brand but was a ten pound buy from a small boutique somewhere. The rose gold sunglasses are by my favourite brand Quay Australia.

In my absence my dear friend and designer Bo, has been busy at work giving the blog a face lift and doesn't it look gorgeous? A new year, a new start and all that jazz, eh? 

If you've been following my recent adventures on Instagram, you'll have seen that the client asked me to have a new, sharp haircut. The image they sent me, showed a picture perfect young model with button nose, cheek bones like coat hangers and skin like porcelain. I do wonder if they had considered how this would translate across to my generous nose, wrinkled skin and thin lips? No matter. What I wonder is, which you prefer - this hairstyle or the micro fringed number?

It's great to be back on the island and to think about 2019 and what it holds. My recent trip to Cape Town showed me how life can be full of surprises, (albeit some of them rather last minute), but if you are willing to say Yes to the universe then anything is possible. We're all different and we all want different things in life, so whatever you want I would say - wish for it every morning, send that wish out to the universe couched in gratitude and then get on with everything that comes your way with joy in your heart and a spring in your step!

Please join me again on Monday when the Style Not Age collective will be featuring our January Jumpers - very topical indeed. Until then, have a lovely weekend!

Anna x

Travelling tales

Just in case you've dropped in for a progress report...

My travels continue apace and currently I'm in the pretty seaside town of St Andrews having a lovely bit of R&R with my sister. If you'd like to see where I've been and what I've been doing, then click here to see my Instagram page for all the latest news.

I'm having great fun with friends and family and am busy making plans for more travelling soon. Exciting times ahead!

Anna x

Time to take a break

Hello and thanks for dropping by. You know how life rarely goes to plan? Well, that's how it is with me currently. I'm not one to take a blogging break, but that's what I'm gonna do. There's no drama, nothing terrible going on, I'm just going away for a few weeks for a break. Meeting up with family, seeing friends and maybe catching some rays, but I promise I'll be back by the end of the month. Happy New Year to you all and I do hope that 2019 is starting well for you. Let's hook up again in few weeks, shall we?

Take care!

Anna x

Style Not Age December challenge - Sequins!

Hello and welcome to our final challenge of the year, and yes I'm in my element as the theme for the Style Not Age collective is Sequins!

New Year's Eve can surely be no better licence to bring out every bit of sparkle and the ladies have definitely risen to the challenge this month. So without further ado let's start with Emma shall we?

The author of Style Splash, Emma has totally embraced the sequin theme with her silver jacket and boots taking centre stage. Talk about ready to party! Join Emma on her blog to get the back story for this festive look.

This gorgeous sequin top was a very timely Christmas present for the equally gorgeous Jacqui of Mummabstylish. Black jeans and heels complete the chic look with a metallic clutch adding a final bit of bling. Join Jacqui on her blog to get all the details.

Elegant glamour with a sprinkling of sequins is what Hilda has conjured up for this month's challenge in the shape of this sophisticated frock. Her sleek heels have had a sprinkling of fairy dust too! Check out Over The Hilda for the full story.

My festive offering comes with extra Brownie points to me - I've shopped my closet as the Americans say. I'm big on recycling as you know, but Christmas presents a huge pressure to buy some new bling to party in. I have three different options of party wear for this evening and only one of them is new and even that was a Christmas present from my lovely hubby.

The leopard print fur coat is very old indeed and was bought in Dorothy Perkins - does that shop still exist? I only ask because the branch in Penzance closed down this year and I'm not sure if that means they have all closed. 

My sequin top was from H&M a couple of years ago and has turned into one of those go-to items, a classic party piece I suppose you'd say. I have a matching skirt, but rarely wear them together as even I have my bling limits! The top and skirt both are fabulous enough even when paired with a simple black top/jeans, but this time I opted for a pre-loved pair of satin trousers in dusky pink to bring out the gold hues in the top. Likewise I chose rose gold for my jewellery - rings were both charity shop finds and the heart pendant was from a boutique in Truro which has since shut down too. The high street is under siege isn't it?

You'll have seen these ASOS boots before, I'm sure. Brocade boots will always be on trend with me! I love the ornate pattern and the colours make them so versatile too. 

So that pretty much rounds things up for our final style challenge of the year. I do hope we've inspired you to try something new/different or maybe even outside of your comfort zone. The ladies and I will be together again on the last Monday of January with our first quest of 2019 - do make a note of this in your diary!

Thanks so much for your company throughout the year. It's been great to know that you're tuning in to see what I've been up to and it's heartwarming to have your feedback and comments. The blog has opened up my life, connecting me to far flung places that I may never visit, but where I've found new friends. I do appreciate your time. It's been a pretty amazing year for me, full of wonderful opportunities and such fun along the way - I hope you've enjoyed the ride. I look forward to sharing further tales of my island life in 2019. 

Wishing you a Very Happy New Year!

Anna x 

Happy Christmas!

Happy Christmas!

Hello and how are the preparations coming along? Currently I'm still making fudge as fast as I can, but hopefully by the end of today everyone will have their allotted box. Tomorrow I'll be making a raised chicken pie for dinner along with other savoury nibbles, and I hope to do some prep for the Christmas meal too. Please don't mistake me for a domestic goddess - there's a whole lot of panicking and comedy moments take place when I'm in the kitchen!

Homemade vanilla fudge for family and friends. 

And finally, after weeks of trying to find the perfect showcase for my tartan boots - here it is! Oh my goodness, how I love this tartan medley. I'm not sure why tartan is so big around Christmas, but I've not got a problem with this fabulous pattern being on trend again. The green teddy bear coat was from TK Maxx last year and is still a fond favourite of mine, cosy and snuggly, just like a cuddly bear in fact.

After searching the Internet for hours I came across these tartan trews (what beauties!) on the ASOS website and if you fancy them they've got £10 off now, see here. I totally love them and have had so many compliments about them and how very me they are. And now here they are teamed up with my fab M&S tartan boots and don't they look amazing together? Gush, gush!

The red pie crust, frilly cuffed blouse is by H&M and was sent all the way from Japan when my dear friend Ben was there on holiday. He came across it in a market and decided it had my name on it. It came by post, via surface mail arriving some 10 weeks after he got home. But arrive it did and thank you Ben - I love it!

Another H&M secondhand purchase is the Sealed With A Kiss Christmas jumper. I bought it on eBay last year and have found that the black makes it easy to pair with most festive outfits. I have a new sparkly jumper set aside for Christmas day and if all goes to plan I hope to sidetrack one of the family to take some photos before the post-dinner naps commence.

The black and silver ring is preloved and the frilly seaweed ring is by Emily Nixon.

From here on in, my lovely readers, I'm not sure how the rest of December will go blog-wise. I'd like to award myself with a few days off, away from the clamour of social media and let the blog bubble away, garnering comments from you or not as the case may be. 

On New Year's Eve I'll be joined by the Style Not Age Collective for our monthly challenge which just so happens to be Sequins. Oh dear, can you imagine what a terrible chore this will be for me to don something so brash and sparkly? Never fear, I'll give it my best shot!

In the meantime, I'd like to wish you all 

A Wonderful Christmas 

and let's catch up again soon!

Anna x