The feel-good factor

Hello lovelies! How are you doing? And more importantly what have you lined up for the weekend? It's well over a year since I've been on the mainland and I can't imagine what it's like now that restrictions are being lifted across the UK. Have you been clothes shopping yet? And if so, how was it? Do share!

This was a work outfit of mine from this past week. We've had a wonderful run of sunny weather, but with a chilly east wind, hence the need for tights. I long for bare leg weather, but I suppose it's only spring after all. The bell sleeved smock harps back to the 60's from when I was barely a teenager. This one was a charity shop find and as is so often, it has no label. The fabric is a heavy weight jersey, perfect for this time of year. 

A wide smock that barely covers the knee can be a bit challenging. Do I end up looking as wide as I am tall? Am I a bit chunky around the knee area? Is this a style more suited to a young girl? Yes, all of these questions came to mind when I saw some of these photos. The fashion critic that resides in my head talks much louder than any straight talking girlfriend could. The truth is, sometimes it's not about how an outfit makes you look. Sometimes it's about how it makes you feel. And this smock dress always makes me feel good. So hurrah for the feel-good factor!

I chose purple tights to tie in with the floral patterned dress, adding these silver brogues (by Office) for a bit of razzle dazzle. 

Pre-loved rings and a mixed metal necklace finish the look along with my Quay Australia sunglasses. I'm listening to Tony Blackburn's "Sounds of the 60's" as I write this which seems very fitting. The song "What  a wonderful world" by Louis Armstrong is a great way to start my day. 

My thanks go to Fiona again for taking these photos. This post work shoot took place in front of our local church in the early evening sunshine. My first week of being open to the public has rushed by in a flurry of happy hello's from guests who were so grateful to be back on the island. Our numbers have increased staff-wise too with lots of youngsters wearing ear to ear smiles as they can't quite believe their luck at landing on our sunny island paradise - and getting paid to be here too!

I'm just off to the beach now for my early morning swim. The plan for me this weekend is all about housework. A big spring clean is long overdue and I'm ready for it. I love to clean if cleaning is my own chore. If a job's worth doing, it's worth doing well is my motto. And with that I'll leave you. 

I hope you have a lovely weekend!

Anna x

A riot of pattern

Hello again and how are you doing? Was yesterday a big day for you? Did you, like me, reopen your business? Or maybe you braved the rush and went for some non-essential shopping? If so, how was it?

We've had a steady influx of guests arrive on the island within the past 24 hours and they were greeted by the most glorious day. Honestly, the Isles of Scilly were sparkling in the spring sunshine and just couldn't have looked any more beautiful! It was a perfect start to the new season and did feel very special. I had three appointments which was a lovely gentle way to reopen the gallery. Behind the scenes I've got a part-time assistant, Lora, who is doing my admin for me, allowing me to focus on unpacking all the new artworks and deal with the appointments too. It feels like a good balance of the workload so far, hurrah!

Fiona took these shots post-work on Friday - it was great to have her help again. With regards to my tripod and camera debacle, I now have a weight in a bag to use suspended below the camera when I'm out and about on my own and it's quite solid and heavy and feels secure even in the wind. I used the set up on Sunday when I went to the beach and the wind was gusting quite a bit. I used the tripod on both rocks and sand and it was perfectly stable.

 

I've worn this outfit before, but with a different top and shoes (see here). Going back to see that post I was more than a little envious of my hairstyle some 10 months ago. I've not had a hair appointment since December and I've still got another month to wait until my next one. 

The back view of my mop of hair shows how long it is now. I've had some lovely compliments on my new longer style, but honestly it's driving me mad. My efforts at scooping it up in a scrunchie or scarf aren't in the least bit flattering, so I just have to keep it super clean and conditioned to make it look okay.

Anyway, back to the outfit. The joy is in the wonderful mix of prints. Fiona remarked that she would never have thought of pairing the two florals together, but agreed that they really worked. They're not the same colour exactly, but tonally they tie in beautifully. The fact that they are both in a silky satin fabric ties them together too. I'm already planning on wearing it again this week as it's a new favourite. The trousers were from TK Maxx and the blouse was a charity shop find. Sasha gave me the jacket as a Christmas gift a couple of years ago - she know's what I like eh?

My checked Converse boots add a playful element to the outfit. 

The statement necklace by Topshop has all of the right colours in it to work here too. The floral rings echo today's theme. And of course, my sunglasses are by Quay Australia.

The majority of my weekend was spent doing my seasonal clothes changeover. I've done a kind of half way house thing this year, bringing some pieces into my wardrobe and others are in big plastic boxes waiting for the warmer weather. We're still having cold winds here at the moment and despite the sunshine it's not exactly warm as yet. 

I've kept a lot of sweaters and cardigans to hand and lots of short jackets too for layering up.

I'll show you the other side of my wardrobe when I've brought out my summer dresses and sandals. For the moment I'm keeping my boots in circulation until I feel ready for that bit of swapping - the gallery is always cold in the morning, but if the sun shines it can be like a greenhouse in the afternoon. I'll be bringing spare footwear to work so that I can change if it gets too hot.

I'll leave you with some shots from the weekend. As I said, the islands are looking beautiful at the moment.

 

Thanks for dropping by. See you again soon!

Anna x

That cold north wind doth blow!

Hello again!

I've seen on the weather forecast that parts of the UK have been having snow over the past few days, brrrrrrrrr! Well, not here thank goodness, but we're still feeling that brisk north wind. So much so, that I've dug out a scarf to go with my latest outfit. I rarely wear scarves. I'm just not a scarf person. I struggle to make them part of my look; they seem to stick out at funny angles or just sit in a big lump under my chin in the most unflattering of ways. 

Yesterday however, as I was making a dash for the door, I thought I might get away with not wearing a coat if I topped things off with a cosy scarf. And hey-presto, this one seemed to work! After a bit of a jiggle and windy round thing and then a looping through thing it looked like this. Get me, with a scarf, eh? A bit of personal blogging history being made. I'd bought this colour co-ordinated gem in Primark a few years ago and of course, this is the first time I've worn it.

This is only the second time I've worn my Adidas corduroy trouser suit and I'm happy to report that I'm still in love with it. I love the colour - coral or blush or salmon pink - call it what you like. The fabric too is ace; soft and cuddly and best of all the trousers have a touch of stretch meaning that they don't bag at the knees after the first time you sit down.

I opted for black and white as my accent colours by way of this gingham blouse which ties in nicely with my white and black boots. The blouse is very old indeed, but came from Asda and has worn well. The sleeves are very feminine don't you think? My sunglasses are old faithfuls from Quay Australia.

My rings and leather belt are all pre-loved items. The handbag was a Christmas present from my son, as were the pink leather gloves in the first shot.

I love the ribbon go-faster stripes down the outside of the trouser legs. My boots of the moment are here again - white patent leather boots (by Besson) - cos they work well with this look.

And yes, the update on the camera situation is that I bought a replacement last week and here it is in action. Lora is back working with me for a couple of months and she was very happy to take my photos. I feel I may have to look into pricing up a heavy duty expanding tripod for those times when I have to go it alone. I've had an expensive month as my washing machine broke down and I had to buy a new one last week too. Sometimes life's just like that, eh?

Thanks for swinging by again. I'll be back on Monday!

Anna x

Easter weekend

Hurrah for Easter weekend!

Not only is it the weekend, but it's Easter weekend, time for guilt-free chocolate indulgence. Yay! 

Daffodils and Easter chicks have been the colour inspiration for today's chilled weekend look. The lime green faux suede jacket was a Primark purchase a couple of years ago and yet is still looking fresh and rather funky too. 

I teamed the jacket up with this neon bright clutch, a second hand purchase also from years ago. I love the textured bubble effect. The floral blouse with lovely yellow daffodils was from M&S.

The wide legged Diesel jeans were recently featured (see here) and I'm afraid you may be seeing a lot of them over the next little while. They're such an easy to wear style - it's a great weekend look, don't you think?

I've had these grey platform trainers for two years and would you believe it - this is the first time I've worn them? It's shocking how deep this stream of new finds runs eh? I bought them online in the Zara sale one January and somehow never got around to wearing them. I'm pleased to say that they're really comfy!

I've taken blue as my accent colour for accessories; the rings are both pre-loved and the belt is also second hand, gifted to me.

These pretty floral edged sunglasses are by Tu at Sainsbury's. A sale purchase from ages ago - no surprise there then! They're a bit Dame Edna Everage don't you think? Hilarious!

I'm so enjoying having the structure of work again now, most of all because it's helping me to redefine weekend wear from working outfits. I've been trying out new combinations at work to check how much stretch and bend room they have; I've been busy hanging art this week - you can see that on our Gallery Tresco Instagram page here. It's only a week until we have guests on the island when I'll open the gallery on an appointment-only basis.

I'm going to apologise in advance to say that the blog may be a few days out of kilter now as my camera broke the other day and I'm still waiting for a new one. There was a terminal tripod accident when a gust of wind blew the whole lot over, smashing the lens. It happened in a flash without me having any time to catch it. I ought to have had a weight attached to steady it, especially as I've had a close call once before, but I thought I was tucked in out of the wind. I wish I'd been squirreling photos away for this eventuality, but alas I haven't! The postman only comes to the island three days a week and sadly it didn't arrive today, so there'll be no feature on Monday. Fingers crossed, I'll be back on Tuesday!

In the meantime, enjoy your Easter eggs !

Anna x