Take four pieces ...




Yay, I'm home again! 




Oh my goodness, how lovely it is to be back on Tresco once again! Four days away on the mainland was quite enough for my first foray in 15 months. Travelling back and forth on Wednesday and Saturday left me with two days of various hospital check up's around which I sandwiched retail therapy involving train journeys to Truro to get to my favourite haunts. 




My major worry had been how it would feel to be thrown into the boiling pot that is mainland life, but honestly it soon became apparent that people were respectful of social distancing and everyone seemed be wearing masks at all of the appropriate times. My fears of feeling unsafe were unjustified and I shall be happy to go off-island again when necessary, although Steve and I have no plans to go away on holiday this year. What about you?




I nipped to the beach on my return on Saturday evening to capture this outfit of four simple items - jacket, dungarees, tee-shirt and pumps. No fancy accessories or even jewellery for this easy weekend look and yet it earned me a couple of compliments along the way. 




The cropped puffa jacket is by Topshop and is a few years old now. It's been a great jacket for winter walking as it fits snuggly up around the neck, capturing the body's heat. The punch of orange is an instant mood lifter too, making it a go-to piece.




And a small drum roll please for this pair of corduroy dungarees. Yes, brand new from the shopping expedition this comes from Enjoy Clothing in Truro. The colour is a bright turquoise, but may look more blue on your screens. I love dungarees for weekend wearing as it signals downtime for me and hopefully to those around too. Don't ask me about work is the secret code when I'm dressed like this.



 
This is casual dressing at its best - no buttons, zips or poppers to do up and best of all, huge pockets! 






Slouchy and oversized, I can see that these will be weekend favourites very quickly. I have to share a funny story about them though. I was served by a new assistant in the shop; I overheard her being talked through topping up stock and moving things around to make the displays look eye-catching. When I took the dungarees to the till she was great, telling me to wash them in cold water the first time to set the dye. What she ought to have said is to wash them before the first wear... By the time I had returned home from the beach, I went to the loo, only to discover that my legs were bright blue as was the white of my tee shirt! The tee shirt has been washed and is fine now, but my legs needed a good old scrub to get all the dye off!




I bought myself a hairband while I was away as I realised it was still another week until I have my haircut. This orange and yellow one was on half price sale in Boots.




These lightweight pumps are rugged enough for moors and beach walking. The brand is Sketchers, although I fancy I bought them in TK Maxx in Edinburgh in 2019.






I'll be back on Friday with a bit more about my retail therapy. I had to send some of my bags home by freight ship and therefore it may be a little while before I can lay the truth of the matter before you. Suffice to say, I had a lovely time shopping and have no qualms about the big reveal. My shopping ban is over and therefore there was no guilt attached to my purchases. I look forward to catching up with you again on Friday.


Take care and have a great week! 

Anna x

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Just another working day




Hello lovelies!




As you read this I shall be off-island having my first taste of mainland life in 15 months. This is probably the longest I've ever been holed up on the tiny island of Tresco without a break. Writing this, I do wonder how I'll feel to be out there surrounded by hoards of mask-wearing strangers, (hopefully) keeping their distance from me. Thinking about this makes me realise how very different lock-down on an island has been compared to elsewhere. Familiar faces in normal routines meant we all seemed to carry on our ordinary lives without too much fuss. How very lucky we have been.




The outfit was from Tuesday when grey skies mingled with a peek-a-boo sun - not the ideal for a pre-work photo shoot, but Fiona and I did our best. I've been keen to showcase this jacket and dress combination as it's a favourite work outfit at the moment. Jamie bought me the dress for my birthday and I love the marriage of the different prints as well as the joyful addition of the bright pink. It's a stylish work ensemble with a generous dollop of fun!




The dress was from Zara, trench from Topshop, boots from H&M, underskirt was charity shopped and the belt was an eBay purchase from a long time ago.










Simple black sunglasses by Radley London add a touch of class to this animal print outfit.




I had started the day at 5.30am, chopping and slicing veg to get a meal into the slow cooker before washing up and making breakfast. A fresh wind was blowing which put paid to my early morning swim, but I spent 20 minutes instead gathering some clothes together to pack in a bag for my trip the next day. It was a productive day at work and I also received my second vaccine in the afternoon so I felt flushed with success. 




It won't be long now until I get my haircut on St Mary's, so this may be the last shot of the overgrown lock-down look. I shan't miss the fact that I have to wash it every day now just to make it presentable.

And last of all, thank you to those of you who have sent me photos for inclusion in my 6th anniversary post. If you're still considering, then there's plenty time. The more the merrier as they say! Just send me an email and attach your snap along with a few words as to how Anna's Island Style has influenced the outfit. It's easy peasy!

                                                                                      Anna x



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Frilled to bits!




Hi everyone! How are you?






Excuse the pun, but I'm frilled to bits to wear this outfit! A monochrome permutation, showcasing these rather old flamenco inspired trousers, it was a joy to pair them with the frilly sleeved blouse to create an outfit that just cried out "Fun!" and oh, what fun I had!




Four years ago I set myself the Black Trouser Challenge - see here. It was the first time I'd succumbed to black trousers since my school days and I was positively evangelical about these delightfully ruffled ones. To my amazement, the weekly challenge ran for 13 inspired weeks and looking back seems to have been very popular gauging by the number of comments each post received. 




The eagle eyed amongst you may recall that this is an almost identical take on week two of the challenge, apart from the shoes and accessories. But hey, that was in 2017, so maybe I ought not to have even mentioned it!




What wasn't happening back in 2017, was the almost daily photobombing from Nick Halliday, CEO of the island! Nick clearly is up for a bit of fun too and may well become a regular on the blog at this rate.




You know what they say, "Laugh and the world laughs with you..."




And so, to the details - trousers were from River Island, blouse was from George at Asda, belt was charity shopped, shoes by Nine West, sunglasses by Quay Australia.




Rings are both pre-loved and handbag by Bags of Time. We sell these bags at Gallery Tresco. They're upcycled from old leathers and fabrics by Claudine Sear. Jamie bought me this one for my Christmas and it's my fave bag of the moment.




I love the mixture of classy and playful that these two elements combined say.




And just when I thought I'd regained centre stage ...




... this happens! Timeshare guest and friend Mark Rigby managed to edge into the limelight that is Anna's Island Style. Neatly done, I may add, as he keeps his 2m distance!




The silver disc necklace was a purchase from M&S many moons ago and yet still looks very contemporary. 




If this is the 14th feature of these (£40) River Island trousers then that brings the cost per wear down to £2.85. Not too shabby eh?

And one final thing. On Wednesday, weather permitting, I shall be leaving Tresco for a few days on the mainland. I have three health appointments to attend and beyond that I can already feel the siren's call of the shops. This will be my first time off the island in 15 months, a scary thought for a fashion blogger who claims to be ready for a change in retail habits. My aim is to shop responsibly; to buy only what I need or can justify by way of replacements. However, I accept my quest seems almost saintly and therefore am cutting myself some slack as I have a gift voucher left over from Christmas which will see my entry in the Portal of Joy - otherwise known as TK Maxx. Wish me luck!

                                                                  Anna x



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Floral midi dress from H&M




Hello again!




How has your week been? I've been really busy at work and honestly the week just seems to have flown by! The stormy weather has meant I've not managed to swim every day, but Fiona and I have wrapped up against the winds and done some lunchtime walking regardless. Checkout my Instagram feed here for my latest reel from the big outdoors on Tresco.




Shopping my closet continues as ever, and hopefully isn't proving tedious for you. This button through midi dress for H&M is very flattering both in colour and style. I love the long, lean fit helping me feel six foot tall. The tiny floral pattern is a riot of colour lending itself to endless permutations of accessories. Today I opted for red as the accent colour.




My old faithful sock boots are also from H&M, many moons ago. The combination of these and the long dress made me feel very elegant and grown up. 




The belt was a charity shop find - a £1 bargain no less! The front half is patent leather and the back is elasticated; a clever way to get a snug fit, eh?




The silver and red beaded necklace was a pre-loved purchase too. The swish sunglasses are by Radley London.




I'm a bit lacking in red rings, so instead opted for the lemon tones in the dress to tie in with these pre-loved pieces.




I braved the day with bare legs, but not without my first application of fake tan. Without it, my pale Scottish skin has a greyish hue! I don't actually fake tan - I use one of those daily tinted body lotions to just take the edge off the glaring whiteness of winter skin. 




Fiona took these shots after work one evening. It was the rush hour along the coastal road incurring a couple of photo bombs from locals Jude and Nick. Little Jude was out practising on his new bike and was uber cute and shy when we spoke to him. 





All photo bombers must, of course, be heckled!




I hope you have a lovely weekend. Do you have anything special lined up? For me, I think it'll be a mixture of batch cooking of meals for the freezer as well as some long overdue deep cleaning of the bathrooms. Such is the glamorous lifestyle of a fashion blogger!

                                                                     Anna x

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