BLACK AND WHITE POLKA DOT JUMPSUIT

Hi everyone, hope you are fine and not stressed at all. It is not much to go, a couple of weeks and our lives will return to normal.

Apart from typical Christmas shopping frenzy, I discovered yet another aspect that stresses me out every time I step inside the department store:  the abundance of amazing outfits all hanging waiting to be chosen to be worn during the festive season.  

And although I already have a dress that I am going to wear on New Year Night, I still can't help myself  wandering into a store, having a look around and trying on a dress or two.  Surely,  we all know that window shopping, as therapeutic as it can be, can't last forever and eventually I ended up with a purchase.  I just couldn't resist the urge when I spotted this black and white polka dot jumpsuit (pun not intended).

The last time I bought a jumpsuit was four years ago exactly to the day and believe it or not, it was also in polka dot print but in reverse, the background was white and the dots were black.  Moreover, I posted it in my blog on the 18 of December 2014.  

You can read the whole post here.  Is it a coincidence or not???  Back then the jumpsuit was regarded as a new LBD.  Four years later and they are still going strong.

Here is another interesting tidbit:  I don't mind jumpsuits, I quite like them but I don't actually wear them which proves the frequency with which I buy them and it was the print that attracted me to the garment in the first place back in 2014 and now and made me want to buy it.

The other detail that appeal to me is the cut as I always like tops with a scooped neck and open shoulders and I was happy to find that this jumpsuit has side pockets.  

It didn't require any alterations in terms of leg length, the only thing that I didn't care about was a thin soft belt made from the same fabric and was not doing much for my waist so I replaced it with a leather one. 

I am wearing it with my new Alias Mae sandals and Villa sunglasses.

This is my last post of 2018.  Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!

So long everybody, see you all in 2019.

WHITE COCOON HAND PRINTED H.S.J.P. DRESS

Hello everyone,  hope you are doing well and keeping the Christmas fever in check.

Although, according to the calendar we, in Australia,  are in the midst of summer, but the weather has been really jumped around so far that you don't know what to wear from one day to the next.

Luckily for us, the day these pictures were taken was very hot and I was able to wear my new over-sized cotton dress that kept me as cool as a cucumber during the photo shoot.  We were having lunch with friends at one of the hottest restaurants in the neighbourhood, Chiswick, and afterwards, on the way back to our car, we had a short stroll through the grounds of the restaurant where these photos were taken.

As a rule, I am not a big fan of over-sized dresses, especially when it comes to on-line shopping.  Despite their promise that one size fits all, I quite often find that they don't fit as well as I would like hence I prefer to buy them at a real brick and mortar establishment where I can try before I buy.

Having said that, I didn't buy this dress at the clothing store, I bought it at the Collective Market on our recent trip to Brisbane.  Walking from stall to stall, I spotted two young women dressed in quite attractive dresses who were busy unzipping big clothing bags and hanging out their stock on the racks.  We came over to have a closer look.  It was hard not to spot this dress due to its unique print.

I asked if they have it in my size which is medium, the girl explained to me that this is an over-size style of dress where one size fits all.  They didn't have a proper fitting room just a big mirror propped against the wall so I slipped it over the clothes I was wearing that day which happened to be a pair of linen pants and a plain t-shirt to get at least a vague idea of what would I look like in it.

My husband assured me that I looked nice, the price on the tag looked very reasonable and I thought, why not.  Even if the bad comes to worst I wouldn't like it on me, it is not going to be a big deal.

Back in Sydney, I once again tried it on but this time properly and actually liked it.  It has a full cocoon silhouette through the lower body with side pockets and is made of pure cotton and is very light and breathable.  But I think its main feature is its unique print that is haphazardly placed all over the dress thus breaking the monochromatic monotone and thus drawing your eyes back to it wanting for more.

Since the print is quite delicate and my skin looks quite pale against the white colour of the dress, I decided to go for rather bold strong accessories like black onyx beads around my neck, a wide heavy bracelet around my wrist and a red painted handbag and matching lipstick for a dash of colour.

What I wore today:

Dress - H.S.J.P

Clogs - Gorman (old)

Handbag - Louis Vuitton (old)

Cuff - Dinosaur Design

and my brand new sunglasses from Valley

I am aiming for one more post in 2018, fingers crossed I will not fail

Love to you all

Anna

xoxo

AWAY WITH THE SCARVES

Hi everyone, hope are having a good week.

As for me, I am feeling better now and my joie de vivre is slowly coming back to me.  I like to be back in the blogosphere catching up on what my friends have been up to while I was away.

Since I haven't done any photo shots recently, I've decided to blog about something that I really like to wear a lot, an accessory that those who read my blog on a regular basis, might have been known for a while.  I am talking about my love of scarves.

Scrolling through my photo archive, I couldn't help but notice that in almost every post I have published, I was wearing some kind of scarf around my neck.

And when it was not around my neck, it would be wrapped around my wrist, threaded through a button hole of my coat or tied around the handle of my handbag.

The other scenario where a nice scarf could come very handy is when you want to refresh your old outfit without breaking a budget or ditch the old necklace that you keep wearing over and over and wear a scarf instead. 

I often reach for it if I want to add a punch of colour or introduce a new pattern to break up a monochromatic outfit; or it could be just a final touch that would unite the separate pieces of your outfit into a complete stylish look.

Some of my scarves are purely functional and are there to keep me warm and comfortable.  I can hardly remember myself leaving the house without grabbing one, mostly for warmth and comfort and not just in winter.

Sometimes, on a hot summer day, if I walk into an air-conditioned building straight from the street, I would quite often get a sore throat so I always have with me a light cotton or linen scarf that I could wrap around my neck if it feels too cold inside.

"

....BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY, I JUST LOVE THEM...

"

It was after my mother-in-law passed away and her husband wanted me to have her amazing collection of scarfs and although her taste in clothes was much more refined then mine, I too became fascinated by them and started wearing them as a statement accessory rather then just a piece of clothing that provides warmth to my neck.

Quite often when I am deciding what to wear, I look at them through her eyes, guessing which one would she chose and whether my choice would get her approval.

If you are not sure if a scarf is your thing, you can start small, buy a couple of inexpensive ones and become experimental.  There are no rules, it's all a trial and error but while you are on the selective side of a purchase, do try and think about what clothes you might wear it with in terms of colours and textures.

Once you get a hang of it and fall in love with the scarfs as I did, then it is time to step up and think about good scarves such as silk, cashmere, pure wool.  Yes, these scarves don't come cheap but think about them as a good investment:  they last a long time, could do wanders to an otherwise simple outfit and never go out of style.

It is amazing how versatile this relatively small piece of fabric is and what magic it could do to your clothes.  We all know that the little things go a long way.And if you, like me, love them, I would like to hear how do you wear yours.

And if you, like me, love them, I would like to hear how do you wear yours.

Anna
xoxo

A SHORT TRIP TO BRISBANE

Hi everyone, hope you are all well.

A couple of weeks ago I decided to give my mind and body a short break that involved not going to the gym, stopping running, bloging and answering most of my e-mails.  Instead I spent a lot of time reading, gentle walking or just relaxing.

It was emotional roller that my younger daughter put us through during her final school exams, combined with the lack of sleep due to the constant noise coming from the neighbours who love to party until the wee hours and other bits and pieces that made me feel physically and emotionally overwhelmed and were affecting my state of mind and general well-being.  It is during this mini break that we took a weekend away and flew to Brisbane primarily because my husband, knowing my love for ballet, and as a part of my birthday celebrations, bought us tickets to the La Scala Ballet Company that was there on tour with performances of Don Quixote and Giselle.

I don't particularly care for this city and would never consider it to be my choice of a holiday destination and this trip only further confirmed my view.  The only one part of it that we really liked was the area called South Bank, one of the city's main draw cards due to its close proximity to the major museums and performing centres and where you can take a long walk along the rive bank with looking the city skyline on your left while enjoying  beautiful display of blossoming trees on your right.

So on the morning of our second day there, we decided to try our luck elsewhere and decided to do a day trip to explore the outside of Brisbane.  After a quick Google search a small place called Montville based on a Sunshine Coast seemed to be what we were looking for.  Apart from sprawling green hills and wineries  this area is also a home to the award winning Spicer Retreat that hosts a highly ranked French restaurant called The Long Apron which my husband immediately booked for lunch.

It took us slightly more then an hour to get there but the scenery around us was very lovely and we enjoyed the drive.  It happens that the restaurant is part of a retreat set amongst beautifully maintained grounds overlooking the hills and is the winner of multiple awards for excellence.

Soon after we took out seats at the table, the waiter placed in front of us a plate with a small ceramic vase with dry sticks placed in it's centre.  Turned out, it was an amuse bouche - the sticks were made of bread covered in finely chopped herbs, it was very tasty.  It was a three course degustation lunch with each dish cooked very well and beautifully presented.

My original outfit for the day was a distressed denim skirt, a singlet and a pair of slides but once my husband informed me that we were having lunch at a French restaurant, I changed my mind and instead wore a polka dot skirt that you saw me wearing it here, seen here, with a sleeveless blouse with a lacy trim and a pair of sandals.  I was in the country side, after all.

After lunch, we took a nice leisurely stroll around the estate enjoying the tranquility of the surroundings and the touch of the warm sun on my skin, making me feel relaxed and content.  We returned to Brisbane just in time to change for the theatre.   The ballet, as we hoped, was absolutely sublime and we enjoyed it immensely.

I couldn't be more grateful to my husband for giving me such a lovely gift.

Love
xoxo
Anna

WHAT I WORE TO A HIGH TEA PARTY

Hi everyone, hope you are doing well

A while ago my husband and I received an invitation to a High Tea birthday celebration that was taking place at the hosts house and the dress code for the party was "smart casual".  

Well, the "smart casual" dress code is considered by many to be rather tricky as there are as many interpretations of it as is the number of people who have made an attempt to adhere to it.  My take on this code is as follows: "Avoid being over or under-dressed because either way you will be sticking like a sore thumb" and thus the recipe to succeed lies in finding a perfect balance between casual and smart elements of your outfit.  After careful consideration of the above, here is what I wore.

I started with the casual.  I think you would agree that nothing looks more casual than a plain jumper worn over a pair of tan slacks, worn with a linen jacket in a similar neutral colour.  I can't even begin to remember how long these slacks from Zara have been sitting in my wardrobe.  

I bought them in Europe many years ago when we didn't have Zara shops in Australia at all and unless someone who travelled to Europe and came back with clothes bought at one of Zara's boutiques, we didn't even know that such a label existed.  Interestingly enough, that after all these years, this slim straight silhouette of the pants hasn't changed much which reminds us that classic style is ageless. Same could be said about my linen jacket that I bought from American Apparel many years ago.

Then came the turn for the smart part of my outfit and to my strong belief nothing smartens any outfit like a pair of elegant leather shoes and stylish accessories like belts, handbags and scarfs.  My regular readers know how much I love scarves and wear them quite often.  

There are so many ways that you can wear them depending on what look you are trying to convey, they come extremely handy if you want to add a colour, texture or bit of  panache to your outfit.  And let's not forget how practical this accessory could be when you need to look smart and feel warm at the same time.  

My choice fell on the scarf that combines the colours of all other pieces of my outfit which linked them all together into a complete look.

Initially, I was thinking of taking a different handbag but then I realised that at this type of party you need both hands to hold your drink in one, and the food in the other and so it was only logical to take a crossbody bag instead.

The party was really lovely.  The rain had stopped, the day was sunny and warm, the food, beautifully presented, was aplenty and the hired barman knew his craft very well.  The hosts made a great effort in making sure that we all had a good time, that our glasses were full and we had food on our plates.

 As were among the first guests to arrive, I managed to take a few photos of the food before it was all gone.  Looks amazing, wouldn't you agree?

 This is the room where dessert was served.

What is your take on a "smart casual dress code".  Please let me know.

Until then,

Anna

xoxo