MY RED VALENTINE'S DAY DRESS

Hi everyone, hope you had a wonderful Valentine's Day.

Today I would like to share you with something about me that I have never said on the blog before.  My husband and I don't believe in Valentine's Day. We don't buy each gifts, he doesn't bring me flowers nor do we go out for romantic dinner on that day.  

We both have quite strong feelings against the notion of being commercially forced to feel romantic towards each other.  We have other ways to express our feelings towards each other.  If you are my regular reader, you might recall my mentioning our tradition to celebrate our wedding anniversary every month by giving each other small gifts.  

Actually, it is my husband who buys me a gift every month without failing, I am more on the receiving side of it and my gifts are more sporadic.  I struggle to come up with an idea of what to buy for him.  And even though he is an avid reader, since I got him an E-book, buying a new book is not an option any more.  Anyway, he doesn't seem to mind taking pleasure in spoiling me, saving the special gift for actual date of our nuptials.

However, if we do decide to celebrate Valentine's Day and go out for a romantic dinner, this is the outfit I would be wearing, starting with this red vintage dress from Lanvin with deep drapes which create multiple folds softly cascading down the front.  I like the folds to be off centre and to one side so with the help of a brooch I gather the fabric around one shoulder thus making the dress looking slightly asymmetrical.

I wanted to clear away from the expected "red dress, black shoes and handbag combo" and put on white shoes but somehow it didn't work; besides, my black shoes have red soles which is the colour of the Day.  As for accessories, since the brooch is encrusted with tiny white pearls so were my ring and a pair of earrings.

A quilted purse size bag from Chanel completed my look.

I am wearing

A dress - Lanvin

Shoes - Christian Louboutin

Handbag - Chanel

Have a great week

Anna
xoxo

IF YOU LIKE MY LOOK, HERE ARE SOME MORE IDEAS  THAT YOU MIGHT LIKE 

LACE MAXI DRESS

Hi everyone, hope you are all well.

I have been in such a good mood until yesterday when I learnt that Google + is introducing some changes and all the comments that have been posted on my blog over the years have been erased.  Gone forever, and will never be back.  What a disappointment.  The only consolation I can find in this grim situation is the rest of the blog is still there, at least for the time being, and from now on the comments will be powered directly by Blogger.  So please leave your comments on my posts in Blogger, below, if you can, your support will be greatly appreciated.  BTW, has anyone else has encountered a similar problem?  Please let me know how you are dealing with it.

But the show must go on, so back to the post at hand.  The Sydney summer is still on and the heat is quite intense with the more heat is yet to come in February.  It is not that I want the summer to end because then the winter will come and we will complaint about the cold,  I just wish that the weather will be slightly cooler with less humidity so that we don't need to use the air-conditioning that is the main cause of summer colds and flu.

I can't speak for the rest of Australia, but the two fabrics choice which totally dominate this summer fashion scene in Sydney are linen and lace.  In my last post I shared with you my linen pants outfit (read the whole story here) and now is the turn to talk about lace.  Two years ago while on holiday in Sorrento, Italy I bought myself, (not knowing that it will become a fashion fad) a very cute lace dress (seen here) which I casually wear during the day.   However, I have for some time been on the hunt for a new dress which would be suitable to wear to more glorious events, like a concert at the opera house or a gallery exhibition, for example.

I saw this lace maxi dress at Zara during their massive post-Christmas sale.  It looked simple but has a subdued elegance about it.   I like that the colour is off-white neutral colours which looks great against sun-kissed tanned skin and gives a sense of cool calm.  

"...BECAUSE A DRESS IS SUBDUED, 

IT CALLS FOR STRONG BOLD ACCESSORIES..."

The lace is rather subtle and it is semi sheer at the bottom due to the partial lining which is removable, by the way, which gives me the option to wear any colour slip underneath depending on my mood, the occasion or choice of accessories.  The A-silhouette with a V-cut neck is very flattering and the fringe around the hem adds some boho feel to it.  Did I mention that the price tag was heavily reduced?

This images were taken in the garden surrounding  the Art Gallery of NSW where we came to see exhibition of Modern Art from The Hermitage Museum of St Petersburg.  I was very excited to see it because the last time I visited The Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg was more then forty years ago while I was still living in Russia.  It was a warm and sunny day, perfect for my new light lace dress.  I wanted to keep the neutral palette and carried a handbag in a similar neutral colour (it is my old Louis Vuitton which is now considered vintage, lol).

Because the dress is rather subdued, it calls for strong bold accessories like my oversized golden tribal earrings that  and multicultural beaded bracelet that I bought many years ago at the Green Market Square in Cape Town.  The black slides with gold trimming around the heel completed my outfit of the day.

We received an invitation to the opening night of 2019 season at Sydney Opera House and I am thinking of wearing this dress again but will probably accessorise it with pearls, take an evening handbag and maybe wear a different pair of shoes.  We will see.  I will keep you posted.

Until then,

Anna

xoxo