HOW I CELEBRATED MY 60TH BIRTHDAY PART I

Last months marked an important milestone in my life - I turned 60.  I have mixed feelings about it.  My friends keep telling me that it is just a number and I sincerely want to believe them, yet I am aware that there is much more to it than that.

I did however, receive quite a few rather nice gifts from my family and which lifted my spirits 👍👍👍.

Anyhow, I decided that rather than be bogged by it and be sad and miserable, I should embrace this fact with gusto and celebrate.  Unfortunately, our original plan which was to spend my 60^th in Bali went out the window so the only option we had was to do it locally.   

Luckily, we have been allowed to travel within the boundaries of our state, so we decided to travel to Nelson Bay, a beautiful two hour drive away part of the world highly popular for its sandy beaches, water activities, amazing seafood and holiday vibe.  I honestly didn’t care much for the beach as we live within a 10 minute walking distance from the famous Bondi Beach, I just wanted a change of scenery and get away from cooking, cleaning etc.

My husband managed to get us a table at Rick Stein's restaurant which has been in high demand since he opened in the area a couple of years ago.  Originally, he wanted to book us dinner at Bannisters hotel that is the home to Rick Stein's restaurant but everything was booked out for that weekend so he settled for lunch.  I was fine with it because our hotel was a fair distance from the restaurant and since we couldn’t spent the night at Bannisters, I was rather apprehensive of driving intoxicated at night in an unfamiliar environment. 

It was the first time that I wore this dress since I bought it at the End of Season Sale from Sass and Bide on-line store which is quite unusual for me as I hugely prefer buying my clothes from a mortar and bricks store to on-line shopping.  But when I saw this dress on-line with the price tag slashed by half, I couldn’t resist the temptation to buy it.  Besides, they promised me a full refund upon returning the dress within 14 days.  To my delight and surprise, the dress fitted me perfectly.  I was hoping to wear it during the summer months but then the lockdown laws were introduced and even after they partially lifted the restrictions on restaurants, I felt reluctant to go out.  

The style of the dress is call the Wild One Dress and you can see why.  I thought that rather than trying to find words to describe it, I would copy a quote from the official site.  It goes like this:  “This fitted tank-style dress features classic sleeveless tank styling, with a high neckline and asymmetric rushed detailing at the side. Made from silk, the dress showcases a striking animal-style print, with raw-cut black chiffon at the neck and armhole, an invisible zip at the side seam, and a keyhole closure at the back of the neck.”

I think that sums it up. 

As for my accessories, I didn’t want anything that would fight with the dress for attention, so I just wore golden hoop earrings and I couldn’t help but to put on a new Hermes bracelet given to me by my older daughter for my birthday (see the picture above).

The food was scrumptious and the service – impeccable which was expected from such an acclaimed chef.

We spent three blissful days sleeping late, going for drives or nice long walks, eating, drinking and generally enjoying ourselves.  It felt so good to be away from everything even if it was a short break.

But this is only the first part of my birthday festivities.  I saved the rest for the next post😍.

Until then

Anna

Dress - Sass and Bide

Shoes - Country Road (0ld)

Handbag - Chanel Butterfly Quilted bag (Old)

Glass - Prada (another birthday present)