A CASUAL STROLL AROUND SYDNEY "THE ROCKS"

Hello, dear friends.  What have you been up to so far?

Sadly, the COVID-19 situation has turned bad once again and for a month Sydney was declared a red zone and we were prohibited to travel anywhere beyond Greater Sydney boundaries which means that our options, when it came to entertainment, were limited by what Sydney had to offer.  Luckily for its inhabitants, it's quite a lot:  from sunny beaches to boat parties, endless cocktails on rooftop bars and al-fresco dining overlooking the lights of the famous Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House.

Walking the narrow winding streets of The Rocks, one of the oldest parts of Sydney, is one pastime that we never grow tired of.  There is history everywhere, you walk the old cobblestoned streets along sandstone buildings each of them has a colouful story behind it, you walk into the one of the oldest pubs in the country where they serve traditional pub grub in the dark and moody room with low beams and dark furniture.  

You step back into the sunlight and stroll to the famous Rocks Markets and admire the arts and crafts of local artisans, listen to the band playing soft jazz or sample the most delicious morsels of Australian produce.  The Rocks are is highly popular destination amongst the locals and tourists alike.

My dress for the day was a sleeveless dress from Mango that I bought on our holidays in Muscat, of all the places, in 2019.  This season the olive-green, khaki or any other colour in a similar hue is hugely popular for summer dresses as well as the floaty bell-shaped billowing, multilayered silhouette that has a slightly romantic and hippy vibe about it.  Besides, you feel so much cooler in a dress that does not cling to your body but rather lets in a breeze that keeps you cool.

Knowing that the streets of The Rocks are paved in cobblestones, I wore flat sandals with quite a thick sole which I normally take with me on my travels.

I always take with me some sort of a scarf or light pashmina, knowing too well that the hotter the weather outside, the more air-conditioned will be the indoors, whether it's a cafe, movie house, museum or a shopping centre.  Hence, my new Louis Vuitton silk scarf, a birthday gift from my husband, that I simply adore and wear it over almost everything.  My favourite style is a loose drape over the shoulders with a single knot slightly shifted to one side. And the Prada sunglasses and Hermes bracelet are also my 60th birthday gifts.

Until then,

Anna

xoxo

 

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

A WRAP DRESS FOR A HOT SUMMER DAY

Hello, everyone.  Hope you are all well.

We are in the middle of the Australian summer and the days are extremely hot and awfully humid which is not good for my hair.  Regardless of  how much time have I spent blow drying it to add some volume, the moment I step outside, it becomes flat and lumpy.  

Anyhow, while we cannot control the weather, we are certainly able to choose the clothing that is most suitable for the season and, in my opinion, nothing works better during the hot summer days than a light and breezy wrap around dress.  Its V-shaped cut allows the wind to cool your neck and chest while the skirt freely floats around your legs.  And to fully embrace the summer spirit, it must be of bright and vibrant colours and prints.

Case in point, the dress I am wearing today which has been in my wardrobe for a couple of years but somehow I haven't grown tired of it.  The peacock print, of course, was the major drawcard when I saw it in a window of a small shop in Paddington in Sydney, that is.  Besides, I've always loved a wrap dress and every time I put one on, I always thank Diane von Furstenberg for reinventing its design and giving the wrap dress a second life.  

The other reason that I am wearing such a bright dress, apart from the weather, is that lately a few good things happened in my household that elevated my mood a lot:  this year my youngest daughter graduated from high school (hooray!!! no more school fees), and last week we celebrated her 18th birthday and she was admitted to one of Sydney's university's where she will obtain, upon completion, a degree of Bachelor of Science, majoring in math.  I can't tell you how relieved and happy I felt.  

Going back to my outfit, as for accessories, instead of trying to tone down the bright hues of the dress, I intentionally chose the most vibrant colours of all.  I guess I can partially blame my high spirits for it.  My bracelet is of sunny yellow, the hand bag is a deep aquamarine and my shoes are sky blue but somehow it works because that is what summer is about.

"...every time I put one on, I always thank Diane von Furstenberg for reinventing its design and giving the wrap dress a second life"

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

WHITE LACE DRESS I BOUGHT IN SORRENTO

Hello dear friends,
Now that I have finally finished my long story about our latest holiday (the first post begins here), I can go back to writing about clothes and would like to start by showing you what I bought on that trip.

My first item was purchased during our exploration of the Old Medina of Marrakesh (you can read more about this amazing place here) where I spotted a stall selling criss-cross slides of many colours and sizes.  After trying a couple of pairs in darker colours, I settled on a pair of whites.  Knowing in advance that bargaining in the souk is a must, my husband locked horns with the vendor until he relented and agreed to sell the sandals for a fraction of what I would be paying for them back in OZ.

On our way to next destination, ie Sorrento, I was fantasising about the clothes and shoes that I would be able to buy there.  I had heard, seen and read so many beautiful things about the Amalfi Coast and its la dolce vita that I could almost picture myself all dressed up in fashionable linen and elegant looking shoes sauntering along the promenade overlooking the Bay of Naples.

Sadly, my fantasies went unfulfilled, in terms of fashion, that is, as I found the  majority of shops were targeting tourists and their stock was rather old fashioned, cheap-looking and totally uninspiring.  Having said that, I found this lovely lacy dress in Sorrento, in the shop called Antica Sartoria Positano.  

When we walked pass its windows on our first night in Sorrento, my initial reaction was:"It's too much lace and embroidery, it is not my style at all and I am not going inside to try on these boho looking clothes" but by the third day I'd changed my mind and stepped inside.  I instantly felt overwhelmed by rack upon rack of similar looking white dresses but the shop assistants were extremely helpful and friendly and helped me to choose a dress which I really liked.

Although, I've seen this how this type of dress was typically worn over a swimming costume when you are at the beach, the intricate decorative beading gives it a sense of a day dress and I feel quite happy to be seen wearing it around town.  I just replaced  a swimming costume with a black colour slip for some contrast.

As for the ring, it was bought on the same trip but later on when we were in Havana from a stall at a small market in Obispo Street, one of the most famous and well travelled streets in Havana.

They are made out of soft metal painted by a pleasant young female artist.  She was selling them so cheaply that I bought about 10 of them in order to give them to my friends and relatives in OZ upon our return.

You have seen my Coach handbag here and here, the reason I chose it is because of its punchy turquoise colour which attracts the eye and brightens up the outfit.

THE INTRICATE DECORATIVE BEADING GIVES IT A SENSE OF A DAY DRESS AND I FEEL QUITE HAPPY TO BE SEEN WEARING IT AROUND TOWN

Love
Anna
xoxo

STYLING BOTTLE GREEN DRESS

Hello everyone,

Even before the weather people officially announced that summer is over (for those like me who lives in Australia, that is), I could feel that it was:  the morning sun comes later, the air in the morning and later in the afternoon feels crisper and the number of tourists around Bondi Beach has dramatically diminished.  So now when I am going for a run along the beach front, there are fewer chances to bump into someone who is taking a selfie oblivious to the world and to the fellow humans around them.

Luckily, the sun is still hot around midday and there is still time left to wear summer dresses, or this last one at least.  Actually, this dress is just an ideal option for the current weather as its fabric is not light, thin nor sheer which is what is expected of a summer dress.

I rather call it a late summer, early autumn transitional dress as its fabric has more weight to it which helps to hold the shape of its silhouette and that was what attracted me to this dress in the first place as well as its bottle green colour.

I found it in Cos, the store I’ve come to love for its cool and edgy clothing for its modern and functional design and the fact that all items are executed on only one solid colour.

When I put it on, it appeared that this dress did not look like my usual style at all because I normally don’t wear full skirts or dresses preferring them to either pencil or straight shaped as clearly seen in my previous post  but I actually liked it.  For some reason, it reminded me of the so-called peasant dresses fashionable in the late sixties and seventies worn by Italian actresses in the movies from that era.

Besides, there is nothing wrong in getting out of your comfort zone once in a while and trying something different.  If you don’t like it, you can always take it back and if you do, you have just enriched the scale of your wardrobe.

I deliberately chose a big statement necklace to balance out the sheer volume of the skirt and add some embellishment to it, rather than a plain simple top.

My shoes are from Camper.  It is the first time ever that I bought a pair of shoes from this store and although they have heels, I must say with that I have never ever have worn shoes as comfortable as these.

Showcasing my new Kenzo sunglasses and clover-shape earrings

When I was going through the images that my husband took of me, I especially liked those that show how the skirt has billowed in the wind which adds a playful feel to my new outfit.

Linking up with Fine Whatever Blog, The Wardrobe Stylist, Not Dressed as Lamb, Style Nudge