NEW OUTFITS

A little bit of shopping has been going on here - after all it is the Sale season so the perfect excuse to add to our wardrobes.  As usual we have chosen very different outfits - from monotone greys for Anne H  to much brighter colours for Anne C.  Let us know what you think in the comments below and what colour you would favour.  

This outfit was purchased in the Joseph sale.  I really love their trousers and look at every sale to see what is available as they are so beautifully cut and finished and are a perfect length for my height. These are in a lovely soft silver grey, which they bill as Putty, and are in a linen mix fabric.  I was really thrilled to find this top that matches the trousers so perfectly and is the shape I love so much.    There is a matching blazer to these trousers, but that made the look all too corporate for my liking so I went with just these two pieces.

I have accessorised the outfit with a necklace from The White Company that I have had for absolutely ages and I love because you can wrap it to suit any length, I like to tie low on the chest so that it breaks the line when wearing a higher neckline.  The cuff is MaxMara and I found it in a vintage shop and the classic court shoes are from Dune London, purchased last year.

The top has a cotton knit front and rayon/cotton mix back with a deep vent for added interest. 

And now for Anne C with her palette of brights and diamante - her favourite style! The bright calypso blue silk top has a matching vest attached and is from Phase Eight and is currently in the sale - although I did pay full price for it the week before it went into the sale!

The white jeans are from Marks and Spencers, although you cannot see the embellished diamante trim around the pockets. The diamante flip flops were bought last year also from M&S, though they have similar ones here.

The champagne is courtesy of my good friends and neightbours who were celebrating a 65th birthday with a barbeque for family and friends!

The accessories are not new, I was wearing my summer sunnies, bought around 18 months ago, from Bvlgari, but are still available online in different colours.

The very bling cuff watch was bought at a jewellery party and the two small rings are Swarovski, while the larger one was a boutique buy - unfortunately not real diamonds!!

The earrings were another jewellery party buy (I love jewellery parties!) and the beaded necklace was bought in a boutique in Santorini.

STUNNING SANTORINI

Anne C here:  We have holidayed in Santorini for the past 15 years, and of course this year is no exception, as we are due to go again very shortly.  Sometimes hubby and I have been with just the two of us, often we have taken along our daughter, Louise, and Anne H and her daughter Lizzy have joined us a couple of times - but we love to share our ideal holiday destination, and this year will be just the same!

For the first Santorini post, I am going to share some photographs from previous years, but will obviously update you with new posts once I get there!

Santorini is a wonderful Greek Island - part of the Cyclades group of Islands in the south Aegean Sea. Famous as being a possible location for the lost city of Atlantis, there are many wonderful stories about Santorini, which we just love!  One of the biggest volcanoes in history, it blew out the top of the island into the sea, some 3,000 years ago, creating a huge crater and towering cliffs which today form the tourist towns including the capital, Thira, but other destinations such as Imerovigli, and Oia, all of which are west-facing, and have stunning views of the sunset as the sun dips behind some of the smaller islands created by the volcano.

Legend has it that when Moses parted the Red Sea, this was actually the tsunami created by the volcano in Santorini.  It also wiped out the Minoan civilization some 130 miles away on the island of Crete, and caused the Dark Ages which followed.  

the legacy of that volcano is still evident so bcause Santorini is a volcanic island, the beaches have black gravelly sand, the sea is quite rocky underfoot and the water looks very dark, though in fact it is crystal clear.

Today Thira hosts as many as 8,000 cruise ship visitors a day and makes it a magnet for souvenir hunters - meaning that goods, souvenirs and food are much more expensive here than elsewhere on the island.  The magnificent jewellery shops drip with gold and precious stones from sapphires and rubies to diamonds and emeralds, and with watches from Rolex to Philippe Patek to Tag and Breitling.

I will be writing about some of the interesting places to visit during the coming weeks, but for me - I am looking forward to some rest and relaxation - sitting next to a pool with a long cool drink, a pile of novels to read and thinking about where to eat! Watch this space.....

A BEAUTIFUL SUMMER WEDDING

Anne C here.  Although this post is about our fashion style and follows what we wear from casual days out to holidays to more formal occasions, I also particularly wanted to talk about family and friendships, since the wedding I went to was the daughter of a very special friend - someone with whom I have laughed and cried with during the past 30+ years.

My friend and I have been through some tough times together, from work-related stress to relationship issues to family bereavements, to happier times including holidays together, nights out with more than a glass or two of vino flowing, to the momentous highs of giving birth.

I was the Matron of Honour at her wedding (I didn't know her when I got married), while my hubby was her husband's best man, and my friend is one of my daughter's God-mothers.  She is the mother of three beautiful girls and I held each of them within hours of their respective birth (actually two of the girls are twins). We have  agonized over teenage years, exam results, university degrees and empty nesting.

So when she invited us to her eldest's wedding at a beautiful country house just outside Harrogate, I knew that this would be an amazing wedding and that I would have to buy a complete new outfit.

She told me what colour she would be wearing and where she bought her outfit, so I knew which shades to avoid, but she was almost as excited as I was to hear what everyone would be wearing - and I can honestly say it was one of the best-dressed weddings I have ever attended!

In addition to the actual wedding, the bride held a "hen" afternoon tea party in her own lovely home, with home-made cakes and beautifully decorated muffins ( the bride's specialty) which was great fun and meant I got to know some of her friends rather than meet them for the first time at the wedding.

My outfit began with the hat!  Regular readers will know that we spent a day earlier in the year with my friend Liz at her lovely shop, Simply Devine, in Tadcaster (between Leeds and York). I fell in love with the hat the first time I saw it, and although although I loved the dress, I worried that it might be too young for me and bought another one instead. However, that was really too short so I decided to buy the original one anyway - I worry less these days about what other people think. So the dress was bought from Coast, and the shoes are Carvela- a sale find in TK Maxx - but also on the Kurt Geiger website (and in black too!)  I had previously seen them at full price and thought they were too pricey. 

The accessories however, are ones I already had - the pink pearl earrings from Simply Devine (again!), the bracelet and watch from a jewellery party, the ring from an independent jeweller and the diamante evening bag from Dewsbury Market of all places!

I thought I would also include a couple of photographs of myself with the bride and her mum at the "hen" party and then some of them from the wedding day - which was about as perfect as it could be.  The sun shone and the setting - the stunning Rudding Park Hotel just outside Harrogate - was beyond amazing.

For information - the dress I am wearing below is from Florence and Fred at Tesco bought last year (although I am a regular impulse buyer from Tesco I have found very little suitable for me this year), the yellow bag is a vintage find in a charity shop and the white platform shoes from an independent shoe shop.

Here's to a lovely young couple just starting out, to wonderfully happy families, and to long and lasting friendships!

SENSATIONAL SCILLA

We decided to have a little adventure one day and took the train from Tropea to Scilla which is on the Reggio di Calabria line. And a very efficient train service it was too, taking just over an hour and a quarter with a change at Rosarno. Although not very well air conditioned, so a little hot, the train was comfortable the staff helpful, our only tip would be to note that after purchasing tickets from the machine at the station you need to validate them on another machine for travel that day. This is the line you would take if travelling to Sicily and from Scilla you can look across the Strait of Messina to the island. 

Scilla splits into three parts - the beach area of Marina Grande which is where the train comes into, the Castello Ruffo which sits on the top of the cliff between the beach area and the fisherman's district of Chianalea which is where we were headed.  It is a 15 minute walk from the station along the sea front and round the base of the promontory where the castle sits. As you pass through the small harbour area you are greeted by the sight of buildings rising from the sea with walls in muted earthy tones of orange and yellow. 

This ancient fisherman's enclave is really different to the rest of the town and has a magical  almost piratical atmosphere.  Small fishing boats are moored in the clear, clear waters at the base of little streets which edge into the sea.

Restaurants are built on decks with the waters lapping below and serve wonderful local delicacies. Scilla's fishing heritage is evident everywhere and particularly in the restaurants where the local delicacy of pesce spada (swordfish) is well worth trying. 

Scilla is billed as one of the "most beautiful villages in Italy" and definitely lives up to this description.   The tiny slipways with water lapping at the base of the houses are mesmerising and one can't help but wonder what it is like when a storm hits. It reminded me of Robin Hoods Bay, but with the sun.

Sited as it is between the cliffs and the sea, there is only one main street that runs the length of the area and has shops, cafes and bars along it's length. Well worth a stroll along with plenty of stops to admire the views.

We didn't have time to explore the fortress Castello Ruffo, which I am sure offers the most amazing views of Sicily and the Calabrian coast, but promised ourselves we will visit again.

SUNSET ON THE COAST OF THE GODS

The sight of the sun setting over the Tyrrhenian Sea in Tropea is so beautiful, particularly when clear enough to spot Stromboli on the horizon.  We are always looking for the optical phenomenon known as  the green flash and although I have seen it once, we were not so lucky this time.  But none the less the sight is truly wonderful and almost biblical I think.  

In the picture below you can spy Stromboli on the horizon to the left. Sometimes, as it is still an active volcano, you can see little puffs of smoke rising from its' crater.

And the evening light casts a really warm glow over the streets of Tropea, accenting the colour of the walls of the ancient buildings.  

It is a flattering light for humans as well I think, bringing a warm glow to even the lightest of tans.  And as someone who does not sunbathe that is no bad thing.  In the pictures here I am wearing a top purchased from River Island last year with black Armani jeans, open toe wedge espadrilles from M & S and a white camisole, also from M & S.  A really comfortable outfit with the slits in the side of the top bringing a fluidity to the tunic that is welcome in the evening heat.

Oh, and here is that Zara printed tunic again, which I really cannot get enough of.  It is so easy to style and I have the same Armani jeans and  M and S shoes on here but with a black camisole underneath.  It makes an elegant evening outfit I think.  Don't forget this tunic is still available in the sale at only £15.99 and also makes a great beach cover up.  I think you need to be of a reasonable height to wear it though as it is so long at the back.

And the added accessory is Polly my brother-in-laws little dog.  In Italian she is called Cipolla which is Italian for Onion.

The outfit below is one of my favourites. The silk panel sleeveless top is from COS - some of the colours are in the sale - jeans from 7 from all Mankind and the shoes are from Dune and featured in our earlier shoes post.  

I have teamed it with a coral bracelet that was purchased in Tropea on an earlier visit and a necklace from Covet which has a stone that reflects the coral tones of the cuff. The sunglasses are Chloe and were purchased in Tropea last year from Ottica Sole Mare who have the most amazing selection of designer sunglasses and frames.

I love the jersey drop back of the COS top, a feature on a lot of their designs, and the high split on the sides just adds an extra dimension to the simple design and cut.