BeautyGoddess

Hello. my dear friends, hope you are all well

We are a half month through our Australian autumn but the warm weather still holds which means that we haven't packed our summer clothes yet.  However, these days if I have to leave the house early in the morning going to work or for a walk after the sun is set, I would grab something warm to cover my shoulders.  

It's this in-between-the seasons period when you need two sets of clothing, one for the warm time of the day, the other - when the air gets cooler.  It could be a hoody if I am going for a walk, a jumper or a unbuttoned shirt if I am running errands and wear something quite casual or in case of a more formal occasion, a classic blazer does the trick.

It might sound like too much hassle but it's quite simple, really.  I still wear my summer clothes but always have a jumper with me, a blazer or sometimes just a long sleeved shirt to throw over a t-shirt or a singlet, depending on what our plans for the day are.

One of the pieces of clothes that I tend to wear quite often lately is a pair of my new ecru linen pants.  Thanks to their simple style and neutral colour, I don't need to worry about my colour choices and I could easily dress them up and down by mixing them with casual or formal pieces depending on what we have on during the day.

Last weekend, for example,  we were going to the Art Gallery of NSW to view the Kandinsky exhibition from the Guggenheim museum in NY.  As you all know, in this day and age nobody is expecting you to adhere to a "dress code" anymore and roll up at the door wearing a tux or a ball gown and elbow length silk gloves.    Ever since COVID all the rules of what should be worn where have become blurred or just simply disappeared.  However, my husband I, both born in another era, still like to follow a dress code, at least to a some degree and dress up accordingly.  

We are both love and respect art so for this particular outing I chose to wore my linen pants topped up with a simple white t-shirt but then I put on my red classic blazer from David Lawrence and accessorized with my new LV scarf to elevate this casual outfit to another level.  

And I decided to carry my Pinko metallic handbag with heavy metal chain to mix things up a little.

The exhibition was quite extensive, one of the biggest outside the US, and we loved it.  As a former citizen of the former USSR, I felt very proud that such a prolific and talented painter was my fellow  countryman.

This weekend, on the other hand, we were invited to a combined birthday party, my husband's middle son and his girlfriend were both turning forty.  The party was taking place in the park where they hired an open patio with casual tables and chairs and BBQ area where the host, with the help of his male guests cooked us some sausages.  

There were also a lot of different dips, freshly sliced vegetables and a several bowls full of potato chips.  In other words, it was a very casual  laid back affair, the atmosphere was very relaxed and very enjoyable.

My outfit was equally very casual.  The same linen pants but instead of a t-shirt I wore a singlet, in case the weather would warm up as the day progressed and I could take off my pink and white striped shirt that I casually threw over the singlet and left it unbuttoned.  

So, here we go - two very different occasions and two different looks, the only common thing between them was a pair of linen pants.

Hello my dear friends, hope you are all ok.

If you are a regular reader of my blog, you might recall my last post which was about the return of the  colour red back to the fashion radar and if you missed it, you can catch up here.

It seems that I got caught red handed (pun not intended) as this post is also about wearing red but this time it is a blazer and mini skirt combo.  As previously, both were spotted and purchased from David Jones, proudly Australian luxury department store but from two different brands.

It started with the blazer from David Lawrence.  How can anyone miss such a bright bold crimson colour?  Definitely, not me.  Besides that, I like its flattering slim silhouette and contrasting black buttons at the front fastening and along the cuffs.  There was an option to buy a pair of pants made of the same fabric but having so many various colours and styles of pants and trousers at home, I chose to skip it.

My next stop was at Marcs (the same brand from which I got my latest dress, seen here), only this time I was after a skirt.  After scanning their racks, I found what I was looking for - an A-line mini skirt in gingham check of peachy orange and dark red that potentially would be a perfect match for my newly acquired blazer and when I put them on together and checked my image in the mirror, I knew I was right. 

I was contemplating wearing my new black Mary Janes shoes seen hear but thought that a pair of black chunky loafers are more suitable to wear with the A-line skirt and would complement the sharp silhouette of the blazer. 

Then it dawned on me that since I turned 60 three years ago, I have been often seen wearing skirts and dresses that were well above my knees and on the short side that some people would describe as age-inappropriate.   This hot topic has been discussed in the blogosphere by older women for years, trying to bring awareness that growing older does not necessarily equate to wearing dark boring dresses well blow your knees, thick shapeless cardigans, lipstick and make-up free and never set your foot in fitness club or a hair and nail salon.  

Yes, I am fully aware that with age our knees sag and the skin wrinkles but this could be easily rectified by wearing stockings and if you have nicely shaped legs, then why not? Some of us are genetically blessed with good legs, while for others it is a hard work to keep them in shape.  There is ever more reason not to hide them.

When I was young, I attended a ballet school that helped me to define the muscles and shape my legs but that was over fifty years ago!!!  Since then, I've invested a lot of time and effort to keep my legs in shape:  I go to the gym at least three or four times a week, I don't work on the machines but prefer group exercises like Power Yoga, Pilates, Barre and Les Mills Shape and Body Balance classes (I am a member of Fitness First club and the names and the routine of these classes are trademarked by it).  I used to run three times a week but lately was advised against running so now I go for a long power walks three times a week instead.

And let not forget to mention that a body positivity mindset and self-confidence play an important role in determining the answer to the question of what we should and should not wear.