Accessories OTD

This started out as an OOTD post, but then I became concerned at losing my anonymity.

There are a enough pictures of me on the blog, that you could probably pick me out in a line up(!), but possibly not enough to go "Aha, it's you!", in a crowded shop. My profile pic was chosen purely because it kept me anonymous. But, now I am meeting more bloggers, some of you know me in real life 3D! Is it something I should be concerned about or throw caution to the wind?

Or just take headless photographs?


Bag & shoes, TK Maxx

Umbrella, Accessorize
Brown jacket, New Look
Black Cargo pants, Evans

Z xx

CK Special

Ooo! Can you tell what it is yet?

Yep...under a fiver!

2 different styles of CK bowls at just £2.99 each!

Bargain! At my local Homesense store, this afternoon.
Z xx

I Have Enough Trouble Controlling 2 Legs...

...let alone 3!

Self portrait with a tripod!

I found, and dusted off, my dads' tripod this afternoon, in the process of trying to get this OOTD ball rolling! Trouble is, I'm wearing more or less the same as the last photo. Leggings from Primark rather than a skirt. So, not very exciting, I'm afraid.

But, tomorrow, maybe I can showcase my Makita steel toe caps! It has to be said they are extremely comfy and what I tend to wear all the time when I'm on a narrowboat. But...tomorrow, if I can keep it together, I am going to visit a lady at Moulton College to find out about volunteering for Riding For The Disabled. I am soooo excited!
It is something I have fancied doing for ages and with the help of my Support Worker, it looks as tho' it may become a reality.

Lots of these taking over the garden!

Helen, (Afeitar), did a post showing her blackcurrant lovelies. My currants and gooseberries have been savaged by tiny green caterpillars. Little bu**ers! I thought the birds were supposed to eat them. Ha! I guess these pests are bad due to the weather. I keep flicking 'em off...I really don't want to use any form of pesticide, but I would like some produce too!

Sadly, figgy figgis fell off his branch. But it was still a fillip that my plant had managed to start to grow one!

Hey ho! Better go and do some washing up! It looks like a sinkful, but there's a big baking tin at the bottom which takes up loads of room, so I know that there isn't much to do. The ironing, on the other hand....!
Z xx

My First Ever OOTD Post

Clothing on...check
Brick wall...check
New skirt bought yesterday in TKMaxx. Vest top one of a set from New Look sale at least a year ago. Grey espadrilles from the mens section (wider sole!) Primani.
Taken by Mr B at lunchtime, nearly missing his bus in the process!
Z xx

Walking Into The Face Of Modernity

I absolutely adore this piece of film that Mr B took in Japan.

I love that the girl is in traditional dress, walking, it seems, in the opposite direction to everyone else. And then I noticed, in particular, the modernness of the red sandals.

Then, having decided to blog this, you can imagine my surprise at finding this picture from Royal Ascot!

They all look so beautiful and serene...mind you, the girl on the right looks somewhat concerned.
Maybe there was a bunch of photographers braying at them!

Check out the little grey horse on the right hand side of the black kimono. How neat is that?
This is probably my favourite fashion picture from Ascot this year.

And the best bit of racing news? That has to be Walter Swinburn getting his first Royal Ascot winner! Huzzah! He used to be one of the greatest jockeys ever and has now moved into training race horses.

When I originally was building this post Mr B came in from work and said that if I was writing this for a red top newspaper, then the title would have to be "Walking Back To Jappy-ness"! (Well, to be fair, it was about half past midnight when he came home! So, I blame it on him being tired!).

Z xx

Question?

Any one else having problems downloading their own videos onto Blogger?

Had written a nice post, which hinged on a piece of film Mr B took in Japan, and it won't download.

I've checked out as much as I can on 'Help', with no success.

Any ideas gratefully accepted!
Zxx

A Post For Pearl

Vivienne Westwood original Pirate Boots.

Pre-fancy VW label; pre-fancy logoed box; pre-fancy logoed dust bag!

These go so far back as to have the scimitar rather than the orb, which is so recognisable as her 'signature', on the label.


Additional 'signatures' courtesy of Mr B who got Lux Interior (RIP), Poison Ivy, Grrr Fur and Nic(ola) Knox of The Cramps to sign one boot. Also on there is Diana Rigg, (due to her Emma Peel character), Fenella Fielding, (I guess...just because...), Eartha Kitt (RIP) and the wonderful Iggy Pop, (before he bailed out and got into bed with Swift Cover).


The little verdigris brooch apparently used to be given gratis to customers at Worlds End.

Enjoy, Pearl!

Z xx

Hello, Lovelies!

Just a quickie. I think I maybe overdid it a bit last week and have hit a big schlumpy-pumpy this week. But, oh boy, it was worth it! And I did go to Brum on Tuesday for my appointment with "Dr Death"!

Gosh, thank you for all those lovely comments...it is the first time that it has hit double figures. I am beside myself with excitement!!

And a big "HELLO" to all my newbie followers; I will mention you all individually with links at some point. But I really appreciate that you've hit the 'follow' button.

I am slowly catching up with blogs and thought you may like to enter this giveaway...

...Michelle is based in the States but will post anywhere, and has just opened an Etsy shop, full of pretty stuff. Sorry, 'stuff' sounds so blah, her items for sale are anything but, I'm just not being very good with my use of English, but at least I AM posting!

Enjoy yourselves,
Z xx

Jump To It!

'Nuff said! You know who you are...and if you complain enough I'll remove it!

Flowers AND reserved tables at Nexus.

Mrs Bossa in contemplative mood! (And I never did find out what your Christian name is!)

Dr Westwoods' smile sums up our day, for me anyway, brilliant!

With a click of Chars' heels we all went our separate ways...East, West, home is best.

I feel very honoured to be deemed an honoury member of NW Bloggers.
Thank you girls for a very special day!
Z xx

Thank you, Manchester!

I cannot believe how quickly Saturday has come around!
The NW Bloggers meet-up is tomorrow!

A few shots of the Media City area in Salford. I believe the three blocks of apartments -not flats!- were some of the first to be built. Guess they weren't very happy when that 'brown' block on the left went up and blocked a view of the basin!

The Imperial War Museum...full of 'Keep Calm and Carry On' goodies.

The tram stop for Media City UK.
I did my very first tram journey to here. On my own too! Mega achievement!!

This is Sugar Junction, just at the back of Afflecks Palace.

I had extremely scrummy fruit scones with jam and cream for tea there the other day. All presented on vintage crockery. Totally delish. They also had a sparkling lemonade, made in Norfolk, which was out of this world. I'm hoping I'll find somewhere that sells it at home, but if not, I managed to find a Martha Stewart Living magazine, June issue, which has a great sounding recipe. I have made homemade lemonade before and it's definitely worth the effort!

So, very nearly the end of my stay in Manchester, and, even with the lift debacle, it has been fabulous to be back here again. The people have been incredibly kind and pleasant and I have had a wonderful time! I even got my gerberas and got to The Hidden Gem, which is probably the best bit of the week, in so many ways.

Thank you, Manchester!
Z xx

Give Us A Lift!

Well, we got to Manchester in bright, sunny weather on Saturday afternoon.
Room was OK, not anything special, but the staff have been great.

Until last night...
when I got stuck in the only working lift! Not for long, about 20 minutes.

Pressed the alarm button several times, no-one came. Tried to use the 'emergency phone'- but the line was dead! Then the lift went UP to the 6th floor...that was when I really started to panic.
Luckily I had my mobile with me and a signal, so had called Mr B who was on his way back on the tram from Media City.
As no-one seemed to be turning up, prior to the lift moving, I also called the Fire Brigade!!

Goodness knows what happened, but apparently when the lift went 'bump' at my stop (GF), it stretched the wiring to the phone and alarm and thus rendered them useless.

Which is why, when Mr B finally got thru' to the hotel, no-one on reception knew anything about me being stuck!!! OMG!

I got out on the 6th Floor and was a heck of a state and didn't know where the stairs were to get down. Eventually found the fire escape and walked down six flights of stairs.
Thank goodness the firemen were there! They put me on oxygen which kept my asthma at bay.

The firemen were great and I send them the biggest 'thank you' possible, but the Duty Manager of the hotel left A LOT to be desired.

Of course, after all this palaver the restaurant was now closed, which was the only reason I was going downstairs in the first place...to order us a meal for when Mr B got back!

Burger King was all that was open nearby, and very tasty it was too!

I need to go home to recover! But not until after I get to meet the NW Bloggers on Saturday afternoon at Nexus. Looking forward to that!

Z xx

Who's A VERY Lucky Girl, Then?

At long last after much trawling of t'internet, after seeing it on Pixiwoo, I found it! Hurrah! Woop!

Thought I'd peek in Debs in Brum and yes, Smashbox had a stand. The smallest, shared, display, ever!
I hung around for a while and couldn't see it on display, so as it seemed obvious no-one was coming to help, I looked thru' the stock drawers below!
And there it was ! One lone Smashbox Masquerade Palette! In the drawer, unloved and unseen by Joe Public! Then there was the small problem of finding someone at a till, for me to pay for it. I seriously believe I could've walked outta that store without anyone taking a blind bit of notice! (Wasn't prepared to try out my theory, tho'!)
The colours are designed to work together in rows of 3, up, down and diagonally, which is quite nifty if you're not too sure about colour blending.

Then, my wonderful Mr B came home with THIS!

MAC 'Packed To Go' 6 Cool Smoky Eye Shadows.
l-r, t-b
seedy pearl, tendersmoke, satin taupe
a brown suit, beauty marked, carbon
Apparently these are marketed for Duty Free shopping only. Mind you, at Heathrow, the counter staff hadn't got a clue! Thankfully, the lovely MAC girl at Narita were on the ball and asked if it was a gift, and very kindly packaged it up with ribbons and bows! How kind was that?

I found out about it on this website, http://beauty-free.co.uk/. I used the photo above from this site, as mine came out rubbish! Don't know who she is, as there are no personal details. But if you are flying/cruising away on holiday, this is the site to look at! I was browsing for Japanese beauty stuff and came across this site. She covers all the 'specials', stuff not available in the regular shops. Makes for very interesting reading!

Mr B also managed to get here, not London, but Tokyo, and bought me this for my birthday!

A Vivienne Westwood amethyst orb necklace. I was very nearly in tears.
It is very beautiful and I am very lucky!
Z xx

Pink

Hasty phone photos! Shame they are not 'scratch & sniff' - the perfume is intoxicating!

Z xx