Saturday 30 July 2022

The Puffin and Oyster

 Hello my lovelies. 


Yup, it’s that jumpsuit again! 
Are you tiring if it yet?

But there’s a reason you’re seeing it here yet again. 
It’s because of where I took it!


I took it to a new restaurant on the island.
We left the house so I guess this can be called a Date Night.
Why don’t you join us?
But don’t worry, we’re not teenagers so you won’t feel like a gooseberry!



So there’s a new restaurant on the island.
And what was the first thing that struck me?


A fire extinguisher!!


Not literally.  
No Pout was injured in the partaking of this date night. 

But yup, I was immediately impressed by how they’d taken an obligatory health and safety item, a fire extinguisher, and made it into a design feature!  This copper extinguisher is a thing of beauty, and I never thought I’d find myself saying that!

Shall we move on in?


The Puffin and Oyster is its name. 
Pub and Dining is its claim. 

Let’s check it out.



This is a long-established beachside restaurant (previously The Hoummet Tavern) that has had a recent makeover.  In fact, a makeover by stealth!

Through The Covid Years it had seemingly laid closed, dormant and discarded and seemed like it would never open its doors again as a restaurant.  Each time I walked or drove along here along Le Hoummet,
 there it was, dead as a dormouse, and as it’s a coastal location I’ve gone passed pretty often
 these past three years.  

Then I go on holiday for two weeks and come back to this!!


How they managed to make these changes without any external sign of activity or work vehicles parked outside, well it beats me!



As well as the amaze balls extinguisher, I was impressed with the decor everywhere I looked. 
And believe me, I LOOKED!


So impressed was I from my looking that it appears I abandoned TP (bottom left) to find his own entertainment as I went a-photographering!


The structure hasn’t changed, the place hasn’t been extended, yet they’ve managed to create additional dining areas seemingly out of thin air!

Note to self: check if the designer can work the same magic with Chez Pout!


The reception and bar area.
 

More dining.
But where’s the pub?



And then this area totally flummoxed me.  
How did they create yet another dining area without extending, I asked myself?
Then I twigged, I was standing in the old public bar! 
Could this be cruelly the “pub” in “pub and dining”? 

I say cruelly as it looks nothing like it used to.  Nothing like a pub. 
So I did stop to mourn the loss of yet another island pub. 
The old pub was so popular with locals within walking/cycling reach, and as a coastal bus pub crawl destination, and its Friday night meat and seafood draws were legendary.
The pub’s patrons would have provided all year round income to support the restaurant side in winter months, so it will be interesting to see if that loss of income will have an affect on the restaurant’s coffers over time. 

But let’s move on. 


Because I guess there is a drinking only area 
in the far right of this picture.  It’s not exactly pubby per se but I guess this must be the “pub” bit of wot it says on the welcome mat. 


 But fortunately the view is unchanged!


They’ve maxed out in the outside dining space too. 


So both inside and outside patrons can soak
in this view as they soak in their wine or pint. 



Now on to the food, for a restaurant can’t be judged on decor and view alone eh?!


TP is looking happy so let’s check out what he ate. 


A fabulous lobster pizza.
Who would have thought to put those two together?

But it worked, I’m told.  
It came highly recommended and it didn’t disappoint. 


Now I feel a restaurant should be judged by its chips, for I don’t eat them at home so I treat myself when out and I don’t want them to be mediocrely meh.


And these weren’t.  Light and with a flavoured crispy coating.  We ate them all, which amazed us as between us we don’t usually get passed half way in the shared pot.

My only criticism of the restaurant would be the mayo.  Served in a sachet 😱.  
However it is no doubt a health and safety choice and these Stokes sachets provided a more decent serving of mayo than the paucity of offering in the ubiquitous Heinz pack. 
So on second thoughts, I’ll let that one go. 


Oh and me, what did I eat?


A roasted peach caprese salad with a side
helping of Guernsey crab. 
It was BIG. 

Again, I’m going to give them the benefit of the doubt here as the peach didn’t taste or look roasted in any way, but I’m telling myself that all the roast flavour was in the discarded skin. 
Still, it would have been nicer to skin the peaches first in boiled water then roast them without their clothes on.  IMHO. 
I just may suggest that to them next time, for there definitely will be a next time.


Now let’s see how these plates fared. 


No surprise, some pizza went home in a doggy bag as it was a much larger pizza than TP would normally order (and there is no sizing option).  Never mind, TP said it was delicious cold the next day. 

And mine?


Well, it may have been BIG but this is what’s left of my salad.  It seemed embarrassing to ask to take home two pieces of mozzarella and a scrap of salad!


So, nice meal, nice service. nice decor, nice view. 
Puffin and Oyster, nice. 
Alright, let’s upgrade that to LOVELY!



And just in case you are getting jumpsuit withdrawal symptoms …


… here’s another peak!


As we sat near an open window, I wore the cardi at the start of the meal until the place started filling and got warmer. 

The cardi has rust coloured embroidered flowers and edge stitching (echoing the base colour of the Primark jumpsuit) and is very pretty; it’s an old fave as it has stuck around for 22 years and is from Principles. 


And I chose a complementary coloured wine!  
Pinot Grigio Rust Blush.  It’s The Pout’s S22 drink of choice. 


Now let’s hear what TP has to say about his meal in this two minute video. 


If the video doesn’t play for you, follow this link
by clicking:

I hope you enjoyed your Date Night with The Photographer and I. 



And if you enjoyed this post (and I hope you DID!) then 
don’t forget to subscribe to my blog and to my YouTube channel so’s you don’t miss a post.  
I’m on Instagram too, so please be sweet and follow me there. 


A la perchoine,
Mary xxx. 

Thursday 28 July 2022

From Petite to Plump

Hello my lovelies!


You may have noticed that Annemarie and I often find we have similar items in our wardrobe. 
Which is kinda strange because we’re totally different body shapes.  She’s lithe and petite and I’m, well, errr plump would be being gentle on myself.
I’m fat but for the purposes of the alliteration to come (and I’m all for those!) let’s call me plump.

Although we are different ends of the shape spectrum we’ve often bought similar items because they look good on us individually.  

Hey, we may have a series here!
From Petite to Plump. 
Clothes that suit both body types. 

Let’s kick it off. 


Jumpsuit

Here sporting spotty strappy jumpsuits.
And our jumpsuits look pretty good on both our bodies.
 
I think the all in one sleek line is what’s working for us here, it flatters all body shapes. 


Summer Dress

This soft-lined floral dress from Monsoon looks good on our petite and plump shapes, and no doubt everything in between. 
Again the line skins the body so suits all. 
And as there is no hint of age-discriminating milkmaid about this dress which is a style so prevalent in today’s shops, so this flowing line suits all ages too. 


So currently I’m gauging from this mini-series is that by keeping the line sleek and classic, a style will fit both petite and plump. 


Coming up next in the series, 
The Ruched Sleeved Jacket.   


A la perchoine,
Mary xxx. 



 

Monday 25 July 2022

What Took Me So Long?

 Hello my lovelies!



It’s embarrassing.  

In this post 

HERE

I was full of defiant enthusiasm to wear a newly bought jumpsuit. 

I say defiant as The Photographer wasn’t overly keen on my acquisition (more on that shortly!). 

And then it didn’t happen. 


Well a week or so I suddenly got the urge to wear this forgotten piece in my wardrobe whilst chatting about it with visiting Annemarie.  
And it’s been calling me ever since.  

So I wore it.

And I quite honestly love it! 


What did take me so long to get round to wearing it?

Is it because in this blog post 

HERE

I was maybe put off wearing it because of my photographer’s lack of enthusiasm for this jumpsuit.  

And lack of enthusiasm is putting it mildly, look at me telling him to “talk to the hand” (a.k.a. wind his neck in!) after his barrage of criticism!


But I’ve finally worn it so let’s chat a little bit about the jumpsuit. 


I bought this jumpsuit at Primark in 2019.  Then didn’t wear it, as explained above. 


The danger with leaving an item in your wardrobe during The Covid Years is that the items, err, shrink 🥴😉. 



Why the silly posing, you may wonder?


Why did I do this off the shoulder look?


Well, I wanted to show you the sun-style jumpsuit’s  strappy top.  But …
I’d just done my nails so couldn’t touch the cardi!


Hence the silly poses!


But jumpsuits.  What are they all about?


Toilet arrangements 

Well let’s first address that elephant in the room.  No, not me, but the lack of “arrangements” down below. 

Well don’t let the “toilet challenges” put you off. 

This style is easy to unbutton in a thrice and provided  you don’t let the jumpsuit drop to the floor, it’s a doddle spending penny.


The sleek line flatters all body shapes

The style is flattering as it skims over even portly protrusions.  It creates a sleek line. 


Lots of air flow

It’s ideal for summer as it’s a cool wear.  This strappy style allows the air to flow freely.  Find yourself a good strapless bra to give a clean uncluttered line.

 (I may sound ancient but I really do not feel comfortable showing my bra straps under a skimpy or strappy top - what’s your view on this?)


A cool uncluttered waist area

The sleek all in one line negates the need for a waistband so allows the waist to keep cool as it’s free of constraints.  And that seems to be a big plus I’ve found from wearing this jumpsuit in hot summer.

 

And a jumpsuit feels FUN!

But I guess the biggest plus is that it’s such a fun thing to wear that I feel the joy as soon as I place my first foot in this clever construction. 


This style jumpsuit sparks joy!


Do you own a jumpsuit?

Any views/experiences to share in the comments below?


News!!

I’ll be posting the start of a new mini-series on Thursday.

Don’t miss it by subscribing to the blog today!



And now for the hard sell!


Instagram

I put together a little reel on instagram

Check out my reel on Instagram. And why don’t you follow me whilst you’re there. Please!

Click the above paragraph to view. 


YouTube 

If a picture paints a thousand words, then imagine how many words a video gives you!

I occasionally release videos on YouTube.  I intend to increase my content and regularity, so be ready for when I do - subscribe on YouTube now 

You’ll find me here - follow this link:

https://youtube.com/channel/UC90wuoPZfrADF1SOfLghuIw


Subscribe to the blog

Talking of following, if you’re not already following me on the this blog, then what took you so long?! 

Why not subscribe today to catch every post when released.  And you won’t miss my mini-series!

What are you waiting for?!




A la perchoine, 

Mary xxx 









Monday 18 July 2022

From Wedding Outfit to Beach Dress


Hello my summer sizzling lovelies !


Well, summer is truly upon us and I’m really getting into my morning swims in the cooling sea and spending time on the beach feeling the cooling sea air. 

So no surprise that this week’s post has a beach theme running through it. 


Right, let’s get on with the post.  

I decided to give the post its title because that seems to be what happened when I put this new dress through its paces. 

I first got wore it to a family wedding a few weeks ago

(follow the link HERE to see how I “styled”’it )


And then I took it to the beach. 








And yup.  Into the sea!


And the soggy sand. 


Now I’m not advocating you take your current best dress down for a paddle. But it made for good Coastal Granny photos eh?!


And here’s the spooky thing. My blogger-Insta “twin”
had bought the same dress and packed it for her recent visit to Guernsey. 

So I invited @my_over50_fashion_life  round for crab sandwiches, cream scones and tea.


Cream tea out in the garden, how lovely!



And of course she took her dress down to the beach too. 


Doesn’t Annemarie look lovely?


And we twinned out on the patio. 


I fastened my back differently to its intended style to hide my bra. 


It’s a happy dress.  Makes you want to dance and twirl!


The dress is a simple line that suits all body types - from Annemarie’s svelte petite figure to my more matronly shape, and every shape in between is my guess 


And then I got a bit naughty with the dress.


Naughty, in The Photographer’s sense of the word.  For me and a belt should not been seen within a stone’s throw of each other according to his rules.  I apparently look like a sack tied in the middle. 
But I sneaked this one in as he wasn’t taking the photos 🤣 .  

I belted it under the bust, as that was the line of the dress. And I don’t think it looks sackish at all.  IMHO. 
It’s possible that belting up in an empire line rather than at the waist, or where the waist used to be in my case, brings the eye away from the thickened middle area. 

What do you think of my totally illegal belting?



And it’s got to be tried out with the ubiquitous jean jacket.  But although this combo tends to be a go for a classic layered summer dress look, a jean jacket right now is a bit chocolate teapot: it’s too darned hot for that classic combo, as my savvy DIL pointed out on the way to a family christening on a sweltering day. 


 ðŸŽµ Let’s talk about arms, baby

Now many of us aren’t happy with our upper arms, especially as we age.  So covering them up is vital for our confidence.  But in the heat we are experiencing right now we need to find diaphanous shreds of layer cloth to cover our arm embarrassment.


Well, enter this type of sleeve.  The flutter sleeve.  
This dress has a loose cut on the bias sleeve which covers the arm down to elbow level, yet still allows a free flow of air where needed.


So ladies. I think I’ve put my new Monsoon dress through it’s paces.
TP says this dress doesn’t need any styling.  It can stand up on its own. He may just be right. 


But are there any ways you would style this dress? 
Please share in the comments box below



Gosh, so much chat about a dress.  I think I’m done!  
But I rarely have a new dress to show so I can be excused, can’t I?

A la perchoine, 
Mary xxx .