Scarf of the moment: Under the Waves

Posted on 14/07/2017 by The Librain

This lovely scarf, Under the Waves, was designed by Alice Shirley for Hermès’ Spring/Summer 2016 season. The minute I saw it I knew that I would have to save up for it, particularly for this silk twill 90cm colourway, #15, with its shades of aqua, blue, pink, cream and turquoise.

The design depicts a host of sea creatures weaving in and out of corals and plants on the Australian Great Barrier Reef. The dusky rose rolled hem surrounds a shimmering range of mainly pastel shades in this colourway. The other versions of this scarf include electric colours against a black or bright background, or dreamy toning shades which would be wonderful to wear. There are so many exciting colourways to choose from.

The scarf has been offered as a 90cm, a 140cm mousseline (SS2016) and a twilly (AW2016). I wish I could afford the mousseline version as the colourways are wonderful!

Under the Waves by Alice Shirley for Hermès

Under the Waves by Alice Shirley for Hermès

First of all, here are the different colourways offered for the 90cm silk twill. Gorgeous!

The mousselines are equally wonderful. I wish I could own #09!

And here are the twillies – so cute!

The design story:

Alice Shirley pays tribute to the Great Barrier Reef, the world’s biggest coral reef, off the coast of Queensland in northern Australia. The reef is the largest living organic structure on Earth. It features on UNESCO’s World Heritage list, and is home to a fascinating abundance of fauna. The living coral ‘sculptures’ attract a multitude of marine species, in an endless ballet of forms and colours. The sea turtle swims to Milman Islet, a small island off the far north of Queensland, to lay its eggs. The leafy sea dragon takes shelter among the fronds of seaweed, while the mandarin fish busies itself hunting for plankton. Each owes its existence to the fragile balance of this extraordinary ecosystem.

The details of the scarf are so lovely with the fish and other sea creatures swimming in and out of the corals and seaweeds:

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I love wearing this scarf in the warmer months and it looks great with a range of clothing in blues, turquoise, aqua and teal. Different ties show off all aspects of the scarf, including the lovely contrast rolled hem:

Under the Waves - Hermès - collage #02

Under the Waves – Hermès – collage #02

Scarf ties clockwise from the top left: asymmetric wrap with my aqua cotton jumper, half-bow knot with my marine teal twin-set, asymmetric wrap again against my bright navy twin-set, cowboy cowl knot, criss-cross knot, and cowl knot. All clothes from Lands’ End, horn scarf ring from MaiTai.

Below is a collage of some of my jewellery which would look lovely with the scarf:

Under the Waves - Hermès - collage #03

Under the Waves – Hermès – collage #03

Jewellery clockwise from the top left: iridescent seahorse earrings by MadMarchMoon, turquoise bracelet, London blue topaz earrings by Blue Nile, shell pendant, turquoise enamel and gold bangle by Halcyon Days, aqua glass and silver drop earrings.

Background information

Alice Shirley

Buro: Interview with Alice Shirley
Mentions Under the Waves as well as other designs by the artist.

There are hundreds of sites out there about the Great Barrier Reef, so I have selected a couple for you to explore if you are interested. You can also find out more about the individual creatures mentioned in the scarf design story.

Great Barrier Reef

Great Barrier Reef
Official tourist website.

Great Barrier Reef
Similar site to the above.

Wikipedia: Great Barrier Reef
Main Wikipedia article.

Sea Turtles

Sea Dragons

Mandarin Fish

I hope that readers have enjoyed this Scarf of the Moment post about Under the Waves. The next one, Escales Mediterranéenes, should be in two weeks time.

Best wishes,

💛💚💙💜❤️

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Update 13/07/17 and school libraries

Posted on 13/07/2017 by The Librain

Good news and bad news today. The bad news is that I am even more ill than I was yesterday. Family tension plus the usual cocktail of chronic conditions and medications resulted in a mental and physical breakdown last night and I have been suffering the aftermath of that all day. I am hoping that things will have settled down again by this evening and that I, and my family, can regain some equilibrium.

The better news is that I have been able to read some material about school libraries again. When I retired back in 2014, I sank into such a miserable state where I was unable to think about my beloved profession. Even visiting a public library was impossible for months. I carried on following my school librarian friends on Facebook, but I left Twitter plus all other forums and only made the occasional comment on my friends’ FB posts when they talked about their careers or work. My family wanted me to write something about school librarianship whilst I still had something to offer the profession, but I found it impossible to do that.

Anyway, I have had a tab open on Safari for some weeks with a link to a publication by the National Literacy Trust and I actually downloaded it last night (well before the breakdown) and read it through. The report can be downloaded here. This is it below:

School libraries: A literature review on current provision and evidence of impact
This literature review aims to provide a comprehensive contemporary picture of school libraries in the UK. It focuses primarily on what is known about the extent of current school library provision. This is then followed by a review of the known impact of school libraries on pupils’ skills, motivation and enjoyment. The review then finishes with an outline of the elements that make a good school library.

It was very interesting to try to read something like this again after all this time. I am not sure what my friends and colleagues think of it, but I felt that something very similar could have been written ten years ago! Although much of the literature cited was new, it didn’t seem to say anything new. Perhaps because not much has moved on since 2014, apart from technological developments. Much of the work cited was also very familiar to me. In fact, there was a tiny unnamed link to me in there – nice to see that some of my influence lingers on after such a long period away from the book shelves! (I will only say that the tiny link to me is the Ofsted 2006 publication on school libraries, Good School Libraries: Making a Difference to Learning, which is mentioned several times).

Despite my slightly negative comments, I am sure that it will still be a useful addition to UK publications on school libraries, especially as it highlights the importance of good school librarians and the impact on students’ reading, motivation, research and study skills, and the library as a place of safety.

It appears that my friends and former colleagues are still battling very familiar issues, made even more difficult, I would imagine, by the swingeing cuts to school budgets and the huge pressure on school staff. It is very difficult to develop a comprehensive school library service when your teaching staff are leaving the profession in droves and are constrained by targets and paperwork. Collaborative working needs all parties to feel relaxed and confident enough to try new ideas. This is very difficult to achieve in a climate like the present and I salute all who are continuing to fly the flag for the impact of school libraries and librarians and who do their very best for their school communities.

My very best wishes to all school library staff and the teachers and other staff working with them,

❤️💙💛💚💜

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Reading roundup 12/07/17

Posted on 12/07/2017 by The Librain

I am amazed to see that I have finished only one book this week! Well, I am 3/4 of the way through a second one, but that is not at all like my usual reading rate. I think I have been too caught up with a range of issues, political and others, and have been flitting from site to site reading up on those instead. I have also been very ill again and this tends to have an effect on my book-reading concentration levels.

X by Sue Grafton

X by Sue Grafton

Anyway, I did finish X by Sue Grafton. I will copy here what I wrote in my review of the book on the Goodreads website:

Oh dear, this did need editing down and a proper central plot. Not three different storylines taking their turn with a huge amount of trivial detail. I have really loved books in this series and Kinsey Millhone is a wonderful character, but I don’t need repetitive details of every shower she takes or every route she drives. Not a bad book, but not great either. Sad, really.

As you can see, I was pretty disappointed with this book, #24 in the Kinsey Millhone series. I felt that it only deserved three out of five stars for its wandering plot lines and far too much detail about trivia, such as water-saving devices in 1980s drought ridden California. I will read other books in the series, but may try to seek out earlier ones that I have not already read as I think those books may have been better written. This seems to happen with many long book series – they start off well, get better as the author hones their craft, then deteriorate as eager readers beg the writer to speed up publication of new episodes. Patricia Cornwell’s Kay Scarpetta books have gone the same way, in my opinion. Surely it would be better to have a shorter series and leave readers wanting more rather than allow your famous and favourite characters to deteriorate and your books to lose the high esteem that they once had? Ah well, I am not a writer so what would I know 🙁.

Good Girls Don't Die by Isabelle Grey

Good Girls Don’t Die by Isabelle Grey

The book that I am on the way to finishing is Isabelle Grey’s Good Girls Don’t Die, the first in her D.I. Grace Fisher series. I have already read the second book, Shot Through the Heart, and enjoyed that, so I think that this one will turn out well. I will write about it next week.

Sorry to give such a short Reading Roundup this week! I had better visit the library to stock up on more for next week.

Best wishes,

💜💚💛💙❤️

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Outfit of the day 11/07/17

Posted on 11/07/2017 by The Librain

The weather has definitely changed today as we have had light rain and much cooler temperatures. So I have been feeling much better in many ways. Well, much better until an incident this afternoon. More about that in a moment.

I had to go to see one of our medical practice’s nurses about my asthma, so Lovely Husband drove me there. I was in and out in a few minutes as there was not a lot she could do for me except check my inhaler technique and my peak flow. These tests set me off with a slight cough, but I felt OK at the time. My consultant at the hospital is in charge of my multiple conditions and medications, so the asthma check was really just for my GP’s medical records.

After that was over, we went to one of the big garden centres for tea and I was just about to leave LH’s side to go for a wander when a massive coughing attack started. Luckily, there was a comfortable sofa nearby and LH was able to sort me out and then bring me home. I think the earlier testing brought all of this on. Anyway, I had to go to bed and rest when we got home as these attacks virtually knock me out. I feel a bit better now, which is why I have been able to write the post.

Outfit of the day 

I had intended to wear a pretty scarf today, but was pleased that I changed my mind just before we left the house as it rained quite heavily later on and I do try to avoid getting my Hermès scarves wet! Instead of a scarf, I wore this silk necklace in shades of blue, turquoise, purple and pink and I think it looked nice with my vest and cardigan.

Today’s outfit:

  • Frosted lavender cotton mix cardigan – Lands’ End.
  • Fresh lavender cotton vest – Lands’ End. This is the other vest that I bought at the same time as the purple sapphire one that I have shown quite a lot of times.
  • Indigo jeans – Cotton Traders.
  • Navy leather sandals – Suave.
  • Amethyst and gold earrings. Bought from a craft shop near Torquay, they have a lovely botanical design which matches a gold ring that I wear every day on my right hand.
  • Silk necklace – present from my Mum.
  • White leather and gold bracelet – Tory Burch.
Outfit of the day 11/07/17

Outfit of the day 11/07/17

As I now take a selfie almost every morning (eek), here is the scarf I almost wore today with the same outfit. It is Hermès’ Escales Mediterranéenes in lovely shades of lilac which tone in beautifully with the lavender of my clothing.

Escales Mediterranéenes by Hermès

Escales Mediterranéenes by Hermès

Well, that’s enough for today. Now I will start my new book and think about the Reading Roundup post for tomorrow.

Best wishes,

💙❤️💚💜💛

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Outfit of the day 10/07/17

Posted on 10/07/2017 by The Librain

Just a very quick post today with my outfit as I am feeling very unwell. The weather has been so hot recently and I have been suffering with my health. I really hope that other people have been making the most of the sunshine and have been enjoying themselves. I don’t want to be on a downer, but weather like this is so difficult for me as it aggravates my asthma and cough. Sunny, but cooler and fresher conditions suit me better.

Today’s outfit:

  • Apple green, cotton, slash neck t-shirt – Kettlewell Colours. I don’t have a good photo of this and will probably not take one as this top is on its way out of my wardrobe. The colour and design are nice but this shade does not fit in with the rest of my colours, so I won’t replace it with similar.
  • Navy and white linen trousers – Isle.
  • Horn and green lacquer pendant – QueCraft via Etsy.
  • Horn and cream lacquer earrings – QueCraft via Etsy.
  • Horn bangle – Pia.
Outfit of the day 10/07/17

Outfit of the day 10/07/17

I really hope that my health and mood pick up this week. At least my “boys” are doing well, although Lovely Husband is also struggling with his health. I must invoke that renowned British stiff upper lip and soldier on 😬.

Best wishes,

💜💛💚❤️💙

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Update 07/07/17

Posted on 07/07/2017 by The Librain

This is not an Outfit of the Day post as, once again, it is so hot that I am lying in a sticky heap wearing very little! I promised that I would show my latest sale purchases, though. Once again, I have been stalking the Lands’ End site for their lovely supima cotton cardigans and tops. They come in a huge range of colours, which change each season. The design is given tweaks too. This season the cardigan has been given nice self-coloured metal buttons.

I will admit that I already have the twin sets in teal, coral and bright navy; the tops on their own in sea green, purple, dark navy, brick and animal print; and the cardigan alone in frosted lilac. Set out like that I realise that I might have gone a little OTT! But these are so useful, would have been great for work and they also fit well into my retirement lifestyle. I can wear both pieces as twin sets with jeans, casual trousers and skirts; the tops alone look nice on warmer days and the cardigans also work well over dresses, t-shirts or vests. The colours are great as a background for my scarf collection!

The supima cotton washes well and seems to hold the colours, which are gorgeous.

Anyway, I have now added these two in marine teal to my wardrobe:

Cotton mix top in marine teal - Lands' End

Cotton mix top in marine teal – Lands’ End

Cotton mix top in marine teal - Lands' End

Cotton mix cardigan in marine teal – Lands’ End

In real life the colour is brighter than in the images above and veers more towards the green side of turquoise, rather than the blue. If the weather becomes cooler next week, I will model them with some of my accessories. I can already see that my turquoise tassel necklace will look nice.

Turquoise beaded tassel necklace - BOHO-LANE

Turquoise beaded tassel necklace – BOHO-LANE

Well, it is time to get back to my reading. Wishing everyone who visits a lovely weekend.

Best wishes,

💜💛💚❤️💙

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Outfit of the day 06/07/17 and reveal!

Posted on 06/07/2017 by The Librain

It has been another really hot day again and I have spent it lying in a heap blogging and reading to avoid an asthma or coughing attack. So no scarves for me today!

Outfit of the day 06/07/17

Outfit of the day 06/07/17

Today’s outfit:

  • Frosted lilac, cotton mix cardigan – Lands’ End. This soon came off as the weather warmed up!
  • Purple sapphire, cotton vest – Lands’ End.
  • Navy linen trousers – Isle.
  • Amethyst and silver earrings – Blue Nile.
  • Bell and bow silver pendant – present from Lovely Husband on our Honeymoon a long, long time ago.

Reveal!

I have never done this before, but it is well known on The Purse Forum and sites such as Instagram. I thought that it would be fun to open yesterday’s parcel slowly, like this…

Here is the iconic orange box with the bolduc ribbon tied in a bow…

…the bow has been untied…

…the ribbon has been removed and the box is ready to open…

…the lid is open and the tissue paper has been moved to give a little peek at the contents…

…now you can see the folded scarf…which one is it?

…the scarf is out of the box and ready to be unfolded… nearly there…

…and here it is – Appaloosa des Steppes 45cm gavroche! Ta da!!

Isn’t it cute in a cowboy knot?

Appaloosa des Steppes gavroche by Alice Shirley for Hermès

Appaloosa des Steppes gavroche by Alice Shirley for Hermès

It also looks good in a bias fold with a MaiTai scarf ring to hold it.

Appaloosa des Steppes gavroche by Alice Shirley for Hermès

Appaloosa des Steppes gavroche by Alice Shirley for Hermès

The necklace I was wearing with the scarf was this horn and green lacquer pendant from QueCraft. I think that they go well together now that I have seen the idea of wearing scarves and necklaces at the same time on The Purse Forum!

Horn and green lacquer pendant by QueCraft

Horn and green lacquer pendant by QueCraft

I love this little scarf already and will write a Scarf of the Moment post in due course. Tomorrow I have another smaller reveal for you from my Summer Sale purchases.

Best wishes

💜💛💚❤️💙

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Reading roundup 05/07/17

Posted on 05/07/2017 by The Librain

I am quite surprised to see that I have only read two books this week, as I seemed to have had a book in my hand every day! Then I had a look and realised that the first one was pretty long and a much “meatier” read than usual!

The Burning Wire by Jeffery Deaver

The Burning Wire by Jeffery Deaver

I will copy my Goodreads review of this book first:

At first I had a great deal of trouble getting into this book. The long list of, mainly male, characters. The interminable number of police/security departments with their names and initials, which I kept on forgetting and confusing. But the plot hooked me in and became so gripping and complex that I couldn’t stop reading! Also, I was reading an old copy from the library with yellowing paper and a very small print size, which was a pain. But a great book, all in all.

As I had not read anything in Jeffery Deaver’s Lincoln Rhyme series before, I did not know the back-stories of the main characters, so struggled a bit to get to grips with the plot. After some difficulties at the beginning, I became so interested that I couldn’t put the book down. I think I may seek out more in the series and I am sure that my local library will be able to supply the books! He could do with writing some better female characters, though.

Dead Water by Ann Cleeves

Dead Water by Ann Cleeves

Ann Cleeves’ writing is much more accessible to me than Deaver’s, so I stormed through this book. Unfortunately, I had read this series out of sequence, tackling the sixth book before this one, #5. I did really enjoy reading Dead Water and I am so glad that Cleeves decided to carry on with the series as I love following the development of Jimmy Perez’ character, meeting the new character Willow Reeves and immersing myself in the Shetland setting. This book has a very dark tone, with very few of the touches of humour in the previous books, for obvious reasons (those who have read the series will know what I mean, but I am not going to give away spoilers).

X by Sue Grafton

X by Sue Grafton

My next book will be Sue Grafton’s X. I have been reading Sue Grafton’s Alphabet Murders series for years and am having trouble remembering which books I have finished! Anyway, I am sure that this one will be good and I will write about it next week.

Oh! I was really annoyed just then. I wrote this whole post then it all disappeared due to a glitch and I had to rewrite it from memory! Maybe the first version was better, but you will never know 😬.

Just a thought. If you want to find out more about the books I mention in these Reading Roundups, do have a look at Goodreads. My reviews are nothing special but you will find some really good ones on there plus author pages and discussions. I also find the site useful for reminding me which books are in each series so that I can request them from the library well in advance. Works for me!

Happy reading!

💜💛💚❤️💙

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Outfit of the day 04/07/17

Posted on 04/07/2017 by The Librain

First of all, I wish a very happy Fourth of July to all US readers! I hope you are having a wonderful day 😀.

Hairdresser day again! I am so pleased that I was able to make it. Last night I had an awful coughing fit and I woke up this morning feeling horribly nauseous. It was a sudden wake-up too because Elder Son rang me on my mobile and I was still deeply asleep. He is away from home this week on one of his “little trips” and he likes to text and call me at all kinds of times to let me know what he is doing.

Anyway, I think that the hairdresser did a good job, although I will not really know until I  wash my hair for the first time. She blow dries it nicely, but I only wash and leave it to do what it will. I keep wondering when will be the right time to grow my grey hairs out and stop dyeing, but I am not quite ready to take that drastic step as yet. Perhaps it will be when I am 65 or 70 or…

Today’s outfit:

  • Bright navy, cotton mix cardigan – Lands’ End.
  • White cotton vest – Lands’ End.
  • Navy and white linen trousers – Isle.
  • Navy leather sandals – Suave.
  • Cream enamel and gold “Byzantine” bangle – Halcyon Days.
  • Coral enamel and gold plain bangle – Halcyon Days.
  • Bluebell and cream enamel and gold “Owl” bangle – Halcyon Days.
  • Crystal and gold stud earrings.
  • Silk scarf 45cm, The Savana Dance – Hermès.
Outfit of the day 04/07/17 with Hermès' The Savana Dance gavroche

Outfit of the day 04/07/17 with Hermès’ The Savana Dance gavroche

As the day was quite warm, despite occasional drizzle, I thought that a gavroche would work well and I have not worn this one many times since I bought it. The colours in it are lovely: blues, coral pink, white and grey in the main. The bangles tone in well, with the coral enamel picking up the pink in the scarf. I also love the cute owls on the blue bangle – they make me think of Younger Son, who used to love certain birds of prey, including owls.

Here is the result of the hairdresser visit today, please excuse the lack of makeup. I barely managed to get there this morning as even getting dressed felt exhausting!

New hairdo!

New hairdo!

Confession time! I was very, very naughty last night. All this talk of “money trees” here in the U.K. has led to me looking at mine and realising that a tiny branch had borne enough fruit for a couple of purchases. One lot in the current Lands’ End sale and another from…

Well, I will tell you on Thursday!

Tomorrow’s post will be the usual Reading Roundup, assuming that all is well.

Best wishes,

💜💛💚💙❤️

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Outfit of the day 03/07/17

Posted on 03/07/2017 by The Librain

I have had to postpone my Wardrobe Planning post that I had intended for today as it will take a bit more work before it is ready to publish on the blog. Never mind, as I have some good news 😀. We actually managed to go out today. Hurray!!! Now, when I say “we” I mean that Lovely Husband took me to a garden centre for tea. He goes out every day as he is able to manage on his own; I, on the other hand, am getting so poorly that I am too afraid to drive myself somewhere on my own these days. I have just realised that I haven’t been out of the house for nearly three weeks!

So, although going to a garden centre is not at all exciting for most, it feels like an achievement for me. Venturing out encouraged me to wear something nice today as I have been slobbing around the house in a vest top, pyjama bottoms and slippers for days.

So today’s outfit was:

  • Frosted lavender cotton mix cardigan – Lands’ End.
  • Purple sapphire cotton vest – Lands’ End.
  • Indigo jeans – Cotton Traders.
  • Navy leather sandals – Suave.
  • Gold knot earrings.
  • Purple crystal and gold tone necklace – Marks and Spencer.
  • Purple enamel and gold chain bangle – Halcyon Days.
  • Silk scarf 90cm – Dans un Jardin Anglais – Hermès. In a basic bias fold.
Outfit of the day 03/07/17 with Hermès' Dans un Jardin Anglais

Outfit of the day 03/07/17 with Hermès’ Dans un Jardin Anglais

It has been quite a warm day with the sun breaking through the clouds. Even when I am stuck indoors I love to look down our garden and see what is flowering. I must take some photos of our garden soon as it looks so lovely.

Tomorrow is hairdresser day again. I go every six weeks, but it seems to come around so fast!

Best wishes,

💜💛💚❤️💙

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