Hi! Welcome to my blog. On Fridays I usually write about the outfits I have worn during the week, with an emphasis on scarves. This week it has been very cold and frosty around here and my body has reacted by suffering multiple coughing fits. This has meant staying in bed most of the time. I did, however, manage to wear some of my larger and warmer shawls and scarves, so that was a plus point!
Here is my most precious shawl: Plumes en Fête by Hermès:
Outfit of the day 11/12/22 with Hermès’ Plumes en Fête shawl
I wore the shawl with a lovely pale grey cashmere v-neck jumper and pretty silver earrings. The shawl is so soft and warm and it drapes beautifully. These Hermès shawls are eye wateringly expensive and I saved up for ages to buy this one. If none of next season’s silk scarves appeal, I might just save up again for another one, even if it takes me all year! But the design would have to be perfect. This is a larger image of my shawl (taken from the Hermès website, so not completely accurate as to the colours):
Plumes en Fête shawl (H243433S 04)
The shawl is very large at 140×140 cms and I have another shawl of the same size by Liberty of London that I will wear next week if the weather continues to be so cold. Here is an image:
Liberty of London – Hera cashmere/silk shawl
This also really beautiful, but I am a bit nervous about the fringed edges!
Well, I think that it is now time to sign off now! Happy Weekend to you all.
This might turn out to be the final Reading Roundup post of the year. I haven’t decided yet when I will start my break from the blog for the Christmas holidays, so I may fit another one in. Or not…
Sorry to be so indecisive!
The Kingdom of the Gods by N K Jemisin
This week’s book is the final part of N K Jemisin’s The Inheritance Trilogy: The Kingdom of the Gods. As usual, this was such a complex book that I really had to concentrate to read and understand it fully. Therefore, I didn’t have the time to read anything else. Anyway, this is the blurb:
“For two thousand years the Arameri family has ruled the world by enslaving the very gods that created mortalkind. Now the gods are free, and the Arameri’s ruthless grip is slipping. Yet they are all that stands between peace and world-spanning, unending war.
Shahar, last scion of the family, must choose her loyalties. She yearns to trust Sieh, the godling she loves. Yet her duty as Arameri heir is to uphold the family’s interests, even if that means using and destroying everyone she cares for.
As long-suppressed rage and terrible new magics consume the world, the Maelstrom — which even gods fear — is summoned forth. Shahar and Sieh: mortal and god, lovers and enemies. Can they stand together against the chaos that threatens?”
I am in step with many other readers’ responses on here. This was a great ending to the trilogy, but the book had quite a few flaws. To be honest, I thought that my feelings of unease were due to my memory issues. In several places, I had to go back to earlier books or earlier in this book to check plot points or characters. By the time I arrived at the final chapters, everything seemed to come together, thankfully. All was rounded off nicely, which was great.
This is now the second trilogy of Jemisin’s that I have completed and I am certain that I will hunt out her other work. If she can write like this, absolute treasures must be in store for her readers!
I am currently reading a very complex science fiction book – also the final part of a trilogy. Also a book that takes a lot of concentration to understand it fully! I will write about it in the next Reading Roundup post, all being well.
Well, I think it’s lovely – thanks to my great hairdresser!
So, hello and welcome to my blog. If you read last Friday’s post, you may remember that I was supposed to write this on that day, but felt too unwell. Today’s post will, therefore, not be in the usual Monday style – not that this matters at all.
It is so unusual for me to actually leave the house that I take the opportunity to wear some of my nicer clothes and accessories when I do go out. On Friday, I chose my Hermès men’s wool scarf, Sweet Dreams, in a range of blue shades with touches of grey and white. With this I wore grey clothing and silver accessories, including the scarf ring. Here are the before and after photos:
Before (top row) and after (bottom row) haircut on 09/12/22
I am so pleased with this ensemble! The dark grey jumper is from WoolOvers, the leopard print coat from Masai Clothing Company and the scarf ring and earrings were presents. Here are some of my accessories (yes, I know that I have showed you some of these recently!) and a full image of the scarf:
Tanya coat in grey by Masai Clothing CompanyDiane handbag by Marco Massaccesi Pewter leather shoes by HotterSweet Dreams shawl by Hermès
At the moment, a large triangle version, in cashmere/silk, of this Sweet Dreams design is available from Hermès and I must admit that I am very tempted! You can see all of the colourways of this, and the original wool square like mine, on my Scarf of the Day post.
Hello and welcome to my blog! Today, I have been to the hairdresser’s for a lovely cut and blow dry and I had intended to write a post with lots of photos. Unfortunately, since arriving home, I have felt really exhausted and so cannot write a full post. Instead I will try to write something over the weekend to upload on Monday.
So, Monday’s post will look like a Friday post! In that case, let’s make Friday’s post look like a Monday post, with this from Twitter…
Screenshot from @OptimoPrincipi on Twitter – accessed 07/12/22
So… we have arrived in December already! Time is really speeding up for me these days. Perhaps that is because I read so much Fantasy and Science Fiction!!!
Yet again, I have only managed one book this week. I think that N K Jemisin’s books need a lot of concentration and careful reading. They are impossible to skip through…
The Broken Kingdoms by N K Jemisin
This week’s book was the second part of N K Jemisin’s The Inheritance Trilogy: The Broken Kingdoms. Here is the blurb:
“A man with no memory of his past and a struggling, blind street artist will face off against the will of the gods as the secrets of this stranger’s past are revealed in the sequel to The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, the debut novel of NYTbestselling author N. K. Jemisin.
In the city of Shadow, beneath the World Tree, alleyways shimmer with magic and godlings live hidden among mortalkind. Oree Shoth, a blind artist, takes in a strange homeless man on an impulse. This act of kindness engulfs Oree in a nightmarish conspiracy. Someone, somehow, is murdering godlings, leaving their desecrated bodies all over the city. And Oree’s guest is at the heart of it. . .”
This really was an excellent read and well worth the full five stars on Goodreads. This was my review:
I think that I enjoyed this second book in the series even more than the first one. The main character was really interesting and well-drawn and I must admit that I am hoping she is the heroine of the third book. Judging by the series so far, I expect that she won’t be. I certainly enjoy Jemisin’s fantasy writing and, yet again, her imagination is stunning.
I was going to have a change of pace and read something else next, but I simply can’t wait to see how this story turns out! On to the final book >>>>>>>>>
So, that is exactly what I have done! I am now about a third of the way through book three, The Kingdom of the Gods, and I will write about it next week. As my reviews of the first two books have been very short, I will try to be more expansive.
Welcome to Monday’s post. I had decided to skip today’s post because I am feeling so stressed and ill, but I will try to write something. Unfortunately, Lovely Husband and I have been struggling to manage Elder Son’s difficulties all weekend. I am not going to spell out any details, for his privacy, but will just say that we are totally wrung out and exhausted. All we can hope is that circumstances pan out OK for him and that he will then calm down.
Whilst all of that was going on, I hunted for, and ordered, some amusing Christmas gifts for all three of my “chaps”. We usually give ES and YS cash presents, alongside some clothes, but I decided that it was time for me to stop choosing clothing that they might not even like! Instead, I have bought some items that I hope will amuse them. Let’s wait and see if I have hit the mark this year!
Now, I will try to loose myself in a book and hope that I can stop worrying!
Welcome to Friday’s post. I had planned to wear quite a few of my gorgeous scarves this week, but life got in the way! Instead of dressing in my nice clothes, I managed to do a few necessary, but messy, household tasks that were definitely not conducive to wearing Hermès. So, I have only one image for you.
In addition, I am having some issues with the program, PS Express, that I use to make collages. They seem to “upgrade” it quite frequently, but I usually find that I struggle to make it do what I want or what worked for me before they changed it. Anyway, the result is that my nice clear collage goes kind of fuzzy and unfocused when saved. If anyone could help me with this, I would be very grateful. My post-stroke brain cannot cope with thinking all of this through!
So, instead of a collage, here is a head and shoulders shot from earlier in the week:
Outfit of the day 28/11/22 with Hermès’ Lazy Leopardesses scarf
With this scarf I wore my dark grey merino/cashmere mix v-neck by WoolOvers and lighter grey cord trousers by Lands’ End. The earrings are grey crystal and gold by Swarovski and I also put on a pretty pink enamel and gold bangle by Halcyon Days. The scarf was tied in a cowboy knot using a mother-of-pearl scarf ring by MaiTai. Lovely Husband was a bit spooked by the leopardess’s face, but I love the eyes and the pink tongue!
Here is a larger image of the scarf:
Lazy Leopardesses scarf by Hermès
If you would like to read more about this scarf, here is my Scarf of the Moment post. I love the pink background and hem on mine, but the other colourways are gorgeous as well.
That’s all for this week. I will try to wear more of my scarves next week – after all, they are there to be worn and enjoyed. Until then…
Well, we are already at the final Reading Roundup post of November. Time really has flown! This week I have just one completed book for you…
The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N K Jemisin
I decided to read N K Jemisin’s The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, #01 The Inheritance Trilogy. Having been awed by her later work, The Broken Earth series, I thought that it would be interesting to try her first book and I am so glad that I did!
Here is the blurb:
“Yeine Darr is an outcast from the barbarian north. But when her mother dies under mysterious circumstances, she is summoned to the majestic city of Sky – a palace above the clouds where gods’ and mortals’ lives are intertwined.
There, to her shock, Yeine is named one of the potential heirs to the king. But the throne of the Hundred Thousand Kingdoms is not easily won, and Yeine is thrust into a vicious power struggle with a pair of cousins she never knew she had. As she fights for her life, she draws ever closer to the secrets of her mother’s death and her family’s bloody history.
But it’s not just mortals who have secrets worth hiding and Yeine will learn how perilous the world can be when love and hate – and gods and mortals – are bound inseparably.”
So, that looked interesting, although I had already read some rather negative responses to this series (I usually try not to do that before reading any book). Anyway, this was my review on Goodreads:
I really enjoyed this book. Having already read a later Jemisin series, which was amazing, I have to admit that I liked this one more. Now, that is definitely going against the tide. The main reason is that The Broken Earth Trilogy, whilst utterly brilliant, was also extremely dark and foreboding. The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms certainly has its gloomy moments, but also more uplifting ones. In my present condition (suffering from depression), I feel that this book was better for me, personally.
Anyway, I am going to read the second book straight away as I find it impossible to look away from Jemisin’s work when there are further episodes in the story still to read!
Yes, I gave it the full five stars and I am already well into the second book in the series. I think that I will have to read everything by this fantastic, imaginative author!
I will take a break from my usual pattern on these posts and tell you that I have been a bit distracted whilst reading Jemisin’s books by this…
Revenge of the Librarians by Tom Gauld
This is a book of cartoons to dip into when you need an uplift. I suppose that it will mainly appeal to librarians and those in the book world: authors, publishers etc. I tried one cartoon on Lovely Husband and he didn’t really “get” it, but I am sure that my librarian friends will. Anyway, I am reading it alongside other books and will write some kind of response, probably a very short one, when I have finished.
Hello and welcome to the first post of a new week. I have spent quite a lot of time over the weekend sorting out hundreds of photos of my Hermès’ scarves. Up until about two years ago, I had put all of these images into folders on my iPad, but my organisation slipped during the worst COVID times. My plan is to finish getting them all into proper folders, weed out unsatisfactory photos, make a record of the date when each folder has been completed, and then make myself keep them up-to-date.
The next part of the plan is labelling all of my scarf boxes. I bought the labels ages ago, but procrastinated as usual! Then I intend to fill a plastic pocket for each scarf with the receipt, some modelling photos and any tags that I have removed from the scarf. That way, I will have the full details for insurance purposes and also for my family when I am no longer here. Even my small Hermès collection is quite valuable and I want to make it as easy as possible for family members to deal with them.
Later on today, I may be able to finish the initial weeding and sorting, which will be great! It has been interesting looking through the collection. I have been able to work out how often I have worn each scarf and I have been quite surprised to see that I haven’t taken some out of their boxes for ages! This has spurred me on with my plan to wear as many of my more expensive scarves as possible. I have to face up to the knowledge that I must wear them at home because I so rarely go out. There’s nothing wrong with wearing a beautiful silk scarf with pyjamas, is there?
I must choose a lovely one for today… you will see it on Friday.
Right, now is the time when I show you something that caught my eye on Twitter:
Screenshot from @womensart1on Twitter – accessed 23/11/22
I just adore those gorgeous colours, although it wouldn’t do for my tea drinking!
Welcome to Friday’s post! I do hope you enjoy reading this and feasting your eyes on such a lovely array of scarves.
I made a real effort to wear a range of scarves this week, choosing from the inexpensive to the luxurious; from the small and cheeky to the large and enveloping. Such fun to choose from my collection!
As a kind of background to the scarves, I decided to move on from my navy base colours and, instead, wore a WoolOvers dark grey v-neck jumper in a merino/cashmere mix and Lands’ End mid grey cord trousers.
The first scarf was given to me as a present. It is a pale blue with glittery threads running through the weave – very pretty. I wore it with heart shaped earrings in a toning shade. The image here isn’t quite true with the colour.
Outfit of the day 21/11/22 with blue glittery scarf
My second outfit of the week used my stunning cashmere stole by Johnstons of Elgin. The colours are navy, grey, green, turquoise and white. This time, I will show you a larger image of the scarf as well as the usual collage:
Pixelated Check Cashmere Stole by Johnstons of ElginOutfit of the day 22/11/22 with Pixelated Check Cashmere Stole by Johnstons of Elgin
The earrings are by Chalk Jewellery and I love them! I keep stalking their website and I am soooo tempted…
The third outfit took me back to my Hermès collection, but instead of wearing a full size 90cm scarf, I chose the 45cm gavroche, The Savana Dance:
The Savana Dance by Hermès Outfit of the day 23/11/22 with Hermès’ The Savana Dance gavroche
For my next and final scarf I chose my most recent purchase: Sous Le Charme d’Orphée by Hermès. As this is double sided, I tried to tie the scarf to show both sides: the beautiful autumnal shades on the front and the greys on the back.
Sous Le Charme d’Orphée by Hermès Outfit of the day 25/11/22 with Hermès’ Sous Le Charme d’Orphée scarf
I wore the pretty Swarovski grey crystal and gold earrings again, but removed the dangles and used the stud parts. The scarf ring is mother-of-pearl, by MaiTai.
Oh, and if I had been able to go out this week I would have carried this lovely grey and silver handbag by Massaccesi and worn these cute pewter shoes by Hotter!
Diane handbag by Marco Massaccesi Pewter shoes by Hotter
Feeling very pleased with this week’s outfits! What do you think?
Former professional school librarian, now retired through chronic illness. Trying to keep cheerful by reading, drinking lots of tea, blogging my new life, and my love of bling!
The Librain
The Librain......retired 
[…] If you would like to read more about this scarf, here is my Scarf of the Moment post with…