Holiday Outfits

I kept my wardrobe for my recent holiday to Olu Deniz simple, with loose, cool dresses for daytime and unfussy evening outfits. When on holiday I want to be comfortable but I also like to dress up in the evening so I always take a clutch bag and some statement flat sandals (remember I like to be comfortable so no heels for me). Here are some of the outfits I wore.

Dress by Accessorize, Sandals by Topshop, Sunglasses by YSL



I featured this little dress on the blog here but this was the first opportunity I have had to wear it. It's a great beach cover up and the neon embroidery adds a fun element. I paired mine with flat tan sandals and soggy sea hair!

Dress and sandals by Zara, Bag by Marc by Marc Jacobs


The last time I wore this dress was when we visited the Maldives. I wore it with bare feet then but this time I paired it with crystal embellished flat metallic sandals. I would normally never wear yellow, infact I think this is the only items of yellow clothing I own, but the colour works perfectly with a tan and the split cape-effect sleeves add drama to the simple shape of the dress.

Shirt by Mango, Shorts by Zara, Sandals by Prada, Bag by Marc by Marc Jacobs

I snapped this shirt up in the Mango sale days before I came on holiday knowing it would be the perfect accompaniment to these old printed Zara shorts. 

Dress by Mango, Sandals by Prada, Bag by & Other Stories

Another Mango buy, this beautiful dress is simple but the sharp neckline and tiny peep hole triangle make it a real statement piece. I teamed it with metallic sandals and a red lip.

Happy Days in Olu Deniz

We've just returned from a last minute holiday in Olu Deniz Turkey. We adore Turkey; the landscape, food, beaches and blue skies, but had never visited Olu Deniz before. We spent our days soaking up the sun by the beautiful Blue Lagoon, doing a little sight seeing and shopping and enjoying time together.

To See & Do

The market at Fethiye on a Tuesday morning is packed full of locals stocking up on the most delicious looking fruit and veggies. Catch a dolmas early then avoid all the stalls selling tacky fake rubbish and instead look for embroidered tunics, traditional towels (as recommended by Gwyneth Paltrow on Goop) and cute silver trinkets.

Mixing with the locals and salivating over all the fresh produce.
Dress by Gap, Sandals by Topshop, Bag by Miu Miu

Paragliding. The scenery around Olu Deniz is simply stunning; high mountains, a turquoise sea and emerald green forests. While we didn't actually do the paragliding (the boyfriend is training for an Ironman and I'm self employed so neither of us could risk a broken bone) it was quite relaxing to sit on the beach, look up at the sky and watch people drift up in the air.

The Blue Lagoon is a national nature reserve and a must visit. The waters are crystal clear, calm and incredibly peaceful. The beaches around the lagoon are mainly private frequented by a mix of locals and tourists and we spent most of our days by the lagoon soaking up the sun and hand feeding the local ducks who would waddle around!

Away from the lagoon is a vast stretch of grey stone beach with aquamarine waters. We would go here every evening to play in the waves and watch the sun set.

As both the boyfriend and I are doing triathlons soon we needed to keep our training up, so each morning or evening we would run up the steep switch back roads past scary looking goats and even came across a tortoise! Running along dirt tracks and up the mountains rewarded us with stunning views of Olu Deniz and was completely worth the sweaty effort.

To Buy

Must buys include bright ceramics such as little dishes (perfect for holding jewellery on your bedside table), brightly printed coasters and stained glass candle holders. 

The blue glass 'evil eye' talismans are a good buy, especially on items of delicate jewellery. 

Olive oil soaps make a great gift and these tins will come in handy for trinkets even after the soap is all used up. 

I love a rummage in a local pharmacy and discovered this delicious almond oil face cream by Bebak. It's super rich (so perfect for my sun scorced skin!), smells divine and at less than £3 is a bargain. The boyfriend unearthed this shaving cream with the best retro packaging.

We also stocked up on these stripey cotton towels that all the locals were using at the beach. You could use them as sarongs or scarves too.

Thank you for a great holiday Olu Deniz, we'll be back soon.

Holiday Packing

The boyfriend and I have taken a last minute vacation to beautiful Turkey. We have visited Turkey for many years and it's one of our favourite destinations. The people, the landscape, the sea, the food, the markets all make for a fantastic break.

Beautiful Turkey

So what have I packed for the holiday? I start as always, by writing my 'What To Pack List' detailing what to wear every AM and PM, then listing extras such as sportswear, what to pack in hand luggage and beauty products.

I've gone for quite a simple colour palette this time, lots of whites, some stripes, some black and navy, metallics and a couple of dashes of pink.

Daytime outfits

Evening outfits

I'm only taking a few pairs of sandals, with tan for day and black and metallic for evening as these 3 pairs will work with all my after hours outfits.

Evening shoes

I always take along a hair mask, a good cleanser, fun nail polishes and a rich body moisturiser when visiting somewhere hot.

A very small selection of my beauty stash

In my hand luggage I pack a light scarf as I'm always freezing on planes, my iPad, some beauty essentials such as lip balm and face oil, a good book and I divide our travel documents into various pouches which I then use as evening bags when on holiday.

I begin by packing the heavy items such as shoes (all in shoe bags) in the bottom of the suitcase. To be extra organised underwear goes in it's own little bag, as do my bikinis. Then I fold everything and fill up the suitcases. Beauty products are placed on top with my extra reading material and then I'm good to go!

Happy Holidays!

Images: Pinterest