YELLOW AND BLACK STYLING PLUS NON FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Hello dear readers! In this post, I'll share an urban summer styling and two book recommendations, all very sustainable and all that.

I have a confession to make. The outfit (and city) photographs in this post were actually taken years ago in Mostar. How many years ago? I'm not entirely sure, but it was quite a few. This post was in drafts for a long time. However, I still own and wear all the clothing items worn in this set of urban outfit photographs. So, I decided to use them along side my book photography and reviews.

The book photography shared in this post is more recent than outfit photographs, dating back to last summer, and location being my balcony in Mostar. Today I'll show you two books I bought and gifted. I will also include a book review that will be short, as these books are non-fiction and I'm a literary lady. Don't you worry, though. There are more literary book reviews coming your way soon enough.

This post is all about being sustainable, from my vintage outfit to the secondhand books I purchased and gifted, even to the way I wrapped up these books. Scroll down to see and read more!

THE STORY OF THIS OUTFIT

I love to mix styles. Pumps and folkore bags. Pencil skirt and mesh top. These photographs were taken quite a few summers ago. I'm not sure why I didn't publish this outfit earlier. Well, I'm publishing it now. Better late than never.

HOW I WORE IT BEFORE? THE STORY OF MY CLOTHING ITEMS

THE HIGH WAIST YELLOW TARTAN SKIRT - vintage, inherited from my mother.

What can I say about this skirt that I haven't said already?

1) Yellow tartan skirt worn with a blue and green striped turtleneck, a green tartan jacket, a caramel brown bag and Umbro sneakers in 2016.

2/3/4) See how I wore this tartan skirt 3 different ways in 2018:

a) with a black biker jacket, a black faux fur stole and biker boots,

b) with a long cardi, leather jacket, brown faux fur stole and high heeled boots,

c) with a white sweater, black high heeled boots and a green tartan jacket.

5) See how I wore this clueless skirt with brown boots, a black top and green tartan jacket in 2014.

6) See how I wore this yellow skirt with a short black coat, a faux fur scarf, a vintage floral bag and red high heels in 2015.

7) See how I styled it with a printed t-shirt, a shirt wrapped around the waist, a baker boy hat and Startas sneakers in 2020.

8) See how I wore this yellow checkered skirt with an olive green turtleneck, a red blazer, high brown boots and a short black coat.

9) In 2021, I wore this yellow tartan skirt to join Kezzie's Dr Who cosplay. I paired this vintage skirt with grey tights, black stiletto heels and a black tunics (worn as a top).

10) In 2012, I paired this yellow tartan skirt with bright pink sweater, snake print stilettoes, and a cord black coat.

11) When I wrote down tips for styling yellow in 2019, I included an outfit featuring this tartan skirt paired with a red floral vintage blouse, a mini brown bag and bw print sandals with a high block heel.

12) In this 2018 post, I shared how I styled this tartan skirt with a burgundy turtleneck, a yellow blazer and black block heels.

13) In this 2018 post, I shared how I styled this yellow and grey skirt with an olive green long sleeved top, an olive green long vest, and black and white sneakers.

14) In this 2015 post, I styled this tartan skirt with a printed t-shirt, a black blazer, a yellow bag, dark tights and Mary Jane heels.

15) In this 2016 post, I styled this tartan skirt with an olive green long sleeved top, a yellow bag, white socks and blue oxford shoes.

16) In this 2021 post, I shared many different outfits featuring a yellow bag, and I picked this vintage combo of a long mint blazer and yellow tartan skirt combo as my favourite outfit.

17) In 2013, I wore this tartan skirt with a double collar shirt styled under a bright pink sweater with a faux leather white jacket, brown boots and a black leather bag.

18) In this 2013 post, I styled this tartan skirt with a green jacket, a red top underneath and green shoes.

19) In this 2013 post, I styled this yellow tartan skirt with a yellow sweater.

20) In this 2024 post, I wore this checkered skirt with a burgundy checkered jacket and a yellow sweater.

So, as you can see I have worn this tartan skirt a lot. I managed to find 20 outfits, but I might add up more, because I'm sure I have more photographed outfits with it.

Do I notice any patterns in the way I style it? Yes, I do actually. I often style it with patterns, especially tartan pattern or matching colours (yellow and black). My blog archives also indicate I love to wear this yellow tartan skirt with red. When it comes to specific outwear, I often wear it with tartan winter jackets and with my black leather jacket. Obviously, I like that combo.

THE RED FOLKLORE BAG- A GIFT FROM MY LATE GRANDMOTHER IKA

1) WITH A GREEN DRESS, CARAMEL BOOTS AND A BLACK COAT

2) WITH CROPPED JEANS, A BLACK COAT AND CARAMEL BOOTS

3) WITH HEELS, BROWN FLARED PANTS AND RED ACCESSORIES

4) WITH PRINTED LEGGINGS, A BLUE DRESS AND A MINT BLAZER

5) WITH AN OFF SHOULDER TOP, A RUFFLED SKIRT AND A PAIR OF BLUE OXFORD SHOES (By following this link, you can also see a couple of ways to style this pair of pointy heels)

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Gill & Macmillan Ltd
Publication date ‏ : ‎ 24 Feb. 2012
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Print length ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0717150283
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0717150281
Item weight ‏ : ‎ 1.05 kg
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 12.7 x 1.91 x 14.61 cm

I can imagine it being used as a coffee table book as well. It's not big, but it's quality made and would look nice on a table. So, it could double as a cocktail table book as well. Moreover, with over 250 pages it could be a nice conversational starter.

I suppose a good candidate for this book would be someone interested in history of Ireland. It can also be beneficial to students of English for obvious reasons. It could be a nice gift for students that have to learn English- and that's just about everyone in the Western day these days. So, you might gift them this book. Not everyone likes non-fiction. Some people like to read encyclopedias and non-fiction.

As I mentioned earlier, this book was a gift. I thought it a good gift for children of my husband's nephew. They are both of school age, so I'm sure they could use it. I choose two non-fiction books for them, one focusing on Oxford, the other on Ireland. So, nobody can say that I have a preference for either British English or Irish English. Anyway, what more can I say about this book?

It contains a lot of historical information, some of which is political. It mentions Irish political parties and politicians. There was more political points than I expected. I did not really expect to see the names of politicians. Of course, this book mentions and references various famous Irish people, some of which you can see on the very cover, for example Bono Vox. It also contains all the kind of information you might expect to find in an encyclopedia about a certain country, from cultural to geographical.

In this book you will find Irish actors, writers and so on. In the image below you can see a little section about Liam O'Flaherty, an Irish writer famous for his novel The Informer. I've read many an Irish novelist, but I haven't read this one. So, this encyclopedia was a nice way for me to refresh my knowledge of Irish writers. I mean books like this one are always educational. Some of them more, some less, but an encyclopedia, pocket or regular size, is always a nice starting point.

The book also lists formative years in Irish history, from the arrival of first settlers in 7,000 BC onwards. I think the book is written as a pretty good reference point. You can always look up for more information. The writing style is simple, easy accessible and readable.

So, to conclude I'm glad I purchased this book. It proved a nice purchase. I hope it was a nice gift as well. Maybe I'll get some feedback on it some day. I certainly love gifting books.

I HAVE DECIDED TO WRAP BOTH SECOND HAND BOOKS IN RECYCLED PAPER

So, for both of these books I used recycled paper. I made use of paper from a flower bouquet I received from one of my students. You may see this bouquet here and tell me whether I utilized the ribbons and the paper well.

I love how these presents are fully sustainable: bought second hand and wrapped using second hand supplies. It proves you can be sustainable in every occasion. You just need to put some thought in it.

Don't they say it is the thought that counts?

Why then, isn't keeping wrapping paper to use again- a nice thought?

NOW, LET'S TALK ABOUT THE SECOND BOOK I BOUGHT

Both of these books were in great state and looked brand new. Not that I mind a shabby book myself. I love to see books that are worn out. Books that are worn out are the books that are used. Sometimes the worst state our books are in, the more avid and proficient readers we are. A person who reaches for books often will have books that are worn out. Still, when buying second handbooks, sometimes it is nice to get a book that looks new. Especially, if you decide to gift that book like I did.

OXFORD BY CHRIS DONAGHUE

I'm not going to pretend that I've heard about the photograph before I haven't. I'm also not going to pretend that I'm more knowledgeable about photography than I am. As a painter, I have a pretty good eye, but I'm no expert on photography. I do enjoy it. There was a time when I was really into photography, and then painting sort of took over. I still enjoy reading about photography, and I certainly love photography books.

Oxford by Chris Donaghue is a gorgeous collection of photographs. As the title would imply, the photographs are that of Oxford, where this photography resides. The cover says Chris has been publishing his photographs for more than twenty years.

While I looked for editions of this book, I noticed that some editions of this book have a different photograph on the cover. Perhaps it was a picture of hardcover without the dust wrapper (or dust jacket). I forgot to check whether they are the same.

Anyhow, I absolutely love the cover photograph and its gentle colours. If I'm not mistaken, you can see a number of prominent Oxford sights on this cover image, including the University Church of St Mary the Virgin ( an Anglican church in Oxford, also practically the centre from which the University of Oxford grew) and The Radcliffe Camera library (built in 18th century).

I'm really happy I found and purchased this Oxford book. I would definitely recommend this book to lovers of photography, or just to lovers of beauty in general.

I bought this book because it was beautiful, and I think it makes for a wonderful gift. I'd also say that it would make for a great coffee table book. It is quality made hardcover photography book. The pages are printed on high quality paper.

THIS BOOK PRESENTS NINETY-TWO STUNNING IMAGES

With nine-two gorgeous photographs, you're sure be inspired. They feature some of Oxford best known locations. As I already said, I'm not a photography expert, but I do love the light in all these photographs.

I think the photographer really used the light to his advantage. He presents Oxford in such a stunning light!