It was unreasonably cold today which was why I had to reason with myself to wear stockings. But I find this almost exciting, because the days are steadily becoming cooler and greyer which means that winter is near (!) and personally, I believe that there is no greater season. Yes, I am one of those ridiculous people who actually welcome the cold, because I find that layering up, inhaling the scent of fire wood and sipping scalding hot chocolate to escape the chill utterly thrills me.
Here I opted for my velvet blazer to shield me from the cool elements, although it didn’t do much in regards to the rain.
Move over hippies from the 70’s; maxi skirts are becoming classier than ever. They are also being worn by women everywhere during all four seasons, because essentially, they can be worn at any time. They can look great without appearing too conservative and can also provide a chic, bohemian look. However if you believe that there’s too much fabric covering the legs, then there are plenty of sheer ones out there to show off the legs, or ones with sexy thigh splits that unquestionably exclude the nun factor. I don’t mind covering my legs, and only recently have I recognised my fixation for maxi clothing, as you could probably immediately pick up from my previous posts. I think I enjoy the sinuous sensation they bring.
The skirt was a well-spotted sale item from Forever New which complements this Forever New top that was a Christmas present. The fairly cool weather today meant that longer sleeves were required, and to be honest I’m becoming quite excited for winter!
As soon as summer in Melbourne is officially over, the days of 30+ degrees decided to breeze along to create an unusually warm start to March, particularly over the long weekend. I spent a night at the beach to enjoy the heat and hazy sunset, which was far better than spending the night in a hot house that lacked ice-cream.
For my outfit, I used a polka-dot scarf as a belt simply because I couldn’t find my white belt, and it actually produced a nice effect. The main component of my outfit is actually the bag-which is (ahem) new- and my entire ensemble was formed around the bag. Why did I leap at this bag as soon as I saw it? Well ladies and gents, if you haven’t received the memo, monochrome is one of this season’s major trends. Yes that’s right, wearing straight out black and white is enough to be considered seriously chic at the moment. So naturally I decided that I had to get me some form of this basic colour combination, and I did not need to look any further than this bag, which was actually very reasonably priced.
It is a struggle to think up anything that you can compare to a summer’s day, however Saturday is one of them. What’s better than the freedom that the weekend brings?
For yesterday’s outing I wore a dress which is traditionally a winter dress, but I wanted to mix things up a little. I coordinated it with a sleeveless collar top underneath to suit the warm weather with silver sandals and burgundy coloured socks that conveniently accompanied my satchel well. The end result was inadvertently school-girl-esque, supplemented by a finishing touch of a fabulous vintage brooch in the shape of a wide-brimmed hat. Now all I need is a blazer and I will be ready for school!
Dress– Target
Top- Forever New
Satchel- The Leather Satchel Co.
Shoes- asos
Belt- ? Brooch- Vintage
It really does look like I’m doing the whole first-day-of-school-photos episode.
There’s really nothing like a wedding to get you thinking about your own one. Last weekend I had the honour of attending my beautiful cousin’s wedding to her lovely partner. The ceremony took place at the stunning botanical gardens in Melbourne with a picturesque backdrop and an accommodating, clear blue sky. Despite the day’s high temperature (and the drops of sweat making their way down my spine), all of the guests were in awe of the radiating couple who were so obviously in love that I almost acquired a headache, though that might have been just the overexposure of sunlight. As I was listening to the couple’s words that were soaked with such mushiness that it can only be tolerated at a wedding, I began thinking about how I would plan my own wedding if I ever decided to get married. And then the relentless aching in my feet made me wonder if wearing high heels had any other significant purpose other than to appear more attractive to the opposite sex and debated if the positives could override the searing pain and discomfort. By the third hour I was highly doubtful.
A view of where the ceremony was conducted.Snaps for the happy couple!How stunning did my cousin look?
The ceremony concluded and we went to the reception a few hours later. The reception was held at the scenic Sandringham Yacht Club which offered a fantastic view of the sunset and a particularly elegant function room. Three delicious courses and several mushy words later, we discovered the location of a fun-filled photo booth and spent the rest of the night dancing and having a fabulous time.
The dress I wore is based on a design that I loved for ages, so I decided to get it made in Vietnam when I was there over a year ago. Considering it is a relatively formal dress, I hadn’t found an opportunity to wear it until this occasion. Needless to say I was extremely excited to wear it, although it was sweltering hot at times.
Dress- Made in Vietnam Shoes- Guess Bag- Vintage Earrings- ? Necklace- Swarovski
My gorgeous sisters and I at Sandy Yacht Club.
It was one of the loveliest weddings I have experienced, and I wish the happy couple all the best!
Jeans are eternal, but anything else denim has it’s moments. Fortunately for the lovers of the rugged blue material , 2013 is allowing for a denim domination in any form or size. This season’s runways have produced denim jackets, dresses, vests, shirts, pants…oh and despite an army of people’s desperate call for the extinction of this look, double denim is still on the cards. I can already hear the yelps of excitement. Just look up ‘Zac Efron double denim’ and he’ll show you how he (seldom) managed it in the past up until now.
I channeled my denim look through an acid-washed dress that looks like it came straight out of the 80’s. Talking about the 80’s, has anyone been watching the Carrie Diaries? She has fabulous style. Back to the topic, I rarely wore this dress out casually because I originally determined that it wasn’t specifically suited for informal outings, but then I discovered how useful a belt, cardie and hat really was. And that’s a fashion note right there- basic accessories can completely alter a look. You’d be surprised with how much you can downplay or elevate a dress or outfit with only a few extra touches.
Dress- Refuge
Jacket- Alive Girl, a find from a fashion store at the South Melbourne Market, Melbourne
Melbourne weather truly baffles me, which is ridiculous because I am well aware that it is the temperamental one in the relationship. One week it is constantly at high temperatures, and then suddenly it drops below 20 and I am reaching for jeans and a jacket. Um what.
The jacket I reached for was one of mum’s oldies. The other day she was shuffling through her wardrobe and flung numerous items of unwanted clothing onto the floor then boldly announced that they were for the taking. Accustomed to my mothers frequent wardrobe rampages and the treasures and trash that are likely to be discovered, I investigated. Amongst the heap of outdated and untouchable clothing lay a decent crème jacket that I immediately snatched. Fortunately I was able to wear it earlier than I anticipated due to the stupid weather. I matched it with a bodice style top, accompanied by high-waisted jeans and clog sandals.
Going back to my dandy adventures in the Gold Coast once more, we traveled to Mt Tamborine to see what the brochures were on about. Apparently it is a must-see tourist spot that offers exceptional views and activities amongst other things, and considering I had never been after all these years, I was curious to see what all the fuss is about.
A pie and a half later, we had strolled down the busy streets filled with the usual weekenders and tourists, poured over beautiful vintage brooches and had bought $30 worth of mouth-watering fudge. Needless to say things were going excellently, and then we were offered the opportunity to crash a tour and explore a rainforest which completely enhanced our thrilling Mt Tamborine adventure. We were given a guided tour by a friendly and informative man who had been running these tours for years, and boy did he have a lot to say. There were some particularly intriguing facts he explained about the history and the local flora, and the rainforest itself was absolutely magnificent.
Luckily the clouds remained non-threatening which meant that I could take out my camera and go into pro-photographer mode which really consisted of taking numerous snaps of the beauty around me and different angles.
Ain’t it pretty?Yep, there were spiders in there.
Watcha doing there, Turkey?It’s difficult to see, but there’s the coastline of Gold Coast in the background.
Top: Ice Shorts: Lumiere Shoes: Miss Shop Bag: Vintage
…And on the car ride home, we devoured most of the fudge.
Okay yes it has been a while. But no one can blame me for taking a couple weeks off from blogging whilst holidaying in Queensland with a serious lack of wi-fi and motivation to get off the beach, hm? Furthermore, holiday mode impacted my ability to actually care about what I wore, so without further ado I picked off pretty outfits and opted to cruise around in basic swimsuits and shorts for the majority of the trip. And damn did it feel great to let go of your appearance and walk around with chlorine-soaked hair and a pair of shabby thongs.
It didn’t last impressively long to the point that a dread started forming, as eventually the more dignified part of me gave me a nudge and reminded me that a person should still make an effort and with the way I was going I wasn’t going to impress any of those cute surfers. Which was fair enough because I didn’t touch my hairbrush for a while. I have slowly noticed that people these days in the Gold Coast really make an effort to look hot compared to when it used to be the bathers and thongs look, which put pressure on me as I only achieved to look hot with a red-as-a-tomato sunburn. But then again the shopping is so superb that it is easy to afford to look good, and truth be told I do a large portion of clothes shopping up there. So I finally made the grueling decision to let go of my freedom and embrace looking decent on holiday. I think a surfer even looked at me after that.
The dress that I’m wearing below wasn’t in fact from the Gold Coast but I bought it in Melbourne *shock* at full price. I saw it and loved it, and everyone knows that you cannot be deterred from love at first sight, which applies to clothing. I even reminded myself that I already have a white maxi dress, but then I reminded myself that *pfft* it’s completely different. I don’t know if it’s the subconscious ‘wedding dress’ appeal to it, but I am attracted to white maxi dresses. It was great to wear in the heat and humidity as the fabric is so light.
Dress: Peace Angel from Tree of Life Bag: Forever New
I am a self-confessed christmas junkie. I positively adore decorating the tree, putting up the lights, singing along with Bing Crosby to cheesy carols, making and bingeing on delicious food, completely over-adorning the house with ornaments, the summer weather, giving and *especially* receiving presents….the whole lot.
So naturally I am aware that there are only THREE days till the big day, and I am super excited.
The other day I travelled to the city to indulge in the yearly christmas festivities in Melbourne. Decorations were draped above the busy streets, buskers were belting out xmas tunes and the city was bustling with people eager to finish their shopping. The spirit of christmas was in full force, and I was like a kid on red cordial feeding off from the high of it.
A Decorated Arcade
As per tradition, I have been indulging in christmas cooking and began with making white christmas whilst coincidentally listening to the song White Christmas. I love americanised christmas carols, and although they don’t necessarily coincide with what an aussie christmas is like, they always describe the (for the lack of a less corny word) ‘magic’ of christmas. So here in Australia we don’t have snow at this time, don’t drink eggnog and don’t put snowmen on our roofs, but it’s still special and christmasy in a slightly different way. It’s usually celebrated outdoors in the sun, and of course involves a turkey! Mmm turkey…
Switching to a less christmas-orientated topic, for the outing I wore an old skirt of my mum’s. Occasionally I feature vintage clothes from my mum in this blog, simply because her wardrobe was so great and this is another item that I wanted to showcase. I love the vibrant colour and the beading action.
Skirt: Charlie Brown Top: Forever New Shoes: Inui Bag: Vintage Sunglasses: asos
I Like Your Shirt 