I used to watch Get Smart all the time when I was little (my dad used to call my sister and I Agent 89 and Agent 91, after our birth years :P ), and while I didn't notice the incredible style of Agent 99 then - too distracted by the shoe phone, I guess - I've been watching reruns for pretty much that reason alone! A show made in the 60's is obviously going to have some mod influences, which I love, and there is no better inspiration than this very stylish secret agent. Take a look for yourself...
Fantastic hair and a tartan coat - fantastic. She always has fabulous eye makeup on, as well - it doesn't even get smudged while foiling evil plots to take over the world.

*dies* This dress is utter perfection. It looks amazing with the 60's bob to go with it. It is no surprise that Agent 99's back story is that she was a "high fashion model", as well as fluent in three languages, a violin and harp player and a talented singer :P

Isn't that a fantastic dress? If I was ever to get married I would want a vintage-styled dress, this is very good inspiration, although I may give the headdress a miss..

Agent 99 goes undercover as a noughties-era hipster?

I wore this fantastic dress to a dinner and movie date with Boy! We went to the Cinammon Club for some yummy Indian food and then to The Invention Of Lying. To be honest (ha) the movie was very clever but not spectacular, as much as I love Ricky Gervais I just couldn't get that into it. Also something about Jennifer Garner just really irks me, I can't place it but I can't watch a movie with her in it without grinding my teeth. I'm sorry Jennifer, it's nothing personal.
I looove this dress. It is my Chuck from Pushing Daisies dress now because Boy said it reminded him of a pastry-maker's dress. The pictures don't really show how vibrant the green is in real life. (They do show how pasty and white I am, though!)


Today I also went shopping and, along with a new iron (joy! No, really) and a mini hair straightener, picked up a Maggie Alderson novel - I read one while on the plane and they are perfect escapist books - and Dreaming of Dior, which I'm reading right now and can say that it is wonderful. I often wonder about the stories behind the vintage clothes that I buy; I think that the author was so lucky to be able to get to know the women who had worn the clothes and their stories. And only in my wildest dreams could I inherit 3000 vintage dresses in perfect condition!

x

p.s I am thinking of buying a new laptop, do you guys have any recommendations?

Continuing from Part One!

, 288 Flinders Lane, Melbourne

Coloured tights have been popping up in a lot of my favourite style blogs at the moment. Gala Darling wears them, Rebecca from The Clothes Horse has been wearing them for years, and Susie Bubble is a champion of coloured legs!

It may be stinking hot in the southern hemisphere, but in the cooler months there is no better way to inject some colour into your outfit. Whether you team coloured stockings with a short dress to really make a statement, or you have a flash of colour peeking out from between your skirt and the top of your boot, it's a fantastic way to liven up an outfit without a lot of effort.

Here's a few ways that I can imagine wearing them. I've gone a bit boot-mad because I really, really, really miss winter.

The first outfit is where tights are the focus. Let the colours of the tights dictate the tone of the outfit - these ones are kind of Beetlejuicy, so the outfit has a delicious Tim Burton flavour. To really keep the focus on the tights, keep the rest of the outfit in similar tones to really offset the colour. This may seem a bit matchy-matchy but it does help keep the focus on your lovely legs!

If you can see the pictures in the collage above, you'll see there are some very clever outfits where the stockings are the same colour as the bottom half of the outfit. This makes the lady in question's legs look even longer and leaner. You could just do this with black, of course, but if your bottom half is going to look fabulous why not do it in colour? Keep the top of the outfit in neutral colours so that it's not taking away from the colour going on down below.

One of my favourite looks is to have a flash of colour poking out from between a long skirt (or in this case, coat) and boots. After all, if it's too cold to take your coat off, why keep the best part of your outfit under wraps? This outfit is all about unexpected details and contrast - a sparkly beret with a chicken talon around your neck, a bag masquerading as a Parisian postcard, and a flash of the most obnoxiously coloured stockings you can find under a heavy, almost masculine coat and flat boots.

Hope that has helped inspire some confidence to break out the colour! In case you were wondering, my favourite brands for tights are Dangerfield, Jonathon Aston, and Sportsgirl.

x

Collage credits, l-r: Doe Deere, We Love Colours blog, We Love Colours blog, Modcloth, from my computer, We Love Colours blog, The Clothes Horse, We Love Colours blog, Modcloth, from my computer, We Love Colours blog, Modcloth, Gala Darling, We Love Colours blog

Two weeks is quite a long time to spend anywhere on holiday, so I felt qualified enough to share my favourite places in Melbourne with you guys! Whether you live there and find something new, or you're about to travel there (like Mam!), I hope you find something that you like!

Release The Hounds, 279 Smith St, Fitzroy
A very cool store which carries retro-style clothing and some actual vintage pieces up the back of the store. One of the labels it carries is Friends of Couture, and the buyer for the store has an incredible eye because I went into the stand-alone store and it wasn't so great. I think I overheard the guy working there say that it was converted from a bar, which only adds to its quirkiness! The guy working there was actually incredibly helpful and not only gave me and Boy a bottle of water each, but he gave us some good recommendations of where to go to Melbourne and wrote down directions to us on the back of my receipt. Check out the range of jewellery while you're there, it is fab!

"Did you hear the news?"

I am very excited to announce that Gin in a Teacup has been nominated for Best Fashion Blog in the 2threads Australian Fashion Awards! I am super stoked to be in the company of Super Kawaii Mama, Lady Melbourne, and Sea of Ghosts... some of my favourite blogs and biggest inspirations!

"That's awesome! But how do I vote?"

You can vote for me here, and I will soon have a banner on the blog as well!
Thank you so much 2threads and to everyone who nominated me, I am so happy!


x

Hello! Today Boy and I went to the Dennis Hopper exhibit at ACMI. It was really interesting, I couldn't take photos inside but luckily THIS piece of epicness was in the place you are technically allowed to take photos.

Sorry this is late! I'm sure it's still Tuesday somewhere in the world?

I gave a version of a festival outfit in my last How-To Tuesday (I just realised THAT was apparently published on a Monday... one day this will actually be published on the right day!), and here is the full article! I am incredibly lucky to be going to two festivals next year - Southbound and St Jerome's Laneway Festival. Dressing for festivals is obviously a lot different than just dressing up for a regular gig - here's some things you need to remember...

♥ It is either painfully hot or incredibly muddy. While you clearly want to look nice and not just give up and dress in a hessian sack (or... you might), you don't want to wear anything that can't be washed or that you would be devastated if it were harmed.
♥ Try and avoid white - in case it's muddy, or in case of horny teenage boys running around with Super Soaker water guns.
♥ Closed in shoes are fantastic but beware - your feet will feel like mini-saunas and at the end of the day will be swollen as hell. Personally, I would rather that then having my feet get all grimy with thongs, but that's just me.
♥ Remember to pack a jumper that will still go with your outfit at the end of the day - it gets COLD at most festivals, even if the heat has been stifling during the day.
♥ I usually take two bags - one with my jumper, bandaids, a spare pair of shoes, and other essentials; and another teeny bag which is just nough for some cash, my wallet (or at least my cards), my camera (not my new big, fancy-looking camera because some festivals don't allow that unless you're press), the timetable for the day and my mobile phone. Check the big bag in and take the smaller one, and collect the bigger one at night when I plan to stay by one stage and want to have my stuff with me! Also if you bring tampons and bandaids you will basically be everyone's hero.
♥ BRING A HAT AND SUNSCREEN! Most festivals have a communal sunscreen area, and obviously you can buy hats there, but sunscreen could run out and hats will probably sell out in about three minutes. Bring your own.
♥ Don't just wear shorts and a band t-shirt because it's easy - wear something that's still "you". Even buy a dress a few sizes up and belt it and it will be nice and cool!
♥ Don't wear fluro, please. Or leggings as pants. But that's another article for another time.

And now for the outfits!

This girl likes Lily Allen, M.I.A, Santogold and The Kooks. She carries a notebook and a camera with her at all time, just in case she runs into her favourite act.