New Year's Eve


I found this via Pip's blog Meet Me At Mikes & I thought it was way too cute not to share! Have a happy New Year's Eve, everybody, and I'll see you in 2012! I have a feeling it's going to be a pretty swell year.


x
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2011


So, 2011 was quite a big year for me with some crazy, rollercoaster ups and downs. I had some not so great moments and definitely a shitty start to the year, but since then things have gotten much better and I've finished 2011 in a very wonderful way! Now this recap is quite long (and not very fashion-y) so I don't blame you for skipping out now!

In January, I had quite a bad start to the year. My granddad died, not too long after my nan had passed away, and my boyfriend at the time broke up with me about a week later. I'm not going to lie, it kind of sucked, especially for someone going through depression, like I was at the time. It also didn't help that my ex-boyfriend handled things in a really douchey way. So if blogging was a bit sparse this year, then that is probably why! I'm not telling you that to get sympathy or anything, but if anyone reading is going through it then I want them to know how important it is to get professional help, because it really helped me. Also surround yourself with wonderful friends - my best friends Renae, Richenda, the Chloes, Emma and Trish were fantastic around this time (and still are, obviously).


Luckily, it was not long after that I started my work experience at Xpress. I got to work with one of my favourite bloggers, Emma, and I had such a good time. It was really special to hear the editor say that I was the best work experience student they'd ever had! I even stayed on for a while after my internship "officially" ended, and now I'm a contributor for them and couldn't be happier that I'm doing a job that I love and getting paid for it!


It was on one of these reviews for Xpress that I met my boyfriend Aidan! Well, it's kind of an embarrassing story (for me). We had gone to uni together for four years but never really spoken. And then out of the blue I invited him to be my plus one to an Audrey Tatou movie and we've been together ever since. Woo!


I also...
♥ dyed my hair red... then bayalage... then blue tipped... then with a Bettie Page fringe... and now pink tipped ♥ went to a lot of amazing shows like Papa Vs Pretty, The Painkillers, Hungry Kids of Hungary, Andy Bull, and more ♥ moved out of my apartment in South Perth and moved into my grandparent's old house ♥ met many amazing Perth bloggers ♥ made many lovely new friends ♥ turned 22 ♥ hosted Boxing Day at my house for my family ♥ learned to cook ♥ went out to Mexican food for my birthday ♥ went to Rottnest ♥ tried to use my DSLR camera more ♥ became incredibly happy again!

So thank you all so much for reading this year and hopefully next year will be bigger & better for all of us! This is my last "big" post for 2011 (I have one lined up for tomorrow) so I'll see you all in 2012!

x

Oh and I do have to say happy birthday to my gorgeous mama! Happy birthday mum!
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Wonderful Christmastime


Hello hello! I had a wonderful Christmas day with my mum's side of the family. We went to my uncle's beautiful house and had a MASSIVE feast of turkey (with two kinds of stuffings), ham, these delicious salads, and Christmas pudding. It was amazing! Even more fun was getting to see my cousins, uncles and aunties, especially my aunt, uncle and cousin who had flown in from Melbourne. It was gorgeous weather (not too hot!), and I got to spend the afternoon playing with my adorable godson, his brother and their new lightsabers, which were mainly used for "killing girls and girl germs".











1. A family photo interrupted by Molly, my uncle's schnoodle puppy.
2. I made this trifle! I was so proud, and it was delicious (if I do say so myself).
3. Present excitement! I got some wonderful things that I will show you very soon.
4. My shoes! I got them half price at the Forever New sale. I love them and they are lovely and sparkly but VERY uncomfortable.
5. Christmas cake! I don't really eat it, for some reason, but it sure looked pretty.
6. Me and my gorgeous godson Adam. He doesn't really let me pick him up very much anymore so this is a very rare photo indeed!
7. I really love puppies so I was ecstatic that Molly was such an easygoing pup!
8. My Christmas day outfit, consisting of a Temt dress, Forever New embellished flats, rings from Sportsgirl, ASOS and Diva, and bracelets from Love Couture, David Jones, a shop in Bunbury and Diva. And earrings from Love Couture.
9. My dad & I.
10. Another family photo, this time with my grandparents and my cousin (down the front with me) insisting on making gruesome faces.

I hope you and your loved ones all had lovely Christmases as well! It's back to normal for me tomorrow, I'm back at work and working pretty much up until New Year's Eve. But, hopefully I'll be able to make time to show you some of my rather excellent presents & Christmas instagrams!

x

Paul McCartney - Wonderful Christmas Time

{One of the highest rated comments on this song was "I used to hate this song, but now it ain't Christmas until I hear it on a compilation CD." I totally agree! This song used to really grate my nerves, but now I love it.}
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Christmas Eve



It's Christmas Eve! For some reason, this year I'm overexcited about the holidays and am so looking forward to spending Christmas with my family. Even though I am exhausted from work and missing my boyfriend, who is in Melbourne until New Year's, I can't wait to have a couple of days to just relax and enjoy spending time with the people I love.

So until I get around to posting my Christmas outfits and other photos, I'll leave you with this photo of me and my sister. I don't know exactly when it was taken... maybe when I was about seven? We do not continue to wear matching dresses, you'll be pleased to know. But my mum made us these dresses and I remember being totally IN LOVE with mine. I adored anything super girly and poofy and princess-like (so, not much has changed!).

Merry Christmas, you guys! Thanks so much for reading my blog and all your love and support this year. Hopefully you'll all still be reading next year and still having a ball!

x
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Fly Me To The Moon


Last night I caught up with my lovely friend Lisa and we decided to go to The Moon for dinner (after seeing that the Mexican place we really wanted to go to was completely packed. Boo!). After a delicious dinner of fries, aioli, and chicken and bacon pizza, we went for a walk through Northbridge and took some photos of Christmassy things.




This was an amazing Christmas tree made out of old bike parts and some cute handmade stars. They were actually made out of the Coles 'Down down, prices are down' hands - we thought that this was a much better use for them.



Good Enough To Eat dress from Modcloth // Target cropped cardigan // Valleygirl earrings (I think) // Gifted ring // Rubi clogs // Sportsgirl bag

Do you remember a while ago I showed you a little sneak peek of this amazing dress? Well, this is it in its entirety! It's definitely one of my all-time favourite dresses. It has a beautiful shape, I love the print (hamburgers and hot dogs and popcorn, oh my!), and it has pockets! I've been wearing it on a pretty much weekly basis. It reminds me of the scene in Grease where Danny sings "Sandy" at the drive-in movies and there's an ad for the candy bar playing behind him... with dancing hotdogs and icecreams!


And from these photos, you might be able to see that I got my nose pierced! My boyfriend's sister and one of her best friends were going, and I've always wanted to pierce my nose, so I decided to tag along with them. And to answer the inevitable question, yes, it was very VERY painful! I don't know if I'll keep it in for long, because I'm not sure it's really "me", but at least I got it done.

And then we saw camels! And a partridge in a pear tree!



There were many (many!) more photos, but I'll save them for another post, and just leave you with this quote that was outside the public library. I thought it was very sweet.


x
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Santa Baby...


This has been my busiest month of the year BY FAR, so I apologise for letting my blog posts slide! Obviously retail work gets a lot more hectic around Christmas, and my work for Xpress has been getting crazy busy as well - not that I'm complaining in the slightest, I adore both jobs! Even my job at Sussan, which includes putting up with crazy Christmas customers. People get a bit insane (and rude) around this time of year.

I know that December 21st is a bit late to be doing Christmas wishlists - and to be honest, my family already got my wishlist a long time ago - but I thought I would show you guys what I've been lusting over for the past month or so (and perhaps send a helpful hint in my boyfriend's direction). So, here goes...




1. Trashy Diva Luscious Libations dress, $137.99 from Modcloth
2. Irregular Choice Sundae Best heels, $149.99 from Modcloth
3. Fujufilm Instax Camera, $85 from Officeworks
4. Vivienne Westwood for Melissa Lady Dragon VIII heels in nude, $202.80 from ASOS
5. ASOS PURR heels in cat print, $126.75 from ASOS
6. World's Smallest Lookbook necklace in 70s,, $34.99 from Modcloth
7. What's the Story, Winston? necklace, $19.99 from Modcloth
8. Glowing Out For Pizza string lights, $29.99 from Modcloth
9. Gala Curious Eternal Ties pendant in Lilac, $99 (on sale!) from The Dreamery
10. Drown Dross ring, $79 from Alegorie

I don't ask for much, do I? If Santa could also give me the sudden ability (and desire) to do yoga everyday, turn down all the awful food-court meals I've been eating while working and help me manage my time more wisely, I would be just as happy...

Now I am off to catch up with the always lovely Lisa Grace for dinner at a new Mexican place... so hopefully (hopefully!) there should be photos to follow!

x

Eartha Kitt - Santa Baby
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Ch-Check It Out


So I got some new floors in my kitchen and dining room, and I thought that before I moved my furniture in it would be fun to take some photos! To be honest, I'm pretty tempted to not put any furniture back in and just reserve the place for retro dance parties...



Vintage dress // Sportsgirl shoes // Diva Pacman earrings

Sorry to wear this dress again so soon after it's last outfit post, but it was perfect for the thirty degree heat in Perth today! It's made out of cotton (as opposed to polyester, like most of my vintage dresses - including the one in the last post, which is why the pictures turned out so awful, I was so hot and gross!) and is so comfortable for the insane heat. Besides, I think it's a happy dress. It certainly made people smile all day!



You can't really see it in the photos but my pink hair is still going strong! It isn't as bright since I washed it, but a fresh coat of Manic Panic should do the trick. I don't know, I kind of like the frosty pink as opposed to UBER BRIGHT.



Well, now I am off to watch the Steve Buscemi/Black Keys episode of Saturday Night Live. I am too excited! I don't know where they got the GENIUS idea to cast both of them in one episode but I'm pretty sure it's a dream come true for me?! Ahhh!

And I suppose I had better put my furniture back in my dining room and kitchen. Boo! Maybe I'll just turn it into a retro diner and run around in this dress serving burgers and shakes. Hey, a girl can dream!

x

Beastie Boys - Ch-Check It Out
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Mr Pink




HELLO! I literally just got home from the hairdresser and ran outside again to take these shots - that's how excited I am about my new hair! I finally got my act together and booked another appointment with the wonderful Bee, and I had missed her so much! Since the last time I saw her, she's moved into a whole HOUSE (as opposed to a room upstairs from some artists), which also has beautiful Little Gracie clothes everywhere! I was in heaven.

Anyway one morning last week I woke up and thought, "I miss having coloured hair." Usually I take ages and agonise over what to do with my hair, but this week I just chose not to think it through so much and decided to go pink! I'm in love. Apparently it will fade better than the blue as well.



Vintage dress // Wittner loafers // Valleygirl earrings // Pink hair by Peggy Sues Hair



Since I was pretty sure I'd be coming home with pink-tinged locks, I thought that this vintage dress would match perfectly. I got it from Winifred & Bance during their closing down sale (boo hoo!). It was half price. It is awesome... though the polyester's not great for such a hot day!


I thought the dress lent itself to some Twiggy-esque jumpings shots... how wrong I was! How do people do it and still manage to look good in outfit shots?! This is one of about fifteen jumping shots I tried and in most of them I look extremely derpy.

Well I know this is a super-short post but I have to run and get some stuff done before Xzibit tonight (I'm reviewing it!). I hope you all have fabulous Fridays!

x

George Baker Selection - Little Green Bag 
(well I had to keep up the Reservoir Dogs references, didn't I? LUV U STEVE BUSCEMI)
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Is That All There Is?



Hello hello! I thought I would just pop in and say hello, even though I have had barely any time to breathe this week, let alone post! I've been balancing my part-time job at Sussan (which is where the gray tee is from, in case you were wondering - it's so comfortable) with helping out at Xpress a couple of days a week for the next couple of weeks and doing all my regular reviews and stories. So it's been pretty busy!

Amidst all the hubbub, my wonderful boyfriend managed to set up my IKEA desk, so now I have my own little home office (which shares space with the Man Cave of the house) so now I can blog from my little desk AND I have an excuse to buy office-y things, like this ridiculous rose pen from Typo. Oh how professional I feel signing off important documents with this.

Anyway I'm sorry things have been a bit quiet here, but things are going great and I am super excited about the holiday season and 2012! I hope all you readers have been having similarly fantastic weeks. '

x

{please ignore the falling-down poster in the background... my house is going through a bit of a moving-around stage at the moment! I will be sure to share many a photo when it's done, though!}

Peggy Lee - Is That All There Is?
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Brooch The Subject


I seem to have amassed quite the collection of brooches, even though I rarely wear them in outfit posts. They've been bought, gifted or handed down to me over the years and even though they don't get the attention (and wear) they deserve, I love them all dearly. It's funny how many memories and sentiments can get attached to inanimate objects, isn't it?







{The kangaroo trophy head brooch is from Pigeonhole; the mix tape brooch, "Hello, I like to skim stones and take long walks in the park" badge and the ampersand are all from the Unwrapped markets; the blue bird and the deer are both leather brooches by My Girl Gwendoline; the carrot is from Corky St Clair in Melbourne; the owl was a gift from my sister; the Vespa was a gift from my friend Cat; the gun is by OSIER; the Mexcellent badge is Limedrop from Pigeonhole, bought during a Mexican-themed production week at uni; and the "No Swimming - Crocodiles", beefeater, and American flag badges belonged to my grandparents.}

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Awoke on a Whale Heart



I thought I'd pop in and do a post on a Saturday to let you know about a discount code for Awoke on a Whale Heart, who I mentioned just recently in one of my What I Wore posts - their stall at the Beaufort St Markets is where I found my excellent (or as some - ahem, the BSC members - would say, extremely chilly) Claudia Kishi dress. Liz from Awoke let me know on my Facebook page that there's a code for you lovely readers - just enter the code "TEACUP" at checkout to get a whopping 20% off your purchases! Hooray! Vintage for all! So have a mosey on down to their fantastic shop... here's what I've got my eye on!

Martine shoulder bag, Fumihoko dress, Orculos dress

Lisbon dress, Venturi dress, Britta dress

Jerry Garcia tee, Fang Island dress, Coeur blouse

Thanks so much to Awoke on a Whale Heart for the offer! Happy shopping, everybody!

x
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You're The Apple Of My Eye


Hello! My River Island apple dress finally arrived, and I've been dying to take photos in it all week. However, I didn't get a chance until today, so the dress' debut will have to be going grocery shopping for eggs and cat food. Whee!

When this dress arrived, I tried it on immediately (of course) and was a little underwhelmed with what I saw. The waist wasn't defined, I couldn't even do up the middle hook and eye clasp and it was just, well, unflattering. After a night spent moping around, I tried it on the next day with a different (better, and much more expensive) bra and it fit perfectly! Hooray!



River Island dress via ASOS // Sportsgirl loafers // Diva ring & locket earrings (?! I know, the idea seems a bit silly!)

I hope you guys aren't sick of seeing these shoes yet. My flat shoes have all seemed to have died a painful and messy death so these are the only flats comfortable enough to wear day-to-day! I love that they add a little vintage-looking twist to every outfit, as well. 





So I had a lot of fun getting dolled up for these pictures... I have to confess, I don't usually lounge around my garden looking wistfully at lanterns and climbing on ladders! I put these Typo lanterns up over the past couple of days; some of my family are coming around for Christmas and so I've been getting a bit overexcited with ideas for decorating! Can you guys recommend any good DIY blogs?

x

Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros - Home
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I'm a freelance writer who blogs about Perth (my old home), Paris (my new home), fashion, food, and everything else that takes my fancy. Have a look around and enjoy!