Random.

I forgot about these snaps that have been idling away on my computer. I'm too lazy and hot to upload photos from the weekend (house party/summer drinks out/the deen), so these will have to do for the moment.

I'm so excited for Australia Day. One of my favourite days of the year (and a public holiday, whee!), its guaranteed to be a scorcher. We usually spend it with friends, in bathers (swimming costumes) the entire day. There's usually a barbie (BBQ) to be had, and booze in more than average amounts. It's then topped off by heading down to the river foreshore, chilling out whilst watching the sunset, followed by fireworks. Nice :) A friend lives a 2 minute walk away from Matilda bay (one of the vantage points to check out the fireworks, and enjoy the Aussie comraderie), so we head to his in the early afternoon, swim, have a barbie and drinks and then head down to the foreshore....

......mmmm, I cannot wait for 26th January :D

denim shirt, vintage (from mum). skirt, cotton on. bag, belt & shoes, vintage. jewellery, assorted.

Claire Hollingsworth & Mister and Songbird

Towards the end of December, a few of us went out to Mojos in Fremantle to check out Mister and Songbird's album launch. Stuart and I were in Leederville, at a street market, two weekends prior to the album launch and they'd come up to us and given us an uber cool launch draw card. It wasn't the launch card that drew us to Mojos (well, okay, it was pretty damn cool!), but the snippets we heard on their myspace page. A band similar to Cat Empire but even more blues'n'rootsy (I questioned whether that was possible, but yes, it is and yes, they are).

Mojos = essence of Freo (Fremantle, a well-established suburb in metropolitan Perth, known for its elegance, charm, quirk and artisan vibe). I love how laid back Mojos is, how artistic it is, how you can drive by endless times without even knowing that it exists.

Anyway, Claire Hollingsworth opened for Mister and Songbird and she was fab. Yet another songstress with an amazing, ethereal voice. But more witty....I particularly liked her song on the prostitutes of Kalgoorlie (a mining town in the heart of Australia; dry, dusty, full of men and bars and prostitutes). Not many do witty tunes well, she excels in that particular route :)

Then Mister and Songbird took to the floor. Absolutely divine; even more so because on their recent European tour they had acquired a breathtakingly beautiful violin player. I kid you not, I have never seen/watched anyone play the violin like she did. She was fabulous. Between her and the two lead singers, two sets of drums, the bass, the superb new vocalist and their country guitar, they had everyone tapping their feet and busy dancing. One word: Highly recommend. Oh wait, that's two ;)

I took some videos but of course they're too big, so I can't upload them :/

Mister and Songbird

One of the two lead singers

Had to do the rockstar pose ;)

tee, cotton on men. jeans, ???. bangles, assorted. scarf, jeanswest. shoes, siren.

Inspiration

I spent all of today sweltering in the 37 degree heat. Our aircon at work wasn't working for some reason, so got home (after scoffing down chips with the boy), put on my tie-dyed fringed kaftan *hehe*, and am currently listening to Katie Noonan in said kaftan. Katie Noonan is an Aussie songstress, with the band George (who are currently taking a break, boo) ; has the voice of an angel, absolutely perfect, sends shivers down your back.

And she sounds even better live. About half a year ago, we went to check out our local summer market stalls and learnt that she was due to perform in a while. Course we stayed! She stunned us with her perfect voice and earthy, laid-back, pure honesty. Afterwards, she walked off the stage and came towards us to sign autographs and again we were blown away by how friendly and non-divaish she is. Nothing like soul music for the soul, right?

I cannot find the song I adore; Bluebird, so this will have to do (close your eyes when you listen to it :)

http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=1l4f3P-PkKghttp://au.youtube.com/watch?v=1l4f3P-PkKg

If you are so inclined, listen to some of her other music. Fabulousness.

Thai Escapades...

...and I don't mean that title in an inappropriately suggestive manner. No dodgy escapades people :)

Happy New Year to everyone.

Thailand was amazing! The people are incredibly warm, the weather was bliss, the country is beautiful (I learnt how to say that in Thai, but the spelling will definitely kill me so I will refrain), the food is beyond fabulous. On our way back to the airport in Phuket, my family discussed whether we would want to live there or whether it was just an incredible holiday destination. I was the only one to conclude that I could live there, nay I would live there.

We chilled out, soaked up some sun, did an elephant trek, drank local beer (well, I did anyway), visited the islands where The Beach was filmed, tried local road-side cafes for authentic Thai food, found an incredible Elvis-cover artist at a Thai restaurant, snorkelled, had massages, checked out some ladyboys, visited the famous Patong bars, made Thai friends. So yes, we were your typical tourists. I even have a souvenier beer vest to prove it :)

And whilst we did typical tourist things, I was touched by the locals and their kindness and friendliness, excited by the chaos of life (which represents real life and REAL living), the overwhelming humidity, and the reminder of how much like Kenya (where I lived till I was 18) Thailand really is. Beautiful, in every sense.

the hotel we stayed at, in Karon

one of the many beautiful sunsets

chilling out at Phi Phi Island

The Beach made it famous, so can't really complain about the hordes of tourists (irony, much? :)

my sister and me, on new years eve

in a public transport van :)

I promise to try to get back to more regular posting once I've gotten back into the swing of things here, as well as the 30 plus degree days.

I'd like to thank you for the wonderful wishes whilst I was away, too! Too kind :)

Seasons greetings

Sorry for neglecting the blog in the last few days, c'est la vie.

I'm currently in my room, aghast at all the clothing I've pulled from the cupboard onto my floor. Trying to decide what is crucial, nay essential, for a 10 day holiday in Thailand. We leave pretty early tomorrow morning (ahh, Christmas irony) and I'll be back on the 5th of January.

I'll be back to blogging when I return. Hope you all have great holidays, and seasons greetings :D

College reunions

My first year of uni, I lived at the residences nearby. The college I stayed at was/is(?) best known for its sporting ability and partying (not in that order though :) Anyway, during the course of the year I made a great bunch of friends. We hung out in the quad, started food fights in the cafeteria (I'm looking at you, Sam!), had intellectually stimulating debates (and some generally crude ones too!) and generally had a blast.

So it's fantastic that we're still firm friends and, for those of us that still live in the country, catch up quite regularly. But last weekend, Sam was back from the UK and so we reconvened for a college-style night. Fun was had, drinks were imbibed, and at one point we were all doing zoolander poses and playing Wii bowling. Competitively :D

yep, this was my 'zoolander' :)

A diverse bunch of people, from all over the world!

Here's to good friends :)

tee, supre. leather vest, vintage. jeans, supre. shoes, urban soul. bangles, assorted. face in 4th pic, priceless.

Christmas Wish List

My family and boyfriend are secretly going about buying presents for the rest of the family, as am I. But I always want to know what I'm getting. Around birthday/Christmas time, I pester Stuart to give me hints about what I'm getting. He entertained me the first couple of times, but I guessed correctly every single time so he refuses to even speak about it these days :D

Regardless, here are some of the things I would be delighted to receive as gifts.

Zu 'Fuji' wedges. Even better than these though....are the ones I saw a few days ago when I walked into a Zu store. They had a new pair of wedges in there (the wedge portion of the patent peep-toe cut away dramatically, but they were oh-so-comfy!) which are unfortunately not yet on their website

Topshop leather skinnies (I did find an awesome straight legged, snug fit pair at an op-shop the other day, which are currently with the tailor for skinny-fying. Cannot wait!)





Chanel 2.55 bag; always have, always will want one <3>

Adore the Canon Rebel XTI Digital camera, would love anyone who bought me this forever. Cupboard love much? ;)





Influence. Nuf said.

Books would not go astray either. I'm the biggest book worm. My problem tends to be the speedreading, so that I'm always on the hunt for new books. Lucky op-shops have them too :)

I'm not going to give away what I've bought people for Christmas in this post though. Nooo sir....I love the surprise/delight on peoples faces when they open up presents you've given them (and hopefully not shock and horror :P)

sources: Zu, Topshop, Google, and mkashley.com

Sharp shoulders, baby.

So here's the dress I talked about yesterday. I found it at a thrift store quite a while ago but only managed to alter it yesterday, whilst watching some mind-numbing tv show. I made it a whole lot shorter than it originally was and changed the hem to it. I also (accidentally) managed to alter the complete shape of the dress. No, I don't know the specifics of that any better than you do :)

But. I adore it! I have no idea where the hell I'd wear something like this (office Christmas party, anyone?) but am absolutely taken by the breath-taking shoulders and huge gold buttons. Ahhh, eight dollar love :)

I still need to find shoes that match the bright blue shade, these grey pumps had to do for the clothing trial shot.

In other news, I've finally managed to complete my Christmas shopping (for now, anyway). Bring on the festivity!

dress, d.i.y. vintage. shoes, kookai.

Want chic dresses, but can't afford to go shopping right now? Bank account looking a little grim this month? Well, have no fear, there are plenty of opportunities for aid online. Log on and find wonderful payday loans and other services, completely care-free! So don't wait, get affordable fashion today!

A hot summer....

Haha, the post title makes me think of Rhys' Hot Summer video. (Is his makeup and fierce feather cape in the video not beyond delish?!! He was/is a makeup artist, who was on the Aussie 'So you think you can dance' show)

We had a scorcher of a weekend; it was 35 degrees on Saturday and a cool 40 on Sunday. So it made sense to make a bookshelf from Ikea in that heat :/ Even having aircon didn't help, but it's been a while since we've had such hot days, so no complaining from me :)

So it being too hot to really do anything, I've put off uploading photos from a pot-luck dinner on Saturday night (where I wore leather and black skinnies, outfit to come) and am going to use photos I've taken over the last few weeks.

(Stu at the boat harbour)

(before the arts festival a few weeks ago)

(the beatiful beach)

I also worked on a few of the d.i.y/sewing jobs I've been putting off for way too long now. I still want to make a pair of fingerless lace gloves (from spare material from a lace skirt I thrifted), a single feather & wire drop earring, and numerous other diys. But I did manage to alter this gorgeous thrifted turquoise dress with fabulous sharp shoulders and poufy pockets, which I will showcase on the blog tomorrow :)

Stuart's outfit: shirt, cotton on. jeans, just jeans?. shoes, dunlops with customised laces.
My outfit: grey vest, supre. jeans, sportsgirl. neon tube, vintage. necklace, d.i.y. christmas ornament. shoes, ancient.

Saturdays in Summer

Summer accounts for such a large portion of Australian life; its not just a season here but a change of pace, great attitudes, a 'she'll-be-right' view of life and just a sense of freedom. And so summer has begun :)

The boy and I spent the first warm weekend in a long while (about 30 degrees celcius, mmm) at a local market where we sat on the grass and watched the market happenings and then got approached by a cute member of a band debuting their new album soon (they were just chilling in the park and the guy came over and was so cute and bizarre), had coffee and people-watched, and went to dinner at one of our favourite restaurants (Little Creatures in Fremantle) with a good friend and her boy. And then Sunday there was more lazing, coffee at the boat harbour, dips in the pool, and just chilling out.

the day to night dress

one of my fave pairs of shoes (I know I say that alot...)

side view of shoes :)

at dinner at Little Creatures (Lil Creatres pale ale, mmm)

I love chilled out weekends <3

1st outfit: t-shirt dress, scarf & bag, vintage. shoes, sportsgirl. sunnies, cheapo shop.
2nd outfit: t-shirt dress, vintage. necklace, diva. shoes, urban soul.