Colour My World

I was going to give you something today about Oscars fashion, but I know that's not why you're here. Let's just say that there was a serious teary moment here when Heath Ledger was announced the winner of Best Supporting Actor. Sniff..

So instead of showing you what every Kate, Heidi and Angelina is wearing, I am of course going to show you what I was wearing instead. Sunday I headed into Fitzroy for a rehearsal for this Saturday's fashion show, Circa Nocturna. I'll admit I was having a rare wardrobe crisis moment, in which I stood in front of the over stuffed closet bemoaning my lack of things to wear! Possibly the result of having too much time on my hands to choose, (which is usually not the case), or just trying to build an outfit around a pair of fabulous but particularly tricky shoes. The Melissa shoes were especially worked in for the lovely K. Line who is wondering about their practicality. After much deliberation, here is the result.

Outfit Details: Purple top - MNG, Pants - Living Doll, Suspenders - Costume shop, Crown Brooch - ?, Shoes - Melissa, Panda Earrings - SIX, Glasses - Vintage Store.

So to answer the shoe question - yes they are comfortable (but I probably should have bought them a half size smaller), no they don't get any hotter than leather shoes, and the best part? They smell like bubble gum!

The Last Rose

After our severe heat wave my garden has been left a scorched and sad landscape. Many of my favorite plants have been lost and some rethinking needs to be done for its recovery. But this morning I discovered that in spite of it all, the roses have struggled on and are giving me one last bloom. Very considerate of them considering today was the first day I wore this blue rose dress.

Seen in a previous post as an op shop find, I spent the morning altering this one down a few sizes before heading off to a children's party. With it's subtle print and little rose buttons, I had to go with the theme and add the white rose bracelet as well. Cool, comfortable and simple. My favorite kind of casual chic.

Outfit details: Dress - thrifted 1980's dress by EM, Shoes - Wittner, Bracelet - Diva.

Daily Outfit - School Gate Chic

It was the first day of school and the beginning of a whole new era yesterday. Miss Four was all fancied up in her little dress and black polished Mary Janes. Her bag was filled with snacks and her heart high with hopes as she went off to meet all her new friends.

No uniform for this year. They are "highly recommended" to wear the official school tracksuit, but in my opinion that is asking for trouble. Imagine teaching them this young that wearing a tracksuit for anything other than the gym is acceptable! (puts hand to forehead in a faint)

And while fruit is the standard snacking fare, something a little more cheerful was required for such a momentous day.

As for me, I knew I had a whole new challenge on my hands with school gate dressing. Given that where I live the standard mum attire is either capri pants and t-shirts, or the full Ed Hardy soccer mum look, I knew that whatever I wore I was bound to stand out. But not wanting to over do it, I did my version of jeans and t-shirt with these vintage style pants I knocked up and one of my favorite new blouses. It is actually even more comfortable than a jeans and t-shirt combo, and in my opinion looks a million times better. A quick twist with the hair and up into a french roll, and I'm done.

Outfit Details: Blouse - thrifted (no label), Pants - made by me, Shoes - Rohde

Now the biggest challenge will be adjusting to a whole new routine. Packing lunches, leaving early, parent teacher meetings, bake sales... I wonder how long the enthusiasm lasts?

300 Posts and it only gets Hotter!

Outfit details: Dress - Georgio Fiorlini (recycle boutique find), Shoes - Rohde, Hair flower - Wicked Sista.
Makeup: Base - Laura Mercier mineral veil in Rose Tendre, Eyes - Laura Mercier Vanilla Nuts, Eyeliner - Shiseido liquid liner in black, Mascara - Loreal Telescopic in Carbon Black, Blush - Mac, Lipstick - Avon colour wear in Plush.

Where oh where have I been these last few days? Melting, somewhat like that scene in the Wizard of Oz. The weather here has been the hottest I have ever known in this country, as testified by the thermometer on my back verandah. While the rest of the city has been suffering power outages for days on end in this heat, I've been fortunate to still have cooling, which meant that my plans for an afternoon tea with friends this weekend was still able to happen.

With all this super hot weather I've had a chance to break out some of the fab summer dresses I brought back from the USA. This one is by Giorgio Fiorlini and I love the bright green tropical print against the hot pink piping. It makes me think I should be kicking back somewhere nursing a Long Island Iced tea. Now there's a thought...

Today I'm trying to relax a little on our first cooler day in a long time, as Miss Four starts school tomorrow! So with another super hot week predicted and the challenges of the first week of school, this is bound to be one for the record books.

Yes, this is actually the thermometer on my back verandah, can you make out what is says?

Her Chequered Past

Me at about 14/15 with my little bro in the dress mum made especially for my holiday.

In a bid to find a few more ensembles to add to my hot weather wardrobe, I came across this number. She was almost forgotten as she'd been living in the dress up box for some time. My mother made me this dress when I was about 14/15 years old, and I wore it on my beach side holiday with visions of Grace Kelly in To Catch A Thief, dancing in my head. Now, I am more than twice that many years old, she sees the light of day again! I gave her a bit of a clean, iron and she still fits!

I am so thrilled with the way this dress looks now. I always had a tendency to dress older than my age, (as my tastes haven't changed much) and it seems I have now 'grown' into my style. But today I had to wear things just a little differently as that pesky broken toe is still preventing me from doing anything other than posing in my heels. So I popped on a cardigan pilfered from mums closet, a super cute pair of wide eyed bear earrings and my new pair of shiny red thongs (flip flops) from Duchess. This is how I actually met the day and headed off to grocery shop with girls in tow.

Outfit details: Dress by Mum, Cardigan - Katies (recycled), Shoes - Duchess, Earrings - SIX

I'm off tonight to see my other brother's band play for the first time. They've been getting all these rockstar gigs, and I haven't had an opportunity to see him strut his stuff. So I'll be getting ready for a night on the town and preparing for a huge long weekend tonight. We've got Chinese New Year celebrations, dinners, parties and I'm even holding a stall at the Camberwell market on Sunday in my ongoing attempts to purge. So If you don't see me this weekend, just picture me sleeping, exhausted in a pile of clothes.

Daily Outfit - Chinoiserie

Outfit Details: Dress - by Me, Shoes - Ana, Hair flower - Leopard Vixen Enterprises, Fragrance - Tokyo Dream.

Somewhere in the back of my closet I found a surprise today. About 3 years ago I made this dress for a party, then soon after discovered I was pregnant, (those two events were not related). It meant that this dress was relegated to the "I'll wear it again in the future" area of the closet, and hadn't been discovered again since. I found both the dress and a pair of suitable shoes, and was actually able to put an outfit together that felt a little more like my style even with the shoes.

The dress is made from a super stretchy lycra blend and has gold foiling in the print. I have no idea what it says ( please someone tell me if it is obscene). It was super easy to make and is super comfortable to wear. The print is like nothing I had seen before in these fabrics and I had to have it immediately.

As for the hair, I achieved this look with the help of a few hair combs to lift and push the top section into some height (no backcombing), and setting the rest in my famous pin curls for an hour or so. It turned out that I even had a matching hair flower in my stash, so a blue rose with requisite skull motive, topped the whole lot off. There is nothing better than being able to treasure hunt your own closet and still surprise yourself at the possibilities that lie within.

Daily Outfit - Fading Away

Outfit Details: Chiffon top - Luca & Marc, Pants - by Me, Shoes - Havaianas, Duck print scarf - Chinatown, Rose ring and earrings - Diva ( a gift from the delightful AusStyle!)

It is 38 degrees here in the shade today, and tomorrow promises to be an even hotter 40 degrees or more. It isn't just the heat you have to watch out for here in Melbourne, but also the searing U.V. So it is wise to dress cool and stay well out of the sun, otherwise you'll end up looking like a Californian Raisin in no time! Today I took it easy, languishing about in a cool cream and chiffon ensemble. I'm still struggling with the wardrobe challenge that this broken toe presents, namely wearing thongs (flip flops for those of you not familiar with Australian slang) everyday. They may be standard attire in summer for most of our population, but for me, I find that they just don't work with the majority of my outfits or looks. So I have to adapt for now.

Happy New Year!!

Yipee! Welcome to 2009, a year that is sure to be full of more colour, laughter, style and frivolity. A huge thank you to everyone who has supported me and had fun reading the contents of my head as applied to the page. There are some exciting changes afoot for the blog this year, and hopefully you should see it before the first month is out.

To celebrate the New Year, and the first NYE that the Mr and I have been free to hit the town in the last four years (!), I decided to wear something super cute, super colourful and warm. Our weather has been crazy here and it isn't even close the the temperatures we usually experience at this time of year. This great dress is a 1980's classic that I thrifted some time ago and has been waiting to be worked into an ensemble that gave it personality. I tried it with a few different combinations of shoes or strappy sandals, but each time the effect was too aging and a bit like I just hadn't updated the closet since 1985. But then inspiration struck and I am so pleased with the final effect. It is about fifty different kinds of awesome if I do say so myself!

Outfit details: Dress 1980's - Syndicate (thrifted), Stockings - Columbine, Platform Shoes -
Urban Originals, Four Leaf Clover hair clasp - a gift from Nana for Christmas, Super Kawaii Bag - eBay some time ago.

Here's to you 2009.
2008 rocked so you have a lot to live up to, but I already have a good feeling about your potential to amaze.

A Garden of Delight

Outfit Details: Cardigan - Ivory, Pin up Print Camisole- Antz Pantz, Cream Pants - by me, Shoes - Rodhe, Earrings and Bracelet - Diva, Hair Bow - Sugar Doll designs.

Boxing Day was spent in a traditional fashion here. A relaxed, sunny afternoon of extreme gastronomical delight and over indulgence. After the tinsel and sparkle of Christmas day, it was a wonderful chance to take in the Christmas beauty of a more natural fashion. I took these photos by the most amazing trumpet flower trees in my brother yard. He recently moved into an old property with a beautifully wild yet tended garden. The sort of place you might imagine pixies run wild and fairies have dance parties on their nights off.

I hope all your Christmases have been a relaxed and festive event with lots of Nana napping to
follow.