Let’s start off with some architecture. This building didn’t photograph nearly as well as it looked in person. Of course it’s typical that the one time I went walking without my camera I spotted about 20 awesome buildings I never noticed before XD
Last weekend I had a catch up with a friend from highschool- Tash! She was in town for a day before she went for a walking tour somewhere that I’ve already forgotten >_<
We did a bit of shopping and stopped for a nice hot chocolate.
I had a Timtam cheesecake and OMGWTFBBQ it was the best thing I’ve ever tasted! For those not in Australia, this is a Timtam. Timtams are one of the very few things Australia has ever invented that are awesome. They have spawned awesome things like the “Timtam slam” which is where you bite off the top left and the bottom right corner and then use it like a straw to suck up your cup of tea. I tell you we really do invent some strange things…
Anyway Timtam cheesecake= awesome and I want to make one!
While we were walking that day there was a gigantic hole in the road for some reason and this truck was there filling it with water. Yuck!
Yesterday a bunch of the beauty blogger girls met up for lunchies 😀 James was there too but he was taking the photo so he’s not in it ^_^ So lovely to have girly days like this!
We had some lovely Thai food at Ghin Khao 😀 The waiter was hilarious telling us that we could stay as long as we want to have our secret woman’s meetings and telling James to report back about it XD
The best part of going out is coming home to packages!
The skirt and shirt I’m wearing here the ones I bought from Savers a couple of weeks ago 😀 Skirt= $5 Shirt= $2!
Packages are awesome and I’m so happy to have such lovely friends all over the world that are kind enough to send them! I received the above from She Falls Softly 😀 She sent me some of her favorite things! The perfume roll on there smells *exactly* like cake!
The coolest part though are these rainbow lashes! I can’t wait to put together an outfit to wear them with 😀
I received a second package this week too from the lovely Reece! She made all of these hair flowers herself specifically to match my outfits :O So thoughtful! And so many yummy chocolates!
She included this beautiful pin and these adorable little hand written recipe cards too! Even one for James: sloppy joes ahahaha!
I have to write so many reply letters and parcels this weekend, I’d better get started soon 😀
I’ve taken up embroidery at night time while we watch movies before bed now too, this is my first project, you’ll have to wait to see how it turns out!
After purchasing with Paypal you will be automatically sent an email with a link and a password for you to download it ^_^
New information about the hardcover versions…
Now a whole lot of you said you were interested in purchasing it as a hardcover edition. I’ve looked into printing on demand via Blurb but as putting it out as a hardcover version involves me having to go through and change a lot of it (eg. changing many many clickable links into a text link reference section etc) I want to gauge the amount of interest in the price first.If I was to print it via Blurb the cost would be AU$55 plus shipping or US$50 plus shipping. Not sure about the difference considering the current exchange rate but this is going off their prices. It’s a decent chunk of money so I completely understand if many of you who expressed interest in the previous post wouldn’t be able to afford it.So I’ve set up a form below where if you think you would be interested in purchasing at that price or if you want one but would prefer it to be cheaper I can look at other options… Just pop in your email and I will keep you in the loop ^_^
Thanks so much for all of your support, I’m very excited about all of this ^_^
I hope those of you that decide to buy really enjoy the book and find it helpful! Do let me know if you have any questions or problems <3
*Edit* I’ve just been informed that the shop currently has layout issues when viewed in Chrome. I am trying to fix this now but in the mean time for best results please use Firefox or if you would like to purchase but can’t manage in your current browser just email me 🙂 */Edit*
A mini tutorial today on another way to display necklaces. I’m on a cleaning kick at the moment so I’m trying to be more organised. I found a bunch of necklace displays at a bead store which was closing down for $1 but they were quite ugly. So this is what I did with them. You could easily make your own out of cardboard.
What you need:
Plastic jewelery stands, or cardboard to make your own.
Pretty paper or fabric. I am using some rose scented draw liners I found at a junk store.
Glue gun
Lace/trim
Scissors
Unfortunately some of my photos didn’t turn out well as the plastic displays were clear and the camera had trouble focusing on them.To give you an idea of what my jewelery stand looks like I’ve outlined it in pink here:
To make your own, just cut that shape out of cardboard. Mine has a stand that folds back but depending on where you’re going to be putting it, that might be unnecessary.
Cut a section of the paper or fabric out which is big enough to cover the display completely and fold around the sides to the edges are hidden.
Use your glue gun to stick the base to the back of the paper.
Roll it forward and stick the top down as well. My stand was slightly curved so getting the paper lined up was a little hard. Make sure it’s perfect before you glue.
Cut the excess paper around the sides off so there is only a few inches of overhang.
Now fold the extra around the sides and carefully glue in place.
Repeat on the other side like this:
When you get to the curved bits just snip the paper ever few centimeters so you can fold it around the curve.
Glue this in place too…
This is how the other side looks:
I repeated this on all 4 of the ones I had:
Now it’s time to add some decoration. I didn’t want anything that would take away from the jewelery so I chose a fine white lace. You could also use ribbon or anything else glue-able.
I added the lace around the edges using a small amount of glue and that’s it ^_^ A nice simple craft which can be done in a few minutes.
Once I finish my cupboard re-organisation then you can see them all in action 😀
Over the years I’ve gone through a whole lot of styles. I didn’t always like pink things, in fact when I was growing I was the biggest tom boy! I’ve been going through my wardrobe to clean out and make space for things and it’s kind of been like taking a journey back through time!
I’m pretty happy with my current style. It’s not perfect but I think it represents me pretty well where I am in my life right now. I wouldn’t change it for the world.
But I’ve been at a lot of different stages in my life and each had its own look. Not many of you might remember but when I started my blog I looked more like this:
That shade of red has always been my favourite, I spent a year in it then and maybe 4 years with that colour in high school. My look was much more toned down during this time.
Even before then I had short black hair like this…
Back in those days I was a Lolita. I wore Lolita clothing pretty much 24/7 and I loved it to death. I was obsessed with it completely and uncontrollably.
I couldn’t find any photos because before that I was quite camera shy so I made you an artist’s representation of how before that… I was really into punk and alternative styles! I wore red eyeliner all the time and I had spiky blue extensions. I even had blue/green hair at one point but I still can’t find photos of it on my hard drive. Apparently I was wearing this style was before I understood the importance of labelling photos for future reference! XD
Back in those days I was also a pirate 😉 Historical re-enactment for the win! I need more excuses to wear my corset again!
Now you’re probably wondering what the point of this is right? Well the one thing that all of those fashions have in common is that they are full of layers and very un-summer friendly.
Australia is hot. With the exception of Melbourne right now everywhere I’ve lived in Australia has been ridiculously hot. If I was picking fashion based on climate I pretty much failed miserably.
So the question is how do you keep cool in summer when you’re wearing like 20 billion layers of clothing? I’m not proud of this but….
A funny thing happened when I was going through my accessories section. I picked up an Angelic Pretty bow and it was exuding Lolita…
So much so that I was accidentally pulled through a time machine vortex which was swirls and swirls of petticoats and frills. I was lucky not to be crushed by the sheer weight of the petticoats.
It took me back in time… but as I didn’t have a camera for my magical adventure you’ll just have to make do with my time machine induced “artists representations”.
This was me:
Unfortunately this was the climate I was in:
See the thing about Lolita clothing is that under the dress is a blouse, under the blouse is a petticoat and under that petticoat modesty says wear bloomers… plus socks or stockings. Pretty much the only places you’ve got to sweat are your knees and arms if you’re wearing a short sleeve blouse.
In Summer it’s not fun. Bloomers are great for protecting modesty but they are also insanely hot to wear under so many layers!
But I was a crafty Lolita.
I used a trick which has been in play since fridges were first invented…. underwear (in this case bloomers) in the freezer!
Epic cool = EPIC WIN!
And this allowed me to be cool and breezy as I did the miserable walk to the train station to work in the mornings.
Hopefully you enjoyed my little walk back through memory lane ^_^
COMPETITION TIME!!
So Panasonic and Nuffnang are holding a giveaway for those of you who are just coming in to Summer (like me ;_;)
Panasonic have just launched a new range of Eco air conditioners which are aparently both smart and stylish. They’ve even won awards like “Good Design” Award. They have also launched a smart phone application to help people with choosing an air-conditioner easily. Here’s what they say about it:
The simple-to-use Air Conditioning Sizing Wizard application allows customers to enter information on their room environment and receive product recommendations. Once you have made your selection, you can access product details, features, images, videos and locate your nearest retailer instantly.
Panasonic has launched a new stylish range of Air-Conditioners featuring improved energy efficiency for reduced power consumption.
The 2010 range features the new Eco Patrol Sensor – a human sensing technology
Inverter technology, providing temperature control for greater energy efficiency and comfort in the home.
AC Sizing Wizard App features:
Easy navigation that allows you to find the right Air Conditioner you, and locate your nearest dealer/installer.
Enter information about your room and then it pops out recommendations for the right a/c.
Scroll through product recommendations and see the main product features, specifications
You can also find out more information through videos, images and handy hints.
Once you have chosen the right Air Conditioner you can use the ‘Where to Buy’ function to find your nearest retail outlet or specialist Air Network Installer on Google Maps, or contact Panasonic Customer Care for more info.
They are also starting to make little webisode things to explain the technology in simple terms. Here is one of the videos/TV Commercials from their site:
So the prize for this competition is an air-conditioner from Panasonic’s new range PLUS the installation into your home! That’s pretty damn awesome, I want one… I need an aircon XD
What you need to do is leave a comment answering the following question:
“What is the craziest thing you’ve ever done to stay cool in summer?”
You know what my craziest thing is so I’m looking forward to hearing all about yours 😛
*edit* Please note that the date has been extended until the 25th of November. The updated terms and conditions can be found here:
http://www.nuffnang.com.au/wp-content/themes/nuffnang-2.0.1/uploadedstuff/2010/11/Terms-and-Conditions-of-Entry-for-Panasonic-Air-Conditioner-competition-v2.pdf
The update Nuffnang information is here:
http://www.nuffnang.com.au/blog/2010/10/18/competition-win-a-panasonic-air-conditioning-unit-just-in-time-for-summer/
Good luck, I hope you enjoyed this post and I can’t wait to see your entries!
One of the goodie bags from the MBBE event was a lovely little pack of Estée Lauder products. Today I’m going to review the Pure Colour “Gloss Stick” in Orchid Dream which is the middle of the products below:
I’ve always had a soft spot for EL lipsticks, my first bright red was one of theirs and a present from James ^_^ Unfortunately budget means I haven’t been able to afford any of their products since then.
When I found this in the gift bags, I was really excited to try it out as the shade looks exactly like the kind of thing I like: berry pink with a blue sheen to it. A little glitter but not so much that I look like I’ve just stumbled out of a children’s television show.The idea of this product is quite interesting because it’s supposed to be about half way between a gloss and a lipstick. The consistancy was unlike any lip product I’ve used before… along the lines of softened butter so it *really* just melts on to your lips.
According to their website it’s supposed to improve lip condition and add plumpness if used for 4+ weeks. I haven’t used it for that long yet and didn’t notice any changes during the time I did. I’m not fussed because I don’t think I need plumper lips but if that’s something you want to consider before buying then I suggest Googling for some more reviews.
I found it stayed on quite well, I needed touch ups after eating but nothing too major and the silky feel lasted as long as the colour. The biggest plus for this was how moisturized my lips felt when I had it on 😀 My lips tend to be a little dry and this just felt like heaven in stick form!
Bare lips:
With “Orchid Dream”:
Price-wise the Australian website lists it as $42.00 (though this colour isn’t listed because I think it is a limited edition) which for me is way out of my price range. In this case you pay for quality though so if I had an infinite supply of money I would probably buy this in every shade it came in. As it is I’m going to be using this one down to the last piece I can scrape out and hope that I’ve had a wind fall by then XD
VERDICT: Very good for an every day shade, lasts quite well. Super moisturising, no over powering smell, glides on like butter. DO WANT.
Illustrator. Strong tea, knitting, watercolours, and making a video game called Moonlight in Garland. Living with her adorable husband Jimmy, fluffy puppy Miss Lottie and Bergamot Bunny in Melbourne, Australia.
