So it’s my birthday next Saturday and I’ve been debating whether to do something or not. Normally I’m of the opinion that managing not to die for a whole year isn’t really an achievement worth celebrating but this year my birthday also marks 1 year since we moved into this apartment in Melbourne and I think I’ve achieved quite a bit since we got here so I’m thinking to maybe do something this year, who knows what though XD
To get myself in the spirit of things I decided to try to make a list of things I want. Most of them are completely unrealistic and I don’t really neeeed any of it… but that’s the fun part ^_^ So let’s go shopping with my millions of fictional dollars!
Disclaimer- All of the images are click through links to the original source so you can visit the stores, not owned by me and are used here to illustrate things I think are cool. If you own any images and would like them removed please email me and I will do so.
Wittner Shoes $189.95Not necessarily these shoes but this style of military-ish low heeled boot. I think something like this would be very comfy for walking but still look great with a pretty dress and military jacket.
Fancy Docklands Apartment $1.1million
A girl can dream right?? I love our apartment but I really just want to buy a place already so I’m paying off my own mortgage not someone else’s!
Meta Sailor Dress 22800yen
I love these wide boat collars no matter what the design, being nautical themed makes is doubly awesome though!
Patterned stockings in any design. $20ish each
I especially want some leopard print ones! Also I’m down to my last pair of white opaque stockings so I should probably find a place here that sells nice proper opaques ones of those too.
Leopard Print Cardigan £64.95
Again not necessarily this particular one but for some reason this is the one leopard print thing I’m yet to spot in stores here: reasonably priced plain leopard print cardi. This is probably to go with the leopard print stockings!
Mp3 player lantern from Strapya $15ish
I like long showers… I want to be able to play music during said showers. This is the cutest version of these I’ve seen so far.
Pink Strapya iPad Stylus $18ish
Ok technically I actually cashed in all of my birthday presents already to buy an ipad so this is all hypothetical but I totally want a nice cute stylus for it so I can draw more often. To go with it of course I would need a nice fancy drawing app so that’s another $15 and while I’m there there’s a bunch of other apps I would buy so let’s add in….
iTunes gift card!
To buy all of the apps I’ve had my eye on for blogging and just general fun like:
Blogsy (for writing posts on the go!)
Garageband (for making music for my videos and general fun)
iMovie (because I’m wondering if I could film fun videos out and about with this… probably not worth the trouble though hmm)
Mega Deco Calculator (because I need a gigantic bling calculator to match the one on my phone XD)
Photoshake (for writing mini tutorials)
Layer/iDraw/Freeform/Sketchpro (some kind of awesome drawing app for fun!)
Something for practicing kanji
Games to keep James busy!
Amazon/iBooks/Zinio gift card!
While we’re talking about it I’ve been reading on the ipad in bed a lot so it would be awesome to be able to indulge my habit and buy some books 😀 I’m thinking some good crime/mystery novels, Japanese magazines and craptastical romantic novels that I read for the giggles!
Any store gift cards XD
I think I’m one of the few people who actually likes gift cards. A lot of my friends/family are hesitant to give them because they aren’t personal but I figure that unless you’re going to spend a lot of time and effort coming up with something super awesome and very personal I would rather a gift card that I can buy something I really want with than generic bath salts XD
Tiny keychain camera from Strapya $12ish
This is just the cutest thing ever. I mean it’s kind of pointless because I always have my phone and my point and shoot and James camera etc but it’s so tiny and cute that I want to get it and deco it anyway!
Lenses for cell phone cameras $10ish each
Such a cute and pointless idea. They stick on over the top of phone camera lens to give cute effects!
Pretty phone stap $5
I probably wouldn’t buy one but I really should get off my butt and make one!
Custom name phone strap $10+
Again I should just make one of these XD Shiny and pretty! I just like having all of my stuff customised 😀
Macaron making kit $30ish
Heart shaped macarons? Bunny shaped macarons?? HELL YES I WANT! I was to do more baking and cute kitchen things are a must. I have no idea if this adorable kit works but it’s so cute I don’t even care haha.
Bear Bouquet $60
I’m allergic to flowers so this is a pretty good substitute!
Puppy! $700+
The second we move into a house/apartment that allows it I’m going to get a dog. At the moment I’m tossing up between a Westie and a Spitz. I also love Pomeranians and the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel I had as a kid was the perfect temperament so I will have to wait and see what kind of place we live in and how much space there is before I decide. I can just imagine that the quality of my posts will deteriorate then as I spend all my time posting photos of my dog XD
Pleated Tartan Skirt Innocent World 13440yen
So many pretty items at Innocent World but I especially love this skirt!
Innocent World Handbag 12390yen
I think this might be my dream bag. I love structured bags like this because they make everything so much easier to find inside. Eventually I’ll have to give my current bag back to my Mother so I might save for this! It’s white so it goes with my wardrobe, it’s subtly cute without being over powering and it’s not huge. I find when I carry big bags I tend to just try and fill them with more junk XD
Better lighting for videos $50ish
James is working out a better lighting set up for my videos so once we find what works in the space it would be nice to be able to buy it! I’m hoping I can have it all permanently set up on my dressing table that way I can just sit down and record videos when I get inspiration rather than have to take over the whole bathroom and spend a lot of time doing set up ad having James accidentally cameo-ing in the videos in the mirror behind me XD
Enough time to properly take Japanese lessons again
This doesn’t so much have a dollar figure but it would be nice to have enough time to study language again. Included in this would be new books to further said study.
World tour trip! $10k?
It would be so awesome to be able to travel around the world for a couple of months visiting new places and having meets ups with all of you along the way! James want to go back to America for all of the food from his childhood so maybe we could do Singapore>Malaysia>Russia>UK>USA>Japan>New Zealand or something like that XD Can you imagine the Snapshots posts I could get out of that?!
Acrylic nails $50ish
Realistically I think this is what I will do on that day XD I’ve been wanting to do my nails again for a while but I don’t have the time to sit and do my own atm and I could use some pampering time so maybe I’ll go get some plain acrylics and decorate them myself later.
Haha that’s a pretty long list now right? XD It feels weird to be this self indulgent because I generally spend birthday money on sensible things like bills or things we need around the house >_<
What do you guys do for your birthdays? Pampering day? Huge party? I’m not really one for parties but maybe a dinner out would be nice! Now back to work for me hahaha!
James and I are off to Brisbane for a business trip for the rest of this week! Instead of scheduling posts I thought it would be more fun for you guys to kind of come on the trip with me ^_^
Below I’ve embedded my mobile blog so I’ll be uploading lots of photos as we go, just check back to this post to see what we get up to along the way! You’ll see the last 5 photos I’ve posted, they update automatically so keep checking back to see what we’re doing… it’s like snapshots as it happens hahaha 😀
Another edition of Snapshots today ^_^ I’ve been quite lazy in writing these entries but I want to get back into it as a weekly thing because it’s such a good way to keep a record of fun things I do. I had considered moving all of the snapshots over to the Cuties section of the blog rather than posting them here but I can’t decide. What do you guys think? Prefer them like this or would you rather them spaced out several times a day on the Cuties section? Maybe we should take a vote, it’s been a while since I took a poll XD
A few weeks back Celeste and I were lucky enough to be invited to the Fashion Addict warehouse for a tour. I don’t know if David knew what he was in for when he invited two beauty obsessed girls, I mean I know that You’ve Got Nail warned him about letting me into the wig/false eyelash section of the store but no amount of preparation can be quite enough I think XD
It was the grown up version of being a kid in a candy store!
Look at all these bangles!!
And tea cup necklaces!
James and I met up with Thomas and Sakie who are bloggers from Japan who were on their way to Singapore. We started the night wondering what we would all have in common but it turned out that we have very similar tastes XD
Also it was an excuse to finally try Max Brenner chocolate which I’ve been wanting to for ages. It was pretty good but definitely not the best I’ve had here.
I didn’t get any photos of Thomas or Sakie ;_; If you guys read this remember to email me the ones you got!!
I’ve been thinking what to do for my birthday this year, I don’t actually normally celebrate it but for some reason I’m feeling extra festive this year so I might actually do something! Let me know if you guys have any suggestions of things I might like to do ^_^
I thought this cake was really pretty!
I’ve been obsessed with spotting gargoyles on top of the old buildings here, there are so many of them hidden up on the roof tops!
I’ve also been making a point to go down alley ways we don’t usually go through to try and find new cute things. Melbourne is one of those places that has so many little alleys and streets that even if I spent my whole life looking through them all I probably wouldn’t find half of the cute places XD
There have been a lot of protests in the city too recently. There are always protests going on in town but I think there have been more than usual because the Federal budget came out last week :S
I saw these adorable fingerless gloves/mittens the other day and I want to make some! I clearly don’t have enough panda themed clothing and I love the idea of fingerless gloves that turn into mittens.
I also spotted these super cute bunny and bear scissors in Tokuya, so sweet!
Celeste came back to visit for a little while and took us to the cutest little bubble tea place on Bourke Street. Can’t remember the name but they had these chairs suspended from the roof and the whole place was decorated with flowers. They had an area where you could rent little cubicles by the month and sell things too, I’m considering making some stuff and giving it a try ^_^
The tea was nice but the food was kind of not great.
James was too busy playing on his phone to pose or eat so I took matters into my own hands haha!
I had tea with my Mother at one of the cafes that opened in Myer since it had it’s refurbishment and they had the cutest tea set…
And lastly here is a cute take on a ladies room sign I spotted in one of the city McDonalds, very posh haha!
That’s all for now! What have you guys been up to??
These “what’s in my hangbag” style posts used to be so popular a while ago and I never got time to do one so I’m making up for it now haha! My good old faithful red bag seems to be on it’s last legs so I’ve been borrowing this black/white one from my Mum recently until I can buy a new one. I don’t generally change bags often or to suit my outfits so it’s very sad when I have to put an old faithful bag to rest ;_; I’m waiting to find the perfect every day bag for my next one so if you see something I might like send me a link!!
So this is my current one, I like it because it’s big enough to fit a whole lot of junk but not so big that my shoulder wants to break at the end on the day. It’s a good size for work because it holds documents easily too.
I pretty much always have a scarf tied to the bag somewhere because they are so useful. Pretty but in a pinch they can: protect your hair from rain or wind, cover bad hair or fix ruined hair, mop up a spill, wipe away stray make up, be folded into a bag to carry groceries or shopping, smoosh into a pillow for long car rides, wrap around bag handles for more grip/padding and so many other things that I can’t remember right now XD
I like bags with lots of pockets so I don’t have to dig around for stuff. I tend to just throw random things in my bag so I like ones that keep my valuables away from anything that might damage them. This one has 6 pockets/sections which is not bag but I think I want even more haha!
In the top zip section and pocket I keep…
1. iPad
This is a new addition to my bag and it replaced my DSLite, a book and a bunch of other things I used to carry around with me. It also replaces having to take a laptop to meetings now which makes my shoulder much happier! This case is just until I finish making my custom case from scratch, so look out for that tutorial in a while!
2. Business cards
I don’t think I need to explain these… they are for work!
3. Notebook
I can’t give up the pen and paper completely so I keep a little notebook for important notes, dates and anything else which needs to be written down quickly or sketched to explain to clients.
4. Headphones
I wish I could take my big ones around with me all the time but unless I know I’m going on a long trip, these ones are just so much more space saving. I’m planning to customise them a bit more in the future and maybe add some more bling 🙂
5. Pens
Fairly self explanatory. The lipstick one is from the last MBBE swap and it’s adorable!
6. Mirror
Small mirror for just in case emergencies. I want to replace this with one of the cuter ones I have sitting in my drawer but haven’t gotten around to it.
7. Blog business cards
Much prettier than my regular ones haha! Again, the use is fairly obvious. These are so much harder to store because of the bows so I think I need to re-evaluate that when I design the next lot. Totally worth it for the cute outcome though.
This is what lives in the middle pocket:
1. Gloves
So important! I can’t stand my fingers being cold so I always like to have gloves in my bag just in case.
2. Fan
Seems silly but can be a life saver in Summer especially if you’re wearing a big frilly outfit.
3. Tape measure
Must have for fabric shopping, crafting and general shopping. I find it’s good for thrift shopping too because if you don’t want to try clothes on or there’s not a space to you can quickly measure them and make a decision on fit.
4. Small Bag
This holds tissues and toiletries like aspirin etc. It’s nice to have everything together in a little bag rather than rattling around in the bottom of your bag getting dirty.
The second large section of the bag holds these:
1. Make up case
More detail on that below in it’s own photo.
2. Sunglasses
‘Nuff said.
3. Camera
The charm is a Capybara that James won out of a vending machine!
4. Lip Palette
Love this so much because there are so many colours that I never need to worry about not having something while I’m out. It also has a gigantic mirror which is useful!
And inside the make up case:
1. Case
I got this one from Haigh’s chocolate shop, it was filled with delicious freckles but has been totally worth the money as a reusable tin. Mmm chocolate.
2. Lip Palette
So you can see the colours inside.
3. Comb
Always good to have one of these handy! This one is a very old metal base which is quite pretty. There are usually a heap of bobby pins in here too.
4. Lip Gloss
This is one of many that find their way into my bag… I can never seem to have enough though!
5. Perfume Oil
I’m not a big fan of perfume but I keep this one in my bag with me because it smells sooooo good. It’s very fruity and good for touch ups after a long day.
6. Cotton buds
Very useful for make up touch ups etc. These ones have water on the inside so you flick them and the end of the cotton bud gets wet for better make up removal.
7. Lash glue
Just in case of lash mishaps!!
And in the final 2 sections of the bag….
1. Mobile phone
Of course!
2. Facewasher
Again like the scarf this has so many uses!
3. Wallet
I don’t actually carry a wallet much these days, partly because James keeps all my important junk in his wallet and partly out of never going out that much haha.
4. More lipgloss/balm
Only having 3 in my bag is pretty good for me! Usually they just accumulate at the bottom because I never take them out XD
5. Handkerchief
I embroidered this one myself!
And that’s it! To be honest this is like the neat version of my bag after I have a clean out, generally the bottom of it is full of crap like sugar packets, other people’s business cards and napkins >_< It’s nice to pretend I’m neat though sometimes!!
Mother’s Day is coming soon, here in Aus it’s on the 8th of May this year so only a few weeks left to think of things to get. I’m quite a bad daughter, I usually forget about these kinds of things. I don’t really celebrate holidays and Mother’s Day changes every year so it’s hard to remember!!
This is my Mum by the way… She didn’t like the photos I took of her so I’ve made and artistic representation of her for this post.
She’s been on the blog a few times but now she’s also come to live with us for a little while. I feel a little sorry for her, we haven’t lived together since I was 17 and back then she didn’t have to deal with all of my blogging related quirks. Back then it was my artwork littering the entire house and she put up with tripping over paint pots and picking up random comic book layout pages from the floor… Now she comes home from work to find the entire floor covered in nail polish swatches James is photographing for me and the bathroom overrun with make up and lighting umbrellas while I shoot a video and bits of lace or craft supplies everywhere. Don’t even get me started with the diamantes… It is impossible for James to make it through a week in our house without having to pick diamantes out of his feet. At one point when I was doing a lot of deco commissions I used to call James Diamond Foot Jimmy XDSo yes… Back on point, I’m not the easiest person to live with so she probably deserves something better than I can afford for Mother’s Day.
Our conversations are usually fairly sarcastic and nonsensical, and the one about Mother’s Day went something along the lines of this…
Of course, after this conversation Nuffnang let me know about the new competition from Magshop!!
Here’s the information:
Currently Magshop are having a big sale on selected titles just for Mother’s Day and if you purchase a subscription on the selected titles you go into the draw to win a trip to Italy. There are lots of different titles to choose from and a magazine subscription is the perfect gift for your mother – they are relatively cheap and will last the whole year.
Besides having discounts on selected titles, people will have a chance to win a unforgettable trip to Italy.Now that would probably be a good Mother’s Day present!
Subscribe now to Madison Magazine or to one of the fashion magazines and you could win a trip of a lifetime to Italy. Lots of others are on sale so there is a magazine that matches everyone’s tastes.
Much better than tech support lessons anyway haha! So what are you guys doing for the holiday, do you all have special traditions?
Last weekend I won tickets to the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show from Sassi Sam’s Blog. So excited! Of course work decided to be crazy and then James and I both caught a cold so we left it for the very last possible day to go, this was also a Sunday and it was PACKED!
We took a ridiculous number of photos so I’ve just picked a couple of my favorites here and you can view all the others in the gallery here.
My outfit for the day:
I think I’ve decided that tulips are one of my favorite flowers, the colours were absolutely intense!
This poor bird was stuck in the hole in the tree, there was a huge crowd gathered looking at him. At first I thought it was some kind of robot bird art installation and part of the show because of the way that it was moving but apparently it was was actually a real bird, now I feel bad for not helping it *_*
The show was at the Carlton Gardens where James and I went for our picnic a while ago and it’s such a beautiful setting. I think the Exhibition hall there is my favorite building in all of Melbourne too.
Surprisingly my favorite exhibit was the big tree which was growing tea on it’s branches XD
James and I both have hayfever so a flower show probably wasn’t the smartest place for us to spend a Sunday but it was totally worth the sneezing for the beautiful photos!
What photo post could be complete without me posing with some kind of gigantic egg thingy with orchids.
There was a baby animal farm too which very sleepy looking animals.
I think the prettiest displays were inside.
Cute gum boots/wellingtons, you can guess which ones I wanted haha:
I spent a lot of time wandering around just starting at the flowers while James did this:
My photos weren’t nearly as good as his of course so I compensated with the pinhole filter on my camera so I could be artistic hahaha! Let’s just say they’re extra romantic and leave it at that XD
I came away with lots of craft ideas too, including making a rose pillow like the one in picture below! Tutorial soon ^_^
We were actually there to see the Garnier display and get a bit of pampering but after 3 hours of wandering (seriously it was a freaking huge event, we didn’t even see half of it!!) we were both so sneezy and cold that when it started to rain we made an executive decision to go home and enjoy hot chocolates instead 😀
I definitely want to go back next year! Did any of you guys get to go? Or can anyone suggest any pretty gardens or places I should check out during the rest of the year?
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.
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Fancy Docklands Apartment $1.1million
Meta Sailor Dress 22800yen
Patterned stockings in any design. $20ish each
Leopard Print Cardigan £64.95
Mp3 player lantern from Strapya $15ish
Pink Strapya iPad Stylus $18ish
Tiny keychain camera from Strapya $12ish
Lenses for cell phone cameras $10ish each
Pretty phone stap $5
Custom name phone strap $10+
Macaron making kit $30ish
Bear Bouquet $60
Puppy! $700+
Pleated Tartan Skirt Innocent World 13440yen
Innocent World Handbag 12390yen
