Missing In Action

Wow, I have been MIA for a lot longer than I thought I was. Sincere apologies. It seems that I have been bogged down in the little things in life lately. I got a promotion and have been doing a hybrid role until my replacement starts on Monday (woo!) so fingers crossed things get a little more sane after that.

I have also been eBaying like crazy again, so time consuming but so worth it since it i has helped me put some more cash towards my Europe fund. I only have 3 and a half weeks until I leave to visit my parents in Paris. So excited! It feels fantastic to get rid of a lot of items in my wardrobe that continually made me feel guilty for not wearing them. Plus it is great to be able to concentrate on creating a more chic and fuss-free wardrobe which is where my style is evolving towards. If I could live in my Zara silk shirt (same as the fourth image from the bottom), skinny jeans, heels and blazer then I would!

I was going to head out to either St Kilda or South Yarra tonight but the weather in Melbourne is horrible, so staying at home watching The Bourne Identity (my favourite) won. My doggie is snuggling up to me and we're listening to the rain outside. Bliss.

xx

04.10.

After visiting Myer and splurging on my new underwear, I headed off to Howard Storage World and decided to go nuts on cleaning up my wardrobe so I can keep all my current clothes in better condition! I've never used drawer liners before but after putting them in a few of my drawers that I keep my more special items in, I definitely recommend using them, they just add that little bit extra luxury and the scented ones even make your clothes smell nice! I also have a lot of delicate knits so they also stop the inside of my wooden drawers catching on the finer yarns.

26.09

After doing some research online and reading a whole bunch of recommendations, I decided to go with the Ella Bache "Sunless Tanning" self tan for face. It smells nice and has a nice glittery "glow" when you squeeze it out of the tube. Fingers crossed that it turns out alright and I don't look like a carrot - nothing worse than seeing a girl with terrible fake tan!


On a random note - does anyone think its ridiculous that the change to 'pokie' laws in Australia and its impact on AFL/Rugby financing granted a significantly higher level of air time than women receiving the right to vote in Saudi Arabia? This actually outraged me this morning.

26.09.

Here are a few random snaps from my weekend. I went to Parklife in Melbourne with a big group of friends and had the best time I have had at a festival in a long time. The weather was looking a little ominous at the start of the day but turned out perfect, and after a few drinks and dancing around I'm sure we would have been oblivious to any weather conditions Melbourne could have thrown at us. The highlights of the day were DJ's Diplo and Mylo, and then randomly finding YumCha dumplings to snack on - way better than usual festival food selection! I wore a MinkPink floral dress which is featured in their latest campaign with a loosely knitted Cheap Monday black sweater, biker boots and my Wayfarers. Sunday was a perfect end to the weekend - breakfast and coffee with friends, and the rest of the day on the couch watching Suits with the weekend Financial Review & Vogue.

22.09.

Once again, I am a terrible blogger! In my defense, I've had a bit of a horrible week including someone crashing in to my car, burning the inside of my wrist on a sandwich press at work and managing to get a virus on my work computer and losing everything.. oops!  I had so many photos saved to post as well, but on the bright side, its meant I've been a bit more productive at work so not all bad! They say bad luck comes in threes so lets hope thats the end of it!

The first image is from blogger Ulrikke Lund, one of my all time favourite bloggers - her outfits are amazing, and as she is same height and build as me so its always nice to see how petite girls work trends.

How cool are the framed shopping bags in the wardrobe image? I might have to start holding on to the bags of all my important purchases and do that - such personal wall art! Also, does anyone have any good recommendations for face self-tanners? I'm losing my latest European glow and need something easy to apply and preferable one that won't make me look like an oompa loompa!

08.09

A few instagram images of my last trip to Europe and some of life in the last few weeks. Cannot wait to get in to the September issue of Vogue UK. Its pricey but well worth it. The last image is taken at my local beach, I couldn't get over how perfect the weather was. Hopefully it will come back soon!

06.09

I finally caved in on my shopping ban last night and purchased these Dolce Vita 'Calla' bootie. I had been on the look out for a pair of light coloured heeled ankle boots for a while now, and I didn't want to purchase until I found the perfect ones. I feel like the search can now be called off, the mix of leather and suede makes them perfect for all manner of occassions. I'm fortunate enough to go Europe twice a year in June-July and at Christmas time to visit my family so finding items that I love and that can also be worn in any season is a huge selling point for me, and I think these tick all the boxes! The size charts on Shopbop always confuse me and as the size 7 was sold out, I got the 6.5 - I'm praying they'll be a perfect fit!

I've told myself I'm going to put a minimum of four items I never wear on eBay tonight as a trade off and I also signed up to the Ethical Fashion Forum last night too. They sent me their briefing report to my e-mail this morning, it was actually a really interesting read. My favourite fact:

A majority of adults (82%) claim to make their clothes last - we think the disposable fashion

trend could have peaked and 2011 may see shoppers reassessing value for money and

putting more emphasis on sustainability, integrity and durability of clothing.

(Mintel, Clothing Retailing - UK - 2010)

03.09

For those of you who can remember my previous blog, British Trash, you'll have noticed that this blog is slightly different in content and direction. I used to purchase new items frequently (at least once a week) from online sites, in particular ASOS & Topshop, lulled by their cheap prices, free international shipping and the quick fix you get from having that new package land on your desk. I guess the main change is that I open my wardrobe and I'm just sick of seeing of seeing it filled with crap. It sounds almost comical that a girl is over having too many clothes.

I've noticed recently, and perhaps this is through working in the industry, that finer details have become more important to me. There are brands out there that I definitely resonate with and will go back to time after time, but the idea of buying a dress that holds an automatic cachet with everyone else is beyond me. I'd rather have the private satisfaction of the fabric, the craftsmanship and the knowledge that I can pull it out in 5, 10, 15 years and love it just as much.

Being surrounded by clothing and collections five days a week has made me almost neutral to certain trends, and a disassociation from the "new" helps when you're thinking six months ahead at all times. This probably explains why my wardrobe tends to be a sea of black. After reading "The One Hundred: A Guide to the Pieces Every Stylish Woman Must Own" By Nina Garcia I've decided to collate my own list of 'must have' items. I doubt I'd be able to buy more than one a year but if I'm saving up for this then it definitely puts buying other insignificant items in to perspective. One tip I can definitely recommend is either leaving your credit card in a drawer at home (or actually freezing it in ice helps) or sticky taping a list of items you really want to it so when you pull it out to pay for an impulse buy, you can remind yourself of the bigger things! I'm going to spend all day tomorrow clearing out and organising my wardrobe, and then eBaying everything unwanted to raise some money for new things!

Old with the old, in with the new!

21.08

Reading homework I'd set myself this weekend. I love fashion books. At the moment I'm reading "In Fashion" by Annemarie Iverson. Its a really great book if you're thinking about pursuing a career of any form within the fashion industry. I think it is mainly aimed at high school students but I've found it informative nonetheless. If you've read Kelly Cutrone's "If You Have To Cry, Go Outside" and enjoyed it then I would recommend her second book, "Normal Gets You Nowhere". It is less about the fashion industry and more about Kelly's life mantra, but if you're a fan of hers then I'm sure you'll love it regardless!

The September issues of my favourite magazines - Vogue, Harper's Bazaar & Russh. This months Russh is themed around "Out of this world" and some of the concepts of packing up and exploring the unknown have really hit a nerve with me. I've made at least five different life decisions while in the shower today!