Aussie Curves: (P)Leather

Today I am Snow Queen:

Either that, or I've mugged a professional ice-skater and stolen her costume.



Today's accessories are a tribute to pleather, which I figure is ok for this week's Aussie Curves theme as there's probably a few others out there doing the same. Also it has leather in the word :-p.

I'm officially in love with my spiky back-pack from MadPax and have been known to hug and kiss it in public. So be prepared to see it again (frequently) on this blog.

The spiky bag and my imitation Docs from Raben footwear make up the pleather portion of the post.

Is pleather even a thing any-more? I'm pretty sure that since the application of the word 'Vegan' to clothing was birthed to the world by Stella MacCartney's very clever marketing team about five years ago, it has since gone viral and now applies to anything - from canvas sneakers that never contained 'Meat' in the first place to clitoral and septum rings.

The cheap white imitation Docs from Raben footwear are awesome as they are super-comfy unlike the real thing which I have in red and still haven't managed to break in despite having them for nearly a year.

This is mainly because I can't be bothered applying the 14,000 bandaids required every time I put them on to prevent them shredding my legs apart. Ezmae from Flashionaffair and I are having an ongoing argument about this on Instagram. She insists that they are super-comfy. I insist that she is clearly deluded and insane.

On my head I'm wearing my new Nicki Minaj Viva Glam lipstick which I got with my MAC voucher from my friends Hannah and Jessica for my birthday. Also a ribbed "boyfriend" beanie that I got from ASOS for $10.

Attention must also be paid to my arm-candy. How cool is this giant resin bangle? It's filled with googly eyes that go all googly as you move! I scored it on my recent op-shopping trip around the Wollongong/ Illawarra region with my cousin Kate. It wasn't from an opshop but rather from Fairymeadow antique centre and hence was the most expensive purchase of the day: an extravagant $20. Sigh, I love opshopping.

And finally, the awesome velvet ice-skater dress was from the same op-shopping trip with my cousin Kate. I wasn't gonna get it but she talked me into it and I'm glad she did. Thanks Kate :)

Aussie Curves: Time Saver

In the interests of SAVING TIME to go with this week's Aussie Curves theme, there's not many words in this post:

My suggestion for saving time? Don't bother agonising over what garments to pair together when you can just slip on a suit and wear the same pattern all over!

How cute is this green vintage polka dot skirt suit? I picked it up in a Marrickville op-shop a couple of weeks ago and as well as being quick and easy, it's super comfy and warm as it's a great heavy vintage knit fabric.

Perhaps I look a bit too much like the mad old lady  I probably inherited it from, but I can live with that. It's like looking in a granny-mirror to the future:

The sunnies and bag you've seen quite a few times now. Floral trim sunnies are from ASOS and so is the Pink satchel by the Cambridge Satchel Co.

I got these imitation Docs a couple of week's ago from Raben footwear. Yes, they're synthetic and I'm sure they won't last (especially in the white colour) but they're just SO DAMN COMFY. I still haven't worn-in the red Doc Martens I bought over a year ago - they're torturously painful, but I've been wearing these ones constantly since I bought them - they're so comfy and the white colour goes with anything.

Happy Mum's day by the way to all the Aussie women out there who've pushed another human out of your vajay-jay at some point! (but not to those of you - like my Mum - who cheated and had caesareans. You guys are just terrible people and don't get a Mum's day sorry - Spit that brekky in bed OUT).

Anyhoo, I hope you do something nice with your Mum today. My Mum and I are off to Grandma's this afternoon along with the rest of the family to have a decadent cake-filled afternoon tea. HAVE A FAB DAY

Rave on you neon diamond

Yay! I'm so cute!

Here's me being cute:

Here's me being cute again (with my super-mega awesome new Madpax Spiketus Rex backpack):

I'm four kinds of cute in this one with my bindi and pigtails and stuff:

So I grew up in the 90s and am happy to see that my fave looks are ALLLLLL back in again so am basically just reliving my childhood (except this time I'm allowed to buy and wear whatever clothes I want). Spice Girls, Jelly sandals, Pigtails, Bindis, Yin & Yangs, Peace Signs, Neon, Rave culture (not that I knew what a rave was at the time - was ten yrs old in the mid-90s!).

How awesome is the spikey backpack though? I love all the backpacks I'm seeing around at the moment - I used to have a thing for mini backpacks as a kid and I remember the goths in Newtown wearing spikey bags like these when I was little.

I didn't know if they'd still be around but they are! And they're made for kids by an American brand called Madpax that has them in every colour of the rainbow as well as a bunch of other fun styles. Check them out they're really cool!

Now if I could just get an inflatable backpack (along maybe with some inflatable furniture: remember that?) then my life will be complete. 

Another novel aspect of this look are the neon yellow Jellybean flats. Now you may recall my recent whinging about my black Juju jellies that I got from ASOS in their biggest size (UK 8/ AUS 10) because of the fact that they kept rubbing - so why bother getting a second pair you ask?

Well I found another brand called Jellybeans on theIconic although I realised afterwards they also have their own fab online shop which also ships for free. They go all the way up to a SIZE 46!!!!! How fucken awesome is that????

I'm normally about a 42 but I bought the 43s just BECAUSE I COULD and when I first got them I thought they were a bit big, but actually a bit looser is better for this material and they're actually a perfect fit. They are just SO DAMN COMFY and do not rub at all. I adore them and am gonna get one in EVERY COLOUR OF THE RAINBOW. Which I CAN because they HAVE THEM ALL HERE.

They also sent out a free packet of Jellybean lollies with them. Any brand that gives free food along with shoes that actually bloody just gets a million gold stars in my book.

The pink sheer shirt-dress is from Shitty Chic a year or two ago but I still love it.

Draw your attention please to the Yin the Yang Out sweater from hand-printed UK label ART DISCO. This was an accidental online purchase during my recent bout of illness when I was stuck at home for the week. Again - it's a childhood thing with Yin and Yang and Peace symbols that got me googling and I stumbled across this label by accident. They've got a bunch of other cool hand-printed sweaters too. They only go upto a size 14 but as they're mainly all oversized styles fattypants sizes can still squeeze into em.

Keep ravin on:

Aussie Curves: Heels

Well this is as close as I get to high heels:

There's a slight incline at the back but they're still a perfectly comfortable height. I'm a firm believer that heels any higher than this are some kind of bizarre medieval misogynistic torture device along the same lines as foot-binding and spine-snapping corsets and that people who think they improve their posture, walk or the way they hold themselves are utterly deluded. 

Of course, I'm being rather hypocritical as these Doc Marten sandals have dealt me a fair share of pain also. The tough leather's been a bit hard to wear in and they've been rubbing at the back. I've found a good antidote to this is to go for a colourful socks and sandals combo like the pink ankle socks I've got on here.

Please also note am showing raw flesh in the leg department. It doesn't happen often: I can't usually be convinced to part from my leggings. 

The dress was a recent op-shop find for about $6 from the Salvos in Fairy Meadow. I went down and spent the weekend with my cousin and op-shopping partner-in-crime Kate and we did our second annual op-shopping tour of the greater Illawarra/Wollongong region. 

There's SO MANY great op-shops down there and they're so much cheaper than the Sydney ones so we got an early start and crammed them all in. Unfortunately didn't score a huge number of finds this time but we did get a few gems. Like this pastel-coloured floral vintage dress. 

That's the thing with op-shopping - it's hit and miss: so you've just got to persist. The denim jacket was another recent find from an op-shop in Goulburn. Love the embroidery on the back!

Here I'm also wearing my new Nicki Minaj Viva Glam lipstick which I got with my MAC voucher from my friends Hannah and Jessica for my birthday:

We snapped these photos in our break in the lunch room at work so here, you can get a nice view of the scungy city flats of World Square in the background:

So the whole outfit:

 - Pastel floral vintage dress - Fairymeadow opshop
 - Denim embroidered acid-wash jacket - Goulburn opshop
 - Floral trim sunglasses from ASOS
 - Pink Leather satchel by the Cambridge satchel company from ASOS
 - Purple leather Eleanor Parade T-bar sandals from Shoes International
 - Pink ankle socks from: my sock drawer (ie. can't remember)

Thanks again to Miss Alison B for snapping these pics :)

The holiday's over.....

Well my throat is better and my hives have nearly all cleared up so after eight days, I'm almost recovered from my bout of illness. It's Sunday night and after a week off it feels like the end of school holidays, which for a lot of disappointed kids and relieved parents this evening - I guess it is today!

After two incorrect diagnoses of Pharyngitis and Glandular Fever, my illness turned out to be Hand, Foot & Mouth Disease....not to be confused with Foot & Mouth that Cattle get! Apparently infants are normally susceptible to it and although adults can be carriers, it's rare that they get struck with the symptoms but that when they do, it can be quite serious. The hives I had on my hands spread to my feet too and turned into hundreds of painful blisters. Now though, I'm lucky to be over the worst of it!

Unfortunately I was at a family dinner the night before I got ill, playing with my little cousins and it looks like I spread it to them! They've all been struck down over the weekend...just in time for the new school term. Poor things. Hopefully it's not as bad in kids!

Have rather enjoyed my stay-cation…even though I couldn't swallow anything or leave the house. Have just been doing lots of homey things: still getting organised to sell off all my clothes online - I know I've been saying that for ages but it will happen soon – please stay tuned!

I tackled my sewing pile: a chair full of clothes that have been waiting to be altered (some of them have been there for about two years!) so now I have new things to wear…some of which I’d forgotten about.

I had a few TV show marathons…courtesy of Mum’s DVD collection. This means I watched all of Jam and Jerusalem (which I was resistant to at first but ended up rather enjoying – it’s written by Jennifer Saunders who I LOVE) and also re-watched all of The No 1 Ladies Detective Agency. I loved the original books by Alexander McCall Smith and the TV show is even better because it stars the fabulous Jill Scott as the gorgeous Mma Ramotswe AND you get to see all the amazing colours and landscapes of Botswana – not to mention the amazing vibrant costumes.

And then today, on my last day of staycation, I belatedly baked some ANZAC biscuits (which I can actually swallow now unlike last week on the actual ANZAC day), I did some restorative sewing work on my favourite quilt – a hand embroidered patchwork I got in Laos that is falling apart, while having a Luke Nguyen marathon (I have his Greater Mekong DVD for some reason) I've done this blogpost, and now I think I’ll do some hand-sewing on my Banksy cross-stitch. Yes, it's been blissful domesticity at its best.

What does that have to do with these photos? Not much! These are more pics that my friend Alison snapped for me on a lunchbreak at work pre-illness – isn’t she clever? I think they turned out pretty well! I guess one advantage of going back is that now I can annoy her to do more – tee hee. These were taken in a lane-way around the corner from work that smelled of wee.

The outfit I'm wearing here is my Roman Holiday outfit - because of the classic full skirt, the polka dots, the collared shirt and the sunnies. Hence I think it's an appropriate outfit for my end-of-sickie-sojourn post.

I'm wearing:

- Green paper-bag waist skirt from ASOS (about a year ago)
- Navy polka dot shirt from my good ol’ Rockdale Vinnies for $4 worn tied over a black tank
- Black Juju jellies from ASOS
- Pink Cambridge satchel from…..erm, yes ASOS

….and then when I got back to the office I realised that although I had my sunnies on my head I forgot to put them on in the photo! So I roped my boss into taking my photo from his desk, opposite mine. Here is his view (lucky him):

The sunnies, with flying birdy detail may be from ASOS too :-p

Wish me luck going back to work tomorrow. Am dreading the backlog of emails! Hopefully it wont deter me from ever blogging and you'll hear from me again soon :)