Inspiration: Back to School

For those of you keeping track of your Australian tertiary education my university, Macquarie, goes back in a month. This is my second year, although since I only do 3 as opposed to 4 units a semester I'm still a first year student. I'm far too excited about it - I'm literally counting down the days. I honestly miss studying, my degree requires a lot of research and there's no better feeling than when researching for a major paper finding a definitive source in whatever dusty tome you find on the shelf and saying to yourself 'Aha!' and feeling like you've just discovered something amazing.

One of my favourite looks that I'm longing for in my wardrobe is one of a vintage school girl. A simple navy A-line skirt - with some satin details and a silk blouse with a pussy bow. Perfection. I'm obsessed with blouses right now, by the way. Is there a rehab for that?

What I love about the look is that it's simple, structured, feminine and can be worn in any season.

An Education - How have I NOT seen this movie? It looks like absolute perfection!

What are your thoughts? What accessories would you pair this look back with? Leave any and all feedback.

Spotted: Where My Money Will Be Going This Week

Dotti - Musky Betsy Brogue AUD$49.95

I found these shoes at Dotti, and absolutely fell in love with them! I'm hoping to pick up a pair next week (fingers crossed there's a 7 waiting for me!) I've never been too keen on brogues, but the scalloping and the peachy cream colour is a great feminine translation of a masculine classic. Perfect Spring/Summer shoe. Teamed back with floral prints and a chiffon blouse with a delicate pussy bow this might just be my go-to look when classes commence at MQ in a month. How would you wear it? Let me know!

Cotton On - Brandy Pleat Skirt AUD$34.95

This skirt is a bit of a miracle find. Remember the damage my brand new chambray skirt took that led to a complete self-esteem breakdown blog post? This might just be it's replacement. Whilst Cotton On isn't known for it's quality either I think it'll have a longer life span than that SES number that's taking space up on my bedroom floor.

Spotted: The Perfect Winter Maxi

I've been browsing through a lot of vintage sites tonight, it's almost 3.30am here in Sydney as I write this but I just had to share this with you all.

Even though it's Summer and almost 40 degrees during the day here (Celsius, folks) I am doting over this vintage knit cocktail dress, paired with a leather jacket and some rock and roll accessories this would make for a great winter maxi-dress.

Knit Cocktail Dress from Rusty Zipper US$42

Rusty Zipper has so many darling vintage garments, have a browse - you never know what you might find.

And it all came crashing down...

I thought I should do a more serious post right now, since that's how I'm feeling - though I do have a 'What I Bought' post coming up shortly. It might be an over share, but it's nothing that anyone should ever feel like they should hide or be ashamed of.

From an early age, my mid-teens was probably when it really worsened, I've always had nothing but contempt for my body. I could see faults with it no one else could, me being as stubborn as I am always brushed this off as someone just trying to be nice by saying it was my imagination. But I, at 16 clearly knew better. Or so I thought. I'm not sure how or even when it went from a deep self-loathing to making myself sick after meals, living off a couple of sticks of gum and whatever my parents made me eat for dinner but it was something I couldn't shake. It went from being something I did to ease my body woes to something that would just make me feel better. If I was sad, I'd make myself sick. If I was stressed or anxious, I'd make myself sick.

In the past year, I've improved remarkably, with only the support of my boyfriend but he lived two hours away so at 1am, with major research papers for university looming being completly overwhelmed and at my wits end I was alone. I had no one and I had to rely on myself. I think it was moments like that, when I felt like I had so much working against me and the temptation was almost irresistible and yet managed to talk myself out of it, that really let me know that I had, to some degree, overcame it.

It's something you never truly get over though. My sister (25) is obsessed with her weight. When I talk to her all she talks about is the weight she has lost, how attractive she is because she's thin - it seems the only way a person can have any worth in this world is to be thin, to her. I go into an immediate downward spiral whenever I talk to her. I feel different in my own skin, it's like I've gained 10kgs and everything's saggy, misshapen and wrong.

Mirrors are almost as bad. I still cry when I look into one sometimes, I can't believe that I could be THAT bad. My nose seems too wide for such small eyes. Nothing seems proportional. It's all wrong.

What prompted me to write this blog today was that for the past week I had been doing so much better than I was even before when I was doing well. I even looked in a mirror and thought 'Sure, my legs may seem a little large but I work out a lot. They're shaped and not 'fat' but healthy. I'm alright' but I hit a roadblock, and I know it's going to sound completely ridiculous. I recently bought a small sized skirt from a shop we have here in Australia called SES. The quality is poor but it's cheap enough that it doesn't phase you. Anyway, so I loved this skirt - wearing it a total of 3 times in a couple weeks. Today, however, I noticed that it was damaged. The seam that runs along the back of it was stretching and pulling - my mind rather than acknowledging most merchandise there is poorly made and shrugging it off jumped to the conclusion that if I didn't have such a fat arse this never would have happened.

Part of why I created this blog was to help me get more confidence and lose some of these insecurities so I can keep getting better - that's why this post was so important to me. It's something that's such a huge part of my life that it'd feel like I was hiding it if I didn't talk about it. I'm not ashamed, it's shown me how strong I can be and it's something I'll never apologize for. I don't know what made me like this in the first place, in a way I think I'm better off not knowing but in the long run I feel like the strength and determination it takes to work past this everyday will make me a better person, if it hasn't already. I don't know who I'd be without it, but in a way I think I prefer this version of me, even with all this and everything it made me go through.

What I Bought: Key Ring

This is something I have been looking for for months, and that's not an exagerration. Ever since I saw this vintage key ring on Miijo from House of Harlow 1960 I've been like a woman on a mission but I've never seen one either in my price range or at any store in Sydney. Frustration! Until today that is.

House of Harlow 1960 Antique Key Cocktail Ring

I picked this one up from Diva, it has a similar antique feel to it but at a fraction of the cost. Even without being on sale this only cost me AU$7.95.

 Did you have any shopping victories today? Catch a bargain? Let me know, I'd love to hear about it!

 

Guide: Finding the right hair care system for you.

I've worked in salons as either an assistant or apprentice for 2 years, so I know a lot about shampoo. I myself, even with the training I had find it hard to navigate my way around super market brand hair care ranges. It's not always easy to afford or justify expensive salon only brands but that doesn't mean you should miss out on having a system tailored to your own needs. This is a blog I wrote months ago, but I think it's important that everyone has this knowledge. As, you'll read later on if you have any questions about products and general hair care feel free to drop me an email, you'll find that on the 'contact me' page.

First off, and I can't stress this enough, KNOW YOUR HAIR, turn the lights down, put on some smooth jazz, pour a glass of wine for the two of you and talk about your days - well maybe not that but at least find out the natural texture - is it wavy, straight or like me, do you have a white girl afro? Figure out what it is that you don't like about your hair right now - is it greasy, dry, brittle? You can buy all the products in the world but if it's not right for you it just won't work.

What else does your hair need? Do you need to tame your curls or do you want to bring them out? Do you need a toning shampoo or one with colour pigments to help boost colour? Do you have dry hair that needs deep moisturizing? This I really think is the next step after knowing your hair type, it's important to specify and narrow it done as much as possible, after all this is about making it easier for you.

An even better way to break this down is to DIAGNOSE EACH PART OF YOUR HAIR, this is something I learned at a training night as an apprentice and it was so helpful. Break your hair into three sections, mentally of course, roots, mid-lengths and ends, and then assign a diagnosis to each and you'll easily be able to find a product to match.

SHAMPOO - ROOTS/SCALP: Any kind of scalp irritations, dandruff, issues with excess oil should be dealt with at the scalp - makes sense doesn't it? My hair, for example, tends to produce a little too much oil at the roots and can get weighed down from it, so I could use a CLARIFYING shampoo. I've previously used a product by Wella in their Biotouch range called Pure Aqua Essence, they also have a leave in conditioner that's great. This product would also suit people with active outdoor lifestyles, work out regularly - pretty much anyone who'll sweat. It can be drying to the rest of the hair and would potentially strip colour so I would give this one a miss if you have coloured hair.

CONDITIONER - MID-LENGTHS/ENDS: We use conditioner to seal up our cuticles after shampooing, this is why we get that smooth feeling and appearance afterward. Definitely a step not to skip! If you have dry, heat damaged hair a fortifying and deep moisturizing conditioner would probably suit you. Despite my mane being a bit slick at the roots it gets much dryer in this section, so I would use a product designed for the aforementioned symptoms.

TREATMENT - MID-LENGTHS/ENDS: Whilst this step is purely optional, a lot of people believe they don't have time for this step, I do recommend people - especially with longer hair or people who style their hair with hot tools, to do some kind of treatment or mask once a week. This follows much the same outline as a conditioner - focus on the problems in your mid-lengths to ends and find the corresponding solution. Also, I go through periods where my ends get extra dry and I find putting an amount slightly larger than a pea concentrating only on my ends, where most of my damage and dryness does help smooth it out and reduce some of the damage - though the permanent solution for this would be regular trips to the hairdresser.

I know there can be a lot of confusion with treatments especially since there are so many on the market right now all promising to do AMAZING things. If you're not a fan of trial and error I have a theory that might help you make your decision next time, last year I attended another training night for a range called PPS, the demonstrator there said something which I found interesting, that your hair is one of two things - hungry or thirsty, and by that it means your hair either needs protein or moisture. If your hair is dry and frizzy you better pour that thing a big glass of water - STAT! but if it's just damaged or lacking it's usual luster perhaps you should take it out to a nice meal? Metaphorically of course.

Being able to diagnose your hair is a major advantage and it's something that everyone needs to know to not only save money but spare themselves the frustration of feeling like nothing works for their hair, hence the long blog. If you have any questions or need any help diagnosing your hair feel free to leave me a message.

Inspiration: Kourtney Kardashian

Don't be afraid, dear reader. I know, I know the idea of a Kardashianite having any sway in ones wardrobe is an alarming one. And no, I haven't gone over to the dark side and you will not see me wearing any outfits like this:

This is purely a one time thing, you hear that Kourtney? This means nothing to me, it's the sartorial equivalent of a one night stand!

I'm only human, and this is a style that's really grown on me lately. The button up with that bow - darling. The skirt, not so much. Personally I'd go for a more matte looking skirt. To make this more day time ready I'd swap the black skirt for one in a similar high waisted cut but in a chambray fabric or paired back with a skirt in a more neutral colour.

Inspiration: 500 Days of Summer

 I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Katy Perry is the poor man’s Zooey Deschanel. She’s got pocketfuls of charm and probably pixie dust and good money says she’s friends with a unicorn – she’s just that whimsical. But, you know, down to earth whimsical not ‘All my furniture is made out of candy’ whimsical.

 

Her wardrobe in 500 Days of Summer was a brilliant reflection of this; it felt organic and natural to her and her character which is something I don’t come across very often in film.

High waisted trousers with a delicate blouse, freshened up with a vest. Adorable and one of my favourite outfits in the film.

 There was a simple and beautiful structure to a lot of her wardrobe. It was 'ordinary' in the sense that you felt like it was something you could re-create yourself but unique in the way it connected with the character.

This was one of those movies that when I finished watching and wanted to completely change my wardrobe - and it did make me think about getting a fringe again (I'm still on the fence about this one!)

This was another one of my favourite looks in the film, it's so sweet and fun with a vintage feel to it. 

Modcloth - Home Canning Top US $39.95

Glassons - Peaches High Waisted Short NZ$39.99 (Also available in a lighter wash)