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Archive for March, 2011

Mar 31

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Do you need a little luxury in your life?

Sitting in the bath last night (didn’t Einstein have all his great ideas while sitting in the bath?) I was thinking about how lucky I am to have the luxury of time to actually sit in the bath and thing about how lucky I am (got it?). Which got me thinking about all those things that we would all LIKE to have in our life but maybe can’t afford, or don’t have time to get, or have other things that really are more important.

I say I would LOOOOOOOOVE to have seven (not just six, seven) sets of 1000 thread count, white,  Egyptian cotton sheets to sleep on, but when I really think about it, I can live with the slightly off white, cotton/polyester blend sheets from the Pillow Talk outlet store in Sumner Park. They are clean, comfortable and they didn’t cost an arm and a leg. Impressively expensive sheets are a luxury I can live without.

The forever-coveted Hermes Birkin Bag

Some girls love handbags, they crave the newest, latest, hottest from Prada, Marc Jacobs, Hermes – personally I don’t get it – actually hold that thought, if someone offered me a Hermes Birkin Bag I wouldn’t want to be rude and say no! But most of the time I’m happy with a nice faux leather (easier to clean) handbag from Witchery or Portmans or Sportsgirl.

Me myself personal? I’m a shoe girl (as you may have noticed here, and here). Do you find that you are either a one or the other? I tried to explain it to the boy last night ‘It’s kinda like are you a either boob or a leg man honey‘ he got it straight away! Saying that, I still don’t have the ultimate pair of shoes that I covet – A pair of REAL Christian Louboutins. In fact I have never even tried pair on (although I have patted a few pairs on the floor of David Jones, yes I did say patted….what?) from fear of loving them so much that I have to buy them on the spot and then not be able to pay rent for the next three months. (This all said as I sit here typing away with my Birkenstocks on my feet – see here for the story on that one.)

Those shoes are my ultimate luxury, something that I can one day reward myself with, something to work towards, something to buy for myself when I have ‘made it’ (made it doing what I ‘m still trying to sort out). So even though these are my ultimate luxury, I still think all of us need to have a necessary luxury, something that makes you feel good, something that is important to you.

my ultimate luxury (hint, hint honey!)

An old friend and flat-mate of mine (hi wifey!) looooooooooved her linens. She would not settle for anything less than a 1000 thread count on her sheets, she always had a million pillows on her bed, the most amazing soft doona (sorry, duvet for all you kiwis) and doona cover because that was her thing, her necessary luxury (and man was her bed comfortable).

For other people it is towels, having the biggest, whitest (is whitest a word?), fluffiest towels around (meanwhile, I’m happy with my end-of-season-sale-at-MYER lot). For some people it’s getting their hair cut and coloured (again, Just Cuts for me – $25 thankyou!), amazing candles, pieces of art, new cars, there are a million and one things out that bring that extra bit of joy to our lives.

My necessary luxury is a pedicure every so often. It’s the whole experience for me, being a little pampered (who doesn’t love the leg and foot massage) and not having to bend over and do it myself! I never was any good a colouring between the lines so its nice to have someone who is paid to get the nail polish JUST on the nail and not all over my toes too. It is only a little luxury but I am a poor uni student now remember so this has actually become quite a big luxury for me and I am going to enjoy every minute of it!

What is your essential luxury? Do you have something beyond the basics that you just can’t live without?

Mar 29

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Champagne taste on a beer budget

What do you do when you make a life-changing decision that will change the way you dress? My mother always told me that I had expensive taste (isn’t it amazing how all these things your mother tells you when you are young make more and more sense as you get older!?) but most of my life I haven’t exactly had the income to back those expensive tastes up – champagne taste on a beer budget is the expression I think she used the most!

Save those pennies!Well I was getting on ok there for a while – working full-time, paying off debt, living comfortably with what I was taking home each week, then I made the decision to go back to study, full-time. That meant leaving my full-time job, and my full-time income to go back to casual work and working very hard to make ends meet. But what about my champagne tastes?! I love my nice house, I LOOOOOOOVE my nice clothes and shoes but one of my favourite sayings is ‘ money does NOT buy style’ (and that one was not from my mother). Just because you have a lot of money, doesn’t mean you always get in right in the fashion stakes, so if you find your piggy bank on the emptier side of full, it doesn’t mean that you have to look any less wonderful - so here are a few tips on how to still get the luxury look for a little bit less.

DON’T SPEND A CENT:

Clothing swaps. Get a bunch on girlfriends over to your house, ask them all to bring 10 items of clothing, shoes etc that they don’t want and swap away! Make sure that everyone gets a fair swap for what they brought along and anything that nobody wants, donate to charity at the end of the night. You leave with a whole new wardrobe and you didn’t have to spend a cent (except maybe on a few bottles of bubbles and some cupcakes).

Alter clothes. Don’t be afraid to alter something that you already have in your wardrobe. I recently shorted a STUNNING Trelise Cooper skirt that just didn’t sit at the right length for me. I couldn’t bring myself to throw it away because it is too beautiful, but I found that every time I went to wear it, I took it off again. I cut off a few inches and now it’s a hot mini that I can wear to a bar, out to dinner or even to uni! Make a dress into a blouse, shorten a maxi dress into a knee-length dress, dye something a new colour, there are so many little things you can do to make an old piece of clothing feel like new again!

Get a friend to look over your wardrobe. People always look at things from different perspectives so get a friend whose opinion you trust to come over and work out new outfits from your existing wardrobe. You will be surprised at what other people will discover in your wardrobe that you never knew you had! They might show you how to wear things differently, create new combinations of outfits, even work out new ways to accessorise with what you have. You will be surprised how much  this will breathe new life into your wardrobe. Maybe you could even return the favour for her!

eBay: In the last two years I have made over $2000 selling old clothes on eBay. It can be a little time-consuming, but it can be so worth it in the end! Make sure you take lots of good pictures and write a really clear description of what you are selling (including measurements). This will MAKE you money to spend on new (or other eBay) clothes so in the long-term, it works out that you spend none of your hard-earned money!

SPEND A LITTLE, BUT SAVE A LOT!

Dress for style and comfort, not for ‘fashion’. Don’t feel like you have to keep up with the latest trends to be fashionable and stylish. Invest (when you can) in a few key basics that will more than pay themselves back in cost-per-wear. Here are just two examples what you could do;

  • Jeans – simple, dark denim jeans are great to take you through winter – but don’t feel the need to splurge! Just Jeans and Jeans West often do a 2 for $99 deal on their own brands of jeans. If that is even too much to spend, see if you partner or a friend wants a new pair two and go halves. A good, classic pair of jeans will last you up to 5 or so years so definitely worth it. Some of my favourite jeans are from Jeans West so don’t be scared to go in and give them a go.

    My bargain ballet flats. Only $49!

  • Ballet flats – if you are like me and wear through your ballet flats after one season, don’t spend a fortune each winter replacing them! I just bought a pair of real leather, plain black ballet flats from DFO that look IDENTICAL to the Country Road ones I love, but there were literally half the price – $49. They are simple, will go with almost everything and if they wear through in one season (like the Country Road ones did) then I won’t be as disappointed about throwing them out.

Find the key looks you want this season and shop around: Flick through a few fashion mags at the beginning of each season, work out the key looks you want to work on and write a list. Just because Marie Claire says you have to get the latest maxi skirt from one particular store, doesn’t mean there aren’t other, cheaper options around. Do your homework, don’t buy the first item you see. Have a look online, on eBay, check out the chain store options and factor outlets to see if you can get the look you want, without paying the price for it.

Shop in the sales. I know this sounds like a no-brainer, but end-of-season sales can elicit some AMAZING savings! Once again it’s about buying pieces that will take you through more than one season because you are usually buying them at the end of that season. Can you still wear it next summer? Then go for it!

Try shopping in February and March for summer sales and August for winter sales. Stores are RIGHT at the end of the sale season and they just want to get rid of old stock to make room for new stock so most of the time it will be heavily discounted.

Clothing markets. Sydney has the best second-hand clothing markets in the country so if you live there head to Rozelle, Bondi or Kirribilli markets to pick up some unbelievable second-hand designer clothes. When I lived in Sydney, I was selling dresses worth over $300 for as little as $20 because I just needed to get rid of them.

If you are in Brisbane, there is a great new market called The Diva’s Wardrobe (follow them on facebook here) that brings together the wardrobes of fashionistas around Brisbane, once again, the girls with the stalls are selling amazing pieces for a fraction of the cost! Any tips from other states would be much appreciated so feel free to let us know!

Chain stores. I know I pay them out quite often (more the service, not the product) but the trick to shopping at chain stores is to look for items that DON’T look like they come from a chain store. It’s also a great way to get the latest trends (only if you want to) at a fraction of the price. Animal print is in this winter, so pick up an animal print scarf (you can’t go wrong with a scarf) from Dotti or Sportsgirl for under $20. A great way to add something new to your outfit on the cheap.

Outlets: Outlets like DFO are a great way to get what you want at a fraction of the price. The great ballet flats I got for half the price I mentioned earlier are from a DFO store and except for the name printed on the inside of the shoe, I could not tell the difference between the two brands. You might have to wade through a lot of crap to find the good stuff, but it will be worth it in the end!

It’s not an easy task but there are definitely ways out there to save you money while still looking incredibly stylish!

Have you got some good tips for saving on your gorgeous wardrobe? What was the best bargain you ever found and where did you get it from?

Mar 22

My slice of heaven

So the first question that comes to mind when planning any holiday is “What am I going to pack?!?” My recent trip to New Zealand over Christmas and New Years with the boy (yes, he is a bona fide, real life kiwi) was no different. Is it going to rain? Do I need to pack my trench? Will it be “one-layer-of-clothing-cold” or “holy crap I don’t have enough clothes in the world for this” cold? Should I pack heels? (I packed three pairs, we were going to a wedding after all).

Driving home from work the other day the boy asked me, “what was your favorite part of New Zealand, what really stood out to you as New Zealand-ish?” note he did NOT ask, “what was your favorite outfit that you took to New Zealand?” or “do you think you packed the right three pairs of heels to take to New Zealand honey”?

It made me realize that the amazing memories I have of New Zealand aren’t what clothes I wore when to certain places, it was the amazing places themselves. New Zealand is such a beautiful country and two guys from the Land of the Long White Cloud have come up with a great way to bring a positive focus back to NZ after the terrible tragedies of Pine River and Christchurch. They have called it Blog 4 New Zealand (or blog4nz). So to do my part (my future children will be part kiwi so gotta keep it in the family) here are some pics from my two favourite places in NZ (so far, I plan on going back many times to explore even more!)

The amazing power of the Huka Falls (and my awesome maxi)

Huka Falls:

The water that flows through the Waikato River is indescribable, the colour in this picture does not even do it justice by a million! To be honest, I was expecting to see a tall, plunging waterfall (think Niagra, ok maybe not on that scale) but the drop of the falls is only 18 meters in total.  It’s the sheer power of the water flowing through a narrowing in the rock that creates this spectacular sight, and best of all, it’s totally free! Although if you are more adventurous (we had just had a nice relaxing massage, so we passed) you can go on a jet boat ride right up to the base of the falls!! (and just so you know, the dress I am wearing in the photo is the one and only go to, super- maxi of all super-maixs I have talked about in previous posts, and the hat is my favourite hat).

The Huka Falls (without my fabulous dress in the way)

Piha and the Waitakere Ranges:
Remember the movie “The Piano”? The amazing black sand that looked so unreal, so dramatic and bleak? That sand is real baby and it’s burning hot!! Situated just an hour north of Auckland CBD is a strech of coastline with rolling surf and that famous black sand. One of those beaches is Piha Beach. The drive over the ranges is not for the faint-hearted, the road going up into the ranges is steep and the road coming down to Piha is even steeper! But man is it worth it! as you drive down the side of the mountain towards this quaint little town, the blackness of the sand makes all the other colours pop! The clear blueness of the ocean, the green grass of the sandunes and the little beach baches (beach houses) scattered along the shortline jump out at you all again the black.

The view from the top - Piha Beach

Like I mentioned before, black sand it HOT!! Think about how fast you have to run across normal white sand on a hot summers day – well times that by ten and that’s just an idea of what it was like. One of my funniest memories is of the boy taking about three steps onto the sand and then having to BOLT as fast as he could across the rest of the beach – I think his feet actually sizzled when the hit the water! (I was smarter, I did the hot-sand thong (jandal) flick the whole way, although even I had to run at the end cause the sand got caught between my feet and thongs – ouch!)

The black sand against my pale pink toes

The other hidden treasure of Piha is the Piha Cafe. This is a town of two whole shops (and NO clothes shops girls!) So we didn’t have much choice for lunch. We walked into one of the two options and the place looked laid back, fun, beachy – we were expecting a burger, or maybe a fancy sandwich but little did we know that this cafe is owned by former All Black Mark Ellis and that there is a majorly amazing chef working behind the scenes. The menu offered The Beef, The Fish or The Eggs…. hmmmm not much choice so it seems so we both chose The Fish (we are adventurous you know). This is what arrived……

The Fish - Piha Cafe

Hands down the best culinary experience of the whole trip (sorry Mr and Mrs Taylor, your home-cooked meals were yummy too). Grilled salmon with avocado, rocket, semi dried tomatoes and sweet potato (kumera) shavings……toooooooo good!

So even though to me the most fun (and or stressful) time BEFORE I go on a trip is deciding what to wear, it really doesn’t matter unless you take the time to stop and really appreciate the natural beauty that is all around. Thank you New Zealand (and the boy for taking me there) for showing me my own little slice of heaven

To find out more and read other fabulous blogs about the wonders of NZ click here.