Merry Christmas, Love from Daywalker :)

This is what some members of my family will receive this year. I think handmade gifts are the best really. I took this picture a few days ago and have since had it printed and framed. Also, I'm not exactly flush with cash.

To my dear readers ( all 3 of you!) , Happy Christmas, Happy Holidays or whatever you're celebrating, stay safe, happy and healthy xoxoxoxoxo

Gladiator............ NO!

I refuse to cave in to the trend of the gladiator. I think these sandals kick ass, especially the zip detailing. They're not overdone and in my eyes are perfect. Plus they work well with skinny jeans which is kind of my wardrobe staple/uniform. Go sandals!!

Zip Sandals - Rubi Shoes

Good Service........ what a rarity!!

Well, I've been pleasantly surprised. I actually got great customer service today which almost NEVER happens. And, this was in Big W buying nail polish. As i was standing there deliberating over two colours, the sales assistant approached, helped me out and even gave me a bonus make-up pouch that was supposed to be for another promotion. I thanked her profusely for doing her job. This was unbelievable since I'm constantly complaining about complete absence of customer service and because only 5 minutes earlier I was in Hairhouse Warehouse where 4 employees ignored me. I didn't ask for their help because I thought they should approach me and why should I spend my money there when I could go elsewhere and not have to almost beg for some assistance.

Anyhoo, the sun is shining and it's summer :)

What I would accept for Xmas.............

Following on from a previous post on what I don't want for Xmas.

How cute is this fashion origami!! It's from Fred Flare, only $12 and would be a perfect Kris Kringle gift.

Good Morning :)

I have been waiting months for this lone flower to appear. What a lovely surprise to wake up to :)

What I don't want for Xmas......

I got tagged by Valentine. I suppose what i'm not looking forward to is the obligatory gift buying, or receiving obligatory gifts - like a pyjama set that looks cute but is 3 size too big when you open it. Makes you wonder why they even bothered in the first place. That's about it really - no insincere gifts - I would rather receive nothing :)

Xmas Presents :)

I purchased this for myself at Genki today on behalf of my man - Thanks Babe :)

The intention was to buy a couple of presents for people - not myself - I always do this!!!

Anyhoo, It's by Tatty Devine and I love pretty much everything they make.

I had quite an amusing trip on my way home. Some teenagers on the train were talking about bleaching their pubes !@#!@? I love public transport.

1986.....

These were the 80's leggings I spoke of in the last post. I'm glad it's out of focus - What a poser!!

The top was actually cashmere Pringle which came from an op-shop in Hawthorn and I vaguely recall cutting it up a few years later. The shoes were from Succhi - man I wish that store still existed :/

Wet Look Leggings............... I don't know.....

They are not red as your monitor may show, but a rusty, russet colour.
I really don't know!!! I kinda feel like Robin Hood in tights. It's funny though because I've lived through 3 waves of leggings - the 80's - I have a great picture of me posing and wearing black wetlook leggings, the early 90's - I remember wearing two very colourful Esprit pairs that belonged to my sister one with a sunflower print and some blue/green ones which I would wear with black or dark red clogs - what a comfortable outfit!! (I've got to find some pictorial evidence) and now - but i'm not finding the transition as easy. As you can see i'm wearing two different shoes - the sandal i'm happy with, but the boot - very unsure. I purchased the boots months ago and still haven't worn them because I'm not really into the white part around the sole - I could colour it with a marker. Anyway, you can't really see the boots, so i'll save that rant for another post :)


Leggings - op shop
Dress - Valley Girl

Another Outfit Post.......

Hi there, I've been absent for a while. There's a lot going on at the moment - such as trying to find a new place to live!! Very frustrating indeed.

Now for the outfit:

Top - H&M - Gift

Belt - Georges Rech - from Op -Shop

Skirt - Temt - from Op-Shop

Shoes - Savers

Silk Headscarf - H&M - from Op-Shop

Boredom and Shoes.......

I was going to throw these out but I thought decorating them might be better. Not sure if i'll venture outside with them but they will definitely become my new 'house' shoes.

The Cutest Thing I've Seen All Day............

Is my little darling Tina bathing in her salad bowl bath :)

Yearning...........

I love, love, love. It's rare that a shoe will grab my attention like these but I will have to look around for a similar pair as $399 cannot be justified. They are made by German label Trippen.

The shoes on their site feature cool detailing without over embellishing and have a very German architectural feel - to me anyway. But I'm currently lusting away over either a pair of Fluevogs or Melissas and they're probably more in my price range than the Trippens. Oh well............ I can dream and be inspired in the meantime :)

She Wants to Party All the Time!!!!

Yet another op-shop score. How good is this? On 12" no less. Back when Eddie was doing way too much coke! For the princely sum of 50c.

Outfit Post.........

The sun was shining outside so I wore this pretty dress today. It ties up around the waist with a bow on the back and is one of my new favourites.

Retro Kitchen Bin.................

I scored this little beauty for my kitchen at the Coburg trash and treasure on Sunday.

The market is great when it's not too windy and you arrive early enough and you're prepared to be jostled and sideswiped by all and sundry :)

Op Shop Score

Beautiful hand tooled leather brooches. I couldn't say what era they're from - I may hazard a guess and say the 70's - the butterfly is kind of reminiscent of folksy style and the craft revival.

What do you think? Any ideas?

Outfit Post

Haven't posted in a while and I thought I looked okay today.

Black Vest : vintage 80's op shop

Green Top: Lush

White Jeans: wakee from a friend

Black Shoes: sportsgirl 2003

Silk Headband: op shop

Marimekko..............

I'm pretty sure this top is from H&M's "Marimekko" range - my mother brought it back from London this year. I've worn it quite a bit, the fabric is a soft jersey. This isn't something I would normally buy, in fact i'm sure it wouldn't have received a second glance from me but strangely it has become quite a regular.

P.S - there's a bird on my shoulder - ar ar!!

All Time Favorite Books................

What are people's favorite books? I'm always interested to hear about new stuff or an author i've never heard of. My interests are very mixed and varied.

Books I have loved over the years are:

The Secret History - Donna Tartt

The Magus - John Fowles

Still Life with Woodpecker - Tom Robbins

The Virgin Suicides - Jeffrey Eugenides

I'm only covering novels here, so tell me what your favorites are.

Image stolen from Amazon.

Op-Shop Score.......

Cute shoes and a floral bow tie for $3. I cannot complain :)

Dictation.............

I find this ridiculously funny and I'm sure anyone who's watched "Summer Heights High" would concur.

Teddi of California...........

This floral delight hails from St.Vinnies on Sydney Rd. The sleeves are much longer, I've rolled them up and safety pinned them to the shoulder seam and tucked this under my bra-strap and used a belt to cinch the waist which isn't visible. I'll need to get the needle and thread out as Teddi needs something a little more permanent than safety pins!! I wonder if Teddi really is from California.........
Anyway, I fell in love with the pattern; it's a lovely explosion of colour and i'm not usually a floral kinda lady but this was screaming for my attention :)

Welcome to Lalor

A couple weeks back we decided the weather was lovely and so took a stroll around picturesque Lalor :)

Grand Finale Day........

Sorry...... I'm a slack bitch. I still haven't managed to learn a little bit of photoshop to crop off the top of the picture. Oh well!

Yeah I know i'm posing, but it's a tres cool shot, non?

Taken today whilst stumbling out of a pub and down Johnstone St, Collingwood. Could not be fagged watching the remainder of the Grand Final....... too boring, no Collingwood :)

Tomorrow, we're venturing out again to Parklife. Soooooo excited to hear PEACHES!@#$#$!#!!!#@!? and Plump Dj''s and Van She, but especially Peaches.... ooooooh yeah. And soo loving this beautiful springy/summery weather. I swear, as soon as the weather turns all warm and light I become a completely new person.

Don't Ban the Can..........

I spent pretty much all day saturday at 'Don't Ban the Can' in Melbourne. What a kick ass day. I saw people I hadn't seen in years. I wish I had taken more pictures, but when there's beer involved my brain goes on holiday !@#@?

A Blast From My Past.................

1. We're having a bit of a spring clean here today. The object is to get all the books and magazines in one place, have 2 piles -
3. 1- keep
4. 2-donate
6. It's going well but we get sidetracked finding stuff like the toy in the picture. I've had this since I was a kid in the early 70's - Isn't it cute!!!

Saturday Morning Goodies...................

I woke up bright and early this morning - 7.30am!! My man and I decided to get out there early, get the weekend paper etc.....

So we came home with these 3 beauties.......

Pomegranate Juice from the Middle Eastern grocery store......... YUM!! - on the label it says "veni, vedi, vici" - I'm pretty sure Julius Ceasar said that and translated it means: "I came, I saw, I conquered" Correct me if I'm wrong though.

Richmond Lager - which is a limited release from Carlton United Breweries - How cool is the label? - I guess this will appeal to Richmond Tigers fans - it tastes a lot like Victoria Bitter to me.

Natural Coconut Oil - from the new Pacific Islander shop which opened 2 days ago - they had some cooked taro in their bain marie - it smelled divine- I've never tried taro, but I will next time I go there - anyway, this coconut oil is great for your skin as a moisturiser and for hair too - when I try it on my hair I'll do a post.

Roomy...............

I just had a photographer over at my place taking shots for the Dec edition of Vogue Living Australia. I wish!!!!!! Actually, she was taking shots for a property evaluation, but we had fun chatting as I was helping her move things around for the shots and she complimented the clash of colours I have going in the bedroom - to my delight.

I asked her about lighting- which is my main problem when it comes to photography - and she says get yourself acquainted with Photoshop. My man has been telling me this for ages - now I have no excuse!

My room normally looks more vibrant than the above shots suggest and I would like everyone to know that I am not responsible for the colour of the walls :)

The Orange and Pink floral pillow case comes from an op-shop in Mt.Waverley about 5 years ago.

The Kartell Unit used to belong to a friends' grandmother.

Green Belt Post..........

Here's a close-up of the belt from the previous post. This is really for Annie of Annie's Spandex http://anniespandex.com/ because she asked!

A Spring In My Step.......

What a beautiful day!!!

Now it finally feels like spring I thought an outfit post necessary.

I bought these little blue leather shoes last week for under $5 from an op-shop. I remember when these were out in the 80's. The brand is "bon-bons" and I wouldn't have been caught dead wearing them back in the day because they were not from a store named "Succhi". I adored that place and wish it was still in existence or better yet, I had kept even one pair of shoes from there. Maybe one day a pair will pop up at a market, ebay or op-shop. One can only hope!@#

The belt comes from an op-shop a few years back - It's made in Western Germany, the belt buckle is made using a process called decoupage - where you find a groovy picture then proceed to cover it with layers of laquer. I've never tried it myself - requires some patience waiting for the layers to dry.

The skirt was originally an A-Line wrap around, I stitched the ends together then added elastic around the waist.

The tie-dyed 'Freda' top, you've seen in previous posts and quite possibly will see again.

Black Wrap Around Top - from my friend Carolina who purchased it from 'Marks and Spencer'

Blue Shoes - 'Bon Bons' Op - Shop

Necklace -A beautiful silver Owl necklace from my man for my birthday last week. You cannot see but I will try and capture a clear image for a future post with the rest of my birthday swag.

Tina Cuteness :)

This is what I have to contend with when I get on the pc. How does one type between tummy tickles?!!

Fringe Benefits Or My best Benny Hill Impression....

As you can see I have cut myself a fringe. I finally feel like I have a 'proper' hair-do although it could be annoying trying to maintain it as my hair is very very curly naturally but i'll see how it goes.

Now for the benefits. The pic on the right is the haberdashery swag I got yesterday. My partner works for an huge textiles/crafts company and every so often they have clearance sales for employees where you fill up a bag for $5. There's at least $300 worth retail so it's pretty sweet. And just in case you were wondering - No, we were together before he got the job there :p

Jacket: Adidas Japan Soccer ( I was wearing this the other night when Aus lost to Japan at the Olympics - I felt kinda bad for not being nationalistic- but that only lasted a few seconds.

Silk Painting

Last Sunday I went to Spotlight and returned with a small piece of silk - they didn't have any suitable white or cream available - hence the dull bronze shade - to practice on. It's similar to painting with watercolours. I just used an embroidery hoop which is perfect for keeping the silk taut. The outline is 'gutta' which allows the paint to stay within the lines without bleeding out. The sea salt is for producing a type of marbling effect. I have plans for this which i'm not divulging - you'll just have to wait! hehehe :)

Self-Portrait

It is so cold here in sunny ol' Melbourne that I have been in the habit lately of donning this pink beret. It's practical for sure but I feel a lot like Rembrandt in one of his self-portraits, (there's one in particular that my Grandparents had a copy of that terrified me as a child and my cousins and I would always take it off the wall before sleep) or else I feel a lot like that Che revolutionary dude. Whilst being aware that berets are currently trendy and not giving a toss, I still can't shake that artiste/revolutionary wanker association. And when I'm out in public I almost want to apologise or tape an explanatory note to myself.

Glassy

I've had a yukky flu for a while, but I'm back now.


Now I don't pretend for a second that I'm a photographers butt.... but, I really liked these items together. I am a bird nut for those who haven't noticed from previous posts and if there's such a thing as reincarnation then I have definitely been a bird in a former life.

Warning..... contents may horrify.....

Okay, forget about the jeans - i'm trying to. The blouse is from Valleygirl and once again, I love it. The top half is red satin with tiny white dots and ties up in front to make a pussy bow which isn't quite visible in the picture.

Tomorrow i'm embarking on a hen's day/night for my cousin. I'm looking forward to getting extra dolled up and lots of silliness with the girls - yay! So I will post the ensuing madness when I'm sober - yikes - I hope I remember to drink lots of water in between cocktails.

In the interim I have this great book "On Becoming a Woman" written for teenage girls by a bloke in 1960 something. His name is Harold Shryock, M.A., M.D. he's a doctor so he knows exactly what he's crappin' on about. It's in top condition, I doubt it has ever been read - shock horror! Imagine being given this as a teenager. According to the author, imaginative literature is a time waster, but get this: masturbation is frowned upon and should the need arise, a young woman can see a christian doctor and have a circumcision!!!!! WTF? The top image is taken from the book. You know you wanna get it :p