Friday, May 21, 2010

Friday Fashion Feature

Goodness me the week has just flown by for me!

I would have appreciated a few more spare hour to devote to writing but alas, the fates have denied me.

As such, here is this Friday’s Fashion Feature – short and sweet.

Circa Vintage is an amazing store I discovered when visiting Melbourne. Whenever I fly down, I like to visit Fitzroy, which is home to Melbourne's bohemian culture. Its streets contain an edgy mix of alternative, artistic and trendy elements.

You can experience the thrill of the hunt yourself & revel in the sweet, sweet clothes all sparkly, clean and lovingly displayed at 102 Gertrude Street in Fitzroy.

Here are some amazing pieces displayed at a recent exhibition of vintage swimwear from the late ’20s to the ’70s  - oh to live in Melbourne!





That's all!

Sianne

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Oh google, you never let me down!

This morning I was searching online for 'two random old ladies' with a facebook message to my best friend in mind & what came up in the images? Pure gold, go Arnie!

More random google searches are in order...

Just wanted to share x
The bulging muscles of Mr Arnold Schwarzenegger
Sianne

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Solution to a bad hair day

Surely I can't be the only person subject to the stress of terribly misbehaved hair... this morning I slept in with only 15 minutes to get ready & fly out the door - lets just say my hair refused to cooperate so a 'plan b' was required.
Whenever this happens, fortunately it's not a frequent occurrence, I'm faced with the predicament of which is more important, food, make-up, underwear or hair. Going without any of the former is less than ideal but when it comes to hair there are at least a few ways to fashionably disguise the issue!
Sometimes I opt for an oversized bow, or a cute scarf but my preference is of course a hat.

A bit too much for work, yes, but purrrfect for a day out!

Take note of the striped 50's fabric turban

Loretta Young in a gorgeous hat with flowers

Now if only I could justify a more significant investment in my hat collection!

Sianne

Friday, May 14, 2010

Friday Fashion Feature

This week I have chosen to feature an Etsy store, rather than just a specific product, the store is called Whichgoose and the products are absolutely adorable!

What does whichgoose sell? Mega cute accessories, most of which feature flowers & leaves and all that romantic stuff as well as home decor through another Etsy site. These pieces are more for the brave fashionista, you'll be sure to get a lot of looks!

The creator of all these magnificent vintage inspired floral accessories is a 27-year-old gone with the wind lover who recently left her job as a graphic designer to make crowns on Etsy full-time - I'm very glad she did.

I thoroughly recommend taking a look around on the site, I'm still deciding which pieces I want to buy... the buttery fly hair comb has stolen my heart.


Daisy chain crown priced at $50

Cocoon butterfly hair comb priced at $30

Pink lace hair piece

Pink lace close-up

'Til next time x Sianne


Thursday, May 13, 2010

Vintage Fashion

Check out this beautiful outift! Shoes, hat, gloves,dress and flowing cape are all stunning.

Model in Paisley Dress and Coat by Balenciaga, 1954

 
Sianne

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Gnomes & my Grandmother

 Over the weekend I visited my 85 year old Grandmother, Dot (or chook), in Albury NSW. My Grandmother is a notorious gardener and home maker. She has an immaculate rose garden as well a collection of ferns, lavender plants & assorted flowering wonders that I can never get to thrive in my garden. I assure myself this is due to the climate difference (of course), what else could it be? Lack of love & attention? Of course it’s not!

Amongst the teaspoons, dinner sets, birthday cards & antique porcelain birds that fill her house, my Grandmother likes to collect (of all things) - garden gnomes. It’s creepy, I know!
Since I was small I’ve always found these little ceramic creatures a little off-putting – now I find them rather cute – though I could never bring myself to own such a vast assortment (or be outside at night with the little buggers). Her sole reason for keeping all these beasties are that they're gifts, "Sianne, what would I say if Cathy came around & it wasn't on display any longer?".
Goodness me, if I had to keep & display every gift I'd have a collection of el cheapo candle holders to rival any other, as a "Gen Y'er" I tend to get away with a lot of re-gifting & garbage tossing.

Just a bit of history, garden gnomes originate in Gräfenroda, in Germany, the little-men-in-hats design is based on local myths as a way for people to enjoy the stories of the gnomes' willingness to help in the garden at night. The garden gnome quickly spread across Germany & into France and England, & wherever gardening was a serious hobby. Some people took to their collecting with a little too much vigor & modern lore’s tell of gnome attacks. God forbid!

Nowadays, you can not only buy your gnomes in home & garden stores, but also online (or see eBay or Google). There are sites for advise on selecting, collecting, repairing, catching (creepy!), accessorizing & of course the proper care involved in looking after a garden gnome. One of the more interesting articles I’ve read recently was about gnoming – which involves the theft of garden gnomes for the alleged purpose of returning the inanimate garden gnomes "to the wild”... you should most definitely look it up if you're in for a laugh!

I wanted to give you a glimpse of the little critters my Grandmother has lurking in her garden & which one day I will inevitably inherit at least a few of. Here’s hoping you aren’t as disturbed as I was when I started to count them up! (I stopped counting at 60, Germany stopped counting at 25 million country-wide).

So here are a few of my favourites from the garden, may I be quite clear that there were plenty that missed out on the relentless flash of the camera...


1st set of Snow White and the seven dwarves
Gnomes around the ferns

Gnomes in a shoe!

2nd set of Snow White and the seven dwarves

Solar powered light gnome

Gnomes on the garden edge


There are a few more stories to tell from my trip to the country and plenty more pictures to share, but they can wait for another day!

Until next time,

Sianne

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Vintage Fix: American Vintage

For the ladies and gents out there with a flair for all things old, you're going to adore this site.

Ahhhh, American Vintage!

The gents for once don’t miss out on vintage goodness, as you can find everything from themed shirts (aloha/bowling/western), ties, suits, lounge sets, leather jackets, suit jackets, hats, belts, shoes, braces, glasses & so much more!

Ladies out there are of course catered to with dresses, hats & accessories galore (the usual really) categorised by era and all very reasonably priced.

Personally I’m going through a circa 1930’s – mid 40’s phase at the moment and am always interested in a handmade frock. Unfortunately American Vintage do sell some very tasteless garments that need lots of TLC, a good press and a few shots of Vodka to look decent – you can however find a lot of gems.

My preffered garments come from the 1920's - 1940's dresses section...







Hope you enjoy browsing as much as I do!

Sianne

Thursday, May 6, 2010

Jen's Cookies: Gluten Free Online!

Jen’s Cookies is one of my favourite brands to buy in store (currently I find them at my local IGA) but I have since discovered a much wider range online – love!

The melting moments treats are simply divine, not dry at all from my personal tasting experience. What I love most about Jen’s is that you don’t need to buy in bulk or pay an excessive delivery/transaction fee.

You can view the range here, from cookies to cupcakes, muesli’s and puddings – there are also savouries which I have yet to try.






If you know of other brands available online that taste decent, please send me a link as I’m always on the hunt for more gluten free goodies to sample!

Sianne

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Red Wagon 50's recreations

1950’s recreation eat your heart out!

Red Wagon wall art is incredibly, ridiculously cute!
The below pictures are stunning on a 75cm round high quality canvas & would make a fantastic feature to any vintage lovers home.






You can also find storybook pendants, placemats (or mouse pads), sock monkeys & much, much more. I could droll over their site for hours.

Red Wagon sells online as well as through a number of carefully selected stockists around Australia.

I'm planning on using their ultra cute wares for a number of Christmas presents this year!

Sianne