Pages

  • Home
  • About Me
  • Favourite Reads
  • Contact

Monday, September 29, 2014 Weekend Snapshots: Exiting hermit mode

University work has been ruling my life recently. Which means total hermit mode. But this weekend I decided to give myself a breather. I needed to... This sister-to-ginger was going a lil insane! So here are a few photos that I collected along the way. Melbourne is so pretty at this time of year - I'm a total winter gal at heart (weirdo), but I can't deny the power that a little bit of sunshine has to completely lift ya mood :D xx


Sunday, September 7, 2014 Weekend Snapshots: When Kanye comes to Melbourne...


My bed time, on an average night, would be at approximately 1-2am. And that's only because I usually FORCE myself to turn off my laptop or put down my book and go to sleep... I am a night owl, what can I say? And so when I tell you that it's currently 9.15pm as I write this and that I'm struggling to keep my eyes open... that's saying something. Put simply, it's an indication of what a jam-packed weekend we've had. From birthday dinners, to football finals, to going-away parties, to baking, to shopping, to "Kanye Westivals" (Kanye is coming to Melbourne, and Melbourne is celebrating).. it was a good one :) I just wanted to post up a few pics before I lay my weary head down to rest. And to say, as always, hope you all had a fab weekend xx






Wednesday, September 3, 2014 Weekend Trip to the "Country"

We spent last weekend in Mount Macedon with a group of old friends who I went to school with (and their partners). We think it's technically classified as "rural", but it's really only a half hour/fourty minute drive from the CBD so it certainly didn't feel very rural. But anyway, it was lovely! The partners had actually organised it, so it was a surprise for (most of) us ladies, so that was an added bit of excitement. 

The property was really nice - it came with its own private golf course and tennis court.. so it was perfect for anyone who is into either of those things. Which I'm not. But it was still perfect. And we were so so SO lucky with the weather - beautiful and sunny and warm on both days. I even got a little bit sunburnt... it was technically still winter! I think that's a first for me.



So there are just a few snaps from the weekend. There weren't all that many photo opportunities because I basically just lay on a picnic blanket eating cheese all weekend... xx



Tuesday, August 26, 2014 Recent Matters...



#1 
I saw this photo this afternoon, and started grinning from ear to ear. For multiple reasons, really. It got me thinking about the word "feminist" and its place in today's world. I don't know if this is just my own personal experience, but I believe there has been a shift happening, even within the past couple of years. I recall in my first year sociology class, about 4 or 5 years ago now, when we had to go around the classroom and explain whether we thought of ourselves as a feminist. I remember most responses being along the lines of "I wouldn't call myself a feminist per se, but I definitely believe in equality".

For a few decades now, I think we have been made to believe that "feminist" is a dirty world - something excessively confronting, aggressive, extreme, and wildly unattractive. A person could believe in all that feminist ideology stood for, whatever branch of feminism that may be, but still feel uncomfortable with claiming the feminist title. But I think there has been some sort of change in the attitudes towards the word within the past couple of years. I think feminism is not only starting to become more accepted, but also encouraged. Even (dare I say it?)cool. 

Just little things, like Beyonce's statement, are working to shake off the stereotypes. Beyonce is sensual, feminine, straight, a leg-shaver, intelligent, polite and a feminist. You can be any type of woman, or person, and still be a feminist. I only hope that it doesn't stay at a superficial level - where it's simply cool to say "I'm a feminist". Because we all know that trends don't last long.






#2
Fruit for breakfast, yeh? Notice the tick of approval for "No Artificial Flavours"... how lenient are these claims, exactly? And for $2? That shit should be illegal. Does anyone else suffer from grocery shopping anxiety? This has only been a recent development for me, but since learning more about what actually goes into our food, I simply don't trust anything (neurotic much?). I basically ignore all the claims on the front of the packages now, and look for the ingredients list... it's actually quite scary how many "healthy" things have lots of little nasties in them. And then you think, OK, I'll just stick mainly to the fruits and veg.. but we're also quickly learning more about what these fruits and veggies are being sprayed and poked with. It's all a little overwhelming.






#3
I've been doing Sex and the City marathons over the past week or so. I did a long one back in my early uni days, and for some strange reason I've decided to re-watch them all. I don't even particularly like the show, I think it's just easy and relatively pleasant to watch. But it's simply amazing how quickly technology has changed even since this show was made, which really doesn't feel like that long ago. They talk about getting "the email" for the first time, whether they would ever do "online shopping", and when no one shows up at Carrie's birthday dinner, they can't reach her to tell her why because SHE DOESN'T HAVE A MOBILE PHONE. I was also thinking, if they made the show today, Carrie would totally be a blogger, not a column-writer. The way she writes belongs in the blogging world, as opposed to the newspaper world - it's way too personal for print publication.

Photo Sources: BeyonceCarrie

Friday, August 22, 2014 DIY: Stencil Wall Art





We're in the slow process of filling up the walls of our apartment. I knew that I wanted something a bit more 'personal' on the blank wall above our bed, and when I came across this on A Beautiful Mess I knew that I wanted to do something along those lines. Then I saw this photo on The Minimalist Baker's Instagram account, I loved the phrase and this idea immediately popped into my head.


It's so easy to do, and I think it looks pretty effective (if I do say so myself). And the best part? You can write whatever the heck you want on it.. The alphabet world is your oyster!



If you're interested in giving it a go, here's how I did it:


Step 1: Collect supplies. I bought the print for about $12 from a cheapo knickknack store down the road. I was walking past the shop the other day and saw all these old-fashioned prints lined up in the window, and I thought it would be a good contrast to the 'Heart and Hustle' line.. particularly the 'hu$tle' part. I also like the bright colours, which I thought would help to make the black lettering stand out. 


Materials used:






Step 2: Remove Picture from frame.. this was actually a nightmare and I ended up cutting my thumb and it bled A LOT.. but soldier on people!


Step 3: Position letter onto painting. I used blu-tack to help keep them in place.




Step 4: Trace outline of letters using a pencil. Once I did this I removed the stencils just to take sure that it all looked OK, before moving on to using the permanent marker... If you're more daring, you can skip this step.


Step 5: Let's make this permanent-marker-official


Step 6: Remove stencils, put back the frame, kiss your sore thumb better, and admire your work!




I actually gave this to George for our three year anniversary. We don't usually do anything to celebrate our anniversaries, but he ended up cooking me a beautiful dinner so I just wanted to do a little something in return. 


Sunday, August 17, 2014 Weekend Snapshots: Cats, Grapefruits and Galleries









 






Credit:


Cat: Neighbour's

Grapefruit and Coffee : All mine

Homemade Pizza: Heaven