Fifties Fever

Antique Fair swagger

2012-01-05T14:30:00.000+11:00

Before we went on holidays (and that reminds me, I still need to do a holiday photo post), I went to the local Antique Fair in town. It was a fateful day that can best be described using dot points (so as not to bore you):

♥ I drove the FC to get fuel, before hitting up a local church fête for some home-made sponge cake and tomato sauce.

♥ But... the FC broke down at the service station. A lovely young chap helped me push her away from the bowsers and into a parking spot.

♥ While pushing the FC, I lost a very integral button on my 1960s tunic dress :(

♥ I messaged my dad and said "Guess what? The old girl has done it again", then trundled off to the Antique Fair instead (thank gosh it's a small town)

♥ I snapped up the below items before my dad arrived to look at the beast.

♥ He thought the starter motor had blown, so I left the FC in his capable hands, then stole Mum's car and went to get my sponge cake and tomato sauce.

♥ But there was only fruit cake left (yuck!), so I came away with just two bottles of sauce.

♥ Dad and my brother had to tow-start the poor FC down the main street of town, which was quite a spectacle.

♥ The new starter motor cost me over $150, which balances out the $20 I spent buying the 3 canisters, some baby items (don't read too much into it) and two bottles of sauce.

Short but sweet

2011-12-29T09:39:00.001+11:00

[Are you all Xmas-ed out? I'm a bit of a humbug this time of year, so there'll be no Xmas posts from me.]

What a productive day! As well as doing a whole lotta work today, I also managed to confirm our wedding date, our venue and accommodation (thankfully in the one spot), and our photographer.

Our photographer was a no-brainer... she's the sister of one of our best mates, and her work is amazing. Plus, she is super crafty... she made the handbag I'm sporting too! But do you think I could capture a photo with the bag entirely in view? Heck no!

P.S. I look grumpy because straight after these photos I had to start carting lucerne bales in from the paddock and into the hayshed before the rain hit. Four tough, sweaty, dirty hours in an old 1960s truck? I don't think so.

dress - BeauMondeVintage

bag - Steph Lee

ballet flats - DeBonisOrquera
vintage Omega watch - gift

Foy's Catalogue, Autumn-Winter 1938

2011-12-19T11:04:00.000+11:00

Once in a lifetime

2011-12-13T19:37:00.000+11:00

One of the sad things about living in the 21st century but loving the mid-20th century is knowing that you'll never be able to experience some of the big things from the past that you love. Seeing the Beatles live in concert? Watching man's first step on the moon in '69? Seeing The Blob at the drive-ins in a chrome-covered car with your beau? Not gonna happen.

This is why I am so amazed at what I am about to tell you.

We are seeing The Platters AND The Drifters live in concert. THE PLATTERS AND THE DRIFTERS! Sure, they're all missing an original band member, but who cares? March 22nd, 2012 will never come around quick enough.

To get the chance to see the bands that sang "The Great Pretender", "My Prayer", "Only You" (The Platters), "Under the Boardwalk" and "Save the Last Dance" (The Drifters) is one of those mind blowing moments, for me at least, that takes a while to sink in.

So right now just excuse me as I jump around and dance to sweet early doo-wop tunes.

FYI - Melbournites can see The Platters and The Drifters on March 23rd at Crown

1970s Norman Hartnell

2011-12-12T09:54:00.000+11:00

How amazing is this dress? Actually, I think it might be a dressing gown or house dress, but stuff it, I'll wear it out in public. It's too awesome to keep cooped up inside the house.

I don't believe I have ever received so many compliments on a garment before - I even had people stopping me on the street. Lots of people assumed it was from Japan, so there were some shocked faces when I said it was actually from Britain, designed by the Royal Dressmaker, Norman Hartnell.

Oh yeah, and I sacrificed buying Christmas presents to buy this sucker. Oops. That probably puts me on Santa's naughty list, right?

Norman Hartnell dress - Mill Markets, Geelong

Heels - ASOS

Kanzashi (Japanese hair ornament) - theastarr

Paris et son Metro

2011-12-09T07:49:00.000+11:00

I was feeling particularly girly the day I wore this outfit. Each item is something that I haven't really worn in a while, as I'm trying to 'shop my wardrobe' instead of buying new clothes. But I am buying new clothes too (come on, who could give that up?).

The scarf is my absolute favourite, and it was a gift from a workmate. She found it in an antique hall in country Victoria, and I'm so glad she thought of me when she spotted it. I love the pattern - the Parisian train network, complete with famous landmarks.

skirt - ASOS

petticoat - thrifted

cardigan - Friends of Couture

vintage scarf - a gift from a workmate

wedges - Review

sunglasses - Topshop

American Graffiti at the Drive-In

2011-12-05T17:17:00.001+11:00

Ever since I saw American Graffiti for the first time, I have dreamt of watching the movie at the drive-ins, with my beau on a benchseat in a classic car. And what do you know, it actually happened!

Fuel Magazine organised a screening of the classic film last Saturday night. I drove J and myself up in the FC, and our friend C drove his Monaro. We were expecting some classic cars there, but we certainly weren't prepared for the 100+ classic cars and hotrods that turned up for the screening! We arrived just before the gates opened at 7pm, and the queue was already down the driveway, out onto the street and around the corner! The FC played nice for the most part - there was a short period where the brakes seized up and it was a real hassle driving into the joint with the brakes on constantly, but they freed up after a while once we parked.

We ended up all watching the movie inside the FC, and seeing as the old girl doesn't have a working radio, we had to bring a little portable CD player with batteries so we could tune into the audio! Obviously we weren't there to watch the movie, as it's our fave movie of all time... we were there for the atmosphere, and gosh, it didn't disappoint!

I only wish that the drive-in was closer to us (it's an hour and a half drive for us), and played more classic movies - I would just love to see The Blob on the big screen.

(below images from jimtz on flickr)

(below images from vanstrapp on flickr)

Topazery.com review

2011-11-29T15:25:00.000+11:00

Normal readers: ignore this post. When we were hunting for an engagement ring online, we really struggled finding decent reviews and feedback from some online stores, so I figured this was the best way to get our review out there... The Google crawler will pick it up eventually so other would-be shoppers can find it!

Background

We ended up going through Topazery.com because of we both felt it was THE ring. I was initially a bit suss about their legal agreement - there are some very specific clauses in there regarding returns and refunds that might cause you to raise an eyebrow. Also the lack of feedback online was worrying, thus why I'm writing this now.

Cost

Any international orders from Topazery are slugged an extra "special processing fee" which is 3.5% of the order cost, plus an extra $7.50 "transaction fee". I suspect that they use the "special processing fee" to cover the high costs of international couriering, as I doubt the US$55 postage they charge covers it. Honestly, it'd be better if they upped their postage costs than charge this random fee on top of postage.

Communication

They were quite prompt with replying to my queries. I first asked if they offer holds/laybuys, and was told they didn't. I then queried the wording of their shipping information - it wasn't clear whether they posted 7-10 business days after receiving the order, or 7-10 business after the payment cleared. Turns out it's the former, not the latter - I received all replies within 24 hours.

Payment

It took 5 working days for my payment to clear from my Australian credit card account into their merchant account. They shipped the ring the following day.

Postage

Our order was posted via FedEx, and the tracking was amazing. As the ring was over Australia's $1,000 limit for duty and GST, we had to pay extra so the ring could clear Customs. I waited until the tracking information displayed "package ready for clearance", then called up FedEx and paid the duty and GST over the phone with a credit card. The parcel cleared Customs that same day (a Sunday, mind you). As we weren't going to be home to sign for the delivery, I called the FedEx customer hotline and chose to authorise the driver to leave the parcel at our address (hidden somewhere of course). The other option was to reschedule delivery, but we work full time so no workday would suit. The parcel was delivered on the predicted delivery date, five days after being posted.

The ring

We knew the ring was about 1.5 sizes too small, so we took a chance that our jeweller would be able to enlarge it. They couldn't say for certain without actually seeing the ring in person. Topazery.com offer their own resizing service, but I was a little uncertain as a) resized rings are not returnable, and b) I've seen some variation in ring size conversion charts across the internet, and I felt it would be safer for it to be resized here. We had no trouble getting it resized in Australia, but we did have to find a specialist who worked with (and stocked enough) palladium.

All in all, it was a success and we would buy from Topazery.com again!

Once upon a time...

2011-11-28T08:50:00.001+11:00

Once upon a time there was a girl who lost the urge to blog for a good many moons, and to dress in all her fancy, ladylike clothes. She rode out the boring months in trackpants and jeans, all the while feeling a little down and out. She went on an overseas holiday, and was proposed to by the man of her dreams, then discovered the blogging itch had returned! This is my story...

We are only four days back from sunny Vanuatu, which was just wonderful. But that's another blog post.

Today we had a family shindig on J's side, then we wined and dined with my family, and showed them all our fabulous photos of paradise. To tell you the truth, I'm getting a little sick of talking about our holiday, but what can you do?

And you see, I dyed my hair. It's a coppery colour at the roots, gradating down to a dark brown at the ends. That's what you get when you're too scared to bleach out the existing black hair dye! I love it nonetheless, and J has nicknamed me Coppertop, which is a much better nickname than what he was calling me previously (Raz-dog... urgh, how horrible is that!)

cardigan - Alannah Hill (I just knew I shouldn't have walked into the store on the day I bought this cardi... who could say no to a red cardi with bows and sparkles? Nobody, that's who).

blouse - ASOS

black underthing - Kiss Me Deadly Vargas girdle dress

skirt - thrifted

velvet ballet flats - ASOS

Dum, dum de-dum

2011-11-10T10:23:00.000+11:00

Finally for once I have exciting news... I am going to be a Mrs! J proposed last Friday afternoon with a beautiful 1930s palladium, ruby and diamond ring.

Twasn't the most traditional of proposals - I was well aware of every step in the process, as we bought it online from the States - but it was a shock when he proposed in the doorway of our house just an hour after he got it home from being resized at the jewellers.

Other news:

♥ We are off to Vanuatu in two days (heck yes - twelve days of lounging around in swimwear with a cocktail in my hand)

♥ The FC broke down AGAIN. This time the starter motor blew at the service station. My awesome dad has already fixed it.

♥ I bought more canisters at a local antique fair. And some vintage baby stuff. Photos to come.

♥ Our shed is being produced. We should have the materials by December, but we have to wait until harvesting is finished (end of January, usually) for my brother to return so we can erect it.

♥ We spotted our first snake in the paddock... a four foot brown. Time to start wearing gumboots and carrying shovels.

♥ Fred and Ginger are back home with me after recovering from their mulesing.

That's pretty much it, really. No wedding date set yet, but perhaps March 2013. So now, forgive the blogging silence for a few more weeks while we frolic in the sun.

My week in instagram

2011-10-12T13:32:00.000+11:00

They finally aired the episode of Spicks and Specks that I was an audience member of. I even have one of the question cards. See Adam Hills on the telly? He's ticking the answers off that are on my card!

I love the front of the card too - I want to get it framed, but I would like to display both sides somehow.

My new ASOS red velvet ballet flats. The huge bows remind me of Minnie Mouse.

I pulled this old gem out - my Tatty Devine dinosaur necklace. A birthday gift from Mum for my 18th I think. Or perhaps it was my 21st? Not sure.

What a nifty idea - tying six glass bottles together with twine to form a lovely table centerpiece. Spotted at Fuel, a new cafe near work. I want to recreate this at home.

Stacks of vintage books at the Mill Markets. Twine must be all the rage right now.

My ridiculously expensive vaccine I need for our Vanuatu trip. I nearly fell over when the pharmacist said $130. That's nearly three weeks rent for me! It's for Typhoid and Hep A, if you're interested.

My new Barbie coloured nails, and the print on my 1960s house dress.

Shopping trip swagger

2011-10-09T08:43:00.001+11:00

Yesterday was the annual local tennis club's shopping trip. For those of you who have never been on a shopping trip, it requires about 50 country ladies, a bus, a verrrry eary morning start, 7-10 factory outlets, a lot of delicious food and general good times. I was feeling a little poorly, so to compensate I wore my newish-to-me 1960s house dress. I like to think the bright colours fooled people into believing I was more chipper than I actually was. Well, until I opened my mouth to speak and they heard my croaky voice.

dress - TheArborVitae

stripe tee - kmart

belt - eBay

leggings - factorie

velvet flats - ASOS

I didn't buy a great deal of stuff - mainly things I needed like kitchenware. This set of four ceramic mixing bowls was $10, a bargain in my books. Lots of ladies grabbed a set.

Ceramic frying pan (so we don't ingest any icky non-stick chemicals) was $20, the glass quiche dish was $7, the glass lasagna dish was $11.50, and the wheat heat pack was $5 (great for people with broken bodies like me).

A new hoodie from Russell Athletic - a bit of a splurge at $40, but I wear the one I bought last year all the time. Never mind my lounge pants and general slothliness. I have what I suspect is laryngitis, and Dr. Google agrees with me. I'm seeing a proper doctor tomorrow though.

And no matter what I do, Blogger keeps displaying this image on its side. I've changed it on my PC, renamed it, copied and pasted it into Paint, rotated it in Photobucket... whatever, I give up! It's a Diana Ferrari dress, marked down from $160 to $36. Bargain with a capital B.

All up I spent only $109, but as a group our busload of ladies spent over $12,600! Ten percent of that money goes back into the tennis club too, so our spending helps keep the tennis club afloat. I'm off now to sleep on the couch, play a little Portal 2, and try to refrain from coughing up a lung. I'm pretty sure I need both of em.

Cooking with radiation

2011-10-07T13:00:00.000+11:00

A few new acquisitions at work for the Special Collections area. Pretty self explanatory, I think. Except for some reason the scanner didn't pick up the words "Recipe Book" on the second image. Strange.

This boring life

2011-10-03T10:11:00.000+11:00

You know your life is boring when you are struggling for blog post content. Apologies. Here, I'll make up for it in quick succession:

♥ My last parcel from etsy arrived, but it took 6 weeks to arrive, and in that time I lost weight so now the two dresses are way too big for me. They're on eBay along with some other vintage if you're interested. Half price shipping for Aussie blog followers :)

♥ The Cats won the AFL Grand Final, wooo! I watched it with a friend and her newborn bub. The boys got very messy and I had to deliver them to their beds at 3am.

♥ We are off to Vanuatu is in less than 6 weeks! I was planning on proposing to J there, but I think he might have the same idea. We've picked a beautiful 1930s ring, but money is tight, so we're praying it doesn't sell before we can scrounge up the funds.

♥ I'm doing the 30 Day Shred. In five days I've lost five inches. I highly recommend it, but it's not for the fainthearted. The first couple of days are painful.

♥ Fred and Ginger are doing their mama proud, and are now out in the paddock with Mary and Brando, eating their big-kid grass. That also means less feeds a day, which this mama loves.

♥ The planning permit for our new shed is ready to be approved. J cannot wait to have his six-car "man cave".

♥ I'm tossing up between dying my hair firetruck red, or going a natural-looking chocolaty dark brown. Tough decisions here.

I think that's about it. My days have been very boring - up at 5am, exercise, go to work, come home from work, eat tea, asleep by 8pm. Thrilling, huh?

Gangsters' Ball 2011

2011-09-20T08:39:00.000+10:00

What a weekend.

I nearly forgot the tickets (thankfully C reminded me when we were filling up with fuel near home).

I forgot my dress. Oh yes, the most important thing. My lovely mum drove halfway to Melbourne to deliver it to me.

Because of the dress shenanigans, we missed out on eating delicious, authentic Chinese noms in Chinatown. Although J and C did pick up some lovely vegetarian frittatas for dinner from a cafe down the road.

The Victoria Hotel was wonderful as always.

Parking a very large car in an inner city multi-storey carpark is what nightmares are made of. I was so certain I was scratching every single panel trying to drive up and down the narrow ramps.

To be honest, J and I were a little disappointed in the Ball itself. Reasons?

- The MC was vulgar and classless (although, he could twirl a mean Diabolo)
- The drinks were ridiculously expensive ($9.50 for a tiny champagne, $14.50 for a spirit)
- There was less variety in the performances (most performers performed twice to fill the lineup, whereas last year most only performed once) and music (last year they played a great mix of 20s-50s tunes… this year, there were only two 50s songs for the rock’n’roll dance comp)
- There were hardly any ladies in real vintage, and even more ladies than last year mistaking Moulin Rouge stripper wear for 1920s-50s fashion. I don’t need to see the folds in your cleavage or your ass, thank you very much.

The positives though?

- The smaller turnout meant that queues for the bathrooms and bar were virtually non-existent, and we could always find a seat to rest our feets.
- The band, The B#s, were great.
- Gypsy Wood, the burlesque performer, was amazing. And enviable.
- The extraordinary drink prices meant we couldn't afford to get hangovers!
- My hair looked awesome (IIMSSM) and I got lots of compliments.

Apologies the pictures aren't great - I didn't take my DSLR because I was worried it might get stolen from the hotel room, so I took our point and shoot, which doesn't take the greatest non-natural light shots.

Pyrex. 1927.

2011-09-13T15:31:00.001+10:00

I love my job. And who knew Pyrex was so old? I certainly didn't. P.S. Sorry I cannot scan straight!

Keeping doctors in business

2011-09-10T20:45:00.002+10:00

I'm still sick, would you believe it? After two weeks post-cold still not feeling right, I went back to the doctors, to discover that I have a sinus, throat AND ear infection? That's the ENT trifecta.

Stuck on the couch, I've been watching a whoooooole lot of Sex and the City, and How I Met Your Mother, playing Smurf Village on the iPad and planning the perfect tropical island holiday wardrobe for our upcoming trip to Vanuatu. Damn wireless technology making instant splurges that much easier.

I promise some proper posts once I'm back on my feet. Next weekend is the Gangsters' Ball so I should hopefully have some decent snaps to share with you :) but until then, here's a couple of items I've bought:

1960s dress from TheArborVitae

Snow Berry court shoes from ASOS

The Sounds of Silence

2011-08-31T17:13:00.001+10:00

And my final lot of posts from the beautiful house around the corner. I upgraded from my lost voice, now I have two ear infections. So from vocal silence to near-audial silence. You'll have to excuse my lack of makeup too.

Anyhoo, this is my new 1940s dress from my spending spree. It fits perfectly and it's so comfortable. AND... J loves it! Hallelujah, I'm going to have to buy more slimline dresses. (His main complaint is that I tend to dress more like a cutesy 1950s teenager than a sexy 1950s woman.)

P.S. Does everyone else just love rayon as much as I do? So comfortable and it hangs so nicely.

1940s dress - wildfellhallvintage

shoes - out of shot, damnit! purple polkadot wedges if you use your imagination!

Silence is golden

2011-08-29T08:22:00.000+10:00

Silence is golden... well, for some it is! I've lost my voice. Apparently catching J's cold wasn't enough, I had to go and lose my voice too. Today I finally felt up to leaving the house in something other than a t-shirt and trackpants, so I guess that is progress.

I cannot believe the weather we're experiencing at the moment. It's still winter here, yet we have been blessed with warm, sunny days that I never want to stop. I sat and read some of the novel I've currently reading on the front porch of my neighbour's house while I was there feeding the elusive cat.

Also, I don't normally blog pictures of bathrooms, but this one is different. My neighbour's house only has an outhouse (that's an outside loo, fyi), but as my neighbour had a fall one night on her way to said outhouse, her doctor has requested they install a bathroom inside the house... and they are refusing! I don't know... I'd like the convenience of a nice warm bathroom on a rainy winter's night.

1940s dress - TMHL

apron - Spotlight

shoes - Airflex

belt - eBay

The Practical Handywoman

2011-08-26T12:45:00.000+10:00

Ever wanted to know how to plaster a wall or successfully join two pieces of wood? Thankfully a new book at work answers all these questions and more. Pity there aren't more pictures though (unless you like wood join diagrams.)

While the cat's away, the mice will play

2011-08-23T16:23:00.004+10:00

My elderly neighbours are frequent jetsetters, and when they're away, they enlist me to feed their cat. Despite feeding the little blighter for around a month over the past year, I have never seen him. Talk about elusive. As their property is so beautiful, I asked if I could take a few sets of outfit photos there this time round.

Their property is the same age as ours - established in the 1850s. The original bluestone house is incoporated into the newer weatherboard extension, and the gardens are so divine. They even have an old bluestone mill, river frontage and an airport! (My neighbour flies a little two-seater plane.) I have serious house envy.

dress - HinterlandVintage

belt - eBay

bracelet - a gift from a workmate who travelled to South Africa

headband - Diva

heels - Forever 21
(broken nail - courtesy of ripping out fences on Sunday)

Spending spree

2011-08-18T11:15:00.000+10:00

Old habits die hard, I guess. To cheer myself up after my study-induced stress-o-rama, I decided to give my credit card a bit of a flog. Here are snippets of what I bought (so as not to spoil the outfit post when they arrive, of course):

1940s rayon dress

1950s house dress

1970s check shirtwaist

6-12 month old pinafore (a gift for a girlfriend)

candy striped party straws and twine

This weekend is the Ballarat Vintage-A-Fair, and I am thinking if it is a nice sunny day, I might talk J into a leisurely drive there in the freshly-running FC. Knowing my luck it'll be a miserable, rainy day. (Dang, just checked the BoM and they are forecasting partly cloudy with a top of 14 degrees... brrrr. Trust Ballarat to hog all the wintry weather. )

Topsy turvy

2011-08-16T14:22:00.000+10:00

My life is in a bit of a hole at the moment. I have been hating study for a while now, and while I am usually quite good at bottling things up, this time the bubble burst. I have taken a year of 'leave of absence' and I'll reassess this time next year whether to continue my IT grad dip or not. Truth be told, I doubt I'll continue.

I was hoping that the stress would just wash away when I submitted my leave application, but it hasn't. I have a horrible headache and I feel sick to my stomach. Life is too short to be stressed about something so unimportant as study. So... let's focus on the good things in life, shall we?

kittens (source)

love (and/or candy) (source)

tea (source)

music (source)

the bush (source)

and of course, vintage! (source)

I promise to do a better post when I'm feeling physically and emotionally better. I'm off to take my doctor's advice, and have some tea and cheesecake. Yes, seriously, he prescribed panadol, a nanna nap, some cheesecake, and a trip to the movies with friends. Awww! Best medical advice ever.

Date me

2011-08-09T11:07:00.000+10:00

Can any vintage furniture aficionados take a guess at the age of these two ladies? I really wish I knew more about furniture. Both are on eBay, and both sellers have dated them - correctly or incorrectly, I'm hoping you ladies and gents can help me confirm!

Numero uno...

And the second...

The second one is by "Moderntone Furniture". Brand unknown for the first one. And in case you couldn't tell, I'm in the market for a cocktail bar or sideboard!

Saturday - a picture journey

2011-08-07T11:24:00.001+10:00

Boy, did I have a jam-packed Saturday. I love when you're expecting a rainy, miserable weekend, only to be surprised by glorious sunshine and not a cloud in the sky. So I made the most of it. Here is the picture story of my Saturday.

I rode to the nearest town to buy organic veggies and freshly baked bread at the farmers' market.

I stopped to admire our property (and rest for a while, because the hill is a killer!)

My little town was once beautiful, but it's being ruined slowly. The old town hall used to be lovely, until they painted it grey and installed fake grass.

The old train station is now a B&B. Sadly, trains don't stop here any more - actually, I don't think any passenger trains run on this line these days.

Mary had a nibble on my bike tyres.

J and I then drove down to Queenscliff for an afternoon of bike riding. We pedalled from the pier to halfway to Drysdale, along the Rail Trail.

The steam train chuffed past us at one point, and the driver tooted the horn and scared the bejeesus out of me, the cheeky devil.

We took a pitstop.

We swung by the Queenscliff train station for a gander.

And a photo op.

They really appreciate their history down there. This sign is so old it has a four digit phone number.

I have no idea what "chains" and "links" are in measurements.

I'd love to live in Queenscliff, but alas, it is definitely out of our price range.

We came home, exhausted but happy, and I snuggled up in bed with a book, and kitty spent ages attacking my origami geisha bookmark.

The end.

Tara Starlet

2011-08-05T08:54:00.000+10:00

Just when I impose an epic spending ban upon myself is when I discover beautiful dresses. I saw another blogger mention Tara Starlet on her blog, but now I cannot find who that blogger was.

I'm really loving all three of these dresses, especially the floral sweetheart dress. I need a new dress to wear to this year's Gangsters' Ball, and I'd like to wear something a bit more casual than the cocktail dress I wore last year so I can get more wear out of it. International shipping is very reasonable at only £8... but even still, ~AU$130 inc postage is a lot for me right now, thanks to my damn pesky cars. Honestly, every car I touch suddenly develops epic problems.

I am *this* close to buying the dress though. Maybe I should hang five and pray for a discount code?

Utility dress, £75.00

Lace collar dress, £65.00

Floral sweetheart dress, £85.00

Divine decedence

2011-07-30T10:48:00.003+10:00

Whaddaya know, I'm wearing vintage! You can all thank the genius that is Rogers and Hammerstein's The Sound of Music for putting me back in a vintage mood - it was on Foxtel last night, so kitty and I had a singalong. No matter how many times I watch that film, I always cry. You know the scene where Captain Von Trapp and Maria dance in the courtyard, and their eyes lock? Tears right there.

So anyway, I didn't do anything particularly special this morning - I just went to the nail studio to have my nails did! I was very excited, because they had just ordered in a plethora of new colours, and there was one that was calling my name. I can't remember what the actual OPI shade name is, but I'm calling this one 'divine decedence'... it's not quite as green as Sally's (but more green than it looks in the photos), but I'll take it. Here's hoping you get the reference - it's only one of my all-time favourite films!

P.S. I did my hair today with my GHD and it's holding up really well. It doesn't give me the style of curl I'd prefer, but heck, it's holding a curl so beggars can't be choosers!

Skirt - antique store in Geelong

1950s suit jacket - eBay

Heels - Dianna Ferrari

Seamed stockings - What Katie Did

Bag - thrifted

Ring - random jewellery store

Back to normal

2011-07-23T14:15:00.000+10:00

I think my Blogger / Google Apps woes are over. Sure, I now have two separate accounts that can no longer talk to each other where I used to have one, but I'm not complaning. Apologies for being scarce in these parts for a few weeks.

Today I went op-shopping, as J is working weekends for overtime now (as well as Monday to Friday - how he does it I'll never know). I found something I'd been looking for too - a tea box to store my teabags. I'd prefer a larger one, but this will do perfectly in the meantime. T'was $2. And the apron was $2 too.

Then I decided to be sneaky and duck into an antique market on the way home, and of course I found something to buy when my credit card is nearly maxed out... a very grubby but working 1960s Astor radio.

So I pulled it apart and scrubbed it clean. There are still marks on the red plastic though - I'm not an expert in this area... is it bakelite? I remember reading (was it on your blog, Kitty?) that you can use Domestos to clean bakelite, as long as you wipe it off really quickly.

Mum and Dad both said 3XY used to be the hip station when they were growing up, but the advent of FM radio saw the station's demise. There must have been so many stations to choose from back in AM radio's day, judging by all the codes listed. I bet this radio has blasted out some killer tunes too.

Google Apps = PITA!

2011-07-12T08:59:00.000+10:00

I may be on a hiatus for a little while - I'm having major dramas with my Google Apps account (you know, because the new Google Apps doesn't support Blogger... or profiles. Ridiculous.) I can't log in using my normal log-in anymore, I've been trying for days and somehow managed to fluke it today, but I don't remember what I did! I'm considering moving to Wordpress, but I'd also like to move everything I have with Google elsewhere... which really isn't an option. I'll stockpile a few posts so I'll be rearing to post as soon as Google fixes their mess.

Melbourne Zoo

2011-07-08T08:37:00.000+10:00

On the weekend, J, his younger brother and I shipped ourselves off to the Melbourne Zoo for a day of animal viewing. Highlights? The baby orangutan playing around with his elders, the show-off seals, and three lions giving each other a bath!

Atomic cup and saucer set

2011-07-04T13:10:00.000+10:00

Ridgway Potteries Ltd - 'Homemaker'

Last weekend at a local market I picked up this set. It was quite cheap - the seller told me that it wasn't a matching set, seeing as the cup didn't bear any markings while the two saucers did. I didn't mind though, I just loved the pattern so I snapped it up for $5.

After some Googling though, I think that the cup does indeed match the saucer. All the photos I found online of this print have a solid black cup. I never saw a set with two saucers though, and they each have different markings on the bottom so I assume they're not a set? Anyone know?

Meet Ringo

2011-06-28T08:35:00.000+10:00

Ringo is the latest addition to our family, isn't he so beautiful? He was dumped near a friend's house, so I managed to convince J we needed him (on the proviso that I don't get a new lamb this year, and that I clean up after him). Well, I already clean up after J, so no biggie. When we got him, his was soooo skinny (worms, most likely).

I felt I had to keep in the tradition we've set ourselves with naming animals - we have Brando, Jagger and Hendrix - so it only made sense to name him after a musician or film star. To find a name for kitty, I actually whipped out my iPod, started scrolling from A through the bands and only made it to B. Later on, a friend mentioned she once had a cat named Zeppelin. Damn, I wish I had scrolled further down to L!

Any more animals and we will have to get an ABN and market ourselves as a zoo.

(so glad kitty doesn't need fancy toys - he loves his beer case)

The Infinity Dress

2011-06-25T17:29:00.001+10:00

I made one!

I had been tossing up buying one on etsy for a while, but then I had a lightbulb moment (that I really should have had earlier) and decided to make my own.

I used instructions from a few different places, namely Rostitchery, Knuckle Salad and Sew Like My Mom. I found I had to mix and match instructions, as some people explained certain sections really well but glossed over others.

I don't know if we have it worse off than in the States, but don't go by the price guide! I was a little disappointed that US seamstresses could buy enough fabric for this dress for around $15 total. I bought mine at Spotlight, and it was $15/m (and I needed four metres!) Short ladies will win here - the amount of fabric you need depends on your height, as the straps should be around 1.5 times your height.

I spotted a lovely teal coloured jersey at Spotlight while I was picking out my dark red, so I will go back and grab enough to make another. I'm planning on taking these to Vanuatu in November, when J and I take our first international holiday together.

Apologies for the inside photos and leggings - it is far too cold here at the moment!

Quick outfit post

2011-06-21T07:39:00.000+10:00

Quick outfit post. It has been so chilly lately; biting winds and lots of rain. I'm so thankful I found this coat when I did - coat shopping is always a chore for me, probably because they're often an expensive item that needs to go with many things. I still need to move the buttons on it because it's a little too big, but I haven't gotten around to it. I really ought to be wearing some tights for this picture - my legs haven't seen daylight in a long while - they almost blend into the walls!

heels - eBay

coat - 1970s ILGWU from the Mill Markets
blouse and skirt (underneath) - thrifted

beanie - eBay

mink - vintage store in Adelaide

Ford Discovery Centre

2011-06-19T14:07:00.000+10:00

Geelong is home of the Ford motor car in Australia. And as such, there is a Ford museum (called the Ford Discovery Centre). The Centre is literally accross the road from my work, yet J and I have never made it inside, despite constantly saying "we really ought to go there one day!"

So yesterday, as we were walking past, we finally bit the bullet and walked inside. The cars on display are constantly changing, and there were some absolute beauties in there. There were also some ugly 1990s models on display - but you win some, lose some. There was even an XY GTHO with ~40,000 original miles on it's second set of factory tyres in immaculate unrestored condition - making it worth over $1,000,000 now.

1954 Customline

1965 XP Woody wagon - can you believe these weren't popular?
They made less than 100.

1957 Mainline ambulance

Ladies working at the Ford plant during WWII - I love the their blouses

1950s advertisement

Then we went to a pet store so I could grab some crickets and cockroaches for my lizard (I know, I find it really disgusting to feed him the cockroaches, but he needs them for strong and healthy teeth) and we spotted these unfortunate looking goldfish - I wonder what happened during their evolution to make them become cross eyed.

Like sands through the hourglass

2011-06-07T12:14:00.001+10:00

I've been shopping again! My urge to shop comes in fits and starts, and right now I'm in the grips of a splurge-a-thon. Here are a couple of things that have made it to me from Etsy.

Print from drkennedyjones - this is hanging near my desk (being a librarian and all, it's very fitting)

1970s dress from HinterlandVintage - I don't own much brown, and I love the leafy pattern. Actually, true story - my mother hated the colour brown so much, she refused to let me wear it as I was growing up! Even now I think I only own one brown skirt, and that's it.

Hemp and leather bracelet from KarensjewelryKorner - very different to what I usually wear, but I love the colours (and it was only US$4!)

Bamboo reusable cutlery from krazybear - I love the teal and gold dragonfly print fabric wrap too

The Washington Nugget - I declare shenanigans!

2011-06-05T10:16:00.001+10:00

A bit of background - the "Washington Nugget", an 8.2 pound gold nugget, was found last year in California, and went up for auction earlier in the year. A nugget of this size and in this location is extremely rare, and as such, it sold at auction for US$460,000. The guy who found it is even selling his property for millions, suggesting that there could be much more gold to be found there.

Problem is - it's a lie. This nugget was found by J's uncle in 1987 in a tiny town in country Victoria, Australia. He's a full time prospector, and we even went prospecting with him last year when we went on a family holiday to Carisbrook.

Photo on the left, taken in the US from this site:
http://www.mostexpensivethings.org/biggest-and-most-expensive-gold-nugget-in-the-world-in-the-10-years.html

Photo on the right, taken from an Aussie prospecting magazine in 1987.
http://golddetecting.4umer.net/t4536-460000-82-pound-1312-oz-gold-nugget-found

J's uncle is in talks with a US TV station who are hoping to fly him out for an interview in the next couple of days or so.

The geologist in the US who "authenticated" the nugget as being a true US one is apparently on the backpedal, saying that two Aussies are trying to scam him.

We're off to visit J's uncle to get copies of the photos and newspaper clippings they have from the 80s.

You heard it first! #nuggetgate!

Edited to add - the story has broken in the US and I'm adding some more photos that we just took down at J's relatives place:

Blues and greens should never be seen

2011-06-04T16:15:00.000+10:00

I know, right? Finally an outfit post! I haven't been feeling the vintage mojo lately - and as much as I hate to say it, it's because J told me a few months back that he prefers me in normal clothes. I know it shouldn't affect what I wear, but I can't help it - I want to look good for him.

I've had a pretty crummy week with car woes and falling ill, so today I perked myself up by getting my nails done in a beautiful OPI scarlet shade, and now I am watching oodles of Ghost Whisperer episodes and eating a packet of Tim Tams. You know, they really ought to sell smaller packets of Tim Tams, thus limiting the amount us ladies can eat in one sitting! Really not helping the weight loss cause.

Skirt - Colorado, thrifted

Petticoat - thrifted

Knit top - Barkins, thrifted

Cardi - Friends of Couture

Socks - Topshop

Heels - Forever 21

Headscarf - Topshop

Up, down, turn around; Please don't let me hit the ground

2011-06-01T12:12:00.001+10:00

I feel like I'm on a roller coaster at the moment - one minute life is perfect, the next minute there is a spanner in the works! After my mini-breakdown over my major assignment, I calmed down and became quite blasé about quite possibly failing the unit. Turns out I managed a Credit, and then I breezed through the open-book exam so I should hopefully hold a C or a D average across the unit. So now I can look forward to 800 pages of even harder coding, in the form of C# next semester. Major breakdown expected.

Last weekend we spent a few days relaxing, inflicting and then recovering from a huge hangover down in a holiday house on the Great Ocean Road with another couple, which was just beautiful. I could live down there, if it weren't for the lack of jobs. Then back to reality, where reality and I collided with a bang.

I blew a tyre on my "new" car (J's old car). Turns out a slow leak from a puncture blew royally, so I was driving around with a 4 inch gash in my tyre and the smell of burning rubber filling the air. Hallelujah Dad, who came to my rescue and changed my tyre for me. Now, before you ask why I didn't change it myself - listen up! Not only could the jack not fit under the car because the car is ridiculously lowered, but one of the wheel nuts on said wheel was cross-threaded, so my Dad had to snap the nut off. The force of which was so powerful that afterward the nut burnt my hand from the friction. I limped home on the tiny spare, thankful I had the FC to fall back on.

But no...

... it wasn't to be. It appears that the plague of mice that we're currently experiencing have found the FC's battery and radiator hose to be particularly tasty. And I'm miffed that I only replaced all the same parts last year from the same darn mice problem. Gah!! How can we have FOUR vehicles and only one of them is driveable (but it has a serious 'funk' of mouse poo - they're working their way into the car interiors to nibble on the seats).

Gosh-damned cars costing me money that I could spend on pretty things instead.

Anyway, time to focus on the positives. See this? A workmate just returned from a holiday to Africa, and she bought me a beautiful beaded bracelet!

See this? My uncle secretly entered my chutney into a show in Brisbane, and I won third prize! I was so chuffed - I will be a CWA (Country Womens' Association, or as my Dad calls it - the Chin Waggers Association) lady yet. I actually looked into joining my local CWA group, but they only meet on weekdays, which doesn't suit me. Boo.

And see this? I bought a new canister! I don't know what decade this is - perhaps 1970s? It is GayWare, with a Tupperware-like fitting lid. I know it's definitely not 1950s because I Googled. If you know what decade it's from, please let me know.

Marlo pt II

2011-05-25T17:12:00.000+10:00

'Nuff said. Enjoy.

Marlo

2011-05-23T13:27:00.000+10:00

Well, we are back from our week away down in East Gippsland. It seems we picked the right week to visit, as only the week before they were flooded and experiencing daily rain. We had perfect sunshine the whole time though, which was lovely.

I didn't get the chance to take many photos - because I was too worried that I would kill the camera. Bike riding? I'll fall off and break it. Kayaking? We'd capsize and it would go for a swim to the depths of the Snowy River. So it stayed safely locked in our cabin for most of the time. I didn't manage a single photo of myself, or a single couples photo of J and I. I wish we weren't one of those couples who never takes photos of themselves, but that is us. So for the moment you will have to enjoy some iPhone photos - what few D90 pictures I do have are being held captive on my PC by J playing Star Wars Battlefront II constantly!

We took a detour on the way there via Mt Baw Baw - I love the forest!

The view from our deck - gums and the river

J's fancy new lure, but he didn't catch a thing

Kayaking on the Snowy River

The Curlip II paddle steamer

I love this sign - warning of the high voltage power lines ahead for tall boats. Never mind the really low bridge underneath the power lines that would stop 16m tall boats!

Scraps, the resident shoe-cleaner. She was the most excited little ball of energy, J and I wanted to take her home with us.

Dayum, Topshop!

2011-05-14T08:21:00.000+10:00

I try to steer clear of even browsing online stores, because it inevitably ends in me whipping my credit card out (who am I kidding, I have memorised my CC number so I don't even need to get off the couch and find my wallet).

I hadn't looked at the Topshop website in ages, because it seemed that every time I did, the fashion was just so terrible. Not the case at the moment, it seems - I was overwhelmed with choice. I am really liking pastel colours at the moment, so I put together a few outfits that I think would be cute. Most of the items I bought aren't featured though, so you'll have to wait and see!

By the way, if you do purchase from Topshop online, google "Topshop discount code" and find a valid NUS number for a 10% discount (it's very easy to find)!

Outfit 1

Pale pink pleated midi skirt

Plum wing stud detail cats eye sunglasses

Cream scallop button shirt

Joplin off white heeled lace up shoes

Outfit 2

Mint pussybow blouse

Champagne wide leg trousers

Natural peep toe sandals by Swedish Hasbeens

Maisy bag by Paul's Boutique

Cream floral laser cut gloves

Outfit 3

Stripe Olivia Bag by Pauls Boutique

Gingham pleated crop top

Lacrosse red suede cross strap sandals

Red button through skirt

I am off on holidays next week with my beloved, so I shant be online for a while. Please don't think I'm being rude if I don't approve your comments for a few days or so!

How to Undress in Front of Your Husband (1937)

2011-05-04T08:10:00.000+10:00

I have just finished reading a book called Showgirls, Teen Wolves, and Astro Zombies: A Film Critic's Year-Long Quest to Find the Worst Movie Ever Made, by Michael Adams, which documents his year-long journey to find the worst movie ever made. It's a fascinating read, if you ever get the chance. I have seen (or own) a few of the movies he watched, but this little flick I just couldn't resist finding on YouTube.

It's called How to Undress in Front of Your Husband by Dwain Esper, exploitation film extraordinaire who created such hits as Maniac, Narcotic, Marihuana and Sex Madness - all designed to scare youngsters away from drugs and sex. How to Undress is worth a look-see just to see the gorgeous clothes and undergarments of the proper young lass, not to mention the hilarious voice-overs. And I have to admit, I don't undress nearly as elegantly as the lady in this clip - but definitely not as slothenly as the other!

Jump in my car

2011-05-01T10:28:00.000+10:00

I honestly don't know how long it has been, perhaps six months or more, since my beloved FC broke down dramatically on a steep, steep hill while I took it for a little Sunday drive. I remember the day well, because it was the same day I gave myself whiplash when I fell backwards over a fence as Brando (he was just a little lamb back then) was chewing on my trouser legs. But, I digress...

The poor FC sat in my parents' driveway sans gearbox and tailshaft for many moons, until the Easter long weekend, when my dad finally found the time to fix her! J and I were away in Melbourne for the night, so my brother took it upon himself to message me a picture of the now bare spot where the FC used to sit, accompanied by the text "It was stolen last night". Having cottoned on to his hi-jinx, I quickly replied back that we were leaving Melbourne immediately, and would meet him at the local police station. I had a good chuckle when he called me straight away to say he was kidding.

So we arrived home from Melbourne to find the FC sitting in the driveway! I have taken her for a few spins, including driving her to work yesterday, and she drives a dream. Even better than she used to, actually, because my lovely dad adjusted the steering, the brakes and the engine's idle speed! Bless his cotton socks. Mum and I even drove to Ballarat to visit the SPC factory in her (think extremely cheap canned goods, for the non-Aussies).

dress - simplicityisbliss

belt - salvaged from a 1950s dress Mary ate

petticoat - opshop

shoes - ASOS

Flogging my wares

2011-04-23T08:43:00.000+10:00

It is time again for a wardrobe clear-out, so I can buy a dress I'm pining for on etsy! (See how good I am raising the funds first - no more credit card debt for me now).

(L-R: reproduction 1940s Victory sweater, 1980s linen sailor dress, 1950s XXL house dress)

(L: 1960s wool pencil skirt,
R: 1970s full skirt)

All available on eBay for cheap as chips.

Machinery shed, C1850s

2011-04-22T07:58:00.000+10:00

After months and months, I finally have these two dresses from greatgrandmaagnes in my hot little hands! I wonder what sort of trip they had while they were lost in the post - they could have been anywhere!

Stupid me decided to ride my bike down to the machinery shed to take some photos, but when I jumped on my bike, I lost a button on my lilac dress! So you'll have to excuse the missing button. I only wish that the lilac dress hadn't been shortened - thankfully there is a little bit of extra fabric in the hem that I will take down, but it would have been much nicer to fall below the knee.

I need to take this dress in a bit around the waist and bust, as it gapes quite a bit. Other than that, it's quite lovely! It would look much nicer with my hair set - and you'll be happy to know I've just had my hair cut, so no more blue hair, which means I can set again!

The next two photos were taken inside the machinery shed. I wasn't fully aware of the history until I overheard my Dad telling his workmate about it when he came to visit. The shed was built in the 1850s by an employee of the Clyde Company (who my family bought the property from). I assumed all the rusty roof sheets were new, but not so - they all bear a stamp saying they came all the way from London! There are two patches in the roof where the sheets have torn or rusted through - I guess we're going to have to look long and hard to find replacement ones now (thanks to the building being heritage listed).

I love the interior - it looks like there is a tree propping the roof up. And see the faint purple marks on the rear wall? They used to hold community dances in there, so they painted decorations on the walls to "spruce" it up a little bit!

And finally, my brother and Dad put some new posts in around the cattle yards, and while they were still wet, one of the sheep stood in it! I think it was Brando. I love the fact that he choose to stand on the one piece of concrete that my brother had marked the year in. It's like baby's first footprint!

Adelaide, on a plane....

2011-04-14T06:18:00.000+10:00

Finally, Dad's pictures from our trip away in Adelaide! Enjoy.

(interior of a winery we visited)

(The amazingly strong Clydesdale at Victor Harbor)

(Mum and I taking a breezy stroll)

(Our accommodation for the night. Best meals ever to be had in the restaurant downstairs too)

(Adelaide)

(The city of churches)

(I'm so squinty because the light was reflecting off the shiny triangles!)

(Token handshake shot)

(Triffids, anyone?)

(Dad's not the greatest at outfit photos - he didn't even get the whole thing in!)

What goes around...

2011-04-08T08:36:00.000+10:00

... eventually comes around! Remember how months ago I was in a pickle because two vintage dresses from etsy were lost in the mail? Well they've finally been returned to the seller, unharmed after all these months - it's a postal miracle!

I'm very excited that these dresses are making their way back to me again (along with something else from the greatgrandmaagnes etsy store. I will be sure to post some pictures when they arrive for you all.

Acquisitions

2011-04-04T08:17:00.000+10:00

I haven't been spending much money on clothes lately. My spending habits go through phases - currently I am all about crossing things off my wishlist, and that I have been doing!

I bought a retro style bicycle. It's red and everything! Ideally I'd like a Schwinn or a Malvern Star, but seeing as I haven't ridden a bicycle since an ill-fated day back in 1996 when I fell off onto gravel, taking most of the skin on my left side off at the same time, I figure it's best to test the waters first. So I bought this beauty from a little bike store on eBay. I was going to take some swell pictures of me riding it wearing a pretty frock, but our maiden ride was short-lived as it started to bucket down with rain!

I've also started to vintage-ify the laundry. There isn't much scope for vintage in this room, as it's also the shoe rack / hot water system / bar freezer / honey extractor storage room too. But I thought a nice little IKEA Lack shelf with some vintage laundry items wouldn't go astray. So far I have a near-full bottle of Trix, and a full packet of Tintex dye.

And finally, we stopped by J's late-poppa's house to pick up something that he left J in his will. All of J's aunties and uncles were there, clearing out the house, and we had a rummage through the unwanted pile of items that was destined for the Brotherhood. Among other things, I found a 1950s book called Successful Dressmaking and a photo of his poppa serving in Darwin during WWII (kneeling, second from the right).

And more recently, I've had great luck with my canister collection! While in Adelaide, I picked up a cute little (1940s, I'm guessing) salt canister, and yesterday at a market I found a pair of Nally S&P shakers (please ignore the filthy wall - who designs a house with only one row of tiles in the kitchen?!)

And lastly, I absolutely fell in love with a Princess Highway coat from Dangerfield. BUT it was $200. A few years ago I would have handed over my credit card without a second thought, but these days that is just too much. So I left it behind with all the other pretties in the store. Thankfully I didn't regret my non-purchase for long, because I found this vintage coat at the Mill Markets for only $65, and it is almost identical to the Princess Highway one! Hallelujah for second-hand.

The Graduate

2011-03-31T08:15:00.003+11:00

I have just returned from my trip to Adelaide, where I graduated from the University of South Australia with my Graduate Diploma. My parents and I spent the weekend there, and it was so lovely. I haven't yet stolen Dad's pictures yet, so instagram images will have to suffice for now.

L - the interior of Alpha Box and Dice Winery

R - the view from our 1900s terrace apartment

L - the lovely old bank in Victor Harbor

R - something to celebrate - the first public toilet!

L - my (very squeaky) four poster bed

R - a beautiful radio I spotted in an antique shop

L - I couldn't believe that a single Clydesdale pulls this tram

R - one of the wines we bought in McLaren Vale

L - double mango cheesecake - need I say more?

R - the Victor Harbor - Goolwa steam train

L - Play me, I'm yours - public pianos in Adelaide, a very cool concept

R - My Adelaide shopping spoils

L - my furry little friend

R - my academic robe - the colours reminded me of Gryffindor

L - wasting time while Dad takes photos of me

R - picture speaks for itself really

L - the massive pipe organ at the Adelaide Festival Centre

R - my shiny piece of paper!

L - wearing my new Friends of Couture 'Rosie the Riveter' dress

R - the epic unpack that I had to do when I got home! Note to self - never do grocery shopping on the way home from the airport.

A week in instagram

2011-03-25T09:50:00.000+11:00

L - a pretty radio I spotted at How Bazaar - a MCM radio is on my wishlist, but they are all so expensive

R - bright Asian print shopping bags at How Bazaar too - I wanted one but they are $40

L - my budding pumpkin plant! I really hope it isn't too late to yield a decent crop from this plant - after all, it did sprout from the compost bin

R - Peggy, our friends' new dog. She was adopted (read: saved) from a bogan family who left her with three breaks in her leg :( She's the most adorable ball of energy - Kelpie X Choc Lab if you were wondering.

L - Brando takes a nibble

R - Sheepsies in the fog

L - The cover of an old cookbook that came into work

R - And an ad from that cookbook! Definitely couldn't get away with this now.

I'm sparing you

2011-03-22T20:16:00.000+11:00

... from listening to my green babble any longer! I really want to talk about sustainability, you see, but I know how it really doesn't fit inside the scope of Fifties Fever, so I have created a new blog.

It's called A Sustainable Journey, and it's basically going to document my journey as I try and greenify every part of my life. If that sounds like something you'd be interested in reading (or throwing your two cents into as well), you can view it at http://sustainable-journey.blogspot.com/.

In other news, I am off to Adelaide on Friday night for my second University graduation ceremony - this time for my Graduate Diploma in Library and Information Science. My parents and I are spending the weekend around Adelaide and Victor Harbour before the Monday ceremony, then flying back on Tuesday.

Because I'm just a glutton for punishment, I'm back to juggling full time work and part time study again. Right now I am writing a little program in VB for an assignment due Friday. I seem to be working longer hours now, and somehow still putting in lots of hours of study, so my life is oh so boring right now. Once I've finished this Grad. Dip, I really need to stop and smell the roses. But not my roses, because the sheep ate them. Well, in three years they should have grown back!

Chrysler Day 2011

2011-03-15T10:46:00.000+11:00

I have always managed to miss Chrysler Day as I usually have something else on. And it's only thanks to some last-minute plan changing that I was able to attend it this year. I'm so glad I did, because the quality of the cars was outstanding - some people travel from Tasmania and Adelaide just to show their cars here.

The Chrysler banner might sound a little specific, but it actually covers Chryslers, Dodges, Plymouths, Valiants, Chargers, DeSotos and Pacers. J actually used to own a Charger, much like the orange one in the third picture, so the day was actually a little torturous. His was an absolute monster though, and the engine was pretty stuffed, so we're glad he sold it when he did. One day down the track we'll get one again.

Soundwave 2011

2011-03-13T13:15:00.000+11:00

It was amazing! I ended up not taking many photos at all, because my little point and shoot camera is literally a piece of shite. Case in point:

Bullet for my Valentine

Slayer

Rob Zombie <3

What I wore, and the view from our apartment.

I saw Anberlin, Bullet for my Valentine, Less Than Jake, 30 Seconds to Mars, Slash, Slayer, Rob Zombie, The Melvins and Millencolin. I missed a few bands that I wanted to see, but what can you do? Maybe next year if the lineup is great I will go to the Melbourne and Adelaide shows, just so I can see everyone. I think I can also safely say that for 10 hours last Friday, the Melbourne Showgrounds was the tattoo, black t-shirt and piercing capital of the world.

We got back to Geelong so early on Saturday morning, as the council was doing roadworks outside our apartment, and as a result the entrance to the car park was being closed for the entire day. Instead of just moving the car to another carpark (we'd already paid $50 to park in this one!), we left Melbourne at 6:30am. As such, I accomplished so much that weekend - a mini-post to follow will show you exactly what.

The other side of me

2011-03-02T08:36:00.000+11:00

I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this before, but I can't be sure. Before I loved vintage, I loved metal. I remember the day that I first fell in love with metal quite clearly.

I was in Year 7 at high school (that'd be 1997). My mum was driving me home from French Horn practice (oh yes, the sexiest of instruments to play) and we were driving up the Batesford hill on the way home as I flicked the radio over to Triple J and heard Marilyn Manson's 'The Beautiful People' for the first time. And it was love at first sight, or hearing... whatever. Rob Zombie's Hellbilly Deluxe album came out the following year, and I was hooked.

I have waited (somewhat patiently) since 1998 to see Rob Zombie live in concert. And I thought my chances were dashed seeing as the little bugger rarely tours outside of the US. But what luck, my friends told me about Soundwave Festival late last year and guess who was included in the lineup! Mr Zombie himself. I bought tickets on the spot for the festival, as well as tickets to his sideshow. Now my wait is over - I'm seeing Rob Zombie tomorrow night, and Soundwave Festival the following day.... eeeeeeeee. My excitement is palpable.

I went hunting to find a picture of me in my metal youth, but I don't think I have any stored online - so you will have to suffice with this one. It was taken on top of 香山 (Xiang Shan - Fragrant Hills) in Beijing in mid-2007, while I was still in the grips of metal fever. Oh, and don't worry - metal fever still consumes me, I just dress prettier now!

I'm taking my dodgy little point-and-shoot camera to the gig and the festival, so I will have some photos to share with you! And the battery is charged this time, I triple checked. In all reality though, it will probably be a whole lot of gratuitous Myspace-style photos of my friends and I, plus some images of teeny tiny people away on a distant stage. But it's better than nothing. Next time I write, I will have seen Rob Zombie live not once, but twice! It's a life-changing experience, I bet.

Have a great weekend everyone!

xxx Ruby

And her name is.....

2011-02-25T08:36:00.000+11:00

Eleanor. Well, KOOL65 here is the predecessor of the Gone in 60 Seconds Eleanor (she was a 1967 build). If this car is a true Shelby GT350, then it is one of only 562 to be built.

So pretty, so tough, so out of my price range.

Oh, you've got green eyes

2011-02-23T08:00:00.000+11:00

This is what I wore to the All Ford Day, and to the local flood fundraiser afterward. The dress wasn't such a great idea as it was really windy, so I spent most of the day clinging to it, hoping I wouldn't flash my garter (which I think I did on a few occasions anyway).

Just before arriving at All Ford Day, I swung past a local market and picked up a copy of the 1958 Penguin Classic 'Dior by Dior' - an autobiography of Christian Dior, for just $3. Oh, how I can't wait to start reading. I hope there are pictures!

dress - CustardHeartVintage on etsy

cardigan - target

shoes - converse

post title inspiration - new order

Geelong All Ford Day 2011

2011-02-20T18:25:00.000+11:00

I have been a bad classic car owner and lover, this summer. Normally I attend every event, but this year the All Ford Day will be the only one I see. So I really made up for it in pictures! These kinds of shows always make me a) want to spend ridiculous amounts of money on fancy cars, and b) want to get my baby girl running properly and looking schmick! Some of these cars are +$100,000 though.

And a little bit of trivia for you car lovers - the car with the numberplate KOOL65... that's a very famous model. Name her. Answer in my next blog post!

Ups and downs

2011-02-13T19:57:00.002+11:00

Wow, what a week it has been - extreme highs and equally low lows. But let's focus on the positives, shall we?

On Friday's drive home from work, I caught every single green light. Amazing, I know! It was also raspberry and white choc muffin day at my work's cafe = double win!

Dodgy panelbeater (let's just call him DPB from now on) deposited a cheque into my bank account. It is only part of the money he owes me, and it hasn't cleared yet, but it's a start. Granted, he still doesn't know that the Sheriff will come knocking soon, but I'd like that to still be a surprise.

I found something I've been looking for for a long time - a red laundry powder tin. Might not seem like a big deal, but for someone who makes their own laundry powder at home, having a decent sized container is a must. And it was on sale at Spotlight.

I gave up trying to find cute nighties that weren't $60 (looking at you, Peter Alexander) so I decided to make my own. The pattern was on sale, and the fabric is just too cute! I already whipped up one in the pink - I left the bow print fabric because I didn't want the cut or style of the nightie to not suit me... that fabric is too pretty to waste. I also lived dangerously and used 100% cotton for this pattern, even though it specifically says suitable for knit fabrics only. But I'm scared of knit fabrics! One day I will build up the confidence - all that stretch just freaks me out.

I tackled my veggie garden. I had neglected it for a while, but my zucchinis were growing great-guns. You know how Australia has "big" tourist attractions? The Big Lobster, the Big Merino, the Big Pineapple... Well, I would like to nominate my place for the Big Zucchini. This guy is over 1kg and as long as a carton of eggs! (They're not cage, by the way, they're free range all the way - we just reuse old cartons). Anyhoo, I planted cos lettuce, baicai / bok choi, coriander, spring onion, broccoli and celery.

I also learned an important lesson. Don't throw pumpkin seeds in the compost bin. You know why? This will happen! I wonder if it will actually yield any punkins?

Also while at Spotlight, my eyes fell on this red beauty of a cushion, and I remembered FF's wise words on never knowingly under-cushioning. I have to admit, I am guilty of undercushioning, but I am making amends! And yes, that is STILL a motorcycle in the living room. I've accepted it as part of the furniture now.

And finally, today's purchases. The RAAF Log book from 1943, which leaves only one more book to find to complete the set, and a cute little cream canister with marbled lid. I'm guessing S for salt? I will probably use it as a sugar pot for the table though.

♥

Ruby

Desperate times call for desperate measures

2011-02-11T07:23:00.000+11:00

Thankyou everyone for your lovely words regarding the terrible time I've been having recently. It did manage to get worse, with negotiations between myself and the panelbeater totally failing - he actually stopped answering all his work calls, and was only *10#-ing people back (US people - *69?). I called him from my home phone number, and he called back three times and didn't say a word, just hung on the line breathing and freaking me out. So I have issued a warrant for him - oh yeah! I can't get him arrested, but I can make the Sheriff take possession of his belongings to sell at auction though. I have to wait 5-6 weeks though to hear if the Sheriff has any success getting my money out of him.

So with my financial situation not looking to get better any time soon, I have to sell some stuff :( I am selling three Freddies of Pinewood Rebecca 1940s style tops, and a pair of their Jeanies too. AAAAAND, I am selling my beloved Triumph sweater. I don't want to, but I am desperate, and it's a sure money maker. Here's the link to my eBay sales - help a struggling girl out!

Have you seen me?

2011-02-09T17:51:00.002+11:00

I think this dress is new to my readers (am I right?) - it's a 1950s frock from Simplicity Is Bliss Vintage on etsy. I love the longer length in the skirt, but I need a longer crinoline so it doesn't show the difference. As usual, the dogs photobombed me!

1950s dress - Simplicity Is Bliss on etsy

belt - eBay

vintage robot brooch - Bombshell Bettie Vintage on etsy

shoes - Joanne Mercer

Up shit creek, and the inner hippie in me

2011-02-08T18:50:00.001+11:00

Thanks everybody for the lovely words last Friday. The funeral was tough, as I expected, and it was loooooong. I'd never been to a Catholic service (funeral or otherwise) so it was an eye-opener. And it absolutely bucketed down while we were at the cemetery - thankfully the fabric in my 1950s suit held up marvelously. Our farm, not so much... we're flooded again.

I am also having a really crap time right now dealing with my dodgy panelbeater. Remember how ONE YEAR AGO I had my FC "fixed" but it turned out the panelbeater had swindled me? Well, I am still chasing my refund. I have been in constant contact with him, and he keeps delaying payment, so today I had my affidavit signed, and tomorrow I am marching over to the Magistrates' Court to enforce my "warrant to seize property". I really didn't want it to come to this, but it must.

Compounded by the fact that I need a new computer for my study, and I was set to finance an order from Dell until Intel recalled their i7 processor, plus my car needs urgent repairs, plus plus my FC needs a new gearbox plus plus plus I am nearly $800 behind on our "shed savings" account...

So I am feeling very "arrrrgh!" right now. In fact, I had a little scream and a cry in the car today on the way home from work. It's moments like these when I wish I was a hippie. No money problems, eating the fruits of the earth, living in a commune, high on LSD and pot... sounds like bliss. I might be romanticising it though. They probably don't take that much LSD these days either.

(image from independent.co.uk)

Not what I wanted

2011-02-04T07:53:00.001+11:00

As promised - photos of me in vintage. Although it's not how I wanted it to be. You see, J's poppa died on Monday afternoon, and the funeral is this afternoon... thus the black. I didn't want to wear black, but it will be a very religious funeral so I thought black would be best.

I am really not looking forward to this afternoon - I am terrible at dealing with ANYTHING sad. We're talking serious tears when the little Weebo thing died in the movie Flubber. And don't get me started on Toy Story 3. Oh yes, I'm that much of a crier. Chuck in a funeral, and I'm a mess. Thankfully my sunglasses are back from repair so I'll pick them up on the way, so I can hide behind them.

In other news, my new course doesn't start for another two weeks, but I have already finished all of week 1's work, and am beginning on week 2 now. Which is fantastic, as it gives me a bit of room to move during the semester (or "session", as my uni calls it).

Grand plans out the window

2011-01-31T07:55:00.000+11:00

Well, I must admit. I had grand plans for the weekend - you see, I was going to take multiple outfit photos (and multiple outfits) so I'd be a little ahead in blogland, but it wasn't to be. Saturday I studied my little rear end off, and I even created my very first program in Visual Basic (hereby referred to as VB). It was only a tiny little thing that opened up a picture, but technically still a program. Sunday was the day I intended to take my outfit shots, and I was ready - makeup done, hair sufficiently dirty to set... but nope. At 9am I received a phone call from J's parents asking if I could babysit his little brother NOW.

You see, J's poppa is unwell and in hospital, and he's gone downhill quickly. So I jumped in my car and raced around to their place, which thankfully is only five minutes up the road. They dashed off to the hospital, and I spent most of the morning cleaning their house. I am a crisis cleaner (plus I really like cleaning) - there is nothing worse than getting horrible news and coming home to a messy house. So I did the dishes, vacuumed, cleaned the kitchen, took out the recycling, put away their clean laundry, made their beds, you name it. We haven't heard any bad news yet, but we're expecting it any time now.

Then the little guy and I went back to my place, and waited for J to arrive home from Warrnambool - he was at the Speedway Championships - something I was looking forward to attending before I got glandular fever and ceased being able to sleep in the back of a ute in a noisy campsite. Then we all went for a two hour swim in the creek with the two dogs, which is lovely and deep thanks to the floods! Shower, food, nanna nap, food, Monty Python, bed... that was the rest of my day!

So you see, I really did have good intentions (albeit a little sneaky) so I apologise. All I have to offer is some Instagr.am pictures from my week, so I hope that suffices. I will promise some outfit photos this week!

(The wheel of J's dad's Indian Chief - he lovingly rebuilt it over 30 years. It's been finished for 5, I think)

(the remote control plane is the best way to tire out two puppies - they run around the paddocks chasing it until they collapse in a heap)

(HMS Poppy going for a dip)

(Clouds in the creek)

(J harvested some honey - from two frames we got around 5kg of the stuff! Sticky and messy but the house smelt so good)

(I'm overloading on the study right now - with my IT degree plus Chinese tutoring. I want to find a Russian tutor too, but I can't find one)

(J's new bee-suit... doing the robot)

(Footy-loving dog - the unpredictable bouncing drives him crazy!)

(My beautiful Mary and her freaky eye - apparently quite common, says my Uncle)

(And finally, cool clouds on Saturday. The moon was out too, but refused to be photographed)

Normally this annoys me

2011-01-25T07:29:00.000+11:00

Does it annoy anyone else when modern designers create vintage style clothes, or is it just me? I usually don't like it even if it is just the top designers, because it eventually trickles down into the mainstream trash. And I hate looking like I'm following a trend (although that's not the main reason why I wear vintage).

But this collection from Christian Dior is A-MAY-ZING! I want them all, particularly the pale yellow prom dress. I have an inkling it might be waaaaaay out of my price range though! You can view the complete collection at Style.com.

Fully sick, bro

2011-01-21T10:22:00.000+11:00

Morning all. Thanks for all your lovely thoughts during the floods - we're A.O.K now, but I unfortunately am not! I've been sick since last Sunday, and the doctors think it is glandular fever (mono for those in the States)... but I'm still waiting to hear back about my blood test results. Either way, my neck is swollen and rock hard, and I'm sleeping 16-18 hours a day, and STILL tired! I haven't been to work all week either (apart from a lousy 3.5hrs that I lasted through on Wednesday before being forced to go home for a nap).

So, I took some snaps for you of the things rocking my world at the moment.

Cadbury Creme Eggs... oh how I love you. I wish you were available all year round.

Medicine. Lots of painkillers (because it feels like the skin in my neck is going to split, it's that swollen) and antihistamines (to help keep the swelling down).

My munchkin (and instagr.am). Don't they say that patting a dog is a great way to soothe stress? Well, if it works for stress, it surely must work for illnesses too.

My new desk. Only $50 from the Trading Post, and big enough to use as a sewing table too. I hate the tangle of cords underneath though, there must be a better way.

My new Barry Morgan's World of Organs tee. If you haven't seen Barry on Spicks and Specks, hop to it - he's hilarious.

STUDY! I got into the IT Grad.Dip I wanted at Southern Cross Uni, and they already have their textbook lists up so I've started reading and summarising already. Geek to the max.

And finally, my blue tipped hair. I took the plunge last week and got my hairdresser-friend to do it, and it was a mammoth task to remove all the years of black hairdye from my tips! The ends are pretty much dead now - they go mushy and stretchy when wet (yuck!) so it needs some TLC.

Now it's back to bed for a nap - gosh, how I hate sleeping away the days.

A very eventful 24 hours

2011-01-15T19:20:00.002+11:00

Yesterday afternoon we drove to Melbourne to pick up J's new car - he's bought an XR6 turbo ute. We were about 500m away from our house when we discovered our ford (it's a floodway that dips down, instead of rising up like a normal bridge) was flooded under 40cm of water. So we drove the looong way back home, then went off to the nearby town of Shelford to visit our mate who was trying to save their cricket club rooms.

The clubrooms were deserted (and surrounded by water) so we drove towards the light - generator lights at a nearby house that usually floods. J grew up in Shelford, and he even had a premonition that we'd be down there helping soon... and he was right!

We helped move furniture out to higher ground, and then I got stuck into making sandbags - after two hours I was dripping with sweat and my arms ceased to function - much better than any workout I've ever had! The high water time was revised from midnight to 5:30am, but we noticed it starting to drop ever so slightly at around 2am, so we decided to pack up and go home.

And getting home was a challenge - all the local roads were closed due to flooding, and everybody had a different idea on which route would be best. We ended up driving to Inverleigh, then back to Bannockburn, and the road was under water parts of the way, but it was driveable. Our poor friends only lived on the other side of Shelford, but they had to take the same route as us - nearly a 1hr round trip just to get to the other side of the river.

We got home to discover the creek had risen to 60cm, and we were almost expecting to hear cries for help in the middle of the night - in the last flood, a car got washed off the ford and my uncle had to tow him out with the tractor.

We wake up at 10am to find that we could see the creek from our back step. We wandered down to find it was at the 1m mark, and water was running through parts of our paddocks too - we guess about 1/3 of our lucerne paddocks are under water.

(the usually bone dry creek bed - it's about 10 feet deep)

(The Moorabool River, taken from the Russells Bridge bridge)

(Bye bye lucerne paddock)

(Our ford. Looks can be deceiving - if you didn't know this road, you wouldn't know that it dips down quite low. We saw a few people attempt to cross this morning before the SES put up road closure signs, and they all quickly reversed back out when they realised how deep it was - not like the flood marker is anything to go by!)

(A pair of stuffed gates. Most of our brand new fencing is ruined, but my brother was frantically running around cutting the wire so the posts wouldn't be ripped from the ground by the weight of the debris catching on the fencing.)

J had to move his bees to higher ground, and then the day took a turn for the worse when I was stung by a bee on my head. There are lots of natural bee hives in the river banks, so the water has displaced them and they're PISSED OFF! I am highly allergic to bees, so we raced to the doctors for an epi-pen (I don't carry one seeing as it has been 10 years since my last sting). Painkillers and antihistamines later, we drove back out to Shelford to see the damage.

The cricket clubrooms only received an inch or two of water in (and it is build up about 6 feet off the ground), so they only had to steamclean the carpets. We heard great news from the house we tried to save the night before - the sandbags held and the house was fine too (apart from the carpets, but that was more from people traipsing through).

(J saved a yabbie that was stuck in a pool of water! She had eggs on her, so she went back into the river)

(The batting cages have seen better days. The current was so strong, it ripped out some of those bollards)

I then came home and had a massive sleep. I think I have an infection in my foot - it got cut sometime during the night, and we spent most of the time knee deep in floodwater that contained leaking septic goo. My arms are also so sore from lifting 20kg sandbags, but I don't care... it feels awesome to know that we could help, especially after feeling so helpless seeing the Queensland floods.

Queensland floods :(

2011-01-11T22:55:00.000+11:00

It really puts things into perspective when something terrible like this happens. And it also makes me proud to be an Aussie. I've watched the news and Twitter feeds today in horror, and sometimes in tears. I only wish I could help in more ways than just donating money, because money is the one thing I don't have right now.

I'm not going to say much, mainly because I don't have such the great way with words that some other bloggers have, so instead I will share pictures.

(and for some feel-good pictures)

(source for all above images - this link shows all pictures being tweeted)

(source)

If you can donate (even a few dollars - it all adds up), please do so here: http://www.qld.gov.au/floods/ ... I'm thinking of selling some more vintage dresses on eBay so I'll have some money to donate.

I just hope all those affected are safe and sound, and there is no more loss of life... seems unlikely though seeing as the worst is yet to come. It's time to pray, people.

It's Hot Rod Show time!

2011-01-10T11:25:00.000+11:00

I cannot believe it has been a year since the last Colac Custom Car and Bike Show! How time flies. Here is my post from last year, if you are interested. It's on again this Saturday, the 15th of January in Colac, Vic.

J and I are most likely riding his bike down for the day (much easier for parking), but the possible rainy weather might negatively affect the turnout of both cars and spectators. I am taking my fandangle camera down, so I should have some nice snaps to share with you.

And the Queenscliff Hot Rod Show is only weeks away too, on the 6th of February. I just hope the weather will be nicer that day - I'd like to wear some summery dresses this summer please!

************************************************

My weekend was chock full! On Saturday I helped Dad cart bales of lucerne from the paddock to the hay shed - we had to get them in before the rain hit, and we achieved with a few hours to spare. I drew the short straw though, driving the 1966 Bedford truck with holes in the floor, vinyl seats so hot they burnt you and no power steering or aircon (unless you're my Dad, who likes to call open windows "aircon". Not the same, Dad). He, on the other hand, drove the tractor in air-conditioned and power-steered comfort - I think it even has an FM radio.

(There are photos of me driving the truck, but I look so unimpressed at Dad wasting time taking photos of me while I'm beetroot red and dripping with sweat, they're never going to see the light of day on this blog!) Photos are taken using the instagram or pudding iPhone apps.

The rest of the weekend I cleaned, and cleaned, and cleaned. Amazing what I can achieve when I don't drink alcohol (oh yeah - I'm trying to see how long I can go without the sauce... 10 days down so far).

************************************************

Finally, in other news, Fifties Fiver is now mobile friendly. Took me long enough!

And I've turned the music off auto-play, seeing as I have had some complaints (and a couple of rude retweets in my feed that I think are directed at me - things like that really hurt my feelings).

And here I go again, jinxing myself. I bought BABY CLOTHES! I don't want children for another 5 years at least, but I fell in love with this cute little 1950s onesie on etsy a while back (from bombshellebettie, of course!) and I snapped it up during one of her sales. I will really have to hide it well so J doesn't spot it.

HELP! Missing parcel - what would you do?

2011-01-05T15:54:00.000+11:00

I need your opinions, ladies and gents.

Bought and paid for two vintage dresses on etsy on 26th Nov.
Seller posted dresses 1st Dec.

Nothing since then. The latest update from USPS says "processed through Sort Facility, December 01, 2010, 7:10 am, CHICAGO, IL 60688".

It's now 40 days since I paid, and I only have a 5 day window left for filing an 'item not received' dispute with PayPal.

BUT, the seller has been really lovely during this whole thing, and another dress I bought from her since then has arrived and is perfect. She's also going to try and get to the PO tomorrow to speak to somebody, and she's submitting a missing item form on the USPS website today too (USPS say they aim to reply within 2-3 days). So I don't really want to open a dispute against her, seeing as she's been so nice and all, but I can't afford to lose $100 at the moment either.

What would you do?

Getting out of that blogging-blues slump

2011-01-05T14:24:00.001+11:00

Forgive my attempt to jazz up a boring post with pictures - I'm slowly recovering from my blogging-blues slump.

I started back at work yesterday (yay), but I have to rotate to another area in the Library in February sometime (boo) which I'm really not looking forward to because I am in <3 with web development. I should hopefully be starting my IT Grad. Dip in late Feb though (if I get in), so that will satisfy my IT needs.

A few of my work mates and I have decided to travel together to Japan in late Oct/early Nov! Two of us (myself inc) will be Japan virgins, one has been twice, and the other (my supervisor) will have been 5 times by then, so she will act as our guide. It's a little embarrassed to admit that rejigging my budget to accommodate for holiday savings is nearly as exciting as the trip itself!

I've scrapped plans for new tattoos (and also dying sections of my hair electric blue) in order to save frantically for said Japan trip. I should have all my monies saved up by June, allowing enough time to recover from little indiscretions, which we all know are bound to happen.

J is frantically hunting for a new vehicle (he doesn't need, he wants), but that's fine with me because it's his money, but I just wish he'd stop talking about blooming engines! Also, he's getting a ute (like the one pictured), and I don't know why, but men in utes are sexier - that's the inner bogan in me talking, I know.

I have recently become obsessed with Instagram. I've always been obsessed with taking photos of my Cons, for the record. I'll be uploading my pictures into my Flickr account if you're interested. And yeah, I'm wearing jeans today - I'm all dressed out at the minute.

I bought a beautiful ring pillow from etsy, even though I'm not engaged. It had been sitting in my favourites list for months, and I was so scared somebody would buy it, so I just bit the bullet and bought it. Knowing my luck, it will be a bad omen and I'll end up a spinster for life, but I'll take my chances.

I'm enrolled in Auslan (Australian Sign Language) classes beginning late February, and running for 10 weeks. It's always been something I've wanted to learn, so I thought why not? I will be able to communicate better with my disabled cousin when I see him next, plus it looks good on the old CV. Speaking of which, I need to get my CV in order, as my cadetship ends in December of this year, so it will be time to start hunting for a new job (groan).

It's 57 days until I see this sexy man (Rob Zombie) live in concert. Which means it is 58 days until Soundwave Festival, where I intend to get my metal on. Seeing Rob Zombie twice in 24 hours may actually be the happiest moment of my life thus far, and that's not taking into consideration the other amazing bands on the lineup. I also cannot wait to see all the little try-hard goth kids in their all-black outfits and pale skin frying in the March sun. Bring on the sore neck.

Adiós, 2010! Hello recent purchases!

2010-12-31T11:18:00.000+11:00

I am not going to do a "so this was 2010" blog post, because quite frankly, it was a pretty average year for me in keeping my resolutions (in fact, I failed at all of them bar one - keeping on top of chipped nailpolish - I solved that by giving away all of my polishes!) and if you wanted to see the year that has been - heck, just look back through my blog posts!

So... instead I will share with you some of my new purchases. They're not vintage, so sticklers, look away now.

Hey Sailor tee by emandsprout (etsy) - I also bought a kitty tee for my supervisor/friend, because she loves kitties!

Custom made ballet flats from DeBonisOrquera (etsy) - I am praying they fit so I can go back and buy heaps more, seeing as the dogs destroyed all but one of my pairs of shoes. They're made out of recycled materials too, so extra plus there.

Paige Premium Denim Laurel Canyon jeans (eBay) - in a past life, I was a brand-obsessed fashionista - and PPD LC jeans were the best I'd ever owned. My last pair gave up the ghost somewhere in Ha'erbin, China - it might have been the -35°C that did it, or the 4 years of constant wear. It was time to buy a new pair - these are second hand, so I'm saving about $100, go me.

sass & bide EVH jeans (eBay) - again, fashionista. The EVH style was THE style of like, 2002? Who cares, I live in the past. This style was good to me too, until someone stole them from my College (US read: dorm) laundry room.

Threadless Every Night I Have the Same Dream, Issue 2, Vol. 1 tee (threadless.com) - You may not know this, but I LOVE everything zombie related. Have you seen the new TV show 'The Walking Dead'? If not, I might almost abandon you if you don't start downloading it ASAP! Also, somewhere between the phases of brand-obsessed fashionista and vintage lover, there came the phase of "alternative". Not quite goth, not quite emo, but 100% gore, grind and thrash, and a little of that phase remains.

Sugarhill Boutique blouse (ASOS) - I was just perusing the latest ASOS sale and J spotted this and liked it too, so it was a winner.

Rich indigo flares (ASOS) - hoping these will be flattering - I prefer a higher waist and a boot/flare leg. Not phased if they don't though, they were cheep cheep :)

And that, I'm afraid, will be it for clothing purchases for a little while... If I stick to a fairly strict budget (and no sneaky clothes shopping), I can have my credit card paid off by February 10th, which is decent, IMO, considering I owe about $2k.

So, have a wonderful New Years Eve everybody! We are currently on "catastrophe fire danger" alert with 40°C heat and extreme winds, so we are staying low, keeping an eye on the Country Fire Authority website and also patrolling the yard for dangerous snakes - one of the downsides to having pet snakes is that your dogs get taught to trust the pet ones, making them more complacent around the poisonous varieties.

What's in store for January 2011?

- donating blood for the second time

- getting a new tattoo shortly after donating blood

- giving up alcohol (for as long as I can - that will be tough, coming from the girl who is sipping bourbon at 10am right now)

- I should hopefully find out if I have been accepted into an IT Grad.Dip (glutton for punishment, I know)

- begin training for a 10km fun run again - I think my knee has just about recovered

See you in 2011, and tell me, what do you have in store for January (or indeed, the rest of 2010)? Did you fail all your NY resolutions too?

Wardrobe clean-out

2010-12-30T14:36:00.000+11:00

I am Spring (or Summer, really) cleaning my wardrobe of the clothes I haven't worn in a while - I have to be ruthless, as my wardrobe is overflowing and I don't have any more room to store new purchases.

I gave up trying to code a webstore into this blog - little things just wouldn't work like the JavaScript shopping cart only appearing on store pages (and not on every single blog post), so I gave up and fell back onto e(vil)Bay. I'm selling mostly 1950s dresses, but there are some from the 1930s right through to the 1970s. Almost everything is larger size - from 30" waist up to 36". Here's a sneak peak, and a link to my eBay listings here.

Not good, I'm afraid

2010-12-26T17:24:00.000+11:00

Sorry for the silence over the last few weeks, but it appears that I've lost my blogging mojo. I even gave up on the Dressember challenge because I just couldn't be bothered. My silence is across the board though - I have stopped updating Facebook and Twitter too, and I have been spending hardly any time online. I am also in a bit of a fashion pickle, after J mentioned to me that he doesn't like me wearing vintage (or as he calls it, the 'grandma look'), and prefers me in jeans and a tee. Would have been nice to know that before I sold all of my non-vintage clothes at the market last month. So in short, I am disappearing for a little while. But I'll be back. I promise.

More of Dressember

2010-12-13T14:06:00.000+11:00

Here are a few more of my Dressember outfits. I am actually quite lucky I signed up, as I'm going through a bit of a blah phase right now - the weather has been too terrible (raining, stormy, humid - blah!) to warrant putting any effort into my outfits lately. Either that or I'm just lazy.

Quick catch-up:

- celebrated Xmas with J's father's side of the family on the weekend (always fun)
- dyed my hair blue-black again
- had to shave Ace the dog's tail and bum after he became covered in grass seeds
- working hard on the IMDb Top 100 list - nearly 70% done
- passed my exam, and have therefore finished my Grad.Dip!
- have only 4.5 days of work left until Xmas hols - the countdown is on
- lost two pairs of shoes in 24 hours thanks to the dogs and the rain... now I am down to only one pair of ballet flats (God, I hate shoe shopping)

1970s cotton dress with smocked back

1950s satin and lace cocktail dress

1950s blue pintucked day dress

handmade dress from 1950s pattern

Two years

2010-12-06T08:03:00.000+11:00

Today my blog turns two years old. And what a wonderful two years it has been. One thing is for sure though, I would certainly be a lot wealthier if it weren't for my love of vintage! But hey, it's only money, right?!

I'll get the giveaway started soon... right now I am recovering from a mammoth dancing effort at the KoЯn concert last night. I'm a broken woman.

Dressember

2010-12-03T07:49:00.000+11:00

It's Dressember - the month where you wear only dresses, over on Flickr. If you're stuck in a fashion rut, go and join the group and post a photo of your daily outfit! Here are mine so far:

Tulips and cherries and roses, oh my!

2010-12-01T17:46:00.001+11:00

Introducing my new garden that I made on the weekend - she's a little bare right now, but I plan on buying a plant or two each week. It's the only spot that can be all "mine" - my dad has grand plans for the rest of the gardens when he finally gets round to them. So this is my little slice of cottage garden (plus Kangaroo Paw because I love it) - the roses are an anniversary gift from J that he has owed me since May! Also, introducing my new dress. Early 1960s white cotton dress with red tulip print. Apologies for the short post - I've been suffering from a migraine since Sunday evening, and I am very much over it.

1930s - 1950s Womens Weekly are now available online

2010-11-22T11:19:00.000+11:00

The National Library of Australia has just finished digitising hundreds of editions of the Australian Womens' Weekly magazine from the 1930s onwards - and you can view them all online (contents too, not just the cover art!) You can even save each issue as a PDF for your own personal collection.

Images taken from the Australian Women's Weekly , Saturday 4 October 1947 issue

The coverage is a little sparse in the late 1930s, but the 1940s and 1950s are well represented. I didn't look at anything later than the 1950s though, as I'm not really interested in that. It would be cool to see what was in fashion around the time I was born (in an "oh-my-God-they-really-wore-that?" kind of way), but their records only go up to 1982, and I'm a 1984 baby.

Click here to view the digitised copies of the Australian Womens' Weekly on Trove here, and happy reading!

The XP Ford Wagon

2010-11-22T08:21:00.000+11:00

This is the other classic car in our family - a 1965 Ford XP wagon. It's J's - it was his very first car, and he drove it every day for years. Unfortunately the poor girl is a bit sad and sorry at the moment - she needs new heads, because J got a bit slack in adding Valve Saver to his fuel (old cars were designed to run on leaded, not unleaded petrol). So he pushed her out of the garage and pressure washed her down, so hopefully he will get his bum into gear and start repairing her!

1950s suit from eBay

Heels from eBay

Seamed stockings from eBay (wow - lots of eBay today!)

Kiss Me Deadly Vargas girdle dress underneath

FYI - I took these photos just before I left for work this morning at 6:30am, and it was freezing - so much for it being November (which should warm this time of year - don't forget I'm in the Southern Hemisphere). My stockings and feet were soaking wet from the dew, the car was covered in dew, but it was a lovely sunrise!

They come in threes

2010-11-18T11:18:00.000+11:00

It's over (I think)! I sat my final exam yesterday, and I am about 80% confident that I passed. Now I have to endure an agonising month-long wait to hear my results. It's just such a relief that I can now return to normal life!

So what does one do in normal life? Buy vintage. Oh yes, and I also believe I owe you a surprise or three.

1) Remember the little giveaway I had a few weeks back - well, the lass who won has failed to contact me, so I have redrawn it and the winner is:

Kerri @ OldLadyChic. Leave a comment with your address, Kerri - I won't publish it up for the world to see, promise!

2) I am nearing 100 followers, and I am also nearing this blog's two year anniversary. So that calls for another giveaway! To celebrate this momentous occassion, I will be giving away a $50 gift voucher to your choice of vintage seller on etsy. Yep, you heard right. Stay tuned.

3) And finally, the surprise announcement I mentioned before disappearing into my study-cave last week.... I am opening an online store! It will only have authentic 1940s to early 1960s garb, and most of the items will cater to us curvier ladies (waist sizes 30" and up). It will be hosted on this site, and I am playing around with some HTML and JavaScript right now, so things might look a little strange for a moment or two. I aim to open the store in January next year - I plan on starting small and will hopefully build it up.

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Right, now all that is out of the way, want to see my purchases? (They're partial shots so I still have something exciting to show you when they arrive.)

1950s dress and hat, from simplicityisbliss

Mary gets a haircut

2010-11-11T11:10:00.001+11:00

There hasn't been a whole lot of excitement in my neck of the woods lately, as I am busy studying for my upcoming exam (a week yesterday - eep). Just for your information, Project Management is no fun.

Once my exam is over, I may have some very exciting news to announce to the world, but I am afraid I must make you wait until then. Oh, and I'm not pregnant, if that is what you were thinking! I'm way too busy keeping up with my four-legged kids.

And this four-legged kid had her very first all-over haircut yesterday. She certainly looks a whole lot different without inches and inches of wool. The blue stuff is a backline treatment for lice, and she was also drenched (for worms) and had a pedicure. Now we can't help but giggle every time we see her.

Brando, the little darling, also had an eventful day yesterday, with a drench, a backline treatment, a quick dagging (where we found a tiny bit of flystrike), and he had his tail docked (a very tight elastic band is placed on the tail to cut off circulation, so the tail dies and drops off).

If you have never seen a lamb react to being docked, YouTube it if you dare. They squirm, they bleat, they roll around - for an hour or so until the pain subsides. Brando was a downright sook, and he refused to come anywhere near me for the entire evening - he even didn't want his bottle of milk for tea! My grandfather wanted to castrate him as well, but we want him to be a manly man (and so he and Mary can produce lambs of their own in future). I nearly had to tackle the pliers out of my grandfather's hands though.

I might not get a chance to post now until after my exam, so enjoy your week, and I shall hopefully have some wonderful news to share with you soon.

A perfect day

2010-11-06T12:23:00.000+11:00

I hope everybody is having as great a day as I am. And it is only noon! First and foremost, my outfit.

Knit - thrifted

Wool skirt - thrifted

Shoes - ASOS
(and water from the creek, care of my puppy who decided to shake off mid-picture!)
(the barn pictured is on our property, from the late 1800s)

The first thing I did this morning (apart from being woken up at 6am by a noisy, hungry lamb, and then setting my hair with hot rollers) was I headed to a church fete in the nearby tiny town of Batesford. I went purely to buy a delicious sponge cake, made by one of the parishoners. Most of my relatives go to this church, so it was great to catch up with my Great Aunties and Uncles, as well as the other folk. So, I bought a beautiful sponge and a bottle of Mrs. M's homemade tomato sauce.

Then it was off to the local Farmers' Market for honey, strawberries and some punnets of mixed lettuce seedlings.

And finally, onto the annual Bannockburn Antique Fair - where I made the greatest purchases (in my opinion). I bought:

♥ Five wave clips for $8 - no idea on age - perhaps 1930s-40s? Anyone care to help me out her? I can only make out the word "Pain, 17258". Perhaps pain represents how comfortable they are to sleep in? Tee hee.

♥ Australian Home Journal, July 1949 and Glamour, January 1948. These two cost $5 total, and the Home Journal magazine comes complete with an uncut pattern for the three dresses seen on the cover! Granted, they are in the wrong size for me, but I don't care... these are going into my collection. The Glamour mag has beautiful colour images too, which is why I bought it.

♥ Ice-o-mat ice crusher. This little gizmo set me back $28. I have no idea if that is reasonable, but it will match my fridge (once I get it painted), so it now sits proudly on my counter top. I'm guessing it is early-mid 1960s?

Now I am listening to a Best Of 1940s record on my record player that I finally pulled down from the cupboard, and soon I will pop out into the garden to plant my lettuce seedlings and some spring onion bulbs I got for free from Freecycle. My veggie patch is going wonderfully - I have harvested about 4kg of broccoli, two great big bunches of spring onion, and some curly Dutch carrots (my soil wasn't fine enough, it seems).

Cheerio, and enjoy your weekend everybody!

Finally... the sweater!

2010-11-04T13:25:00.000+11:00

I know it has been a long time, but remember this sweater I posted way back in April? Well my good friend Alice has finished sewing it, and it is now being proudly displayed in the window display of an awesome little knitting supplies store! Isn't it wonderful?

I can haz craft?

2010-10-29T06:59:00.000+11:00

Over the last few days I have been slowly making my handmade Christmas presents for everybody. Exhibit A is bathsalts, and Exhibit B is lemon marmalade. Details as follows:

Bathsalts
Jars - found around the farm and scrubbed clean
Epsom salts - eBay
Organic lavendar and rose petals - Austral Herbs
Essential oils - store in Geelong
Wooden scoops - eBay
Chiffon bags to hold salts in the bath (saves cleaning petals out of the bath!) - saved from weddings I've attended
Fabric circles and ribbon - scavenged at Mum's place and my sewing basket

Total = $7.70 each (I made 8 - four lavendar, four rose). And I still have plenty of petals and essential oil left, so I might make potpurri too if I can find a few nice bowls.

Lemon marmalade
Ball preserve jars - Redback Trading Company
Lemons - free from a workmate
Sugar - my pantry
Water

Total = $2.65 each

I still have five Ball jars left over from the batch I bought, so I am planning on making some strawberry jam too. There is a pick-your-own strawberry farm not too far away, so I might drive over there this coming weekend.

I need to also make cute little swing tags for both items, requesting that people save the jars and return them to me when they are finished so I can make more goodies. Which reminds me I need to scavenge through the fancy paper cupboard at work - tomorrow's job!

So in order to be ready for Christmas, all I need to do is:
- find pretty floral plates at op-shops
- make chocolate peanut clusters (just before Xmas)
- make cookies (just before Xmas)
- create a little cookie and slice cookbook to accompany the cookies
... and I'm done!

Knock-your-socks-off cuteness!

2010-10-26T09:57:00.000+11:00

I should update you all on my most recent purchases. I haven't been in the mood to buy clothing lately - I think because I can't fit anything else in my wardrobe! I will amend this soon-ish, as my Mum and I are holding a stall at a local market in late November (weather-permitting)

I'm super excited about what I just bought from cloth-ears.co.uk. I am a real sucker for anything with the Air Mail stripe, as red + blue + white is my favourite colour combination.

The shopper tote will actually become my day-to-day handbag, as my Balenciaga City is no longer big enough (thanks to the iPad - hefty little blighter, he is). And I couldn't say no to the matching wallet and bag charm! I do wish that the cloth-ears website could handle overseas orders though - you have to email them for a postage quote and invoice, which can take a few days (but perhaps you're all not as impatient as I am).

I am also waiting on some more Ball preserving jars from Redback Trading, and the following etsy items. I love having items in the mail on their way to me... it's very exciting (but maybe my life is just boring).

Vintage-style robot brooch from bombshellbettiesvint

Blue earrings from laceandlinks - (I only really wear simple earrings in this style - studs always jab me in the shoulder (or J's shoulder) when I sleep)

Red bell flower earrings (for me) and a French love letter necklace (will be a Xmas pressie for my cousin) from BrassAndChain

Wheels in the Sky 2011 calendar and miscellaneous prints from bomobob - (I also bought two different calendars for my mum to give as Xmas gifts for the aunties and uncles)

Another year older

2010-10-25T15:23:00.000+11:00

'Twas my birthday on Sunday, and I turned 26. To celebrate, J and I ate a whole lot of Tim Tams, and we went for a ride on his Triumph down to Apollo Bay to enjoy the sunshine (and enjoy I did - I got a little sunburnt / windburnt). My 270km round trip didn't do my behind (and particularly my sacrum) any good, but it was such a lovely day that it was worth the soreness.

My birthday haul was:
- a Bunnings gift card (the Aussie version of Home Depot, but with an awesome gardening section too)
- a Chinese cookbook with authentic dishes, and text in Chinese / English. I can't wait to cook 干煸四季豆！
- the Spicks and Specks board game (it's my favourite show on telly)
- a tripod / monopod for my DSLR
- and the awesome iPad from J

I was pretty specific with what I wanted - I know that sounds a bit rude, but we don't have any space in our house to store anything excess, and I am really over the scented candles/body wash presents of past. In hindsight, I should have requested no wrapping paper or cards too - such a waste. (But I did try and unwrap carefully so Mum can reuse it all.) I will request that my Christmas will be paper and card free though.

The most exciting part is that with my tripod, I can now take outfit photos all around the place. But I have to tease you a little longer, as these photos were taken prior to the unwrapping of the tripod. Behold, me not wearing vintage!

Spreadin' the word

2010-10-21T08:09:00.001+11:00

Here are a couple of cool websites that I love, which you may not be aware of:

Kiva is a microlending site that lets you lend US$25 to entrepreneurs in developing countries. The entrepreneurs pay back your loan over a set period, then you can loan your $25 out again. The website makes it seem as though your $25 (combined with $25 each from other people to create the total of the loan - between $100 and $500 usually) goes straight to the entrepreneur, but in fact Kiva loans the money before any lenders get on board, so you're technically reimbursing Kiva... it's confusing, I know, but it's a great cause.

With PostCrossing, you basically send a postcard to a stranger somewhere in the world, and in turn you receive a postcard from a different stranger. Sounds strange, I know, but I think it's a cute idea, as I love receiving happy mail (not to be mistaken with bills and statements - that's boring mail), and I love learning a little bit about other peoples' way of life in the shape of a pretty postcard.

43 things is a goal-setting community. One look at their front page, and you will see a huge list of some of the goals other people are setting. You can join a goal, or create your own, and then you can discuss with others about your journey. If you've already fulfilled a goal (say, travel to China, for me), you can leave comments for others on how you accomplished the goal and if it was worthwhile.

I'm back!

2010-10-20T07:33:00.001+11:00

Last week was a week I'd rather forget. It was horrible, thanks to a huge assignment due last night, which I left to the last minute as always. The thing that annoyed me the most was that it was such a time consuming assignment (requiring us to learn a whole new program, then spend 20+ hours creating project plans) all for just 30% of our overall mark. I'd rather spend more time studying for the 50% exam.

* think of happy topics, think of happy topics, breathe, breathe *

My serapes arrived from the States! And also, my new remote control for my DSLR. Annnnnd.... my birthday present from J - an iPad - which arrived today after a traumatic 24 hours lost within the University (my work) somewhere. I am very excited, as I can begin to fulfill my quest of becoming paper free at work.

So... LOTS of photos to make up for my week-long absence. I hope you'll forgive me (I'm sure you will).

1. La outfit

The hair - not as happy with it as my last time, but it's ok. Four-day dirty hair, setting lotion and foam rollers overnight. It held up pretty well. I was planning on taking some snaps before heading to work today, but it was so cold outside that I waited until I got to work... and then I had to find a decent (read: pretty) spot to pose. Thankfully one of my workmates is an artist, and her desk area provided the perfect backdrop.

2. La serapes in la FC

Ahh, beautiful, beautiful colour. I am a very colour-loving person by nature, so therefore I just love these babies. Would you just look at the poor FC up on jacks though - I must make a time with my dad to install the new gearbox. And as promised, some pictures of the interior. It's looking a bit messy right now, because the carpet in the front is pulled back so we can access the gearbox. It was also really hard to take photos of the interior without being able to get into the car.

It's oh so quiet, shhh, shhh

2010-10-12T09:03:00.001+11:00

Not a lot is happening in my neck of the woods... but here are some little things to tide you over until I get my ass into gear and write a proper post.

♥ I changed the music for my blog, but I've been having trouble finding a flash player that will consistently work! Please let me know if it fails to load for you.

♥ I broke the layshaft in the FC - it's an integral part of the gearbox. Funny story (well, it is now... it wasn't at the time):

Sunday was a beautiful day so I thought I'd go for a quick toodle down the road with the dogs. Going up a very steep hill, it started shuddering, then stopped. On a steep hill. Just after a blind corner. In the middle of the road. In a remote location. I could start it again, but it refused to go forward or back... I couldn't even get it into gear.

I had no mobile reception because I'd broken down in a valley, so I jumped out of the car, ran up the hill and frantically called Mum to call my Dad to come rescue me. About half an hour later, my Dad appeared and tried to get it into gear (turns out it was jammed in two gears... it only has three, how greedy can it be?!) but that failed, so he ended up under the car, and removed the entire tailshaft.

I was stressing out to the max, because when he removed the tailshaft, if my drum brakes weren't strong enough to hold the car stationery on the hill, the car would have rolled backwards and crushed him! So I was pushing down on the brake pedal so hard, and for so long, that my leg got the shakes.

With the tailshaft removed, I could now roll backwards and forwards, and Dad managed to tow me home, with the rope only snapping three times. What was meant to be a 10 minute Sunday drive turned into a 2 hour saga.

I luckily found a replacement gearbox on the FE-FC owners forum for only $90, but a refurb kit for the new gearbox cost nearly $200. Lesson? Keep your gearbox oiled up! Here is Dad towing me home:

♥ Seeing as the FC is off the road, I can't go to the Camperdown Cruise. I am shattered, as this means that I will be spending my birthday alone again, because J will have to work now. Feeling pretty crappy about the whole deal, but what can you do?

♥ I bought two separes for the FC on eBay. They're those colourful Mexican blankets that usually adorn the seats of classic cars and hotrods (the aim is to prevent the hot sun damaging your precious tuck and roll upholstery). Once they arrive I will take some photos of the FC's gorgeous interior.

♥ My veggie patch has been extended, and the fence put up. I had to sew hems onto 41 metres of shadecloth (top and bottom of each strip) - it was tedious, and in the end, we only used 28 metres. Better photos to come soon.

♥ I am just about sorted for Christmas - yesterday all of the components of my Christmas gifts arrived (Epsom salts, organic petals and tiny wooden scoops for the bath salts, and jam-making utensils and pretty quilted jars for the lemon marmalade). Now I just need the time to make them.

♥ I am officially over studying. I have just one one assignment and one exam to go, then I graduate with my Grad.Dip! And, of course, I have left the assignment to the last minute, and it's a doozy (project management, anyone?). Prepare for a mini-meltdown any moment now...

That's enough for now...

And the winner is....

2010-10-07T07:07:00.000+11:00

I was planning on doing an aesthetically pleasing, paper draw out of a hat, but I decided to not waste paper, and just used a random number generator. I also planned on actually drawing it last night, but I got so sidetracked hemming shadecloth for my garden that I darn well forgot!

But, without further ado, the winner of the little Frenchy inspired items is...

Number 5 is Claire M! Claire, please email me at rach @ fifties-fever . com so I can get your items off to you， and thanks to everybody who entered!

Wanted

2010-10-06T13:30:00.000+11:00

I am hoping one of my lovely crafty Aussie readers will be able to help me out!

I am after your unwanted scraps of pretty fabric (measuring 6"x6" and larger) and ribbon (at least 3" long) so I can make part of my handmade Christmas presents (lid covers for my jars of bath soaks). I will pay for postage, and I really don't need much.

I've also decided to make lemon marmalade, because everybody seems to be inundated with lemons at the moment, and they can't give them away quick enough here at work - I just need a few utensils (like jars and lifting tongs, which I have just bought online) and I'm right to go!

Don't forget that tonight I will draw the winner of my little giveaway, so last chance to enter!

Final days to enter my giveaway

2010-10-05T08:38:00.000+11:00

Gosh, how that week has flown! Now, I am drawing the winner of my little giveaway tomorrow evening, so you only have a little over one day to enter! So quick sticks, hop to it! You can enter here.

And a few tiny tidbits:

My workmate has just returned from a trip to Europe, and she brought me the most darling little postcard back (which is now being proudly displayed on my desk) - it's the "Another day in paradise" card... but there is a whole set that I may have to try and get my hands on. I think life definitely would be paradise if I was the owner of that beautiful stove! (Kidding, kidding... I'm trying not to be materialistic.)

And I have almost all of my Xmas presents sorted! I am trying to make all my gifts this year, so I am making organic bath soaks using Epsom salts and flowers (stored in old jars I've found here on the farm), handmade soap, choc peanut clusters, and cookies/slices on pretty floral plates (from op-shops). I am also going to make a little slice and cake cookbook that I can print to accompany the cookies. Thoughts? Ideas for boy-friendly pressies?

LOTS OF STUFF!

2010-10-03T17:45:00.003+11:00

I am not normally very succinct, but I will try today because I have a lot of updates.

1. Green September is over! How quickly did that month fly? We used less electricity, less money and helped the environment. I am going to keep implementing my changes until at least the end of the year.

2. I survived my week of babysitting T. We made homemade soap and paper, and he played the PS3... a lot. Not exactly how I wanted to spend my week off work, and I didn't really get thanked for it, either, which was really annoying. Must learn to say no to a day or two in future!

3. Brando has been quite ill again, but I think he's on the mend now, thanks to some antibiotics we're feeding him twice a day. To help him get better, we've had to move the dogs to my parents' place, and allow Mary (the one-year-old lamb) into the house yard so Brando will follow her around and, as a result, eat more grass!

4. I cut off my hair! I chopped off 5 inches, and it feels so much nicer! I tried pincurls last night, and they lasted much better (but still not great because my hair was clean-ish).

5. I went on a shopping trip yesterday and only spent $150 on things we really needed like saucepans and some shorts for J. I did buy a gorgeous pair of Review polkadot wedges for $30, marked down from $120 for myself though!

6. No more neck collar! Whiplash all healed, and my back is getting there slowly with the help of physio, heatpacks and strong painkillers. No outfit photos from that period will ever see the light of day, sorry!

7. During Green September, I collected rubbish from just ONE kilometre of our fenceline that lies against the road. And this is how much I collected. Disgusting, isn't it?

8. A random picture of Jagger the snake today going for a "walk"

200th Post Giveaway!

2010-09-29T08:55:00.000+10:00

Well, I was planning on doing a giveaway for reaching 50 followers, but I blinked and now I'm into the 60s! Thank you, and welcome, to all my new followers - I think I can thank Bombshell Bettie's giveaway for that! (If you didn't know, I'm sponsoring a giveaway on Bombshell Bettie's Vintage - a cute pair of brogue heels - so hop to it and enter if you have a size 9-9.5 foot!) But back to this blog...

I have this cute French-inspired giveaway for my followers: a vintage embroidered collar, a red plastic F21 bow ring (size 7) and an adorable handprinted card and envelope for your Mon Chéri.

Open to worldwide readers.

Post a comment to enter.

Re-blog or tweet for an extra entry!

Winner will be drawn in one week - Wednesday 6th October

GOOD LUCK!

Homemade bread

2010-09-28T09:39:00.000+10:00

Well, I was planning on taking a few more outfit photos this week, seeing as I have the week off, but I am now out for the count after my little tumble I took on Sunday! I went to the docs yesterday because my neck mobility was getting much worse, and turns out I have whiplash and a cracked sacrum! So now I am wearing a very stylish foam neck collar, and spending a lot of time lying down (because sitting hurts so damn much).

But anyway, yesterday afternoon T and I made a loaf of bread! Except T wasn't overly enthused as the process didn't involve the TV or PS3 in any way, so I was left to do most of it.

The instructions called for leaving the dough to rise in a warm spot, and the only warm spot in our house is inside the reptile enclosures. I chose the lizard's enclosure, because I didn't like my chances of extricating the snake should he wrap himself around the bowl!

I ended up rushing off to the doctors halfway through the process, so my mum (who came down to watch T) popped it into the oven. Unfortuntely, when the bread was done, J was home by then, and he left it sitting in the oven to cool (wtf?) and didn't read the instructions to remove it from the bread tin after a few minutes, so it sweated and turned mushy on the edges :( That boy can't handle instructions.

Other than the mushy bits (which I cut off), the bread is delicious! Next time I bake a loaf, I'll make sure I don't need to rush off anywhere!