Bought! Hat stand from Earthborn

EEEE! I have been after one of these for a while now, and had the idea stuck in my head that I ought to wait and hunt down a vintage one. Well that idea never panned out. Every time I went to the vintage shops and markets, they were always sold near immediately. Sitting still at their stalls, taunting me with their 'SOLD' stickers ...
So I decided stuff it, and picked up one from a home wares store at Carindale.
I'm glad I did finally bite the bullet, as unless you find one trawling through garage sales you aren't going to find it much cheaper then new in store. Comes in Red and black also I think.

Hat Stand available from Earthborn.

Quick reminder! Brisbane Vintage Fashion Fair is on today.

I've totally spaced the last few days I wanted to put up a reminder about this on Thursday,bit late but if any readers want something to do today I highly recommend checking this out, even just to look!
I have blogged about the fair previously here. and you can also find out more information here.
Go! I implore you!

Bought! Typo Haul

Christmas is less then two months away, confronting much? This year has utterly flown by like so many of them do and we're already gearing up for a great holiday period.
Hey... I know I may be early in some peoples eyes but at least my decorations didn't go up at the start of September *coughDavidJonescough*.
So I've been off to stalk my favourite gift shop, Typo, and picked up a few early presents, but also check out these cute as ornaments I got for my tree!

Also bought these little gift tags, I never seem to have any when I want some.

So now if everyone could just tell me what they want for Christmas without actually telling me, I'd love you.

Bought: Hello Kitty body wash from Target

I can quite happily say I never fell into the Emo genre while I was in high school. I was too cool for that (lol! Joke). But while I was in high school I utterly loved and adored a heap of kitschy Japanese stuff. Manga, Anime, figurines, but none of that creepy dirty porn/paedo stuff.
Part of that was Hello Kitty. Especially the lesser known characters like Chococat. I had Chococat contact lens cases and carried them everywhere with me.So as you can imagine when I saw this sitting near the counter of Target I had to have it, I don't care much for the product inside, but the strawberry scent is quite cute and reminds me of childhood. I plan on refilling it with other product when it's empty.

Looking good in amongst my other shower gear

Hello Kitty Body wash available from Target stores (Australia)

Tip of the day: Self tanning? Add dark bedsheets to your shopping list

I have a beautiful set of white bedsheets with black piping and a gorgeous Edwardian lace print, also in black. At least they were gorgeous. I made the fatal mistake of using them over summer while I slathered myself with St Tropez on a weekly basis. Big mistake. They now have a brown cast to them that I didn't notice until it was too late. Can't bleach it out or I'll kill the piping.
So before you start pulling your limbs out into the open and showing off your carefully applied tans, for the live of god, put some dark sheets on your bed! Black is ideal, but dark prints are also good at hiding stains for something a little less Goth. Don't ruin your crisp pale sheets.

September Sales!

Truly one of my favourite times of the year, There are normally heaps of sales this month with many worthwhile discounts. Perfect time to get a head start on christmas shopping too! Here are some that I have already looked at, or plan to:

Portmans: Are clearing off what remains of their winter stock to fill with summer stock arriving frequently. A lot of the items can easily be translated into summer wear with maxi skirts, blouses and clothing that walks the line between work wear and smart casual. Great time and place to stock up on classics.


Sportsgirl: 50% off already reduced stock? Oh my god yes please! I already told you all about the great wedges I bought there on Thursday, but I also picked up a large slouchy handbag that will see me through my casual days this summer. Loving bags with two straps.

Cotton On: 30% off everything online, you only have until Monday to make use of this discount though so get on it! great chance to pick up fashion items that don't need to see you past this season.

David Jones: Great to check out and start stalking items so you can jump on them the second they have another round of discounts. My friend picked up the perfect classic pair of nude patent slingback stilettos the other day, makes me jealous I can barely balance in wedges. Lots of bargains to be had across the store, home wares, clothing, beauty, worth a look at the very least.


Cue: If you've had your eye on something, now is the time to snap it up. I haven';t had the chance to go in and check out the savings, but I know from past experience that the sales are good.

This is just a handful of what's out there at the moment, but it's a great time to stock up on your summer wardrobe. Take the opportunity while it's there.

Nature inspired Wall lamps by Ikea

Another thing to add to the refurbishments when I get off my financially challanged butt and buy a house, how gorgeous are these lamps? The Ikea catalogue landed in my mailbox last week sometime last week and these are by far my favourite thing in there.

 Soder Wall lamp by Ikea

They also have a pendant lamp in the range.

 Soder Pendant light by Ikea

Cannot wait to move into our own rental again soon, started looking this week and the market is tight as (yawn, I know) wish me luck guys!

Birdette does Laundry: How to wash your clothes

Boring! Yes I know. Trust me, I know. But it never ceases to amaze me just how clueless the majority of people are when it comes to washing clothes, guys in particular, but yes, some girls I know, the horrors! All in one, no colour sorting, bras in the dryer, No no no no no! My god no!
So I'm going to tell you all everything I know. Barely any of it I learnt from my mother so I don't expect yours to have taught you that well either. This will also help out anyone who has just moved out from home. Do not take your laundry home for your mother to still do once you move out. Grow up, buy a machine and do it yourself, she has only been looking after you for the best part of at least two decades! In fact, go buy her some flowers, just because she's been awesome all these years.

Buying a machine:
Personally I only have one piece of advice here, get one with a central spindle, mine does not have one, and it is a bitch that likes to tangle clothes and get stuck on repeat. Will be getting a new one when I can afford it.

Washing Powder:
My best advice it to use what your mother uses, chances are she's trialled a lot of them and she knows her stuff, plus you already know you are not allergic to it.
Also use white vinegar as an end of wash softener, it neutralises soap powder and finishes your clothes nicely.
Lastly buy a woolwash for your wool and silk items, best to handwash these.

Separate your clothes:
I normally do my washing once every two to three weeks, this is enough time to get up decent load sizes so I do not waste water in the machine, it will generally take at least 40 litres of water to run the smallest load, so you're better off hand washing if you have anything less then perhaps two kg of clothes to wash, (generalising here).
The categories I break up my load into are as follows (you may need to adjust depending on your wardrobe):
Blacks
Whites (I sometimes add lights into this load as I do not wear much white)
Lights
Brights (can need to be further broken down into colours, blues, reds etc)
Dulls (Mid range colours, but not brights, think tan, olive, grey muted shades)
Darks (nearly black but not quite, navy, charcoal  a lot of denim etc)
Delicates (silks and wools)
Dry cleaning

Also worth mentioning here is that you should wash your tea towels daily, bedsheets weekly, and towels at least weekly. they can generally go in the same wash as they tend to be colourfast, but check the labels. if in doubt, separate.
Take dry cleaning to the cleaners, and save your receipts, a lot of jobs will let you claim dry cleaning as a uniform or work related clothing tax refund.

Buy some garment bags.
Best to have about half a dozen of these, some mesh, some normal, the mesh ones are best for knickers, while the other variety are best for bras, fabric belts, and other items, Have a look around, a good price for these is just a couple of bucks each, I like Ikea and department stores to find them.
Items that you'd want to put in these are (but not limited to):
Bras
Knickers
Clothing with straps and attached belts (wrap around dresses and tops)
Shoestring singlets
Hosiery
Lingerie in general
Keep like with like in the bags, and make sure you do your bra clips up when you chuck them in, they catch on everything.

What temp to use?
My rule is to always use cold water, it's too much stuffing about if you separate your clothes by temp to wash in, cold water will wash everything and use up stacks less electricity too. Only bother with hotter settings for things like bedsheets, and if you haven't mixed your loads. Apart from risking colour leaking from item to item, it can sometimes shrink your clothes.

Got a top loader? Let the machine fill up a bit without any clothes in it yet.
For top loaders, it's a good idea to stick your washing powder in and then let it mix with some water before you put your clothes in, this is a good time to sort you load and garment bag any items that need it.

Suit your wash to what you are washing:
Gentle Cycles are for dedicates and items that are recommended for hand washing (if an item says to hand wash, I stick it in a garment bag and on a gentle cycle.) Heavy duty loads are for Tradie's uniforms, incredibly messy gear, rarely washed jeans and for linens. Everything else can go on a regular cold cycle.

Dryer vs. hanging up:
Do your electricity bill and the environment a favour and hang your clothes up to dry as much as you can. Some items of clothes you simply cannot chuck in a dryer, bras,  jeans, and sports gear come to mind but check the label before you put anything in the dryer. Personally, the dryer is made for uniforms that have frequent wash and wear, linens and for extra crisp cotton shirts. Bonus tip? If you dry your cotton shirts in there, and grab them out and hang them on coat hangers IMMEDIATELY, You made not need to iron them at all.
Also if line drying in the sun, turn your clothes inside out as this will prevent the majority of colour fading in garments, who cares if it's on the side? At least you can't see peg marks on the outside!

Well I do hope that's helped some of you out at least a little, I have more so share but I'm really over typing at the moment! If you have any other questions please don't hesitate to let me know!

Cute handmade owls by Tickled Pink Events.

OK, I admit it, I am one of those girls who utterly adore owls, and if it didn't make me look like a crazy person I would quite possible have them all over my house. But I'm no Nina Proudman, and only let my owly obsessions out to play occasionally.
Tickled Pink Cards is a stationery company that ties in with Tickled Pink Events, a wedding and occasion planning company. I had the pleasure of meeting Natalie at the Young Designers Markets last week and she is lovely.
What drew me to her stall were of course these gorgeous handmade owls she was selling, I wanted to take them all home with me. Have a look at these and tell you you don't want one of them to pop on your couch or to sit with your books.

 

Owl obsession now sated for the time being ...

Tickled Pink Designs are stocked all around Brisbane, Please visit her site to read more information and find out where you can buy her wares!

Bought! Retro Camera Mobile by Sweet and Salty

So after the year of weddings I had last year, this is clearly the year of babies for me. Expecting three out of my friends within the next six months.
One of the mother's to be is quite the photographer, and loves vintage cameras so when I snuck the information out of her that she hadn't bought a mobile for her little boy's cot, I snapped this up quick smart.

Retro Camera Mobile available from Shana Logic

Cats, birds and deers are also available.

Loving this week: Cassandra Graus and Alannah Hill

I feel that since I'm in a house I have no hope of decorating at the moment that I'm drawn to home furnishings. You always want what you can't have! I can't wait to have walls to decorate, and a kitchen to fill with kooky kitchenware , and a room just for dining! (And perhaps showing off more of my quirky tastes.)
Blank walls! Blech! I want to cover them in things that make me happy. Like this adorable kitty print. Cassandra has created a collection of kitty themed prints, that make me giggle when I see them. I want this one especially.

 

Cat Nap Print by Cassandra Graus available at Shana Logic.

This is a truly great time of the year for scooping up a bargain, because of all the gorgeous new things flooding the stores. <3

Alannah Hill comes up with dozens of new designs at the start of the season and I especially loves her promotional pictures for her collections. I first saw these almost a fortnight ago but just haven't had the resoures to share anything, and now they're in store anyway! Go check them out online too. I love the skirt in this picture, a totaly scene stealing piece.

 A snippet from the Spring Summer 2011 collection by Alannah Hill.

Typo

Typo has been revolutionary for shopping for me, and my failproof gift store. When I first discovered it's cute and attitude filled shops popping up I was almost shocked to find they have the same parent company as Cotton On. You see, Cotton On used to be great to me but about five years ago I found that the quality of their clothes had dropped dramatically and I was squeezing myself into sizes that should've fit me. No my ass wasn't expanding that much, they had gone the way of Supre and become somewhat of a jersey wasteland.
Back on topic, Typo is filled to the brim with kitchy hipster like stationery and homewares, with new collections coming in on a frequent basis, because of this they have a great sales rack where I like to visit regularly and pick up the cast offs of ranges I love. The canvas' are a great and a cheap way of decorating rental houses, the cards aren't quite for your grandmother but are something you don't feel embarrassed handing to your best friend.
I particularly love the magentic notepads for your fridge, as well as the meal planners and do do lists (or the shit that needs doing' lists, lol) and I have noticed some of the more PC items popping up on the desks of my co workers.
I also have a collection of their coffee mugs, perfectly matchy in the all-the-same-shape-but-completely-different way.
I highly recommend paying them a visit if you're stuck on what to bu a fiend for their birthday as well, for under $20 they have saved my ass numerous times in last minute 'Fuck! The hell do I buy this person??' moments.

Loving this week: Mimco, Palmers and Kikki K

For a long time I've been after a bag from Mimco, I've always liked their Viking Pouche Style, but in the latest range drop soemthing else has caught my eye, the Faraway Hip Bag. It has a top opening like a doctors bag, and come with both a long strap and carry handles. I'm always a fan of long straps as shopping is so much easier when you don't have an arm already occupied with carrying your handbag. It also comes in a nice neutral brown that will go with stacks of things.

 

Faraway Hip Bag by Mimco.

Next on my list this week is an oldie but a goodie. Over the years I have introduced many of my friends to this product, and I fell in love with it yet again this week while trying to make myself feel better in my sick state. Palmer's Cocoa Butter Moisturiser. If you haven't tried it, I highly suggest it. (They even have free samples to send out via their Aussie Facebook page) It smells divine, even the boys in my life are suckers for the smell, and the effect is magnificent, you feel totally pampered, and your skin glows. not bad for a supermarket buy. I also read that they don't test on animals, so it's good for any ethical readers out there!

 

Palmer's Orginal Cocoa Butter Formula.

I love stationery. When I move into my new house in a few months, I hope to have a room that I can say is purely a creative outlet for myself. I'll set up my sewing machines, mannequins, fabrics, stationery, computer, everything that I do to keep myself smiling and sane. Kikki K has just released a new inspiring catalogue for the new ranges coming out, you can see it here. I find it helps to see how other people fill ther spaces and create their niches without being pigeon-holed. I cannot wait.

Sweet Hearts Adhesive Notes by Kikki K

Tip of the day: Make drawers run smoothly

When we moved house last week, I managed to inherit a huge set of drawers. four huge drawers, two smaller, and even a little armoire on the side to hang up more clothes. I love it, but the drawers are a bitch. All jammy and hard to open and close smoothly.
Now you could get someone to sand down the edges so your drawers have a little extra room, but then you'd have a lot of work to deal with, and need to find someone you're OK with seeing your scanties. This method is much quicker, and less messy.
Keep a bar of soap in your knicker drawer. Firstly it will keep your knickers smelling nice, and secondly it's great for rubbing on the corners of your drawers to make them run smooth. Give it a go and see.

For nice drawer soaps, just your normal imperial leather just won't do, My favourite pretty soap brand is Mor, they have a huge range so you're bound to find something you like, and the packaging is so pretty you might not want to unwrap it (buy a few bars for your bathroom too). My favourite is the Black Cherry Plum.

A range of the scents available 

Mor Black Cherry Plum Soap

Mor is also available at selected Myer stores and Cosmetics Fragrance Direct for the bargain hunters out there.

Loving this week: Carven, Have you met Miss Jones and Topshop

Trawling the internet for gorgeous things, I found this designer, who by no means is new but new to me, Carven. (watch the awe inspiring catwalk show on the French homepage here.) Totally in love with the cut of this skirt, I'd dress it down with a pastel singlet and sling handbag, or wear it to work with a crisp shirt and sleek blazer.

Available at Net-a-Porter

Up next is this cute and quirky vase from Have you met miss Jones, Certainly something to talk about, I want to stick it in the middle of my dining room table with some large blooms.

Available from Have you met Miss Jones

Topshop have a trend that's right up my alley at the moment, Prim and Polished. Blair Waldorf would approve. I wish I could wear playsuits, but I'm just too tall from shoulder to crotch. Kinda gross to say but true, I have a loooooong torso, so I was incredibly cut when I saw this adorable playsuit and knew it would just never work for me, but perhaps for you?

Available at Topshop

Brisbane Vintage Fashion and Decor Fairs

Last time I went to one of these it was located in Westend and it was epic. Time has just escaped from me and it looks like they've expanded!
Brisbane Vintage Fashion and Decor Fairs are going to have their next event on the 29th and 30th of October, at the Eaglefarm Race Course, (Just a quick walk from the train station) and even if you aren't a buyer it's well worth a look just to see. I love going to these places to get one of a kind items that you just can't find in stores nowadays, 40's suits with their gorgeous shape, 70's suede skirts, and vintage clothing patterns by the barrel load, and at great prices too.
Depending on the stall holder the prices can be awesome or a bit OTT. I have in the past snaffled a vintage Oroton glomesh bag for $20 (still in its box and with a tag stating that it was 70 odd dollars back when it was bought!), numerous dresses that only required a little altering to be worn today (shortening sleeves and hemlines are something even a novice can do), and the patterns, gorgeous Jackie O suits, 70's caftans, and great Vogue designer stuff. Admittedly I haven't touched some of them, but they're great collectibles.
A lot of the stalls are run by vintage clothing stores throughout Brisbane and surrounds, so you can get a feel for their wares and then visit them when the fair isn't on.
I'm really interested in checking out some of the decor as this looks like a new addition to the stalls, Perhaps I'll find something to jazz up my then new house. (Yup, you guessed it, I'm going to be moving house AGAIN in another two months.)
Also another draw card is that everyone is so nice, Very few shops around have such warm and welcoming staff who are dying to tell you about their favourite and latest find, and they really know what they're talking about, they have collected and sold vintage for years and it really shows in their knowledge.
I'd recommend signing up for their mailing list as the markets are kind of sporadic from what I can remember, and it's a good prompt to remind you when they're coming up soon. Until then, I'll find some other events to tell you about!

Moving tip of the day: Glad wrap

Quickest way to pack DVDs and videogames stacked into shelves? Leave them in there and coat the lot in glad wrap. But make sure you can carry them. Don't do it with books, too heavy.