Family Vacay

Don’t hate me but… I’m off to Bali today for a long-awaited family vacay! That naughty volcano seems to be behaving itself, so with a bit of luck I’ll be tucking in to my first nasi goreng and Bintang by this afternoon. I haven’t been on a proper family holiday for a few years so I’m really looking forward to having some pool time with my brother and folks, plus drinking cocktails, getting massaged, eating too much… you know, all the good stuff!

As usual the packing and preparing for the holiday has been almost as much fun as the actual holiday will be. I’m super excited to wear all of my tropical looks, the first of which is this one, which I’ll be wearing on the plane this afternoon. Comfort is priority number one, followed closely by looking cute. Luckily the flight from Perth to Bali isn’t particularly long, so you don’t need to worry too much about wearing something super travel friendly. Any longer than three hours on a plane (and any flight involving a meal) and I’d definitely be avoiding white! As it is, this summery look will be fine for my quick jaunt over to Indo and will mean I can walk straight off the plane and into a beach bar, ready to order my first G&T. Oh mannnn am I ready for a summer holiday!

Follow me on insta if you want to keep up with my holiday (@inthedressupbox)!

Top: Kookai, Anglicare Fremantle $7
Skirt: Mister Zimi
Earrings: Good Sammies Myaree $1
Shoes: Birkenstock, eBay
Sunglasses: Preen, gift 

Travel Diaries

Hello! I'm back from holidays and am attempting to catch up on things before I go away again this weekend (only for two days, but still, it's madness!). So amongst the 27,000 loads of laundry and the 871 unread emails that are furiously blinking at me, I've been editing the MILLIONS of pictures I took while in Queensland and Queenstown. Here's a quick snap shot of our 2 weeks away...

 

Luke and I spent a week hanging out with his parents on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland and then a week skiing our hearts out in Queenstown, NZ. It was the perfect balance of action and relaxation. In Queensland we went camping, did some beach fishing, slept in every day, drank endless cups of tea and played many games of scrabble, mah-jong and canasta. 

Queenstown was seriously spectacular, I found myself gasping with joy almost every time I turned around (hence the zillions photos). We spent most of our time there on various mountains (The Remarkables, Coronet Peak, Cardrona and Treble Cone) skiing and snowboarding until our legs turned to jelly. That being said we did find time to check out a few local wineries, cruise around the Otago region and eat and drink our way through the small town. We had so much fun and will definitely be heading back!

Travel Outfit - Two Ways

Something slightly different on the blog today… You know how I mentioned in this post that I’m going on holiday to Queensland and Queenstown so I need to pack a very versatile wardrobe to combat the two different climates? Well this stripey cotton dress is the first thing going into my suitcase and I’m going to show you how I plan to style it for the sun and the snow. The dress was recently gifted to me from a lovely friend who regularly culls her fabulous wardrobe and gives it to me (hooray!). It’s so comfortable and versatile, as soon as I slipped it on I knew it would be a perfect piece for my travel wardrobe. Here’s the dress on its own…

and then worn two ways...

So easy to style right?  Look number one is how I’ll wear it in Queensland, relaxed and dressed down. Perfect for wandering around the Sunshine Coast and catching up with my friends and Luke’s family. My converse and denim jacket are my travel staples, they basically come with me whenever I go away.

Look number two is for a day in snowy Queenstown. Layered up with super thick tights, my long wool coat and a cosy beanie I think I should be warm enough to survive the cold. I’ll also probably wear some gloves but I can’t for the life of me find mine, hopefully they turn up before we fly off on Friday, otherwise I’ll have to buy a new pair while I’m over there!

When I’m packing for travel I try to include simple outfits which can be changed easily with different accessories. It’s amazing the difference a sparkly necklace and a cute hat can make to a basic dress!

Outfit 1

Dress: Hand me down (thanks Gerri!!)

Jacket: Salvos Osborne Park $15

Necklaces: Op Shop $3 each

Hat: Op Shop

Bag: Anglicare Fremantle $7

Shoes: Converse

Sunglasses: Karen Walker

Outfit 2

Dress: Hand me down

Jacket: Salvos O’Connor $12

Fur trim: Asos

Tights: Leona Edmiston

Boots: Tony Bianco

Beanie: Hand made

Sunglasses: Ray Ban 
Clutch: Salvos Mt Hawthorne $4

P.S that first picture reveals my outfit photo secret... I'm terrible at doing my own makeup and hair so I almost always cover up dodgy hair/tired eyes with a killer sunnies/hat combo!

Packing and Planning

Luke and I are heading off on holiday in 17 days! I am SO excited. As with all my holidays big or small, packing and planning my outfits is one of my favourite things. Our up coming trip is a little tricky because we will be spending a week camping in sunny Queensland and a week skiing in snowy Queenstown. So planning what to pack for two very different climates is a challenge!

To combat the temperature difference in our two destinations I'll be relying on lots of layers, which shouldn't be too hard. Years ago I did a snow season in Banff, and managed to survive the -35 degree temperatures wearing my cotton summer dresses layered with thermals, tights, beanies, gloves, scarves and the heaviest winter jackets I could find. So Queenstown with it's balmy -4 degrees should be a breeze! 

I'll definitely be taking along this whole outfit though (with the addition of some tights!). I found this kilt only a few days ago and I am SO IN LOVE. I've been wanting a kilt for ages, and while you often see them in op shops, I could never find one that was the right fit, length or tartan. This one fits the bill perfectly!

If any one has tips or suggestions on great places to eat, drink or see in Queenstown please let me know! We'll be spending most of our days on the slopes, but I definitely want to make time to explore the rest of the town. 

T-Shirt: Red Cross Willeton $6

Kilt: Anglicare Belmont $7

Jacket: Wittner

Boots: Tony Bianco

Socks: Target

Beanie: Hand made by my lovely aunt

Sunglasses: Pared Eyeware

Not My Travel Outfit

Hello from New South Wales! The boyfriend and I have jetted off across the country for a week of birthday celebrations in sunny Sydney. I haven’t spent much time in Sydney so I’m excited to explore and relax (with lots of eating, shopping and drinking thrown in the middle). In the grand tradition of this blog I was going to share with you my ‘travel outfit’ (i.e what I wore on the plane) but it’s exactly the same as this outfit from a few weeks ago (plus my cons) so I’ll give you another outfit instead…

This amazing vintage peasant blouse is one of the pieces my gorgeous neighbour Gerry gave me. She dropped off a huge bag of vintage clothing and costume jewellery for me to rummage through last week, I seriously lucked out and scored so many awesome things. Gerry is a true stylista (she worked for Dior and Fendi!) and has the most amazing wardrobe, so I felt pretty spoilt to receive a few bits and pieces from it.

I could easily go ‘full peasant’ with this blouse, and I probably will at some stage, but for now I think basic black leather and some espadrilles stop this top from looking too costume-y. What do you think?

Top: Vintage, gift (thanks Gerry!!)

Skirt: Vintage, from Paris

Shoes: eBay
Bag: Op Shop

Bracelets: Op Shop
Necklace: gift