Camping Detox

It’s amazing what 8 days in the bush can do to a girl! After spending last week camping and wearing shorts, sunscreen and not much else, I have come home to look at my wardrobe with fresh eyes. I was getting a little bored with it all and have been hanging out for cooler weather so I can start wearing some different things. But being deprived of mascara and forced to wear practical shoes for a week is all it took to spark my enthusiasm for my summer clothes again.

I’ve been worrying lately that my style isn’t ‘cool’ enough. Why can’t I dress like those off-duty model/blogger types, carelessly toting a $700 clutch, an origami skort and wearing a beanie plopped on top of a perfect blow dry? Why can’t I be that person for a day?!* 

I’m not a perfectly groomed individual and that’s OK, I've come to terms with it (most of the time!). Today I woke up and wanted to dress up like a over-sized toddler and that’s also OK! This outfit is very girly and a bit twee, but after a week in the wilderness I was itching to wear something lady-like, this skirt jumped out at me because, hello, it’s pink and covered in flowers! Everything else just kind of fell together and before I knew it I was head to toe in pastel pink. Just before taking these pictures I swapped my existing shoes (yellow wedges) for my leopard shoes, I needed a bit of edge somewhere!  

Knit top – Op shopped
Skirt – Melville Markets (I finally got around to altering the hem)
Shoes – Seed
Bangles – Vintage (gold) and Ted Baker (cream)
Hair clip – Vintage

*Probably because if I have a great hair day, there is no way I’m covering it up with a hat!

Cold Snap

I'm not one to wish the seasons away but I must say I'm hanging out for some cooler weather. Not least because I want to wear some of my fabulous coats. On my recent op-shop trips I have come home with a few new coats that I am just dying to wear. Summer is wonderful for a million reasons, but dressing in Autumn and Winter is so much more fun. There are so many different things you can play with when dressing for cooler weather; scarfs, hats, stockings, jackets, jumpers, gloves, oh my goodness I am excited! 

Here are the three coats I have picked up recently...

Red vintage Calvin Klein jacket, which is lined with black and white check $12 from Salvos
Cropped khaki green military jacket $8 from Salvos
Black and white tweed blazer with incredible sculpted shoulders and lined with silk $8 from Anglicare

Seriously, these three op-shopped babies are to die for. Paired with my new Jeffrey Campbell boots and I'm ready for a cold snap!

Glamping

From reading my blog you may get the impression I'm a girly girl. I do love dressing up, doing my nails, playing with my hair, wearing pink and flowers and sparkles all in one go. So yeah, you are correct. But that doesn't mean I'm completely filled with fluff and sequins, I can 'rough it' when need be. And that need has come...

The boyfriend and I are going camping this week for 8 days. We will be sleeping in a swag, fishing, hiking, swimming and four wheel driving. It's going to be wonderful. I'm under strict instructions to dress appropriately for such activities and not to bring any make up (gasp!).

So how does a certified priss like myself deal with such shocking limitations? Well, my first two essentials are a hat to hide my crumpled swag hair and large sunglasses to cover up my bare face. Then it's easy! 

These denim shorts will be my (gl)camping staple. I'm packing three t-shirts (stripe, black and white) and a variety of colourful scarves which will perform a myriad of duties (protecting my skin, covering up dirty hair and, most importantly, looking cute). Throw in a beach dress, a bikini and some proper hiking gear and I'm ready for a week of fun in the wilderness! Toasted marshmallow anyone?

T-shirt, shorts, belt and scarf - Op-shopped

Sandals - Melissa

Hat - Markets

Sunglasses - Raybans 

Friday Outfit Compromise

Almost every Friday morning I wake up and think, "Oh good it's Friday! I'm going to wear gym clothes and thongs to work and no one can stop me". This always seems like such a good plan while I'm lying in bed, total comfort for the last day of the working week is name of the game, right?

Wrong. Well not the comfort part, but certainly the gym clothes part. I could wear exercise gear to my work if I wanted and no one would bat an eye lid, but it's honestly not what I feel comfortable in (unless I'm actually working out). Leaving the house in ratty clothes just makes me feel awkward and un-confident, regardless of how comfy said clothes are. I feel much better when I'm decked out in a nice outfit, proper shoes and some make up. 

This outfit was my Friday morning compromise. I actually pulled on my stretchy gym pants, but then couldn't bring myself to wear them out of the house, so I put on this equally stretchy tube skirt and a loose (albeit fabulously printed) top instead. Hair slicked back, sweet squid earrings and some platform wedges make everything seem pulled together. 

I love this outfit! For something that is arguably as comfortable and easy to wear as work out gear (OK, maybe not the wedges), this looks (and makes me feel) a million times better.

Top and skirt - op-shopped

Earrings - Capnmueller

Wedges - Hobbs

P.S Stretchy tube skirts are the best! Who knew?! This is the first one I have worn and I LOVE IT. Will need to keep an eye out for more.

Hot Hot Heat

One of the things I really wanted to focus on when planning my outfits this year was accessories. I have a huge variety of accessories that I don't really wear because I either forget about them or don't know how to incorporate them in to my everyday style. I'm trying really hard at the moment to be a bit more exciting and unpredictable with my outfits, but MAN it is hot right now! No one wants to wear a whole heap of unnecessary stuff when the temperature creeps higher than 37 for several days in a row.

 

This little hibiscus print dress is super light and easy to wear. I originally layered on some bracelets and a sparkly necklace, which did look great. But even at 7am when I was taking these pictures I felt hot and uncomfortable with all that resin (bangles) and metal (necklace) clinging to my skin. So I ditched the jewels and threw on a head scarf instead. So while this outfit isn't exactly a great example of accessorising, I was pretty pleased with the over all look and most importantly I managed to stay cool in the hot hot heat. 

I bought this dress for $3.50 at Anglicare in Canningvale and it just so happens to perfectly match my vintage Oroton scarf, don't you love it when that happens? My wedges are one of the three pairs of shoes I got in the after-Christmas sales. They are from Seed and cost me a whooping $15. Did you find any bargains in the sales? 

Seeing Spots

Spots are the best! Seriously. They are definitely my favourite print. I love mixing and matching them and wearing them in unexpected ways. This outfit isn't particularly ground breaking, but I do love how preppy and polished it looks (shame my hair had to ruin the overall effect!). 

Also you have to check out my shoes. You know a few weeks ago when I said I was hungover and bought shoes to make myself feel better? Well these babies were my medicine! Black and white stripes are so classic and clean, they are an interesting shoe, but not so wild that they won't go with lots of different things. Plus the pointy toe is very on-trend right now.

I wear a lot of bold primary colours and prints which I break up with either black or white, so these shoes will work well in my wardrobe. I have endless ideas about how to style them. I wore this outfit to the office and unfortunately these amazing slingbacks were perhaps a tiny bit too high to be tottering around my work all day. But that's OK, I'll save them for occasions more exciting than work. 

My spotty skirt and top and pink clutch are all op-shopped, they were all around the $5 mark, which suits me just fine! I have been on the look out for a fuchsia clutch for awhile and this envelope one is the perfect size to fit all my stuff. My shoes are from Witner and were on sale for $35! So ridiculous!

P.S Have a happy Australia Day tomorrow! I am making an awesome on-theme top to wear, so if it works out OK I'll share it next week.

Jump-suited Up

I've mentioned it a few times on this blog, but I find it amazing how much what I'm wearing can affect my mood. Do you ever find that? If I'm feeling sick or a bit sad then nothing makes me feel more like my usual happy self than a fun outfit or a bright lipstick. It's almost like my clothes are willing me back to normal. 

I op-shopped this jumpsuit a few weeks before Christmas and hadn't been brave enough to wear it yet. So when I woke up last Wednesday morning feeling a bit off, I knew the one thing to pull me out of my funk was this bright patchwork printed beauty. 

I've always been a bit weary of jumpsuits, I've got a long body so most never fit me correctly (hello camel toe!) and even when I find them that do look flattering, I have never actually been confident enough to wear one. When I found this one hiding in the dress section of Fremantle Salvos I figured it was worth a try for $7. And I am SO GLAD I took it home! I seriously felt like I was wearing my pyjamas all day long. Super comfy and so stretchy, it is the perfect outfit for when you want to look pulled together but also remain insanely comfortable. 

My lovely new Ray Ban aviators, op-shopped hat, Hobbs wedges and Dinosaur Designs bangle pulled the whole look together. This outfit was my first little attempt at following my style resolutions and dressing out of my comfort zone. It's not totally pushing my boundaries, but it was a great start and I can't wait to experiment a bit more!