a fresh wardrobe - ruche

I have found myself wanting to freshen up my wardrobe as we move into spring. I think it has to do with that tricky transition time going from a winter wardrobe to a spring wardrobe, when you need to dress for a range of temperatures. I don't know about you but I always feel a little strange baring my arms and legs for the first time after winter. Anyway I have found a 'look' that I love courtesy of a beautiful US based online clothing shop - Ruche.

Described as "a modern boutique with a vintage touch", this shop is a beautiful place to find fashion inspiration through a combination of beautiful clothing and stunning Look Books. The quality of the photography and design alone is worth a look. I love the mix of texture and colour in these outfits and they are all so 'wearable'!

It's not just the beautiful clothing, but the entire outfits head to toe - the shoes and the accessories. I would love to get all the looks in their entirety!

I also appreciate that the Look Books are all left on the site, despite it now being Autumn in the northern hemisphere, us southerners can find inspiration from past seasons. All the above images are from the Spring 10 or Summer 10 look books.

Here's a look that I can wear this week. A delicate ruffle print top wrapped in a cardi in a pretty spring colour. I feel a shopping trip coming on and I will certainly be using the beautiful Ruche as my own personal style 'look book' this spring! Visit the Ruche online shop & blog for some inspiration no matter what hemisphere you are in!

look the part - Sex and The City

I can't have a week seeking inspiration from the new Sex and The City movie without involving fashion.
Luckily for me a little while back I discovered the wonderful website Polyvore. It's chock full of incredible clothes, shoes and accessories but my favourite part of the site is the create section where you get to put together incredible outfits using designer clothing labels like Diane Von Furstenberg and Alexander McQueen and unbelievably cool shoes by Christian Louboutin and Jimmy Choo. In essence it's a girls dream! I think of it as the modern day equivalent of paper dolls!
Not only can you browse amazing pieces, and of course find out where to purchase them should you be so lucky, but you can create mood boards using your fave designer pieces. There are some very talented people who are doing amazing mood boards - you can browse them all here.
I've picked out a few which I think would not be out of place in Sex and The City 2 with bright colours, amazing shoes and an overall feel suitable for camel rides across sand dunes - well maybe not suitable, but very chic!
Enjoy and go play at Polyvore for yourself!

Papaya! by Hennie Henne Baby featuring Aeropostale bags

Tangerine n Fucsia by Alexianoor featuring Lanvin dresses

Happy Birthday girls!! by ♥ℓιfε ιs bεαutιfuℓ♥(Busy) featuring Lanvin shoes

Just Another Woman In Love by Neki featuring Emilio Pucci dresses

feet warmers

After the coldest May night in 4 years last night, I have found myself embracing my ugg boots for another chilly winter. I love my uggs and maintain a strict indoor only policy with them. I have found another alternative for keeping feet warm from a very stylish lady living in New Zealand.

 Holland Designs has a range of crochet patterns for sale which allows you to create some stylish indoor footwear.

{top left} Skimmer T-Strap Ballet Flats
{top right} Ladies Rose Garden Ballet Flats

{bottom left} Ladies Sporty-Casual Crocheted Flats

{bottom right} Ladies Cross-Strap Ballet Flats

Don't they look super comfy and not the least bit daggy! 

There's also a stylish alternative for men with the Mens Oxford Loafers

Also for those worried about your ankles getting cold then these Cabled Cuff Boots are for you

All these patterns are from the Adult Slipper section of the store. Holland Design also caters for little feet and heads with a range of booties, slippers and hats for kids. Check them all out in the etsy store.

Now I just need to learn how to crochet!

pretty out - emma kisstina

You know all the things that make it fun to be a girly girl? Well talented swedish artist Kristina Hultkrantz, aka Emma Kisstina, has captured them all beautifully in her fun and light style.

A pretty perfume, like Miss Dior Cherie? - Check

Hot red lipstick? done

Killer Heels? Check

Nail polish in pretty pinks? got that too

Anything missing? Oh what about a cocktail to sip on.

Raise your Cosmo ladies - here it is!

Check out the etsy store, as well as the blog and flickr for my female fabulousness!

pretty inspiration - in the air

After a pretty hectic and non-creative period in my work-life in the past few months, I'm finally getting some time to look around for design inspiration. Today I looked at Behance for the first time in months and was immediately rewarded with some eye candy from Los Angeles based photographer Julia Galdo.

Julia's Behance portfolio features her In The Air series of wonderful images. Part fashion shoot, part artworks these images have such a beautiful feel to them. The model floating in each scenario looks effortless and somehow natural.

 I love the colour combinations in all these shots. The yellow tights against the orange door and the purple leggings above the yellow and green field. I also think the turf hat in this one above is quirky and cool

You can see more of Julia's work at her website or in Behance portfolio. If you love colour and fashion, check out the Color Steps series - very cool!

nuts for knits

It has been such a long time since I had a leisurely wander through etsy, so with a winter chill in the air, I thought I would check out some cosy knits. I have had a few items in my favourites for a while, but they were on hold until the weather was cooler.

This cosy neckwarmer made by Les Tricots Du Coeur is one such piece I found a while ago. I really like that is a cotton knit and not wool. I think that this would feel lovely against your skin and I love the colour and buttons. So stylish under a great wool coat! One of my favourite things about winter is wearing a great coat with a scarf. I just wish sometimes it would be cool enough to go the full ensemble with hats and gloves too.

I'm always one to match my accessories and this totally fabulous hand knit bangle really has caught my eye. I love the mis-matched buttons and the vintage key charm. Such an original piece from the wonderfully named  Knot Original store.

Taking it one more (and probably ridiculous) step further in matching accessories is this wonderful knitted Cup Cozy Mug Sleeve from natalya1905. Again there is a lovely button attached, which you can select yourself from 3 different options. I think the shape in this one resembles a coffee bean shape and I appreciate that type a synergy!  These come in some amazing colours with cool names, like Yellow Honey Golden Mustard, Twilight Plum Eggplant Vegan and Kiss Love Passion Wedding Bride.

These next few pieces are from an etsy shop which I could buy so many things from. The store is Beaded Wire and while being a jewellery store, I am in love with the knitted pieces like this Ruffled Aqua Scarf with Rose Scarf Pin. I think it is so elegant the way it sits... and this happens to be one of my all-time favourite colours! I think I would also wear the rose pin (which detaches) by itself as a brooch.

This Double Ruffle Neck Warmer is another elegant piece. Have a look at how it comes together over here. A simple button through and you're ready to go! This is another beautiful colour too, a really different shade of muted red or rust as it's described by the seller.

 Add another ruffle to the mix and you get this Triple Ruffle Cowl which to me has a real Elizabethan feel to it. Certainly would keep your neck cosy though!
Anyway I have plenty to ponder over as it's not quite cool enough yet to be scarf weather, but I have loved spending some pretty time in etsy today! I hope you liked some of my picks too.

10 years of Inside Out

Iconic Australian interiors magazine Inside Out is celebrating their 10th year with an amazing Art Market. The magazine asked a bunch of their talented contributors to create an artwork representing 'Heart and Home'. They have then given everyone the opportunity to bid for one of these pieces with all proceeds going to charity.
Here are my favourites:

 Ceramics by Kylie Johnson 

I love this lady's ceramics, especially the tags with lovely saying and phrases like... "If you have two loaves of bread sell one and buy a hyacinth" . See her website here. This 3 piece work features a poem by Kylie. 

"We holiday in the spaces of our home........ in soup
&; conversations

in washing up bubbles

& zucchini

in doorsteps
rotting &;
beds unmade...............

&; cups of tea with flowers dripping........."

I could find a home for this certainly but would have to hurry as the auction is on now for this piece - ending April 16th.

Mixed media by stylist Shannon Fricke

A styling star, Shannon has created her piece using ceramic samples from her own line of ceramics called Free Range. I haven't seen any of these - but knowing Shannon's style I'm sure this rage will be lovely. and I'll be keeping my eye for it.

A more colourful pick is this next piece by Lizzie Buckmaster Dove.

 This is an incredibly creative use of paint swatch cards. Each piece is swatch cards combined to form an image - one as the base, the other as the shape. I'm blown away by this is a great use of colour swatches. I've always loved the paint swatch walls in hardware stores, but never would have been this creative with them!

My last, and possibly favourite pieces are these fashion illustrations by designer Akira Isogawa. It seems I'm not alone in my desire, as the first piece is already up to $596 on ebay and out of my league. Neverless it's fun to dream and appreciate these beautiful pieces.
See all the available artworks here and also check out the 10th Anniversary Issue of Inside Out.

blush pink - colour crush

This week I've found myself drawn to pink -  blush, rose or dusty, I have found myself in a very girly frame of mind and loving everything pink. I'm not normally that way inclined and have never been a 'pink girl'. I've always been more into the cool colours like aqua, blue, green. Anyway, I have found some lovely images and products around the web-world to share with you today.

These images had me gasping earlier this week! They are so pretty as both images and items of clothing! They are from the Flickr stream of Allen Company Inc. The talented Kristina certainly has an eye for vintage finds! The top image features dresses from the 1940s and 60s. The dress on the left actually looks like a dress I saw in a shop earlier this week. Take a closer look at it here. The bottom left image is titled "What little girls dreams are made of" but I think big girls dreams are also made of shoes, bags and even a little hat like the antique eggshell one (take a look at the original here as it is cropped out in my collage). Kristina sells her vintage finds through etsy and has new finds every Monday. I love dresses, they are so elegant and lady like. It's quite amazing how timeless the style are too. Check out this 1940's emerald strapless dress. I could see it in shops today.

 top left: A Spectacle (Pink) by Ashley G ::: top right: Pink Grapefruit - Print by Amber Alexander ::: 

bottom left: medicine cabinet for SAD afflictee by Doodle and Hoob ::: bottom right: sardine and anchovy postcard by cricicis

This collection of perfect pinkness is from various talented artists on etsy. What most appeals to me is that these use the colour pink without the clichés of 'pretty pink-ness'. Even the cute bunny has an individual, unique style. I think he is fabulous.

Another etsy find is this Set of 3 Little Sauce Dipping Bowls in Speckled Blush Pink by the little red door. So sweet!

and finally - the clothes shopping....

 Both these looks are from Forever New. They always have such fun, girly clothes and these to outfits don't disappoint. I particularly like the Tulle tiered skirt in the top pic!

Hope you enjoyed my colour crush today!

what would Alice wear? - Alice in Wonderland

To finish up Alice week I thought I would find an answer to the question of what I think would Alice wear. I certainly feel I have found a lady with a great vintage style and a real eye for dressing. Let me introduce you to Eleonore Bridge.

 

Eleonore authors an incredible blog - le blog de la mechante or Mean girls blog. I have had one of these pink tutu pictures in my Flickr favourites for a while, but only this week ventured over to see the full image set and discovered this incredible blog. These photos were taken around Notre Dame on a wintry Paris day. This outfit is so fabulous and makes me so envious when I learn that the pieces come from chain stores - the pink tutu skirt is from Top Shop and the woolly tights H&M.

 

Here is another set of wonderful images - again the bubble skirt is H&M, the funky apple belt Topshop. Eleonore is so painfully chic and I am so envious of her style (and her wardrobe).I am thrilled she likes to play dress-ups and photograph them all as it is so much fun to look through!

 

More H&M pieces - the dress and bow belt. I don't know about you but I think it would be hard to be seen in public with Eleonore as she just looks so fabulous all the time - I suppose this should be expected for a Parisian lady. Check out the gallery of labelled My Style which showcases Eleonore in her everyday outfits.Oh to be so chic!

 

There is also a gallery of Alice In Wonderland photos which are a lot of fun - but I prefer to think of the modern Alice dressing exactly as Eleonore does, so I think I have found my modern day Alice.

I hope you enjoy this bit of Friday inspiration :-)

aussie pride

Don't be scared, this has nothing to do with sporting achievements! The phrase Aussie pride is getting thrown around quite a lot with the winter Olympics (and sporting events in general). Today I am full of local pride, but the source is some amazing (and surprisingly long-standing) Australian fashion and accessory companies.
My discoveries came over the weekend reading an issue of Madison magazine.
The cover is pretty hard to miss with the gorgeous Miranda Kerr dressed in an Aussie flag inspired dress.

 

All the fashion featured in this issue is by Australian designers and there is a great article - Aussie Heroes which tells the history of iconic Australian fashion brands. These aren't the brands that traditionally get pushed overseas as iconic Australian fashion, but the ones you and I no doubt shop in (or want to!).

 

 Country Road

I was truly surprised to read about the long histories of some of these companies. Cue has been selling runway trend-inspired fashion since it opened a Strand Arcade Sydney store in 1968, the first Sportsgirl store opened in Melbourne way back in 1948 and Sussan started out in 1939 selling hosiery and lingerie.

I may be showing my age, but this is exactly how I remember Sportsgirl from my teen years reading Dolly magazine!
The biggest surprise for me was Wittner shoes which was founded way back in 1912 and is still run be the same family which founded it!

 

Wittner Shoes - 1926

Wittner Shoes - 2010 - they have come a long way!

You can read the Aussie Heroes article from Madison here and also if you can, get a copy of the magazine. It's a great showcase of Australian fashion. My favourite is a story celebrating the Bonds Hipster. There are some incredible photos with amazing jewellery which I'm going to try and hunt down to show you here.

Feel Good Fashion - the Uniform Project

Ever look in your closet and think you have nothing to wear even though there physically is no more space to fit any more clothes? I had a moment recently where I looked at my wardrobe and my drawers... and my chest and thought "I have way too much clothing". I have been pondering doing a re-evaluation of all my stuff and cutting back my clothing to a core set. More importantly I want to establish my 'look'. I'm not sure what that is exactly, but think I might actually try and define it with some mood boards.
It seems like fate now that yesterday I cam across the Uniform Project. It's a fascinating project on so many layers.
The main concept is 1 dress worn every day for a whole year. Sheena Matheiken, the projects founder and creative force (and clothes horse) takes the same black dress and creates a new look every day with accessories, layers, hats and shoes. This in itself is a wonderful concept to watch. The nice twist is that some of the add-ons are donated.

Here is the dress on day 1 as a 'blank canvas'. There are plans to sell this dress. After you look at the amazing versatility Sheena and the dress designer and creative partner, Eliza Starbuck get every single day out of it you can certainly see that it would be a great wardrobe staple. It can be worn both ways round, under over and around all sorts of clothing and accessories. This is certainly a uniform I would be happy to wear.

Above is a snapshot of some of the September outfits.

You can view by the month or individual days. Beginning last May this dress has already been through a northern hemisphere (New York to be exact) summer, autumn, winter and a recent trip to India.

Day 45. Sun, June 14 2009 The uniform dress is extended a fabulous wedding outfit.

 

Day 234. Sun, December 20 2009 All rugged up for the snow in Brooklyn

Day 256. Mon, January 11 2010 A day in Mumbai
The second aspect and more noble aspect of the Uniform Project is that it is all to benefit the Akanksha Foundation which works to fund the education of  kids from India's slums.
You can find lots more out about the project, the foundation and the recent India trip over at the Uniform Project Blog.
It is really an inspiring project and certainly has brought my whole wardrobe excesses to the front of my mind.