Terrifically Thrifty!

Unfortunately life has got in the way and there has been less and less time for blogging.

This is a short & sweet post of an outfit I pulled together quite quickly that I think works really well together - terrifically thrifty really ...

My leather skirt is an Ebay purchase, my top is a mohair knit from one of my fav charity shops in my area and the scarf was a freebie!  

Love You Locks

On the mornings I catch the train into work I walk over the Southbank Bridge. Each time I walk over the bridge a little pang of 'love' flutters over me as I look at the Locks of Love slowly multiplying each week. 

This particular morning (running late to work and all) I stopped to capture these locks and take a moment to really ponder on this gorgeous gesture of locking your love to that moment in time.

The Locks of Love signify couples locking their love away on the bridge, which will bring good luck to their relationship. The clicking of locks was made popular in Europe, so makes me wonder if the locks originated from a gorgeous European couple on holiday in Melbourne!

Corny perhaps, but hey, who's not up for a bit of cheesy romance once and awhile? I might even get hubby to meet me on the bridge tonight. ;-)

 

Love you Locks article

       

                          

Good afternoon!

Here are a couple of little snap shots of a few outfits I have put together over the last couple of weeks.

The photograph with the graffiti wall has me wearing men's chinos that I picked up for 2 bucks. I didn't know they were mens until I got home and checked the size! The jacket is also a hand-me-on my friend gave me many years ago. 

In the second photograph I'm wearing a pair of Target short-leg pants with another hand-me-on Zara jumper my friend gave me. The white shirt underneath is a $3.50 charity shop bargain.

The off-the-shoulder dress is a Sportsgirl find that I came across in one of my local charity shops. I wore this to the Melbourne Spring Fashion Week & it was brand new!

The final photograph is a Portman's dress I picked up for $8 with all tags attached. I wore a cardi (from Big W) over it, but won't need that for the upcoming warmer months!  xo                                                            

 

At work yesterday one of our tutor's brought his little girl in with him being it school holidays. She was the most sweetest little six year old and was very excited about spending the day with her dad at work. I asked her how she liked school and her reply was "it is ok". The conversation went into the direction of her not having many friends and her best friend is now giving her a pretty hard time. I wanted to march down to her school, tell her ex-bestie to smarten up and play whatever games you play with a six year old myself. Before I did that, I wanted to cry.

Her smile and the way she cuddled and looked up at her father created a sadness in me not only for her innocent self, but for her family; her mum, her dad, the people that love her the most. 

I couldn't help but ponder on what my daughter will face as she moves through her young life hurdles; kindergarten, primary school, high school and/perhaps university. These new stages will bring new friends and experiences, I will always be there to support her, but I can't always be there in the moment to protect her. Her choices will be her own (hopefully some with my guidance), but predominately as she matures and grows, it's her own life to live.

We all hope our children grow into happy people that are loved and cherished by their family and friends, it's only natural. It brings me much joy when Miss Two speaks of her fun encounters with her friend's at Childcare, when I drop her off and she hugs & runs outside hand-in-hand with her besties, laughing and giggling. I hope I am witness to that for a very long time.

There is a government website that gives some fantastic advice to all parties involved in bullying:

http://bullyingnoway.gov.au

In the Pursuit of Happiness

Getting it right all of the time is hard, actually it's nearly impossible for someone like me who actually doesn't even know if they are getting it right in the first place...

I strive for happiness, balance, calm, fulfilment and excitment in my life, after all who doesn't? Reaching all of the above doesn't come easily and it often leaves me questioning "am I making the right choices?" 

I work four days a week in a very busy and often stressful environment with one precious day of Miss Two and me time that we cram lots into. We swim, socialise, shop, cook, clean (well I do the last two) and invest as much quality time into one Mother & Daughter Day as possible! Of course we have the weekends as a family and that is wonderful too, but once the Sunday evening draws to an end, I get the pang of us all going our separate ways for the week ahead. 

I'm a 'grass is always greener' kinda girl. I go to work - I wish I stayed at home more, when I was at home whilst Miss Two was a baby - I couldn't wait to start work again, when I was travelling - I longed for routine and being still for awhile, I have now have that stability & I envy people that can go off travelling when ever they like, etc, etc ... It goes on & on! Stopping to smell the roses, living life as it is now, or however it should go is something I work on, on a regular basis. 

I guess the point of this post is 'am I doing the right thing, right now?' I'm working hard to help support my family, doing my bit, saving for the future, yada, yada ... or should we be sacrificing our somewhat financial freedom for more days at home with my little lady.

#confused
#each day brings a different conclusion

My favourite dress

My friend has currently ditched the corporate life and decided to study Beauty Therapy whilst working at Endota, busy girl! The bonus with this is I get my hair, nails & make-up done for a fraction of the price (fraction being $0!). She is super amazing & extremely gifted.

We decided to have a little photo shoot and we didn't even get through a quarter of the wonderful vintage items I have in my wardrobe! I have chosen one of my 'looks' of the afternoon, mostly because I adore the dress I'm wearing. I bought the dress from my favourite on-line Northcote store Dear Gladys, it is not-for-profit and has the most amazing vintage & contemporary clothing. I never feel guilty shopping there as it is for a great cause, Dear Gladys raises much needed funds to help women experiencing disadvantage to get back into the workforce. Win win all round really.

Thanks to Brigitte for getting some really fabulous snaps. xo

 

 

Am I being selfish wanting to Volunteer?

I've always wanted to volunteer. We have all thought about how nice it would be to 'give back to the community', right? Well I felt like the time had come and put my name down for a program and it felt good. There was a bit of a wait until my interview, great, I'm looking at doing something, but there is nothing set in concrete - I am getting there ...

This week I had the phone call and a spot had come up, they would like to meet with me & get the ball rolling. So, today Miss two and I went along (Miss two was very well behaved throughout the 2 hour interview!) and I thought it all sounded pretty wonderful ... I'm ready, yep, I am ready to give back, aren't I??

One of the questions was "What makes you want to be in the program?", my answer was honest and is a combination of a few things that made me feel like it would be something I and someone else could benefit from; the program is Big Sister, Little Sister. 

I live in the Western Suburbs of Melbourne, which has a high percentage of low socio-demographic families. This doesn't always mean that children are uncared for or unloved, but occasionally there is a gap missing in a child's life that needs a good metor or role model. My family and I have pretty stable, fortunate lives, my husband and I have good jobs, my little girl is happy and we hope to help Miss Two achieve her goals & get every opportunity this world has to offer. We have a well supported family network and have a good routine happening, we are busy, but happy.

So, my question is, am I being selfish mentoring a 'Little Sister' & giving up my family time? I work four days a week, so family time can be somewhat precious. The commitment is 3 times a month for a minimum of 1 hour per visit - my family can be involved, but obviously it wouldn't be always and my time would be concentrated on my 'Little Sister'.

I see so many positives; my Miss Two growing up with the knowledge of 'giving', I, as in ME can make a difference to a  person's life, it's just juggling my 'time' there is nothing to lose financially & it's something I have wanted to do for such a long time.

So why is there this little niggling feeling of, will it be all too much? can I do this? Am I being selfish to my family? ... and if it doesn't work out, which is the biggest one of all, how would my Little Sister feel ... 

I need to make a decision, fast. The ball is rolling, police checks are happening, second interviews and tests will be booked in shortly. It's so hard when your heart says one thing, but your head says another. A weekend of serious thinking ahead.

Melbourne Spring Fashion Week!

With the combination of wanting to take my teenage niece to something fun, entertaining, interesting & 'non-boring' and with our love of fashion, we went along to Melbourne Spring Fashion Week on Saturday night. I've never been to a fashion festival so I wasn't sure what to expect. I had a little Google before the day on what designers are hitting the runway, but didn't have any real expectations. I must say I had we had a fabulous night and even got bumped to the front, which included a free goodie bag! 

Each designer opened with a different musician to start there collection, it came across (to me anyway) as an art, which untimely fashion is ... parts were definitely not 'street style' and a little out-there, but that's what made it eye-catching & entertaining. I loved the glam of it all, from the fashion photographers to the quirky VIPs (one woman was head-to-toe is florescent colours!). It was over within in an hour, but was perfect for the attention span and left you wanting more.

After the show we took some piccies and headed to the Veggie Bar on Brunswick Street - one of my favourite places to eat in Melbourne. 

My niece has an eclectic style and loves a good op-shop find, her jacket is from Savers! My top is from my favourite store Dear Gladys, it is over sized with silk lining so it doesn't scratch. Our heels are huge, so I was very careful, especially where I was stepping!

Not only did I have a fabulous night, but I was tucked up in bed by midnight! Score! ;-)

A sunny snippet

I'm loving the sunshine today in Melbourne. Unfortunately I've been stuck in the office for majority of the day, but got a little glimpses of the beams whilst driving into work this morning!

There are a couple of items I'm wearing today that I wanted to share with you; my beautiful opal necklace that my aunt has passed onto me (vintage), my Italian Marco boots (I purchased these from The Salvos for $20) and my watch (I paid $5 for the watch & bought one in 4 different colours! {not so ethical at that price I imagine, eek}).

I hope you are having a fantastic day, wherever you are. xo

Afternoon Gardening.

I love gardening. I haven't always, in fact I had no interest in my younger years. My love may have evolved with my age, owning my own home, the 'timeout' I get when I garden and the appreciation of watching plants grow into something wonderful. The combination of all that I mentioned makes it one of my favourite, um, hobbies? Although I think I'm still one step away from putting 'gardening' under my 'Interests & Hobbies' on my resume!

I look forward to getting out into the garden this Summer with Miss Two. Last Summer it was more about her getting as much dirt in her mouth as possible, this year I hope she will be able to assist me with the weeding! Training started today ... it was a little windy & muddy, but we rugged up and pottered about, we had a lovely time.

I grow my own little veggie patch and have managed to grow a good little crop of vegetables. We have just recently bought a compost and it's so amazing the things you can put in that thing - vacuum dust and all!?

I love my little book Backyard Farming that my friend gave me for my birthday last year, it's so insightful & has some really creative ideas to try out.

Here are some pics from my arvo in the garden. xo

Minty

Off to work in my mint blazer this morning. It was freezing waiting for the train!

This little beauty cost me a $1.50 from Savers. Hubby & I were cycling home from work a few weeks ago and the Savers in Footscray was having a sale. We pulled up, hubby watched the bikes and I had a quick rummage amongst the racks. Two jackets later & $3.00 down, I stuffed them into my bike bag and continued on my merry way!