Antiquing.

    I love old junk-in addition to being unique, it's way more affordable(well most of the time). My mum and I went to an antique warehouse the other day and it was so fascinating. The warehouse was MASSIVE and there was such an array of things from different eras.

    As usual, I left with a things I had no use for but were too cute to leave behind. I found an old version of Snap! and A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Mum on the other hand found this beautiful candelabra- it'll look super nice when we have dinner outside in the garden. I cannot wait to have my own house to fill with random treasures like these.

Till next time..

The birthday box.

With Christmas around the corner and birthdays a never ending affair, it can be stressful finding the right present for a close friend or relative. To add to the stress, Christmas shoppers are a nightmare! 

So why buy when you could DIY?

(sorry for the extremely tacky segue)

I give you the Birthday Box- a customisable present that requires very little effort, is a tonne of fun to make and much more personalised!

In this box, I put in a personalised mug, a travel fund jar and some adhesive notes. My friend(the receiver of the box) LOVES her tea, so I used a permanent marker to write a quote on a plain white mug. Up is a great movie, so I recreated the travel jar with a mason jar, paper and washi tape. Everyone loves stationary and everyone loves cute dogs and these adhesive notes possessed both qualities so they made their way into the box! I bought the bunting on the box from a stationary store but you could make your own using some twine and washi tape.

 I love giving presents and making them is equally fun. What would you put in your box? Any ideas you could share for the next? Buzzfeed had a great post on 41 DIY Gifts You'll Want To Keep For Yourself-a great source for inspiration.

Till next time..

November Playlist.

      Another month, another playlist. I give you the November playlist. This months favourites were a mix of fun upbeat songs like the new Mark Ronson song(ft my fave, Bruno Mars) and calmer rainy Sunday songs like Mexico by the Staves and numerous Bon Iver songs.

Mark Ronson: Uptown Funk ft Bruno Mars
Half Moon Run: Need It
alt-J: Left Hand Free
Kishi Bashi: Q&A
The Staves: Mexico
Taylor Swift: Blank Space
Wild Child: Here Now
Ben Howard: The Fear
Arctic Monkeys: No Buses
Bon Iver: I Can't Make You Love Me/Nick of Time

What were your favourite songs during November? Any recommendations? 

Till next time...

Beach daze.

*Warning: Picture heavy post*      

       After a horrible Saturday morning, my friend and I decided to go watch the new Hunger Games movie, Mockingjay Part 1. Although it was a brilliant movie, it left us wound up and feeling worse than before the movie. To unwind we headed to the beach. Fortunately, we were at the beach at sunset and it was absolutely gorgeous. I enjoy going to the beach because of the photo opportunities, but i've never really understood the serenity people associate with beaches-that day was the day I finally understood.

Till next time....

Cupcake science.

      I LOVE Anna's (from Vivianna does makeup) Lemon Drizzle Cake recipe. I have made it multiple times and every time wished I had made more. The other day, I played around with the recipe and I was happy with the results.Instead of using lemon zest in the cake batter, I used orange zest and I used very little of the Lemon drizzle on top of the cupcakes. The cupcakes were super soft and fluffy- absolutely perfect cupcake texture!
      I usually never mess around with recipes because i'm too scared i'll mess it up, but this experiment turned out well! These were seriously easy to make-so if you are need of something for your afternoon cup of tea, I suggest these!

Till next time...

100 days.

         100 days of summer began a few days ago. It's such a relief to be done with exams and finally have some time off to do...nothing. I love not having that sense of urgency to have to rush back home to study, or miss out on something fun to finish that final essay.
         The other day my brother took these photos and although I have nothing to write about them, I loved them too much to not put them up. I'm determined to learn how to use my camera more this summer and improve my photography skills-be prepared for more random photos!

Till next time...

Jean Paul Gaultier.

      I love a good fashion exhibit and the Jean Paul Gaultier exhibit at the NGV did not disappoint. I can safely say it is one of my favourite exhibits i've ever seen.  It was such a different take, and it left me mind blown. Instead of just displaying the clothes on mannequins, they projected faces onto the mannequins that blinked, winked, smiled and even talked. Although it was really weird at first (especially when some of them started singing), it really added to the experience and was very unique.

         I really loved the simplicity of some of his designs- like taking stripes and turning it into an evening dress. I think my favourite part of the exhibit was the runway section. There was a runway with mannequins 'walking' and chairs around the runway where you could sit and watch.

     All in all, it was a great exhibit and I recommend it to anyone who can go. It was such a unique experience and left me wanting more. I usually get bored after the first few rooms, but this was so interactive and engaged so many senses, I never once felt bored! The exhibit is on until the 8th of February. You can find more information here.

Till next time...

Summer reading.

     

       One week before exams started, I decided to treat myself to a couple of books. According to the 'estimated' shipping time, they were going to arrive the day after my exams finished, so justifying my purchase as an end of exams treat, I bought them. Only thing is, they arrived just after I finished my first exam-first (and hopefully only time) I was actually disappointed that my order came so quickly!  I cannot wait for exams to be done so that I can start reading them(okay I lied, I already started reading #GIRLBOSS).

#GIRLBOSS// Sophia Amoruso: After reading everyone on the internet rave about the book, I decided to get this and so far I am not disappointed. Definitely one to read when you are feeling like you need some motivation-it motivated me to study more for my last exam!

Not That Kind Of Girl//Lena Dunham: Essie Button loves Lena Dunham and her book. I love Essie Button. It had to be read.

It//Alexa Chung: Again, saw it crop up on Instagram and on various blogs so I felt it must be read. PLUS, Alexa Chung has some serious style and that's reflected in her book.

Style Stalking// Christene Barberich & Piera Gelardi: I love Refinery29. Enough said.

Yes Please//Amy Poehler. It's written by Amy Poelher. Enough said.

       As you can see my justification for reading most of these books was either someone else read it or the author is awesome. I honestly can't wait to write the last word of my last exam so that I can be free for a couple of months to do whatever I want. Freedom is a dish best served in summer (I apologise for the tacky line).  Do you have any book recommendations, because as a self-confessed bookworm, it'll only take my two weeks to finish reading these.

Till next time...