I guess being St Patrick’s day and all I should have worn something green. But this dress was calling to me. I’ve been watching a lot of Twin Peaks recently, and the black, grey and red plaid reminds me of the opening theme song. It’s the kind of dress I’d wear out to the diner for a slice of cherry pie and a damn fine cup of coffee. Ya know?

It has some beautiful details, like the black button cuffs at the elbow, and snap-buttons all the way up the front. The cotton is also super-soft.

It’s getting on to autumn in our part of the world. Here in the sub-tropics, that kinda just mean comfortable. I’m looking forward to wearing cardigans again!

Dress: Vintage (Brisbane Vintage Fair)

Bag: Vintage

Shoes: Melissa

Belt: Vintage

Cameo: Antique

Sunglasses: ASOS

Hope you had an amazing weekend!

The lover and I skipped off to Prometheus Bound on Saturday and had ourselves rip-roaring time. There was a makers-market, burlesque dancers, trombone-playing-elmos and Voltaire. It was a chance to dress up, meet new people and catch up with old friends. What a hoot!

My talented sister made this bespoke faux fox for me. He has cute little ears, weighted limbs, a fluffy black tail and sparkly rhinestone eyes. He’s also very warm. I can’t wait to wear him more when the cold weather comes back!

Dress: ASOS

Shoes: ASOS

Hat: Vintage

Bag: Vintage

Faux fox: Bespoke

Gloves: eBay find?

Brooch: Antique

We’ve been enjoying some comfortably cool weather lately. I’ve found that all those grey skies are changing my mood. When it’s cooler I’m drawn to darker colours. We had a party for my nephew’s first birthday today and I felt that stripes, straps and buckles were in order!

This beautiful lace scarf was a gift from a dear friend. Don’t you just love the delicate little flowers stitched around the edge?

Skirt: They Call Me Kitten D’Amour

Shirt: Review

Belt: eBay find

Bag: Vintage

Scarf: Gifted

Shoes: Vivienne Westwood for Melissa

Sunglasses: ASOS

Earrings: Gifted

Hope you had a lovely Sunday!

What a year it’s been. Wherever you are, and however you choose to (or choose not to) celebrate today, I wish you joy.

oxox

My sister, Emma, painted this and gave it to me on my fourteenth or fifteenth birthday. To this day, it remains one of the most beautiful things another human being has given me.

Its the end of another week. A whole seven days of mixin’ it up and havin’ a blast.

I went to my first Christmas party of the year and walked away with some goodie bags.

Tasted some amazing honey mead from  Seven Sheds, Tasmania. Don’t you love the handwritten tasting notes on the label?

I received a package from Alima Pure this week. I’m excited about trying out the colours and they always throw in some extra samples for good luck. How lovely!

K and I spent one evening in the spare room together. He tinkered with his electronics and I finished some alterations on a dress. I’m really grateful that we don’t have a television sometimes! It was nice to listen to music and be productive for a while.

I won so much money at the races on Saturday I couldn’t close my wallet. (it was all five dollar notes and one dollar coins… not the millions you are imagining) I bought a bottle of Prosecco with the proceeds and made Bellinis! Absolutely delish.

Speaking of delish, I made pancakes this morning. With bananas. That’s right! Bananas are affordable again! Six months ago a kilo would cost $13 at my local supermarket. Now they’re about $4 a kilo. A cause for celebration if ever I saw one!

Made up a batch of Rosemary Salt this morning.  It smells divine. Later this week I’ll post some more photos and instructions. It’s so easy to throw together and makes a great gift.

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Seasonings that made this week tasty: evening walks in the soft rain, evening walks in the wind, sewing buttons, catching sight of well dressed ladies, new library books, ice packs, ordering new shoes online, The Princess Bride, afternoons off, silly text messages from friends, eating cold curry the next day, planning holidays and long warm baths.

Summer has arrived. It is hot, humid and very sticky. The poinsettias are in bloom. The bees are about. Cold drinks and afternoon swims are needed.

I decided to mix up a salt scrub. I use cooking salt, Epsom salts and a wee bit of rock salt. Mix it all up to a paste with your favourite massage oil or body wash. Rinse off and admire how smooth your skin has become!

The salt crystals are super pretty. Be careful though, it tends to get everywhere!

I decided to combine my two favourite vegetables and accidentally created the WORLDS TASTIEST SALAD. Finely sliced fennel and radishes with spinach, a dash of apple cider vinegar and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Freakin’ delish.

I’ve been painting my nails bright colours. Summer does that to you I guess.

With all these internet sales happening, I’ve been contemplating buying a new handbag. Like six isn’t enough?

Sometimes a gal needs to treat herself to a candlelit bath.

Or macadamia encrusted dark chocolate from Lief.

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Assorted sweet treats this week: pretty postcards, Garden Spells, sunning myself like a lizard on thge warm concrete next to the pool, rediscovering old musical favourites, wearing the tiniest amount of perfume possible, The Hamster Wheel, making an effort at having a conversation with new people (instead of being terminally shy), fitting everything in my handbag, blue cheese, cuddles and sleeping in.

 Another week has flown past!

I curled up  to watch Northanger Abbey. Felicity Jones is just too adorable don’t you think? I was inspired to dig out my old penguin copy for re-reading.

I gave myself a head-start on this years handmade giftmas presents. I can still smell the vanilla all over my hands! Tutorial to come soon!

More painting and drawing! Hopefully I will have something pretty to share with you all later this week.

On Tuesday my Library launched some new search software. We had to wear these awful oversized grey T-shirts. I figured if I had to wear the shirt, I was going to wear it my way! I made this cute little detachable peter-pan collar to wear over the top. It’s a little bit ridiculous with the polka dots and the felt hearts, but it made wearing a silly T-shirt easier to bear.

Finally decided to defrost my attempt at clarified tomato water. Instead of using egg whites for clarification I tried the gelatine method but substituted vegetarian-friendly agar agar. The result was less-opaque but still cloudy.  To this I added some chilli and basil infused vodka I made, but the result wasn’t as good as I was expecting. K said it had a BBQ after-taste! Though after a little experimentation I discovered that it tasted amazing when mixed with Hendricks Gin!

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Extra flavour this week: swimming in the afternoon, tasty burgers, catching up with old acquaintances over dinner, getting all the laundry done (it was a mountain!), the sound of cicadas, giving strangers directions, fancy dinner Fridays, exciting trips to the post office, taxi rides home and Sufi poetry to keep me company.

What a crazy ride! This week’s wrap up is tiny. Like a Tiffany’s box, or a parcel of chocolate truffles!

I continue to dabble in ridiculous crime novels! This week was more Kerry Greenwood.

I went to the farmer’s market on Wednesday. What do you think I found? Bright poppies! So close to Remembrance Day too. They were fresh enough to wear in my hair on Friday.

My family gathered together to celebrate my Grandfather’s 70th birthday. An impressive milestone don’t you think!

After a super relaxing bath I banged my knee getting out of the tub. The resulting bruise is nothing short of spectacular. It was pointed out by a lot of concerned relatives. Not to worry, arnica to the rescue!

Warm fuzzy extras this week: barbecued falafel! amaaaazing foot rubs, pots of tea, The Shooting Party, gratitude, watching puppies play in my neighbour’s front yard, planning tea-parties with friends, cool breezes, chocolate truffles, popcorn, lazy mornings, tweeting about coffee, making plans for travel.

What made you smile this week?

 This week I indulged in one of my favourite cocktails. You can find the recipe here.

Inspired by Violet I decided to make Royal Fig Jam Drops with Cointreau drizzle. Spectacular.

A friend said I could borrow her gorgeous Elna sewing machine, and even tied it up with a pretty red bow! Here are some of the sewing projects I have been working on.

This week I read A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness. To say I was disappointed in the complete lack of vampire sex is an understatement. I have moved on to The Radioactive Boy Scout by Ken Silverstein.

We have a whiteboard in the kitchen and I love to write silly things on it. My brothers can attest that this has been a lifelong hobby of mine. Mr K said that attributing the quote to Gandalf was completely unbelievable, but I like to think he said this to Saruman right before breaking his staff in The Two Towers. Or you know, its equivalent.

So, I read Kailey’s post about The Aristocats. I confess, I’ve never seen it and made a mental note to grab a copy next time I went out. The very next day at work, a co-worker hands me a DVD of The Aristocats and says casually “I thought you might like this….”

OMG GUYS IT WAS FATE!

Extra things that made my heart flutter: winning small change on Melbourne Cup day, Mr K cooking dinner (horay risotto!), issue six of coilhouse being finally released, lazy afternoon tea, people watching, bandannas, realising that I have a total of four legitamate library cards, Summer is finally here, Upstairs Downstairs, deciding on Christmas presents and projects, fake bacon, and little doses of sunshine.

Do share, what rocked your world this week?

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