Alone, Together.

I've been wondering - what do you guys do on the weekend? I am usually such a busy bee during the week that I treat my weekends as a much needed battery recharge period. I love my friends, and I love meeting new people, but there is really nothing better than having some alone time to indulge myself and reflect. Case in point - my Saturday morning consisted of Chai tea, orgasmic pea, chickpea, avocado and feta salad, and Vogue. Heaven. 

News!

I know I have been completely MIA this week, but life and other stuff got in the way. I'm sorry! I do have exciting news for you lovely people though. I am now a beauty contributor for a fantabulous online fashion community called Breakfast With Audrey! 

My first article

Another article

If I am ever a little bit quiet here, you will probably find me Audrey-ing away! Go check out the website for my articles (of course), loads of fashion & beauty news and reviews, and sign up and comment away to earn Audrey dollars!

Have a great weekend, y'all! xx.

Instagram-ed.

Open Omelette - be still my heart

I love Face of Australia's Barbados nail collection 

More Revlon lip butters (someone stop me!)

Baked eggs from Circa Cafe

Being the best model you could get in a Napoleon Perdis make up class

New tights from Glassons

When I heard that Facebook had bought Instagram for a cool billion dollars (spare change, really), I went into flight mode with all sorts of imaginary scenarios where Mark Zuckerberg would swoop in and lord over my beloved Instagram like what the Capitol does in the Hunger Games - yes I know that is an embarrassingly bad analogy, but I just saw the movie so that is the best I can come up with right now. Like a good Girl Guide, I am always prepared, so I have saved all my Instagram photos onto my computer. But it has been about a week since the news broke and Instagram hasn't changed, so who knows,  maybe I am stupidly waiting for an apocalypse that will never happen.

I hope you are all having a great 'in between weeks which have a public holiday' week! Check out my Instagram (@wendyandco) before it's too late - I kid, or am I really?

Short Break.

Oh hello! This is a quick PSA to say that I am going to be out of blogging action for a few weeks because.... I'm going to HONG KONG! 

I will see you on the flipside xx.

Bits & Bobs.

Green jumpsuit with tags still attached & waiting to be worn.

Hosier Lane, Melbourne.

Waiting to be mailed.

New go-to lipstick.

Here's to the weekend. 

Spendthrift.

The biggest internal debate I have every time I try to grapple with my own sense of style is whether the price tag is worth it. Sure, a Balenciaga leather tote trumps all over some imitation Sportsgirl offering, and I would readily label myself as "brand conscious" (or even "brand snob"), but there are times when you come across an item so ridiculously cheap that you'd be silly to not get it. 

Case in point: I paid $4.50 for a pair of heels*. You read that right, four dollars and fifty Australian cents. To put this in perspective, a fruit smoothie in this land costs anywhere from $4 to $7. I could have bought 2 pairs of these shoes and still have change compared to getting a ready-made focaccia. 

Heels from Love Couture

They aren't bad, eh! If they had been priced in the three-digit region, I probably wouldn't have purchased them, but at this low low price, they are cute and comfortable. I have so many outfit options swirling in my head: pairing it with a black silk jumpsuit, sequined top and skinny jeans, black shorts and blouse, stockings and tight dress. The list goes on.

*Disclaimer: the heels were price $9 but the store had a buy-one-get-one-free deal, so essentially the shoes cost $4.50.

Burr, it's Cold in Here.

You'd have to be living under a rock, or climbing the Himalayas, if you didn't hear about Tanya Burr over the past week or so. Who is she? Well, according to the Daily Mail (yes, I'm incredibly well read), Miss Burr is a 22-year old Youtube sensation specialising in celebrity make-up tutorials, and is such a specialist that she amasses over 2 million Youtube hits per month. 

Want to look like Olivia Palermo? Here you go:

Miranda Kerr in all her Victoria's Secret Angel glory? Look no further:

Some people have complained that she's a one trick pony, that her looks essentially look the same - eyeliner, neutral shades, pink or coral cheeks, pink lips. For me, I say each to their own. Tanya's clearly found her niche and success with taking celebrity/editorial looks and interpreting them her own way, and hey, I certainly don't think I am more skilled than her. I must also give kudos to her willingness to show her bare face, and making quite simple to follow videos. To top it off, she's a fellow pale skinned lady, so I couldn't criticise her (too much) even if I wanted to.

What do you think? Is Tanya your cup of tea? 

2-0-1-1.

I'm going to join the end of year chorus and say, "can you believe another year has passed?!" 2011 wasn't a stellar year in any book (personally and globally speaking), but that's not to say that nothing happened! There were events that put my life in perspective, and emotionally challenges that made me more self-aware. Yes folks, I'm practicing for my career as a self-help authoress. 

As for New Year's Resolutions - aren't they always the same every year? I always strive to be a "better person", but my psychology lecturer always said that breaking your goal into smaller, more achievable goals are more likely to be achieved. So here goes:

- Don't impulse buy every time I enter a shopping centre.

- Keep an accurate diary so that I stop double booking things!

- Laugh more.

- Lose another 3-5 kgs.

- Take shorter to wake up/get ready every morning.

- Push myself out of my comfort zone more (okay that's really abstract, but I really want to do this - let's move overseas!)

- Catch up with friends more often!

- Blog blog blog.

Here's to a bigger, better, brighter 2012!

xx.

Priorities.

Images via Tumblr

Things I should do more often:

BLOG!

Moisturise my whole body (and not just my face).

Go to bed at a sane hour.

Say no.

Drink water. 

Talk to strangers. 

Travel the world. 

Save money. 

Sing in the shower.

Lust-Haves: In for the Kill.

Let me set the scene. 

Sydney's temperature went up to a scorching 33 degrees today. There was no breeze, and I felt like my clothes were superglued onto me (humidity, go away!). Naturally, when I got home, the first thing I did was to open up my windows to somehow cool the room down. Then I bee-lined for the shower. 

The horror began when I went back to my room. Because my room was the only source of light, all the insects and their mothers and fathers and siblings and lovers and friends decided to congregate around my windows. Some even went through my so-called insect proof fly screen and were wreaking havoc in my sacred place of sleep and relaxation. 

I screamed like Janet Leigh did in Psycho, and proceeded to flail my arms in an attempt to kill, or at least detract, the pesky animals. I ran downstairs to get Mortein. Of course, there was no Mortein to be found. The best I could do was shut my windows and let my room resemble an oven again. 

So today I am not lusting after anything. There are things still flying around my room that I did not know existed. My wishlist is a thing of necessity. It only has one item. 

Image courtesy of See Reeves

Lust. Need. Now.

I ♥ Mags.

As you all know from the fabulous movie, The September Issue, the biggest issue in the fashion magazine world is September. It's a prelude to the Spring/Summer fashion weeks, and provides a window to the all important (and my favourite) fall fashion trends. Besides gearing us up for the Christmas season, the September issue is a "back to school" bible for fashionistas, so to speak; it's the time when you decide what your style personality will be for the next 12 months. It's also the 132nd reason why I think I live in the wrong hemisphere, since I have to wait 6 more months to get my hands on and be able to wear the clothes featured in the pages. 

As a result, you can bet your whole mortgage that you will see me running around like a headless chicken during this time every year, trying to find one newsagency that stocks the September issue of US Vogue. Most newsagents do stock this issue, but because Australia is like the kid who sits alone in the school cafeteria, the majority don't get it on their shelves until October or November. So, after one week of luckless searching and scaring the newsagents with my interrogations ("When will you have it? What do you mean you haven't ordered it yet?!"), I finally found a copy in Chatswood! I give my eternal love to Supanews Chatswood Chase.

So happy. Mine!

When I was still bathing in my euphoria a few days later, I got home to find another treat waiting for me. The October issue of Shop til You Drop! This issue is a particularly special one, as it features 3D articles! How cool is that!

An even happier Wendy.

What are some of your favourite fashion mags, ladies?

The Best News of the Year.

I was pleased when Gap graced our shores and opened here in Sydney at the beginning of this year. I was excited when Zara opened its doors at Westfield Sydney in April. But nothing matched the internal party my brain had when I read that TOPSHOP will be opening their very own store in this humble city by the end of this year.

My new shopping home will be located at the famous Gowings building, whose most recent tenant was Supre (so in other words, it's getting a massive upgrade). According to this report, Topshop is set to open before Christmas, just in time for me to buy myself a truckload of Christmas gifts.

If you couldn't tell, I'm beyond excited about this.

Come to Mumma!

Not My Daughter, You Bitch!

For the past few Harry Potter movie releases, a few of my friends and I have set a whole day aside for a day of leisure. The tradition goes like this: go to a yummy brunch in the morning, then to the supermarket to grab ingredients and snacks, and then back to one of our houses to hang out and make a mouth-watering Jamie Oliver chicken caesar salad and an equally tasty dessert. To top off the day, we would catch a night session of Harry Potter (to avoid those pesky kids and loud teenagers), sneaking in our desserts, popcorn, and 7-11 slurpees. We are truly thrifty people at heart - why pay 3x more at Hoyts for the same thing you can get much cheaper somewhere else?

This past weekend was our last Harry Potter day, and a bittersweet emotion that ran through me all day. The films will never match the books, but they have gotten much better with each film and the actors grew into their characters' skins. This last film was very well-done in my opinion, and I admit I was close to shedding a tear at the end. That is, until I realised they decided to include the ridiculous "19 Years Later" epilogue.

I'm sure you are all more interested in the food we ate/cooked this year, so onto the pictures!

First it was brunch at Chaos Cafe in Neutral Bay:

Mango, Mint and Apple Frappe

Scrambled Special - with Feta, Sundried Tomatoes and Spinach with Sourdough Toast

Omelette with Spinach, Onion and Bacon

Pout Like You Mean It.

I am LOVING the bold lip colour trend happening right now.

Two weeks ago, I impulse bought the Bust Out! lustre lipstick from M.A.C's limited-edition 'Surf Baby' range. This lovely mid-tone violet shade went a long way to satisfy my dramatic lip craving. The pictures really don't do justice to how great and dramatic the colour is. Note to self: invest in better lighting or better camera, whichever is more realistic.

Bust Out! - WITH flash

Bust Out! - WITHOUT flash

Without flash

With flash

Then one week ago, I impulse bought (I'm sensing a worrying shopping habit forming) Zoe Foster's beauty book Amazing Face, which is truly AH-maz-ing in every sense of the word. Filled with clever skin and make-up tips, it has already become my beauty bible. Zoe has some ingenious tips on achieving the ooh-la-la bold lip. Obviously I'm not going to give away all her advice - you'd have to buy her book, but here are some of her wise words:

• Bright lipsticks are best if they come in a creamy/matte formula
• Make sure your skin is as flawless as can be (concealers and foundations are your friends, ladies)
• Be minimal in your eye make-up to give centre stage to your lips
• For red lips, USE A LIPLINER
• Using a lip brush will give you a more precise application (and lasts longer)

So give your lips some loving and play around with your lipsticks!

Blog Crushes.

What's your internet surfing routine? Facebook first, then Twitter, maybe a dash of news, then repeat the cycle? Want to shake things up a bit? Well, I'm here to help you with a few blogs that I currently have a girl-boner for. These blogs are guaranteed to put a smile on your dial, or you get your money back.

Kate Middleton For the Win

Yes, I'm one of those that is still obsessed with Kate Middleton (Pippa who?). This tumblr hasn't been updated since the nuptials, but it has the best photo captions.

Welcome Aboard.

Being the couch potato that I am, I end up watching a lot of ads. One that has been playing constantly is the new Virgin Australia advert:

The marketing enthusiast in me should have been focusing on their rebranding efforts, but no, what got my interest was their new uniforms. Designing a uniform is a tricky task. You have to make it modern yet comfortable. And you have make sure they look like an air hostess and not the other kind of hostess. Most of all though, it has to represent the brand's identity; often this means adding a cultural touch to the uniform.

This got me rushing to the laptop to check out what itchy materials and weird cuts other airlines are making their cabin crew staff wear.

SINGAPORE AIRLINES

Nicknamed the 'Singapore Girl', their stewardesses have been wearing the traditional Sarong Kebaya for almost 40 years. And if you think your work has a strict uniform policy, think again. To be a Singapore Girl, here are just some of the rules:

• Your lipstick and nail colours must be one of the red shades pre-determined by the airline
• Your eyebrows must be shaped, and not tattooed
• Your sideburns cannot be longer than your earlobes
• Eyeshadow colour must be either brown or blue, as set out by the airline

A little bit sexist? Maybe so, but it's working wonders for the brand.

Keep Calm and (fill in the blanks)

Trench coats. Combat boots (think Doc Martens). Bomber/leather jackets. What do they have in common? All commercialised into popular culture/fashion, all originated from the military.

Over the past year, a new fad has joined the club:

Look familiar? 'Keep Calm and Carry On' was an attempt by the British government to raise the morale of the public at the start of World War II (thanks Wikipedia!). It was little used back then, but when a bookshop owner found the poster over 60 years later, the rest is, well, history.

I've lost count of how many parody posters have popped up - so thanks to my good friend Google, let's look at a few, shall we?

 

 

 

I was actually inspired to write this post because I got a 'Keep Calm and Lie Down' pillow yesterday. But it got me thinking, what is it about this poster that speaks so much to us all these years later? Our current obsession with vintage? The current global economic status and state of the world? Our love of being 'postmodern'? Whatever it is, the best advice is really to Keep Calm and Carry On. 

p.s. What is your favourite parody poster? Mine is probably this:

Note: I do not own any of the pictures that I used in this post. Please click on the picture for links. This will apply to all my future posts.