Scallop

The type of scallop I'm talking about is not the fish kind but the fashion kind, a scalloped hem to be exact. I now have three pieces of scalloped hem clothing in my wardrobe, this beige dress being the most recent buy. It is of course from ASOS as I don't seem to be shopping anywhere else recently, but I do want to get back into buying and supporting local designers asap, ASOS just make it too easy with all their out of UK season but in AU season sales (the one time it pays to be in the Southern Hemisphere) great range of sizes not to mention the free shipping worldwide. My black military style jacket is yet another rediscovered oldie, I bought it at H&M in New York in 2006 and wore it heavily through that winter and then promptly forgot all about its existence until my recent wardrobe clean out. Re-finding all these amazing pieces I already own has given my wardrobe a new lease of life without having to shop and spend money, so yay for wardrobe clean outs!


Our Sunday routine involves heading down to the local park with Hachi, grabbing coffee and bagels on the way and just enjoying the atmosphere. Hachi would have been in these photos but he was far too busy chasing other dogs for photo time. So instead you get me, looking awkward and as per usual mid fight with Henry who reckons taking outfit photos in Redfern park is asking to be mugged. He may well be right, but, hey we weren't mugged and I got some nice shots so was worth the argument it took to make it happen. You can see without my jacket on how the scalloped hem continues in the sleeves and also around the neckline, and its these little details that make the dress for me.


A Glebe Markets find, these patent bowling shoe-esque brogues were a pricey for a 2nd hand market stall item at $50, but worth it for their awesomeness and the fact they fit my previously moaned about giant feet.

Outfit Details
Dress ASOS Curve on clearence for $30 (No longer for sale)
Belt ASOS Curve black skinny belt $20Necklace Estelle Dévé, gift
Shoes Glebe Markets $50
Bag Sporsgirl Fringe Bag $99.95
Red Lipstick Mac Russian Red $36 

How to make a terrarium

 In my post this week where I let you all have a sneak peak at our new place I promised to show you how to make a terrarium. Well here is my tutorial on how to make yourself your own terrarium.

Step 1:

Gather your materials. You will need:

• A glass vessel of some kind, we went with a classic round fish tank from the local $2 shop. Ours cost $15.
• Plants. We chose succulents which are known for their robust survival skills. Our local nursery had them for $3 a pot.
• Stones for drainage and decorative purposes, you can buy them at garden supplies stores but we found our stones for free.
• Potting mix.This bag was $4.
• Gardening gloves as its a messy job.
 Total Cost: $22

Step 2:

Make your drainage layer by adding stones of your choice. Some people add charcoal first as it aids drainage but we have skipped this step as we couldn't find any and have read mixed reports on whether it is really necessary.

Step 3:

Add your potting mix to the desired planting height.

Step 4:

Plant your plants, trying to make it a visually pleasing arrangement. Keep in mind they have more chance at survival if you plant them at the same level in which they were originally planted in their original pot. We also planted a succulent cutting we let dry out for the last month allowing for new roots to appear.

Step 5:

This step is optional, but we decided to decorate the top with a layer of rocks. So there you have it, 5 easy steps to make a terrarium for your house for a total of $22. I remember being fascinated as a kid by my Nana's terrarium, imagining little forest creatures living in the glass box having a fantastic time, its nice to have this little reminder of those times looking pretty in my home. I'm hoping to have more DIY style posts over the coming months, some fashion and some interior themed DIY's as I'm always making and creating but never documenting the process. xoxo

What's in my Styling Kit

We have all seen those "what's in my bag" posts around the place and I thought it might be interesting to share with you something a bit different, what exactly goes into my styling kit. If your not sure what a styling kit is, basically its a tool kit of useful items a stylist brings with them to a shoot. Every stylist is different, but essentially most kits will contain at least double sided tape, bull dog clips and scissors. I'm going to show you what I bring with me on set.


Organised chaos. I am looking for a better box with more compartments that is ideally on wheels, but for now this red metal box will do. I bought it at Arthur Daley's in Melbourne for about $25.


From Left to Right:
Sewing kit: I have a set of sewing needles and threads in different colours as well as a few other bits and bobs like extra buttons and an unpicker just in case.
Bobby pins: I find these are the most requested item on shoots, someone always needs just one more, so I have these on hand in both dark and light colours for those moments.
Zip lock plastic bags: These come in handy for so many reasons. I use them to hold shop tags as we remove them from clothes so as not to misplace any, I use them to keep models jewellery together so as not to loose pieces, I use them to store things inside my kit. Basically I use them a lot.
Black Markers: Great for labelling things as we go.
Lint roller: I prefer these sticky lint rollers to the more traditional ones as I find these remove more hair and lint and do it faster too!
Ball of rubber bands: Great for adjusting belts, necklaces, clothing. Also good for grouping things together.
Shoulder Pads: For those times when the shoulder needs that oomph.
Double Sided tape: For those times when you need something to sit just so, or to protect modesty when required.
Black Electrical tape: Shoes need to be taped on the bottom of the sole to protect the shoes from wear and tear.
Hollywood no shows: aka nipple concealers. For modesty.
Scissors: Pretty self explanatory really. 
Safety pins: Useful for adjusting clothing and jewellery and also for "punking" up a look. 
Bulldog clips: Again for adjusting clothing and jewellery to fit. I like to bring a variety of sizes.
Fragrance free wipes: Not only useful for models to remove their make-up but also good for keeping things clean on set.
More shoulder pads: A different style to the other pair, these are more sharp.
Black crop top: I like to use this under see through garments as I like the line it gives.
Black bike shorts: by Voodoo Hosiery, always handy to have on set to add the something extra to a look.

So that's what goes into my styling kit. Some of this might be a bit "no shit, Sherlock" but hopefully this post gives you some insight into the job. xoxo

Small Apartment Living

Welcome to our home, please leave your coat by the front door on our tree shaped hat stand. There is a funny story about that hat stand which you can read about here. You can also see I have always been obsessed with entry hallway's, having made three posts about them back in 2008 here, here and here (FYI Henry broke my beloved Jenny Kee vase featured in that last hallway post). I guess why I am so obsessed with the entrance of a home is because its the first thing you see when you walk in, and I want mine to have that wow factor. You may recognise the white metal shelf, that piece used to sit in our kitchen in our Melbourne home as a display of all my favourite (at the time) red kitchen stuff, and it used to be much taller. Then in our 1st Sydney home it was in my office as extra storage for all the mess working as a stylist generates. The great thing is the shelf is adjustable and comes in two pieces so we were able to make it two shelves instead of just the one so it could work with our new Sydney pad. The first section sitting in our hallway and the second on the balcony as a plant stand.


If you follow me on twitter then you would know we recently had to move house as our lease was up (never again will we sign a 9 month lease, but being new to Sydney at the time we didn't know any better and needed a place ASAP). Well the new place is absolutely tiny, about a third of the size of our last place and a lot smaller than our old Melbourne apartment, but what initially scared us about this place has made us fall in love with it. By placing furniture in defined zones, downsizing a few items and keeping to a clean white colour palette I think we make the most of the tiny amount of space available. In a way its a very Japanese way of living, our apartment wouldn't look out of place in Tokyo (but the rent in Tokyo would be much cheaper, much much much cheaper!).

Vintage Danish Sideboard bought in Melbourne at Clear iT on Brunswick Street back when it used to also sell vintage furniture, for around $300. Vintage Danish Coffee Table bought on ebay for $5. Ikea Flakati rug $39.99. Vintage white sofa bed from ebay for under $100.

As you can see we have split the small living space into three sections. Living, Study and Kitchen which helps optimise the space. Our furniture is mostly from our Melbourne place which we got trucked up here (moving from Melbourne to Sydney was cheaper than moving from one end of the street to the other, yep when we moved we moved to the same street, and no this is not the first time I have lived on the same street more than once, if it ain't broke don't fix it I say) The only major change is the dining chairs as our old chrome chairs took up too much space so we sold them on ebay and replaced them with classic replica Eames dining chairs from Matt Blatt for $79 each.

The white stool in the mirror is a new buy from Kmart, and for only $5. I have one in the bedroom as my dressing table stool and we have one outside on the balcony as a plant stand.

The mirror is a tried and true decorators tip to help make the space seem larger. We bought the mirror for our last place as there were no full length mirrors in the house and it sat in our bedroom. I'm glad we could make it work in our new space as that thing was a total bitch to take home on the train from ikea, haha. The key to renting and living stylishly is to buy pieces that will fit in with all your other furniture no matter where or how it is positioned. So try to buy matching items in colour, tone or size. Another tip is don't get too attached to a piece because moving around can mean it wont work at all even if you have tried to keep to the aforementioned rule of buying only things that match.Thanks to ebay and gumtree getting rid of unwanted items is easily done, but it can be sad to see much loved items go (on the plus side you get some money for new stuff).


As the space is so small we only have two dining chairs, but we do have four white ikea folding chairs that sit in the gap between the fridge, utilising empty space and perfect for when guests come over.


The new place didn't have a pantry, or any room for our microwave, so we bought this cute little Ikea Bygel kitchen trolley for $49.


Our tv is a few years old and non digital so we have a set top box set up, not very pretty but functional.


The skull that holds our tv remotes is from one of those children's collect the whole series to create the full set thingys from a newsagency. It was the 1st in the series and us such was at an introductory price of $2 and was the only piece we wanted, score!


We made the terrarium (instructions on how to make one yourself coming this week) and it sits on a replica Kartel Componibili shelf from Matt Blatt for $99.



My sister gave me the Sydney bus destination scroll as a house warming gift.


Our study area is bright and full of little pieces of inspiration from our travels.


The teeth in cup is from an art event I held in art school called Swap Shop where the idea was to swap pieces of art for other pieces of art, and this is what I ended up with. The wooden Elephant is from a newsagency (I find some cool things at newsagencies it seems) The vintage Tasco microscope is from Savers.


Missing a few issues here and there but still a great collection of my fave mag, Russh.


The bunny is from Tokyo and the mini replica Robert Indiana Love sculpture is from Typo. Henry and I have seen the sculpture in person in both New York and Tokyo so this is a nice little reminder.


This macrame hanging plant holder is my first ever etsy buy, and I love it. It was a custom order from The Scarf Tree: Modern Macrames and it only cost me $16! My only wish was that the hook was on the other side of the balcony as it sits on the "ugly side" above the air con unit. As renters we're not allowed to put any new hooks in.


Here is the "pretty side" of our balcony. The fern and giant cane Papasan chair are both Surry Hills Markets finds, the later for only $100. The chair is so comfortable, its like sitting in a hug.

So that's our new home, and its sure to evolve and change over time just like my personal style. Already compared to our home in Melbourne its a lot more grown up, there are less bold hits of red and the colour palette is more subdued. I love interiors just as much as I love fashion, and often get jealous of my husband who works as an Interior Architect. I want to spend my days choosing tiles and finding the perfect chair for a client. Mind you he also does tricky architecture stuff I don't know anything about, I just like the decorating side of things. Well I hope you enjoyed the post and if you have any questions about where things are from that I may have missed I'll answer you in the comments below. xoxo

Breaking the rules

As a Melbournian it's against the rules to say that the food is better in Sydney, but I'm sorry but it is. That's the first self imposed rule I broke this weekend, the second is further down in this post. Henry and I had brunch at one of our favourite cafes in Sydney, Kawa on Crown Street in Surry Hills with Vanessa, my Junior Fashion Editor at On The Streets of Sydney to talk through some upcoming shoots. Vanessa also has a fabulous blog, The Monday Issue which you should check out. Our food was fresh and fabulous, and whilst not being Melbourne cheap, Kawa is cheap for Sydney so it gets a huge tick from me. Plus the place is decorated so darn cutely, I love all the indoor plants and hanging ferns.


The second self imposed rule I broke this weekend was my rule about not wearing pants (see rule 4 of this post from 2008). Look at me as happy as larry above in beautiful Hyde Park wearing my new ASOS palazzo pants. Rules be damned, I'm going to wear what I god damned please from now on without fear or fight. Also why didn't anyone tell me just how comfortable pants are? I've been missing out for years.


I'm also wearing my new ASOS trench with leather accents, bought on sale for $102 (its still available at that price in some sizes and in the other colourway: clickity click) A girl ran after me today asking me where it was from, that's how awesome it is!


My white pussy bow blouse is another re-found oldy from my time teaching English in Japan. I bought it at Savers for about $3 and it fast became a favorite in my working wardrobe. Unfortunately the pussy bow element of the blouse often got me in trouble at Nova as I looked too "maid style". This was at the time of Marc Jacobs retro secretary phase and pussy bows featured in many of his collections, so when I wore my blouse that's what I was thinking of, definitely not visioning looking like a sexualised otaku maid...only in Japan. The red lippy is Mac Russian Red, which I also haven't worn since I lived in Japan (but this tube is new, I'm not wearing five year old lipstick guys!) There was a stage where I had black hair and wore red lipstick every day and only ever wore red, black and white. That stage lasted about four years until my style transformed into what has been documented on my blog over the years, you know the leggings + dress + waist belt + blonde bob with fringe +  my infamous giant glasses with virtually no exceptions in between. I seem to be going through another style transformation at the moment and I'm not sure where I will end up. Its weird that I change like this about every four years, but all the changes have occurred whilst living in different cities so maybe that has something to do with it? Who knows?

Trench ASOS White leather trim mac $102
Pussy Bow Blouse Savers $3 (God I miss Savers, hurry up and open in Sydney already)
Palazzo Pants ASOS Curve on clearence for $30 (No longer for sale)
Belt ASOS Curve black skinny belt $20
Bag Sporsgirl Fringe Bag $99.95
Loafers Sportsgirl on sale for $39.95
Floppy hat Ebay $30
Red Lipstick Mac Russian Red $36

We spent the rest of the afternoon at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, checking out the amazing contemporary art collection donated to the gallery from art collector John Kaldor. The collection includes pieces from Jeff Koons, Ricky Swallow, Christo amongst many other world renowned artists. An amazing collection to have been donated to the gallery, and is definitely worth checking out. Another exhibition held in the galleries temporary space is Unguided Tours, a video and installation exhibition of my favourite kind of art, humorous, playful and in a way almost slacker art. Unfortunately unable to take any photos in the gallery, but take my word for it and check out both exhibitions if you can. xoxo

Body Image and Fashion Blogging

When Gala Darling called out on twitter for contributions to her Body Image and Fashion Blogging article to be featured on her blog I put my hand up right away as there were a few things I wanted to address. You can read what I had to say below and head over to Gala Darling to read Gala and other blogger's thoughts on the issue in part one and part two of the great initiative to get some dialogue going on what we are all thinking.

Here is a photo I was too scared to blog because it shows my double chin...well that and its off centre as my mum took it, thanks mum! x

“Body diversity in fashion blogging is out there, if you know how to look for it. In fact there is a whole world of plus size “fatshion” bloggers getting together, having blog conferences and getting sponsorship from brands and designers just like you all in the “straight” sized blogging world do (straight sized is the respected term within the fatshion blogging world for, for want of a better word, normal sized people). The reason you straight sized bloggers aren’t aware of it is because you don’t have to know about it, if you know what I mean. If your a size 8 then you probably have never heard of Evans, Monif C, City Chic, Torrid or even clicked over to ASOS Curve, all of which are leading Plus Size brands around the world. Because your not googling those words you don’t see the terrific blogs out there in the fatshion world, blogs like Young Fat & Fabulous, Fat Aus, Pocket Rocket, Fatshionable, Nicolette Mason, Musings of a fatshionista, Le blog de Big Beauty and many many more.

For me as a blogger I sit between the two worlds. I am what the plus size fashion world calls an “inbetweener”, I can wear straight sized clothing from designers and regular chain stores but can also shop at plus size stores too. So I see both sides of the blogging world, and that’s the thing, there are sides and I do feel my blog, or any other plus size blog could never reach the heights of Rumi or Jane blogs, I mean Chanel won’t be inviting me to no ball any time soon. In terms of my blog and sponsorship I am lucky that in Australia I have been accepted by the mainstream blog-osphere and as such have worked with top chain store Sportsgirl (An Aussie version of Topshop if you will), helped Target launch their recent Stella McCartney line and been featured in many top magazines (Cleo, Shop Til You Drop etc) but I do also know I have missed out on opportunities offered to others because of my size. Some brands just can’t see through the fat, so to speak, and decide to spend/send their promotional dollars/products elsewhere, even though my readership may be larger than the blogger who they finally choose. Its about branding, and if a brand, which is used to size 8 models isn’t prepared to get in on what makes fashion blogging special, which is seeing a real person talk about and wear the clothes that they make and are promoting than that’s their loss really. On the flip side my size has given me opportunities that I would have otherwise missed out on. For the past year and a half I have been blogging for Australia’s leading plus size retailer, City Chic, and essentially I get free reign on all product in stores (fun!) and last year they sent me over to New York for a plus sized blogger conference, which was more fun and inspiring than I could have ever imagined (more on that later).

I find when I talk to my straight sized fashion blogger friends they start to feel uncomfortable at the words we use within the fatshion blogging community, words like Fat & Fatshion, they are more comfortable with nice sounding words like curvy, whilst we are trying to reclaim the word fat from its negative connotations to become a positive body acceptance word. Lets not dress up what it is and speak the truth, because with the truth comes acceptance. On the other hand I can see that the language used within the plus sized fashion blog-osphere can be a little daunting for those not aware of the fat positive message that is being discussed, without intending to it can exclude others from the conversation. It can get very heated and political as the fatshion world is not always just about pretty clothing, its about changing attitudes and society to be more accepting of fat, which is pretty hard considering the media’s current portrayal of fat people.

There are people on both sides of the blogging divide who are negative about others bodies, yes on the plus size side you can get chided for losing weight, the opposite of what would happen in the straight sized fashion world. I just try to avoid the negativity and look at the positives. I love the strength of the community within the plus size fashion blogging world. Last year when Gabi, from Young Fat & Fabulous organised the YFF conference in New York for plus size bloggers andbrands I got to meet with some of my most admired and respected bloggers in the world whilst also meeting with buyers, designers and CEO’s of the worlds leading plus size brands. The highlight was meeting Gabi herself, a powerhouse in the plus size fashion blogging world akin to the likes of Rumi with her god like status amongst us mere mortals, Gabi has been a leader in the plus size blogging world, one of the first to really embrace her curves and make others have the confidence to do the same.

My personal struggle with self acceptance is all over my blog, especially in the early years (I’ve been blogging for five years now). Of course I still have days when I wish I was thinner, but not as many as I used to. One of my most popular ever posts was this one (and Gala you actually linked to it) where I discussed ways to dress for curves, which I now see as a self conscious way for me to address the fact that I felt alone at the time, like I was the only fat fashion blogger in the world. At that stage I used to get emails from people saying “I love that your a role model for us plus size girls” and it used to both annoy and frighten me, I thought my being plus sized was my little secret (Yes, secret! Even though I was posting images of myself all over the internet) and definitely didn’t want to be a role model for others, I mean how could I? I was still in the doubting myself and hating my body stage. That’s where the fatshion blogging community stepped in and showed me the way to self love and acceptance through seeing that I was in fact not alone, that there were other girls out there just like me, being fat and looking fabulous.

What it boils down to in the end though is the two blogging worlds are separate because the shops are separate. Well, that and a few other reasons, but hey, at least now you know we are out there, and we rock!”

What are your thoughts on body image in the blog-osphere? xoxo

Tokyo Obsessed

I am obsessed with all things Tokyo right now, but really when am I not? Normally I would have got my Japan fix by now but Sydney induced poverty has kept me Australia bound, and as such I'm suffering major withdrawals, not helped by Susie Bubble's amazing posts on her recent Tokyo trip (look she visited my friends shops in Koenji's Kitakore building at my insistence, and she was impressed which says a lot, Susie sees the best of the best of the fashion world and what the kids in Koenji are doing stands out as unique/amazing/unreal amoungst all that she has seen!!!). So yes, I miss my amazing friends over there soooo much, and I miss the unique fashion just as much (the two are intertwined I guess). The above platform sneakers from a street snap from my friend Daisuke's site Drop Tokyo remind me of the sweet as pie Tabuchi from Spank and I really desperately want a pair for myself. Fruitless internet searching where I found many similar styles on yesstyle.com (the home for cute Japanese/Korean high street pieces) but sadly all were too small for my size 10 feet, has left me with a slight ache in the pit of my stomach for the awesomeness that could have been. I also found an amazing pair at Nu+Nan's Sydney city store, but they only have the one pair and again it was too small for my heffalump of a foot. Not that I would fare much better finding platform sneakers in Tokyo where I spent the year I lived there pretty much not buying any shoes at all due to the small sizing, but there occasionally were some larger shoes around and I'm sure I could stumble across a pair of platform sneakers in my size if I just could have some dollars in my account the next time Jetstar have a Japan sale. Here's hoping I get over there soon cos I'm going CrAzY!

Styling work: Westfield for Fashion Journal

A new issue of Fashion Journal is out today, but if you have a copy of the previous issue (issue 104) you will see this Westfield advertorial I worked on (a little late to be posting about it I know, the day the new issue is launched and all but only now getting my blogging mojo back). Inspired by nature and the season itself, Autumn and the changing tones in the natural world the styling used a dusty burnt orange, camel and caramel palette to showcase the latest trends. All clothing is available at Westfield Sydney's urban level 1, where we shot on location. Shooting in a shopping mall is getting less weird for me now as this is the fifth time I've worked on a Westfield level 1 advertorial. Talk about yay for a returning client, I must be doing something right. It also makes it easy that there are so many great stores and interesting design features on that level so its always easy to pull great looks and get some interesting shots with cool backgrounds (how cool are the pink legs?)
Stylist Hayley Hughes Photographer Ken Leanfore Hair, make-up & manicure Vanessa Collins Model Isabella from The Agency Models Assistant Stylist Samnang Sou

Parting ways

My fringe has finally grown out enough to try out a middle part, and I must say its nice to not have hair in my face all day. I can't wait till my hair is all one length, but I know as soon as that happens I will end up with a fringe again. The simple part has changed my look dramatically, I finally look my age and not ten years younger, or at least I think so. I do realise it is nice to look young and to be mistaken for a teenager well into my twenties and one day I will look back and wish I looked as young again.

Dress ASOS $75
Blazer A rediscovered gem. Its from when I taught English in Japan. I bought it on Bridge Road in Melbourne in desperation as I needed something fast as I was leaving the next day for Tokyo and in order to do the job you had to have a black blazer and I knew there was no hope of me finding one there. Yes it was a rule you had to wear your black blazer every day (even in Summer) as was wearing tights (but not printed, fishnet or lace) and sleeves that at least met your elbow. This blazer actually got me into a lot of trouble as it was too fashion-y I guess, but it was the only one I could find that actually fit me and wasn't incredibly ugly.
Necklace Corky Saint Clair silver Anatomical heart locket $150
Bag Sporsgirl Fringe Bag $99.95
Loafers Sportsgirl on sale for $39.95
New hair Free


I love the asymmetric hem of this dress. If you look at me from one side it looks like I'm wearing a maxi dress and on the other side a midi.


The bag is my third black fringed bag (the others died after too much wear) I hope on keeping this one much longer.


Comfy and cute, these loafers look like the shoes my Nana always wore. Love some nan-spiration. x

Styling work: Mori Gyaru - Forest Girl

I've had this idea for a shoot for a long time, a shoot inspired by a cult trend from the streets of Tokyo, and finally got to realise my vision this week and I'm pretty happy with the result. What with being out of action for the last few months due to my knee as styling is pretty physical work - there is the sourcing, the lugging of many bags and boxes back to the location, prepping the racks which often involves building them first, dressing models which involves a whole lotta kneeling (which I'm still unable to do) and then returning all the clothing the next day. Who ever said fashion was glamourous? I'm just so happy to get back into the game. Have a few new clients to add to the mix, as well as my work for On The Streets of Sydney, of which the above shoot was for. Check out the look in its entirety and read the blurb about my inspiration, part forest girl part swamp girl, there is one in all of us xoxo

Stylist Hayley Hughes Photographer Rachel Kara Hair & Make-up Sarah Scott Model Lauren Moody from Chadwicks