Spend a lil bit of time this weekend doing something especially for you. Whether it's soaking in a rose-scented tub, painting your toenails a pretty hue, or striding out somewhere special - enjoy.
Hey everyone, slightly hungover in this neck of the woods after much delicious Brokenwood wines and some damned fine Bacchus food {duck and foie gras terrine - I heart you so}. Husband and I have refreshed ourselves with an omelette {thanks for the idea Beth! Sadly, I had to cook the damned thing myself} and a strong coffee.
To take us all into the long weekend I'd like to share some vintage Cher - all feathers and fabulousness.
I seem to be obsessed with kitchens at the moment. Currently floating my boat is this picture-perfect room. Me likey. Me likey very much indeed...
Why is it that when you're busy something's always got to give and for me, it's exercise. It's ironic as I write about health and fitness so not only do I know that exercise is essential - I also feel so amazing after something simple as a walk. It's even worse because I live a five minute walk from this beautiful beach. Just walking by it lifts my heart. On twilight the light cast over the ocean baths can tend to bring a tear to my eye - and at this time of the year? Well, I'll be lucky to hold back the tears.
Some things just make everything better. Bows. Feathers, and, of course, the home of feathers - birds. Whack a bird on something and I'm going to love it {oh, but not Fabio's face - remember that? Damn!}
If I had a fridge as pretty as this pink Smeg number I'd keep it ever so clean and only stocked with the finest Perrier Jouet champagne.
Busy, yet calm, that's my mantra for today. The to-do list is long, but do-able. The roses are fertilised, the towels and a load of my husband's sport and garden clothes are washed {with a cup of white vinegar added to deal with the sweat - he's been working hard}, I've sent off one piece that was due and plan on starting the other at 1.30. I also need to tidy the living room and kitchen and fly to Coles for the makings of dinner.
My Sex and the City post inspired a little debate or even declarations on men, love, marriage and lust {well, internally it did}. See, I've watched every episode of SATC, quite a few times over, and seen the film a few times too. And despite this, I don't get the Big thing. Sure, he's sexy with the whole "Abso****lutely" thing, and I love his penchant for Moon River but I don't consider him a keeper.
I'm not a patterned tights kinda gal, but these lil pretties from here could well change my mind. Hello, cuteness incorporated! 
Spoiler alert!
I know that yesterday was officially Shoe of the Day but I couldn't help it - I fell in love. And when I'm in love I'm one of those share it with the world types. Yes, chances are there'd be public displays of affection, endearing {to us} pet names, lustful gazing, petting, stroking... 
In cause for celebration we had the final french lesson last night and after one semester I'm starting to feel confident. It's taken a while, but things are finally starting to sink in and I'm learning to think french. Hurrah. I went to the Monday class last night instead of my usual Thursday, but luckily one of my fellow classmates also attended. It's amazing how quickly you can bond isn't it? After nine weeks I feel like I know these people - mainly because we have a love of all things French in common.
Doesn't everything look prettier with a bow? These Valentino shoes caught my fancy this morning and it wasn't just the crisp black and white patent that set my heart a'flutterin'. Adding something a little bit quirky to an item is essential as far as I'm concerned. And the bow detailing on this lover-licious pair of shoes really does it for me.
Catching up with the gals really soothes the soul. I'm back from my weekend away refreshed and relaxed and in the mood to continue to effect positive changes in my life. It's nice to step outside of your usual zone and look at your life from a different perspective. After a few days away I'm feeling inordinately blessed with my life. Lovely hubby, gorgeous daughter, lovely home, fabulous friends, great working lifestyle. Bliss I tell you, bliss.
See this? This is one of the three bedrooms in the house that my friends and I are staying at this weekend. Three rooms, three queen-sized beds, three gals. That's a triple treat my friends and I'll bet that we're each going to enjoy it. I'm leaving in an hour {squeeeeeee}. There's champagne chilling in the fridge and cheeses ready to go alongside it in the cooler. I've packed a range of frocks and my toes are a pretty shade of mauve thanks to Melissa's post.
I love the town I live in. I grew up here and while we had a few glorious years in Sydney in Newtown and Bronte, moving back to Newcastle made me feel at home. In the years that we were away a lot of change occurred. The BHP closed down and the revitalisation started. Firstly Darby Street became an eating strip to be proud of, then the Foreshore took off as home to some seriously stunning eateries. Then, over a year ago, one of my friends from Uni, Marcus Westbury set off the most amazing project. Renew Newcastle has seen an abundance of artisians move into vacant buildings in the previously bereft Newcastle Mall. Not only have they injected life into the area and seen boarded up or vandalised shop fronts filled with colour, vitality and talent - it's had a knock-on effect with businesses moving into the area along with the crowds.
I'm headed off for a girls weekend this afternoon. I'm catching up with two dear friends who I don't see anywhere near enough of - which is why we decided we needed a whole weekend - rather than a dinner or lunch chat. So I'm sending off the article that's due today and then packing the car and heading off around 4.30pm. Woo hoo. I'll be taking champagne and because it's our first night we're simply having champagne and nibblies for dinner - the whole point of a weekend away is not cooking!
Tis very grey and miserable outside today. So I thought I'd share this gorgeous image from a Grace Coddington shoot in US Vogue from nearly 10 years ago. A fluffy big poodle, a pastry-cabinet to sigh over, and a pair of mary janes on the model. Just luffley.
Should I be finishing off the article that's due on Friday? Yes. Should I be researching the other one due next Wednesday? Mmmhm. Perhaps I could wash my daughter's sheets before they walk out of her room and throw themselves in the washing machine? Well, yeah. Or I could be planning my netball training schedule for this afternoon. But, ah no. 
While peonies, violets and lavender all hold a special place in my heart, roses fill my front fence with beauty and my life with joy.
Bedtime is my favourite time of day. I love pulling back the covers, snuggling into my pillow reading a chapter or two and then drifting off. That's what I'm loving about the colder change {well, what we're getting of it}. Sleeping on a hot summer's night is never an appealing prospect, but in autumn and winter... oh my!
Don't you just love an easy meal? The other night my gal was at a sleepover, my husband wanted a man-sized t-bone and vegies and I didn't know what I was in the mood for. Luckily my fridge, garden and pantry offered up a tin of tuna, linguine, garlic, lemons, parsley, chillies and tomatoes. So I quickly sauteed the chilli and garlic in a touch of oil while the pasta boiled, then I added the tin of tuna {broken up with a fork}, next went the tomatoes, olives and a bit of lemon zest. All were quickly tossed together with a bit of chopped flat leaf parsley and lots of black pepper and washed down with a glass of rosé. Yummikins!
What a difference a year makes. See that top photo? That was our lilly pillies not long after we'd planted them last February. See the bottom one? That's them now. Check out the growth. They've filled out to form a dense hedge and they're getting close to the top of the fence - all 2.4 metres of it! We're hoping they'll grow to around 4 metres, obscuring the house that's on the hill behind us. It's such lovely, lush growth on these lilly pillies. We have had issues with psyllids, but if you keep the water and the fertiliser up then they seem less affected. When we've been slack with the watering we've had to spray the new growth with Defender - but it seems to have calmed down now.
Here's the results of this weekend's labour - my husband's not mine. Our vegie garden has had a few tonnes of soil and rubbish removed from atop of it and it's been dug through, has had gypsum applied and is ready for the manure and top soil before planting. Through the centre we've got a wee step and we're going to use the large pavers we have left over from the backyard to form a division between the two gardens. They'll go beautifully with all the reclaimed convict sandstone we've used as edging. Now, the photos don't do it justice, but these chunks of sandstone, as well as being over 100-years-old are also huge and damned heavy. My husband's managed to use his brute strength to lug them into place, and built some mighty nice muscles in the meantime!
Whew, all my pressing deadlines have passed. I still have work to do, and then I need to start the onerous task of pitching story ideas to editors {eek} but today's catch-up day. There are piles of washing calling my name, shopping to do, meals to plan, watering to do... So the plan is to slowly chip away at all of this, breathe, and stop for a second and look around.
You may have read the report in yesterday's sunday paper where outraged parents were calling for ratings on concerts. One woman who'd taken her 9-year-old along to see Lady Gaga was 'shocked' at the language and carry on at the concert. I'm shocked that she'd taken a nine-year-old to an adult's concert.
Check it - a shoe with a heel so low and so well-balanced it's virtually a pair of flats! This rather yummy pair of Sigerson Morrison shoes made it to the shoe of the week position predominantly because of my need to be sensible this week. Hence, sensible attitude - sensible shoe. Of course they still have a hint of danger thanks to the patent leather - and those buckles are eminently stylish don't you think?
If there's one thing I aspire to be it's neat and organised so these Stella McCartney Day-Of-The-Week undies may well take me where I need to go. Seriously, day-of-the-week undies, with their own cute lil boxes. Seriously, have I died and gone to cute-heaven? Or am I just hysterical? Either way there's some serious coveting going on in this part of Merewether...
Last night I finished reading a rather good book {A Much Married Man by Nicholas Colleridge - $3 from the Salvos} then snuggled into bed for a good night sleep before waking and having a yummy bowl of porridge with brown sugar and a double latte. Mmmmmmm. Does life get any better?
We're finally getting some work done on our side garden. This weekend we've hired a skip bin and my husband's barrowing all the clay he's excavated and we're having it recycled through a rubbish removal company. Then we're ready to start the vegie garden, lay the gravel paths and plant the hedging. Sadly, it won't look like this picture above, but our garden was designed by the same designer - Peter Fudge. He's created some amazing gardens and came up with some brilliant ideas for ours. 
Here we are at the end of another week, and the start of another weekend. Yay. I'm just thrilled that this weekend won't involve doctors, hospitals and x-rays - so anything has to be an improvement on that doesn't it?
There's a decided chill in the air this morning. It was only 15 degrees at 8am, after a still-steamy night. But the turn in the weather's got me itching for cool-weather clothing. Opaque stockings, leather jacket, a foofy skirt and these Alexander Wang boots would make the perfect street-smart winter look. I'm pretty sure that whatever needed doing would be done so much better in these fabulous booties.
I'm pretty sure that my head is now completely bamboozled thanks to Saturday's dedicated to all things broken {my daughter's arm} and yesterday's Big Day Out in Sydney {without the bands, fresh lemonade or cheese on a stick - damn!}.
Well, after that weekend I need to start the week off well. So here are two shoes of the week for you. TWO. The black beauties are Fendi - and aren't they utterly fabulous? Normally I'm not a fan of lucite, but this platform is just utterly exquisite. The delicate little pretties below are Valentino and they're making my heart ache. I have an itching to visit a haberdashers to find organza flowers to create my own vision...
I've been quiet this weekend haven't I? That's because my wee lass fell off a ripstik on Friday afternoon and broke her arm. Poor little poppet. She's currently encased in a half cast with a full plaster cast set to be installed on Wednesday once the swelling goes down. 
Here's one of the first stills released from Sex and the City 2. I've been invited to a screening on June 4 so it looks like the release will be around then. Hello girly night out!
I seem to be having some timing issues at the moment. I've got a lot of work on which is absolutely fantastic. Because I'm one of those rare individuals who loves their work I refuse to complain no matter how bogged down I become. I also refuse to turn down work {unless I'm asked to write something I'm actually opposed to - which hasn't happened yet}. So aside from my 9.30 to 10.30pm viewing of MasterChef: The Professionals {which I love, love, love and will die when it finishes tonight} I'm pretty much just working and mothering, with the odd spot of wifing thrown in {not a word - but you know what I mean - being a wife...}
I can totally understand why people become crazy doll collectors. Check out these Mad Men dolls that've just been released. For a start, they've got the original 50s Barbie eyes {sideways glance, cool cats-eye-liner} and would you have a look at Betty's dress! Loving it!
You know what I love most about this whole cold weather scenario? Bringing out the slow cooker. This morning I chopped a few onions, a couple of potatoes and an orange capsicum, browned up a few chicken drumsticks and cut six thighs into bite-sized chunks and threw it all into the slow cooker with some coconut milk and a mild chicken curry slow cooker mix. Then I popped a layer of baking paper over the top {my slow cooker's huge, so I need the paper to keep in moisture and to let it bake more evenly} and seven hours later it smells divine. 
You know how horrid and frustrating it is when you suddenly lose a follower? {As I did today - gained one "Hi Ben" and lost one "Bye-bye errant friend..."} Well, I reckon I've discovered something worse - being dropped off someone's blog-love-roll. However, I think I know how this happens.
I know that the Hot Cross Buns have been in-store since Boxing Day, but I'm starting to plan my easter treats for the kiddies in the family. I've already bought little lactose-free easter bunnies for my dairy-free-niece and now I just need to find suitable treats to post OS to the England-based nieces. I think packaging them in cute little baggies such as these found over at Martha Stewart could be the secret to success. I might try for something pretty such as unusual lollies this year. Last year I gave the girls pastel easter-themed cookie cutters and wrote out two recipes for sugar cookies {one chocolate, one vanilla}. Sweet - but without the chocolate overload!
You know one of the things I liked best about the Oscars? The fact that it's filled with real celebrities - people who are famous for a reason. When I was growing up people had a reason for appearing on the covers of magazines - because they had a talent which made them famous. David Cassidy - star of The Partridge Family and singer. Easy. Celebrity. 
I think I'm suffering a little post-Oscars-funk today. I'm still excited that a female director took out the Best Director category for the first time ever on International Women's Day {go girl power!} and the Oscar-wrap-up over at Lainey Gossip was superb. But I think that the fact that the Award Season has wrapped for another year is indicative of how quickly time is zooming by. 
