Tuesday 24 December 2019

Meet Me Under the Mistletoe






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Dress: Anthea Crawford guipure lace
Sandals: Wittner leather
Bag: Country Road vinyl, leather with silver hardware
Hinged Bangle: Wallace Bishop silver

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Taking a little break from the big shopping centres with a quick trip to Orion Springfield Central... where, naturally, I couldn't resist taking a few pictures with the festive decorations. I'm wearing a gorgeous 1960s-inspired "flower power" guipure lace dress from Aussie designer Anthea Crawford, comfortable-yet-stylish white leather gladiator sandals from Wittner, boxy silver metallic handbag with white leather accents & silver hardware from Country Road & finally, a chunky silver hinged bangle from Wallace Bishop.

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Monday 23 December 2019

Celtic Christmas Illusion







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Dress: Anthea Crawford x Downton Abbey embellished mesh, satin
Heels: Wittner metallic leather with gold buckles
Bag: Gift, Vera May patent leather with gold hardware
Bangles: Gift, mixed metal, sparkles

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Avid readers of this blog will already know that a large portion of my ancestry is Celtic & that I utterly adore all things from that side of the world, particularly bagpipe music, Highland dancing & traditional songs including "A Scottish Soldier." This is never more true than at Christmastime, when I long for the divine Isle of Skye, the feeling of the glacial chill from the Loch Ness on my skin, the smell of "tatties" cooking & the sight of snowflakes on the windowpanes & rooftops... amidst the heat & humidity of a Queensland summer, that is. I was seriously chuffed, therefore, to be invited to attend a recent Celtic Christmas Illusion concert performance with some dear friends, replete with traditional singing & dancing, stunning costumes & great "craic" in-between... one of the best ways to welcome the festive season with some pomp & circumstance from across the sea. 

For the occasion, I wore a gorgeous, heavily embellished mesh wiggle dress with midi-length hemline, ruffled skirt & black satin lining, cinched with a black & gold art deco beaded grosgrain ribbon belt from Anthea Crawford's recent Downton Abbey collaboration, gold metallic leather pointy-toed heels with buckles from Wittner, retro-inspired purple patent leather hard case handbag with gold hardware from Vera May & armfuls of mixed metal, sparkly bangles that a dear friend brought back from a trip to India a few years ago.

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Sunday 22 December 2019

The Old Razzle Dazzle




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Dress: Anthea Crawford twill
Heels: Wittner leather, laces
Bag: Forever New vinyl with silver hardware
Hinged Bangle: Precious Stones Jewellers silver
Cuff: Najo via Precious Stones Jewellers silver

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Finishing up all my festive preparations with a spot of gift shopping at Indooroopilly Shoppingtown (as it will forever be known to me) before indulging in some light lunch at the newly renovated Cafe One. I'm posing in front of the AMAZING Christmas windows of the Peter Alexander store wearing a vibrant blue & pink large-scale floral twill fit-to-flare dress from Aussie label Anthea Crawford, blush pink leather pointy-toed lace up heels from Wittner with matching blush pink vinyl crossbody bag with silver hardware & chain strap detailing from Forever New, a chunky art-deco-inspired silver hinged bangle & tribal style cuff from Najo via Precious Stones Jewellers.

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Roast Pumpkin Cakes with Rocket, Sundried Tomato & Parmesan


Washing it all down with an ice-cold Vanilla Milkshake...

Saturday 21 December 2019

A Christmas Carol










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Dress: Anthea Crawford jacquard
Heels: Wittner metallic leather
Bag: Nine West textured vinyl with silver hardware
Cuff: Wallace Bishop silver
Dragonfly Cuff: Kellie's Antiques silver

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In this world, there are few things that are truly timeless. "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens, first published in London in 1843, is one of them. The story of Ebenezer Scrooge, an elderly miser who is visited by the ghost of his former business partner, Jacob Marley, & the spirits of Christmas Past, Present & Yet To Come over the course of one evening & henceforth becomes a kinder, gentler man - particularly to his long-suffering underling Bob Cratchit - is a perennial festive favourite in a variety of incarnations, not least because the themes (among others) of the quality of mercy & compassion, the importance of paying it forward, the joy of sharing the wealth, the need for rewarding loyalty & the idea that anyone can be forgiven if they are truly contrite are still of great importance to this very day. 

For the second year in a row, I have been fortunate enough to witness Shaken & Stir Theatre Company's award-winning version of the tale with its lavish costumes, innovative video backdrop design & live acoustic caroling at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC) & have not been disappointed. This year, I attended with some dear friends & dressed up accordingly, donning a stunning navy & silver flora jacquard dress from Anthea Crawford with its body-lengthening sewn-in panels & deep v-neckline, a pair of silver metallic leather heels from Wittner, a shiny, textured vinyl shoulder bag with chain strap from Nine West to carry all of the essentials (like some tissues for the more emotional scenes), a flat silver cuff from Wallace Bishop & delicate silver dragonfly cuff from Kellie's Antiques to complete the look.

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