Monochrome Magic

 

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Dress: Sacha Drake mesh, ribbon, satin

Heels: Kitten D'Amour vegan leather

Bag: Beach n Beyond vinyl

Bangles: Gift, Indian silver, gold, sparkles

Headpiece: David Jones satin, glitter

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Finally sharing all the pictures of a magical outfit that I styled up to attend a recent Christmas party in my beloved River City. I'm wearing a stunning monochrome mesh & cornelli ribbon "Pica Pica" midi dress with oversized satin bow straps from celebrated Australian designer Sacha Drake, black vegan leather strappy heels from girly label Kitten D'Amour for a modicum of height, a black vinyl cylindrical handbag from Beach n Beyond at Coolangatta to carry all the essentials, gold & silver sparkly bangles that a dear friend brought back from a trip to India years ago for those "mixed metal" vibes & finally, a satin headpiece with gold & silver glitter stars from my local David Jones department store (a few Christmas seasons ago) to evoke the "Old Hollywood" movie star party glam of Hedy Lamarr in THAT famous picture.

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Magical Monochrome

 

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Dress: Aje linen/silk

Heels: Kitten D'Amour vegan leather

Bag: Gift, vintage satin, beading

Necklace: Tree of Life silver, twine

Hinged Bangle: Gift, Precious Stones Jewellers silver

Bangle: Gift, 20th Century Antiques & Collectibles antique silver

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Having a magical moment in monochrome wearing this stunning ensemble to a recent special event in my beloved River City. I'm twirling about in the balmy morning air in a stunning black & white checked linen/silk puff sleeve mini smock dress with ruffled hemline from celebrated Australian designer Aje (worn backwards for a sleeker look at the front), a pair of black vegan leather dual buckle heels from Kitten D'Amour for the perfect fusion of style & comfort while walking about on the city streets & a vintage black silk & beading handbag that some dear friends gave me before the recent Spring Racing Carnival season to carry all the essentials while adding a touch of daytime sparkle. When it came to jewellery, I chose a statement-making silver draped necklace with black twine fastening from my local Tree of Life store, my favourite art deco wave-style hinged bangle from the delightful ladies at Precious Stones Jewellers at Uptown (formerly the Myer Centre) & a heavy antique silver bangle from 20th Century Antiques & Collectibles that my younger brother gave me for my birthday a few years ago.

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Keep scrolling for a close-up of the aforementioned necklace...

Monochrome Morning

 

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Dress: Sheike broderie cotton

Slip: David Jones elastane

Ankle Boots: Wittner matte leather, patent leather

Bag: Nine West vinyl, silver chain

Bangle Stack: Gift, vintage Mexican silver

Bangle: Gift, 20th Century Antiques & Collectibles

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All dressed up & making some "monochrome magic" in this stunning ensemble - the perfect thing for an even in my beloved River City followed by some retail therapy at Indooroopilly Shoppingtown! I'm posing near the stunning new fountain under the escalators on floor two wearing a gorgeous white broderie cotton 60 style mini dress with high ruffled neckline & puff sleeves from Sheike with a black elastane camisole from David Jones underneath for modesty purposes, a pair of black matte leather ankle boots with patent round toes from Wittner, a black & white/speckled grey vinyl rectangular shoulder bag with silver chain strap from Nine West to carry all the essentials (more than ten years old & still going strong) & some of my all-time favourite silver jewellery pieces - a stack of vintage Mexican silver bangles from some dear friends overseas & a single, thicker vintage silver bangle from 20th Century Antiques & Collectibles (formerly of Coolangatta, now in Tweed Heads) that my younger brother bought for me as a birthday gift a few years ago.

Monochrome in the Springtime

 

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Dress: Anthea Crawford stretch twill

Cardigan: Taking Shape mesh

Ankle Boots: Wittner matte leather

Tights: Razzamatazz 40 denier nylon

Bag: Sussan vinyl

Belt: That Shop elastic, patent leather

Hinged Bangle: Wallace Bishop silver

Bangle with Charms: Pandora silver, onyx

Ring: Pandora silver, onyx

Ring: Pandora silver

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Same dress, different blog post!

It's always wonderful to be able to get a lot of wear out of an sartorial purchases & it's even better if you can wear them to completely different events in different weather to get the optimum "value for money" in this crazy economy. I will admit that I don't always think about cost per wear when adding to my wardrobe - sometimes I just really, really want that fluffy, organza dream dress that can only be worn in a certain circumstance - but I do think about the "classics" question, which is whether or not something will stand the test of time. Classic silhouettes or prints or even something so incredibly out of the box that time is irrelevant are always top of my list. Case in point: this gorgeous, black & white floral stretch twill midi dress from Anthea Crawford. It's sleek silhouette & below-the-knee hemline, in addition to the monochromatic colour scheme mean it can be worn today, in ten days, in ten months or even ten years. I've styled it up here for an appointment in the River City on a cold morning, adding a black mesh cardigan from Taking Shape that I've cinched in with a wide, patent stretch belt from That Shop, donned a pair of black matte leather ankle boots from Wittner for height, 40 denier nylon tights from Razzamatazz to keep my legs feeling toasty warm & a black vinyl shoulder bag from Sussan to carry all the essentials. When it came to jewellery, I wore a chunky silver hinged bangle from Wallace Bishop, silver & onyx charm bangle & matching rings from Pandora to complete the look.

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