The Suite Traditions

 

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Dress: Elliatt via Melina's Boutique embroidered & embellished mesh, jersey

Heels: Gorman vegan leather, elastic

Bag: TK Maxx woven

Belt: Oh Jo Jo Boutique woven stretch

Bangle Stack: Gift, vintage Mexican silver

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

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One of my most treasured traditions is attending a performance of Tchaikovsky's 1892 masterpiece "The Nutcracker" each & every year around Christmastime in my beloved River City with some dear friends, all dressed up & full of a sense of wonder at the stunning beauty of ballet as an art form & the joy of the festive season for both children & adults alike. For the occasion, I donned a stunning pastel floral embroidered & embellished mesh puff-sleeve gown with fish-tail hemline & blush jersey lining from Australian label Elliatt that I discovered at Melina's Boutique in the small township of Rosewood, cinched in with a natural stretch woven belt from Oh Jo Jo Boutique, a pair of mauve vegan leather round-toe slingback heels from Gorman for a modicum of height & a retro-inspired, natural woven "box" handbag with wooded beaded handle from TK Maxx to carry all the essentials. When it came to jewellery, I chose some beloved silver pieces that added shine without overshadowing or competing with the dress - a stack of vintage Mexican silver bangles that some dear friends brought back from overseas & a single, thicker vintage silver bangle from 20th Century Antiques & Collectibles (formerly of Coolangatta, now Tweed Heads) the my brother gave me as a birthday gift a few years ago. 

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Sugar Plum Fairy

 

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Dress with Corsage: Sacha Drake jacquard, embroidered trim

Heels: Jo Mercer leather, laces

Bag: Pigeonhole leather

Brooch: Gift, gold, beads, enamel

Bracelets: Jewelled Bazaar faceted beads

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Another day, another stunning Sacha Drake floral jacquard dress to be styled up & worn to a traditional & much-loved Christmas event in my beloved River City; this time, "The Nutcracker" Ballet at Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC). This gorgeous gold & white floral gown has a matching corsage & gold, white & black embroidered trim on the asymmetrical strap (added by me) which is picked up in the black leather lace-up heels from Jo Mercer & black leather shoulder bag from funky boutique Pigeonhole to carry all the essentials including my face mask & hand sanitizer. When it came to jewellery, I decided to go festive with a stunning gold, enamel & beaded Christmas Tree brooch that a dear family friend gave me (pictured in detail above) & a stack of faceted bead bracelets from an Etsy store called Jewelled Bazaar to complete the look.

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Suite Life

 

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Dress: Dream Sister Jane organza, satin, tulle

Heels: Forever New suede, wood

Bag: Olga Berg via Myer vinyl

Bangles: Gift, vintage silver

Bangle: Gift, engraved wood (from New Zealand)

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The festival of art continues on the blog with this latest post, chronicling a recent trip to the River City's Cultural Precint at Southbank for a ballet performance of Tchaikovsky's festive masterpiece "The Nutcracker Suite" - always a delightful Christmas tradition with its sumptuous costumes & oft-lauded musical score - followed by a quick sojourn to take in the view from the Kurilpa Bridge & peek at the Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art at both GOMA & the Queensland Art Gallery, celebrating its 10th year with more than 69 thought-provoking & emotional projects of new & recent work from more than 150 individuals in 30 countries. 

After such a difficult year, it was wonderful to be able to just walk around & immerse myself in all things art & culture, swishing my way through the day wearing a stunning & voluminous blush pink organza, satin & tulle shirred & puff-sleeved midi-length smock dress from whimsical British label Sister Jane's premium diffusion line, Dream Sister Jane that left me feeling like Clara Stahlbaum herself! I styled it up with a pair of sky-high blush suede slingbacks with wooden stacked heels & buckles from Forever New for a modicum of height, carried a boxy blush vinyl handbag from Olga Berg via Myer filled with all the essentials including my mask & hand sanitizer & layered up with accessories that all have serious sentimental value - a stack of handmade silver bangles (7 in total) given to me by some dear friends & a square wooden bangle engraved with the Elvish script from the ring in "The Lord of the Rings" - One ring to rule them all; one ring to find them; one ring to bring them all & in the darkness, bind them - that someone special brought back from a recent trip to the place where Peter Jackson filmed Tolkein's immortal trilogy in New Zealand to complete the look.

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