Mighty Oaks

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Dress: Anthea Crawford silk chiffon

Heels: Betts for Her iridescent patent

Clutch: Mombasa Rose iridescent patent

Belt: Blue Illusion silver & stretch

Bracelet with Charms: Pandora silver & onyx

Ring: Pandora silver & onyx

Headpiece: Target satin, ribbon & mesh

Butterflies: Interflora paper & wire

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Following on from the "Race That Stops A Nation" was the more subdued Crown Oaks Day, traditionally known as Ladies' Day, where muted colours, girly prints, feminine touches & sweet yet sophisticated embellishments abound. Although I wasn't in Melbourne to witness the national Fashions on the Field final at Flemington, it didn't stop me from dressing "to the nines" to attend another elegant luncheon at an exclusive member's club in the River City.

Rather than the structured, guipure lace fabric that I wore on Melbourne Cup Day, the stunning Anthea Crawford dress that formed the base of my outfit was made from floaty silk chiffon fabric covered in butterflies & cut into a tapered shift with cowl neckline detail & sweet ruffle cascading from the left side of the waistline. 

When wearing a dress that is widely available in two of Australia's biggest department stores - in this case Myer & David Jones - it can be important to really "make it your own" & I accomplished this by gathering one side of the cowl & securing it with a large thin bow fashioned from the dress' fabric waist belt. This produced an asymmetrical detail on the OPPOSITE side of the body to the aforementioned waist ruffle, opening up the neckline to show off more of my decolletage. Where the fabric belt had been, I covered with a stretchy black belt from Blue Illusion, held together with a silver clasp that looked like stylised butterfly wings, cinching in my waist & creating further visual interest.

Instead of wearing my usual patent black accessories with such a ladylike look, I decided to go a bit "edgier" with a pair of sky-high iridescent patent platforms & a matching clutch in the shape of lolly wrapper for that touch of kitsch. Whimsy was also the name of the game when it came to jewellery - in this case a bangle with silver & onyx charms in the shape of hearts & presents from Pandora & the corresponding "heart" ring. 

Of course, it wouldn't be Spring Racing without the headpiece & this one was a true work of art, if I do say so myself: an oversized black ribbon & mesh "wing" designed headpiece from Target that I customised with a trio of gorgeous botanically accurate light blue paper butterflies from my local Interflora florist. Using wire clippers, I liberated the winged insects from the "stem" they were attached to & poked the ends through the tiny holes in the mesh at intervals, playing around until the formation looked natural & pleasing to the eye. Check out my little craft project in detail below:

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Race That Stops A Nation

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Dress: Anthea Crawford guipure lace

Heels: Target Collection glitter platforms

Clutch: Taking Shape mesh & resin

Headpiece: Lovisa satin

Watch: Guess silver

Bangle: Gift, vintage Indian beaded

Cuff: Vintage, Art Nouveau silver

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It's billed as "The Race That Stops A Nation" & this year's Melbourne Cup didn't disappoint; the auspicious race won by a female jockey - Michelle Payne riding Prince of Penzance - for the first time in history! Unfortunately, it cannot go without stating that there were also tears on the track, with three-time-runner-up Red Cadeaux "breaking down" close to the winning post, requiring the dreaded "green screens" to be brought in, but thankfully, he appears to be recovering well after life-saving surgery...

But I digress.

This is a fashion blog, so you're probably here to discuss fashions on the field...

I'm not a Melbournian & didn't attend Flemington, but I did have the opportunity to revel in the spirit of the day with a banquet luncheon at an exclusive member's club in the River City. For such a chic occasion, I donned a floral 3D guipure lace dress from Anthea Crawford with scalloped v-neckline, empire-line detail to draw attention to the narrowest part of my waist, cap-sleeves & classic just-below-the-knee hemline. The vivid shade of blue was enhanced by the dress' black lining & I picked up on that when it came to the accessories, teetering in a pair of sky-high black glitter platforms (picked up during a sale at my local Target store for $4!) & edgy chrome "chain mail" mesh clutch with black resin clasp from Taking Shape.

When it came to jewellery, I went for pieces that were elegant yet unexpected: a chunky silver Guess watch from their "androgynous" range, a vintage silver Art Nouveau dragonfly cuff - given to me by a dear friend - to echo the botanical nature of the dress' lace & finally, a thick black Indian bangle from the 1970s - yet another gorgeous gift from another darling friend - covered with silver beads of differing shapes & sizes. Scroll down to check out each in detail:

Of course, it wouldn't be a Spring Racing Carnival look without the exaggerated headpiece & I decided to go with something sculptural: an oversized, black satin rose with malleable petals on a thin headband from Lovisa that blended in with my brunette bob. It worked perfectly with the modishness of the accessories & the starling shapes created by the stunning guipure lace, as evidenced below:

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We Are Sailing...

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Dress: Sportscraft stretch cotton

Shoes: Dunlop Volleys canvas & rubber

Bag: Now @ Kmart straw & rope

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Spent a delightful Saturday morning at Wivenhoe Dam, introducing Sweet Baby James to the wonderful & water-logged world of the local sailing club. He loved it, particularly seeing that all eyes were on him during an impromptu photo shoot by the water's edge...

For me, deciding what to wear was quite the conundrum - casual wear is usually not my style, as I'm sure avid readers of this blog can attest - but all of the pieces came together in the end to create a bright, cohesive & (surprisingly!) rather "outdoorsy" whole.

The look was centred around this large-scale, floral print cotton shift from Sportscraft - bought two or three years ago now - with a French navy background & vivid, botanically accurate blooms, scoop neckline, cap sleeves & front pockets. Check it out in all its glory below:

When it came to footwear, comfort was key, so I donned this pair of canvas & rubber Dunlop "Volleys" - a reissue of the popular 1970s style - in a bright shade of white with purple accents. Certainly a departure from my usual heels, but perfect for walking over uneven, rocky terrain & along the bank...

Rather than carry a handbag, I threw all of the necessities - sunhat, sunglasses, raincoat, jacket, insect repellent, sunscreen, waterbottle, mobile phone - into this oversized, rainbow striped straw tote bag that I picked up at my local Kmart store for $5. The vibrant, summery tones mixed well with the colours inherent in the dress' pattern while the white rope handles matched the tone of my sandshoes perfectly.

Well, now that all the outfit details are out of the way, scroll down to see how the morning unfolded:

Superb views of Wivenhoe...

Sweet Baby James has a turn at the tiller...

And they're off & racing!

Exploration...

Tuckered out & hugging his teddy bear...