Lovely Lace

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Dress: David Lawrence lace with satin lining

Heels: Wittner metallic leather with gold buckles

Bag: Forever New vinyl with gold hardware

Hinged Bangle: Samantha Wills resin & gold

Wrap Bracelet: Thousand Island Dressing gold beads

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A quick little bit of outfit inspiration for this weekend. Here I am posing against our unbelievably lush front hedge wearing a gorgeous black floral guipure lace sheath dress from David Lawrence with gold satin lining & asymmetrical hemline, metallic gold leather pointy-toe heels with ankle straps & gold buckles from Wittner & carrying a soft gold vinyl handbag from Forever New. Jewellery was simple & in keeping with the black & gold theme: a chunky resin hinged bangle from Aussie designer Samantha Wills & beaded wrap bracelet from Thousand Island Dressing in Paddington.

We Are All Made Of Stars

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Dress: Anthea Crawford cotton pique

Heels: Wittner laser cut leather

Bag: French Connection suede with silver hardware

Belt: That Shop patent leather & elastic

Hinged Bangle: Wallace Bishop silver

Twisted Bangle: Showcase Jewellers silver

Watch: Guess silver

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If there is one main blessing in my life, it is that I have a strong & supportive family around me that I absolutely adore. Honestly, I love them to the moon & back. As I've gotten older, the relationship with my mother has changed from a purely mother/daughter one (as it should be when you are growing up & need guidance) into one of a close & enduring friendship. We love to go shopping together, catch a movie, peruse art galleries & eat at a variety of funky cafes & restaurants. On this particular occasion, we headed to Brisbane for some retail therapy & whilst on our way to lunch at one of our all-time favourite Thai restaurants, Phat Elephant, we stumbled on this massive art installation outside City Hall called "One Million Stars" by Maryann Talia Pau. Created as part of Festival 2018 celebrating the Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast, it is a vibrant work drawing attention to the need for peace & as such, peaceful activism in our world.

After marveling at the intricacy of the one million individually folded paper stars, I decided to take some outfit pictures wearing this gorgeous monochrome spotted dress with cold shoulder neckline - made from stretchy & comfortable cotton pique -  from Anthea Crawford, cinched at the waist with a thick black patent belt from That Shop in Coolangatta (specialising in all things retro, pin up & rockabilly), matte black laser cut leather peeptoe booties from Wittner & boxy suede handbag with oversized silver handles from French Connection that has pretty much been my go-to since I bought it for under $30 in the pre-Christmas sales. When it came to jewellery, I kept it simple & silver - a chunky, androgynous watch from Guess, twisted thin bangle from Showcase Jewellers & thick hinged bangle from Wallace Bishop to up the ante on daytime shine. After all, we ARE all made of stars, you know...

And a few pictures from our delicious lunch...

Life of Riley

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Dress: Review cotton

Brogues: Wittner patent leather with moulded sole

Bag: Vera May patent leather with silver hardware

Belt: That Shop, Coolangatta elastic with silver clasps

Hinged Bangle: Wallace Bishop silver

Brooches: Zing Pop Culture silver, resin

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So excited to share all the gorgeous photographs from the "rocket & space" themed second birthday party of my cousin's darling youngest son. We celebrated our sweet little Riley with presents to open, games to play, bikes to ride, cuddles to share, space-themed party food (both hot & cold) to fill up on & a bright rocket-shaped birthday cake to blow candles out, make a wish & share among friends... with a couple of cheeky surprises thrown in!

For the occasion, I wore a whimsical navy & red heart-printed cotton fit-to-flare dress from Aussie label Review cinched in at the waist with a retro-style belt from That Shop in Coolangatta, shiny black patent brogues with chunky white "creeper" soles from Wittner (the very definition of stylish yet sturdy & comfortable) & a vibrant patent leather handbag with silver clasp from Vera May to echo the texture of the shoes. Jewellery was simple - a cute pair of silver & resin brooches in the shape of Walt Disney's Mickey & Minnie that I found by chance at my local Zing Pop Culture store (ideal for capturing that "young at heart" feeling) as well as a thick silver hinged bangle from Wallace Bishop for some daytime shine.

Scroll down to see how it all unfolded...

Opening the first of many gifts...

Big Brother James helping assemble the "spaceship" tent...

Granny gets involved...

The finished product...

Floating in space...

Trying out Riley's Rocket, made with love by Aunty Jo & Uncle Rayne... & myself, of course!

Birthday Boy cuddles with Uncle Nick & Aunty Mel...

Like one of those vintage tin "wind up monkey on a bicycle" toys, no?!

Opening more thoughtful gifts...

Pass the Parcel

Time for CAKE...

This one was made specially by Aunty Jo. Look closely to see Riley looking out of the rocket & Big Brother James & Mummy floating in space!

Blowing out the candles & making a wish!

Cutting the cake...

Yum!

Biker Gang

Fun & Games

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And a little something extra...

There's no better feeling than to know that the gifts you put so much time & effort into purchasing or making, wrapping & presenting to the recipient are used & enjoyed. This little series of photographs - brothers engaging in some make-believe with the Whatever Next! inspired "imaginative play" aspect of Riley's space-themed gift - really warmed the heart. These are the moments that I want to remember forever!

Whatever Next! by Jill Murphy (1983)