Cobalt from the Blue

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Dress: Anthea Crawford guipure lace

Sandals: Wittner leather with silver buckles

Bag: French Connection vinyl with chrome hardware

Scarf: Anthea Crawford silk

Beaded Bracelets: Ahmet's Turkish Restaurant silver, beads

Ring: Gift, Chapel Hill State School Fete silver, bead

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Cobalt blue (or electric blue, as it's sometimes known) has long been a welcome part of my wardrobe repertoire for quite some time & shows no signs of abating. In fact, it's a trend that we keep seeing in fashion magazines or on runways season after season, year after year. Case in point: this gorgeous guipure lace midi dress from Aussie designer label Anthea Crawford that was given to me by a dear friend around four or five years ago & is still going strong... showing that if you are able to purchase/choose quality, it is certainly an investment worth making. I've styled it up here for a morning of concierge shopping with a group of lovely ladies by adding a pair of black leather heeled sandals with silver buckles from Wittner & a matching black vinyl cylindrical handbag from French Connection with a floral & striped mixed print silk scarf (also from Anthea Crawford) tied around the handles for added flourish. When it came to jewellery, I layered up with an armful of "evil eye" beaded bracelets from Ahmet's Turkish Restaurant & a finished with a silver & "evil eye" ring on my finger that I picked up at a little stall at the Chapel Hill School Fete a few years ago.

Frangipani By Name...

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Dress: Sylvester by Kate Sylvester jacquard

Heels: Carvela by Kurt Geiger suede

Bag: Review textured vinyl with gold hardware

Brooch: Gift, Erstwilder resin

Bracelets: Blake & Taylor upcycled buttons

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Sharing even more pictures of the gorgeous little ensemble that I "styled up" to head out to a family lunch at a local Italian restaurant... this time standing by a blooming frangipani tree in Hawthorne. I'm wearing a sumptuous gold & navy leaf-printed jacquard drop-waist baby doll dress from Sylvester by Kate Sylvester, a pair of comfortable yet stylish navy suede heels from Carvela by Kurt Geiger, a vibrant yellow textured vinyl handbag with dainty bow & gold hardware from "girly" label Review, pair of upcycled vintage button bracelets from Paddington's Blake & Taylor & finally, a sweet little resin brooch from Erstwilder depicting a bluebird holding a "love note."

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Marinara Sunday

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Dress: Sylvester by Kate Sylvester jacquard

Heels: Carvela by Kurt Geiger suede

Bag: Review textured vinyl with gold hardware

Brooch: Gift, Erstwilder resin

Bracelets: Blake & Taylor upcycled buttons

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Finally sharing all of the gorgeous pictures from a Sunday lunch with family at one of my favourite places to eat in all of Brisbane, Marinara Cafe & Restaurant at Hawthorne, where they serve some of the most delicious Italian comfort food I've ever tasted among beautiful traditional decor. The service & atmosphere is also amazing - it's such a positive & happy place to be (& this is coming from someone who's seen it both on a VERY busy night around Christmas time & quieter daytime lunches) that you actually feel yourself smiling ear to ear as though you are around old friends. With all of the current issues surrounding social distancing & isolation, I'm currently planning my next takeaway meal, drooling as I do so...

But I digress.

For the occasion, I kept it simple yet sweet with a gorgeous gold & navy leaf-printed jacquard drop-waist baby-doll dress with drawstring detailing from Sylvester, designer Kate Sylvester's diffusion line for David Jones mixed with a pair of navy blue suede mid-heels from Carvela by Kurt Geiger for some added height to balance out the silhouette of the dress & a vibrant yellow textured vinyl handbag with sweet bow & gold hardware from Review, gifted to me by a dear friend a few Christmases ago. When it came to jewellery, I took the opportunity to wear my new Erstwilder resin brooch in the shape of a little bluebird carrying a sweet "love note" in his beak & finished the entire ensemble with a pair of upcycled vintage button bracelets from Blake & Taylor in Paddington.

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Garlic Pizza

Baked Spinach & Ricotta Ravioli

Tuscan Baked Salmon

Brooch Lovers Anonymous...

Like Mother, Like Daughter, I guess!

Dot & the Kangaroo

Many Australian children would have grown up engrossed in Ethel Pedley's storybook "Dot & The Kangaroo," published in 1899 & detailing the adventures of a little girl who becomes lost in the bush, only for a red mother kangaroo - who has lost her own joey - to help her find her way home, teaching her about the Australian outback along the way & giving her a greater understanding of the magic of natural world & the unique floral & fauna that make up the land "down under." If you were a child of the 1980s (like myself) you may have even watched the Yoram Gross (yes, of original "Blinky Bill" television show fame) film version that was released in 1977 & was so popular that a sequel was released in 1983 entitled "Dot & The Bunny." Imagine my joy & surprise, therefore, when years later I was invited to the stage performance of the classic tale at the behest of some dear friends who were visiting from overseas, followed by a meander around the Queensland Art Gallery & San Kai Japanese takeaway lunch by the river at Southbank Parklands...

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Dress: Anthea Crawford embroidered mesh, satin lining, lace trim

Sandals: C'est Bon via Williams Shoes glitter with gold buckles

Bag: Forever New textured vinyl with gold hardware

Bag Charm: Gift, plastic, faux fur

Cuffs: EKKA Markets woven thread, beads

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For the occasion, I wore a gorgeous, heavily floral embroidered mesh midi dress with satin lining, ruffled hemline & lace trim from Aussie designer Anthea Crawford (last seen here for Christmas Day 2019), a pair of sparkly gold glitter sandals with gold buckles from C'est Bon via Williams Shoes for some daytime sparkle, a blush pink textured vinyl handbag with gold hardware from Forever New & furry "cat face" bag charm that was gifted to me a few years ago & finally, a pair of handmade woven & beaded cuffs that I picked up at the EKKA Markets five or more years ago to keep things smart-casual with a bohemian flair.

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Scenes from the Queensland Art Gallery...

Bento Boxes by the Brisbane River...

"Yo Mama" Milkshake from Brooklyn Depot