Wednesday was the first day that’s really felt like Autumn so far (although we seem to be back to summery weather again now), so I decided to spend the afternoon relaxing and taking a stroll. It was even cool enough to wear my new cotton cardigan, which by the way is so awesome and comfortable.
Happy Easter!
Breakfast: Scones with butter and Vegemite.
I know some people will think that is weird or even gross, but I think it’s delicious. I’ve always loved sweet and salty flavour combinations. Like peanut butter M&Ms – soooo good – or McDonalds fries dipped in soft serve. I can remember being told off as a kid for putting Vegemite on my pikelets and (this one is a secret.. so shh!) I sometimes put salt on my ice-cream.
My first round of listings on eBay just went live. You can have a browse here if you’re interested. Much, much more to come!
Vintage cotton vest $15
Witchery oversized cropped jumper $3
Batwing top $3
Vintage woollen blazer $20
Jacquie E cotton cardigan $6
Birthday money + op shops = happy Amie. I also used some of my birthday money to get a haircut. Not that you can really tell from these photos. I think I need to invest in some kind of product that stops my hair being ridiculous every time the weather changes.
I started two knitting projects this week.
I started knitting my ‘corn’ scarf – made from Lincraft Snowball yarn to (hopefully) look like variegated corn. I’m probably going to add a fringe of fine threads at either end to look like corn silk too. I also started on a cowl, inspired by Orchid Grey’s tunnel scarf. I got some super soft dark green yarn at half price the other day and it was just begging to be turned into a nice big cowl.
I’ve never knit anything other than scarves, but I really want to give this circular shrug that I found over on Craftster a go. And ever since I saw it, I’ve been aching to make this Secret Garden tam. I must teach myself more knitting skills. And crochet too. I have books about both, but just can’t seem to get past very basic stitches. I’m going to make it a goal for this year though.
I love wearing knit and crochet clothing, so it definitely makes sense to learn. I can’t wait for it to cool down a bit more so I can start wearing my ever-growing collection of beanies, tams and berets too.
Cardigan – thrifted, tshirt – Big W, jeans – no idea, shoes – Dunlop Volleys.
I knew I needed my hair cut, but having seen these photos I think I ought to make it a priority. I worked out yesterday that it’s actually been almost eight months since my last hair cut – eep! I didn’t get it cut in Canberra because it was either go to a hairdressing chain (no thanks) or be prepared to fork out $100+ (and I spent years cutting my own hair to avoid paying less than $50). I would have cut it myself, but I seem to have lost my scissor confidence and it’s gotten so long that it would be difficult to do anyway.
To fringe or not to fringe, that is the question now.
This is where I spent the Saturday before my birthday.
It’s the Tamborine Mountain Botanical Gardens. Matt surprised me by hiring a car and driving us down there for the day. It was lovely! Unfortunately, I didn’t get any good photos. Matt bought me a Holga pinhole camera for my birthday, but it turns out I suck at using it pretty hard. We drove around, visited a local brewery, looked in the cuckoo clock shop, walked through the gardens, sat in the gardens eating cheese and crackers and tried to go to a lookout (it started raining so we turned back.. it then stopped raining when we got back to the car!). On the way back to Brisbane we stopped and had McDonalds at a service centre thing. Romantic. We finished the day off with a night time view of Brisbane from Mount Coot-tha. It was an amazing day. Matt is the best!
And this is me on my actual birthday on Sunday. Matt took me for a pancake breakfast before he had to go to work and afterwards I met up with my friend Kristy. I bought myself a birthday present of a camera tripod and then Kristy and I had tea where Matt works. After that we went to the Brisbane Botanic Gardens to take photos. I’m really disappointed that all my Holga photos are no good. I think if I’m going to have another try I’ll need to buy a shutter release cable (even with the tripod the photos were blurry just from me holding the shutter open), but I kind of think I’m too impatient for a pinhole camera (which explains why most of the photos were underexposed).
And now I’m 25.
It’s my birthday soon. I will be 25 years old. I have no idea how this happened. I swear I was only 22 like the other day! So, I’ve been thinking about things I might like as gifts. Usuaully I just reply with ‘iunno’ whenever I get asked for gift suggestions for myself, but since I’ll be crossing the dreaded threshold into ‘mid to late twenties’ territory I thought I should do the mature thing and have a little think about it. And since there are some pretty neat things on my little list I thought I’d post it here for all to see.
And that’s my list. For further inspiration, I’ll be sending family and friends to my hearts (which, frankly, they should look at anyway because I heart some awesome stuff!). Now, if someone asks, I can just refer them to this post. Problem solved!
Wednesday is Farmers Market day in Brisbane city and today I went along with my camera. I love going to markets. I’ll go along to fresh food markets, street markets, flea markets… any kind of market really. I just love the atmosphere. Today, though, it was all about lovely fresh food. I went with a couple of friends, Dan and Tash. Tash is a chef and food blogger and I absolutely adore her enthusiasm for all things edible. On her advice, I walked away with three delicously plump vanilla pods which smell incredible. And I took a whole bunch of photos. Enjoy!
And what better way to end a day at the markets than with a delicious iced tea.
It’s sooooo hot today! Weatherzone tells me the current temperature in Brisbane is 30.6°C with 69% humidity, making it feel like 36.3°C. I love that Weatherzone has the ‘feels like’ temperature, it makes me feel like my whinging about the heat is somehow more justified. Apparently there’s a slight chance of a storm this afternoon, but we’re still expecting a low of 26°C overnight. And that’s not until 3am!
Thankfully, Matt has been keeping us well supplied with iced tea. At the moment it’s black tea with mandarin and it’s rather delicious and very refreshing. I love having a boyfriend who works in a tea shop. Since he started working there we have slowly accumulated a collection of different flavours and varieties and I’ve learned a lot about tea too. For example, rooibos is not actually from a tea plant, but rather a legume. Crazy stuff, huh?
I’m sure I’ll post further about tea, but for now here’s what I wore today. The skirt and top are both thrifted, the necklace was a gift, as was the lotus hairclip and the sandals are from Big W. I’ve been wearing the sandals a lot this summer because they’re nice and cool and no fuss to put on. In fact, I’ve worn them so much that I’ve actually developed sandal tan. How embarrassing!
I really should start putting sunscreen on my feet. Right now, though, I need some more iced tea before I melt.
Matt and I don’t do Valentines Day gifts, but I decided I still wanted to make something little and cute for him. So, I made a bunch of lollipop flowers. They’re cheap and super easy to make. Here’s how.
Draw or download and print a flower template and cut it out.
Trace the flower onto some felt. I chose dark red for Valentines, but I think I might try some other colours for birthdays and things later.
Cut the flower out of the felt and snip a little hole in the centre. I found the easiest way to do this is to fold it into quarters and just snip the corner.
Insert your lollipop into the hole. I also cut out a set of freehand leaves for mine, but I think that’s pretty optional. Now just shape the flower around the lollipop a little and you’re done!
Happy Valentines Day!
Hi! My name is Amie and I'm an aspiring writer/artist, home cook and fashion enthusiast living in Brisbane, Australia. This blog documents my passion for kitschy crafts, vintage and remixed fashion and style, tasty food and a host of other delightful things. It is also a constant work in progress. Stay tuned.
