Some snapshots from Brisbane

A few photos from the day at the Story Bridge in Brisbane. Gorgeous model Ellie was on hand to model all the Joolz for various editors and photographers who we met with throughout the day. I had to do the odd bit of posing for photographers, but thank goodness the professional model got to do most of that :)

We had fun!

Some snapshots from Brisbane

Brisbane visits, RAFW pretties & other stuff

Spent most of last week in Brisbane, for the launch of Thread'n'Bone on Wed night (it looks fabulous and is full of gorgeous things) and then media chats on Friday, at the lovely Shelter Bar at the Story Bridge Hotel. My sister lives across the road, and its my favourite pub in Brisbane. It was divine to be in a place where people are still enjoying a summery climate, wearing little more than shorts and tshirts. Autumn in Brisbane is lovely. I think I could quite happily spend the winter months in Queensland!
We did a few photoshoots and had a few chats to various fashion editors and magazine types. Got into the Courier Mail on Sat, good shot of lovely model Ellie who spent the day with us, plus a little head shot of me in there too!


Got back to freezingness (aka Victoria) on Sat afternoon and went straight out to Paddy & Lu's farm near the Grampians. Its one of the most beautiful places to wake up in the world. They have a sheep paddock in front of the house with a huge old gumtree, and then its flat landscape until the Grampians rise straight up into the sky. Really beautiful. In fact, I have a photo of that tree standing in the paddock in front of their house - I'll show you what I mean. I just love waking up and walking out to this. It just seems so quintessentially Australian, to me.


Anyway, after a too-fast visit to the farm, back to Melbourne and a whirlwind of jewellery making for RAFW. I found out very late that I was to provide some pieces to accessorise part of the swimwear show happening on Wed (yes, tomorrow!) so had to really knuckle down and get busy. I couriered it all up there last night. Can't wait to see some shots - hopefully tomorrow! I'm following about a million twitterers who are tweeting from RAFW so I'm sure someone will post some pics. Hopefully some shots will show up on Fashionising too. I'll whip them up here as soon as any come to light. Its been a very busy & exciting week so far and looks set to continue!

Brisbane visits, RAFW pretties & other stuff

Snapshots of Russia

I have quite a fascination with Russia.
I think maybe I inherited it from my mother. She went there in the sixties with a friend. I can't imagine what it must have been like back then for two girls travelling around by themselves. One of them could read Russian, and the other could speak it - I can't remember which - but I'm guessing mum's friend was the one who could speak it as I think she had a Russian parent or something. Anyway, mum had Russian novels, we listened to Russian composers, and she had an authentic Matryoshka (Матрёшка) doll which I loved to play with.

I visited Russia in 2000 with my sister. We travelled on the Trans-Siberian railway from Moscow to Beijing via Irkutsk (Ирку́тск) (and Lake Baikal - о́зеро Байка́л) and through Mongolia. Its the only time I've really struggled with communication, as absolutely noone spoke English and nothing was written in English anywhere. I had to learn to read the cyrillic alphabet really fast! (I can't read it anymore, I really should brush up on it again, such a good skill to have - amazing how fast you can learn when you really have to!)

Anyway, I found this series of photography to be really captivating. A series of beautifully taken snapshots of life. Go have a look!
http://englishrussia.com/?p=2217

Snapshots of Russia

I'm excited about this!

Where the Wild Things Are was one of my all-time favourite books as a kid. When I heard they were making it into a film, at first I was horrified. I was certain that they'd stuff it up. But then I used to hear a little bit about it when they were making it here in Melbourne (a very convoluted connection from a puppeteer to an acupuncturist to me) and I've been so curious to check out the results - so as soon as I spied this preview on MamaMia's blog I jumped on and had a look at it. YAY I LOVE HOW IT LOOKS IN THE PREVIEW!!! I can't wait to see this.

Who wants to loan me their child/children so that I'm not the only adult in the cinema without a kid or two?

I'm excited about this!

Apocalypse Ahoy

Lwnski is a bloody great Melbourne artist whose particular brand of fantabulous creativity is being exhibited all over the world at the moment.
Right now he is showing in London, New York, and Melbourne!
SO local Melbournites who love - nay, need to check out piping hot artists with an eye for the joy, beauty and humour all around us should get thee post-haste to Apocalypse Ahoy.

Its happening this Sat, 18 April 2009, 2-4pm, and I hear from a semi-reputable source that there will also be cake.

Its the last ever show to be held at the delightful Brunswick Bound, 361 Sydney Road, Brunswick. I'm not sure what the story is, but the upstairs exhibition space is finished for now - so not only will you get a chance to check out Lwnski's latest greatness, and eat cake, but you'll also be a part of history in the making.

Those of you who don't yet know Lwnski might like to cruise on over to his site to check out all the goodness on offer there. I am the proud displayer of some vintage Lwnski myself, and let me tell you its the single coolest thing in my house.

Apocalypse Ahoy

Fundraiser for Make-A-Wish

The Make-A-Wish Foundation are a wonderful organisation dedicated to granting the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions - to, as their website says, "enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy". They really are a very special charity, and one I wholeheartedly support.
Some more info from their website tells the story:

"On June 23 1985, a life insurance salesman from Ballarat heard a speech that changed his life.

The speech, given by Jack Stanford, the then National President of Make-A-Wish America, was an impassioned tale of the magic and joy experienced by children whose dreams had come true. He also spoke of the warmth and laughter, as well as sadness and heartache, experienced by those involved in the process of granting wishes. The man from Ballarat, Les Roberts, returned to Australia inspired and determined to pursue the mission of granting wishes to sick children.

Later that year, Make-A-Wish Australia officially opened in Melbourne, and news of its good deeds spread rapidly. Soon, volunteer branches formed in cities and regional areas across the nation as people from all walks of life joined together to assist children in their own local communities.

The first wish

Our first wish was granted to 16-year-old Shawn Cleland of Footscray in Melbourne in 1985. An avid fan of AFL, Shawn’s wish was to meet the players of his beloved Footscray.

Shawn had never flown in a plane – so Make-A-Wish added an extra-special touch, flying Shawn to Sydney to see the Bulldogs play the Swans.

“Walking was my first choice of a wish”, said Shawn who was confined to a wheelchair due to his illness. His second was to play cricket for Australia or football for Footscray.

Shawn’s favourite player, Footscray legend Simon Beasley, paid him a visit before the trip, “Tell the team that if they get a thrashing they deserve a salary cut”, Shawn joked.

Make-A-Wish Australia today

Since that first wish, Make-A-Wish Australia has gone from strength to strength, now granting about 500 wishes every year. We now have 55 volunteer branches throughout the country and more than 1000 volunteers, supporting more than 40 staff members in fulfilling our mission of bringing magic and joy to children and young people with a life-threatening illness."

There's a fabulous fundraising event happening for them this Friday, the Black & White with a Splash of Red Ball: the Bayside Branch’s annual ball will be held at Red Scooter, 3 William Pl, East St Kilda on Friday, April 17 starting at 7.30pm.

There'll be a celebrity host, 3-course meal, entertainment, an auction of donated goods and the presentation of a very special Wish.

I've donated some Movie Star Bracelets to them for the charity auction. If you wish to attend, please contact Susanne on 0407 803 521 or via the link I've provided.

Fundraiser for Make-A-Wish

Huzzah! They have arrived!

Yes, the beads I have been waiting on have finally shown up. So today I immediately got to work putting the first necklaces together that I had planned for these beads.

And ta-dah! I present to you: the GEC Butterfly Necklace!

GEC Butterfly necklaces are your 'budget-friendly' option from the new collection. Its based on the lovely Dawn Butterfly necklace, but without the real pearls or vintage playing card. Still a genuine Joolz playing card butterfly necklace and it has the porcelain playing card extension tag!

Available in lipstick red or shiny black, as of this Thursday you can pick one up for the screamingly fabulous price of $59.99 from:
Blue Attic, 323 Lygon St East Brunswick, VIC 3056
Design-A-Space, 142 Chapel St Windsor, VIC 3181
and
Thread'n'Bone, Shop 5, 251-253 Wickham St, Fortitude Valley QLD 4006

Enjoy x

Huzzah! They have arrived!

Where are my new red and black beads???

I ordered a bunch of red and black beads a few weeks back. I'm creating an inexpensive mini-range for Blue Attic, one of my favourite stockists.
Tani, the lovely shop owner there, really wanted something from my new Third Time's The Charm range that she can offer around the $50 - $100 price point, and as I'd been thinking about something like this already, I promised her I'd create a red and a black version of the Butterfly Dawn necklace, but without the biggest pearls I could find, or collectable cards from Vegas casinos, so as to bring the price down to a point she can offer her clientele as the 'budget option'.
But the damn beads haven't arrived yet! They should have been here last week, surely. Can't believe how slow the post is.
And on a side note, wow that is quite a storm carrying on overhead right now. Cracking thunder and lovely rain. I did plan on riding my bike to the bank but think I might avoid the outdoors for now! And how great is my timing - I planted some garlic from my mum yesterday. Perfect planting weather! Mum's organic garlic is amazing - fresh, straight out of the ground, its incredible. She has two different types, a purple-skinned one, and one which has huge cloves, about 3 to a head. And soon I will have some of my own from the garden. YUM!

Where are my new red and black beads???