Lavender & Twill : February 2016

Tuesday, February 23, 2016

༺ Oh Tea ~ It’s an Erstwilder Pinup Picnic ༻

Okay everyone, you already know that I’m about to get super excited because picnic, but to add to all that ~ Erstwilder ! Pinup! Picnic! Brooches!! *✧･ﾟ:* \(◕▽◕✿)/ *:ﾟ･✧*

When I saw all the gorgeous designs Erstwilder were releasing in their new Pinup Picnic novelty brooch range, you must know that I had the most agonizing time trying to decide which ones I was going to pick! They are all stunning, but in the end I had to narrow it down to three.

The Rosy Lee Teapot was first on my list, as tea is always an absolute must for me. You probably won’t be surprised to learn that I have a rather large collection of teapots, including this darling little stacking bunny pot “Tea for Two”. And what better addition to my teapot collection than a pink pot and cup brooch with dainty red hearts? The tea lover in me says “Yes please!” (♡ヮ♡) ∠❤!

But where would you be at a picnic if you didn’t have cupcakes?? So the delightful Cherry on Top brooch is modelled by Miss Loulabelle, a vintage loving gal that I met last year. We finally got the opportunity to hang out and spend some time together last weekend while doing this shoot, and I was so happy to have that chance! I also couldn’t go past a pretty pinup miss ~ and the self-titled Pinup Picnic lady is the perfect complement to round out a delicious selection of Erstwilder sweet treats!

Miss Loulabelle and I had such a grand time with our little picnic for two ~ I swear, half the fun is in the getting ready for these sorts of events ~ don’t you just love a chance to do your girl thing with another friend? And while our conversation revolved mostly around petticoats, make up and the like, I do seem to recall a certain helpless lapse into giggles over some silly lines about Mr. Darcy coming up out of the pond in his white shirt, all while taking photos?

Thank you Colin Firth. *ahem*

When it all comes down to it, what I really loved about this fun time is chance to make new friends. I think merry get-togethers over a pot of tea, or a good old fashioned bottle of Coke, are really a lovely way to spend time with your friends, new or old, and certainly the best for a summer evening out! (⁎＾ᴗ＾⁎) ☆☆

Have you seen the Pinup Picnic range yet? Which is your favourite ~ if you can pick! ~ of the bunch? Or better yet ~ where would you hang out with your friends if you went on a picnic. Beach? Pool? At a park perhaps?

xox,

bonita

Disclosure | This post was created in collaboration with Erstwilder and the items I have reviewed were gifted to me, but all views and opinions expressed in this review are solely my own. ʚ♡ɞ(o•ᴗ•o❁)

Tuesday, February 16, 2016

༺ Mother & Daughter: Buttercup Dandelion ༻

True story time ~ don’t try to work with children when you are in a tight jam!

Also, we don’t have buttercups… Just a lush field of greenery, dotted with brilliant yellow dandelions and fluffy, itchy-as-all-heck, seeding grass to stand in.

Yesterday I had planned to get ready, do an outfit shoot, then go and do the grocery shopping. Everything was comfortably rolling along until I realised that I’d forgotten about my first Pilates class of the year ~ and that was happening in half an hour! I had exactly thirty minutes to get these photos done… Argh! (◉ Д ◉)

I swiped on my new favourite lipstick, grabbed the Mister, the camera and the children {somewhat in that order!} and headed across the road to take some pictures.

Then of course, there was my genius idea to get some photos of Belle and do a Mother & Daughter post ~ mostly because every day she is looking so much more adorably grown up, and less and less like my little baby girl. But working with children is tricky at the best of times, and we were on such a short time constraint that it made it a hard to get a good picture.

I think I might have to do an outtakes post sometime soon, and include some photos from this shoot because there were a few hilarious shots where Belle was just like “Nope! I’m out of here!” and all we have are blurry pictures of her back as she takes off. This was even after she very seriously informed me with her arms all crossed that she “had to get dressed’n {dressed and ready} for de day, n’ take some photos for my shog too Mummy” while I was getting ready. Haha! Whoops, I think she’s a bit young for blogging just yet! ◟(• ε •๑)◞ ₎₎ ₎₎

When came the time for taking those photos ~ she naturally had other ideas about what she should be doing ~ namely, playing with her big brother and running about the place! We managed to get a few snaps, then I dashed back to the house, scrambled into my gym gear and went to Pilates with a full face of makeup ~ which, to be honest, I don’t normally do unless I’ve already been out for the morning.

I prefer not to wear makeup when working out as I don’t want to clog up my skin when the product mixes with perspiration! Not a nice feeling at all…

However, I was pleasantly surprised that it all stayed perfectly in place, and my face didn’t get shiny at all, so when I got home I simply changed, then went to the shops as originally planned. *phew!* A bit of a topsy-turvy day, but these things happen.

It was a good thing that I had a cute, easy to wear outfit that I could throw on and off. My hair flower is a beautiful pastel rainbow rose confection {try saying that five times fast!} from Daisy Jean Floral Designs and I love it so much! When it came in the mail, I promptly clipped it to the towel turban I was wearing as my hair dried, because sometimes I’m far too excited to wait to wear my new pretties! ‘‘\(*≧▽≦)ﾉｼ･✧*:ﾟ

I love how well it goes with another wardrobe favourite ~ this top is the Rio blouse in Lilac Rose Gingham from Vivien of Holloway, and it’s pretty much the best thing ever.

I’ve been wearing it just about non-stop this summer, and it has proven to be an extremely versatile piece. The style of the blouse is easy to wear with circle skirts, or pants, and another favourite pairing is with my Vivien of Holloway capris.

Plus, a great bonus for nursing mothers ~ the ties at the neckline undo and allow really easy access for breastfeeding, which is another reason that I’ve been loving this top a lot. And how can you go past the darling lilac gingham with sweet pink roses scattered all over it? It’s really my favourite fabric ever ~ I wish I had yards of it to make myself a couple of dresses, a skirt or two and more blouses from it!

Do you have a favourite quick and easy outfit uniform? Mine is definitely a dress of some sort, or a skirt and top, but that’s only if the blouse is easy to wear. I don’t like wearing a blouse that is fussy, like if you have to keep tucking it in, or it doesn’t allow for a full range of movement easily. Or worse ~ the fabric isn’t comfortable! As a whole, I prefer knit tops to blouses, but not in the case of the Rio top which is easy to move in and comfortable as well as being cute! Also, a great peasant blouse is definitely for the win. ☆(*ゝω・*）

xox,

bonita

Disclosure | Daisy Jean Floral Designs and Lavender & Twill have partnered up this year to bring to you some amazing floral hair accessories! I bought the DJF hair flowers because I really like them, but I’m also excited to feature this wonderful Australian small business, and the pieces I buy are discounted as part of our agreement. (✿◠‿◠)

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Isabelle wears ~

Lollipop Hat | Mini LuLu by Avenel
Dainty Daisy Dress | Kmart
Sparkles Owl Little Girl’s Purse | Gifted
Dainty Daisy Sneakers | Kmart

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Wednesday, February 10, 2016

༺ Road to Neverland ༻

Sometimes you just want to be a unicorn princess. ❤ And sometimes I think I don’t want to grow up….

As a teen I always admired Japanese street fashions, and I think I’ve mentioned it here before, but I was really into the Gothic Lolita fashion {this was back in my monochrome days ~ so black was clearly the only acceptable colour}. It was something I’d never seen before, it was so different, so frilly ~ so… fun!

I never really had the chance to wear Goth Loli styles however. There wasn’t anywhere I could buy those kinds of clothes in Australia, and buying them from Japan was not only prohibitively expensive, but also super difficult ~ the wide range of online retailers you can find today weren’t around, plus translation and shipping issues where numerous.

I ended up buying myself my first Goth Loli outfit when I was in London, some years ago. I went shopping at the Camden Markets, and being a mecca for alternative style, I found a Lolita/Gothic Lolita shop and was so excited to see the fashions I’d wanted to wear for ages!

Did I ever wear the full fashion?

No, not really.

I did wear my outfit to a fancy dress party once, dressing as a magician’s assistant. I never dared to wear a full Gothic Lolita look. Yet, to this day, I still love the Lolita style ~ though I am far more drawn to Lolita and Classic Lolita fashions than the Gothic now. I might have moved on from my love for all-black-everything, but certainly not my love for alternative fashions!

Every now and then, despite being a Vintage Girl through and through, I still try out my favourite doll inspired styles. Sweet and girly are definitely two key words to my personal style ~ but I wonder if I’ll have to leave them behind as I grow older?

I know that there’s a lot of rhetoric about not letting age define us as women, being able to wear whatever you want ~ and I think that’s great! I also notice that there’s still a certain, mmm, age appropriateness going on?

Even vintage girls, outside of fashion trends and influences, seem to move away from the more ‘youthful’, sweet sixteen vintage looks as they go through life, and adopt the more ‘mature’, elegant vintage styles. I’m not saying that this has to be the way, or that it’s a bad thing. Those that do this, absolutely wear their chosen fashions with aplomb, and I think they look smashing!

I love that classic vintage fashion doesn’t rely on a woman’s age, or her looks, to create fabulous style ~ but rather the fact that she is a woman. Full stop. I feel that the impact of vintage fashion springs from our inherent femininity. And every woman has that ~ it’s just up to her how she wants to express it.

Even so, it feels like there is a necessity to not be “mutton dressed as lamb” ~ can you look silly wearing girlish style when you are indeed, a girl no longer?

Are you a vintage girl, or a vintage lady?

I wonder about these things, and what I’ll do when my children are all grown up. Whether I’ll still wish to dress like a unicorn princess, or want to be a more grown up version of a doll. Maybe I’ll start wearing historical costumes instead of sweet girly dresses! (❀◕ ‿ ◕❀)

I don’t feel a particularly pressing need to find an answer to these questions, but I do wonder. Maybe those changes will happen naturally, and I’ll slowly gravitate towards more classic looks. Or maybe I just don’t want to grow up, and one way for my feet to be forever on the road to Neverland will be through my wardrobe…

xox,

bonita

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Tuesday, February 2, 2016

༺ Pining for You ༻

It’s been raining for almost all the month of January, but thankfully the sun came out for one glorious day ~ so I popped on a hat and some heels and went out with the family to enjoy it!

The 1940’s inspired look I created is all based around this gorgeous, summery peach blouse I bought right after Lottie was born ~ which is almost over a year ago… Jeepers! That’s flown by! (ô д ô)’

It’s been laungishing in my closet, waiting for the right moment to come along {you know, as items of clothing obviously do…} ~ and finally the moment to shine was here. It’s actually one of those clever retro 80s-does-40s pieces that are so useful for adding to your vintage wardrobe at a lower price point.

And sorry, I know that techincally anything over 20 years old is vintage, and anything over 100 is antique, but despite the years rolling by, anything from the 80s upwards has simply got to be retro to me. I can’t fathom clothes from when I was a child being considered vintage!

But that’s by the by really ~ my hat is one of those cute straw toppers that has also been waiting for the perfect outfit opportunity to come along, and really, I have no idea what era it’s from. The brim is not actually round, it’s teardrop, which is really different, though sutble ~ and it has a little lip at the front to raise the brim off the top of your head. I thought that was really cute! (⁎＾ᴗ＾⁎)∠☆

Right at the other end of the spectrum I’m also wearing a fresh-off-the-press Forever New sheer lined skirt that I got this summer. So there you go. Not a genuine 1940’s piece to be seen ~ {except that mysterious hat maybe??}

The best thing for me was that, though the outfit wasn’t from the 40s, my hair was! I somehow managed to achieve the most authentic styled 1940s updo I’ve ever tried. One part thanks to the Lush hair products I’ve been trying out ~ they have done wonders in restoring my curls! And two parts due to these awsome hair pins I’ve just ‘discovered’. You know those crazy bobby pins that are really thin and are wide open at the mouth?

Yeah, I had no idea how they could be so useful ~ I thought they’d just fall out! But it turns out that they do work ~ and they work really well! (~￣▽￣)~… Haha, who’d have thunk? I found these are great for holding the shape of your style without squishing the volume. I literally had only five normal style bobby pins in my hair that day {whhaat? That’s crazy for me ~ usually it’s no less than twenty!} and a handful of the open mouthed hair pins. They worked beautifully for catching stray strands that didn’t want to stay rolled up, and for taming random bumps. Oh! And for pinning my hat on! ….Nice. Multi-use hair pins.

So is it just me that didn’t know these hair pins actually work, or have they been a long time secret of all vintage hair styling? I feel like I’ve been missing out all these years!!

xox,

bonita

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Pages

Tuesday, February 23, 2016

༺ Oh Tea ~ It’s an Erstwilder Pinup Picnic ༻

Tuesday, February 16, 2016

༺ Mother & Daughter: Buttercup Dandelion ༻

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

༺ Road to Neverland ༻

Tuesday, February 2, 2016

༺ Pining for You ༻