Them Harlem times...

So right now I am absolutely buzzed at the news that our flights to New York are finalised and we are ACTUALLY heading back to NYC on June 16th for FFFW 2013!!! Along with the excitement of Full Figured Fashion Week I am soooooooo excited to see our beautiful NY friends again! The excitement of it all has got me going through my photos from last years trip and making me realise how much I have not blogged about the most amazing time we had over there. (It seriously was THE MOST AMAZING time!!!) Cue the need to do a NY post right now :)

This was a fabulous day spent in Harlem with our gorgeous friend Deja from I'm Just Daisy!  Beginning with shopping, then some delicious soul food at Amy Ruth's (we were dying to try chicken and waffles!) and a lot of catching up since we hadn't seen each other since our last trip the year before. Deja then had to run off for class so naturally we tagged along to see her beautiful college. It totes put my baby college to shame, lol. We met her beautiful friend Ash and had a quick tour around the joint until we had to part! SUCH a short but good time catching up...

with Ruth & Deja

Amy Ruth's Chicken & Waffles- soooooo good.

with Deja

with sister Mele & Ruth

What I wore:

• Sheer, cropped, tribal top- Kmart $8
• Black, oversized, cotton tee- Kmart $5
• Pink tube skirt- Kmart $10
• low cut Converse All-Stars $30
• Glasses- some souvenere sotre in Manhattan $5 (LOVED them & was so sad when they broke :'( lol.)
• Earrings, thrifted $2

My wardrobe choices were always dictated by the heat on our stay in NY. It was hawwwwt every day bro! This outfit kept me cool, comfy & colourful whilst walking around all day!

Mele with Ash & Deja

NYC, I cannot wait to see you again...

Big Love xx

Aussie Curves: Second hand...

HI LOVELY ONES!! *Waves with utmost enthusiasm* I feel like its been forever since I've done an Aussie Curves post and I've been missing it dearly! This week's challenge is second hand...HOLLA! lol. 90% of my wardrobe is now made up of thrifted, DIY and borrowed clothes that I LOVE! I guess my wardrobe transitioned this way over the last 4 years from: being a poor uni student, losing some weight, getting more creative with outfit choices and showing off my love for creativity in clothing. I find true individuality in pieces I thrift or as us Aussies call it...opshopping. No one else will be wearing what you have on, it's the best and cheapest insurance policy because we all know how much you would die inside a little if you showed up to an event wearing the same thing as someone else there! So there you have it, my little spiel on why I love second hand goodness!

These pics are totally throwback material from my graduation banquet in 2011! I have absolutely no way of pulling off a shoot this week because I somehow managed to sprain my knee and hinder my walking/standing ability as of late lol. so this event came to mind because the dress I wore this night has been one of my most fave finds to date! Anyway I'll let the pics roll and explain a little later...

What I wore: Floral sheer dress, Savlo's $1/ tan skinny belt, sister's closet/ Tan heels, $30, Target like 6 seasons ago/ Flower ring, Diva $5, 4 seasons back.

Raneece, Emma & Sister Mele x

With Nigel x

My beauties Charmaine & Lossy x

We sourced the jars from local thrift stores, found pebbles at a local beach and collected sticks and scrap material to make the table settings. The only thing we did buy was the goldfish lol.

We spent many hours in our dorm lounge room that we dubbed LoF (Lounge of Fun) cutting, sewing and painting these banners for the night!

With Tys, Jennifer & Rhi <3 

Bust that move! lol.

Clown time with the sister.

With Tegan, Jenny & Rhi...forever love these ladies x

My main x

I am friends with some of the most talented women I know. Friends Rhi & Emma designed and illustrated these personalised award for the night with water colour pencils!

The best closeup OOTN shot I could find. LOVE this dress! My sister found this at our local Salvo's on the "Fancy Dress" rack for ONE DOLLAR! I think it was someone's paint smock or something because there are random paint marks on it that are totally unnoticeable! On the rack it seriously looked like a "dodgy-old-woman-who-wears-no-bra-sack" if you know what I mean lol. but on was so lovely! 

So basically my friends Rhi & Tegan put their hands up for the Grad committee on the condition that myself and my main Jenny helped out...HELLS YES we thought...we love having creative control! Now the only problem was we had zero budget to work with from our Uni. Cool yeah, no. So after meetings with the Student Services Coordinator we agreed that any money we raised he would match it so on we went with numerous fundraising events to get a bit of dosh. It was a vision of ours to share the brilliance of thrifting and our love for second hand things through decorating the event with op-shopped and hand made things and this was the result! It was the best fun and we got loads of compliments and it was so nice to know we did it all at a fraction of the cost!

Its funny...I used to LOATHE second hand clothes because my parents managed a St Vincent DePaul's  so my whole childhood I was dressed in thrifted clothes. The horror of being in year 7 when every surf brand is the jam and all you want is a bloody "Billabong" jumper but all you have are the "cool" Supre jumpers with  Australian animals on them. KML...fast forward 10 years and here I am, an avid op-shopper with basically a whole wardrobe made up of second hand pieces. Life :)

Long story short...YAY for second hand anything! What do you think?

Big Love xx

IT'S A WEDDING!!!

Well this story begins way before the wedding at a place I called home for 3 years...College. I spent the duration of my tertiary education living in dorms and experiencing life and study on a level I had never experienced before. My first year was full of well...firsts. Living with strangers, making new friends as an "adult", studying at university level, eating in a cafeteria and discovering who the hell I was in this world. By my second year those strangers had somehow become sisters, I had buckled down and was working my butt off to get good grades and I was learning key lessons in life that were leading me in a direction of self discovery I had never anticipated. By my third year the people who I new not a single fact about not too long ago were my every day companions and to my surprise, upon reflection, became people that felt as close as family. Somehow the word "friends" didn't seem to suffice when describing who these people were in my life.

That was just a tiny bit of information to try and put into context how much fun, love and memories are made and shared when I get to reunite with my college family  at an event like this wedding. I graduated in December 2012 with not only a Bachelor in Education but a whole new kooky, passionate, talented, hilarious, beautifully diverse family. For me this was wedding was not only a beautiful celebration of love and union but a REunion of  friends and family. So much fun in just two days. Here's how it went down...

9 hour road trip to Coonamble, NSW with sis Jenny. Left my house at 1:30am picked up this girl from her brother's 21st at 3am then drove like a mutha. Here are a few snaps from along the way looking nice and skanky,  haha!

Lucky we scrub up alright.

LoF sister Steph walking down the aisle. Sooooooo beautiful & blissfully happy!

Groomsmen in grey.

What I wore: Jacket, $3 Thrifted Salvos/Sequin tube top, $1 thrifted, MS Opshop/Skirt, $20 Forever 21 last season/ Wgede heels $30 Taregt this season/ Handmade necklace and clip-on earrings thrifted, $5.

Level 4 dorm sisturrrs

The dance floor was our beeeeetch, lol. :)

with my main Jennifer :)

We found the bride!

We were so pleased...lol.

I wouldn't normally post so many photos for one event but I just couldn't turn any away! lol. This day/night was SO MUCH fun!! A wedding on Steph and Josh's farm/property from the afternoon and into the night ft bon fires, fairy lights, a folk band that made the whole thing feel like I was in the Shire with all the Hobbits (blame my love for The Lord of the Rings LOL.) and  making memories with some of my most treasured people in the world!

Steph and Josh, I wish you all the happiness and prosperity one can wish another in the life you are building together. God's blessings and love coming your way. THANKS FOR THE INVITE, hahaha.

Big Love x