It's almost time!

Here we go! It's only 3days till Christmas and we're leaving for George in the morning. There's wrapping paper all over the house, half packed boxes and a half packed suitcase. What a crazy year this has been, everything's going wrong and at the same time, everthing's going right. As this is my last post for the year 2012, I wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a wonderful new year. Be safe over the holidays and on the roads and have an awesome funfilled time!

-I'm off, see you in 2013! New year, new beginnings-

xxx

Outfit Love: Colour!

The first time I walked into Matchbox, I was wearing this dress and Irma told me later that she'd thought I was a hippy:-)) Well I'm just a creative being with an intense love for textiles, colour and design. Oh and don't forget my love for everything vintage, oh and thrifting and nature and animals and... okay, so I might be kind of a bohemian. I wish I could dress like a true Gypsy, though. I'm in love with the use of textures, the hair and the sense of being free to roam where ever you wanted, aaaahhhhhh.... doesn't that just sound awesome?! Oh-right, I was actually busy doing an outfit post.

• The plum cardigan, I got from Meltz a while back. I just love the intensity of the colour and was quite surprised to find it complements a variety of items in my closet. 
• The tye-dyed dress I found in a boutique shop back in Pretoria it was called Blue Bells. I don't know if this shoppy is still there, it was a branch of the mother-shop, Signorina's. What a lovely shop, I used to spend hours in there. They had the most beautiful and unique handmade silver jewellery, wow!
• My cutesie bow-pumps are from Mr. Price(L.O.V.E.)
• The Mystic Bell around my neck, was bought at the annual gem-market in the Brooklyn Mall(also in Pretoria)

  -I do apologize for my rambling this morning, it must be the excitement talking. You see, we're moving into our new place in 11days and I just cannot wait anymore-

xxx

Getting into the Christmas spirit...

It's that time of the year! I always pick a theme for Christmas, colours, vintage, etc. So it helps to have a good source of visual inspiration and Pinterest is great for this purpose! This year I thought to revert back to the vintage yet modern "brown paper packages" tied-up with red string. Don't you just love giving presents, I can't wait to see the reactions when people open their gifts! We always go with handmade or at least personalized gifts. I would usually make the gifts and Dave would make the cards(he's awesome like that). Here's a section screen shot of my pin board, "...making Christmas..."  

-hope you're enjoying the festive season so far-

-time's running out way to fast-

xxx

Lucky Friday Finds #4

There is nothing quite like a good day out thrifting! It takes your mind to the happiest place and you forget all your troubles and cares... I feel I should warn the beginner thrifters, though, it can became somewhat addictive. Well I was out doing my rounds and thought I'd pop in to say "hi" to my sweet friend, Irma, over at The Matchbox. Yes I stayed for about two hours and no I did not leave empty-handed. I rummaged around Irma's little shop while we had tea and chatted about two hours away... just look what I found!

 -Aren't these just lovely? Can you believe I found this pretty owl, man I was lucky!

Now, I'm in two minds about these little frames. Dunno whether I should spray them a different colour or keep them in their original state. Any advice?-

Have a happy Friday

xxx

Welcome my Toady friend

For the past year and a half we've been hearing the strangest screeching noises outside of our lounge window. Thinking it might be the wind causing a tree branch to scratch against the window and then realizing that there is no wind and non of the plants in our front garden are anywhere near the windows... Having heard my grandmother's toad croak one night when he was hiding in her flower pot, I thought that it could just be. And I was right, our Toady friend had made an appearance once last year and then we never saw him again. So for a few nights I've been hearing those same screeching noises every night, then forgot about it. Then when David took Vicky out for her last walkies, I just heard him shouting for me to bring a flashlight. All I could get in the midst of panic was my cellphone... and there it was! On his way up the stairs for a visit, I suppose.

 -This lovely amphibian is known as the Raucous Toad-

-thanks for the visit, dear friend, come again soon-

xxx

Something oh so sweet...

Tried this really quick and easy recipe from my Pinterest board Yum-Yums. It's called cake batter fudge and it is delish! It was so good it was almost gone before I could take this photo below...

-If you would like to try it out for yourself, go to Baked from a box for the recipe and instructions. It's super easy and super yummy! Enjoy-

Ps.  Don't eat it all at once, now....

xxx

Happy Monday Makings #3

Okay.... I'm trying to get back into the swing of things. Can you believe we're standing at the end of 2012?! With only 15 days 'till Christmas, 19 days 'till we move to our new home and 21 days 'till 2013! Not to mention all the December birthdays in between... So on this Monday, the 10th of December, a cold and windy overcast day, I decided to share with you my new Pink Roses. These are painstakingly made by cutting hundreds of little pieces of fabric, melting each and every little piece and then assembling them into these lovelies. They are then sewn together by hand with beaded details to make them oh so pretty. Most of the fabric I use is sourced from local thrift- and charity stores, some of my fabric is donated by my lovely readers and now and then my fashion designer aunt would send me her off-cuts. I see potential in everything, so this heap of off-cuts just became a lovely garden of pink roses.

-amazing how this bunch of pink can brighten up one's day-

xxx

In loving memory of our dear grandfather...

It has taken me a while to even think of writing this post. I don't really know what to say. This year has taken it's toll on many of us. Through the tears and the missing him, I'm just so thankful that his suffering is over. My dear grand-dad past away on the 10th of November after three weeks of severe pain. A few months back he had surgery to remove a melanoma from his back, the surgeon said that he got all the cancer and this was a big relief to all of us. Not long after that surgery, the cancer was back and had spread too far too quickly. 

We all miss him so much...

 -I will never forget how (even on his deathbed ) he sang old songs and told little jokes, winking at me when he got my grandmother all worked up. He liked pulling her leg just to see how she would react-

-I think of him almost every day, it's hard to accept the fact that he is gone-

xxx

Outfit Love: Spring at Last

We've had such funny weather here lately, it's been rainy and cold all through September and October. It was so nice to be able to wear my summer outfit although there was still a chill in the air. I love my capped-toe shoesies from Mr.P, my thrifted kid-mohair wrap cardigan and my Mr. Price Project dress.

-there's nothing quite like blooming flowers, fresh summer air and a pretty frock-

xxx

OddOneOut at the Market

Hi friends, what a strange and hectic year this has been... in the midst of all the chaos I'd been preparing for this private market, Saturday past. What a lovely bunch of people and some interesting beautiful ones too:-)

 -something old, something new-

-pretty new lovelies-

xxx

Outfit Love: Archive #3

This has to be a favourite outfit! Dressed completely by Mr.Price, the 100% pure cotton blouse I've had for about 6years now and it is still perfect. I'm in love with Viscose at the moment and "was out of my mind" thrilled when I came across this lovely vintage polka-dot flair skirt, last year. It came with this cute little faux leather belt (you can see it sticking out from under my blouse, there). My denim heels are also Mr.Price, I just removed the floral bows they had on, as it restricted my wardrobe quite a bit. I love the way way this outfit makes me feel... 

- I'm walking on sunshine -

xxx

Happy Monday Makings #2

Happy Monday friends! What a crazy-crazy year this has been...and even crazier past week! Through all the madness and having my posts heaping up like, I don't know what... I just had to share this quick post with you guys. I made this with the scraps I had left over from making my first ever crochet jacket (I will post this as soon as I've worked in all the ends:)) I hate wasting anything! I make full use of everything I work with... and I almost never throw anything away. I've been told that I'm a hoarder, but then you can't be an artist and not collect things... Just imagine this pretty necklace would've been in the bin had I not been a collector of "trash".   

-this was so easy to make-
-it took a bit long, though, the french knitting part-

-the pictures are pretty self explanatory, don't you think?-

-love my French knitting doll, an old school friend gave her to me-

-Thank you Katinka, I'm taking good care of her-

  -hope you like it and that you had a nice Monday-

xxx

Rainy Monday

We've been having so much rain, it feels like we rewound the clock back to when it was winter. As much as I love the rain, I have to admit that I'm starting to long for warmer sunnier days... It's like I've said in previous posts, I would really like to be able to wear my summer dresses now. Any-hoo, This morning I woke up with the sound of rain drops against the window. Francolin's and Guinea fowl were squawking far in the distance and a choir of clicking stream frogs filled the noisy air.

-the rain through our lounge window & our pretty little window sill-

xxx

Hermanus Whale Festival

Every year busloads of tourists flock to our little town for the Whale Festival. This Festival marks the peak of the Whale season and if you're lucky you can see the whales playing in the water from the shore. This year we have had quite a lot more whales than last year. They are also not shy, we've seen the most awesome displays of whales breaching, so close it feels unreal! We have a Whale Crier who blows his bamboo horn when he sees the whales, this notifies the tourists who the swarm the view points, taking pictures and even applauding when they see the whales breaching. For amazing aerial photo's of our whales, click here.

 -fun for the kids at the Festival was moved to Gearings Point this year-

 -Old Harbour: this is where you go for kayaking and other water activities

-Are those people hanging about in the freezing Cape waters?

-It can't be?!: Our Family friends, all the way from Gauteng! We didn't see them, they didn't see us and when I went through our photo's after meeting up with them, I was astonished! We walked right past them, Dave took a random photo and then we went to the Checkers tent-  

 

-What a beautiful display of local Fashion designers' latest ranges and local food prepared by two of our well loved celebrities, David Flock and Sharleen Surtie-Richards.

Outfit Love: Thrifting all the way

Hermanus has decided that Spring is canceled this year... we had lovely warm, sunny days in August and went October hit, winter was back. It's been two weeks of very cold, windy and rainy day! Most all of our little town's shoppies are fully stocked with summer clothes and swimwear. Now it's freezing, my winter wardrobe is worn and I can't find a decent jersey anywhere! In defeat, I decided to go thrifting to cheer myself up and it worked! I came home with a lovely chunky Woolworths jersey which I found at the Animal welfare shop for only R25. My Ivory earrings were a gift from my friend, Irma. I made this statement necklace using wooden beads which I collected from various places. And for the grand finale, my Sissy Boy jeans! These are vintage high-waisted skinny jeans. I found them in a bag of clothes a friend of my mom gave me to do what I can with. Anything I can't wear, cut up or make something pretty with, goes to local charity shops. 

  

-love-

-i do so hope the weather turns warmer soon, i sure could use a tan-
xxx

It's my Party!

Hiya Friends! I know this seems a bit late (as my birthday was last Thursday) but I have my reasons:)

So if you would like to join me for the most delicious croissants ever... meet me (and Dave) at the Belgian Bakery in Hermanus on Saturday at 11:00. If you would be so kind as to RSVP by Thursday so I know how many party favours to make<3 p="p">

Hope to see you then, have an awesome week!

xxx

a floor full of vintage beauties

I had a bit of a mad, crazy and crappy week.... so please forgive my absence. As it's my birthday tomorrow, I'm starting to feel a bit better:) I just stumbled upon this pic I took of my small collection of vintage, retro goodies and felt like sharing something quite random with you guys...

  -i love digging these awesome finds out of the most unlikely places-

xxx

So, I tried my hand at knitting...

Okay, so I didn't only start knitting now... my first try was when I was 7. We had to knit squares and sew them into a stuffed animal. I made it halfway through the first square(which was riddled with big gaps) and then I handed it over to my mom who basically did the whole project by herself. I tried and failed a few years later and then just left it.

Around 15 years old, I fell in love with crochet with the combined help of my mom, dad and my granny. When I started my Textile Design course at the T.U.T. in Pretoria, one of my projects involved me having to knit. So for the first time in years I had to pick up those dreaded knitting needles. I didn't really know how to cast on stitches and my mom wasn't home at the time so I took a chance and asked my dad. His mom used to give him and his brothers crochet work to do when they were home sick as children. So, I though he might know something about knitting too. Do you know, I was right, he showed me how to cast on and off I went from there. 

Knowing almost nothing about knitting, I thought the way that I knit was the only way. Later I found that I was knitting something called the garter stitch. Daves mom showed me some fancy stitches earlier this year, but only the pearl stitch stuck. Then while visiting my gran the other day I took out my pearl knit test piece and we got to talking about all things knitting and she took out this awesome vintage knitting book. She said that I could borrow it to try out some of the stitches and patterns. Woah! Luckily this book is so amazing that it explains everything! So now here is my first ever try at knitting from a pattern:)

 -man! i was so impressed with myself! love it-

 -how do you like my sample scarf so far? it's coming on pretty good, if i don't say so my self-

xxx

 

Outfit Love: Nude and Neon

Gotta love the new colour and fashion trends! It's not every day I walk into a shop and want to buy one of everything. I'm more into interesting clothes, items that are different and fun and colourful. You know, the type of clothes that turns your mood into rays of sunshine when you just think of wearing it:) 

Any-hooo... this outfit makes me feel calm and comfortable. With my JFK wrap top from a charity shop. It makes me feel good having helped a charity and playing my part in reducing consumerism. My nude Chinos and my toe-capped pumps both from Mr.Price are perfect for a day in town, casual and pretty at the same time:)  

-we've been having some cold fronts, which makes it so hard when you want to start wearing those summer frocks and it's still raining outside-

xxx

Outfit Love: Floral Printed Jeggings

Although the weather has started turning, it still gets pretty chilly when the wind picks up. And now I see there's a cold front on it's way:(  I was so hoping to pack my winter stuff away.  Anyway, I walked past our local Pick'n'Pay Clothing store and there they were, calling to me! These Floral Printed Jeggings are both beautiful and comfortable. It's amazing how a "print" can bring life to an otherwise boring outfit! I had to stop myself from wearing them everyday, hehehe:)

-found this red wrap cardi at a thrift store in town, it Angora Rabbit hair! Oh-so soft and very warm, what a lucky find-

xxx

Happy Monday Makings, YAY!

It wasn't such a Happy Monday, as I had a terrible headache for most of it. What made  my day was the makings of this Monday:) I've been seeing a lot of statement necklaces around and have a little baggy of turquoise acrylic drop beads that I've had since forever and never quite knew what to make with them. They are such a pretty colour and I could not get it over my heart to get rid of them. So inspired by the latest jewellery trends, here is my Happy Monday Makings!

 

-this lovely piece didn't even take an hour to make, I can't wait to wear it-

xxx

 

Something yummy for my tummy

The thing I love most about Pinterest is that I can build up an archive of yummy recipies. Then anytime I feel like making something delish, I just go to my YUM-YUMS board, click on the link and get the recipe. It's so much better then trying to find a recipe that I saw in one of my magazines but can't remember which one, what page, and all the frustration that goes with that. So I felt like making Cinnamon Rolls and this is how they turned out, yay!

-recipe from America's test kitchen Feed , via Pinterest-

So good! 

xxx

Another prezzy for Leia...

Dear little Leia,

This lovely cushion was handmade just for you for your 2nd birthday. I used all the colours of the owl and bunting flags I made you, they should all look quite pretty together now. These handmade gifts are all little additions to your room, so that even though we can't see you that often you can know that we love you and think of you always.

Your aunt Chane' and uncle David<3 p="p">

-crochet pattern from Ravelry, by Penny at Create, found via Pinterest-

xoxo

Lovely Spring Weekend

...Love my Spring day hair. Although it was a cold and rainy Spring day, I enjoyed just chilling at home. I started a new knitting project and I spent some time musing on Pinterest and in the evening we had a "braai" with my parents and I made "smashed potatoes" found the recipe via my Pinterest. It was delish! 

-love my hanky curtains too-

On Sunday, Dave decided that he wanted to go for a drive. So we packed lunch and drink and off we went to the Southern most point of Africa. It was the most beautiful day and the sea reminded me of our time in Mauritius. Isn't the L'Agulhas lighthouse just too cute?

 -it was damn cold! the wind blew right through all three layers of clothing I had on--

 -by the sea...ooh-ho, by the wonderful sea--

I'm back! Yes I am!

Hiya friends! Please pardon me for going MIA for a while, I've had quite a crazy month! So much has happened, so many things have changed, gone, started, broken, fixed....you name it! But the important thing is, I'm back! It's almost Spring here in South Africa and I'll be doing a lot of sorting and clearing out of stuff. You know what that means, right? Yip, there's a giveaway on the way! So look out for my Spring Cleaning Giveaway! I've got so much I want to share with you guys, I don't even know where to start...

-image designed with elements from shabby blogs-

xxx

Watercolour Drippings

Watercolour Drippings by my-essence featuring leather handbags

Home baked Olive bread

This is the easiest recipe ever! I popped into our local supermarket and bought bread dough. Rolled the dough out as thin as I could and sprinkled the surface of the dough with roughly chopped Olives. I then closed the dough up randomly, cut it into even pieces with a smooth sharp knife and baked it in the oven for 35 minutes at 200 Degrees Celsius. Take them out as soon as they start browning slightly. These are so delicious, we had them Hummus and sometimes just plain cause they're just so good! This particular night we took the biggest two rolls and made chicken burgers<3

-We felt like having a "braai" (it's like barbecue) so we made marinated chicken fillets, stuffed mushrooms and a potato dish all over the open fire. It's the best!-

xxx

Outfit Love: faux fur and printed trousers

Loving these colours at the moment! Creams and ochers, black and gold... you get the idea. So a few years ago, my aunt, Leiro, gave me a bag full of this "fancy-wool". I struggled for months to try to knit something from it. It's a very difficult fiber to work with, all the hairs make it impossible to see what you are doing. So I would get half way and then realize that I had dropped a stitch or two. Needless to say I had to start over a bunch of times. When I eventually finished it, it was a very shapeless infinity scarf. While visiting with Dave's family, his mom took out this beautiful shawl that she had knitted with similar wool, only she bought hers mixed with a few different fibers intertwined into the same ball of wool. I thought to myself, "wow, what an idea!" so when we got home, I dug out that scarf, pulled it apart and knit a plain brown wool together with the furry one. Now I've got a faux fur scarf, it's so warm and furry:)

• Vintage Trench Coat - a gift from Dave's mom from way back
• Faux Fur Scarf - hand knit by me:)
• Knit Pullover- Thrifted
• Printed Trousers - Mr. Price, can't believe I found this in my size and their Viscose
• Lace Brogues - from Edgars

 -I love how soft, airy and comfy these trousers are-

xxx 

Lucky Friday Find #3

Here's what I found at Matchbox... I know, I just can't keep myself away from that little shop. I've been looking for the right tea strainer for quite some time now. So when I stepped into Matchbox to visit my friendy, this awesome retro tea strainer was just waiting to come home with me. It's perfect. You make your tea with the leaves in your pot, simply put the stainer over your cup, and the strainer catches all the leaves. My other two strainers are the type which you put the leaves inside and then put the whole thing inside your pot. The one only makes one cup and the bigger one doesn't fit into my teapots at all. I've got lots of different tealeaves, I can't wait to start brewing some real tea! These cute little frames are made of plastic with old withered printed silk flower portraits inside. They have "slide-open" backs which makes it very easy to replace the fabric. I thought of doing some embroidered art for our bedroom to put in them. I'm not yet sure whether to spray paint them or not. What do you guys think? 

 Ah, these little vintage deer were hidden away, lucky for me, I saw them just before I left Matchbox. I snatched them up and brought them home with me, aren't they pretty? 

Enjoy Your Weekend<3

xxx

Outfit Love: warm vintage browns

So...I had this bag full of off-cuts my Gran gave me a few years back and the other day I decided to go through it. Guess what I found? Rolled in a bundle and tied up was the hem of one of my Gran's vintage dresses which she probably shortened and couldn't get herself to throw the excess fabric away. So I decided to make myself a bodycon skirt.

• Thrifted Crochet Scarf - a lovely warm vintage brown scarf
• Fabric Brooch - an OddOneOut Vintage Range from R40 each
• Carved Shell Necklace - Found this beauty in Matchbox, it was only R10, I had to replace the chain, but now it's good as new.
• Knit Pullover - from Mr.Price, they have them in a variety of colours, but this one goes with almost everything<3
• Bodycon Skirt - Here it is, my one hour skirt. Yes, it was that quick and easy to make. I will doing a d.i.y. on a similar one soon.
• Leggings - also from Mr. P, love them!  

   -This gorgeous bag, my Gran made me when I was still studying, she saw me struggling with my heavy library books when I visited one day and the next time I saw here she gave this bag to me. Now isn't this necklace just something else?-

xxx

Recipe: Berry Booster Smoothy

This past month or so has been physically and emotionally draining. With having the flu for more than two weeks, my granddad being in the hospital, the geyser breaking this weekend, the market I was supposed to exhibit at being canceled... I don't think there is enough space on my blog for everything that's going on in my life at this moment. I basically have to force a blog post out even though I would much rather just get back into bed. The only thing that seems to make me feel just alittle bit better is food. Making food, eating food and even just pinning food on Pinterest. I know, it's just sad, but atleast something good is coming from this bad time in my life. I call it the Berry Booster, it is so healthy and so yummy. It can even be used as a meal replacement is so filling.

You will need:

• 6 strawberries
• half a cup of fresh blueberries
• 1 large banana
• 1 cup of low-fat Greek style yogurt 
• 1cup of 2%low-fat milk
• mint leaves to garnish

All of the above ingredients makes one large serving. Simply put everything in a blender, blend until smooth and pour into a pretty tall glass. Garnish with mint leaves as shown above. I poured our smoothies into my favourite Art Nouveau "the kiss" glasses which Dave and I had bought at Clicks when we just started going out. I never really had the opportunity to use them until now. 

Enjoy, hope yours comes out as good as mine did. When I had finish my massive glass-full I had to fetch a spoon to get it all out, every last drop. Yum!

xxx