cheap & chic

all dressed up for a night out with the girls recently. i had spent literally 10 mins in a salvos that afternoon and made off with this pink 90's polyester fitted dress. there is something deeply satisfying to me about dressing up in something that cost $5 that afternoon (it looked really clean!)

woooah pink polyester, i'm sure i had this exact dress way back!

here are my new italian leather boots freshly arrived via ebay $30 such a bargin!

mask

love this photo because of the relationship between the scuba mask and the funny characters on baxi's jumper (a recent thrift score)

baxi loves anything to do with the underwater world especially scuba divers so he was very pleased with this breathing tube we made

nest

baxter loves climbing and finding a perch up high. he made himself at home in the 'toy tower' recently

must be because he is part pussycat

freefall

my life is feeling chaotic at the moment. the sleep deprivation is starting to really bite and mess with my head. i'm loosing track of important things and getting snowed under by the relentless demands of the kids and niggly renovation issues. getting dinner on the table each night is hard. getting through each day feels like climbing a big mountain.

during a recent housebound hot day i set up activity that had just the right levels of danger and excitement to keep the boys entertained for ages

jumping off their wardrobe onto mattresses, blankets & pillows below

i sat back with flint watching, taking a rare moment to relax, letting their joy wash over me and take me away from the grind of everyday living. 'to infinity and beyond"

turtle

in a rare gesture of brotherly love, winter made baxter a turtle this morning to cheer him up.

he was thoughtfully appealing to baxi's love of sea creatures. it was super cute

challenge

awhile back i mentioned i was the recipient of a special 90's jumpsuit, thanks to fellow JS addict Skye. the fact that she felt unable to love it enough to keep it was a worrying sign and i found i was at once excited and terrified by it. the shapeless shiny polyester screamed 'run away' at me, yet i was drawn to the special fancy piping on the front in an irresistible way.

earlier i had a rare childfree moment and decided that today was the day to don the beast and try to tame it. the lovehart locket, bouff hair and 90's sandals helped but i felt something was missing... i needed chunkier heels, wedgy thick clompy numbers

tonight i had another quick attempt and added a classic big bow (courtesy of piece of re-cycle bag), and converted a pair of heels into some chunky wedges via some of richies socks. this is fashion DIY at its finest people and a sure sign of someone who doesn't get to shops very often. i'm not sure how successful i've been but am thinking i will return the favour to Skye and send her a similar 90's fugly piece and see if she can fashion it up.

blue

when a painting session developed into winter wanting to paint himself yesterday i agreed

i knew it was non-staining, 'washable' paint

he was full of enthusiasm deciding he was from a country where people were blue, when suddenly the game was cut short with distressed complaints about itching and stinging

a beeline was made for the shower! will have to find some body friendly paint so he can re-visit that fantasy another time...

slouchy

i enjoyed donning this summery outfit when escaping for a girl's night recently. the top is a favorite that was kindly sent to me by jodi last year following my frequent posts about 90's florals.

these trousers are also current fav's bought from *gasp* a vintage shop recently (so rare for me to step out of my thrifting zone) they were only $15 and are a lovely light raw silk that have a very natural distressed look to them which i love.

grrr so risque with those daring bare shoulders!

still loving my manly amped shouldered jackets

moving on

winter has recently turned his back on duplo lego and has suddenly become a fully fledged 'big boy' lego man. it seemed he had pushed his former love to the end of it capability. the huge set we have amassed (mostly via ebay) now seems to be shelved waiting for a turn with baxter and flint. i had been holding off the proper lego as its so hard to manage and didn't fancy starting a new collection, however we have finally given in much to his delight and a box of tiny intricate pieces has been started, requiring practically full time management for mother.

another new theme is 'indianna jones'. again he hasn't seen the movie but has picked up threads of the story via other kids and hassles rich to tell him more stories at bedtime. after being begged and begged for some indy lego we decided that winter could earn some pocket money to buy his own. this was very popular and the figurine above was earned after a week of daily jobs were carried out. it was a win win situation for all involved. note in the photo winter has made him a paper parachute.

space and army lego are also very popular here is a recent spaceship

indianna jones in a little boat that spins around and above some of the intricate worlds he makes full of booby traps and different levels

he is so obsessed that he can literally spend all day doing it (very frustrating for his brother who wants to play with him causing him to make trouble instead). i have found i need to put it away when friends come to play so he can break free from legoland and muck around.

perky

full of smiles and squeals of delight

am enjoying every moment with my little one (ok maybe not so much the moments when he decides to drag me out of a deep sleep..)

eyecandy

we had a busy weekend of back to back birthday parties. particularly photo worthy was all the vintage dresses and shorts happening at Max's 'construction party' in st kilda. above is the birthday boy with his number 6 card i made round his neck. next is brother iggy getting into the spirit of the theme (max has an obsession with signs and has acquired quite a collection). i am having 70's shorts envy.

prints were another theme with the mums. note max's clever sign cake.

this little 90's dress is one of my current fav's it has big deep pockets at the front, and overall buttons on the shoulder which are both winning details in my books. its hard to see but in my hair is a fab floral clip sent to me by lovely Skye recently (also included in the package was a scary but potentially super hip 90's jumpsuit that i will be photographing shortly - the challenge is to make sure it looks fashionable and not like something that i just haven't stopped wearing for the last 10 yrs!)

winter had so much fun, he had to have a recovery cuddle (it was very hot). baxi made the most of the diggers collected under a shady tree.

wallpaper

mum and dad uncovered this roll of 70's wallpaper recently and thought it would appeal to me. they were spot on i LOVE it! the whimsical, flowing illustration style has so many delightful details in it such as the flowers covering the nipples here and the bird to the left of the woman's hand.

i am thinking of hanging it as a long strip between two pieces of wood, like the calligraphy is sometimes framed

butterflies

perfect for our new love nest!