Landscape

Wearing: Digital Print Landscape blouse and skirt from Ghosts and Flowers boutique, Kenji Heels.

I've been meaning to break out this jaw-dropping combination for a while but haven't felt up to being a show pony for the camera. Biding my time appears to have paid off since the skirt and top both look simply gorgeous but the skirt looks so much better in real life. It seems my camera can't quite capture the sheen as well as fine details of the mountains and panorama scene all over the hem of the blouse and skirt as well as sleeves.

I broke the bank to be able to but this ensemble and it appears that it has cost me- while I'm not a big girl my arms are very tight in the sleeves of the shirt and also the skirt is about three sizes too small. One of my many follies when buying online is that I convince myself that I can fit into clothes when I really can't and the measurements are all wrong but I'm still comforted by the fact I have a gorgeous matching outfit that is unique and one of a kind. Bit of a surprise to see that the gap between my legs makes them look a little skinnier than they actually are and the beautiful contrast between the bottom of my blouse and skirt together.

As soon as the coffee I had this morning kicked in my mind instantly reached for red lipstick to bring out a bit of sass buried deep within my sole and it worked, although I'm not sure my already red nails went well with this outfit and it's cool tableau of mountain scenery. I'm a sucker for sharp collars and stunning blouses with an unusual nature and technique about their structure, it's no wonder I fell in love with this outfit when I spotted it online and had to have it. Maybe once I reach my target wait it will be something I can proudly wear to fashion events and runway shows... if I ever stop eating chocolate bars and have more salad and celery that is.

Dainty

Slowly in just a few hours there will be the culmination of romantic tension as well as many advertisements bombarded to consumers in order to cheesy and floral trinkets, poesies and sonnets. My brain has been awash with all sorts of amorous ideas about architecture as well as structured clothing, bright and brilliant patterns and my favourite Yves Saint Laurent Art ring with pink stone. It's hard not to get wrapped up in the emotion of a holiday with gravity and retail appeal but I know I really shouldn't- I'm just lucky I've been collecting photographs of idyllic scenes and settings instead on my hard drive.

Being the most wonderful person I've met in my life, my beau has promised to deliver some roses to my tomorrow on St. Valentine's Day because it's to be expected and I asked in an indirect fashion. There's something softly spoken about the gesture of giving roses to a girl on this special day, February fourteenth as well as her birthday. I suppose I'm just rather lucky to have someone special in my life that cares about me and is willing to spend time with me.

As a passionate gesture for my boyfriend I wouldn't mind performing such a feat for my lovely beau in return- long have I been a fan of the photographic but never sought to bare all in such a manner. I may not have the delicate porcelain complexion but I have gorgeous dark brown hair that may lend it self well to the budding and white blossoms of Spring. Ah if only it were not for the improper use of such suggestive photographs of the Internet and the way they can destory a person's reputation...

One day I will have wonderful and dainty upholstered leather couches in the middle of magnificent sitting rooms dedicated to reading and the learned arts as well as creative endeavours. That is if I ever curve my love for shopping online and persuade myself to be frugal and make smarter financial decisions such as working more often and harder as well as selling the occasional lost treasure online for a bit of spare cash. I will lord over my spouse and choose the the furniture with little regard for what they have to say as well as create a studio space of at all available for fashion blogging complete with iPad and typing station... in my dreams.

I wish I could stop being such a dainty girl and get my hands dirty once more, scrape and bruise my knees in rough and tumble sports and once again explain my injuries with a mixture of pride and embarrassment. What could possibly look better than turning up to a fashion or runway even than having scabby or bruised knobbly knees? At the moment I'm also sporting a rather attractive band aid on my calf, acquired from a missing chunk of skin I assume to be hanging on to my razor blade. Even in my dull life of little activity I manage to do some serious harm to myself- I really shouldn't buy a plastic skateboard and try to take that up as well. It will only end in tears and more injuries but this time to my pretty face.

I already stare at my reflection enough as it is and it would be a horrible idea to acquire a vintage and silver framed wall mirror but one day I'll watch myself grow old in it's reflection and remember what it was like to be without the white hair, hair coming out of my ears as well as wrinkles. It's all about the gorgeous and ornamental baroque style frame even if I had to paint over it in a garish colour such as lilac or baby pink I think I would be content with it gracing my walls but still afraid of the whole thing collapsing on its own weight and acquiring another seven years of bad luck.

Dainty and yet modern with twenty-first century flair and grace comes matching shirts in wild and digital prints and matching but slightly garish blue lipstick. This look would be nothing without the soft wisps of fair hair and the pale complexion of the model dressed in such a manner, although styling is an important aspect of fashion once must also consider what you look like and how best to accentuate your own personal and individual personality.

Whenever my mother watches those period pieces based on old books such as 'Jane Eyre' and 'Pride and Prejudice' there are these fantastic buildings with well kept and groomed grounds surrounding them, lace dresses that reach the floor and tight bodices as well as spectacular interior decorating. I think I could be completely content and happy for an afternoon if I had a large pair of lace curtains to wrap myself in as well as small phonograph in the corner to dance around with and fantasise the entire day.

I've excepted that I don't need fair skin and blond hair to be dainty thanks to my hero and style icon Alexa Chung- she's one of the most graceful and skinniest things I've ever clapped eyes on but her Asian heritage reassures me too that you can be perfectly beautiful and reach your potential without having blue eyes and blond hair. Although with that said, a well groomed routine and vintage frill neck collars certainly don't go astray for maintaining a girls image in these areas though I can tell that much.

I hope one day to hold a kitty in my arms with the perfect little pink nose and masses of fur everywhere and have it follow me around- only then will I feel a sense of cosmic fulfillment and empowerment over refined and aristocratic creatures. Perhaps being dainty and empowered with chic flair isn't about the way you look but is rather a state of mind you can channel should you be ready mentally and with the right tools and knowledge.

Forest

Everything seems to artificial today and there's nothing green and luscious at all in my environment- needless to say it's driving my slightly paranoid and worried about the effects of urbanisation and the lack of trees and forests. I can't wait to talk off on my holiday to Canada next year, from my older brother's photographs and experience he indulged in doing mountain walks and absorbing in natural forest full of green leaves and wide trunked trees.

 

I suppose many days I'm quite happy not to leave the comfort of my home but today feels particularly lonely and absent of living creatures. I'm surrounded by things that are neither living nor dead- I'd love to instead feel the warmth of the sun and see luscious green grass and forest all around me. Maybe having a pet in my room such as a cat and something living and companionate would make me feel better about the little activity I participate in everyday. Next week is the start of many activities for orientation of university including scavengers hunts as well as an outdoor music festival. Finally then I'll stop feeling like a recluse and get some face-to-face interaction with new and exciting people.

  I wonder exactly how many American footballers enjoy meeting in the clearings of forests, fully dressed in shoulder pads and the like. I have the opportunity to maybe create my own photographs in this style and image in the coming months if I'm lucky enough. On the weekend I will be fixing up applications and cover letters for volunteer positions- one includes acting as a promotional photographer in order to advertise the sporting groups and clubs at my new university. While it may be a task a little over the knowledge of a simple lowly first-year, I'm keen to at least apply for such an opportunity but sourcing my own models as well as props may be another problem in itself.

My mother says that I'll love the trees and large suspended bridges of Canada when we go- the views are amazing and I'd love to see the forest shrouded in a veil of heavy trees. I just have to ensure that I have the discipline to save my money and keep working as many available opportunities as I can despite the fact I'm not loving my job at the moment. I'm sure when I'm holding a Canon 50D or something similar with a few thousand dollars in hand for a long holiday next year it will all have been worthwhile.

On returning to Melbourne after a semester of study in Canada, my brother was quick to criticise the landscape I had always viewed as on occasion hilly. He despaired at the lack of mountains and the flatness of the ground (just as well he never went to California, flat city). My mother plans for us to visit Canada in Summer which will still be chillier than our Melbourne Winter and I'm keen so see some mysterious cloud and fog banks engulfing rugged mountain terrain and trees.

I heard many a wonderful story about whole groups of raccoons raiding garbage cans at night but in my three weeks in America not once did I see these creatures- a pity really considering how seemingly domesticated they've become due to the encroaching of man into animal territory. I guess I'm just a sucker for any animal with large expressive eyes, unusual fur markings and a twitching nose expressing an inquisitive nature and a soul hungry to learn more socially.

I have a distinct policy about crosses and avoiding them being drawn on my body and especially on my forehead in the place of a bindi but I do rather admire the floral wreath and loose, sheer shirt situation and field of tall grass. Just my luck that there's no fields or parks where no one bothers to go in my area- I wouldn't mind giving the tumble in the tall grass a go but there is no doubt in my mind that my hair would become a horrible tangled mess.

Ah Melbourne, although there is a wealth of activities within the city and revolving around Federation Square for young bored people such as myself- there's definitely a lack in the culture of nature walks as well as interesting environmental scenery. Once you've been enough times, Melbourne Zoo can also be a lonely trip and tiresome although the grounds are so large and there's always animals you never get to see after an entire circuit of trawling around the place.

I wonder what a cat would think of a long and romantic walk around a well kept park full of beautiful plants and a noticeable absence of mice and rats. I can't say that I know the feline personality quite well but in my experiences they are wriggling jelly beans smothered in fur and do not enjoy long periods of being held and carried around. Also- cat leashes and walking around one's neighbourhood with cat in tow is a laughable matter.

This year I am determined to make a visit to my city's Royal Botanical Garden as well as Royal Flower Show as a photographic aesthetic experience and something fun to do with my mother- should we not be feuding at that instance and point in time. I haven't been in years and it certainly would be nice to feel inspired and also a bit ashamed about the state of affairs for my own garden. The last thing I remember about the show I last attended was engraving things on smooth looking river stones.

Sometime in the future I do plan to take a bit of a trek around modern Japan as well as contrasting the life between village and big city.

Beach

I had every intention of going to the beach last Saturday, but without having written the date down in my diary I had signed up for work the night before I realised when the beach trip was happening. It's a shame really since every experience one way or another had to include egotistical men who have no idea what really happens in the real world and are used to getting their way through complaining enough. 

I wouldn't have minded a day at the beach after all this had happened as a way to unwind but my shift was in the middle of the afternoon and the second last of the day so there was nothing really left to do except for enjoy the burn and sting of a hot shower. Water and cleansing is so therapeutic physically and mentally, I almost wish I could have more than one shower a day sometimes- to clean my hair and prepare myself in the mornings as a remedial way to energise oneself and then finally before going to bed to feel comfy and adjust the correct temperature.

There seemed to be a bounty of straw and floppy hats going for a dollar each at the second hand shop I loitered in front of today but I do like the allure of a smartly structured and brimmed straw boater hat a bit more. I do like the occasional floppy hat usually in felt and if it can be helped with a feather in it since they are the most helpful one protecting oneself from the skin and you can still look feminine and gorgeous while wearing one. Hats can be so subjective sometimes and although I do want to shade my face from the sun... I have some sort of fashionable reputation to uphold you know.

I know that I was the disciple of water and it's soothing nature but I do think that soaking in moss-infested water is taking it a bit far- yes, yes it's all very artistic and probably represents the spread of some disease plaguing some sort of metaphorical cause but I can't really imagine a more traumatising experience then having moss cling to my skin. Water is meant to clean you, not to stain your lovely white dress as you float about in it with a peaceful and mundane expression on your face and act as a magnet for small aquatic vegetation.

When I imagine trips to the beach, I like to envision myself as some beauty wrapped in a shroud of modest sheer white material as well as spectacular and bright sunglasses and a wide brimmed floppy hat. My last trip to the beach encompassed cheap broke moccasins, a t-shirt in bright green, board shorts and a broad rimmed and daggy looking hat borrowed from my mother that made me look more like a childish version of the Grudge. Not exactly how I planned to look but I suppose we all build up impressions of ourselves that can be hard to live up to at times.

I have many a wonderful of memory of swinging on what was affectionately known as 'The Tarzan Rope' at my local pool and I think it has been a bit of a crime that I haven't been there in so long. I had weekly swimming lessons and it was indeed the only sport I was encouraged to participate in as a child, my brother prospered at it but I instead chose basketball instead. That choice has been the greatest mixed blessing of my life.

It hasn't been a great aspiration of mine to go the swimming pool with my boyfriend and cling to him for dear life but I was sort of looking forward to a beach trip with my sweetheart sometime this Summer. Well, with only a few weeks left and Valentine's Day just around the corner I may be able to persuade him to be sea bound but I doubt it. In the grand scheme of things, it's not that vitally important to me but it would be nice to have that ticked off in my mental Summer check-list.

One of the wonders of the beach and shoreline that I don't think I'll completely understand is the amount of caves, small little islands and moats speckled along a shoreline. Of course it completely captivates my imagination and makes me think of scenes from Hayao Miyazaki's Ponyo and Disney's 'The Little Mermaid'. One of my dear friends adores walking around and exploring nooks and crannies as well as climbing so it was fun running around after her last Summer as well on a few school camps. Ah, memories.

In order to think pure thoughts and be in a serene place of peacefulness, I think that pure, white linen clothing such a s a sundress maybe something gorgeous and showy such as this midriff piece worn by model Bambi could be worn to the beach. I rarely take a dip in the ocean and feel liberated by bathing in the water but I think I would be happy with strolling around yellow sand beaches, getting sand in my shoes and feeling the cold ocean spray and wind whip my bare skin. I'd love to have a midriff dress such as this, there must be something viable and close to this design handmade on Etsy...

Having a map/ network of train systems from a foreign land has been a small aspiration of mine but there's not a lot of available wall space in my room and I'm content to spontaneously decorating with magazine cuttings when the mood takes me. Instead I'll just buy some white sundresses and vintage lace pieces instead to satisfy my urge to get in touch with my inner hipster.