Welcome to the Jungle

Wearing: American Apparel Sheer Floral Blouse, Skirt from Miss Shop (Myer), This is Make Believe Resin Rose necklace, vintage scrunchie, elephant purse from Melbourne Zoo.

The purpose of this post is two fold, I had been collecting clothes together in a neat pile with a jungle sort of theme and this morning the delivery man gave me my new rose resin necklace! I'm super excited to finally have it, although I must admit the colour of the red is more pink then I originally thought it would be.

I'm sort of tempted to wear shorts, this blouse and necklace as well as my hair out tomorrow to my university enrollment day, the resin roses are faceted with double chains and some of the thickest clasps I've seen. I'm absolutely in love with my necklace, I wish the New Zealand label made more of this amazing necklaces! There are some available for sale on the Good as Gold online store, but I payed a sum total of $60AUD for mine instead of over $300! I love eBay and picking up on what other people don't want anymore.

My mother bought me this skirt several years ago and I usually get a few compliments when I wear it; it's reversible and has plain green on the underside but I love the sketched leaves in black and their pencil-like markings. It's pretty stretchy too so when going out for a big celebratory meal at a restaurant it never lets me done and is really comfortable in soft cotton. The elastic gather around the waist also makes it pleat gently down at the hem, one of my favourite features of a skirt these days.

I brought this sweet little purse to my Indonesian oral examination since I was discussing conflict between farmers and elephants on an Indonesian island- it just fits a few cards for ID as well as maybe bank card but I can't quite cram my phone in there. I really should wear my leaf skirt and elephant purse together more, maybe even go back to Melbourne Zoo to buy some more colours of this purse.

This is possibly the best little bun that I've ever done, but it still fell out after about an hour or two; the scrunchie isn't really supporting the bun instead I use the hair and twist it into itself and hold down the ends using clips. Still, I'm glad I'm getting some use out of my floral scrunchie. I only payed 50 cents for it at my local second hand shop and they had a whole bunch on display at the time. I wish I had bought more though.

Vintage touches to hair

When I went in to work yesterday and had to prepare my hair which was a light mess I managed to neaten it up by pulling the hair from the top of my hair and the strands which would make up a fringe if they were shorter, braiding that and putting at the top a scrunchie in a gingham print. I felt a lot better for it and not I'm lusting after some of these touches others before me have added to their hair and the first is a barrette or large statement clip. I love the lock of the $1 notes American currency shaped into a bow against the honey brown tone of her hair. Barrettes are easy to clip in to place and the bow is simple enough to make but I'm not too sure how I would feel using another country's currency simply as a decoration in my hair! If I ever did find a patterned fabric of that material and stiffened it by using felt as a backing support than maybe I would be daring enough to try. The bows I've made at home so far are too large to wear without it looking ridiculous and over the top, I should really work on making some cute practical ones.

The contrast of brightly coloured red dyed hair and the vintage fabric hair scarf look so great together, the way the red mixes with tones of gold and the intricate pattern of the scarf add so much colour and life to what would otherwise be a boring photograph. I have a few bandannas myself that I sometimes wear on occasion in my hair, mainly with the tied knot at the front giving off a Mexican maid look rather than anything scary and intimidating. I would deal with people joking and saying things like 'housekeeping' to me rather than anything to do with shady goings on and dealings. The sweet vintage print on this scarf as well as the way it's worn with coloured hair is so vibrant and the two complement each other perfectly. It's a match made in heaven.

My last final touch of vintage pieces to hair is the use of a scrunchie that's brightly coloured with some fantastic pattern which looks particularly striking if it's keeping a bun neat and tidy. I can never really master making my hair look so neatly kept and tidy though and it hates to be tamed and kept in a bun without the intervention of a clip or large comb. It'd be nice to master the technique used in this photograph, of twisting the hair and tucking the ends into the centre of the bun but I'm not sure if the length of my hair has now become a hindrance and the weight is too much of a problem when holding it up. Still, a girl can dream can't she?