It’s pretty safe to say that kimonos and pineapples are being washed away from the shores that are our warm weather wardrobes. Before you put yours away into storage, let me show you how you can extend its life a little longer by tying it back to front and chucking on some classic black pieces to keep it relevant. Let’s call this a pathetic attempt at ‘sustainable fashion‘.
Recreate my look:
Kimono / Dress / Shoes / Hat / Purse
When we were in the visitor’s information centre at Kangaroo Island, I saw a wonderful sentiment that I would like to share with you today. “Kangaroo Island is not what it was nor what it will be. It is a story about change, isolation and remoteness. Natural change is never ending. Human activity influences change. Conservation is about managing the rate of change.”
Whilst the main point about conservation is importantly clear, I think its also a great reminder of why you should travel. Do it now and do it often because the places you go today will look different in ten years.
Take Vivonne Bay for example, in a survey of 10 000 beaches, it was judged one of the best beaches in Australia by University of Sydney’s marine studies centre director, Professor Andrew Short. I’m not exactly sure how they reached this conclusion but there’s something magical about those turquoise waters. That magic may disappear in the future but for now I’m just glad that I had the opportunity to see it.
Recreate my Look:
Kimono (c/o) / Tee / Jeans / Watch (c/o)
Groundbreaking is what I hope Meryl Streep’s character would say if she looked up at me through her glasses and did a head to toe flick with the eyes. In reality, she’d probably get her assistant to throw me out.
Victoria is known for its crazy four seasons one day kind of weather so I wanted to be as prepared as possible in Mornington Peninsula even if it meant sweating a bit and looking out of place on the beach. Everything about this outfit is a travel essential regardless of the climate you’re jetting off to. Converse are a given, boyfriend jeans are comfortable eating pants and flannels make great swimsuit coverups. Plus, a boater hat and aviators are just good sense.
I spotted this long line of brightly painted beach boxes as soon as we docked and couldn’t wait to get a proper look at them and call dibs for the future. For a cool, 150k you can buy one to store all the flamingo blow ups, boogie boards and neoprene wetsuits you need for a day by the sea. Its a sound investment because the government has stopped allowing people to build new ones only to purchase and repaint old ones. I think mine would be turquoise, with a white roof and a pink door.
What colours would your beach box be?
Recreate my Look:
Flannel / Jeans / Converse / Hat / Backpack / Sunnies / Watch (c/o)
I have returned from my holiday with plenty of beautiful things to share with you including the first SS Brunch of 2016. I want to introduce to you Magdel and Emre who are the founders of Uzuri, a newly launched brand that hails from the beautiful and graceful country that is Africa. They have a wonderful vision to clothe the inner dreamer, seeker and scholar and their SS16 Capsule Collection consists of timeless and elegant staples including The Moja which is a 100% leather sandal that has been locally sourced and crafted in Africa. I hope you enjoy this SS Brunch and feel inspired to tread lightly and kindly.
What makes Uzuri African?
Our leather and fabric are sourced locally and the craftsmen with whom we partner are all South African. We aim to design first and foremost for the women of Africa. Women of different ages, races and cultures – all embracing their heritage, inspiring generations to come, seeking beauty, living boldly but also seeking qualify and functionality.
Uzuri means beauty and grace. Do you have any muses that embody these two words?
We were both raised by strong and independent women, we have the privilege of being surrounded by incredible sisters and friends who are passionate about life, who are true to themselves, who pursue their dreams fearlessly. Ladies who live their lives with intent + walk in truth, in grace, in beauty. These are the women that inspire us, the women we want to dress.
What are some of the steps implemented so that your final product is ethical and fair?
We believe in buying local, even if the result is a slight increase in prices, and in partnering with our South African craftsmen and ladies. We are involved in every single detail. Sourcing, meeting with our craftsmen / ladies, designing + the final quality control – we ensure that all the people in the production chain is honored and fairly compensated for their contribution. Uzuri is a vision that stretches further and wider than clothes + shoes. We love our country and we want to build + dream alongside contributors to continuously invest in + grow this multifaceted country of ours.
Tell me about your creative process, is there a certain time you work, a candle you burn, a beverage that you consume?
We have both been working full time until the end of 2015, so the dream of Uzuri was pursued over weekends, late nights + early mornings. We have been drinking numerous cups of tea + dreaming of a brand that is true + bold + ethical since 1999, when we first became friends in grade 8.
What are you goals for Uzuri in 2016?
Uzuri is still in its baby shoes. We want to continue building a brand without compromises- growing holistically but remaining faithful to the childhood dream. Our aim has always been to rather deliver an ethical product, that embodies beauty and quality, than delivering a bigger, more mainstream, but less ‘hands-on’, range. Of course this has its own challenges, especially in a growing market – the effect being that Uzuri ranges are always limited editions. Moreover we will continue to follow our hearts, work hard, and shine a light on the beauty that Africa has to offer.
The Moja in Nude Leather (c/o)
If you want to learn more about Uzuri’s vision as well as visit their newly launched website, click here.
It’s almost that time of the year again … Not Christmas though … STUVAC is rolling in with one week left of uni. I almost didn’t write a blog post today because I thought I didn’t have anything to put up but then I realised I still had this draft sitting pretty since June just after I had wrapped up semester 1. One of the biggest motivators for me during STUVAC last semester was texting my study and workout buddy each morning with motivational quotes so I hope this post gives you a little inspiration to go out and tackle your finals head on. Don’t forget to get off your studying bum once in a while, stay hydrated, eat clean and get a lot of vitamin sea. Also, I thought I would include my 10 STUVAC Commandments:
If you are still keen to extend your study break (are you procrastinating on SS haha, check out some post exam inspo here ) / Photos by study buddy: Adela x Styliminal
Mid-sem break is sadly over but I’m trying to recover from my two days of school this week by having a slow Saturday morning. The rest of the weekend will be spent cramming for assignments and exams because its go go go up until the end of November when I sit my finals. I’m working on my laptop outside today with my huge cinnamon, pear and banana breakfast smoothie which was inspired by a similar drink I had at The Butcher’s Block a few months back. So delicious and easy you should whip one up yourself over the weekend. Just throw one banana, one pear, a handful of ice, a handful of oats, half a cup of milk and one teaspoon of cinnamon spice in the blender.
If you’re a Sydney sider I hope your long weekend was a brilliant one. Despite the crazy hot temperatures, it was lovely going to the beach for some palm tree caps (more on that in a future post) and Doyle’s fish and chips but my favourite was walking around all the streets and seeing the pretty beach houses. I must have sounded like a parrot because I spent the entire day cooing over how cute the pastel exteriors and nautical embellishments were.
As soon as I stopped off the pier, I spotted 22 Marine Pde. It was a few hundred metres away (and I have bad eyesight) but I heard my calling and I knew that was where I wanted to snap a few quick outfit pictures. I appropriately went with a very nautical palette on this fine Sunday and threw on a super lightweight trench that is a great transeasonal addition to any wardrobe. You can see how I styled it earlier in the fall in Red Lip Classic Thing. I also went with my royal blue shorts that are very loose and more flattering and sweat proof than denim cutoffs. You can see how I wore these shorts in Sandy Tops Sea Bottoms & China Blue x Moroccan Prints.
This is the first post of October which may be a strange thing to remark on but October is an important month for Style Smorgasbord because in a couple of weeks on the day of halloween, this baby turns one! Its becoming a toddler :’) and I thank y’all for watching it grow up with me. I’m going to put a stop on the analogies for now but I have some very cool things in store for SS to celebrate its birthday.
I am constantly floored by my unconscious creativity. Woah calm done kid, you’re not that g8. But seriously, I called this post Crochet + Coconut Palms purely because of my shirt and also the palm tree in the background. Then now, as I am writing out this blog post, I see that I resemble a coconut. Amazing. I always knew white and brown was a strange combination but I always figured it was more reminiscent of a chocolate ice cream sandwich or an Oreo. Its funny how I always manage to connect everything together … must be why I am such an excellent English essay writer or maybe it just means I can fertilise 12 fields with all the bull I used to put in my essays (joke credit courtesy of Yik Yak). Speaking of poor taste, has anyone been watching the Australian Bachelorette? Oh gosh it is good stuff … most of my crew watches it and we all agree that Sam is perfect, most of the guys are forgettable and its pretty obvious who the final 3 are already. I would also like to point out that the wallpaper in the Bachelorette house is beautiful, I think it has palm trees on it. Oh the things I do and do not notice!
Can you imagine the tan stencil you would be able to get if you lay out long enough in this top?! It would be so epic haha. If you’re interested in this top, just go for your normal size. I was worried it would run small so I ordered an M but its a little looser than I personally would like.
Top: Dresslink (c/0) / Skirt: Old (similar here) / Wristlet: Fossil
Photography: Matthew / Styling & Editing: Myself 🙂
This cardigan makes me feel like a superhero in the wind. Swish Swish. Its a cozy knit and goes great with loose clothing, a big scarf and bare face and feet. Its funny because as I was taking these photographs, a plane flew by and my friend (shout out to you Mishy!) said is it a plane? is it a bird? Oh no its Karen!
// Cardigan (c/o) Lil Muse / Tee Country Road / Pants H&M / Scarf Cotton On //
Photography: Chloe ❤
Quote: Owl City ‘Designer Skyline’
I am finished with my first semester of university, exams and all! To celebrate, Adela and I went to our mecca that is Bondi Beach. Its a tourist spot, sure but its endless array of cafes dotted along the seaside is too attractive to pass off. After being holed up for a month, it was such a literal breath of fresh air to be outside. We grabbed brunch from Trio Cafe which is an all day breakfast place and we split the mango and lime buttermilk pancakes and raw salad both of which were de-li-cious and the portions were ge-ne-rous. Then we popped by Pressed Juices to grab something that was indeed, ‘positively life changing’ (as their slogan suggests) so we could have something to drink whilst we sat by the beach and just talked about how great everything was 🙂
I’m so glad I brought along my camera because we set it to self timer mode and went a bit crazy with candids. The following pictures are a few of the gems that I found; most notably, scenes of the sky changing colour as the sun set and Jasmine Dowling’s contribution to Bondi’s street art scene! These pictures remind me about a lot of things but above all else, to stay gold Ponyboy.
June was an uneventful month with finals so I spent my time making my own fancy drinks.
I always appreciate some good tiling particularly marble and Moroccan.
2 reads: Pretty Honest – Sali Hughes and the last Princess Diaries – Meg Cabot. Highly recommend both.
A bit of a sneak peak of some gorgeous photos to come.
Title Lyrics: ‘June’ – Spock’s Beard
STYLE SMORGASBORD 