The Perfect Duffle

I really want a nice duffle bag. Probably because I carry my entire life in my bag every single day (I like to live by the dysfunctional Boy Scouts motto: Always be prepared with really superfluous crap that you will never use - like multiple lipglosses or two pairs of sunglasses when it rains...) Or perhaps it's because I want to look like I have a miniscule athletic bone in my body (Healthy body, healthy mind...or so they say) when it's disgustingly untrue (does anyone get puffed after walking up one flight of stairs?)

Or maybe I just need one because Alexander Wang says I need to at least look fashionably athletic (in the most glorious impractical sense of the word...although I suppose you could use that football clutch as an extra ball in a game if you were that desperate and sadistic to bags...)

In any case - point of the story is I would love to steal my 'far-too-fab-why-the-hell-are-you-doing-a-subject-like-law' friend's everyday duffle bag. 100% minimal black leather. In true CK style. Aged leather. Could it get any prettier? Oh wait...yes it can because it'll get better with age.

I would totally make up a sport as an excuse to get one.

Ten-hut.

xo

Bec

Mark Borthwick: Dazed & Beautiful

Vanessa Bruno and Rag & Bone - Two of my favourite labels in the whole world...The former for its basics that fit like no other and insouciant, minimalistic Gallic panache and the latter for its impeccable, totally-borrowed-from-the-perfect-boyfriend tailored aesthetic.

Lookbooks - A guilty procrastinating pleasure

Mark Borthwick's photography - Simply too pretty for words. It's that softly blurred, retro imperfection that just makes me want to have never ending hazy afternoons with the sun streaming through my window. Listening to Beach House and Au Revoir Simone. With a cup of herbal tea.

Does anyone need anything more?

I think not.

Love

xo

Bec

Images courtesy of Vanessa Bruno and Rag & Bone

Chris

Chris was the first awesome friend I ever made in the law school.

He was like the type of person I completely dreamed of meeting in uni after my repressed private school girl's life (In a depressing note about that - I was totally pigeonholed today as an 'Inner Eastern suburbs, private school kind of girl'...so much for epic street cred)

A man who never ever fails to make me laugh and to inspire me sartorially (and in all things artistic and cultural)

He has an amazing op-shopping 'eye' (like our...go figure...mutual friend Sas) which I am still desperately hoping to develop. Everything about this outfit is somewhat of a dug up thrifted treasure from the vintage shirt to the leather jacket (which actually fits him perfectly) to the crazy-cool sunglasses from EBay...

I think we should totally hang out more so I can just absorb more of his thrown together fabulousity (uh yeah...I am totally dropping in Kimora Lee Simmons here) by proxy...

Sigh

Did I also mention that he was wearing an absolutely perfect pair of biker boots (also an op shop find) that I was quite possibly too depressed to take a photo of for fear that my camera might break from the awesomeness of it all?

Serious wardrobe envy...

Double sigh

Love

xo

Bec

A Different Kind of Picasso

There's nothing better than finding those hidden gems in your mother's wardrobe.
This is my mother's vintage Paloma Picasso chain bag (apparently she used to do bags AND bling) from the early 90s.

They totally don't make babies like this anymore.

Plus it gives me the slight (somewhat falsely earned) satisfaction of saying 'I own a Picasso'

Love

xo

Bec

The Jeweller

I seriously doubt people come as ab-fab as this...pretty much ever.
In the temple of kitsch glam that is Shag - I was most delighted to meet Luke who totally blew me away with this ensemble (on the even better flip side - I also found a pair of very 80s vintage Ferragamo flats in my size...which never happens thanks to my ginormous feet...curse that for being THE one abnormal un-Asian gene I have)

I just love so many crazy things about this outfit...I don't know where to start.
But even better was getting to have a chat to the totally fabulous Luke himself (while my camera decided to go spastic on me and not focus...yeah I totally know how to use the thing...clearly) who also happens to be working on a brand-spanking-new jewellery line as we speak (taxidermy inspired and very very exciting). It's times like this that I'm glad I have my enigmatic trippin' partner around because she looks infinitely cool and knows what she's talking about while I sort of gawk like an awe-struck dork (yeah that's pretty much me 99.9% of the time...)




And on a side note: I totally want to steal those combat boots...*nudge nudge hint hint*

Love

xo

Bec

PS. I totally felt his fab factor deserved an experimentation in bigger photo sizes! So now I can do bigger photos (Major thank you to blog idol Vanessa for that...if I could write you a sonnet of adoration I totally would...but then you might file a restraining order against me...dum dee dum...)

Get Tanked & Graffitied

I spend obscene amounts of money on basic tank tops. There. I said it. I feel better now. Well not really. But anyway.
'But why? They're just basic pieces of cloth?'

Oh dear unenlightened people - the perfect tank top is so much more than just a basic piece of cloth. Draped the right way and put together with the right 'mussed-up, I'm-a-model-recovering-from-one-bender-of-a-party' items...they can totally give you a look of absolute easy sexiness. One which I am still hoping to (and disgustingly am yet to) achieve. Ultimate sigh and die moment.

But occasionally you stumble upon a clever trick or two...and this I found on a mannequin at the Vanessa Bruno store (and bought the see through tank shortly thereafter...oh yes...Rebecca, you and your will of steel) Belated lightbulb moment: You can totally mix things up when you wear things backwards! Oh I do adore when something so wrong turns out ever so right (I just wish I'd thought of it first...like my brilliant idea of wearing cardigans backwards...but that kind of epically failed...)

And note - It is not a fake bra.

Love

xo

Bec

Black tank - Vanessa Bruno
Grey tank - Bassike

I Do Love A Man In Black...

And I really should have added '...and knee high boots' to the title...

As the weather gets colder (ignore the entirety of last week where the sun and my denim cut-offs came out for a last hurrah) - It's nice to see everyone reverting to the favourite colour of fashion editors everywhere. Or is it a shade? I never quite understood that. I guess it's not really a colour...

Aside from totally wanting to steal his very comfy looking leather jacket, perfectly coordinating scarf and droolworthy (and yet practical) satchel...I am OBSESSED (and I repeat...no actually I shouldn't repeat...because that raises my creepy levels to an all time high) with the fact that the gentleman decided to don a pair of knee high boots!

Hello modern Mr Darcy of my dreams! (Admit it...there is something rather swashbuckling and debonaire about a man walking around in knee high riding boots)

If only he had appeared on a white horse...

My goal to live out Pride & Prejudice in real life would have been oh-so-perfectly-achieved.

Alas.

Love

xo

Bec

It's All About Rainbows & Flamingo Bags

I like to think Rachel and I were destined to be friends from the moment we exchanged stories about a private school boy that she was rumoured to be dating in our Business Computing class. Thus began a friendship filled with bus trips, donuts, shopping sprees in Sydney and countless boy stories swapped over double periods of Extension Math (and I would die if anyone ever brought up the Poko Pano Bikini Charity Fund...a long story involving a Brazilian bikini I loved and having insufficient funds to purchase it)

I think she seriously may be one of the nicest, funniest, most inspirational people I have ever had the privilege of meeting (and going to school with) and I am always half in love with whatever she wears whenever she walks out out the door. It's bold, a little bit crazy but always 110% amazing.

I am now totally convinced that I should attempt slightly purple and blue hair, and accessorizing a Alexander Wang-esque dress with THAT flamingo bag (I did seriously have to do a double take and check whether it was a flamingo and my 'beyond 20 year old eyes' weren't just screwing with my head)

And then I realize that I hate girls who can actually do that while I will wind up looking like I belong in that special place where everyone dresses in white and there are really cool padded walls (seriously...someone has told me that before...actually a few people)

But noone could hate Rachel. No seriously. Try. You can't. It's impossible.

Damn.

Love

xo

Bec

Simon: A Lesson in Classic Prep

There is something about seeing people in well-made classic pieces that just makes me unspeakably happy.
It's just like seeing something out of another era walking around in my otherwise fairly banal surroundings.

Somewhat creepy style-stalking confession moment: I've been a major fan of Simon's majorly preppy, classic and totally 'I holiday in my beach house in the Hamptons'-esque aesthetic for some time now.

The man does traditional, polished Americana so impeccably, I'm tempted to give him an A+ on my style report card (no leather vests, bandannas or ripped jeans here). Major sartorial points were scored on the button-up shirt, matching jumper, cream chinos and coordinating shoes. All executed to perfection.

Classic, traditional, pragmatic, functional, quality, intellectual and well thought out.

Exactly the same could be said of the man himself.

That's my report card for the day.

Love

xo

Bec

'Elegance is refusal' - Coco Chanel

After seeing a feature on Mademoiselle's Rue Cambon apartment - I am totally re-inspired by the character that was Coco Chanel. She was more than just the 2.55 bag, the tweed jacket and two-tone ballet flats. She was an absolute legend and a real force of nature.

Whenever I want to get my power woman mojo back, I just think of Chanel.

And her motto in life: 'A girl should only ever be two things: Classy & Fabulous'

Amen.

Love

xo

Bec

Shredded

Ah there's so much to love about my partner in trippin' and all things shallow...
Her enigmatic charm and her thing for industrial-chic Helmut Lang/Rick Owens/Yohji/Comme-esque outfits definitely rank high on my list of things I adore (and quite possibly drool over while sadly wishing I was that hot)
Checklist:
Moody, artistic, ever-reliable, fail-safe black - Check
Androgynous but totally sexy (ever so slightly provocative) detail - Check
Preternaturally cool chutzpah to go with it - Double check




So now I am totally tempted to go run a black tee through my paper shredder. Although my hypothesis for that little experiment is that it will not end well (or rather in pieces for the humble oversized black tee...)

Love

xo

Bec

For a bit of extra perving - and to make me feel like I'm right on the look zeitgeist - the black shredded tee look totally made it into the Rochambeau lookbook for A/W 10 (which is totally worth looking at if only for the weird girl-on-girl action between the model and uh...herself)

Rochambeau - http://rochambeau.us.com/fall10/

A Touch of Girly

I've had nightmares about printed skirts below knee length since my mother bought my first school skirt (which literally came down to my ankles) and claimed that 'I would grow into it...or in any case, it's becoming of a girl to look modest'

Thankfully aforementioned skirt got a good 5 inches of material hacked off or God knows how I would have survived.
It could be a bad case of literally living out the adage that 'Girls will always turn into their mothers' but I'm beginning to see the charm of the slightly longer skirt. There is something decidedly quite feminine and cute about it (or it could just be me having had it up to here with artistes like Lady Gaga running around pantless and adding more fire to the 'leggings as proper pants' trend...I think my eyes seriously need therapy)

I was quite taken with the ensemble of this stylish walker around campus. The way her skirt has quite a bold print that really grabs your attention and how she plays it down by keeping the colours really simple (white and navy...oh how I swoon) Note to self: You never want a scary print in even scarier colours. It's like channelling Donatella Versace in a bad way.



But even better is the detail. I always adore little extra weird details in an item of clothing. The way her simple white shirt has a really subtle print and ABSOLUTELY DIVINE sleeves (it's like a cut-off puff thing...eek...that doesn't even make sense...I should really work on trying to being more eloquent before I type)

And accessories. Ahhh...this is always the part that makes me want to salivate and die of lust (I did nearly swipe some guy's Prada backpack but then the boring sensible law-abiding citizen part of my brain kicked in...that and I realized I have no running ability whatsoever) Oh I'd totally die for her beat up utilitarian satchel. It's like a boxy YSL Besace but even better for its uniqueness factor. Oh major vintage lust...

I also think I need to stop drooling over people's satchels. For one, it probably ruins the leather. Second point, it's not an attractive look.

Love

xo

Bec

Leather & Drop Crotch

I must admit...

When my ab-fab friend Sam informed me that he was experimenting with a new look...I was skeptical.

Even more so when I was told that it involved a 'quarter leather jacket and drop crotch pants' which tend to bring unpleasant mental images of both 'weird-in-a-bad-way' punks and yummy mummies doing the harem pant thing.

Oh me of little faith!

It turns out the man definitely knows how to bring a (much desired) bit of Rick Owens to my rather bland usual surroundings. It's dramatic gothic flair in an understated wearable (and totally crushworthy) way. On another note - I am also totally heart-ing the slightly haute-trashtastic effect of the ripped tank top (oh Balmain - what have you done to me? It's apparently a serious sign of mental problems to come when you start understanding why $1000 ripped tank tops sell out on Net-A-Porter...)

In a nutshell - Just another one of the many reasons why I absolutely adore this boy to pieces.

Love

xo

Bec

Purple Paisley Panache

If all else fails, I am totally loving my alliteration in the title and thinking maybe if I fail dismally as a lawyer (a very likely possibility indeed)...maybe I should become a spin doctor who comes up with catchy slogans. Or not...

The other thing I totally love is spying an item that I could never wear (at least not without looking ridiculous in a bad way) on other people...Looking suitably fabulous.

Purple is one of those things.
Paisley is yet another one of those things.
I get the feeling that if I wear both those things at the same time, someone will mistake me for a failed gypsy fortune teller. And as fun as it is to make up clairvoyant futures for people (it really is more fun than it sounds)...it sadly isn't exactly my goal in life.

Take 1 - Is my favourite intellectual editor of style, Tarang (I really think I could dedicate a whole month to style stalking him and not get bored). I'm a little bit taken with the muted tones of the scarf and the way he pairs it with navy and the lightest shade of violet (wow that sounded disturbingly like my mother's interior decorator...). Unusual and refreshingly bohemian.

Take 2 - Is my gorgeous girl crush at work, Erika. To this day, I still believe she's far too pretty and lovely to be working in the rather un-pretty and un-lovely accounting industry...but anyway. I may or may not have taken the long route to my desk post-coffee breaks just to check out what smack-bang-ab-fab outfit she had for the day. I totally envy the fact that she has the perfect skin tone and hair colour to carry off those vibrant shades of purple and blue. It makes me want to go blonde...except that I have an ominous vision of that not working out particularly well...

I could be tempted into trying my luck as a failed gypsy fortune teller though...

Love

xo

Bec

Breton Stripes

It is now officially beyond freezing. And while I am admittedly very happy to be dragging out the ubiquitously Melbourne layers and reveling in all things black and moody...I am maybe kinda actually missing the sun...

And one of my all time favourite summer looks. The Breton striped top.

Chanel was certainly onto something when she stole this look and made it an indispensable item for women everywhere.

Whether you decide to pair it with cut off shorts and sandals, make it a cropped affair or something slightly sheer...it always brings that requisite touch of the French Riviera the streets.

Bisous

xo

Bec

Cuffed Denim & Tri-Coloured Boots

Every so often you spy something relatively cool in relatively bland settings.

Like these boots.

Tri-coloured awesomeness...two shades of brown + black no less...

Lace-up in that kind of really cool early 20th century governess type way...

It's seeing things like these that make me wonder why I have no op-shopping skill or cred whatsoever (Unless you have a penchant for belly dancing outfits or ladybug costumes) Plus noone seems to want to share their thrifting secrets with me! Is it some kind of conspiracy to keep their hard-earned cool intact?!

In any case...the sad truth remains...I have never found anything quite that awesome.

Yet.

Love

xo

Bec

Private School Boys & Bulldogs

When I was younger, I really wanted to date an aristocratic, posh and preppy boarding school boy from Eton.
He would be suitably debonaire, take me out to afternoon tea, speak with a perfect British accent, have excellent taste in music, art and theatre, and be fluent in multiple European languages.
He would also dress the part. Tailored blazers, V-neck sweaters, perfectly cut button ups and trousers (yes aha! Not jeans...proper pleated trousers) and brogues.

Sadly it never came to pass. Enough said.

However - I still never quite got over my love affair with brogues of all colours and styles. I really want to get an awesomely ugly bulldog who bounds around in a dandy bow tie like the Opening Ceremony dog there. Ideally, I'd call him Winston as well. Or Nigel. Nigel's a pretty good name for a bulldog. And ever so often...I do adore borrowing from the boys, pulling off a shrunken blazer, a slightly quirky shirt (this one's from a niche little Malaysian label called Dude & Duchess), cuffed shorts, a big brown beaten up satchel and walking out the door sipping a beautiful single malt and feeling suitably posh and snooty.

Love

xo

Bec

Image of Bulldog courtesy of Opening Ceremony lookbook
Image of brogues courtesy of Madewell lookbook on Refinery 29

Other image - Self explanatory self service

Things Unseen

I need to find a new bra.
No I need to find THE perfect new bra.
It's like the Holy Grail except sexier.

It has been my quest for some time and is the driving force behind what hopefully will be a new bonding event for girls everywhere 'Field Trippin' for Bras'. In my ideal world - it would be as big as 'Give everyone a hug' day.

There's nothing more sexy and subtle than a hint of bra peeking out from under a loose tank or a tank dress...just that hint of the unseen or some straps falling off the shoulder when you're dancing in a sundress...or really just walking around the house in your underwear. It makes you feel all girly and frolicky on the inside. Perfect for doing a little dance to the lo-fi tunes of Au Revoir Simone, Pink Martini or some Bebel Gilberto...

However - and there is always a however or a qualification word of some sort - lingerie companies all around Melbourne seem bent on screwing me over. Is it too much to ask for a girl with an A-cup to demand that SOMEBODY make a damn push up bra in her size?!

Aside from the whole 'We don't like making brassieres for girls with no rack...' problem

'Uh like why do you need support honey? Those things basically hold themselves up with nothing at all'


There's also the whole issue of aesthetics. It's like noone has really captured what I would really want to wear when doing aforementioned jig to bedroom jazz. It's either too tacky (far too much of that), too reminiscent of high school or just woah...mum lingerie...let's not go there.

Which is why when I read about Yasmine Eslami's new lingerie line Yasmine Paris in the April edition of Jalouse (god bless you French magazines and your focus on underwear and all things sexy and porny) I felt like all my prayers to the lingerie gods that be had been answered. Perfect balconette bras in MY FAVOURITE colours...black, white and oh my god here's a revelation...BLACK & WHITE...in naughty but nice materials like tulle, lace, silk and cotton.

Pure. Perfection. I die. Majorly.

I could just wear these babies the whole day and feel like a whole new woman.

Note - It doesn't hurt that the creator is an ex editor of the art/style bible that is Purple Magazine and that the model is none other than Shannan Click

Other note - Like all good things, evidently...the answer to all my prayers requires a jet set ticket to Paris...

I'm thinking maybe I should write some sad fan letter to Ms Eslami and see if I can buy them as a special order. They are just that good and require THAT level of creepy devotion.

On the upside - I will have the sexiest underwear around. Bar none.

And seriously - is anyone NOT in with me to go on a lingerie field trip in the City of Lights?

Love

xo

Bec


Images courtesy of Yasmine Paris
http://yasminelondonparis.blogspot.com

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A Little Bit of Bling & Bowie

There's a starman waiting in the sky
He'd like to come and meet us
But he thinks he'd blow our minds


The shiny boots are obsession worthy!

Velvet is always a good place to start when channeling that 70s rock vibe! (Hey - if Jimi, Janis and The Stones could dig it...so can you...)

The cropped hair no less and the androgynous silhouette!

It's nice to see a little touch of someone channelling classic David Bowie on the street

Even better when it's in a totally wearable way...

Although I must admit to a not-so-closet desire to find a shiny leotard...put on some rainbow glitter make-up...and get my Ziggy Stardust on...Oh yes...Starman!

Love

xo

Bec

Illustrated Adoration

Anyone who has ever sat next to me in any class whatsoever will know that I am a notorious doodler...
NB. It is a mega fun way to occupy oneself thus maintaining a non productive state of equilibrium distracted zen

I have been kindly told (possibly too kindly) that my doodlings are actually relatively good (then again I've never actually sketched something and tried to pass it off as one of my friends...the compliments would probably come to an abrupt halt shortly thereafter) but I have to totally take my hat off to these sketches by Brooklyn based graphic art/tee shirt designer Lacee Swan.

It probably doesn't hurt that they are of 'so-cool-it-hurts-my-hip-socket' models cum 'it-girls' like Alexa Chung, Karlie Kloss and Dree Hemingway (god I love Alexa...I would marry her if she would have me) and that you can pledge your allegiance to such peons of cool by wearing their nicely illustrated mugs as a top! Yay!

It does remind me a bit of the whole Henry Holland mania a couple of years back where you showed your fashion cred/model allegiance via one of his very tongue in cheek tees (I personally had a thing going for the 'Cause Me Pain Hedi Slimane' and 'Do Me Daily Christopher Bailey' slogans) but then everyone started wearing them and then the copies came out en masse (finally culminating in trashtastic versions of the tees being draped off the mannequins at none other than everyone's favourite retail cesspool Supre)

I really hope these babies don't go down the same pathway to destruction

I have a sinking feeling they will...

But still...they make me want to go back and doodle in class...with a vengeance

Love

xo

Bec

Agent Orange

I generally have mixed feelings about orange.
I like the fruit, don't like the soda
I love it as a highlighting colour because it's happy and friendly but can't actually read anything in fluoro orange pen
I love when people wear it, but couldn't pull it off to save my life (bad memories of orange legging experimentation from 5 years back flooding through head in a horrific way)

Getting a shot of this fiery haired muse nearly made me love orange in a whole new way though.
I just love so much about the outfit. How the dress is a little bit flirty and feminine (and has a bit of a cute 40s vibe) to the way she's toughened it up in a really chic way with the biker boots and black patterned pantyhose (I was going to say stockings...but that just brings back a whole host of memories about being in a private girls school and having carpet stick to your school regulation black stockings...a most attractive look and let's not forget about the static)

And the hat! Oh Heaven knows my penchant for unusual accessories and how much I LOVE LOVE LOVE spying them on the street. It's just so old world glam and not one of those run of the mill panama hats or fedoras (as much as I love both...mass commercialization and Miley Cyrus have reduced my level of adoration significantly) And I just love how it adds that touch of a bygone era to what is essentially a very modern outfit (On a side note - it makes me miss my beyond gorgeous friend Leah who has since dropped off the face of the planet and how she came to my party one day wearing THE most amazing red egg-shaped hat from the 20s I have ever seen to this day...and some amazing pantyhose from the 50s...I kid you not...the box had not been opened in 50 years)

Oh it makes me all inspired to go play dress ups again in a dramatic, flamboyant way!
Maybe an affair with Orange would be in order...
Or perhaps not...

Love

xo

Bec