A belated birthday gift from Heartbreaker Fashion

I love vintage clothing. Just about all my favourite items of clothing are vintage. I also love vintage re-creation, which is all about flattering cuts and fun fabrics that you don’t see on ‘fashionable’ clothing. Unfortunately, re-creation vintage can also come with a price tag that is out of my tight budget range.

However, a couple of years ago I found Heartbreaker Fashion, a vintage inspired clothing company founded by a Californian mother and daughter team. Their clothes are simple, comfortable and flattering. Unless you order from the ‘fancy’ ranges, the dresses are 100% good quality cotton, well made and perfect for the Queensland climate. Best of all, they are very reasonably priced. A friend and I each treated ourselves to two dresses as a ‘test run’ and are still happily wearing them a few years later.

My previous purchases; 

Super Spy Dress Anita in Black. Made of cotton knit, it is perfect for evenings out in Brisbane.   
Aimee dress, colourful and comfortable cotton. Mine is a different pattern.

 Images courtesy of Heartbreaker.

So when a good friend gave me some money for my birthday to spend on a ‘nice top’ I knew just what I wanted. I had seen this photo on the Heartbreaker website a few weeks before and been completely seduced. It was exactly how I wanted to look!

 Ella top in Turquoise Cosmic Dot. Image courtesy of Heartbreaker 

For good measure I threw in the same blouse in leopard print (because who doesn’t love leopard print) and I was very tempted to get this super-cheerful daisy top as well, but I chose to be restrained. 

 Ella top in Hip Kitty and Springfield.

They’ve only been around a couple of days but I am really happy with them. They are great for work and casual and are a great fit. Downside is I (theoretically) have to iron them, but I can cope with that in exchange for looking adorable. In fact, I can get away without it. Which I always will, if I can. Ironing sucks.

Me in my two new purchases, with appropriate shoes; leopard print on the left and turquoise frilled leather BCBG Max Azaria on the right. The latter bought at Retournez-vous second hand shop in Mooloolaba

The only negative was that it took 7 weeks for my two blouses to arrive. They ask for 7-10 working days to make the order, which is fine. But then the package was dispatched from the US and I watched in horror as the online tracker told me it had left the states, arrived in Brisbane, two attempted deliveries were made within 15 minutes on the same morning and then the package was on its’ way back to the states! WHY?!  

When it arrived back at Heartbreaker it was dispatched back immediately, first class. It still took 2 weeks to get here but nevertheless, it arrived on my desk safe and sound.

The delay in arrival was not the fault of Heartbreaker, rather the Postal Services, but that doesn’t make it any less irritating and of course the only people I could whinge to were Heartbreaker. They always responded politely to my emails and did whatever they could to fix the situation, which truth be told isn't a lot when the package is somewhere in transit over the Pacific.

Anyway, the package did arrive and I am delighted with the contents. So much so I rather want more of the same. Particularly as there is new one with a bee print on it.

Provided you don’t need anything in a rush, I would heartily recommend Heartbreaker for fun flattering summer dresses, simple vintage-inspired cocktail wear and now, cute blouse tops. 

Check out the Heartbreaker Fashion website or if you like them on Facebook, you can see latest design, what's cooking in their test kitchen and of course, sale items!

Alcoholic volcanos and layers of leis

A couple of weekends ago I threw a birthday party with two of my favourite people and fellow February-babies Caz and Kirst.

 Kirst in Gorman and me in Kitten d'Amour.

We’ve thrown joint birthday shindigs for a few years now. First at Alloneword, then at Limes and this year’s venue of choice: Alfred and Constance.  All three of us have had some good times there, so with the considerations of a Tiki bar, Queenslander decks, good food and a very helpful events coordinator, it was a pretty easy choice to make.

 

Bar drinks and decoration

 
Waking up on the day or your birthday party, if you’re looking forward to it, is a little like a second birthday. It felt like by special day all over again, but this time on a Saturday so I got to sleep in!

The party started early and our friends faithfully turned up right on the button to help us celebrate. There were beers, mojitos and bottles of wine to wash down platters of devils on horseback and bowls of thick salty chips.

Celebration time!

Over the night I got to catch up with so many old friends I now seem to see only at our annual bash. A triple birthday is one hell of an excuse to get people together. In amongst all the updates, we managed to down some Zombies (only one each), Jamaican Divorces and Kava Bowls.

 
Pina Coladas and Kava Bowls.

Cocktail appreciation time.

There were some great parts: everyone went nuts on the cocktails and the oddly 90s music. Being outdoors significantly lowered the temperature on what was one of Brisbane’s only clear Saturday nights this year. The bar staff were charming, the food as good as expected.

 

  

Downsides were that we had been lead to believe we’d have a small roped off area for a few hours which would then be opened up. But when we arrived, there was a rowdy blow-up doll-toting hen’s night in process on our little deck and they were not to be moved. Also, the place seemed to be much busier than any other time I’ve been to Alfred and Constance. Good for them, but it bums me out when I can’t reach a bar laden with pina coladas.

 

 

Nevertheless, a great time was had by all, and I would recommend Alfred and Constance for functions or for just a nice, relaxed evening out.  There’s something just so right about the combination of wooden deck, novelty cocktails  and fake turf carpet that really makes a night out. 

Thank you to all my wonderful friends who helped make my night!

 

This is the story about the time I got second-hand Facebook stalked

This is the story about the time I got second-hand Facebook stalked.

It was my joint birthday party and I was with a bunch of friends at Alfred and Constance. It was about 8pm at night and we were surrounded by a crowd of people celebrating hen’s nights, 30^th birthdays and Saturday nights. A girl I had never met before came up to me while I was talking to a guy friend. She was in a pretty cotton dress with a crown of flowers and a badge that screamed ‘BRIDE’. The conversation went something like this:

Bride-to-be: Hi. Is he single?

Me: No.

Bride-to-be: Are you single?

Me: No. But he is. (point to single male friend)

Bride-to-be: Wait – I know you. Did you used to date Jim*?

Me: Urm…yes.

Bride to be: You’re Sarah*!

Me: No, Sarah is his sister. He wouldn’t date Sarah. I’m B.

Slightly worrying bride-to-be: Ah, ok, sorry. Jim’s sort of potentially dating a friend of mine.

Me: Yes, he is my ex. Definitely ex. 

Bride-to-be with no concept of social boundaries: I’d love to hear the back-story behind that!

… expectant, eager face stares into horrified, ‘can’t believe you just asked me that’ face …

Me: NO.

Friend next to me chimes in: You see, it’s B’s birthday, she really doesn’t want to talk about her ex.

Bride-to-be with no concept of social boundaries: Oh, ok. It’s my hen’s night tonight.

Expectant pause.

Me: It’s my birthday.

Bride-to-be with no concept of social boundaries: Ok, bye.

*stony silence

I was in shock from that conversation for quite a while. Let’s get a few things clear:

This girl, whom I had never met before, recognised me from Facebook photos of me with my ex-boyfriend. That’s how many photos of the two of us she looked at, presumably while ‘researching’ him as a potential date for her friend. I got second-hand Facebook stalked.

Secondly, having met me, this girl thought it was the perfect opportunity to do a bit of first-hand investigating and find out about my relationship and break-up with Ex, presumably for any juicy details or dark secrets, like if he cheated on me (which he did not).

Why, in any god’s name, would she think that I would discuss the private matters of my most recent and painful break up with a complete stranger whom I met at a bar while celebrating my birthday? She genuinely looked so expectant and excited when she wanted to hear ‘the back story’, anticipating that I was about to spill everything.

I’ve had a lot of people say strange things to me and I have had a lot of very odd conversations. I am not usually stumped for something to say, but a loud and indignant ‘NO’ was the only word I could manage in this situation. I’m sure if I had been more forthcoming, there would have been subsequent questions and a full-on grilling session would have ensued.

If I met the ex of someone I or a friend was dating, it would never cross my mind to ask them about their break-up. Would you? Would you question the ex to find out if someone is good enough to date your friend? 

Dear Bride-to-be, I don’t know who you were but you might want to tone it down when you’re out in public. You were creepy. I hope you had a fun night after the scaring innocent people incident. 


*fake names 

Happy Birthday to me!

Last week was my birthday. It wasn’t a hugely significant one, but it was one *one of* the last of my 20-something years.

I’m not going to write about life and time creeping up on me and all the things I haven’t yet achieved because that’s not going to be cheerful to read at all.

Instead I’m going to spend the rest of this page being smug and pleased with myself for how good my birthday was and how excellent my friends are for all the effort they put into making my day special.

For many years now, I have held joint birthday parties with a close friend who is also a February-baby. If you’ve never held a joint party before, I can highly recommend it. Halves the stress, doubles the chances that people will show. 2011 we celebrated at Alloneword, 2012 we partied at Limes. This year we have decided to get all our friends together at Alfred and Constance. That’s not for a few weeks, but organising it seemed to take up all my birthday-planning-bother. So until last weekend I was doing nothing and had no plans for my actual birth-day.

Fortunately a good friend rode in and took charge and so come Sunday night I was chauffeured to a super-secret location (my friends’ house) for a dinner with friends.

I didn't drive...

For a few years I did not enjoy my birthday. Or rather, I preferred quiet birthdays that centred around eating rather than socialising. I still don’t like the pressure of organising a birthday party by myself. Now, however, I am quite happy to pass over the reins of organisation and lap up the loving care and attention of not cooking one micron of a delicious three course meal, being plied with Mumm and Shiraz and getting to dictate my dessert of choice. Berry Clafoulis for anyone curious. Any dessert that involved berries or stone fruit is an instant favourite. Except Summer pudding, which is just red soggy bread. Serious, so unnecessary.

No birthday cake as such so I blew out candles stuck into toblerone.

 Meringues with mint-chocolate, fresh berries and cream.

 Cutting my 'cake' and a pile of delicious desserts.

 Monday morning I walked out to this on my kitchen bench;

...which is a pretty great way to start the day. Especially when you have two slices of it for breakfast. 

The rest of the day was silly gifts – including Pixar DVDs and magic bubbles – lunch at the pub, chocolates and flowers. In other words, just what a birthday should be about.

This was the first time in years I worked on my birthday. It’s sort of a personal rule to not work but rather spend the day doing all your favourite things. In 2009 I took the day off, ate raspberry tarts, drank champagne, went to see a musical and fed squirrels. That was a good birthday. However I absolutely had to go to work yesterday. Fortunately, my work colleagues made the day worthwhile and I felt very special.

 Beautiful flowers, a birthday gift form my boss.

Rounded off the day with the traditional family celebration dinner.

As with just about every situation in life, it’s the people around you that make all the difference.

A big thank you to all of my friends and family who went to so much trouble to make sure I had an excellent birthday. 

How do you buy a present for a person who has everything?

We’ve all had this problem. What do you get the person who has everything. There are stages in life when you have all that you need. Same for your friends. But birthdays and christmases still roll around regular as clockwork and as time goes on it becomes more and more difficult to find a good gift. They have enough glasses, enough earrings, enough pot plants. You gave them a DVD or book last birthday/christmas so you don’t want to do it again. Fortunately, after a while most people enter into a new stage that opens up a whole pantry of gift-giving opportunities. They buy a house or have a baby and suddenly you can get them hammers or baby books and you’re ok again for a few years.

Inevitably though, you run out again. Eventually you will run out of ideas completely.

So what do you buy the person who has Absolutely Everything they will Ever need?

I will tell you.

Mid-week silliness: the birthday scenario game

It’s so simple – match up your birth months and day to see what your ‘scenario’ would be. I feel like February kind of lucks out with the action ‘married to’. August has ‘sword fight with’! So much more scope for the imagination. 

 

 

So for my birthday – 11 February – I would be married to Pacman. That’s terrifying! He’s hungry ALL THE TIME! I’d be making pies constantly. Plus, that would make me Mrs Pacman! Though I suppose that might be the one saving grace – I get to be a video game character.

I also don't imagine Pacman as a great conversationalist. I think it really stops at 'nom nom nom'.

It could be worse. I could have ended up married to Voldemort, Sarah Palin or *shudder* Justin Bieber.  I think the only people on that list that I would want to be married to are Harry Potter and my best friend.

What's your scenario?

Monday infographic: How common is your birthday?

Haven't you ever noticed how birthdays seem to come in a rush?

Well, some clever people got together and analysed birth data between 1973 and 1999 and came up with this great chart showing the commonness of certain birth dates.

The data is for North America so some of the stats would be a little different for us but I still think it's pretty interesting. For example, September births in Australia don't signal all the winter / christmas snuggling people get up to in December. However it seems to me that I know an awful lot of September babies, so maybe we do still enjoy a bit of extra holiday 'cheer' even in the heat.

Not surprisingly, 29 February was the least common date. Valentine's day sticks out like a sore thumb as the most popular day in February as does 30 December. Looks to me like April and November babies might be the rarest. And first of October? That's all those people getting frisky at New Years ...

What I did with my surprise tax return

You may recall that a few weeks ago I got a wonderful surprise in the shape of a UK tax return from 2009. About a fortnight later I decided what I would spend it on.

Whilst reading an article about bespoke bags I noticed 'Cambridge Satchel Company' and that name rang a few bells for me, perhaps from an old copy of British Vogue. So I went to their website and … fell in love.

Cambridge Satchels are of classic British schoolyard design. They are made in Britain out of 100% leather and you can custom make your own from their website. They don't even cost a fortune. I had to have one!

The great difficulty was which one to pick?! My immediate preference was for the Batchel because it has a handle, but it only comes in 15inches, so maybe too big first time round. Then colour! Red, purple and classic tan were all wonderful if safe choices but I really wanted either yellow or green. After all, when such an amazing range of colours is presented to you, you have to be a bit out of the ordinary.

Images courtesy of the Cambridge Satchel Company website.

I canvassed 3 opinions and ultimate chose … green. And it arrived today!

There was a bag for the bag!

My GORGEOUS new satchel!

I'm so in love I don't think I'll be able to stop at one. Next it will be the Batchel which can fit a laptop, writing books and girly handbag necessities. I feel a fab new workbag coming on and perhaps even a life-long love affair.

As to cost - embossing costs £5 a letter and I chose silver to compliment the handles. The bag cost £88, embossing £5 per letter, £20 postage, total of £108 which is roughly equal to $160. Worth every penny.

My birthday gift to myself and the best way I could have spent my surprise windfall.

It's my party I'll go retro if I want to

This weekend just gone marked the start of my 10 day long birthday celebrations. Following a formula that had been so successful last year, I had a joint birthday party with two close friends and fellow aquarians, one of who also blogs over at My Heart Beats.

I had pre-party outfit panic until one day, staring at my wardrobe hoping for inspiration, I spotted a dress purchased in the post-christmas sales and not as yet worn – perfect! It was from Kitten D'Amour, a Queensland designed and made brand that make fabulous boudoir-chic clothing in limited runs. My dress was 67 of 80. It was so much fun to wear because it's the sort of dress you know you look great in; it's the sort of dress that makes you feel good, which is just what you want for a birthday dress.

The birthday girls.

Dress from Kitten D'Amour. The first of many I hope.

With thanks to the fabulous Rachael for the photo.

We invited everyone we knew who was sufficiently fabulous to have drinks at Limes Hotel. We started early to catch the sunset and I have to say that the rooftop bar is lovely in the late afternoon sun. Starting at 5 does mean that one parties for quite a looong time though...

Apologies for the lack of photos – I might have starting enjoying myself to much to think of taking photos.