A wonderful trip to Melbourne | photos

I’VE just got back from a few amazing days in Melbourne!
One of my lovely friends Kelsey moved there a few years ago and since her wedding is fast approaching and I’m one of the bridesmaids, I headed over with our friend Lisha to help her begin looking for wedding dresses.
It was a jam-packed few days but I would do it again in a heartbeat!
Today I wanted to share some of my photos with you and take a look back at this trip.

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

Oh Melbourne!

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

This is a good way to fly. An incredible magazine, too.

Plane views over the clouds | Extraordinary Days

I love getting the window seat.

Holographic handbag and black floral dress | Extraordinary Days

I love holographic bags.

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

It’s not Melbourne without a funky cocktail bar – this was at Cabinet in the CBD.

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

A sequin skirt and sandals for a busy day of shopping!

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

I love dessert!

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

Arthur’s Seat views. Breathtaking!

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

The beautiful restaurant at Arthur’s seat.

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

I was asked if I was a make up artist when I bought all of this! Needless to say I was VERY flattered.

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

Out for breakfast!

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

I love a big breakfast.

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

The Tea Salon in Emporium. This place is just adorable!

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

Cakes at The Tea Salon.

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

Luxurious ice tea from The Tea Salon.

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

Beautiful!

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

I love these ladies!

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

MY FAVOURITE PLACE.

Melbourne holiday - black sneaker heels | Extraordinary Days

I wore these new babies on the plane and felt pretty cool.

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

I kept busy on the flight home with A Beautiful Mess’ blogging course and Firefly.

Melbourne holiday | Extraordinary Days

Sort of caught the sunset.

I had such a good time! The wedding dress shopping was successful and we got our bridesmaid’s dresses sorted.
We also took a trip out to the Peninsula Hot Springs – this was an absolutely incredible experience and deserves a post of its own – so stay tuned for that.
If you follow me on Instagram you will have seen I bought an incredible handbag while I was away… but this also deserves a post all to itself! It’ll be up as a bonus post this week.
And best of all I got to spend lots of quality time with two of my favourite friends, who always know how to have a good time.
Every time I visit this city I just want to pack my bags and move over there. Maybe I will, one day.

Have you ever been to Melbourne? What did you think?

 

Festival fun in a bright orange kaftan

SUMMER means it’s the festival season!
Just a quick post today as I’m flying off to Melbourne today to see some lovely friends who are lucky enough to live over there!
(I’ll be bringing you photos from my trip later in the week so stay tuned for that.)
I went to the H2Overflow event held in the Perth CBD yesterday afternoon/evening with my friend Hayley and it was such a great experience!

Festival outfit | Extraordinary Days

Time to party!

Festival outfit | Extraordinary Days

This kaftan is in such a fun colour!

I was definitely easy to spot from a distance!
I kept my hair simple with a tidy bun to keep it out of my eyes and threw on a cross-body bag and minimal silver accessories.

Festival outfit | Extraordinary Days

I really need to bring out these sunglasses more often.

Sunglasses are always a must for outdoor events and I picked out this really cute Dotti floral pair for the day.
My silver glitter jelly sandals brought the whole thing together. I’ve said in a previous post that these are really comfortable and easy to wear all day – they’re my go-to summer footwear, especially when there will be lots of dancing and foam involved!

Festival outfit | Extraordinary Days

Shiny nails to match my shiny sandals!

Festival fun | Extraordinary Days

A foam pit with very little foam left!

Festival fun | Extraordinary Days

Silent disco!

It was such a good day!
What are your fashion go-to items for festivals and concerts? Let me know in the comments!

Red lipstick and a long black lace dress

IT’S party time!
I wore this little black lace number to the engagement party of two lovely friends of mine recently. (It was a big week – we also attended a wedding too!)

Black lace dress and Samantha Wills rose gold necklace | Extraordinary Days

I love this bright red lipstick against the black.

I found this dress is a little boutique on a cobblestone street in Florence, Italy, when I was there last year, but you can see similar styles here, here and here!
I wasn’t looking for anything in particular but it caught my eye!
I am so in love with the high-low hem and the shape of the dress.
While I was initially worried I’d end up looking similar to Morticia Adams, the higher hem and the front and the fact it’s sleeveless take away some of the harshness.

Black lace dress and Samantha Wills rose gold necklace | Extraordinary Days

This was a GOOD hair day!

The waistline fits like an absolute dream and the skirt is so fun to swish around!
I took along an adorable owl face handbag from H&M that was a gift from my lovely friend Catherine!

Owl face handbag with Samantha Wills necklace | Extraordinary Days

I love owls!

Owl face handbag | Extraordinary Days

It’s hard to take photos with a kitty who wants attention!

Unfortunately it’s sold out now but there are some other owl bags here and here.
I also wore my Samantha Wills white howlite mineral necklace, as I wanted something with a long but dainty chain to break up all the black.
Did you catch the last time I wore this necklace?
The black stiletto heels were a holiday purchase from a tiny shoe store on Santorini. (Similar style here.)

Black lace dress and Samantha Wills rose gold necklace | Extraordinary Days

This is a very good dress for swishing around in.

And finally, a slick of red lipstick brought the whole outfit together! I wore Australis Colour Inject Mineral Lipstick in Cha Cha.

Would you take on a black lace dress? How would you style it? Let me know in the comments!

Flowers and lavender dresses and weddings, oh my!

WEDDINGS are so much fun!
Last week I was lucky enough to attend the wedding of two old friends of mine, Sarah and Leslie.
They sure know how to put on a good party!

Lavender formal dress | Extraordinary Days

This breezy lavender dress was perfect for the hot weather.

As the ceremony was on a really warm day I wanted to wear something that would keep me cool so this little lavender dress fit the bill.
The flowy skirt wasn’t restrictive and the ruffled straps added something a bit different to the dress.
I wore silver sandals for the ceremony as it was on grass but donned a pair of incredible white Windsor Smith heels for the reception. (See them here or a similar style here.) I want so many pairs of shoes from their collection!

Lavender formal dress, silver glitter bag and white platform heels | Extraordinary Days

These chunky white Windsor Smith heels were easy to walk in.

I knew I wanted to wear my hair up to keep it out of my face and off the back of my neck but I jazzed it up with some adorable K is for Kani flower hair clips.
I bought these quite a while ago and have also worn them with more casual outfits. See them here and check out the rest of her amazing headband and flower crown collection here.

Lavender formal dress and floral hair clips | Extraordinary Days

These flower hair clips are just adorable!

For my accessories I stuck with shiny silver druzy earrings, a glittery bag and my staple chunky silver watch that was a birthday gift a few years ago.

Silver watch, earrings and floral hairclips | Extraordinary Days

Accessories from the day.

All in all it was a lovely day!
The reception was at the Aquarium of Western Australia and included time to walk around and check out the aquatic creatures before the party started.

Photobooth fun with the blushing bride!

Photobooth fun with the blushing bride!

"Hot couple"!

“Hot couple”!

Congratulations to the bride and groom!
What would you wear for a summer wedding? Let me know in the comments!

MAC Saint Germain lipstick vs Savvy High Shine lipgloss

I CAN’T get enough of light, bright pink lip colours right now!
Today I wanted to review two very eye-catching lip products in my collection that are similar shades, MAC’s Saint Germain and Savvy High Shine Paparazzi.
Let’s start with Saint Germain.

MAC Saint Germaine lipstick and Savvy High Shine lipgloss | Extraordinary Days

Can you tell that lipgloss has rolled around in my handbag for a long time?

When I first picked out this colour I was intending to match it to the dress I wore to the Melbourne Cup last year.
Needless to say I should have actually brought the dress with me to the shops that day because while it would have gone well with the fluoro pink (can you tell yet that I’m a huge fan of fluoro?) it’s not quite what I was going for.

Melbourne Cup fluoro pink dress | Extraordinary Days

This was an amazing day!

But I’ve since teamed Saint Germain with other outfits like a little black dress and I really love how bright it is!
As far as lip liners go I’ve worn this shade just by itself with MAC’s lip clear lip primer underneath, with a rose-coloured liner and also with a bit of concealer on my lips to make the colour really pop.
My favourite was the concealer just for that boost to the colour but I really enhancing my Cupid’s bow when I don’t wear lip liner so I’ll probably just continue to change it up depending on how I feel.
I love how bright this is when you first put it on but unfortunately, I’ve found the vibrancy just doesn’t last.
That said, it’s still a lovely rosy colour when it does fade and I think there’d be people out there who would prefer that to how full-on if is when it’s first applied but I’m just not one of them.
Of course, there’s always the option to just keep applying it to keep the colour vibrant but that wouldn’t be my first choice.
Before I found Saint Germain my go-to product for that sort of shade was Savvy High Shine gloss in Paparazzi.

MAC Saint Germaine lipstick and Savvy High Shine lipgloss | Extraordinary Days

These two are a bright pair.

When I first saw the two side by side I thought they were very similar and it wasn’t until I put them together on the back of my hand that I saw Paparazzi is much darker.
Still, I think it gives that punchy colour I was aiming for on my lips and the thicker consistency makes the coverage a bit more even.
In terms of how long they last, in my books a lipstick will usually always win and this is no exception.
While I like lip glosses sometimes, at the end of the day if can’t stand up to me having a meal then it’s probably not going to be one of my favourites.
(My ultimate go-to lipstick/liner combination for THE LONGEST wear in my collection can be found here.)
So for my final verdict, both of these products are great if you bear in mind the colour-fade issue.

Would you wear either of these lip products? Let me know in the comments!

Black and white striped dress

HELLO summer! I wore this outfit out to lunch last week so I didn’t melt in the heat.
This striped dress is something I’ve had sitting in my wardrobe for months but I’d never worn it.
The tags were still on and everything!

Black and white striped dress | Extraordinary Days

The weather was great that day!

As part of my plan to get in control of my finances this year (more about this in my 2015 goals post) I’m trying not to buy any clothes and shoes, which means digging through my existing wardrobes instead.
(Yes, you read that correctly, wardrobes plural. I have a lot of clothes, okay?)
I was fun to pick this out and remember why I bought it – it’s adorable! It’s from a store called SES but unfortunately they don’t have an online shopping section! (What a shame.)
I was worried about looking about like a prison inmate or someone in pajamas but after wearing it, I think it’s a winner.

Black and white striped dress | Extraordinary Days

A high bun is definitely my go-to hairstyle for a lazy day.

I wore a black Cotton On long singlet dress (find it here) and threw in my usual fluoro pink Aldo bag and fluoro pink sandals.
The small belt attached to this dress helps give me a waist despite the stripes but, as it’s brown, I will probably change this for a black belt in the future.
A high bun to keep my hair out of my face and off the back of my neck is also one of my go-to hairstyles.

Black and white striped dress | Extraordinary Days

Fluoro pink every day!

Would you wear vertical stripes? Let me know in the comments!

Samantha Wills white howlite necklace

LAST week I celebrated my two-year anniversary with my lovely boyfriend and I was lucky enough to be spoiled with a Samantha Wills necklace!
I’d been eying off this Australian designer’s collection for a while now and there are so many things I want from her collection!

Ready for Mexican food!

Ready for Mexican food!

I chose the White Howlite necklace from the minerals collection – a pendant with a fine rose gold chain and a dainty name plate with the stone’s meaning: calming and stress relief.
I don’t really believe in minerals having real-world applications but it’s still really beautiful.
(And hey, worst case scenario, a little calm is something I could definitely use in my daily life.)

Samantha Wills White Howlite necklace

It’s just so dainty!

The rose gold wouldn’t usually have been my first choice as I mostly wear silver but the only necklace in the collection with a silver chain had a black onyx stone that I felt just didn’t suit me.
But I really like how it looks against a whole range of colours, especially black.
Other stones available included amethyst, rose quartz, lapis and a turquoise stone. (See the collection here.)

Samantha Wills White Howlite necklace

I am drooling.

The chain has two extra rings on it to allow you to wear it shorter if you like – I’ve been wearing it at its longest length.
It came in a beautiful wooden box with flowers stencilled into the top – something I’ll definitely keep on display.
For the rest of the outfit, the Portmans shorts were a gift from my lovely friend Candice. (Similar here and for the heels, see a similar pair here.)

black and white Portmans shorts

I love these shorts so much!

They’re quite fitted at the waist and although I’m always paranoid about spilling something whenever I wear white, the tropical print is fun and I think they’ll feature heavily in the rest of my summer wardrobe.
We took these photos before going out for Mexican at my favourite restaurant – he’s always so patient when taking outfit photos!
I really couldn’t ask for a better boyfriend and we’ve got so many adventures planned for the future.
Here’s to many more years!

Extraordinary Days

Nothing says ‘couple’ like matching floral in a tropical location.

What’s your favourite piece of jewellery? Let me know in the comments!

Full-time fashion blogger shirt

OKAY, I’m wearing this top with only like 80 per cent irony.
When I saw it in an Ally store a while ago, I just couldn’t go past it! I first showed you this shirt in my post about my new 2015 diary.

full time fashion blogger top

Last-minute adjustments.

I wore this for a fun day out of hitting op-shops and lunching with my lovely friend Candice. It was really hot so I tucked it into a little black Cotton On skater skirt (similar here) and threw on my glittery jelly sandals.
This shirt has got a fairly loose fit but I like the shape the rolled sleeves give the shirt and, as it was a bit too thin to wear on its own, I wore a white spaghetti strap singlet underneath.

full time fashion blogger top

Hello, summer!

While we were waiting to pick up Indian food for lunch we snapped some photos in a really cool graffitied alley behind a bar.You can pick you your very own shirt like this one here.

full time fashion blogger top

I’m always searching for something in my bottomless pit of a handbag.

Okay everyone, let’s have a show of hands, would you wear this shirt?
Also, if YOU’RE a fashion blogger, make sure to post the link to your little bit of the internet below so I can see!

Three ways to make your outfit sparkle on NYE

NEW Year’s Eve is almost upon us!
Aside from freaking out about where the year has gone, I’m starting to plan my outfit for the big night.
I’m a huge fan of sequins, glitter any anything else that shines but it can be daunting to put these into an outfit without looking like a walking disco ball, especially for more casual events.
Here are three easy ways to throw in a bit of shine into your look, to get 2015 off to a great start!

blue maxi dress ootd NYE

We’re set for a warm NYE! I’ll be by the pool.

A sequinned belt:
I paired this gold belt with a floaty maxi dress and sandals for a low-key bit of sparkle.
NYE is usually hot even after the sun goes down in Australia so this would be great for a barbecue or a few relaxed drinks with friends.
It’s not too over-the-top but is still fun.
I threw in a plain white clutch so the belt would be the feature and my gold Juicy Couture charm bracelet – a gift from my lovely sister on a recent trip to Hong Kong. (There’s a close-up photo of these jewellery pieces at the bottom of this post.)

blue maxi dress ootd

This outfit is perfect for a more casual shindig.

blue maxi dress ootd NYE

Gold accessories bring the whole thing together.

The showstopper:
This gold sequinned top is definitely in my top ten favourite items in my wardrobe.
You’re not going to be missed in this thing!
This shirt has a black faux-leather (pleather) back and sleeves so it’s not full-on sequins the whole way around.
I paired it with a plain black skirt and minimal accessories – this top does all the talking.

gold sequin top ootd NYE

The faux-leather backing makes this shirt a bit warm, though.

Shiny accessories:
If you’re searching for something minimal to add to your outfit, simple, shiny accessories are always a good option.
This cat ear headband is a bit silly and fun but definitely cute!
Make-up wise I’m going to be keeping things pretty simple – just pink lips and liquid eyeliner.
For this look I used MAC’s Magenta lip liner and Max Factor’s Flipstick Colour Effect in Boreal Mauve 15.

cat ears headband ootd NYE

I love this headband!

Let’s take another look at the accessories I used for these outfits.
The big silver necklace from my dolphin skirt OOTD post would also be a winner, especially if paired with a little black dress.
You can pick up a Juicy Couture charm bracelet just like mine here.

So many shiny things in one image.

So many shiny things in one image.

This bracelet just gets me.

This bracelet just gets me.


What are you wearing on New Year’s Eve? Let me know in the comments!

My favourite dolphin skirt

I LOVE any item of clothing that has animals on it, so this skirt is one of my favourites.
I bought it from a rack of clothes outside a tiny store in Singapore’s Chinatown.

I took this look to a friend’s birthday party this weekend.

I paired the bright skirt with a pop of pink in my handbag and my biggest, shiniest necklace.
The necklace was another travel purchase – I picked it up in Florence in a random boutique.
It was just so over-the-top that I knew I had to buy it!
I’m house-sitting at the moment so today I had a canine helper for my photos!
I also put on Lime Crime’s Centrifuschia lipstick — I can’t get enough of this fun colour. Read my review of it here.

Dolphin skirt ootd

I think he approves of my dolphins.

I'm a cat person but I just can't resist that face!

I’m a cat person but I just can’t resist that face!

Do you have a favourite piece of animal-print clothing? I’d love to hear about it!