Amy Winehouse. Even her name seems to be mocking her alcoholism, but she's apparently going to be making a comeback in the form of designing a clothing line with Fred Perry. The scary part? The designs are actually pretty good. Although that could just be my love of tartan talking.

Old School Style

Vintage-inspired looks have been making a comeback as of late, which is something I can defiantly get behind. I've always loved older styles, especially the late 50s/early 60s stuff, every since I bought my first high-waisted floral skirt allllll they way back in year 9 of high school. So naturally when I heard about Mad Men, which takes place during that exact era and designers were citing the show as an influence, I had to see it.

I loved it. Even setting the amazing clothes aside, the show itself - the characters, the plot, the dialogue between characters - is absolute perfection. Even the casual sexism of the male characters doesn't bother me too much (it's not like they could take it out of the show), because the show itself isn't sexist. Each episode gives as much time to the lives of Betty, Joan and Peggy as it does to Don, Roger and Pete.

The women of Mad Men (L-R: Betty, Joan and Peggy)

I've only seen the first season so far, but already my love of Betty and Joan knows no bounds (my love of Peggy, not so much, but I hear she gets more awesome next season).

Betty Draper

Betty's Grace-Kelly-esque style is one of my favourite styles in the show. She always looks the part of a perfect 50s housewife, even when (spoiler) daydreaming about the door-to-door salesman or being asked for a lock of hair by a neighbourhood child.

Get Betty's look: (clicking on the pretty pictures takes you to their store)

Joan Holloway

Joan is my favourite character, so I'm probably being a little biased when I tell you that she is awesome. She has curves and is sassy and bitchy and so confident. I know I should like Peggy more because she has aspirations to have a career outside of being a secretary. But I think that's the beauty of Joan's character: she's good at what she does, and she looks the best doing it.

But really, anything that figure-hugging and shows off your curves works wonders if you're going for the Joan look. Bold colours and cuts match Joan's personality because she has a confidence to carry it off - and you guys should too.

Get Joan's look:

Fashion Under the Influence

(from Hark! A Vagrant)

Today for my Adaptations class we watched the 1995 miniseries version of Pride and Prejudice*, and while watching it I couldn't help but wonder how much of my fashion taste has been influenced by watching the series when I was little.

For example, my love-standing love of bonnets, particularly of the straw-and-flowers variety:THEY ARE SO CUTE, but so hard to find.

And my love of crop-jackets:

(especially this one, the puffy sleeves are so adorable)

Not to mention my love of Colin Firth, rufflely-haired men in suits (I had waaay too much fun fiding those pictures), old fashioned dances and tea, and my dislike of boy-chasers (see: every scene with Lydia in it).

Despite that fact that my mother is quite a tomboy, I turned out to be quite the girly-girl, and I think this might go some way to explain it.


*if you've only ever seen the newer Keira Knightley version SHAME ON YOU, the mini series is way better.

Sale Report: Gilles Street Markets

Although I hadn't been for ages, I went to the Gilles Street Markets with my cousin. I remembered it being quite good value and I was not wrong. I didn't pay over $10 for anything all day, and a majority of my purchases were $5 and under, especially towards the end of the day.

We were there all day, which really is the best way to go about it. Getting there when it opens (10am) means you get the really good stuff before anyone else (I got a 70's disco dress for $5), and staying later means you get things at reduced prices (I got a green sailor dress for $2, plus a dress my cousin had seen earlier had gone down from $40 to $10).

Seriously, if you have a chance to get to one, I'd defiantly recommend it. The next one is on the 21st of this month.

Sale Report: Globalize

Usually I avoid places like Globalize like the plague. Anything in there is over $50, so to go in there would only mean torturing myself. However, a few times a year they have a huuuge sale. In the past I've avoided these as well, on the basis of my "if it's over $30 then it's not really on sale" rule. But I was in Rundle Mall, and I saw "nothing over $40" posters plastering the windows, so I thought "why not?". I am so glad I did.

Piper Lane Flamingo Mini Skirt
It was: $89. 95
I got it for: $20

Evil Twin Insane In the Membrane Crop-Tee
It was: $59.95

I got it for: $20








Mooks T-shirt
It was: $49.95
I got it for: $20
(I find this slogan hilarious)







Plus a brown gingham scarf and a lace scarf (2 for $15), black and white check shoes ($5 down from $45 - defiantly my favourite bargain of the day) and pink velveteen shoes with these adorable bows ($14 down from $30).

If you are down Rundle Mall way any time soon, I would most defiantly advise you to check it out.

Recipe Time: Super-Easy All-Together Cake

When I moved out of home two-and-a-bit years ago I could not cook at all. I mean, I could make plain pasta, and I knew (more or less) how kitchen implements worked, but I'd never cooked a meal ever. While lining up to buy my very first text books at the uni book store I was looking over the racks (anyone who's tried to buy textbooks during the rush period will tell you, it's a freaking long line), and I saw this gem, sitting in the recipe section - Afternoon Tea. Recipes that had been tried and tested over the years, and had been compiled by a magazine that I've come to adore, Frankie.

It had pretty pictures, not very many or hard-to-find ingredients and very simple looking recipes. And so, eager to use this to learn to cook, I bought it. Defiantly one of my better impulse buys. I've used it almost constantly since then, and the recipes have yet to fail me. The chocolate icing from the peppermint chocolate cake recipe is constantly praised, and the all-together cake is always a hit.


All-Together Cake

Ingredients:
1/4 cup milk
125g butter
3/4 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon flour
1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 cup self-raising flour

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.
2. Combine all ingredients, and beat for approximately 6 minutes.
3. Pour into greased cake tin and bake for 40 minutes.
4. DONE

Easiest. Cake. Ever.


Chocolate Icing

Ingredients:
1 cup icing sugar
1 heaped tablespoon cocoa powder
2 tablespoons melted butter
2 drop peppermint essence (that is, if you want it to be mint flavoured. If you'd rather just plain chocolate icing, you can just leave out the peppermint essence)

Method:

1. Mix all ingredients until smooth.
2. Ice completely cool cake with a hot knife.

from Afternoon Tea (by Frankie Magazine)

Good Weird or Bad Weird?

People's clothes are the first thing I notice about then. It's slightly superficial, but it's true, especially if they have weird clothes. I'm not saying that 'weird' is necessarily a bad thing, but sometimes it's just plain wrong.

Seen: at Glenelg beach, South Australia.

I'll admit, this outfit hits two of my pet peeves crocs and the all-black-ensemble*. Plus the hammer pants seemed to be made of silk. So it would have been a bit like wearing pyjamas.

Seen: on some golf show.

I don't know what to think about this one. On one hand I love the fact that the guy wearing it seemed like more of a white-beater/jeans kind of guy. And I defiantly loved the ridiculousness of it (so. much. pink.). But it was a weird one.

Have any of you guys seen any weird-bad or weird-good outfits lately?


*It can sometimes work, but I always feel like there should be some colour there, or even greys/whites. Unless, you know, you actually are at a funeral.