Colourful Interiors: I love Embracing Colour in my Home

/ Interiors / 1 Comment

If you’ve read my blog for a while and follow my daily outfits on Instagram, you will know I love to wear colour. I also love embracing colour in my home. Colourful interiors make me happy, and I tend to gravitate towards bright colours when decorating my home.

While we have the odd feature wall throughout our house, I embrace colour through cushions, artwork and quirky décor. I also love adding shades of green with live plants.

colourful interiors

I have an eclectic mix of items that I swap around here and there.

I usually change things up straight after putting the Christmas tree away.

I thought I’d share some corners of my home that have had a bit of a refresh. The only new items on display are my Reese Witherspoon book, and two plants. I also bought new cushion covers for our outdoor setting to replace the mouldy, sun faded ones.

styling a buffet colourful interiors

The larger framed artwork is from The Block Shop, and the smaller framed artwork is by Maggie. She did this painting at Kindy, when she was 4.

I was scrolling through photos of my décor style in previous years and it’s interesting to see I display things a bit differently. Always with levels and odd numbers of items grouped together.

new planter colourful interiors

I still need to update family photos, which is on my to do list for things to get done around the house.

dining table colourful interiors

Outside, I replaced the cushion covers. I had bought ‘outdoor’ cushion covers on eBay a few years ago, but the covers faded and went mouldy after being kept outside. My two Sunburnt Outdoor Living cushion covers were great, although they had slightly faded from the sun.

I had bought these in a seconds sale for my grandma as it was hard to find 60cm x 60cm sized cushion covers. But when I received them, the colour was not what I expected so I kept them for myself (too bright for Grandma). I wanted to refresh those cushions, so when the Boxing Day Sales arrived, I bought two new cushion covers.

colourful interiors outdoor area

I’m really happy with how they look outside. The two small cushion covers are from Bunnings, which I had bought a while ago. This area is where I like to retreat with Jacob to watch the kids play in the yard.

outdoor area colourful interiors

I’ve never had a flair for interior styling, but I do enjoy reading interior style blogs and take styling cues from their displays.

TV Cabinet display

Everything I have on display speaks ‘home’ to me. Sometimes the kids add their own outdoor ‘treasures’ to my displays.

colourful side cabinet display

Do you love colourful interiors? Or do you prefer a neutral home interior? Do you change your home around after Christmas or at the start of a new year?

Love Themed Accessories & Gifts For Yourself or a Friend You Love

/ Lifestyle / 0 comment

February is the first Birthday month for us where two members of our family will have their Birthdays less than one week apart. One of those Birthdays falls on Valentine’s Day. And despite the hype and commercialism of the day, I still manage to receive something small from my husband, even though it’s HIS Birthday, and he should be the one getting all the gifts.

It doesn’t take much to appreciate the one you love and a simple gift or message of appreciation can do this. Love themed accessories can also be a well received gift.

I do know that it can be a hard day for those that aren’t partnered or no longer have their partner. No doubt it can be a tough day, but perhaps we can shift our focus to the ones we love in life (kids, parents, siblings, other family and friends), and the people who love us back. Why not use Valentine’s Day as a way to send a card to a friend you love and appreciate? Life can be so busy, we don’t often let our friends know we appreciate them.

If you want to give more than a card, these love themed accessories come in under $40 and are a fun take on the Valentine theme.

Love Themed Accessories

love themed accessories

From top left to right, clockwise

Heart Hoops $21.12

Neon Cherry Matt Black XO Earrings $18.95 (they are listed as noughts and crosses but I see them as a hug and kiss 😉 ) *

Ruby Olive Maiocchi Earrings $19.00

Miss Monogram Olivia Key Ring – Red Envy $39.95 *

Heartbeat Ring $22.95

Aloe You Vera Much Planter $25.70

Add To Cart Sweetheart Earrings $20*

Heart Button Necklace $20.40

Maybe you could gift yourself with one of these accessories too? I like to sometimes accessorise to the theme of a day just for fun. Wearing some heart shaped or xo earrings are an easy way to do that.

Do you celebrate Valentine’s Day? Ever dress to the theme of a day?

Disclosure: There are affiliate links on this post. Should you choose to purchase an item, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. There are also links to new small businesses who would appreciate your support. I receive no commission from these, just happy to share about them. I’ve put an * next to these. 

How to Shop Like a Personal Stylist – The All Occasion Dress

/ Fashion / 0 comment

Dresses are a favourite staple in my wardrobe. In summer, they make dressing for the day easy. You slip that dress on, add shoes and accessories and you’re ready to go. The all occasion dress is my go to dress to wear throughout the week.

The next post in my shop like a personal stylist series is sharing dresses for all occasions: Dresses that can be worn to work, a catch-up with friends, to church, a conference or worn just because. They could even be dressed up to go to a special occasion like a wedding or cocktail event.

all occasion dress

Most of my wardrobe is made up of dresses for all occasions.

If I have to go into work, I will opt to wear one of my all occasion dresses.

I used to segregate my clothes for different occasions, but now I try to wear as much as I own in my wardrobe to enjoy the clothes I have.

How many times have you kept a new dress for a special occasion and only worn it once? For a formal or cocktail dress, this is different. But for a newly bought all occasion dress… it should be worn more than once. Wearing a dress to different occasions is a way to get more cost per wear.

Having dresses that work for all occasions will look a bit different for everyone. I’ve compiled some dresses below and you will notice most have sleeves and the hem will finish just above or below the knee. I’ve chosen this style as this will suit most workplaces. (Of course, a sleeveless dress can be worn with a blazer if needed – like the Gorman Geo Print Dress.)

Here are some All Occasion Dresses I’ve found online

I’ve taken one dress from this collection to show you how it can be worn differently to three different occasions.

One All Occasion Dress Worn Three Ways

Do you own an all occasion dress? Or do you prefer to segregate your dresses for different events?

Disclosure: There are affiliate links on this post. Should you choose to purchase an item, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.

How to Wear a Kimono Three Ways

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Owning a piece of clothing that can be worn multiple times to create different outfits is something I consider a good purchase. This forms part of how to shop like a personal stylist. Today I wanted to show you how to wear a Kimono three ways. You would have seen me feature this kimono back on this post about casual outfits.

Wearing a kimono three ways

When I look for pieces to add to my wardrobe, it has to be something that is missing or something I want more of to give me choice. My wardrobe is well curated. My stance has changed over the years to buy less, and wear more of what I own.

But there are times where I will find a piece that I love. And I really loved the look of this Spell Designs Kimono when I first saw it. For this particular piece, I left it for 48 hours to think about whether I needed it or not.

The want gave way though and I added it to cart after time away from the computer.

I could imagine myself wearing this kimono open as a layer over a tee and jeans or tee and jean shorts. I could also wear it as a dress. However, experience has taught me cross over belted dresses often have me constantly doing this (see pic below). So it definitely needs a slip worn underneath.

tying kimono

I still love it and I’m very grateful I was able to purchase it as it is no longer available online.

Check out other kimonos available at Spell if you would like to add this type of item to your wardrobe.

How to Wear a Kimono Three Ways

As a Kimono Dress

wearing a kimono three ways

Layered over shorts

wearing kimono over shorts

Layered over jeans

wearing kimono over jeans

There are slits under the arms to give the kimono a slight billowy feel. Without a cami or tee underneath, I’d feel exposed.

Despite this, I still love it and can’t wait to wear it once the weather drops below 30 degrees.

I might even slip it over my swimmers when I head to the beach. Now, I’ve found 4 ways to wear this piece. 😉

Do you own a kimono? Have you ever bought anything from Spell Designs?

Disclosure: There are affiliate links on this post. Should you choose to purchase an item, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. 

How to Shop Like a Personal Stylist – Capsule Workwear Wardrobe With Colour

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We spend one third of our day at work, five (give or take) days a week, so having workwear outfits is a must. Your work environment will determine what type of clothes can be worn to work. Some workplaces have a relaxed view to corporate wear, and I have gone with this approach when creating this capsule workwear wardrobe with colour. This is the second post in my How to Shop Like a Personal Stylist series.

How to shop like a personal stylist

Gone are the days where black and white are the uniform colours for the office. Don’t get me wrong, they have their place and they look smart, but adding colour to your workwear wardrobe can brighten your day and most likely the atmosphere in the office.

I created this capsule workwear wardrobe with colour to show how easy it is to mix and match 3 shirts and 3 bottoms with the right accessories to create multiple outfits. This wardrobe is for a Summer update. To add more outfits, incorporate dresses (this will be a future post 🙂 )

For my capsule workwear wardrobe, I’ve stuck with black and white with colour pops of red, baby blue and blush.


Capsule Workwear Wardrobe with colour

1. The Everyday Blazer $89.95

2. Belle Polka Dot Blouse $79.95

3. The Crossover Blouse in Blue $89.95

4. Batik Border Neckerchief $14.95

5. Jo Mercer Blush Patent Leather Heels $99.95

6. Frankie 4 Tessa Black Heels $219.95

7. Oroton Estate Medium Tote Real Red Deep Blue $104.95

8. Gorman Geo Flower Linen Culotte $151.20

9. Jacqui E Elle Linen Patch Pocket Skirt $62.96

10. Little Party Dress Polka Dot Pants $59.95

11. Bird Keepers The Everyday Shirt in Rose $99.95

I follow the same principle as the casual outfit post (which you can read here to get your weekend outfits sorted). Each shirt should be able to go with each bottom. It may need an accessory to tie it together.

Here are my three base outfits.

Workwear outfit one

 

workwear outfit 2

workwear outfit 3

I then mix and match to create more outfits. The neckerchief has the blue, red and pink in it, which ties those particular outfits together.

blue red and blush

Mix and match blush blouses

Mix and match spots

This last outfit is fun because it matches a pattern within a pattern. The culottes have a similar spot pattern as the blouse. The neckerchief doesn’t have to be worn with this outfit. I think it would like great both with or without – it’s your preference.


spots and culottes

With three bottoms and three tops, I have created nine outfits from this capsule workwear wardrobe.

The shoes can be worn with all nine outfits so you can get the most wear out of your heels. Flat are always a good option – but I have found heels from Frankie 4 and Jo Mercer are good to my feet.

Do you work from a capsule workwear wardrobe when dressing for work? Which outfit would you wear to work?

Disclosure: There are affiliate links in this post. Should you choose to purchase an item, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. 

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