There are quite a few online OUTLET and CLEARANCE shops out there – selling great stuff for 50% – 70% off. All. The. Time.

Sometimes it can be a bit tricky to keep tabs on the frequency of new arrivals and quality of the stock. But when you hit a gold mine, it’s pretty hard to resist.

I was browsing the ASOS Outlet Shop (you have to click the OUTLET tab) and I found heaps of awesome dresses for under £30.

Enjoy your weekend! xxx

…

Check out more of my favourite online shops in my Women’s Online Fashion Shopping Guide.

Most times I consider myself a city girl. I enjoy crowds, tall buildings, air conditioning, wireless internet connection and hairdryers!

But there is also a part of me that craves simplicity.

Sometimes I need to strip away the unnecessary add-ons of my life and live simply.

I guess, that’s what I love about camping.

It makes me reassess what I need in order to survive. It makes me realise what I CAN and CANNOT live without. It makes me choose. And cull.

I found that living with less makes me focus on nature, and its pleasures.

There’s just something intoxicating about waking up at sunrise and breathing in the morning air of the bush. It is heavy, dewy, cold, and rich with the smells of wet wood, damp earth and grass.

And like in the photo above, to mix in more smells of hot, freshly brewed tea, sizzling bacon and eggs, warm toasted bread and burning wood – ahh, it’s amazing.

I think living simply brings about a certain kind of happiness and contentment.

I should really do it more often.

And I should at least try a little harder to bring some of that contented simplicity back into my normal life.

(You might find it interesting to note, that we can’t live without ceramic tea cups.)

So I’m trying to write a review about the latest collection of clothes from Singapore Designer AL&ALICIA – but I can’t seem to do it without gushing and squealing. I’m completely in love with their clothes!!!

Their designer rundown is brilliant, it sums up their look perfectly –
Al likes tailoring with a masculine edge.
Alicia likes all things flirty and feminine.
The two of them combined is AL&ALICIA
Where boy meets girl to create a subtly androgynous look
The truth is that Al is Alicia. And Alicia is Al.
A schizophrenic duo, designing together.

Above I’m wearing the Eye Spy Tank, and Boy Washed Shorts. And I am also sporting a Rayon Twill Blazer in Wind Chime (an off white colour).

I absolutely LOVE THIS LOOK, especially with my Converse Chucks. I’d be so, so, so happy walking around Singapore for hours dressed like this.

My favourite item so far is the Rayon Twill Blazer. Gorgeous, soft and I can’t get over the way it falls and swishes around my body!

My usual style leans more towards flirty and feminine, and I tend to stay away from boyish shapes. But AL&ALICIA has a very, very cool thing going with this combination of “boyish girliness” and I just might do a bit more of it.

On the left, again I’m wearing the Rayon Twill Blazer in Wind Chime (I’m in love!). The top is the Alexa Pocket Blouse, and the shorts are the Annie Belted Shorts.

On the right I’m wearing, the Stacy Shirt and the Annie Belted Shorts again.

The designer behind AL&ALICIA is Alicia Ong. Born in Singapore, trained in fashion in New York, with internships in Marc Jacobs, J.Crew and DKNY. All her clothes are made with amazing quality and style, and they are all made in Singapore.

You can buy her clothes from the AL & ALICIA online shop.

Or New York’s eDressme.com/al-alicia

( See all my Daily Outfits here )

…

Check out more of my favourite online shops in my Women’s Online Fashion Shopping Guide.

A couple of days ago, my husband came home from helping a friend clean up storm damaged trees in the backyard.

In amongst all the dead branches, they found not one, but two bird nests. At first, they thought one had an egg in it, but it was just a gum nut caught in the grass lining of the nest.

It’s simply amazing that birds can make such a thing. And I was most impressed by the differences between the nests.

One is woven entirely from twigs, each twig curved by beak, and then lined with grass. It is exactly what you image birds would build! Like in a cartoon!

But the other is made of a kind of felt of feathers, human string, and what looks like spider webs.

It has all been so beautifully merged together that it looks like it was produced out of a steam pressing mould. It smells as clean as if I just bought it from an expensive boutique. I suppose it has been washed by the rain.

How long does it take to collect all those spider web threads? Why would two different species of birds need such different nests?

I know there are answers somewhere, I just don’t know them.

So I’ll just enjoy being amazed, and add these to my collection of inspirational nature things I have on top of my computer monitor.

Next month, I will be flying to Singapore to attend my cousin’s wedding. I’ll only be there for 2 days, but I’m quite excited. I can’t wait to party with my relatives!

It just so happens that my cousin is Peranakan/Chinese, and her husband-to-be is Scottish/American. So the theme of the wedding is Kilts and Kebayas, and all the guests are supposed to dress up accordingly.

But the problem is, I had no idea what a kebaya is! I admit I’m not that well educated!

So the other day, I blurted out to some Singaporean friends – Does someone have a kebaya I can borrow to try out? I needed some kabaya wearing experience!

My friend, bless her, raced home and grabbed this for me.

It fit me perfectly, like it was tailored just for me! And the fabric was quite beautiful. So, I was beginning to like kebayas.

It turns out that a kebaya is traditional dress made up of a blouse and sarong, worn by women in Brunei, Burma, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. Each culture has a slightly different interpretation of the kebaya. And there are different patterns, fabrics, embellishments and beadings.

My cousin is half Peranakan, which is a distinct Chinese/Malay mixture ethnic group, and they ALSO have their own kebaya style.

So I did a quick search on this newfangled thing called the INTERNET, and it led me to many images of super hot chicks in sheer blouses covered with flowers. I was sold. I want one now!

I also found this beautiful photo of some lovely Peranakan ladies sporting some gorgeous, authentic Peranakan kebayas.

They are so beautiful!

So again, I searched the internet. And me, supposedly being the online shopping queen, could not seem to find a place to buy an authentic Peranakan kebaya online. But I did discovered that authentic kebayas can cost between $400 to $800 for the full set.

SO. EVENTUALLY. I have sourced an actual (not online) kebaya shop, and I talked to a lovely lady (on the phone) who assures me that there are authentic Peranakan kebayas in my size for $140, in some nice colours. But I am in Perth. The kebaya shop is in Singapore.

I fly into Singapore on a Thursday night.

My appointment with the kebaya lady is early Friday afternoon.

And the wedding starts late Friday afternoon!

Leaving it a little late perhaps? Can I stress myself out enough??

I don’t even know what the kebaya will look like!

I guess I’ll have to bring camisoles in two different colours – black and cream? And two pairs of shoes?

Ah well, if all else fails – never fear, I’ll have a back-up dress to wear to the wedding.

And now, to get my husband into a kilt!

Kebaya photos are from The Nyonya Kebaya by Datin Seri Endon Mahmood and Wikipedia.

I’ve been crazy over pumpkin lately.  I can’t seem to get enough of it. I love it on pizza, made into soup and dips, and especially roasted and tossed in salad.

This is my favourite dressing for Roasted Pumpkin Salad -

Honey and Balsamic dressing
1/4 cup honey
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil

Whisk until well combined, then drizzle on salad :)

I’ve been trying to wear less black these days. And today I was going for a casual but smart look.

I found a Chiffon Blouse from YesStyle, which was a great buy. It’s actually a cotton tshirt, with a drapey chiffon layer in front. It’s nice and versatile – to wear to work, dinner or dress it down. And easy to layer.

I’m wearing it with some gorgeous new shorts from Singapore designer Al&Alicia. Which I’ll talk more about next week!

Quilted chain bag from FashionJunkee.

Patent flats by Sachi.

My leather belt was a vintage find from an op shop.

As for my hair – I curled it in the morning, gave it a good hair spray, and went about all day with a messy curly ponytail. I loved it!

Here are some other WHITE TOPS from YesStyle that caught my eye.

Lace Top and Camisole and Lace Layered Dress

Balloon Sleeve Top and Shawl Collar Blazer

Happy shopping (or browsing) everyone!

( See all my Daily Outfits here )

…

Check out more of my favourite online shops in my Women’s Online Fashion Shopping Guide.

For nearly 2 years, I have been hankering to go kayaking in the river.

You see, I live near the river. And every time I drive or cycle past it, I look over – and see people paddling their kayaks on the still blue water – and I find myself filled with a strong sense of desire and envy.

I guess I just never got around to it! Mainly because I’ve been bogged down with the BUSYNESS OF LIFE. As you do.

So for my birthday, my husband organised a surprise kayaking day for me (rather, us). OMG you should have seen the BIG BIG smile on my face and the twinkle in my eyes when he told me 15 minutes before we walked out the door.

We borrowed our neighbour’s 2 person kayak and 4WD (thanks Irwin!), found a spot on the river to start, plotted a course and set off!

It was SPECTACULAR. It was an incredible day for kayaking.

The water was still, like a pond. The air was crisp. The scenery was beautiful. Ahh it was so so so cool. Definitely one of the best, most peaceful and tranquil experiences of my life.

Gliding along the mirror-like surface. Slicing through the water. Seeing my ripples ebb as far as my eyes could see. It was magic.

At some parts of the river, it was SO QUIET and SO STILL, that it all felt a bit odd. Eerie and creepy, perhaps.

You know. It was like a horror movie. The scenery goes quite. The sun suddenly feels hotter, the insects stop buzzing, the fish stop splashing, a crow flies overhead going AAAAAKKKKKK. And I was just waiting for something large and green to slowly appear from the water.

I actually said to my husband, “Uh, there are no crocodiles here in Perth right?”

Anyway, while we were paddling, the water exploded a few metres away from our kayak. I thought someone dropped a large rock into the water. But emerging from the splash, flew an osprey. It was like watching a nature documentary – and seeing the water droplets roll off the feathers in slow motion. The osprey flew off carrying a fish in its claws. It was SO CLOSE to us, and a very cool moment.

But even cooler, was 10 minutes later, we paddled past a tree, and saw the same osprey perched on a branch eating the fish. We paddled slowly and quietly towards it, and took some awesome photos.

Overall, we kayaked for 2 glorious hours.

The paddling itself was pretty hard work. Especially since I’ve never done it before. It was quite a workout for my abs, arms and legs. But my body felt so good. And it was so refreshing for my soul.

I really, really loved it.

And now I hope that one day I’ll have my own kayak and go paddling on the river at dawn. And at night.

At the Rosemount Australian Fashion Week, there was certainly a lot of excitement and gushing over the launch of ELLERY’s new collection. In fact, I hadn’t seen the pictures and I was thinking, OMG it can’t possibly be that good can it???

But alas I was wrong. I couldn’t take my eyes off the garments as I browsed through photos and videos of the show. They were simply gorgeous!

I love the inspiration from the zodiacs. I love the edgy feminine look. I love the tailoring and slight asymmetry. I love the mix of textures and I LOVE the colour palette.

Images by Zimbio and Ellery
…

Check out more of my favourite online shops in my Women’s Online Fashion Shopping Guide.

Just stunning.