gold, gold!

If only Santa Clause was still coming to my town....this little baby would be high on my wish-list!

I think my penchant for gold is growing by the second....to me, this ring is hands down perfect...

Karen Walker jewellery available at Incu, QV building, Melbourne CBD / Shimmer, Chapel St, South Yarra. 


xo

Benefiting from the Brow Experts

Benefit Brow Bar via 

Brows.

They really do shape a lady's face. There's nothing like that fresh feeling when you've just had a tidy up, leaving so much more room to play with eye makeup in the area - and so much more expression.

Well, I thought I had it down pat, my brow specialist Maya had been shaping my face for the past few years. The shape was great. But I wanted more. I wanted more arch, more thickness, more more more!

Insert Benefit Brow Bar.

The ladies at Melb CBD Benefit getting their brow on!

Benefit's marketing strategy is a corker. Imagine being 'just another' beauty counter at department stores around the world. How on earth do you get cut through? Cute packaging, tick, reliable products, tick - but everyone has those bases covered! Clearly one of their best sellers, brows a-go-go got them thinking outside the cute-as-pie box --- no one specialises in brows. Let's do it!

Hats off to you Benefit, you've outdone yourself!

The whole experience was a lot of fun. I booked early to avoid disappointment, got to the counter and it was a buzzing - girls everywhere, waxing, powdering, ra ra ra! It may not be for those who like a little privacy when they're having teeny tiny hairs ripped from their face. But fun all the same!

My brow specialist, a cute pommy girl, lined up her measuring stick to make sure she had the right angle to get the super arch happening. She asked if I'd like a tint. A tint? I'd never had a tint before! Hell, why not!

Tint on, wax twirling, the whole process was over in 15 mins and the results were outstanding. Until today my brows were so sparse - but the tint really bulked up the beauty!

But then the fun really started - my pommy waxer sat me down with another girl, Hannah, who spent a good 20 min playing beauty show&tell with me. By the end I wanted to ask her if she'd be my BFF and go buy matching charm bracelets with me! ha! She was so lovely - and showed me heaps of products which I'd totally overlooked in the past.

I took home a new lippy and gloss - so stunning - and left with a Christmas wish-list a mile long (and the good sense to not purchase anything more in-store until I look online for a cheaper deal, my bad!)!

Thanks Benefit - I'll be back!

The big move

So the biggest news to come from my four month absence has been something that I've been looking forward to for a while: moving.

Yep - farewell green walls - we're outta here!

Where to you ask? Well, rather than  packing our bags and heading to some far away majestical place - we've decided to keep things simple. And move 100 metres down the road!

Too funny.

But we're chuffed. The new place reminds me of a little European manor, it's lovely:

We're on the ground floor, with two rooms, a sunroom, and a very spacious outdoor area! Loving the prospect of a new-ish kitchen and (most importantly) a dish washer! (Although LB does a great job of dish washer in our house ;))

Needless to say we're counting down the next 10 sleeps until move in day! Can you just picture LB and I wheeling our worldly possessions down the road! Hilarious.

And now the fun begins...decorating!!

xx

Recap: four months fell.

Well! That was what one would potentially call a baptism of fire!

The past four months have flown right on by. Learning the ropes of my new job and trying to figure out the whole work/life balance has been difficult. The last thing on my mind after a nine hour day has unfortunately been blogging. Poor little Foxy.

Although after four months away from all my favourite blogs, I must say that it has been a lot of fun to sit down a read the back catalogue of my faves tonight! I've missed out on a lot! But that's what's great about blogging - you can pick up right where you left off.

So here I am, picking up Foxy and falling in love all over again.

xx

image

What diet?

My stomach is crying out for me to make these CHOCOLATE CREME BRULEE tarts over the weekend...(I haven't counted a propoint in weeks, the jolly fat (wo)man has entered my home and it's not even Christmas! Oh dear...save me..no...feed me...no..save me from these amazing looking treats!!)



DONNA HAY

3 sheets store-bought shortcrust pastry
butter, for greasing
2 cups (500ml) milk
200g dark chocolate, chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 egg yolks
1/3 cup (75g) caster (superfine) sugar
1 tablespoon cornflour (cornstarch)
2 tablespoons coffee liqueur
caster (superfine) sugar, extra, to sprinkle
dark chocolate shavings and double cream, to serve

Preheat oven to 160ºC (320ºF). Cut the pastry into 12 x 10cm rounds. Cut a slit halfway through each round (this will make it easier to mould into tart shells). Line the bases of 12 x ½ cup-capacity (125ml) lightly greased muffin tins with the pastry. Prick the bases with a fork and line with non-stick baking paper. Fill with pastry weights and bake for 15 minutes. Remove the paper and weights and bake for a further 5–8 minutes or until golden and crisp. Allow to cool on a wire rack.

Place the milk, chocolate and vanilla in saucepan over medium heat and stir until melted. Bring to the boil and remove from heat. Place the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl and whisk until pale and creamy. Add the cornflour and whisk to combine. Gradually pour in the hot milk mixture, whisking continuously. Return to saucepan and cook over medium heat, whisking continuously, for 1–2 minutes or until slightly thickened. Stir through the coffee liqueur. Pour mixture into the tart shells and refrigerate for 4 hours or until set. Sprinkle tarts with caster sugar. Use a blowtorch to caramelise the sugar. Top with chocolate shavings and double cream to serve. Makes 12.

Try not to eat all 12 at once!
Recipe stalked down and hunted from here.

leaving the farm...

All good things must come to an end, greener pastures, time for a change, yadda yadda yadda...

You get the drift. My days 'on the farm' (well, as close to a farm as these well-manicured fingers were ever going to get!) are drawing to a close. I'm leaving my job in agricultural lobbying for a new role. Still in the environment sector, but a fresh start. I'm excited :)

And here's a picture of a ridiculously stunning pair of shoes. Just because every celebration deserves a pair...

Shoes, here, of course ;)

How have I lived 26 years without concealer?

Now that I know totally everything there is to know about beauty ;) , thanks to Zoe Foster and her new book Amazing Faces, my one question really is how did I ever survive without concealer?

On reading the book and watching a few YouTube vids I decided it was high time to do something about my dark circles. And, on her recommendation (and to my initial fear), I stepped away from my beloved MAC counter and walked on over to....Bobbi Brown.

Oh My Lordy! How did I not know the amazing ability of these little pots of goodness?!

 
Bobbi Brown - Corrector and Concealer Kit.

I now have no black circles, and a perfect, radiant, young looking eye area. I feel a million bucks! Thanks Bobbi!

Beauty Bliss!

Return of the mack..or was it max? And a new beauty book to knock your socks off!

I always sang 'return of the max..' - but that's very 'beth' - my Lover Boy (Happy Birthday today!) always laughs at my ability to make up my own lyrics to songs. He will forever be known as my 'shaving grace', after a roadtrip where Beyonce's 'Halo' featured prominently and it wasn't until we had travelled quite far along the Great Ocean Road that my interpretation was corrected, with much laughter to ensue...

Meanwhile, back to the topic - I'm alive! I didn't die after my surgery (my worrying once again hitting where it hurts). The surgery went well, we found Endo, treated it, and my little uterus is all ready to house many many happy fat bouncing babies (one day...). Enough of the over share - time to return to fun topics, methinks!

Like Beauty. I admit - I have a girl crush.

The other day I was walking through the city DJs on my lunch break, when I saw a cluster of people all gushing over a gorgeous brunette, who was signing books and smiling for cameras. My thoughts of 'who's the D-grade celebrity today?' were quickly overshadowed by something shining over on the MAC counter, and I quickly forgot about said brunette.

Until I saw an snippet of an interview on TV, and had to track her down. And by her, I mean Zoe Foster.

Beauty editor, author, youtube-producer-extraordinaire. This girl has serious Wow! factor. I've spent the whole afternoon looking at her YouTube clips and flicking through her new book Amazing Face which I quickly ran to Dymocks to buy today.



I just wish I'd discovered her last week so that I could have had my book signed too!!

when Layton entered my life

Who can resist the marketing pull of mid-season sales? Not I!

I've been handbag browsing for a while, determined to find a nice tan leather handbag, preferably with gold features. Today I walked in to David Jones, and left a little bit poorer. But at 40% off - who could resist.

Michael Kors - Layton. Welcome to my life.

(excuse the image, he's sitting on my desk at work showing off to the world!)

I actually lusted over the wallet version of this bag when I was in the UK - isn't it pretty:

Unfortunately the backpackers bank account said no at the time...but I'm loving the bag instead!!

the gift that keeps giving

One of my b'day presents from LB this year was a 12 month subscription to Marie Claire. I thought this to be an awesome gift - as when the first edition arrived in the mail yesterday it felt like my b'day all over again!

Thanks babe!

Looking forward to snuggling up in my PJs and reading tonight - although my version didn't have all of text on the front cover - simply the pic of Gale and the MC header. Not sure whether that's because I'm a subscriber and get an early edition? Hmm..interesting...love that frock tho!

luscious lips!

As part of the Seriously Smooth Skin challenge that I have set myself, I'm paying particular attention to rediscovering my once-luscious lips. The have been far from luscious in recent times, more like dry and cracked :( Not even Katy Perry's cherry chapstick would do the trick!

But now..behold! It's Clinique's Superbalm to the rescue!

Yep, this little baby tube of goodness came in the post yesterday, and after treating my lips to a dose before bed last night I've already noticed an improvement today. So much so that I've cracked out my favourite pink lippy to show off the pout! Mmm...love this shade of MAC lippy!

Lustering

How do you keep your lips looking luscious all year round?
xx

skin shopping

I've spent too much time this last few weeks browsing StrawberryNet and reading reviews on Makeup Alley - it's addictive to say the least!

I've tried this year to make more of an effort with my skincare routine. Being 26 and all, I'm starting to fret about the damage I've probably done as a youngster; forgetting to moisturise, wearing makeup to bed after coming home from a massive night on the town, and generally not taking great care of my body's biggest organ.

So. I've started mixing things up. A few of my latest purchases to help see me through the Winter, rehydrate my skin and undo some of the damage of the past:

Dermalogica: Skin refining masque

A skin-clarifying, texture-refining masque with oil-absorbing clays and purifying plant extracts to deep-cleanse the skin, helping to reduce oily-skin breakouts.

Dermalogica: multi-active toner

An ultra-light facial spritz that refreshes and hydrates the skin while smoothing the surface. Helps condition skin to prepare for proper moisture absorption.

Dermalogica: intensive moisture balance

An ultra-rich phytonutrient moisturizer designed to combat dry skin and reduce the signs of premature aging.

I've been using Clinique products for a while now, but have read so many great reviews about Dermalogica that I've decided to extend my routine and bring a few new babies into the fold! It's amazing how addictive beauty products can be! Let's hope these new products do as they say - and I'll be on my way to smooth-as-a-baby skin in no time!!

What skin care products do you swear by??

keeping calm, carrying on

Sometimes it doesn't all go the way we planned. I get that.

I've always planned on falling in love, getting married, having a million babies, and living happily ever after. Living the simple life,  but loving it.

So you never think anything would ever get in the way of said plan. Like, your health.

As I blogged about a while ago, I've had a few health issues this year. While I hoped and prayed they'd go away it doesn't seem to be going my way. It would appear my body wants to challenge me a little bit. So I have to raise to the challenge and get things sorted to ensure my dreams of happy baby-infested simple life can happen. 

I'm booked in for investigative surgery on 17 June. At this stage all signs are pointing towards endometriosis. 

I'm drawing inspiration from this one person's story, who I blogged about here, before I had any idea that I would one day may be heading down this road too. Unlike this blogger, whose story is quite simply amazing, my troubles have come on suddenly. Who knows what has been brewing inside me over the past 10 years - if anything at all. Best I find out, treat, and hopefully - move on.

So it looks like I'll have a bit of spare time while cooped up at home recovering in June - a good chance to get serious about Foxy and get stuck into blogging! I treat Foxy as a bit of a diary of sorts, so I hope no one reading minds me taking this personal approach. Writing is good for the soul, so they say.

Who knows what we'll find - but I'm in good safe hands with an absolute expert specialist who is as determined as me to get to the bottom of this whole saga and make things right again.

Here's hoping the fairytale ending remains.

boots not made for walking.

Ankle boots. I want some. But I can't decide what style I like or what would suit my wardrobe the best.

Walking past Joanne Mercer the other day I was surprised to see quite a few hot boots in their window display - I've never shopped there before. But I'm thinking I might have to stop by soon!

These so don't go with much in my wardrobe but I love them! Perhaps it's the farm girl coming out in me, but I think they could be so funked up!

These guys come in tan too!

Love the wrap around the back!

What do you love about this season's winter boots?! Have you seen any to-die-for boots that I should keep my eye out for?

Princess dreaming...

Like most Commonwealth girls, I grew up believing I would marry Prince William.

From a young age I told my Mum and my Nanna that Willy was my man. I'd play dress-ups with Mum's old heels and strings of Nanna's fake pearls, practising my Royal Wave.

I bet you Catherine Middleton played those same games of dress-ups. Only difference is that her childhood dream came true. Oh Katie, you're one lucky lady!

And while I'll be watching the Royal Affair on the big screen at home, in my comfy PJs, eating take-out and critiquing her every move, I'm sure Miss Middleton will have her Wave down pat.

Meanwhile, the dream of being a fairytale princess bride still rages inside me. (I blame the Little Golden Books and Disney for that.) If I were frocking up to meet Willy at the end of the Abby Aisle here is the dress I'd have stolen from Mummy's wardrobe:

There will be lots of lace and classic elegance...

...Autumn leaves will be falling...

...pink and pearls will have their way...

And because I still can't decide whether I'm gold or silver (my skin suits gold, my mind prefers silver) - I'd have one of each!!

A girl can only dream, right?!

makeup bags. A dying breed.

I love my makeup collection. Lots of pretty tubs and tubes to keep me entertained for hours. I have a lovely nice big black case to store them in, it's all fine and dandy.

However. My 'everyday makeup' needs a new home. Rather than lugging around the big black case I am ashamed to admit that I cram my beautiful MAC babies into a hideous Malaysian Air makeup bag similar to the one below. It was a freebie that LB scored when he flirted his way into 1st class when taking off to join me in Europe (yes, I was insanely jealous of his upgraded, and angry when he couldn't replicate his skills on the way home - having me by his side surely didn't help our chances :P).



Ewww. Anyway, back to the story.

I'm quite embarrassed when I have to open my handbag to get something and that grubby white makeup case pokes it's ugly face out! But the dilemma? NOWHERE stocks cute and fun makeup bags anymore!!

The ones at the chemist are all ugly, priceline have let me down, myer/djs sent me back to the drawing board. I look and look and cannot find! The below babies are what I'm after - fun fabrics and a decent size -  but I can't find a website to ship them into Australia at a decent cost for me (sorry Nordstrom - $70 postage for a $30 case won't cut it).

SO - suggestions?? Where is your makeup bag from? Have you seen and cute ones out and about?

do you scoop?

Scoopon, Cudo, Spreets.

Three words I anxiously wait to pop up in my inbox each day.

Daily deals. Are you a fan?

I never 'did' vouchers. Until I met LB. He loves his Entertainment Book, and we can often be found eating out at new restaurants that we'd never think of to try had we not a 25% discount for.

Then along came the daily deals. I was late to the party. And boy have I splurged since! So far we've enjoyed three course meals at extravagant steak houses, pizza&pasta feasts, indian banquets and beauty treatments - all at a fraction of the normal price! Not to mention countless of glasses of free wine and sides of bruschcetta. I even scored a $40 Spreets voucher just for filling out a survey for them! Sweet!

So have you checked out your daily deal?

Today's is a rippa on Scoopon!



$49 for $420 worth of beauty treatments - ooh laa laa! I think I may have found my month early birthday present to myself :P

Are there any other voucher sites that I should know about? What bargains can you never resist?

Take me for a ride on a big jet plane!

And so the busy-ness continues.

Tomorrow we're off - to New Zealand! My beautiful friend Tamara and her partner Xavier are set to say their I dos! MC Hammer here has her lines written, yet I'm feeling very under prepared. It has been another crazy week and I haven't had a chance to really sit down and practice. Or pack for that matter. Or look for my passport. Here's hoping I can pull a rabbit...

Meanwhile - I'm totally excited about checking out Queenstown over the next few days! Any must sees??

Can you think of a more sensational backdrop for a wedding? I'll be sure to take plenty of happy snaps :)

Have a fantastic end to your week!

image via here

flowers flowers everywhere!

As I mentioned in my last post, I was lucky enough this week to be asked by my company to head along to the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show - Growers Avenue Cocktail Party - and take some photos of the awesome work our members were involved in.

The Growers Avenue is an initiative by Flowers Victoria, the peak industry group for Victorian flower growers. The Avenue offers Victorian growers an opportunity to showcase their flowers to the public - and what a bloomin' marvellous display there was!

Unlike last year, this year the growers worked with florists to arrange their flowers in the big produce bins, with lots of creative designs on show.

Victoria's cut-flower growers do a magnificent job, don't you agree? I might just have to go out and buy myself a bunch this weekend!

look at those cute little guys hiding away in there! loved this display!

beautiful roses!

I've always had a soft spot for iris', love how they're tucked away in there!

I'm kicking myself for not writing down the creators of these marvellous designs, how fantastic are they?! There was a whole row of them, these two were my faves!

If you're in Melbourne and looking for something to do this weekend - don't hesitate - rush off to the Flower Show before it's finished for another year!

busy in the bush...

I know, another week with no new posts...

I've been busy. Not saving the world busy, but busy.

This week I traded my heels for boots and headed to the Wimmera for an annual grains industry conference that the organisation I work for hosts. The Wimmera is a big, flat, dry place - perfect for getting lost in (which I managed to, successfully, twice).

After my few days in the bush I headed back to Melbourne in time for the opening cocktail party of the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show - which my work is also 50% owner of. This is one gig I really don't mind - each year I'm asked to head along and take photos. I'm no pro, but I'll be sure to share a few more soon - so many beautiful displays!

For now, there's a million things I need to get done before my weekend begins. Very excited for tomorrow - Aunty Beth is babysitting little baby Jessica while her Mama and Papa Bears are off at a wedding! Oh I can't wait!