Happy New Year!

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Well, it's almost midnight here in Australia and i just want to wish everyone all over the world a Happy New Year! It's been a long and awesome 365 days and i hope that the coming year will be filled with more joy, happiness and amazing things to come. Have a safe one :)

Merry Christmas!

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Merry Christmas to everyone out there. It has been a fabulous 2010 and i hope 2011 is more blessed with for all of us. Do have a fun one :)

Hi Lo

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How's everyone doing? Ready for the celebrations yet? Well, Santa gave me an early present as my tooth has finished growing and its no longer sore! I'm looking forward to having a proper meal tonight and tomorrow because i can finally chew!!! I don't think i'm going to be having custard anytime soon because i'm already over it from consuming it so much. I guess by the time 2011 comes in, i'll have my complete set of 32 teeth. Yup, you read that right! The last one started growing this week and i can already see a little bit of it sticking out. I'm so grateful that it doesn't hurt as much as number 31 so i doubt i'll be having any complaints about it.

Due to my survival on liquid food over the last week or so, my fridge only had milk and eggs in it. Just seeing it so empty broke my heart so i went off to Woolies today to stock up on some broccoli, cauliflower and other chewable items that i can cook with all through next week. I've never shopped on Christmas eve before but today was a first for me. The aisles were really maniac with humans and trolleys everywhere you turn. It was almost like a traffic jam in some aisles with lots of people waiting to go through and others waiting to browse. I hope that's not me in a few years time.

My arms had a bit of a workout today because i bought quite a lot of things that were heavy and i had 2 bags to carry. I'm one of those people that only likes going food shopping 1-2 times per week. I can't stand going into Woolies anymore than that in a week because it makes me feel like i'm spending too much money. So i always try to make a food timetable and a list for about a week ahead so that everything i buy revolves around that. It also means that all the fresh items i buy like basil, kaffir lime and coriander leaves can be used up in time before they start dying on me.

As for Christmas, mine is going to be a really quiet one because there's nothing i like better than watching movies and drinking wine on Christmas day with just a few people around. What are your plans for Christmas?

I'm Teething :(

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Now i can completely understand why babies cry so much when their teeth are coming out. so, number 31 is currently growing and it is giving me absolute grief. Over the last few days, i’ve been living off custard, Nurofen, water and ‘So Good chocolate bliss soy milk’. I can’t bear to chew anything because it hurts so much. I can’t even shut my mouth properly because my gum is swollen and whenever my upper tooth comes in contact with it, the pain is exacerbated. Not i see why my friend keeps telling me to go have it taken out. The only pain that has come this close is the tummy ache i get during that time of the month. I keep consoling myself by saying there’s light at the end of the tunnel

The upside to all of this? I think i’ve only spent about $20 this week as most of that went towards getting milk, a packet of custard powder and one pack of Nurofen tablets. I guess there’s always a bright side to things non?

For those of you who have your complete set of 32, you need to share with me how you survived the pain because i’m not looking forward to number 32 coming out anytime soon.

Phew

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It's funny how things work out. Last night i was just complaining about not being able to have a cute blogger template installed because of several issues that seem to come up after installing it such as not being able to access my dashboard and all. Well, the lovely Bursting at the Seam left me a comment about understanding my plight and as usual, i went over to check out her blog. After seeing her cute template, i could not help but scroll down to see who designed it. Long story short, it led me to getting the new template i have up now. What do you guys think of it? Is it worth it? Or should i go back to the simple purple theme i had before? As usual, your comments are very much appreciated so please do feel free to tell me what you think :)

Free Templates

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Two posts in a day huh? My bum is almost numb from sitting down for so long. I've been trying to upload a free template from one of those websites that have blogger templates; but i'm having issues with the XML aspect. Being that i'm completely inept when it comes to things like this, i'm still unable to get it working. For some reason, i can't see the code to copy onto my HTML gadget. So, i actually have to upload straight from the folder which is being an absolute bugger at the moment. Here's to hoping that i can get it working at some point.

Healthy Eyes

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Had a trip to Specsavers today to have my eyes checked and i'm glad to say that my eyes are getting better. My astigmatism on my left eye has slowly corrected itself and my right eye which is short sighted is much much better now. Due to the prescription i got today, i actually don't need to get glasses for the mean time until i get my eyes checked again same time next year. But, the doc did say that i should consider using my lenses when i feel the pressure building on my eyes. So, i need to go look for frames at some point in the near future but there's no rush as i won't be needing it at the moment.

How has your Thursday been going? Mine's been pretty simple. Other than my eye appointment, i browsed the mall briefly before heading back home to do some research on possible ways to keep myself entertained over summer without having an impact on my wallet. I'm still enjoying catching up on the blogs i didn't have time to read while i didn't have any internet. I've been reading The Simply Luxurious Life over and over again to absorb some of her amazing posts that i missed. My favourite series for this week from her blog is 'why not...achieve your dreams'. Do head over to her blog and you won't be disappointed

Delish!

So...my return to the WWW has come with a minor glitch. For some unexplainable reason, the net is unbelievably slow. I can't even begin to come up with a sensible excuse for this occurrence. But i won't let that dampen my mood because my first meal for my flatmate's mum has gone off with a bang! Or should i say it went down well.

Anywhoo...halfway through eating, i realised that i didn't take any pictures of the meal. Very silly of me i know. I can't say i used a certain recipe because i'm known for my random acts when it comes to cooking. But for those who are a wee bit interested, i'll make it simple and tell you what i did. I've never made chicken with honey before so i kind of just winged it as i went along; if you happen to know an exact recipe for this let me know.

What i did:

I soaked the chicken in a mixture of water, maggi cube and dark soy sauce. I usually make sure the water covers the chicken because i like my chicken soft. I let it marinate for about an hour and poured out all the liquid from the marinade. I added a few teaspoons of grapeseed oil and honey to the chicken and just mixed it till all the pieces were coated. I grilled the chicken for about 40 minutes (at 160C) and turned it once halfway through

PS: i sprinkled a bit of salt and black pepper on each side while it was facing upwards

FINALLY!!!

...my internet just got fixed about 30 minutes ago. I have so much catching up to do, thanks for your patience guys. I'll be back either later tonight or tomorrow to do a post. I'm expecting a guest at home in the next 27 minutes so i have to go start up on dinner. My flatmate's mum just arrived from Thailand and will be here pretty soon.

Just thought i'll give you guys a quick update before i attempt making fried rice and grilled chicken breasts with a honey and soy sauce marinade :)

Sore Feet and Gum

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Since my last post, i've been constantly on the move looking for things for my new place and trying to find as much 2nd hand items as possible. If anyone tells you moving and furnishing a place from scratch isn't stressful, please send them over to me so i can conduct an interview. Don't get me wrong, it is pretty fun having to choose stuff for a place you're going to live in as opposed to just having to put up with what someone else has chosen. But it is also really stressful. Coupled with the fact that we started doing this pretty much straight after exams, i haven't had much time to rest. My feet are currently killing me and i could do with a really good massage right now. On Tuesday, Cookie was kind enough to come help us out while we moved some of our things to the new place and also while we bought items from Woolies and Reject Shop.

These days, i pretty much fall asleep once i hit the sheets. Tomorrow is going to be another early day for me because i have to dis-member my bed for the removalists to come take it to the new place and then put it all back again. I'm also moving finally tomorrow, which means lots of cleaning and packing tonight. Unfortunately for me, the internet at the new place won't be ready until the middle of next week or Friday by the latest and that sucks because it means that i won't be able to read any of my favourite blogs until then.

As for plans after moving, i honestly don't have any. Moving is expensive business and after everything, i plan on staying indoors as much as possible to minimise any possible expenses as all the places i applied for a job didn't offer me any. I think some time at home would give me a chance to dig in deeper and find a creative and cost-free way to keep myself entertained. What have you all been up to?

The V Pose

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This picture of Anna Paquin and her gorgeous hubby Stephen Moyer absolutely cracks me up because they're mirroring each other's pose on the red carpet. I'm sooo loving the little grey beard he's rocking with that broody look of his.

Today has been a pretty long day for me and i can tell you that my feet are sore from all the walking we did today scouring everywhere for as much bargains as possible. I must say we saved ourselves some major $$ with the second hand items we found today. I can't wait to see how it's all going to come together when the items are delivered next week. We got a dark chocolate couch and bookshelf for the living room; a red rug, red poppy painting and a red floor lamp to contrast with the dark chocolate. The floor is actually wooden and also in a dark shade of brown so there's a bit of a moody look going on there.

When we woke up this morning, we didn't have much of an idea of what colour of couch we planned on getting. But we knew our cut off price and we knew that getting a couch for that price would mean one just big enough to sit 3 people. So you can imagine our excitement when we found a 2nd hand couch almost 1/3 less the price of our original budget and almost twice the size of what we expected. The fact that we found a couch so cheap automatically dictated the colour scheme of the living room as there was no way on earth we were leaving without placing a holding deposit on the couch.

How was your Friday? I need to go have a relaxing shower, massage my feet and watch a movie so i can slowly drift off to sleep. Have a good one guys :)

A Sigh Of Relief

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Phew! Exams are finally over and i must say it is such a relief! I'm so glad that i survived this semester which has been the hardest so far since i've been in Australia. I was so tired after my exams yesterday and when i got home, all i wanted to do was sleep. But i knew that had to take a back seat because the next important thing was to find a place to live as soon as humanly possible. We had 4 different viewing yesterday, of which i attended 2. There was one we were really hoping to get and so we just applied on the spot. We had 2 more viewing today which were very disappointing. In the midst of us grumbling about our disappointment at how the place looked, we got a call saying we've been offered one of the places we viewed yesterday. I cannot begin to tell you how excited i was and still am. This means no more annoying viewings, scanning and photocopying documents, hoping that you can beat someone else to the place. Now it is all about finding as many cheap stuff as possible and this includes a trip to two second hand shops tomorrow to see what they have to offer.

I'm secretly wishing that the other place we really liked calls us tomorrow morning to say we got the place. That would mean that we actually have a choice of two places, but if that doesn't happen, it's ok as the one we've been offered is pretty good.

On another note, we scored a pretty good deal on a christmas tree today. Anyone who knows me in person would tell you that i've been drumming about owning a christmas tree for too long now. Even the boy has gotten sick of hearing it and just told me to get a tree already! Well, today we saw a pretty white christmas tree at Myer but it was really expensive. That was before we found out that there was a much smaller size of the same tree at a more reasonable price. But it doesn't end there, there was a 30% offer off all christmas items if you purchase 3 or more items from the christmas section. Of course, we got ourselves a tree and 2 small bells that are meant to decorate the tree. We plan on sticking these on our door; so anytime someone opens our room door, there would be a little announcement in the form of bells! How childish right? Well, i don't care, i was just really excited. Anyway, the entire haul cost us $69!!!!!

I'll definitely keep you guys updated on all the occurences as we go through moving into the new place. Happy Thursday people :)

Really Quick Update

Hi Guys

Just want to let you know i'm still alive. Just currently doing my exams and my last one is on Wednesday. After that, it'll be straight onto house hunting and hopefully i'll be able to resume posting on a frequent basis from next week. Thanks so much for your understanding

xoxo Hermine :)

Very Summery

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It's very rare for me to feature Jennifer Garner as an outfit inspiration cause she tends to wear trainers a lot and that's something that i don't like doing. But when i saw this picture of her, i immediately thought 'calm and collected summer'. Anyone who knows me would tell you i run away from shorts and mini skirts because i feel shy and awkward about showing my legs during the day, and i hate shaving my legs. But i think these loose casual pants make a good substitute for jeans during the hot summer days of Australia don't you think? I could easily pair this with a tank top or a short sleeve tee; finish off with a nice pedicure and thongs {flip flops}. Now can someone tell me where i can find something similar? A darker shade would be much appreciated.

On another note, my first exam is tomorrow morning at 9am, do wish me luck bloggers :)

Top Of The Morning

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Good morning to all you bloggers out there!!! How are we all doing? I definitely woke up on the right side of my bed today and it is a great feeling. It's week 13 at uni which means final week of classes. Luckily for me, i don't have any assessments due; although a few of my friends still have something to hand in for Friday. I'm glad that the semester is almost over and the Australian heat has started giving me glimpses of what summer has in stock for us. But for today, i'm not doing any studying at all. I'm just going to chillax and draw up a plan for how i want to study over the next 2 weeks as my first exam is on the 6th of November.

Happy Monday everyone :)

Green Thumb?

These days, i've been having a weird interest for luxurious self sufficient living. I know! You usually don't hear those words used together in the same sentence. But i've been wondering if this is actually possible in some sense. For a while i've been dabbling at making a few things from scratch. I've tried making a simple hair moisturiser and a leave-in conditioner; both of which i liked. And since i'm still figuring out what i really want to do with my life - my passion, what drives me, bla bla bla - i've been trying to focus on the few things that catch my attention when they do and giving them an attempt to see if it's an interest i want to pursue in the future.

After my temporary dab in the hair care world, i definitely know that when i have kids, i want to be a complete DIYer! I already know how to braid my own hair even though i'm extremely impatient about it, and i've started learning to care for my hair as well. Thanks to a few great blogs online and my friend putting herself up as my practice head {she hates doing her own hair}, i'm getting good at it. And i know that the more i keep trying, the more skilled i'll become with it and the more confident i'll get. My current interests are in soap making! With exams just around the corner, i have no idea if or when i'll give this a go. Maybe summer? I need to find a DIY book on it first and see if it's a costly experiment or not

Happy weekend :)

Hair Story

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Sorry it took me a while, but i’ve finally had the chance to post about my hair issues. I keep going back and forth on what i want to do to my hair for summer. I know getting a hair colour is definitely not an option because i’m trying to reduce the amount of chemical processes i put my hair through. My hair is currently chemically straightened and i think that’s already enough chemicals for now. Especially with the fact that i keep hearing horror stories of how people have had their scalps burnt due to improper application and skin sensitivity/ irritation.

I know i’m a bit of a hair dye addict so if i want to pursue that venture, i need to consider letting go of chemical hair straighteners. The only problem is that i have a very curly hair that i’m not used to dealing with on my own. I’ve had my hair natural for 3 years and prior to that for 7 years. But during these periods, i’ve always had my hair braided because it’s been difficult for me to handle all the detangling and combing on my own which used to lead to headaches. The longest i’ve had my hair was while it was still natural and it was up to the middle of my back.

I’ve been contemplating either going to a professional to get my hair chemically straightened or giving it up completely and just letting it grow out natural. The problem with the professional side is that these stylists here aren’t necessarily up to par in my books. They don’t meet the standard that i’m used to while i lived in England. I actually tried going natural last year and i survived 9 months before i gave up and had my hair chemically straightened. This month would make it the 4^th month since i haven’t had my hair straightened; but that’s because i’ve got extensions in which means i don’t have to deal with the two textures on my head.

Extensions is looking like a pretty good option for summer right now. But like everything else, it has an annoying catch. The person who does it really well without giving me a disastrous headache lives all the way in Liverpool! I’m not one for travelling long distances just to sit down and get my hair done. It absolutely irritates me. But for now, i have my upcoming exams to focus on. After that, i’ll worry about my hair; but don’t worry much as i’ll keep you guys updated J

Shoe Love

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Can't Wait...

...for this week to be over. My final assessment for the week is a presentation i have tomorrow at 12.30pm. I’d be lying to you if i said i’m not a bit nervous about it. It’s worth a total of 30% of my final grade and along with it an essay. Luckily it is a group project and i have a great group. We all know what we’re doing and this means that i don’t have to worry about a group member flopping during the presentation because that would reflect on us as a whole.

But before i continue rambling, i just want to say a quick thank you to my new subscribers. I’ve noticed that i picked a few people up during my absence and i must say i really appreciate it. Thanks to those of you that keep coming back to read all my ramblings.

I’m looking forward to putting my feet up this weekend and not having much to do. Next week marks week 12 according to the uni calendar which means we are one week shy of last lectures. I have an essay due next week Friday and a test on Tuesday. After those, its straight on to hardcore revisions as my first exam is on the 6^th of November. I can already smell the end of this semester and although it has been very stressful, i’m happy with the way things have gone so far.

I’m currently craving sushi and a short hair cut. Let’s start with the sushi bit. I’m currently living in an apartment with others and i’m the only non-Vietnamese person here. The minute i mentioned my craving for sushi, my flatmate decided that homemade sushi was the answer to all my sushi problems. And you bet it was! I don’t think i’ve consumed so much wasabi in my entire life. We made salmon sushi twice in a row and i learnt that by eating some marinated ginger, you can counteract the burning effect you get behind your nose from excess wasabi. But currently, what i really want is teriyaki chicken sushi. I must admit that the best i’ve had in Australia was actually in Brisbane at the city mall and it had Krispy Kreme pretty close by to it. Every time my friend and I went to Brisbane, we always ate sushi and bought some more for the next day. I think i’m going to attempt making some sushi when the summer break kicks in. For me, that’s usually the best time to experiment with recipes as i have all the time in the world to be patient with what i’m doing.

Well, i've taken too long a break from getting ready for my presentation. Tomorrow, i'll tell you all about my current need for all things hair. Have a good day bloggers J

Grateful Friday

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* I'm grateful that i've survived this week. With all the stress of uni, headaches and lack of sleep, i still managed to pull through without any tantrums whatsoever. I had 2 tests on Tuesday and 2 tests this morning and i'm glad to say they went well. My eyes are heavy from all the stress of reading so i'm definitely going to bed early tonight. Next week is going to be another long one as i have a test on Monday and Tuesday; then an essay due Wednesday and a presentation on Friday

* I'm grateful for the gift of life. The fact that i'm still alive is enough reason for me to give thanks to God. Our family friend passes away just a few weeks ago and even though he's in his 60s, he'll be very much missed as he was a very kind man. I remember growing up in the compound where we lived and me watching all his kids playing around and fighting. The fact that i'm still alive means there's more opportunities ahead for me. Every day brings more opportunities to grow, to be better and to do better.

* I'm grateful for the gift of gratitude. Before i started saying things i was grateful for on a daily basis, i used to take for granted the little things that happened in my day and shaped my whole day. Taking time out everyday to remember what i'm grateful for has enabled me to be more positive towards things no matter how terrible the previous day was.

* I'm grateful for good grades. I haven't had my scorecard look this good before; especially not before exams and not as a whole in regards to the subjects i'm doing in a semester. Usually i tend to have one subject where i tower above my other subject grades but this semester, i'm really grateful for the fact that they're all good. It means my hard work is paying off. Now my dad would not have a reason to ask me why i tend to focus more on one subject :) And by the grace of God, it would still look this good after my final exams

What are you grateful for?

Away For A Bit

Hey guys

Just wanted to let you know that i'm going to be away from the blogging world for a wee bit. I'm super busy with uni at the moment getting ready for my final assessments; after which i have to worry about getting ready for exams. Plus i've got other things going on and the stress is beginning to pile up on me. Hence, i haven't really had much to blog about and i'm needing some time to just focus on the most important things right now without getting too stressed.

Hopefully i'll be back soon :)

Toe to Toe

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I Think I Need Help

On a serious note, i think i need some sort of help. Or maybe i’m just being a drama queen. So for the last few weeks, i’ve been having really weird cravings by my own standards. Most people who know me know that i’m not one for eating raw things. But recently, i can’t help but eat sliced tomatoes sprinkled with salt; most especially those cherry tomatoes. They just look so yum! Combined with feta cheese and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, the explosion in my mouth is just orgasmic! But i’m not meant to be eating cheese in the first place because i’m lactose intolerant but since i’ve been indoors all weekend, i don’t feel too bad as i don’t have any reactions on my face which is great. But i’m not buying anymore feta cheese because i don’t want my body to get upset with me. Another craving i’ve had is green olives marinated in thai spices. I’ve been getting these from the deli section and they taste so yummy; i actually went out today just to buy these and i’ve already eaten half the can! This is sooo not good as green olives can be quite salty. My third craving so far is sucking on lime wedges. Yes, you read that right! I’ve just been buying lime, cutting them up in 4 wedges and sprinkling a bit of raw sugar and salt on the sides before sucking every single juice out of it

On this road of cravings, its good to know i’m not alone. My flatmate said she’s been craving McDonalds quarter pounders and their fries and she sure went there a few times last week. Worst of all, she was eating Maccas meal in the middle of the night yesterday so i guess i’m not too bad. And just for the record, i am not pregnant. Unless it is possible for me to be pregnant with chai tea J

Anyone having cravings? Feel free to share J

Lady In Red...And White

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Black

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My skin and belts don't get along well. So about 99% of the time, i tend to wear my belt exactly how Victoria's worn hers in the picture above. The minute the buckle comes anywhere close to my navel, i start to get some weird skin reactions that still remains unexplained. I'm loving her black belt and i'll be on the hunt for something similar as i only one jean belt at the moment and its brown. A little more variety in that department wouldn't hurt :)

Side note: Can you guys let me know if this font is too small or if its readable? Thanks :)

My Perfect ASOS Find

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Over the last few weeks, uni has been showing me exactly who is boss in this relationship of ours. Its just the end of week 8 for uni and this period usually oozes of essays and reports for me. My next essay is due Wednesday at 5pm and its a relatively short piece, 1000 words, so i've started working on it as i need to pick the perfect article. I've pretty much narrowed down my choices to 2 articles for now. I think i've looked at way too many articles today so i'm going to leave it till tomorrow to select which one i'd like to use. The beauty of writing essays is that i've been able to time myself on the average amount of words i can write in an hour. If i've done a thorough research and essay plan before starting, i can write about 400-500 words in an hour. But on the days i'm flying blind (not sure of the structure i want to use, no plan on what ideas will be discussed in which paragraphs), i'm lucky if i can write 300 words within the hour. Hopefully for this essay, that won't be the case. My plan is to spend the entirety of Saturday looking at the different theories i can use for my essay and narrow it down to a choice of 3 and then select an article to use. On Sunday, by the grace of God i'm hoping to wake up in time for church. And when i get back i'll select a theory to use and then do all my tutorial questions for the upcoming week 9. Monday is going to be strictly dedicated to writing my essay and sleeping! Yes, i haven't had a decent sleep in quite a while so i definitely need to try and work on that. I've been sleeping odd hours due to the amount of work i've had to do and the times my brain is functioning.

But before we even get into any of those, here are my perfect ASOS finds. I'm adding them to the top of my wish list and hopefully i'll buy one or two of them during the Christmas period.

ASOS WHITE sculpted belted coat

Ok, so at the moment its Spring in Australia so i evidently shouldn't be shopping for a winter jacket. What i've realised is that its really hard for me to find a winter jacket that i actually like. So what i do now is to note down where i found something really appealing and then wait till about the end of February to narrow down my choices. And since i've started acclimatising to the Australian weather, i might just need a proper winter jacket for the next winter season. March is the beginning of Autumn here and to me, that's the perfect time to start shopping for a jacket. With that being the beginning of Spring in England, some of the winter jackets would be on sale so hopefully, i'll only pay a knockdown price if i opt for this one from ASOS as it retails for £150

WAREHOUSE one shoulder drape dress

My closet is seriously lacking in the dressy dress department. As a matter of fact, i only have one that i really like and can dress up for both day and night. This one is perfect as it is very girly and flirty. It does look a bit short on the model but since i'm just borderline 5'6", i think it'll be a good length on me. At £65, it does seem a bit pricey so i hope that the quality is top-notch

Well folks, that's all from me for now. I hope you guys have a good day or a good night depending on where you are when you read this. It's 1.22am on Saturday here in Australia so i'm off to hit the sack :)

Short Shorts

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I really wish i could pull this look off during summer. But i feel like i might die of embarrassment in the process. Or end up marinating in shame. Gotta start working on those squats before summer gets here because i bought two mini skirts that i'd love to wear :)

My Obsession With...

...Christmas trees! You see, i've never had a Christmas tree in my life....like ever! Back home when i was growing up, Christmas was always fun but we never really got a tree. Ok, so most people i know didn't get trees; except they were expatriates or have spent several years living abroad. Still, i always wanted a tree. And since we didn't have one, i always decorated our living room like it was a giant Christmas tree. I was strictly in charge of the decorations because no one else cared about them. So my mum would always take me to the markets and let me pick all the decorations i wanted for the house and she'd let me put it up wherever i wanted. My dad never complained because he knew that it was much better than me whining to get a Christmas tree. Christmas is usually all about food; who gets to eat the biggest chicken thigh, who gets goat meat, are we making pounded yam with egusi soup and blah blah blah.

Whilst all these conversations went on, i was the one dragging the dining table chair around the house so i could climb on it and hang stuff on the wall or ceiling. Our house was always so colourful and my dad's friends always commented on it because i used to put up every single decoration i could possibly find in the house. And i'd usually have them up from the 1st day of December if my dad lets me get away with it and leave them on for as long as possible.

Even though its been years since i celebrated Christmas properly, i still want a Christmas tree. And guess what? David Jones have started bringing out some cute Christmas decorations and it has me all gooey inside! Now i'm contemplating the idea of moving into my own place so i can decorate it for Christmas and finally get myself a Christmas tree. But you know what? If i get a tree, its going to stay in the living room all year (if i don't get a flatmate)!

Shoe Love

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Rooney Mara

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Wrong Side

Hello to all you bloggers out there! How's your day going so far? I hope much better than mine. I must admit right off the bat that it seems i might have woken up on the wrong side of my bed today. I'm in a bit of a sour mood; although i woke up at sunrise (thanks to my bed now facing the sliding doors) i haven't really been in a good mood all day. Due to this, i missed my tute and i'm staying home to study for a test i have tomorrow at 10.30am and read 'inspiring posts by others' on the right-hand side of my blog for those who are just as interested as i am.

And how did your weekend go? Relaxing? Mine was blissful if i may say. It rained for the majority of Saturday so i spent it indoors living it up like a Queen. I made myself a nice salmon avocado sandwich, made myself T2 chai tea in a glass pot i bought from Woolworths for $15 and watched all the episodes of Grand Designs that i have. I cannot wait for them to start a new series as that was one of my favourite shows whilst in England

The Disadvantage Of...

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...paying £3 less for delivery from England to Australia is that it might take twice as long for your items to arrive. You see, Topshop and ASOS charge the bog standard £10.50 for delivery to Australia which although pricey, it means that your items would definitely arrive within 5-7 days after its been posted. But Miss Selfridge offered a cheaper alternative at £7.50 and my friend couldn't resist. Since she was placing an order, i decided i might as well order some lingerie from them because my most girlie and transparent undees are actually from Miss Selfridge and anything see-through always rocks my boat. On the 18th of August, we were informed that our items were on their way to make a happy union with us. That seemed like many moons ago because we are yet to receive our parcel. Worst of all, Miss Selfridge told us to wait at least 2 weeks before worrying and that in the past it has taken some items up to 4 months to arrive at its destination. 4 months?!?! For a location on planet earth in this 21st century? Its not like we reside on Mars or Venus where i would understand that it should take a considerable amount of time before it arrives

On another note, it was an extremely windy morning today, the sliding doors kept banging against their fittings and all i could think of was why these buggers didn't install a toughened glass or at least a triple-glazed unit. Yes, i do know an awful lot about windows and how they can be made more weather friendly especially in situations where they'd be used in countries that have extreme weather conditions. It is Spring here and that means rain and wind! From my observation of the sliding doors, they are definitely double-glazed and they look just like any bog standard glass sheet. That means they haven't been toughened. Usually toughened glass is made with an extreme amount of heat and the idea is that it makes the glass a bit more flexible yet resistant; technically it becomes almost shatter-proof. Not completely but almost. So this is definitely the kind of glass you want to use if you have kids running around in skateboards and banging into things because it means that the pressure from that won't have any effect on the glass. Talk about health and safety for your kids...ha!

A Quick Break From My Essay

This afternoon, i had coffee with one of my girlfriends El at the Gloria Jeans cafe. It was a well deserved or undeserved break from writing my essay and a good catch-up as we haven’t seen each other in a while. But before i left, i had the opportunity to ham it up a bit for my camera whilst waiting for the elevator. I ordered a soy hot chocolate with marshmallows on top and a sausage roll. I believe she had a skim mocha and a cookie/ ginger man looking stuff...yup, i’m not 100% sure.

I can’t believe i went there and didn’t order a cup of coffee. Its been months since i had that baby and i guess i’ve kicked my coffee habit without too much effort. In the picture, i’m wearing COVERGIRL exact eyelights brightening liner in 700 vibrant pearl and i have a dab of MAC studio fix fluid in NW47 underneath my eyes to stop my liner from streaking. I’ve also got the MAC suntints liquid lipbalm on in pink tinge