Elegant or just way too girly??

so I bought this sweet silver
bow necklace from Etsy a couple of week's ago and I was really excited when it arrived but whenever I wear it I feel really silly....i dont know what it is - Ive worn it with a simple scoop neck style top or dress so nothing over the top
but for some reason i just feel it doesn't look right...bows will always be one of those classic accessories that drift in and out of fashion (think Chanel, think Madonna in 'Despretely seeking Susan', think Valentino, Christian Lacroix....) maybe its just meant for girls named Alice that have adventures in Wonderland... what do you think?

we had glorious weather today so I washed all our bedsheets and towels...i love drying clothes in the sun and Im sick of leaving my household chores for Saturday...what a waste of a day! This weekend I plan to go Rozelle Flea Market...cant wait! Im also getting my parcels together for 'Pay it Forward' so hope to send those out next week too!

*Top necklace photo taken by me (background is Australian Country style mag)
* Australian Vogue
* Vintage Alice from google images

Catching up....

Just catching up on my 'fashionable challenge' sketches....
i bought a nice new sketchbook the other day - its nice and thick...and feels really nice to draw on!

This is.... a glimpse of my weekend away

i love Winter getaways... slow leisurely days, hearty comfort food, warm clothes, lots of tea & coffee breaks as well as sticky pudding treats...we had a great time and were super lucky with gorgeous weather!

We tasted some great wine and beautiful dessert wines too and then we moved onto beer samples - cant wait to organise a dinner party so we can try our new purchases!
after a long day at the wineries we girls went to the Hotel's spa for body massages - heavenly time out..(note to self: try to get more pampering time!)
the whole weekend was a little over-indulgent but once in a while thats OK!
here are some pictures I took...you can see the picture details on my Flickr page
its was good to come home to our little boys...we missed them and they us...and lucky us - we got home just before a freakish hail storm hit Sydney!!

a long weekend getaway....
we're skipping town...without the boys!
its been a while that we're having a weekend just as a couple so today we're driving up north to the
Hunter Valley...a beautiful wine region not far from Sydney.

its not really a romantic getaway as we're going with another 3 couples so i think it will be a eat, chat and have a good laugh weekend ahead....they are predicting rain so I guess a wet one too!!
Im not much of a wine drinker so Ive offered to be designated driver during our wine estate adventures...i'm more keen on finding good local produce, antique shops, chocolate,cheese & olive tasting fun!

the only anti-social thing Im taking with me is my crochet ...that wont be too bad I guess...

have a fun weekend everyone and I shall see you soon with my 'This is...' post!

here are some lovely garden and flower themed images by British photographer Tim Walker...love his work!!!
we've had rain and wind the past two days and my backyard is one right mess!!! it'll have to wait though....
Have a good one!!

Additions....
So whatever happened to those cute little dogs that would hang out on the arms of the A-list celebrities...guess they're been replaced by babies...
everyone's having them in celebrity land but i must admit it beats the 'off to rehab/overdose/affair' gossip headlines
and I was really giddy with happiness for
Nicole Kidman and Keith when they announced the arrival of their new little bundle of joy...even better was two close friends of mine had their babies last weekend - they were due 22 days apart and ended up having their bubs two days apart - freaky or what??
it makes my ovaries ache with cluckyness....which comes back to the question that I get asked a lot and that I think about a lot too...will I try for a third?
ive written about this before and I think about it much more than I say...but I really would love another little one in my life...
Andrew suprised me the other day by saying if we moved homes we could have another baby and thats the first time he said 'maybe' ...its always been a firm 'no more kids' for him.

Im not very good at the stay-at-home mum role and somedays I even struggle with my current part time work/mum /home-maker role too and I know deep down that the reason I want a third is to have a baby girl....thats kind of selfish isnt it?
im just being honest ...I love the idea of having a little girl....then I have my 38th birthday coming up in 5 months time and I think Im not really ready right now but then will I miss out if I dont?
So much to think about huh....
off to make some warm tea...its freezing today!
* Images
Kate Moss + Leila Grace
Yasmin Le Bon + Amber
Audrey Hepburn + Sean

Illustration Friday - Enough!

one scoop is never enough....i always go to the gelato shop with the intention of only one scoop but end up with a few flavours....

big shout out to my dear friend Melissa who is celebrating her birthday today!! Yeahhh...
melissa & I joined illustration friday two years ago and together we discovered the creative world of blogs and drawing on a weekly basis...fun!
have a super day melissa!!

A Creative Mess....
my craft corner is one complete mess right now....its the only way i can create though as for me its 'out of sight out of mind'

i try so hard to have things set up in a certain way but when im making stuff, paper and ephemera scrap are lying around in such a state for days...its embarrassing if someone suddenly drops by and it drives Andrew nuts haha... but if I pack things away i tend to lose that creative energy!
Im almost finished my 'Vintage Prom' itty bitty page swap ...this time i made two small collages ( itty bitty small) and then had them printed but that was a complete disaster as they didn't print the correct size...sigh!!! i should have just made original ones....
this is the front

and the back - getting ready for the big night!

We call them 'Formals' here in Australia and I must say they are a low key function compared to the ones we see on American movies and TV shows....well they were in my time...now days they are forking out big bucks for designer gowns, car hire and professional hair & makeup....


I'll leave you with some fun 'Vintage Prom' Americana images found via google
* Norman Rockwell's - After the Prom
* Saturday Evening Post front cover

this is....what makes me happy!

apart from my boys and hubby who (usually) put a smile on my face, i try to find happiness in the little things that we sometimes take for granted in our everyday life....
today it was
*homemade chicken soup (ive got a cold... wahhhh)
*fresh out of the oven cake
*Music (currently loving 'Paris is Burning'
by Ladyhawke)
* a stack of new magazines
* a trip to 'That Vintage store'
in Enmore to help my sister choose some chandeleirs for her house....nice!

a happy moment from the other day - Peter & I ventured into town on Friday to meet Andrew for lunch and we found ourselves in a train carriage full of Brazilian youths (pilgrims) here for World Youth Week (the Pope's in town people!!)...what a wonderful 20min train ride... they had their guitars out, singing, cheering, clapping and I got caught up in the fun of it all ... a happy train ride!

Big thanks to Jacinta
for this weeks topic and to see more 'This is ' entries go to Angela's blog
* pictures by me - today's lunch & old wares from 'that vintage store'*

Colour Combinations

i was so inspired by the Pink and Gold images from
Martha Stewart
....Just beautiful!
Her magazine layouts are always a stand out with subtle but striking colour...
so here is my latest page from my clippings book...all inspired by warm golden pinks....

other colour combinations Im currently loving

*Smokey Blues + pale grays
*Dark Purple + Teal
* Lilac + pale yellow

What colours are inspiring you right now?

Illustration Friday - Foggy

Foggy brain always hits around 3pm....nothing that a strong coffee wont fix....

for more Illustration friday entries click HERE

Simple smiles

happiness is....

finding a car spot right outside a Gloria Jeans cafe for cappuccino to go

the collaboration between 'The Wiggles' and (Mr.Disco) Leo Sayer

knowing tomorrow is Wednesday and the last day of the working week for me! Yeahhh....

tickets to see 'Mamma Mia' tonight .... Colin Firth = yummy yummy!

reaching the bottom of the ironing pile...two hours later...lucky Monday night TV is interesting!

your 5 year old telling you you're the best mum in the world! now thats just the best isnt it??

Kate Moss Image from Flickr

This is what gives me goosebumps

for me its usually an explosion of the senses that makes me get all goosebumpy everywhere...

Id have to say music and watching a beautiful dance performance or theatre....
'How Deep is yOur love ' by the Bee Gees

always does it for me - i mean i love the Bee Gees but I dont know what it is about this song, it just takes me somewhere else....

beautiful photography
like this shot by Elif Sanem Karakoc, and she's only 16 years old....stunning! amazing!! breathtaking!

on a personal note it was way back in 1993 when my grandfather Solomos was at his last days - he was very sick, very frail
and it was a hot hot summer in Cyprus....my sister was over from Australia visiting me so we used to gather at my grandparents every evening and go see him, talk to him.
One evening he was sleeping so we were all sitting on my grandparents front porch talking , my aunts were upset but laughing too and reminicing about their childhood and fun memories when all of a sudden with great force he comes running out of bed screaming ' the house is on fire...the house is on fire' and closing windows and slamming doors...now this an old weak man who was bedridden for weeks but the strength he had running through the house like that it was unbelievable....it came out of nowhere!

of course there was no fire so we settled him back in the arm chair
but the last few days of his life he would sit and pretend he was sewing - he was a shoe cobbler in his heyday and he specialised in handmade leather boots so it was amazing to see him actually believe he had a needle and thread in his hands and sew away all day long...he was at a happy place and i hope it eased his pain a little ....watching him gave me goosebumps - it was beautiful!

happy birthday....
to my darling husband Andrew!!
hip hip hooray!!

lots of parties this weekend! last night his niece Christine turned 21 ...
and today we are off to another birthday party but this time its our friend's 5 year old little girl and a dress up party! fun all around!

Vintage image via Takeabreak on Flickr
and a pic of my bag from last nights 21st party

illustration Friday - SOUR

the last thing Jane
wanted to do tonight was attend a work function - at least the sour cocktails being served were delicious!

*Please dont drink and drive*

for more illustration friday entries click HERE
this is also my entry for
a fashionable challenge - Lean

....not much time to draw these days....

Warm Sticky Treats...
my niece came over this afternoon to play with the boys so I made some mini apple tart tartin ...so easy!
i spotted Donna Hay's recipe in Sunday's newspaper and it looked SO good I had to try it out...
Peel and core 2 apples - slice into rings
melt 2 tablespoons butter and add 1-2 tablespoons brown sugar then add apples to saucepan and gently simmer for 5mins.
Cut out rings of ready made puff pastry - place apple on top and bake in hot oven until golden.
I also poured some caramel sauce over the puff pastry scraps and baked those too - shouldnt waste anything these days.
Look how well quiet the kids are....why are they always like that when cartoons are on?












for those interested.... I'll be seeing my mother in law this weekend so I'll ask her how she makes the candied grapefruit skins.

Ohhh the lovely & creative blogger Nancy has nominated me for a 'Brilliante Weblog' Award - thanks SO much, so kind!! i appreciate all who visit my little space in blogland and i love reading your comments..!!
so many great blogs out there....love this blogging community!
here are some wonderful bloggers to visit.....

Leni & Rose - great blogging tips, wonderful craft too!
Gracie Bella Butterfly - we both dream of becoming paper-good queens, go say hi as she's got a giveaway happening
S.hopTalk - she finds the best stuff to share on her lovely blog
Fun Old New - Nina, my flickr friend (and Ellia's mum) has ventured into blogging...her vintage loot is enviable!

A frosty day...
i had the day off today...home with my boys and a quick visit to my orthodontist this morning for a good tightening of my braces ...frick! it hurts!...im over the braces already-.how long to go? oh okay another 18months ....sigh!

Its been so cold lately, my eldest Peter has the sniffles again and i felt so sorry for him this morning having to drag him outdoors when I knew he just wanted to curl up stay home with his toys, cartoons and hot chocolate....we were home by lunch and both boys had a nice afternoon nap.

i made some yummy chicken soup for dinner and the boys were in bed early....they didnt complain though its freezing - they need rest, mum & dad need a rest too....
i was flicking through my copy of 'Real Living '
magazine this evening and was excited to see Emma Cassi's home featured....

Emma a creative stylist & jewelrey designer is represented by
Sarah Kaye and not too long ago I was happy to discover that she also has a blog

her home is wonderful ...i love the neutral shades and gorgeous natural light but its all the personal bits and pieces that make it warm and cosy!! lovely!

* Top image by Sarah Kaye
* Bottom two images from Real Living Magazine

this is ...my treasured childhood possession

well apart from wonderful memories & lots of childhood photos,
i dont have too many things but I must say my baby jewellrey means a lot...along with this handmade gold bracelet I have a baby brooch and a sweet little ring that my parents bought for me when i was born...
I also love my sewing basket that was a gift from my mother's friend....ive had it for a good 25 years now and i still use it today!

I also have my box of penpal letters
from my preteen years...nothing too sentimental but it makes me smile when I look back at them...
thanks to danielle for this week's topic and have a look at Angela's blog to see who is playing along with 'This is....'

Loving Blue....
Im such a Lucky girl!
I recently won a $50 voucher from
Ruby St Designs ... Kris always puts together great kits - she restocks every Sunday evening and has regular giveaways on her blog!!
so this is what i picked....I was really drawn to these soft blues...my parcel arrived the other day and everything is gorgeous!

So
ive signed up to have a stall at my niece's school fete
which is 8 weeks away...not long!!!

got to get the craft going on!!
its my first craft stall - any tips/advice? would love to hear!

some more show and tell....
I recently bought this fun canvas collage on Etsy from my blogging friend Nancy... a treat for little moi!!
I love Etsy...such great stuff!!

Tonight we are off to my parents for a Winter BBQ...its freezing in Sydney! my toes are frozen!!

I shall leave you with a wonderful (over the top) blue bedroom image from Domino magazine...from my flickr favs!
Back tommorow with my 'This is...' post!

a good dose!!!

Vitamin C anyone?
We have so many oranges at home...my parents friends grow them at their farm so Ive just received a whole bag, my in-laws have a mandarin tree and their neighbour a grapefruit tree so lots of citrus fruit to go around....isnt it wonderful how nature provides such a good dose of Vitamin C in these fruits just at the right time of the year...chilly Winter

my boys are getting over the flu but Ive been so busy at work with year end financials that I can feel a cold coming on!
On Sunday my mother in law was sitting in the warm winter sun threading grapefruit skins into tight rolls....what for, you ask?
Fruit preserves or spoon sweets as we call them....these skins will be cooked in a thick sweet syrup for hours until they are soft, then preserved in sterelized jars - perfect for the warmer months...usually served with a glass of ice cold water as they are so sweet!
Other fruits that are popular to preserve are Watermelon rind, figs, grapes...my favourite are small eggplants...yum!

Vintage Orange Juice ad found on Flickr