chop chop

My hair is getting the chop tomorrow.

It shall be my last visit to a hairdresser for almost a year (unless it suddenly strikes my fancy in Nepal, or if I get gum in my hair....which unfortunately happened with some frequency when I was younger, my curls would be propelled with masses of crackling static force and snatch & grab to jumpers, other people's faces, their lip gloss, glass windows, carpet, pets etc etc thus inevitably reel in sticky clumps of gum..)

I'm thinking volume and shape, is the way to go for my haircut. Something that looks effortlessly chic - without any effort.

[images: Valentino Vamp]

Yes, I realise that this is an unattainable desire. Essentially since I'll be camping for many months - I can't imagine what my curls will reel in.

Papercup

I want to become a school teacher!

Or a member of a typing pool!

Or a Librarian!

Basically I want an excuse to wear Papercup clothing. All. Day. Long.

Toast

The name of the label should have set off warning bells in my mind. Toast - like it’s carbohydrate laden namesake - is tasty, addictive and probably not the healthiest option.

[Toast]

Example – this headscarf is divine, but it costs a cool £45. Ouch.

Their catalogue is like bread and butter pudding – saturated in so much deliciousness, it makes your heart ache but you can't help but scoff a second, third..and maybe fourth helping. Yum.

Challenge accepted

My departure date is slowly inching closer and I’ve been busier than a bower bird, bringing shinny new things back to nest – I’ve got my tent, sleeping mat, pillow, sleeping bag and will soon buy lots of fancy water purifying gadgets.

The trek company stipulate that backpacks can’t be bigger than 80L. They have helpfully provided gives a “rough” guideline of what to bring along: 3 pairs of socks, 3 t-shirts, 2 pairs of pants, 2 pairs of shorts and a swimming costume. Oh and a hat.

I usually bring that much for a day trip to the beach, let alone a six month expedition around the world.

I’ve got the feeling that they are hoping that the list will shock everyone to err on the side of under-packing, so the truck isn’t bogged down before it crosses the English Channel.

I know it’s probably the clever thing to purchase pants that do everything but wipe your arse or the coat that is designed to roll up into the size of a postage stamp and ward off bears. But adventure clothes are in equal parts fantastically clever and often specularly ugly. I like to envision myself in an eclectic array of ensembles whilst sniffing my way through spice bazaars, marvelling at the Ajanta Caves sculptures or ambling through Nepal’s Royal Chitwan National Park.

[Travel chic]

[style]

I know that travelling is more than a fashion parade and I’ve done a fair amount of roughing it. But I’ve also got albums full of photos which seem just like one long (action packed) day trip, as I’m wearing the same jacket and jeans in every photo. So this time around I want options and I'm starting to see the packing guidelines as a challenge. Sure it will probably leave me with a crippled back from lugging around a backpack around full of inappropriate travel clothes. But heck, it would be nice to feel pretty as I swan through Beijing’s Temple of Heaven.

[image via: Lucky pony]

A hive of bees and a dash of hairspray

The ever chic ginga ninja of the delightful blog Yours Truly - has put up a tutorial about how to create a beehive!

The step-by-step tute makes it look so straight forward, but my butter fingers and clumsy clips means that my beehive is more crappy than snappy!

First place: tied

[carottesauvage]

Holey moley - these pants are perfection.

Beehive

[Image via: Yours Truly]

My hair is growing at an achingly slow rate. It's skimming my ear lobes and when straightened is just touches the nape of my neck.

It was a silly idea to chop it off, my hairdresser warned me not too. If I had a penny for every time someone compared me to Shirley Temple I would be able to afford tickets to Golden Plains.

It hasn't been all snips and snails, and puppy dogs tails - It has been easy to roll out of bed and not have to attempt to tame a mass of curls.

But now I want a beehive.

Contemplation

'Contemplation seems to be about the only luxury that costs nothing.'

I Capture the Castle, Dodie Smith

[image via: fashion gone rogue]

Mad for Mad Men

I'm going to a Mad Men party soon. To say I'm peachy is a bit of an understatement - I love the show so much I would happily enrol in the uni course.

It seems like most major fashion magazines have featured a 1950's/1960's inspired shoot in the last 18 months. But this one featuring Catherine McNeil in Vogue Australia is a show stopper, the styling is a flawless blend of vintage and contemporary references.

I know that there are no rockabilly characters in Mad Men - but I'm sorely tempted to slip into a pencil skirt and prance around with cheeky indifference.

Where are they now?

This made me laugh. A lot.

The Baby Sitters Club: Where are they now?

I was surprised how about much I could recall about the club members and how fondly I still feel about them.

I particularly liked reading the comments section after the post, I too was jealous of Claudia's effortless style. Do you remember her telephone stalker? Yikes, that book freaked me out so much I had to attempt reading it three times. On the third time I skipped to the end, just to find out who the stalker was as the suspense was too much.

It's good to know that Claudia is doing well at the age of 37 and that I can now read a "thriller" cover to cover without developing a nervous tic.