With all our time zone differences, one of the fun things about living abroad is waking up in the morning to emails and comments that have come in overnight from my faraway friends (thats you, my dear readers!), and this morning I woke up to a pretty fabulous surprise that I simply have to share with each of you. Artist Diane Bronstein (you all know how much of a fan I am of her work, i posted about her here) is hosting her first giveaway!!

Diane is offering each of us a chance to win her enchanting watercolour featured above called Ghost of a Memory. To enter, all you have to do is comment on her post by clicking here, and if you’d like to double your chances of winning and you have a blog, you can link to her post and competition by posting about your favourite dress.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Of course I don’t need to tell you I am doubling my chances!
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Now, you may be sick of seeing my favourite dress, especially since I even wrote an ode to it here, and posted it here on that most memorable day last week, but for a third and most likely not final time, here it is again!

Yep, it is indeed my 1920’s knitted number that was handed down to me from my Oma’s cousin. It has many stories to tell, the following being one of them: A few years ago I wore it to a wedding in Sydney and the groom’s mother who lives in an estonian castle (!) came to me and proclaimed rather loudly “You are wearing my dress!” According to her, this dress is only one of a kind, created by a Melbourne designer (she didn’t tell me who). This woman who proclaimed it as hers said she lent it to a friend about 50 years ago and the friend never returned it! Thank goodness it turns out my Oma’s cousin was not the friend, and after all this I said, “How fascinating, do you mind that I wear it?” And she said, “Of course not darling, you look simply ravishing in it! It was made for you!” Phew!

But the saddest news is that my favourite dress has been hanging ever so lonely in my closet in Sydney for way too long. Since I’ve been away for 2 years that means I have not worn it for more than two years! Quel dommage!! (That is French for shock!horror!) I have worn it to nearly every ‘main event’ in my life over the past 5 years, here are just a few snapshots of me in the dress at various functions in Canada and Australia…

I modernised it a bit by wearing it off the shoulder and accessorising with a low belt. It is one of those dresses that just sits so beautifully – it swings when I walk, it falls softly around me when I am seated, and it can be dressed down (like when one happens to be captaining a yacht!?) or dressed up for a wedding.

But now, I must say, it is all but a ghost of a memory.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Everyone, get over to Diane’s blog and comment tout de suite as she will be drawing our names out of the hat on Monday! Thank you Diane!

By the way, Diane has three blogs, check them all out while you are at it:

Inspiration By Design
Daily Art
Style in the Streets

Next weekend, on Saturday November 22nd, on South Curl Curl beach in Sydney, starting at 4pm there is an AWESOME music festival happening. Hosted by The Beats That Give Back, there will be live bands, all of varied roots: rock, reggae, acoustic, harmonic, organ drifting, singer styling, bass slinging, brass blasting, djembe tapping, solo ripping, & drum cracking… Some of the music you will hear on the day will include:

The Landlords
Jumbledat
The Sniffer Dogs
Lemonade
The Pachamamas

Let me tell you, if anyone knows how to throw a fabulous beach party, it is the organiser herself – hostess with the mostess – Bron Harrison. She has organised fire twirlers, a fully stocked bar, a BBQ and so much more, making this event one of the hottest of the season.

Tickets are $25 but you need to get in quick as past events have sold out. Click here to read more about the event and purchase your tickets.

All proceeds from the event will be donated to buy food, medicine and essential equipment for Tibetan refugees in North India. So jump online and buy your tickets and if you can’t make it, you can donate by clicking here.

…………………………………..
Thank you for the heads up Sue!

These images were created for the very awesome Sydney Symphony Orchestra. I love the concept – stunning portraits of the Sydney Symphony performers ‘billboarded’ (in post-production) on blank walls throughout Sydney. The landscape shots were taken by my good friend David Knight (remember I featured his work here and here). David has captured some of the most picturesque nooks and crannies of the city and I found myself guessing where all the shots were taken. Sydneysiders, do you want to play with me and guess along?

If you have not yet seen the Sydney Symphony Orchestra perform then you must! I have seen them a number of times and am enraptured with every performance. The 2009 season is now open. And if you’d like to know who were the masterminds behind these images, see below…

Agency: Moon Group, Sydney
Creative director: Linda Jukic, Senior Designer: Christopher Doyle
Photographers: Landscapes David Knight, portraits Anthony Geernaert
Retouching: Kerry at Cranky Mermaid

I didn’t mean to, it just happened! I surprised myself. How does one surprise themselves you ask? Well, this is what you do…

You look at yourself in the mirror but this time you look at yourself CLOSELY. Not the usual ol’ two second check over to ensure you have nothing hanging off your face, but rather a magnified look. And then you are aghast! at the condition of your skin. And then you think, how long has it been since you last had a facial? And then you realise it’s been more than 2 years, in fact you can’t even remember when the last time was, so it’s more like 3 or even 4 years past. Then you think, I need a facial! So you get on the internet and you look for a beauty treatment boutique that uses natural products only. You find one! And you make an appointment mid-week…

That’s how it happened for me yesterday. Which is how I discovered Aromatique Amsterdam, on the Nieuwe Spiegelstraat which is the street with all the antique shops I was telling you about the other day. What a treat! I’m going to tell you more about this wonderful discovery soon as there is much to tell. But for now, all I will say is my skin today feels sooooo good.

I doubled my surprise treat dosage by mistakenly finding a fabulous restaurant on the same road to stop for some lunch. I intended to just grab a quick bagel but the bagel shop was packed so I scouted for another place and I found Spelt – a little oasis with a yummy menu. So there I was, mid-week, without my laptop, pen or paper or book or any of my usual distractions, looking out over their beautiful garden, having no choice but to be content with my own company. I had the mushroom soup, followed by the apple tart which was so delicious, I want to go back for it again. Perhaps another mid-week treat is on the cards next week? How ridiculously indulgent of me that would be!

A number of people have been asking me lately “what inspires you?” and I tell them, “blogs!”. I know, shock horror that I admit my creative soul is fed by the creative genius of others, but it’s how the creative world works – we all feed each other. And you all know my mantra by now (beside ‘enhance the everyday’) is: embrace, nurture and acknowledge. So it got me thinking, perhaps its not enough that my favourite blogs are in my blogroll and that I assume you go and visit all of them as often as I do – perhaps its time I show you exactly what inspires me, on a more regular basis. So today I have selected a few of my favourite blogs and am highlighting some of their recent blog posts that have got my creative juices flowing. I just know they will do it for you too…

Starting with Jo from red aprons – not only does she have fabulous taste in stockings and shoes, but she is also a girl who leads an extraordinarily interesting life in Sweden, her new homeland. Having moved there some months back to study, Jo takes us with her on her everyday adventures and shows us what inspires her along the way too. Last week she took us to a tiny island called rörö and I can’t stop day dreaming about this place. Oh, I’m so inspired, just look at that homemade shack above!
…………………………………………

Now this is a new discovery for me – it ironically came just after I recently made the announcement of my dislike for a certain word. Well, I take it all back!! Because I have completely fallen in love with the Brisbane letterpress company called Bespoke Press! Yes, bespoke! You never thought I’d say it, did you? Well, perhaps Bespoke Press is the only time I will say it. They make the most beautiful invitations, stationery and paperie using 100% cotton paper, and they have a love for “deep impressions, graphic design, interior design, and beautiful handmade things new and old.” How could I not fall in love? They have a wonderful website and blog, and recently they went on an incredible journey through Croatia and Italy, giving us plenty of photos to drool over. You simply must go and visit, there is bespoke inspiration galore…

…………………………………………

Then there is Amanda’s photographs. I can never get enough of her work. And this photograph is just so delicate and feminine.
…………………………………………

And my dear Liberty Post! The girl’s got my heart this week – she has surprised us all by posting all about Australia! And I am getting such a kick out of seeing what she comes up with next – I always find it so much fun to see my country through someone else’s eyes, and Liberty has been posting everything from Dame Edna to Akira, from vintage Australian stamps to a splashing of hilarious shots of the Melbourne Cup day. Thank you Liberty Post, you rock!
…………………………………………

Now it’s no secret that I adore the life led by Joslyn from Simply Lovely. With two beautiful daughters Audrey and Millie, Joslyn is always doing the most fun things with them. Recently they painted this cardboard castle and I’m totally inspired… to paint cardboard castles, eat cotton candy, have children, and go to fun fairs on weekends carrying my Japanese parasol. I am also a bit jealous that she gets to wear flip flops and singletops on an Autumn day as we can see above. Oh, also that the sun shines in Autumn for her in Austin, Texas. Phenomenal!
…………………………………………

Nadia’s blog la porte rouge is pure inspiration – front to back, back to front, in between and upside down. Nadia snaps brilliant photographs all over her neighbourhood and home – they are magic to me. The above photos are of some dying gerbera daisies that Nadia couldn’t quite let go. And I just adore them – even flowers die gracefully in her home, like “layered ballerinas” as Nadia so eloquently observed.
…………………………………………

And then there is the fabulous embroidery work of artist Joetta from Little Yellow Bird. Recently she has begun painting on her embroidery, creating the most maginificent textural illustrations. So very beautiful, I can’t wait to see her new works once completed.
…………………………………………

So that’s it for show + tell around the (blog)block for today! Perhaps I should make this a regular weekly treat, what do you think? Maybe not so elaborate, but just an image and a post, like the other bloggers do, what say you? If you like this idea, then you’ve just read the first in the series called…

Tomorrow I will take you on a little wander for show + tell around le petit bateau, and next week I am going to… well, you’ll just have to wait and see. x