Graduation

So I finally got to attend my graduation ceremony :)!!!

As I have mentioned in previous posts this was a big deal to me as there were a couple of times when I wasn't sure I would ever make it to this day.

When it came to the ceremony I though of it as a great excuse to dress up and look amazing, I had been told a lot of things about what I should wear 'black looks best', 'you'll break your neck if you try to wear those shoes' of course it didn't really bother me what others said. I had already bought my dress (or rather had it bought for me as a graduation present) and I was set on some statement shoes that of course had heels bigger than my feet.

For anyone who is graduating and has no idea what to wear or wants to know if what they have in mind is appropriate I have a couple of tips to help steer you in the right diretion.

Dress or Suit?

In the end what you are wearing underneath the gown can't really be seen during the ceremony so you are best to dress for what you are doing afterwards but this is not to say you can wear your converse, jeans and a tee because people will notice that. If you are planning on buying something new for the occasion (you worked hard so why shouldn't you?) then you might lean towards a suit, graduation generally means you are heading out into the professional world and you may be going to a lot of interviews or already have the job and want to impress people around the office. If you do opt for the suit I recommend that you leave the jacket backstage or with a friend as the lighting can make the stage rather hot, this tip goes for the guys to. 

If on the other hand you want a beautiful cocktail dress to party hard in later make sure it's not going to be a one off wear, too many times I have bought a dress for that one occasion and after it has hung in my wardrobe with all those other dresses to good for every day wear.

Heels or Flats?

For my graduation I actually took two pairs of shoes with me, heels for the ceremony and flats for all the running around before and after. Again there really is no bad choice, except maybe thongs. 

One thing I did find with the shoes I wore was that they were very noticeable (bright pink) so when I was searching through the pages of professional photos I found it very easy to find myself.

So my advice is as long as you are comfortable walking in your shoes it is really up to you, don't let anyone tell you that heels are inappropriate or to much hassle, it's not a long walk from one side of the stage to the other so practice up and down your room at home and you'll be right, plus sky high heels do wonders for shaping your legs so a little bit of discomfort can go a long way.

Accessories and the Rest

I wore some big bling to stand out from the big black robe but again like the rest it is up to what you think suits you and makes you feel the best.

The only area I have any real do's and don'ts for is the hair and make up department.

DO put in some effort, go get it done professionally if you want, it is a big day go spoil yourself.

DON'T go over the top with the make up, yes you will be on a stage but that doesn't mean you need stage make up, most of the photos will be before or after and they will be close ups so you want to be looking your best then, it isn't necessaries for the audience to see your eyelashes.

DO curl or straighten your hair, again take some time style's it because this is a part that isn't covered by the gown.

DON'T spend hours and lots of money on an intricate updo as the motar board (hat) will most likely ruin it wear your hair out or loosely tied up, at the very least remember that you will be wearing a hat so a bun on the top of your head might not work so well.

So when it all comes down to it dress to impress yourself and no one else, make sure you like how you look it's your day you deserve to feel great!

XX Stacy

Also you most likely will get hat hair ^ so be aware of that :)

Strathpine Flea Markets

Candy, Viccy and I had heard many different stories about these markets so we really weren't sure what to expect from them. We were also slightly unsure of the location and with footpaths closed and construction works it took a bit of guessing and a gamble upon whether the tents we could see in the distance were markets stalls or break areas for the workers, but with a bit of luck we found our way.

My style for the day was a definite clash of patterns but matching the colours made it work.
Estimated value $95

• Skirt - Mix Coles
• Shirt - Mix Coles
• Belt - Trade Secret
• Tights - Valley Girl
• Shoes - Famous Footwear
• Sunnies - Mix Coles
• Bracelet - Valley Markets
• Necklace - Birthday Present

Candy was as beautiful as ever with red being her colour of choice for the day.

Estimated value $85

• Skirt - Target
• Shirt - Kmart
• Cardigan - Target
• Tights - Myer
• Boots - Target

Viccy showed off my latest creation (check out how to make it) with a bit of colour blocking as well. Estimated value $120.

• Shirt - SES Fashion
• Skirt - Cotton On
• Tights - SES Fashion
• Shoes - Converse store
• Bag - Cosmetics Plus
• Cloak - Handmade Lace Collections
• Necklace - Valley Markets
• Gloves - Caboolture Markets

The markets were a great size with stalls along the car park and ovals and inside buildings and sheds. The range was just as had been describe on the website that I found these markets, a whole lot of trash and treasure with collectibles to such as crockery and coins but as large as the range was we past over most stalls very quickly. There weren't really any stalls that caught my eye and as nice as all the owners were I didn't come away with any insightful stories or lesson to pass on.

We finished at these markets very early in the day with very limited purchases and on a brighter side very full wallets.

Viccy bought a gold plated bracelet for $8

Candy bought a lovely teapot for $2

And I bought a paper making kit for 50c.

In all we had a good time and there was nothing to complain about but I wouldn't rate these markets very highly especially since they were rather difficult for us to get to.

Thanks for reading :)
XX Stacy

August Adventures

So with the approach of spring (although the weather really doesn't seem to be getting warmer) there is a lot to do this month so many so that I am already having trouble deciding what to do.

This weekend there are some great things happening around Brisbane first up is the Vintage Fair with prizes for the best dressed. For a bit of an outdoor adventure and weekend drive I would suggest Monte Lupo presents Alice located in the tambourine mountains and with inspiration drawn from things such as Alice in wonderland and the wizard of oz this would be a perfect picnic day with a bit of whimsy.

Monte Lupo - Feathers, Fur & Foliage

There are a lot of other things I am looking forward to this month, the Mummy exhibition continues and I have heard that it really is worth seeing, the Queen Street Mall is turning 30 and two of my favorites the Ekka and the Ekka Day Races.

Some of the markets on the cards for this month are the Suitcase Rummage, Eumundi Markets, Eagle Street Markets and back to Rocklea for some more inperation before Viccy and I hold our own stalls in September.

And to wrap it up this month is the Mercedes-Benze Fashion Festival. So I hope that gives you some ideas of what you might fill your weekends with this month I know that I don't have enough days to fit everything in so let me know where you get to and if there is anything that really shouldn't be missed!!

West End Markets

For the third week in a row we rose before the sun to make our way this time to West End. Every week it seems that we are getting up earlier and earlier to make sure we are there to grab the first bargains of the day and this week was no exception as we arrived at 6am when the markets officially open and well before the sun was anywhere to be seen.
The day was not a particularly rainy day but as the markets we were visiting were in Davies Park we decided it was a wise idea to wear gum boots as there would still be muddy patches between the stalls.

With the weather in mind we both chose very colorful outfits to brighten the day and I must say I have never received so many complements for how I looked. My look was very much a fashion blogger meet fluro hippie with an estimated cost of $135.

• Shirt - Trade Secret
• Skirt - Trade Secret
• Tights - Supre
• Boots - Big W
• Belt - Trade Secret
• Earrings - Gift
• Necklace - Handmade
• Cuff - Valley Markets
• Bag -Valley Girl

Victoria was a more subdued colourful with some modern red and black colours but again the gumboots showed her true spirit of love and peace. Her outfit cost around $120.

• Dress - Alley
• Tights - Supre
• Boots - Big W
• Earrings - Valley Markets
• Necklace - Rocklea Markets
• Bag - Rocklea Markets

So the market trip began today with finding a car park as we had chosen to drive, even though it was so early it wasn't an easy task as these markets are very popular, so we ended up parking a couple of streets away in an alley we felt rather unsafe in especially in the dark.

These markets are mainly about the fresh food which was all so amazing and cheap, I wish I had more room in my fridge or some idea of a recipe and I would have bought enough groceries for the week. Victoria however bought a little of the food and did some price comparisons for her upcoming marketing adventure and what she found were some good quality food at very cheap prices.

One of the stalls that caught my eye to begin with was selling candles and candle holders, there were beautiful moulded figures and so many colours, the stall just smelt of honey and the combinations drew us in.

I loved the bowl like holders made of beeswax in every colour and size you could imagine and after being reassured that all the products the man sold were unicorn safe this was my first purchase of the day.

The next stall that I feel in love with was a mix of handmade and new clothes and accessories the lovely girl there made most of the jewelry herself and the cape that i bought from her was one of a kind (I am assuming her name was Renee as the stall and brand was Renee loves Frances)

The rest of the morning was spent wandering around looking at everything the was to be offered and finding as much inspiration for ourselves and our own market stalls as possible. Since we had arrived so early and some stalls had not because of the weather we were finished by 9am and ready for some breakfast (not including the delicious bagels we had at 6am when we arrived). So we made our way to the amazing Paddington not far across the river (north side of course) and decided we would eat while waiting for all the antique and vintage shops to open.

There are so many wonderful shops in Paddington we could have spent all day wandering in and out however I am a bit sad to say our wallets would really have felt it as most of the price tags should weigh a ton with how much is on them. One of my favorite shops was Thousand Island Dressing which has a range of  unique homewares and jewelry.

We then went on to look through almost every store we could find, we skipped the ones that didn't have a lot in them as we have come to realise they are the ones that are generally the most expensive, a give away is when there sale rack out the front is more than you can afford. We looked in Yesterdays Books and Things, St Vinncent De Paul, Retro Metro and their clearance store, Ra Ra Superstar and Hobohemia with a few in between that I can't remember.

These stores were all very inspiring to us with new ways to use old things and combinations of clothing that we would have never dreamed of ourselves. 

I was extremely taken by Ra Ra Superstar and their quirky yet whimsical range of clothing you should really check them out sometime if not in person on their website we really had a fantastic time looking, unfortunately no buying with our budgets but I was completely flattered by the shop lady who said i looked simply fantastic and wanted a photo of my outfit for their site!!

We ended our Paddignton visit sifting through the enormous Antiques shop, there were really too many bargains to mention and it just made me want a house of my own to furnish with anything and probably everything I could find (or afford) in the shop. Most items were very reasonably priced and we could have spent hours looking and not seen everything but as we had already been awake for 8hrs we decided it was time to head home and review our days purchases.

Today not all of our buys came from the markets with some being from shops in Paddington as well.

My collection today was -

• Candle holder $16
• Clock/Poncho $49
• Vest $6
• Owl Statue $20

Total Spend $91

Viccy bought a range of things-

• Sunglasses $40
• Cherries $2.50
• Bread $5
• Chile Plant $3.50
• Flowers $5
• Lantern $9.50

Total Spend $61.50

All in all we had a great morning and I would recommend both the West End markets and a shopping trip to Paddington to anyone who is looking for something fun to do.

Hope you enjoyed!
XX Stacy

Weekend Rituals 3

Well we are doing it again. Early Saturday morning we shall be heading off to the West End/ Davies Park markets to sample a trendy blend of fresh food and fashion.
I am looking forward to getting some fresh produce for a beautiful dinner and some cocktails to sip in the evening while we admire our bargains and blog.

Online Wholesale

As I may have mentioned (or you may have noticed) I am slightly addicted to shopping. For some time now I have been browsing an online wholesale website Wholesale Dresses. The clothes start at amazingly cheap prices and some escalate out of my price range with duplicates of the same item being sold at different prices under slightly different names.

Many wholesale websites offer very cheap prices for bulk items such as 24 of the same, previously I had found a site which offered 2 of the same and I thought that was pretty good and still very cheap. This site allows you to order one of the item you want as long as it is "in stock" (I will come back to this later).

Online shopping can be very risky and even more so when it is a shop overseas where your language (in my case English) is not the countries first language. I had noticed with the site many people would ask questions and only get half the answers they were looking for or even worse got completely lost in translation and the answer showed no relevance at all.

With this particular shop there are a few things you need to take into consideration when ordering your items.

1. Possibly the most important is that these models are super tiny and probably have short arms and legs as well so make sure you check the measurements (although they are not always accurate) if it is a style that you have never worn before just keep in mind it probably wont fit you the same way it fits the model in the picture so just go for style you know suit you.
2. Out of stock items must be bulk ordered, when you place your order everything will be in stock at the time but when it comes to compiling your order they may have sold out of some. There is really nothing you can do about this because it is an internal fault with their calculations (the excuse they give is that they receive so many orders per second it is impossible to keep up to date). I would suggest have a back up in mind as they don't give a refund only store credit.
3. The pictures on this site are not always what you will get, I think they say that 20% of their stock is made to look like the photo but will not be the same. Just remember the price of what you are buying, if you think you could go out to the shops in your city and find something similar for the same price I would suggest that because you can never be sure that what you see is what you will get.
4. Finally the shipping, I have mentioned this in my previous online shopping review. Shipping matters, the cost can dramatically change an item from being a bargain to being a rip off. This site has the higher end off the shipping price scale but I decided what I was getting was still cheap enough when the shipping costs were added. A good tip would be don't just buy one item because the shipping for that would be very similar to buying three, but then as your package weight increases by 500g the shipping goes up and they don't have a spend so much get free shipping so you probably can't just buy a new wardrobe from them.

After considering all this I bought a few items from their store, some of which I have fallen in love with and some of which I think I will be giving away...

So onto what I ordered from the site and what I received

Long Sleeve Cloak Shape Coat Green US$9.89
I was pretty happy with this coat, it is fully lined, the measurements were correct and the only real difference is the straps on the sleeves are higher than pictured.

Graceful Single-breasted Special Collar Coat Yellow US$9.73

This coat needs a bit of work as all the buttons are loose, it is very similar to the picture although the fit is not as nice and the pleats are a little high, but I do think once iron and fixed up a little it will be great.

Slim Waist Big Lapelled Double-breasted Coat Orange US$14.51

This coat was slightly more expensive than the others and I would say it was worth it. The material is nicer and the fit is much better, although the buttons are still a bit loose.

Long Sleeve Round Collar Deer Printing T-Shirt US$4.05

This tunic was a absolute bargain, exactly as the picture. No complaints at all!!!

Graceful Lotus Leaf Backless Charming Dress Black $8.63

There really isn't anything wrong with this dress... but it just isn't right, the sleeves don't stick out as far, the collar isn't as round and the back is a lot higher than pictured. I will probably change it a bit myself so it is a bit more special. But yes I was disappointed with this one.

Skinny Fashion PU Legging Panty-hose Black US$2.70

These tights are great, supper fashionable at the moment and so much better than paying $20 in a store. I have worn these half a dozen times already.

Double Used Lovely Picture Printed Handbag US$6.33

This bag is exactly like the picture, it is smaller than I imaged but I checked the measurements and it is correct, I do really like this bag, I am not sure where the pattern is from but I have seen it before. If you know what it is let me know :)

Vogue Pattern Shackle Cubic Bags Purple US$6.22

This bag is also just as pictured but again I am not sure about it, there is nothing wrong with it I just think it's not me, probably because it a funny size...

Fashion High Heels Boots White US$9.46
I love these shoes!! I was so worried about ordering shoes because if they don't fit there is nothing you can do (as you can see it didn't stop me). They fit great the only little problem is the ties on the sides are uneven, but when tied you can't notice :)

Simple Style Cusp Flat Shoes Black US$6.76

Again I love these shoes. I have been looking for a pair of black flats for a long time to replace a pair that i wore through but none had been right. I think these will do the trick 

Paillette Embellished Flat Shoes Blue US$8.11

Another pair of fantastic shoes, exactly like the photos and again a perfect fit. My photo isn't very good but the colour is exactly that shown on the site.

Renaissance V-Opening Bowknot Platforms Beige US$6.63
These are my least favourite shoes, they aren't shaped very well so it is easy to get the left and right mixed up. The bows are a bit messy but could be straightened and glued. They fit a little smaller than the others but are still a good buy.

Lace Double-Use Printing Fashionable Canvas Shoes  US$9.46
100% brilliant, exactly as pictured, perfect fit and beautiful colours.

Fashionable Korea Simple Cross High Heels Pumps US$13.51
These shoes are beautiful, however they are too small :( the toes just don't have enough room. But on the plus side they are made well and are great materials.

Pure Color Stylish Woolen Yarn Glove Deep Grey US$2.46

It is hard to get gloves wrong and these are exactly the same as pictured, lovely and warm too.

Lovely Double-layered Lace Hollow Socks Beige US$0.81

The socks are the same as in the picture, they look super cute with the white shoes I bought, however I have noticed they did fray slightly when washed so I may have to hand wash these.

Hot Sale Retro Wheel Printed Zipper Decorated Jumpsuit  US$7.13
Lovely Double-layered Lace Hollow Socks Beige US$6.89
I have never really been sure about the jumpsuit trend but I thought at these prices I would give it a go, unfortunately they were out of stock, which may be a good thing as I later realised my legs are probably a bit too big for Asian clothing.

I had read a lot of reviews of this online store before I decided to buy from them and I have to say I am overall very happy with what I received. I think this may be because my expectations reflected the price of the items and I ordered what I was sure would fit and also suit my size and not just a stick.
The postage was very fast considering some of the reviews I had read had said they took months to arrive, mine took about 10 days from China to Australia.

I would recommend this site if you are after cheap clothes but are also willing to take a risk, I would recommend the shoes and accessories over the clothes themselves but I am sure I will be buying clothes from them again.

Just remember to be sure you are happy to pay the price because there is no way of knowing for sure what you will receive.


Good Luck and Happy Shopping
XX Stacy Lace


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