Stuff That I Bought does Birdsnest

If you have been reading this site for any length of time you would know I’m marginally addicted to online shopping. That said, I have had some bad experiences recently with things coming in at the wrong size, wrong shape, fitting wrong or just looking…well…wrong.

I have talked about Australian site Birdsnest before and how awesome they are, so I decided to put the Birdsnest girls to the test. Goodness knows I’m not the most fashionable model on the catwalk, so I enlisted their help to dress me for autumn. They have a fab function on their website where you can shop for your body shape, and as someone with a slightly unusual body shape (5’2” and, um, curvaceous) not everything looks good on me, so any and all guidance is appreciated. Not only are clothes categorised by body type, but they actually style complete looks for you to shop from because they have full time stylists on staff. Genius. It's like fashion for dummies.

They have an incredible all-female team who pick the seasons items, style all the shoots and add a handwritten note into every parcel. Jane, the head bird, started Birdsnest because she is passionate about making women feel good about themselves, and it really shows. I spoke to their stylist Peige and, based on my body shape and a few ‘I like this, I don’t like this’, she sent me a pile of clothes that would be shape and style appropriate. You know what? She nailed it all. All of it. What do you think?



Are you an online shopper? Does the idea of shopping by body shape with fully styled outfits appeal? (this is rhetorical, I know the answer is yes.) I will totally be shopping from Birdsnest in future - they stock a lot of my favourite brands like Staple the Label, Ben Sherman, Blue Juice, Mink Pink, Sass and Wish, and they show me how to wear them.

As an aside, and in the interest of transparency, Birdsnest are letting me keep something from this little experiment. What do you think I should keep? (I guarantee I'll buy most of it anyway.) I'm massively obsessed with the Sass Grace Army Jacket ($109.95), Mink Pink Long Distance Maxi ($59.95) and Therapy Duke boots ($59.95).

Check out Birdsnest.com.au for more autumn fashion inspiration. 

Also, the track used in my clip is Won't Go Quietly by Example. Check out Example's facebook page or you can get his new album on iTunes. 

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Oh, Friday...

Dear Lush Keep It Fluffy Purple Bath Ballistic,

Thank you for being amazing. I had been looking forward to dropping you in a hot bath all day and you didn't let me down. Your delicious jasmine and warm vanilla soothed my aching muscles, moisturised my skin and melted away the stress from a week that can only be described as icky. I feel a gazillion times better (and a little bit sparklier) from having spent time with you.

Big love,
Elise

Dear Cleaner,

Apologies for the bath bomb residue in the bath. Im sure you'll have fun cleaning it up.

Sorry,
Elise

Grab your maps and your oxygen, it's Sherpa Chic

I'm calling it now - the hottest look for winter will be what I have dubbed Sherpa Chic. I say that because I recently had the chance to check out the new season Sportsgirl stuff before it hits shelves (some of it is in store now) and holy frijoles! Straight off the Himalayas, but in a really sexy way. We're talking ponchos, chunky jackets and enough fur to make Sarah Palin moist.

Here's your winter checklist:

• Heavy grandma knits
• Printed maxi skirts and harem pants (there is a pair of pants I am already imagining myself in)
• Fur gillettes (oh how I desperately want one in black - if you find one anywhere let me know - Sportsgirl are doing browns and creams)
• Felt hats for off duty model-chic
• Shearling boots (which I am possibly not cool enough to wear, but they are pretty anyway)
• Textured bags
• Patterned tights
• Chintzy vintage-look gold jewellery

Gotta say, as someone who isn't a size 6, I'm not sure how I feel about the patterned tights. Everything else - WANT. In fact, my number one item that I must have is a fluffy cream long-sleeved mini dress that is so super soft and cuddly it feels like a hug from a cloud. Also, mittens with kittens on them. There is really only about a week in winter when it gets cold enough in Sydney to wear mittens, but gosh darn if I'm not going to wear the heck out of the mittens in those seven days.

If you're really quick, you might be lucky enough to pick up one of their leather shift dresses. They are only making 100 and at this stage they will be exclusive to their flagship stores, but there is a small chance there will be a second batch made. I might put my name down when I go into Sportsgirl today to buy the printed pants, a felt hat and some shearling boots.

I don't have pics of the aforementioned kitten mittens, the leather dress or the magical cream mini because they are in the second batch of stocked to be dropped, but you really should check it out. BYO goat though.

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Stuff I love right now

In the spirit of Valentine's Day, I'm going to talk about stuff I'm loving at the moment (apart from the obvious stuff like my Fiancé and Cadbury Turkish Delight easter eggs).

1 - Macbook Air - I love this little 11" baby so much it hurts. She's shiny (like me), she's pretty (like me), she's impressively powerful (like me) and she's so light I can sit her on my lap and not even feel it (errr...). Plus she is handbag size, so I can take her on the bus and do stuff while I'm on the move. Yes, my Air is a girl. (Price: starting at $1199, From: Apple)

2 - Antipodes Kiwi Seed Eye Cream - I have been using this eye cream for about 3 months and it has steadily helped to repair all the damaged skin around my eyes. Because I stare at computers all day, my eyes and the surrounding area get really dry, but this cream gently hydrates without being too heavy (because heavy eye cream just does the reverse of what it is supposed to and drags your skin down to create sagging). Take five, Antipodes, you've earned it. (Price: $48.95, From: David Jones)

3 - Nivea Calm & Care Deodorant - It smells good. I like it. What else can you say about deodorant? (Price: $3.79, From: the supermarket)

4 - Lapureté Mild Crème Facial Cleanser -  This cleanser is a good one, people. It contains a natural botox alternative called Okuru, as well as passionflower, which work to gently target all those fine lines and age spots that seem to creep up as we get older (I just had another birthday, so I'm hyper-aware of how old I feel right now). This cleanser seems to really agree with my skin and I plan on draining every last drop from the tube - fighting crows feet while washing my face is pretty cool, no? (Price: $39.90, From: Terry White, Chemmart, Pulse pharmacies)

5 - MOR candle in Italian Blood Orange - Bellissimo! Absolutely beautiful. Blood orange, jasmine, rose and lily of the valley dance around my bedroom while I wind down every night (and play Angry Birds - I'm totally stuck on a level in the Valentine's Day special edition). Not only do you get 40 hours burn time, but it looks elegant in the black glass with the gold stamp on the front. The perfect bedside table accessory. (Price: $39.95, From: David Jones and Myer)

The Antipodes, Lapurete and Mor were offered to me for consideration.
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New yumminess from outer space

Who doesn't love a Mars Bar? (I'm sure there are people who don't, but I silently judge them.) That said, I can't say I was overly enthused when I saw the new Mars Caramel on the shelf. Actually, I was just confused - doesn't a Mars Bar have caramel in it already? What's so different about the Mars Caramel? Does it come from different cows? (caramel comes from cows, right?) Is it made by different oompa-loompas at the Mars factory?

Perplexed, I bought one anyway. I almost bought a regular bar to compare the two, but figured that would require too many extra minutes on the treadmill.

It was good, don't get me wrong. In fact it was real good. The caramel was softer and runnier than a regular Mars Bar, but if you leave a regular Mars Bar in a warm room then the caramel goes soft anyway. So…

…yeah. It just saves some time really. By the way - it's just caramel, no nougat. Duh. But can you ever really taste the nougat anyway? The caramel is always the star.

Price: $1.62
From: Coles
Why you need it: To help you work, rest and play, or so I'm led to believe
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Cosmetics so delicate you can eat them. Seriously.

- by Shay

 I talk to my girlfriends about make-up a lot. What they're lusting after, what they love and what they would never ever use, even under duress. One thing I've noticed recently is their fear of using bright colours on their faces, and their puzzling fear of mineral make-up. This seems to be an epidemic amongst my nearest and dearest, and it’s something I would like to stomp out right here and now.

To ease my friends toes into the wonderful world of the mineral I have enlisted the help of Inika Cosmetics – a 100% natural cosmetics brand who also happen to have been developed by two amazing Aussie chicks. Just over four years ago Miranda Bond and Jenni Williams started using natural ingredients to create make-up that feels great, looks amazing and works just as well the chemical-laden stuff.  Oh, and did I mention it’s perfect for use on even the most sensitive of skins?  Hell.  Yeah!

Their products are packaged with the environment in mind, and all of their products are certified either vegan, organic or both.  Yes, your sister could eat your Inika make-up and still stay well within her New Years resolution to not eat animal products.  But they don’t encourage that.

I have been using the Inika mineral eye shadows in Blue Steel (1) and Honeycomb (2), two colours that also happen to work very harmoniously together on the eyelid.

Blue Steel is a lovely muted cornflower blue.  It appears very strong in the pot, but applies a gentle wash of colour that is very buildable – perfect for my sissy mates.  I found it to be easy to apply but be mindful that you will experience fallout on the cheeks where the particles drop, so it’s probably best to leave applying your foundation until after doing your lids.

Honeycomb is the perfect blending or highlighting colour.  It’s a sweet pale gold colour, and again is very buildable on the lid.

Both shadows lasted well throughout a normal day of activities, and they left my eyes looking picture perfect after removing with eye-makeup remover.

I also gave the Inika mineral blush line a swirl and tap. Pink Peach (4) is a gorgeous shimmery dusty rose colour.  It has a fair amount of sparkle but still looks natural on the apples of the cheeks.  I was enamoured with the super convenient puff pot attached to the lid – just a quick tap and it applies straight from the pot, so easy!

Peachy Keen (3) is, as the name suggests, a lovely strong peach colour with added shimmer.  It applied beautifully with my blush brush and left my cheeks looking bright and Summery.  This worked especially well with my favourite maxi-dress teamed with a nice metallic sandal.  Very beach-chic.

The end result of all of this is I’ve finally convinced my mates that mineral – and brights – really aren’t that scary after all. They’ve all told me they will be scouring the website for their local Inika suppliers (there are 371 Australia wide, so that should be an easy task).  My brown-eyed friends are even keen to give the Blue Steel shadow a go now they’ve seen how well it makes darker eyes pop.  Mission accomplished!

Inika Mineral Eyeshadow
Price: $24.95
Inika Mineral Blush
Price: $24.95
From: Buy on the Inika website or check for stockists
Why you need it: Beautiful colours, gentle formula and affordable prices. Consider all the boxes ticked.
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Urban Outfitters - the good, the bad and the WTF was I thinking?!

It’s kind of disturbing how much I have bought from Urban Outfitters over the last 4 months. Not all of it was for me (there were, like, two Christmas presents in there) but there were a lot of parcels arriving on my desk. I hate to say this, but not all of it was good. Some of it was bad. In fact, some of it was downright ugly and I have to wonder if I was shopping drunk (it happens sometimes - I know you can relate).

Let me give you a quick peek into some of the stuff that I bought.

The Good
1 - Ecote starburst sandals – $38 – Worn them to death
2 - UO Rhinestone mesh necklace – $34 – Cute, right?
3 - Lomography diana+ mini camera – $39.99 (although now 34.99) – My first lomography camera and I love it! So much fun shooting on film.
4 - Truly Madly Deeply Leopard Cross Dolman Tee – $38 – This shirt is insanely comfortable and I wear it all the time.
5 - Urban Renewal Leather Turban headwrap – $4.99 – Mine is red, not blue, but it’s still just as pretty.

The Bad
1 - Lomography fisheye – $48 – This was a Christmas gift and the flash was broken. Awkward.
2 - Circa 78 wildflower necklace – $17.99 – I love this and I wear it all the time, but it was broken when it arrived and I had to dig out the old jewellery pliers and find a jump ring to repair it. 
3 - Silence and Noise raw silk tee – $54 – I have bought tonnes of Silence and Noise stuff before and it always fits the same, but this has an odd fit and sits really funny. Shame, because the print is gorgeous.
4 - Ecote twist sandal in silver – $14.99 – The sole on the left foot snapped the second time I wore them and it’s now held together with superglue PLUS the toe line sits funny and gives the most godawful blisters.

The Ugly
1 - BB Dakota slouch ankle pant – $26.99 – These look NOTHING like they do in the picture. They are baggy with a really low crotch and seem five sizes too big. Ugh. Such a shame.
2 - BDG Cricket sweatshirt dress – $48 – I wish I looked like the model.
3 - Silence & Noise Multi Chard Print Dress – $39.99 – Drunk shopping?

Hit up Urban Outfitters while the exchange rate is still good!
Pics graciously stolen from the UO website
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I have put on weight and I'm loving it!

You know I’m marginally obsessed with making my hair fat )and if you didn't, now you do). Genetics blessed me with fine, limp hair and I’m a total sucker for anything that tells me it will make my hair fatter/thicker/healthier. I’m still using Activance, which I have told you about before (and still love!), but some new products came into my life a couple of months ago and holy heckballs, Batman is my hair looking better than ever!


I have been using Living Proof – Full Shampoo and Conditioner. This brand has a cult following in the States and is now stocked here by the magical Mecca. I can see why it has a huge number of fans; I don’t like to throw the word miracle around willy nilly but this might just be an appropriate occasion. I recently had lunch with a girlfriend who has known me for about 12 years and she remarked that my hair had never looked thicker and healthier. My hair actually *feels* thicker! My ponytail is bouncy! When I wear my hair out, I don’t look like a drowned rat by lunchtime! 

On top of the Living Proof prods, I occasionally give my hair a spray with Bumble & Bumble Thickening Spray, also from Mecca. It's sort of an everything spray - thickening, heat-protecting, hairspray - which seems kind of frou frou, but you pop it in while your hair is damp (pre-blow dry) and then style as usual. It makes styling that bit easier and adds a bit more body to limpid locks.


I won’t say that I’ll never try another thickening product again (old habits die hard) but I don’t know if I’ll ever find anything that matches Living Proof – Full. Big call, but I’m prepared to stake my reputation on it. 

Living Proof - Full Shampoo and Conditioner
Price: $39/8oz bottle or $15/2oz bottle
From: Mecca Cosmetica

Bumble and Bumble Thickening Spray
Price: $50/250mL
From: Mecca Maxima

Why you need to get amongst it: Fat hair. Simple as that.

The Living Proof products were offered to me for review
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