melbourne { a whirlwind tour }

The mission:
Spend a fun filled girls weekend with my ma in the world's most liveable city - Melbourne.

The resources:

The Melbourne Design Guide was our passport to all the goodies the city had to offer - specifically in the way of gastronomic delights. When it came to shopping, The Design Files Gertrude Street shopping guide led us on a walking adventure that resulted in tired feet and a maxed out credit card!

The plan:

We flew in to Melbourne for a whirlwind weekend visit with just enough time to do some serious damage to our diets and our savings plans. Jetting in around lunchtime, we quickly ditched the bags at the hotel and headed for the Camy Shanghai Dumpling House, which is apparently well known to locals. Our concierge was a little hesitant to send us there (we think he was trying to keep the deliciousness all to himself), but we found our way to 25 Tattersalls Lane hungry and hot. Plastic-y chairs and a heaving crowd greeted us as we were shown to our booth, where we ordered two plates of veggie dumplings, steamed and fried. Mere minutes later, the food arrived, hot, homemade and hearty. And then the bill arrived. $13. I kid you not - for as many dumplings as we could stomach and a couple of drinks into the bargain. And no, we were assured we hadn't been undercharged!

Hotfooting it out of Chinatown and on to the Craft Hatch Markets, we were reminded what Melbourne is all about - hidden gems. In what was essentially a rubbish filled back street, we happened upon an artsy cafe through which stalls of jewellery, letterpress cards and textiles were interspersed. A few Christmas presents down, we headed back to Bourke to do the mall thing, just in time for dinner.

Seamstress, housed in a 100 year old textile factory (and Buddhist Monastery), was quintessential Melbourne. There's no trying to hide the history of their old buildings and the restaurant was decorated with coat hangers dangling from the ceiling, reams of cloth suspended overhead and vintage sewing machines at every table. The food is made to share and literally amongst some of the best I have tasted. The eggplant. Oh my god, the eggplant!

The next day saw us head to Gertrude St, where the shop to catch our eye was Little Salon. A kookie mixture of antlered rabbits and Christmas bunting, I snagged my Christmas gift from mum and we were off and racing. Stopping in at such delights as Books for Cooks and Obus, we made our way to the Rose Street Artists Markets. I picked up this quirky giraffe (horse? zebra?) ring who now sits on my finger as I type.

Heading back to Federation Square, we popped in to Chocolate Buddha (on the recommendation of the lovely Jazz of Fizzle Out) for some (more) dumplings and ramen, then it was back through Little Collins St for some more retail therapy before jumping on the plane.

...

Where are your favourite spots to visit in Melbourne? Any hidden treasures?

{ venice } & the amalfi coast on film

My husband and I ended up taking our Nikon F2 with us on our honeymoon and we're glad we did. Though the photos aren't as clear and sharp as those taken with modern day digital cameras I love the imperfections and the grainy quality of these shots. 

jas x

dreaming of a { beach } picnic

 

jas x

Image via pinterest

passage to { india }

Jas and I were lucky enough to visit India earlier this year. We took our film cameras hoping to capture even a little bit of what makes the country unique. The pics below were taken in Agra - is there anything more beautiful than the Taj Mahal?

I developed these pictures as part of film photography class - watching the images reveal themselves was almost as fun as taking them.
Cx

cat { eyes }

It seems all Europeans are sunglasses aficionados. Everywhere I turn in Milan the women are rocking the latest sunglasses trends. And it seems that the cat eyes are high on the fashion lover's wishlists.

The great thing about the current cat eye craze? It suits most face shapes and sizes.

They will be an Australian spring must have.

jas x

Image via fashionably kate

{ wish list } ruby paris

Scooters are on my mind.

I've been watching Parisians and Italians zipping around on them and on my return to Australia I will definitely be dragging Claire to our local Vespa outlet to help me pick one out.

While at the high-end Parisian retailer Colette I spotted this designer headwear by Ruby. I love the vintage style head plate on the front and the bold designs. Ruby does custom colours and will size the helmet to fit all head shapes and sizes. Not only stylish but also safe - all Ruby helmets are manufactured using carbon fibers making them solid and light as a feather.

Ruby headwear is on my wish list.

Colette has an extensive online store, click clack here to check out the Ruby range or some of their other modern and retro goods.

ciao!

jas x

Images via Essential Homme

alice in { wonderland }

We arrived in Milano yesterday and we're staying at the Maison Moschino hotel. From the moment we walked into the lobby I felt like Alice on her arrival in wonderland.

The building is a neoclassical 1840s railway station, resurrected to bring to life the design dreams of Rosella Jardini, Moshino's creative director.

Maison Moschino welcomes you with a lobby ornamated with origami clouds, and table and floor lamps resembling Moschino dresses. There are 65 rooms, inspired by fairytales including the 'sleeping in a ballgown', 'forest room' and 'sweet room.' We stayed in the 'life is a bed of roses' room with the chandelier, the bedspread and chairs all covered in rose petals.

I'm not keen to leave wonderland.

jas x

Images via Maison Moshino

parisian { men }

I thought the women of Paris would catch my eye, with their Chanel and nautical stripes.

But the women haven't stood a chance.

Whether it's out to brunch, picking up a bottle of milk from the local corner store, or drinking chardonnay until the early hours of the morning, Parisian men seem to do it in style.

How do they make it look so effortless?

jas x

{ paris } has attitude

Paris has me convinced. As soon as I return to Australia I am joining Claire & investing in a scooter.

Will I look like this? Probably not. But a girl can dream :)

jas x

around the { world }

Jas is off on her honeymoon and since I wouldn't fit in her suitcase, I put together this list of things I would do if stowing away on someone else's honeymoon was an acceptable thing to do:

Sit on a balcony overlooking the Amalfi Coast...

Take one of those 'holding up the leaning tower' photos in Italy (and eat lots of pasta)...

Ride a bike through Munich...

Take a walk over the Brooklyn Bridge...

And let off some balloons under the Eiffel Tower.

Cx

(amalfi coast brooklyn munich paris italy)

next stop { paris }

My bags are packed. Watch this space for fun and fashion from Paris!

jas x

image via flikr

new zealand { on film }

In a few days we leave for our honeymoon. My husband and I both love photography and we are planning to take our Canon 550D and my little Canon point and shoot.

Normally we also take my father-in-law's vintage Nikon F2 on our travels. This time, in an effort to travel a little lighter we had planned to leave it behind.

But, while sifting through old travel photos I found these shots, taken on the Nikon F2, from our trip to the south island of New Zealand. And I was reminded of how much I love this camera, the click and clunk of the shutter, the slow whir of the film rolling over and the shots it produces.

Maybe travelling light is overrated?

jas x

Language Love

If I didn't want to run off to Paris before seeing this video, I certainly do now!

EF - Live The Language - Paris from Albin Holmqvist on Vimeo.

uomo fashion { florence 2011 }

Spring fashion in the northern hemisphere has been all about colour. And not just for women. The designers raided their children's crayon boxes and the men followed by embracing every colour of the rainbow.

It's no secret that Claire and I love the colour blocking trend and we're happy to see the boys aren't being left out :)

jas x


Images via Monica Rose