New Years Eve Wishes

New Year's Eve has always been a time for reflection.
Pondering the past year and what has or hasn't been achieved.
Looking forward to the oncoming year and making the resolve to follow through with the changes we would like to make in ourselves, family, lifestyle etc.

The top 10 Researched New Years Eve Resolutions are as follows:
1. Spend more time with family and friends
2 Fit in some personal fitness
3. Tame the bulge
4. Quite smoking
5. Enjoy life more
6. Quit drinking
7. Get out of debt
8. Learn something new
9. Help others
10. Get organised

Well I'm not sure what your new years resolutions will be but there's about 5 on that list which are going to be on mine. Don't smoke so at least I'm off the hook for that one.
Number 10 is basically my number 1, because I believe once I get my shizz together I'll be able to do 1, 2 & 5 more easily.

Are you getting frocked up tonight and hitting the town??
I had planned to have a little paartay but I've landed in a fluey heap and am no good to man nor beast.
So have some bubbles for me tonight and I will see you in next year!!!!
BTW 2012 is going to ROCK!!!

If I was going out I would be wearing sparkly stuff....Gold or Silver

Or lots of embellishment

And drinking Champagne ( I wish they would bring back champagne saucers)

Peep toe, sling back and sparkles Yes Please!!

What are your new years resolutions??

Inspiration for a new job

I have a beautiful new client who is a bit of a celebrity and lives in the hinterland of Byron Bay.
She and her husband are very busy in their job's and they have a gorgeous baby girl.
Their house sits on high in the hinterland and has magnificant views of the coastline and Ocean and they live in a virtual paradise.
The problem is that their home is a big mix of many styles having been renovated several times, the last one being about 10 years ago.
Think Ski Chalet meets Brady bunch home with a good old big timber deck tacked on.
The bottom floor is below ground level so there isn't much natural light coming through and the main room is in an attic annex but again with amazing views.
These clients are delightful and young and have the adventurous spirit that is needed when taking a big leap of faith. I am thinking Key West meets Retro beach house. Lot's of white base and pops of acid colour.
It is in very early stages and will take a lot of work re renovating and ripping out cabinetry, new kitchen etc. But like an overly excited puppy I can't contain myself.
Here are some shots that are giving me inspiration for this particular job. Some of these spaces may only have a small essence of what I am going towards, but it is the first start of the process.
Most of these gorgeous images are from Coastal living...love, love, love.

Click to enlarge and love the wallpaper in the bathroom

What I am loving at the moment.

Number 1 As this year comes to an end I am arming myself with all the arsenal I need to get my butt off the lounge and out into the world of personal fitness. I know, I know, WE all say it every year, but this year I mean it. I'm 42 in June and I've got to move it move it, before I can't find it, find it!!

Now my biggest issue is procrastination...you know the way it goes ...I haven't got anything organised, I don't have an outfit to wear, I can't possibly exercise today as it's a slightly azure blue sky not a sky blue sky etc etc.

So I eradicated all of these issues and have acquired the new gym membership and have left strict instructions with said gym to harass me if I am a no show.

I have the new trainers (as my dog ate my last ones...really he did!!) they came with the new membership so bonus on that issue.

And I have bought the prerequisite  new gym outfit.

So that brings me to my first thing I am loving at the moment....

I am loving that Lululemon has opened at the local Westfield at Carindale. They have brilliant Yoga and gym wear and I was waiting and waiting for them to open in Australia. I have always been a big fan and regularly shopped there when in Santa Monica in The States.

Here is what I have purchased for that ummm transitional stage....hides the bad bits and lets you move. Fabric is so comfortable like wearing pj's.

Nice baggy top over built in crop Yay!!

Very sucky in fabric holds it all up and in.

The pants have got great waist bands that are nice and high. So I'm set for excercise come 2nd of Jan!

 Number 2  One of my bestest friends and comrade in arms Sonya Driver  has been very clever and invented Australia's first Organic tan. I have known her for many years and she has had many ups and downs, but she has persevered and made her a dream a reality. Her product Eco Tan has gone international and she is an inspiration.
The colour makes me feel and look a lot healthier without all the mysterious nasty chemical contents that other self tanners have. Smells lovely, goes on like moisturiser and we can't keep up with demand at the shop.

Number 3 I am always loving Atlantic Pacific blog. She has quirky style and I wish I could look as groomed and well put together as her one day.

Number 4 In February is the annual Designer Bloggers' Conference in LA. I am going!!!

I am definitely loving that!! 

Other things I'm loving at the moment are
5. My ipad 2....kicks 1's butt
6. Inspirational, creative women that I am surrounded by.
7. My Children are always my favourite things of course but at the moment they are xtra fabulous.
8. The fact that 2012 is going to be bigger and better for everyone.
9. All my friends and family that have stuck by me and listened and encouraged through some very tough times.
10. All my fabulous clients that have inevitably become good friends.

What are you loving at the moment???

Socially Excited!!

Well..well..well what a socially actioned pack week it has been. Is everyone contemplating de-tox as much as I am at the moment??
In the light of the day, sitting here at work,  I have to question the complete disregard my impulse synapses have for my poor old liver.  Those pushy Von Economo cells (these are the cells in our brain that make us seek social interaction) are also to blame.
I am presently consuming water at a massive rate and eating my good sulphur rich foods to bolster my abused liver's function as much as possible. The sad story is it will just have to hang in there for a couple Von Economo cell fuelled weeks more and then it can have some r & r.

The unbridled frivolity all started last week at the Calexico fashion parade at Brunswick Social  in The  Valley.  So much fun and so many positively charged people all dressed up and happy.
Being given lots of drinks and lots of steamed dumplings (which are delicious) is always a good way to start an evening in my books. So we stood around chatting and eating, eating and chatting. The fashion parade commenced. Beautiful long, lithesomely limbed girls came strutting out stalking up and down the catwalk looking impossibly young and a little bit more than hungry. I did feel bad, watching them (obviously ravenous) walking through a throng of people eating unashamedly their body weight in Dim Sum. I for one am always pro food so I can safely say was shovelling delicious steamed morsels into my mouth at an alarming rate...At one point one of them spotted my food mid air and I thought the wee waif would float down and try and wrangle it from me. She would have been up for a fight I tell you.
During the course of the parade I spotted a shoe that caught my attention away from the food, beverages and the socialising. A beautiful pair of platform Alexandre Birman's elegantly holding up one of the models. It was love at first site. They would be mine.


Gorgeous girl, gorgeous frock and that painting across the eyes...that's my new look.

Beautiful, but eyeing off some food as you can see

This lovely creature is the one that started my shoe obsession. There they are on her feet begging me to take them home. Mind you I'm 5'10 and in these I hit 6"2...tall girls can have nice shoes too!!

The New Shoe Alexandre Birman is a clever man.

Me and my gorgeous friend Jacqueline...real girls with real drinks. Actually, she is too thin and pretty to be my friend so may have go Jac sorry.

So after Calexico event I kept a low profile on the weekend, mainly sleeping on lounge, being jumped on by offspring and floating on pool bed. All very low stress and low impact. 

So this week has just flown by. It's been Industry Christmas parties and socially significant occasions amped by 100. 

This week I have attended the following:

The gorgeous girls from Ivy & Piper put on a little soiree for all of us Bloggers in Brisbane Town (which I must say was very girly and special) and it was great to catch up to Anna from Black & Spiro, Robin from Magnolia Interiors, Lauren from Rilo and Judy who I bought Lily G off way back when.

The girls from Ivy & Piper have a stunning show room and everyone frocked up like ladies. 

I had just been doing a big install all afternoon so I threw on my Megan Park jacket and that was as good as it got with me.

This is not me....that is my jacket.

Wednesday is a blur I think I worked.

Thursday my gorgeous generous and always helping everyone else in the world friend

Nim invited me to her personal Louis Vuitton morning tea.

Nim (who works tirelessly for many many causes and can buy as much Louis Vuitton as she likes because she deserves it) invited a few girls to accompany her to a personal morning tea held at Louis Vuitton in the mall.

It was a lovely morning in anyone's standard and anyone coming at me at 10.30 in the a.m with a Magnum of Veuve is a friend of mine for life.

We went through the art of scarf tying and lots of other very girly useful stuff and then proceeded to make big (dreaming) wish lists for partners, husbands or benevolent bank managers to consider when Christmas shopping for us.

I bought myself my own Christmas gift which was a gorgeous gold pair of the Lily Louis Glasses.

I think they were also speaking to me...and yes I have seen a doctor about this condition. 

Many people have asked me over the last two years why I didn't change the name of the store when I bought it, many thought I should have. Lily was my great grandmothers name and my great grandfather was George so I don't mess with the messages the universe gives me, i.e buy shoes and buy sunglasses.

The Ladies

Part of my wish list..
The new season Louis Vuitton shoes will be in Australia next year.
They are whispering sweet nothings. My bank balance is containing sweet nothing.




Tonight is dinner with friends...I will be drinking mineral water and trying not to fall over in my new Alexandre Birman's enjoy your weekend.
Melinda

Putting Monday Blue's in The Pink!!

Mmm Monday. No thankyou. I have so much trouble with the first day of the week.
Laying in bed every Sunday night, brain in overdrive obsessing over all the things to be done.
Then here sitting here at work trying to get through the mountain of paperwork, logistics and purchasing that are my tasks to do on a Monday.
So I have come over to my lovely blog for a wee bit of procrastination. I am posting some pretty pics to take my mind of all the uninspiring account and book keeping to be done.
Enjoy