The Dress - Bespectacled

It arrived and it's finally mine! Now, don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about, because I know you totally do. What - you don't, really? You don't remember the long-awaited teal cardigan covered with spectacles from not one but two of my wishlist posts? Oh well, you can just be amazed at the fabulousness of it in this post. 

Cardigan: Modcloth

The purchase of said cardigan went a little bit like this...

HANNAH: *Gasp...* *Squeal*

LUKE: What? (Mildly concerned that I'm having some kind of seizure - obviously we haven't been married long enough for him to know that these sounds mean an article of clothing which I REALLY like is on sale.)

HANNAH: It's on sale!

LUKE: What is?

HANNAH: What do you mean, what is? The teal cardigan covered in spectacles of course!

LUKE: O.o!

HANNAH: Please...

The happy conclusion to this story is that 2 weeks later it was mine! It's also true that I don't always get every cute bit of clothing I want. And I am now officially on a clothing ban for a couple of months. 

 Scarf: Supre

No, I'm not a huge fan of Supre. I used to buy basics there: singlets, T-shirts, etc., but I've found that I prefer Glassons for basics, and they're usually better quality. Plus, I can't stand how they are trying to make 12-year-olds dress like prostitutes - it's really, really gross. That shop needs to learn the meaning of the word modesty.

 This scarf was originally my sister's, I think. Until I, well... stole it. Don't worry, she has plenty of my stuff too.

Jeans: Just Jeans

I feel like I need a pair of high-waisted jeans to go with some of my cropped cardigans. But I'm kind of scared that high-waisted jeans wouldn't suit my pear-shaped figure. The only ones I've found that I like are from Freddies of Pinewood, and I'm worried about spending money on these but then not actually liking them.

I think the other thing that I love about this cardigan is how my spectacles perfectly match the ones on the cardigan. It's like they were made for each other. :)

Love!

I've decided that I quite like bobby-pinning my hair back for a different way to wear it. It reminds me a bit of how Amelie wore it in the movie by the same name.

 Whoever said you can't do anything with short hair?

Until next time :)

The Song - Needing/Getting

You may have noticed from these posts that I am very much into female singers. I don't know why, but most of the artists on my iPod are females. Maybe this is because it's easier for me to sing along - who knows? Anyway, I do have a few more alternative/rock bands that I like. One of these is OK Go. It was actually my sister's ex-boyfriend who got me onto them way back in 2006, and I've liked their music ever since.

I actually went to a concert they held in Melbourne in 2007. It was awesome - I knew all their songs and they were really great entertainers. But by far my favourite part was when their equipment went down and they just started doing a scene from Les Miserables to pass the time! Beyond cool. Anyway, in case you don't know OK Go, they are probably most commonly referred to as the treadmill guys. You know, the video that went viral a couple of years ago with guys dancing on treadmills - yep, that's them.

OK Go are an American band formed in 1998, and have released 3 albums. They are known for their incredibly imaginative, low-budget music videos, which are often done in one take. To be honest, I often have to watch the video twice; the first time I'm so entertained by what's happening on screen that I have to watch the second time to actually listen to the music!

One thing that really made me smile when looking them up on Wikipedia were the descriptions of the band: Damian Kulash (lead vocals, guitar and car), Tim Nordwind (bass guitar and vocals), Dan Konopka (drums and percussion) and Andy Ross (guitar, keyboards and vocals). Now in case you missed that, under Damian's list of instruments it says "car". How do you play a car, you may very well ask? Well, watch the music video of the song "Needing/Getting" below to find out.

Until next time :)

The Holiday - Easter Break Part 6

Okay, I swear these are the last of our Easter Break photos - I was kind of hoping that I could drag it out until I go on holidays again, but no such luck. So we went to Castlepoint, which had been recommended to me by a colleague. It was a bit of detour - on the eastern coast of the Wairarapa - but it was so worth it. The scenery was just breathtaking, as you can clearly see from these photos.

So the place is actually named after this awesome rock, since Captain Cook thought it looked a bit like a castle when he saw it from his ship. Personally, I think I'd just like to try rolling down the green patch. :)

The perfect ending to the perfect holiday. Now I just need to figure out when the next one is going to be. :)

Until next time :)

The Book - Life Is But A Dream

So I've recently started a book club with some of the girls from work, plus Carolyn and Rebekah, and we had our first official meeting last weekend at our place. It was so lovely just to chill out, eat some yummy food, and talk books. I totally recommend it. There's something really special about reading a book at the same time as other people, I guess because reading is normally such an individual thing.

Anyway, so we read the book Life is But a Dream by Brian James. I'm not sure if I would exactly recommend it. It's about a teenage girl with schizophrenia who is admitted to a mental institution or "Wellness Centre". The basic storyline concerns her struggle between reality and unreality, and her coming to terms with her illness while starting a relationship with another patient.

I would probably give it 2 and a half stars out of 5. I'll probably end up exchanging it at the local second-hand bookstore Arty Bees (yes, Wellington has the most awesome second-hand bookstore in the world - period). However, it did get me to think a lot about how everyone sees the world, and how we will never know if we're all actually seeing the same thing.

The writing style was okay, but to be honest Luke and I are also reading a Charles Dickens at the moment, so that's pretty hard for any author to compare with.

In sum, if you're wanting a bit of a "different" kind of read - something that's not too fast-paced, which you don't need to use your entire brain to comprehend - this book just might be the one for you.

Until next time :)

The Dress - 1940s Swing Pants

No, my hair doesn't grow at an unbelievably fast rate - these photos were taken a while back, and I thought it was about time that I posted them. :)
So I'm not much of a pants wearer, to be honest. I'd much rather be in a skirt or dress. I'm not against jeans in any way - they're just so darn practical - but I know that skirts and dresses flatter my shape the best.  However, then I discovered 1940s swing pants, which caused pants to go up a couple of notches on my "like" scale.

Top: Max

I actually found this top in a second-hand store for $10. I think what drew me to it was the wrap-around style and the mandarin-like collar. However, it had these ridiculously long red ties attached to either side - I mean, they could easily wrap around my waist 3 times. I was a bit unsure what they were for. So I cut them off - and now I use them to tie back the curtains in our bedroom - innovation at its best. The red tabs at the side of the top still reveals where they went, but oh well - I might unpick them one of these days. The top has ties on the inside which hold it together, and for extra security I use two safety pins at the bust and one at the side. 

I think that out of all my tops it's probably the one I get the most complimented on. Isn't it funny how we often wear clothing that other people say nice things about? It's almost like this gives us extra approval for additional wearing of something!

Pants: Heyday Vintage Style

So I think I've written about Heyday on here before, but I can't say how much I love their clothing. Everything is such great quality. Yes, it's on the expensive side, but you know with clothing sometimes you really do get what you pay for. These pants are great. I was in between sizes on their website - stupid big hips and small waist - so I asked to have them altered, and for a small fee it was no problem. Despite this, I would recommend that you get any alterations done after you physically receive them, as it's really a bit hard to judge without trying them on. They're black, so they go well with everything. 

I have to admit that I have been admiring other pants on there from time to time. Hello forest green! Just checked the website, and she's put up some other fun fabrics. Although I think I'd personally have to go with the darker colours to avoid looking 10 feet wide. The best thing is that they're machine washable. Woo!

However, even better than that is the buttons! Love! 

And this is how I would look if I were one of those dogs with the bobbly heads. :) 

Ha ha ha. 

Until next time :)

The Verse - The Diverse Excellencies of Jesus Christ

So this past Saturday, I went to women's Bible study. It was such wonderful fellowship. Anyway, we've been doing a John Piper series called "Seeing and Savoring Jesus".

We were looking at "The Diverse Excellencies of Jesus Christ". These were just so refreshing, challenging the way I see Jesus and making me fall in love with Him even more. This list was actually created by Jonathan Edwards.

- We admire Him for His glory, but even more because His glory is mingled with humility.

- We admire Him for His transcendence, but even more because His transcedence is accompanied by condescension.

- We admire Him for his uncompromising justice, but even more because it is tempered with mercy.

- We admire Him for his majesty, but even more because it is a majesty in meekness.

- We admire Him because of His equality with God, but even more because as God's equal He nevertheless has a deep reverence for God.

- We admire Him because of how worthy He was of all good, but even more because this was accompanied by an amazing patience to suffer evil.

- We admire Him because of His sovereign dominion over the world, but even more because this dominion was clothed in a spirit of obedience and submission.

- We loved the the way He stumped the proud scribes with his wisdom, and we love it even more because He could be simple enough to like children and spend time with them.

- And we admire Him because He could still the storm, but even more because He refused to use that power to strike the Samaritans with lightning (Luke 9:54-55), and He refused to use it to get Himself down from the cross.

Until next time :)

 

The Review - Lars and the Real Girl

Okay, so I saw Lars and the Real Girl when it first came out in 2007, simply because I think Ryan Gosling is a pretty awesome actor. My friend Paige likes him too, so I dragged her along as well, although she's not  really "into" arthouse films.

Let me just say this first, before you get the wrong idea about this movie. I am extremely sensitive to things in movies. Too much swearing, violence, sexual scenes, or dirty jokes, and I'm out of there - and I will avoid the movie or TV show for the rest of my life. There's even a joke at my work that whenever the conversation takes a certain turn, I get this "tight-lipped" expression, and within 10 seconds I'm gone. 

Although the premise or even the blurb of this movie might sound kind of twisted/sick/strange, it is not. Trust me, it is not. It is one of the most sweetest, endearing, heartwarming films that you will ever watch. Even Luke, who is even more sensitive and conservative than I am, loved this movie. So if you make a snap judgement, you'll be the one missing out.

So the main character, Lars, is shy and a bit of a hermit. He lives in the garage next to his brother and sister-in-law, keeping very much to himself. Lars is sweet, quirky and completely socially inept, but obviously wants to be normal. So he orders a "Real Doll" and calls it his girlfriend. She is a missionary, and sleeps in the house with his brother and sister-in-law because he doesn't want people to get the wrong idea.

The story is about acceptance: Lars's family and the community accepting him and his "girlfriend" Bianca. It's a really lovely film, and was critically acclaimed for good reason. Ryan Gosling plays the part of Lars extremely well. I guess it's one of the reasons I admire him as an actor so much - he is highly versatile.

The other actors are also great, and despite the bizarre storyline, the film feels very much cemented in reality.

Okay, if this trailer makes you smile at least once, I think you should go out and hire it.

Until next time :)

The New Look - Louise Brooks

So I've been wanting to do a Louise Brooks-style bob hairdo for quite a while now, and this weekend I finally took the plunge. In case you don't know who Louise Brooks is, or what her style of bob might be: Louise Brooks, who lived from 1906 to 1985, was an American dancer, model, showgirl and silent film actress. She was the lady who really put the bob on the map as far as hairstyles go. You may even recognise her, if not the haircut.

My hairdresser Matthew, as you can clearly see, is an absolute master. If you live in Wellington, I totally recommend him; just go to Hair International. Reasonable prices as well, plus on their website it says that first-time clients get a 20% discount. :) Matthew is very passionate about hair (especially vintage styles), and it is thanks to his encouragement that I decided to take the plunge. 

This is the first time in ages that I've had a haircut where you can actually see my earrings. 

And in case you wanted to know what it looks like from the back.

So do you think I could be a 1920s silent film star?...

...probably not.

Yes, I am the master of the fish face. 

Oh, and I hope this encourages you to get that haircut/colour done that you've been thinking about for ages.

Until next time :)

The Holiday - Easter Break Part 5

Time for another look at our holiday snaps. Almost done, I swear! On Saturday night we stayed in the most delightful B&B, Otahuna Country House, just outside of Martinborough. I definitely recommend it - very reasonable rates and beautiful surrounds. Wish we could have stayed longer. Silly me forgot to take a photo of the cute little cabin we stayed in. But I did get a shot of the main house - so pretty. Unfortunately I'm not sure how much longer it'll be running, as they had a "for sale" sign up. This is a shame, because the couple who run it couldn't be nicer. We also got an awesome recipe for birdseed slice from the lady... yum!

In the morning we awoke to the sounds of sheep bleating. So I decided to go say hi. They weren't very friendly until the lady gave me some food for them, and then they were almost too friendly!

Luke and I then made some friends of a different kind. Namely the horsey kind. 

So beautiful. They were a bit puzzled as we didn't have any food, so we went back and got them some tomatoes. FYI, horses don't eat tomatoes. Who knew?

One of them (the one on the right, I believe), won "Horse of New Zealand". I guess that's the equivalent of winning a beauty pageant, right? So it was a pretty attractive horse, with the evidence to prove it!

Now you see why I wanted to live here. So cute.

So you know you're in the country when... you have to give way to cows. 

We then went to Pukaha Mount Bruce National Wildlife Centre and got better acquainted with some of our feathered friends. At the time I felt very educated about New Zealand birds (they have so many!) - But now I've forgotten all the information I read. So here is a photo of a bird.

And here is a photo of a different kind of bird (at least I know enough to tell that they're different species).

Redwood trees so tall

Makes Hannah feel very small 

Growing round us all

Another bird that may or may not be the same species as the last one. Yes - as an ornithologist I totally fail.

Until next time :)