Hat!

Today my family and I headed out for a wander and picnic lunch at the botanic gardens. I do love a good picnic.I wore this fabulous hat I found while op-shopping on my birthday, an amazing dress with a slip underneath - both from my favourite vintage store Peachy Keen, beads from an op-shop, and my jellies. The weather was back to being properly summer (it's been cold and rainy the past few days) and the gardens were beautiful as usual, I am especially fond of all the old english roses. I listened to Florence and the Machine all day - am so excited for Laneway on monday!

Also - The second-to-last photo also features our picnic blanket, which my Mum found on my birthday op-shop .

Vintage Finds

Above-Louis Armstrong playing 'Mack the Knife'
So it was my birthday not too long ago (really? who would have guessed after that last birthday cake post) and I had the most amazing day. After presents in the morning with my siblings(I got an old 60s portable record player which is in the video above, it also folds up and you can carry it around like a little suitcase, and a retro towelling beach robe/dress thing! I have been wanting both for soooo long!) Mum and I headed out first to a junk/second hand store up the road and then into the depths of henderson on an op-shopping spree. I don't know if it was because of my birthday or if I had some good kharma or what, but I found something in every single store. The best op shopping luck ever. Thank you universe. Among my finds were a brown woollen skirt , 70s floor length dress, a bunch of old records, and a vintage doll (who is now aptly named June and shall appear in a later post). An old doll was the one thing I really wanted to find that day and I stumbled across her in the most unlikely little recycled clothing store. I also found an old book that I had been searching for for ages that we used to have at my primary, and an old ad book about one of my favourite cars, the triumph spitfire. That night the whole family came round for a fantastic vegan tea and then we spent the evening listening to records (my mum even dug out her old collection) on my new record player. Still not sure how I feel about being 15 but at least now I can get my learners . My Mum and I are searching for an old VW beetle that we can do up to be my first car - super excited!

My records, tucked away in a record case found in an op shop up north


Fantastic curtain fabric and an old book from my Aunty and Uncle, my cousin Kahi also made me the most awesome birthday cardto the tune of the Jackson 5, and Sol very kindly donated some of his prized shell and seaglass collection to come and join one of my shelf displays

According to the 1976 'valuetale' Helen Keller imagined that she was followed around by 3 tiny leprechauns as a child, and had HUGE eyes

Some photos from the Triumph Spitfire MK4 advertising and specifications brochure

Katie Cook - Vegan Carrot Cake (My Birthday Cake)

Ingredients

1 1/2 c. all purpose flour

1 c. sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 c. vegetable oil

140 g apple sauce or stewed apple (1 goulburn valley pot)

1 tsp vanilla essence

1 1/2 c. grated carrot

1 c. shredded coconut

Making

Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Stir in oil, apple and vanilla until well mixed. Stir in carrots and coconut (Batter is thick). Pop into a greased or baking paper lined cake tin and cook for roughly 40 mins (depending on your oven) at 180˚c.

Icing

250g soy cream cheese

juice of one lemon

2 cups icing sugar

Combine ingredients with a fork or a whizz-stick, if icing is too runny then keep adding icing sugar until it is at the appropriate consistency.

Up North

Here are some (polarized-yay!) photos from our recent holiday in Omapere. There was a huge sunflower in the vegetable garden of the house we stayed at, the biggest one I've ever seen, and it required lots of kodak moments. While we were there we took a day trip over to Ahipara to see my Auntie, Uncle, and Cousins. I never quite got why they moved up into the middle of nowhere, but after seeing how beautiful their place is I fully understand. In front of a backdrop of native bush and with enough room for two horses and some rescued battery hens (sporting names like 'Barry' and 'Derek') at the bottom of the drive is a river with a fantastic, if not a little chilly, waterhole. If you follow the river down there is a field filled with wild blackberries. It was the first time I had ever been blackberry picking and I have to say they are not gentle plants -my hands were still covered in little cuts and stained slightly purple with their sweet juice for days after. While my family stayed in Omapere for a week, Rosza and I came down early to go to big day out, which was amazing. TheChecks DevendraBanhart TheVeils Kasabian Bandicoot Muse DizzeeRascal sixbottlesofwater and physicallymeltingintheheat all in one day. Fantastic.

Note- I used this to make all my photos look like polaroids, and also the dress I am wearing in the first photo is the same one I wore on christmas day

Swimsuits, Oh Swimsuits

I am experiencing some serious swimsuit lust now that summer has hit us. I'm going away up north tomorrow which basically means I'll be at the beach all day for a week, defending my green and yelow floral  seventies one-piece from ignorant claims that it is a dress. Not even in the seventies did hemlines go that short, honey. My best friend is coming away with us (us being my family) and bringing her amazing rockabilly style swimsuit with her. I am extremely jealous. It was in the summer fashion quarterly and I'd been pouring over it for some time when she suddenly popped up in it, completely unaware of her swimsuits fame. In saying that, up until about a month ago she thought that you pronounced diplodocus as dipl-i-docis . So what can you expect.  Anyway, here are some of the fruits of my swimsuit lust.

Aren't I a Lucky Gal-Christmas Goodness

Well, it's been a wee while since christmas now but at least I'll finally be putting some photos on this blog.  I got so many wonderful presents from my family I honestly don't know what to do with them all. I feel incredibly spoilt. Almost most excitingly had to be my amazing vintage sewing kit from santa (oh, the joys of having younger siblings). I am oh so happy-and I'm sure my mum is too because now I don't have to pester her for needles and pins all the time.Of course, christmas is about the giving not the receiving etc etc, so I've included a photo of what I gave my mum (No idea what  she's going to do with them, but they're made with pretty vintage fabric). I wore a gorgeous dress brought from oohlalavintage (this picture doesn't show it very well though) which suited the amazing summer weather perfectly, it was the hottest christmas I can remember in years. So hot in fact that we had to unearth the fan from underneath five winter coats and start a waterfight in the middle of the day. I was all ready to bring on the iced tea and embrace a long hot summer when only a week later I found myself in winter clothes. Gotta love Auckland weather.

Needle book and pin cushion handmade by my Mum

The sewing kit in all it's glory-I'm especially in love with the amazing vintage embroidery book!

Gorgeous fairy lights, on top of some fantastic retro sheets

Below-what I made Mum, and below that- the case I got from my siblings and a litle bit of kiwiana.If you haven't seen the video that inspired the t-shirt, watch it-it certainly made me start taking the police seriously. Gosh up until now I had thought all they did was attempt to do useless things like solve murders and  bust p-labs. How wrong I was.

Girls On the Wing

There is a part of me that would love to grow up to be an air hostess. Too many old articles and pictures (and possibly one too many viewings of 'the view from the top', not to mention my collection of retro air new zealand and B.O.A.C paraphanalia) have left me under the illusion that it is still a new, exciting and glamorous occupation. If only, if only. I would happily go without the extensive in flight entertainment we now have if I got to ride in a plane with this sort of decor. Flying is so ordinary and boring now, somehow we have let the excitement and fun that the air hostesses of the 60s brought fade away. I certainly think flying is a lot less desirable when the only energy and fun that comes with it is the annoying song off the pacific blue ad.Good lord. Why wasn't I born in a past decade?

According to the 1973 Sun Annual for girls,  'A trainee stewardess enjoys a full grooming course which aims to help her with make-up techniques and hairstyles as well as showing her the art of the 'catwalk' which will enable her to walk gracefully around the air craft when in flight.'

Need I say more.I didn't see no catwalking on my last Quantas flight.

Really, what girl could resist a career that involves egg chairs?

Not to mention getting a matching umbrella to go with you fab uniform?


That moustache. Is fabulous. 

I think I would honestly die if I ever found one of any of these old uniforms

The go-go boots!

And finally a bit of service with a smile :)