The Week That Was.

Ever had one of those weeks where everything that could go wrong did go wrong? Well, that was my week. Between the stress of uni assignments, the exhaustion that was work and everything else I am so happy to have made it through the week!

My week began with the case of the missing books. I had been waiting over a month for the third parcel containing the rest of my recent online book purchases to arrive. This involved dealing with customer service for both the online bookstore (who ended up being incredibly friendly and helpful) and Australia Post (who were horrible and rude!). The good news is that they miraculously turned up on Friday. Yay!!

I cannot wait to get reading these. Actually their arrival on Friday was slightly ill-timed since I will not be able to read them until the next fortnight filled with essays and other assessments has passed. In the meantime they sit there taunting me.

The other rather major part of my week was returning to work after a bit of a hiatus the past couple of months. I think it's going to take me a while to get back into the swing of things. The exciting part of being back at work is seeing Jersey Boys. This is a fabulous production which I am absolutely loving (for now anyway, after a year of watching it I may not be so enthusiastic). Although it is based on the 60s (an era which I am personally intrigued by) - namely Frank Valli and The Four Seasons - I think it is something that transcends generational divides and anyone could enjoy watching, plus I'm 99.9% sure that EVERYONE has heard at least some of their songs at some point in their life. My sister F saw it on Thursday and enjoyed it, so I'm not alone in saying that it's a pretty good production. So get out there and see it people, I recommend it!

In following with the 60s theme of the show we got new uniforms...

This 60s-style bowling shirt looks innocent enough, but don't let appearances fool you people. I kid you not when I say that it almost killed me from discomfort yesterday. Turns out it's made from 100% polyester, which I am allergic to. So guess who now has a lovely rash on their back and shoulders. Yep, that'd be me.

Well, I'm off to spend some time with my dad with it being Father's Day and all.

Emmys.

It's no secret that I love, love, love award shows. Whether it be the Emmys, Tonys, or Oscars I will sit there year after year, watching religiously. I love all the glitz and glamour of the red carpet - the beautiful gowns and sparkly jewels - as well as the ceremony itself...the hosts, presenters, performances and best of all the speeches. I love how heartfelt and sincere the speeches can be, making you feel the genuine joy, excitement and shock of the winner. I also love waiting for the music to kick in, signaling for the winner to wrap up their speech - and it always, and I mean ALWAYS leads to them getting flustered. And I'll admit that this occurrence is sometimes hilarious to watch.

Today I tried to resist the allure of awards shows in order to study for a test, but alas it was not to be. Instead I curled up on the couch and watched the ceremony, switching to E!'s Red Carpet coverage whenever I got the chance. Mad Men and Modern Family walked away with the top Emmy honors of the night. This makes me super happy as I love Modern Family, it being one of my favourite shows of the moment.

On the fashion front, this year it seemed that navy blue was the popular colour of choice for attendees. Now, I'm not particularly a fan of blue (navy or otherwise) but after seeing some absolutely gorgeous navy gowns I may just be a convert. That's not to say, of course, that there weren't gowns that completely missed the mark.

Some of my favourite looks of the night were:

(Image Source: people.com - Credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty images)

Dianna Agron (from Glee) wore this beautiful tiered Carolina Herrera gown. I'm not sure what it is about this dress, but I LOVE it. I think it may be how the lace-overlay contrasts with the black... it is simply stunning. In my eyes Carolina Herrera's gowns are almost always perfect. The dress was accompanied by Cartier jewels. Let me just say, you can NEVER go wrong with Cartier!!

(Source: au.eonline.com - Credit: Jason Merrit/Getty Images)

The second look that I absolutely adore is this delicate Dior dress worn by the ever-stylish Emily Blunt. While the dress exudes a simplicity that makes it all the more beautiful, for me it was the elegant Lorraine Schwartz Diamond Flower Pin (see picture below) that caught my attention, and made me love this look.

(Source: people.com - Credit: Jason Merritt/Getty Images)

The pin has an air of old Hollywood glamour to it. I love jewel hair pins (and brooches), and have several of my own. It's just a pity that I have very little opportunity to wear them...in addition to the fact that I chopped my locks of into a short, sharp bob.

(Source: people.com - Credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)

And my third and final favourite look was that of Glee star, Lea Michele. She wore a gown from one of my absolute favourite designers in the entire universe, Oscar de la Renta. Being that I'm a fan of his work it was almost guaranteed that I was going to love this dress. The gown went with the navy blue trend, and the sweetheart neckline and ruching of the bodice is simply stunning. The look is absolutely made by the Lorraine Schwartz jewels, which I think complement the gown perfectly! Move aside Neil Lane, I think that Lorraine Schwartz may be my new favourite jewellry designer.

My Last Weekend of Freedom...

...well for a long while anyway. This week signals 'back to work' for me, which means that this weekend was essentially my last weekend to do relaxing, fun things for myself - as I mainly work weekends at my theatre job.

Sadly, my weekend was not filled with much fun but was instead consumed with university assessments with a side of stress *sigh*. Despite the boringness there are a few lovely things that have cheered me up through this rather glum time.

This is lovely thing #1 - a wonderful beauty powder that is scented like peonies and has the fluffiest little powder puff ever! I've always wanted a powder like this, I've always thought they were so classic and feminine. Growing up I always used to sneak into my parent's room and head to my mother's dresser to play with her makeup, but especially with her tin of beauty powder. Though I think this one is infinitely better, and based on the scent I think peonies might even be my new favourite flower.

Lovely thing #2 that cheered me up was this necklace that I found during a brief study break/trip to the shops. I always tell myself that I don't need any more dress jewellery but then I always see something and cave, as I did with this. For months I've been slowly piecing together all the elements for the outfit that I will be wearing to my sister's graduation ceremony in September. In April, for instance, I ordered the most perfect dress from my favourite US department store, then in June I ordered a pair of heels from the same department store. All that was left was accessorising the outfit, and I think this necklace is going to go perfectly with the dress.

Last but not least, lovely thing #3 was this dress that arrived on Friday (not technically the weekend but whatever), it's the product of my latest online shopping adventure.

I personally don't think that the picture does the dress justice, I'll be the first to admit that I almost didn't buy it because of the picture. The dress is a Mexicali (Mexican-inspired) dress, with some wonderful embroidery on the sleeve. It is made from super light cotton that will no doubt make it perfect in the sweltering heat of summer. Now I just have to wait for the weather to warm up...

Another Find in the Great Closet Excavation!

So, F pretty much almost threw out this blazer that also once belonged to our mum.

I just rescued it from the 'to donate' pile. I cannot tell you how many times I have seen similar blazers in Op Shops around Sydney, and feel sad that I almost lost this.

I showed my mum the jacket and got the history of it out of her. It was purchased in the 80s (no surprises there) from David Jones. It was incredibly expensive at the time and of very good quality. A fact that I can vouch for as the stitching and fabric is still perfect today, though this could be because my mum was of the opinion that things should only be worn once or twice before a new wardrobe was needed. Ironic since she now tells me that I spend too much on clothes, ha! What I also find interesting is that the jacket is a size 12, and shows just how much sizing has changed over the years. I am nowhere near a size 12 today, yet it just barely fits me.

Cardigans, Brooches and Other Pretty Things.

So, F is currently cleaning out and organising her closet. A task that seems near impossible, and somewhat frightening, as she is THE biggest hoarder. I swear there are things in there from 15 years ago!!

Anyway, during the excavation of her closet she came across a couple of knitwear pieces previously owned by our mum. One of them is this cardigan.

Now, I absolutely hate the colour green. I avoid it like the plague as, no matter the shade, it always looks terrible on me. But overlooking the bright green hue of this cardigan I am impressed with the craftsmanship of it AND it has given me a whole new respect for my mother as she hand-knitted it. The cable knit on both front panels of the cardigan is so well done, it looks as good as (or better) than the machine cable knit on my Polo Ralph Lauren jumpers.

This cardigan was made in the 80s, (which I believe explains the bright colour choice of green and yellow) back when my mum was quite the lover of fashion. She had some pretty fabulous skirts and dresses (mind you, of 80s fabulousness, not the modern day stuff that I tend to covet)...and she still has some of the most killer heels and bags, some of which I have stolen out of her closet. My favourite has to be this clutch/side bag/cross-body bag that I rescued from years of torture at the back of my mum's closet (where it was haphazardly stored, hence the slight red ink stain on the flap).

But back to the cardigan, what I love even more about it is this cute little brooch that my mum styled with it.

It's a little aged and chipped (also from years of careless storage, this time in the depths of F's closet) but it is so adorable, and somehow works perfectly with the cardigan.

Bargain Shopping.

Today, after attending various appointments and running several errands, I stopped by the shops, as I usually do. However, unlike other times, as I stepped into the shopping centre it promised to be a rather boring uneventful visit - since I'm currently in the midst of a self-imposed shopping ban following a recent online shopping spree.

As I wandered around I stepped into one of my favourite bookstores and perused the shelves looking wistfully at all the books that are currently on my to-buy list. I tried my luck searching through the bargain bin and ended up buying this for $5:

From reading the back cover it appears to be a typical book from the chick-lit genre. Chick-lit books are one of my guilty pleasures, no matter how frivolous the tale...plus they make for good travel companions!

With my new purchase in hand and adrenaline pumping through my veins, I was on a mission to search for other bargains, which found me buying these:

While I'm not absolutely in love with the necklace or the bracelets I figured they would be useful in bringing some new life to my wardrobe, which won't be seeing any major new additions anytime soon (well, while I'm in frugal, saving-mode anyway). Plus they were only $2 each from $20-$30!!