this blogger has something to say.....

(Top: Agent 99. Denim vest and midi skirt: Vintage - from my mum's closet. Necklaces: Etsy. Shoes: K-Mart. Bag and sunglasses: Asos)

I think all bloggers find that inspiration ebbs and flows, and being the expressive people that we are, we feel the need to tell you all about it. So here we go....

I have to apologise for my recent absence on the blog.... it has been for a reason. Something happened to me last week.... my wardrobe BROKE under the WEIGHT of my clothes. It wasn't made of wood.... or plastic.... it was made of metal and it snapped like a twig. So this is where I start re-thinking about the way I buy/wear clothes.

Thanks to numerous cheap and impulsive purchases (and when I say cheap, its not really that cheap in the end), my wardrobe is not as wearable as it could be. Instead of buying 5 pairs of shoes that cost around $100 each, I would prefer to buy one pair of shoes with that money and wear them to death. So thanks to a recent rummage through my mum's old clothes and the collapse of my sturdy METAL wardrobe, I feel inspired to recycle clothing and purchase only investment pieces. I think that the end result will be more reflective of my personal style. Now, I am by no means saying that you won't see the odd inexpensive trend-based piece on this blog because you WILL (I love playing silly buggers with useless trendy sh*t just as much as the next person)... but having a sister that spends TIME exercising her CREATIVITY and PATIENCE in producing beautiful clothing makes me think... maybe I don't need fast fashion in my life as much as I thought I did.

Kaye xx

the long weekend

Perth had a long weekend last week, so Robert and I headed down to Busselton to recharge our batteries and do some fun country activities. In Western Australia, we are so lucky to have such an amazing wine region right at our doorstep (we have over 150 wineries!). Robert and I love doing the wine tastings and then grabbing a delicious meal while looking out over the countryside. This time, we also went to one of the nearby beaches to frolick, all tipsy and happy. Yes. Frolick.

On the last day, I strongly insisted that we go to one of the local animal farms. When we rocked up and robert saw that the sign read "WONKY WINDMILL ANIMAL FARM", he was hesitant and made note that we would be the oldest people there. I knew that. But what better way to forget about patients, business paperwork, reports, emails and the general daily grind than to pat a pony and cuddle a rabbit.

Flanging around with a yoke

The theme for this outfit is flanges and yokes. I decided that I would make a skirt which featured a yoke. I saw the floral material at the markets and thought about it for a few days, then went back to find an orange fabric. I also wanted to make a blouse with flanges inserted at mid shoulder. You can not see the top of the yoke skirt as I felt that, as an outfit it was better to leave the blouse untucked. The skirt is a high waisted skirt with a diagonal yoke. 

The bird necklace... if you can see it, is from one of my favourite shops in Mount Lawley Perth, Behind the Monkey. This shop has heaps of local jewellery and stocks my favourite jewellery designer, Victoria Mason (I am probably wearing my tea cup earrings in these photos, but will have to take some close ups).

And of course I am wearing my favourite sunnies from Mauermarkt.

On this particular day we decided to ride our bikes to Treptower Park. It was sunny one moment and stormy the next... one of the not so exciting downsides of living in Berlin. We walked around the park through to the Soviet War Memorial. This is an amazing memorial and would suggest that it is a must see for any Berlin visitors. The park itself lies on the Spree. In the summer it is always full of people having a grill, beer or exercising. We ended this day with a relaxing beer in the sun (I was savouring the moment as I knew that summer would soon end...boo hoo).

Photographer: Michael Dooney

sorry... I will add the definitions now
Yoke "The yoke is a design element which located at the top of a shirt, skirt, pants or shorts, and is cut separately to create a pieced illusion. Yokes are sometimes cut on the bias or cross-grain to define a style( for example, the cloth over the shoulders on Cowboy style shirts.)" Burdastyle 

a flange is just an extension or a part which is a continuation of the garment. So in this case I added a piece of fabric about 3 inches wide which ran from the waist to the mid shoulder and through to the back. On the second photo you can see the folds in the blouse. This is the flanged section.

Another simple draped dress

This is another very simple dress, made it by draping it on my new dressmaking doll. I bought the fabric at the Turkish markets (which is where most of my fabric is from as I can't afford to buy it from most fabric stores in Berlin....sewing is expensive here compared to Aus, can't wait to sew with second hand fabrics back home). It is a knit jersey fabric. The earrings are my mum's, guessing they are from the 80's. The sunnies are supposedly vintage (well that is what the guy said) and were purchased at Boxhagener markets for a bargain price. The key is to look really interested, then start walking.... 

We often ride our bikes through the centre of town and on this day we walked along the Spree near to one of our favourite spaces the direktorhaus.  Michael has attended drawing classes there and we also heard Iain McGilchrist talk about his book The Master and His Emissary. Interesting stuff, if only I had the time to read it. That's the sewing addiction for you!