The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier Exhibition

If you missed the JGP Exhibition on tour at NGV that ran from Oct - Feb (how could you?!) I urge you to catch it somewhere else on its tour (next stop Paris, then Munich). It's so totally worth it! Goes without saying that the man and his art are inspirational, but certain features of the exhibition like the talking, blinking, smiling mannequins are as freaky as they are awesome. JGP never fails to surprise and shock all at the same time. And although pictures speak a thousand words, the photos that I am about to share just do not do justice to the amazing detailing on each piece showcased in this exhibition. But just to give you a taste of this crazy, genius' work here are some photos I took at the National Gallery of Victoria.

Weekend Dinner Outfit

What do you wear to a weekend dinner out with the beau when it's cold outside? Do you suffer a little for fashion? Or dress for comfort? I do a little bit of both sometimes. Honestly, it depends on where we're going really and also how we're getting there. Since we were going to a nice place and were going to mainly remain indoors shielded from the chilly winds, I decided to brave the cold and wear a skirt (I could've worn tights but it wasn't too bad without them). But also, made sure I could brisk walk so I wasn't in the cold for too long, and only ballet flats could help achieve that. So here's my Weekend Dinner outfit:

Black Silk Tank: *$5 (Dotti)

Black Cardigan: *$24 (Cotton On)

Bow Necklace in Soft-Gold: $19.95 - Portmans

Siri Pleated Skirt: *$23.99 (Forever New)

Red Wallet/Clutch: $30 (Charles & Keith - Singapore Airport T3)

Heather Embellished Ballet Flats: *$58 (Forever New)

Outfit Total: $160.94

* = sale prices

I had well and truly worn out my Santini Blitz Ballet Flats bought almost a year ago and it was my go-to pair for work and play. But I loved the style, comfort and versatility of it. Luckily I found a very similar pair at Forever New - so I grabbed them instantly! Not as comfortable as the Santini ones which were really soft, but it does the job.

Short post today. Will come back with more soon. I will leave you with words that have been motivating me lately...

"Slow progress is better than no progress."

The Rachel Zoe Project returns

This news is Maj! Like, it's totally Ba-nanas! When I read it in my twitter-feed, I died! 

Hehe...ok, I'll stop with the Zoe-isms. You get the point. The Rachel Zoe Project is back for its 5th season after an almost 1.5 year long hiatus. Bravo TV will start airing it from the 6th of March. Don't know when Arena in Australia will catch up but hopefully it'll be soon and we can have new eps to look forward to in the near future.

The show, if you haven't already watched the first 4 seasons and its gazillion re-runs, is like most other reality shows: a little bit trashy, full of drama, every insignificant event edited to look like the biggest tragedy. But throw in a bit of hollywood glam, beautiful people, a smidgen of an insight into the lives of the rich and famous, gorgeous designer outfits, LA snobbery and voila you've got The Rachel Zoe Project! Guilty-pleasure-TV at its best!

On the show you also get to see a little bit of what happens behind-the-scenes when her A-list clients need to have their red-carpet looks sorted.

The 2 darlings of the Oscars this year were both styled by RZ.

Other celebs who have her on Speed Dial for couture control are:

Jennifer Garner - her very first celebrity client.

Cameron Diaz

Demi Moore

Eva Mendes

Still love this gorj white dress and turquoise necklace she wore to the Globes in 2009. This may have, kind of, subconsciously inspired my birthday outfit.

She's also Guest Editor for Piperlime.com

Has her own successful fashion and accessories line.

 And she's a mum to a (very stylish) toddler.

 Of course her life is Reality Show-worthy!

Can't wait to watch her and all the amazing new outfits this season.

I always think Black and Gold when I think Rachel Zoe

Love her 70s, boho, chic style

She also does classic, glamour with an edge really well

Inspire me!

It's been a lazy sunday! I've just been sitting on my couch, drinking coffee, browsing through my favourite websites and blogs and catching up with friends over the phone (wishing I looked as glamorous as the model in this photo whilst doing all of the above - but my pyjamas don't exactly scream "effortless chic"). I'm on a self-imposed (more like circumstance-imposed) spending ban, so haven't been doing anything worth sharing. But hopefully soon I'll think of ways of doing fun things whilst keeping up my savings goal. 

For now here are just some random inspirations and pretty pics I've come across...

I did it! 30 days of NO SHOPPING!

Yaaay! I haven't shopped for 30 days! My last purchase was at Melbourne Airport Duty Free when I bought Marc Jacobs' Daisy (50ml) on 2nd of Aug on my way back from Thailand (so really, 1st Aug cause I was still on Thai-time). I'm so proud I managed to honour the commitment I made publicly on the blog after the massive shopping spree(s) (but then Thailand happened so I had to tweak the rules a little). Honestly, I hadn't given myself a set time-limit, I just knew I had to cut down and save money after spending on my trip etc. Plus I've been so busy with work and stuff that I haven't had the time or the energy to shop (which was a blessing but very well-disguised, I must say). I just went with the flow and before I knew it, I had lasted a whole month!

And that is why, on this gorgeous first day of Spring I decided to celebrate and visit some of my usual digs again ;)...

Chapel St around 5pm

Ok, we are moving backwards now...I actually, went to Chadstone first. My first (and pretty much only) stop at Chadstone was Zara. And to get myself ready for Spring, I got these pants...

I'm loving the candy colours that are out this season. I have a few tops and scarves to fit the trend  but I needed bottoms, and these were the perfect colour - the only colour that is part of the trending pastel rainbow that I didn't already own (except mint, I really don't like mint, even as a flavour...let the gasping begin....just a personal choice - I don't mind it on others). But, but, but I had a gift-card for Zara so these pants at $45.95 technically cost me $0, so I still haven't broken my ban! And you've gotta reward good behaviour, that's the best way to keep going.

What was even better was that I was ready to walk out with a US size 6 pair but when I tried them on they were loose! And for the first time after a reallllly long time, I fit into a US size 4 (don't be deceived by the angle of this pic which is making my hips look massive)!! Even in this slim-fit style! WIN WIN WIN! So, I decided to reward that behaviour with a Red Velvet Cupcake :)...

After that, I went to Topshop but just to browse. And I bought an iPhone cover from Dotti for $9.95 which is something I really needed but you can't count that as shopping now, can you? No you can't! So, 30 days and counting....:D