Other Peoples Fridges

I know that this is a weird heading but don't you just love seeing how other people keep their fridge (or not).  I think it's very personal and telling about how someone lives.  I thought I would gather up some pictures of fridges that I find interesting or from people I admire.  Hope fully it will inspire me to clean and tidy my own - and finish replacing all the old number-filled products with home made ones (any good jam recipes without the sugar?)


The Glamorous Housewife

Yes, we all know I love her - the front of her fridge is almost as good as how it looks inside - click on here to visit her post.  My favourite part is the flowers in her fridge!  I managed to find similar baskets to hers but not in lovely colours - mine are maroon.

 

The Daily Connoisseur

Surely if there is someone with a grown up, perfect fridge it's Jennifer.  As the oracle on all things Frenchy-chic here is hers (its a video).

 

 A Bowl Full of Lemons

Have you seen how organised this lady is - OMG.  She has fridge coasters - I hadn't even heard of them before but they do certainly encourage you to keep your fridge clean.  You can find the post here.

The Pioneer Woman

Recently the Food channel has been playing episodes of the Pioneer Woman and she has two kitchens - one in her house and one in the lodge (where guests stay) - so that means two spaces to put food!  I would be in heaven.  Here is a post about how she stocks her fridge.

 

Here are some vintage fridges (all from here) that just look amazing and almost as full as mine.  I have been trying to clear out my top shelf of condiments (all those Asian jars you buy because they look good and then use once because you don;t know what else to make with it).  I am also trying to use my Thermomix to make everything that I might buy from scratch (which is pretty easy) but I cannot bring myself to trow anything away so it's taking awhile!

And finally the fridge that looks like it belongs on a ship.  One side is a fridge and the other is a temperature controlled pantry - apparently Nigella like them.  From here.

Vintage Race Wear

Melbourne Cup is the first Tuesday in November and is the biggest racing event in Australia - aka The race that stops the nation.  Most workplaces run sweeps and everyone stops work at about 3.00pm to watch the race.  Some workplaces even let staff have time off - I've heard it called the hairdressers public holiday!

There are a few important races in the lead-up to Melbourne Cup and while I do enjoy following the form guide, mostly I love looking at the fashions.

Once you have placed your bet (my money this year is on these 5: Spechenka, Peal of Bells, Moudre, Dunaden and Mourayan - I go by the name, taking my cue from the late Jennifer Patterson) all you need to do is find your outfit.

Here are some vintage racing pictures to help you decide what to wear.

Fashionable ladies and gents on the lawn at the Melbourne Cup, c 1910, with the grandstand in the background, from the Library's collection of Victorian Railways lantern slides.  From here.

1930s.  From here

From here

1940s.  From here

Happy trainer: Tommy Smith after Tulloch's cup win in 1957. Photo: Baden Mullaney.  From here

     

Sadly, there are not too many Melbourne Cup fashion photos from the 1950s but here is an idea of what would have been fashionable.  From here

                                      1965. Jean Shrimpton who caused a scandal with bare legs and a bare head!.  From here

Blog Love

I thought that I would do a round-up of all of the blogs that I have been loving lately.  As you would expect, as an expectant mother, most of them are blogs that belong to other mothers that I admire.  Most are vintage in theme or focus on cooking and/or eating!


Retro Mummy

This fellow blogger is an Australian who is getting a lot of (very well-deserved) attention for her blog and parenting activities.  I have no idea how she finds the time to update her blog/twitter/facebook etc so often.  She is also the online Mum that I tweet when I have a question about something baby-related!

She has recently revamped her blog after her fifth (!) child and it looks amazing - as do all of her babies and not-so-babies.  With headings such as blog, family, bake, sew, quilt and a few others, her site is a great resource for any new Mum!

Corrie - aka Retro Mummy.  From here

Annabel Langbein's Blog

I adore Annabel.  From the husky way she introduces her TV episodes, to the advice she gives about growing your own in her cookbooks - she is brilliant!

Annabel has two children (I think) that are mostly grown-up now but continues to feature family friends children and her own family in her TV episodes and cookbooks.  Annabel is such an inspiration for me, as a woman who has achieved that work-life/ family-life balance doing what she loves and not compromising on her standards.

As someone who wishes that they were a bit of a Francophile I can see a lot of French influence in the way that Annabel approaches life.  I believe that she does have quite a few French friends and has spent some time there.

In Australia, her new book Simple Pleasures has just come out but the TV series has not started yet.  I have flipped through her book in the bookshop and am hoping to find it in my Christmas stocking as it looks jam-packed with new recipes and ideas.  Are you listening husband?

The many pleasures of sharing - from here

Sprouted Kitchen

This blog has the most stunning photography going - ok I know that there are many others up for that prize!  This blog is authored and photographed by husband and wife team Sara and Hugh Forte (what a good musical name).

The Sprouted Kitchen features recipes designed around wholefoods and they have just released their first cookbook Sprouted Kitchen: A Tastier Take on Whole Foods.  The blog also features discussions on food trends (such as ingredients and new coffee making methods), travel and reviews of other cookbooks.

Sara and Hugh Forte - from here

Supercharged Food

Lee Holmes (another Aussie) is probably not a new name to you but I had to include her website in my list.  Just loading her page makes me feel like being a healthy domestic goddess.  Lee is a health coach but graciously offers a lot of information and advice on her website for free!

Lee's website has recipes for food, recipes for natural cleaning products, tips on dehydrating food, links to cooking videos (mostly raw food), a online shop and is all done in the most enchanting, retro-fairy-princess style imaginable.

From here

Elegant Musings

This is another blog that you probably all know about already but as she is expecting her first child - she is going to be the most stylish mother going!  And how cute will her baby look in all those hand-made outfits. 

Casey Brown blogs about sewing projects, daily outfits, recipes, things she finds thrifting, crafting and she also has a great section of tutorials for sewing and crafting items.  In the past she has hosted sew-alongs with great results - it is my goal to complete one of these one day.  Casey is also great at updating her blog regularly with her maternity wear and for my next baby I will certainly be stealing her style.

Outfit: baby packing mama - from here

The Vintage Wife


This is a blog that I have been following for awhile from Stateside and it is written by a lovely vintage lady named Cedar.  It features her beautiful daughter Lucy, recipes, vintage fashion (for Mother and child), vintage decor, sewing patterns and some great parenting tips.

From here

Linking with The Glamorous Housewife

Inspiration on a Monday: Vintage Summer

Vintage Summer by vintagebel featuring summer handbags

I have been in bed for the whole weekend with the worst flu of my life so today I thought I would dream about what I want the coming summer  to be full of.

I created the above on Polyvore - which I still don't have the hang of yet - it seems too easy!

Inspiration on a Monday: Glamorous Mum No. 3

Here is my third glamorous Mum: Candice De Ville also known as Super Kawaii Mama.

 

Super Kawaii Mama was one of the first blogs I ever began following - I think I may have created a blog just so that I could follow her.  I love Candice's style and quirky accessories and for me, being Australian, it is great to see fashion posts that I can apply to my wardrobe - at once!

This photo belongs to the gallery entitled Daily Outfit - please find it here.

I very much admire the way that Ms De Ville keeps her professional life separate from her home life but at the same time manages to convey her love for her girls and home.  When I started my blog I thought that it would all be about fashion and vintage things but I have been unable to keep food out and recipes and pictures of my cat etc.

This photo is under this post

Again, SKM is one of those mothers that seems to have-it-together and is not apologetic for the fact that she will turn up at the school gate looking like she is loving the life she leads.  I think that the balance she has struck between work and home life works very well.  And what's more, she is so generous with her knowledge.  On her website you can find links to her video tutorials, beauty secrets, product reviews and information about the regular workshops she holds for ladies who have an interest in vintage styling.

Please click here to visit workshop news

                                              

For more about Candice De Ville and her lifestyle you can find her Twitter here and her YouTube channel here

Inspiration on a Monday: Glamorous Mum No. 1

With impending Motherhood only 18 weeks away (OMG) - I have been seriously searching blogs and websites for mothers that have that something extra - everyday women who juggle work, home life and do it all very stylishly.  I am sure their little girls growing up will be thinking "I want to be just like Mum".  

In an attempt to steal some of their style I will be featuring a few on my blog over the next couple of Mondays.  Please click on the images to take you directly to that post or the header to take you to her home page.

Here is the first:

Bethany's blog The Glamorous Housewife is amazing.  As someone who has worked in movies (as a prop stylist I think) she has a great eye for detail and colour.  The bright, happy feel of her blog is a genuine reflection of her personality.  I don't think I have seen her wear all black on her blog yet, nor do I see much black when you look around her home.  And speaking of her home.  The kitchen - the flamingos, the dining room with the wallpapered ceiling - is there anything that I don't want to steal?

The amazing dining room with the wallpapered ceiling

From the "You Got That Where?" series

To fulfill the part of a glamorous Mum I think you have to be pretty clue-y when it comes to fashion and this is where I fall down but where Bethany excels.  She does a great series called "You Got The Where?" which details vintage-inspired items that she finds at department stores and how she styles them to fit in with her "look"

Bethany is completely honest with her readers, which makes for some very funny reads (ie - when comparing herself to Martha Stewart) and entertaining YouTube videos.  It's on her recommendation that I went and bought a good under eye concealer.  Here is her latest video from YouTube - fish tacos.  Don't you just love the way she says "Hi Dolls"?

When I look at The Glamorous Housewife blog - I honestly do not know who she finds the energy, motivation and time to create such a wonderful life for her family.  I will definitely be doing my best to emulate her.

Here are some amazing shoes and her beautiful Ariella

The secret is out...

So I know that I have not blogged in forever and my friends (that know I have a blog) have all asked why and here is the answer.  I am pregnant!

11 weeks and 2 days today.  It seems so surreal because I do not feel sick anymore and to look at me quickly I don't think you can tell but there you go.  On October 31st (or sometime near then), we will, God willing, have a baby.

Already some of my clothes are too tight to wear and be comfortable so I am going to have to go shopping.  It's coming into Winter here (Autumn really began this week with a freezing wind) so I can layer.  For inspiration I have been  watching Mad Men in Season 3 and 4 where Betty Draper and Trudy Campbell are pregnant but both of them seem to be pregnant in Summer.

 

Here is Betty just after she has had the baby but she is till in maternity wear

 

This is Betty in her new maternity dress for a big party - Derby Day at a country club.  I love her hair and make-up here and the belted waist of the dress but definitely not the sleeves.  I itch just looking at them.

 

This an at-home outfit of a skirt and smock style top.  I think that this would be the most comfortable to wear but again, not so great for Winter.

 

Here are the only photos that I could find of Trudy Campbell Pregnant.  The amazing shots on the left are from Tom + Lorenzo blog which breaks down each Mad Men episode and discusses all the fashion and a lot of the set as well.  I would like to think that if I decided to wear something similar to Trudy on the right to bed I would actually still be able to sleep.  I wish I could look that good when my tummy is that big.

Now for some pictures of two of the greatest style icons of the time, Grace Kelly and Jackie Kennedy.

 

Here Grace (Princess at this stage) is apparently quite pregnant and standing with one-time beau and fashion designer Oleg Cassini - fancy looking this good running into a ex?

 

I had to include one of the famous Kelly bag hiding the pregnancy - again with a coat.

 

 

These two are of Jackie.  One public and one private.  I love the amount of colour that Jackie wore.  I think the top picture convinces me to get a nice warm big coat to wear in Winter.

 

When I told my Grandma I was expecting she was telling me that she hates seeing pregnant tummies bare in public and she was telling me she used to have skirts with a cut-out bit for the belly.  I didn't know what she was talking about until I have seen the above illustration.  I think it's hilarious that none of the women illustrated are pregnant but I can see how the waistband of the dress expands to accommodate the growing baby.  Today skirt seem to be designed to wear under the tummy or have a giant elastic bit to go over the bump.

 

These two designs show how the smock style top covers the belly down to wear the skirt has the cut-out.  I think it would be hard to get them to sit right but they do look ok.  I think the green one at the bottom would be comfy for sleeping in.

I will maybe (depending how brave I am) do some outfit posts of what I wear as I progress.