Weekend Indulgence

Thus past weekend i was treated to a day of indulgence by my lovely boyfriend. After dining out for breakfast, which is tradition for Saturday mornings, we headed out to Port Fairy to checkout the chocolate shop Slitti. It was incredible, we shared the tasting plate and boy was that a treat, the most delicious chocolate I've ever come across. 

On our way home from Port Fairy we stopped into the local winery Rowans Lane and did a full tasting and Jason even bought me my favourite, the sparkling Pinot Noir mmmmm yumi!

We were the only ones there at the time so we got extra special attention and found out about the building which i absolutely love the design of.

T2 Summer

I love love love T2 and i especially love when Summer comes and i can turn all my favourites into iced tea. T2 have put together this Christmas pack that has the super delicious Citrus punch, a jug and a scoop, making the perfect gift for any tea fan. This pack also comes as chilly apple, personally i like to mix both for the yummiest combo of sweet and refreshing!

1920's Glamour

I visit my local bookstore on pretty regular basis and last weekend spotted these beautiful new editions of F Scott Fitzgeralds' classic novels. I bought the Great Gatsby for summer reading and i hope to collect the whole set (might take me a while). I love that the covers have that 1920's glamour about them, it really sets the tone for the novels before you even open to the first page. 

Bayly & Moore

I am completely in awe and in love with these gorgeous stop motion wedding videos from the extremely talented duo Sophia Bayly & Simon Moore. These snippets of someones special day are made even more lovely with the incredibly cute and whimsical music selected for each. I love that each one is unique to that couple, what a keepsake!

Off to the Otways

I was very fortunate to spend my working day dinning at the absolutely gorgeous Otway Estate Winery and Brewery as part of the Christmas celebrations. It's such a peaceful place and the food is scrumptious! As it was a work lunch there was no wine or beer today but I am a big an of their Prickly Moses beers and encourage everyone to try them! I was particularly excited when i found a sign saying they have live Jazz there once a month so i'm already making plans to head back one Sunday over summer. 

I ♥ Kate Spade (NY)

I'm a little obsessed with designer Kate Spade of New York, and frequently visit her website to check out the new treasures available. I am in love with these idiom bangles, each engraved with a cute little phrase. I love the fiery red bangle "take heart" the best, but any would be a treat! 

Creative women

My lovely and talented sister in law Captain kk is in a book! The book is a series of interviews with some very talented creative ladies that are part of the group Creative Womens Circle I can't wait to get my hands on a copy.


" Conversations with Creative Women is a collection of 14 exclusive interviews with some of Australia’s most talented female creatives, from industries as varied as millinery, textile design, blogging, architecture, retail, writing, weaving and fashion design.

The women interviewed in this book are at different stages in their careers, with varying responsibilities at home, as an employee, as a self-employed freelancer or as a business owner. They talk about their careers and creative lives with insight and generosity "

Bright and busy.

I'm a sucker for a good window display, while walking down Brunswick street late one evening i was drawn to this beautiful burst of colour hanging in the window of a stationery store. I love that it's got some much going on in one small space, I just had to share!

Felt frenzie.

A few months ago it was my nieces third birthday, I wanted to give her a present that would last and that she would actually want to play with, then i remembered how much she loves to play with her mini kitchen. 
I set off on a mission to make a collection of felted sweet treats that would look like the real thing. Once I'd finished i had cookies, doughnuts, cake and even tea bags, but nothing to display them in or on. 
So back to the craft shop to get more felt and design my very own cake stand. I'm pretty proud of my tiny treats it was sad to see them go, I had so much fun making them, but I'm happy i got such a good reaction when i gave them to her!!

Click click.

I've been an admirer of polli jewelry for a while now and only recently noticed that they have a range of pendants and brooches made from wood. I love me a wooden brooch, and these little beauties remind me of my Diana mini. It's definitely one for the wish list! 

Lomovember.

CLICK ANY PHOTO TO ENLARGE

To celebrate lomovember i decided to share some of my latest photos from my Diana mini. There's a bit of everything; the lost and found market, the Zoo, Sorrento etc. I love that every photo has a differnt tint, i think my favourite from this batch is the one with the really dark shadowy trees in front of the Sorrento beach.

Grandeliers.

I love homewares and design pieces using natural materials, so when i came across these beautiful 'Grandeliers' from Who Did That I was in awe. They come flat packed and ready to attach to any light fitting. I'm definetly considering getting one.

Beautiful Bunny.

I love pretty little dishes to store my keepsakes and jewellery and as my love bird ring dish is quite small i thought the addition of this beautiful little bunny dish would be a perfect fit for my room. I picked it up while in Melbourne this weekend for a concert, i found it at sportsgirl of all places?!

Love birds.

A little over a month ago I attended a wedding in the beautiful seaside town of Sorrento, we were staying for a few days so i had pelnty of time to walk around the town and check out the shops.
One store in particular tickled my fancy, they had a huge range of white bone china ornaments, dishes and vases. I fell in love with the smallest piece, this little love heart shaped dish with two love birds. So cute! It was a must have for my room and now it houses my most precious rings.

Busy Bee.

Well it has been a crazy few weeks, with graduating and starting a new job but I am super excited for what the future holds and thats why i thought these lovely calander post cards would be a nice little treat for myself to celebrate new beginings and the new year ahead. They feature a collection of beautiful prints by Catherine Campbell, who I mentioned in my very first post. I can't wait untill they arrive in the post!

Ork!

I've been a bit slack on the blog posts lately but for good reason, I've been busy planning my New York trip and while doing so I stumbled across these amazing posters and prints of American cities from Ork posters!. I'm obsessed with this heart print, it may just have to be an early christmas present to myself. Thump thump.

Not Tuesday.



I saw a post on Frankie magazines site about the etsy store Not Tuesday, I love their handmade beads that aren't quite round and the beautiful colours! If only i hadn't just spent all my money booking my holiday.

Beautiful brogues.

I should be saving my money, and mostly i am, but when i saw these lovely topshop woven brogues on ebay needing a good home i couldn't stop myself. They were a bargin so i don't feel so guilty and they'll be perfect for the upcoming spring weather. I just love the double buckles!

Waiting for the Sun

I am in love with these sunglasses, they're from brand 'waiting for the sun', how fitting. I have a bit of an obsession with bamboo products so when i saw these french made beauties i was in heaven, and lucky for me they're stocked in Australia!! This is definitely one for the wish list.

Mojito Cake

It's such a beautiful afternoon and usually i love nothing better than a sit in the sun while sipping on a Mojito but today i decided to shake it up a bit and turn my favourite cocktail into a yummy dessert. I used a tray for mini loaves to make little individual cakes so everyone gets the crispy edges on this light fluffy cake! Try it for yourself, it's perfect for the warming weather.

Ingredients:
Cake-
1 pack homebrand white cake mix
1 cup soda water
1/4 cup rum
3 tsbp chopped fresh mint
2 tsp lime zest
3 egg whites
Juice of one lime

Glaze-
50g unsalted butter
1/4 cup water
1 cup caster sugar
1/2 cup rum

Cream-
1 cup whipping cream
2 tbsp icing sugar
1 tsp lime zest

Directions:
1. preheat oven to 175 degrees celcius, lightly grease baking tin.
2. In large bowl combine cake ingredients and mix gently before beating with electric mixer on low for 30 seconds and then on medium for 2 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl. Pour into tin.
3. Bake for 25-35 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.
4. In saucepan combine glaze ingredients, heat until boiling over high heat then boil for three minutes turning down to medium heat, mix should ticken slightly.
5. Poke warm cake with a toothpick and pour glaze over cake, leave to cool completely.
6. beat cream ingredients until peaks form. Garnish with a mint leaf.

Lomo

I recently got some more film developed from my Diana mini, I had been a bit lazy about getting it processed and forgotten what was on there.
I'm so glad i finally got around to it because I love them, it was a mix of the beach at home and my trip to Sydney. I really like the one with the Opera house and the lovely chevron patterned walkway. From now on I am going to be proactive about getting my film developed, because i just love the surprise of opening the envelope and finding out how my persistent snapping turned out! 

Photo booth love.

 I'm a big one for rituals and i thought i'd share one of my favourites. Everytime i head to the Melbourne the first thing i do is make my way to the corner of Flinders and Elizabeth pick up a Lord of the Fries mini burger, cross the road  get into the photo booth and take a crazy set of photos, while they're processing i eat my mini burger. It's simple and a bit silly but it's my very own little ritual and i love it!I try to make it fun and do something a bit different everytime which you can see below in my latest strip.



Snippets of Melbourne

I got got up at the crack of dawn on Sunday and headed off on the train, i wanted to get the most out of my day in the city, and i did just that. I managed to see the Miff60 at Acmi which was excellent! 

I then popped across to the carpark to check out the Design Market, which was buzzing with people. There were so many great stalls it took quite a while to get round to all of them but it was well worth it. I picked up a baby size keep cup and some lovely stationary from the note maker pop up shop. I decided i had time for another market and jumped on a tram to the North Melbourne Markets. More great stalls, lots of vintage, i fell in love with a little carousel necklace and bought some Letter Flags to make "millie" bunting.

Later that day i met up with my lovely cousin for some pre-gig dumplings and a photo booth stop off. Then onto the highlight of the day, Seeker Lover Keeper at the Thornbury Theatre, which is such an exquisite old building. The gig was amazing, three Australian Lovelies singing their hearts out. All in all it was a great, fun filled day.

Cleaning out my wardrobe

I've been having a big cleanout of my house, especially my wardrobe, to make it easier when it comes time to move house.

I decided to sell the very best vintage pieces on ebay and donate the other pieces. I have about 20 items that are on auction and have buy it now prices for the hasty buyer.

You can check it out here!

Luxury leather

 

My sister works at this lovely local leather goods store and when i went to visit her today i couldn't resist this great sized, handmade, black leather Lambada overnight bag, yum!

It's a real splurge but whenever i'm off for the weekend my bags are either to small or to big but not this, it is just right! I can't wait to test it out next weekend when i head to Melbourne. 

Lush.

I love Lush products, i use them everyday and lucky for me they recently had free shipping, handy because i forgot to get a few things last time i was in Melbourne.

Not only do these products smell AMAZING they are environment friendly with their packaging, they don't use animal testing, their are no presevatives and all products a vegetarian and sometimes even vegan friendly!

These products have made my whole attitude to getting up in the morning change, now i can't wait to get up so i can jump into my heavenly smelling shower!

Whats the time Mr Wolf?

I'm on ebay quite a bit and have been searching for a good quality watch for a while ever since my "cheapo" watch broke and finally i found the perfect one, it's the Nixon Elle watch and it has a really cool flip face with polished bamboo on the reverse. It's the perfect watch for me because it's so silm it fits my tiny wrist and doesn't look ridiculously big, i love the little bit of lavender on the face.

Dry July

It's that time of the year again, time to "get on the wagon" to raise money for a cause close to everyones hearts.

 

Dry July is an online social community where an individual such as myself can sign up to the challenge of a month long sponsored abstinence from alcohol. The funds raised from your donations directly benefit the lives of adults living with cancer right across Australia.

2008 was Dry July's inaugural year with over 1000 participants and... raised a combined total of $257,283 for the Prince of Wales Hospital Foundation and Dreams2Live4 Committee based in Sydney, New South Wales.
In 2009, Dry July went national attracting over 4000 participants Australia wide. Collectively, participants helped raise over $1.27 million dollars for adult cancer patients at our 6 beneficiary hospitals.
Dry July 2010 continued the fundraisers exponential growth with 4 new beneficiaries added, over 9500 people nationally taking part and raised over $2.45 million.

You can donate to sponsor me here: https://www.dryjuly.com/profiles/melissacumming
Lets get together and help make this year the biggest and best yet!

Rabbit Ring

My sister recently went on a holiday to Perth and visited a shop we both love, Pigeonhole. She got me this gorgeous gold Rabbit ring, which i first saw on muso Bertie Blackman.

Pigeonhole have the most beautiful bags and purses and are also part of the impossible project bringing back polaroid film. Their online store is well worth a look!

My name is Millie and I'm a stationery addict

I love love love these recycled cardboard stationery organisers from french online store adonde which come in in my favourite colour, grey. I spend way to much money on stationery and as tempting as these are, they will have to wait and be put on my wish list.

Packing Post.

I've seen on a few blogs posts about packing for trips and the "what's in my hand bag" posts and decided it was a good time for me to give it a go because i'm off to Melbourne for a girls trip tomorrow before seeing my sister off at the airport.

I have been very good and picked my outfits carefully so don't pack anything i won't need. To drive to Melbourne and have a shop I have my new grey jumper and mustard scarf with jeans and brogues, for going out for dinner I have a new terracotta woven top from staple with black jeans and black platform lace ups and for taking my sister to the airport and driving home i have my khaki green dress with leather jacket tights and booties. Oh and of course i've packed my favourite waffle pj's.

My pigeonhole handbag had a clean out and now just has the essentials, pigeonhole purse, leather fox case for my iphone, Chanel perfume, Mac lipstick, carmex, pocket mirror, ipod shuffle, rayban glasses and rayban sunnies and my notebook and bamboo pen.

It's nice to be all organised and see what i have to play with.

M is for magazine

I like to have my frankie magazines handy to flick through for inspiration and fun and found this great magazine rack that is perfect for my desk. M is for magazine and Millie!

A bounty of books.

I have been on a bit of a splurge book wise lately and thought i'd share my purchases. 
The Secret Garden, Jamie's 30 Minute Meals, The Pleasures of the Table, Stencil 101, Op Shop Guide Victoria, Letters and Numbers vol.1 and The Selby, there's truly something for everyone in this mix!
My home library is getting bigger week to week, I find it so hard to leave my favourite bookstore without a new treasure. 

Love locket

I bought this lovely locket a while back from Foxes, a great online store with so many beautiful things, from jewelry to home-wares. I just bought myself the perfect chain for it and was saving it as a little gift to myself for finishing Uni yesterday!

Book Buddy

I have been buying so many new books and flipping through them all and realised i didn't have nearly enough bookmarks to keep track of where i am up to. So I got creative last night and pulled out some felt, this penguin is the first book buddy and there is soon to be a lion and a monkey, the possibilities are endless. I think they will make nice gifts, i often give books for presents and these buddies will be a cute little extra.

Secondhand Snuggle

I saw this great post on the Frankie blog about two weeks ago and got all inspired to get crafting. I hit up the op shops last week and found a lovely "girly" coloured wool blanket for $3, perfect for a hot water bottle cover. 
Mine isn't as neat as the few seen on Frankie but cute none the less.
I loved the tag that was stitched onto the old blanket and couldn't resist incorporating into the cover.
 

Hooray for Frankie

Frankie magazine always have the best competitions, i enter as many as i can and it has certainly payed off. I received this beautiful parcel in the mail, I had won the new Skipping Girl Vinegar cd and i must say the case alone was worth entering for. I especially love the hand written note it was sent with. Love.

Pretty Penny

You may remember a while back i did a post about purchasing a special home for a pet fish. Well it has arrived! The photos aren't great I'm afraid but you get the idea and you can see what a beautiful pet fish i have, her name is Penny and she is settling in very well.
 

Retro Sound

 

I've really just started getting into the whole collecting vinyl thing and recently picked up some stellar records from a local op-shop, one of which is the Double LP Star Wars Soundtrack!

So this morning determined to listen to my new vintage gems I decided to go on the hunt for a good sound system. Boy did I get lucky to come across this amazing piece of Australian craftsmanship, It's in great condition and sounds pretty darn amazing. It's been pumping out the turns from as soon as it was set up. I can now say i am hooked on vinyl and it's going to turn into an expensive addiction i can tell.

My very own Useful Box.

I found this idea for turning an old suitcase into a craft box when i was searching for recycled suitcases. I have such a lot of bits and pieces for crafting and have never had a proper storage space for them. 
My sister gave me this lovely old suitcase she had and i got to work sorting and tidying. It still needs some work, I plan to put an insert in the lid which will have elastic loops to house my needles, hooks, scissors and things.

Crafty Crochet.

I taught myself how to crochet two nights ago and look what i've achieved since then, a whole cushion cover! I love my new found skill, it's very addictive, i kept saying to myself "Just one more row". I'm going to make a second cushion cover and then start finding new things to make any suggestions?
 

A note for every occasion.



I just love this idea! A box of greeting cards for every occasion, this brown box from Kate Spade contains 15 cards and envelopes in a range of colours each with a quirky greeting on the front. I love sending cards and letters to my friends and family and these would be perfect for just that.

Felt flowers.

Bought this lovely new backpack a week ago and decided it needed some decorating to make it a little more girly.
Rummaged through my craft box and found some lovely coloured felt. I'd seen flowers like these one a hat once and thought they'd be the perfect thing to 'pimp' my backpack.
They're very easy to make, you just need five felt circles the same size and pinch them together one at a time and sewing a stitch in each before joining the next.
 

Loved.

Just found this beautiful ring from St. Kilda Jewelry, who create their gorgeous designs out of Brooklyn, New York. I just love the elegance of this simplistic design. Loved.

A crafty present.

Today i recieved a very lovely gift of the crafty kind. It was the first of fellow blogger Pip Lincolnes books, Meet me at Mikes, which is also the title of her blog. It's such a beautiful book full of fun crafty projects that have gorgeous photos to match. I cannot wait for the easter break so i have time to get my craft on and put the book to good use.