Shooting the breeze

 

It was smooth and smokey and had the most soul of a launch party I've been to in some time. The invite that came couriered to my door, an oversized glass jar of home made pickles, should have been a good indicator of this with it's promise of shooting the breeze with David Chang (read Momofuku), Andrew Levins (The Dip),  good ol' fashioned conversation, PLENTY of whiskey and one of my favourite Sydney pub converts - The Carrington to house the shenanigans. 

Highlights: house smoked lavendar cola, pork ribs glazed with bourbon BBQ sauce, the calamari sliders, Levins telling stories of food bloggers complaining of the poor light (for shooting) in The Dip aaannnd probably a few more pork ribs glazed with bourbon BBQ sauce. 

Photos: Rachel Kara

Event: Bulleit Whiskey 'Speak Easy' presents David Chang & Andrew Levins 

a garden party

It was sister 1's birthday yesterday, for which she had envisioned a garden soiree.
In the lead up I was picturing myself all braids and garden wreaths, creamy skin and flushed rosy cheeks, muted flower toned dresses, nude sandals, all very soft and whimiscal - a big, but desired step away from my unofficial uniform of jeans, tee and button ups.
Having just moved into our new home it's a hot mess of boxes and last minute bit's and pieces so cleaning, organising (ie hiding sh*t in places that won't be seen by guests) and decorative preparations left only 10 minutes for personal preparations. I ended up fresh out of the shower with a side plait, makeup of no such description, in an old floral number with a sheer white tshirt underneath a tied up pale pink shirt and my beat up converse...it was far from what I had imagined but very close to what I had predicted...that's just me and I think I'm ok with it.

See rest of this stunning Flowergirl ediorial here.

Photos: Signe Vilstrup for Elle Denmark May 2011 feat Julie Rode, Maria Palm Lyduch + Solveig Mørk Hansen

I have two titles...

A short game of random word association is usually how I pick an irrelevant blog title but Shady Ladies and Gin & Juice kept flickering in my mind like a broken fluorescent as I was knowingly getting these images together for this post....so there ya go.

Moving forward.

These are my beautiful sisters - two by DNA, one by soul - plus a beautiful Swede.



Waiting in the alley.

Take your pick.


If you ever want to buy me a drink it's gin, fresh apple and lemon. Yeah you do.


SCENE. Who are these people and where do they come from? In awe.




If you live in Sydney and don't recognise this place you really should get onto it.



Who hates Youtube but loves Vimeo? ((my hand's high in the sky))
Who is lazy and can't be bothered waiting for Vimeo to take an hour to upload then take another half hour to release a 1 minute video - so opts for Youtube, see's the video quality has turned to that of shit and now regrets their laziness? Me! Me! me!

Photos: Rachel Kara

P.S. People swing dance to rockabilly music on a Saturday night IN SYDNEY. Who would have thought

ripe

2011 is now five days old (or young, depending on whether or not you drink from the cup that's half full). I am sleeping more, perhaps so I can dream more, and am quite comfortable in the numbness these (passing) lulls of mine bring.

I bought a journal. This o-check design journal infact.



I thought if it was pretty I'd be more likely to use it but have quickly come to realise - or maybe just admit - that I am straight up awkward when it come to pen, paper and private thoughts. Heck, I think I've shared more of my inner self with this damm blogspot (which is potentially accessible to [according to www.internetworldstats.com] almost 2 BILLION people) than I ever have with any form of handwriting tools.



So I'm sorry journal but here's my entry for today. Don't be jealous.


2011 started with no big bang.

Midnight hit. All I wanted was to curl in to a ball and have my non-existant lover stroke my hair as we fell sweetly and silently asleep by each others side.



Reality was, there were enough faces in and around my home to scare my sometimes painfully and naturally introverted self. It was confronting. My insides were squirming. I had chosen to invite them here?

...but I do come from a family of performers and like they say

"the show must go on!"

so as the clock struck 12 I hoo-ed and ha-ed with the crowd whilst my mind wandered far from home.

I wanted to wake up from a beautiful rest with the fire in my gut reignited by the potential opportunity, mystery, adventure and discoveries the turn of a calendar year can bring.
Direction, certainty and at least a faint sense of security as welcomed accompaniments.



What felt like an eternity later the party was dying down as the sun was coming up and a couple of things came crashing down upon on me:
1. An honest look at what was/is my greatest desire (so here's where I draw the line on what 2 billion can know about me!) and,
2. For the 6 months or so that I have just passed I have been more or less trying to 'extrovert' myself.
It is only just occurring to me how tiring and laboursome it has been but I have done what I needed to do.

I woke from a short and unsatisfying sleep stepped into the shower and as the water fell I had word that that season is over. "You can be you" over and over. "You can be you". I liked it and felt a little calmer, a little more comfortable in my skin.

I don't have a resoltuion or plan for the year as yet so I will leave this post with all it's ugly ends hanging loose for now.

Photos: , Rachel Kara

Disclaimer: I get my tenses mixed up a lot and make up my own grammar and punctuation therefore I'm sure my writing is a bitch to read, but this isn't about you. This is now also officially my private journal.
You can still enjoy my photos?

Dream on

I tried to get inspired to clean my room (or at least organise my mess) so did what you should always not do when you have a job at hand 1. Went online 2. checked what's been happening with The Selby.

What I ended up with was mismatched but way dreamy combinations (like Jaimie Campbell in Pharells pool in Mexico - ohhright) and photos of myself laying on the floor procrastinating.



Latest news: Woodstock NYE house party. Going to have a photo field day! Need some party inspiration. The thought of hosting a 'party' is giving me hives, or headaches, so am going to stick with the term 'gathering'. What kind of gatherings are y'all going to to welcome in the beginning of a new decade?

Photos: The Selby, Rachel Kara

bai

This photo & the story that goes with it almost sums up Halloween 2010 for me. Almost...but not quite, so expect more on this topic in the not too distant future.

I'm going camping for the weekend! So er yeah, I'll let you know how that goes. I'm taking a proper big comfy mattress which is going to prove to be either the best or worst idea I've had all week.
I'm not a princess yo. I just recognise that the spinal cord is the most important organ (nerve, tissue, system, whatever) in the body and must be treated with due care.

x

Photo: Rachel Kara

back it up

Hobogestapo. "A PHOTOGRAPHY COLLECTIVE DOCUMENTING NIGHTLIFE, MUSIC, FASHION AND CULTURE..AND IN RECENT TIMES..PRODUCING MORE WEIRD, CONCEPTUAL STUFF". I like their stuff. Like, REALLY like it. And their letter box is outside the shop so I get a gentle reminder each time I walk out the front to check it out.

Time for a slight ramble....

Have I already mentioned that I'm in the process of converting from PC to Mac? If not, well, I am. Everyone says I'll get used to it but am finding file organisation, or lack thereof, leads me to heave a deep heavy sigh at the very thought of sifting through files to make a post. Definately not what I signed up for.

Almost had an anxiety attack the other night trying to sort out my thousands of photos which were duplicated and scattered in various locations...add to the fact that iPhoto now goes into self destruct mode and decides to freez everytime I import any number of files and I am almost officially over it. Any encouraging words to get me through this rough patch will be gladly accepted.

Photos: http://www.hobogestapo.com/

wiggin out.

Post title = joke of the night at a recent wig party I was at. For some reason it didn't stop being funny. My creative director/genius hairdresser friend was conveniently over at my house before the party hence the wig not actually being a wig but more like a big hot mess of braided hair pieces on half of my head. Few feathers chucked in for something different. Not that it wasn't different already. Loved it.

Oh and quite a large photo of myself right there. Not gonna lie...it makes me feel quite vulnerable putting 'me' out there. Will probs stick with everyone elses pretty pictures for now yah? Yahhh. Must say, have been to some pretty A grade parties lately so will have to do a catch-up post.