C R Y S T A L L I S E D .

(Crystallised by Vintage Lover)

So i'm hoping i'm not the only one who does this but the other day i wrote a list of things i want to do and would like to achieve with my blog this year. I think it's so important to be constantly trying to find ways to improve your work whether that be your career or even your blog. For me, it's both. I'm always thinking of ways to improve, to grow, to expand. There's never a moment when my mind is quiet and for some reason that's the way i like it. Sometimes i feel like my mind looks like Shibuya crossing with a thousand things crossing my mind at once and all going in different directions. Maybe with a few anime characters and kawaii cats in there too..

One goal on my list this year is to start posting beautiful look books i come across. There seems to be an influx that arrive in my inbox lately but i never get time to post about them. I'm hoping that by doing this it will help to break up my personal posts and hopefully help me to post more consistently, which is my main goal.

The first lookbook i want to share with you is "Crystallised" by Vintage Lover. Not only is it absolutely beautiful but Jaharn is one of the nicest vintage sellers i've come across and is more of a friend than anything else, even though she's half way across the world in London and we've never actually met before. It's comforting to know there are vintage sellers out there who like to work and support one another and who are genuinely happy for you. And right now i couldn't be happier for Jaharn and her store. After months of hard work her stunning lookbook is complete and it couldn't be more welcomed. You can shop the Vintage Lover collection HERE.

M Y P E N S I E V E.

I think i enjoyed taking photos of my new stock a little too much today. Why? I don't really know. I've had a skip in my step ever since taking it easy of the past two weeks and i can't seem to shake the feeling that one person cannot be this happy for so long. A few little things adding to my mood. Lovebento.com featured Gary Pepper Vintage on their website which you can read here. I also just found out the other day that i was chosen as one of Weardrobe's spotlight bloggers and had a banner of myself on their fashion website and various other places. Not only that but they have even been so kind to make one of my photos their default picture on their official facebook page! I also did an interview with Tongue in Chic, a fashion website based in Kuala Lumpar which you can read here. As if things couldn't get any crazier i just finished another interview with a wonderful lady, Maggie, who is launching a self help book for teens and was lovely enough to include myself and Gary Pepper Vintage. I'm still so overwhelmed by any sort of attention like this so a very big thank you to Lovebento, Weardrobe.com, Tongue in Chic and Maggie! You have me skipping all over the house.

On another note, there is this exquisite antique store in Tasmania that i just love visiting when i'm there so i quickly took Luke to have a look for himself on the weekend. I try to avoid this place as i always leave disappointed at the thought that i simply can't afford to ship any of the furniture back to my house. Everything is so reasonably priced and they have pieces that i have envisioned to belong in my future home, can you believe these antique wooden cases were only $150 for the three!?

These random snap shots from the weekend pretty much sum up a few of my favourite things to do when i have a day off: opshopping, tea and sunsets. I think evenings in Tasmania are exceptionally beautiful as everything is amazingly peaceful and just quiet enough that you can hear a car from a mile away. I especially love those days when there's hardly any wind and everything is so calm and still that when the sun starts to set normal lakes like this start to resemble crystal mirrors and you start to wonder whether or not the tress are really looking at themselves in their reflection. Or perhaps you're simply catching a quick glimpse into that world we all imagined as kids where everything is just upside down?

But want to know my absolute favourite? When the sky catches on fire for those last few seconds and you sit there wondering how you can somehow try and capture that perfect image to keep locked away for a rainy day. Lucky for me, we found a lake that began to quickly turn into a pool of silver light on sunset and what i like to call, Dumbledore's pensieve. It looked so surreal and all sorts of magical so i suppose i know exactly where moments like this, and my other favourite memories, will be kept safe and sound from now on... somewhere in Tasmania in my very own pensieve :)

R U N A W A Y S.

{Knitted jumper: vintage, shorts: camilla & marc, crochet socks: from tokyo, shoes/belt/brooch: vintage.}

I suppose you could say this is what i do with my time when i'm away, find a beautiful place with luke and relax for the afternoon. Lucky for us, there are a million beautiful places scattered all over tasmania so we drove around for a while until we found the perfect one, and i absolutely love that the first photo captures the feel of the day and looks more like an oil painting than anything else. It was a wonderful spontaneous trip and worth every penny even if it was only for a few days. I think Luke and i are both very blessed to have not only found careers we both utterly love so much but jobs that allow us to pack up and travel with some sense of freedom, and this trip was a win-win for both of us. I found some amazing vintage pieces for the store that i am immensely happy about and Luke shot some incredible photos which turned out extremely well as Kelly Slater happened to surprise everyone by showing up. I can happily tell you that his photos will now be gracing the cover of a national body boarding magazine, as well as a double fold out spread for another and is currently in talks of using his photos he shot of Kelly for Quicksilver in the US! I've been meaning to do a post about Luke so i can show you all some of his amazing surf photography so i suppose this is a good reason to finally getting around to doing it. I don't think we've both ever been happier that we jumped on a plane and ran away for the weekend even if we did miss our flight home by 10 minutes because we ordered poached eggs for breakfast. Next time, no eggs.

And isn't it strange when you're frantically trying to pack or find something to wear your outfit always seems to come together in a weird, unintentional, colour coordinated way? Mine was completely coincidental and i'm still laughing at the fact that i own a belt that is the exact same color as my shoes!

My new collection is coming and will be up by the end of the week :)

newarrivals.

I'd nearly forgotten to show you all my store favorites this week. I think this is actually my favorite collection so far. It's hard to find dresses that aren't the same cut, design or floral print to what you've already found so i simply love all the different styles available this week. Then again, i did find some absolutely stunning dresses that i need to photograph today so i will probably be saying the same thing again next week! There's over 130 items ending tonight so be sure to have a look to see if there is anything you like :)

IN STORE NOW:

1. Vintage two toned backless batwing dress // 2. Vintage cream criss cross slip dress.



3. Vintage black backless criss cross shift dress // 4. Vintage red grunge jumper.



5. Vintage cream/black multi strap button dress // 6. Vintage black cut out crochet dress.



7.Vintage cream crochet boho jacket // 8. Vintage white off the shoulder crochet lace dress.



9. Vintage high waist leopard shorts // 10. Vintage black faux leather grunge jacket.



11. Vintage cheetah print knitted jumper // 12. Vintage peach knitted panel jumper.



13. Vintage white cut out mesh button shirt // 14. Vintage black sequin backless draped top.



15. Vintage cream lace boho top w slip // 16. Vintage pink tux jacket w black frill trim.



SHOP THE GARY PEPPER VINTAGE STORE HERE.

claireinc.

Want want want// need need need:

Clair inc has just updated their online store with their fabulous january listings for 2010. Unfortunately, i checked their blog too little too late and missed out on this amazing valentino jumper by a couple of hours, apparently it sold as soon as it went online and for only $345! I was surprised by how quickly i decided that i needed this (approx 3.2 seconds, seriously) and by how much i was willing to spend. But i was more surprised when i emailed belinda at clair inc inquiring about this little gem and ended up telling her, for some unknown reason, that i like to blog about her store, she then replied "Your blog is BEAUTIFUL! Love your ebay shop. So good to see a stylish ebay store in Australia with great trend based vintage. Beautiful styling too!". woah, if only you knew how much that means to me, belinda. If only you knew...

You can check out claire inc here or join her facebook page here. I would highly suggest it as her new items are defiantly swoon worthy...

{www.clairinc.com}

sailor.

I've been dying to try and outfit that would go with these amazing shoes i picked up when i went to Japan last year. I found them in this little underground store in harajuku and it was instant love. Luckily, i found these vintage cream pants at the start of the week that i tailored into super cute shorts and they are the exact same color as my heels! Originally, the shorts were for the store but i think i will just have to keep them now. Throw in a pair of crochet socks and an over sized colored clutch and i'm done!

These are my friends charlotte and eliza. We decided to go out on the weekend and after a few bottles of wine we were having one of the best nights i've had in ages. I was worried i may have forgotten how to dance but soon realized that i still had it; terribly uncoordinated moves and all sorts of embarrassing.. perfect. I hope you all had a good weekend too :) I have a sneak peek of my new listings going up tonight on our GPV facebook page so if you're not a fan yet, be sure to join!

{Top & shorts: thrifted. Bag: thrifted. Socks & heels from Tokyo. Rings: YSL/various vintage collection.}

style.

I'd nearly forgotten to tell you all that my new SLR arrived safe and sound at the start of the week thanks to my darling boyfriend and his brother who hooked me up with a pretty sweet deal in the city. I've had such a crazy week with over 100 listings finishing on friday night and another 89 new pieces going in store tonight! Luckily, we found a couple of minutes to go play with my new camera on saturday afternoon with these beautiful big green trees that line a tiny lane just down the street. In these photos i'm wearing my new favorite skirt and boots that i picked up at the start of the week. The skirt is made from a metallic foil material that you can't really see in these photos and my boots are yet another pair to be added to my vintage collection. I'm a size 8 and they are so hard to come by when i'm op shopping so whenever i find a pair that fits, it's a miracle! My best friend, Laura, who is pictured with me below, is blessed to be a size 6 so i like to buy her pretty boots all year round.

One of my new years resolutions was to try and make time to document my style on this blog every week and show you that everything i sell on Gary Pepper is representation of my style and something i would personally wear myself. To be honest, i'm not one of those girls who spends thousands of dollars on designer brands, needs the latest alexander wang bag or wears layers upon layers of clothes paired with a ridiculous sized heel during the day. I live by the beach and my number one priority is comfort. If i was to describe my style it would be: cheap, chic and simple. One day i might feel like wearing a skirt and a singlet, the next i might be wearing an outrageous rainbow foiled dress to dinner. I am an avante garde girl at heart, give me a huge egg for a hat, pokadot gloves, a ridiculous taffata prom dress and lady gaga any day and i'd be happy!

Anyway, enough of my babbling, i hope you all had a wonderful weekend and enjoyed a nice glass of wine. Here goes my first outfit post :)

{Top & Skirt: Thrifted, Socks: Target, Boots: Vintage, Necklace: Vintage, Rings: YSL/Vintage.}