Reality Check!

I'm sorry if things are a little quiet on here at the moment (and I feel like i'm saying that a lot lately, since i'm going through such a transition period at the moment) but this week is my first week of uni and boy has it been straining!

Now, I consider myself an intelligent person, and an enthusiastic and fast learner, but right now I am facing a major reality check - university is hard work! Especially after having a year off from study where the only work you did was teaching in child care centres where the furthest you strained your brain was to come up with another nursery rhyme to entertain the children! (There are only so many times you can listen to yourself sing "if you're happy and you know it, clap your hands" without wanting to rip out your own larynx, you know.)

Don't get me wrong, I knew this wasn't going to be easy, and I love it for challenging me this way, but I am coming home from Uni every day absolutely exhausted and feeling headache-y from information overload!I'm sure I'll get used to it in time, and adjust to this style of learning, but for now I need a little lenience on the blog front to get through the transition phase, and hopefully get to a point where I am no longer to exhausted to think when I get home. I will try to post as much as I can, but while I'm adjusting to a new schedule and new lifestyle, I would appreciate a little lenience :)

And hey, you never know, but this new lifestyle and  new learning endeavour may open up a whole host of new ideas for me to explore on the blog in the future! Already I can see myself becoming more engaged in the world around me, and especially in the media and films, thanks to my Journalism and Screen Analysis classes. Yay for new ways of thinking! Even if they are mostly about the fashion in the old films I'm watching! Shh, don't tell my lecturer!

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Have you entered my 100 follower giveaway yet?

Click here for details!

Also, enter code ifollow20 for 20% off advertising!

100 Followers Giveaway!

Hi guys, so here it finally  is - the giveaway!

Five lovely ladies have been kind enough to team up with me to celebrate making it to the 100 mark on this little blog this week, and boy have they been generous! Each and every one of these bloggers are people whose blogs I read every day and who have inspired me to continue on this journey through the tough times, so it means so much to have their support in the form of this giveaway and I hope that you all show them lots of love!

I have split the prize for this giveaway in half to share the love a little more evenly, with each prize being worth upwards of $50 all up! Want to see what you could win?

Prize Number One

2 months "Stallion" size ad space on Little Foal

"Let's Blog Some Shit" Notebook from Typo

"Dainty Frames" Clip Art Package from The Ink Nest

Custom Digital Image by Kim at What Peggy Said

1 month "Medium Stitches" ad from Chevron Stitches

Prize Number Two

1 month Large Ad Space on Kitty and Buck

Social Media Icon Set (up to six icons) from Kitty and Buck's Design Service

2 Months Ad Space on Being Erica

Handmade Hair Bow from Erica's Etsy Shop

1 Month Ad Space on Three Inch Stitch

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Plus, for a limited tine only, use the code ifollow20 for 20% off ads on Little Foal!

Oops, no Friday's Finds! But here is something else for you instead...

I was really slack this week and didn't make it to a single op-shop! I do have a good reason though, and I'll explain it to you later. For now, check out what I picked up out retail shopping today!

Good score, huh?

I can't even remember the last time I went crazy, shopping like this! It was a much needed bit of retail therapy after a tough week and I picked up some great stuff.

My original reason for going to the shops today was to pick up what stationery I needed for uni on Monday. As you can see, I went a little overboard in Typo, my favourite stationery shop, picking up all sorts of goodies including an adorable stamp set on top of the lecture books I bought.

How freaking awesome is the "let's blog some shit" notebook!!! I grabbed two of these - one for me and one for my upcoming giveaway, with a spare (the typewriter one which says "my homemade blog" for in case the winner doesn't quite approve of the language on the first.

The rest of the stationery is pretty bland and i bought some basic winter clothes, as you can see, but see that trench in the top left over there? That was 25% off at Portmans! Yep 25% off at the start of the season! Can anyone say awesome? That saved me nearly $40!

I've been wanting a trench like that for aaagggeeessss and last year I just swooned over the Portman's coats from a distance because of their rather hefty price tags (or maybe it's just my tight-arse attitude that kept me at bay) but bottom of the line is, everybody needs a good winter coat, Portman's is excellent quality, It was on sale and it's classic and won't date. Purchase totally justified!

I did mean to stop by the oppies on the way home today, but being totally laden down with bags in the pouring rain, I opted to stay on the bus and head on home as quick as I could! I also meant to do an outfit post today, but this morning every photo I took just looked so awkward, and when I got home this afternoon I was soaked through and looked like a drowned rat. The outfit gods just aren't on my side right now, are they?

Have you had a good bargain out retail shopping lately? I'd love to hear about it. The start of a season is always so exciting for clothes shopping, isn't it?

DIY Coaster Tutorial

I don't know about you, but I hate the look of water rings on wooden surfaces! It is so disappointing to come across a nice table with little, dark rings mottling the surface! After spending a week refashioning my dining table, the last thing I wanted was for people to plonk their drinks down on it and create water rings, so I set about making my own pretty, blue and white coasters for my dining table to protect that pretty, wooden surface!

I also made these cute vintage bicycle ones for my non-existent coffee table (hopefully we will find one soon!)






















To make your own pretty coasters, you will need:

Blank Wooden Coasters 

(Mine were from Kaisercraft and were less that $1 each)

Scrap booking Paper 

Mod Podge 

Foam Brush

Spray Sealer

(highly recommended)

Exacto Knife/Rotary Cutter

Cutting mat

Pencil

Scissors

Here's the how to:

1. Turn your scrap booking paper upside down and trace the outline of the coasters onto it.

2. Cut around the outlines with scissors, making sure to cut outside the line! This is important so you don't end up with wood showing on the top side of your coasters. You can trim off overhang later with your exacto knife.

3. Mod Podge your scrap book paper cut-outs to your coasters, using a wide, foam brush. Let it thoroughly dry.

4.  Turn your coasters upside down on your cutting mat and trim off any overhang using an exacto knife or rotary cutter.

5. Give your coasters a few coats of Mod Podge to seal them, letting each coat dry before applying the next, and making sure to seal around the edges. I gave mine about 5 coats, but I was probably being excessive.

6. To eliminate tackiness, spray your coasters with a light coat of acrylic sealer once Mod Podge is dry, and they're ready for you to enjoy!

I hope you found this tutorial helpful. You don't have to use the spray sealer if you don't want to, but I would highly recommend it. I haven't gotten my hands on any yet, and my coasters are constantly stuck together when I stack them! I used matte finish Mod Podge for my coasters, and some people have told me that the shiny finish is less tacky, but I'm not entirely sure whether this is true.

Happy crafting!

Valentine's Day Recap

Okay, I know I am late in posting about Valentine's Day and half of you are probably sick to death of Valentine's posts, but I really felt like sharing this with you guys, because for me, Valentine's Day this year had a deeper meaning.

My regular readers would already know that Jake (the boyfriend) and I are undergoing a massive transition period this year, but for the benefit of my lovely new followers (hi guys!) I will give you a little back story as to why Valentine's Day was so special for Jake and I this year.

Not many people know this, but I am Jake's first girlfriend. He fell in love for the first time when he was 20 years old, and I am the lucky girl! I've felt at times like this might be a bad thing - like he might want to see what else is out there, or might just fall in love with someone else some time, and this scares me to death, but after 20 months together, I am starting to realise that this guy is committed to me and he is in it for the long haul! This has especially been proven since January, when we signed the lease on a unit together on the Gold Coast.

Jake and I have known this move was coming for a long time, as this is where I am going to Uni this year, and have been looking for a job for him since October, with little luck. Finally, the time came where we just had to start looking for somewhere to live, regardless of whether he had a job or not, and eventually we got this place even though he still hadn't found a new job.

Being a student, I am broke as a joke. That's just the way it goes, I guess! So Jake having a job is soooo important to keeping us both alive with a roof over our heads, and that is where our strange situation comes into play, and where Valentine's Day changed for me from an overly commercialised Hallmark Holiday to a special day to show Jake how much he means to me.

Right now, Jake and I are renting a unit in Coolangatta. All costs are split in half, and my Centrelink money just covers my half of the bills, rent, food etc. All of our furniture is here, we took Jake's bedroom stuff, bought some office stuff and I contributed the rest, BUT Jake still doesn't have a job up here, and so he has been forced to keep on working in the Byron Bay area where we used to live, staying at his parent's house through the week. This means, although he is basically still living at home and is only here on the weekends, he is still contributing the majority of his pay to the rent, bills and food here. He is also spoiling me rotten, buying me clothes and taking me to dinner and the movies nearly every weekend because we miss each other so much through the week and are trying to cram in twice as much quality time on the weekends, and he feels guilty for leaving me by myself all through the week in a new place where I know no one and have no car to get from A to B.

This living arrangement has been incredibly hard on both of us. Even though we both lived with our parents before the move, we still saw each other at least 5 days a week, and stayed at each other's houses most nights. So basically, we see less of each other now that we are "living together" than we ever did before, and it's hard. I swear, come Thursday every week, I am completely overwrought with loneliness and emotion, and cannot wait for Friday afternoon to bring me back my boyfriend. I know that sounds pretty pathetic, but it's true. I'm here completely alone Monday to Friday, so seeing that one familiar face on Friday afternoon is just the most amazing thing in the world. I used to think that I liked my own company. I still do, but I realise now that 5 days straight of it is not good. As well missing each other excruciatingly, we are both feeling the financial strain that independence brings, and Jake is feeling guilty from leaving me here all week. So basically, this last month has been strange and wonderful and hard, and that is why I so desperately needed to show Jake how much he means to me this Valentine's day.

I thought long and hard about what I could do for Jake that would show him how much his love and support means to me without costing too much. I was down to my last $30 to last me a week, and needed whatever we did to be cheap! I straight away ruled out going absolutely anywhere, because I was adamant that whatever we did, I would pay for it. All week I had been blowing Valentine's Day off to Jake doing my best to seem disinterested so that he wouldn't plan anything big, or buy me anything and it almost worked! When I called him on Thursday night and he was out drinking with some friends, I lost it a little though, and blew my cover by crying because he was out with mates and I was home alone on Valentine's day. He ended up turning up on Friday afternoon with chocolate roses (the best kind!) which I am sure were last minute, but which I loved anyway, to say the least.

Then, it was my turn to surprise Jake. He came a little early, so everything wasn't quite ready, but he loved it anyway so I was thrilled!

I made him a card with a picture of a classic hollywood couple on it, and the caption "Honey, you make me swoon!" and decorated the dining table with a photo collage of us on the wall above it. We always have fake flowers on the table, so I left the decorations at that and worked all of Thursday afternoon and Friday on preparing a yummy home cooked meal of grilled snapper with lemon and cracked pepper, cheesy cauliflower and chorizo-stuffed zucchini halves with parmesan cheese on them. For dessert I made mixed berry tartlets with x's and o's out of leftover pastry adorning the top, with whipped cream to serve. We ducked out before dinner to get some celebration drinks, Kahlua for me and Coronas for Jake and we were all set!

Even though we ended up eating in front of the TV, Jake really appreciated all the effort I went to to make the night special, and he told me that he "would rather eat what I had just cooked him than go out to dinner any day!" which is a massive compliment from Mr Convienience who usually hates  waiting more than 10 minutes for food!

Having Jake come early ended up being kind of convenient because my electric mixer broke halfway through whipping the cream and I hadn't finished preparing the main meal, so Jake got the lovely job of shaking the container of cream till it whipped itself! Haha :)

All in all, we had an amazing night, and whole weekend for that matter. I am so blessed to be loved by this amazing man, and I have a feeling that he feels the same about me, even if he did have to ask me what swoon means when he read the card I made him :)

120 lovely People!

Oh my goodness! I cannot believe my eyes!

To think that it was only 6 months ago that I started this blog... All I can say is that I am shocked at how far I have come since then, and it is all thanks to you, my lovely readers! 

Hitting the 100 mark is always a big deal in blog-land, but to actually double my following overnight - I'm blown away! Thank you all for taking the time to follow, to leave lovely little comments and for simply reading what I write! It means so much to me to think that what I write on here has value to some of you, and that maybe my posts can make someone smile, or laugh or feel nostalgic. That's the stuff that makes a blog worth writing! 

To welcome all of my lovely, new readers and reward those of you who have stuck by me over the months, I have decided I'd like to do my very first giveaway. If you're a long-term reader who would like to contribute something, please don't hesitate to contact me, and in the meantime, I am going to get my thinking cap on to figure out what I should offer up and how I want the giveaway to run :)

The giveaway will happen next week sometime. More details coming soon, and thank you all for continuing to support my blog! 

xxxxx

The GFC Collective Blog Hop #19

<a href="http://www.peacoatsandplaid.blogspot.com/search/label/gfc%20collective" target="”_blank”"><img src="http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a268/bre916/BLOG/newhopbutton150_zps0ae6c5c9.jpg"/></a>

Welcome to the weekly "GFC Collective" party :) This is a link up for bloggers who want to gain followers and meet some awesome new bloggy buddies. I have met some pretty neat people by following them with GFC. It's so easy to keep up to date with all of my fav blogs :)

Not sure if this is the blog hop for you? Listen to what other bloggers have to say...

"Just to let you know, your blog hop is the best I've participated in for gaining new friends!!! I couldn't believe the results!! Thank you!"

- Danavee, This Vintage Grove



"I'm dropping by to let you know that I love being a part of your blog hop! 

 I have been meeting really nice bloggers.  Bloggers who are actually friendly and want to connect! 

I'm putting the blog hop button on my side bar, like, permanently!  Everyone should know about it. 

 Just thought I'd share with you. Thank you."
-Vickie, Oh Abby Day


"Hi BreAnna, just want to say that your blog is beautiful, creative, and fun. The GFC collective is one of my favorite parts of the blogging week. Love meeting new friends and fellow bloggers. We just started our blog and were amazed at how helpful the GFC collective is! Keep up the amazing work."
-Alea and Rachael, Sparkle Your Life


"This GFC Collective Hop is seriously one of the best link ups out there! Through this hop I have found so many great blogs & friends that I wouldn't have otherwise found! Thank you so much for hosting such a fun link up! Please take the time to link up & join along! You won't be sorry that you did!"

-Amy @ Keepin' Up With the Smith's



Has the GFC Collective done wonders for your following? Let me know, shoot me an email at peacoatsnplaid(at)gmail(dot)com

Bre @ Peacoats and Plaid

Autumn @ The Busy Bee

Heidi @ Antlers & Roses

and our lovely co-hosts for the week

Sunae @ Little Foal

Britt @ Three Inch Stitch

Ceri @ Curvy Guru Ceri

Vickie @ Oh Abby Day

...want to co-host? Email Bre at peacoatsnplaid(at)gmail(dot)com

My Blue & White Obsession

Blue and White Inspiration

Blue and White Inspiration

So, I may have mentioned before that I am a tad obsessed with Blue & White at the moment. I'm not quite sure what started this obsession, but I think it has something to do with the Blue Willow teapot and cooking stuff I got for Christmas and my birthday off my mum, dad and sister (little bro got me a fondue set - what a champ!). 

The term "Willow" is applied in a general way to many of the copies of the blue-and-white porcelain imported into England from China during the last half of the eighteenth century. For a century and a half the "Willow Pattern" has been the stock-pattern of nearly every British Pottery manufacturer, and although at times its popularity has waned, it has eventually returned to favour, and now is again at the apex of its popularity. Thomas Minton is thought to be the original producer of Blue Willow china in England, but was closely followed by other manufacturers, such as Royal Worcester, Spode, Adams, Wedgwood, Davenport, Clews, Leeds and Swansea in the production of the Blue Willow pattern. The Blue Willow china I received for Christmas is modern, and was made by Churchill, but it's not just the classic nature of the Blue Willow pattern that intrigues me, or the colours, it's also the legend associated with it's origins. 

The Blue Willow legend was probably made up as a sales pitch by one of the English companies who produced it, in order to sell more of their product, but it's a beautiful story nonetheless, and I think it's quite romantic. The story is about the daughter of a wealthy Chinese merchant being put to death after she runs away and gets married to a commoner. Later, the addition of the Gods turning the lovers into a pair of doves was added to the story. This was to tie in the story with the newly added pair of doves on the china. All of the main elements of the Blue Willow pattern are included in the story, just as in the poem which was on the box of all of my Blue Willow china:

Two birds flying high,

A Chinese vessel, sailing by.

A bridge with three men, sometimes four,

A willow tree, hanging o'er.

A Chinese temple, there it stands,

Built upon the river sands.

An apple tree, with apples on,

A crooked fence to end my song

And now a look at the Blue and White which is decorating my household:

The Blue Willow china my family gave me, displayed on an old cane hutch. 

(This display is obviously not complete, but money is an issue when it comes to decorating here)

Mum gave me this enamel Blue Willow jug not long after Christmas, to add to my collection. It's vintage and unmarked.

This Delft candle holder was a part of the huge collection of china mum gave me last week.

You can find a tutorial for these coasters I made on the blog later this week :)

So, what do you think? Are you a fan of the Blue and White look? I just love how it is so pretty without being cutesy - I'm trying my best here to decorate in a way that Jake will like as well, and so far the Blue and white thing is working really well! Obviously, our decorating is still a work in progress, but I couldn't be happier with how we have our apartment looking so far - we have only been here and living out of home for a month, after all!

Are there any colour combinations that have you swooning at the moment? I'd love to hear :)

Nervous!

Oh my goodness! I have my first O-week activity for uni tomorrow and I am absolutely freaking out guys! This moment has been such a long, long moment in the making and now it is finally here, I am beside myself with nerves! I'm so worried that I won't make a good impression, or might find it hard making friends, and I'm so worried that I'm not going to be able to keep up with my workload that I've been sitting here all night with my tummy in a knot, and I can't even eat my dinner!

Funnily enough, the thing that is worrying me the most is what to wear. I knowww, how girly and predictable of me, right? But i swear, it's not like me at all! I'm the girl who chucks on whatever she feel good in and heads out the door. The girl who dresses for her mood, for her taste, for her own aesthetic and doesn't give a hoot what anyone thinks of her. The girl with "the tablecloth dress", the jarmy shirt and the funky hippy dress which get worn absolutely all the time! So why am I stressing out? Why am I so adamant that I make a good impression on these people? Well, it might have something to do with the fact that people keep on telling me the friends you have in uni are the friends you'll have for the rest of your life! The rest of my life is hopefully going to be a long, long time, people! In fact, I'm really holding out hope that humans are immortal by the time I reach like, 45. Forever is a long time to be talking to the same old girls, so naturally, I want to make friends with the right people! 

I know this is a trivial thing to worry about, and I know that I should just dress in what I feel comfortable in so that I make friends with similar aesthestic taste and interests as me, but I still feel like I have nothing to wear. I'm sorted for tomorrow, because I'm wearing the new outfit I bought the other week, but for the next three years' worth of classes - I'm worried!

The new outfit

I made a few Polyvore wishlists that I would like to share with you - three different styles which I would totally wear in a heartbeat, and all of the clothes in the sets are under $50 a piece, so I might eventually be able to actually buy a few of these things to incorporate into my wardrobe and make dressing for uni that much easier. All of the jewellery in the pictures is similar to stuff I already have and wear everyday. I'm not such a fool as to think I'll be getting any new jewellery any time soon - student budgets are not forgiving!

Anyway, take a look and see what you think. The pretty nude bag is something I REALLY want! I need a good, big, neutral bag for uni, so if I budget hard enough...

My Polyvore

What do you think of the styles I picked out? Anything in there that you think I'd get a lot of wear out of? Obviously the black skirt would be a winner, but what about the other things?

P.S. Sorry for my overuse of exclamation marks in this post. I'm seriously just that nervous!

Thank you mum!

Remember how I told you all in my last Friday's Finds post about my mum giving me a whole heap of antique serving ware that she didn't want anymore? Well I finally unpacked it all and got a few photos! I am yet to find somewhere to actually put it all, but I couldn't hold off any longer - I just had to get it all out and share it with you guys. 

Pretty good score, huh?

I'm still pinching myself that she actually gave me all of this! This is the majority of the good china that I wasn't allowed to touch as a kid. Unbelievable! I feel so lucky to have grown up with parents who love antiques and nurture my own developing passion for them. I almost thought dad would pull the pin on me taking all of this, but he surprised me by not saying anything. Maybe the fact that they are moving soon is starting to sink in, and he is realising there is no way he wants to pack and unpack all this stuff which sits unused in cupboards all year long? 

Here are a few of my favourite things that mum gave me:

Alfred Meakin "Gloria" and Grindley 

These plates are super pretty. These photos don't do them justice! I love the blue and orange of the one on the left, and it fits right in with the decor that Jake and I have in our lounge/dining right now, and the one on the right just steals my heart every time I look at it! I don't know why, but I love it. Probably because I know mum loves it haha.

Delft candle holder

I'm obsessed with blue and white right now for decor because its pretty, but not so feminine that Jake doesn't like it. There are some classic patterns in blue and white and I love Delft's blue and white wares almost as much as I love Blue Willow.

Royal Staffordshire serving plate and New Hall Hanley cake plates.

This serving plate is probably my most coveted and cherished item that mum gave me. She always used to pull it out to put biscuits or cakes on when we had visitors, but for some reason stopped doing that a few years ago. I have childhood memories attached to this serving plate, and think it's beautiful. I also love these little cake plates - so simple and pretty. I think they will see a fair bit of use in my household.

Royal Doulton saucers. 

These saucers were given to my mum by my dad, and kickstarted her massive collection of Doulton plates about 25 years ago. They are incredibly special to me, even though one has a massive crack through it, and they will be displayed in my bedroom on my chest of drawers.

Lord Nelson Ware bowl and Bell China saucer

I love the garden scenes on these pieces of china. They would be absolutely perfect in a little girl's room! I used to call the Bell plate "the Mary, Mary plate' when I was little because the scene on it reminds me of the nursery rhyme "Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary" which mum used to sing to me when I was little.

Price Bros. Cottage Ware

I used to think these were doll's houses when I was little, but there was no way mum would ever let me near enough to touch, let alone play with them! Mum loved them, so I love them. I can't wait til I have a coffee table or something to put them on!

Elizabethan "Chantilly", Royal Doulton "English Rose" and Pontesa cake plates

These plates are just super pretty and that's all there is to it.

Schumann Germany trinket bowl thingy

I'm not exactly sure what this is supposed to be for, but I love it! It's super classy.

Old Chelsea Trio

By now, you should all know about my utter obsession with tea and tea cups, so it shouldn't surprise you that this trio sets my heart a'flutter! So delicate and purple and pretty!

"Gloria" by Royal Stafford cup and saucer

Infinity pretties.

Old Foley Tennis Set

Oh my gosh, this is possibly going to be my favourite cup to drink out of this winter. Whoever invented tennis sets is a genius - a saucer and a plate for my cookies all in one? Yes please! Plus, it's super pretty!

H & K Tunstall serving bowls, Alfred Meakin plate and Empire Ware salad bowl

These pieces of serving ware absolutely delight me with how they look so "matchy-matchy" on the table. Plus, the serving bowls were my grandad's, which makes them extra special, because I don't have much which reminds me of him. 

So, there you have it, my whopping new collection of antique serving ware, including a breakdown of my favourites and evidence that I'm not very good at culling down when it comes to favourite antiques! Now I just need to make some friends on the Gold Coast who might want to come around for tea :)

You're making my head grow!

Guys, you're making my head grow!

In my little bloggy break, I was nominated for another TWO Liebster Awards, one by the lovely Erica of Being Erica, and one by my awesome sponsor, Britt of The Three Inch Stitch. Both these lovely ladies inspire me on a day to day basis, so I would love for you to click on over to their blogs for a looksie :)

rules:

- the liebster award is given by bloggers to other bloggers with 200 followers or less.

- the nominees must link back to the blogger who awarded them.

- you must write 11 random facts about yourself.

- you must answer the 11 questions from the blogger who nominated you.

- you must make up 11 new questions and nominate 11 other bloggers.

I love this picture. Even though Aud's photobombed it :)

facts:

- I have worn glasses since I was 7 and my first pair had Sylvester licking his lips on one corner and Tweetie on the other. 

- I am slightly obsessed with blue and white at the moment, especially the Blue Willow pattern which I have started to collect.

- My favourite author is Emily Bronte and I plan on naming my first daughter after her someday.

- I can't count how many times I have seen the Harry potter movies. I watch at least two of them at least once a week.

- I am a massive History and Literature nerd and am studying those subjects this year at University.

- When I'm reading a good book, I usually end up dreaming that I'm either the character in it that I love, or the author's best friend. It's weird. 

- I am a girl and I HATE shoe shopping. Am I going to be evicted for this or something?

- I absolutely love eating apple puree and stewed apples. The kids at school used to make fun of me for eating "baby food" but it's totally delicious!

- I may have had a bowl of stewed apple for lunch today.

- Sometimes I don't wear a bra. I can get away with it cos I have small boobs and they're pretty perky. 

- I once considered getting my nipple pierced. I seriously don't know what got into me and I'm so glad I somehow woke up from that idea. That would sooo not suit my personality!

Erica's questions:

1. what is your middle name, and would you change your name if you could?

I, truthfully and in all honesty, do not have a middle name. Not very many people believe me when I say this because they think it's just something ghastly that I don't want to admit to, but it's true. Neither does Jake, actually. It always made me feel left out when I was a kid so I'd tell people my middle name was Rose (my absolute, most favouritest name ever at the time).

2. what was your first ever concert, and the last you went to?

My first ever proper concert was Bullet for My Valentine, Bring Me the Horizon and Cancer Bats. I hated Cancer Bats and loved the other two and nearly got killed in an aptly named circle of death, but a huge, tattooed bear with stretchers I could fit my head through saved me and it was an awesome night :)

The last concert I went to was a new, Aussie band called Ball Park Music, and they were supported by Loon Lake, who I absolutely love. It was also a great night but this time, rather than getting punched in the boob, neck and face,  my friends and I did awesome 80's throwback dance moves and awkward group hug, bouncing sing-a-longs.

3. what is your favourite movie, and can you recite a line from  it for us?

Omg, don't even get me started. Omg. 

My FAVOURITE movie is Harry Pooter and the Philosopher's stone and I can quote the whole bloody thing for you if you like? Favourite lines include:

and, of course,

4. tea or coffee, and how do you take it? 

Tea, preferably loose leaf Earl Grey with two sugars and a tiny splash of milk in a vintage tea cup.

5. what was the last book you read, and are you a kindle or original girl?

I am reading a few books at the moment - Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, and a Kathy Reichs book - Break No Bones. I refuseto use a kindle. Part of the charm of reading is the smell of book pages, the sound of turning a page and the feel of the book in your hands/on your face as you fall asleep reading it. A kindle just wouldn't feel the same on the face.

6. scrambled or poached, and with what on the side?

Hmm, scrambled with all the trimmings - ham, tomato, eschallots, parsley, salt and pepper in them with toast and bacon on the side.

7. can you play an instrument, and to what level?

Does Three Blind Mice on the recorder count?

8. what one food would you survive on forever, and can you cook it?

PASTA! And hell yes, I can cook it! I make a mean lasagne, spag bol and fettucine alfredo, as well as an awesome "shells with vegemite and cheese", which was my childhood fave.

9. lindsay lohan's best movie is meal girls. true or false?

Try her only good movie? Oh wait, she did Freaky Friday okay too.

10. pink is obviously the best colour, but what's the second best?

Blue! (obsessed right now)

11. next to me, who is your favourite instagrammer, and give me their name.

Umm, probably my bestie, Ellie. i think her name on IG is elliegracee

Britt's questions:

1. How long have you been blogging?

I've been blogging since August, so that's, like, 6 months now!

2. Have you been nominated for a Liebster Award before?

I have, this is my second/third nomination and I just can't believe it! People like my blog?!?!

3. What does your typical day look like?

HA! This is going to make me look sooo lazy and weird because I haven't started study yet and so i'm in this weird limbo thingy where I have nothing to do all day, but usually I wake up around 9, check my e-mails, facebook and twitter over breakfast, then I make a to do list (yep, everyday, even if all that's on it is "lay around in jarmies drinking tea and watching Harry Potter"). Then, I do the things on my list, taking short naps and social networking breaks every 5-10 minutes, depending on how interesting my to do items are (usually grocery shopping, cleaning and organising the new home). Then, I spend the afternoons either watching movies and crocheting or embroidering, or blogging/generally wasting time on the internet. Like right now, where I wrote a whole paragraph about how I do nothing all day. Then I cook dinner and go to bed. The end.

4. Do you have any furry (or scaly, feathered, slimy) friends? 

My gorgeous boy, Coke, who is a Jack Russel cross Mini Foxy and is the cutest, kindest, most caring creature on the planet! I miss him so much! He lives with my mum and dad.

5. What are your favorite crafts to make?

Like, uh, anything!? Haha. I'm not a fussy crafter. I like cutesy stuff with purpose.

6. What was your favorite toy from childhood?

Definitely my Baby Born! And her cot, pram and all her pother accessories! Mum bought her for me when she had my little sister so that i'd stop pestering her to hold the baby all the time, and I carried her around everywhere, playing "mum". She was incredibly special to me and I've kept her for when I have kids. I'm extremely sentimental about things like that.

7. What is your favorite place to be?

Home, in my jarmies doing bugger all, thrift shopping, or at one of my favourite beaches. Depends on my mood.

8. If you could live anywhere (other than where you are right now), where would it be?

Honestly, I am ACTUALLY PLANNING on moving to either England or Germany for a few years when I finish uni. Boyfriend doesn't fancy Germany much, because my ex lives there, but we are both super keen to head to Europe at some stage and I daresay we will one day end up in England :)

9. What would you consider one of your greatest accomplishments?

Honestly, sticking with this blog is a major accomplishment to me. That and surviving the HSC with chronic fatigue syndrome and still getting into the Uni course of my dreams.

10. What is your favorite book?

Wuthering Heights, hands down. Closely followed by the Harry Potter series, the Millenium Trilogy, the Dragons of Pern books, and the Clan of the Cave Bear series. I like series'. 

11. What is one thing you want your readers to know about you through your blogging?

I really want my readers to connect to me, personally. I want to share my life with my readers and I want them to know me for all my ups and downs, my creativity and my eccentricities. I hope I am achieving that in my blogging. 

11 Aspiring Bloggers Who Get a Mega Thumbs Up:

Trudie, at My Vintage Vow

Kim at What Peggy Said

Natalie at Good Girl Style

Charlotte at Midnight Caramel

Octavia at Octavia and The Ocean

Chelsea at Sketchy Notions

Sarah and Lauren at Whimsy and Juno

Emily at Emmy in the Making

Marium at Decorate Vintage

Annnd that's it because Sarah and Lauren totally count as two and all these bloggers are so awesome that they make up an extra person between them all!

If you were one of the nominated blogs, link me your post so that I can find out more about you!