I would like to know who, in your opinion, has taken the greatest fashion risk in past 12 months and totally rocked it? And what was it?

Hmmm… interesting question. I can’t think of anything in particular that was a huge risk although I loved the L.V Bunny Ears but I never saw anyone wearing them off the cat walk except Madonna and she looked like a freakin’ idiot. In terms of fashion risk takers in general here a few people that rock my sartorial world Daphne Guinness, Tilda Swinton, Queen Michelle, Susie Bubble and Vivienne Westwood.

Best place/area in Melbourne to shop for affordable but still stylish clothes? Annnnnnd … in your opinion, top ten staples/must haves for a rounded wardrobe?

I don’t really shop much in Melbourne because I’m insanely busy but the DFO there is fantastic. Co-Dependant Smaggle and I clean up every time we go there. I love Alice Euphemia, IDS, Brunswick Street in general but particularly the Alannah Hill outlet and a truly divine store called Harem. For not affordable but flipping pornographic clothes go to Gorman. That shop is beautiful. Avoid Chapel Street – I’m disappointed every time I go there. High street in Westgarth and Northcote are great too for little boutiques and cute things.

My top ten?

* As many dresses as you can get your hands on

* Scarves

* Tights

* Comfortable heels

* Boots

* Cardigans

* Good underwear

* A gorgeous winter coat

* Big earrings

* Eye shadow in natural colours

What do you like about living in Canberra (besides the obvious family/friend/life partner thing)? Anything that drives you crazy about the nation’s capital?

Oh I love Canberra! I grew up here. I know where everything is, the roads are wide and easy to drive on, I know where to get the best Bi Bim Bab in the city and I know which restaurants to avoid. I have been a part of some incredible theatre there and I had a wonderful, creative and awe-inspiring childhood there. Obviously the fact that a good majority of my favourite people live there helps a bit too. Things that drive me crazy would be that there are so many areas that could be used to give Canberra more life but it seems to be happening quite slowly. The lake would be incredible with bars, shops and cafes but developers seem to have a mind block with building there. I hate that people hate Canberra but I know why. It’s a difficult city to visit but a great place to live. I also have contacts in Canberra – if I want a job, an artist to collaborate with, wholesale beads or a part in play I can get it. I’m finding Melbourne to be a bit difficult in that regard and also there is so much more of everything it’s hard decifer what’s legit and what’s not. It’s always easier to live in the city that you were born in but if you stay there forever you’ll never appreciate it.

I don’t want to know everything about you in stalker-ish detail as I like random disclosures, that air of mystery and the way you often channel the divine Miss Vreeland. But I would love the Smaggle-made swag – so ….. the kaftan hour – is it now like, so over? Also – your thoughts on the kimono.

The kaftan hour is definitely not over. Never will be. Kaftan is in your heart. I love the kimono – Roomy Smaggle is Japanese and we often have evenings in our kimonos drinking brown rice tea and watching Scrubs.

Hello! The thing that got me attracted to your blog was “Why don’t you?” which was one of my favourite old columns in Cosmo magazine (I have no idea if they still have it).
So my question is, was that your inspiration? If so, good job. And I like your ideas better.

No way! My inspiration came from the divine Ms Vreeland who wrote ‘Why don’t you?’ columns for Harpeer’s Bizarre when she was the editor. I assume Cosmo got their inspiration from her also. I remember a reading a few of her ‘Why don’t you?’s in a book and then I found a whole book FULL of them and I was so sad when I finished the book because she’s dead now and obviously wouldn’t be writing anymore so I thought I’d just write them myself. Glad you like them!

What character from the ORIGINAL cast of Beverly Hills 90201 would I be?

By the way for everyone else it’s Grant from Ink and Leather who is asking this question. Jackie. Kelly’s mum. She’s a total queen who loves shopping, dining out and men. Plus I have a feeling you may be a closet alcoholic. Just a hunch.

What is your guilty pleasure music?

All of my music is guilty pleasure music. I love Whitney Housten (seeing her live in March. Squeal!), Cher, Michael Jackson and musical theatre soundtracks. At any given time I’ll either be singing ‘Beat it’ or ‘La Vie Boheme’ from Rent or singing the entire score from Les Mis – playing both Val Jean and Javert. I’m a musical disaster. Let’s stop talking about it now.

Please keep doing what you’re doing & don’t ever become a sellout?

Okay! I’ll try not to. What exactly constitutes a sell out though?

I love your posts where you talk about fitness and your ridiculously healthy lunches and exercise sprees (i like exercising vicariously through you  ), would you tell us how you developed a healthy balance between life and being healthy throughout your life until now, and any exercise/diet tips etc?

I’m a really busy person and I lose the plot if I don’t take care of myself. Here are a few tips that I live by -

* Generally speaking I don’t eat carbs. I rarely have bread and pasta. If I eat any carbs it will be rice or crackers  - my two big weaknesses in the white refined cards group.

* I eat vegies all day, everyday. I have carrot sticks, celery sticks and a big salad for lunch. I also have green smoothies and fresh vegetable juice as snacks.

* I rarely eat packaged food on a day to day basis. The one exception is canned tuna.

* I try to exercise every day but if I don’t exercise for one day I try to do a whole hour the next day to make up for it. I HATE cardio but I make myself do it and I love pump classes and strength work. I’m an ex-ballet gal so I love to stretch and tone.

* It’s important to eat for well being not weight loss. I struggle a lot with my weight. I always have. I find that it’s easier for me to resist sugary, refined foods if I think ‘I’m going to feel really sick if I eat that’ rather than ‘I will gain weight if I eat that’.

* I keep a food dairy where I track my calories and exercise everyday. It’s sounds obsessive but I have terrible genes and if I stop concentrating on what I put in my mouth and taking responsibility for it I gain weight really, really quickly.

* I’m not too strict about my ‘rules’ because I hate fussy eaters. If I go to friends house and they serve me rice I’ll eat it but I’ll go easy on dessert and work out a little harder the next day.

* I believe in eating like cave men. I think if you can hunt it, catch it, pick it or grow it then you can eat it. Which is why I don’t eat Mars Bars. Or McDonalds.

* I make my lunch everyday. It’s easy once you make a habit of it.

* I always pack my gym gear and schedule in classes. I drive there before I can even contemplate not going.

* I rarely weigh myself because my weight is bizarre. I fluctuate in a horrifying way so I go on measurement and how my clothes fit me. Otherwise I get unhealthily obsessed about it.

* All bets are off in Friday nights when I have a glass of red in my hand.

I’m a new-comer to your blog and you may have revealed this while you lived in Canberra but…do you spend more time north or south of The Lake?

South side bro! I’m a Kambah gal from way back. I used to work at the Kambah Village newsagent. My parents and Mr Smaggle are still technically Southsiders in Barton and Griffith but we spend most of our time in the city and in Manuka.

Love Lady Smaggle

xxx

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Etsy

* Go wild on pay day. Just this once spend ALL your money on prettiness? Go to your favourite shop and buy everything your heart desires? Buy an entire outfit? Including shoes? Underwear? Perfume?

* Host an evening of only entrees? Invite your dearest ladies to drink champagne and nibble on tiny morsels with no promise of a main course? Perhaps choose a theme of Asian cuisine? Duck with peking sauce wrapped in lettuce leaves? Tiny boxes of Vietnamese noodles? Sashimi? Rice paper rolls?

* Wear high heels EVERYWHERE for one full week? Tuck a pair of ballet flats in your bag for emergencies?

* Pack your lunch everyday? Chickpea and eggplant salad? Roasted sweet potato with sesame seeds and rosemary? A rosy red apple for your snack? A tiny package of nuts and dried cranberries?

* Hi-jack your workmates diary? Leave them cheery little notes on random dates? Scatter the pages with butterfly stickers?

* Rent a movie that you know NOTHING about? Head to the thriller section and pick out one based purely on the title? Watch it on a Saturday night in eating peppermint chocolates and drinking red wine?

* Be divine? Drink a glass sauvignon blanc with your lunch?

* Embrace the beautiful weather? Don’t leave the house without a fresh blossom tucked in your hair?

Be gorgeous!

Love Lady Smaggle

xxx

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After the success of my first stocking necklace tutorial I have had several requests for more DIYs. After seeing the Degas exhibition in Canberra I was inspired by this painting to make a necklace that ties around the neck leaving a bow. 

Here is the finished piece…

First I cut the toes off a pair of old tights and cut down the sides to open them up. 

Then I drew a flower template on cardboard and traced the shape on my stocking material. I then cut out all the shapes. I made 5 sets of 5 flowers but you can do more or less if you like. 

Step 1 – Take a metre of ribbon and find the centre. fold each side upwards to form a square-ish shape. Glue with fabric glue and leave to dry.

Step 2  - Take 5 of your cut outs and lay them roughly on top of each other. Sew them together through the centre of each flower. You can be pretty messy with this step because it gives the flowers more volume. Arrange the flowers on your ribbon as shown.

Step 3  - Sew each flower to the ribbon and sew a crystal or bead in the centre of each flower. You may need to put a few extra stitches in and around the flowers to make them sit flat when you’re wearing your piece. All done! 

Happy crafting! 

I’m still new to the DIY thang’ so please leave feedback! 

Love you guys…

Love Lady Smaggle

xxx

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I’ve been receiving ridiculous amounts of traffic from my How to Wear a Scarf for Men post so I thought I would give the lads a special sunday treat and give you guys some sartorial eye candy of your own… I’m just a bit thoughtful like that.

Experiment with the proportions of your outfit. Wear your shirt a little longer or your pants a little shorter.

Don’t be afraid of patterns and bold prints.

Try unusual silhouettes in your ensembles.

Embrace statement hair. There is nothing sexier than a young man rocking a quiff or funky mohawk.

Theme dressing? Girls do it all the time. Why not be appropriately dressed for every different situation?

Okay I’m not seriously suggesting that you try this look. There is no way that you’re cool enough. But do try to inject some colour into your wardrobe. Black, navy and bottle green are starting to haunt me on the streets of Melbourne.

Try wearing jewellery. And not just a plain silver chain or ring. I love a man who wears statement accessories.

I don’t care how old you are. Wear a god damn suit and smoke a cigar. And then take me for a ride on your yacht.

Be yourself. If you want to wear a fabulous jacket covered in antique fruit print, do it.

I heard recently that Einstein wore the same thing every single day so he didn’t have to waste the thought on what to wear, but he theorised relativity. What’s your excuse?

And don’t be telling me these tips are ‘gay’ – they are no gayer than those hideous, skinny, long shorts and feral lace-less 80’s sand shoes that seem permanently attached to every Australian male under the age of twenty. Plus I’m a girl. I know what tingles the poonani…

Photos from Facehunter and The Sartorialist.?

Love Lady Smaggle

xxx

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A big massive thank you to all who entered the armwarmer giveaway. Your answers were gorgeous and Captian Apricot and myself had a hard time coming up with the winner. 

BUT… we both loved Scribbles and her love notes so congratulations love! The armwarmers are yours. Just email me at lady(at)smagglestyle.com and I’ll pass your deets along to the Captain!

Again, thanks for entering! I love you all. And thanks Captain Apricot for sponsoring the first Smaggle giveaway!

Love Lady Smaggle

xxx

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A few weeks ago I received an email from the gorgeous Ninaribena over at Canberra’s Got Style. She made my SJP top that I’ve nearly worn to death. Anyway aside from being ridiculously talented she is also a gem. Sensing that I was having a bad week she popped these gorgeous earrings in the post to cheer me up. Bless! They are from her Etsy store Tango and James. I’ve very awesomely styled these earrings with my OH&S school appropriate head scarf and clear lens glasses that I wore to make filigree today. I do apologise for not giving the earrings a better podium for their debut but the fact that they look pretty tops on this deranged librarian speaks volumes about their coolness. 

Thanks Ninaribena! Smaggle loves you!

Now I’m off to have a few gins with Co-Dependent Smaggle. I’m going to kill whatever brain cells I have left after eight straight hours of delicate silver wire work…

Love Lady Smaggle

xxx

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This post is long overdue. I had several readers (and a close friend who has now given birth to her pregnant belly) ask me last year for a post on how to dress while pregnant but, as I stated yesterday, my cranium was cruising my nether-regions and I never got around to it. So here it is!

Why don’t you…?

* Wear a long, shimmery, clingy dress to a formal occasion? Embrace the beauty of your baby bump? Wear nail polish and sparkly rings? Use bronzer to highlight your gorgeous glow?

* Invest in leotards? Navy? Forest? Evergreen? Wear them under a-line shirts, floaty tops and cardigans? Be fabulous and try a unitard? With a white summer dress? And a million floaty scarves?

* Dismiss hideous maternity pants and have your existing pants altered? See what magic a tailor can do?

* Try being a hippy? Long flowing skirts, wrap around dresses and empire waists? Fabric draping with the line of your new figure?

* Make an effort with your beauty routine? Be sure your eyebrows are always plucked? Wear flattering make-up? Style your hair?

* Do an Audrey Hepburn? Dress in knits? Stretchy capri pants? Black ballet flats?

Julia Roberts- dark, flattering base colour and a chunky necklace. The balloon sleeves balance the silhouette.

Milla Jovovich – Gorgeous grey with sultry red lips and a whole lot of bling.

Katie Holmes does jeans and a baby doll blouse. One does wonder how confortable those jeans are though…

Nicole Richie embraces a casual wife-beater and knit combo.

Gwen Stefani kicks pregnant butt in flat jewellery sandals, Indian prints and flattering lines. The Queen Mum.

What about you? Had babies? Any advice to share with my readers? What article of clothing could you not have lived without during your pregnancy?

Love Lady Smaggle

xxx

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Advanced Style

A wee little while ago I wrote an article on How to Dress Well in your 40’s. I got several requests from readers for such an article so I thought I would take a stab at giving my humble opinion. There is a section in my article that has caused a few readers a bit of grief. Let me set the record straight.

Yes – I wrote a section that was entitled ‘Less Colour = Classy’. I clarify that women can rock brights well into the later years of their lives but that it’s really hard to pull off. In the comments section I’m proved wrong by the gorgeous colour ambassadors Tricia from Bits and Bobbins and Wendy B. These ladies rock acid brights, leopard prints and primary colours and they look freakin fabulous! At the risk of offending either one of them, I’m fairly certain that they are both over the age of thirty and they are a perfect rebuttal to my offending statement. I ALWAYS think that people should dress however they please. Obviously. I wear turbans to work and evening gowns to the movies. I’m really not one to point the fashion finger at others. I’m terrified of colour so I rarely wear it. That’s why I wrote the section on colour. I think older women look classy and sophisticated when they tone down the colour. I think younger women look classy and sophisticated when they tone down the colour. That’s my opinion. Wendy B and Tricia are both designers and fashion bloggers. It takes practice and a keen eye to be able pull off their looks. I certainly couldn’t do it!  Colourful dressers are brave, adventurous and fabulous. I’m not one of them, so I can’t offer advice on how to wear colour. I only write what I know.

As a blog author I offer my opinions daily and I do it for free. I love a good argument and I will never delete comments from people that disagree with me. If you do disagree with something I say, I would love to have a pleasant and respectful debate with you – like WendyB and Tricia. Here are a few things I would like commenters to keep in mind…

* My age does not add or detract value from my arguments.

* I’m a person, not a corporation. When you say mean things, I read them and feel bad.

* My blog is not the Bible. Please take a chill pill before you read it.

* Don’t judge me on one post.

* If you don’t like my blog, don’t read it. It’s like hanging out with someone that you hate. It’s really weird.

I also find it strange that people are so obsessed with this article. I’ve written about WAY more controversial topics – Ethical Dilemmas in the Fashion Blogosphere, Fat Fashion and Positive Body Image and Fashion Etiquette – Is it okay to steal your style from other cultures? and for some reason people are getting all jiggy about whether or not grannies should wear colour. Bizarre.

Although having said that I’m very, very lucky that I so rarely get less-than-pleasant comments. I love all my readers so much and value the positivity and intelligence that you all bring to my blog so thank you.

Love Lady Smaggle

xxx

P.S Do any of my older readers have an opinion on this? E? What are your thoughts? Is what I wrote super offensive or is it just being perceived badly?

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Easton Pearson. We Aussies know to how rock a fashion week don’t we?

This collection conjures images in my head of an exceptionally tall woman wearing candy coloured wedge sandals and bright summer dresses. She keeps ducks in her garden and drinks coffee through a straw. She wears chunky clay necklaces that she made in her pottery class and she studies anthropoly. This woman is unmarried but she has a continuous string of long-haired lovers that call on her at unusual times of the day. She carries a parasol to keep the sun of her face and you can’t tell if she is 20 or 40 years old. Waking up every morning, she decorates her body with frills and lace, wraps ribbons everywhere they will fit and she always adds one more accessory before she leaves the house.

I’m beginning to wonder if anyone would mind if I wore a ballgown to work…?

I’m feeling the need to dress like a birthday present.

Love Lady Smaggle

Photos from Vogue Australia

xxx

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I do love a bit of Betsey. Her ready-to-wear Fall 2008 collection makes me love her even more. The look is slightly trashy and very vintage with unexpected lines and versatility through out the collection. I get so bored when designers pick a fabric and repeat the same dress 10 times with slightly different shapes. Yawn. Not the case with Ms Johnson. Each of her outfits has an individual personality, much like the characters out of Rent - waif like band groupies who do drugs and steal but you love them anyway because they are so fabulous and tortured. The kind of girl who carries a massive bag everywhere because she is homeless and all the clothes she wears are borrowed or stolen yet she still manages to look like she fell straight off the catwalk and into a bar. Her make up is flawless, her diet consists of champagne and cigarettes and she is stuck in an abusive relationship with a guy she is in love with. Oh and she has a hidden talent like singing or painting that she either lives to pursue or halucinates about while dying from an overdose. Her life is made all the more fascinating because the girl you love to hate is wearing red lipstick, a beret, platform shoes, blue nail polish and fishnet stockings…   

Here are a few covetable items to assist you in the pursuit of the ‘Bad girl with a heart of gold’ look…

* Blue nail polish – It makes you look a little like a corpse but lets face it, it’s the kind of the look we are aiming for here.

* Fish net, polka dot or lace stockings. They give the appearance of nakedness and they never cease to make an outfit look naughty.

* Fringing. Perfect for swirling on the dance floor or strutting down the street in your platforms.

* Crimped hair. Am I the only person who still thinks this is cool? If I had straight hair I would do this every day.

* An unexpected accessory. A beret, a man’s watch, a scarf tied around your waist. You want to make it look like you just stole it from somebody else. You know because you’re just so crazy like that…

* Platform shoes. None of this stiletto crap. You need the extra stability for your slow motion running scene.

* A piece of sentimental jewellery like a locket or a ring that you wear all the time and you get misty eyed and elusive whenever someone asks you about it.

I’m breaking out the blue polish this week…

Love Lady Smaggle

xxx

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