This, That and The Other

This month has been overwhelmingly hectic but there's always time to appreciate little things.

I have been particularly enamored with our cat Hamlet lately.

I think it is because in the winter time he piles on the pounds and grows a lovely winter coat that makes him oh so cuddly. He is also more affectionate in the colder months and basically stalks us for cuddles.

Like me he compulsively hunts sunshiney spots.

Unlike me, he gets to curl up in said sunshiney spots for hours at a time.

Sometimes I think we work simply so that we can provide a warm home and expensive daybeds just for Hamlet. This leads to me resenting him from time to time but I quickly get over it because he is  so undeniably lovely.

:)

My fave peice of jewelery these days is a knife pendant from Emgee which I have been matching up with a little bit of bling and this beautiful Marquisette leaf brooch.

Very pretty thinks me.

I haven't had any time for my art this month but hopefully I should soon be able to finish a charcoal I have started. It will be in the same mother and child theme as this one

I also have started a Venetian Streetscape painting which is crying out to be finished.

My friend let me use his photo from a recent Europe trip

Should be nice I hope.

There has also been time for cake :)

This is Chestnut and honey cake but came out a little dry so will have to tweak the recipe I think but it wasn't bad for an experiment

.

and finally some prettiness from on top of my wardrobe

Happy Sunday everybody! Love E xo

Birth Imminent!

Due Date - Tomorrow!

With my original due date being the 3rd, and then having it changed to the 10th, well I feel like I'm well overdue, although it's not the 10th yet. From what I hear, this is how just about every pregnant woman feels at the end.... the end... the beginning of a whole new adventure! When will my little man arrive???

 My sister made me lovely BLUE for a BOY cupcakes with cute animals on them for one of my baby showers (lucky me had 2 thrown!) I'm loving anything blue for a boy!

got to love the accuracy of the womb...a version of pin the "tail"(baby) on the "donkey"(pregnant bel)

cute gifts!

Wish I had more lovely photos of us together... Next time we are together I'll have a little son!

Just in at Vintage Aesthetic

Here are my latest listings on Etsy.

With a much more visually pleasing model than the usual one ;-)

My lovely hubby bought me this dress years ago and I adore it but it has always been too small for me. I would have to wear it with the top buttons undone and a singlet underneath and never felt comfortable.

So off to Etsy it goes. If I do happen to sell it though the money will go straight to buying myself some vintage loveliness that does fit!

It doesn't get more 80's cool than this! So much fun!

I love the cut of this dress. Again its a little too small for me, otherwise it'd be stayin!

And my absolute favorite....

...this stunning 1940's handmade dress. I'm so in love with it. This is what dresses should look like.

So feminine and elegant.

More posts soon ~E xo

Weekend at Parkinson ave

The weather is becoming very wintery indeed here in Adelaide which has made my daily walks increasingly difficult for all the obvious reasons but also because cold air gives me extremely painful earaches.

So that my thighs don't suffer the consequences of said earaches I invested in this pair

of vintage rabbit fur earmuffs from Etsy. The got their first test run yesterday and thankfully kept my ears ache-free as well as looking pretty cute!

The weekend also contained copious amounts of soy lattes accompanied by this almond and apple cake

I use this almond cake recipe a lot and vary the fruit I use according to the season.

The following recipe is for a very large cake using a 29cmx23cm baking dish but you can half the recipe and use a normal sized tin if you wish. It is so very moist and gets better as the days go by, tasting its best on 

day 4. It has never lasted more than 5 days in our house but I suspect it would keep for a week or so.

It is of-course, Gluten and dairy free :)

~Almond cake~

Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees for a fan forced oven. Line tin with baking paper.

Beat together 250g Macadamia or Rice bran oil with 350g caster sugar and seeds of 1 or 2 vanilla pods until creamy. Add 4 large eggs and beat in well.

Gently fold in 100g rice flour, 100g potato four (sifted), 2tsp guar gum, 2 tsp baking powder, 150g almond meal and 2 pinches of salt.

When combined fold in 8tbs of soy milk.

Now you can add fruit of choice. My favorite is Pear with honey and walnuts but other good combo's are Plum (grate lemon zest into cake for this one and fold through pistachio nuts) Pineapple and ginger, mixed peaches and nectarines are nice too... whatever tickles your fancy.

Cook in the oven for 50 minutes or until the center of the cake is quite firm. 20-25min for the smaller cake.

I also use this almond recipe to make lime syrup friands which are absolutely divine! 

My mother in law calls it angel food.

I also re-arranged my display as you enter my home to accommodate my latest painting.

I doubt I will keep it there for very long as I prefer a more feminine look for this space but its nice to have a change.

The tins were given to me from my Nana when I was a teenager and I still love them.

It helps that my favorite dog is the cocker spaniel.

We scored this awesome record player from friends that are moving

How cool is it?! We're yet to see if it works but it looks great either way.

Hope you give the cake a go and find a lovely space in your home to enjoy it in :)

~E xo

It's finished!!

I first had the idea for this painting when the young man in it was 12. So 6 years ago! I took the photo about a 18 months ago and started painting it almost a year ago. So to finally have this on canvas and finished after all that time....  the feeling is indescribable :)

Its taken about 20 minutes for the Adrenalin in my body to subside! Ha ha!

So here it is...

and a detail shot...

It's kind of a pair (kind of but not really) to this one I did called 'December'

Haven't got a name yet for the one of the young man so, any suggestions? 

Pleeeeease no one say 'skater boy'. 

If you like my work any would like to see more please visit my facebook page and press 'like' :)

or if you know anyone who wants a painting, drawing or portrait please send them to me!

(If you haven't caught on from my shameless marketing, I really want this to be my full time job!)

Happy day to you all ~ Love E xo

All the beautiful ladies

Here are some photo's of my favorite beauties of today.

It is no secret that I have a major girl crush on Zooey Deschanel.

And here's why..

Need I say more?

Rachel McAdams.

Each time I see her in a movie I just gaze. She's superb...

It's rather sickening how many hairdo's she can pull off!

Another actress that has my attention is Carey Mulligan.

Have you ever seen anyone look so fabulous whilst riding a bike?

If you haven't seen An Education yet you should do so. The wardrobe's are amazing!

We watched it at the Moonlight Cinema's while drinking Chai latte's from our Thermos :)

Song of the day ~ Stay with me baby, by Duffy

~E xo

The good ol' days...

What does this all mean? It's so frustrating having a massive belly! Don't get me wrong, I love this little baby bump, however it would be nice to post something fun, say vintage dresses from my mum! Outfits, or things as such. Not long now.

On another note - what should I do with my hair? If I can't wear my lovely vintage outfits, I can do something with my hair can't I? Suggestions? It is currently blonde (with re-growth!) a bit choppy and around shoulders, with fringe growing out to the side. BORING.
Ideas?