Bloggles

15.11.09 – Fashion Weekend

As promised, here is some coverage on the Fashion Weekend that Nghi and I attended on Sunday. It was nice to have something to look forward to, especially after my exam on Friday. We weren’t quite sure what to expect but we caught on pretty quickly. The hall was lined with stalls offering discounted clothes and accessories which would have been great if were in the mood to shop and spend some money but we were just happy to browse. Some stalls (like the Mink Pink one) got a bit crazy – jam packed with women attacking clothes racks from both sides. I’m a very lazy girl and while I love a good bargain, I’m just not prepared to trawl through copious amounts of stuff and to fight off  other fashion-crazed ladies to find them.

But don’t worry, it wasn’t all bad. There were cat walk shows, a wine bar, a ghd style bar and an Essie nail bar where you could get an express mani and bottle of polish for $20. I didn’t leave completely empty-handed because I made sure to swing by the Glitter Gal stall to take them up on that wonderful offer of a free holo polish upon mentioning Nixxy’s Nails. The ladies were all very lovely! I certainly went away with more than I expected (and was saying this to Nghi on our way out) when Kerry offered to have one of the girls paint my toes. I certainly felt pampered! Not only that, but I left with a set of newly shaped ‘brows for $20. Glitter Gal were introducing the technique of eyebrow threading that I have to admit, had never heard of before. (What? You haven’t either? Don’t worry, I’ve included a video on it in this post for you ). I’m not your typical girly-girl and don’t usually take an interest in make-up or beauty treatments (as strange as this sounds because I am so enthusiastic about nail polish!) but I threw caution to the wind and thought “why the hell not?”. It certainly was interesting and I wish I had been a better demonstration of it because my eyes watered as the hairs on my brow were jerked out. I’m such a pansy and probably scared some people away! In any case, it was lovely to meet one of the people behind the nail polish that so many of us adore so much. Kerry was a wonderful lady who was happy to tell me all about her products.

On with ze pictures!

Glitter Gal cosmetics. Oops! I think I caused a bit of a stir when I took this picture But all was well after I promptly went up there to introduce myself and explain that I was just documenting my time at Fashion Weekend for my blog. Kerry explained how competitive the beauty industry can be and told me about a time a rival company sent one of their people over to check out her ideas and products.

Glitter Gal’s range of polishes that you can find at Perfume Connection or online

They also design and manufacture a whole range of Australian make up products including lipgloss, eye shadows and mascara

I’m not the best model for it, but here is Glitter Gal’s red holographic polish on my toe.

Mmm, so much shimmahh!

The free bottle of blue holographic polish that I scored!

Newly shaped eyebrows. Excuse the pimples, I’m in the middle of a terrible break out at the moment. Ick.

And finally, a short Youtube video on eyebrow threading

This is Blushingham Palace. A dusty pink shimmer that almost comes off as frosty. There’s a flash of gold in the bottle which unfortunately isn’t visible in any of my pics (sorry! not my best, I know) but that doesn’t matter too much because it doesn’t really translate onto your nails… Ok, maybe it does,  but only very slightly! I don’t know what it is with me lately, but unless the colour is bright and in your face, it will have me snoring whenever I look down at  it, zzzzzzz (not even alternating caps zzz’s!). It came across as a ‘nanna’ shade to me, something senior citizens would wear and I’m surprised it lasted as long as it did on my nails before I scratched it off to replace it with some real colour. Maybe I’m being a little harsh. It’s probably just the mood I’m in at the moment. It is pretty much summer here in Australia, after all!

So I logged into Flickr the other day to find that another user had added this picture as one of their favourites:

My first thought was why anyone would take interest in such a photo. It wasn’t particularly well-shot or artistic. The subject matter isn’t even that interesting! I only took it to document the arrival of this parcel and noted that it was interestingly packaged, resembling a Toberlone chocolate bar. Maybe that was it and they were just as amused as I was about its shape.

My question was answered though, when I followed the link to this other person’s photostream. It’s filled with photos of customs declaration stickers. How peculiar! I didn’t think they were all that interesting or collectible but I guess there are people out there with collections of postage stamps and nail polish I love how the internet brings out the (non-creepy) weird in people. I guess it’s easier to share your interest in seemingly ’strange’ things from behind a computer. It’s great, though, because alot of the time you end up finding that it may not be so weird after all! My mum is still getting her head around all the “crazy” people who blog about nail polish

03.11.09 – We got Fajitas this time!

So, as determined after our first visit to Flying Fajita Sistas, a second round was made to try the signature dish. I know we said we would go back on a non-Tuesday so that we wouldn’t succumb to pigging out on just the $3 tacos but they’re just too good and we couldn’t pass up another opportunity to eat them. So we made a compromise and agreed to order the Sistas Double Fajitas to share between the four of us and our own tacos on the side to supplement.

Upon letting the staff know which booking we were under, we were informed that we were lucky enough to get one of the “lovely balcony” tables upstairs. We were excited until we realised what this actually meant – an outdoor seating. I’m sure it would have been lovely… if it wasn’t ridiculously hot that day! It was 6pm and the temperature was probably still up around 30 degrees Celsius. Oh, how we longed to be downstairs with easy access to the wall of pain!…  Or just indoors in the air conditioning. Oh well! On with the photos of the meal we sweated our way through.

STEP 1 – Start with a soft, fresh tortilla

STEP 2 – Add ze meat!

Sirloin marinated in chipotle and achiote, chargrilled and cut into tender strips
Grilled King Prawns in a mild Guajillo and Ancho Chilli rub

STEP 3 – Go crazy with the other fillings

Clockwise from top left; Pineapple, jalapenos, Salad, cheese, guacamole, crema, salsa
L-R on the bottom:  Mexican Rice and frijoles

And now we can say we’ve actually had the fajitas at Flying Fajita Sistas. I liked the prawns, they were good but I probably wouldn’t order the sirloin again because I could just go a shredded beef (Ropa vieja) taco instead, mmm. My parents always tease me and call me a grandma with no teeth More often than not, you will find that I enjoy food that requires less chewing (like soup and risotto). I’m pretty fussy and only like steak if it is cooked at a proper medium-rare and ribs within the first 5 minutes they’re served (it’s the window before they cool down and go tough!).

Before I go ahead with the pictures of this colour, I just want to thank Nixxy over at NIXXY’S NAILS for the wonderful competition she held not too long ago. I was the lucky winner of the two tickets to Sydney’s Fashion Weekend. THAT’S RIGHT! I WON! YIPPEEE! I’m having a pretty good week so far because I also managed to score $36.90 on Shocking in the Melbourne Cup! *dances*

Anyway, I’m looking forward to hitting this up with Nghi and hear that Glitter Gal is giving away a bottle of blue or green polish to the first 50 people who visit their stall and mention Nixxy’s Nails. I hope there are some left by the time I get there! I’ll be taking some photos and posting them up afterwards for anyone who couldn’t make it this year!

On with the colour!

OPI – Shootout at the OK Coral – Direct sunlight

OPI – Shootout at the OK Coral – Flash

This, my friends, is Shootout at the OK Coral. A bright ‘in your face’ pinky-coral with a crazy flash of  hmm… fuschia. It’s amazing! I couldn’t stop staring at my nails the whole time I had it on. I must admit, I didn’t think I would be wearing it much, if at all, when I first got it but boy am I glad I ended up with it. It’s my ideal colour for summer and matches the flowers on my maxi dress perfectly! If only the sun would come back out again