Heading South

It's Matt's exhibition opening tomorrow and I can confidently say, I think we're both pretty darn excited.

Come 3pm we'll clink glasses to celebrate this new solo show.

Perhaps you can come join us? Daytrippers? Yes please! 

Thanks for your kind words. When the chips are down, you sometimes wish the seagulls would descend, whisk you away, and float you up to the clouds to dangle your feet from up there. So your words gave me comfort.

Anyway - back to art. Join us!

When Life Hands You Lemons

I'm not even going to pretend.

The last few weeks have been an emotional rollercoaster. And I really want to get off it, pronto.

My Mum is sick. And I'm worried.
Work is stressful. And I'm not coping.
I miss spending time with my smalls.
Some a$$hole broke my rearvision mirror - and 5 others in our street
The kids fetes are on - stress. Baking. Donating. It's never ending.
And Matt's show opens this weekend.
Right this minute, I've drunk half a bottle of wine (yep, way to control stress) and I'm dancing to this.

How are you holding up? For realz, I want to know.
And so what I was going to say is: when life hands you lemons, make a peach and raspberry tart to sell at the preschool fete. Ok? (Trust me, it's easy)

Inside Auckland's Coucou Boutique

Coucou is a new boutique located next to the lovely MADE in Aucklands Britomart Precinct. Coucou is an eclectic mix of beautiful vintage pieces and pretty things from all around the world. Brought to you by the same people behind MADE who’ve travelled far and wide to hand pick the best vintage and one off pieces they can find. 

  Alongside the vintage are some new pieces from European labels such as Asos, Topshop and Zara all in all creating a colourful collection of treats with something to suit everyone and price points mostly under $100.00! Can't beat that!

I Can't Wait.

I can't wait to see this film. I read the book when I was an SAHM and I really hated it. Like, really, really hated it. But still read it. But now I am a work-away-from-home-mum, I can see what that book was banging on about.

And I really, really love SJP. Have you ever heard her interviewed? Most polite, lovely, charming, witty, intelligent, stylish woman. I LOVE SJP.

Can not wait to see this film.

Taylor-ed to perfection - The Freya 'Taylor' bra reviewed!

  As you some of you may remember from one of my first ever blog posts, the Freya 'Deco' is a bra that I hold very close to heart. Not only was it the first bra that I ever bought after being refitted as my 'true' size, but it is also a bra that I have continued to purchase again and again in different shades and prints (you can see my earlier review of the 'Deco' here). 

  The 'Deco' comes in back sizes 28-38 and in cup sizes B-GG and has proved a real best-seller right from its launch. The 'Deco' is a bra that gives great cleavage, whilst being soft and comfortable enough to wear on an everyday basis. It is no wonder that as soon as I glimpsed a preview of the Freya 'Taylor' back in April of this year, I knew that I had to own it! 

  Thanks to Freya Lingerie, I was given the opportunity to review the eagerly awaited 'Taylor' Deco, after being fitted by a Freya expert. I went to my local Freya stockist and the lovely Unnis fit me into a 28FF. I had previously been wearing a 28F in the Deco and felt that I needed to size up in the cups, so I was very excited for my 28FF Freya 'Taylor' to arrive in the post!

  As you can see from the photo, the 'Taylor' builds on Freya's classic black Deco moulded bra, but has been updated with diagonal stripes, lace and velvet detailing and bronze and copper notes. The 'Taylor' is spot on-trend with its semi-sheer black mesh overlay, which gives flashes of the nude moulded cup beneath. The nude colour coming through the mesh really ramps up the bra's sex appeal, without actually revealing anything! 

  The diagonal stripes on the cups give the bra a more 'structured' look, drawing the eye towards the cleavage - meaning that all eyes are on you! The 'Taylor' is also complimented by a strip of bronze velvet ribbon that runs along the cups, adding a luxurious feel to the bra. The straps and centre of the bra boast copper and black satin and lace bows and the top of the cups feature black lace - subtle detailing which lends to the bra's glamorous finish. 

  To compliment the 'Taylor' bra, a matching thong (£12.50), high waisted brief (£16) or short (£12.50) is available. I went for the shorts, as it is a style of underwear that I find very comfortable to wear, as well as being sexy. Like the bra, the 'Taylor' shorts are predominantly black, with two diagonal strips of bronze velvet, black lace trims and a pretty copper and black bow at the centre. I love the panels of striped mesh at the hips, which show off a bit of 'peek-a-boo' skin underneath! (See detail below)

  In terms of fit, the 'Taylor' set was a great success. The bra band sits nice and snug in a 28 and the cups fit perfectly in a FF. The lightly padded cups give a beautifully rounded and uplifted shape and the plunge style gives a cleavage that is truly knock-out! I am also thrilled that the 'Taylor' has such exquisite detailing, whilst remaining seamless. The shorts are also very comfortable to wear and give very good coverage on the bottom. The 'Taylor' shorts are, on the whole, fairly seamless, showing through faintly under only the tightest of my bodycon dresses.

  It is not often that you come across a lingerie set that both oozes elegance and is also practical and comfortable enough to be worn everyday, but the 'Taylor' certainly delivers! What's more, at £33 for the plunge bra and £12.50 for the shorts, it is a bra set that is affordable, well-fitting and very good quality. With its unrivalled support and shape, I think that I have truly found my match in the 'Taylor'. It is definitely my favourite bra set of the moment and something that I would highly recommend to any larger busted lady...

Top marks, Freya!

Love, 

Kitty xo

*The Freya 'Taylor' also comes in a strapless multiway style - A review of the Freya 'Deco' Strapless will be coming soon!

Behind the scenes of a beauty shoot by 9-year-old Tyla Novak

We were shooting beauty for Black #15 this week with photographer Greg Novak when his 9-year-old daughter Tyla, a budding photographer herself, took these great pictures. M.A.C's Amber D came up with a fun, pop concept, Jason Chong-Li of Stephen Marr whizzed up the hair and Rachael Churchward styled the models Kendall and Ella, both at Clyne. There is something unique about the angles and aspect of these images, nice work Tyla!

Shen: Mary-Ellen's perfect circle

Life for Mary-Ellen Prendergast has been something of a circuitous route which is, perhaps, exactly why she has called her new label Shen. A graduate of Wellington Polytech's fashion school, she cut her teeth with legendaryAuckland designer Patrick Steele before spending two years working at Savage London and Top Shop stockist Poetic Gem in the UK. Upon returning to Auckland Mary-Ellen spent a decade at High Society as designer for the label Obi where she learnt enough to feel confident about starting her own label.

In ancient Egyptian, Shen means encircle and in hieroglyphics a shen ring represented eternal protection whilst in modern Chinese Mandarin, its meanings include awareness and consciousness. Looking at her first Shen collection "Forever Lasting" it is clear that Prendergast was both 'aware' and 'conscious' when she went about designing the collection as it is an accomplished first effort influenced  by her adventures and love of all things Asian. More poignantly, her successful battle with life-threatening breast cancer less than a decade ago ensures she knows better than most the meaning of 'eternal protection'. "Without such a life-changing experience I may not have had the drive to start my own label," she says. "I'd like Shen to embody the personal values I bring to my design and reflect the qualities and aspirations of the women who buy Shen." With this first collection, she has achieved that. Photos: Stephen Tilley, styling Ana McDonald.