Instagram

I have always wondered what the big hype is (or was) over Instagram and now I've finally discovered it for myself. Yeah, it's quite amazing! I guess we're always a bit slow with keeping up with the trends these days but now I can see why people love Instagram so much - you can take a photo of pretty much anything, put a special effect on it, and wow, you've got a really neat picture! So, James got it on his iPhone today and I was playing around with it tonight. Here's a few random shots I took.

Boots With Heels

Heels haven't really played a part in my dressing in recent times, actually make that in the last two years, I haven't worn heels since I had an office job back in 2009. Ok well I lie, I can maybe think of two occasions off the top of my head where I have. I don't know why I don't wear heels, perhaps it's just cos flats are way more comfortable? I mean, I look at people on the streets trying to walk in heels and it's painful sometimes to watch. But in saying all this, I've been looking up a lot of style inspiration for Autumn since we're heading to Taipei very soon and will be doing a lot of traveling to cooler climates. I've decided that I really want to start building up a solid wardrobe around just a few basics but also a couple of good pairs of shoes that I can wear in the sort of Autumn and Spring temperatures. And I'm thinking heels! Perhaps a pair of ankle boots with a small heel to start with and we'll see how that goes. I can't live in my Converse shoes forever. Well I could, but change is nice too. I was scrolling through one of the style blogs that I follow mariannan.indiedays.com and I saw this pair of ankle boots which I think is just what I want!

Fresh

Source: TheOnes2Watch

I love these shots of Charo, they're so fresh! I especially like the minimal makeup and the messed up hair. I probably pay more attention to hair than anything else when it comes to looking at editorial spreads, in fact, I've been obsessed with hair ever since I was about 5 when I decided that I wanted to be a hairdresser when I grew up. Well that obviously didn't happen, instead I just cut my own hair as well as James' which is good enough for me! I still have no idea what I'm gonna do with my hair once it eventually grows long again but that's still some time away since it's taking forever to grow out. Maybe instead of thinning it and getting it straightened, I'll just let it out and embrace my big, thick and ugly hair! Urgh. Can I just get a whole head of hair transplant?

Your Personal Religion

Was listening to Sophie Hunger's "1983" album today, and then I was searching YouTube and came across this version of "Your Personal Religion". It's quite different to the original but it's pretty amazing - I absolutely love her voice, the musicians, the instrumental and there is so much intensity and energy towards the end. It must be fun to be in a band. Well these guys look like they're having fun!

Farah

I shot Farah for StyleSophomore just the other day and I love her style a lot! So many colours going on and it all works so well together. Farah was with a whole bunch of friends waiting at the traffic lights when I first saw her, so I followed them across the road and down the street until I found a background that worked in with the colours of her outfit. I'm always a little hesitant when approaching a large group of friends when I only want one of their photos. Not only do I feel weird just singling one person out amongst the rest, but from previous experiences, I learnt that friends usually always have some sort of influence on whether or not I get the shot. Quite often, the person I ask, turns to their friends as if to say "save me!" or the friends usually keep walking and are very uninterested and that kind of draws the person away with them. In saying that though, it's not really a problem and I was fine with approaching Farah and her friends and getting the shot. She was really cool with having her photo taken and I think her friends were equally as excited about the whole thing!

Outfit | Saturday Strollin'

Did some walking shots yesterday for something different. Well we didn't plan to, James just grabbed my camera, jumped ahead and started snapping away as I walked towards him. These were taken as we walked down Pearl's Hill (and back up a little as the light was behind me!) just outside our apartment block. I really like how they turned out and they ended up far better than the still shots we took which was surprising considering how hard it is to walk and shoot and focus at the same time. I guess the trick is to just take hundreds of shots and hope that you can get a few good ones out of that, which is just what we did! 

Yesterday, we headed down to The Pigeonhole Cafe in Duxton for coffee while we sat and did some drawing/illustration, then we spent some time in Haji Lane before it was time for James' appointment at Vagabond Ink. I'm wearing my favourite printed tank that I bought from the markets up in Petaling Jaya, skirt from Seoul, bag from Taipei and Converse shoes.

Off now to watch my favourite team ever, the New Zealand Warriors, kick some Manly ass in the NRL grand final. The game kicks off in about 1 hour and I'm super super excited. This is what I've been waiting the last 10 years for! 

Saturday Night Vagabonding

Just spent the evening down at Vagabond Ink, while James got some new ink and touch-ups done. Always good to see Val and Tala (their resident dog who is the cutest pup ever). Some shots I took of Val doing an amazing job as always, and Tala just being Tala. It was so hard to get these shots of her as she was pretty much chewing on her bone the whole three hours that we were there and wouldn't sit still for a second! If you ever fancy getting some ink, head down to Vagabond Ink at 35 Kreta Ayer Road. We've been back there four times now and wouldn't look anywhere else. A great team of artists who do an awesome job and Tala is also pretty cool to hang out with!