The Promise Ring

Have you noticed recently that a few hot young celebrities are strutting their stuff around Hollywood sporting diamond promise rings? Promise ring: A ring given to a romantic partner (typically given to the girl) to indicate their commitment to the relationship. It generally signifies that the couple know they want to be married, but because of age or circumstances, it's not possible at the given time. Think Nicole Richie and Ashlee Simpson:

Nicole Richie's promise ring from Joel Madden.

Ashlee Simpson's promise ring from Pete Wentz.

I recently jumped on the bandwagon when I received a diamond promise ring from my boyfriend, as a birthday gift. It's beautiful. Elegant, understated and petite. I love it so much, I just had to show it off on this blog, plus it's a celebrity trend!

Birthday Inspiration

I promised to post some pictures from my birthday celebration. It took me weeks to plan my outfit, but all I knew was that I wanted to wear white - it's my favourite colour on me. After spending over $200 on two dresses on Ebay, one a vintage white lace mini and the other a white Marc Jacobs tulip style dress; I decided to wear an outfit consisting of items that were already in my closet, plus a belt I borrowed from my cousin. I took inspiration from a recent photo of my style icon, Nicole Richie:

Nicole Richie at Stella McCartney's screening of "The Party." Credit: nicolerichie.org

Unfortunately I have no full length shots of my outfit, but here I am wearing a white strapless mini dress, a black croc skin belt, black patent flats and a black leather jacket. Next to me, is my best friend, Emma.

With my boyfriend, Shane.

With my other best friend, Steve - the male equivalent of myself!

The Birthday Girl!

Last week I celebrated my 20th birthday. I just love birthdays. I love the presents, the cakes, being surrounded by people I love, being the centre of attention for a whole day... need I say more? I think it's fair to say that despite a few hiccups with a dinner I organised for myself with friends, this birthday was by far the greatest I've ever had (even though I was terrified of turning 20)!

My presents were out of this world. Some of my faves include:

• A diamond eternity band my boyfriend, Shane gave to me
• A Prada Jacquard Doctor bag, from my grandparents
• A heart shaped diamond ring, from Mum
• The P.S I Love You DVD, from my best friend, Emma (my fave movie right now)
• Pink and brown leopard print pyjamas
• Black pointed toe flat knee high boots (something I've been searching for for 2 years now)
  

I'll post some more photos tomorrow
xx

The Worst Blogger

I know, I am the worst blogger! I created my profile in January, waited til February to make my first post, followed by my second post in March, now here I am again, two months later. The truth is, uni makes me so crazy, I forget about everything else! However, my uni semester is FINALLY over, and I am anxiously studying for my exams, BUT I have decided to commit to this blog, once and for all. So, stay tuned for more installations very very soon!

My Hair Lifesaver

I am officially an old maid (yes, at the mere age of 19!). I sit here, at my laptop, typing away, wrapped in my dressing gown, donning a pair of fluffy slipper, my hair bundled up in a pink shower cap, drinking a nice hot cup of tea. Why? I am treating myself to a fabulous hair treatment (hence the shower cap to lock in the heat). After a fun-filled day at the beach yesterday, I came home to a total hair disaster. My hair was knotty and just down right feral - the beach always does this to me. Not to mention the months of sun and wind damage, chlorine damage and of course, what we're all guilty of, the biggest sin of all - heat styling! So in times of need, I turn to my trusted friend, John Frieda. Designed for natual and bottled blondes (me? never), John Frieda's Beach Blonde Kelp Help Deep Conditioning Masque seeps deep into over-baked, under-nourished hair, renewing strength and vitality, while keeping hair looking its best. After leaving this on for 10 minutes, my hair feels softer and silkier than ever before. And even better, it has that amazing sea smell so you feel as though you've spent the day by the beach! Must be off now - have to rinse my hair! Buy it... you'll never look back!

A Little Love

Happy Valentine's Day! I wanted to start off my very first post with something I'm very passionate about - LOVE - and what better day than Valentine's Day? While we generally think of Valentine's Day as a day loved-up couples celebrate their love in over-the-top gestures involving candle light, roses, boxes of chocolate, teddy bears, lingerie, jewels and other romantic gestures; we often forget the true meaning behind the most romantic day of the year. So here's a quick history lesson for you. Back in AD269, the Roman Emperor Claudius banned weddings, as he was actively trying to recruit men to join his army, but they instead refused to go to war, preferring to stay at home with their wives and families. His logic was that if they were unable to be married, they'd sign up for his army. He faced much opposition to this law, particularly from the martyr St Valentine, a true crusader for love, who started secretly marrying couples. Once this came to Claudius' attention, St Valentine was condemnded to be beaten to death. As the legend goes, he left a farewell note to the jailer's daughter, signed simply "From Your Valentine." To honour the romantic priest's memory, in AD496, Pope Gelasius set aside this very date for romance.
Bet you didn't know that!