DANCE MAGIC DANCE

So like I said last post, it isn't that I am no longer buying anything. I am just trying to be a lot more thoughtful with my purchases. These shorts are a pretty good example of that more thoughtful process. At this beginning of this year I went to down to Melbourne for my gorgeous sisters wedding. When it comes to weddings I love to wear something sparkly, if these is a chance to dress up I love to be really dressed up and for me that means sequins. I still don't fit a lot of things in my wardrobe so I decided to buy something new.

Every part of me wanted to buy an amazing sequin dress but I had to be honest with myself and accept that lately I just haven't had many occurrences where a sequin dress was required. So I decided to treat myself to this amazing Gorman skort and wear an  , iridescent top that I already owned. I already have got so much wear out of the skort, it's really great for dressing up or dressing down and because of the design of the pattern if you end up with inevitable mum stain it just looks like part of the pattern! perfect!

On the subject of practical mum stuff, I thought I would put together a bit of a list of things I found super useful for my child for the first year and beyond and maybe some things I thought I would need that I didn't end up using. If you are only here to see what I am wearing I'll put this content a bit lower.

Gorman Collage Skort - Gorman 

Plain white tank - topshop

Fruit necklace - Flea Market in LA - I love this because it reminds me of those lollies called runts :) 

Vans Classic slip on platforms - Violent green (no longer a store)

Ok you have been warned, baby content to follow. I remember when I was pregnant I would ask people what is the one thing you found super useful for your baby and a lot of people struggled to answer that question.  Now I realise it is most likely because they were so overtired they struggled to remember their own name let alone answer my question. I am going to share what I found useful, Ill break it across a couple of posts because sitting down to write lists is a bit tricky with a toddler haha :) starting with nappy and changing and feeding:

NAPPY & CHANGING

Change Table: Ok so this was something that a lot of people had said to me was a waste of money and we didn't end up buying one. Instead what we did what purchase a change mat from Ikea and pop it on top of a chest of drawers. We use it for every change, It is in our bedroom so perfect for the nighttime change. My back would not have copped with changing him on the floor. And of course the most important advice for changing at a height, always one hand on bub, so set everything up so that you can reach it without removing that hand.

Nappy Bin: This was another thing I was told was a waste of money. Because our change table set up is in our bedroom it is an essential. When that bin is shut there ain't no baby stank getting out! There are a few options when it comes to baby bins and the one I chose I chose for two reasons, firstly, I will be honest, aesthetic. And second, you can use standard garbage bags. So the actually bin itself is a bit more pricey but you don't have to keep buying specific bin liners that end up adding to be a fortune. 

Ubbi Nappy Bin

Nappies: We buy Huggies Ultimate, we have tried others and they just haven't been as good. My son has very sensitive skin and after reactions with other ones we decided stick with this brand

Wipes:  Joonya Wipes!!! Love this brand! When you are are the primary caregiver you have an enormous mental load. You have a million trillion things to remember and all of them are important. So if you can tick something of your list that you no longer have to think about, do it. These are automatically delivered and if you run out early you click a button and they get sent out early. I don't think I have ever had to wait more than three days for them to arrive. Again my son has sensitive skin  (eczema) and we have had not one single problem with these. Can't rave enough about how much I love these wipes

if you want $10 off your order use this code JR27WNAI

EATING

Milo is breast feed, 15 months and going strong. When he was really little we had to do top up feeds with expressed breast milk and those were done with a little cup. I was nervous about nipple confusion so we never introduced a bottle and that has worked for us. So anything we had that was bottles didn't end up being useful. I think the best advice is to not open everything up until you actually need it, that way you can always return it or resell it. 

I demand fed and still do and that worked for my family. My child feeds for food, for comfort, to fall asleep and it isn't restricted. I don't believe in "bad habits" when it comes to breastfeeding. Everyone has their own path and that is my approach. When feeding I would say start with say left breast and then if bub fell sleep I would do a nappy change and offer right breast for "dessert", next feed I would start again on the right side. This helps with effectively draining the breast and avoiding mastitis. If you do feel anything like that starting to come on the "dangle feed" is amazing.  

Rocking chair: I bought a gorgeous Ikea rocking chair and I used it a grand total of maybe 1 time to feed. I fed in bed mostly and getting a  hang of laying down breastfeeding was a real game changer. 

Nipple Shields: These were a life saver in the early days, I think I ended up using them for the first 12 weeks. I will say though I think it meant I ended up having to spend more time breastfeeding I am guessing because it slowed the flow of milk. But I would have taken slow milk over sore cracked nipples any day haha. The ones I used were the medela brand and I found them really good. 

Breast Pump: I used a tommee timpee breast pump which did the job but I think if you were going to be doing a lot of pumping you might want to look at investing in a really good one. I've heard the most positive reviews about the Medela swing. 

Feedbaby: In the early days I found this to be a really helpful app, especially for remember which side I had fed off of last. I remember thinking how will I ever be able to remember which side I fed off last and then you get to a point where a simple squeeze of the boob tells you.

Breast feeding info: Breastfeeding can be tough, it can be exhausting and there seems to be an overwhelming amount of information flying at you.  I would highly recommend the Australian Breast Feeding Association for answers to your questions or for support you can find their website here https://www.breastfeeding.asn.au/ or call them in 1800686268.

Highchair: There are a lot of amazing looking highchairs out there, especially the vintage ones. BUT remember the a cute highchair is a pain in the ass when it comes to cleaning.  The Ikea ANTILOP doesn't have little  gaps for food to get caught and you can hose it off or chuck it in the shower - excellent price point as well.

Food pouches: These are great for bub to hold themselves with yogurt and better for the planet than the pre packaged ones. I couldn't resist these ones with the little cute animals

I can't say that I have found any plates or bowls that have been stand out, although I do prefer things made from bamboo for their supposed antibacterial quality,

SOLIDS: We did a combination of baby led weaning and home made puree.  I love these little pods for pre making purees  to freeze and now I use them for making up a batch of lentils or spag bol to freeze, you can also use them for making muffins in the oven. I now own three of them, I also love the bowls that you can use to heat up the little serves, or good for heating up some peas or whatever.  The brand is Weanmeister and I purchased it from here https://www.eatteethsleep.com.au/

I also found this chart super helpful to know the difference between choking and gagging

Both my partner and I did a baby first aid course which I couldn't recommend enough just to make you feel more confident. We did the course through a place called my baby basics.

Next post I'll do sleeping, clothing and some other bits and pieces. Let me know if you want to know anything else I found handy xxx

Behind the scenes haha 

A JOY IN ALL I CAN SEE

You will probably notice as we moved forward through the year that some/a lot of the things in my outfits have made an appearance before. You'll also notice a bit more of a repetitive back drop. The repetitive backdrop is because my outfit pictures are taken quickly whilst my baby sleeps, but don't worry kids are great with technology these days and I’ll have my son trained in taking photos and scouting out good walls by the time he is two I am sure (I jokkkee haha).

 Like nearly every person on the planet recently,  I have watched the Marie Kondo series on Netflix, Tidying up. I think it’s important to add that I haven’t read the books, so my understanding of her methods are move of a gist of it. I am going to be honest with you and say I actually enjoyed watching Consumed more. Anyway, somewhere between watching those two shows I started to look at my wardrobe more and started to think about what was sparking joy for me and what wasn’t. I did not take all my clothes and put them in one massive pile in a room. Even typing that makes me feel sick, there is no way I would be able to actually do that, it would end in one way, me unable to fit in the room having a panic attack.

What I ended up with was firstly, that I have to much in my wardrobe. When I look at it I don't feel joy, I feel stressed and overwhelmed. The most enlightening realisation I had was how much of a sentimental attachment I have to my clothes. I keep everything, like literally everything and that is why my wardrobe(s) are bursting at the seams. One of the reasons for this is I have a fear of getting rid of something and regretting it, as weird as it sounds I still regularly think about clothing I have lost, rip blondie jacket and Alexander Mcqueen singlet that got left on the bus. I also look at an item of clothing and remember doing a thing wearing it or spending time with a person and I hold that memory in that item of clothing.  I don't know why realising I felt that way made me feel able to start getting rid of things. I looked at clothing and thought about whether I truly loved it or loved the memory associated with it, because if it is just the memory I still have that without the item of clothing. I made an instagram which you can check out here if you are interested in any of my second hand wares:

https://www.instagram.com/hbhbcloset/?hl=en

It's a slow process but it has been really quite refreshing and I must say it makes me super chuffed when someone else gets excited to find a treasure amongst my wardrobe to add to their own.

One of the things that I think is really disappointing about the hype of Marie Kondo, and I have said the hype because I think that this is people misconstruing the message, is people chucking away lots of stuff.  Bags of clothes being dumped at second hand stores till they have to refuse to take anymore and worse still things being thrown directly into landfill.

It has made me think a bit more about fast fashion, "inexpensive clothing produced rapidly by mass-market retailers in response to the latest trends.". I think people are very quick to blame the fashion industry and perhaps should be taking a little more accountability as consumers.  Go out and buy some fabric, sit down at a sewing machine and make a t.shirt and then try to work out how that could possibly be selling for $5.  It doesn't add up and it doesn't make a lot of sense and this is where fast fashion is now at, out of control and unethical. I am not going to explore the ethical side of this here because I think it is a big topic and one that I don't feel I am educated enough on to provide a comprehensive enough opinion on - not to say I don't have an opinion on it.  I don't know if this is where fast fashion started but this is where my knowledge of it began. Topshop. I am pretty sure there was a situation where Topshop brought out a copy of Balenciaga jacket and hand it in store before Balenciaga. Back then that seemed mind blown but as technology has progresses this has become the norm and Topshop has become an expensive fast fashion brand in the grand scheme.

Copying designers is not a new thing, this has been done in the fashion industry for as long as it has existed. Pre internet in its current state, buyers would head off overseas on buyers trip looking for things to buy, sketch, take photos of to bring home as inspiration. So obviously this was a much slower process than is today, there was actually seasons of fashion rather than what it is now, almost weekly new trends. Things tended to be more inspired by rather than direct copies. Fast forward to now everything is online, we can see designer shows virtually as they are happening. Mere moments after a fashion show has taken place we can view ever little detail of every garment and every accessory. Which means production of fast fashion copies can start instantly.

I think a lot if people have got this mind set where they think things should be sold for the exact make cost, but this make cost they are imagining is maybeeeee the cost of the fabric? Surely that is the only way you can rationalise a $5 t.shirt. I find it strange that a lot of people seem to feel like they don't need to pay for the design element. That innovation and creativity is seen as something with no value. I think that sometimes when we buy fast fashion that is such an obvious copy that is the clear message we are sending.

So where am I going with this. Am I committing to 100 percent never buying fast fashion? No I am not quite there yet but rather that I want to start being more thoughtful in my purchases. I have actually set my self a limit of how many non-essential items I am allowed to buy this year. It's kind of a fun challenge. I'll want to get something and rather than just heading to the shops I will try and scout it out second hand. It almost makes it feel more like a treasure when you do find it and sometimes you have to wait because no one is selling it at that moment so it challenges whether or not you actually really want something. When it comes to fashion purchases, if you are dressing in a way that is your style rather than a trend you will find your pieces are going to last because they don't "go out of fashion". Now is the time to be buying second hand because everyone is getting rid of all their things that no longer spark joy and there is copious amounts of second hand joy to be found.

Sorry If I have rambled and not really got to a point, I haven't slept well in well over a year haha. Let me know if there is anything you want to see me write about xxx

Pastel Check Blouse - Lena Loved Vintage

Baby Don't Cry back pack - Harajuku

Egg Circle Skirt - Lazy Oaf

Mint Croc Stan Smiths - Adidas (purchased in New York)

Ice Cream Socks - Modcloth

WHEN I WAS YOUNGER AND NOT SO WISE

Oh hey remember me !
I was down in Melbourne recently to watch my beautiful little sister get married. I caught up with my darling friend Mel while I was down there and being the incredibly generous friend she is she gave me this dress and a few other gorgeous vintage pieces from her label Lena Loves Vintage. You can check out Lena Loves Vintage on instagram  or drop her a dm to find out when she is going to be at a market near you. I felt like this dress was the perfect outfit because it exudes mum vibes, more like a late 80's, early 90's mum vibes as appose to a current one. I could almost picture my own mum wearing this when I was younger, although I'd say it wouldn't be in this shade. 

And I'll dive straight into new years resolutions, one of mine this year is to commit to outfit blogging once a month.   I think one of the crucial things with new years resolutions is you need to set realistic goals. Once a month is a pretty realistic goal for me at the moment. I got to the end of last year and realised I didn't have a lot of photos of myself which I think that is a pretty common theme for mums. You always end up behind the camera or you just feel ratty looking and not camera worthy.

I have a bad habit of not keeping up with blogging because - a) life gets busy and b) I overthink it.  I think sometimes when you are blogging you can start to feel like a person standing in a room talking to yourself because you don't really get much feedback about whether people give a shit. I was at a family do recently and one of my gorgeous cousins commented on how much she had enjoyed my blog growing up and then really made me chuffed and I guess the lit the fire underneath me again.

So moving forward I am going to try to avoid over thinking it. My posts are probably going to look different from how they use to as the photos (like these) will most likely be a rush job in between putting Milo to sleep, boobing him, playing with stacking cups etc.

Ok well here's to keeping new years resolutions and I will see you next month. Please feel free to let me know by commenting below if there is anything you want to see/me to write about xx

How cute is the back detail on this dress!!

Lazy Oaf Quilted Metallic Heart Bag - ASOS

Gold mermaid shell belt - this is vintage and I think I thrifted it somewhere in Melbourne 100 years ago 

Black and white gingham frill socks - Cotton on body 

Lazy Oaf x Vans - Ok so you wont be able to get these anymore they sold out super quick. Your only hope of getting these is to start trawling for someone getting rid of a second hand pair. These would have to be up there as one of my most favourite pairs of shoes of all time. You can probably tell by how worn they are. 

And of course a mum bun xx