Beautiful South Africa

Let me start off by saying that I have a 'mild' (some might say serious) case of wanderlust and a inability to settle in one place. Since leaving school, I have bounced around the world unable to find 'home' in one place. 

In  December 2011, I came back to South Africa and took up a job in Cape Town. I thought I'd be here a year or two and back onto the next country in no time. Now I'm entering my fourth year at my work and thinking about the prospect of buying a flat in Cape Town. Cape Town is ticking every box at the moment for me and the one thing that I'm always grateful for is the stunning scenery that I am surrounded by. I may still move away someday (never say never) but right now I'm thrilled to call Cape Town my home :)

All the pictures below are mine unless stated.

 

Breathtaking views at Saturday Farmer's markets

Colorful homes filled with history

Fresh fish at seaside restaurants 

Historical buildings with lions that overlook the city

Hikes that give you a view that makes you grateful to live in South Africa

Quaint seaside villages

And finally...sunsets that look like watercolor paintings

Hello All

It's been a long absence due to work and lack of personal time but...

https://unknownpoetry.wordpress.com/2014/02/27/im-back/

and I'm excited to share beautiful things with you again.

I find this blog a way to share things that I enjoy talking about with my friends (but maybe don't always have time for). I hope you all enjoy the posts that are coming and please comment :) any input is appreciated!

Longing for Summer

Been ages since I've had time to do this but here goes...

The last few days in Cape Town have been stunning and warm. All I can think about is beaches, ice cream and long hot days. Roll on September and with it Spring :)

“And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.” 
― F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby




 







And of course, those stunning sunsets that Cape Town is famous for.





All the pictures were taken by me.

Planning some changes

Anyone who knows me will know that I LOVE changing my hair. Very often I will walk into a salon and emerge with a very dramatic hair color change. I could quite happily change my hair color every month if I thought my hair could withstand the swing from brown to blonde to red to black and then back to blonde again. 
Last year I decided to start growing my hair from a pixie cut. Mainly for a guy. A year down the line and I have shoulder length brown hair that I'm utterly bored with and the guy is history. 
I'm not one of those people who's blessed with curls or poker straight hair that still seems to have volume. I'm useless with a hair straightener (clamped an ear or two in my life) and curlers usually get knotted into my scalp. I also don't like what I look like with my hair down so when its long enough to be tied up then it's in a bun or plait or pony. So next week Friday, it's all coming off again. Looking forward to having a short pixie cut again :)
Some of my hair inspirations are shown below: 

                                      

Now I just need a make-up artist on constant stand by to look like these ladies ;)

Images:
1. http://www.besthairstyles2013.net/anne-hathaway-haircut.html/2012-new-york-city-ballet-fall-gala
2. http://www.marieclaire.co.uk/beauty/galleries/11838/0/short-hairstyles.html
3. http://ionstudionyc.blogspot.com/2010/10/happy-birthday-winona.html
4. http://www.beautystat.com/site/hair/spring-summer-2011-short-hair-styles-emma-watson-tilda-swinton/
5. http://www.thecelebritypix.com/Shannyn-Sossamon-Pixie-Cut-How-To.html
6. http://www.becomegorgeous.com/hair/photos/michelle_williams_hairstyles/michelle_williams_hairstyle_at_2011_critics_choice_awards-I1925
7. http://properpixiecuts.tumblr.com/page/714
8. http://celebsalon.sheknows.com/short-hairstyles/katie-holmes-has-a-new-hairstyle/

Women Wednesday

I have a slight obsession with clothes and often find myself searching European blogs for style ideas. One lady that I stumbled across is Ines De La Fressange. She's a French model, fashion designer and perfumer. She's so casually chic and put together in a way only the French can do. She seems to have an almost careless attitude to fashion as if she just threw on what was available and it just happens to look good on her. The reality is more than she knows what suits her and as a result she has a working formula to avoid her outfits wearing her.

http://lilylemontree.blogspot.com/2010/05/style-icon-ines-de-la-fressange.html

I used to hate blazer and the way they looked on me, now I can't get enough of them especially if they are in velvet. I own a vintage brown velvet one but would love an forest green version like above or even a sapphire one.  As long as there's a pop of color, the look can't be boring.

http://www.style.com/peopleparties/celebritysearch/person1423/slideshow?loop=0&iphoto=12&play=true&cnt=4

Everyone need a classic black dress and the above dress is quite timeless. The make up and gloves make it look a bit more exciting but the cut along with the stockings and flats are timeless and classic. I think everyone woman should have a perfect little black dress that suits them from their 20's through to their 50's. 

http://www.style.com/stylefile/2008/12/ines-de-la-fressange-has-pink-credit-cards/

I have mentioned my love for over the knee boots and I adore the texture and color of these ones. 

http://rdujour.com/index.php?s=Ines+de+la+Fressange

I own a few bowed blouses but am too afraid to wear them in case I look too 'librarian' or silly. Ines makes it work very well and I think I may just haul my blue one for work tomorrow. I also have quite a few berets and think they look so gorgeous on a pretty women. However I often don't wear them in fear of looking like I'm trying too hard or costumey (not sure that's a real word but it gets my point across.) 

http://www.myblackcherry.com/2011/10/parisian-chic-by-ines.html

Blazer, straight legged pants and a belt to define the waist. Very feminine and classic and can be dressed up by good quality leather shoes, handbag and some striking jewelry.

http://sissiehrstrom.blogspot.com/2011/04/ines-de-la-fressange-suosittelee.html

The white and navy combination always works and looks great regardless of age or shape. I think too often people fall back onto black clothes and bad quality can show through in a all black outfit. Navy blue is very flattering to all women and worn with white or cream, looks crisp.

Manicures

I'm one of those women who loves painting her nails. Although I lean more towards strange colors and combinations rather than a straight forward manicure. This past week I've been spring cleaning my flat and throwing away anything that I no longer needed or used. My nail polish collection was in desperate need to be de-cluttered and I chucked away about 30 bottles that were old or ugly (3 full bottles of NEON yellow?!?). I found some glass containers from Clicks and now my collection of polishes, stickers and nail sponges are all safely packed away according to color, not sure how long that'll last though.
Thought it would be fun to show you my week of nails with the polishes used.

I started the week thinking of Autumn.

I love the Mavala range and this color, Electric Green, was a gift from a friend. At first I thought it was a bit too much but I always get compliments when I wear it so it's grown on me. The color you see above took 2 coats and it dries so quickly.The sparkly copper glitter color is by Accessories cosmetics (no name) and it took about 3 coats to get it the intensity that I wanted. 

Half way through the week I got bored and decided to do more girly nails. This Revlon polish called Innocent was found at the last Clicks Cosmetic sale for R45 , huge bargain as far as I'm concerned. This color pretty much goes with everything but can be a bit tame for me, so I added a gold swirly sticker also by Revlon. I'm sorry but can't remember the name of the products, I found the stickers in a Dollar store in the US over the December holidays.

To end my week, I looked to my polishes from my time in South Korea.

The purple polish is from a shop called Etude House and the cream is from the Face Shop, both amazing make up shops that I was obsessed with when I lived there. They don't have names on them but the cream colored one has the code BR801 if anyone wants to order them online. The Essie polish is called Parka Perfect and is probably my favorite from the week. In fact Essie is my go-to polish at all times. The quality is amazing and the most I've ever had to apply is 2 coats. It also dries really quickly.

All the pictures above are from my Instagram page: RamblingInsomniac

Feels like a Friday

I woke up this morning feeling super chirpy. Only needed one cup of coffee to get me out of the door. The reason for my happiness is that while the rest of South Africa has a 3 day weekend, I have an extra day to sleep in and do nothing. My work has given us all Monday off and I fully intend to chill each and every second of the 96 hours of freedom. Have a great weekend everyone and I hope everyone returns to work refreshed :)

http://funnypicturequotes.com/long-weekend/