And the nominees are...

"Did you hear the news?"

I am very excited to announce that Gin in a Teacup has been nominated for Best Fashion Blog in the 2threads Australian Fashion Awards! I am super stoked to be in the company of Super Kawaii Mama, Lady Melbourne, and Sea of Ghosts... some of my favourite blogs and biggest inspirations!

"That's awesome! But how do I vote?"

You can vote for me here, and I will soon have a banner on the blog as well!
Thank you so much 2threads and to everyone who nominated me, I am so happy!


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What I Wore 17.11.09

Hello! Today Boy and I went to the Dennis Hopper exhibit at ACMI. It was really interesting, I couldn't take photos inside but luckily THIS piece of epicness was in the place you are technically allowed to take photos.

And here is pretty much what I wore, my new shoes were giving me blisters so I changed to go and get some delicious pasta for dinner:

♥ Vintage dress

♥ New cardigan by Friends of Couture (more on that later, as it involved an epic shopping day which deserves its own post)

♥ Rodarte-inspired tights by Dangerfield (also new and, as I mentioned in my last post, an obsession of mine for a long time)

♥ Owl earrings by Diva

♥ Bag by Temt

♥ Black flats

And some more photos from the day...

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What I Wore 11.11.09

Hello from Melbourne! This is what I wore to go to dinner at Stalactites and then to the Bennett's Lane Jazz Club. I am having a fantastic time which unfortunately (and especially with the addition of a dodgy laptop and battery) does not translate into lots of blog posts being produced.

♥ New dress from Retrostar

♥ Black flats

♥ Don't Ask Amanda headband (also new)

In between shopping Boy and I have also been to the aquarium. I loved it! Here are some pictures...

Penguins!

Jellyfish!

I will try and update some more now that camera and laptop issues are sorted!

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How-to Tuesday: Dressing for a Festival

Sorry this is late! I'm sure it's still Tuesday somewhere in the world?

I gave a version of a festival outfit in my last How-To Tuesday (I just realised THAT was apparently published on a Monday... one day this will actually be published on the right day!), and here is the full article! I am incredibly lucky to be going to two festivals next year - Southbound and St Jerome's Laneway Festival. Dressing for festivals is obviously a lot different than just dressing up for a regular gig - here's some things you need to remember...

♥ It is either painfully hot or incredibly muddy. While you clearly want to look nice and not just give up and dress in a hessian sack (or... you might), you don't want to wear anything that can't be washed or that you would be devastated if it were harmed.
♥ Try and avoid white - in case it's muddy, or in case of horny teenage boys running around with Super Soaker water guns.
♥ Closed in shoes are fantastic but beware - your feet will feel like mini-saunas and at the end of the day will be swollen as hell. Personally, I would rather that then having my feet get all grimy with thongs, but that's just me.
♥ Remember to pack a jumper that will still go with your outfit at the end of the day - it gets COLD at most festivals, even if the heat has been stifling during the day.
♥ I usually take two bags - one with my jumper, bandaids, a spare pair of shoes, and other essentials; and another teeny bag which is just nough for some cash, my wallet (or at least my cards), my camera (not my new big, fancy-looking camera because some festivals don't allow that unless you're press), the timetable for the day and my mobile phone. Check the big bag in and take the smaller one, and collect the bigger one at night when I plan to stay by one stage and want to have my stuff with me! Also if you bring tampons and bandaids you will basically be everyone's hero.
♥ BRING A HAT AND SUNSCREEN! Most festivals have a communal sunscreen area, and obviously you can buy hats there, but sunscreen could run out and hats will probably sell out in about three minutes. Bring your own.
♥ Don't just wear shorts and a band t-shirt because it's easy - wear something that's still "you". Even buy a dress a few sizes up and belt it and it will be nice and cool!
♥ Don't wear fluro, please. Or leggings as pants. But that's another article for another time.

And now for the outfits!

This girl likes Lily Allen, M.I.A, Santogold and The Kooks. She carries a notebook and a camera with her at all time, just in case she runs into her favourite act.

The hippy girl travels the girl searching for the next Woodstock, making friends and breaking hearts wherever she goes.

This is for the one who goes to every Big Day Out, regardless of the lineup, just because it's SUMMER and SUMMER MEANS FESTIVALS.

Do you have any tips? Leave them in the comments section!

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Where have you BEEN?

I thought that I was long overdue for a post - of any kind! This is what's been going on:

♥ I had five radio news stories to do last week, which I managed to do in two days. That meant finding interviews, doing the interviews, editing them, and writing the stories to go with them - IN TWO DAYS. That explains my kind of necessary absence from the internet!

♥ I've had a sinus infection and then a bacteria growing ON that infection - yum, I know, but it meant that I was pretty much useless for a week. I'm feeling much better now though.

♥ I've now officially finished uni, next year is my last year! I haven't re-enrolled yet because my stupid uni account isn't working, but one of my units is meant to be print production, which means producing the uni newspaper! Eep!

♥ I've lined up some work experience for the holidays - I haven't been able to get fully into it because of uni but it's something I'm really excited about and that I hope I can do a good job at! All the people seem really nice so far.

♥ I bought the 21 Day Wonder Diet book in preparation of summer - I will let you know how it goes! My friend at work is doing it as well so I will have no excuse for slacking!

♥ I go to Melbourne in less than a week! Ahhh! I am still collecting places to go so let me in on your secrets!

♥ I got an email from Emma at 2threads telling me about their upcoming fashion awards - I would be really happy if Gin in a Teacup got through the nomination stage to the voting stage! You can win some awesome prizes just for nominating a blog as well, so please help a blogger out!

Also, I have been the incredibly fortunate to get these two awards!

One is from the lovely Em of Lick My Cupcakes:

And I would like to pass it on to And Darling, minteva's new blog. Hooray!

I also received one from A. at shut up, vita. But that requires a whole post, methinks!

If you've read this far, hooray! Here is something just for you.

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Where the Wild Things Are

...living in my jewellery box, apparently. These are five of my favourite animal rings!

Snake, lion, blingy owl, blingy cheetah, owl.

I've been sick all this week, I FINALLY got a doctor's appointment today and while they aren't 100% sure what's actually wrong with me, they did put me on antibiotics so hopefully they will work and I will be back to normal soon. I've been inside all this week watching Pushing Daisies, Seinfeld and... um... Rock of Love (please don't judge me, I was not in sound frame of mind!).

Thanks for your comments on the how-to post, I'm glad you liked it! It will definitely be a regular feature now :)

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How To Tuesday: Wear Shorts

One of the results from the survey was that you guys would like to see more how-to articles, so I'm going to attempt to do one every Tuesday! How-to Tuesdays are born! If you have any suggestions please leave them in a comment or email gininateacup@gmail.com.

Shorts are really tricky for me to wear - either they look really casual and boring, or I think that they're way too short and that I will end up looking like I should be wearing them on a street corner. But, it's one of my summer style resolutions to try and embrace shorts, so here are my golden rules:

♥ Wear them at a length that you will be comfortable with, and not at a length that you will be continually pulling them down because you think they're too short.
♥ Don't skimp on the quality. Yes, Cotton On have $10 shorts around summertime, but the cut is less than great. Make them a wardrobe staple and be prepared to spend a bit more for a cut that REALLY flatters you - if you can find that in shorts then they are basically miracle pants that should never be taken off.
♥ DON'T WEAR HIGH BOOTS WITH SHORTS. It will look a lot more Pretty Woman when the look you're aiming for is just plain pretty. I think that boots should be well below the knee and definitely not with a heel. Also, if you wear cowboy boots, please be aware that you are following something now made trendy by Miley Cyrus kthx.

shorts1 by taralouise89

This is my grandpa-inspired set, haha. I was a bit wary of floral shorts when I saw them around - my first thought was that they looked like giant bloomers - but I think that if you continue with the "quaint and pretty" thing that these shorts are putting out then they should look fresh, rather than looking like you've forgotten to put on trousers. Also, unless you are very savvy to mixing prints, stick with a block colour that complements the shorts for your top. I am not adverse to crazily mismatched prints but it IS very easy to look like you just picked up two random things off your bathroom floor.

shorts2 by taralouise89 featuring Chanel

I wasn't on the "formal shorts" bandwagon (if you visit Go Fug Yourself, you'll know THOSE girls were vehemently against them) but I think these shorts/skort are too cute not to wear any time of day. Dress sparkly shorts down with similar coloured flats, a simple tee and minimal accessories. Also, and this is just MY opinion, but I would save bright coloured sequins for other parts of your outfit, unless you are extraordinarily proud of your bum and thighs. As with lots of other sartorial matters, you can get away with black more often than not.

shorts3 by taralouise89

This is my ideal look for a music festival. Shorts will prevent you from melting while you're dancing around, there's a long top which stops denim shorts from looking too Daisy Duke, and the shoes won't make your legs look stumpy, which is a big fear of mine whenever I wear shorts. Also, did I mention I MUST get a feathered headdress as soon as possible?

Happy leg-baring days!

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