Poppy + Playlist

Ahh, September. It's been a while since I blogged, so here's a little update on what's been happening in my life... 

- The last few weeks have been ABSOLUTELY brutal in regards to uni and assessment - hence the silence on Avenue Maria. I have to take an economics course in order to contribute to my degree and let me tell you, as much as I am very gifted with the art of spending money, I have no grasp on how it actually works in society. Srsly. Why wasn't I taught about the stock market in school? Or the GFC? I am an adult now and I feel like knowing about that sort of stuff is a prerequisite. Anyway, so I submitted the assignment in the end, cried a few tears in the process (I also have no issue expressing emotions) and consumed lots of chocolate, crossing my fingers that my tutor passed the wretched thing.

- This dress is beautiful, and I love it. I think it makes me look like a life-sized Christmas ornament. It's H&M (surprise) and was on sale for $30 (surprise surprise!) so naturally it went straight in my basket. While Tess and I were taking these photos this afternoon a little girl and her Mum approached us because the little girl thought I was a "Princess". It was really sweet and made my week. 

- Driving test for my P's license is coming up. If I pass first go you'll definitely hear about it on all social medias because I'll be that bloomin' excited.

- Overall, I'm doing pretty okay you guys. I'm happy. There are good and bad days, but the bad ones are few and far between. I am still going to Headspace and finding a lot of use out of it - it's such an excellent program and as much as Australians complain about the government system, there's a lot that is done right (especially in regards to youth mental health) and I'm really thankful and lucky to be living here. 

- There's a dance coming up next weekend which is SO EXCITING! You all know how much I love the dances my local parish put together. A lot of my friends from Brisbane are back from their overseas adventures too, which is wonderful because the Mambo No. 5 is never the same without them!

- Here's the music I've been listening to lately. If you're a Stranger Things fan you'll recognise a lot of the songs are from the first soundtrack! So good. It's quite a bittersweet playlist. 

September Playlist 2016 // life through the lens

I like flowers to be the first thing I see in the morning - and roses and baby's breath together are one of my favourite combinations. So beautiful and feminine. These ones are from the markets; I popped into the city on Wednesday afternoon and picked them up as they are generally quite cheap towards the end of the day! 

This photo was taken right before my little sister lowered my camera and pegged a handful of the yellow seeds hanging above my head at me. So charming! 

AND this photo was taken an hour before I had beer spilt all down my back on a raging dance floor, someone whacked me on the butt (yeah... I did NOT sign up for that thank you very much!), and I lost my house key somewhere between the Grease medley and 500 Miles. We (my roomies and I) don't go out on the town much, but when we do, we definitely take it to the next level...

An abandoned hotel in Woolloongabba in Brisbane's south. Very spooky looking... 

Me-time. Listening to records, gazing at the fairy lights on my windows and reading are some of my favourite elements of my bedroom and having my own space.

Well, hello there September! You have crept up on me so quickly! This time last year I was in a very different place in life, and not very happy. In a year I've grown very much as a woman, achieved lots of little (and big) things for myself and at the moment, feel pretty okay with how my life has been going. Here's some photos I thought I would share with you all from my Instagram as some of you don't have it :) 

Music has always been a major aspect of my life; however this year I've really broadened my genre palette and have discovered so much talent that Spotify has quickly become my most-used app and often the reason my battery is so low at the end of the day (I feel like if I had to keep one app over FB and Spotify, I would have no issues deleting the former for good).

This month, albeit we are just over a week into it, has brought about a range of discoveries... including a new found love for Glass Animals, and stumbling upon Father John Misty who has increased my quality of life during bus commutes from a 5 to an 8! WOW! 

Here we have a new playlist that I have compiled - all songs that I have had on repeat for the last week or so. As always, it's quite eclectic and diverse. A lot of support for my fellow Australians, and also some international artists too. Bon Iver's latest single is in there too. Enjoy, and follow me on Spotify for more playlists if you're interested :)

on romance

I bought this dress when I had just turned 18. I tried it on in the shop change room and instantly fell in love with the romantic lace detail and the soft colour of the fabric. I shelled out $150 that day and didn’t look back at the shop as I exited without remorse – I had bought a dream dress. Something I felt that my future daughter would love to unwrap out of a box of tissue paper, and wear to her first dance or date. This dress has a lot of sentimentality for me. I haven’t worn it more than a couple of times, but each event was significant. The original reason I bought it was because I thought it would be perfect for a “first date”. I pictured mystery boy and myself going to a ballet or a theatrical performance of some sort, wearing this lovely dress. We would then have a romantic walk along the river and I would teach him (or attempt to) how to dance. 

This isn’t how first dates usually are my friends, as such, I found out this year on a rainy night in July. 

I was in a pretty horrendous place during the whole “romantic pursuit” of said boy. Life seemed to have “fallen apart”. Uni was a shambles, work wasn’t too good and in general, my mental health seemed at an all time low. I was really confused as to how anyone would find me even remotely desirable, let alone during this time of confusion and stress. I was feeling pretty delicate, and the last thing I wanted to do was add to my list of... things to worry about.

The actual date was lovely – albeit, I was a complete babbling mess for most of it, my left eye was bloodshot because I accidently sprayed perfume into it and the rain had caused my hair to take on the ‘electrocuted look’ . Things didn’t really continue with the boy afterwards and I was surprisingly completely okay with this, because at the time, the experience of it all was really quite fascinating, and it was exciting and positive while it lasted. You see, I’m pretty new to the dating world. High school didn’t involve any sorts of romantic conquests, and if they did, it was all my own head. I also consider myself a very guarded young woman; I wear my heart on my sleeve but I don’t act on a lot of the feelings I do have. I always felt that as soon as I got out of school I had to be fast, and experience things more and “catch up” to everyone else. And I mean, I still do want to experience more, but the feeling is beginning to slow down as I realise that everyone’s compass is different and sometimes taking things slow and letting them come together naturally is the best execution. 

So, yes, I am 19 and I’ve never been kissed before, but I do think there is something lovely and special about that. Knowing me, there will be some sort of disaster when the time does come, but, as always, there will be a unique story to tell my friends and family at the dinner table. 

Anyway – good night! I have a big week of uni and work and should probably get as much shut-eye as possible.

faux film project

One of the many reasons I love having a blog is because it feels like I'm the editor of a magazine. There are only a few minor details... like the fact that there is no regular print version of my content, nor do I have an office full of devoted staff... (one day...)

Each "issue" or "post" has some sort of underlying theme, which keeps things interesting, but also relevant to the overall aesthetic and theme of Avenue Maria. I've been feeling a bit more experimental  lately; particularly focusing on the major difference filters (tasteful ones, mind you) can have on an ordinary photograph. For these photos, I wanted to achieve a pretty dramatic 60's/70's vinyl album cover look. I've been listening to a lot of Ray Coniff's records lately and I've been feeling really inspired by the dreamy photography and grainy effect from the film cameras. SO! I decided (with the persuasion of my little sister) to take photos that were inspired by these images. 'Faux film', if you will. 

Here are a few examples of Ray's previous album covers that are part of my vinyl collection:

And here's my edit!  It was actually really simple creating the filter for these particular photographs. I used VSCO on my phone, focusing primarily on adding colour in the "highlights" and "shadows" category. Editing photos without going overboard is actually something that has taken me a really long time to master. I love doing it, but it's time consuming and sometimes frustrating getting the colour balanced. I think these photos turned out beautifully, but who knows, perhaps in a few years time I will look back on the editing job in horror at how "over done" they are! 

Anyway, that has been my most recent little project! How are you all? Enjoying life hopefully, wherever you may be in the world. I am good! Uni is still going well, I am attending all my classes (surprisingly), hanging out with friends, working, the usual. My appointments at Headspace are still happening fortnightly, and that's going really well. I've been listening to lots of great new artists, reading (mostly uni journal articles.. ha), and also STRANGER THINGS! Everyone was tweeting, and talking and posting about it and I wanted to know what all the fuss was about... guys, it was amazing. I just finished the last episode this evening and the whole series was incredibly well done. Everything from the cinematography, soundtrack, cast and plot. I'm not going to give anything away, it's the type of show you should start watching without any prior knowledge.

And on that note, it's time for tea with the fam! Hopefully I'll be back soon, will say hi again in September, aka. Spring, which means more flowers and more beautiful sunlight to experiment with through the camera lens.