spring inspiration

Mice flats by the one and only, Marc Jacobs! Aren't they cute? I would be tempted to name each foot ♥ 

This is one of my favourite outfits from Carrie's beautiful blog, WishWishWish. It's perfect for the changing weather here in Australia and has the sweetest retro accents (ie. floral pants and platforms, anyone?)

My new favourite recipe website is called Call me Cupcake and it has everything your sweet tooth could desire. This cake is almost too pretty to eat. 

Raspberry tarts! Definitely want to try this. 

An outfit fit for a picnic. I love the way Liz paired the gingham skirt with a cropped top.  

I've been wanting to try out whoopie pies for a while now and these banana ones look delish!

Hello everyone! I didn't mean to be away for so long! Time seems to be flying and there's nothing I can do about it. It's actually quite scary: before I know it I'll be finished my tenth year of schooling and preparing for my last two years. The two years that will inevitably determine my future. At the moment we are subject selecting and planning what we would like to study in university/ college. I'm still very undecided and a little bit anxious about the whole thing. I have no idea what I want to do when I 'grow up'! Oh well, I guess for now I'm just going to enjoy the fact that I have time to make such decisions; focus on earning money, my studies and my blogging life! Wow, I'm not even making sense...

These are a few things that have gotten me excited for Spring. I am getting tired of waking up to chilly mornings and am anxious for Spring to arrive. How can you resist blossoming flowers and not-too-hot-not-too-cold weather? :)

P.S: I was super duper excited because I was featured on Teen Vogue's snapshot blog again! You can check it out here and here :) Welcome to any new readers! 

Currently listening to: Lights by Ellie Goulding 

to market, to market

 Valleygirl blouse, thifted skirt and sunglasses, Forever New belt, Rubi bag & shoes (not pictured), Diva cameo earrings, Revlon lipbutter in 'Lollipop'

Spring is right around the corner. The weather has been really lovely lately; with only short bursts of cool wind and warm, sunshine escaping through the clouds most of the day. Yesterday we took a tiny trip down south to a cute little organic cafe and food stall assortment to pick up some fruit and vegetables. I got some more strawberries too! If you follow my instagram (@avenuemaria) you would've seen a few pictures from yesterday including a tiny little cake I ordered that was sugar and gluten free! It had a pretty little flower on top too... making it hard to want to eat (but I did anyway, and it was delish!).

This outfit was perfect for roaming around, gazing at the glorious fresh food. I found this skirt at the very back of my closet, sad and forgotten. How on earth could I forget about a pink skirt that I thrifted for only $3?! It's perfect for summer and hits just above my knee. I liked the way it went with this collared blouse, too. I really like laser cute details! They are so unique ♥

Currently listening to: Here Comes the Sun by the Beatles

beauty business, second edition

Hi friends! I thought it would be fun to share my beauty routine with you all. My last 'beauty' related post was over a year ago so I thought it was high time to update since my make-up routine has changed quite a lot! 

Brushes: 

Manicare foundation brush, $13.95 from Target

Eyeshadow brush, $10 

Lip products: 

Baby Lips, $2.95. Revlon Lip butters (Cherry Tart, Lollipop, Raspberry Pie) $15 on sale and $25 regular. All of mine were on sale. C.O Bigelow rose salve, gifted. Liplicious jelly tube, gifted. Maybelline Colour Sensational lipstick (Pink Peony), $12.95. Clarins gloss palette, gifted. Kiehls lip balm, $7.95. 

Eye products: 

Dior Show sample, came in a gift set. Bourjois eye shadow pots in Rose Tentation (I also use this as a blush) and Beige Rose $20 each. Colour Co. eyeshadow palettes, gifted. Napoleon Perdis SET loose shadow tubes, gifted.

Face Products:

Revlon Colorstay Foundation in Ivory, $37. Maybelline Coverstick, $14.95. Napoleon Perdis SET primer, $35

Before applying any make-up, I wash my face with an acne cleanser, followed by a gentle exfoliator. I then apply a light, oil-free moisturiser and when that has dried I'll apply the NP primer. I've only just started using a primer and I have to say that they work wonders! My skin is incredibly oily so having a base that'll save my makeup from sliding off of my face by the end of the day is quite important :) Concealer is next and I smooth it over all the necessary spots and under-eye discolouration. I really like this Maybelline formula; it's quite full coverage and doesn't look cakey. I like the nifty packaging too!

Revlon's Colorstay foundation comes next. I use the Combination/ Oily skin formula in shade 'Ivory'. It's easily the most spectacularly wonderful foundation I've ever used! It's quite pricey though... but if you use your sleuthing skills, you could find it for a great deal online or elsewhere... (I'm thinking The Chemist Warehouse). Anyway, after blending that well and smoothing over any streaks with the brush, I'll add a little bit of blush to my cheeks. Then I do my mascara... soon I'd like to buy a curler but I still haven't gotten around to it! I also like to add some white eye shadow to the inner-corner of my eyes because it brightens them up a whole lot! I usually finish there with a pretty lip colour and lately I've been using Revlon's lip-butter in Cherry Tart. It's quite subtle and looks lovely in general. 

I thought about reviewing each of these products individually... what do you think? Do you have any other beauty related questions? If you do, feel free to send me an email: avenuemblog@gmail.com. I'm always open to suggestions! 

I love all of these products a lot... and would highly recommend them. The best thing is that they can all be bought at a chemist (or 'drugstore') and work just as well as high end products. I've been browsing BeautyJoint, Cherry Culture and StrawberryNet for good deals. I'd really like to try out e.l.f cosmetics, NYX and Jordana cosmetics. I've heard they are so wonderful and judging by the prices online ($1.99 for a pretty cream shadow), cheap too! 

diy embellished collar

 Valleygirl blouse (yet again!), thrifted Sass tulle skirt, thrifted pumps, vintage bracelet, Emerson bag, Forever New belt,  DIY collar

Ever since watching Chriselle's wonderful DIY video on how to make your own collars, I've been just dying to make one for myself. So I finally found an old white collared blouse at the op-shop for no more than 50c and set to work. It was so easy and added the perfect amount of 'polished' and 'preppy' charm to my outfits. It looked really cute with a sweater too. All you have to do is cut the collar off of a basic work top (or mens business shirt) and add whatever embellishments that take your fancy! For this one I added pretty gold bows to the corner with a glass bead in the middle. It took me about 10 minutes to sew them both on :) 

Next I'd love to make a sequin, lace or embellished flower collar... the designs are endless! Give it a go ♥ 

Oh, and guess what? I was so excited! I was just shopping for some basics in Big W the other day (equivalent to Wal-Mart in the US) and I spotted this adorable Mulberry inspired bag for $7.00! It looked so lonely on the shelf so I had to buy it. Besides, the justifications were endless; one of them being that it was cheaper than most fashion magazines these days. How on earth could I pass it up? The leather is lovely and it's perfect for school. 

Anyway, onto some other news; my operation went really well and I just wanted to thank you all for the well wishes. It was quite funny though because my Mum was telling me all about the silly things I said after having the general anaesthetic... apparently I started giggling, "seeing double of everyone", claiming that my brain was "melting out of my ears" and that I "refused to fall asleep"! I honestly don't remember any of it! Have any of you got any hilarious stories of your reaction to that kind of medication? To top the day off, after surgery, Cookie Monster came to pay me a visit (much to my protest as I'm nearly 16!) and my Mother began snapping away embarrassing photos... Oh well, at least I got free rainbow ice-cream :) I feel much better now, and the next few days are all about relaxing and recovering.

P.S: This is my 250th post!! Yay!! 

Currently listening to: Dancing in the Moonlight by Toploader

seven things

1. Krista R lace collar 2. Dior Addict parfum 3. Topshop blouse 4. Forever 21 skirt 5. Swell sunglasses 6 & 7. Charlotte Olympia heels 

Here are a few things I've been dreaming of lately! I really need to practice self-control with my work money or else that Canon will never be in my hands, hehe. 

I'm sorry for the delay and inconsistency in posting; I've been under the weather lately and have remained in oversized pyjamas (don't worry, no crocs!) for the last three days. I visited the Doctor today and found out I have a cyst that has to be surgically removed tomorrow morning. I'm a little bit nervous as I've never had an operation before... so I've packed my overnight bag with some Teen Vogues to keep me company, my favourite Cinderella doll and  few dvds. I sound like the biggest wimp, I know, but say some prayers none the less :)

P.S: Thank you all so much for the comments on my last post and all the emails of late. You all know how to make a girl feel fabulous ♥
P.P.S: My latest obsession is watching the beauty gurus on youtube do the 'make-up don'ts' or 'look your worst' tag. They are hilarious! Here are my favourite two: Brittany and Lauren

orange blossoms

 Caroline Mitchell dress, Target coat, vintage sunglasses, Miss Shop booties, Coach bag (borrowed from Izzy!) and Revlon lipbutter in 'Raspberry Pie' 

Izzy (from Views of Now) and I spent the day together with an interesting mission: to find the perfectly pretty location for our outfit pictures. And, we definitely were pleased when we came across the ideal: a white picket fence with beautiful vibrant blossoms and the perfect amount of sunlight. It was the most gorgeous morning... we hadn't hung out at a weekend in ages so having heaps of good laughs and mucking around in between photo taking was the perfect remedy to take our minds off pesky homework and such. You can take a peak at the rest of the photos and her nifty outfit here ♥

This may not be too hard to believe, considering I'm a complete spaz in 'real life', but I simply refused to walk up the hill to this location in heeled booties so I (brace yourself!!)... WORE CROCS IN PUBLIC. I know. It was hard for Izzy not to laugh at me when I was wearing these hideous black concoctions on my feet whilst taking her photos.  I don't know about you, but this vintage  inspired outfit didn't really go too well with them. A few cars drove past and the stares were inevitable... but my feet were comfy and that's all that mattered. Oh, and don't even think about asking to see pictures of the crocs with this outfit. Not happening!

I picked up these snazzy sunglasses yesterday... at first only for giggles but I realised how much I love them! They are so huge and fabulous and even better, only knocked $2 off my bank account! Op-shops truly are gold mines on good days ♥ I hope ya'll have an amazing up-coming week. 

All images taken with Izzy's nifty Canon!

sun flower

...a mini outfit post! (expect more this coming week!)

Another glorious afternoon... perfect for warming my back with the sunlight. This week was actually quite breezy, except for the midnight stay-up I had in order to complete an assignment I left to the last minute. Considering the fact that I started the night before it was due, it was a pretty darn good effort and I was very proud of myself at the end! 

I have a nice weekend ahead of me... not too much homework, hopefully some baking involved and of course, a tennis lesson. The coach says I'm getting better and that simply makes my heart leap because I've never been very good at sport, haha ♥

Hope you all have a pleasant weekend. What are your plans? 

P.S: This song always makes me feel happy... I don't know why! :)

(Element Eden x Daydream Lily frock, gifted boater hat, Forever New earrings, Revlon lipbutter in 'Lollipop')

stepping stones

 1. My favourite nail polishes. A lovely purple colour called 'It's my year' and a sparkly pink called 'I Lily love you'. 2. My favourite outfit post picture from this week... the lighting is just so beautiful. The suns rays are always welcome in photos. 

3. Blueberry muffin for morning tea! 4. Getting ready for Emma's tea party ♥

5. Teeny tiny flowers for my ears. These are so pretty and dainty! 6. It was a lovely meal! 

7. Bambi earrings... these are good luck charms, I swear! 8. A bracelet I made on a school retreat a few weeks ago as a souvenir of the lovely time. 

9. Flower headbands I drew and added sparkles to... If you're wondering what I do when I'm procrastinating it usually involves drawing mindless little pictures, hehe! 10. Whilst sorting out some magazine clippings for a little project, I came across this bike. Yep, it's my dream bike. Pastel? Check. Basket? Check! ♥

11. My room/ sanctuary/ little place. 12. I love going through the archives of this blog... it's astounding how much I've changed; my style, my writing... this photo was taken in September last year. Time really does fly!

You can follow me on instagram via @avenuemaria if you like :)

diary III

Pretty pretty sunspots! I don't think I'll ever tire of this location. ♥

A pretty Audrey Grace lookbook illustrated by Caitlin Shearer. Full of beautiful dresses a girl can only dream of.

 The beautiful gift bags at my friend Emma's 15th birthday tea party. It was a splendid day with lots of sun, good times snapped through the camera and delicious food. A lovely escape from the everyday school routine and a chance to get a little bit of colour in my skin, hehe!

The cutest iphone case from Iconemesis! A cupcake and Fifi Lapin all in one? Definitely yes ♥ 

This weekend was very busy... everything seemed to be on! I'm happy though because I got a lot of things done and I (think) I'm ready to face this coming week. I have another shift tomorrow night and I'm hoping it won't be as busy as my last. It's not always pleasant being sworn at by demanding customers. I guess I need to get used to being in the real world -- and that includes dealing with rude personalties, haha! I hope you had a lovely weekend too and enjoy this coming week :)

P.S: Fifty years ago today, Marilyn Monroe passed away as a result of a drug overdose. Many people ask me why I take such an interest in her and my answer is that she was not simply a 'sex object' for the media to gawk at and refer to as 'shallow' but she was a human being with serious mental problems triggered from an unstable childhood. She was sexually assaulted and was constantly suffering from abandonment by each of her several carers up until her late teen years. Behind the famous eyes and beautifully flawless face lay years and years of built up pain that she was struggling to maintain.
I think she was a marvellous actress who simply needed help, respect and the chance to shine without the 'sex' label plastered on her overly exploited exterior. She once said this quote:

"I have feelings too. I am still human. All I want is to be loved, for myself and for my talent"

 I honestly hope that one day the critism will cease and she will be left to rest in peace. After all, she was just another person on this earth with troubles that were hidden away but desperately in need of help. 

distant dreamer

(Dotti blouse, thrifted skirt, Target hat, Miss Shop boots) 

I wore this outfit last weekend to church and morning tea. The weather has been absolutely lovely lately so I've been making the most of the sunshine by wearing this hat. It's got pretty laser cut patterns around the edge that filter the sun through and make my shadow on the side-walk look interesting. I've always wanted an interesting shadow, haha!

Anyway, I couldn't wait to to tell you about this purple skirt. It was a lucky op-shop find a few weeks ago and I've worn it over and over again since. It was on the clearance rack in the Salvation Army for only three dollars! I was SO proud because usually I have rotten luck when it comes to op-shopping and only come out with something ferrell that I talked myself into buying. Woohoo!
Anyway, enough of my silly rants; I hope you enjoy the rest of your week ♥ 

Currently listening to: Distant Dreamer by Duffy