#ITTC COLOUR PALETTE CHALLENGE

I am a huge fan of Instagram and I have so many favourite accounts, it would be hard to pinpoint even just a handful! I absolutely love wasting time perving on their beautiful galleries and sometimes my feed is just so full of beautiful imagery it is often a quick pick me up as I usually feel inspired or just darn happy after looking at the beautiful photographs.

What I am starting is a personal challenge but you are most welcome to join me, what I want to work on is using colour palettes to pretty up my instagram account with a flowing block of different colours and also as a way of practicing and challening my styling and photography practice. Using particular colour palettes seems to be a pattern which is prevalent with the accounts that I personally enjoy looking at and I would like to work on using different colour themes. I have often steered clear of doing it because I love colour and I really couldn't play favourites to just one particular colour palette, but with this challenge I can play around with different palettes each month.

First rule of the colour palette challenge is that you must have at least six consecutive photographs which express at least four of the colours from the colour palette challenge. Yeah, and that's it.
So my plan is to release a colour palette every month and my aim is to have at least six consecutive photographs using a minimum of four of the colours from the months colour palette challenge. Some months I may follow the palette exclusively with my styling and photography, and other months I may just do my six consecutive photographs, I guess it just depends on what I feel like doing or how much I am loving the colour palette.

Ooops, I lied. Second rule of the colour palette challenge is that with each photograph posted (blog or instagram or facebook or ello) you must hashtag #ITTCCOLOURPALETTECHALLENGE that way we have a reference as to our progress (wow, i'm a bit bossy). You must hashtag #ITTCCOLOURPALETTECHALLENGE (just incase the first bolded, uppercase shouty style hashtag demand missed the point). At the end of each month I will decide on my favourite photograph and give myself a pat on the shoulder.....unless you decide to join in, then I will share a pat on the shoulder with you too and we can emoticon high five each other and say, 'We did it!'. 

As of tomorrow, let the challenge begin.

Cowabunga!

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4

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A TABLE FOR SIX

 Oh my glob, can you believe that this entire set was sitting on the side of the road? As soon as I saw it, I pulled over, knocked at the front door and asked if it was free. You can only imagine the beating of my palpitating heart when they said yes. I took two chairs with me and then came back to claim the rest by foot. It was only nine houses down the road from mine, and it was a collective effort taking the four chairs and the table (which is quiet heavy as it has an extendable center) down the road and up our dirt driveway. So the old table got promoted outside to our deck and this little set got a wipe down and is now our main table. I am inlove and feeling very lucky!! This is exactly what I have been looking for and I would have been willing to pay for it. 

Thank you Universe! What are your top pre-loved finds?

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4

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INSPIRATION AT THE MARKETS

 

Today was market day and we almost didn't make it there. I was flying solo with the kids as Matty was in Melbourne watching the demise of the Swannies at the grand final. After a relaxing morning pottering about at home, cleaning up my newest roadside fine (oh my glob, an amazing six piece retro/retractable dining table!!) driving around looking for a carpark for about thirty minutes was pretty annoying, I told Paddy that we were going to have to make this our last round drive and then we were going to drive home (a good idea for the markets would be to have a shuttle bus system running in from terrigal carpark). Circling around for the final time, we ended up scoring the best carpark in all of the land. Right out the front of the entrance to the markets.

We always head straight over to the gozleme stand and today we had a slight variation, instead of two cheese and spinach, we had one chicken, cheese and spinach for him and the usual for me. We plonked ourselves down in front of a wonderful blues band, I closed my eyes and I could have been in Byron. So at the table setting I spied a few pieces of table scape inspo, I was loving the different textures of the hangings, some crochet and some woven together. I love this idea of storing the pineapple, as there is never enough room in the fridge and the fruit basket is always too full. I want to do a weaving class, one of my darling friends pointed me in the direction of Kosklea and their workshops, one of which I spied is a weaving class - which I would to do one day.

What types of workshops are you interested in or have you attended?

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4

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DREAM CATCHER

 

I am a daydreamer. I always have been. I like to dream big and I like to dream of alternative scenarios. Growing up, daydreaming was never a habit that was graced by my parents. It was viewed as wafty and the type of thing that a scatterbrain would run away with. Lately I have been embracing my habits and rather than trying to squash them (I love food, so I have been cooking more of it from scratch; I love beautiful imagery so I have been taking photographs daily; I love being able to photograph handmade things, so I have been learning new skills), I have been dissceting and thinking....daydreaming....about their strengths and where they might take me one day. I have a love for food, travel, fashion and photography. Along with a billion other people, my dream way of living would involve being paid to photograph food and fashion around the world. So what am I doing to achieve that? Slowly, but surely I am chipping away. Practicing my skills, refining and sharing and surrounding myself with likeminded creative and motivated people. Lately I have been surrounded by even more creative people than ever (even when I worked in the creative field of advertising) and I am astounded by the limitations that we all seem to cap on ourselves. Maybe it's because we are parents, or maybe it's because we are no longer in our 20s...whatever it may be, I want to shake it off.

I had an amazingly uplifting conversation with a beautiful friend of mine today and we both have so many ideas, plans, abilities, connections and friendships yet the things that we want to achieve seem to be happening at snails pace. We made a pact to keep on encouraging each other and to remind each other of our abilities. I am so thankful for the people in my life who support my ideas and dreams. Another major push occurred after reading through the Collective Magazine, oh my gosh. The inspiring stories are literally brimming off of the pages and made me realise that people are doing the sh*t they love and making a living out of it. From illustrators, to weavers, programmers, designers and photographers....and just like me, they aren't academically trained in the area of interest, but their passion and love for their interests and hobbies has led them down an amazing journey and growth - both personally and financially.

Here is my calling to the Universe, I am ready!

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4

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BROWNED BUTTER & SALTED HONEY PIE

A big storm was brewing up top and I had to look twice at the big plume of clouds loitering and looming in the far distance. I wasn't quiet sure if it was a big bright patch of light or a big fluffy ominous cloud. Then the wind seemed to change direction and pellets of rain began to splat onto our tin roof. The perfect weather to be channelling some Local Milk style and throw in some of my newly aquired workshop skills.

I had been eying off this pie recipe for a couple of weeks and today I made it happen. I have never made pie crust in my life. The sudden darkness and change in wind direction made it feel like something magical and powerful was about to happen and it certainly inspired me to make something different today. Before I started making the pie crust, I slid open the doors and stood by them as I began rubbing the cubes of butter into the flour. Then I felt a swoop. I looked to the right and there was a Kookaburra sitting on the table next to the spare cubes of butter. Cue the Benny Hill soundtrack for the next twenty or so minutes while I tried coaxing the Kookaburra back outside the open doors with a tea towel (I don't know what I was going to do with it should it have turned around and aimed it's huge beak at my face). I don't know what sign mother nature/the universe was trying to give me, perhaps it was telling me that it's time to get my hair in order, or maybe it was a swift reminder of practical advice to install  the flyscreens which Matty removed when we first moved in, all of those years ago. In the bathroom washing my hands, I looked in the mirror and the top knot bun sitting sideways on my head looked something like a rotund bush rat. Besides the Kookaburra this week we have had a menagerie of animals freuqent our home including the usual flurry of bush turkey's who seem to use our house as an actual thoroughfare, a mouse (eek, I seem to be the only one who seems to believe that this is a problem) and a couple of new tails who managed to grace our hallway while I was hanging out the washing to dry. After all of that commotion, the pie crust was rubbed, rolled and chillin' like a villain in  the fridge and the brown butter and honey filling was frothing away on the stovetop. During which I joined the rest of my family up in the backyard and after another comical attempt at rounding up our chickens to go back into their pen, I got my camera out and practiced doing some portrait shots of Matty looking pensive in front of the chicken coop. Yup, my ability to give direction needs a lot of practice...the photo looked like, 'oh hey, remember that time when you looked like a serial killer on death row'. Nailed it. On that note, below is the recipe for the pie, which I acquired from Kinfolk Volume 12. Hope you give it a go.

KINFOLKY BROWN BUTTER & SALTED HONEY PIE

Pie Crust:

1/2 cup of iced water

1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temp and cubed

1 and a half tsp of sugar

1 1/4 cup of plain flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 egg beaten with a splash of water

To make the pie crust, sift the flour, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl. Add the cubes of butter and rub together with your fingers until it's roughly combined and slowly add water one tablespoon at a time. Once the dough comes together, ball it up and place on a floured surface and roll out so that it fits the base and up the sides of your pie dish. Cover in cling wrap and place in the fridge for at least one hour.

Filling:

3/4 cup unsalted butter

3/4 cup honey

1 cup sugar

2 tbs plain flour

3/4 tsp of salt

1 tbs lemon juice

5 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla essence/paste

1 cup of thickened cream

Himalayan Salt or flaky sea salt for topping

Preheat oven to 190 degrees. Melt the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat, bring it up to simmer and foam and will eventually calm down. Stir constantly  and watch it turn golden and then brown which takes about 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat once it turns brown and stir in the honey until it melts and completely dissolves into the butter. Let cool for about 10 minutes.

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the salt, flour, sugar and then stir in the brown butter mixture, vanilla, lemon juice and whisk in one egg at a time until all combined. Then whisk in the thickened cream.

Pour the filling into the pie crust and bake on the center rack in the oven for 60 - 75 minutes, turning around halfway through the baking time. The pie is done when it is golden brown on top and it should look puffed and still jiggle in the middle quiet a bit. Let it rest at room temperature for at least 4 hours and serve with a sprinkling flaky sea salt.

Thank you for sharing Kinfolk!

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4

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AT HOME WITH XANTHE & ACE: SUNDAY KID OUTTAKES

 

 

 

 

Just a couple of outtakes from a shoot which I was so excited to do in collaboration with Sunday Kid, the first of one of many of their super cool "At Home" interviews for their blog, which you can read here. This family is as cute as pie; Xanthe is an uber talented stylist and her husband runs a family owned restaurant/takeaway shop in Woy Woy on the Central Coast and Ace is just an amazing handsome little dude. Their place is filled with retro awesomeness and it sits right on the water with the shop downstairs and their home upstairs. Walking up and into their abode reminded me of my childhood summer holidays spent on houseboats and yachts on the Hawkesbury River. Once upstairs, you are greeted with the most spectacular view and a feeling of freedom swept over me as I looked out across the water and over into the mangroves. Just the slightest breeze over the water and up into their balcony and I could swear I could feel the motion of the house bobbing gently with the water.

  
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PINK OR BLUE AT THE LAKEHOUSE

 

The weekend hosted the perfect weather to be sitting by the large bay windows at The Lakehouse with a room bursting with beautiful ladies and an assortment of delicious bite sized treats and hot pots of tea. We were here to celebrate the welcoming of baby number three for a very dear friend of mine. She has two handsome and healthy young boys and we were all there to share the excitement of finding out the gender of baby number three. 

The table was spread with towering tiers of assorted macarons, mini slices of orange and chocolate cake, cute little cups of chocolate and orange mousse, scones, freshly whipped cream and shallow dishes of blackberry jam. Long sandwich plates were delicately topped with sandwiches and mini quiches, exactly the type of food you hope to fill up on at an afternoon tea. The tea menu itself boasted an impressive assortment of deluxe tea leaves which would satisfy even the most pickiest of tea drinkers and perhaps even lure in the most die-hard coffee fans with the availability of the such distinct and diverse flavours.

The real jewel of the crown was the cute and unassuming little cake which sailed high above the tiers of sweets and plates of sandwiches. We were all so eager to see whether the cake was bestowing a pink or blue filling. You can only imagine the excitement and disbelief at seeing a pink sponge cake hiding underneath the white buttercream frosting. It looks like they used a different recipe this time around and I am just so beyond happy for my darling friend and her beautiful family. This pink little sponge cake is the first of lots and lots of all things sweet and pink. By far, this is the best way to welcome in new life is with an abundance of sweet treats, friendship and love.

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WEEKEND ARRANGEMENTS

My weekend started with a sleep in (thank you Matty), a coffee and a kiss-kiss on each cheek from my family before I bounced out of the door to meet a gorgeous friend (and her micro-babe) for a long lunch and a shop before we embarked on a floral workshop at the Octopuss Garden.

The Octopuss Garden is inside an A-frame building. Need I say more. There was so much inspiration and beauty to choose from once inside. We were welcomed in by the amazing girls who shared some of their home made Sangria with all of us while encouraging us to enjoy the delicious cheese and dip spread. This is a slippery slope, once I start with food, particularly cheese....it can be tricky for me to move away, let alone concentrate on something else.

 

After choosing our stems we moved right into the stripping, snipping and spiral holding our stems into beautiful posies and bouquets. Working with flowers is therapeutic and there is great pleasure in working directly with beauty. Whilst we all wanted to work on more organic and flowing bouquets and posies, there was one who made a gorgeous structured posie with some cute little buds sticking out.

 (The above one is my little posie)

 (The token Kinfolky shot. Nailed it.)

My style is similar to my hair...kind of everywhere and loose, a bit bushy with a stick poking out. I made my bouquet with a good friend in mind - she was having her baby reveal the following day and I was hoping to style a bouquet that would flow with either a blue or pink sponge cake upon the gender reveal at the cutting of the cake. Lately I have really been noticing the colours purple and green in my life (they also happen to be my favourite colours) and they seem to be appearing everywhere. I couldn't resist using flowers with the captivating purple colour and I am just almost obsessed with the velvety looking gums. My large bouquet is pictured below and modelled by the lovely Laura.

My friend's wonderfully abundant bouquet below!! Gorgeous. It was interesting seeing how differently we all styled out bouquets and posies.

The day ended with two smiling mama's, a pram full of shopped items, freshly baked bread (thank you Kath!!!), bunches of fresh flowers and a sleeping baby. Is this not the best way to end the day?

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4

Please do not use my images without permission.