Feather

Ayla beanie | Carly jumper c/o Oh My Love | Mink Pink Skater Skirt | Studded boots c/o Boohoo

This outfit feels so strange to me but I can't help but love it. I'm wearing so many things you hardly ever see me in (okay, just two - beanies & black), but I can already tell I'll be thrashing variations of this outfit throughout our Autumn/ Winter this year. I love feeling like a little duckling in this feathery jumper and the beanie is actually designed and made by one of my good friends, Ayla. Check out her tumblr for more of her stuff. Maybe I am excited for the arrival of some colder weather after all! (NB - not that it's actually come yet. Today is technically our last day of summer but it's still as hot as ever). xx

Giveaway | Daisyheads Floral Crowns

Today's giveaway is as sweet as can be! One lucky winner will get both these beautiful floral crowns by Daisyheads. Each crown is handmade and beautifully crafted.

How to enter
1. Like Daisyheads on Facebook
2. Leave a comment on this post

Entries are open to all readers, international included. If you don't have a blogger account you can still enter by commenting anonymously but please leave your email address so I can contact you if you win!

Entries close Thursday 7 March 2013. Good luck!

Summer's End

Mika & Gala tunic dress c/o Market HQ

This has been the longest summer I can ever remember. I truthfully couldn't tell you the last time it rained or the last time it was necessary to wear a a cardigan or any kind of layering. These hot summer days are sticking with us and I'm enjoying every last second before Autumn pops its head around the corner. I've been wearing this tunic almost every day at the moment. It's so easy to throw on and it's light and breezy enough to stop me from suffering too much in this insane heat. I've almost forgotten what it's like to feel cold or to need to wrap up warm! 

New items in my shop!

Just dropping in to let you guys know that I've uploaded a few new items to my store and discounted some of the older stock :) Thanks to everyone who has made a purchase so far! Just a reminder that international shipping times can take a little longer coming from New Zealand but most items arrive around 3 weeks after I ship them (which is within 24 hours of the purchase). xx

Chinese Lantern Festival

Chinese lantern festivals are celebrated on the first full moon after the Chinese New Year. Every year at this time Auckland puts on an amazing event full of beautiful lantern displays, amazing food markets and incredible performances. This year (the year of the snake - representing wisdom and intuition) Jeremy and I went along and although it was a little overwhelming (it felt like almost of all Auckland was crammed into one tiny park) it was an amazing night. We wandered through the garden admiring the lights, sipped on bubble tea and watched a martial arts demonstration. Such a fun (and free!) event. I love living in this city!

Boohoo Global Styler

Polka dot dress c/o Boohoo | Element Eden Hat | Necklace c/o Romwe | Glassons Boots

Today I thought I'd let you guys know about the Boohoo Global Styler competition. For full info check out their website here but the basic idea is that next time you wear something from Boohoo, snap a pic of yourself with the speech bubble (you can download it off their site) and share it on twitter or instagram with the hashtag #globalstyler. You could win a trip to the fashion destination of your choice! 

I'm loving this polka dot dress from Boohoo and the material is a little thicker so I think it'll be getting a lot of wear during our upcoming Autumn! Anyway good luck and I hope you guys enter :)

Smoothie Sunday | Tropical Smoothie

Hi guys, here's my second smoothie recipe for you. If you missed my last one you can check out my berry smoothie here.

I wanted to use strawberries for this drink but as they're going out of season here I substituted them with blueberries which was still quite nice. The mango gives this drink a really fresh taste and if you need tips on how to cut them you can check out this video tutorial here. It's as simple as throwing all the ingredients in the blender and mixing them to a smooth consistency. I recommend putting the heaviest ingredient (in this case the bananas) on top as it pushes all the ingredients onto the blades.

I think this will be my last fruit smoothie for a little while as winter is coming here but I'll be back with different variations of my favourite smoothie recipes.

Here Comes the Sun Husband
Guest Post

Interview | Daydream Lily Film Photography

Most of you would have heard of my blogging buddy Liss from Daydream Lily. Her blog was one of the first I ever read and after I started my blog in 2008 we struck up a friendship and have talked almost every single day ever since (no exaggeration). Most days my morning routine begins with a coffee, a catch up on my emails and a Skype chat with Liss. Over the years we've both jumped the ditch a few times to hang out as well - you can see some of our adventures on Liss' blog here and here and on my blog here, here and here.

Anyway, Liss is a huge film photography fan and I've always wanted to share some of her images with you so I recently asked her a few questions about it all. I hope you find her pictures and advice as inspiring as I do!

• When did you first become interested in film photography and why? 
I've been doing film photography since I was little. My Dad taught me to use his Minolta SLR when I was 11, we set up a studio in the loungeroom photographing his bonsais and I learnt all the camera settings. I also had my own darkroom in my senior highschool years which I set up in my basement. I've always had this love for the magic of film, I still haven't been able to capture the same magic with my digital cameras. I feel more comfortable holding an old SLR than the new DSLR.

• What film cameras do you have in your collection? 
Minolta x300, LC-A+, Olympus OM10, Canon EOS3, Holga, Diana Mini, Diana F+, Superheadz Wide and Slim, Lomography Fisheye, Instax Mini, Polaroid 600.

• Which one is your favourite and why? 
The LC-A+ is an amazing camera - it's like a point and shoot that gets the results of an SLR and works well in all light conditions. Also the Superheadz Wide is really fun for such a cheap price (under $40), I'm always telling anyone who wants to try film photography to start with that camera.

• Who are your favourite film photographers?
Annette Pehrsson has been a long time favourite and Much Love Anna's blog always inspires me to get out and take more photos. I love her film photos.

• Can you tell us any tips and tricks you've learnt along the way that might help other film photographers?
Don't be worried if your first few films don't work out. I've had whole rolls come out blank because I had the settings wrong. Also a lot of the toy cameras don't do so well indoors, unless you like that super grainy look. And my favourite film is ISO 400 fuji, after trying many types thats the one I use most.

• And lastly, what's the best thing about shooting film? 
I love how every film camera has its own little quirks, especially if you buy a secondhand one... and only I know them, like my LC-A+ you have to wind it a certain way and any time I let someone else use it I have to tell them how to wind it. For me that is fun, it's as if I have a bond with all my cameras.

You can see more from Liss here: Blog | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter

Contributor | Free Photoshop Curves

Hello there! I'm Mandy from ManD. It's such an honor to be one of the contributors here in Amanda's lovely blog and I can't wait to share some Photoshop presets and travel pictures with you!

This time round, I produced two Photoshop curves (double happiness!) free for downloads. The first curve, Blue Mail yields a filmy effect and enhances the overall contrast of a picture. It's quite applicable to all sorts of pictures. The second, Beacon is a variation that comes with a warmer tone. Recommendations: Tune down the curve's opacity to around 70-80% to make the picture softer and more natural.

Click here to download your free curve: Blue Mail. 

Click here to download your free curve: Beacon.

Instructions on how to use the curve can be found here: Installation Guide by Julia Trotti. 

I guess that's all! Hope you enjoy the curves, and if you have any inquiries, do not hesitate to contact me. More free Photoshop presets are also available on my blog here.

Cheers!

Mandy Faith
ManD
Here Comes the Sun Contributor

His & Hers | Favourite Workout Tracks

This year I'm running a blogging series 'His & Hers' where Jeremy and I share and compare a few of our favourite things. We kicked it off recently with a post on our favourite movies. This time around we were inspired by a Spotify article on the top 20 New Zealand workout tracks to share the music we listen to when we run. Mostly we run together so it's without music, but when we are working out alone it's great to have some energetic and inspiring music to help you push that little bit further. Here are our faves:

His:

1. Oh Sleeper - Endseekers

2. Fall Out Boy - Sugar We're Goin Down

3. August Burns Red - Empire

4. Katy Perry - E.T

5. Mumford & Sons - Little Lion Man

6. Beyonce feat. Jay Z - Crazy in Love

7. Nero - Promises

8. Ellie Goulding - Figure 8

9. Loui the Zu - Smokers Lung

10. Attack Attack! - The Revolution

Hers:

1. Kimbra - Come into my Head

2. Ellie Goulding - Only You

3. Katy Perry - Firework

4. Fun. - Carry On

5. Robyn - Call Your Girlfiend

6. Passion Pit - Take a Walk

7. Beyonce - Run the World (Girls)

8. Ok Go - Here it goes Again

9. Kimbra - Cameo Lover

10. Ellie Goulding - Anything Can Happen

Who are you?

In the past I used to occasionally write mini surveys for you guys to find out more about who you are and so I can come visit your blogs. I've been having a bit of a reminisce through my archives and realised it's been almost two years since the last one so I thought it was time I brought this feature back!

I'd love to know more about you so if you want to play along just copy and paste this mini survey into the comments section and replace my answers with yours. If you read my blog but don't have a blogger account you can still comment anonymously and just tell me your name in your answers. I'm excited to find out more about who you all are :) I hope you play along!

1. What's your day job?
I was working in marketing/ communications but I left to pursue my own passions. At the moment I'm a mix of full time blogging and setting up my own social media consultation/management business. (Feels weird to finally be spilling the beans on what I've been working on all this time!)
2. Where are you from? 
New Zealand :)
3. What are your favourite hobbies?
Blogging (obviously), running, reading and photography.
4. What are your favourite TV shows? 
I have so many! Some all-time favourites include The Wire, Gilmore Girls, Veronica Mars and Arrested Development. Some recent faves are New Girl, Modern Family and Breaking Bad.
5. Where do you want to travel to? 
Eeeeeverywhere! But top of the list would be Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong. And New York.

Can't wait to hear from you guys!

Cocktail Recipe | Jarjitos!

My lovely blogging friend Mandy from Making Nice in the Midwest has a blogging series called 'Guest Bartender' where different bloggers share some of their favourite cocktail recipes. I was recently invited to contribute and shared the details on how to make these Jarjitos! Jarjito is just a fun name for a mojito in a jar and we made them with vodka instead of white rum.

You can check out my guest post and step by step instructions here and recipes from other bloggers here. Enjoy!