Mendl's Mail

Below is a letter I sent to a fellow grand budapest hotel fan :-) 

All you have to do is paint an envelope salmon pink with watercolours, allow it to dry, then use red paint to do a simplified version of the mendl's box design.

I didn't bother drawing the design first, mostly because I'm lazy, but also because I like the uneven look, but if you prefer a more perfect envelope you could trace all the swirls etc from the actual box design. Don't forget to substitute the words for your friends address though!

Next I want to try making the courtesan au chocolat sweets that feature throughout the film - you can find a video and recipe here. 

You can even make a box to put your cooking creations in using this DIY!

Anyway, hope you enjoyed the mendl's inspired mail and have a lovely week! 

p.s. I may be absent from this blog for a little while because my camera has broken :-( I have yet to decide what type of camera to get - is it worth the extra money to get a slr or should I just get a still shot camera? I am torn because I would like to have better quality images but I don't want to spend too much- definitely no more than $500 so it would be on the cheap end of slr's- is their quality still good? I am by no means a photography person so any advice would be much appreciated!

Guest Post: DIY Ombre Parcel String

Hello! Claire here from South by North. Here is a simple little diy project to add some colour to a parcel.

Cut two metres of cotton string, or however much you need. In two glasses, add a few drops of different colour natural food colouring to water, it should be quite strong so you only need a small amount of water. Drape half of your string in one glass, and the other half in the other, leaving the middle portion out of the glass. It helps the string soak up the colour if you press it into the liquid. 

Take the string out of the liquid and squeeze the excess out over the sink. Lay it out to dry. Once it is totally dry you can use it on anything!  Word of warning, if you get the string wet again the colour will likely run.

The Grand Budapest Hotel

I saw Wes Anderson's new film 'The Grand Budapest Hotel' today and I am in LOVE! I think its my favourite of his so far (which is saying something because Moonrise Kingdom is one of my all time favourite movies). The colours and the building were what made it for me (although everything else was of course fabulous). If you haven't seen it I would definitely recommend :-)

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I love how similarly Wes Anderson and Jude Law are dressed in this photo- I wonder if if was intentional?

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Such pretty colours!

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I so badly want to stay at a hotel with decor like this. 

Incoming Post

The other week Fee from Burnt Feather sent me an amazing parcel of goodies, and I'm finally getting a chance to share it :-)

She sent me a shell bunny! It is so cute, and it was perfect timing for easter :-D She also sent some scout badges to add to my collection of patches (which I took photos of today, so I'll post it soon), a sweet hedgehog notepad, vintage wrapping paper and a little Australiana dish! 

How great is the decoration on the cylinder she sent!

Thank you ever so much fee, I loved everything in it!!

Warren Kirk

Hello all. I haven't written for a while because I have been completely bogged down with uni work, which feels like it's never-ending. I have been trying to catch up with all the lovely mail I've been sent, so for those of you waiting, I'm sorry and I'll try to send some out soon :-) I haven't had time to write a proper post so I'll leave you all with this:

This post is a bit photo heavy because I have completely fallen in love with the photography of Warren Kirk. He documents Australian suburbia, and there are so many brilliant snapshots into peoples lives and their taste. All the photos in this post are from his flickr, which I spent forever gazing at. I just love all the vintage and tacky details and I hope you guys enjoy them too :-)

I adore swan pots.

Those sunnies, and the red post box; divine. 

 Everything about this room is just perfect.

I would give anything to have this kitchen with its faux wood cabinets and salmon bench top. She clearly has wonderful taste; that jumper is brilliant, as are all the trinkets on the shelves.  + how sweet is the bird on her shoulder!

I have a bit of a thing for vintage scout stuff. My local scout hall is the most beautiful place, filled with vintage banners, awards and pictures (I will have to take photos one day). Whilst I am partial to my own scout hall, the wall mural in this one is so great. 

 Look at those giant cacti!

I couldn't resist adding this one. I love shell art. 

And last but certainly not least, this amazing collection of cacti and concrete pots! I am slowly gathering vintage concrete pots and filling them with cacti, but sadly I come nowhere near rivalling this beautiful assortment. 

Anyway I hope you all enjoyed this peek into old Australian suburbia. I will try to do a snail mail post soon :-)

happy easter

Happy easter everyone! I hope you have a fabulous, chocolate filled day! 

I haven't had any time lately to do any easter crafts :-( So I'll leave you with this sweet photo instead

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Mini Easter Mail

Some mini mail I made whilst procrastinating to send to my friends to wish them a happy easter :-)

The cards are just a little bit of thick paper with oil pastel dots and the envelopes are made out of wrapping paper scraps. They probably only took about 10 minutes to make all up. 

confetti mail

A letter I sent to Sara from random places familiar faces :-)

I don't know why I had never thought to make confetti mail before - I almost always add confetti to my letters and I made these cards which are very similar but I have never actually stuck confetti onto my mail?! I have now remedied this and I love how it looks!

The rosette award thingo isn't stuck onto the letter it's just covering the address.

I sent some dymo tape, an old Australian iron on patch (I've started a collection- I'll have to post about them one day), a fortune teller fish, a black apple card and a cute poodle coaster :-)

I bought this rainbow washi tape when I was in melbourne and it is the best $5 I have ever spent on washi tape- I am in love with it!

I have a billion uni assessments/essays in the next couple of weeks so I will probably be a bit absent for a while as I don't have any drafts saved, but I will try and post something :-)

Incoming Mail

I received a lovely parcel from Kathya the other day. Inside was the most amazing vintage christmas wrapping paper! She also sent a vintage card, sweet page markers, a tote bag and cute socks :-D

thank you ever so much kathya!