8 Things...

Hello hellooo!! So I've finally got my A into G blogging for the first time in a very long while. Whilst I've been busy with non blog related things, I've managed to get my hands on a whole heap of wonderful vintage frocks, tops, skirts, bags and bottoms of which I'm currently in the process of funking up and eventually putting online for some lucky ladies to purchase!

In the meanwhile, I was tagged by the lovely Hazel of Hazel's World of Joy in her Tagged! 8 Things... blog. There's always a bit of nostalgia involved in filling these things out which is why I was more than happy to participate. It reminds me of old school days where we'd get friends to fill out 'Slam Books'...remember those? So much fun! So heres my 8 Things to kick start my return to the world of le Blog!

Eight TV shows I watch...
To be honest I really don't watch much television so my selection is really random, but when I do, these are normally what I end up watching.
1. Grand Designs
2. Jamie Oliver 30 Minute Meals
3. Embarrassing Bodies
4. Sex and the City
5. Gordon Ramsay Great Escape (which is finished)
6. Perfect
7. A Place in the Sun
8. Jersey Shore, very trashy but strangely entertaining.

Eight Favourite places to eat...(Of the MANY)
1. Lanna Thai. My local Thai restaurant (St Helens, UK) and the closest thing to authentic Thai food around here. Run and cooked by Thai people, gotta love that!
2. My mum's place in Australia especially when my grandma cooks. She really is the best home cook I know!
3. Temasek (Parramatta, NSW Australia) AMAZING traditional Malay food that definitely hits the spot for my love of chilli!
4. Toko (Surry Hills, NSW Australia) Fabulous modern Japanese food, relaxed, trendy atmosphere with awesome cocktails to boot!
5. Mad Cow @ The Ivy (Sydney, NSW Australia) The BEST Wagyu steaks out! So delicious served with the chimichurri sauce.
6. Bem Brasil  (Manchester & Liverpool, UK) Authentic Brazilian rodizio and buffet. You never leave this place with an empty stomach!
7. Barcelona. There are so many tapas bars around the city that serve delicious traditional catalan tapas dishes! The food played a huge part in me falling in love with this beautiful city!
8. Teacup on Thomas Street (Manchester, UK) Wonderful array of cakes, puddings and teas. I like the fact they use fresh, whole ingredients for all their meals, the owner is super friendly and the atmosphere is super relaxed!

Eight Things I look forward to...
1. Finally finishing all the vintage garments I've been altering.
2. My best friend's wedding in April 2012 when I will fly solo to Melbourne for the wedding and then Sydney, Australia to see my beloved family and friends. Looking forward to seeing her walk down the aisle, not looking forward to singing (haven't sung in aaaages) and doing a speech at the reception eek!
3. Finishing my interior design diploma...hopefully soon :P.
4. Going to America at the end of the year with my family. Planning on visiting relatives on the east and west coasts as well Hawaii.
5. Skype date with one of my besties tomorrow.
6. Finally getting my visit back home to Australia organised.
7. Bed time...super buggered today!
8. My hair growing long again. I cut it short late last year but it's slowly but surely growing back.

Eight Things on my wishlist...
1. New DSLR camera (...STILL!)
2. More sunshine.
4. Endless supply of red velvet cup cakes.
4. A new pair of platform heels.
5. A pair of Jinga shoes for dancing.
6. A big 10 seater vintage or reclaimed wooden dining table with beautiful turned legs to take back to Australia for when we move back.
7. New dining chairs.
8. Im currently on the hunt for some new paintings. In particular, old renaissance or period portraits with black backgrounds.

Eight Things I'm passionate about...
1. Respect
2. Following your dreams
3. Empathy
4. Family
5. Faith
6. Honesty (with yourself and others)
7. Good food
8. Life

Eight Words or phrases I use a lot...
1. "You know what I mean??" I nearly always use this at the end of  when I'm explaining something.
2. "Holy Moly!"
3. "Are you serious??"
4. "It's hard to explain..." Often mid sentence when I couldn't be bothered explaining something.
5. "Oh, that's amazing!"
6. A vast array of 'colourful' four letter words that I'm really trying hard to find alternatives for.
7. "Geez Louise!"
8. "I love you." You can never say that too much! ;)

Eight Things I've learnt from the past...
1. Forgiveness can always be given but trust must be earnt.
2. 'Great minds talk about ideas, average minds talk about things, small minds talk about people.'
3. It's not the quantity of friends you have its about the quality.
4. Don't judge, not one is better than another, everyone has a story.
5. I think theres something about turning 30 that changed me. Appearances, materialism etc take a backseat and self confidence, contentment and acceptance with life and myself really set in.
6. Always aim to be purposeful and don't waste time on idleness.
7. Never diet or deprive your body of what you want. Everything in moderation is good for you. Keeps you satisfied and keeps cravings at bay.
8. To always keep my mind and body active.

Eight Places I would love to visit...
1. New York in Spring/Summer as I've only ever been in Winter :(.
2. Turkey
3. Africa
4. Ho Chi Minh and Hanoi in Vietnam and travel down the Mekong Delta to Cambodia.
5. Japan during Spring time
6. Santorini, Greece
7. I've been to the South of France but would love to do a road trip along the entire coast in summer during the seafood festivals.
8. Rio di Janeiro during Carnival

Eight Things I want or need...
1. I want new pair of proper running shoes. Running in my cross trainers all this time must be whats causing sore knees whenever I run.
2. I need to get my own sewing machine and give back my friend's one that I've been borrowing for a while now.
3. I need to invest more time blogging. I've been majorly slack lately...all for good reasons though ;),
4. I need to get cracking on altering all these new vintage clothes I'm going to put online to sell.
5. I need to sketch and draw more and be more experimental with different mediums.
6. I need to call my best friends back home in Oz more often. It's like food for my soul whenever I talk to them!
7. I want to get my windows washed, its a big thing here in the UK not sure why because it rains all the time anyway but...yeah. 8. I need to wear my glasses more often. I always catch myself squinting when I read or am on the computer.
8. Desperately need a good 2 hour long deep tissue massage. Been way too long!


Eight Things I love about winter...
1. The fashion.
2. Being able to wear boots all the time.
3. Being able to warm up against the fire place.
4. Snow
5. Comfort food.
6. Mulled wine.
7. Flannel pyjamas and chunky bed robes.
8. Finger drawing on fogged up windows.

Eight bloggers I'm tagging...
I've tagged bloggers who I've recently come across and have really enjoyed reading!
1. Susan @ Retro Restyling 
2. Brandi @ Not Your Average Ordinary
3. Claire @ Landbaby at Blucoat
4. Elizabeth @ Peach on Earth
5. Noelani @ Mon Petit Chou Chou 
6. Linda @ Reunion Vintage
7. Hatty @ Who Shall I Be Today
8. Caroline @ Sparkly Vodka


xx Jo