Tomboy

Being a woman is so high maintenance sometimes! I was raised with three very 'blokey' brothers which often ment that my parents dressed me in by brothers clothes and I played whatever they played on weekends and after school. This often involved making go-carts and racing them with neighbours, lizard collecting and making our special concoction of 'snail soup' (snails, slugs, water, salt...you know the rest :P) I never worried about how grubby I looked and it was often a fight for my mum to get me to wear earrings or anything girly.  Now I'm a grown woman but it doesn't help that I have three sons (no daughters), a professional rugby player husband with two of his male relatives living with us. I prefer to dress in anything baggy and often resort to wearing my husbands, 11 year old son's or my brothers clothes simply because I like it. Dressing in anything girly or sexy is a treat (more for my husband than myself) which I don't mind indulging in when I have the time or am in the mood for it.  This blog post is to pay homage to some of the beautiful celebrities who aren't afraid to strip off the stilettos and embrase their masculine side by doning mens style threads every now and then.

Quentin Crisp

Ruby Rose

Shiloh Jolie Pitt

Gwen Stefani

Ashley Olsen

Alexa Chung

Nicole Richie

Vanessa Paradis

xx Jo

Visual Diary: Melbourne

While I was back in Oz, I paid a vist to my best friend in Melbourne. It's the 3rd time I've been to this beautiful city and whilst I love the vibrancy, the beaches and the fast pace of Sydney life, I do appreciate Melbourne's more laid back lifestyle and its appreciation for the arts which shows in its architecture, fashion and abundance of music, drama and art events. Another thing that struck me was how beautifuly and cleverly styled all the window displays were in many of the high street and independent stores I came across. Every time I visit, I can't stop going on about how much I love the layout of the city and how much it reminded me of a 'mini London'. I was only there for the weekend but because I was child free, we got a lot eating, catching up, shopping, eating, hanging out and of course, eating done ;). My favourites definitely have to be the different cafes and shops around the Brunswick area as well as the Camberwell Sunday Markets which I literally had to be pried away from.

Another great window display at a vintage store in Brunswick. I love how they've used pages out of a children's book as the backdrop! Cute.

MUD Australia's fabulous suspended tableware and cutlery window display. Their current range is pretty darn amazing too!

Bustling, eclectic and eccentric. Camberwell Sunday Markets.

Mooching...bargaining...mooching...bargaining...if only life were that simple.

Stunning asian inspired lantern.

Can never run out of ideas of what to do with old frames!

Vintage printing press letters. Completely useless unless you have a printing press of course but there is something I just love about them.

I was so close to purchasing these beautiful solid rose wood corbels to use as brackets for a ledge in our house in Australia. I still have nightmares about not getting them. So beautiful, so regretting it!

I purchased all this plus another pair of sunglasses for well under $60! I could have bought more but had no more room in my luggage :(.

xx Jo

Lovely things...

Its been one week since I've returned back to the UK and with jetlag, the craziness of all my boys returning to school (one just starting and the other starting highschool) as well as 3 separate drop offs in the morning, I am surprisingly starting to get my groove back and settling into a good routine.

I've just purchased some design books and a bundle of my favourite design mags in an effort to gain some blog inspiration. To be honest I was looking to write about something with more substance but with new Autumn/Winter ranges out, there are just so many amazing products out there that I am ogling at the moment. Here are a few of my faves.

Urban Outfitters Paisley Floral Tapestry Throw

Would look deliciously cosy partnered with crisp white sheets and a mish mash of pillows of different shades, shapes and textures. Would look just as lovely thrown carelessly over a lovely mid century vintage couch.

Seletti fruit and weapons shelf sculpture in still life white.

I just love it when fruit and felony unite to make a truely wonderful kitsch statement piece for the abode. Seletti products never cease to please! More of their product range could be found here.

Olympus Pen digital camera

"Most people think that a cool camera has to look like it came from the future. The PEN looks like it came from your dad!"

...call me shallow but under that permise alone, I'm sold!

Broughton steel and leather log basket at Chesneys

With Autumn now upon us and the temps cooling down, this is the perfectly stylish accessory for any log fireplace.

xx Jo

Meeting Sibella Court

Those of you who follow my blog know its no secret that I admire the work of Stylist, Interior Designer, author and The Society Inc. owner, Sibella Court. The influence of her love of travel, history, the beach and personal memories is so profound in her commercial styling, interior design and the items she curates for The Society Inc. I love the fact that the store undergoes a complete colour palette and theme change 4 times a year...something I find very thoughtful and true to what she does best as a stylist and designer.
So naturally, when I found out she was conducting a book signing session at Potts Point Bookstore, I was excited to get the chance to meet her. I was so un-blogger like as to not prepare myself to interview her because I thought it might be too busy tsk'tsk (Obviously something I'm still learning about as a blogger). So when I discovered she had plenty of free time to sign, take a photo and have a little chat, I was pleasantly surprised....as well as kinda bummed that I didn't prepare anything :P.

Sibella was very polite and attentive and mentioned that she had come across Lola Lovely Pre Adored when I told her the name of my blog, which I was quite chuffed about! Apart from that, my lack of preparation reduced me to being a bit of a nervous wreck; apologising for taking photos, fumbling around my mind for questions whilst listening to her generous answers, and my indecisiveness as to which book I should get her to sign.What I had discovered during our conversation, was that her 3rd book Nomad will be hitting bookstores internationally on the 1st of November. Its theme as the title suggests, is styling with items collected throughout her travels. I was fortunate enough to have a sneak peek into Nomad and was taken aback by the beautiful photography and layout of styled vignettes filled with the colours, textures and the ornate ethnic patterns of objects picked up during her travels throughout the Mediterranean, South America, Asia and the Middle East. Definitely a book for people like myself, who love to collect all sorts of curio during their travels...PLUS, she also mentioned that she is in the process of working on a 4th book which will be released some time next year, so be sure to look out for that!

As some may know, Sibella works closely with Justin and Bettina Hemmes as an interior stylist for the Merivale Group where among others, she has styled and designed rooms such the Upstairs at the Beresford Hotel in Surry Hills and Ms G's in Potts Point (Which co-incidentally was the same restaurant I stopped to gawk at the interior of on my way to the book signing.). Sibella is currently working on several projects at the moment. She particularly spoke about the research she is currently conducting to convert an old 1920's bathing pavilion in Neilson Park into a bar. Her fascination with the locker rooms of old underground boxing gyms will present itself in the styling of this bar. I envisage old rust patina metal lockers, exposed bulb lamps suspended from the ceiling, worn wooden benches and cracked concrete walls. With an amazing eye and a bevy of local and international suppliers, I'm sure this space will deliver in style and ambiance and I personally can't wait to see the finished result.

'Upstairs' live music venue at the Beresford Hotel in Surry Hills

It was hard to think of insightful questions on the spot but as a budding designer all I wanted to know was where Sibella drew particular inspiration from. She mentioned her fascination for galleries and museums, some of which she had worked on several projects with. She also mentioned the great working relationship she has with local curators and artists. I noticed in particular on her blog, Anna Wili Highfield whom she is good friends with and an artist who I had blogged about in the past here.

I wish I could cover all we spoke about but to be honest, a lot of it was a blur, I was too busy
thinking whether she noticed how flustered I was as well as the beads of sweat forming on my forehead (not sure if that was due to nerves or the fact that I had speedily walked several kilometres to get to the bookstore lol). All in all, it was a very pleasant, casual but inspirational experience. But I couldn't help but feel the pressure when she said she'll keep eye out on my blog. If that's not encouragement enough to push me along with my studies and what I do with LLPA, I don't know what is! 


xx Jo
For my previous blog on Sibella Court, click here.

Studies so far put to good use

Among the craziness of trying to tie up loose ends before I leave for the UK, I was 'hired' by my mum to select the colour scheme and wall and window treatments for their big 6 bedroom home which they are in the process of re-decorating. I figured it would be fun and a bit of practical experience for my interior design studies. Currently, they have a very cold pale greyish blue colour on her walls with a large brick wall as their 'feature wall' in the formal lounge. Although they have loads of big windows, the majority of them are either south or east facing meaning they don't get much light during the peak of the day, so I've chosen a very pale (some would say white) muted yellow based paint to warm the house up a bit.

Living room brick wall

One of the soon to be 'feature' walls

Mum wanted feature walls so instead painting random walls in block colours (which I find to be kind of outdated and sometimes garish) I've chosen a nice cream coloured grass cloth to feature on selected walls throughout the house as well as on the stairwell where Ive suggested installing a dado rail and only covering the bottom half of the wall in the same grasscloth. With the majority of the house being tiled, I think this would definitely soften the spaces up a bit and will mirror the texture and shades of the big brick feature wall. My parents have very simple, classic taste so here are a few sample pics I showed them of how I visualised the overall feel of the house to be. They loved it! The decorators arrive tomorrow to start painting so we're very excited to see the finishing result!

Now I won't be applying this to any of the spaces in my parent's place but I thought I'd share this amazing product I came across during my research into the perfect wall covering. Its a product by Crezana called Liquid Metal Grasscloth. It's so opulent and could easily be OTT when teamed with the wrong surfaces and accessories but I love how it's styled in this image right down to the very last detail of the framed child's drawing on the wall. Definitely adding it to my inspiration images for one of my upcoming design assignments. Perfection!

xx Jo

Where in the world is LLPA...

Hey peeps, 
Sorry for the major shortage of blogs lately. I've got so much to blog about but my lack of time and 'digital resources' (such as the usb cable for my camera :P) has got the better of me lately...but alas, I'll get around to things soon! 
As you may know, I'm back home in Australia for a visit. It's been great so far, time definitely flies when you're having fun! Apart from being out of action for a bit due to jetlag, as well as much needed catch ups with family and close friends, much of my time has been consumed by attending a few events and workshops as part of the Sydney Design Festival. This year's theme is 'Is Old New Again?' which is so relevant to what my ethos is behind Lola Lovely Pre Adored. Its all about ethical, sustainable design and up-cycling which is I am so excited by. Rosary Coloma, a dear friend and current guest curator at Sydney's Gaffa Gallery and was generous enough to invite me to several of Sydney Design Week's Launches. Rosary curated the installation, Lure with Bait, Strike with Chaos, which is a wonderful exhibition/experience created by designer, Liesl Hazleton in collaboration with John Smith of several deconstructed instruments which have been turned into beautiful, wearable pieces of jewellery. A musical 'soundtrack' resonates in the background as part of the display as the instruments' final 'swan song' prior to its great transformation. 
I also attended 'Up-cycle Fashion', run by A.L.A.S Label and Transparent seams. This Was basically a workshop allowing our creative juices to flow. A group of around 12 of us transformed pre-adored shirts, jumpers, skirts and trousers into completely different ready to wear garments. I was quite pleased with the result of my little creation where I transformed an old knitted jumper into a knee length, high waisted pencil skirt with pleat detail. 
There is so much more to share but even as I type, I am pressed for time to be somewhere else so I promise to post 'proper' blogs with images and more details about these wonderful events and much more very soon!


xx  Jo

Brazilica Festival 2011. Celebration of culture!

I mentioned it on my the LLPA Facebook Page and I'll say it again, I'm proud to be part of the Liverpool School of Samba and proud to promote the Brazilica Festival which we are hosting!! I've been practicing to take part as one of the sambistas this year but had to pull out (a week before due to a nasty accident :P) but nonetheless, this weekend will be a celebration of the wonderful Brazilian culture with events, performances and even a Rio de Janeiro style parade, working its way around the streets of Liverpool tomorrow! So, if you're in the North West of England come join the fun!! Click here to find out more about it.

xx Jo

Sibella Court's, NYC Apartment

All fads, matchy matchy pieces and brand names aside, home is all about surrounding yourself with treasures you love and memories.  I love how one of my favourite stylists, Sibella Court has the ability to create amazing, nostalgic spaces out of her random collection of paraphernalia. Her New York Loft on the third floor of a converted garment factory in China Town is a supreme example of this. To me each room is like a work of art, that only she knows the secrets behind.




For original source and more images click here. 


xx Jo

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

Portuguese Tart

Just this weekend past, a girlfriend and I planned a very last minute trip to Faro, Portugal. Both of us being Aussies, we were missing the sunshine, the beach and some good fresh seafood. Creature comforts we all take for granted back home. It all started with a Facebook status and kind of snowballed from there. Two days later, we were literally on a plane to Portugal!
We booked a modest hotel across the road from Praia Do Faro (Faro Beach) and were spoilt by an abundance of sunshine, fresh seafood and the open air of the ocean. What made this trip so wonderful was that there was no itinerary for the four days we were there. We lived for the moment, relaxing for hours with a good book, our pashmina scarves for a towel, and nothing but the sunshine and the waves of the beach as a backdrop. We went on little adventures by bus and foot armed with our apetites for culture, a few recommendations from the locals the limited amount of Spanish and Portuguese language I knew.
Here are a few happy snaps from my trip and some of the sights of beautiful, historic Faro, Portugal.

Our hotel to the right. 

Just like nanna's house ;)

What it lacked in decor it definitely made up for in location.

Going walkabouts through the town.

Beautiful colours of the native flowers.

Serenity of the beach.

Food, glorious food!

Historic city of Faro.

Despite the fact that we returned back to the UK with our clothes slightly more snug than usual, we had a wonderful time relaxing, dreaming and soaking up the sunshine. For me this time away on my own made me appreciate my beautiful family much more, it gave me new perspective and focus on my dreams and it definitely refreshed me to be able to continue to pursue them through my studies, work, and through my work with LLPA.

xx Jo