Pastel Pumps

Popped into my local Mr Price store the other day, and after much deliberation as to which pastel colored pumps I preferred, I decided to spoil myself with both. New motto: When in doubt, get one in each color. Thanks Mr P!

Visit the ever-so inspiring Mr Price blog called 'In The Fashion Loop' by clicking here.

When all the Pro's came to town

The pro surf tour, formally known as the World Qualifying Series (WQS) came to town a few weeks ago, and after a year of being out-of-the-loop with all things surf related, I jumped back on the bandwagon and got involved in all the fun.
The Mr Price pro, a 6* Prime WQS event took place from July 2nd-8th, and with the event practically being in my back garden (I'm a local Ballito girl), I was able to get on staff for the event and help run the contest. I assumed the role of event assistant for the week and got involved with a little bit of this and a little bit of that. The event was such fun, and it's always my favorite time of year. I love it when different accents can be heard around the beach, and the world's best surfers get to show off on our waves. In the end, Glen Hall, an Irishman from Aus took the contest win on a sunny Ballito sunday, and that closed off an amazing week of surfing and pack-out beaches full of avid supporters.

Two days after the Mr Price Pro ended, the second leg of the South African WQS events began down at JBay. The Billabong Pro, also a 6* WQS event started on Tuesday July 10th, and I was lucky enough to travel down to the Eastern Cape and be a part of the action. When I was much younger, my dad used to work for ASP, so as a part of his job, he would go to the event every year and most years I would go with. The last time I was in JBay I was just a little girl, and so it was amazing to be back there  and watch the Pro for the first time in years. The waves over the contest period in Jeffrey's were absolutely phenomenal.  It was between 6-8ft most days, and the conditions were perfect. It's seldom that the planets align and such perfect waves are delivered for a contest, but the Billabong Pro was a definite exception. I spent most of the week watching the event from the top floor of an apartment building right on the point at Supertubes, and with a panoramic view like that, I definitely had the best seats in the house. Our South African surfers put on a really good show throughout the event, but unfortunately were unable to clench the win from Brazillian Adriano De Souza who ended up being crowded the 2012 champion.
I had such a stunning time in JBay, and despite the cold weather, and often gale force winds, we still managed to watch the surfing all day (with Vida Coffees in hand) and then burn holes on the dance floor at 'The Mexican' by night. I made some great friends, enjoyed relaxing and watching top class surfing, and remembering all the trips to Jeffrey's as a kid.

Happy 94th Birthday Madeebs

Today, Nelson Mandela, a hero I share with millions of other South Africans, has his 94th birthday. This man has taught us the definition of forgiveness, love and living in harmony, even with your enemies. He is a beautiful, gentle soul that has shaped the course of my country's history. Thank you Madiba for the sacrifices you made so that my generation could know the feeling of freedom. 

Oh, to Build a Home

As most girls do, I've been lately dreaming of taking a house and making it into a home. I've been doing temporary work at a furniture and decor shop in Ballito called Home Flair, and I think being surrounded by gorgeous wallpaper and crystal chandeliers from 9-5 has inspired me to start visualizing what the home of my dreams would look like. So, here's to hoping my ship comes in and I get to take this mood board of homely dreams and turn it into a sweet reality. 

Night Market

There are many reasons why I love my home town, Ballito, and this is one of them:

This friday night there will be a night market/picnic under the stars at the Litchi Orchard in Salt Rock. My friends Chloe, Josh and Majozi will be entertaining us with their lovely voices and musical talents. 

Oh, and I'd better warn you that there are foods of the most decadent kind that lurk around this market, so come armed with an empty stomach and eat your fill!

Friday is going to be divine, I can't wait. 

For more info, visit the Litchi Orchard's website

Bikes, Betties and the Beautiful Beachfront

Last week, in celebration of the lovely Casey's birthday, a big group of friends and I went skating/biking along the Durban beachfront promenade, from the Moses Mabhida Stadium to Ushaka and back. It was one of those 'pinch myself is this really winter?' kind of June days, and Durban was breathtakingly beautiful. This day was one of my top 5 days of 2012 so far and I am ever grateful for the city I live in and the people that I get to live with, and fun is definitely a top priority of ours. 

Side note: I am rather stoked about the recent rise in popularity of skateboarding in Durban (especially amongst girls), thanks to the likes of companies like 'Peg.' I got to use a Peg longboard for the first time, and it was a sweet ride!  

Here are some of my iPhone pics of the day.

Spotted on 'Guy With Camera' Blog

Last week some friends of mine and I went cycling/skating along the Durban beachfront promenade (blogpost and pics soon to follow), and I distinctly remember a guy standing with an SLR taking some shots of us as we rode past. You know those times when a rando takes a photo of you and 1) you wonder what the heck that picture will look like, and 2) wonder where the heck it will show up. Well, a friend sent me a link on Facebook to the 'Guy With Camera' blog telling me to check it out because I showed up in one of the featured photos. 'Twas a nice little surprise. 
I so loved the entire blog post that the Guy With Camera did about my hometown Durban, that I thought I'd share it along with some of the beautiful photos that accompanied it.


As seen on www.guywithcamera.co.za:
Durban
While growing up in Natal, Durban always had the feeling of a dated city. Like retro theme park or a sticky swimming pool flooded with flashbacks in beach mosaic and the smell of suncream SPFs. A summer nostalgia for South Africans who used to swarm in from middle country. The vaal flocks of GP numberplates. “Are those all doctors?” But slowly the city seems to be shedding it’s past prime plastic and reinventing itself. It still keeps that warm retro charm but after walking the new promenade, exploring brave new coffee shops in industrial umbilo and seeing rooftop gardens on downtown city blocks, you get the feeling the city is becoming alive again. Durban doesn’t have a large network of creative types supported by advertising and media houses like in Cape Town or Joburg who are normally the fuel behind interesting city concepts. A lot of Durbanites migrate to Cape Town craving creative stimulation. But many of these new Durban projects are started by people who’ve studied art in Barcelona or have had a software company in San Fransisco making apps for Apple. And they’ve realised that there’s nothing wrong with applying new ideas in your home town while surfing in boardshorts over your lunch break.

Durban, isn't it pretty?

Say It With Watercolour

Today I had some fun exploiting my new 'watercolour' Photoshop brushes. Added some of my favorite quotes and lyrics, and here you have it: