Happy weekend!

"Each morning when I open my eyes I say to myself: I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today. 

I can choose which it shall be. Yesterday is dead, 

tomorrow hasn’t arrived yet. I have just one day, today, 

and I’m going to be happy in it." - Groucho Marx

Hope you have a lovely weekend :)

Listen-worthy: Avalanche City

 
Avalanche City is folk music band from New Zealand. While the band is actually a solo project by singer/songwriter Dave Baxter,  live perfromances feature other musicians. Avalanche City's debut album Our New Life Above the Ground was released  in 2011 and was written, performed and recorded by Baxter (pretty impressive, huh).

The album, which was only recently released in South Africa, is really cool and I like that most of the song lyrics are hopeful and sweet. Currently my favourite songs on the album are 'You and I' and 'Love Love Love' ( watch the cute music video for it below)

To find out more about the band you can visit HERE

Gold earrings giveaway

Today I am happy to announce the start of a fabulous giveaway sponsored by Friedasophie Jewellery Design (which is based in California, USA).    

The winner will receive this pretty pair of earrings:

Description: Beautiful 14k gold-filled leaf earrings hanging from gold-filled ear wires. Size: approx. 45-50mm.

HOW TO ENTER:

1. Be a follower of  this blog on FB or twitter- THEN please visit the Friedasophie Etsy store and leave a comment on this post telling me which item is your favourite.

2. For an extra entry, tweet about this giveaway & include @beingbrazen in the tweet

Giveaway notes: *Anyone may enter this giveaway * the winner will be chosen randomly * This giveaway will end on Sunday, 8 April and the winner will be announced on twitter & Facebook on Tuesday, 10 April. Good luck, darlings. 

 -  -GIVEAWAY CLOSED! Winner: Jhan from Beyond My Smile  - -

Call It Spring

International footwear and accessories brand 'Call It Spring' will be launching in South Africa super soon and it looks really cool. Trot over HERE and check out their website. 

Note: The first stores will open in Menlyn and Cresta (Jo'burg) in April, in Canal Walk (Cape Town) in June and then in Sandton City in July.

Style inspiration: the denim shirt

  Image from The Satorialist

All above images found via Tumblr

 Image from Style Pantry

 Are you a fan of denim shirts? They are growing on me -I think I may need to get one.

Movies I want to watch....

 

Here are a few of the movies that I am really looking forward to watching- hopefully they will all be out here soon (Note: click on movie title to watch the official trailer):

1. The Hunger Games - Based on the series of books by Suzanne Collins, the film centers around Katniss Everdeen and her fight for survival in a televised "game"that  forces young district representatives  to eliminate their competitors (after reading all the books I am very excited for the film)

2.  On The Road - In this film adaptation of American writer Jack Kerouac's 1951 novel, a group of friends go on a crazy road trip across America during the 50's. 

3. Dark Shadows - Directed by Tim Burton, this film is based on a gothic soap opera that originally aired from 1966 to 1971 on American TV. The film looks like it will be quirky and funny, plus it has a great cast (which includes Johnny Depp & Michelle Pfeiffer).

4. Snow White and The Huntsman  - In a new twist to the much loved fairy tale,  The Huntsman hired to kill Snow White becomes her protector and trains her to fight so she can help take down the evil queen. This film looks like it will be brilliant.

5. The Odd Life of Timothy Green -  A couple that are struggling to get pregnant bury a list of wishes for their future child in the backyard and then find a little boy on their doorstep.  This Disney film looks so sweet, magical and will probably make me cry my eyes out.  

6. The Avengers -  This action/adventure film, which is based on the Marvel comic book series, is about a  team of superheroes that are recruited to help save the world from Loki and his army. It looks  awesome and full of amazing special effects.

What movie/s are currently on your must-see list?

The 'Keep Calm & Carry On' story

I'm a huge fan of the 'Keep Calm and Carry On' posters (plus many of the variations of the original) and of the simple motto itself. Recently I stumbled across a short film that tells the story behind the now-iconic poster an just had to share it.

Check out the film below for a little 'Keep Calm and Carry On' history lesson :

Image of poster from Tumblr.com

New in my closet

Winter (aka my favourite season)  is slowly approaching and I am looking forward to wearing extra layers of clothing again. While my closet is not chilly weather ready yet, I am hoping to have it full of lovely winter clothes soon. 

Here are a few recent additions to my closet (mainly basics):

1. Wine coloured dress - Mr Price
2. Black, tulip dress in jacquard - ASOS 
3. Striped grey, cotton top - Country Road 
4. Blue & white striped scarf - Trenery 
5. Bodycon skirt - Country Road 
6. Red knit sweater - Mango

 - All photos taken by me -

10 things I learnt this weekend

1. The Swedish film version of The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo is good.
2. When it comes to sushi, my eyes are always bigger than my stomach
3. Constantly being hunched over in front of my computer is not good for my back or posture - I need to get a new computer chair and focus on sitting properly.
4. I always seem to think I have the most brilliant ideas when I'm drinking lots of wine, unfortunately  I struggle to remember most of those ideas the next day *laughs*.
5. Whenever I seriously crave a sweet treat, I never have any in the house
6. I am so thankful that The Boyf is a skilled and fearless bug catcher
7. Not everyone finds THIS Tumblr as funny and cute as I do (how could they not?)
8. I finally understand why everyone was raving about The Help book - it's awesome.
9. A statement necklace can really enhance a simple outfit (I want to buy a few more)
10. Not everything that is true needs to be said.

What have you learnt recently?

Happy Weekend!

"We cannot tell what may happen to us in the strange medley of life, But we can decide what happens in us, How we can take it, What we do with it, And that is what really counts in the end."  -Joseph Fort Newton

Music crush: The Naked and Famous

The Naked and Famous are a really awesome,  indie rock band from New Zealand .

The band formed and in 2008 and released their debut studio album, Passive Me, Aggressive You, in September 2010. In addition to being nominated for numerous awards, many of the songs off the debut album have bee used in popular TV shows  (like The Vampire Diaries, Gossip Girl and  The Secret Circle), movies and in several commercials.

At the moment my favourite songs from the band are 'Punching In A Dream' and 'Young Blood'. Check out the video for 'Young Blood' below: 

 To find out more about the band or to listen to more of their songs, trot over here

TV show love

I 'm a bit of a TV junkie and currently I am watching quite a few TV series (like THESE five) , but I am always on the look out for great new shows to check out. Not too long ago I was introduced to these two, lovely TV shows and I have really been enjoying them :

1. Hart of Dixie - The show centers around  Zoe Hart (played by Rachel Bilson), a New Yorker and brand new doctor, who moves to a small Southern town to take a medical position only to discover that the doctor who invited her there has passed away and left her half of  his medical practice in his will.
It's a really sweet and funny show that is filled with very likeable characters. Plus, both Rachel Bilson and Jaime King (who plays one of the main characters in the show) wear some seriously fabulous outfits. Check out the series preview  over HERE

2. Once Upon a Time - This fantasy/drama series is set in small town called 'Storybrooke' where the residents are actually all fairytale characters, but they just don't remember they are.  The only person who seems to know the truth about everyone is a 10 year old boy, the mayor and Mr Gold ( a creepy character played by Robert Carlyle). The show flashes between the "real" world and the magical, fairy tale land where all the characters actually belongs.  
Personally, I think this show is wonderful and whimsical. If you love fairy tales I highly recommend you give this show a try. You can check out the TV series trailer over HERE

Have you discovered any great TV shows recently?

Celeb style: little lace dress

Both of these pretty celebs rocked little lace dresses this month:

Left: Mila Kunis in a blush pink Dior lace dress

Right: Emily Van Camp in a Diane von Furstenberg lace dress.

What do you think of their choices? Are you a fan of lace dresses?

Lust have item: The book clutch

I'm totally smitten with book clutches at the moment, especially Olympia Le-Tan ones.  I think they are the perfect, quirky accessory for any stylish book-lover. 

I first took notice of the book clutch when I saw Natalie Portman carrying one at the New York premiere of 'Black Swan' in 2010. Since then I have spotted quite a few celebrities rocking book clutches on the red carpet. Most recently, Michelle Williams attended the 2012 BAFTA's holding a book clutch from Olympia Le-Tan ( last image above).

French designer Olympia Le-Tan's book clutches are beautifully hand embroidered and are limited to only 16 of each design. Unfortunately, at around £900 each  (that's about  R10 000) they are a bit too pricey for most people. 

Here are two Olympia Le-Tan clutches I would love to own *le sigh*...

While Olympia Le-Tan book clutches may be the most covetable, there are quite a few other places that sell nice (and more affordable) book clutches. Recently I saw cute book clutches on the Kate Spade website and on Etsy. Alternatively, you could check out THIS awesome DIY video and learn how to make your own book clutch ( If I wasn't so DIY challenged, I would try this)

Would you want a book clutch? If so, which book would you want?


 - most of the above images found on tumblr.com -

Happy weekend!

"Too much of anything is bad, 

but too much Champagne is just right".
  - F. Scott Fitzgerald

Music crush: Birdy

Recently I received  Birdy's self-titled, debut album and I am really enjoying it.

Birdy (aka Jasmine van den Bogaerde ) is a 15 year old, British singer/pianist with a haunting and innocent voice. Discovered at the age of 12 (when she won a UK talent contest), her music career skyrocketed after her version of Bon Iver's "Skinny Love" was released on Youtube in January 2011. Since then the song has been featured on The Vampire Diaries TV series and has had over 18 million views on Youtube.

Her debut album, which mainly consists of covers of  indie songs, is beautiful and quite melancholic. My favourite songs on the album are  The xx's "Shelter", Phoenix's "1901", Nake and Famous' "Young Blood", Cherry Ghost's "People Help The People" and "Skinny Love" (watch the video below).

 To find out more information  or to buy the album in SA , you can visit here

Silver & topaz necklace giveaway

Today I am happy to announce the start of a lovely giveaway sponsored by South African jewellery designer, Jessica of Thula jewellery.  

The winner will receive this silver 'eternity' pendant and necklace ( so pretty): 

 Description: A sterling silver pendant, made up of two never ending circles. The center circle/ tube features a beautiful 6mm genuine round white topaz, the stone is bezel set into the center circle/ tube. The outer circle measures 13.5mm.
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HOW TO ENTER:

1. Trot over to the Thula website and tell me, below, which item you like best.

2. For an extra entry you can either:  "Like" the Thula facebook page and leave a comment on the wall mentioning this competition  OR tweet about this giveaway and include @beingbrazen and @hellothula in your tweet.

     Giveaway notes: *Anyone may enter this giveaway * the winner will be chosen randomly * This giveaway will end on Sunday, 18 March and the winner will be announced on twitter & FB on Monday, 19 March 2012. Good luck, darlings. 

GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED - winner @robzwatters

Products I'm using right now

Here are my thoughts on a few of the beauty products I have been using: 

1. Essie nail polish in 'Licorice'  - I've actually been using this  black nailpolish for a while and I really love it (especially in winter). It goes on well, though it does need two coats to be fully opaque.  It also doesn't seem to chip too easily, which is great.

2. Estee Lauder's Pure Colour eyeshadow in  'Pink Ice' -This pretty, neutral colour is very shimmery and works well as a highlighter. The packaging is very attractive  and I love that there is a mirror in the eyeshadow compact. I will definitely keep buying this colour.

3. Revlon PhotoReady Translucent Finisher - This finishing powder has a tiny bit of a sparkle to it, which I like. Annoyingly I find the powder does not last very long on my skin and the brush that comes in the compact is not very good. Overall I like this product, but I'm still on the hunt for the ultimate finishing powder. 

4. Woolworths face tinted moisturiser (light) - Usually I only use Dermalogica's Sheer Tint Moisture if I need a tinted moisturiser, but  I thought I would give this one a try and I was pleasantly surprised.  It looks a lot darker when you first squeeze it out the tube, but once you start spreading it over your face it becomes lighter and more sheer. It offers nice, light coverage and has a SPF15. It's also very affordable.

5. Benefit's Bad Gal Lash mascara (black) -  I like that this mascara adds some volume and  does seem to lengthen my lashes. I am, however, a bit disappointed that the bristles on this mascara brush clump my lashes together a little - it's annoying. I think this mascara is pretty good overall, but it's not the best mascara I've tried.

Have you tried any of the above products? Did you like them?

It's for you...

Darlings, how have you been?  Last week I was feeling very flu-infected, so I took a little break from blogging to throw a pity party and tried to get some much needed rest. Thankfully this weekend I started to feel a lot better and hopefully this week I will back to feeling perky again.

Anyway... since it's been quite a while since I did a little Q & A post on my blog, I decided that today would be a good time on...

How it always works (in case you forgot): I will answer the below random questions - then you answer the questions as a comment. Why? cause sharing is caring *winks*

1. Today I feel... contemplative and optimistic
2. This week I hope to ... make it to gym at least once
3. Last night... I had chicken and vegetables for dinner, watched TV series, let the neighbours cats play in our apartment for a while and forgot to wash my hair.
4. At the moment I would really like to have... more time to write what I want, a teleportation machine, a dishwasher, new boots and lasik surgery.
5. What's the last thing you bought for yourself, excluding food? a red jersey
6.  Right now I spend too much time... watching TV shows, trotting around on the interweb, wearing comfy "only-for- around-the-house" clothes and thinking.
7. Song currently stuck in your head? 'Someone That I Used To Know' by Gotye
8. Do you prefer winter or summer? I love how dramatic the weather is in winter.