back and begging for stuff.

so i'm back. feel bad for my extended hiatus, but it was essential. my last month has been hectic. full of assignments, exams, physie highs and lows with some work mixed in for good financial measure. all except the latter are over now for another year and i can't wait for 2011 to begin. EXCEPT for chistmas. it's pretty wrong that my first post back is grubbing for presents but as my sister is scared of shopping for my gifts i now present you with my updated list of summer/christmas must haves.... well things i must have.

i'm known now for my love of internet shopping and it really is a simple reason. i like stuff no one has or, maybe even didn't think they wanted until they saw it. 'hipster' is a disgusting word, but i really am one. combined with a huge dollop of geek for good measure. which is where i will begin.

battlestar galactic was and will always be my favourite show of all time. when it ended my sadness was cushioned by its sister show caprica. a few years ago bsg released 2000 limited edition cylon toasters. they sold out and to get one now you will be looking at a price tag upwards of $500. so, instead of maxing out mums credit card, you can now get cylon toast from a caprica toaster here. on sale for a measly $65.   

MODEKUNGEN are an amazing swedish brand. although, their site is entirely in their native tongue it is reasonably easy to navigate. this is their handvaska med nitar undertill bag.... no idea how to say that but has me going, oooh pretty. the brand suits my post-punk loving self but is still classic enough to be rocked with a cardie. will set you back 899 SEK or $132. another reason to shop online, our dollar rocks!

i'm a bit confused as to why i want these israeli desert boots. maybe i think they will make me look like ziva off ncis. meh for $70 it's well worth the consumer indulgence. palladium boots have some other rather less conventional shoes going on here and they are all very well priced considering how well made they are.




it just isn't summer without new swimmers and sunnies. this year black milk will supply the former and ray-ban the latter. the red galaxy one piece really does sell itself. just look at its amazing weirdness, and will set you back $85. quite reasonable, no? the black milk brand really is amazing, it's site is a print lovers dream. check out their other swimmers and leggings: R2D2, Astronauts and Skeletons.

ray-ban's have been on my christmas list for years and years, and i haven't really ever bothered to ask for a pair because they were simply too expensive. well the american dollar sucks and they aren't as out of your reach as you may think. a pair of wayfarer 2's will cost you $145, have a look at their many many colour options for two tone magnificence.


'think geek' really is nerd heaven. as someone who habitually loses book marks and even the book itself, this find could not have come at a better time. the book rest lamp is everything i have ever dreamt of and more. well, not really but it is very cool looking and more importantly nifty. combine this with a pac-man alarm clock, going to sleep and waking up will never be the same again.


now, please excuse my indie indulgence but i just must have these shirts, to turn into singlets.... well for mum to turn into singlets. kurt cobain and count duckula. bit of a questionable combo but still, these both make me squee with love in two very different ways. firstly, the daniel johnson shirt worn famously by kurt cobain is the personification of my disenfranchised teenage years. ooh the angst. and count duckula, well it's count duckula! possibly the best children's show EVER!

onto dvds and books. stocking stuffer essentials. let's pretend for a second that i have room in my apartment for anymore box sets and/or novels. hypothetically, it's not surprising that i need every season of waking the dead, peep show and jam and jerusalem. the english really do comedy and serial killers better than any other nation in the world. ebay is always worth a look for box sets, even after you consider postage, you can save a considerable amount of $$$. penguin classics are always a cheap and cheerful addition to any christmas morning. 'wind and the willows', 'madame bovary', 'journey to the centre of the earth', 'middlemarch', 'mrs. dalloway' and 'decline and fall' by evelyn waugh have been on my ebay watch list for the past month or so.

lastly, as i sit watching the first day of the ashes i'm reminded of the fact i have never EVER been to see live international cricket. for something that played such a big part of my childhood summers. so i'd love tickets to go watch the english FINALLY get what is coming to them. ticketek have some very good deals for families and even a concession price for us poor university students. a silver ticket as the SCG will cost you $90 for an adult (and $77 with concession).

well that's it. hope these sites give you some ideas for presents (not just for me, though keep me in mind) that might be a bit out of the box but fit someone you know and love.

something small to make you smile.

the internet is full of crap. i think, we can all generally agree with this statement. we fill a vast majority of our time with complete trash. not that it isn't highly entertaining or interesting, but still not exactly plumbing the depths of human achievement. having the most friends on facebook may get you interviewed by some vacuous morning show host, but probably not a nobel prize or even a job.

this brings me to this photo. i found this yesterday and am inclined to believe that it is easily the shining peak of my internet surfing. a golden ray of light, through the otherwise dark intellectual vacuum of online content. the picture of elisebeth and dave mitchel, in kings cross circa 1965, is just so lovely to me. it speaks of a seemingly more exciting time in history. a time when people tried, or maybe just pretended, to care about the sucky world they lived in and endeavoured to fix its problems.

now, i know this is an incredibly idealised view of australia in the 60s. still, it made me genuinely smile at the two people (presumably married) and the way they seem to just casually 'fit' the world at that time.

wine wine wine.

there are many things in this world that me and my father do not agree on, but thankfully wine is not one of them. there really is nothing wrong with wine. i actually think sometimes that homeless wineos have the right idea.... ok so maybe not, but they do get to drink an inordinate amount of wine, the amount of wine i wish i could drink were it not for the sheer fact that my uni grades would plummet and i would probably get fired from my job from either being pissed or recently pissed.

however, i digress. red wine is the best wine. there really are no down sides, aside from the yumminess and being drunk the only thing that could even approach being more exciting is the lack of stress when buying a bottle. if you have stress about picking a bottle to consume then, well you are an idiot. there is no other perishable good that has such a simple code for its scale of shit to awesome. THE PRICE. its right there, on the bottle following the $ sign.

don't worry, i'll explain. you walk into a bottle shop, its full of sluts in ugly shoes (oh so yes, maybe i am retelling my recent trip into wollongong for alcohol) and you stand in front of the 'shiraz' section. a few hundred bottles stair back at you. which to choose, which to choose? hmmmmm. now here, is where my stress just fades away. a cheap bottle of wine, lets say under $10 in australia is RUBBISH. but if you want to marinate some brain cells, a good choice because you can get 2. now above $10 is my price range. i like a $13 to $15 bottle. affordable, red, and most importantly will not taste like lighter fluid. from here up i'm not really interested, but they get even better.

the more expensive the better the wine. it really is that simple. all this fetishisation of wine is bourgeoisie wank. i blame the french! i also love the french for this. they do pleasure well and have inserted a handy system for wine goodness.... so thank you france.

stay tuned to my next thrilling blogpost regarding my love of cheese.

the satorialist.

some of you may know of the lovely fashion photographer scott schuman's blog the satorialist. i routinely check this blog a few times a few to see what weird and wonderful people he has grabbed a shot of on his travels all around the world.

if or when you go check this blog out the thing i always remember is, i can never either afford most of the things on it OR would never think of combining these clothes and coming up with a look like that. but, it does give you fashion ideas.

my taste in fashion is actually fairly generic in comparison to the people in the blog. i have come to terms with this. still, the quest for cool, different, brand name clothes is never ending. you might not be able to buy cool but, snazy clothes might make you feel pretty cool.

this blog just goes to show you, pushing the envelope in what you wear is really just a question of how far you want to go. the blog really does prove that fashion style can reflect your own personality. these are people on the street, normal people. just like you and me. 'cept richer. bastards! ha!

etsy!

i have been asked to post about this website by a friend who i recommended it to and is now insanely obsessed with it. etsy is a great online shopping website that is a bit like ebay but without the bidding and houses way WAY better stuff.

do check it out if you like clothes, books, accessories, furniture and house stuff that are one of a kind and a bit different. the sellers are really helpful and will post to australian most of the time if you ask. also, all prices in usd so consult xe exchange for up-to-date currency conversion stats before clicking that 'commit to buy' button.

i must warn you there is also a lot of crap on this site but they are outnumbered by great finds....not that i have a birthday coming up or anything. previously expensive brand names that are now vintage are michelle must haves, so shop away. thus, unless you want to look cool and be insanely poor then don't click here.

dreaming of burberry....again.

i want a trench coat! is it too much to ask for a beautiful tan, double breasted, knee length, tartan lined beauty with a sexy burberry tag? seems so if you aren't willing to sell a kidney to get one. under $500 is farely reasonable, no? yea it really isn't. upwards of $1000! for shame burberry.

well in my internet travels i found some wonderful pics but i really like this one the most. that kid screams innocent cool. not a bit of pretentiousness in sight. the satorialist couldn't have found a cooler kid.

oh well i guess i'll have to settle for a london fog trench. or not.....all donations for the 'michelle wants a burberry coat fund' are accepted via email and in person. ALSO, i do have a birthday coming up. remember, tan, double breasted, knee length, burberry! cheers. i promise to act surprised.