My Floristry Vol. 1

 Hi friends! I know that I haven't posted in a little while, but as you can see, I've been quite busy lately. I wanted to share some of my latest floristry creations! These are some of my favourites. I do love my job. More posts soon!

xx
May

that sunflower trip

My mum and I made the last minute decision to go on a two-day road trip this weekend. For a long time, we've wanted to drive to the Toowoomba region during the sunflower season to explore. And more recently, we've been talking about taking a drive beyond Toowoomba to Warwick to look at some of the beautiful old buildings of that region. So we set of in search of flowers.

We stopped at the little town of Crow's Nest on the way to go op shopping and to check out the beautiful autumnal leaves in the park.

Next stop: Toowoomba for a little shopping. We visited the sweet flower market there.

We stopped by Laurel Bank Park, which is a beautiful park with many nice gardens and little walks.

After a little while, we left town and headed south. During our trip, we saw a total of five sunflower fields, two of which we stopped at to take photos. The first spot was along the highway at the exit for Cambooya. At least six other cars were parked along the side of the road, everyone enjoying and photographing the beautiful sunflowers.

Further down that same road, we found another field called 'Mayfield.' :) We found ourselves among some of the same people who were at the first field. Evidently some were expert sunflower-photographers as they had stepladders to take great photos from above.

It wasn't easy to capture the feeling, and the sunflowers stretching out for what seemed like forever...

After taking a scenic drive through a few little towns, we arrived in Allora, where we were spending the night. The town was home to a few historical buildings, including the house where P.L. Travers, the author of Mary Poppins, lived.

We spent the night at the hotel and then drove off to Warwick the next morning for exploring. The local art gallery was running an exhibition about miniature houses and buildings, which was the cutest. I loved how much attention to detail went into each model.

We drove by the amazing Abbey of the Roses, which looks like this. Unfortunately, we couldn't go in, but I did take the below picture over the fence.

After spending several hours in Warwick we started the drive home, stopping a few times at other pretty places that caught our attention.

It was an awesome trip, and we did it on a pretty tight budget as well. We took most of our own food, so it ended up costing about $10 each in food. Accommodation was $25 each and the fuel, we estimated, cost about $60 for the trip. So in total, the trip cost us about $130. Not bad for a beautiful weekend getaway!

wanderlust

Among my goals and plans for 2018 was "travel more." But without the time and money to make this dream happen, it's so easy to fall into the jealousy and comparison trap. So I came up with a small list of what to do when you want to travel, but can't, in the hope it will help me and anyone else going through this right now.

go on a mini trip

This one kind of goes without saying, but if you don't have the ability to do that NZ road trip or visit France, at least travel as much as you can. Plan a day trip, or even an afternoon trip. Be a tourist in your area for a day. You might be surprised what beautiful locations are right outside your door.

create a travel fund

Even if you can only afford to save $20 a week, at least that's something. That's $1,040 in a year! Determine what matters the most to you. If travelling is really a priority, surely you can give up something else in place of it. 

plan for the future

Start a Pinterest board or a pen-and-paper list of the places you'd like to go. Start researching routes, accommodation, and activities. If you can't be there in person, at least 'be there' via the internet. :)

make the most of it

Whether it's a drive home or a walk to the shop, we are constantly embarking on small adventures. Learn to appreciate the beauty around you, right now. Stop and look at the view. Watch the sunset. Spend a few minutes gazing at the stars. As Henry Thoreau said, '...only that travelling is good, which reveals to me the value of home and enables me to enjoy it better.'

Happy travels, friends!

a simple christmas diy

How early is too early to start Christmas decorating? By the time we're about half-way through November I'm already pinning and planning and crafting. This year I found a lot of these rustic twig stars used as decor, so, feeling inspired, I decided to make my own.

You will need:

✰ foraged twigs (I used olive)

✰ scissors

✰ string or twine

✰ wire of some kind (I used raffia wire)

Start by cutting the twigs down to your desired length. You can use secateurs for this step if you'd like. Five twigs per star. A little bit of bend is okay, but you'll want to use twigs that are as straight as possible.

Start constructing! Wrap small pieces of wire around each intersection. Embrace the quirkiness and uniqueness of each star, due to the nature of the rustic twigs. Have fun, and happy December!

life lately

First of all, I want to apologise for my absence on this blog as of late. I've been focusing mainly on my floristry course, which is now winding up. I'm so excited for my finals next week! So I've been in planning mode for that. The course has been a fun and challenging part of my life for the last six months, but I feel ready to move onto my next adventure, whatever that might be.

Basically, once I finished school, I knew I wanted to pursue some sort of creative career. I struggled to imagine myself doing anything else. After a lot of thinking, I decided to study a Certificate III in Brisbane, which would be a six month commitment. Originally, my plan was to study graphic design, but when I rang up the school to enrol, their phones weren't working for a day. That gave me enough time to realise how much I didn't actually want to study graphic design.

For me, it was the safe and sure option. Study something that would give me guaranteed desk job, and something that I already had experience in. I knew how to use the different programs and platforms they would be teaching. People had told me I would be really good at it. But when it came down to it, I just couldn't bring myself to enrol. I remember going online to the school's website and opening tabs for every Cert III they had on offer, and closing down all of them. Except one. Floristry.

Unlike a lot of other florists, I didn't grow up with floristry as my dream job. In fact, I never really considered it as an option until that moment. It was so unexpected and new that I decided to just go for it. I arranged for some work experience at the local florist, which helped to confirm what I wanted to do, and then rang up to enrol. This time, their phones were working.

Floristry is harder than I expected. I also didn't expect to love it as much as I do. You'd think that the more time you spend with flowers, the more immune you become to their beauty. I've found that the opposite is actually true.

So what's next for me? As of right now, I'm taking it a day at a time. I hope to get a job as a florist very soon. I'll keep you posted!

May

P.S. I would absolutely love to do some flower DIYs here on the blog! What would you like to learn how to make?

ten tips for thrifting success

1. DO YOUR RESEARCH

If you're not already using an online thrift store directory, check them out. For Aussies, that's opshop.org. Or else, type 'op shop' into Google Maps to see all the nearby ones. They are often found in clusters. Don't forget to find out opening hours--and leave a bit of space, as some close before their listed closing time.

2. VISIT SMALLER SHOPS FOR SMALLER PRICES

Handwritten price tags are likely to be cheaper. Church and community run thrift stores, rather than chains, have the really good bargains. You'll want to blacklist the more expensive places.

3. SET A BUDGET

Or else just an idea as to how much is your limit, per shop. You could also work on a donation-per-purchase basis.

4. WEAR THE RIGHT CLOTHES

Wear a singlet, or take one in your bag. Bra with removable straps in case you want to try on something strapless. Comfy shoes. Don’t forget a water bottle and snacks.

5. DISREGARD SIZING

At least at first. Sometimes clothing items are misplaced, tags mislabelled or missing. Also, oversized sweaters are the best.

6. DON'T FORGET TO LOOK IN EVERY SECTION

I've purchased many a stylish vintage tee or comfy flannel from the guys' section.

7. PROPERLY INSPECT EACH ITEM

The occasional missing button and stained splotch are to be expected. Make sure you find them in the store instead of once you get home. Check that all the zippers are in working order and sturdy. Sometimes, I've received items discounted for small stains I knew I could get out later.

8. NOW, CULL YOUR PILE

The more you thrift, the more of a system you'll develop. I like to grab everything I like, then, cull down most of it before trying on. Looking at everything with fresh eyes helps, a lot.

9. ALWAYS TRY EVERYTHING ON

Even if you are 99.9% sure it will fit…speaking from experience here.

10. KNOW YOUR BRANDS

This means you won't get cheated. If you know all your department stores brands you won't end up paying more for an item than it was bought for originally. It helps to know fabrics, as well. Make reading tags a habit.

Hope this helps and inspires you to head out and find a bargain!

woodgate beach

I just got back from a two week holiday to Woodgate with my family! Woodgate is a small little costal town in between Hervey Bay and Bunderburg on the eastern Queensland coast. We had a wonderful two weeks on the beach, exploring and visiting nearby towns. Here are some photos from our adventure:

I loved the moodiness of the ocean -- blue and sparkling one day and wild and grey the next. I've never spent a significant amount of time by the sea before, so it was really cool to get aquatinted with the tides and moonrises etc. To fall asleep listening to the ocean's roar is something I'm already missing.

And the sunsets. I miss the sunsets.

I love this photo of two of my little siblings -- watching a storm roll in.

One of the road trips we took was to a nursery/garden called bamboo land we had visited as a family over seven years ago. It was nostalgic to be walking those same paths again.

This is from Maryborough, a town I loved because of its historical buildings. (Or as my family and I call them for no reason, "hysterical buildings.")

Just a cute tree growing beside our holiday house.

A beautiful place in Woodgate was Theodolite Creek, which we called Treasure Cove. Unfortunately, I have no photos of the place, nor do I think photos can do it justice. It was an inlet of the sea. When the tide was out, you could walk for ages across the mouth of the sea. When the tide was in, pools and sand islands where formed. The place was nestled by a beautiful little forest and the sand had lots of driftwood and shells on it, hence "Treasure" Cove.

It feels so good to be home, and yet so exciting to be leaving again soon, because I move out this week to study Floristry in Brisbane. And with my boxes of possessions I'll carry with me these memories.

xo

May

P.S. I'm thinking of revamping my blog's design and posting more often. What kinds of posts would you like to see more of?

beautiful things

words from jane austen / lace / some freshly picked roses

a rainy day

update in photographs

I went on a wonderful two-week trip with my mum to the Blue Mountains, Sydney, Hobart and Melbourne. We flew to Sydney, cruised to Hobart and to Melbourne, then flew home. This was my first time leaving Queensland for a holiday, and it was such a fun time.

Unfortunately, we didn't go in the opera house, but we did get this view of it while cruising out.

Colourful Sydney townhouses by the water.

Little Italy in Melbourne! We had authentic pizza and gelato.

Melbourne, from the top of the Shrine of Remembrance.

St. Kilda, Melbourne, at sunset. Beautiful place.

And beautiful Hobart.

There have been a couple of small road trips as well. I found a lot of beautiful places near where we live that I'd never visited before.

But really, how adorable is this little guy?

Someone's really nice driveway. Trespassing may or may not have been involved. ;)

I really love this view.

Here's a video I made as well.

Thanks for reading! I hope you have a great day and I'll see you soon.