blue poles

A few weekends ago my friend Diana and i decided to make a trip to the country with the kids for something different. We made our way through wauchope and out to Byabarra. We then settled in to Blue Poles cafe & art gallery for a late lunch.
The outlook at this place is just amazing, and you feel instantly at home and joyful in the company of the properties hosts. They are especially good with children! Almost "Mrs Doubtfire-ish" I got lost in tranquility as my eyes grazed the lush valleys dotted with colourful autumn foliage, water springs and fruit trees. This was my idea of heaven!...that was until my kids started fighting over who was colouring in outside the lines...haha!

The food was good. I would have liked to have said great, but unfortunately it was talked up just alittle too much by our exuberant hosts. The high point food wise, was my coffee brulee - super strong with a wonderfully smooth texture. This was not something i would have picked usually, not being the big coffee flavor advocate. But it just goes to show that sometimes trying something out of your usual perception pays off big time!

Blue poles is also home to a quaint studio B&B. Featuring a large bath beside bay windows overlooking the peaceful bushland setting....just dont go in bird watching season!..:)

the cafe, art gallery and B&B which are all housed on the property are all lovely.  Defiantely worth the drive for something alittle off the beat and track.

a full bellied, line dancing
 joanna xo

wintersun

OK so a couple of weekends ago port macquarie hosted its first wintersun festival. This is 10 days of elegant retro revival at its finest.

We all know how i love the bygone eras, so attending this festival was certainly right up my ally. I must admit the whole set up was rather unique, with stages set up all about town featuring amazing bands and entertainment at various times throughout the day.

Balls and swing dances were held during the week at Panthers club, and i was actaully really disapointed that i couldnt make it to any. I certainly would have enjoyed pulling something fancy out of my closet.

Aside from the music and romance in the air. You just cant bypass the classic cars and i found myself day dreaming over rebuilding an old classic myself...having always been a huge bel air fan...i certainly got my lust on!

For a girl of course i enjoyed parousing the stalls for clothing gifts and accessories. And got the giggles imagining certain friends wearing rolled demins, and biker jackets with quiffed hair - a la grease style.

All in all it was a brillant way to get the kids involved in some wholesome family fun. It was just as perfect for those that lived during the time, those that wished they lived during that time, and those that knew nothing about it!

cherry tattoos and fluffy dice
joanna xo

saturdays shenanigans

Well it was two of my dear friends birthday parties on the weekend. One of which i volunteered to do makeup for. So my day started with some baking - cheese and pesto scones, a coconut and sultana loaf, and miniture chicken and asparagus sandwiches. Then it was off to "high tea" for Diana's 31st (wink wink)

Di dee and I

The ladies!

After i raced home, got changed made sure the sitter was arranged for my babies, i took off again to Kirst's house. What a great night, my lovely friend has some great friends. The atmosphere was awesome, the food fantastic and a good time was had by all. Would you believe i was home and in bed by 9.30pm. haha i guess i'm not quite the party girl i once was!

Kirst & I early on

Half the girls that attended

My cute friends Bec and Pete

Nothing like a plate to remind you how old (or young) you once were.

Very cool

heres to birthday parties, and lasting friendships, Joanna xo

Getting perfectly groomed brows

Wether your brows are unruly, too thin, too sparce, too thick- we have the soutions!

PROBLEM: Unruly brows
these tend to be bushy, and with hairs that scatter in all directions.

SOLUTION: Brush all the hairs upwards with a mascara comb ending the comb at the top of your natural eyebrow, then neatly trim the excess hairs (that come past the end of the comb) with a pair of curved cuticle scissors. Do this all the way along for natural looking brows.

TIP: Use a clear brow gel to groom into place, or try an old mascara.

PROBLEM: Over-plucked or natural thin brows

SOLUTION: Using a pencil, place it against the side of your nostral up towards your inner brow. Place a dot at the inner brow. Using that same pencil against your nostral, angle the end of the pencil toward the outer edge of your eye. Place a dot here - (in line with where your brow should be.) Then angle the pencil in towards your pupil whilst looking straight ahead all the time leaving the base of the pencil at the nostral. Place a dot above this it should be where the highest point of your brow is to arch.

 

Now you have the measurements for a perfectly framing brow. Fill this area in with a stiff angle brush and a good eyeshadow that is about 2 shades lighter than your hair colour UNLESS your blonde then you can go 1-2 shades darker.

 

After this i like to apply some brow liner, just in feather light strokes to give some dimension and realism to the fake hair we are drawing in.

Tip: As a final step, use a brow mascara that the brush has been wiped well and go over the brows. Not only does this thicken the hair but it seamlessly blends all the products.

Perfectly groomed brows completely make the face. It sets the basis of most looks, and lets you get away with simply adding some mascara a swipe of lip gloss and your good to go!

faking it with the best of em....joanna xo

Makeup basics 101 - pimples

Thanks for joining me in this series on the basic how-tos! we all want to look naturally flawless and with the next few posts we are going to learn how to create that perfect canvas for your makeup looks. Guys dont be disheartened  - these are all things you can do to! So lets get started...

PIMPLES

1. DONT pick!!!! ice the area to reduce reddness and inflamation. (i've also heard that eye drops help) Tea tree oil is also great to apply (just make sure it dries prior to makeup.)

2. Foundation the rest of your face like usual (if you typically wear foundation) using clean hands or santised tools. (disposable sponges are great when we have pimples)

3. Choose a dense concealer that is the same colour as your foundation. This should be in a heavy creme constistancy, so that it covers well and stays put. I love Revlon photo ready concealer and coastal scents cameo quad palette in medium (excellent cheap alternative) Both of these products have a great creamy texture and high pigmentation.

4. Dot this on the blemish, then work the edges out with a  blending brush (something small, dome shaped tip and fluffy) to seamlessly blend the coverage. DO NOT blend overtop of the pimple - this will dilute the product.

5. Press powder on top to completely ensure the staying power of the concealer.



Remember that covering blemishes requires a very different type of concealer than which we use to conceal under our eyes! So dont be tempted to use this type in that area, unless you like looking older and wrinklier than you are!  :)

have a blessed day my friends.

joanna xo

personality plus pt2

Learning to appreciate and make the most of the opposing personality types is the aim of successful interactions. Espically in business.
People are productive, but we shouldn't use them.
We should not try to change others (this has been a hard lesson learnt), but should learn to change our understanding of them.

Of the specific types, learning to appreciate and utilise these main traits will help:
-Sanguine's have a light carefree attitute
-Choleric's have a "take-charge" attitute
-Meloncholy's are attention to detail people
-Phlegmatic's have a faithful support thing going on

also knowing that we are born with our personality type is a bonus, and while we can tweek certain things, the core of our natural strenghts will still reside within our type. learning that each type is motivated differently also helps.

Emotional needs of the major types:
-Sanguine's need to be noticed and complimented
-Choleric's need to be appreciated in every aspect of what they do for others
-Meloncholy's need us to understand and not ridicule them
-Phlegmatic's need respect for who they are, regardless of what they do

*information taken from "personality plus at work"- Florence Littauer & Rose Sweet

have a blessed, insightful week my friends.

joanna xo

embracing the storm

I have been so super busy lately that all my hobbies have suffered! I berely have time to do any make-up work, blogging has been out the window, and writing my book has taken a back seat too.
  I am living as a single mum now while running an expanding company. I have business study comittments one evening per week, as well as one 16hr cleaning day a week on top of a full-time workload. then there is  weekly bible study. I have a large 3bdrm house that needs my attention, a swimming pool to keep clean, tropical gardens to keep on top of. An child with special needs, as well as a realtionship that i have been trying to salvage. Now i am not complaining! I love my life.
  All this could easily become alittle overwhelming to alot of people...and dont think it wasnt momentarily so for me too. But i can honestly say that God is making this whole process alot smoother than i ever imagined.
  Now for some time management strategies and were home and hosed. I want to start getting up earlier so i can fit in my daily physical training, and make good healthy food to take to work. (my body isnt coping with the physical demands) I want to allot time to working on my makeup every week. I also need to spend atleast 2 nights a week writing if i want to finish this book sometime this year...all the while being a present and attentive mother. The only way i see any of this happening is simply managing my time better. It also doesnt help that i just want to crawl into bed with a good book for hours on end. But i usually limit my daily reading to bath-time and bed-time. I have managed to finish 4 books this month despite all the other stuff. However i dont know if i can continue at this pace. Haha see thats just my nature, when i like something i go for it. I put so much energy into things in the beginning, and not all can pan out as i dont have the "STEAM" to continue. Anyway i just wanted you to know i was alive and doing well (all things considered). And i am looking forward to the next chapter of my life. Back to regular posts next week.

                          This picture was from this time last year...my what can change in a year! 

embracing the storm
joanna xo