The Vintage Experience of Aletta to Alice

As you all know, the buzz around Cape Town is Vintage! It is a trend for the bold, fashionable and daring!

Last year I was behind the scenes of a photoshoot done for Aletta to Alice, a vintage brand that does not fail to impress the old-fashioned at heart! This is an online store owned by a friend of mine with a great eye for vintage and style!

Aletta to Alice will be at the Mid-Year Market by The Vintage Experience at Truth Coffee Cult located: The Fringe Design District, 36 Buitenkant Street, Cape Town

Make an evening of it on 26 June (tomorrow night)! The market will be from 5pm to 9pm. Join us! There will be pizza's, goooood coffee, great fashion at excellent prices! See you there!  :)

Join Aletta to Alice on Facebook to keep up to date with the great vintage updates!

Jo Malone makes scents to Mishtery!

Ah smell, the most underrated sense of the human body... Until you have encountered the heart-warming aroma of freshly baked bread, the crisp air after the rain or the scent of your partner’s scarf when you bury your nose in it to shield you from the cold. Fragrance is to the nose as heaven is to the Angels.

As a creative, I am invigorated by passionate people who inspire through their craft. After visiting The World of Jo Malone in the V&A Waterfront, I am certain that this is not just cologne, it is unadulterated art! Perfumery has always poked my interest, so this past Saturday my bff and blogger, Raylene of Diary of an Innocently Oblivious and Hapicup and I visited Jo Malone.

Jo Malone

Jo Malone is an undeniable brand if you are a perfume connoisseur. Jo Malone is a London brand! Straight out of the UK. Jo pushes the boundaries of making scents and experiments with unlikely ingredients such as Saffron and Lime Basil. What I love about Jo Malone is the freedom to create. Each one of her perfumes is ready to wear on its own and can be layered or used together in what she trademarked as The Art of Fragrance Combining.  I thought that you have to spend exorbitant amounts of money to be able to afford bespoke fragrance, but Jo Malone makes it possible to own my own signature fragrance. It is still pricey but I can build my bespoke scent over time and money. 

The Tasting Bar

The staff at Jo Malone will assist you in tailoring the perfect combination that will suit you and your body’s chemistry.  Jo believes layering different textures (such as crèmes, body oils and bath scents) of the scents that you like to forge a longer lasting scent. When I was treated to The Tasting Bar, the combining process was explained to me and scents were chosen according to my preference.

Remember:  A good cologne or perfume comprises of a top note or head note which you will smell right away, a middle note or heart note that carries the sent before the top note diffuses and a base note which you will smell after 30 minutes. I will do a follow up post that will explain  fragrances in depth.

 

My arms and hands were wiped down with a warm towel to open my pores and prep the skin. This is followed by the bath oil, Pomegranate Noir and the application of velvety body crème and the grand finale of Jasmine and Mint cologne sprayed onto my skin and followed by a cupped motion of the hands to blend the scents. 

What a wonderful experience! I still feel heady and overwhelmed by the luxury, quality of service and product that makes Jo Malone a pungent force in the world of fragrances. This is a service that is available to you at no cost upon request when you visit Jo Malone. Upon completion you will be given a chart with a fragrance arc and the assistant will record the combination for you to keep. I recommend you try the Tasting bar! You will love it. Don’t take my word for it though, try it for yourself.

A special thank you to Raylene of Diary of an Innocently Oblivious and Hapicup for being my photographer for the day and to the Glamour Gloss Girls at Topshop SA for beautiful blue manicure!

The rest of the photos are on my Facebook page, A Bunch of Mish-takes, if you want to see more! :)

An Instaweek!

So the Mishtery took to Instagram and I love it! Here are some Instapics of the week!

If you see any pics you like, follow me on Instagram @Mishtery10 and I will follow you back.  :)

InstaMish!

BodyLove: Ashleigh shares her love!

Ashleigh Davids is a confident young wordsmith, a singer, a poet, an editor and a blogger. A creative force. A free spirit. I met Ash through mutual friends and right away I loved her passion, genuine interest in people and her hair! This woman is one to follow. So watch this space. At 20 she was named Editor in chief of Live magazine...  I asked Ashleigh to write her thoughts on BodyLove, to share with you. Enjoy!

I’m at a crossroads, far away from my intended healthy eating plan or enthusiastic exercise routine, somewhere between throwing out the clothes in my cupboard I feel are unflattering and no longer wear, taking better care of my frizzy hair and continuing my path of minimal makeup and modest dress sense.

As I venture on and thrive to make better decisions concerning my health, body and lifestyle I find myself in a fix. I’ve always been aware of the various products, services, activities and practical changes alike that one could make to improve and better ones life, and furthermore, ones perception of self and level of BodyLove.

I’ve also known that these things could quickly become a crutch, a lifeline, a necessity we feel we cannot live without - an unwelcome god which we worship and idolize. I did not want that.

Truth is none of these things, however beneficial, will ever make us beautiful. We were created that way.

Coming to a full and complete sense of body love, is perhaps an eternal journey and lifetime commitment more than it is an occasion or a milestone at the end of a race.

There are many things about me I love, and other things I hope to improve - equally sure that this is as much an emotional, mental and spiritual quest as it is physical - I watchfully guard my mind, body and spirit.

BodyLove starts with a conscious choice. A conscious choice I made yesterday, one I make today, tomorrow and every other day of my life.

What do you choose?

BodyLove,
Ashleigh

Connect with Ashleigh:
Blog: http://ashleighdavids.wordpress.com/
Twitter: @AshleighDavids

A bag of Mish-tricks saves the night!

It seems everything happens on a Friday! Have you noticed how crunch time always seem to take ownership of what should be the winding-down day of the week? Well, Friday past was no exception. I found myself sleep deprived and managing to just about stay awake mentally for the most part.

Let me tell you Tuesday to Friday has been nothing but deadlines, urgent matters and bleh... Too much of everything. So in this zombie-like, preoccupied and panicked state, I reserved my seat to attend our annual book awards ceremony and later cancelled. Long story short, I ended up attending this semi-formal event at The Commodore hotel with a pair of skinny jeans and beaded jersey. FACE PALM. I swore then and there never to be unprepared ever again! So here is what saved the day! A bag of Mish-tricks! In a flat spin I accquired the following items that would transform my look from day time to evening.

The Bag!
I swopped my work tote for this cute studded number. I chose this bag because I like the size and it sharpened my look without looking like I tried too hard. A clutch would do the trick too but I felt like bringing my own flavour. 

The Heel!
I hate high heel shoes! Yes, I know... Not very lady like but they kill my feet. If you are going to suffer, wear a shoe that wow's while you owe in your head... Guilty! I thought this number was a great choice.

The Props
I love accessories and hardly ever buy anything without acquiring at least one accessory. I figured... since I will in all likelihood have a glass of vino, I would make a statement with a nice cocktail ring. My hair was not particularly fresh and clean, so I had a nice sleek bun and to draw attention away from my not so Pantene hair... I went for a larger pair of earings. Pretty vintage flower. :)

The Makeup
One thing that a makeup artist taught me was to draw attention to either the eyes or the lips... I chose the eyes. I always have my smokey eye trio shadow, concealer, white eye pencil and a pot rouge! To quote Bobbi Brown; "Concealer is the secret of the universe..." Makeup universe that is... It covers my dark circles caused by lack of sleep, sinus and allergies. (Also known as the beating the week laid on me.) My own favourite item in my makeup bag is my white eye pencil! It makes the eyes look fresh and bright. Only lining the bottom of my eyelid does the trick. Thank goodness for pot rouge! This is revolutionary. Its lip colour and cheek colour in one! Mascara is my personal preference rather than black eye pencil and if I can recommend a product, the Elizabeth Arden Ceramide Lift Mascara is perfect. It strengthens and lengthens lashes! Try it!



The Conclusion
A great time was had by all and this is what I looked like! It took 10 minutes to achieve this look.

A Mish-take: I am stuffing all these transforming goodies into my studded bag of Mish-tricks and leaving it in my car's boot! Girls, you should be jumping on this band wagon and creating your own bag of Mish-tricks! If you have your own quick tricks, please comment below! Let me know!

Mishtakenly,
Mishtery

Friday Food Fest: Creamy Beef Potjie Goodness

Ah, winter! Scarves, beanies and warm accessories time! Love.

Also the time of the year when the outdoors may not be the best idea and while that might be true... Esspecially with the hale we weathered this past weekend, which I mistakenly took as snow (not having seen snow in my life before)...

This time of year food becomes a comfort. And it is at its best enjoyed with friends and family infront of a crackling fire with a glass of port (or good red wine - I am not a red wine fanatic, hense the port. :) ) So if you are brave enough and love the outdoors inspite of the cruel winter days, here is a delicious potjie recipe for you! This recipe is going to take some time to make but that is why we have friends! You will need to: Dress warmly, practise patience, have good company and sip on a drink of choice while making this mouthwatering dish.

Please enjoy this scrumptious potjie. Don't take my word for it! Try it for yourself!

Serves 6 | Preparation time 10 minutes | Cooking time 2 hours

Creamy beef potjie

This stalwart is the South African version of beef stroganoff, and it’s worth the wait.

butter, for frying
4 leeks, white parts only, sliced
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
freshly ground black pepper
2 cups brown mushrooms, chopped
1 cube of beef stock
1 kg stewing beef with the fat still on, cubed
1 glass of red wine
1 tub (250 g) cream cheese
1 handful of parsley, finely chopped

In a cast-iron potjie, melt a knob of butter over the coals. Add the leeks and garlic and season to taste with freshly ground black pepper. Let it sweat over low heat for about 10 minutes until soft.

Add the mushrooms, crumble the cube of beef stock into the potjie and place the meat on top.

Pour the wine over the meat and cover the potjie with a tight-fitting lid.

Let it simmer over lukewarm coals for about 2 hours. Alternatively, bake it in a preheated oven at 140 °C for 2 hours. When the meat is tender, stir in the cream cheese.

Sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately.

Tip:

In a hurry? Cut rump into thin strips or buy beef strips. Quickly brown the meat and set aside, then follow the recipe. Simmer everything together for 20 minutes. Add the cooked meat just before dishing up.

 

This recipe was taken from Go! Weekend Food by Alret Lintvelt. Available at all good bookstores!

BodyLove: Elise warns against Jolie's Mastectomy

I know it has been quite some time since I have shared some BodyLove. Reason... Quality over quantity and my latest post is a guest post by Elise Fernandez. A friend of mine who survived breast cancer, a cancer activist, a mother, a fighter, a trooper, a brave hearted strong woman. In this post Elise shares her opinions about the controversy surrounding Tomb Raider star and humanitarian, Angelina Jolie's double mastectomy.

__________________________________________________________________________________



The article of Angelina Jolie and her brave decision to have a bilateral mastectomy concerns me. While every woman or man has the right to decide how they deal with being a high risk candidate for cancer to attack, I do believe that Angelina is sending out the wrong message. She speaks about her surgery as if she walked into the hospital and a few days later, like a super hero character in one of her movies, she walked out again.

While this is true for her, the reality is that for other women, who really suffer from breast cancer, who struggle through poverty, unemployment, disability, chemotherapy, abuse, abandonment, children who are substance abusers, and many more challenges that they have to deal with during fighting cancer, this is not the case. One does not just carry on with life after a bilateral mastectomy. Your breasts are connected to the rest of your body and when something is removed from the body it does not function exactly as it used to.

The scary part is that so many women will now be inspired to lose their breasts because they can just have new ones implanted. Be very careful when making this decision as it is not what it is "cut out to be". Medical aids and private care facilities are making a fortune by having people believe that this is the way to go. I understand that Angelina lost her mom to cancer, and she has every right to her decision. But she did not have cancer and she has all the money in the world that could increase her healing process. What's next on the cards? A multi million dollar movie about how she had to have her breast removed?

Please do not be deceived and do not believe the hype. As for our own media and newspaper houses, they need to stop perpetuating and re-enforcing ideologies and so called role models that influences the decisions of African people. For the rich, that type of surgery and it's after effects are a walk in the park. But cancer is not something to be glamorized and since I've had it, what I also find disturbing is the millions of funds that the awareness of the disease generates, only to land into the bank accounts of a select group of people who enrich themselves through this very important cause.

BodyLove,
Elise

Angie spreads her wings! New York! New York!

Last Friday we had a surprise farewell for a very special person! Angelique Blanckenberg. We call her Angie. :) Angie has big dreams and amongst those dreams, moving to New York is very high up on that list.

She is confident, social media savvy with lots of spunk, fervor and a strong inclination towards fashion! We worked together for little over two years but it felt like a lifetime because of the impact she made on our lives! This is a lady who literally has a thought bubbles filled with images of the Statue of Liberty, the Big Apple and New York Fashion week floating in her head. Angie has the ability to re-awaken dreams and reminds us of the importance of holding fast to those dreams... No matter how far fetched it may seem.

Thank you for the colour you painted with your Angie-isms and laughter. Your presence will be missed in our passages for damn sure.

Angie and blogger, TarrynJo from Titbits from TarrynJo

For all the pictures, visit
A Bunch of Mish-takes on Facebook!