Northcote

Ben and I flew to Auckland on the 14th for the Fleetwood Mac concert. We visited several different areas in Auckland to go thrifting and take photos. If you want to read all about our trip, see that post here. I always bring my DSLR with me on holidays, even if it's just to Auckland because you never know what might catch your eye. It's a hefty and rather annoying thing to carry around, but ultimately worth it.

Northcote has a strange little area next to the Savemart, it's almost like a mini Chinatown. There were tons of Asian supermarkets and eateries, along with strange stores like 'The Tofu Shop'. It was quite entertaining, especially for Ben who's spent a fair bit of time in Hong Kong. We hung around that area for a bit, eating a box of shapes and sipping on our feijoa juice. Then, I decided to pull out my camera.

I actually really like how most of these shots turned out. None of them are particularly special and they'll probably never be used for anything. But, it's always good to keep in the habit of using my camera, especially when travelling (if Auckland even counts as travelling). I'm especially pleased with the landscape image of what I like to think is a Father and his Son, shopping for fresh fruit at the Asian supermarket. The light and shadows were perfect and the vibrant pops of colour from the fruit made the make the stand out.

I've found that ever since purchasing my new phone I've been inclined to take most of my photos on there, as the camera quality is pretty amazing. Sometimes it's nice to take your time and appreciate more of the process when taking a photograph. This is where I find it so important to whip out my DSLR as often as possible. Even if it's pain to lug around, the creative exercise of taking photos is always worth it for me.
See more photos from our trip here.

Bella 🌼

Auckland Colour Study

I've never particularly liked Auckland, despite having lived there and taken several fun trips for concerts over the last few years. There was something about the insanely humid climate and spread out nature of the city that simply annoyed me. But, after spending four days there with Ben for the Fleetwood Mac show on the 16th, my relationship with Auckland City has been resurrected.

We flew up on the 14th, the flight was at midday and we arrived extra early as this was our first time travelling together and I didn't know what to expect. Luckily, we made it onto the flight with no major dramas. Aside from a violent battle with an extremely temperamental vending machine at the airport. We stayed with my Grandad and his girlfriend at Princess Wharf. Their place is amazing, it has the best view and a very comfy bed. Plus, it's pretty much walking distance to everywhere we wanted to go, including the concert venue.

Upon arrival, Ben and I decided that we were very hungry. So, we managed to stumble across a funny little place called Food Alley. It's a crazy cool peach coloured building with a retro, almost Hollywood sign out front. Walking past, you'd probably assume it was abandoned or closed down. But inside is the strangest little assortment of Asian food stores, including an Indian place where we purchased our food of choice. The most Western option on the menu, butter chicken. However, we both agreed that it was the best butter chicken we'd ever tried, and we've tried a lot.

The standard for food was pretty high after that and Auckland did not disappoint. We dined at a delicious French restaurant with my Grandparents on the first night. Then we enjoyed everything from milkshakes and chicken waffles to burgers, pasta and feijoa juice. Yes-we love white people food.

For our first full day in Auckland, we got up early (ish) and had breakfast at the apartment, then we set off on our first adventure. We took a bus to Northcote, which was complicated and slightly stressful, but we eventually made it to Savemart. I picked up a few pieces for my store, which you'll be seeing soon! Then, we explored Ponsonby and K Road, which was so very cool. I've been to Auckland several times with my friends over the last couple of years, yet we never properly explored K Road. I guess it's the Auckland equivalent of Cuba Street, but in my opinion a lot cooler. We shopped in Paperbag Princess, Crushes, The White Elephant, Smoove and my personal favourite, Vixen.

Vixen was basically Bella heaven. There were 1970s lamps, groovy chairs, Elvis pictures on the walls and a plethora of incredible vintage cowboy boots. Ben was subjected to multiple visits to Vixen and lots of photos. There were several 60s dresses for sale that I was very tempted by, but the price tag was enough to knock some sense into me. If you want to see a rundown of what I did pick up whilst thrifting in Auckland click here.

The concert was on Monday night so we had plenty of time to explore during the day too. We headed back to K Road for a more in-depth look (sorry Ben). Then to Newmarket, where we found the best cookies and cream milkshake ever. We walked through the shops in Parnell, saw a very cute miniature schnauzer called Freddie and made it back to the apartment with time for a nana nap before the concert.

Fleetwood Mac was absolutely amazing and honestly better than either of us had expected. Stevie Nicks was especially fantastic and for a 71-year-old had more energy than both me and Ben combined. Plus, an incredible head of blonde hair that she whipped around all night. Mick Fleetwood played an insane twenty-minute drum solo that got everyone grooving and then Neil Finn blew us away with his and Stevie's duet of 'Don't Dream It's Over'. They played almost all of our favourite songs and came back with 'Don't Stop' as their encore, which was just perfect.

For our first official holiday together, Ben and I had the best time in Auckland. Although I wouldn't live there, I have a new appreciation for Auckland City (especially K Road). Our trip was complete with our final day spent at Auckland Zoo (Ben's choice) and an extra cheesy Pizza Hutt pizza, which we had been craving for days. I basically went photo crazy over the four days that we were there, I love having memories documented through photos and videos, so my storage is filling up fast. But, I know that this will be a trip we'll look back on and remember so fondly!

Bella 🌼

Take Me Back

It wasn't long ago that I stepped into Take Me Back for the very first time. You might remember my gushing blog post about it from a couple of weeks back (here). When my Grandmother and I were exploring the op shops and Savemart in Upper Hutt, it just made sense to pop back in there for another look. I had my camera with me and naturally, I went photo crazy for the second time.

It was nice to take my time a bit more and look closely at some of the products and pieces in Take Me Back. The owner was so lovely and let me stick my camera lens in every nook and cranny of her store. If you ever get the chance to pop into Take Me Back in Upper Hutt, I would highly recommend it. If you want to read more about their store, see my first post here.

Bella 🌼

September Thrifted Buys (Auckland)

September has flown by so quickly and I've been thrifting like mad (as per usual). I spent a couple of days with my Grandma sifting through both Savemart's in my area, as well as every single second-hand store in the greater Wellington region (blog post on that coming soon). Ben and I also travelled to Auckland for the Fleetwood Mac concert and went thrifting on K Road, where several purchases were made. So, to commemorate this successful month of op-shopping I thought I'd put together a little collection of some of my most favourite purchases. Some of these pieces are for my store (here) and others are just for me! If you have any questions, feel free to ask them below.

As my obsession and fascination with 60s/70s fashion grows I obviously had to pick up a pair of white go-go style boots. They've featured in a few of my Depop photos, as well as some images on my story and I've had tons of compliments and questions about them. So, it was practically a miracle when I found an almost identical pair at Vinnies last week. They're even by the same brand! I'll be listing these incredible white boots on my Depop in the next few weeks, so keep your eyes peeled!

One of the fastest and best-selling items on my Depop is the fluffy bucket hat. It's a trend that anyone above the age of 30 doesn't seem to understand (quite frankly, my Grandmother finds them pretty ugly). But I think they're fantastic and such a great way to spice up any outfit, whilst keeping your head nice and toasty. I managed to pick up over five different fluffy bucket hats this month, one is already for sale on my store (here). So, if you were wondering, yes-both of the pink fluffy bucket hats pictured above will be for sale very soon!

I found so many incredible vintage pieces in Auckland that tempted me majorly. I eneded up narrowing them down to a small collection, mostly because my carry on was already verging on full to bursting point. I picked up a gorgeous 1970s beige dress with suede details and big gold buttons. It gives me major Western / Once Upon a Time In Hollywood vibes and would look incredible with some cowboy boots.

The dreamy orange and cream floral 70s dress is from Crushes, a store I'd never heard of but stumbled across when exploring K Road. They had so many amazing vintage pieces and I had to really stop myself from spending up a storm. I can't wait to wear this dress in the Summer with my brown boots and a cute headband. Then I simply couldn't resist picking up my favourite Rolling Stones album on vinyl. It was only $30 at a cute vintage store on K Road and a major pain to transport home on the plane (but worth it).

After starting my business selling second-hand clothes, I've found that buying for myself has become more difficult. Most things that I thrift I'll end up selling, even if I regret it later. So, it was nice to actually pick up some pieces for myself in the month of September. Now, the weather just needs to warm up so I can actually wear them!

Bella 🌼

September Op Shops Colour Study

Thrifting this month has been such good fun, with my own personal style developing, as well as my stores'. I went on a two-day long op-shopping expedition with my wonderful (and very patient) Grandmother. We visited both of the Savemart's in my area and every op-shop in the Wellington region, including Petone, Tawa and Upper Hutt. It was an exhausting couple of days and I'm embarrassed to admit that my arms were alarmingly sore from sifting through racks of clothing all day.

I found so many amazing pieces for my store, including pants, tie-up tops, skirts, fluffy bucket hats and crochet bags + so much more! I also found several funky homeware and furniture pieces to lust after. It seems I've become kind of known for my taste in crockery (??) as I had two strangers send my images of mugs at op-shops they thought I would like this month. So strange, but a great compliment all the same. I have been asked quite a lot recently what my favourite spots to thrift in Wellington are, so I might curate a list of the best op-shops in the area. Let me know if you'd be interested in that!

Ben and I went on a thrifting mission to find the perfect outfits to wear to Fleetwood Mac this month. I stumbled across the most incredibly beautiful 1970s maxi dress, it was love at first sight. But shopping for Ben was quite a lot harder. It's weirdly difficult to find decent guys clothing at op-shops, maybe that's because they've been picked through. Or perhaps Ben is just super picky (probably the case). But he really struggled to find the right piece for the concert. Until we walked into Tangent on Cuba Street and hit the jackpot. If you're a Wellingtonian and you haven't stepped foot in Tangent, you really gotta.

I often share most of these images on my Instagram story as I take them. But, I love seeing them all collaged together at the end of the month. It's so weirdly satisfying and it seems to tell a fun story of the places I've been and things I've seen that month. Keep your eyes peeled for some of the pieces above which will be coming to my store soon!

Bella 🌼