The Flower Power Curation - Depop

(All prices have been converted to nzd at the current exchange rate, but most items are from US sellers. All original listings have been linked in each description, any images belong to sellers.)
Items Listed Top Row to Bottom Row (left to right)

Every night I spend at least thirty minutes browsing through Depop and liking copious amounts of funky items that I'll probably never buy. They end up sitting in my likes folder until they eventually sell, and I feel a small pang of sadness as I imagine all the possible outfit combinations I could've made with them. So, rather than curating the ultimate wish list for myself and never actually buying anything, I thought I'd share them on here. (Really just a way of justifying the amount of time I spend searching through Depop.)
This edit is very clearly a floral based style, the classic 1970s Flower Power motif that I'm completely obsessed with at the moment. I especially love the 90s and early 2000s take on this floral design and the infinite amount of colour combinations and styles that exist out there. So here are some of my best finds,

1970s Style Orange Polyester Button-Up - $18.36 nzd
Literally my dream button-up shirt, I love the retro 70s vibe with the orange, yellow and pink colour scheme and daisy print. I would love to wear this tucked into some high waisted flares or tied at the front.

Lavender Flower Box Purse - $10.71 nzd
Such a cute (although slightly impractical) plastic purse in the shape of a flower. I really don't know what occasion this would be appropriate for, but it would look so good with a full purple outfit.

1970s Green Hawaiian Dress - $39.77 nzd
Such an amazing vintage dress and would look so good with a turtleneck or white collared shirt underneath, as it has a really low neckline. I like the way the seller has styled it with a belt too, sinching it in at the waist to give it a more flattering shape.

Lime Green PVC Chunky Purse - $39.86 nzd
Another deeply impractical purse, but how good would this look with a full green outfit or some big denim flares?! Definitely a more 90s take on the classic flower motif, but I love that it still has those retro colours and could compliment a green 70s dress so well.

Multi Coloured Flower Power Tee - $33.65 nzd
Such a sick retro style tee, with an amazing array of bright colourful flowers. These colours would make this such an easy and fun piece to style, matching earrings or headbands to the shirt. I would style this piece tucked into some high waisted flared jeans as the material is a super figure-hugging style.

Vintage Coach Chunky Floral Slides - $68.84 nzd
The classic chunky platform sandal that would go so well with literally any of these other pieces. With the flower motif on the sides and front of the shoes, they would look extra funky with some bright and colourful socks in the colder months when you don't want your toes out!

Purple Y2k Floral Tank Top - $22.95 nzd
Another more recent take on the floral pattern, but still so cute. This tank would be so great for layering and the bright purple colour would look so great with any green, orange, yellow and pink accessories especially.

1970s Flower Power Button Up - $29.06 nzd
This shirt is a dream, I would love to style this tucked into my favourite pair of flares or unbuttoned over a basic singlet top. The pattern is so funky and in your face, which I love and it's a great retro statement piece.

90s Does 70s Gingham Dress - $45.89 nzd
Cutest ever little yellow gingham dress, just asking to be worn with a collared shirt underneath and some big chunky boots. I will forever love the combination of 70s / 60s with 90s fashion and this is a great example of that style.

Y2k Multicolour Flower Hair Clips - $15.30 nzd
The perfect accessories to go with any of these pieces, little colourful hairclips like these ones are such a big trend at the moment, and these ones are just a bit different to the regular clips you see everywhere.

Little White Flower Earrings - $7.79 nzd
These earrings are such a nice basic and toned-down version of the 70s flower motif. I love a big bold flower earring for sure, but these are a great alternative for those days when you want to dress it down a little, but they still have that funky retro vibe.

Funky Yellow Floral Skirt - $36.72 nzd
It doesn't get any better than this, with some colourful tights and big chunky shoes. This pattern is so funky and the random placement of the buttons and singular pocket is so cute.



Items of this style for sale on my Depop, shop my store here.
Bella 🌼

Counter Journal - The Pilot Issue

I've been hanging out for a new Wellington-based publication to appear for a while now. Something fresh and shiny, bright and full of new creative voices and talent to read about. Like a lot of people, I still love the romantic nature of picking up a magazine, something tangible and beautiful, a quality that online publications will simply never have. Enter; Counter Journal.

Almost one year in the making, Zack Holmes (editor) and Bonnie Brown (artist) have produced the pilot issue of Counter Journal.
It was a rainy day and I was browsing in Minerva, on Cuba Street, a beautiful store full of the most tempting magazines and books. My bank account was screaming as I fingered my way through the magazine section. Then I stumbled across Counter Journal, the very last copy on the shelf. Its bright and beautiful cover art caught my eye and it was love at first sight. I was delighted to discover that it was, in fact, a Wellington publication! It was Zack's initial idea that brought Counter Journal to life, with experience in digital printing and Bonnie's background in illustration, architecture, graphic design and typography, it was a match made in heaven.

Flicking through the pages of Counter Journal, I could tell it would resonate with me completely, the simple, yet beautiful layout and design, combined with so many fresh faces and creatives to admire. My personal favourite and an article that is so very relevant to my life right now is 'Perils of Distraction' written by Vivienne Kruckow. She is a successful entrepreneur, running her own business, as well as committing to freelance writing jobs too. So, in short, what I aspire to be. It's interesting reading her perspective on the art of distraction and procrastination, as it's something I struggle with on a daily basis. Working for yourself and choosing to follow the freelance path has its challenges. For me, it begins with waking up, the temptation to simply snooze your alarm when you have no immediate commitments is always there. But I find that once that first step is completed, I've showered, dressed (preferably not back into my pyjama pants) and brushed my teeth, the day has officially started. Vivienne includes a list of certified distractions in her piece which I will now apply to my own creative life, such things as listening to podcasts, writing blog posts and connecting with people online. These are all things that I can sometimes feel guilty for doing, or like I'm wasting time. When in fact, they're all necessary exercises to get my creative brain working and steer me in the right direction to completing a task. That being said, there are also distractions that are simply just that, *cough cough* Love Island and Married at First Sight on demand. "Do you think Sophia Amoruso built Nasty Gal by spending a whole day watching Netflix?" Writes Vivienne. Check out Vivienne's Instagram here.

Whilst Counter Journal is full of incredible writing, I was also impressed with the photography that was sprinkled throughout. Especially, 'Old School Aotearoa: Dairies', a series of images capturing the authentic Kiwi roadside dairy, where many of us would get our dollar lolly mixtures and ice blocks after school. This series is full of nostalgia, I'm sure for many people, but the photographer also gives a real sense of beauty to such run-down old Kiwi buildings.
My love affair with Counter Journal was then topped off on the final page, with Frank's, a business that is close to my heart. As one of my first ever blog posts, back in 2015 was a series of images and a small review of Frank's on The Terrace. Their distinct interior style is a just a square-cropped photo waiting to happen.

So, now I'm just patiently waiting for Counter Journal's official first issue to be released so that I can be one of the first to snatch it off the shelves. Counter Journal will be released quarterly throughout the year and I'm so excited to see what they come up with next, watch this space!

Found out more,
Counter Journal Online
Instagram

Bella 🌼

Picnic Basket Plaid - Thrifting

My thrifting purchases were so deliciously colour-coordinated today, I thought I'd share them, they'll all be available to purchase in the next month on my Depop too!
Initially the haul started with this beautiful green, pink and yellow plaid coat, which I adore and ended up wearing for the rest of the afternoon, however, I will sadly say goodbye to it and sell it on my Depop soon! I just love the colour palette in the wool and it's a really nice cropped fit, with a hood and two little pockets, like red riding hood gone picnic basket plaid. Then I stumbled across an almost perfectly matching pink crochet bag. I love the crochet bag trend and this one is a super bright Barbie pink colour, the same pink running through the plaid coat.
Along with those, I picked up a super snuggly green turtleneck, pastel blue canvas slide belt and a green mesh tie-up top. If you have your eye on any of these pieces, watch this space as I'll be uploading them for sale soon!
Bella 🌼

Happy Camper - Californian Hues

My ultimate dream is to live somewhere in California one day, maybe in a little apartment on Venice Beach, or a house in Echo Park. I've visited Cali three times previously and each time I fall a little deeper in love with everything about it. I always take thousands of photos, and some of those have gone onto be in my shows and exhibitions and end up hanging on someone's wall. It's definitely a place of inspiration for me, and for so long I was convinced that I could never replicate those dreamy Californian hues and warm colours in my work back in NZ.
So, I decided to set myself a challenge and took a walk around my neighbourhood when the sun was shining and the light was warm. My mission was to replicate, as best as I could, that distinct Californian look in my photos. These pairings will be featured in a collection that I'm currently working on, and I think they came out great!
That warm yellow light is crucial in order to create the look I was after, but I also knew that extra warmth could be added to the images in post-production. I'm especially pleased to have found an amazingly retro orange caravan down a little dead-end street. By adjusting the colours in the third pairing, I was able to manipulate the orange of the caravan exterior to be more of a lemon yellow colour, a sneaky trick but super helpful for instances like this.
Although Wellington is not California, it's nice to know that I can somewhat replicate that look and produce work that I'm really pleased with. I'm super excited to share my new collection soon, as it's probably my favourite so far, capturing the unique interiors and exteriors of homes, with a retro 1960s / 1970s focus.
Bella 🌼