New York in Three Days

It’s been a while, but I’m back with regular articles! I've missed not posting on here, so I am going to put a lot more time and energy into posting regularly on here moving forward! I thought I'd start with a trip I took last month.

I ventured to New York with Japanese Beauty brand Decorté. They are a brand I hadn’t heard too much about before the trip, as they are only just breaking into the western market. It’s common knowledge that Japanese skincare has renowned status, not to mention the techniques and steps to achieving that glow meant learning new ways to achieve them. The purpose of the trip was to introduce me to the new range, AQ Meliority. I'm a big fan of beauty products that are a true testament to scientific research, and this new range is designed to awaken the skin's ability to self-regenerate and recapture youth. Unique ingredients sourced include Benifuki Extract (a rare green tea), Murasaki-Cha Extract (a purple tea high in polyphenols), and Shirakaba Water which protect skin and prevent ageing. The day started being dressed in a traditional Yukata, followed by a presentation surrounding the new range. Then the fun part, the facial! I have a NYC highlight on my Instagram featuring the full process, so if you’re interested in learning more it’s all explained over there with videos live from the facial. My skin was glowing for days after, and I have started to introduce the Intensive Revitalizing Emulsion followed by the Repair Lotion into my night time regime every night. It’s been 3 weeks and my skin feels supple and looks glowing. It’s currently stocked in Harrods in the UK. its no surprise Decorté is the best selling beauty brand in Japan. 

Decorté kindly accommodated me at The Wythe in Williamsburg. I’ve wanted to stay at this hotel for some time! The decor is industrial, with nice big warehouse style windows, concrete floors and modern service. It’s also conveniently a short walk from the L train which takes you into Lower Manhattan in 5 minutes. I love this area, and used to make the trip here to one of my favourite vintage stores when I lived in NYC over ten years ago. It’s called Beacon’s Closet. It’s easy to spend a few hours in this converted warehouse. I picked up an on trend longline leather jacket and Levi’s jeans both for under $50! 

I wanted to make the most of my time in the city, so I booked an extra night in Manhattan staying at The Moxy Chelsea. It was a nice change to Brooklyn; equally as nice, and I paid a little more for a city view. It’s only around $30 more than a standard room, so I definitely recommend it! The sunset over the concrete jungle was one of the best I have witnessed. And because of that, I’ll definitely rebook for next year. 

I loved being back in New York, and even though it’d been ten years since living there it felt exactly the same, and I still knew the subway! It was also nice to catch up with old friends. 

As I ventured to NYC on my own, I took my tripod to capture all the content you see in this post. Out of all the cities I take my self-portraits, New York is one of my favourites (this is my second trip to the city taking self-portraits) and it’s so nice to convey how I view the city through images. I really enjoyed these three days, the new brand I got to meet with, and the creativity I felt. Before heading to New York, I was thinking about attending New York Fashion Week next February and this trip confirmed that. Only next time, I’m sure it will be freezing cold with a lot of layers! 

And before I forget, where to eat! Two Hands is an Australian cafe on Mott Street, and the breakfast doesn’t disappoint! Prepare to wait though! For dinner close to Moxy, I went to Rosa Mexicana for a friends birthday which is about a 15 minute walk down sixth avenue. Let me know if you have any other questions about New York, my Instagram messages are always open!

All images photographed self-portrait.

Festive Cocktail Recipes for Entertaining

Out of office on. Four favourite words this time of year right? I am usually so organised with gifts and my wrapping, but this year it’s been a little different! I left it until the weekend before. I’ve been getting my head stuck into work, decking out my apartment before Christmas, and obviously filling my fridge before the Christmas festivities start. After all, I will be heading back to the Australian sun in January so it’s the perfect time to get friends and family over to enjoy some much needed quality time for my favourite time of the year.

I feel most peoples head are a pickle in December, and by pickle I mean rushing around not planning the small details as you hoped. So this is where I step in. After all, Tis the season to be jolly, so I’ve listed my four favourite cocktails below for the holiday season. Thank you Samsung for always making hosting so much easier. 

Winter Sidecar 

Ingredients: 

50ml Grand Marnier 

15ml Clementine Juice 

30ml Martini Bianco 

Ground Cinnamon 

Cinnamon Sticks for garnish

Method: Moisten the rim of a cocktail glass with clementine juice. Sprinkle cinnamon powder onto a small plate and dip the rim of the glass into the powder. Shake all remaining ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and strain. 

Christmas Noel 

Ingredients: 

40ml Grand Marnier 

30ml Creme Brûlée Liquor (I picked up mine from Marks and Spencer) 

30ml almond milk 

15ml double cream 

1 tsp peeled pistachios

Method: Shake all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice, and strain over a stemmed cocktail glass. Grate pistachios as a garnish. 

Kir Royale 

Ingredients: 

1 tbsp Creme De Cassis 

Champagne 

2 Fresh blackberries

Method: Pour the Creme De Cassis into a champagne flute. Top with chilled Champagne and garnish with the blackberries.

Cranberry Spice Mocktail 

Ingredients: 

50ml sparkling water 

50ml cranberry juice 

4 dashes of bitters 

75ml apple cider 

10 cranberries 

orange wedge

Method: Muddle cranberries and orange wedge in the cranberry juice, and then pour the rest of the ingredients and stir with a spoon. Garnish with cranberries and orange peel and serve on ice. 

So get your fridge stocked, the festive playlist on, and your finest threads on to entertain at home. There is no better way to commemorate Christmas time than through some family photography. Gather up your beautiful family and clink glasses in front of the camera. Have a wonderful Christmas and New year! 

Photography and Creative Direction by yours truly 

Collaboration in partnership with Samsung Home Appliances

Give Your Instagram Husband A Break

It's about time I did a post about my self-portrait shots. It’s probably one of the most common topics over on my Instagram DM’s so it makes sense to talk about it in more depth! I went live on Instagram in Ibiza and was overwhelmed by your questions and support.

I’m guessing you’re reading this because:

1. Your Instagram husband is awaiting/hinting his redundancy 

2. You’re ready to work on your terms and time

3. You’re curious how I take my own style shots

4. You're ready to gain confidence learning a new skill

So a bit of background as to why I decided to go out alone and learn this new skill. The majority of my friends are bloggers. I moved to Sydney on my tod, not knowing one person. I reached out to different creatives to make new friends. We ended up catching up for coffee and helping out each other with photography. This was a great way to meet people, and I still love doing this with a lot of my close friends. I still work full time besides Style Structure meaning weekends are the only time to capture content. The majority of my creative friends took their blog full time at around 45’000 followers, and most of them like to shoot Monday-Friday which is completely understandable. - weekends are precious and the time to spend with loved ones.

(Mango Dress: Shop here, Mango Shoes: Shop here)

Besides fellow bloggers, I had an ex boyfriend that helped me out on weekends - but that became awkward and ended up going downhill pretty quickly, especially when he abused my appearance/weight at times. It made me feel very unconfident in front of the camera and my low self -esteem started to show in my face. 

(Faithfull The Brand Dress. Shop similar here and here)

I turned to my good friend Jiawa Liu (or you may know her as @beigerenegade). Her answer was simple.... “Photograph yourself”. At first I was shocked she thought I was capable of this. Why would she suggest this when I have no experience? Jiawa had been taking her own images for years, and she is amazing at it. She told me the tripod to buy (I use the K&F Concept 62) which is extendable.

So with my new equipment in hand, I ventured to North Sydney to shoot my first self-portrait blog post  September 2016. Don’t get me wrong, there were a few things I needed to learn. 

• Firstly, I was using an 85mm lens, which wasn’t too smart to start with as it meant the tripod was really far away from me. Since then, I invested in a 35mm which means I can be a lot closer. 
• Secondly, once I pressed go on the remote I kept making the mistake to move. Once the remote is pressed, it’s better to stay in a similar spot as the camera has already focused on you. 
• Thirdly, I made the mistake taking test shots of my location and kept the spot focusing on my backdrop. This meant that once I jumped into the frame I wasn’t in focus. Instead, the background was.

(Third Form Dress: similar here)

With practice, patience and time I started to correct my mistakes and slowly started to test myself in busier environments. This year was my biggest test - Midtown New York City at lunch hour. You can see the post here. 

Yes, people stared.

Yes 2 girls Snapchat me to probably upload to their story “what the F is this chick doing".

And yes some people asked if I’d like help taking the picture like I was a tourist.

No I wasn’t a tourist. I was working! The more you practice the less you notice others around you. What are the chances they will see you again? Maybe you will strike up conversations and educate passers by of what you are doing. Maybe it will become more of the norm and people won’t as intrigued?

(Mango Floral Blouse: shop here, Asos Shorts: Shop here and here, Woven Bag: similar here and here)

Before I regained my confidence, there wasn't one image on my feed without sunglasses. I would hide behind them thinking people didn't notice. Well guess what, Jiawa noticed and the start of this year we started 'the face challenge'. Basically less sunnies, more confident shots looking down the lens.

If it wasn’t for taking my own images, I wouldn’t have learned my good and bad side. The beauty of taking your own pictures is you can take as long as you need. You can capture hundreds of images and not feel bad about it! It also gives you so much freedom when you travel. All images in this post I took whilst in Spain last month. It also opens the doors for more collaborations and travel. If a brand wanted to fly me somewhere I can go alone and feel 100% confident I can capture my own content. 

(Anna Quan Shirt: Shop here, La Mer Moisturiser: shop here)

(Lovers & Friends Bikini Brief: shop here and Bikini Top: shop here)

(Lovers & Friend Blouse: shop here, similar skirt: shop here, and similar bag: shop here)

The most important benefit from being a self-portrait blogger (70% of the time) is positive health. After being in an abusive relationship, doing something for me to build my confidence was the best way to heal. I learned to self-love again, recognised my self-worth and have built my brand around taking on the majority of my jobs myself. If it wasn’t for Jiawa and my close friends, I probably wouldn’t be where I am now. They believed in me, and that’s what I needed. 

So if you’re tossing up whether to take the plunge and become independent I say absolutely! You can still catch up with your favourite bloggers, Insta husbands and photographers creating awesome work. It just means you don’t have to depend on them for every post.

I hope you have enjoyed reading this article. It’s very different to what I usually write but as it’s a topic you guys are interested in I thought it was time to talk about it more. Receiving messages on Instagram of creatives also taking the plunge and sending me their work has to be the biggest compliment. It’s empowering and uplifting hearing that it’s encouraged you guys to do the same.

Please keep sharing your self-portrait posts with #stylestructureselfportrait. It’s your first step on your journey to being an independent confident man/woman.