DAY 17 // Festival Season.

Day 17.
Its almost Friday!!

And I have music festivals on the brain. With festival season just around the corner, down here in Oz, it's hard to escape the excitement of them.. they are everywhere! From small folk festivals in the bush, like Woodford, to larger New Years festivals like Pyramid Rock and The Falls, to huge one day electronic festivals like Stereosonic and Future, theres something for every type of music lover.

Festivals have been getting bad rep's in the media lately for being drug hubs and essentially dangerous places for young people to be..expecially in the growing EDM genres. but I feel like for the most part festivals are being unfairly targeted by this type of scrutiny. Drugs and Alcohol are present in so many parts of youth culture, from clubs to bars to house parties, to concerts..and it's always been that way. Young people just need to make smarter decisions about them, no matter what setting you are in. Festivals are full of amazing people and amazing atmospheres and should really be experienced by everyone atleast once in their life.

So because of this Pro-festival stance of mine and in light of the season I decided to make a list of The top 10 things I love most about music festivals. I think most of you reading will relate and agree with atleast a couple of these, and I'm excited to reminisce a little about my past festival experiences with these photos... here we go.

{ONE}

Oh the sounds..the MUSIC. Obviously #1 on the list for me. One minute you can be listening to the sexy sounds of The Weekend and Frank Ocean while the next you can be in the dance tent jumpin' around to some crazy dubstep. The diversity of sounds at many of the larger festivals these days are insane..its eclectic and its beautiful. {This photo was taken at Coachella 2012}

{TWO}

One of the utmost greatest things about music festivals is the fact that you can wear the craziest outfits/accessories/costumes and not get judgingly stared at for it..only high fives and smiles. Festival people beat to their own drum and it's amazing to see the creativity that goes into the get-up's that these people flaunt. You can truly be whatever you want to be at music festival. Even a furry Yetty. 

{This photo was taken at Sasquach 2011}

{THREE}

The Camping is always epic. Miles and miles of tents, cars and camper-vans lined up in a field, all baring flags and music and rowdy groups of campers. It's the best way to capture the full experience of a week or weekend long music festival. You don't shower, you eat only beef jerky, and you pee in gross porto-potties. Truly glorious. { This is me and Kate, our first day at Sasquatch 2011}

{FOUR}

Dancing is an integral part to fully enjoying a music festival. You don't care what anyone else thinks because they're all doing the same stupid, flailing moves.. you just giv'er. For optimal fun, you dance in a mosh pit of hundreds of people while electronic sounds are pulsing and the bass is heavy..but finger dancing with beers in tents is fun too. {This is me and Kate, first night at Sasquatch 2011}

 {FIVE}

Your Crew! These are your beautiful friends who help you make the great memories.. the friends you dance with, party with and squeeze into one tent with at the end of the night. Your crew is always a great bunch of rowdy humans who you love and who share you're love for music and fun. 

{This was The Coachella Crew of 2012..love em to death.}

{SIX}

Ah, the people you meet. I love how music festivals bring together like-minded people from all over the country, the continent and the world. It's hard to meet a legitimately bad person at a festival..because only the coolest and most fun people attend festivals. boring people do not go to festivals. 

{This is a photo of our camping neighbours at Coachella. They were from San Francisco. Definitely some of the coolest guys I've ever met.. They also design rad T-shrits. }

{SEVEN}

Shenanigans! It's part of the festival lifestyle really. For 3 days, you get to act stupid (in moderation of course...) and wake up with a drink in your hand and spend the afternoons kart-wheeling and hoola hooping and playing games of beer pong and drinking vodka from a watermelon.  

 {EIGHT}

Mom won't like this one..Shoulder Rides! Most definitely one of my all-time favourite things to do at a music festival. All you gotta do is find a tall, strong looking man who will agree to lift you up on his shoulders while you bounce around, flailing your arms and screaming at the top of your lungs. Why? Because it is THE BEST VIEW EVER. You feel like you're on top of the world. No heads in your way, no annoying girls elbowing you in the ribs..just you, and your light saber. 

{This is me opening night at Coachella, during Swedish House Mafia's set}

{NINE}

Body Paint is a must-have at a music festival. It's a fun and creative group activity that will never get old. Peace Signs, Hearts and Swirls were clearly a favourite of hours in this pic. Hippie Vibes all the way. {Coachella 2012}

{TEN.}

I will rap this list up with the best of them all. LOVE. There is so much love shared at music festivals (and i'm not talking about the sexy-time ronchy love..so get your head out of the gutters) I'm talking serious human love. At a festival it's virtually impossible to be in a bad mood and you feel so in love with your life - those around you, the sounds you hear, the setting you are in..everything. Good vibes are being spread. Strangers are coming together under one roof. You will not meet a more accepting and loving bunch of humans than at a music festival.

 {This is a photo my friend Max spontaneously snapped of me and my good friend Ryker at the Gorge Amphitheatre, during Sasquatch 2011..so much friend love shared in this picture.. thats the love i'm talking about}

THE END.

Thanks for reading,

Until Tomorrow xo

DAY 16 // Love Is Bold.

Day 16.

Cammie and I have developed some pretty intense boot tans, short tans and glove tans. We also have freakishly dark arms and backs along with permanent dirt under our finger nails. Shit is getting intense.

The weeds were on steroids today..like i'm talking massive (and in abundance) and I felt like The Hulk every time I ripped one out of the ground.. full force, biceps and fore arms bulging. I told Ian that thanks to him and the weeds Cam and I are going to leave this farm absolutely ripped..like she-men. How are we supposed to find hot aussie husbands as she-men huh?

Anyways, C'est la Vie..farm life is tough.

I've decided to channel my hate into loving thoughts. There's no point in feeling angry and frustrated over some stupid plants. For the love of the pumpkins we will get this job done.

Because it's like they say, "Hate is Easy, Love is Bold"

Now to my dumb "creative" graphic.

Goodnight!
xo

DAY 14 // Music Monday

Hello Monday.

Thankfully today went by pretty quick out on the fields because the weeds were out of control and Cam and I kept screwing up. Like accidentally hitting the water hose that runs through the ground to water the pumpkins (the "tape", they call it) with our chippers, puncturing holes in line and causing leaks. Or mistaking a pumpkin plant for weeds and chopping the whole thing off.. oops. Lucky for us Ian never gets mad and he usually laughs at us, making a joke that we're still a sleep or that we're thinking about boys..the problem is usually the sleep bit. Today I felt like a zombie.

I've been listening to music a lot out on the fields and I'm getting pretty bored with my playlists so I spent the afternoon downloading some new music, most of which I've found through 8 tracks (for those who don't know about it..heres the link: http://8tracks.com)

These are some of my favs at the moment. I feel a bit out of the music loop lately..I haven't listened to the radio really in just about 6 months. But that's probably a good thing too because the radio is over played with crap most the time anyways, right? So though these songs might not be "new", they are new to my little ol' ears.

Goodnight!
xo

DAY 11 // Instalove

Hurrrayyyy! It's Friday!
I'm not going to lie, the cheap wine has been flowing tonight at the farmhouse, so I'm going to make this short..

We just got back from a little cruise around the fields with Reece and Ian in the truck. We had our torches out and were scouring the crops for foxes and rabbits. Well, we found a fox..deep in the lucin fields..and we gunned it right for the poor guy. Chasing it in the truck we almost ran over it, Cam and I were screaming like little girls and Reece was laughing his head off.. we swerved and fish tailed it all over the place and eventually scared it into the creek. With the lighting bolts illuminating the sky and the thunder rolling in..it was quiet the evening... gotta love the simple thrills of farm life!

Alright, so I may or may not be cheating a bit with this post. I haven't exactly made or done anything creative tonight, but I do want to share some people that inspire my creativity on a daily basis. A true Instagram fanatic, (I will admit) I follow some pretty awesome "IGERS". From local creatives (In Vancouver, BC), to awesome aussies, to european foodies, I am ever excited by my morning instagram feed.

So, here are 10 of my favorite Instagram Creatives.. IGERS that I believe are very much worth following.

Cheers to Cheap wine Fridays!

Until Tomorrow xo

Koakai Supply Co. is a local Vancouver brand inspired by the sea. They create sick surf inspired apparel for men and women with hand-rendered graphics by the talented @ericaleecraig. These "Defenders of Local Beach Culture" are killing it in Van and I'm stoked to see what amazing things they will create next.. check out their gear at koakaisupplyco.com 

A super creative food artist from Norway, this girl even has a book published on Amazon. Her food art always brings a smile to my face. 

Spell has been a favourite of mine even before my journey to Australia. I was so excited to step into their amazing store while I was in Byron Bay 5 months ago and even more excited to walk away with one of their leather fringe purses. Still a staple for a night out. I'm truly inspired by this brand, two sisters who have built a unique and creative clothing boutique from the ground up. 

check em out at spelldesigns.com

A Sydney based Vintage clothing label. Amazing photography and amazing vintage fashion.

Los Angeles based Vintage inspired clothing label that I have a huge crush on. Their Tee's are cool as. 

A local Sunshine Coast bohemian brand based out of the cute beach town of Mooloolaba. I had the pleasure to check out their store when I was there 4 months ago and I fell in love with their designs. fringe on fringe on awesomeness. check out their new website at gypsystone.com.au

This awesome Ista-feed is brought to you by @sticks_and_stones_agency. Not much to say about this other than...LEO & FRANCO. sticksandstonesagency.tmblr.com

An amazing artist. I only wish I could sketch like her. check out more at ponygold.blogspot.com

A "moroccan gypset collection for the bohemian soul" .. some totally rad custom skateboard decks. see more at amescollective.com

Amanda Malm makes lovely bags, and has a hell of a style. love this chick. check out her blog at modette.se/amandamalm.

DAY 10 // Missing the Sea

Helloo All,

Today was a scorcher once again, around 36 degrees. Maybe because it's almost friday and our bodies are giving up on us for the week or maybe it's just the intense heat but today seemed extra tough. One more day though and we've conquered week deux.

My creative bit tonight is inspired by my desire to be near the ocean again and the fact that I'm missing it like crazy. 

If I've learned one thing while being in Australia it is that I'm most happy near the sea. I'll always remember the week I spent couch surfing in Mermaid Beach on the Gold Coast and Jodi and I were staying in this little beach shack apartment literally two minutes from the ocean. We would wake up early every morning because the sun was too hot to sleep in and I would head down to the beach for a morning jog or we would both walk down with coffee and just sit there and take in the salty air while watching the local surfers catch some waves. I loved it so much. 

So I pulled this quote from my collection and decided to practice hand-rendering type with it. I've always been a fan of doodling typography. And I think these words are lovely.

The ocean sets a good example for us humans.

Thanks for reading!

Until Tomorrow xo

DAY 9 // Finders Keepers DIY

Alright, DAY 9! And its wednesday so that means only two more work days till a nice little weekend break. STOKED.

Today was long and hot..36 degrees hot.. and I burnt my ears! what the heck? I've NEVER done that before. I guess it serves me right for choosing not to wear a hat. It hurts.

Ok, so creative bit for the day.

I had this idea a few days ago.. I love cutting clothes up and making them more awesome or just, new. So I found this dude's "singlet" in our dorm room in Cairns a couple weeks ago and there was no one in the room but me and cam, no one to claim it, so I took it. It's just a plain white shirt, loose fitting and comfy..but for creativity's sake I thought I'd transform it a bit and cut the crap out of it.

I cut the bottom all the way around so that the front is shorter than the back, and then cut the back into a deep "V" with horizontal slits. Then for the front I added some gold studs that I randomly bought at Jay Jay's, (while buying a sweeeet pair of overalls..) to each shoulder.

Something like this is super easy to do while traveling. I don't condone stealing of course...BUT at hostels a lot of the time there are "lost and found" type boxes full of forgotten stuff. So if you're not weirded out my second hand clothes, give it a wash and make it your own.

This project literally cost my 99 cents. Perfect on a poor backpacker's budget.

{Excuse the quality of the photos- not my best work..a bit rushed tonight.}

Thanks for reading,

Until tomorrow
xox

DAY 6 // Small Town Thrifting

Hellooo Day 6!

Today Cam and I mostly chilled out, BUT we did motivate ourselves this morning to do a little run around the fields and some ab excersises, YES.  It was a great start to our relaxing sunday lounging by the kiddy pool. Yes we found a kiddy pool.. in a dusty box in the sunroom.. and we built it! It was perfect to read a magazine in and for a little cool off, such a great find.

Now to the creative bit of the post - I styled a shoot today using two thrifted shirts I found at this random second-hand stall at the markets yesterday. There was pretty much just a table with a pile of clothes on it and the bearded man said to us "girls, fill a bag for 5 bucks!" ..what a steal of DEAL. So we rummaged through the stuff, mostly crap..but managed to find a lululemon workout top and these two beauties. He was disappointed we didn't fill a bag, but I was happy paying $5 for my three finds..still a stellar deal.

Since I'm a thrifting freak and half my wardrobe is second-hand, I paired the two shirts with as many other thrifted item's as I could. The teal shoes I bought in noosa for $1 and the shorts I bought back home at value village and cut & distressed them to make shorts. The brown belt is also thrifted from Van and I guess you could say the orange bra-lette is thrifted two because my lovely friend in Noosa gave that to me when we did a clothes swap!

All in all, these looks were super easy to put together, and dirt cheap! I've always said: you don't have to spend heaps of money to look awesome and have great style.

Thanks again to my gorgeous model Camille for letting me dress her up and put her in front of the camera. She rocked it.

Goodnight All! thanks for reading
Until Tomorrow xo

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This is a Challenge.

Hey friends and other lovely people that decided to check out this crazy little blog.. Thankyou! I really appreciate it and I hope you find it even just a little bit interesting and worth while.

I guess first I'll explain myself.

Eighty Eight is a creative challenge as well as a way for me to document some of my time living on a farm in rural Australia. Why Eighty Eight? Because that is the number of days I will be spending out here, as a "farm girl", to earn my second year visa in Australia. Those who have backpacked this country know all about this business.. and may or may not have experienced some hard farm times yourself for that extra year of fun in the land down unda. I'm definitely one of hundreds doing it, so this is nothing special or new, I just hope to make the best of my three months here and in the mean time awaken my creative brain once more by posting things online...

one creative "thing" that i've done or made, everyday.

"Thing": A photograph, a DIY project, OP shop find, delicious recipe..anything awesome goes.}

With plenty of down time at night and nothing to distract me like bars, boys or booze..I feel like this is the perfect opportunity to do something meaningful and creative with my time. So we'll see how it goes..

I hope you enjoy and follow along.

peace&love.