Scuba Dooby Doo!

Mark & I spent last weekend at the National Diving & Activity Centre to finish off our last two diving speciality courses. 

We took the train from a rammed Paddington on Friday afternoon and arrived in picturesque Chepstow a few hours later. 

We stayed in a wooden wigwam again...Lucky 13 ;)

Here I am...Hello there!

Wearing my outdoorsy clobber :)

Our awesome instructor Andy & his lovely wife Lesley also arrived on Friday night, so we all met up at the cafe/bar for some grub and chattery.

Then it was off to bed, to catch some Z's before Saturdays Wreck diving extravaganza. 

Saturday morning...

It was a little bit nippy but after a "full English breakfast" minus the meaty stuff I felt more than ready to brave the water.

Dive Wimbledon, what can I say...

I'm so chuffed that we came across these guys, they have been awesome all the way!

I can't believe that less than ten months ago I had never even breathed underwater, now I can navigate a course in very poor visibility, I can hover and control my buoyancy by lung capacity, I can lay a line and penetrate a wreck and I feel like a proficient diver.

Never in a million years did I think that I'd end up feeling so fired up about diving.

When we did our open water course last February I thought that would be as far as I'd want to take it but after our very first dive in the Red Sea I knew that I wanted to go further. 

I wanted to improve my underwater skills and also be able to dive deeper than the 18 meters you're allowed to as an open water diver.

So we signed up for five specialities; Dry suit, Navigation, Peak Performance Buoyancy (PPB), Wreck and Deep and we got our Advanced Open Water Diver certificate included in the price.

Here are our fellow students gearing up for the wreck diving on Saturday...

We did three dives and our wreck was a single decker bus.

1. Surveying the wreck and map any hazards and points of interest.

2. Lay a line outside the wreck, then follow the line back whilst closing your eyes, then retrieving the line.

3. Penetration dive, lay a line inside the wreck and retrieve the line.

Both Mark and I did really well and managed to bag our wreck certs, yay!

This is how happy and contented you look after a days diving... 

In the evening the whole crew amassed at the cafe/bar for dinner, drinks and much chin-wagging.

At ten I called it a day and snuck away for a rendezvous with my sleeping bag.

On Sunday morning there was mist in the air.

Before breakfast there were thin wisps of mist dancing over the water...

After breakfast you could hardly see the quarry for the thick mist soup...

Mist-schmist! 

We had more important things on our minds, like gearing up for the days first deep dive...

This was the car park before our first dive...

and when we got back up it looked like this :)

We did our three deep dives to the 'BAE 146 Aircraft' at 27 meters.

1. Navigating a reciprocal heading and looking at what happens to colour and a plastic bottle at depth.

2. Swimming around the aircraft maintaining neutral buoyancy, ascend and preform safety stop where you breathe from your buddy's alternate air-source for a minute.

3. The last dive was a bit of a fun-dive, we descended nearby the jetty and swam out to the aircraft, swam through the aircraft and then went on a short tour around a few of the underwater attractions.  I had brought a garden gnome with me which I planted nearby the Devon Aircraft at 25 meters.

I decided to named him 'Orinoco Browne'...

Orinoco from The Wombles of Wimbledon & Browne is the surname of Awesome Andy our instructor :) 

Happy hubby, the best diving buddy a gal could possibly wish for...

Me (in my gnome hat) and our fabulous fellow students in-between dives...

I had a cracking weekend and I have to say that I feel a little bit sad now that it has all come to an end.

In a few days the postman will bring us our Wreck & Deep cards and then that will be that...until next time ;)

We're already scoping out the rescue diver course for spring and hopefully there will be some warmer water diving on the cards before then. Diving ROCKS!

Before I sign off, I want to show you the awesome new stock that I've added to the shop recently, clicking on the pic will take you to the item... 

Hope you are all doing grand and that life is treating you well :)

Lot's of love,

Jennie

xXx

Bernshaw & Beret

The other week Lady Gaga stepped out in the iconic Versace safety-pin frock  that was originally worn by Liz Hurley at the premiere of  'Four Weddings and a Funeral'  in 1994.

In 2008 this frock was voted "the greatest red carpet gown of all time" and it certainly did great things for Liz.

Lady Gaga is a bona fide master when it comes to dressing for attention and I really dig her trademark outlandish style, however I'm really happy that she didn't team the dress with a meat hat or a taxidermy headdress :)

English label Bernshaw made a replica design of the Versace dress and thanks to eBay I was lucky enough to get my hands on one of those a couple of years ago...

I haven't as yet had the opportunity to wear it to a social occasion, it it deserves a proper occasion.

I will be celebrating a biggie-burfday in a couple of years so I may hang on to it until then ;)

Our PADI certification cards for Peak Performance Bouyancy and Navigation specialty diver came through the post today, only two more to go and we've clocked up five.

Half way to becoming Master Scuba Divers, yay :)

We still have to log twentyish more dives and do the PADI rescue diver course but that won't happen until next spring, unless I stumble upon a pot of gold or something.

Today's Ensemble:

 Vintage 50s velvet jacket, 60s day dress, 80s boots, beret with vintage brooch, patterned tights.

Mark thinks that I look like Michelle from 'Allo 'Allo! in my beret...

Listen very carefully, I shall say 'zis only once :)

Lot's of love,

Jennie

xXx

One Step Beyond

Gloriously sunny afternoon, blowing away the cobwebs and getting over a particularly vicious bread hangover.

We've been trying to avoid eating bread for a while but last night we ODed on the stuff... 

pizza, garlic bread  and apple pie and alpro custard for din-dins!

Hubby and I both felt well sick afterwards and my stomach took on balloon like proportions...like I was carrying a bread baby or something.

I don't get that horrid bloated feeling on our normal veggie & legume based diet, thank goodness.

The preferred cure for a bread hangover is a right old Madness inspired run around in the park...

Doctor Marten shirt & boots, Frocktasia tie-dyed skinny Tee & necklace, badass buckle detail mini skirt, spanking spandex leggings, Faux-Wayfarer sunnies & 50s gents felt hat.

It works every time :)

Hope you are all having a fab weekend!

Lot's of love,

Jennie

xXx

September on speed and Odd Lovin'

What the heck happened to September, eh?

'WHOOSH'...that's what happened...like a rat out of an aqueduct!

October entails a trip to B&Q to get draught excluder tape & tea-lights,  an hour or five up in the loft swearing like trooper whilst trying to locate hats, gloves, woolly scarves and other cold weather related clobber & paraphernalia. 

It is also usually the month when my hot water bottle 'Gino the Giraffe' makes a reappearance in bed and he brings with him at least another duvet, thermal PJ's and bed-socks for my poor frozen feet. 

I take to wearing outdoor clothing indoors & favor wigs to keep my loaf warm.

Don't get me wrong, I love this time of year...the coziness of dark the evenings, rooms lit up by tea-lights and candles, hearty soups and roasted pumpkin.

Soon the park will be on fire with colour and for a few weeks we will be treated to natures very own art display. 

I go for long walks along the urban nature trail near our house, it smells divine, just like the woodlands where we used to go mushrooming when I was a kid.

It would be so lovely to live near a forest, I'd get well into foraging then...
berries, mushies and wild veggies.

One day we will leave this dirty city behind us and to be truthful I am very much looking forward to that day.

I sorted out my wig collection earlier and was reunited with my turquoise cartoon cool wiggy-woo, as soon as I put it on a little dress-up session ensued...

Super funky vintage 60s psychedelic floral dress, lurex tights, Demonia heels, cartoon cool wiggy-woo

Fabulously ladylike vintage 50s leaf print dress labelled 'A Russell Stuart Model' & a gorgeous vintage patent clutch from  Odd Lovin'

Whilst on the subject of  Odd Lovin' I was super lucky a few weeks back when I won their giveaway... 

I don't actually buy make-up very often cause I always get stuff from my mum as pressies so I never really need to but I have to say that these Lily Lolo mineral make-up products really impressed me...

 The vegan friendly eye shadow is lush, the colour is called 'Deep Purple' and it certainly is that.

This is now my favorite eye shadow and I have no doubt whatsoever that it shall remain so for the foreseeable future...sorry FACE Stockholm but I may have to dump you!

Odd Lovin' vintage is the brainchild of Malmoe based stunner Tuva Minna Linn...

"She writes poetry, drinks sweet sherry and listen to 70s records. Tuva Minna Linn is the creative spirit and vintage lover behind Odd Lovin’. Ever since childhood she’s been inspired by clothing, always mixing, trying and falling in love with something new. Her heart beats for the 70s and just the sight of a Ossie Clark dress can make her cry."

Not only is she absolutely gorgeous, she's also a wonderful wordsmith and fabulous stylist to boot.

Here are four of my fave garments from the Odd Lovin' shop...

High Flyin' Bird vintage caftan dress

Soul Sacrifice vintage Indian hippie dress

Somebody To Love vintage embroidered boho dress

What The World Needs Now pre WW2 Japanese Houmongi kimono

Wicked stuff I think you'll agree and if you happen to live in the south of Sweden you can even pop along to their showroom to try before you buy...sweet as!

Have a cracking Friday y'all!

Lot's of love,

Jennie

xXx

The Frocktasia Sale

The FROCKTASIA sale is now on, with loads of reduced items in the shop :)

Like this awesome dashiki print dress for a mere £15 or this stunning handcrafted Moroccan leather bag for £30...

 No less than thirty frocks are up for grabs in the sale, none of which cost more than £30.

This sassy vintage 60s dress with sheer chiffon sleeves & lurex trim was reduced from £35 to £30...

Camo is the print of choice for the fashion army this autumn. 

Topshop are currently punting out a Camo army jacket for £48. 

The Frocktasia version is not only kinder on the pocket at £35 but also unique with its hand painted SMILEY on the back. 

Bags of bags and most of them with a price-tag of £30 down from £40.

The wicked Frocktasia 'Grumpy Suns' earrings are now £20.

Another Frocktasia handmade item that is up for grabs in the sale is this goth-tastic chiffon rose crown headdress for £25 which will look awesome teamed with this 90s dead-stock Ralph Lauren velvet dress that has been reduced from £40 to a bargainous £30...

I think there is something for everyone...

a magnificent motely mix of unique handpicked vintage garments,  brilliantly bohemian genuine leather bags and wicked one-of-a-kind handmade accessories :) 

Lot's of love,

Jennie

xXx

The things you own, own you!

Now that I'm concentrating on trimming down my vintage collection instead of perpetually adding to an already crammed setting, I'm actually starting to find stuff again.

Stuff that I'd forgotten I had bought or perhaps worse still stuff  that can't even remember ever buying, oh dear!

The sign of a proper hoard addict, someone who has stuff in their wardrobe they have no idea how it got there, crazy!

I am also being reunited with "old friends" that haven't seen the light of day for ages. 

Many have been skillfully sandwiched away in a far away corner of the wardrobe or folded up in a storage bag up in the loft.   

It's like a blanket of heavy snow slowly melting away in the spring sunshine & revealing long forgotten about little daisy buds. 

Perhaps a little needlessly florid but that is exactly how it feels.

I'm happy the snow is finally melting, I'm happy to see frocks wing their way out the door and for each and every one that flies, I'm feeling lighter.

That's the whole thing, I woke up one morning and thought to myself...
"Shit man, I am being imprisoned by my possessions, even if I wanted to move today, I couldn't cause of all this STUFF"
...and that really scared me!

So instead of doing my usual ostrich act and burying my head in the nearest pile of vintage clobber, I have taken some steps in the right direction.
Besides my Frocktasia on-line shop, I'm eBaying, Gumtreeing and will be car boot selling too in a couple of weeks.

After being inspired by wonderful Vix's vintage fair post, I've even been eyeing up that avenue today.

I will not rest until I have made a big dent in my stockpile and in the meantime I suspect I shall continue to unearth forgotten about buys galore and be reunited with "old friends" like this vintage 80s glitter bow print prom dress that I bought when I lived in Edinburgh in the 90s and this DIYed goth bride veil made for a Halloween do in a South London pub that I worked in many many moons ago...

Getting rid and letting go, feels so incredibly cathartic & liberating...

I never thought it would!

Lot's of love,

Jennie

xXx

Hello I am Inga, from Sweden!

I've just had the laziest weekend ever & it's been bloody grand!

Besides an hour long compass training session in the park yesterday, I've pretty much based my hours around sleeping & eating.

 Slumbering in bed, snoozing on the sofa, catnapping in the kitchen, nodding-off in the bath & dozing on the balcony (whilst stargazing & trying out our cosy new sleeping-bags).

Sometimes my body and mind just needs to switch off for a couple of days and when that need arises I don't fight it, I don't feel guilty about having a seemingly unproductive weekend, I just let everything go, roll up like a little hedgehog underneath my duvet and drift off cause I know that once I have gone through this process I will feel completely rebooted.

I've had lot's of fantastical lucid dreams too which is always nice.

Last week whilst having a root around in my vast amassement of  vintage clobber, I unearthed a pair of kick-ass cyber goth boots that I bought a couple of years ago.

Now when I'm not buying so much anymore & perpetually bringing new stuff into the house every weekend, I'm actually starting to find stuff around the house that I really love and want to wear.

These boots ROCK...they are chunky as hell and made by DESTROYER, how very apt.

I also found a pair of spangly lurex hot pants from my clubbing days; just as well they are stretchy cause my derriere is not as dinky as it once was.

On my last car boot sale jaunt I picked up a new wig, when I put it on my husband told me that I looked like a stereotypical Swedish chick ;)

 

The beastie boots...

Last week I added thirty vintage frocks to my Frockfest  album on Facebook.

I've plenty more to add and I'm hoping to do a FROCKTASIA store update this coming week too.

I'm looking to add autumn stuff like vintage coats, more jackets and shapeshifters.

Here are all the frockfest dresses...

Now that I've had a good weekends sleep I'm raring to go...

Monday...bring it on!

Hope you have all had a fantastic weekend :)

Lot's of love,

Jennie

xXx