Winners, Wearing and Weekends

I'm a little late but remembered that I promised to announce the winners of my trade secret giveaway on Friday. Apologies for the lateness but the random number generator at random.org has picked Kat and Amber. Would love to see your finds - tag me (peta_ballerina) and trade secret (tradesecret_aus) on instagram to show off what bargains you find with your voucher. I'll be in touch via email shortly.

 The days have just been beautiful around here lately. Upon recommendation from my aunty and uncle we took Rocky to the dog beach at Coolum - Stumer's creek. He had a ball - so much so that we've been again - twice in a couple of days. My sissy also visited and we had a girls day - I got a seafolly tankini top to wear post-baby and pre-back-to-pre-baby-body from a shop in Caloundra marked down from $160 to $30! It amazes me how much some things cost and amazes me even more that some people pay those sorts of amounts!

In other news my wardrobe clearout is slowly happening. I took five bags to the op shop yesterday and it felt fantastic. What isn't so fantastic is this dress was in the selling/giving away pile and I've decided to keep it for now. It's a good maternity and autumn/winter option and I need all the options I can get!

target dress | thrifted siren heels | michael kors watch

Saturday officially marks three months till my due date ... I'm not scared yet but I'm sure as the days tick along apprehension and doubt will make an appearance. 

Trade Secret Fun + a GIVEAWAY

Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending the grand opening of the newest Trade Secret store on the Sunshine Coast (in Maroochydore) and was kindly gifted a voucher by the lovely TS marketing manager Tessa to spend on whatever my heart desired. Tessa even provided my twin sister a voucher when she found out she was coming along with me. LUCKY OR WHAT?!

The store is jam packed with mens, ladies and kids clothes and accessories AND homewares at at least half the RRP price of regular stores (and that's without any further discounts applied which happens all the time!) They have some great brands on offer including Wish, Lee, Calvin Klein, Henleys, Mossimo and the ever reliable Bonds.

Sissy and I went off separately to check out what was on offer and when we came together to show each other what we were considering getting, what do you think twins did? Yep, picked the same Sunnygirl pants.

Here are some of the other things that caught my eye. 

I got the red ballet flats with the bow and the onesie with the dozer on it

 I desperately wanted those shorts but there were none in my size (and they wouldn't fit at the moment anwyay!)

um, YES they have Michael Kors bags! I think the top one was just under $200. 

Between my sissy, husband and I we scored a new jacket (wearing today), a pair of Lee jeans, a Henleys shirt, a couple of onesies for the little man, some shoes and a toy for my niece who is just the most scrumptious little thing ever. Wouldn't you agree?

exhibit A

Oh, and here is my modelling said jacket. 

 just add sugar anorak and zensu wedges C/O trade secret | asos top (here) | forever 21 waxed coated jeans | karen walker sunnies

Would you like to join in on the trade secret fun? I have TWO yes TWO fifty dollar trade secret vouchers to give away to my lucky readers. All you have to do is leave a comment on this post with your contact details - it's that easy! Winners will be drawn by random number generator in two weeks time (26 April 2013) and will be notified via email.

Sorry, only Australian readers/people visiting Australia can enter!

Store locations can be found here.

even though i was gifted the voucher, these views are my own - I really do LOVE trade secret and shop there regularly so this was just a bonus

Secrets and Plurals

Today I'm very excited to be attending the grand opening of a new Trade Secret store at Maroochydore. I'm even more excited that the lovely marketing manager of Trade Secret contacted me via instagram to offer me a voucher to spend in store! And I also have been offered a couple of gift vouchers to give away to my lovely readers. I will be posting about those tomorrow ; )

On trips to Brisbane my twin sister and I always made a point of bypassing a suburb where a trade secret(s) was located. It was always one of those shops we thought Toowoomba would never 'get'. And wouldn't you know it ... Toowoomba got one a couple of years ago. And I was over the moon. Because I love the shit out of trade secret. Since I've moved to the Sunshine Coast I haven't visited the Kawana store very often because it is a good 15-20 minute drive. This new Maroochydore location is just down the road from my Buderim abode. You can guarantee the husband and I (and the new baby) will be there VERY often. The husband has told many-a-friend that TS is his favourite shop and it is a shop where he actually looks. Normally he just finds the 'boyfriend' seat. 

I got these from the Toowoomba store over easter. Hello $10 - down from the TS price of $29.95 - regular RRP like $45!

He thinks I should split my gift voucher with him but I'm thinking I'll take at least half of it, he can have maybe a quarter and we'll pick up some items for the little man who will be making his way into our lives in August (or hopefully even before ; ))

Can't wait to open my giveway tomorrow and share with you my items on my wishlist and and what we spent the voucher one.

For anyone wondering about the blog post title there is a running 'joke' in our family about plural shop names. Mum and the husband love to refer to Myer as Myers (because it was started by so-and-so Myer) and we all love to call trade secret trade secrets due to a hilarious phone conversation we overhead while shopping in the Toowoomba store one day. A lady's husband was asking where she was - her reply? 

'Trade Secrets, you know, next to Harvey Normans'

(probably one of those 'in' jokes where you have to be there to find it funny)

till tomorrow 

Giveaway Winner .... Nutcase Helmets

Thanks to all the entrants in my Nutcase helmets giveaway. All of the entries were so fantastic I simply could not pick a winner so allowed the team at Nutcase to choose the lucky recipeient.

Their choice?

Lauren Wharton of Tastes like Love. 

Lauren wrote:

Absolutely LOVING the Nutcase Street GEN2 'Candy Swirl' helmet. With colours that resemble a retro boiled lolly, this helmet would bring out anybodies sweet side! Team this up with a cute wicker basket and a spring dress and any lady would be a babe on two wheels!

Lauren also added a comment on my blog to support her entry:

This is such a fantastic giveaway, and a super practical one! 

I've had my retro, creamy, dream of a bicycle for over a year now and still haven't found the perfect helmet - for the same reasons as yours, I hadn't found one cute enough to match how cute my bike is! And it has deterred me from getting down with my bad self on my bike! So to solve my problems I would choose the Nutcase Street GEN2 'Candy Swirl' because not only is it fun, girly + colourful, but it looks like a hard boiled retro lolly. Which is also is my husbands nick name for me - Lollie. I couldn't think of a better way to spend my spring afternoons than busting out my bicycle of the confines of my spare room, and actually being able to ride it guilt free because I have the cutest helmet that will bring out my sweet side!

Congrats Lauren. Send me an email and we'll get the prize shipped out to you!

The Sea Change ... It's ON!!!!!!!!!!

Why hello lovelies. BIG news this week!

Before we went to America I applied for a job at the Sunshine Coast and was eagerly awaiting a phone call to see whether I had secured an interview. I was pretty sure I would at least get an interview and was also somewhat confident that I would get the job. Well I DID GET THE JOB!

What does that mean then? The husband and I will be moving to the Sunshine Coast probably right on new years. I start my new job on the 14th January. Receiving that phone call was surreal. The idea of moving is now a reality and actually securing a new job means we actually have to move. I've been working at the Uni for over 10 years (and in my current position for around 6 years) and will get my 10 year service award in December. It will be sad to leave my co-workers who are a great bunch of people but I'm up for the challenge. 

What will even be harder is leaving our lovely friends and the comfort of living in my hometown but ... I can't complain. I'm going to be living seaside!

I am IN LOVE with this house at Buderim ... seeing the bank tomorrow to see how much money they might consider loaning us. 

Anyway, enough of that. 

Here's what I wore for What I Wore Wednesday. A little bit of a cooler day allowed me to wear a floral dress with sleeves that I picked up at Myer for 75% off.

piper dress | target wedges | forever new belt | sunnies from vinnies

Why haven't more of you entered my giveaway? Is no-one interested in a fabulous nutcase helmet? There is less than 5 entries so far ... that's pretty good odds. 

Christmas Wishlist post coming tomorrow for anyone out there needing pressie ideas!

Helmets can be cool - giveaway time!

When I first bought my bike I hated the idea of having to wear a helmet and considered rebelling by not wearing one. I could not find anything remotely even okay to match the awesomeness of my bike and ended up picking up the least dicky helmet I could find at my local Big W store. I rode my bike once after that - the helmet being the reason (my husband will argue otherwise).

I came to my senses when I realised that the po-po's would probably not give me a warning and would fine me on the spot if they caught me without the necessary headwear. 

I knew there must have been a better solution out there so I took to Google and stumbled across nutcase helmets. It was LOVE at first sight ...well as much love as one could have for a helmet. 

They have a multitude of interesting designs (and plain ones too for those not so adventurous) and offer three sizes in the street helmet. Removable padding can be added or removed to customise your fit = win, win! The range includes street helmets as well as specialised helmets for water and snow sports. 

EVERY time I wear my helmet I get a multitude of compliments and SO WILL YOU if you win my give-away.

The kind folks over at Nutcase have offered to give away one of their unique helmets to one of my readers. You can choose the style and size and nutcase will have it shipped to you. Easy! 

Don't have a bike? No worries! Win a helmet and THEN find a bike to match!

What do you have to do to win?

Head on over to the Nutcase Helmets Australiasia facebook page and leave a comment about your favourite style and how you'd rock it. Leave a comment at the bottom of this post also to let me know you have entered. I will select the most original and entertaining answer as the winner on Friday 26th October 2012. I'd love to see the lucky winner post a photo wearing the winning helmet over at the Nutcase facebook page : )

Stay cool

(everyone welcome to enter!)

Lady in Red

A month or so back I received an email to advise me I had won this giveaway on the Lucy and the Runaways blog. I chose this dress with the $50 credit I won as well as receiving this dress.

Seeing that the Sheinside site seemed to be of Asian origin I ordered a size M in both dresses and although a bit worried that they were too big when they arrived, the fit and quality aren't too bad. I certainly would not have fit in to a size S. This dress is a thicker cotton type material (even though the item listing states it is 'wool') with a scalloped hem and has received quite a few compliments today. I chose this dress based on the seven (7) 5 star reviews that it had received. This is a really handy tool to have on a site - real life reviews from other shoppers. 

sheinside dress | diana ferrari wedges | vintage oroton belt | ray ban sunnies

The site has a gazillion items on it and has free worldwide shipping so it is worth a look. The pieces are very on trend and are very reasonably priced. Items that caught my attention after a quick squizz at the best sellers list include.

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

Giveaway Winners and Pyjamas to Work?!

Sorry it's a bit late but I have just drawn the winners of my photobook giveaway. Thank you to all that entered! The lucky winners are Erica Louise and Zara. 

Congrats girls. I'll be emailing you shortly.

I've seen a few celebs rockin the polka dot pant recently and when these babies turned up at Lifeline yesterday in all their 90s glory I knew I had to grab them ... however much they may look like pj or mc hammer pants. I've only had one (male) co-worker ask if I forgot to finish getting dressed this morning so that is a win.

I can only imagine these may just have belonged to one of the members of Girlfriend (who else was a fan?!).

thrifted katies pants | asos wedges | thrifted the works shirt | sportsgirl scarf | bag from KL | ray ban sunnies