Goodbye tea lights hello Pyro Pet: Introducing Kisa

Have you had enough of boring little tea lights and the mundane glass jars filled to the brim with wax?  Our homes have been blistered with the smelly kind in plain jars for too long, until now. Introducing the candle for the stylish pyro – Pyro Pet!

Pyro Pet Kitty Candle

Introducing a pretty little kitty that has taken over my lounge room and she comes with a pretty little secret too… once she’s all burned down, I won’t be left with the usual waxy mess, instead I’ll be left with a pretty little kitty skeleton.

Sounds goulash? Not at all, shes’s a sophisticated version with big enchanting eyes and will captivate you each night while her wax drips, enticing you to see her as she reveals herself.

My Pyro Pet was generously donated by Prezzybox.com and came in what I consider to be the new ‘less is more’ sophisticated branding that is sweeping products around the world. Following in Apples footsteps companies are beginning to create simple but effective brands that wow.

Anyway, back to the pretty kitty.

The idea of Pyro Pet

“Sweet little kittens are transformed in a fire. Crawling from the ashes come forth grinning metallic devils with sharp claws and fire blazing in their eyes”. Pyro pet

And that’s what’s so brilliant about them…

You start with a sweet pink kitty, flame flickering…

And then Kiso, the Pyro Pet is revealed

The surprise…

Transform your tea lights into little characters that come to life. Grab then from Prezzy Box in pink or grey. I adore them. I want a matching grey little boy for my pink kitty now.

Goodbye tea lights hello Pyro Pet: Introducing Kisa

I've dropped from a size 16 to a 12 and going for a 10!

I was tired, lacklustre, I had palpitations and was my motivation to diet again had flown out that forever window of hope. In truth I was bloody fed up with feeling like this almost every day of the week yet I still had to pluck from obscurity that motivation, that Captain America like energy to work, run the house, get all my Mummy chores done and then attempt to lose weight and get fit. Get real! It aint’ ever going to happen – BUT IT DID!

There were no diets that worked magic here. No strenuous exercise! No Mr or Mrs Universe yelling preposterous words down my nose either… It was just me. And now, with oodles of energy, loads of time to get things done and 2 sizes lighter (waa bloody hoo!) I am a changed woman.

Seriously! I feel free for the first time from the emotional chasm of dieting, and free from the horrible feelings I had every time I looked in the mirror with disappointment because I’d yo-yoed again.

And I want to give you every single secret that I’ve uncovered!

Heres a McSneaky at just one small thing I did that made a dramatic change in my health and weight!

 

Love food, love life!

Zarn

 

I've dropped from a size 16 to a 12 and going for a 10!

Alice In Wonderland wedding inspired shoot

What is it about Alice In Wonderland that manages to inspire so many different things? Is it the fluffy bunny? Or maybe its the dreamy context of which we can all, like Alice, imagine a fantastical place that makes us deliriously happy? And is it this that makes it so popular as a wedding theme? Alice In Wonderland wedding inspiration is gaining in popularity again only this time Alice has grown up. She’s more sophisticated, she loves her design and decor and has a palette of blues, pinks, reds, golds and of course black and white.

I adore the aesthetics of the more grown up Alice In Wonderland wedding. Still bold, she’s elegant yet still very exciting and today’s Alice In Wonderland wedding inspiration was created by a fantastic team led by the brilliant Pink Martini Events and snapped beautifully by Herman Au Photography.

Alice keeps growing up and today, she’s gone Vogue!

Alice In Wonderland Wedding inspiration

 

          

A little from Pink Martini Events:

For this wintry styled shoot we were inspired by the whimsical and quirky nature of Alice in Wonderland. We wanted to put our own touch on the theme by showcasing an elegant white tea party that maintains the unusual elements of this much loved classic. This meant crafting the signature tall hat and oversized bowtie for our very animated Mad Hatter model Robert Hilo, posing our bride model Alice in a giant high backed chair to “shrink” her, adding an adorable “Mr. Rabbit”, adorning our table with a variety of stacked teacups and teapots and showcasing an asymmetrical cake that was a reflection of the topsy-turvy Wonderland. To balance out the quirkiness of these elements, we designed elegant matching stationary and chose a simple but refined wedding gown with a blue sash for our Alice.

It was a true challenge trying to depict winter in Southern California since the four seasons look nearly the same year-round. To accomplish the wintry feel, we opted for a white, silver red and light blue color palette. To add variety to the white décor, we ensured that the elements possessed a variety of textures, such as beautiful cottony rosette linens, a mix of smooth ceramic and embellished teapots, paper and feather trees and soft florals. We incorporated pops of bright red, silver and light blue to break the uniformity of the white but still maintain the winter feel. These colors were accents on all of the yummy desserts and goodies, such as cakepops, cupcakes, cookies and macarons, scattered on top of the table. A tea party is not complete without these sweet treats!

The Nixon Library and Museum, with its combination of simplicity and sophistication, was the perfect venue for this styled shoot. The pristine white walls in the ballroom were instrumental in boosting the elegance of our winter tea party, while the autumn colored trees in the courtyard made a stunning background for our DIY photo booth backdrop which were decorated with silver and gold frames containing character silhouettes from Alice in Wonderland as well as handmade paper flowers.

The romantic part…

“Our favorite part of this styled shoot was giving our models, Robert Hilo and Kiho Hilo, the opportunity to have some of their very own wedding photos. These pictures capture Robert’s eccentricity and Kiho’s sweet nature and beauty, which are an accurate reflection not only of Alice and the Mad Hatter, but of Robert and Kiho. These lovebirds were married in the summer of 2013, but decided to put off the reception because Kiho’s family resides in Japan. The couple is waiting for the day both families can get together to celebrate their special union. Until then, these pictures serve as a great way to commemorate their love and special occasion”.

Frabjous creatives:

Loved something in this shoot? Then get in touch below.

Design – Pink Martini Events - www.pinkmartinievents.com

Photography – Herman Au Photography - www.hermanau.com

Model – DJ/MC Robert Hilo - www.hiloproductions.com

Florals – Wen Floral Design Studio - www.wenfloral.com

Cake – But it’s Not Just Cakes - www.binjicakes.com

Tux Rental – Friar Tux Shop, Huntington Beach, CA = www.friartux.com

Dress – Blush Bridal Couture - www.blushbridalcourtureoc.com

Stationary – Love Meet Design - www.lovemeetdesign.com

Furniture Rentals – Lux Lounge EFR - www.luxloungeefr.com

Makeup – Makeup by Joyce Kim - makeupbyjoyce@hotmail.com

Venue – Nixon Library - www.nixonlibraryevents.com

Hair – Mimi’s Beauty Supply and Salon - www.minisbeautysupply.com

Alice, whether or not you’re over it all or still obsessed with her and all the whimsy the story creates, she will always be a part of weddings.

As they say, Don’t be late!

Alice In Wonderland wedding inspired shoot

Absent from the blog but present in real life!

You may have noticed I’ve been missing from the blog for a while… OK, a long while! And it’s taken me a long time to finally sit in front of my littleMac and type this post; I thought about apologising, but honestly, I’m not sorry. I’ve been selfish for months now… but I needed to be. My daily gossiping about weddings and fashion and all things photography seemed so useless and completely unnecessary in my life over the last few months…

Now I’m ready to bring on the love and get back to Alice. Here’s why I’ve been away…

Now I won’t elongate the last few months of my life in words that sound like I need sorrow, or pity but the truth is, life’s been hell. We lost Rob’s Dad at the beginning of the year after a traumatic stint in hospital and then in the weirdest twist of fate, his Mum landed in hospital needing life saving surgery one week before his Dad’s funeral.

Then a few weeks after the funeral finally went ahead my beautiful sister was diagnosed with breast cancer and has been fighting it ever since…

That was my last straw – I crashed!

My last few months have been like sheets of ice breaking every time I took a step so, I decided, most selfishly, that my family needed to come first. And it did! And it still is… but

I’m back in a multi coloured rainbow kind of fashion and loaded with some awesome wedding stuff and more BIG surprises. (Things will be somewhat different around here) because…

Things have become somewhat a little steadier now so

1. I’m back, Alice is back!

2. And I have a (super excited about this one) sparkly new vogue-esq blog design on its way soon

3. I’m also currently lapping up the summer holidays with my bewdiful baby girl before she returns to school in two weeks as a big Yr 2 girly so I’m enjoying the stuff I love – her!

4. I’ve also become a health-conscious-doodle bug, (don’t get me started… no, actually, DO!) and I’m addicted to all things fresh, beautiful and physically torture-esq (ask my Yoga teacher)

5. And my new passion for being a healthy, yet still nutty, crazy, out-of-the-box, passionate human being will become a HUGE part of Alice this time (loads of super cool blog posts coming on all things bright, green and happy).

When I started blogging I thought there was a ‘proper’ way I had to blog, a ‘supposed’ way I had to proclaim my identity but lives lessons have taught me one thing this year … honesty, truly is the best medicine.

It will be me on the blog, live, raw, and uncut this time. I won’t pretend to love Rock n roll if I don’t (not that I did), or get a tattoo just because it makes me look cool or pretend to be the stylishly perfect blogger I see so much of on the internet. I have warts, I am passionate and therefore I hate and I make mistakes but it’s all mine and I do it with great heart and loads of passion.

The one thing I’m not though, is rude, I don’t swear like a trooper and I won’t shove my opinions down your throat.

I will ..

be creating one hell of a place for you to get inspired by all things creative and stylish

be seeking your ideas too

be sharing my ideas, passion, out of the box thinking on all things wedding, love and life! (With the occasional Green tea).

I’m quite simply quirky, out-of-the-box, social and packed full of energy (most days) and that’s who you’ll find here (and somewhere else *chuckles to herself* more on that later)…

Arrgh! It’s sooo good to be back!

Stay tuned for more passion, out-of-the-box, social and energising creativity.

Zarn xx

Photo credit: andrealeephotography.com

Absent from the blog but present in real life!