Ballarat Bitter

One of my favourite beauty hobbies is to get eyelash extensions. I’ve had them on and off for many years. The things I like most about them include that I don’t need to wear mascara on my blonde lashes, I don’t need to have my lashes tinted, there is no mascara running on my cheeks when I’m exercising and I can touch my eyes all I want without worrying about smudging black everywhere.

My natural lashes are actually a nice length, but they grow straight out so when I blink they brush along my cheeks, leaving any makeup that might be on them. Eyelash extensions negated this. On top of all of that, they’re so darn pretty. I love to not have to do makeup to feel elegant and the eyelashes made this possible. Really, the reason I’m writing all of this is that I can’t have them anymore. This photo is the last ever experience I will have with them. I have been gradually building up an allergy to the glue, possibly triggered by the use of cheap eyeshadow a few applications ago. So after having these beautiful lashes applied, I had to have them taken off a few days later.

I’m pretty devastated. I loved getting them done! I don’t really have any other beauty things that I do for fun. I don’t get my nails done, I don’t get my brows done, I rarely get my hair done. I sometimes apply a face mask at home on my own, but that’s also rare. So the one beauty thing I got any real pleasure from has been taken away from me. My eyelash specialist (who is also the most inspiring and interesting woman), totally feels my pain and is going to upskill in the area of eyelash lifts. I’ve had a lift done before and I loved it because it also looked nice and it stopped my lashes brushing on my cheeks when I close my eyes. I can’t wait for her to be doing the lifts! So the whole thing is bittersweet. Bitter because I don’t want to be allergic to the lashes, but sweet because my beautiful lash specialist will be staying in my life with her exceptional skills.

Speaking of bitter… I’ve been wanting to do photos in front of one of Ballarat’s Ballarat Bitter signs since forever. I initially suggested it for the cover of the Ballarat Lifestyle Magazine, but the Editor Lucy said that they’ve thought of it before and it was difficult to get it to work. Because it says ‘Ballarat’ at the top of the sign, with the title of the mag above it, it looks like it says ‘Ballarat, Ballarat’, which is weird.

For these photos, once I started thinking more solidly about the location, I had to think about what outfit to wear with the painting. Something I do a lot more now that I didn’t really do when I first started blogging is that I try to colour coordinate what I’m wearing with the location. I think I resisted the idea for such a long time because I was worried about blending into the background, but realistically, the colours I’m wearing only need to be in the same palette. That way the background and the outfit look like they’re having an agreeable conversation on the same topic, not an argument where neither is listening to the other.

So, with that in mind, how did I choose what to wear? I looked at the painting and mused on the palette. The things that stood out to me most were the brown and blue tones. I did initially buy a copper coloured pleated satin skirt (what a tongue twister), but the skirt wasn’t flattering on me and I sent it back. Then I bought this stunning faux leather skirt into my life and I really wanted to use it here. The best complement to that I thought would be this sky blue sweater I decided to wear. Anyway, I don’t really need to explain this further. I’m sure you can see for yourself how the colours work together.

Ballarat Bitter came about in 1926, but has since been out of production, save for special occasions (such as a personal request to Government from the crew of the HMAS Ballarat). The brew is represented by a mascot called Bertie. If you come across the term ‘Ballarat Bertie’, this is who they are referring to. He even comes with his own rhyme.

Tinkers, tailors, soldiers, sailors,

Cooks and coppers too;

Dance with joy around the boy

Who makes this bonza brew!

He’s definitely one of Ballarat’s best-known icons and you can find him on the side of many old pubs, including this one at The Royal Oak. I used to live near this pub and when we went for dinner we referred to it affectionately as ‘The King’s Wood’.

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Shirt: Review

Scarf: vintage/inherited

Jumper: Princess Highway/Dangerfield

Skirt: ASOS

Shoes: Modcloth

Pics: My mum, who stood in the cold, dreary rain with me while it was getting dark.