Wednesday 30 January 2013

Moving On Up!

So the excitement I was hinting at yesterday is this...

I got a job!

Today is my first day of training at Bling, a cute, cheap jewellery store here in New Zealand!
At this point I will only be working two days a week (which sucks for saving purposes) but is a great start, considering I have been unemployed for about four months now since I finished University. I have never worked in retail before so I'm a little nervous, but also quite excited!

Here's to new beginnings!

Tuesday 29 January 2013

A Disney Day Out...

Hello Everyone!! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend, I definitely did. It was a long weekend here in New Zealand, and while this doesn't really affect me (the joys of not doing much, although good news to come below!) it did mean I got to spend the day with the family wandering around in the sun.

However the big highlight of my weekend was road tripping up to Auckland with Rachel, to meet some of the other Disney girls who will be heading to Florida with us come August. In the end five of us attended the little meeting, which turned out perfectly!

We started by polishing off a huge New York style pizza, which I felt was quite fitting for the event

Then we picked up some Starbucks and headed down to the water to have some fun. Auckland was buzzing with festivals for us to enjoy so we went down to the Silo Park Markets and enjoyed the buskers, live bands, and beautiful weather!




Megan, Kate, Rachel, and I

There we all are (except Sunnie who had to leave early)! I had a blast meeting all the girls, and we all got a long so well, which is encouraging for our future trip! I am looking forward to our next meet-up. Hopefully with a few new people, and in Tauranga so we can show off our city!

Thank you Auckland, and thank you lovely ladies! Until next time x

Friday 25 January 2013

I Am Currently...




Reading...
&

Looking Forward to Watching...
&

Listening To...
&

Watching...
&

What about you?

Tuesday 22 January 2013

One Year Ago Today...

This Blog was Born!

I really can't believe it has been a whole year since I sat down one day in summer, bored out of my mind, and decided I was interesting enough (ahem) to be a blogger.

This little blog has gone through many changes over the year. It started off with a couple of really terrible designs, and a completely different name. Luckily I don't have visual evidence of that era! Life as I Know It was a good name for a while, but I wanted something more unique and more me!

Here is the evolution of Sinead in the Sun so far!




And I'm already itching to change it again!

And on top of Sinead in the Sun, this year also brought the beginning of my love for design and therefore SineadElle Designs!
I have had so much fun getting involved in the blogging community, and more than that I am happy with myself for keeping it up so long, I did not think it would stick! I may not be the most regular, or the funniest, or the best dressed and whatnot, but I like to think you readers stick around for a reason :)

I wish I had something exciting planned for you, a giveaway or something. But I am beyond poor, and it takes a lot of time and energy to organise them! So just know I am super grateful of each and every one of you, and I love hearing from you through comments and emails. And I really hope you continue to interact with me through our little niche in the internet!


WATCHING: Charmed. Lots and lots of Charmed. I love re-watching all the seasons, the 90's fashion, old school special effects, so much magical scandal... Its fabulous!

READING: I'm feeling very book schizophrenic at the moment. I'm currently reading Game of Thrones, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, and Broken Silence. Plus I just re-read The Hunger Games and Catching Fire in 2 days. This is what being unemployed does to me! 

DREAMING: About Disney, about getting a job that doesn't terrify me (i.e something easy) about really delicious, cheesy, bad-for-you food, about road tripping, about the beach...

EATING: A cheese and feta cheese toasty that is currently cooking away...

NOTICING: How weird the weather is currently, windy but warm, sunny but cold... Make up your mind!

WORKING ON: Stopping myself re-designing my blog again! Anyone need their blog redesigned to distract me?

WEARING: It usually consists of pjs or shorts and a singlet. I miss winter fashion

PLANNING: A road trip to Auckland to meet with some of my soon-to-be Disney friends! And my 21st party, which is coming up in 2 weeks!!

FEELING:  Hungry. My toasty is calling me!

Thank you for a fabulous year! Here's to another...

Friday 18 January 2013

Think of a Wonderful Thought...

200 Days.

200 Days!

We are hitting the big countdown marks now! Isn't it funny how the round numbers always seem really important. Tomorrow my countdown will hit 199 which is a whole new level of crazy! This week has been one of excitement on the Disney front. I am beginning to complete the first steps that will end with me in Florida...

I have been doing some research. Maps, and guides, hotel reviews, all that jazz. Not only do I get to live in Florida for a year, I get 30 days of travel on my visa at the end of my Disney contract. So I have been figuring out where I might want to go (if I have any money left that is!) 

Any suggestions fellow Bloggers? Where do you believe I MUST visit? 
Your home town perhaps, get our blate (bogger date) on?

But by far THE most exciting part of this week was booking my flights! As soon as we confirmed our bookings it hit me, shit just got real y'all. I am actually going! I am also over $1000 poorer but still. We can look past that depressing fact!

I AM GOING TO DISNEY WORLD!


Tuesday 15 January 2013

Oh Those Golden Globes

Awards season is my favourite. Being a major film buff I love to see which films are winning big, and which are falling short. Possibly my favourite part however, is the Red Carpet. Holy fashionistas dream... or nightmare in some cases.

Unfortunately I wasn't able to watch the Globes this year, they only play on certain channels in NZ and I don't have them. BUT I am always keen and willing to throw in my two cents fashion wise.

Here are my Hits and Misses of the 2013 Golden Globes!


I love the colour of Jennifer Lawrence's dress! The belt and the shape of the skirt show off her curves, and her hair and make-up go perfectly! My only issue is with the pointy Madonna style boobs. Amanda Seyfried's dress is so pretty I love it! I love the lace cut-outs and her hair and make-up is understated, allowing the delicate dress to shine. Kate Hudson wins the battle of the cut-outs! The black and gold combo works, and the high collar is awesome!


Jessica Alba has the perfect mermaid dress! I love the colour and her simple but fancy jewellery. Her hairstyle is very classic Hollywood! Some people weren't fans of Taylor Swifts dress, but I think it works for her. The colour is great, and so is the shape, plus it has an awesome back. Only the creases mark it down a little. How adorable is Kristen Bell and her baby bump! She dressed it perfectly in a pretty lilac with fancy beading with a high collar. LOVE it!


My last "hit" was Zooey Deschannel. She went 50's glam and I love it! The colour, the dress, the pearls... She is adorable! Nicole Richie heads up the first of my "misses" the dress would be ok if the collar was slightly different. But I cannot forgive the make-up! Too much blue eyeshadow, to matchy, its just bad! Ew. Thats all I can really say about Halle Berry's choice. I just, I don't know. It looks like someone threw up a bunch of newspapers on her after drinking too much wine. I really don't get why...


Olivia Munn almost got it, but not quite. The dress is just a little too shapeless and dull. Sienna Millar looks like she got attacked by silly string, this dress is hideous! I'm already not a fan of two piece dresses, but this one looks like it was made by a four year old. I would have liked Jessica Chastain's dress if it weren't for the complete lack of fitting. It makes her boobs sag down to her waist which is ridiculous! I do love the colour with her hair though.


I really love the colour of Marion Cotillard's dress, but its just too lop-sided. Maybe if the longer hem was on the other side, where the belt had no material draped over it, but I dunno. Plus ugly, ugly shoes! Lena Dunham picked a dress that is just way to old for her. Props to her for trying, but it doesn't fit her properly, the material is too thick, and it makes her head look tiny. I actually really like Sarah Hyland's dress, on anyone else it would have looked classy and sophisticated, but holy boobs. Way way way too old for her! And with the big hair and thick make-up, she just looks trampy. Sorry darling!

Now I am no fashionista, and I can only dream of wearing dresses like these. But I really don't understand what goes through these girls (or their stylists) minds when they choose to dress like this. Can they not see the dresses are hideous/ill-fitting/inappropriate? *sigh*


Until the next awards show ladies...

XOXO Gossip Girl  oops I mean Sinead!


all images from here or here

Monday 14 January 2013

SineadElle Designs New Design!

Its been a little quiet on the SineadElle Designs front lately, which makes me a little sad. Not only because I don't get to work with any of you awesome people, but I'm finding myself missing designing. It means I'm getting the itch to re-design my blog AGAIN.

BUT I got to re-design my good friend Rachel's blog, transitioning from a personal blog to a Disney blog! I am very happy with how it turned out! 

We went for a travel theme and I loved creating something a little different! So much fun



What do you think? I love it, and you should definitely go check out her blog and follow our Disney adventures!!

Friday 11 January 2013

Bohemia by Veronika Carnaby

Today I have a treat for you all.

By now you should all know that I love to read. Like a lot. All the time!

So when Veronika contacted me and asked me if I would like to review her book Bohemia, I jumped at the chance!
"In her debut novel, Veronika Carnaby picks up where the Beat Generation left off. Set in 1960, Bohemia chronicles a group of twenty-somethings who defy the "ideals" of a mid-twentieth century society to seek creative fulfillment. In the process, they spotlight the creative path that artists of all mediums tread, all the while depicting the challenges faced by youth in the decade that changed the world."

I really enjoyed reading Bohemia. It was very reminiscent of Jack Kerouac's On The Road which I loved! It follows the same style, following a group of young adults as they set out to discover the world and themselves.  This is something that we can all easily relate to, which is what I think makes the novel so special. It allows us, as readers, to identify with the characters, and put ourselves into the narrative. For me in particular, being in my early 20's and trying to figure out how to start my life, I could totally see myself in their shoes, which for me is hugely important for me to enjoy reading something.

Obviously I am not familiar with the setting that is the 1960's, but the writing style and narrative really draw you in and make you feel immersed in the culture and freedom of the beat-nik generation. Everything Veronika writes is to draw you into a world she has created, the language, the slang, the way the characters act and interact; all come together to paint you a 60's, freedom inspired, restless picture of life.

My main criticism is that the writing style did make the narrative difficult to follow at times. If you aren't familiar with the beatnik style you might have trouble with this one. The pace and timing was a little rushed at times, and I would often get lost in a long description and find myself having to reread a page to remember where we were in the plot. Mostly during the first few chapters, towards the end I was hooked! I enjoyed being drawn into the novel so much and I think if this is the right book for you, you will love it! If not, give it a go anyway, you might be surprised!

My Rating: 4/5
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