Valentines Day

Ok so I totally get that a blog about a bride to be would not be complete without a V Day post even though we don't really make a big deal of it (other than our first together which I must say was FANTASTIC!). So here it is.

This was our 3rd Valentines Day together. We've done different stuff every year which I think is good. Don't want to get bored or anything. However, the last two years, Valentines Day has been through the week. Now I'm not saying I'm old but I like being in bed by 9pm most nights  (as does husband to be) so going out through the week doesn't really fit our lifestyle. We celebrate Valentines Day on the Saturday before which has other benefits aswell such as, there's no price hike cos of the date, there's no restrictions on menus etc because of the date and most importantly there isn't a billion other couples competing for a table/room/parking space etc.

This year we decided to go to dinner and a movie. Pepes Jindalee was the restaurant and Sherlock Holmes 2 was the movie, Unfortunately the movie didn't start til after 9pm.... And a massive storm was headed our way so once dinner was eaten (by 8pm even though I was dragging it out) we decided to just go home and snuggle on the couch with a movie. I must say, this was WAY better than sitting in a movie theatre.

Gifts (or I should say gift) were done earlier that week. I got to chose my own and I got a beautiful satin robe. Its a grey blue colour and I love it!
As yet I haven't given my gift (mostly cos I have NO idea what to get but I'm sure I'll think of something.

I hope everyone had a great Valentines Day no matter to what degree you celebrate it!

The thing about honeymoons....

So since we've gotten engaged pretty much everyone has asked about a prospective date for the I do's. Only one person has asked if we've thought about the honeymoon. Which got me thinking about where I'd like to go. She suggested Tasmania. Which was on the right track as I have always maintained that I wanted my honeymoon to be in Australia. I've always had this bug in my brain that going overseas for your honeymoon was pretentious. Don't ask me why, I just have and I don't mean any offence to anyone who wants to go overseas (I do actually :P) but to me it seemed sill to go to some tropical island overseas when WE LIVE ON ONE! And theres less chance of  horrible things happening to you here.

I also got thinking about it this christmas. My family and I went to Rumba Restort at Caloundra and more amazing place I've never been. It was gorgeous. Ocean views, a spa in our bathroom and an array of restaurants to please any palate just a quick lift ride away, it was a lovely and relaxing time. As well as being only a 20-30 min drive from Montville and Maleny (two of my FAVOURITE places ever). Not that its a list topper as far as a honeymoon destination goes but these days, not alot of people actually get a proper honeymoon. So really, it could be the place if work/money doesn't allow much else. I think it'd be a grand ol' time too.

But given the choice, I would pick either the wine regions in Victoria or South Australia, the countryside or mountains in New South Wales or somewhere tropical in North Queensland. Those are in order of preference by the way, just so I'm clear.

So think on it and let me know where you would like to go or DID go for your honeymoon!

The Ring

Hello again! I know, I've been terrible and not posted in months but I'm back now!

No this post isn't a rip off of a Japanese horror movie, it's about my amzing engagement ring. I think I mentioned a post or two back that I finally got it. I won't go into the details of the horrible heartbreaking experience we went through to get it but just give you a basic low down.

My ring is the Hearts on Fire Transcend Dream Single Halo. I love it! We picked it out together. I told me fiancee that anything he picked would be perfect but he told me that I would have to wear it the rest of my life and he wanted me to have some say. So here it is. Don't be jealous ladies :P Now all I have to do is pick the perfect wedding band to compliment it. There is a matching band but after the hullabaloo getting this I'd prefer going elsewhere.



Bubble and Sweets Part 2

So I've done reds I'd like for my wedding, now I'm moving onto whites. So theres a few I'll mention, again some are boutique some are plain ol' bottle shop but all are fabulous.

This first one I found pretty much by accident. My lovely fiancee was looking for a secret Santa present for a work collegue and we went to the bottle shop together. I must say, I only found this brand of wine cos I like pretty pictures.... Baily and Baily has a large selection of red, white, dessert and sparkling wines all with different names and pretty silhouette pictures to match. We ended up getting a few different ones for the secret Santa gift and then tacked on a few for ourselves. 

Baily and Baily Silhouette Moscato Heavens Gate= OH MY GOSH!! This is so lovely. It's really smoothe, refreshing and has a beautiful round flavour that doesn't fade once you've swallowed it. Theres no burn to this wine and is amazing on a hot summer afternoon. 

My second white is a boutique wine from Maleny Mountain Winery at Maleny, Sweet Sunshine *sigh*. Not only does it have a lovely name, it tastes beautiful too. The winery website itself describes the wine as "sweet and soft in texture with a pleasant fruity finish" and it's so true. It is worth the almost 2 hour drive up a mountain (I have a massive phobia of heights....) to get to it. Doesn't hurt that pretty much everything from the place is amazing and theres a cheese factory up the road.... But I would go just to get this wine so I could indulge on a hot day. A total must for sweet lovers.

I'll combine my next two as they both come from the same place. Brown Brothers. I love Brown Brothers wines and they are a staple in my wine collection. They are readily available in all bottle shops and are great prices. So the first is the Moscato. Its the plain 2010 Moscato, they have a few. It has a mild frizzante to it and a sweet sherberty taste. The other Brown Brothers is the Crouchen Riesling. I've drunk this wine for many years and still love it. Its very fruity and crisp and never disappoints. 

           



So they are my choices for sweet whites. They are all great value and go well either on their own or with food. Stock up I say and enjoy *kisses*

Bubbles and Sweets

Ok so I finally have my ring (YAH!) so I can really start looking into what we (translation "I") would love to have incorporated into our wedding. Today I'm going to compare some champagnes (well sparkling wines really) that I've narrowed down as wanting for toasts etc. Also, I'll throw in some of my and my fiancees favourite wines. Now not all places are happy to have you provide your own alcohol so depending where we have our reception will decide whether any of these make it to the big day.

The first bubbly I'd like to mention is one I've only recently tried. NV Frizzante by Banrock Station. I bought this on a whim last Friday and we had it as a celebratory drink on Saturday when we finally got my engagement back. In a word this wine is delicious. I admit, I like sweet wines but this one, boy oh boy, it's got the most beautiful flavour. Its described as "lemon sherbert and exotic fruit". It certainly has a sherberty fizz to it but it's a very soft fizz. It doesn't give you that tickle in the nose that makes you screw your face up nor does it have the fizzy burn like a lot of the others that makes you smack your tongue around your mouth. You can buy it in any bottle shop. It's around the $14.99 mark I think.

The other I'd like to discuss is a boutique sparkling wine from a winery in the Hunter Valley called Peterson House. Now, unfortunately we've not been to the actual estate, we tasted (and subsequently purchased) several of their wines at the Brisbane Ekka this year. I was drawn to it as the stand was lavishly pink and sparkly (thats just me, I like shiny things) and I'm sooooo glad I was. The Botrytis Semillon is absolutely stunning. It is described by Peterson House as having "rich apricot and smooth citrus flavours" and you better believe it does. It's not technically sparkling (it's actually a dessert wine) but it gives that impression when it hits your tongue. Like the NV Frizzante it has no burn to it and slides down easy. A little too easy :P This is only available through Peterson House online or their cellars in the Hunter Valley (so unfortunate for non Hunter Valley residents). We still have our bottle and are saving it for a very special occasions. It's priced at $32.00 and totally worth it!

So they are my choices as our "champagnes" for the wedding. Now for general wine selections I have a few I'd like to share. We are mainly red drinkers but as I said earlier we like sweet wines. It can be difficult to find sweet reds in bottle shops but I've done the hard yards and heres all the tips you need to find a good drop. All these wines MUST be served chilled so are much better being drunk in the warmer months.
The first is a wine I kinda found by accident. I can't even remember the circumstances but I know it was an accident. Its Crimson Cabernet by Banrock Station. It is gorgeous in every way. It's raspberry, strawberry and cream in flavour and has no bitterness or acidity like some other reds (that goes for all the reds I'll mention). It is VERY drinkable and goes with pretty much anything. Or nothing at all. It retails for between $8.99 to $14.99 depending on specials in bottle shops.

The second is Cienna by Brown Brothers. My oldest sister put me onto this one when I told her about the Crimson Cabernet (hereafter to be called CC). We did a swappsies of sorts. Cienna is just as good as CC but if possible it's even sweeter with even less acidity (which is really saying something). It retails a little cheaper than CC. Around $12.99 in any bottle shop.

Lastly, I want to mention what is my FAVOURITE sweet red. Love by Sirromet. This is the most beautiful wine I have ever tasted. We picked this one up from the Queensland Tasting Centre at Mount Tamborine (awesome place! You must go there. Wines from all over not just 1 winery). This wine is just so good I cannot praise it enough. You must try this wine. You just must! It's a cherry type flavour that leaves your mouth feeling like it's just spent a long relaxing time by a cool pond (without the fish/frog after taste). If you're not a fan of reds as such, I would recommend this as your "first". It'll be gentle and sweet and take care of your needs without asking anything in return. You can get this in other places than the Sirromet Winery such as the QLD Tasting Centre and other boutique wine shops but it's not available in general bottle shops.

Hopefully I'll be able to partake in one, some or all of these beauties at my wedding but it's not possible then that fine because I can get most of them with not too much trouble.

My Dream....

Ok so I'm moving away from discussing my ring simply because I'd probably throw my laptop into our TV if I have to again think about the sh*t we're going through.

So onto what I actually want in my wedding (even though it's still around 2 years away). When I was young I would dream about my generic wedding to a faceless man. Then as I grew older and discovered that marriage was about loving someone (who woulda thought it) I lost any hope and interest of getting married. As a whole the men I had any involvement with where complete idiots who though more of me as a barbie doll than a person (I have a very similar shape in certain areas) and they usually focussed in one area in particular mostly because there is an abundance of it, err them... But then after 25 odd years, I moved jobs and met a guy... And all the years of claiming I'd never get married vanished like they'd never happened. So to make a long story short (too late) I started to imagine ALL the possibilities of what we could have for our wedding.

Now I, much like my dear friend Miss Maddy (totes have to check out her blog if you havn't already) absolutely love all things vintage. As I've gotten older my everyday style has revolved around the vintage look. I work in an office environment so it's very easy for me to indulge this love. Seamed stockings, suspenders and garters, sky high stiletto pumps, blouses and knit tops, pencil skirts and cardigans all have a prized place in my wardrobe. 
My idol, since I was ten years old, is Marilyn Monroe. I adore her. Jane Russell, Lauren Becall, Jayne Mansfield, Katherine Hepburn just to name a few stand along side Marilyn as the epitome of class, elegance, sexuality and feminine power. These women and their era's of domination, the 40's and 50's are the inspiration for my wedding. I also adore the style of Dita Von Teese and think she is amazing, having been such a huge influence and a key figure in the recent revival of this area of fashion. I have spent hours pouring through websites finding what I want, from my and my bridemaids gowns, to my fiancees suit, to my bouquet, make up and hairstyle. Everything will have a touch of vintage to it. 

That being said, please enjoy a taste of what I've found out there. The following are some examples of the style of wedding (God willing) we will have!

R-Day

Well my ring is due back today. So far we'd heard zip.... Not impressed. We checked last week that everything was on schedule so we didn't waste time going to collect a ring that wasn't there (as that had happened to a colleague of mine recently, different jeweller though). We were told it would be on time and they would make sure to check straight away with their head office to ensure this information was correct. We would receive a return telephone call if there would be a delay. No call has been received. So we're assuming it has arrived. Although as a famous person once said, assumption is the mother of all f*ck ups....
If no call has come by tomorrow a call will be made... And questions asked if our precious cargo ISN'T here. And not nice polite questions either. I've been fairly controlled so far but my patience (which is great, if I do say so myself) is fast evaporating.

Hopefully my next post will contain the good news that I'm typing with a diamond clad finger :D We can all only hope otherwise my whinging might just become unbearable. I'm sure most of my family, friends and work mates are welcoming the return of my ring even more than as as it heralds the dawn of me shutting up about it!