YOU CAN NEVER GET A CUP OF TEA LARGE ENOUGH OR A BOOK LONG ENOUGH TO SUIT ME - C. S. LEWIS.

I'm a coffee and tea girl. 

There's also soup but I don't count soup as a beverage. I often get told I don't drink enough water.. which is true, I really don't. I am getting better though but that's probably because I do blood and plasma donation so I am required to drink tonnes of water before donation. This of course is for my own sake because it allows my blood to run easily when it comes to donation.

Anyway, there was a Sydney Tea Festival over the weekend and me and a friend decided to go. Actually we went to 3 festivals in the one day but I think I'll break it down into other posts since it'll be too much in one post. Too much going on can get confusing.

The Sydney Tea Festival was actually our 2nd festival of the day and we went all the way to Carriageworks in Eveleigh. Luckily, I had pre brought our tickets because when we got there, there was a long queue for the ticket booth. I swear, me and friend were staring at one another with that silent question going through our heads 'I hope we don't have to line up' before the attendant told us that ticket holders can go to the other line. We first got given a little small ceramic cup with the Sydney Tea Festival logo on it and was advised that this will be a tea tasting cup and an A4 map of where the stores are situated. 

Needless to say we drank a lot of tea. Traditional tea, flower tea, herbal tea, chai tea, fruit infused tea and many more. They also did the traditional Japanese tea ceremony which I have to say am very lucky to have experienced previously before so it made watching and understanding a lot easier for me to take in. The festival also had some food trucks and cute little accessories for tea making, from the beautiful handmade ceramic cups to glass teapots and biscuits to go with your tea. 

    

SHE WORE FLOWERS IN HER HAIR AND CARRIED MAGIC SECRETS IN HER EYES - JEZIE.

Finally got around to importing the photos off my camera. I've been a little lazy since work is piling up and I've been obsess with playing Pokemon Go. 

A while back I had brunch with some girlfriends. We went to one of the very first cafe thats on my Eat List. I'm glad to say I can finally crossed that one out now.

Petal Met Sugar.

It's so well presented and pretty. I had organised the Winter High Tea set as it was also a birthday celebration for a friend. Sometimes the best part of life are memories and that includes spending it with people you care about. Even if its about the most mundane stuff in life such as "how's life?" 

I really am grateful to have friends that will make time out of their schedule to spend it with me. To catch up on life and each other. 

I love how they presented their High Tea in a clear case box and that each piece is quite delicate and small. It might not look like much but it is very filling and by the end of our brunch we were quite content that we manage to finish the high tea for once. 

CREATIVITY IS INTELLIGENCE HAVING FUN - ALBERT EINSTEIN.

Sydney is just plain beautiful.

Growing up I found Sydney - meh. Nowadays it's got its charm and when you look at it in a different angle you start to see how beautiful she really is. Last weekend I went out with a friend for some catch up, we watched a movie and then head over to Barangaroo Reserve for Sculpture by the Sea.

The weather hasn't been great so the ground was a little mushy but it was still a lot of fun. It's such a beautiful place and the sea breeze was refreshing. I went with a girlfriend but I can definitely say that this is a really good dating place for anyone wanting to bring their other half. Just saying.

    

 

IF YOUR HAIR IS DONE AND YOU'RE WEARING GOOD SHOES YOU CAN GET AWAY WITH ANYTHING - IRIS APFEL.

When I was still working for M.A.C cosmetic, I was looking for myself. 

I went through a phase where I was experimenting with my appearance, constantly changing my hairstyle, colour and length to see what suited me. I was very lucky. Working for M.A.C allowed me the freedom to experiment while still getting paid. They were all about expressing ourselves and because of that I found myself with every shade of hair colour and lengths. Of course, this also meant that eventually people I'll just meet will get intimated by my appearance. It was fun and a tad bit lonely.. not everyone gets it and because of so I often found myself wondering if I've gone too far?

Still my mind set was, if I don't play around while I'm young, I'll look ridiculous when I'm old and attempting those crazy hair styles. I have really thick hair, like no joke really thick which takes me hours to dry so most of the time I have to get my hairstylist to thin it out for me. Last year I was asked to be a bridesmaid (giving me a years notice) because it was held overseas and I'm so glad she did; gives me time to save for it. As my hair was short and I've been through the part where asian wedding planners have this thing about curls and wanting to curl my hair even though it's short.. I decided a year should be enough for me to grow my chin length bob into something long. It was the hardest year I've ever gone through. In order for it to grow, I had to make sure it was healthy and to make it healthy I was not allow to dye it, and I had to have regular trims to keep it healthy.. I had to make my hairstylist promise that no matter how much I beg, she cannot cut it short. It was definitely a very trying year and it's kind of amazing that it did grow and grow very fast it did. I was pretty surprise how long it manage to grow in a years time. So yes, I had long hair for my friends wedding and her wedding was beautiful. 

When I came back from overseas I was tempted to get it cut, I find long hair hard to manage and maybe just a tad bit too girly for me. I didn't know what to do with it. I'm not very good at curling it and most of the time I just throw it into a ponytail to get it all off my face. The first time I went to my hairstylist after coming back, she convinced me not to cut it short straight away, give it a little more time and see how I like it. Six weeks later, I went back and got it cut short! Just above the shoulders, so yeah I cut 2/3 of my length and it felt great! I love her work, it's so light and easy to manage and I don't have to worry about styling it because it sits perfectly every time (just not when I'm at home). Then I went for that tortoise shell colouring for my hair and it was perfect, dark roots light ends. I really did like it until I found my hair growing too fast again and the ends looking worse to wear. Plus I wanted colour. I miss the old me that gets to do crazy colours and get away with it.. it's kind of hard now when I'm an admin and the first face that people see when they walk into our office. Still that doesn't mean I won't try to push my boundaries. So now, I'm spotting rose gold hair, where the roots are black to brown and my ends are reddish pink. It's not permanent, just semi, which means I can change it after a couple of washes. So even if my managers walk in and tells me it's inappropriate or too much I can fix it instantly without damaging my hair. Win-win.

I used Fudge Paintbox - Pink Riot. Priceline stocks these so it's very handy and it's not permanent so it's not as damaging to the hair. It was applied onto of my already balayage hair. 

So far I have been getting compliments for the colour and it is something that I haven't done before. Hope you all like!

AT THE END OF THE DAY, WE CAN ENDURE MUCH MORE THAN WE THINK WE CAN - FRIDA KAHLO.

Midweek are always the hardest to endure. 

Some of you might know and some of you don't but in my senior years of high school, I actually changed schools. I went from an academic focus high school to a very artsy high school. I studied art in year 7 and 8 just like everyone and I really enjoyed it but like all Asian families, my parents did not see a future for me as an artist and so in year 9 to 10 I was 'advised' to pick more business/law related modules. I went through a hellish year 9 to 10 where I was bullied. When you're there in the moment you don't feel that it's bullying, you just feel like crap, no confidence and that what those 'mean' people are saying must be true. I really withdraw myself in year 10, hiding out in the library, because I didn't want to deal with them and their snide remarks, some say it's running away and others say its an escape. I think I would of been fine if these 'mean' people did not then decide to go to the library and taunt me when I was clearly avoiding them. Looking back, this was clearly bullying and I bet none of them believe in the fact that they were bullies. I was so depressed that I ate and had even thought about suicide, because you get into that mind frame where 'it wouldn't matter if you're alive or not, no one will miss you'. Before anyone start going on about how this is the wrong way to think or that you shouldn't let what they say hurt you.. let me just point out that I AM better. I am not that little girl anymore where she'll eat and eat and put on weight because she was so depressed. No one really understands depression and no one depression is the same. 

One of the leaders of this 'mean' group actually private messaged me on Facebook a few years back saying things like she had brain cancer, so she had an operation and now she is better and that because of so, she had forgotten all that had happened in high school and all she remembers was that we were once friends.. that she will like for us to be friend.. I'm sorry but NO! Firstly, how convenient that she had forgotten that she had bullied me and made me depressed and suicidal?! Secondly, how dare she used Cancer as her excuse! I was 20 turning 21 when my mother passed away from Cancer. I do not need people who can't even own up to their mistakes and actually apologies like a human being in my life. 

I changed school in year 11 and believe me it was the best thing that had ever happened to me. I never thought I could get my parents to let me change school but I was lucky because my brother was entering year 7 and he had made it to this high school as part of their selective year. I remember going with him to his orientation night with my mum and while we were mingling about, I remember speaking with the principal and asking about wanting to change school. I'm still surprise how my mother did not say a thing when the principal was happy to have my interview right then and there, taking us to her office. My mother was all the more happier that I was going to the same school as my brother so that I could catch the train with him and keep an eye out for him. 

I still remember my very first day of high school. I knew no one. It was daunting and exciting at the same time. I still remember the thoughts that ran threw my mind that very first day. 'I will be myself, no more trying to be someone I'm not to fit in. At least this way, the friends I make will actually be people who are friends with me for who I am'. I no longer looked back on that part of my life as shameful, that I ran away from my problems because guess what, the fact that I made the decision to change school, that I decided to take control of my life doesn't change. 

I am who I am because of the circumstances and the events that had happened in my life. I cannot erase it and I cannot change it, but I can look back and learn from it.

You're all probably going 'Whoa! This is a very personal post'. I never tried to hide my past, the good, the bad and the ugly are all me and I guess this is what really drew me into art. Art was always something beautiful for me as a kid, but as I grew older I started seeing art as a way to express the inner thoughts. It probably comes as no surprise that my old time favourite artist is Edvard Munch and at that time the one painting I loved the most was "The Scream". Not because it's famous but because it reflected my mind set back then and that it was my reality. Vincent van Gogh "The Starry Night" became one of my favourites because it's more hopeful and that was something I gain back.

So yes, I'm those arty type of people who enjoy art -  you and I might see the same art work but our interpretation might be different and that is what I love most about art.

Which then goes to why I needed some soul inspiring time and what's better for the soul than a visit to The Art Gallery NSW. The last time I visit The Art Gallery NSW was for their Noh Exhibition. This time me and my art appreciation friend went to see Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera: from the Jacques and Natasha Gelman collection. We went on a Wednesday night because The Art Gallery NSW have decided to do what they called an "Art After Hours", in which the Art Gallery is open till 10pm on Wednesday. 

Frida Kahlo - some of you will know her as the famous mono brow artist. 

I studied her for a bit in High School and found her fascinating because most of her works are self-portraits and self portraits are not easy. I can go on forever about her and her life history but then there are already so many sites about her and so I feel like I've blab enough on this post to not need to add art history to it. If you are fascinated by her, please click on her name and it'll go into more depth. 

What I really admired in Frida, not just her work but that she loved, passionately and fiercely and without a damn to the world around her. A lot of people, myself included feels that her and Diego are so mismatched, even her parents believe so but she loved him. She was the definition of 'Love Conquers All'.

Oh and we managed a little more time to explore the Young Archie 2016 displays. Such talented kids that were truly inspiring!