And this is why i'm going broke buying womens magazines

So, just to begin with, I am sitting outside in the sun, blogging from the beautiful sunshine-iness of my backyard - laptops rock! As do lovely almost - Spring days in Australia. Aaah...

Anyhoodle, I just wanted to discuss the female obsession with shopping. Perhaps i'm being cliched here, but girls like shopping. More to the point, I like shopping, even if i'm not actually buying anything ( thats called " window shopping " for the uninitated ). Guess its that whole
" thril of the chase " thing - there's something about having a vague idea of what you want and going on the hunt for it. And yes, most times i will have a semi-formed idea of what i'm after - especially when shopping for clothes. Which is what i was doing this morning. However, being that I am not so financially well-endowed, I went shopping with a view to lay-by ( or lay-away as you American type people call it ).

I really like lay-by. I know its incredibly " old school ", but i still like it. Yes, i know you can just put things on your credit card and get them NOW but somehow i always forget to put regular payments on my credit card and then you end up in a little thing called debt ( argh! ). So I rather like being able to find the things i want but dont necessarily need right NOW ( its all about now!now!now! these days, isnt it? ) and being able to pay them off when i actually have a little cash. Plus, if i forget to go and make a regular payment, someone from the store will ring me and remind me - unlike the credit companys who will just keeping piling more payments ( hello interest charges... ) right on top of your bill.

And i know you fashionista's out there are saying - " But wont the things you put on lay-by be waaaaaaaaay out of fashion by the time you pay them off ? ". Well yes, they would be if you were into totally disposable fads. However, i'm not - i'm trying to fashion myself ( ha ha! unintended pun right there ! ) in the Audrey Hepburn/ timelessly/effortlessly chic mold. Which is hard to do on a budget in a country town, but i'm giving it a shot. Sure, i'll incorporate some of the seasons trends into my wardrobe, but only if they suit me. I pretty much like to stick by the " wear what suits your body shape " rule. If i had a dollar for everytime i'd seen somebody wearing a trend that didnt suit them - shout outs to cigarette pants, micro minis and floaty maxi dresses here - just because they were in fashion, i'd be able to afford to start my own fashion label ( which would be called House of Amy, because " Amy " is French. French is always fashionable ). So many times i just want to walk up to impressionable young women, shake the shit out of them and say " Who let you walk out the of the house like that ?!? Go buy yourself a nice pair of jeans, a tank top, and some ballet flats and you would look SO MUCH BETTER! ". And its not like i'm against freedom of fashion expression - Kate Moss, Chloe Sevigny and Lou Dilloin almost always look fabulous - but most women are not Kate Moss, Chloe Sevigny and Lou Dilloin. We regular type women are more, say, Rachel Bilson, Jennifer Aniston or Susan Sarandon - that is, to say, still totally cute, gorgeous and sexy, just less suitable to eclectic, crazy fashion.

So i'm not saying lets all get about looking like clones of each other - hell no! If you're into vintage indie cool, then be into it. If you're all pin-stripes and ballet flats preppiness, then rock the prep-college look. If you'd rather be all street, then wear you're Chuck Taylor hi-tops and hoodies with pride. Just please choose pieces that work with your body shape. I just wanted you all to look good people. I'm all about the beauty!

P.S I put a dress on layby for my almost three year old neice. Its a tiny little collared shirt dress, red with white polka dots and pintucked sleeves. Too cute! If they had an adult version in the store i would have totally bought it for myself!