Flashback Friday: Barbie... get on it!

~Originally posted December 17, 2009~

 

Hi Dolls,

 

Even though I am 25 years old, I still love Barbie. She is awesome!A couple of months ago there was a Barbie expo at Federation square. As a cover, I dragged my husband’s 7-year-old god-daughter along and bribed her with the hope of free Barbies! When we got there all she wanted to do was get to the shop at the end of the expo where you could design your own Barbie.

The expo had everything you could want to know about Barbies. We learnt how they were made, watched a movie and then waded through rows and rows of Barbies that dated back the first ever Barbie in 1950. There were Barbies designed by high-end designers including Chanel, Versace and Valentino. There were even the glamorous and famous Barbies including Audrey Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor and Beyoncé just to name a few. We walked the runway where mannequins were dressed in full-sized Barbie clothes and later stared through the glass cabinet at the most beautiful Christian Louboutin Barbie pink heels I have ever seen! I couldn’t get enough! So many childhood memories were floating back to me. We made it through the displays of camper vans, limousines and sports cars and to my god daughters delight we finally made it to the store.

So it just goes to show why I find it hard to let go of anything as I know it will have a comeback eventually! 

The ques! I have never seen anything like it! We finally managed to design our own Barbie and I must say they were magnificent! You could choose between hairstyles, clothing, shoes, handbags and makeup. Once your design had been completed our masterpieces were put together and rocked the looks we picked for them in a glass display cabinet before they were wrapped up in a plastic box and popped through the shoot landing in our hot little hands. There were so many things to choose from and we ended up walking out with a remake of the first ever Barbie made in the 1950′s (It was a tough choice between this one and a remake of the 80′s Barbie), a nail file with the phrase ‘plastic is the new tan’ and our design your own Barbie. I almost bought my husband a Ken T-shirt with the slogan ‘doing it Ken style’, however I knew he would never wear it. They also had an offer to subscribe to vogue for six months and you would receive your very own collectable Vogue shopgirl Barbie. That night I went home and immediately ordered it and she is awesome! 

Since going to this expo I have noticed Barbie is popping up everywhere! Mattel have teamed up with Mac and Stila creating the Barbie loves Mac and Barbie loves Stila makeup lines. Even Mimco have got on board with handbags and accessories called Barbie loves Mimco.  

                      

So it just goes to show why I can't let go of anything - everything has a comeback eventually!

Flashback Friday: I Love... My Chanel Handbag

Originally posted on Wordpress - December 21, 2009.

Hi Dolls,

About 6 months ago I jokingly (sort of) asked my husband if I could spend our tax return on a Chanel handbag. He asked me how much they were and when I told him, his reaction wasn’t what I had jokingly hoped for. I told him it was an investment and I could justify this by working it out to $1 per wear. I would only have to wear this handbag every day for the next 8 years and 8 months. Unfortunately this didn’t appear to sway his opinion.
A few months past and we finally got around to lodging our tax return. Saving this money obviously did not cross my mind. A tax return is like free money – as long as you don’t get a bill! So I asked my husband what we were going to buy. He said that he thought I was buying a handbag. You could not imagine my surprise and excitement. I dropped what I was doing and rang the Chanel store immediately to see if my handbag was in stock. It was! I left work early and drove into Collins Street to make my purchase.

I finally arrived and as I walked toward the store I felt like I was on cloud nine. I had a spring in my step and nothing could drag me down from the fashion high I was on. The doorman opened the big glass doors for me and as I stepped inside I thought to myself that this is a lot like what I think heaven might be like! I glided straight towards the counter and introduced myself as the girl who called this morning about THE bag. She looked at me with pity and said she was sorry but they had just sold out. I looked at her in despair. I felt sick. This was the bag I had been dreaming of my whole life and she shattered this dream within two seconds! I felt defeated. I was beyond disappointed. The shop assistant must have realised this and offered me another bag with gold hardware instead of silver. I shook my head. Then she offered me the smaller version of my bag (which was the same price!). I shook my head again. This was not what I had my heart set on and was just not what I wanted. She then offered to call me the minute another bag arrived. I thanked her and walked out the store feeling extremely rejected. I felt so down and the high I was on just minutes ago had completely vanished.

The next day at work I received a call from Chanel to let me know that my bag had come in. The shop assistant advised me to come in straight away as she couldn’t hold the bag for me and also couldn’t guarantee that it would still be there later that day. I couldn’t believe my luck. I ran into my boss and asked if-I-could-go-early-because-my-bag-has-just-turned-up-at-chanel-and-they-won’t-hold-it-for-me-and-it-might-not-be-there-later-and-I-need-to-go-NOW!!!!! As the fashion savvy boss that she is, she immediately understood me and told me to go now! So I did. I called my husband and asked him to collect me immediately. I needed a quick exit from the car when we got to Chanel and could not waste time on ticket parking. He agreed (amazingly) and we were on our way.

We rolled up and I was dropped off in front of the store. I bolted from the car and back into my little piece of heaven. I ran directly to the counter and breathlessly announced that I was here for the bag! The lovely shop assistant smiled at me and asked me to wait there and she would go and get my bag. I beamed back at her and thanked her for all her help. I was finally getting my very own Chanel handbag!!! She returned with my bag and my heart skipped a beat. It was beautiful. I held my breath as I took it in my arms. It was love at first sight. I handed my money over and took a seat while I waited for my new purchase to be wrapped, boxed and ribboned. I felt at home here. Everyone understood the thrill of a new Chanel handbag and were all genuinely excited for me. A few minutes later my bag was returned to me packaged in Chanel’s signature carry bag. My only disappointment today was that I couldn’t show off the carrier bag for longer. I had already kept my husband waiting for quite sometime as we all oohed and ahhed over my new handbag.

I waived goodbye and exchanged air kisses and as I walked out of the store the alarm sounded. I was mortified. I had beeped on my way out of Chanel! I turned around and the doorman asked me to come back in. What had I done?! Thankfully the shop assistant noticed my panick and told me not to worry. She apologised and told me that it was her mistake and she hadn’t removed all the tags from inside the bag. She took my carrier bag away and returned it to me a few minutes later. So I went to leave again. The doors opened and to my relief the alarm remained silent.
I cuddled my carrier bag in the car all the way home. When we returned I de-ribboned, unwrapped and unboxed my gorgeous new handbag. The italian leather smelt amazing as I gently removed the dust bag that revealed the Chanel Large Shopping Tote. My handbag was magnificent and more than I could have ever wanted. I felt like the luckiest girl in the world and I suppose I am!