#neon white magical girl designs to be exact

[princesseevee06]

um. can you tell i’m normal about them

[nerdwriting]

The Creative Directors Behind Fate: The Winx Saga Must Not Be K-Pop Fans

Also, they have a pretty wrong idea of the role fashion should play in a show.

There are a few words that will stand out across most reviews of Netflix's Fate: The Winx Saga - drab, boring, flop, flat, unimaginative. Critics and audiences consensus is that the show is not only a mediocre-at-best story, but also an atrocious (and ultimately confusing) choice of adaptation of the color pop and fairy magic cartoon it’s based on, 2004 italian cartoon Winx Club.

Fate has plenty of it's own issues - white washing and erasing characters, cringey dialogue, outdated melodrama, etc. But where it truly, unequivocally fails is as an adaptation. Fate misses everything that was magical and lovable about the original series, in all levels, from bizarre writing choices, - such as never actually developing any sense of friendship between the characters, who are based on a cartoon about…..a group…….of friends -, but it's especially and immediately felt in the art direction and costume design.

Winx Club is set on a fantastical world, Magix, where each of our main characters hail from a different planet, à la Sailor Moon. Alfea, the fairy school they attend, is the most common background: a pastel colored, futuristic high tech-meets-fantasy, art nouveau inspired castle. Alfea sets the tone for the whole visual of the cartoon: bright, colorful, futuristic meets vintage, leaning into the technological positivism of the Y2K style, uniting it with magic, DnD worthy monsters and, of course, fairy wings. Often featured are also the Red Fountain school, where the Specialists train, and especially Cloud Tower, the goth and gothic inspired witch school Alfea has an OxBridge rivalry with (How cool would that be in a live action? I guess we’ll never know…).

On Fate, Alfea is the only school we ever see, and it’s another beige boarding school in not-Britain, somehow set in a magical world where everyone has the exact same technology and even social media that we have on Earth in 2021, no transformations and, most egregiously, no fairy wings.

This lack of visual creativity is pervasive throughout the whole show, and its most heartbreaking iteration is in the characters' wardrobe. The styling has the barest bones of a color scheme, - such as 'Bloom has to only dress in red since fire, duh',- the clothes are ill fitting, bland, dark and very dated. These are supposed to be teenagers who enjoy fashion, and yet they look like varying types of soccer moms from 2010.

The series seems to operate on an old and tired vision that women and girls can’t have depth and have adventures and fight monsters while also caring about fashion, a vision that the original show played a big, big role in challenging in the early 2000's. Fashion and costume design sets as much of the tone of a visual medium as the script does; through clothes we can gauge characters’ backgrounds, passions, and personality.

Winx Club has some of the best examples of this in the cartoon sphere - Bloom’s comfortable and bright style, Stella’s glitzy and bold, Musa’s edgy and cool, Aisha’s sporty and fun, Techna’s neon and tech gear inspired, Flora’s earthy and romantic, they all work as extensions of each character and serve a narrative purpose. And that’s not even mentioning how insulting it feels that in their quest to make Winx “edgier, darker” and fit for an older audience, the creators of Fate somehow decided that was in opposition to caring about style and fashion. Most “girly” shows, including the Winx Club are just as much adventure action shows as the ones geared towards boys, and it’s emphasis in fashion, friendship and color does not detract from that. The original run of the cartoon deals with war, violence, grief, abusive relationships and even genocide; leaning into those plotlines would not require Fate to erase any integral parts of what made Winx so beloved, and the fact that they did shows that the Netflix team completely missed the point of fashion in the original show, and really, the point of fashion and costume design in the world building of any show.

That, however, is not a mistake K-Pop makes very often; (This might seem like a bit of wild swerve in topic, but stay with me here). Unlike it's western counterpart, the Korean pop scene never lost the emphasis on music videos and how the visual medium can complete and potentialize music and performance; the K-Pop culture is very album and concept oriented in a way that has been all but lost in many other pop circuits, and the music video, styling and set design of a ‘comeback era’ is a key point of excitement among fans.

As such, music videos that follow storylines, connected universes, boundary pushing concepts and visual effects are the norm, rather than the exception, and a list could be made of works that are beautiful examples of what a live action Winx adaptation could look like. In fact, and very smoothly, here is a small list of exactly that!

A Small List of K-Pop Music Videos That Are Better Winx Club Live Actions Than Fate: The Winx Saga

3. Red Velvet - Psycho

If it was a darker and more somber look that Fate wanted, there was a way to make it actually appealing. While it still feels a liiitle too grown up and elegant for Winx, (maybe this author is biased, as a full proponent for the Y2K fun) Psycho makes a very compelling argument for a witchy, mysterious, fairy tale-esque show that could look scrumptious and definitely not boring, or even a gorgeous example of what the witches in Cloud Tower could look like. Black and white, dark green, pastel blue and pops of jewel tones make Psycho's color palette. To add interest to the understated colors, the styling is heavy on textures; We see plenty of stonework, intricate embroidery, tassels, lace on lace on lace, feathers, bows, opera gloves and lots of glitter. All of that is offset by bold, dark makeup, leather accents and eerie cinematography. Needle & Thread, Marchesa Notte and Self Portrait lend their hyper feminine and intricately detailed tulle gowns, juxtaposed with the creepiness of the lyrics and the dark backgrounds; their deep berry and green fairy tale looks are built with pieces from Zara to Nina Ricci to Dolce & Gabbana to Alexander McQueen.

Red Velvet’s more edgy styling for 2018's Bad Boy would also not feel out of place on the Trix.

2. IZ*ONE - Fiesta

IZ*ONE kicked off 2020 with sweet and fun Fiesta. The MV features rooms with mismatched décor that go from retro to space opera, rocky faux landscapes that feel other worldly, and visual effects that would look perfect on the back of a transformation sequence. Mirroring the set design, the girls wear various outfits by sustainable up and coming brand Chopova Lowena. Their signature skirts made with discarded and repurposed fabrics give a cool and interesting twist on a schoolgirl look that would look very sweet for a band of school fairies that occasionally go off to save the world. Also, wouldn't those bedazzled headphones look great on Musa's fairy outfit?

1. Aespa - Black Mamba and Next Level

Aespa is what fans call a monster rookie. With only three music videos under their belt, they still have some of the most visually interesting work in the industry right now. Their concept is very tied in with high tech, featuring even AI avatars of each member, packaged in a glitzy, fantastical and futuristic aesthetic, candy pop meets cyberpunk. I think I’ve exhausted ways to say that is exactly what a perfect Winx adaptation should feature.

Their debut smash hit, 2020’s Black Mamba is truly a perfect moodboard for live action Winx. Wearing a sequined and colorful mix and match of Dollskill, Gucci, Didu and Balenciaga to a backdrop that features some alien fairy forest realness, a pyschedelic fever dream, rooms straight out of a Y2K catalog or donning lime green and black techwear inside a metro fighting the "black mamba", Aespa look through and through the part of fashion loving fairies who save the world together, while looking fierce, stylish and, most importantly, interesting.

The styling and the sets jump seamlessly from more casual colorful fits with blouses, shirts and baggy pants to barren, darkly lit backgrounds and fringe-and-glitter heavy pieces necessary to fight giant snakes, in a way so fitting to transformation outfits for magical girls we could cry.

In their third MV, 2021's Next Level, the cyber in their concept is taken up a notch (get it. because Next Level-), set to a futuristic urbanscape intersped with a planet made of crystals and the ocasional alien fauna popping up again. We get treated to Monse, The 2nd Skin Co., Johanna Ortiz and The Attico styled to fairy princess standards, sporty sky racers and a white and sequined group styling that is top ten fairy busy saving the world uniform material, or maybe even a specialist worthy getup.

This particular look from Ningning is so Techna that it almost feels as if it's mocking Netflix.

And doesn’t this Karina trapped inside the "black mamba" in Alexander McQueen feel like a perfect Dark Bloom moment?

These are only a few examples of interesting and creative designs that are in line with what a live action Winx Club should have given us. There are so many more I could list, even among other TV Shows, like Sex Education and even polemic dark Euphoria, that know how to have fun with style and design without losing the depth of their stories. In the end, it's hard to justify why Fate creators even wanted to make an adaptation that didn't even try to capture the heart of its source material, and all we can do is watch one more "Restyling Fate: The Winx Saga" video on Youtube whilst mildly dreading season 2.

[hellomynameisbisexual]

Here's a shortlist of those who realized that I — a cis woman who'd identified as heterosexual for decades of life — was in fact actually bi, long before I realized it myself recently: my sister, all my friends, my boyfriend, and the TikTok algorithm.

On TikTok, the relationship between user and algorithm is uniquely (even sometimes uncannily) intimate. An app which seemingly contains as many multitudes of life experiences and niche communities as there are people in the world, we all start in the lowest common denominator of TikTok. Straight TikTok (as it's popularly dubbed) initially bombards your For You Page with the silly pet videos and viral teen dances that folks who don't use TikTok like to condescendingly reduce it to.

Quickly, though, TikTok begins reading your soul like some sort of divine digital oracle, prying open layers of your being never before known to your own conscious mind. The more you use it, the more tailored its content becomes to your deepest specificities, to the point where you get stuff that's so relatable that it can feel like a personal attack (in the best way) or (more dangerously) even a harmful trigger from lifelong traumas.

For example: I don't know what dark magic (read: privacy violations) immediately clued TikTok into the fact that I was half-Brazilian, but within days of first using it, Straight TikTok gave way to at first Portuguese-speaking then broader Latin TikTok. Feeling oddly seen (being white-passing and mostly American-raised, my Brazilian identity isn't often validated), I was liberal with the likes, knowing that engagement was the surefire way to go deeper down this identity-affirming corner of the social app.

TikTok made lots of assumptions from there, throwing me right down the boundless, beautiful, and oddest multiplicities of Alt TikTok, a counter to Straight TikTok's milquetoast mainstreamness.

Home to a wide spectrum of marginalized groups, I was giving out likes on my FYP like Oprah, smashing that heart button on every type of video: from TikTokers with disabilities, Black and Indigenous creators, political activists, body-stigma-busting fat women, and every glittering shade of the LGBTQ cornucopia. The faves were genuine, but also a way to support and help offset what I knew about the discriminatory biases in TikTok's algorithm.

My diverse range of likes started to get more specific by the minute, though. I wasn't just on general Black TikTok anymore, but Alt Cottagecore Middle-Class Black Girl TikTok (an actual label one creator gave her page's vibes). Then it was Queer Latina Roller Skating Girl TikTok, Women With Non-Hyperactive ADHD TikTok, and then a double whammy of Women Loving Women (WLW) TikTok alternating between beautiful lesbian couples and baby bisexuals.

Looking back at my history of likes, the transition from queer “ally” to “salivating simp” is almost imperceptible.

There was no one precise "aha" moment. I started getting "put a finger down" challenges that wouldn't reveal what you were putting a finger down for until the end. Then, 9-fingers deep (winkwink), I'd be congratulated for being 100% bisexual. Somewhere along the path of getting served multiple WLW Disney cosplays in a single day and even dom lesbian KinkTok roleplay — or whatever the fuck Bisexual Pirate TikTok is — deductive reasoning kind of spoke for itself.

But I will never forget the one video that was such a heat-seeking missile of a targeted attack that I was moved to finally text it to my group chat of WLW friends with a, "Wait, am I bi?" To which the overwhelming consensus was, "Magic 8 Ball says, 'Highly Likely.'"

Serendipitously posted during Pride Month, the video shows a girl shaking her head at the caption above her head, calling out confused and/or closeted queers who say shit like, "I think everyone is a LITTLE bisexual," to the tune of "Closer" by The Chainsmokers. When the lyrics land on the word "you," she points straight at the screen — at me — her finger and inquisitive look piercing my hopelessly bisexual soul like Cupid's goddamn arrow.

Oh no, the voice inside my head said, I have just been mercilessly perceived.

As someone who had, in fact, done feminist studies at a tiny liberal arts college with a gender gap of about 70 percent women, I'd of course dabbled. I've always been quick to bring up the Kinsey scale, to champion a true spectrum of sexuality, and to even declare (on multiple occasions) that I was, "straight, but would totally fuck that girl!"

Oh no, the voice inside my head returned, I've literally just been using extra words to say I was bi.

After consulting the expertise of my WLW friend group (whose mere existence, in retrospect, also should've clued me in on the flashing neon pink, purple, and blue flag of my raging bisexuality), I ran to my boyfriend to inform him of the "news."

"Yeah, baby, I know. We all know," he said kindly.

"How?!" I demanded.

Well for one, he pointed out, every time we came across a video of a hot girl while scrolling TikTok together, I'd without fail watch the whole way through, often more than once, regardless of content. (Apparently, straight girls do not tend to do this?) For another, I always breathlessly pointed out when we'd pass by a woman I found beautiful, often finding a way to send a compliment her way. ("I'm just a flirt!" I used to rationalize with a hand wave, "Obvs, I'm not actually sexually attracted to them!") Then, I guess, there were the TED Talk-like rants I'd subject him to about the thinly veiled queer relationship in Adventure Time between Princess Bubblegum and Marcelyne the Vampire Queen — which the cowards at Cartoon Network forced creators to keep as subtext!

And, well, when you lay it all out like that...

But my TikTok-fueled bisexual awakening might actually speak less to the omnipotence of the app's algorithm, and more to how heteronormativity is truly one helluva drug.

Sure, TikTok bombarded me with the thirst traps of my exact type of domineering masc lady queers, who reduced me to a puddle of drool I could no longer deny. But I also recalled a pivotal moment in college when I briefly questioned my heterosexuality, only to have a lesbian friend roll her eyes and chastise me for being one of those straight girls who leads Actual Queer Women on. I figured she must know better. So I never pursued any of my lady crushes in college, which meant I never experimented much sexually, which made me conclude that I couldn't call myself bisexual if I'd never had actual sex with a woman. I also didn't really enjoy lesbian porn much, though the fact that I'd often find myself fixating on the woman during heterosexual porn should've clued me into that probably coming more from how mainstream lesbian porn is designed for straight men.

The ubiquity of heterormativity, even when unwittingly perpetrated by members of the queer community, is such an effective self-sustaining cycle. Aside from being met with queer-gating (something I've since learned bi folks often experience), I had a hard time identifying my attraction to women as genuine attraction, simply because it felt different to how I was attracted to men.

Heteronormativity is truly one helluva drug.

So much of women's sexuality — of my sexuality — can feel defined by that carnivorous kind of validation you get from men. I met no societal resistance in fully embodying and exploring my desire for men, either (which, to be clear, was and is insatiable slut levels of wanting that peen.) But in retrospect, I wonder how many men I slept with not because I was truly attracted to them, but because I got off on how much they wanted me.

My attraction to women comes with a different texture of eroticism. With women (and bare with a baby bi, here), the attraction feels more shared, more mutual, more tender rather than possessive. It's no less raw or hot or all-consuming, don't get me wrong. But for me at least, it comes more from a place of equality rather than just power play. I love the way women seem to see right through me, to know me, without us really needing to say a word.

I am still, as it turns out, a sexual submissive through-and-through, regardless of what gender my would-be partner is. But, ignorantly and unknowingly, I'd been limiting my concept of who could embody dominant sexual personas to cis men. But when TikTok sent me down that glorious rabbit hole of masc women (who know exactly what they're doing, btw), I realized my attraction was not to men, but a certain type of masculinity. It didn't matter which body or genitalia that presentation came with.

There is something about TikTok that feels particularly suited to these journeys of sexual self-discovery and, in the case of women loving women, I don't think it's just the prescient algorithm. The short-form video format lends itself to lightning bolt-like jolts of soul-bearing nakedness, with the POV camera angles bucking conventions of the male gaze, which entrenches the language of film and TV in heterosexual male desire.

In fairness to me, I'm far from the only one who missed their inner gay for a long time — only to have her pop out like a queer jack-in-the-box throughout a near year-long quarantine that led many of us to join TikTok. There was the baby bi mom, and scores of others who no longer had to publicly perform their heterosexuality during lockdown — only to realize that, hey, maybe I'm not heterosexual at all?

Flooded with video after video affirming my suspicions, reflecting my exact experiences as they happened to others, the change in my sexual identity was so normalized on TikTok that I didn't even feel like I needed to formally "come out." I thought this safe home I'd found to foster my baby bisexuality online would extend into the real world.

But I was in for a rude awakening.

Testing out my bisexuality on other platforms, casually referring to it on Twitter, posting pictures of myself decked out in a rainbow skate outfit (which I bought before realizing I was queer), I received nothing but unquestioning support and validation. Eventually, I realized I should probably let some members of my family know before they learned through one of these posts, though.

Daunted by the idea of trying to tell my Latina Catholic mother and Swiss Army veteran father (who's had a crass running joke about me being a "lesbian" ever since I first declared myself a feminist at age 12), I chose the sibling closest to me. Seeing as how gender studies was one of her majors in college too, I thought it was a shoo-in. I sent an off-handed, joke-y but serious, "btw I'm bi now!" text, believing that's all that would be needed to receive the same nonchalant acceptance I found online.

It was not.

I didn't receive a response for two days. Hurt and panicked by what was potentially my first mild experience of homophobia, I called them out. They responded by insisting we need to have a phone call for such "serious" conversations. As I calmly tried to express my hurt on said call, I was told my text had been enough to make this sibling worry about my mental wellbeing. They said I should be more understanding of why it'd be hard for them to (and I'm paraphrasing) "think you were one way for twenty-eight years" before having to contend with me deciding I was now "something else."

But I wasn't "something else," I tried to explain, voice shaking. I hadn't knowingly been deceiving or hiding this part of me. I'd simply discovered a more appropriate label. But it was like we were speaking different languages. Other family members were more accepting, thankfully. There are many ways I'm exceptionally lucky, my IRL environment as supportive as Baby Bi TikTok. Namely, I'm in a loving relationship with a man who never once mistook any of it as a threat, instead giving me all the space in the world to understand this new facet of my sexuality.

I don't have it all figured out yet. But at least when someone asks if I listen to Girl in Red on social media, I know to answer with a resounding, "Yes," even though I've never listened to a single one of her songs. And for now, that's enough.

[jeremystrele]

The Top 10 Most Loved Homes Of 2019!

The Top 10 Most Loved Homes Of 2019!

Homes

by Lucy Feagins, Editor

The entry area to Mardi Ola’s spectacular converted warehouse in South Yarra. Antique cabinet filled with various art pieces: David Bromley ‘Noah’s Ark Bronze Animals’, Gemma Smith acrylic sculpture from Sarah Cottier Gallery, and Vanilla Netto neon from Arc One Gallery. Vintage Soriana sofas purchased on 1st Dibs. Painting by Gemma Smith from Sarah Cottier Gallery. Painting in hallway by Vanilla Netto from Arc One Gallery. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

View of the library. Vintage pendant from 1st Dibs. Jardan ‘Sunny’ sofa. Behruz Studio rug. Joe Columbo ‘Elda’ chair. Curtis Jére ‘Brads’ table lamp. Maria Fernando Cardoso feathered hanging totem from Arc One Gallery. ‘Blow Up’ chair from 2st Dibs. Gemma Smith paintings from Sarah Cottier gallery. Vintage leather dining chairs from 1st Dibs. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

‘This is actually the girls’ homework table – it’s never looked neater!’ Mardi says. Solid oak tripod table by Louella Tuckey. Vintage Japanese glass vessels on table from Made In Japan. Industrial steel doors and windows by Skyrange. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

View into the kitchen. Lacanche range, custom brass rangehood surround. Solid European oak joinery with stone masonry by Hendersons (‘seriously the best laughs ever working with those guys!’ Mardi says), vintage plaster from Geoffrey Hatty. Swing placement by Louella Tuckey – who insisted Mardi needed it in the kitchen. Cappellini ‘Hi-Pad’ stools from Dedece. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

A Jaw-Dropping Apartment Is One Of Australia’s First Warehouse Conversions

Everyone is now familiar with the converted warehouse… but this was one of the first examples in Australia! This home of designer Mardi Orla is seriously jaw-dropping, with soaring ceilings and a New-York-In-The-60s vibe. The vintage mushroom collection is NOT TO BE SCROLLED OVER. We can hardly believe this home is in Melbourne!

Revisit the original story here

Looking through the dining room out to the garden. Lamps in distance by PET Lamp from Safari Living. Washed blue cabinet from Manon bis. Photo – Caitlin Mills for The Design Files. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

A quiet nook. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

Barb in her lush European garden, which she created with the help of local landscaper Gavin Smith. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

A Stylish, Sentimental Home In St Kilda

When our art director Annie Portelli gets excited about a home she’s styled for one of our shoots, we sit up and pay attention. Annie was seriously buzzing over the St Kilda home of Barb Hyman and her family. Barb renovated this once derelict grand mansion, into a chic and sprawling terrace of finely crafted luxury.

Revisit the original story here. 

The dining room looking out over that beautiful Warrandyte view! Wall hanging, cushion and ottoman by Sage x Clare. Leather chaise, dining table, wooden hand and shell chandelier all found at vintage bazaars. Dining chairs from Instagram account @ccss_tm. Jardan rug found on Gumtree. Lighting by Lights Lights Lights. Swing by Jesse Cleay.  Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

Papasan chair from Gumtree. Cushion by Sage x Clare. Indigenous art from Leonard Joel. Palmtree art by Natalie Jade via Greenhouse Interiors. Black and white pot from Iggy & Lou Lou. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

The amazing outdoor area. Dining chairs from Ikea. Table from Gumtree. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

A Warrandyte Delight

Over the last few years we’ve seen so many Melbournian’s head to Warrandyte in search of a tree change close to the city. Another major plus is the incredible modernist and mid-century homes you can still find in wonderful condition in the area! The unconventional property of Sage and Clare’s Phoebe Bell and Chris Monahan is a perfect example. The sprawling property is home to two families, filled with colourful art and objects, with sweeping views over the treetops.

Revisit the original story here.

The southern shady garden view of the house. The reading room upstairs angles to look out at the large snow gum. The rain chain was at the request from Fleur and carries rain from the small roof. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

View from the kitchen through the hallway and into the guest bedroom. Fleur’s father collected old books, and she says she has ‘inherited a love for them’. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

View from the living room to the dining and kitchen, as well as the deck and garden (partially established here by Bush Projects Landscape Architects). Another piece from the early morning group trip to the timber yard, which according to Fleur is ‘lovely to hug’. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

A Magical Inner City Treehouse

Fleur Glenn’s treehouse, designed by architect Murray Barker, is truly something to behold. This charming, yet contemporary home in Clifton Hill perfectly caters to this empty-nester’s book filled and tree-lined life!

Revisit the original story here. 

‘When we bought the house, only the left side was there. We felt the house looked unbalanced so when drawing up the plans we wanted to balance it out. We used the same colourbond steel and existing design features as we wanted it to look like it had always been like this, and not a new extension. We were so lucky with our builder as he had done the original renovation the year before so was across all the finishes and colours we needed. I love the dark tones of this house against all the greenery’, Chyka explains. Photo – Amelia Stanwix.

The outdoor area is one of Chyka’s favourite places. Photo – Amelia Stanwix.

This room was originally a gallery and didn’t really work for Bruce and Chyka. They decided to double the width and turn the colour scheme black – they wanted it to look dramatic, so peaked the ceiling to add the drama with three antler chandeliers. The room is light and bright thanks to the doors to the courtyard. The couch and chairs were old ones they recovered. Photo – Amelia Stanwix.

The Impossibly Chic Chyka Weekender

Chyka Keebaugh puts her own distinctive flair on her ‘Nordic meets The Hamptons’ weekender! The Big Group co-founder was scrolling through instagram when she spied this holiday home (seriously!) and secured the property! Together with husband Bruce, Chyka embarked on large-scale renovations, including extending the grand master bedroom and major landscaping around THAT spectacular new pool.

Revisit the original story here. 

Sophie’s favourite view. ‘We decided to lay a ceramic tile that looks like wood in the kitchen and take it out to the garden. No one realises it’s actually a tile’ Sophie reveals! Rug from Pompon Bazar. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

A snapshot of some of Sophie’s favourite artworks, by Esther Stewart and Bec Smith. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

Sophie’s Gubi beetle chair sitting on the edge of the living room. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

A Colourful, Art-Filled Family Home in Balmain

Fashion industry expert Sophie Trippe-Smith and her entrepreneur husband Adam  have got some SERIOUS style! This bright and cheerful renovated 1880’s Balmain terrace is filled with colourful Australian artwork and eclectic pieces.

Revisit the original story here. 

The bright and joyful house of Kip&Co co-founder Alex McCabe, partner Bobby Babb and 10-month old Quincy! Pink concrete bench by Rutso, ‘the one thing I absolutely wanted for the house and love it’, Alex tells. Crocodile bamboo quartz splashback, found by Bobby and Alex peeking out from a dusty corner of a stone warehouse in Melbourne. Aged brass cabinets ‘roughed up” by Alex and Bobby with some apple cider vinegar. Black paper maché vase from India. Blue and white Italianate ceramic pot handed down from Alex’s grandma. A mix of European pottery and Indian paper maché vases on the shelf. Custom-made stools by Jason Blake. Mud Australia Pebble Bowl Large in Slate used as a fruit bowl. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

Bedding and rug are new season Kip&Co (available in March!). Simple bedside tables from Grandfathers Axe. Bedside lamps from Cove Island Essentials in Canggu, Bali. Paintings are by Nancy Nodea and Peggy Patrick from the Warmun Art Centre, ‘both artists are from the Kimberley and work in traditional style, including using ochre from the local area.’ Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

Outdoor chairs from Bali. Marble table top sourced on a trip to India. ‘Kip&Co’s manufacturing base is in India, so we try to get there at least twice a year’, Alex tells ‘Sometimes we get some time to sneak off and connect with amazing local artisans, like those in the stone workshop where this table is from’. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

A Home Of Joy And Light With Alex McCabe In Kip&Co

The home of Alex McCabe, founder of Kip&Co is, unsurprisingly, a joyful burst of colour!  Bright pops of art, textiles and objects create a unique sense of character in this St Kilda home, but the scene-stealer for us is that kitchen splashback. So glam!

Revisit the original story here. 

Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

The Timeless Beachside Home Of A Magazine Industry Legend

Deborah Bibby is a magazine industry legend, having spent 11 years as Editor-In-Chief at Real Living Magazine, as well as working as editor at JONES Magazine, Dolly, and Cleo. What a line-up! Deb brings her exacting eye for detail to this renovated beachside haven. A timeless delight!

Revisit the original story here. 

The home was originally designed by Australian designer, builder and landscape architect Alistair Knox, who is renowned for many wonderful homes in the Eltham area. Pop and Scott Dreamweaver Pot. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

”I sobbed with happiness that all I could see were trees around me’ Sunni said of the first night they moved in. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

The reading nook with a delightful ‘hodge-podge’ of secondhand furniture.Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

A Home With A Warm Hart

Doula Sunni Hart is a veritable ray of sunshine, so it is no surprise that the Eltham home she shares with partner Pete their two kids, Fox and Dizzy, as well as housemates Tilly and Thea, is a warm and welcoming space. The sprawling Alistair Knox-designed property was a dream come true for Sunni, who has long loved the Eltham home. The family have brought their own personal flair to this mid-century delight, introducing their own ’hodge-podge’ of treasured collections to the stunning home.

Revisit the original story here. 

The custom-designed mousehole entrance to Emma and Tom Lane’s spectacular Spanish-inspired home in the Byron Hinterland. Dragon tree in custom-designed corten pot. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

The living room. 300-year-old Croatian roof tiles sourced by Sonya from Jatana Tiles line the floor. Oregon timber shelves made from the old roof trusses in the original house. Sunken lounge designed in partnership with Sarah Ellison Studios. Rafters made from recycled spotted gum from a bridge in Goulburn. Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

The living room, overlooking the expansive property. Sunken lounge designed in partnership with Sarah Ellison Studios. Coffee table from Ha’veli of Byron Bay. Solid stone Byron Bay-built fireplace made from basalt rocks foraged on the property. Rafters made from recycled spotted gum from a bridge in Goulburn.Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

The pool area overlooking the Byron Hinterlands.Photo – Caitlin Mills. Styling – Annie Portelli.

A Spectacular Spanish-Influenced Homestead In The Byron Hinterland

If there was one hone that really took our collective breath away this year, this was it. Emma and Tom Lane of the beloved The Farm in Byron Bay shared their own spectacular home in Coopers Shoot in the Byron Hinterland. The Range is set on 120 acres and was designed and built using adaptive reuse principles, with an emphasis on natural and recycled materials. The result it a serene and luxurious haven, designed for inside/outside living. Seriously, if this isn’t ‘living the dream’, we don’t know what is!

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abby winter porn - 9 Simple Facts About Abby Winters Six Girls Explained

" "Uh, yeah…" I muttered, confused by her sudden appearance. " she asked as I drifted into waking. "Failure to appear will result in forced compliance. " With a perfunctory nod and smile she tore a slip of paper from a booklet she was carrying, and proffered it at me.

There was definitively something off about her, and not just by the fact that she appeared to have broken into my apartment overnight; her neon green pixie cut, numerous piercings, and prolific tattoos of cocks and tentacle monsters savaging women didnt seem to gel with her matter of factly work-a-day demeanour; none of which was helped by her wispy, transparent clothing that seemed designed expressly to tittilate and show of her flesh rather than conceal anything.

" "Well", I suggested, stretching to feel my morning glory blooming under the covers, "perhaps youd be down for a bit of practice? "You are served with appearing at the Capital City Temple within fourteen days for a union with Her Grand Majesty the Most Exalted, The Goddess Persicima, Glory of all the World and Mother to All.

" With a quick flick of her wrist she threw back my covers and gave my cock a long, hard stare. " she said, pulling gently at a band around her throat, sending her clothes (if you could call them that) falling to the floor. "I would advise you to bring your A game.

" "Now…" I said, looking over the slip of paper, "when you say union…" "Fucking, yes. "Normally I wouldnt have time, but your laziness means that youre my last stop for the day", she said with a disapproving click of her tongue and a shrug, "so why not, I suppose? " "Much the same, isnt it? As far as Saturday mornings go, this one wasnt much out of the usual, or, rather, wouldnt have been, but for the woman standing over my bed as I woke up.

"Now get off of your lazy ass and show me what youve got. " Obediently, I got to my knees and shored up behind her, guiding my cock into her already wet slit, my burying it to the hilt eliciting not so much as a shiver. " I asked as she climbed up onto the bed and wiggled her ass at me. As I looked down at her back I was greeted to an ornate scene tattooed into her milky white skin, of a burly man grabbing a woman by the hair and riding her like a stallion, so I decided to do much the same, her short hair smooth and hard to grasp under my annoyed fingers.

" she asked, looking over her shoulder at me. "Not in the slightest. "If thats all you have to work with…" she said with a shrug. "So her majesty and all that likes it rough, is what youre saying? "Im not here to ride you, and what you need practice at is pounding password abby abbie winters a cunt, not getting ridden.

"I hope you do as well, then. "Do try and make an effort. " Annoyed, I let go of her hair and grabbed her hips instead, taking a firm grasp with both hands. A couple of minutes of hard riding later I came, filling her up as best I could with a torrent of hot jizz, having elicited not so much as a single moan from her. "If thats the best you can do, I fear for you.

" I asked, using the purchase gained by grabbing the angels mane to drive myself even deeper. " I offered, before drawing back to put every muscle in my body into pounding her. " she said, ignoring the stains the cum dripping from her pussy left on her lacy garments. " she said with a bored sigh.

Angrily, I balled it up and tossed it into my wastebasket; let them try to force compliance all they want… As far as Saturday mornings go, this one wasnt much out of the usual, or, rather, wouldnt have been, but for the four women standing over my bed as I woke up. " With an idle shrug she vanished into thin air, leaving behind only a wet spot on the bed and the slip of paper on my night stand.

" the tallest of them said. As I fell back, exhausted, she was already well on her way out of the bed and gathering up her wisps of silk. " another one chimed in. "You are expected at the temple. It had been two weeks since my encounter with the angel of Persiwhateverthefuck, and Id not put much more thought into it, a decision I was now rather regretting.

Each of them had much the same look as the last angel had, albeit with slightly less in the way of tattoos and piercings, and slightly less in the way of clothing. With the quickness of a great cat I was on my feet, the bed between me and the four of them, and quickly I made for the door. "You can come quietly, or not.

"Just let me put some clothes on, and Ill come quietly. " I suggested, immediately regretting it as the shortest of them threw herself headlong at me in a gloriously well-executed tackle, sending me sprawling on the floor. "Do we have to tie you up?

"Youre fine the way you are. " the tallest of them said. " Boxing me in, the four of them walked me naked up main street, but not until after affixing a ring around my cock to secure my erection. " she said, squeezing abby winters girls hard. " Kim exclaimed gleefully as she spotted me, but as I turned around to offer my dissent one of the angels prodded me hard with a finger to drive me on.

Fortunately, a summer Saturday morning left the streets all but deserted, but nonetheless I ran into Kim and Alice outside the corner store. Reaching under me to grab my balls, she was quite clear about how this was going down. " I shouted in her face. "Ignoring a summons isnt a good idea! "Oh yeah, Ive been up the temple a few times. " With a shrug, the angel stopped, and let me exchange a few brief words with Kim.

" she said, nodding at the big marble building in the distance. "Youve got some experience with this, then? " "Apart from Dont ignore the summons in the first place. " she asked, staring off thoughtfully in the middle distance. "Is there that much of a rush?

"The second time I got to bring Alice, and we all had a lot of fun. " I asked, and she gave a grin and a nod. " the tallest of the angels said, waving the rest of the abby winters girls out. "Take a deep breath and relax, I guess. " "I dont follow…" I said in puzzlement, but before Kim could answer the angels drove me i love abby winters models winters on.

"Her Grand Majesty will be with you shortly. "In future", a voice came, ringing like a fine silver bell, "see that summons are responded to promptly. There was no imperfection to her near as I could see, and as the moment went on for what felt like a thousand years, I could easily be brought to believe that I had seen everything about her a million times over. " On opening my eyes I was confronted with what was easily the most beautiful woman I have ever laid eyes on, before or since; tall, soft, just the right everything, from the curve of her breasts to the round of her belly, nothing about her hidden from view; if her angels wore revealing clothing, she wore nothing at all, were it not for the fact that she did.

"Try not to embarrass yourself. "I… I will…" I stammered, words hardly finding their way to my mouth. The rest of the journey passed quickly, even with the hot pavement burning my feet, and before long I abby winters.com winters clips was dragged down into the sanctum below the temple and tossed bodily into the massive bed covered with flower petals. " she asked, looking back at me.

" As she slipped out with the rest of them I laid back on the bed, waiting for Perwhatever, my cock throbbing against the cool metal ring around it, my eyes closed against the dim lights of the sanctum. " The strange atmosphere tangling itself about my wits I could barely get on my knees, but somehow I managed, and brushing away the wispy silk covering her rear I got my cock brushing against her eager wetness, immediately eliciting a low, growling moan.

With my first thrust I drew a deep, ringing moan from her, filling the room, and on the second I came, spurting a torrent of seed deep into her. "Now…" she said, climbing up into the bed and getting on all fours, "show me what men are made of.

" she said at length, rolling over onto her back, a finger darting to her pussy to grab a fleck of the juices oozing out of her and tasting it with great relish. " "Well…" I panted, the golden ring falling from my cock as it receded, "theres not much to do for that. "Far too quickly over with, though. " she said with a grin, quickly springing up and pushing me down on all fours and getting behind me.

" As I felt the prod of a ghostly construct prodding against my ass, Kims advice suddenly made sense. "Do let me know if Im being too rough. "Now is when the fun begins. Grabbing my hair and yanking me back up to my knees, the goddess nibbled softly at my ear, before quietly whispering to me. As I filled her up, she loosed a scream of joy, her body twitching against me in orgasm, a glorious celebration of the most perfect sex.

" With a deep breath I grabbed her hips and plunged deep into her, her heavenly cunt forming itself to my exact desires; tight, but not too tight; warm, but not too warm; wet, slippery and deep. " she whispered, driving her magical cock up my ass.