Jungle Book

Pretending to be Mowgli in a tropical rainforest, chasing creeks, skipping on mossy rocks leading to waterfalls and loving the smell of the forest. I never wanted to leave and can't wait to go back to the mountains and clamber over rocks till I am exhausted. Of course the cold meant, all the layering happened under the block-print dress, beanie came out to play and boots with thicks socks were needed.

Yes, I go camping in flowy dresses, sometimes trip a little bit but my love for block-print flowy goodness means I rarely want to wear much else. What do you wear to go camping?

The colours of winter

People like minimalistic outfits, tend to go the tried and tested route in the winter, I am NOT one of those people. Bright bags bought during various travels and market expeditions, traditional scarves, colourful beanies and floor length woollens with comfy jeans help me get excited to leave the house and explore during winters. I refuse to become a grey, black or dark blue blob for the colder months and colour plus jewellery helps me brighten dull and chilly days.

There is something great about travelling in winter, the fresh cold air lends a touch of magic to the entire experience. Like I said I am not one for sticking to neutrals instead reaching for the brightest sacks, wraps, beanies and oversize blankets masquerading as cardigans to wrap myself in. Massive totes handmade in far off corners of the planet in eye searing brights, block print or bandhani dupattas in saturated hues, statement necklaces, heaps of silver jewellery and embellishments galore; all this is a bit more like me. I like clothes and accessories that are functional but have character, don't stop me from running down a mountain side but definitely don't blend in. And I like to wear things again and again and then some, this beanie has featured on my blog for years as have the boots and I am not ashamed to say I don't go out and buy the latest winter must haves every season. Although it doesn't look like it to people who know me and my house is being taken over by shoes and bags; I do want to buy less and less. How do you battle the winter blues?

Roadtrip Day One: Mountain Sunsets

We're back from the outback and really inspired from all that we saw and experienced; being away from most things modern did us a lot of good.We started off from the city and crossed the Blue mountains region to the very centre of NSW and camped in the middle of no where with dusty red earth, barely any cellphone network and a whole lot of fun.

The trip was visually inspiring but also so much more in the sense that one gets so much time to think and reflect while driving past spectacular fall foliage and quaint small towns. Lately I have been feeling the urge to maybe reduce the burden of having so many belongings and go back to having a smaller collection of things that are fabulous to me. Lets see how far I am able to pare back.

I have always been drawn towards comfortable clothing in natural fabrics that let my skin breathe and accesories that mean something to me. The earings in these photos were something I admired long ago on a friend from Columbia who promptly took them off and gave them to me, this vintage beaded belt was something picked up on travels and my various sweaters have so far been worn in multiple continents. I hope to continue to love my things, resist picking up things from impersonal shops and build a collection of truly eclectic items that mean a lot to me.

Here are a few pictures from our first sunset from the trip. Hope everyone had a relaxing break.

Autumn roadtrips: In the woods, around mountains and by the sea

One of my most favourite things to do is to go through instagram feeds of National Geographic, various travel photographers and mountain climbers. For weeks now this urge to go away and be closer to nature has been hard to control and finally this long weekend we've rented a campervan with a tent and are going away camping into this wonderful continent that I have come to love so much.

I wish things work out as planned and we are able to travel a bit more in the coming years, so far having our families on two different continents and us living in the third has ensured a lot of moving and I can't wait to add more destinations to our "already visited" list.

As the temperature drops and the leaves start to change colour it is the best time to run around trees, up the hills and walk by the water. Here are a few things clotheswise that I am packing for my roadtrip, do you have any suggestions?

I can't be bothered wearing jackets on top (unless I have to) and hide my flowy tops so I generally do my layering under my clothes; which is when my collection of merino baselayers come very handy.

As the glorious Vix says "None of this running off to the shops for a new wardrobe when the season changes. Its lurid Hawaiian prints and gauzy cotton maxi dresses all year round for me. After all, isn't that why thermal underwear was invented?"

Outfit 1: Silk blouse, denim cutoffs, tall fringe boots with a merino baselayer under and a pair or merino leggings if needed with a Morroccan backpack from the Glebe markets.

Outfit 2: For those days in the mountains when its too cold to wear shorts; Icebreaker merino singlet with a Kathmandu merino pull-over on top, colourful pants to not look too wintry, a gifted suede bum bag from Pondicherry,my trusty Palladiums with thick woollen socks.

Outfit 3: Torn jeans with a merino singlet, an old tee, a block print scarf, Vintage chunky sweater and my broken in Converse with thick socks.

What are your road-trip must-wears?

Water falls and hikes

Spend a wonderful weekend at the mountains, chasing water falls and climbing rock faces and had the best time camping. Sometimes wonderful memories are made away from civilization and feeling free, uninhibited but awed by the sheer beauty that surrounds us.

Warning: Its a picture heavy post but what can I say, waterfalls are my favourites.

Ofcourse camping calls for tried and tested comfortable clothes like these ying yang shorts, soft tee shirt and a wool cardie with my trusted Palladiums.