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It’s Friday! It’s sunny! To celebrate, grab a bunch of friends, a couple of drinks and your best dancing shoes and head out into town for a gig. There are some pretty wonderful gigs going on tonight, so take your pick from our suggestions, scroll on down for some inspiration as to what to wear and start getting ready.

First up in our super mini and very selective gig guide is Adam Page’s Fundraiser Gig for his big ol’ trip to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The lovely Adam Page is throwing a bit of a party to help him to survive the festival once he gets there. He’s a bucket load of talent and will be sure to please everyone with his wonderful range of music. According to Simon Sweetman, Adam’s the perfect mix of “straight and serious, comedic, demented; he can take your breath away… with some of the beautiful flute and sax sounds he coaxes. Then there's all the other instruments he layers in, vocal percussion, beatboxing, the works.” It’s set to be a good vibe with some awesome music and beer to match. Meow, from 9pm, $10 on the door. Claire's going, go dance with her! The Facebook event can be found HERE, Simon Sweetman’s write up can be found HERE.

If you’re into big, brash, bands with a bunch of attitude and a smash up of hip-hop, funk, soul and jazz then look no further than Brockaflowersaurus-Rex and The Blueberry Biscuits. The 9 piece Wellington band will knock your dancing socks off with their lush sounds and epic tunes. These guys are by far my favourite Wellington band and I always have the best dancing times at their gigs; it helps that all the band members are fantastic people who are heaps of fun to be around. They’re playing quite a small gig tonight at San Fran Bathhouse, with things kicking off at 9pm. It’s $15 on the door. Make sure you’re there early as there are only 150 door sales! The Facebook event can be found HERE and check out their tunes HERE.

You might have picked out your gig, but have you picked out your outfit? It’s always tough in Winter deciding what to wear to a gig. It’s brutally cold outside, but way too hot inside. My advice is to wear a dress, or skirt and blouse, with stockings and a couple of cardigans that aren’t overly precious. You can take the stockings off if you get too hot and the cardigans you can just stash somewhere off to the side or hook over your bag. I’d rather my cardigans go missing than a coat! (Also helps to have a friend in the band, because then you can beg for your stuff to be hidden backstage). Here’s a selection of outfits that would be perfect for a mid-Winter gig:

(1. Alice Nightingale Zelda Skirt and Clara Blouse, 2. Arielle Mermin Marianne Dress, 3. Chrissie Dress, 4. High Noon Tea Marcell Dress, 5. Celine Rita Bella Dress)

The other issue with gigs is a bag. Too big a bag and you’ll be annoying everyone around you on the dance floor and yourself. Go for small; bring your essential cards, cash, keys, phone and a lippy. Maybe even a roll on perfume if you’ve got the room! Here are our picks for small gig appropriate bags:

(1. SA I See You Baby Bag, 2. Norma Wallet, 3. KOA Calyx, 4. KOA Vane, 5. SA Destructive Romance Bag)

If you want to get the party started before you go, make these:

I didn’t really need to put those in this blog post, but I think someone needs to make them. They are so cute!

I hope this post has inspired you to dress up, go out, have some fun and dance the night away! Might see ya dancing!

Happy Friday!

xox Anneke xoxo

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We are very excited to introduce this beautiful recipe journal to you all; say hello to Petite Kitchen! This stunning little journal, crammed with recipes and packed full of the most drool-worthy photography, will be a welcome addition to any home. Be sure to get one into your kitchen quick to start cooking delicious, simple and good for you food!  

Petite Kitchen is written by Eleanor Ozich, author of the food blog of the same name. Eleanor started developing simple, natural recipes to help nourish her young daughter who had developed seemingly incurable eczema. After a visit to a Naturopath who suggested a radical change in diet, Eleanor started a new approach to cooking which has since magicked away her daughter's eczema and improved her whole family's health! You can read more about Eleanor's inspiring story on her blog; which, like the journal, is full of wonderful recipes and is definitely a must read.

The recipes from Petite Kitchen aren't just healthy and nourishing, they taste wonderful and look amazing too. Here's a sneak peak from this season's issue:

Um, yuuuuum! I want to eat them all. Thanks Petite Kitchen for the drool-worth images!

Hope ya'll are keeping warm and dry and the snow isn't impacting too much on those of you down South. Be sure to find a snuggle buddy, a hot water bottle and a big quilt! For those of you in Welly, banish those Winter chills with a big dance at tonight's Beyonce Tribute Show at Mighty. We'll see you there!

Happy Friday!!!

xoxo Anneke xoxo

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Food has been a running theme in our weekly blog since I’ve somewhat taken the reigns of writing it. To say I’m obsessed with food would be an understatement. Since I moved out of home a couple of years ago and actually started cooking, I’ve been experimenting with vegetarian food; because it’s delicious, it’s been a good way of getting vegetables into my flatmates and it’s a lot cheaper than meat based meals. Not meaning to be preachy, but it’s always good to vary your diet and include some meat free meals in your week, if you’re a meat eater like me!

Now vegan, that’s a territory I haven’t quite yet explored, but one I’m definitely keen to. Emily, one of the lovely ladies here at Madame Fancy Pants, has recently become a vegan. We’ve all got a little overexcited dreaming up and sourcing recipes to add to her repertoire, including Claire deciding that creating a vegan macaroon would be perfect to include Emily in our macaroon obsession (we are both addicted to the ones from the wicked italian café just up the road). Oh that cloud of coconut, dipped and drizzled in dark chocolate… I’m drooling just thinking about it. Not a pretty image? Well, here is a real pretty image to distract you.

Oh pretty, pretty vegan food! These recipes come from the blog Wolf and Willow. The owner of this blog, Nancy Alice Chalmers, has embarked on a sugar-free and vegan diet adventure and has created an e-cookbook, dubbed The Sexy Sugar-Free Vegan Project, which is full of amazing recipes. Red Velvet and Coconut Cream Brownies? Yes please!! The two recipes above, Roasted Eggplant Hummus with Vegie Crisps and the Heavenly Coconut Butters, are available as a sneak-peak on her blog. They seem like perfect vegan party canapés to me. Or just smother your morning toast with one of them. Or both. Whatever floats your boat (probably don’t combine both, wouldn’t be very tasty).

So, I may be a little in love with Hungry and Frozen, who I have mentioned before on this blog. Wellingtonian Laura Vincent fills this blog with food love; it’s bursting with recipes she has created and snapped to share with all her lucky readers. Since she started the blog as a ‘strapped for cash’ student, most of the food you can find on her blog can be made on the cheap, whilst still remaining tasty and healthy. I’ve turned to her recipe for Spicy Chickpeas with Tomatoes and Coconut Cream time and time again for a quick and healthy dinner.

Ice cream is my favourite food, don’t judge, and Laura’s ice creams are seriously standout. She’s conquered vegan ice cream in a few variations, but this Lemon and Poppyseed Ice Cream looks amazing. Would probably taste pretty good after those Spicy Chickpeas too!

My last source for vegan cooking inspiration comes in the form of Tumblr blog, Thug Kitchen. If you like your vegan food served with a side of gangster, check this one out. Be warned, if you’re sensitive to strong language, would be best to avoid this one. If you can look past the effs and blinds, or you are harboring a secret internal gangster (like me), you’ll enjoy it and laugh. My picks? The Lavender Lemonade alongside the Roasted Chickpea and Broccoli Burrito. Delicious.

Well, there we have it! A trio of blogs where you can find delicious vegan recipes to try out on yourself, or your lovely vegan friends. I’m dreaming of eating the Strawberry and Vanilla Coconut Butter by the spoonful already…

Xoxo Anneke xoxo

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