20 Facts About Me

1. I was born 3 weeks too early and had to be put

in an incubator...to cook. (joking) but as a result, I was a tiny four pound baby.

2. I'm Half Greek/Half Guyanese.

3. I first started writing stories at 5 and I haven't stopped since.

4. I involuntarily start crying in winter. My eyes just water uncontrollably in windy environments. It's so weird, and my dad suffers it too.

6. I considered being a professional actor before realising hairdressing and writing was my passion.

7. I write for Elite Daily.

8. My favorite fruit is watermelon.

9. I'm scared of the dark.

10. I'm OCD about being clean.

11. I wear a silver cross that I never take off.

12. I wish I had naturally wavy hair like my Mum.

13. I have two brothers.

14. I fell in love at 14.

15.  I've known my best friend since I was thirteen.

16. I'm only 5"3 and even my boss calls me 'little!'

17. I'm allergic to prawns.

18. I have a severe fear of flying.

19. I hate spicy food.

20. And last but not least, my name is derived from the word philosophy, meaning wisdom. :)

Dear 21 Year Old Me...

Dear 21 Year Old Me,

You made it.

You know how they say you're meant to have an epiphany on your 21st? Grow wings? become an elder? All that jazz?

Well, have you?

I think you have. 

I think you've come a long way

A long way from being a six year old queen bee, from colourful pencil shavings and having your hair pulled by nasty, naughty third grader boys. A long way from travelling back and forth from England to Australia. A long way from sitting alone on the first day of high school, wandering if your coffee complexion and frizzy hair will ever get you a seat with the 'popular girls' and whether you'll ever stop writing in recess break time to keep your thoughts from spilling out through your dreams.

A long way from a highschool romance that almost broke your heart, and the few affairs that followed that almost drove you mad, but taught you so many valuable lessons about your own self worth.

A long way from all the long nights spent working on your novel and the early mornings finishing hair exams and all the bottles of V energy and blueberry muffins you scoffed, struggling to keep awake long enough to get through the day and the frightening job trials with girls with perfectly styled blondes coifs of hair.

But most of all, you've come a long way from all the grief, hardship and hurdles that life brings and you've used all of it as a massive sandpit to grow and evolve in and ultimately, fall in love with life again.

You grew up.

Along with all the people, you love and cherish the most.

Your best friends, soulmates and the people that have watched you grow into the author, hair stylist model and beautiful human being that you've become.

 Love,

You xoxo




 
 

Because I Say Yes.

Sometimes there's true happiness to be felt when I tease my hair out and apply a coat of my favourite shade of red. ;)

It's been a bizarre month. Some pitfalls, some joys, but overall, the only thought consistently running through
my head is: "You made it!" and I continue to think it every day.  I got the job and I'm on my way to a rewarding career.   And there was a time, after all the countless interviews (where I spent a good majority being a professional bullshit artist) and the disappointment and the heartache waiting for the phone to ring, that I felt like giving up, but I didn't, because I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt, the moment I stopped saying yes to new opportunities was gonna be the moment I stopped truly living.


Patience, hope, faith and trust in something bigger than your own self doubt  is seriously powerful and along with letting go of your fear of the unknown, it's having the courage to say YES even if something doesn't work out.  Even if you get rejected.  Even if you're scared out of your wits.  Even if your heart seems incapable of opening once more.

It's freeing...liberating and strangely comforting knowing that in order to really live, we need to take steps toward the unknown. Even if they are only baby steps.

The best advice I ever heard was, "Do at least one thing a day, that scares you."

Beyond The Pale

If you like stories that are a little bad, a little naughty and a little forbidden...

Go and grab a copy of my new novel: Beyond The Pale.

Available for purchase and download on Amazon Kindle:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ID8UP10

IF YOU LIKED:

 Fifty Shades of Grey, Lolita, An Education.

Melbourne, Goodbyes & Pikachu Onesies

I know. It's embarrassing how long I've been MIA for.
A whole two months.

In these two months, so much has happened. I managed to get really ill and had to defer college for a semester so I decided I needed to escape my little, old town and fly off to Melbourne for a week, just to breathe in a different kind of air.

Melbourne for the record...is beautiful.
Revisiting the city again after a whole two years filled with me lost nostalgia.

It's bristling with these massive apartment blocks and skyscrapers and highways that never seem to end.
The city is stunningly busy and walking around is like stepping into a catalogue for the Aussie version of the upper east side.

Everyone is super friendly and super busy and super designer and everywhere you go, the atmosphere is filled with this busy enthusiasm and passion for...LIFE!

I had so much fun and learned so much about myself in the short time I was there, living with loved ones, staying up too late, exploring the city and driving down dark freeways at night, the wind caught in my hair, the music up loud, the memories etched in the stars.

Most importantly, I learned that, even in a city as busy as Melbourne, anywhere can be the loneliest place in the world if you have no one.

 It was really hard saying goodbye.

And on that note, I'll leave ya'll with the last photo I took before I left, inspired by a few too many Johnny Walkers and someone who will always hold a special place in my heart... ;)

Ebony & Ivory Inspired Shoot

These are a few sneek peeks from a photoshoot I did with the gorgeous Kiki, a month back.
We were shrouded in all sorts of materials and lingerie and shot under studio lighting.

Little Girl Lost

 Sometimes, it's not about snapping the perfect image.  It's about the emotion behind the lens and behind the person.

In a world where we are taught to swallow our tears, it's hard to ever  express when we feel a little sad, a little vulnerable and ultimately...a little lost.
That's why i wanted "Little Girl Lost" to be as intimate, lonely and stripped as possible.
To capture what it means to be a young girl.

(All images subject to copyright - © Eleglance Photography)

Southern Shoot Sneak Peak

© EleGlance Photography, Glynn Jackson.

There's something so magical about shooting near a waterfall. It has a sort of Southern charm that gets lost at the beach.

The smell of mulch and mud and fresh grass and country air alongside the gush of running water over the rocks...

And the best news is I got chosen to represent Covergirl of Australia's Swimsuit Edition.

Yay :)

TGIF.

This friday has been hectic. I began the day by making my friend Gemma, brunette. 
She had been all sorts of fire reds and honeycomb blondes for a while and decided she wanted to go a little darker and add volume and soft curls to her hair. 

So, voila! Then I finished off my Friday night with my best friend, indulging in caramelised banana pancakes (yum!), vanilla vodka and strawberry milkshakes. And of course, hitting the dance floor...

How did you spend your weekend? ;)

Behind The Scenes.

End Result © Marjorie Rose.

Today was so much fun.  In biting cold wind, I shot a beautiful sequence of editorial photos with Marjorie and model, Eddie. We moved around quite a lot on location and walking back through town carrying a mini suitcase in stilettos and a strapless dress caused a little too much attention. I ended the evening with coffee, seaweed salad and pizza. Not all in that order. ;)

Monday-itis? I don't think so.

Monday in a nutshell. Colouring,  crimping, curling and straightening hair and then home from college to a terribly fattening but delicious dinner at Nandos with my best mate.

Time to get some much needed Zzzzs for tomorrow's photoshoot...
Pictures to be posted soon.

Did anyone suffer Monday-itis?

xoxo

Sneek Peek: Summer in Winter.

© Marjorie Rose Photography 2013

Escaping the city for a few hours yesterday for an editorial photo shoot was amazing.
We drove all the way into the country and found this amazing field and creek filled with mulch and knee high reeds.  It was really sticky and the sun had turned the water, this amazing sky blue.

Hot chips and lemonade finished off the day.  Marjorie and I drove back down the highway, watching the marmalade orange sun, set over the sea.

My flats were totally wrecked and walking home in my new Malibu denim shorts and 1920s style bikini (below) was even colder.

But it was 100% worth it.

xoxo

Today.

 

Day offs mean three things for me.

• Chicken and ricotta salad in town.
• Shopping.
• Driving with mates.