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[boneandwillow]

A trip down memory lane... Our first family holiday to Tasmania!

Jeremy, Alfie and I had our first family holiday together back in May 2017. Jeremy's parents mentioned they had timeshares with Wyndham/ Ramada Resorts and asked us if we would like to use some of their points to go on a holiday.

My passport had expired, so going overseas wasn't an option as I was not bothered to go through the renewal process just before getting married. We suggested that we choose somewhere in Australia that we could all visit (so Jeremy's parents and younger sister could join us) as we didn't feel comfortable using all their points that they pay for, on just us three.

We all decided on Tasmania as the majority of us had all wanted to visit there. So we picked a date, bought some tickets and then before we knew it we were headed on a plane to Tasmania!

Alfie's cousin Monique also ended up joining us, so all up, we were a group of seven. Unfortunately, Jez's son, our other boy, didn't want to come along on this trip as he didn't like the cold. It was a shame that he decided not to come along, as we soon realised he would have loved Tasmania as much as we did! We want to go back to Tasmania one day, so he said he will definitely join us for the next trip. We were there for seven days and didn't get to see all that we wanted to, so to be able to go back and explore even more with him would be amazing.

Next time, we would love to drive down to the Spirit of Tasmania port in Victoria, make the overnight ferry trip, and then have our car to drive while we are there.

We stayed at the Ramada Resort by Wyndham near Seven Mile Beach. It was a great location, only a 5-minute walk to the beach and around a 30-minute drive to the city centre of Hobart. To get around, we hired a van that could accommodate all of us. It included a car seat for Alfie, so we were all set for adventuring!

We mostly visited National Parks and saw the Tasmanian Devil 'Unzoo' as our choice of 'tourist' destination. As a whole, this was a fantastic trip. I would highly recommend Tasmania to anyone! It was the perfect amount of sightseeing and staying home in our three-bedroom villa cosying up next to the fire. I love holidays where you get to relax, enjoy each others company and spend quality time with the ones you love.

love AJ xo

[boneandwillow]

Social Media

It may be an unknown thing to a lot of people, but I am an introvert. My favourite thing in the world, is to be alone.

It energises me.

I do enjoy socialising, partying, going out and doing spontaneous activities and adventures. It’s just that after; I need to unwind, decompress and be by myself to recharge. Cocoon for a while, if you will, then I can be a social butterfly again.

At the start of the year (2019) I noticed that I have been feeling like I can’t do that. I spent ages trying to figure out why.

Then it dawned on me.

So I was born in ‘85. I grew up in the 90’s and was a young teenager when mobile phones and the internet became accessible for most of the “everyday” families in Australia. My dad was the only one in the family who actually had a mobile phone, and it resembled a skinny brick and was quite heavy. When I was in my late teens MSN chat was becoming huge, it was still dial up internet - and if my family needed the phone, I had to get off the computer. I did have my own mobile at this point. The Nokia 3210, a hand me down from my parents. Text and calls were all it could do, and texting wasn’t huge because not all my friends had phones. Home phones, were the main source of voice calls - mobiles were more used for away from home. There were some times that I didn’t use my mobile until the weekend.

By 19 I had purchased my own mobile, a flip phone. That had a coloured screen (still very pixelated) and a few games on it. Apps weren’t around yet, and it basically was used to just text or call and ease boredom in waiting rooms as I edited basic phone pics (“oh look, I can make all these pics black and white” kinda thing) or played games like ‘snake’. It always felt odd taking a picture with my phone, I mean it was a phone not a camera! I still took my camera out with me everywhere to actually take photos, phone pics just didn’t cut it.

When I was in my early 20’s MySpace was the latest thing and that was accessed only on computers… there were whispers of FB but MySpace was where it was at. You could customise your page with cute links, pictures and even play music as people clicked on your profile… it was a way to show very curated version of yourself and everyone was adding each other and checking daily to see where they sat on the “top friends” list… it could get quite cutthroat!

I was living in Cronulla with my younger sister then, and the only time I could check MySpace was when I get home from work or on the weekends. You would go on for an hour or two, update a few things - snoop on cute boy’s profiles and then be done with it for a while.

Around 23 I got an iPhone. Hellooooooo apps! It was crazy! Tetris, car race games, sudoko - proper picture editing apps… a camera on my phone that was just as good as an actual camera (well almost) but it meant that I could start to leave the camera at home and ease up some room in my bag when going out….

MySpace was fading out… FB was getting bigger amongst our group of friends… we would virtually throw ‘sheep’ or ‘poke’ each other to let everyone know when we were online or wanted to chat. Phone calls and texting were your main way of communicating. It wasn’t until FB started asking us “what are you doing” and then later “what’s on your mind” that people started posting content on their profiles and on others too. It was all pretty exciting and new.

We soon learnt that people would abuse or misuse these prompts… sharing personal things, like fights with partners or parents. Airing dirty laundry or disclosing secrets or information they shouldn’t (dramaaaaa). But not everyone was misusing it, but just posting every single thing and every little tidbit of their life - the good, bad and occasionaly the ugly.

Now, please don’t misunderstand me - there is nothing wrong with sharing, and for many people it is a way to connect and reach out. Heck, I do it through blogging.

However I did realise for someone like me, who needs to be alone to recharge… seeing everyones lives being displayed on Social Media, meant that I wasn’t getting the down time that my brain needed.

Maybe it’s because of the era I grew up in, which is why I tried to explain it a bit. Where we have slowly (well maybe not that slowly) been exposed to more and more of people’s lives.

We don’t need to ask what people did on the weekend. We saw it.

How was the wedding? Oh it’s ok I already saw all the pics.

Children don’t have to tell their grandparents about their achievement when they see them in person, because mum or dad already posted it up.

Again, I’m not saying any of this is bad.

I am saying that I am missing human connection, as well as not getting a break from everyone at the same time.

So, I muted you all... yep - muted or unfollowed.

Snapchat, I deleted altogether. Instagram and Facebook, I came up with my own algorithm for unfollows and mutes. The closer you are to me/ the amount of content you post - determined how much or how little I muted of you.

My best friend, she posts on social media once a blue moon (if that) - she isn’t muted, I also don’t get to see her as much as I used to so I want to see bits and pieces that she does post.

Family members; I have a few that post daily, if not multiple times I day - mute, unfollow, mute, and mute. Now when I see them and they tell me something, I am genuinly interested and happy to hear it all. Because it is all new information.

Celebs, bloggers that interest me and other creative things I like to look at - post constantly, but none of them are muted because it does not make me feel drained to watch them. I have no personal connection to any of them - it’s just interesting to me.

It is honestly nothing personal to those who may be reading this and realising “haaaang on a minute, she hasn’t like anything of mine in ages!?!” I just couldn’t handle it all anymore. It did take some time to adjust, because I would feel bad and search people at first, because there was that “addiction” to knowing - but just because I can know, doesn’t mean that I should. Not if it is not helpful for my own mental health.

None of this is about being good or bad, wrong or right - it’s about looking at things as being either helpful or unhelpful.

For me some social media exposure, has been unhelpful to me. So I have adjusted it, so that it is no longer being unhelfpul.

If you are feeling burnt out, drained or even annoyed at some things that you are exposed to - maybe take a look at what content makes you feel that way, take stock and maybe try my method. It may be short term, it could be long term. Doesn’t hurt to give it a try, and the process is reversable. If you need help muting or even unfollowing (depends on the platform) - let me know! I can tell you how to find it, oh and I will add this is NOT un friending people, it is simply what it suggests “muting” the content that people post.

AJ xo

[boneandwillow]

The outward appearance...

I've kept this Pinterest board a secret, for many many years - because I wasn't sure where I wanted to go with my personal style and also didn't feel the need to divulge it with everyone.

Until now.

Since having Alfie, I have put on weight. I am now no longer viewing myself as less because of that reason. Because frankly, being a size 6-8 (Aus) meant starving myself, belittling or putting myself down to 'force' myself to exercise - and having to exercise twice a day for about 4 hours a day. More on weekends. Just to maintain a body size that people, and myself at the time, deemed worthy of recognition and love.

Our society is fat phobic. We see value in thin. We gain weight and instantly feel less. I am not talking about being unhealthy. Unhealthy feels, is and looks different. Unhealthy can also look thin. Look at anorexia, look at bulimia. That is not healthy. We are fat phobic, and that is damaging. Diet culture is damaging. Body shaming is damaging. If we all learnt to love ourselves more, we would treat our bodies with respect. That is what I am learning to do.

This Pinterest board started off with me pinning looks I loved. I soon got discouraged because I could not make it work. Because only one body shape was being represented. So I went searching for more, and my god I found it!

Since not beating myself up for gaining some weight, I want to move more. Not to lose weight, but to love my body and because moving feels good. I also don’t care what I eat, and because I don’t care - I actually don’t eat as much crap or have binge sessions because “tomorrow I have to be good again”. If my body changes, it will change because I respect it. Not because I am trying to ‘fix myself’. I do not need to be fixed. I eat cake, chocholate and I eat salads and granola bars. I fuel my body, when it needs it. That’s it.

Do I have it all figured out? Absolutely not. I just know that I am on (god I am going to hate myself saying this) a “journey” (barf) and I am still figuring things out, and changing the way I think.

Our worth and value is not measured by scales or clothing tag sizes!!!

I have culled my clothes. I chucked out everything I was still holding onto that was a 6 or an 8 - because one day I would get back to it. Ha, I am never going to find the time to exercise 4 hours a day anymore, plus I cannot function on minimal food. I kept everything that fits me. Disregarding the tag size, because quite frankly it ranges from a size 10 to a 16 - so go figure.

I’m starting again, I am buying what fits me - whether that means I go up or down a size in the fitting room. I don’t care. I will buy things to look good on me, not make myself look good for my clothes. Because I look good now.

Time to stop body shaming myself, because my body is amazing. The way it is now. AJ xo

[boneandwillow]

Making my own Natural Deodorant - Batch Number One!

December 10th 2018

I’ve been looking at a few different recipes online, and have also looked at the ingredient list of one of my favourite natural deodorant pastes.

This first batch that I have made I have used the following ingredients:

1/2 cup organic coconut oil 1/4 cup arrowroot powder 1/4 cup bicarb soda 2 teaspoons of yellow bees wax beads 10 drops of rose geranium essential oil 8 drops of lavender essential oil and 5 drops of rosewood essential oil

I melted the beeswax in a glass container over a pot of water, and brought the water to a simmer as I stirred the wax.

Once that was melted I added the 1/2 cup of coconut oil, and continued stirring until that was fully dissolved and clear in colour.

Once complete I took the glass jar off the heat and sat it on my bench. I sifted the arrowroot powder in and continued to stir to prevent lumps - although the residual heat seemed to help with that too.

Once combined I added in the bicarb by also sifting it in while stirring.

Lastly, I added the drops of all three oils I had chosen and then poured the final mixture into some old tins that I had lying around. The amount of mixture that I made was enough to fill three tins and half a small glass cup - I had run out of tins.

Verdict:

Consistency wise, I think it needs more beeswax and maybe less coconut oil. I will try the next batch with just more wax - perhaps double the amount, and see how that goes first.

Smell wise, definitely more essential oils are needed. I chose three, but it could probably do with a few more - the smell of the coconut oil is very apparent, and I am not a HUGE fan of that smell on the skin. It’s not the same as the ‘fake’ coconut smell that we all love, it can smell a little funny on certain skin types.

Anti- smell and freshness throughout the day… wise… December 11th 2018 have had my first day using it. I had a shower in the morning and applied it to clean fresh skin with my finger tips - noticed that it was a bit grainy. So I don’t know if I should have mixed it over the heat for a bit to help dissolve the bicarb a bit better? Can try that in the next batch. Jez gave my pits a smell test at the end of the day, and he said that they smelt fresh - I didn’t notice any bad odour either, but sometimes we can get used to our own smells. Seems to be working!

Will keep you all posted in any changes, if I have any skin irritations or if it doesn’t seem to keep up with my sweating and if I start to ‘stink’ bad at any point.

Other than consistency, which I will work on in the next batch, I may have made a winner!

Love AJ xo

[boneandwillow]

Detoxing ma pits....

......and other things I am doing to be more sustainable

 Yes it is as weird/ gross as it looks and sounds - I am going to have to explain. 

I've been trying to make a conscious effort in reducing our carbon footprint around the home and try to be more sustainable, so I have slowly been phasing out all products in the house that are chemical based. One of the first things I started with was my deodorant. 

I thought it would be a simple switch, I'd stop using the antiperspirant aluminium based products and swap it for a bi-carb, coconut oil and lemon balm one. Well, was I totally wrong about the simple switch. 

I smelt rank. Like horrible, disgusting rank - it was more than just your normal B.O smell. Luckily enough for me I don't leave my house to go to work each day - so only Jeremy and Alfie had to put up with my new found scent. It got to a point though, that I was like 'I can't keep doing this someone will pass out or die.'

So I looked in to why this could be happening, and it turns out it's all the build up of deodorants and antiperspirant over the years was leaking out of my pits - and to me this information made sense, because I honestly could not think of any other reason that it would be smelling so bad! 

I then found out that you could detox your armpits to help balance the PH levels again, and also draw out all the impurities and yuck stuff lingering in your armpits. 

You have to apply it everyday for 7 days, 10 mins at a time. So I would stand in the bathroom (as pictured) with my arms held up watching YouTube vids to help pass time, before hopping into the shower to rinse it all off. 

It bloody worked. I had my doubts at first, because when you first smell it your nostrils get assaulted by the strong scent of Apple Cider Vinegar. It's also think and goopy, and kinda gross to smear on under your arms... but it honestly works. Once I had done the 7 day detox and kept using the natural deodorants I noticed that my sweat actually didn't smell at all. It was just water basically, and then the nice scent of the natural deodorant was able to do it's job. 

I still detox every now and again, to help keep myself fresh and keep drwaing out impurities and balance the PH levels again - I honestly love it. 

If you are also wanting to make the switch to natural deodorant, I suggest you do this first. I use Earth’s Purities Detox - a - Pit it’s from my favourite organic and natural online store Nourished Life.

I’ll talk in the next few weeks about the other products that I have swapped out, so keep an eye out for that!

Love AJ xx

[boneandwillow]

Bohemian - What style are you?

"Bohemian" bəʊˈhiːmɪən noun 1. a native or inhabitant of Bohemia. 2. a socially unconventional person, especially one who is involved in the arts. Synonyms: nonconformist, unconventional person, beatnik, hippy, avant-gardist, free spirit, dropout, artistic person; informal freak "he is a real artist and a real bohemian"  -- Google Search

This blog has taken me longer than what I had hoped. I started it back in August and I swear time just ran away from me…. when did we hit November? Well, no matter - we are here now and I am proud to share with you, probably, my most favourite subject ever.

Bohemian.

Bohemian style has always been a small passion of mine. I was always marked as unconventional or ‘least likely to conform’ and my sense of style was always a mismatch of colours and themes. I have occasionally bent towards trends and fads over the years - but only to blend them in with what I already have or own. Growing up, I could never get a grasp on one trend - as I seemed to like everything and want to collect mementos from everywhere I went and travelled. It took me a little while to really hone it and realise that I could make it all work - I just had to be smart about it.

Before we begin let's dive in more to where the term originated. The word 'Bohemian' as we understand it today is derived from the French expression "La Boheme" which was used to describe people from the region of Bohemia. Bohemia was the original name of the Czech Republic back in the 12th century. Now, Bohemian style is typically a collection of art, findings, souvenirs and artefacts that have been collected over time and all put up to be displayed. Technically you could have all sorts of styles everywhere and it would still be bohemian, I personally feel that to define what type of Bohemian style you have - it is good to take a step back and look at what the majority of what you collect and display, and then continue with that trend. You can still pepper other elements of boho in there, but try to stick to the one type to help it not look cluttered or messy. There are many variations of boho - and I could have gone on and on with all the different types, but that would have taken me even loooonger to finish so I have narrowed it down to the most popular at the moment and given you seven to work with, and a final list of things that you should aim to have in your home to really tie in the whole look! Take a look, follow the links to any of the stores that I have featured (all pictures used with permission of course!) and let me know if you have a favourite - or if you have decided to take on one of these great bohemian looks!

1 Tavi Canvas Print Mimi & Mark 2 Kalif Nomadic Rug 3 Seagrass Basket Grey Dutch Warehouse 4 Balero Natural Cushion 5 Senegal Grain Basket 6 Globe Vase AYTM 7 Avalon Boho Basket 8 Cascade Cuttlebone Hanging 9 Mr Pinchy 10 Log Coffee Table 11 Koda Cushion Cover 12 Adobe Stock 13 Great Barrier Reef Canvas 14 Black Bolga Basket 15 White Coral on Stand Mimi & Mark

1 Raffia Wall Hanging Dutch Warehouse 2 Raffia Wall Hanging Dutch Warehouse 3 Adobe Stock 4 Rattle Snake 5 Banded Weave Basket Bohome + Roam 6 Beaded Tassel 7 African Grass Baskets 8 Fishbone Cushion Bohome + Roam 9 Mandala Basket 10 Adobe Stock 11 Gary Gazelle Canvas Mimi & Mark 12 Opulence Rug 13 Sumba Stone Men 14 African Mudcloth Ottoman

1 Sage Green Cushion 2 Adobe Stock 3 Abstract Flowers 4 Mongolian Sheepskin Throw 5 Adobe Stock 6 Slipper Chair 7 Roundback Chesterfield Velvet Sofa 8 Adobe Stock 9 The Hanna Buffet 10 Paloma Velvet Cushion 11 Tala Metal Lamp Mimi & Mark 12 Bambury Faux Fur Cushion 13 Vionnet Carved Coffee Table 14 Marion Three Seater Velvet Sofa 15 Peacock Buffet Sideboard 16 Obsessed Art Print 17 Milan Velvet Ottoman 18 Astrid Ottoman

1 Brown Cow Hide Cushion Mimi & Mark 2 Oia Marble Dining Table 3 Adobe Stock 4 Adobe Stock 5 Abode Living Danish Reindeer Hide 6 Adobe Stock 7 Adobe Stock 8 Adobe Stock 9 Beaded Tassel 10 Adobe Stock 11 Teague Bull Framed Canvas Mimi & Mark 12 Adobe Stock 13 Whywood Entrance Bench 14 Adobe Stock 15 Icelandic Sheepskin Rug 16 Cowhide Ottoman

1 Moroccan Tower Print 2 Oud Rose Candle 3 Adeelah Pendant Shade Mimi & Mark 4 Anika Moroccan Cabinet Mimi & Mark 5 Black Ottoman 6 Adobe Stock 7 Moroccan Cushion Cover 8 Adobe Stock 9 Medallion Cushion 10 Adobe Stock 11 Abra Wooden Carved Candle Holder Mimi & Mark 12 Moroccan Mirror Mimi & Mark 13 Moroccan Inlay Box 14 Adobe Stock 15 Adobe Stock 16 Mango Wood Carved Tables Mimi & Mark 17 Adobe Stock 18 Adobe Stock 19 Adobe Stock

1 Adobe Stock 2 European Crystal Carafe 3 Frida Luxe Velvet Cushion 4 Persian Hand Knotted Rug 5 Lumli Cushion by KAS 6 Jilin Ginger Jar 7 French Provincial Adele Occasional Chair 8 Venice Vintage Dressing Bench 9 Adobe Stock 10 Frida Luxe Velvet Cushion 11 Art Deco Japanese Mirror Chest 12 Adobe Stock 13 Adobe Stock 14 Tresor Dining Chair 15 Felicienne Lamp 16 Adobe Stock 17 Cire Trudon - Louis XIV 18 IXXI Girl With A Pearl Earring 19 Vintage Boucherouite Rug

1 Cactus Villa Photograph 2 Adobe Stock 3 Handmade Flat Weave Rug 4 Peruvian Frazada Cushion Bohome + Roam 5 Carved Bull Skull Mimi & Mark 6 Cactus 7 Llama Framed Print Mimi & Mark 8 Arwen Cushion 9 Cowhide Peanut 10 Kilm Cushion 11 Miss Grey Skies 12 Caramel Suede Pouf Mimi & Mark 13 American Bison Print 14 Serax Cactus Vase 15 Adobe Stock 16 Adobe Stock 17 Nueva Raya Rug 18 Floor Cushion Mimi & Mark

1 Adobe Stock 2 Adobe Stock 3 Rattan Mirror Eye Dutch Warehouse 4 Adobe Stock 5 Adeelah Pendant Shade Mimi & Mark 6 Rattan Moon Dutch Warehouse 7 Macrame Wall Hanger Dutch Warehouse 8 Ruskin Canvas Mimi & Mark 9 Carved Wooden Wall Art Mimi & Mark 10 Adobe Stock 11 Seagrass Basket Dutch Warehouse 12 Marigold Weave Rug 13 Henry & Co. Photography 4 Rattan Mirror Star Dutch Warehouse 15 Gabbie Ceramic Vase Mimi & Mark 16 Adobe Stock

"HistoryWorld.net" "Wikipedia/ Bohemia and Kingdom of Bohemia" "BohemianCaravans. weebly.com "Newworldencyclopedia.org"  -- *sources found online

All imagery used with permission. Image sources and credits can be found by clicking the linked descriptions. All other images purchased from Adobe stock or free image stock platforms.

[boneandwillow]

Oma's Macrame - Natural Stick Collection 3

Handcrafted by Oma herself

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Oma's Macrame - Natural Stick Collection 2

Handcrafted by Oma herself

[boneandwillow]

Oma's Macrame - Natural Stick Collection 1

Handcrafted by Oma herself - this sweet circle macrame measures 20cm in diameter, and is 50cm long.

[boneandwillow]

Oma's Macrame - Dreamcatcher

Handcrafted by Oma herself - this sweet circle macrame measures 20cm in diameter, and is 50cm long.

[boneandwillow]

Decor Gem

Handcrafted, painted and gilded with either gold or copper - these little trinkets will add to your decor around the house and office.

Materials - plaster, copper/ gold foil and paint

[boneandwillow]

Sea Grass Series

A4 Size prints - 300 gsm paper

Original art work, photographed by Bone & Willow

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Succulent Series

A4 Size prints - 300 gsm paper

Original art work, photographed by Bone & Willow

[boneandwillow]

Beach Mandala - Print

Hand drawn, original artwork by Bone & Willow

A4 size print.

300gsm paper.

[boneandwillow]

IG: we_colewoods

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[boneandwillow]

Neverland Exists by Garrett King