Shelley James

Keeping it real since 1988.

[shelleyjames]

"It's More Fun in the Philippines!"

[carisi-rollins]

Australia’s Belinda Snell’s amazing 3-pointer from half court to send the game into OT.

[fintylaserwizard]

FROM DOWNTOWN

[shelleyjames]

LEGENDARY.

[shelleyjames]

This tune is pure bliss. Thank you Frank Ocean.

[shelleyjames]

I'm on Team Woolworths.

First of all, the song is cute. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside. And the peeps in the ad are real Woolies workers. More warmth and fuzziness.

I know we have a supermarket war in Australia, but it doesn't have to be complicated because at the end of the day, their prices and specials are pretty much the same.

So really, it's just a matter of who annoys us less. And at the moment, Woolies is winning that with me. Big time.

And one last point.

I really object to Coles playing the 'down down' jingle IN the store. WHY AM I BEING PUNISHED FOR ACTUALLY CHOOSING TO GO INTO YOUR STORE AND PURCHASING STUFF? So poor.

[shelleyjames]

Coles. Please, make it stop.

What is wrong with these people? First Dawn French flogging Fly Buys? Now Status Quo playing big red guitars? And they're still persisting with this "down down" rubbish?

[hellsleepsaround]

[shelleyjames]

Why aren't there more funny comments on clothing tags? If I saw that I'd want to buy that brand again. Cleverness.

[david]

McDonald’s: Why Your Burger Doesn’t Look Like the One in the Ad

This is some pretty ingenious marketing.

[shelleyjames]

God. I hate them, but I also love them. Well played, McDonald's.

[shelleyjames]

COLDPLAY. MELBOURNE. 13 NOVEMBER 2012.

PENCIL HER IN KIDS.

[shelleyjames]

Let's talk fashion for a minute (or two)...

When I was 17 the one thing that got me through VCE was sex.....and the city! (kids, please.)

I stumbled across the show when it was just about to end, back in 2005. I wasn't sure why it took me so long to get into it, but as soon as I started to watch it, I couldn't stop.

I then proceeded to hunt down every DVD and start right from the beginning - way back to 1998 when my girl Carrie sported that (awful) triangle hair do. But you know, Carrie was always my favourite. Yes, she made mistakes, but she also took many chances, always went with her heart and was so incredibly articulate and thoughtful - all whilst looking fabulous!

Watching Carrie's style evolve over those 6 glorious seasons was a pleasure - and to this day, photos upon photos upon screencaps litter my "fashion inspiration" folder.

So Sex and the City became my reward for study. Sometimes I did indulge a litle too much but hey - I made it through.

Since the show ended, I've been on the Sex and the City tour in New York City and even made a special trip to Ladurée on the Champs-Élysées so I could eat pastries in (almost) the same spot as Carrie. A little in love, you might say.

Now fast forward to 2011 and Sex and the City has evolved into two movies (both of which I LOVED, thankyouverymuch) and the four girls have starred in a range of different films.

Out this week is SJP's latest rom-com, 'I Don't Know How She Does It.' The wonderful people at Nuffnang are giving away a couple of double passes to the premiere in Melbourne on Wednesday, and I would love nothing more than to see the lovely little SJP in the flesh!

In order to do this, I must impress them with my thoughts on what I would wear if I were to meet SJP in person.

This is not easy.

SJP changed the way women felt about clothes - in my mind, she made fashion fun.

I'm all for dressing to one's mood, because I think that clothes should make you feel good, and sometimes you might want to go for an all black ensemble (I call this 'Morbid Mondays') and other times you might feel like pastels and brights all the way!

I'm into two big things right now:

1. Tribal (mostly neutrals bit with a hint of embellishment)

2. Brights & colour blocking

Depending on how I felt on the big day, these are some options I'd propose...

1. Tribal inspiration

I'm really enjoying the texture that the whole tribal look brings - it adds so much extra depth without too much extra effort. It's elegant yet punchy at the same time.

2. Brights

Well it is spring! Colour blocking isn't something that comes naturally to me, but I'm definitely embracing it - first with jewellery, then with tops, then with skirts - it's all a matter of just bringing it together! I definitely think a meeting with SJP would be more than enough motivation to just take a risk and go for it!

(by the way, how BRILLIANT is Polyvore? I could spend days on here...heaven...)

I think that either way, as long as you feel awesome in what you're wearing, it doesn't matter what other people think. We all have our own style. I think that's the mantra that SJP has lived by, that's why she hasn't always picked the safe option.

Now speaking of clothes, what am I going to wear to work tomorrow...

[shelleyjames]

This Ginni Rometty.

Today she was announced as the first-ever female CEO of IBM, effective 1 January 2012. Earlier this year she visited Australia from the US, and spoke at an employee town hall session in Melbourne. After her presentation, another grad suggested we go down and introduce ourselves.

It did seem a bit crazy, and very intimidating.

She's the Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing - with the company for over 30 years, and kind of a big deal (certainly validated following today's news.)

We're two sales grads from Australia, not even a year into our careers.

Now, I know I only spent a few minutes with her, but she just has this wonderful aura and charisma. You couldn't find two people placed at more opposing ends of the IBM 'food chain.' But, she still spoke to us with such warmth and sincerity.

I am proud to work for an organisation that, in just 67 days, will be led by a female.

I'm not big into the whole 'girl power' thing (yes, I loved the Spice Girls like any other 90s girl.) But 95% of my direct team are dudes - they're just, everywhere.

This announcement will do more than Ginni knows for young female IBMers around the globe. I know I'm still years and years away from ever a tasting a smidge of her success, but I feel confident and optimistic about what can be achieved if you're just willing to put yourself out there, and take some risks.

"Growth and comfort do not co-exist."

[jhnmyr]

Just Thinking.

[shelleyjames]

jhnmyr:

Most people think think of unconditional love to mean “I couldn’t love you any less, no matter what.” But what I think unconditional love means is “I couldn’t love you any more, no matter what.” Either way, it sounds neat.

Say no more, Mr Mayer.

[shelleyjames]

I didn't just like this page because it's fairly funny.

It's also very, very true.

[fyeahgraphicdesign]

[shelleyjames]

fyeahgraphicdesign:

100 Icons of Progress tells IBM’s stories of technological innovation through icons and clean, open pages designed for reading.

(via Fonts In Use – IBM100)

"Mr Watson believes that all of the problems of the world can be settled easily if people are only willing to think."

I love IBM. Happy 100th birthday.

(do we get the day off?)

[shelleyjames]

Why Melbourne Needs Topshop #1

A couple of months ago I bought this awesome fully-feathered necklace from Sportsgirl. It's this black/dark-green-in-certain-lights shade (similar to the feathered cape they'd been selling.) It had attitude.

Today I saw the exact same necklace at Forever New.

Except, it was pale pink.

So Forever New have pretty much taken something that is supposed to be a bit edgy & washed their awful, overly feminine aesthetic all over it (is it really necessary for everything in that store to be either pastel or floral? Or that cheap looking shimmery material?)

I'm certainly no fan. In my view, Melbourne's high fashion scene needs serious help. I'm not going to pretend that I'm patient enough or cool enough or brave enough to buy vintage, or scratch around the alleys to find unknown boutiques. I like the comfort of going into stores I know.

But, I still want accessible fashion that is not just a poor representation of a current trend. On top of that, they charge you some ridiculous amount for it ($90 for a plain sheer top? Really?)

We need Topshop. Badly.

Topshop is like Sportsgirl. On crack. It's a perfect blend of current trends mixed in with unique stuff that Bardot or Portmans couldn't even comprehend. It actually has its own voice & honestly, the most outstanding pieces in my wardrobe are from their stores. Sadly, I've had to go all the way to New York & London just to have the full Topshop experience.

Maybe that's what makes it so special, but it doesn't mitigate the fact that if a Topshop opened in Melbourne, Forever New & co would be in some serious trouble.

Can I call shotgun on being the person to do it? Just need to find some serious capital first...

[johnmayerappreciation]

I would eat a whole plate of pigeon shit to play for you guys.

John Mayer at the Scranton, PA show in response to Kings Of Leon having to cancel their St. Louis show due to extreme pigeon poo showers. (via collapsible-plans, johnmayerappreciation) (via johnmayerpicspam)

[shelleyjames]

Consecutive days of boredom

The most productive thing I did today was construct a measuring tape using a template from the internet so I could (somewhat confidently) order a dress from www.asos.com.

I also put all my errant documents and pictures into their corresponding folders on my work laptop. I did not, however, succeed in finding a cool, yet 'professional' desktop photo.

I've deleted most of my Facebook messages so the '99+' badge on the Facebook icon on my phone goes away. And for the first time in ages, I've actually responded (within 24 hours) to pretty much every message or post I've had on Facebook, or to any text messages.

Over the past couple of days I've made pumpkin soup. I've cooked a whole pork roast by using the turbo cooker for the first time. I made an apple and raspberry pie. I went to my personal training session (thought it was necessary to place that after all the food points.)

I watched 'The Shawshank Redemption' and 'Love and Other Drugs'. I made an emergency trip to the Mac Shop to replace my MacBook battery. I've obtained Adele's "21" album and have rekindled my appreciation of her beautiful voice.

It's these long, extended periods of time off where I've planned no holidays or trips away (and when my housemate abandons me for the Gold Coast) that I am absolutely thankful for having employment to go back to once this is over.

Please, Melbourne, TELL me that stuff is open tomorrow because I need to leave this apartment.

(I think I'm going mad.)

[shelleyjames]