Phew! Well it's been hectic times around here the last few weeks. My personal life got quite busy and to be honest I was starting to feel a bit overwhelmed and emotional. Thankfully I had no plans for the weekend just gone other to relax and take a breather. Unfortunately last Sunday I received a text message from my housemate telling me she was pregnant and that her parents were coming over from China and that I had 2 weeks to find somewhere else to live. Cue a general sense of panic. My first thought was to put the feelers out with all my friends on Facebook. There were lots of kind offers from friends near and far and it was very heartening to see such love and support for me. It sure helped to cheer me up. Unbelievably though, I was scouring Gumtree for share houses when I came across one that almost seemed too good to be true!

Not only was it big and beautiful, it was also in a lovely area (not too far from where I used to live in Holland Park) and still nice and close to work, not to mention it was cheaper! I called the number and wouldn't you know it, they could have me round to check the place out on Monday night. I went round and it was just as lovely in person as it looks in the pictures, plus the housemates seemed friendly and fun. They're into travel and when one of them started talking to me about Man V Food I knew this was the household for me. I drove home and texted them right away saying that I'd love to take the room if they'd have me. Always seeming to be one to land on my feet, they texted me back saying they'd love to have me too! Just over 24 hours after being told I had to move and I found a brilliant place! I couldn't believe my luck.

 

However, that only gave me 4 days to pack everything up ready for the move this weekend just gone. Luckily a lot of my stuff was still packed from the last time I moved and I really only needed to pack up my room which didn't take long. And so it was that on Saturday my wonderful sister and brother-in-law brought round their ute and, along with my wonderful Man, helped me pack it all up and take it over to the new place. Of course it was just my luck that the only 5 minute window of rain we had in the whole entire beautiful sunny Saturday was while we were loaded up and driving to the new place with my mattress strapped to the top. It got pretty soaked. We had to leave it out on the deck for a day to dry and air out. Thankfully we could stay at The Man's place on Saturday night so we didn't have to sleep on the floor.

 

We got everything moved in on Saturday, which left Sunday for unpacking, but not before a super fun night at the Soused Seas, the amazing private tiki bar of our new friends Rod and Maxine. Our friends Dani of Black Lagoon Designs tiki mugs and Evan of Johnny Voodoo's Barbershop introduced us to Rod and Maxine, who are also going to Tiki Oasis this year! I drove so that The Man could enjoy some well-earned drinks but we definitely need another trip back when I'm not driving - the cocktails they were making were fantastic! It was a great way to blow off some steam after a big day moving and was lots and lots of fun.

 

Sunday it was time to put my bed up in my room, unpack all the boxes and really settle in. I was just putting the final fur coat into my wardrobe and as I pulled my arm out of the closet, I cut it on a wire shelf that had a sharp bit sticking out. It sliced me pretty good, not deep enough for stitches but too deep for just a band aid. There was blood running down my arm and I was most concerned about it having split my tattoo. I pressed some paper towel to the cut to try to stop the bleeding while we headed to the nearest pharmacy for some assistance. Thankfully the cut was nice and clean but it didn't seem to want to stop bleeding. Some antibacterial and a few steri-strips and I was put back together. It's starting to heal nicely now and I just hope it won't affect my tattoo too much once it's fully healed. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

 

For what was supposed to be our 'designated weekend off' it certainly turned out to be much more eventful than we were hoping. Still, the new place is fantastic and I'm settling in nicely. Now I'm really looking forward to the Easter holidays for a chance to really catch my breath and relax, because it looks like from now until then we'll be pretty busy! Sigh.  

 

Sunday just gone we headed to Morningside RSL for a fantastic afternoon of rockabilly markets and rockin tunes by the likes of local Brisbane band Twang and The Hi-Boys headlined by Mr Entertainment himself, Deke Dickerson all the way from the USA. Despite receiving some rather crappy news that morning, I was determined to have a great day. I had a pretty new dress to wear and with such fantastic bands and great friends, it really wasn't hard to be well and truly cheered up!

 

Can we just take a minute to appreciate this dress? I'm in LOVE! I so very rarely am able to wear anything strapless. With such a big bust, I usually find it impossible to find anything that fits correctly and doesn't threaten a wardrobe malfunction but this dress is simply divine! It fits like a glove and it even stood up to the test of a couple of fast and furious dances! A++!
 

First up were Twang who I just LOVE! Their style is the perfect mix of rockabilly and country and their beat is so great to dance to. Fast enough to keep things fun without overdoing it. Also, Mariee is their female frontwoman, something that instantly appeals to me. Not only can she play the guitar but boy can she sing! She has a great voice that showcases a restrained power, kicking butt without overdoing it. There aren't that many female-fronted rockabilly bands, particularly in Brisbane, so think Twang are just the bees knees.

 

Next up were The Hi-Boys who play fast and hard despite their classic look. These guys give it all they've got and play so fast that it's almost impossible to dance to them. It's kind of a shame because they deserve some dancefloor appreciation by in saying that, they've got a real jump beat vibe that really brings the energy up in the room. For me they kind of represent a sort of Go Cat Go meets Rusty Pinto sound which I love! Their rockin tunes were the perfect opportunity to catch a breather from the dancefloor without losing my enthusiasm or momentum.

 

Of course everyone was waiting for Deke. Having seen his Guitar Geek festival at Viva Las Vegas last year as well as at previous years' GreazeFests so we knew we were in for a treat. They don't call him Mr Entertainment for nothing and his stage presence plus the obvious rapport he has with our mate John Flynn made for a rather cheeky yet entertaining afternoon. This man is a guitar god but it seems his talents know no bounds as he swapped instruments with the guys doing a bit of both drums and the double bass.

I know I’m slightly out of synch with my regular ‘Tattoo Tuesday’ post but I only got this baby finished on Monday and wanted to wait until the swelling had gone down to post it. So that you can see it in all its glory. And damn what glory it is! I am in LOVE with this tattoo! I can’t wait for it to be completely healed so that you can see all the shading and detail in it. Mark has done an amazing job!

 

It’s on the outside of my left calf and it pretty much takes up the entire area, from ankle to knee, just to give you a bit of an idea on its size. It only took two 2 hour sittings with Mark (Suicide) at Voodoo Tattoo in Loganholme to complete. Not bad huh? He’s been doing this for a long time so he’s nice and quick but the quality of his work is unbelievable. He does the BEST shading! I mean, look at the shading on the devil’s face!! I think it might be my favourite part about this whole tattoo. Nailed it!

 

I’ve been planning this tattoo for a little while now and it’s inspired by two of my most favourite kustom kulture artists of all time – Coop and Vince Ray. The devil is of course inspired by the iconic Coop devil but the style and the girl is very much Vine Ray’s. The inspiration for the girl was actually taken from last year’s Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekender poster, also designed by Vince Ray. And the devil with his finger under the gal’s chin? Well that’s a personal little detail.

 

 

The scene itself is taken from the cover of a rockabilly compilations CD I have and I just love the effect of the streetlight illuminating the brick wall. I wanted it to feel a bit sleazy, like some kind of clandestine meeting in a back alley. I love hair and really, what outfit would be complete without some leopard print? I am so pleased with this one, it was actually a great area to get tattooed. It didn’t hurt a bit and it’s healed really well, really quickly. I’ll be sure to post a photo once it’s healed completely so you can see all the colour, shading and details pop!

Ah this tattoo caper, the more I get the more I want. Lucky I’ve still got plenty of bare skin left!