Seasons and Cycles....

For seven years I have been researching and growing my knowledge of astrology for my own pleasure. I never had any intent to practice astrology, until April 2017, when the Universe, three times in succession, actually kicked my butt about doing astrology for others. As such, I now have an operational website, facebook and instagram page hosting articles similar to what you read here, astrology reading services and insights. I'd love you to follow along, if this is your thing. 

As of today, the Alice Jeans blog is now ended, but it's associated facebook page will continue to operate with occasional shared posts of vintage love and inspiration. 

Thank you for your kind support throughout the last nine years.

With love, Kesenya

In the market for a new car? This could be your retro dream come true......

After the ultimate promo tool? Looking for a dream toy? Can you see yourself cruising along an ocean road with the top down, scarf fluttering in the breeze? Then look no further than this advert ......

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
1951 Pontiac Chieftain Convertible

$50,000 — Pick up only

Details:
Straight 8 Motor
6 Volt Battery
Electric Roof - Black Soft Top currently installed, comes with a white spare
Automatic 3 Speed
83627.3 Miles
White Wall Tyres
White/red leather interior
Currently unregistered (is roadworthy, I let the rego slide)


Extras:
Comes with a spare radio
Comes with car mats
Comes with a spare battery in the boot and everything in place for a use if you would rather not use the American one under the bonnet
Comes with a spare white soft top roof
Comes with a trickle down charger for the 6 volt battery
Will include a barely used bottle of flashlube




Description:
A stunning car that catches the eye everywhere it goes. Has been in Australia since 2009, imported from Arizona. I have been the sole Australian owner and it has only ever been driven as a gentle Sunday outing car over the last 5 years. Has been used in modelling shoots, parades and multiple times as a wedding car. I am very sad to see her go.




Condition:
The car is in fabulous condition for it's age. Upholstery is beautiful and without blemish. The carpet is also in a great state although it could be fitted a little better. Neither the upholstery, carpet or duco are original, however I am unsure when the restoration work was carried out - done in America before importing to Australia.
There is a small tear (see photograph) in the hood lining interior (obviously out of site when the top is down). The duco also has a couple of very minor scratches that would come out with a cut and polish. The Chieftain emblems on the steeling wheel and hood are a little lined with age (see photographs).
Mechanically, the car is perfect aside from some starter motor issues that have been rectified by an excellent auto electrician and are now managed well through a drip down (trickle down) charger. Wipers will need upgrading to obtain a rego.
Due to age the radio does not work (secondary one included for the clever handyman/woman!). Heating/cooling does not work. Electric roof works perfectly.




THIS IS A VERY RARE CAR. I HAVE INCLUDED A CURRENT SALE ADVERT FOR A SIMILAR CAR IN THE USA HERE - http://assets.hemmings.com/uimage/46339862-770-0.jpg?rev=1 - ADD CURRENCY CONVERSION, IMPORTATION AND REGISTRATION TO THIS AND YOU WILL FIND THIS PONTIAC IS REALLY GOOD VALUE!



Notes to tyre kickers:



I will not drive the car anywhere to show her to you - she is unregistered
I am not responsible for the paperwork for you to drive her home
Payment is via PayPal or Bank Deposit only


PLEASE: ONLY GENUINE BUYERS

Holiday fun in cute 50's style

Summer in Australia means many things to different people - but to everyone in some form or another it means HOLIDAYS !

 

With the advent of car culture came the creation of the mobile home or caravan (although mobile  wagons have been around for centuries), and by the end of the second world war, caravanning holidays were a popular pastime to an increasingly affluent generation.

 

In the last decade the popularity of restored vintage caravans has been growing exponentially to compliment the rising mid century vintage cultural movement, with vintage caravanning magazines, websites, blogs, restoration companies, and festivals all drawing interest from lovers of the bondwood and aluminium beauties.

 

With this in mind, just lookie what I have discovered up for sale on the Victorian sea side holiday town of Torquay!  If a caravanning holiday is on your agenda, and vintage style is your hallmark, then you shouldn't look past this darling little van, in beautiful original condition. Here are the details for all you potential happy campers......

 

$7,500 ono

Vintage caravan 1950’s gason bondwood sleeps 4

(needs double mattress)

Really beautiful inside as you can see. has annexe which we have never used. Very good condition for age. We will be super sad to see her go but she is not quite big enough for us
new tyres and has had the towing carriage replaced and now has electric brakes as well.
Currently registered

Old water damage in the roof but sound

 

If you are interested, leave a message with your email address on the bottom of this post and I will be sure it gets to the owner. This little van deserves a happy life with a true vintage lover !!

 

The art of Swanson

 

Aloha and WOW ! I need to thank my fb friend Ida Fae Tiki for putting me onto the most beautiful art - the art of Swanson. It's the middle of winter here in Australia, and these stunning South Pacific inspired works have me feeling all warm inside. Thought I would share them with you here to transport you to a wonderful world of mermaids, tiki culture, tropical flowers and beautiful hula girls...... ahhhh, I can feel my toes beginning to thaw already! Enjoy!

Check out the webpage HERE 

 

PS. Make sure you read Mark and Kerrie's bio page - for any would be creative, it is truly inspirational! Mahalo !

Quizz Time

What a  great Quizz for a wintery Thursday ! Take it multiple times - especially if you are an eclectic fashionista - for even more fun!

A chat with Hay House Radio

Recently, I was blessed to be able to talk with Jennifer Morris from Hay House Radio about my book, The Journey of the Tree.  I thought I would share it with you and wish you all a very happy Winter Solstice. Here is to new beginnings, new hope and healing ! Love to all and thankyou for the support everyone in the online community has showered on me throughout my 'journey'! XOXO

 

 

Little Girl Lost - Grandma's little girl dresses.....

Are you familiar with the beautiful impressionist painting "Lost" by Fredrick McCubbin? It is so compelling, yet sad and evocative - the little girl wandering and lost alone in the Australian bush at the turn of last century. McCubbin is brilliant at storytelling through his paintings, and this particular one, as a parent, I find quite touching.

 

 

So, being the parent and creative that I am, I decided to have a fun afternoon with my daughter re-creating the feel of "Lost" in the bush where I live, and with a 1950's spin.

 

My baby doll, dressed in two of her grandmothers 1950's 'best dresses' (arnt they just darling?! Homemade by MY grandmother for my mother) and putting her best play acting face forward, captured the feeling and mood so perfectly.....yes, I am a very proud mummy indeed!

 

 

Here they are for all you 50's clothing lovers, and you Australian art lovers, to both enjoy.....

 

 

 

And found !

 

Ahhh, my little baby doll

 

‘George, I thought you’d never ask’

Succulent envy: continuing Alice Jean’s occasional series of guest blogs from garden historian Richard Aitken

‘George, I thought you’d never ask’

 

 

I gave a lecture in Adelaide recently to accompany the opening of two shows I have curated as part of the AustralianGarden History Society touring exhibition Cultivating Modernism. There was a terrific response, with standing room only at the Bradley Forum of the University of South Australia’s Hawke Centre, so much so that Gloria couldn’t get in.

 

Gloria is one of my funkiest colleagues and the ‘full house’ sign suggested to me that garden history is alive and well in South Australia, and that a renewed appreciation of modernist gardens and design landscapes is in the ascendant. Gloria has form in this field as the author of two terrific monographs on modernist Australian artists, KathleenSauerbier and Jacqueline Hick, so I was sorry not to have her there.

 

But I had the pleasure recently of working with Gloria on an article for Australian Garden History on succulent envy (amongst other things). My co-editor Christina Dyson and I had selected Gloria to participate in the Australian Garden History Society’s editorial mentoring scheme, to work up for publication a lecture originally given to The Johnston Collection as part of TheGarden of Ideas exhibition and lecture series.

 

Gloria’s topic was the modernist interior, with a focus on the fascination for cacti and other succulents. ‘Make friends with the cactus’ she reminded us in the title of her article (quoting another unsung Australian modernist, Adrian Feint, writing in The Home magazine in 1928). Flower painting and interior arrangements allowed experimentation in the modernist interior, noted Gloria, and the spare crystalline forms of cacti were particularly appealing to interwar and postwar generations of floral artists.

 

 

The stark forms of these plants looked back to a primitive past, one that resonated with modernists keen to airbrush out any link with ‘decadent’ stylistic precedents. The same spare, primeval quality of many Australian plants also pervaded a modernist appreciation of local flora, especially the geometric beauty of banksias and bottlebrushes with their strong cylindrical shape and severe leaves: think Margaret Preston.

 

And so Gloria continued, linking the paintings of Thea Proctor and Adrian Feint (in contrast to acknowledged traditionalists such as Hans Heysen) with advances in floral art, led on one hand by British florist Constance Spry, and the adoption of a diluted orientalism on the other. It’s all fascinating stuff and these impulses have governed the ongoing floral festival at Adelaide’s Carrick Hill, Looking Glorious. Now I wonder if Gloria had anything to do with that?

 

Richard Aitken

(guest blogger)

 

 

 

The Sex Kitten Stroll

A couple of months ago I took my children along to the local rock n roll dance lessons (I thought it would be a good 'family' thing to do together.) Well, the kids enjoyed it, but an hour was about as much as they could concentrate on and I ended up coming home a bit more frazzled than energised.

 

So, I think I will leave it for a little while longer - just till they get a wee bit older.

 

So, while I await that time, its great to know I can still strut my stuff - keeping myself fit and my skills honed (!) - in my kitchen each night doing the Sex Kitten Stroll.

 

I'm not exactly sure where this dance evolved from (if anyone knows, please post in a comment below), but it is certainly big at all the massive Rockabilly festivals here in Australia, and also in the US and Europe. A bit of an eye candy fest for the guys who get to watch all the hot chickie babes shaking their booty together, line dance fashion but with a hell of a lot more wiggle !

 

So, just to make sure I don't forget any of the moves, I have put together a little youtube snippet on how to execute The Sex Kitten Stroll..... if the scene is new to you, this might prove handy to begin with.

 

Best of luck my friends, and I look forward to seeing you on the dance floor in the not too distant future !

 

 

 

PS This was filmed on my HTC phone - hence the dodgy quality, and the fact that my jumper is aqua in the picture, and emerald green like my shoes in real life!!! Humph!!

 

Sinfully Decadent Chocolate Fudge

Well, it has been an age since I have posted any baking, but, fresh from my school holiday home entertainment program, I have some rather tempting fudge to entice you into the kitchen with.

 

 

 

You wont want to be on a diet for this little number as it is guaranteed to add inches to your waistline overnight, but oh my (!) it tastes so wickedly divine...... PLUS, it is as easy as a wink to knock up - or, do as I did and set your little poppets to work for you.....easy peasy lemon squeesy !

 

Microwave Fudge

 

500gms chocolate (milk, white or dark)

1 Tin condensed milk

70gms Butter

2 Tablespoons icing sugar

3/4 cup chopped pistachios

 

Line slice tray with non-stick baking paper

Place chocolate, condensed milk, icing sugar & butter in a microwave safe bowl - microwave for 1 minute. Take out and stir - if chocolate is not quite melted, zap at 30 second intervals till fluid. (If you prefer to avoid the evils of microwaves, do the same in a bowl sitting in a saucepan of hot water on the stove)

 

Mixture will come away from bowl when ready.

 

Add pistachios and combine. (You can add any other ingredients you like at this point - m&ms, sultanas, nuts, honeycomb etc)

 

Pour mixture into lined tray and pop in the fridge to set.

 

Mmmmmmmmmmm.........

Meanwhile back in the jungle......

 

 

OK. So Katy Perry has a song called ‘Roar’.

A song styled like a classic Tarzan and Jane cartoon, except, unlike Tarzan and Jane, the ‘hero’ of the clip is the woman.

 

What a turn on most mainstream, classic mid century storylines. I love the way Katy infuses everything good about the new with everything good about the old in so much of her work.

 

But that’s not all I love about this film clip. I love the lyrics……

 

I used to bite my tongue and hold my breath
Scared to rock the boat and make a mess
So I sat quietly, agreed politely
I guess that I forgot I had a choice
I let you push me past the breaking point
I stood for nothing, so I fell for everything

You held me down, but I got up (HEY!)
Already brushing off the dust
You hear my voice, you hear that sound
Like thunder gonna shake the ground
You held me down, but I got up (HEY!)
Get ready 'cause I’ve had enough
I see it all, I see it now

I got the eye of the tiger, a fighter, dancing through the fire
'Cause I am a champion and you’re gonna hear me roar!

 

Inspiring isn’t it ?

 

Way back when – in the days of my grandmothers – women didn’t really have a choice in Australian society. After the role based freedoms of WW2, where women took on many ‘masculine’ jobs while their men were away fighting, the following few decades must have seemed so restrictive. Back to the roles of mothers & wives, teachers, secretaries, hairdressers and nurses (great occupations though these are). Although I am not a feminist, I am grateful for the freedoms the movement has bought women today. We can pretty much be anything we like – from Prime Minister to mechanic, CEO of a Bank to manager of a mine.

And its not just occupational freedoms that have been achieved.

If I want to remain single and childless, I can do so without being made to feel like a societal leper.

If I want to have a child through IVF as a single woman, I can do that too with little, if any, negative backlash.

If I find myself caught in a relationship that is neglectful, abusive, selfish or demoralizing, I have a choice. I don’t have to stay – as was the case in the not so distant mid 20^th Century.

 

My own story is not dissimilar to Katy Perry’s song.

 

Once upon a time I had no courage to live a life true to myself – I lived only according to others expectations. And as my religious background encouraged me not to divorce, I stayed in an unhealthy relationship far longer than I should have.

 

Once upon a time I had no courage to allow myself to be happy. I resigned myself to my lot in life. I gave up the hope of relational happiness because of one decision I made in my early 20’s - when I knew nothing of life, love or relationships.

 

Once upon a time I didn’t think I was worthy of having my relational needs met. I thought I must be too demanding. I thought I must be ‘too much’ for any man to really love. I thought I must lack that captivating essence that made a woman worthy of being treasured.

 

But not any more.

 

Now I roar....and the roaring grows louder every day. And it feels really REALLY good!!!

My book - about the journey I have taken in discovering my roar – is out now on Balboa Press. Although my roar is a gentle one (that’s just my nature) it is also fiercely alive and passionate. It is my dream that people caught in the same trap I was, find the courage to transform their lives. Through my book “The Journey of the Tree” I want people to know that

 

They DO have the courage to live a life true to themselves, not others expectations

They ARE allowed to be happy in this one precious lifetime

They ARE worthy of having their relational needs met

To quote the famous New York dancer, Martha Graham – “There is one you in all of time”. The manifestation of life that is YOU could happen only once in all of history. Your combination of cells, genes, personality, creativity, locality and experiences could only blend together once. It is your responsibility to shine that preciousness forth into the world !

 

Please consider purchasing my Aesopian like fable “The Journey of the Tree” as inspiration to stop being “Stranded in the Jungle’. It makes a beautiful gift book for yourself or others (daughters, family, friends, colleagues) needing the nudge to start roaring in their own lives.

 

My blogsite

www.kesenyaspongecake.blogspot.com.au

 

My booksite with Balboa Press

http://bookstore.balboapress.com/Products/SKU-000683774/The-Journey-Of-The-Tree.aspx

 

Photo from Brooke Orchard Photography

           

 

Snippets of the City

I LOVE Melbourne. The CBD is alive with culture, fashion, food and fun. But I remember a time when that wasn't really the case. Being the age I am (no need to guess at that folks) I remember when the CBD was pretty dead. Full of business people during the day, dingy empty allies, shoppers in the Bourke Street Mall only and NOTHING at night - save the Metro Nightclub and a few pockets of restaurants. Bravo to all those involved with transforming Melbourne's CBD into one of the hippest, fun-loving, creative and delightful city centres on the globe today. Here are some of my own personal favourite places to hang out when I'm downtown - all with a tinge of something vintagey about them.....

 

Cookie

 

A fantastic restaurant on Swanston Street, buzzing with fun art, great music and of course, yummy food. I particularly love the Little Golden Books on display and the wall of lipstick kisses.

Captains of Industry

Gentlemans outfitter and café. Once again, this place has a wonderful vibe - great music, great food, great atmosphere. AND you can watch a vintage style barber, shoemaker and taylor at work while you sip your late. Fun.

 

 

Clementines

 

This place is Divine with a capital D. Every city should have a store like this. Every regional town should have a store like this. In their own words "We love to bring you produce and products made and crafted in Victoria, Australia. We're very proud of our artisan makers and growers." Totally brilliant. Need I say more?

 

 

 

La Belle Miette

 

Oo la la ! My daughter (Rainbow Girl) and her Fancy Nancy books would swoon at this shop. Macaroons in every colour of the rainbow - the perfect fuel for a superhero princess. (Can I let you in on a little secret though? Super Mummy also thinks this shop is a dream, and simply breathing in the beauty of this boutique patisserie is enough to empower you for a day's shopping.)

 

 

 

 

Circa Vintage

 

Who doesn't love glamorous vintage frocks these days??? Read any novel worth its salt, watch any timeless movie, pick up any history of fashion coffee table book and vintage dressing or classic clothing features in inspiring forms. The same is easily said of Circa Vintage. Although a little, shall we say, intriguing to find, this beautiful vintage clothing shop, perched on the second floor of one of Elizabeth Street's darling art deco buildings, is well worth hunting for - the victory of discovering such a treasure only adds to the memorable experience!

 

 

 

So there you go. My five favourite destinations in Melbourne CBD. For that something different, wonderful, creative and quirkey, this beautiful city wins every time. Hoping to bring you more great destinations as I venture into inner city suburbs in months to come.