The Red Shoes

Jaunted ran a story about the "uniform refresh" at Virgin Atlantic. This week, VS has had a few 'news' items including new routes, the launch of their first Airbus A330 aircraft and the arrival of the red shoes on female cabin crew.



Apparently, the highly successful James Bond-style ad campaign from last year, which featured crew in red patent heels, resonated so much with the travelling public that they came to expect the new level of 'glamour' on the crew serving them on flights.

The new shoes will be of a lower heels and different shape to those in the adverts, naturally, as stilettos don't exactly lend themselves to a long-haul flight.

While I did like the look in the tv spot, something about the shoes for the crew just doesn't seem quite right to me. I think the style of the new crew shoe just doesn't work in patent red. Also, with a red suit I personally think it's a bit too much red. Of course, with just a skirt and white blouse it might look fine, but I think they'd have done better to go with black. Either way, those shoes won't last two weeks before "cart toe" takes over. I hope the crew are supplied with (non patent) cabin shoes as well!

Photo: Virgin Atlantic via Jaunted.

Travel Finds & Treats!

One of the perks of being a globe-trotting flight attenndant* is the fact that one gets to spend time in various cities, and frequently getting to return to those same cities, so that one can seek out new shopping haunts, places to eat and relax or just find that perfect gift for a friend or loved one that no one else at home has.

Now my regular readers will know that I do love a bit of a shop, sometimes too much so lately (my poor credit card, ouch!) which has resulted in my cutting the worst offender into four pieces and leaving it in the bottom of my dresser drawer. But I digress...

On my travels, I have found some of my most loved items in places such as airport gift shops, chemist and newsagents. Since a lot of fun can be had even window-shopping, I'm going to share some of the designers & places that put a smile on my face. Maybe you might discover something new...

The first is Catherine Manuell Design, an Australian luggage & accessories brand which has been around for about 11 years. Manuell has been designing a lot longer, however. Her colorful designs are well known and can now be seen in many a business & even economy cabin, standing out proud on the baggage carousel.


Here's a bit behind her design choices:

Black spells 'classic' in a lot of instances. There are cars that look better in black than in any other colour (okay, perhaps we'll give you an occasional red), bank account balances, and be honest; a penguin suit really has no business being anything else.

But luggage? Well, it can make for a confusing time at the carousel - which is exactly what Catherine Manuell thought eleven years ago.

"I've always loved colour, so when I came to buy luggage, I never wanted a black bag, but I realized that was basically all that was available," says Manuell. "I thought it was pretty dull and I was suprised that there was no more choice available, and so I decided to create something completely different for myself and others!”

And plain black is a far cry from the range that Catherine Manuell Design (CMD) now sports. Forget plain black, think faux red croc, french peasant prints or cranberry alligator, floral haby's, swirl black flat fur, poppies, and Aboriginal artist painting prints - the list of options is long.

One of my first purchases as an 'international air hostess' was a CMD luggage tag, bought while my flight was delayed in Darwin airport. (Of the lily-pad carpet fame in 'The Amazing Race') I still have it now and it started off my rather strong obssession with luggage tags. Among others I have the Singapore girl tag, a retro 50's tag, and pin-up girl tags.

Next on the list is Christopher Vine, another Australian designer probably best known for his homewares such as mugs, plates and other knick-knacks featuring feminine shoes, corsets & clothing.

As well as those, he does a cute line of cosmetic bags, luggage tags and stationery. Another favourite in my collection is his 'First Class' cosmetic bag, with retro flight attendant print & some Pan Am-style zipper pulls. Too cute!

One of my more recent discoveries was the gorgeous Sex Kitten Boutique in Brisbane, Australia.

This place is worth going to just to gape at the fitout alone! If you're a girly girl, love chic French boudoir style or burlesque, you'll want to put this on your list of places to see! From gorgeous retro-styled dresses, to day-wearable corset tops, cheeky lingerie & some beautiful jewellery & accessories, they've got a little bit of everything to satisfy your inner Dita von Teese. The branding is very thorough, right down to the price tags but I just love it! The clothes are heading towards expensive, but this is because they are limited in each edition, so you won't see the dress on every second girl. One of my favorites is the Chicago Pinstripe dress.

Very sharp!

You can take a virtual tour of the boutique if you're a bit too far away to visit in person. The best part is, Shipping is Free with Australia, and only $30 for International orders! =)

Stay tuned for my next few Travel Treatie Discoveries!

*(However, not as much of the globe as I would currently like)

Bikes, Bookings & Beach

Well. Where to begin. Such a lot to update on, I've nearly forgotten all the stuff I wanted to post about!

Exercise: I've been pretty good lately, yes ok I admit I've slacked off some days, but overall I don't think I've done too badly. Once in Perth I did a fast walk from South Perth (near the Mends St jetty) up to the park near Burswood Casino. And back. Not too bad. I was getting a little sick so haven't been riding the bike as much, but I did get out with my friend J yesterday and we did 45 minutes before deciding the weather was so nice we'd rather be at the beach! =D

I think the ride was overdoing it a bit as when I got back tot he car I had to lie down and put my feet up, feeling lightheaded. While I was lying there some guys playing football nearby kicked their ball over and it nearly knocked me out! Haha! But they were kind of cute so I forgave them.

J and I dumped our bikes in our cars then headed for the beach. Much better. The water was a little cold but it was really refreshing, being the Easter long weekend, it was really crowded but it was so nice just to be there, floating on the waves and talking. I also took the opportunity to take my new (waterproof) camera for its first test drive for underwater shots- as we were near the shore it wasn't too interesting underneath the water but it was fun to be able to have it with me and not worry about someone stealing it from my bag. The only drag to the day was that I was on call reserve, so had to keep checking my phone, but luckily I didn't get any calls so it was all good in the end.

Once we got too cold in the water we took our towels up onto the grass and just got some sun for awhile. I think I needed it after spending a few days mostly sleeping in bed. Once we dried off we decided we were both really hungry and went to get fish and chips. The line for the most popular place was really long, plus we decided it was a bit too expensive. There was a simple kebab joint down the road which also did fish and chips for half the price of the trendy place, so we got our food then sat down on our towels on the grass and ate. Our reward for being good about exercise was a really pretty sunset, which we watched the end of while going for a quick walk down the beach and back to work off the fried fish :P

Some lifeguards were training in their powerboat and it was really funny when they rounded a corner too quickly and threw the female lifeguard off the dinghy. Of course she screamed as she went over unexpectedly and the guys had to go pick her up out of the water, red faced. Hehe.

I've also done a couple of work trips which were really good, one to Singapore with some new crew which turned out to be a huge trip, mainly because we went out on the town the first night and stayed out til 3am (I only had 3 drinks the whole night as I'm kind of not into the drinking thing anymore, it doesn't do much for me, plus I already had a massive headache from work that day. SO I just had a vodka tonic or two and watched everyone else. We went to the bar Clinic which is decked out like a hospital, and you get drinks in drips and test tubes. But it was kind of expensive so really we sat around dithering over the menu while taking photos of us mucking around in the wheelchairs. All was good until two of the crew who had had more drinks than us decided it would be fun to take off in the wheelchairs down the street. So we got the 'move along' and then headed back for the hotel. On the way some of the crew decided it would be fun to go on the Reverse Bungy ride. Fun for all, even if you're only watching! Hehe


Singapore at night!

Next day I shopped a bit, had a fantastic pedicure (including leg massage and heat treatment), stocked up on my faves from the Body Shop (which I can't buy here at home) and found a fantastic pair of shoes to go with a new dress of mine. (More about the dress later!)

Plans for holiday going well, got my leave approved so now just waiting on booking confirmations. Singapore Airlines are having an awesome sale which will get me to London and back for around $1499. Emirates had a similar offer which I really wanted to do as it had a stopover in Dub-Dub, but I had to pay by tomorrow and my bank transfer won't be through by then. Oh well! SQ it is! I do like a Kebaya, and I'll get to fly on the A380. (I'm such a plane nerd, just had to include it so I could check it out.)

I plan to make a few posts today while I can as I am off on another trip tomorrow, so be sure to scroll down and check for the others =) Will also add some photos, once flatmate gets home with her work computer which isn't so slow as this one!

Shopping, Sydney & SkyHighBoy! (Part 1)

Well after settling in after the New Year rush, it was back on duty for me.

My NY trip was great, with a fun crew. Seeing as we got in to our layover port quite late, we decided to just have champagne and watch the fireworks from the hotel balcony. Of course we brought hats, nibbles, and those party blower things that roll out and make a hooty noise when you blow them. (I love them but the naighbours don't)



Next up was some time in Sydney, it's always fun when I get a bit of time there. As usual, I slept a bit when I got into the hotel as the flights had been through the night arriving first thing after curfew lifted at 6am Sydney time.

After sleeping, it was time for a shower and then I got dressed and headed down to the station to get the train into town. Catching the train in Sydney is cool, as it's underground and some of the tunnels have been there for like a hundred years or more. You can see how old they are because the ceilings are still black from soot. It's funny how you can feel the train before you see it as the big rush of air gets pushed along in front of the train.



I was on a mission to find a dress, not just any dress, but THE dress. I saw it in a magazine and fell in love. I want it to wear for my birthday, I've never bought myself a dress that expensive before (not too expensive, it's around the 120 mark)

Despite trying all the known stores which carried that brand, I was unsuccessful. Still waiting on an email from the label themselves to find out if maybe it's not been released yet. Oh well I have a month or so to find it!

In the Pitt St mall, this girl was trying to raise money for a plane ticket to visit her dying mother. She was challenging passers-by to a game of chess and was kicking ass in less than 3 minutes. Pretty amazing stuff! I hope she gets where she wants to go.


Of course Sydney wouldn't be complete without a little shopping (window shopping and REAL shopping!) I succumbed once more and bought this cute little pair of shoe-booties, how retro are these, but I love them!


Perhaps I was subconsciously influenced after reading this book in Borders:


I always liked how Dita did retro, she combines a few things I love: corsets, awesome shoes, 1940's fashion and pin-up/Varga girls. Think I might be adding this book to my shelf very very soon, the pictures alone are amazing and I don't think smutty, even in the fetish sction, it's an interesting look at the whole connection between burlesque and fetish, people think they're totally different but really they're not. And if you think fetish is only for freaks, well, if you've ever admired a girl in high heels then that is a fetish too! And not a bad one, I love girls in heels!


Anyhoo, I'm getting off track. After doing a bit more window-shopping, I receieved word from SkyHighBoy that he had touched down in Sydney and we made plans to meet for coffee & chat (the two things aside from shopping that we flight attendants do best!!) ^_^

I never get tired of looking at the buildings in Sydney, the QVB is one of my favourites:






This one is for Bagpuss:


Turns out that the giant Christmas tree in the Queen Victoria Building is a great meeting spot, if you don't mind being blinded by tourists taking photos, that is. (Not that I am a tourist taking photos, hehe)




Cute crystal animals in Swarovski


And this one is for Wizardress:


Ok I just reaised the time, this will have To Be Continued...