BAM IT'S JOANNE

For as long as I can remember, I've always been a top and skirt/ pants girl, as opposed to dresses. My Christmas outfit was an exception, so for New Year's I'm going back to what I am comfortable with. I love wearing top and pants to a fancy party or dress up event, simply because I feel like my outfit would stand out among a sea of dresses. It's the 21st century and dress code rules are out of the window nowadays - wedding guests are starting to wear white and brides don't care! 2015 has seen celebrities wearing jumpsuits and blazers/formal pants combination to red carpet events. If they can do it, why not you?! Plus your pants can double up on work duty once you go back to the swing of things in January, as opposed to the traditional "party dress" that you'll only wear once and forget about. 

Photos by Ramon Diamzon

Keepsake top / Country Road pants (similar from ASOS) / Witchery sunglasses / Witchery earrings / Wittner shoes (similar from ASOS)

Click to shop: 

As someone who lives in skirts and/or pants, it's a breath of fresh air to be wearing a dress - let alone a figure-hugging one! However, with Christmas and New Year parties looming around the corner, it is easy to see why I'm venturing out of my comfort zone a little more this time, but still sticking to the classic black, which makes up about 40% of my wardrobe (no joke). The last time I wrote about a little black dress was about 15 months ago, and this time I've found the perfect upgrade. The price is a little (haha, 'a little') steep, but I believe in investing in timeless, classic pieces, and I'm confident that this perfect laced Nicholas number will be a crowd favorite and wardrobe staple for years to come. 

photos by Ramon Diamzon

Nicholas dress / Wittner shoes (similar) / Witchery sunglasses

Petite women around the world - rejoice!

Ladies and gentlemen - may I present you my Holy Grail of all denim - this pair of form-fitting Mavi jeans. Stretchy and comfortable, it sits at the perfect spot on my waist, and brushes just slightly past my ankles at 5'4''. It's actually 5'3''. I grow that extra inch on good days. But I digress. No longer would I have to fold (or double fold) the tail of my jeans because this is just the right length at 28''! I am so grateful to the designers at Mavi (tipping my hat off to ya!) for considering petite girls like myself. The hunt is officially over. 

Wearing: Mavi white tee, Mavi 'Alissa' Ankle Super Skinny Crop jeans, Samantha Wills pearl ring, Najo bracelet, 66 the label straw hat

Photos by Ramon Diamzon

You know that feeling of surrealism? The moment of realisation when it hits you and you're gob-smacked that your favourite artist/ online influencer/ secret crush comes up to you and wants to get to know you? Well, in blogger-speak, there is nothing, and I repeat, nothing more exciting than being approached by a brand you've been a fan of all your life. 

If you have been following my eye care journey, I was told that my eyes are not taking in enough oxygen because of the contact lens I was wearing. So it was a fortunate stroke of serendipity that the very same brand that I've became so acquainted with for a quarter of my life (I am fiercely loyal and refuse to swap brands) approached me and offered to help fix my problems. It was as if they read my blog! Of course I jumped at the opportunity and said yes (after explaining my terms and conditions about giving a positive review if it's not true, of course. All opinions are and always will be my own! How else do you stay loyal to your blog?).

So let me lay it all out for you:

Brand: Alcon (formerly Ciba Vision) 

Old lens type: Focus Dailies All Day Comfort (blue box)

Duration: Past five years

New lens type: Dailies Total1 (brown box)

Duration: Probably for the rest of my life. Once you go water gradient, you never go back.

Water gradient? What do you mean? Perhaps this chart explains it best:

Four other bloggers and I were invited to take the Dailies Total1 five day challenge, where we wear Dailies Total1 for five day to night outings and write reviews about how our night went and whether the comfort lasts all night.

The challenge kicked off with the five of us being invited to O Bar and Dining, the revolving restaurant up on George Street. We enjoyed canapés, three course meals, and a cocktail jug that is bigger than my face at 47 levels high, and we stayed there so long that we had to cancel my car transfer (which would have arrived 2.5 hours too early), and the waiter had to come and politely kick us out. That's the sign of a good night, isn't it? 

All in all, here is a quick summary of what my first impression of them is: 

Extremely comfortable, contact lens feels invisible, lasted all night without falling off or needing eye drops (which is so rare!). It's amazing how technology improves lives. Due to the water gradient technology explained in the graph above, the contact lens feels like a soft jelly-substance that provides comfort to my eyes, and because the core has a lower water content, it acts as a better oxygen transporter, allowing my eyes to breathe better and not dry out. This will also hopefully help ease the blood vessel issue in my eyes that my optometrist warned me about.

Sorry for geeking out on you guys like this but I'm just really interested in the health of my eyes and therefore excited to share my new discovery with you!

I'll be back with a second post detailing my overall experience with Dailies Total1, which I'll also hold a The Iconic giveaway to five lucky readers! Stay tuned for more details :)

This is a sponsored post, but all opinions are -- and always will be -- my own.  

Photo by Ashleigh McCallum