We hang out for the Alice Euphemia garage sale and the half yearly clearances at David Jones, but still manage to blow a load of cash on a designer T-shirt.

It makes sense to save some money on beauty products and services... but how?

Read on for 5 insider tips on looking good for less...

Fashion can often be an expensive thing, a very expensive thing, however working on a budget certainly does not mean sacrificing your personal style.

Lucinda from Thrift & Thread graces us with her presence in today's guest post which just happens to be all about making your own necklace out of cord. Watch and learn.

Light, dark, colour- it's all captured in Sarah's evocative illustrations and we love her even more because we can proudly say she's from Melbs.

If you haven't caught on to her illustrations yet in Yen, Semi Permanent or Australian Creative then you need to keep reading.

Genna Campton is an illustrator that Melbourne needs to know about. She likes chocolate and is from Sydney, but don’t hold that against her, she’s crossed the border and now calls Melbourne home.

There is much to be said about the ‘slashie’. You know… model/actress, comedian-slash-writer, or socialite-cum-designer/singer/actor/Botox experiment (the kind that spawned a revolution of injecting arse into face). Interestingly, the very notion of melding trades has become the norm, and the idea of the ‘expert’ has transcended into a mish-mash of professions: a slushie if you will.

Despite L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival being over until next year, the highly anticipated and unfortunately belated Desire photography exhibition is finally here. Previously postponed due Melbourne’s temperamental weather, Passion Victims will be launching this Thursday night to showcase a national collection of fashion photography.

Ah to see a model smile. It’s a rare occasion. As a child I used to wonder why they were always so sad. “Because their too skinny,” Mum said. So double-coat Tim Tams must be true happiness, right? Delusions aside, apparently they do smile. A lot, Australian fashion photographer Sonny Vandevelde would have us believe.

In my experience, a blindfold coupled with a darkened room can lead to a good time. Seriously. I mean think of the possibilities: sensation, stimulation, thrill of the unknown. The very idea that the fantastical is presented with a shred of fabric and the absence of illumination is a feat in its own. What were to happen to this visual if it were preceded by an image, one that depicts a nude woman?

A reflective look at the historical measurement of time shows a distinct shift that emerged along with the reign of the mobile phone and other technological devices. It must be admitted – along with a pang of sad nostalgia – that the humble left wrist is no longer the first place consulted by members of the younger generation when asked for the time. Instead, this common request will more often than not prompt a frenzied rummage through the individual’s bag or pockets for the latest generation Nokia or iPod.

A couple entwined in an intimate embrace are lit by the changing shadows of the night. Their stage – a secluded laneway – is constantly interrupted by the presence of roamers, residents, workers and street dwellers, who are forced to confront this public display of affection. For street artist Vexta, creating images that evoke questioning is the potency of her craft. Beginning in 2003, her stencils and paste-ups have undoubtedly contributed to Melbourne’s international reputation as a stencil art hub.

There is a little well known expression that is often preached and yet not practiced. Whilst many profess that the joy is in the journey, rarely do the majority simply step back from the blur of every day life and absorb all that is upon offer. Others, such as Fallen Magazine’s Kara Allen and Lauren Whiffen, understand that the best things in life are those worth seeking out and then immersing oneself in completely.

Hold on to your spray cans, kids: July is officially the month for Street Art & Culture at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image. Presented as part of the State of Design festival; the July ACMI program offers three successive perspectives on the gloriously dissenting world of street culture.

She had Eric Clapton on his knees and George Harrison needing no other lover. Most famous for inspiring two of the greatest love songs of all time during marriages to both of these men, the legendary rock muse Pattie Boyd is now showing – for the first time in Australia – her personal collection of photographs taken during both relationships.

I think everyone wants to be involved in the world of art and culture in one way or another – unfortunately for me I am rather creepy when I dance, couldn’t ever pen a song, and am never asked to join family games of pictionary because, well… I’m just plain rubbish at drawing. It’s for these reasons that I go to exhibitions and gigs – to at least be able to enjoy the product of someone else’s genius. It is refreshing however, when an artist decides to use people off the street as inspiration for his/her creations.