It’s no surprise that we at Luscious love a bit of vintage glam.

From 1960’s screen siren fashions to kitschy and cute homewares - there’s something about vintage items that tell their own story and carry an air of elegance that is rarely seen today.

So there is no wonder that we have fallen for the old Lomography Diana camera.

This cute, lo fi, plastic camera has been around for years but has firmly built itself up as a photographic cult classic due to its simple nature and unique production of images.  

With every shot, you honestly don’t know what will result.

The Diana camera really produces your own vintage photographs, as the lens captures colours from stained and faded to overexposed and vibrant.

To get your own retro-tastic little snapper, head onto the official Lomography website or get the Diana Deluxe Kit for Camera from Amazon. It’s full of helpful hints, great buys and absolutely incredible photography by other Diana lovers all over the world.

We have all been in the situation, attending a party when you are less than familiar with other attendees.  Either you’re the ‘plus one’ or a friend you were going with suddenly backed out and now you left to mingle with strangers for the night. Here are a few helpful tips to get conversations moving and make you the life of the party!

How do I start the conversation?

Although this seems like the most daunting part, it is essential to put yourself forward at parties. If you go into the situation with closed off body language or a hesitant attitude due to nerves, you may appear as if you do not want to converse with anyone at all.

Be open to conversations at every opportunity, whether it is over an interesting canapé, a rushed introduction to a mutual acquaintance or you simply find yourself standing next to a stranger amongst a circle of friends.

Photo: Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard in 'Breakfast at Tiffany's'

Conversation starters:

If you do not know anything about the person you are hoping to converse with, it is always helpful if you ask them how they know the party’s guest of honor. This can open up an easy conversation as you have established a common connection. Further to this you can simply follow the ever-wise Dame Elisabeth Murdoch’s advice when she is faced with meeting someone new and attempting to hold a conversation.

In an interview with Andrew Denton she expressed the art of holding someone’s attention is to simply, “Ask the man what he does. If you ask your next-door neighbour what he does it flows out. You can’t stop him.” This is a great way to find out more about your new acquaintance and find an area of connection with what they do for a living to start a deeper conversation.

Listen up:

Part of having a successful conversation with new people includes being a good listener.  Try to use open body language when engaging in conversation, keep your arms uncrossed, your body turned to the person speaking and hold eye contact.  It is important to regularly engage in what someone is saying otherwise conversations will fade out and you will be left with awkward silences because they will not think you are interested in what they have to say.

Rotate the room:

The art of party mingling is to try to speak to a variety of people throughout your night. Just because you have had an easy conversation with someone does not mean you have to stay by his or her side. Try to circulate the room as best you can, as the best party guest is one who is open and friendly. A great place to meet people is by the food or drinks table, as conversation over the products can be short and sweet.

Also try to join in a group’s conversation by standing next to someone you don’t know.  This can be easier if you do know somebody else close by, but can also help initiate a new conversation. Also try to include others in your conversations, it may be someone you already know or simply met five minutes previous, but it will demonstrate your willingness and you inviting personality.

Things to avoid:

There are many hazards that can occur in a party atmosphere which are easy to overlook, especcially as you feel more confident in your mingling skills. 

• Try to avoid eating and drinking too much, although drinking can give you confidence, you may regret some of the things you say and do the next morning as you are more likely to put your foot in your mouth when your guard is down (think Christmas party disasters!) 
• When making conversation, attempt to avoid any controversial topics that may offend easily such as religious views and politics, although these can generate deep conversations, there’s a good chance that someone will have a different view to yours and this may cause upset.
• If you make friends with someone on the night, avoid any gossip talk as fate will have it, they are probably related to or in a relationship with the person you are talking about. Plus it is simply bad manners!
• Do not talk about yourself too much; people will want to hear about your opinions and experiences but they do not want to hear your entire life story for the duration of the night.  Keep asking others questions and engaging them so that the conversation is shared between you.

Photo, right: Gossip Girl
 

Above all, when placed in a daunting situation where you are forced to meet new people, keep a friendly demeanor and be open to talking to anyone in the room.  People will respect and remember you if you are confident, polite and attentive during conversation. 

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• Spring racing fashions
• Spring racing: Fabulous hats
• Vintage racing photos

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But it’s the little gem of a scooter which makes the image complete (and a Gregory Peck look-a-like doesn’t hurt either!)

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You’ve been invited to a wedding and as your review the invitation a week before the big day, you discover to your horror - there’s no present registry!

Picking out a wedding gift can be an extremely difficult task, particularly if the bride and groom to be have been living together for years and already established an impressive home wares collection.

If they have chosen not to have a registry, this does increase the chance of doubling up on gifts with other guests, so try to think outside the square!

Here are a few ideas to help find the perfect present which will make you a memorable wedding guest.
 
Give a give certificate for a beautiful restaurant; with all the chaos involved in planning a wedding, this will be a well-deserved treat when the hype has died down and the credit bills start arriving.

If you’re in Melbourne, check out the amazing food of the famous Pearl restaurant on Church St in Richmond. The menu changes seasonally to ensure produce is always fresh, and the meals are prepared with mouthwatering precision.
 
Purchase some crystal champagne glasses and a bottle of Moët and Chandon - it’s classic gift, but always a winner. 
 
For a personal approach, take the time to put a collection of photos of the handsome couple together in a creative way. With all the photos lying around online these days, taking the time to put them into a special album, a DVD or even printed onto canvas make a unique and sentimental gift to treasure.

Now you can load up your own images online on websites such as Big Prints, order a canvas the way you want it and it gets delivered to your home-too easy!
 
Give a gift before the wedding such as special wedding dance classes. By pre-paying this gift, you will have the delight of seeing it being used on the big day as the couple takes the floor for the first dance together!


For a sweet treat, put together a personalised Chocogram for the lovely couple (see right). You can write any message you like and it is printed the flavoured chocolate you desire.

Alternately you can buy personalised rock candy from companies such as Suga. thoughtful and delish!
 
For more ideas, you can use companies such as Red Balloon to organise activity packages for you, or put in money with a few other guests to purchase something out of your usual price range which the couple would adore.
 
Whatever you decide to give to your loved ones on their special day, the most memorable gifts are those that show a little bit about the couple you know.

Make it personal and don’t be afraid to step away from conventional towels and dining sets. 

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We love Audrey Hepburn for so many reasons, one of them being her ability to look fabulous in a frock.

Here are some pix of the divine Miss Audrey to inspire prospective brides, from her own weddings to Mel Ferrer (1954–1968) and Andrea Dotti (1969–1982) as well as non-wedding outfits from her films, and some from photoshoots.

Note that she did not marry her longtime partner until her death, Robert Wolders (1980–199), but we have included a few photos of them together to balance things out.

Clearly not all of them are actual wedding dresses, but they might help give you ideas for both traditional and modern shapes and styles.

See our much larger photo gallery here.

Learn more about the lovely Audrey from Wikipedia and IMDB, or stock up on her films and the books relating to her. Some of our favourites include:

• Roman Holiday
• Breakfast at Tiffany's
• Funny Face
• War and Peace
• My Fair Lady
• Sabrina
• Charade 

See our much larger photo gallery here.

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Be inspired by some fab (and not so fab!) celebrity weddings. Here are some fun sites to check out:

• InStyle Star Style Weddings
• People magazine: Celebrity weddings
• Forbes: The 20 Most Expensive Celebrity Weddings
• Celebrity Wedding Buzz blog
• E! Online Celebrity Weddings 2009
• Marie Claire's 10 Best Celebrity Weddings
• Flipgloss.com Biggest and Best Celebrity Weddings
• Wedding Paper Divas: Classic Hollywood Vintage Weddings

Photos: Grace Kelly and Prince Ranier, and Audrey Hepburn and Mel Ferrer on their wedding days. See more Grace Kelly and Audrey Hepburn photos in our galleries.

Loving it? Keep reading about weddings here.

Or go the entertainment route and check out some wedding DVDs such as:

• My Best Friend's Wedding
• 27 Dresses
  
• Wedding Crashers
  
• My Big Fat Greek Wedding
  
• The Wedding Singer
  
• Made of Honor
• Just Married
• Four Weddings and a Funeral
  
• The Wedding Planner
• Rachel Getting Married
  
• In & Out
• The Wedding Date
  
• Monster-in-Law
• Monsoon Wedding
  
• Muriel's Wedding
  
• That Old Feeling
• I Do
• Cousins
• Betsy's Wedding
• Margot at the Wedding
• Royal Wedding / The Belle of New York
• The Prince & Me 2 - The Royal Wedding

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Avoiding work and looking for ways to divert yourself? Then have a flick through our luscious photo galleries on our Luscious on Facebook page. Here's a taster...
 

Inside Martha Stewart's houses and offices	Luscious lingerie	Grace Kelly

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