As 2012 comes to a close, I thought I'd share with you my top 10 songs of the year. I am a self-confessed music-a-holic and love nothing more than sharing what I've been listening to.

10. Esmerelda - Ben Howard

I discovered Ben Howard this year and instantly fell in love with his voice. Esmerelda the first single off his 2012 EP Burgh Island. The song is very raw and not overproduced and I love it for that. It's a little bit dark too and always reminds me of an emotional video montage scene in a movie.

Summadayze 2013 Set Up

So I've been back at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl for the past couple of days helping set up the 2013 Summadayze music festival. I was pretty much doing the same thing I did when I worked at Parklife which I setting up skrimming (material that goes over the fences) and putting up signs. It's hard work and you get completely covered in dirt and a bit sunburnt, but it's so worth it.

Day One.

The Boatbuilders Yard

Happy Boxing Day. I've been up since 3.50am because I had to be at work at 5am. It's now about 3:00pm and I feel like I've been awake for a million hours. I managed to get about 6 hours sleep last night so I'm not too tired... yet. I finished work at 10am and decided since I was already amongst the madness of the Boxing Day sales, I may as well stick around.

Merry Christmas

I thought I'd spread some Christmas cheer with you by blogging about my recent trip to The Boulevard in Ivanhoe. The Boulevard is about half a kilometre long and most of the houses are covered in Christmas lights! There's also plenty of Christmas music and lollies if you look hard enough. Now if you're expecting a nice, quiet, romantic stroll down this street, think again. The Boulevard draws crowds of several hundred every night, so expect a lot of children, prams and tourists. 

Rooftop Cinema

After climbing up a million flights of stairs you emerge at the top of Curtain House and experience the wonderful view that Melbourne's Rooftop Bar has to offer. We made the hike tonight because it's that time of the year again when the Rooftop Bar is turned into a cinema with the best view in the world. The movie we watched was the comedy classic Zoolander even though I, and everyone else there, had seen it so many time we could quote the whole movie.

The Moser Room

A couple of nights ago I went to a 21st in an amazing venue in Melbourne called The Moser Room. Located in the heart of Chapel Street, Prahran (pronounced Pa-ran), is this Victorian meets Moroccan themed bar. With baroque lounges and lavish chandeliers, The Moser Room was a little piece of luxury amongst Melbourne's busy nightlife. 

Gaijin Lunch Bar

So this is another one for the students. The Gaijin Lunch Bar is an Asian cafe with very eclectic decor located in Melbourne. The best part about is it has good affordable food and cheap alcohol. The perfect place for dinner and pre's before a night on the town. Or just a quick feed. Don't get me wrong, the food isn't three hat worthy, but it's good for the price and it's rarely very busy. 

Costume Madness

You know the saying, one woman's trash is another woman's knight in shining armour. No? Well in this case it was. My friend told me about a costume warehouse sale and it's just something you can't say no to. Located just out of the city in a shady factory area of Melbourne was a huge room filled with what I assume are antique or very worn costumes. Prices started at just $2 but got to in excess of $650. A bit out of my budget.

The Big Design Market

Today saw us back at the Royal Exhibition Building in the Carlton Gardens for another arty/crafty design market. Most of the stalls at The Big Design Market were different to the Finders Keepers market, although I did see some familiar stores, and everything was more homey compared to the last one. There was still definitely an abundance of jewellery but not as much clothing. 

On Wednesdays, We Wear Pink!

The other night we hit the town for my friend's 21st. We started at everyone's favourite place, Taco Bill, where the margaritas were 1/2 price. We gorged on Mexican food and decadent fruit margaritas for a while and then headed to one of the best places in Melbourne if you're a poor student like we all are. 

Gingerbread Village

Christmas has officially hit Melbourne and to celebrate the festive season the Gingerbread Village by Epicure Catering is back! Located in Melbourne's City Gallery are some of the major Melbourne landmarks baked out of gingerbready goodness. 

On The First Day Of Christmas...

*Heads up. You're going to want to read this one*

Each year my family have our Christmas celebration early because it's so difficult to get everyone together. This year we had it on the 1st of December which is a lot earlier than usual. I tried my hand at baking again and made these tasty gingerbread cookies. We also feasted on a huge amount of delicious delicious roast dinner which I may or may not have had seconds of. I had a massive food baby for the rest of the day but it was so worth it.

Papa Goose

The other night we had party for a youth-led organisation I volunteer for called Left Right Think Tank. We were celebrating finishing the creation of their yearly policy document (don't worry if you don't know what that is, I didn't before I started) and just having some general end of year drinks. We hosted this grand affair (lol) at a bar and restaurant called Papa Goose located on Flinders Lane. I was the official photographer for the night, although I wasn't using my own camera so a lot of the photos turned out crap. The venue was quite sophisticated and the food was yum! Here's some of my favourite photos of the venue from the night...

Lunch with Then Lets Begin

When I started blogging I never imagined that I would meet new people through it. A couple of months ago Frances from Then Lets Begin and I started following each others blogs and now she's in Melbourne! We met at the iconic Federation Square and headed to Degraves Street for a yummy and very filling lunch. After that I took her on a bit of a shopping tour of Melbourne through the laneways and arcades all the way up to Melbourne Central.

Brown Brothers Hidden Vineyard

After wandering down a side street in Prahran, we entered into a wonderland of vineyards, gigantic fruit and picnic baskets. What looked like a regular old building from the front, was actually a whimsical cheese-filled valley of destiny. We were greeted at the door by the lovely hostess and escorted inside to our picnic area where we were treated to complimentary wine and cheese. 

Village Melbourne

I feel like I say this at least a couple of times a month, but I seriously did not know this place existed. Formerly known as the Belgian Beer Cafe Bluestone, the Village Brasserie is an indoor/outdoor bar which creates the atmosphere of being in Central Europe, although you've barely left the Melbourne CBD. Currently, the buildings and the grounds are being converted into an urban cultural community hub. We went there to have some chilled drinks, although being the poor uni student I am, it was a bit pricey. Still good none the less.

Flinders Lane Shopping Night

Whenever I see the words "shopping night" or "shopping festival," I instantly think free alcohol! The Flinders Lane Shopping Night did not disappoint. However as the name suggests, it's not actually about the free alcohol (although it's a welcome incentive), it's about getting together with friends and taking a little trip down shopping lane. Flinders Lane in Melbourne is known for it tiny boutiques and local designers. Although normally a bit more pricey than your standard high street store, it's definitely worth a look if you're looking for something unique. 

Beach Goodbye

Tonight was bittersweet. We all gathered on the beach to say farewell to an amazing friend as she heads back to her homeland, the US of A. And I know what you're thinking, but Marlee aren't you meant to be studying for exams? Well I gave up on that. Plus there was no way I'd miss this. 

Harvest Festival | Shenanigans

Okay, I swear this is the last post I'm going to do about Harvest Festival. But it was an awesome day and I just have a few more photos to show you! I wont write much because you're probably sick of hearing about it by now. So please enjoy these last few photos and I will diversify my content once I have a life again.

Harvest Festival | Street Style

Festival's are a bit like a toned down version of halloween, in that you can wear almost anything and get away with it. However amoungst all the crazy costumes, you also find some great personal style. I found these lovely ladies who I thought looked amazing and I hope you do too.

Harvest Festival | Arts

Harvest Festival stretched way beyond the usual stage and audience festival experience. There was an entire fringe entertainment extravaganza engaging and involving anyone and everyone they could. As well as roving performers, there was an abundance of abstract and whimsical artworks around the venue. 

Harvest Festival | Music

Yesterday I attended Harvest Festival. It's never really interested me that much in the past but I think that's just because I didn't know much about it. My friend Sam and I decided to volunteer at the festival for something cool to do and to get free entry into the festival. Possibly one of the best decisions of my life. This festival was absolutely amazing. Possibly the best one I've ever been to! Because of this, I'm finding it very difficult to collate the photos into one blog post, so I've decided to do a series of them. Today is the first in the installment and based on the crazy beautiful, eccentric and mind-blowing music.

November Jewellery Haul

Okay so I may not have bought all of these in November, but as I said in a previous post, I'm in the middle of exams so my life is a tad boring right now. I've decided to show you my recent jewellery purchases and tell you where I got them from.

The first item is this gold heart ring with a little cross on it. I'm not normally a fan of wearing crosses because I think they're religious and I'm not religious, but this one wasn't too religious-y (new word) looking.

Southbank

The other day I had the task of walking down Southbank in the search for a venue for an upcoming event. I decided, because Southbank is pretty and I needed some entertainment, that I would do a blog post on it. So here it is. It was a very wet and rainy day and of course I forgot to bring an umbrella. But a little bit of water never hurt anyone so it didn't bother me too much.

Gentlemen Of The Road

Guest Post

Okay! Hi! I am Abby, and I volunteer with Marlee. My cousin (Josh) and I, for reasons that remain unclear to me, decided to travel to Dungog, which is 3 and a half hours away from Sydney to see Mumford and Sons on their Gentlemen of the Road tour. 

Cafe Giraffe

Today I thought I'd share with you one of my most frequented cafes in Melbourne, the Giraffe Cafe. Or Cafe Giraffe. I'm not entirely sure which way is correct. Cafe Giraffe is an adorable and homely little cafe on Little Lonsdale Street between Elizabeth Street and Queen Street. I particularly like this cafe because it is fairly cheap (most meals are $10 or under) and the serving sizes wont make you obese. 

Stickwork Melbourne

So this is in Melbourne at the moment. Is it not the coolest thing you've ever seen in your life? I want it in my backyard so I can make a legit fairy house out of it. This amazing structure is the creation of American artist Patrick Dougherty. Patrick has weaved his arty magic over 200 times around the world. This particular piece too three weeks or 2,000 hours to build. 

Fox + Sui

Fox + Sui are an Australian duo, based in Melbourne, that go by the pseudonym Andras Fox and Sui Zhen. Although you may not know the name, if you went to any of the Melbourne Spring Fashion Week events this year, you will be pleasantly surprised that you do know one of their songs.

Finders Keepers

Melbourne is full of markets at the moment! However, the Finders Keepers market is easily the biggest I've been to taking up almost all of the Royal Exhibition Building in Carlton. You could find cute little nic-nacs, clothing, jewellery, accessories, kids things, artwork and much much more. There was also a beautiful selection of live ambient and lounge music, which showcased some of the best up and coming talent in Melbourne. The weather was also absolutely perfect, which was just the cherry on top. 

Melbourne via Instagram

I wanted to give you a heads up that String Of Events may be a little slow over the next couple of weeks. It's the end of uni and exam time so I'm going to have my head down studying. Well that's the plan anyway. I also wanted to tell you that I'm going to start posting my 'music of the week' over on the String Of Events Facebook page. I've made it fairly obvious that music is a big part of my life, so if you want to know what's flowing through my headphones, go check it out and 'like.' 

I leave you now with a selection of Instagram photos from the past couple of months. 

Yummy Yoyogi

Recently we went to dinner at Yoyogi on Swanston Street for my friend's 21st. I feel like I don't go out to dinner enough in the city because I always think I'm going to spend a lot of money. However, this place was very reasonably priced. If you didn't guess by the name, Yoyogi is a Japanese restaurant, and ever since our trip to Japan in 2007, my friend and I have had a soft spot for Japanese food. Well I assume most people do because it's so tasty. 

Magic Lantern

Ever since I discovered City Gallery on Swanston Street I've kept an eye on it to see what exhibitions would follow Royal Melbourne. Magic Lantern is the next instalment in the gallery showcasing beautiful images from Melbourne's parks and gardens from the era of the magic lantern projectors. 

Topshop x Grazia Party

I was lucky enough to go along to a Spring Races party at Topshop in Chapel Street hosted by Grazia Magazine. Joined by my ever fashionable cousin, we sipped on cocktails and were shown what's in this season. Little did I know there are so many rules and guidelines for going to the races, something I don't usually do because I don't like the idea of using animals for human entertainment like that. Much like a circus. 

Parklife

Parklife has got to be one of my favourite events of the year. I'm fairly sure I've said that before. This year I was working at it scanning tickets and helping out in the cloakroom. Not necessarily exciting stuff but I love working in a festival environment. Unfortunately Melbourne was completely temperamental weather-wise with rain most of the day. That didn't stop most people. 

Backstage at Parklife

I was back at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl today helping set up Parklife and we got to have a quick look at the mysterious backstage world. I could only take photos on my phone but I thought it would be cool to show you guys the halls where in less than 24 hours, some of the biggest names in dance music will be.

Parklife Set Up

Today instead of being a good little uni student and doing my assignments, I spent the whole day at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl. I was giving up my time to help set up Parklife. It was fairly laborious and my hands are very sore, but I got a free ticket out of it so it was kind of worth it.

Random Retro

I was at Westfield Southland today trying to blow all my birthday money and I came across this travelling vintage shop called Trish Hunter Finds. Everything had a very 60s and 70s feel and in the centre was a darling vintage caravan which doubled as a shop.

Show Time

Two years ago I worked at the Royal Melbourne Show and I vowed never to pay for entry to the show again. Luckily, this year I got myself two free tickets so it was show time once again! Melbourne really turned on the weather for us with an amazing sunny 27C day and it stayed warm well into the night.

Tesselaar Tulip Festival

Tucked away in the hills about an hours drive from Melbourne is a little slice of floral heaven in the town of Silvan. The Tesselaar Tulip Festival was dreamt up by the Grandfather of the now owners of the beautiful tulip farm and once a year they open it to the public. 

Wearing: Sportsgirl SS10 top, Cynthia Rowley khaki jacket, Valleygirl black leggings, Rubi boots, Nica Alicia Acrossbody bag in coral, sunnies from Elizabeth St in Melbourne, various gold jewellery.

Welcome To Wonderland

So I'm finally 21, which in Australia doesn't really mean much, but it's an excuse to eat cake and see friends. I've had my heart set on an Alice In Wonderland themed party for a while now, not because I'm super obsessed with it, but because of the whimsy of wonderland. 

Japan 2007

So life has been a little slow this week. I've had exams and assignments, and there hasn't been much on in Melbourne that I'm interested in/can afford. So I decided to trawl through my old photos to see what I could come up with to tie me over until the weekend. I decided to blog about my trip to Japan in 2007. I know, this was aaagggeess ago, but it was either this or nothing, so I'm going with this.

South Melbourne Market

I was walking through South Melbourne the other day for a completely unrelated reason and happened to come across the South Melbourne Markets. It's been a while since I've been there and since it was literally across the road, I decided to go revisit it.

Gorman x Rhys Lee Launch Party

Australian women's clothing brand Gorman recently had a launch party to celebrate their collaboration with Rhys Lee at Melbourne's GPO. We were treated to wine, beer and mini bean burrito type things. All very yum. The collection features a lot of vibrant prints and classic Gorman cuts. 

MSFW12 Day 6 | Target

Today's Target runway show was very, well, Target, and I wasn't really expecting anything else. There were a few good pieces like this floral number and brightly coloured jeans, but overall it was exactly what you expect from Target. 

MSFW12 Day 5 | French Connection

It was French Connection's turn to take to the runway today on the 5th day of Melbourne Spring Fashion Week. Their spring/summer collections focused heavily on primary colours red, yellow and blue, with variations of each. There was also a strong sorbet pastel influence, and some key metallic and sequinned pieces. 

MSFW12 Day 4 | Sportscraft

Sportscraft launched their spring/summer collections on the runway today at Melbourne Spring Fashion Week with classic suits, skirts and shirts. The first couple of collection had a more casual feel with pink and red being the major theme throughout it, ending with a show stopping paisley shirt and pant. 

MSFW12 Day 3 | Review

Day 3 of Melbourne Spring Fashion Week saw fun and flirty brand Review take to the runway with their spring/summer collections. Each piece was very pastel and almost as girly as it can get. I wanted it all. There's nothing more flattering than a cinched in waist and a big flowy skirt. 

MSFW12 Day 2 | Wittner

Day 2 of Melbourne Spring Fashion Week exploded into action with the theatrical runway display from Wittner. With several dancers captivating the audience and many props featured throughout the show, the audience was certainly entertained. I walked away thinking "wow, that was weird." But definitely in a good way!

This season they have five looks.

#1 Neon Life

MSFW12 Day 1 | David Jones

Today was the official first day of the Melbourne Spring Fashion Week and to kick it off, David Jones hosted a runway show at the Melbourne City Square to help everyone get prepared for the Spring Racing Season!

Nitin Sawhney

Sometimes it's good to just throw yourself into something without really knowing what you're getting yourself into, and this was definitely one of those situations. Nitin Sawhney exceeded all expectations and he and his band were breathtakingly talented. I'd never actually been exposed to his work before being offered tickets but it sounded like something I would enjoy and my gosh it was.