12.26 // Meryl Streep circa 1985

Gotta love Meryl…

via Vanity Fair; on the set of Plenty, 1985

~ r

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9.30 // adieu, septembre… il etait bon.

So here it is. 11:32 pm. I’ve just nearly finished my prototype homecoming dress.. I sort of need to get it done, since the dance is, umm, SATURDAY. Yeah. That plus NHS app plus school plus XC (good race the other day!) plus PSAT coming up… agh. Stress/no free time much?

And Paris is starting. And I’m missing it. The only thing I have time for is to go to WWD and glance at the cover images. Gareth Pugh looked sweet, as did Fendi… and so many others… *sigh*. Maybe this sunday… nope, I’ll be collecting canned food for Gleaner’s. Sigh.

On the bright side, I’ve rediscovered Tyson Ritter (in Gives You Hell…. MMMMMMMMmmmm….)

Mmm. Gorgeous boys make the world go round.

Night!

~ r

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9.1 // Film Inspiration: Girl On A Motorcycle

As we are all well aware, all things studded, leather, black, and zipped are a major element of this fall’s trends. Girl On A Motorcycle [1968, starring Marianne Faithfull] seems to perfectly embody that spirit: rebellious, edgy, paving-your-own-path, etc…

If you set out to watch the film, though, be warned: it’s fairly graphic and on the edge of, um, rather naughty (so I’ve read). Just sayin’.

Gotta love the 60s!  ~ r

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Style Icon: Patrick Wolf

Patrick Wolf, avant-garde-dressing singer/songwriter, is somewhat of a brilliant dresser, usually channeling a sort of eclectic/punk English vibe. Crazy red/blond/brown (depending on the day, it seems) hair and flamboyant dressing make for an interesting persona, to be sure, and when you add in his romantic-folk-and-pop techno-ish style you get a very unique young man (to say the least). One of the interesting musical aspects (aside from his basically self-created genre)? He incorporates a myriad of instruments, ranging from viola to ukelele to piano. Throw that into a techno sound and see what comes out…

~ r

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7.2 // day two of this grand venture

It’s only been what, a week or so, since the highly disputed Iranian elections, and already this hot topic seems to be fading into the woodworks (relatively speaking). Such is the fate of any international news item… [Overshadowed by Al Franken's Senatorial (haha) election and the Marines' attempt to gain control of that Afghan valley from the Taliban... I predict that Afghan/Taliban/Pakistan conflict-related news will soon have a surge in worldwide coverage... I'm just sayin'.]
Strangely enough, I’ve spent most of today in front of the TV watching the Burn Notice marathon… granted, I ran this morning, but I also pretty much undid said exercise with a donut (long john, Bavarian-creme-filled, caramel-topped… delicious, needless to say!) and a pizza bagel for lunch (also hugely YUMMM). Abs and weights offset the laziness, though… eh, who cares? Even the most exercise-addicted addicts need fat days  :)  (plus, it’s been rainy and cloudy and generally not very July-ish for the past 2 or 3 days, so there’s no guilt there…)

Read Vanity Fair’s article on Johnny Depp today… gotta love ‘im. He’s so much more than just an incredibly sexy face… I am so seeing Public Enemies!

images via vanity fair

smarties make you smart AND hyper!

~ r

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5.12 // Who says no to a day off?

Home sick today… although in reality, I probably could’ve gone to school and survived… but it’s nice to have a day off of life sometimes, don’t you think? Especially one as nice as this – about 65, sunny, and hardy a cloud in the sky. Parfait. And although the Cloud of Make-Up Work is looming ever so slightly on the horizon, I’m refusing to let it mar this otherwise wonderful day. So far I’ve slept in, had a strange dream about an abandoned house, written a few pages (although I’m not sure…), napped, and eaten toast. Usually I’d use this opportunity to play dress-up, but I’m just not feeling it today. Plus, my little brother is home sick too. So there you have it.

Everyone’s in an uproar about Wanda Syke’s jokes as the White House Correspondants’ Dinner, some – err, most – of which have been construed as harsh and highly controversial. My opinion: yes, they were hard jokes, but they were true. Even so, as I sat in my room doing weights and watching it, I felt a tad uncomfortable… like, “Did you really just say that to the President?”

The Rush Limbaugh one. The Controversial Joke. The Joke That Everyone Really, Really Wanted To Say For A Long Time But No One Ever Dared To Until Now. You know, the one that compared him to Bin Laden, named him as the 20th hijacker, and wanted his kidneys to fail? Yeah, that one. That one was great.

So, retrospectively: she probably should’ve toned down a bit (but that’s her choice), but what’s said is said and can’t be undone. Besides, that’d be no fun! 

Hair art from somewhere:

I love Beyonce’s outfit here. (That felt so foreign to type! I never talk about celebs. I shy away from them. I’m allergic to them. Mostly.)

Quote of the Day:“I know we’re best dressed when we get into a taxi and the driver asks, “You going to a costume party?” and we say, “No,we’re just going to the pub.””

- Agyness Deyn

I found that picture a while ago, liked the shoes, and forgot about it. Here it is again.

And here is a picture of one of the worst cars in the world:

via Luxist

Hopefully LV will be out & suing him shortly for all those LV monograms…

Julia Restoin-Roitfeld… and her shoes and magazines and books and jewellry…

The Selby

here

Mmm, more outside time now. Maybe another nap. Maybe mint ice cream.

Mmm, yeah.

~ r

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4.14 // And how was your day?

“Style isn’t what but how you wear clothes. Fashion is the way you walk, talk, dance and prance.” – first issue of i-D (here)

“While we’re both geeks, Adam is Twittering everyday, and it’ll be a cold day in hell when you see me Twittering anything.” – Jamie, discussing their [Adam & Jamie's] geekiest qualities (here)

“Choosing a nail polish for your wedding day is about the biggest nail decision you’ll ever have to make” – FabSugarUK. Really? Is it that life-altering? I probably won’t even bother – it just chips off in a few days anyway. Naked nails, that’s me.

And now for something completely different… actual news, that is.

“TEHRAN — An Iranian judiciary official said Tuesday that the trial of an American journalist accused of spying for the United States had begun on Monday in secret, and that a verdict was expected within two weeks.
The journalist, Roxana Saberi, a 31-year-old with dual American-Iranian citizenship, was arrested in January and was initially accused of working without press credentials. But last week an Iranian judge brought the far more serious charge of spying for Washington.
“She is charged with spying for foreigners,” the judiciary official, Alireza Jamshidi, told ISNA, a news agency. “The first session of the trial was held yesterday, and she defended herself for the last time.” “ – NYT.

Agh, more conflict. And while a tiny, minuscule nugget of my brain says, “Maybe she is a spy”, the rest of my logical self – most of it, that is – takes over and says there’s no way the US would do something so stupid. Unless that’s just my US perspective. Or maybe a remnant of some Bush thing gone awry, or simply forgotten? But I doubt it. Either way, I sincerely hope things can get worked out, and quickly. That’s one place I would not love to be a journalist. Those people are brave.

Source: NYT

And unnngh, don’t get me started on the drugs-and-guns situation with Mexico. Every day now, it seems to me, I hear another report of a cartel-related attack or more smuggled guns being caught. (I suppose the guns-getting-caught bit is good news. Relatively.) I think for a while now – and this may/probably is a generalization – people have been paying so much attention to situations like Iraq and Georgia and Israel that we forget to peek over the fence to check on the neighbors (or as the case may be, pull back the lace curtains, peer through our binoculars, and sip tea with our old lady friends. Haha.) The Mexico situation has gone unchecked (again, very relatively and generally) for some time now, and I strongly feel that it requires more of our immediate attention; not only from the government, but from the people and the media as well. The more we get involved and actively interesting in solving our nation’s problems, the more pressure it’ll apply to the government to take action.

I’ve just realised just how much I used the word “relatively” in the last paragraph. Well, 2. But the tone – and that of many other such opinion articles I’ve read – also seem to express a great need to put our views in perspective, take them from a wider angle. I don’t want to be construed as single- or narrow-minded, or accused as seeing things only from a stereotypical American view (we’re right, they’re wrong, etc.) And I suppose in the bigger picture, the Middle East threat is much more immediate. (And lets not forget North Korea!)

That’s something people today could use more of, I think: a general sense of perspective, taken with a dose of humility and a cup of reality. (Haha, I lost my train of thought there and forget my last word. It was a good word, too; fit my need perfectly. Oh well.)

WELL. On to more sparkly and fun things.

From JAK&JIL, Giambattista Valli. Mmmmm, je l’adore.

Via altamira.

This guy from Easy Fashion really caught my eye for some reason.

These sweet fashion illustrations from MITICA FASHION ILLUSTRATIONS. I love them. Every time I see them, though, they make me want to crumple my sad little sketches into balls and throw them out the window into the rain. But I’m not an artist per se… I think once I get a fabric, I know what to do… and my simple drawings suffice for my needs; the real design is in my head. 

A particularly gorgeous one. Slightly GV-esque for me.

And hey, apparently Emma Watson is going to do Burberry’s ad campaign next season. Wow. (FabSugar)
She’s one that’s been on the edge of my radar… I’m not a huge celeb-style-stalker (haha, I stick with likeminded bloggers instead!). But she’s on there.

From Copenhagen Street Style.

OK, bedtime pour moi. Bonne nuit!
~ r

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4.13 // fashion and cartoons and pirates, oh my!

Everyone seems to be posting articles of varying lengths and intensity about how “80s boyfriend suits are back”. May I be the first to say, duh? Anyone who saw the runways, has watched TV, stalks celeb styles, or walks into a store knows that.

Gucci // Spring 2009. Myf Shepard.

More random Phillip Lim // Fall 2009:

Diana Farkhullina. (Love her hair!)

Valeria Dmitrienko.

Phillip Lim peg leg pants, $450 at Net-a-Porter.

Herve Leger nude bandage dress, $1650 at N-a-P. I wonder how hard it would be to make a look-alike…

Have you ever thought about this?
What’s the opposite of easy? Hard, right? WRONG! It’s ‘difficult’! The opposite of soft is hard. Weird. I just thought about that.

And hey, Wile E. Coyote (of Coyote & Roadrunner)… Wile E… wily… (I had lots of thinking time during the Easter Vigil… 2 1/2 hours of praying and incense, running from about 7:30 when we arrived to 11:45, when we left the reception for the newly Catholic people. Cake at 11:30 + punch + hours of sitting still + being with your friends = lots of concentrated hyperness.)

Ah, Looney Tunes. I must admit that when I’m home sick, I find myself watching shows such as Baby Looney Tunes, Tom & Jerry, etc… (the classics, not the crap new shows)… given the choice between that and, say, Bringing Home Baby, well… bring on the animated anvils!

Other things I thought about:

- what’s vegemite? (from that song by [the] Working Men, Land Down Under). Answer: a gross-looking veggie paste used on toast and the like in Aussie and New Z.
- I wonder if I can find VeggieTales shows online somewhere…
- what if someone replaced the incense with weed or something?
- [insert loads of shopping and clothes-related thoughts-
…and lots of other random stuff. Your mind tends to wander when not occupied with anything active.

Oh, look, Lady Gaga sans pants… again.

That’s just gross. Plus, I seem to have a weird anti-fetish for anything denim that’s not jeans: jackets, skirts, you name it.

Blake & Leighton in Rolling Stone:

Ummm…. lol, ok…

…and look who else tagged along! Haha. I like how Blake is like, “Umm, hi?”

Pillow fight!

- Rings for under $100! (But they’re soooooo cool!)

Via Ref29.
“So when designer Lisa Paik launched a new line of bedecked rings called the Museum collection, we were intrigued. Each of the 9 pieces in the collection is inspired by an iconic work of art (like Klimt’s “Emilie Floge” or O’Keefe’s “Pink Tulip”), and all come for under $100.”

Everyone’s seen the leaked May VOGUE US model cover.

Ehh, I dunno, what do you think?

Her blog here. She’s amazing.

Sneeze, sneeze, sniffle. If I come down with something now, I’ll be a bit pissed.

Crazy how fast break goes by… and yet it’s been long enough for school to become nothing more than a distant, fuzzy memory; when faced with it now, looming tomorrow, it seems like such a foreign concept. Getting up at 5:45 to sludge off to school for learning? Nooo thank you, I’ll stay here, sleep in till at least 9:30, peruse the blogs till 11, then partake in random fun, lazy activities. Eating, yes. Some exercise. Friendly socializing. Dinner with the family, relaxation time, bed – after reading and music – anywhere from 11:30 to 2 am. Repeat.

So yeah. School? Psssh. Work? No thank you. Besides, it’ll force me to actually think about what I wear, not just throw on the nearest sweats and tank. (Yes, I admit it! At home, where no one can see me, I am a total slob. Unless I’m playing dress up, you’ll find me in: (1) running/workout attire, (2) sweats, a tank, and a sports bra, or (3) PJs.)

And on a serious note: pirates, Somolia? Really? I know you’re not the only 3rd-world nation to have them spring up, but to defend them (verbally)? What, are they government-endorsed pirates? Now, I also understand that it’s not the government per se that’s making the statements about getting revenge, etc., and that you don’t really have the funds to actively fight all the pirates. But still. A little something.
Hopefully once ships start having armed guards and whatnot, pirates will die out (again). How crazy is it to sit around the dinner table in 2009 and discuss pirates? How they need to be rid of? Haha, my mom said they should just make the captive pirate walk the plank, and I agree. If they want to be pirates in this day and age, we can still get rid of them old school.

This one’s alright. 

Mmmm, he’s gorgeous.

Arrr,

~ r

Haha, currently listening to: Marooned – Pink Floyd. Coincidence. 

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4.3 // Spring break is upon us… now what?

Well, Spring Break is finally here – what to do? I started it out with a nice 9-miler… or I intended to. I ended up doing only about 7 – and about 2 of those were walking (she said with great disgust). Also, a random dog followed me home. It was windy and rainy and not a very good day in general.
The reason I had to turn around (! grr…) was my hip [left] was hurting, which in itself would be bearable (but still not good). But this was shooting pain down my quad, causing it to cramp up and generally not be terribly cooperative with the rest of me, which wanted to move forward… or move at all… Anyway, after 3.3 of the slowest miles of my LIFE, I told L to keep going, I’d just run on my own. I stood at the intersection, my sweats covered with mud up to the knees, the wind whipping the drizzle around in a very dreary sort of way, and thought: 6 more miles? Noooo thank you. So I turned around and began my trudge back home. I did eventually get tired of walking – only about 1/2 or 3/4 of a mile – and started a running on-and-off thing. At the intersection that marked about 2 miles to go, I heard a dog running after me and freaked out a bit… until I looked back. A black lab puppy of some sort was following me. I petted it and yelled at it to go home, but it followed me more… all the way home. Several times, I had to yank on its collar to avoid me having to watch a dog get squished in the road. What a great day that would be.
So that’s my day so far… Needless to say, I’m disappointed in myself – err, moreso my hip/quad for being lame. But also me feeling like Ugh – why do I bother? But it’ll pass.

Plus I’m going prom dress shopping tomorrow for my friend Kirstyn, who absolutely hates shopping… that’ll be fun! (If I go to prom, I am so making my own dress. I refuse to wear one of those hideous pink shiny sparkly monstrosities that so many teenage girls seem to find stylish. Or something. Agh.

I hope to pop into F21, as I have basically no spring clothes. Here’s (some of) what I want:

Encore, juste un peu des choses que je veux…

Soooo yeah. I need a job… I might be a lifeguard this summer, depending on how a few things pan out…

Right then. News and fashion, comme toujours… ou recent, at least…

A glamouri look… F21 pants, Joie jacket… love.

“MObama” style time!

Michelle vs. Carla Bruni: who will win? (Oh brother.)

Thakoon dress.
ODlR on MObama not wearing his clothes: “I don’t object to the fact that Mrs. Obama is wearing J. Crew to whatever because the diversity of America is what makes this country great. But there are a lot of great designers out there…You don’t go to Buckingham Palace in a sweater.” — WWD

Another un-retouched photo scandal, this time it’s Madonna and her Hard Candy album cover:

Ho hum. She seems to be glowing… radioactively?

Vogue Italy cover (April 2009)

Eliza Cummings by Steven Meisel. And oh, where did that editorial with Imogen go? …
Ah, here.

Ahhh, love it! [Refinery29]

Valentino at a book signing (for his book, “Valentino: A Grand Italian Epic”):

Who would choose coffee over Valentino?

The line.

Louboutin for Rodarte studded pumps = deeeelissh. Love the creamy colour with the red sole (as always).

Via ELLE.

Anne Hathaway style: she wears loads of girly, feminine & sophisticated-charm Valentino looks. Yay!

Hmm. I don’t really like her hair in these…

Lady Gaga’s dress/figure skating costume (by Benjamin Cho) on American Idol:

Via The Cut.

Another sweet editorial/ad grouping/why can’t I think of the word? Ah. Campaign. Yes, that bit.
I don’t feel like giving my opinion on this, except that I want it all and AHHHHH. “Up-and-coming designer Erin Kleinberg makes the sort of comfy clothing that would look good lounging around the house or out on the town, which is why choosing girl-about-town Theodora Richards to lounge around the house for her fall ’09 lookbook was kind of perfect. The Richards sister looks right at home in Erin’s oversized cardigans and drop-back dresses, and she’s definitely inspired us to wear our sheer thigh-highs with a pocket tee all throughout the summer months. Head over to Barneys to pick up your Kleinberg, and feel free to have a little dress up session in your own pad.” Ref.29

I love laid-back, comfy looks for spring. Always.

Need a new comb? Want a statement comb? Feel paranoid while combing your hair (even if you are in front of a mirror)? Then these knife combs are for you!

I think I’ll pass.

Hmm, what else… Skye Stracke with a faux-hawk, haute couture style:

(from Numero Tokyo).

Need jodhpurs? (I do, but I have yet to try them on in person, to see if I can pull them off… my runner legs might not work so well with skintight khaki.)

Hudson Suede-Patch Jodhpur, Ralph Lauren, $298. Mmmm. (They have yellow, lavender, and white as well, but I like these best).

Via NAST.

Ok, sleepytime now.

~ r

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3.28 // A Motley Assortment du Mode

How to Rock Acid-Wash Jeans and a Crop Top:

Rumi of fashiontoast. Walmart jeans, actually.

Sea of Shoes does harem pants:

Agh. She has amazing style.

CAUTION: do not use this much tanning stuff.

Who knows. Maybe that’s her natural skin, maybe it’s just the camera… but welcome to Oompa-Loompa Land.

Marc Jacobs on a hang glider in Rio de Janeiro:

from fashionologie.

How to Rock vintage levi’s cutoffs:

Thank you, Stylish Wanderer!

Somarta // Fall 2009 (Japan Fashion Week)

Too bad JFW is so low-key and under-reported. As The Business of Fashion points out, that’s weird, because Tokyo is the most designer-obsessed place in the world. Ah: “The government now subsidises many of the shows with the idea of bolstering Japan’s textile exports.   This government intervention, unfortunately, has had mixed results. Sure, the government subsidies allow many young brands to realize their vision. But in general, the week suffers from a lack of name brands. Comme des Garçons, Yohji Yamamoto, Junya Watanabe, and Under Cover all show in Paris, the de facto capital for global fashion.”
Read the full article…

Cool jacket/dress (on the left):

A while ago – on the fall runway posts – I mentioned one model that I thought looked like Alice Cooper. So.
I am forced to eat my words, for this is definitely not Alice Cooper.

That’s Jamie Bochert in W and i-D and looking very un-Cooperesque. I still think that in the first photo, she looks a bit like that…

^ that one. (Marc Jacobs // Fall 2009)

Hmm, maybe a bit of celeb trash gossip. (Hey, everybody needs some!)

Bored? Peruse through 38 photos of the most luxurious (and in most cases, ridiculously extravagant) celeb houses on the market. Here. Hmm, maybe I should be a millionaire…

Rihanna‘s got new ink: a gun on her ribcage. But is it CoverGirl material? (Not so much…)

Kanye West is no more – nope, he’s changed his name to Martin Louis the King Jr, to fully embody MLK Jr and Louis Vuitton.
Really?

In Complex magazine.

He did say, though, “How the hell is a 29-year-old grown ass man acting like a little b—?” he asks. “How spoiled can I get?”
Good question.

Kira Plastinina: do those words make you shudder? Cringe? Groan? Roll your eyes? Yeah, us too. But never fear, good news is here! All of her US shops will be closed by the end of this year.
Sorry, some bad news too: she’ll be coming across the pond for Parsons in 1 1/2 years. Agh. Although I must admit it’ll be good fodder for trashy gossip tabloids…

One of her many (although there are only 2 remaining now) US stores, perpetually empty.

Anne Hathaway on VOGUE Mexico:

Gorgeous dress.

/*end celebrity gossip*/

Some sweet little doodles by Laura Laine around iconic fashion… icons, I guess. ICIs.

Cool, huh? See the rest here.

Lastly, a cool lookbook: Elizabeth & James.

Sorry my last few posts have been pretty uninspired – mostly just random cool stuff I find whilst perusing my hundreds of fashion feeds – I’ve been busy with school (sort of…), designing/trying my hand at sewing (!!), writing and editing my friend’s story, trying to rediscover the clean room hidden under the current disaster that is mine, and oh… going through roundabout after roundabout so as to not flunk my road test tomorrow – 8:30 am. The good news: it won’t be traffic-y at all. The bad news? I may not be fully awake. Oh well. Wish me luck!

~ r

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