Don't wanna be the thorn in your side, good woman

Do you remember the first music concert you went to?

The first one I went to was the John Butler Trio. I was 14, it was a free concert in Bunbury, and it was part of a cause to save the Leeuwin forest. Three of my friends & I bought big obnoxious sombreros from Crazy Clark's (a kind of two dollar store, I guess) & I gave mine away to a random girl who promised she would give it back, but of course didn't. We sat through two hours of increasingly hippy-like and decreasingly coherent protestors before John Butler actually came on stage - I had a photo of him where he was literally the size of a pin head and I cherished that photo for about six months! Before the show we saw him hanging out in the park with his wife & baby & it was very sweet. But the highlight of the concert was:

Do you remember the first concert you went to? Would you still go & see that band now? I was only reminded of this when I heard this song on the triple j hottest 100, haha.

x

Obsessed with... Peacocks!

For some reason, I am strangely drawn to feathers on clothes. Peacock feathers happen to be my favourite at the moment. Even though in real life, only the male peacock has the colour & the glory, why should it be that way for us humans? Claim back some of the peacock strut with these sartorial choices...

Teal Peacock Feather Tights

Much like the bird itself, these tights command attention and I'm sure would cause involuntary strutting by the wearer. I would wear these to a gig at a little bar, with a little black poofy dress, purple suede ankle boots, and electric blue eyeliner. I think they are very Doe Deere, don't you?

Plumage of Burma clip

A little more subtle than turquoise tights, this is still one for the girl who wants to wear her peacock feathers with pride. I would wear this to a university lecture, perhaps to a sociology lecture, with jeans, knee-high black boots, and a tasty cashmere black v-neck sweater. Then I would wear it to the library, where I would dog-ear my favourite poems of ee cummings and grin to myself.

This bracelet/ring is SO AWESOME! It is very Cleopatra, in my opinion. I think that I would wear this out to dinner with friends, so it would catch the light when I gesticulate wildly. I would wear it with a sequinned tuxedo jacket (a la Queen Michelle), ripped tights, a denim miniskirt and patent leather ankle boots.

Peacock print

If your love of peacock doesn't quite extend to you wearing feathers on a regular basis, you could always put this nifty little piece of artwork on your wall. I love that it's on an old page of a novel, it makes it beautiful and modern at the same time. I can see this in a little frame in my kitchen.

Of course, if you want to keep your peacock love on the inside, you can always give it a subtle nod with these peacock knickers. Delightfully cheeky way to show your love for our lovely-plumed birdfriend.

...And on the other end of the scale, you can show your obsession to its full extent with this magical peacock headdress. I think this would be fantastic to wear to a ball (or gala event of your choice) with a gold flapper-style dress and matching teal shoes. Incredible!

Wanting to emulate the peacock strut is all very well and good, but I don't think anyone can ever have it down like old Mick...

x

English Breakfast

I thought that, since I don't have the time to blog as much as I used to, I would do one of these at least once a month so you could see what I've been up to. It will just be what I've listened to, what I've seen at the movies, what I've been doing - quite similar to Cupcakes and Mace's Hier Und Jezt (which I love). Anyway, on with it! Oh, and they are all named after different types of tea WHAT OF IT.

♥ Watching: Transformers 2 (think I'm a bit in love with Shia Labouf. And Megan Fox); Bruno (hilarious); How I Met Your Mother season 4, lots of action movies on Blu Ray.

♥ Listening to: Noah and the Whale, She & Him, Regina Spektor, David Bowie

♥ Blogs I'm loving: Tink in my Closet, Park & Cube, Flair to Remember

♥ Reading: Hey, Nietzsche! Leave them kids alone: The romantic movement, rock and roll, and the end of civilisation as we know it by Craig Schuftan (awesome!)

♥ Favourite picture:

♥ Purchased: Wheels & Dollbaby Beauty Queen pencil skirt, Rimmel "Sexy Curves" mascara, purple sparkly eyeshadow quad, lots of hairspray to maintain my new do!, liquid eyeliner.

♥ Lusting after: The new Johnny Depp movie, Public Enemies; Inglorious Basterds; Wheels & Dollbaby Wheels & Dollbaby Wheels & Dollbaby!; cute uni notebooks from Smiggle; these; pink sparkly eyeliner

♥ Loving: Living with Boy, watching entire series of TV while snuggled up under a blanket, my Totoro toy, my job & my work friends, having a PS3 in the house, cooking, ugg boots!

x

Style Icons: Isabella Blow

Otherwise known (by me) as 'the lady with the fabulous hats', Isabella Blow is a true style icon. Credited with discovering Alexander McQueen and Sophie Dahl (whom she found sobbing in a doorway and described as "a blow up doll with brains"), Blow was also editor of Tatler magazine. To many, she was the very pinnacle of English eccentricity, she was certainly hard to ignore and she is a fashionable icon to anyone out of the ordinary.

At his graduation show, Blow asked to buy McQueen's entire collection - it cost her £5, 000, which she paid off in weekly installments of £100. She said, "When I said, 'I know this sounds weird, but I want to buy the whole of your collection', Alexander McQueen offered to sell me a coat for £350. I said, 'That's a lot for a student'. He said, 'But I made it'. In the end I bought it all for £5, 000, but it took me a long time to pay for it." - Vogue UK

"If you met Isabella, the sort of charm of Isabella's hat wearing is that she wears hats like she's not really wearing a hat at all. She feels much more normal when she's wearing hats than when she's not. She really doesn't think there's anything strange about this sort of hat." - Philip Treacy.

After deciding on a medieval theme for her wedding dress, Blow asked Treacy to create a suitable head-dress. He said, "I wanted to base the hat on a 1930s play called The Miracle... I couldn't believe I'd hit upon the one person who didn't expect tulle and veiling and pearls and that for her wedding hat". Blow then let Treacy work out of her London flat, and subsequently opened up shop next door. He has since designed couture hats for Chanel, Valentino, and Givenchy.- Design Museum

Blow at her 1989 wedding to Detmar Blow

"It's not a mad hatter's tea party," she says sternly. "It's meant to be a sensual, erotic display. You're there to get a new husband, a new boyfriend, a new girlfriend, whatever. And you can get it. The hat is a means to an end, a marriage contract. It's everything. It's a sensual thing - the idea of catching somebody like a spider in a web. It's the old fashioned cock-and-hen story, the mating dance. Men love hats. They love it because it's something they have to take off in order to fuck you. Anyone can wear a hat." - The Guardian

Tragically, Blow passed away on the 7th of May, 2007. She reportedly died from suicide. Her obituary read:

"Heads would invariably swivel as Blow entered any fashion arena - be it a run-down warehouse in the East End or a rarefied atelier in Paris. Her dress-code remained an elegant version of the fashion cliché " classic with a twist". Teetering on satin stiletto Manolos, wearing couture gown, feathered hat and smeared ruby lipstick, Blow was a dishevelled bird of paradise who didn't give a damn about convention. She loved to gossip, talking 20 to the dozen, dropping names, witticisms and acute observations, and invariably ending her sentences with a deafening roar of laughter. In the manner of penniless aristocrats everywhere, Blow was no good with money and identified with Oscar Wilde's assertion that "anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination"."

So, when you're feeling in a bit of a rut, take a cue from Isabella and adorn your beautiful noggin with a hat, sparkly hairclips, beret, feathered headdress, giant lobster or massive bow! Wear it to lunch with your mother, dinner with your boyfriend, to walk the dog, go grocery shopping, attend a lecture, go to a cooking class, to fall in love, kiss your lover, and generally be fabulous!

x

What I Wore 19.07.09

This is what I wore to go to my cousin's 18th lunch, and then to Bruno with my lovely Boy!

♥ Vintage dress

♥ Cotton On cardigan - so old it has turned blue instead of black

♥ Black tights

♥ Forever New shoes - new!

♥ Owl ring from Diva

♥ New hair!

I got my hair cut yesterday at Toni & Guy, I am so happy with it! I got my hair cut there last time I got my fringe done, I had a different hairdresser this time but I was so so so happy with it! If you need a good haircut then go to Paul at the Toni & Guy in Perth city. It's been a while since I grinned all the way through a haircut!

Oh, and I got these insane shoes from Forever New for twenty bucks. I think they were on sale because they actually feature FAUX FUR. ON A SHOE. Awesome/fugly? I couldn't decide. But I knew I needed them.

And this is one of my favourite rings. I need to name him. I have a lot of jewellery with owls - my dad collects them, so maybe it has subconciously affected my jewellery choices? Hoot hoot!

Now I am off to watch season 4 of How I Met Your Mother. Hooray!

x

p.s If anyone can help me with thism I would be happy - I want to do a little signature thing at the end of posts instead of just an 'x', is there any program you would recommend to do that? I am so hopeless at computers so please do not mock me! :P

Happy Birthday!

Image via Cakewrecks

I've been so busy with work and getting ready for the next semester of uni that I forgot my blog's first anniversary yesterday!

I just wanted to write a quick post saying thank you to everyone who reads this, everyone who leaves a lovely comment and brightens my day, and anyone who may have taken inspiration from something I've written. I've met some amazing people just through this blog, I've gotten to practice writing, I've had articles published, and been feeling a lot more fantastic!

I love blogging and even though I haven't been posting as much recently (how do people with full time jobs have any energy at all? How?), it doesn't mean that I love this blog any less or that it means anything less to me.

Anyway thank you all so much for reading and looking at my blog, I love you all!

xo

Rut

It seems that I am in a bit of a style rut at the moment. I think it's because I have to wear all black to work, and even then I feel like I don't really dress like 'me'. On my days off my thought process goes "ARGH COLOUR TOO MUCH CHOICE... I'll just wear black". Or some other 'safe' outfit. Part of the problem is also that I just need to shake up my appearance... I'm getting my hair cut on Friday so maybe that will help? Do you have any suggestions? I have a few events coming up that will hopefully give me the chance to dress up a bit...


Here are some pictures that are giving me hope that I can beat this mofo!

BUSTIER, from Lookbook

I love all the tan accessories, and those pants! Lovely. I'm not crazy about strapless tops - maybe because of the constant fear of it falling off - but I suppose if you're tanned and have nice shoulders like this lady here you could pull it off.

Facehunter

In this outfit I love the contrast of the sequinned, OTT top with just a plain miniskirt, unkempt hair and minimal makeup. I am pretty crazy about Peter Pan collars, always.

Facehunter

As you may have been able to tell, I love this outfit precisely because of the rockabilly elements - the colourful pump heels, the high-waisted jeans, with a collared shirt tucked into it. Need I say more?

Boring wedding, from Lookbook

I love the stockings, I would love to wear white stockings but, alas, I cannot because of an unfortunate condition known as sausage legs. The necklace is divine, I have been obsessed with birdcage necklaces for ages! This one is particularly lovely.

Goldmember, Jak and Jil

I am a little bit in love with big, chunky, man-style watches at the moment. I love that tone of nail polish with the gold, too.

Facehunter

I know that this girl had a Livejournal, so I think now she has an actual blog? Either way, this outfit is so adorable. I don't know if it's a dress or a skirt and a top but I love the navy (as an alternative to black) and of course the gorgeous hair.

Any street style blogs you can link me too? Help me!

x

What I Wore 12.07.09

Hiiiiii.

This is what I wore to have a delicious vego breakfast at Dux Cafe, which is conveniently right at the end of my street. I am stuffed full of yummy food. Life is good.

♥ Leona Edminston Dress

♥ Valleygirl belt

♥ Cotton On leggings

♥ Steve Madden shoes

♥ Computer chip earrings I bought at Supernova

♥ Sportsgirl beret/tea cosy :P

You may notice the slightly shambolic state of my house at the moment... Boy is staying with me while he finds a permanent abode so I apologise! I am planning to organise it while listening to the Triple J Hottest 100 of all time. Hey Jude just came on.

From Wikipedia:

The song's original title was "Hey Jules", and it was intended to comfort Julian
Lennon from the stress of his parents' divorce. McCartney said, "I started with
the idea 'Hey Jules', which was Julian, don't make it bad, take a sad song and
make it better. Hey, try and deal with this terrible thing. I knew it was not
going to be easy for him. I always feel sorry for kids in divorces ... I had the
idea [for the song] by the time I got there. I ch anged it to 'Jude' because I
thought that sounded a bit better." Julian Lennon discovered the song had been
written for him almost twenty years later. He remembered being closer to
McCartney than to his father: "Paul and I used to hang about quite a bit—more
than Dad and I did. We had a great friendship going and there seems to be far
more pictures of me and Paul playing together at that age than there are
pictures of me and my dad."
Although McCartney originally wrote the song for Julian Lennon, John Lennon thought it had actually been written for him.

Thank you for all your congratulations about my uni results :) I was very happy indeed! I am kind of freaking out now because I realised it's only two weeks until I go back, where does all this time go?

x

p.s I have a new Twitter account - http://twitter.com/gininateacup! Follow me!

p.p.s I decided to do the q & a post for my 200th post, so it will still be a while! I will remind you closer to the actual date... but please still leave a question if you have one!

I passed...

My first semester of uni for the year! I even got a distinction for anthropology (and a credit for media studies and a pass for journalism)!


I'm very happy & relieved, I thought I did a lot worse! But I guess that's always the way. Now I'm working until the 27th, when I go back, to study radio news, more media studies, and more anthropology! Because I'm all on my own tonight I am celebrating with Chinese food and Spicks & Specks. Hooray!


Anyway, that's just a super quick update on what's been going on in my life. Hope all is well with you, don't forget about the questions post!

More posts will be up soon!

x

Supernova 2009

This weekend Boy & I went to Supernova, which is pretty much a comic book/cosplay/anime & manga extravaganza! It's the first time I've been so I was pretty flabbergasted by all the effort people go to and basically just people watched the whole time. Oh, and took photos of all the awesome costumes (none of what I wore because, well, it was quite boring compared to all the cosplay costumes!).

I ended up getting quite a lot of stuff including, oh, A COPY OF WATCHMEN SIGNED BY DAVE GIBBONS OMG dsljkfhlasdjkhfdashjfdfhjks. Also a book on Bettie Page (Bettie Page Rules! which has a lot of other women in it as well), some earrings made from computer chips, a cameo ring, & some Death Note books. I think that's all. I was totally overwhelmed by all of it, I felt a bit out of place to be honest, I love nerding it up with a bit of manga & anime but... wow. Not to that extent! It was so fantastically bizarre.

If by the off-chance anyone went, what did you think?

x

What I Wore 04.07.09

On Saturday night Boy took me out to dinner at Ciao Italia. YUM. If you live in Perth, why haven't you been already?! It is the yummiest Italian food I have ever eaten (and Italian is my favourite so I eat a lot of it). Plus they are massive servings, so we took the rest home & ate it for dinner tonight! I DIE (of deliciousness).

♥ Vintage dress (new! To me, anyway)

♥ Tights that I found while cleaning up my room

♥ Shoes from Zoom

♥ Earrings from Sportsgirl (new, you can't see it but they have little deer in the middle of the hoops)

♥ I also wore my blue Dotti coat because it is still coooold!

♥ Curly hair!

Print on the dress:

I love the colour of this dress, it's not a colour that I would usually go for but I love it. I can see it becoming a regular in my outfit photos...

So I had a pretty fantastic weekend, filled with yummy food, good wine & excellent company. Also on Friday I watched Ghost Town again & loved it even more than I did the first time! Very highly recommended! Ricky Gervais = ♥

Boy & I also went to Supernova so there will be photos from that to come!
How was your weekend?
x

Ask me, I won't say no, how could I?

Ooooold photo, you will be glad to know I no longer drink Pulse! :P

I have had this blog for almost a year & since I never did an introductory post, I thought I would jump onto the 'ask me anything' bandwagon & get you to interview me for the big blogiversary!

Any questions about my favourite places in Perth? What's my favourite food? What music I bop away to when writing the blog? Why I like to write? Who my favourite blogger is? How I met Boy? What it's like working in retail? JUST ASK! I would love to answer them & meet more of my lovely readers. I'll answer the questions when I have a good enough number.

Fire away!

x

I Like Your Style

While trends obviously don't give any fashionable long-term solutions, you can't deny that they are fun. However, you don't want to be someone who wears EVERY SINGLE TREND AT ONCE and looks like a fashion victim (who wears leggings as pants, buys exclusively from Supre and has an overly loud, annoying ringtone. You know the type, oui?).

One person who does trends really, really well is Diane Kruger (girlfriend of Pacey from Dawson's Creek, and currently in Inglorious Basterds. I only mention because I LOVE Quentin Tarantino and cannot WAIT to see this film).

Trend: One shouldered dresses

Why it works: It works on Kruger because she keeps the rest of the look minimalist. By incorporating feathers (another trend), she keeps it softer than the body-con, 80's inspired dresses that are usually what you think of when you look at this trend. I also like that while her hair is quite severe, it balances out the blatant girlyness of the dress. Having adorable matching shoes doesn't hurt, either!

Trend: Brights

Why it works: Although this dress is, well, ultra-short, I really like it. I think that the black accessories help to tone it down somewhat, and I like that she's matched the strength of the dress with the cute details on the shoulders.

Trend: Cropped shirts

Why it works: Matching the casual nature of a cropped shirt with tailored black pants makes the outfit seem more polished, somehow. I especially love the casual elegance of the accessories she's chosen - the straw boater and coral-coloured purse - it makes it look like she's off for a weekend in the Hampdens. I think that having killer abs would be the best accessory with a tee this cropped as well?

Trend: 50's elegance

Why it works: Although the retro look works for some very fashionable bloggers, if you're just wearing it for a bit of fun, then you may as well put your own spin on it. Kruger's completely sheer 50's frock with a bodysuit underneath definitely brings the 50's into the modern age, and something about the neckline is really fantastic.

Trend: Off-duty glamour

Why it works: OK, so this isn't really a trend, but it is nice when people make an effort even on their days off, you know? I love the fact that her sunglasses match her boyfriend's, and the gorgeous purple of the dress. Although she looks uber-casual (compared to her other looks, anyway) she still looks fabulous and not dressed down at all. It's nice when people can inject some of their personal aesthetic into every aspect of how they dress.

So, there you have Diane Kruger, trend icon! Although a lot of fashionistas talk up classics, you can always use trends to put some fun & new-ness back into your wardrobe. Take some tips from Diane and make sure to stay true to your personal style & not get too caught up in looking "so-this-minute".

x