Petticoats, Vintage, and Beautiful Women.

What a ridiculous last couple months! Right now I'm all about appreciating the small things in life that are going amazingly well, completely disregarding what has been a burden to me achieving greatness! An epic sentence, I know, but things have been pretty amazing lately. 

I always look forward to the beginning of the week. They give you a chance to "reset" and a chance to start over on a new foot. Most of the time I actually look forward to them; they are an opportunity to take stock of your environment, your to-dos, and reaffirm your purpose in the world. Unless you have to be up at 6a... that's a whole different thing. 

Sitting at 12p, typing away on my long neglected blog, sipping a cup of coffee with some sweetened condensed milk-- I'm amazingly happy right now and have been on this trajectory for a little while.

Within the span of a week I got to see one of my fashion idols perform her beautiful burlesque show, got to enjoy the opera for the first time in my life, and got to dance down Market Street during one of the most momentous parades in SF history. I'm so incredibly blessed by the universe right now.

manifesto point #10

 There is Never a Good Excuse to Not Take Care of Yourself or Your Surroundings.

This nearly all is specific to a raging sore in many personalities everywhere. One has to wonder at what point did the entrance of laziness overtake (healthy)pride in the self and (healthy)pride in surroundings and environments. I will most certainly admit my room is a disaster area and my hair and makeup in a mess half the time... I'm definitely not immune to this point. However, there is self dignity that I've been trying to cultivate, making sure this isn't the case 9/10 times.

There is never an excuse to not take care of yourself. There really isn't. Laziness? The perceived freedom in being able to do absolutely nothing for yourself? There's really nothing noble in being a slob who doesn't bother to shower, let alone put on a clean pair of pants and make sure your nails look decent.

Lack of just giving any sort of damn about this is also unfortunately pervasive. "I just.don't.care."-- really, what sort of excuse is that? If you think that you're being judged solely on the content of your character, as far as modern times are concerned, it still a work in progress. People will first and foremost take a look at you, think to themselves "Damn- he/she looks like crap. WTF is wrong with him/her?"-- and bam, judgment. No one is above it, and frankly, its part of our times and way of life.    

I'm not trying to advocate being overly fussy and a macaroni. Just please be careful to take pride in the self, pride in your appearance, and as the saying goes "PUT YOUR BEST FOOT FORWARD." Everyone can take the time to put their best foot forward.

 

I love this quote from Dita von Teese about this topic (she probably puts it nicer than I do!):

"I always believe in taking a little bit of time. I'm telling you, the day that you decide not to brush your hair, or the day you decide just to put on a pair of sweats that have a stain on them and you don't wear any makeup, that might be the day that you run into that one person you don't want to run into when you look like that. So I have a rule about making an effort in the morning before I leave no matter where I'm going."

This point also is a reminder to take care of your things; they'll last longer if you do. Slow down. Consider how you like/need/admire this item, and how the life span of it will change dramatically if you actually care for it.

There is never an excuse to not take care of your surroundings. Pick up your trash on the street. Don't walk in the grass if there's pavement available. Recycle when you can. Common sense. Its unfortunate that so many people just shrug their shoulders or give lip service to this point. Is it really that annoying to not throw your garbage on the street? Really now, that's just stupid. Don't be a douche and ruin something beautiful.

Thai iced tea and digital collages-- how fulfilling.

This past week I (re)joined the Polyvore community which has proved as interesting as I thought it would be. I all ready knew what the website was all about-- user generated graphics, layouts, and collages of fashion items posted all over the internet. If its been photographed, it's more than likely available on the site. From the occasional browsing of Woman's Wear Daily (WWD), I gathered that Polyvore was finally being taken seriously-- and by finally I mean, probably for the past couple years- where have I been??

Anyway, I heard about there being contests with collages so I figured it was worth a shot to join once again. Glad that the interface and I aren't the best of friends or else I could get totally hooked! I still prefer Photoshop for all my graphic needs, of course.

Test #1 by aquavert featuring a fascinator hat

Test #2 by aquavert featuring print dresses

Test #3 by aquavert featuring vintage handbags

The last collage with Dita is obviously my favorite-- I was finally starting to understand the different features of the graphic interface by the time I made it-- knew more of what I was doing. I could probably spend hours browsing and commenting on other people's "sets" but I'm limiting myself to the occasional weekly visit; I have more important things to concentrate on-- and I mean that in the most positive way imaginable.

This tastes like lemon merangue pie and I adore that.

Yes, yes. I'm well aware that I'm being heavily influenced by popular culture these past few months. Yes, I know this is most definitely unlike me. Then again, it is a nice anchor for my wandering mind. I'm sure if I were to ask my boyfriend on the matter, he would deny his own influence as well-- which I don't mind. I will take responsibility of all this all on my own.

I suppose you can say that I look at inspirational ideas, people, situations, and places a little bit differently than many other people do-- an artist's trained eye, so to speak. (Well, even that would be an ego-stroking comment; that's a topic for another day.) Looking past what is and isn't "in" and actually picking out the traits that I find desirable in each inspirational source without bias is actually extremely liberating.

With all that said, I reiterate that I've been more-so into (american? western?) pop culture than normal which I'm ok with. Being sucked in by Kim Kardashian's huge ass isn't on my to-do list, however (at least not yet, anyway).


Katy Perry:

 

I don't listen to her music, but her style is inspirational in how it flatters femininity and well... uh, assets. Looking at how Katy Perry asserts herself with confidence gives me a little more hope which is great-- her interviews really reflect how at ease with herself she is and which I admire. Obviously, that's something to be learned with time. Granted, the songs she puts out are a little much for me -- but the positive attitude and giant grin at all times are a huge plus and I definitely like her.

Dita von Teese:

Oh, I like her... as much of a dirty pleasure as it might be. Classic, sexy, and very very dedicated to vintage styles. I really admire how she turns fashions and ideals that are considered very "grandma" by modern standards and brings out their old appeal with full vigor. Putting her burlesque aside (and which I have no problem with, btw!), she's more covered up than a lot of fashion icons of today and to be honest, that's what  I like. Its all classic and tasteful, with attention to detail and frankly-- I love the silhouette of her fashion way more than the modern things normally touted.

Ew. No thanks. 

I will gladly embrace feminine, soft lines, beautiful colors, fabrics and non-anorexic (or drug-fueled [Lohan D8 ]) style.  

Miss Pandora/Louise Ebel

I actually found her blog via Forever21 which was weird, but I'm still glad I stumbled upon her website and all the cool pictures she updates with. She's a wonderful inspiration for a few different reasons: 1- She's around my age range which I think is so cool! She's doing so much for someone so young. 2- If she can do it, so can I (haha!). 3- She mixes and matches high-end with some of the fast fashion styles of today. Louise is definitely a modern fashion icon in my life and I love it.

Looking at what I think is attractive clothing, I'm happy to say I still slant towards more vintage and older style. Even though I may not be as fully steeped in the (Japanese) street styles as I used to be, I'm still within boundaries I love and appreciate. Yes, I love pink, yes I adore frivolous decoration, curvy lines, stockings, ruffles, lace, and the totality of "girly", so I don't feel its a betrayal of 10 years of self identification. But at least I'm comfortable saying I can take it to the next level and be more grown up than previously and I'm all good with it all.

 

(Top 2 images from Google, purse by DesignsByAmbiana @Etsy , cuff by TheVanityFair @Etsy )