Sunday Wishlist: Disco Heaven

Sunday Wishlist: Disco Heaven by jalekseyeva featuring plastic sunglasses

BDG crop top, $20

Nanette Lepore floral print pants, $160

BDG mid rise jeans, $30

High heel shoes, $47

ASOS plastic sunglasses, $31

Opening Ceremony Press Opening Ceremony Book, $65

DIESEL, $79

T shirt

H&M Fashion Against AIDS Spring 2012 Collection | nitrolicious.com

Bustier imprimé ethnique Fashion for AIDS de H&M 

 Ever since I saw the lineup for the Governors Ball Music Festival in New York at the end of June, I've been thinking about all things loud, electronic, and indie. Within two hours of seeing the lineup, I had practically texted anyone and everyone who I knew was living in NYC this summer, bought one-day tickets for Sunday (to see the likes of Modest Mouse, Explosions in the Sky, Cults, Devendra Banhart, Freelance Whales...!), and drafted this disco-electronic-influenced wishlist. This wishlist is basically all I could ever dream to wear for a music festival in a cosmopolitan city, even though I would probably die of heat stroke if I ever tried to wear a sweater or bomber jacket in the middle of a New York summer. Regardless, the bright neon pop of the colors of these items evoke my current favorite artists-- like this Major Lazer concert tee, for instance (yet another artist playing at Governors Ball!). Sunglasses-- like these amazing round ones with detachable lenses-- and a good camera bag are also essential for any music festival. My Canon deserves much nicer accommodations than the mesh Canon bag it came with, so this Diesel leather camera bag seems perfect, surprisingly compact, and just sturdy enough to handle some Passion Pit-influenced moshing. 


Also perfect for good electro-pop is the Fashion Against Aids collection at H&M, which combines great design with a worthwhile cause. The neon prints on the bustier and bomber jacket above are perfect for a concert in a big city. Likewise for this UO sweater with rainbow sleeves; I know I swore I would never go back to UO but sometimes their sale items are pretty much faultless, such as this interesting scribble-print cigarette pant-- unique but subtle enough from a distance to work on multiple occasions. I'd pair them with these disco platforms from Ruche, which seem to go with pretty much everything. And although the Nanette Lepore floral pants are a bit out my price range, how great would it be to dance to Sleigh Bells or Metric with this bold print? Certainly concert-friendly material. Lastly, did you know the Opening Ceremony Press book is available on preorder? It includes original photography by Terry Richardson, zine inserts by Chloe Sevigny and Spike Jonze, and includes art and written work by M.I.A., Alexander Wang, Rodarte...! I don't know if I'll be able to afford the hefty price tag, but it's definitely worth a peek.


Hopefully this wishlist inspires some music-inspired style choices, or at least gives you some items to add to your download list. Personally I can't wait for my next summer music fest. It has been far, far too long. Governors Ball and Lollapalooza, here I come!

Thursday Inspiration

Off to New York until Tuesday so I won't be posting as often. Can't wait to visit my favorite old college haunts (which mostly involve thrift stores and a lot of delicious food... and art museums, of course).

All images from my tumblr.

Corely Tenold

via Origin of Cool

Jenny Kee, via Street Peeper

Comme des Garcons detail

Bill Murray at Cannes

via Suicide Blonde

via Suicide Blonde

via The White Pepper

via Humans of New York

via http://topit.me

Now, packing and getting ready for New York. Happy almost-weekend!

Fiesta Swap!

It's no secret that I love clothing swaps. For $10 or less, you trade in your gently used or new items for completely new-to-you pieces. The surprise of finding a longed-for piece randomly at a swap is priceless. The digital photo print shift dress from the last fashion swap I blogged about is already one of my favorite pieces-- and it was free!

This month the Swapaholics put on the "Fiesta Swap," where the attendees were asked to bring the loudest, craziest, brightest items in their closet. Alas, I didn't find anything over-the-top amazing the way I did at the last swap, but I did leave with a bag full of gorgeous new items:

The roundup: a ridiculously cute black sweater with a Rooster design (immediately makes me think of Tavi Gevinson [esp. in this photo] from Style Rookie!), a vintage red sundress that you've already seen, a blue/white striped sleeveless sweater from Lily Pulitzer, a gray cropped sleeveless knit top, and a very MJ (Jackson, not Jordan, that is) black vest with stud details on the shoulders (Thriller-inspired outfits here I come!).

The Swapaholics photographers snapped a few pictures of the attendees so here are some photos of me from the event (all photos courtesy The Swapaholics):

(You can see my friend Diyang in the neon green in this last photo-- we actually met at the same event last month. Crazy how these things work out!)

Blue and white polka dot dress, vintage (great-grandmother's own), gifted

Neon orange belt, ASOS, $12

Vintage tiger earrings, thrifted in San Francisco, $10

Vintage leather crossbody messenger, Hobo, Ebay, $34

We also had drinks and burritos courtesy of the Swapaholics:

Yummm.

P.S. Did you notice anything different about me in these last couple of posts? I dyed my hair-- seemingly at the same time as my friend Maggie from Stranger Than Vintage, who lives a thousand miles away, completely coincidentally! I'm still getting used to the slight hint of ombre, and generally I wanted something with a little more 'oomph,' but it's just subtle enough to work in daily life without being "that girl with the crazy hair" (let's just say I had red streaks my senior year of college and became, er, a little too popular. People in huge lecture classes with me would say hi to me in the middle of Manhattan and I had no clue who they were; apparently "the girl who sits in the front of class with red streaks" became "the girl that was a little too recognizable for comfort").

Here's what my hair looked like immediately after the dyeing-and-straightening (excuse the laptop camera):

And on the next day, in slightly different lighting:

Completely different look in different lights, huh? I love how the sun changes the look; it looks particularly interesting when up in a bun, or in braids, because just a few hints of dyed hair show through.

Here are some inspiration pictures that I brought with me to the hairstylist, from across the interwebs:

The last two photos are of Preetma Singh, Vogue US Fashion Assistant and woman of the incredible golden ombre hair. She was definitely my most glorious inspiration for the ombre idea-- look at how perfectly her hair goes from chocolate brown to sunny blonde at the tips!

Why did I dye my hair? Tough question. Partly restlessness, partly to symbolize a kind of new life, a kind of change. Women, I've noticed, tend to drastically change their appearance after changes in their life-- usually break-ups, to psychosomatically induce an entry into a new life state. It makes perfect sense-- if you look different, you will learn to feel different, and better. I dyed my hair with red streaks in college after a horrifying break-up, and also pierced my ear cartilage within the same month. Although my life is stable romantically, it was an extremely difficult semester work-wise. After 18 straight years of schooling, I just finished my last full courseload of my entire life-- and thus I changed my hair to symbolize this new life state. Good riddance, 4 graduate term papers per semester!

How about you? Do you change your hair or the way you look to symbolize a kind of rite of passage?

Hey Lolita Hey

Man, I love swaps. And thrift stores. And vintage. And rifling through my mom's and grandmother's suitcases of old clothes. I just looked through my closet and counted that about 60% of my entire wardrobe is swapped, secondhand, or vintage. Which is quite an accomplishment, if I do say so myself. Most of my so-called "new" stuff is just clothing from when I was in college and scoured the sales racks at H&M and Urban Outfitters religiously. That is not to say that H&M never produces great stuff, on occasion-- these shoes, for example, are my precious Swedish Hasbeens from their H&M collaboration last spring (I scooped up the absolute last pair in red in the entire store-- it was hidden in an entirely different department!). Regardless, aside from the occasional necessity, I'm making it my goal to buy almost exclusively secondhand clothing from now on. One, because it's hard to buy new clothes (of quality) on a grad student's budget, and two, because it's the most ethical thing to do. It's sustainable, and all-around better for the environment, the world, you, me, and everyone we know. Case closed.

In any case, I got this dress at the Swapaholics "Fiesta" swap last week (we were asked to bring in our most colorful clothes). I was so excited to find this red vintage floral sundress; it's a bit big on me, but I really don't give a care in the world. Who became queen of the world (other than Beyonce, of course) and dictated that all women must wear formfitting tops? I, for one, feel most comfortable in flowing vintage dresses. There's a time for skinny jeans, a time for pencil skirts, but now is the time for loose sundresses, especially given this gorgeous 80 degree weather we've been having (albeit temporarily).

 Red floral vintage sundress, swapped

Black headband, boutique in Paris, about $6

Red clog sandals, Swedish Hasbeens for H&M, $65
Red heart-shaped sunglasses, Ebay, $4

Neon orange skinny belt, ASOS, $12

Color wheel pendant, Yellow Owl Workshop, gifted by the bf, $44

Isn't this necklace amazing? It was my boyfriend's Christmas present for me this past year! I already traveled across three continents with it. That said, I'm not sure whether you could technically call it a surprise, seeing as that I sent him an email saying, "buy me this!" with the link to Yellow Owl Workshop's website, which I saw on Refinery29 earlier that week. But hey, whatever works. He was happy to provide me with a gift I liked at a grad-student-appropriate price range, I was happy, everyone was happy.

Hope everyone's enjoying sunny weather and relaxing times, wherever you are! And send me your thoughts on swaps and secondhand clothing-- do you buy the ethical argument? What's your reason for wearing vintage and used stuff, or are you an exclusively non-secondhand kind of person?

So you wanna be a movie star?

Doesn't everyone secretly want to be a movie star? I was playing around with GIMP (the free, easier version of photoshop) a few nights ago and found this crazy awesome filmstrip filter. Isn't it great? It really does make digital photographs look like they were filmed on celluloid. Or maybe I'm just deluding myself. One day I'd really love to learn how to work with real film, so I could stop relying on the DSLR so much.

Here are a few joke-y Hollywood-inspired photographs from a secret modeling session that I had with myself and my Canon. I'm usually really shy when other people take my picture; it makes me extremely uncomfortable most of the time. Which is why 100% of my photos are taken with my beloved Canon and good ol' tripod. I'm not sure why I feel so strange when other people take my photo. I don't find it flattering-- just weird. I much prefer being behind the camera rather than in front of it.

 Vintage Denim Jacket, Guess Jeans, thrifted

Floral strapless bralet (remember this post when I tried to decide on them?), Wasteland, $26

Black shorts, Marciano by Guess, swapped

Black pumps, Sofft, DSW(super old), $50 

These are the outtakes of a Lookbook contest for GUESS that I really wanted to enter. In the end I decided against it-- the look asked for "sexy" photographs and I really didn't feel comfortable putting up a photo like that on the internet. These are pretty tame, after all; what Lookbook was looking for was a whoooole other story. Besides, I'm a grad student, and next year I'll start teaching undergrads. I'd be absolutely mortified if any of them found any of those photos. So I decided against it. Besides, Marciano (who owns Guess) donated thousands of dollars to Mitt Romney's campaign. Bad move, GUESS, bad move.

In any case, while I was fooling around with my camera settings, I tried a very Brigitte Bardot all-over cat eye. I used so much black liquid eyeliner that there was barely a drop of it left after the one-person photoshoot! My boyfriend wasn't so much a fan of the cat-eye (or of the outfit, which he called "very Pretty Woman), and I don't think I'll brave wearing it outdoors too often, but it really picks up well with black-and-white photography, don't you think? Wearing so much eye makeup is strangely transformative. It looks and feels like a mask-- like wearing the makeup of an entirely different person. It reminded me of how much I love Halloween, and how much time and care I put into my costume every year (let's just say people are still talking about my legendary Frida Kahlo costume!). 

It also reminded me of the gorgeous vintage photographs of my favorite Hollywood celebrities of the last century. Since I'm a film student, I figured I'd make a list of my ten favorite female actresses of all time, accompanied by a few of their films that I personally recommend for best appreciating their "gorgeous gorgeousity made flesh" (A Clockwork Orange)

1. Elizabeth Taylor, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958)

2. Brigitte Bardot, Et Dieu Crea La Femme (1956), Contempt (1963)

3. Anna Karina, Une femme est une femme (1961), Pierrot le fou (1965), Vivre sa vie (1962)

4. Rita Hayworth, Gilda (1946)

5. Catherine Deneuve, Les Parapluies de Cherbourg (1964), Belle de jour (1967)

6. Jean Seberg, Breathless (1960)

7. Greta Garbo, The Joyless Street (1925)

 8. Kim Novak, Vertigo (1958)

 9. Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), Funny Face (1957)

 10. Ava Gardner, The Killers (1946)

Modern Times

Getting the $5 Groupon for a year's worth of Vogue US is probably the best decision I have made in a long time. I've always known it, but now that I'm finally a subscriber, there's even more proof, month after month: Vogue's writing is crazy intelligent, and their editorials are shot with grace and artistry. I'm constantly amazed by the editors' abilities to mention Proust and Miu Miu within the same sentence, if not the same clause.

But it was only when I saw the "Modern Times" editorial (referencing Charlie Chaplin) in the May Vogue that I really, truly, madly, deeply fell in love with Vogue. Although that might have been because of the use of my favorite male actor Michael Fassbender, with whom (like many/most women in America) I am really, truly, madly, deeply in love. Oh Fassy, you had me at Mr. Rochester.

Aren't these just gorgeous? I love the composition of all of these photographs-- the slim midcentury modern lines, just the right amount of detail. The interesting shapes of the clothes, the grim urban colors-- at once 1920s and 1950s. The middle photograph could have substituted for any Rene Magritte painting, and the black-and-white photos have the whimsy of Charlie Chaplin.

Having just salivated over this editorial a few weeks ago, I put on the following outfit for a night at the home of one of my favorite profs (whose name I will keep secret, but who I knew would appreciate the eclectic aesthetic of the avant-garde):

 Black-white high-low tunic shirt, thrifted ($22) Buffalo Exchange (last seen here)

Black tank top (under tunic), about $15, Zara (old)

Black Ralph Lauren legging pants, thrifted $10

Black Dolce Vita 'Jax' Booties, Plumforpolly.com, $140

Plated gold necklace, Vintage from Nava in Rhode Island, $24 (last seen here)

 Maybe it was the high-low shirt. Maybe it was my accidentally-too-short bangs. Maybe the gold plated necklace, or my glasses. But this look seemed very beatnik-meets-flapper-meets-surrealist, with a huge dose of Elsa Schiaparelli. Can't wait to see that exhibit in New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art!