I want them....

Vuitton Panda Tokyo

Louis Vuitton Panda in the Vuitton shop in Omotesando, Tokyo.

The Misanthrope

Went to see The Misanthrope with Damian Lewis and Keira Knightly in the west end last week. Gorgeous set, great acting and an amusing and thankfully modernised script. I liked Keira's Chinese-style jacket too. I know, I go to the theatre and sit there thinking about where I can get the outfits from... I can't help it.

Arty Farty Stanislavski

2010 is all about me finally trying out some of my old interests and seeing if they still give me the thrill and excitement my desk job just never will. I once was very active on the amateur stage ('darling!') but after many teenage years spent being told, on the chance occasions I met a professional in the field, 'not to put your daughter on the stage Mrs Worthington' that the joyous side of this activity waned and I went in a different creative direction. Recently a friend took an am dram course and I went to see him in a play as part of the Camden Fringe festival. It was really great and I was so jealous afterwards and a little bit gutted that I had stopped being all arty farty actorly and had become a nine to fiver with less and less confidence in my creative self.

So I've signed up and now find myself in strange warm up exercises, jiggling my shoulders and hips in a semi-circle of other 30 somethings of a Saturday morning whilst making high and low-pitched noises and feeling all silly. I can't say if I like it yet but I like the feeling that I'm exploring a different creative route that I enjoyed very much as a teenager. If I end up in the local church production of 'Joseph and is technicolour Jill Sander trench coat for Uniqlo' or I end up in Hollywood on a 500 a day calorie diet and looking all botoxed and tanned I don't mind. For now its just an adventure.

Pictures wise for the post I'm showing my most aspired to artists in the field, most in productions where I think they excelled. Julie Walters, Juliet Stevenson, Leonardo Dicaprio, James McAvoy and Anne-Marie Duff.

What I bought in the sales

Oooh naughty, I have spent all of my December paycheck and its January 6th. Hmm, looks like I'll be shopping in the basics food range until February. Ridiculously I started my sales shopping two days before Christmas whilst strolling through the very quiet shopping area near my mum's house in Teesside. A stress free, practically empty department store just doesn't happen in London so this was something of a novelty.

Anyhow I am now the proud owner of the cream/white leather dress from French Connection that I've had my eye on all year but couldn't buy thanks to the £250 price tag! I acquired it for £150 which is still massively too expensive for my wage but in my defense, I HAD TO HAVE IT. So what if I have to suck my stomach in for it to look good. It does fit, I swear.

Anyway I went mad buying lots of little tops etc... and have to say it was well worth it now I have something different to wear every day but I hate being very poor and so now think I should have showed a little more self-restraint.

PS. The Fiorelli bag is the same design but I got in light pink same as the t.shirt colour and the necklace wasn't even in the sale ha!

Fukase The Solitude of Ravens

The solitude of ravens is a hauntingly dark set of images by Japanese photographer Masahisa Fukase. The photographer had been famous for the joyous photographs he took of his wife but the marriage ended in 1976 and his work quickly turned to darker material. Despondent Fukase became infatuated with the raven of his native Hokkaido, ten years worth of photographs of these birds make up The Solitude of Ravens. It was published in Japan in 1986 and republished in the US in 1991. Soon after this Fukase fell down a staircase whilst intoxicated. He has been in a coma ever since. The Solitude of Ravens resonates with loss and lonlieness. The sharp silhouettes of the ravens haunt my mind long after I've but the book back on the shelf.
Photos Copyright Masahisa Fukase

Will Steacy Photographer

I am drawn to Will Steacy's photographs because of the light, the sharp focus and stillness of each scene and the overwhelming feeling of emptiness they convey. These are just some of his images from two projects. The first, Down These Mean Streets, is about the neighbourhoods you wouldn't want to be in at night. The areas left crumbling from lack of investment. The other images are from the project Eclipses about the Mural Arts Programme in Philladelphia which attempts to spark positive change in struggling neighbourhoods.
All Photos Copyright Will Steacy

Quentin Jones Painter/Illustrator

Illustrator Quentin Jones whose work for me stood out at the Central Saint Martin's graduate show in Islington, London this year has collaborated with E.Tautz, Saville Row tailors on an animated film to promote their S/S 2010 collection. The film was shown recently at London Fashion Week's first dedicated menswear day.

www.quentinjones.info
All images copyright Quentin Jones

Summer Teeth Blog

This is a really good blog to follow as it's like this lovely lady has made us an edit of all the fashion magazines that exist and put them all in to one lovely big visual blog. I'm putting some of the images here but you should go to the blog page and sit with a cup of cha and spend the next two hours browsing. I insist!
http://egotrippingatthegates.blogspot.com/