BRING ME EDELWEISS

poisoned femininity

2009-09-15T23:18:00.003+01:00

I die. The texture, the prints, the rich, deep colours. These sisters have completely upped the ante in bewitchery. The below image is so haunting, like if the three witches of Macbeth were beautiful towering amazonian women.

( rodarte s/s 10 )

yoshitaka amano

2009-09-14T19:52:00.003+01:00

This man has been my favourite artist since I was 11 (and also introduced me to Gustav Klimt). You can find many more high quality images of his work at this gallery.

what lies beneath the surface

2009-09-14T11:59:00.004+01:00

Mount Etna (Valley Of The Ox), Sicily 2008
Another favourite photographer I've come across recently. These almost look like a bleeding orifice on our planet.
( Guy Sargent )

mummification

2009-09-11T13:36:00.003+01:00

I remember referencing her Refinery Smoke collection a lot during one of my projects last year. Her Fall 09 collection is even more exciting though, she's really taking the intricateness to another level.
( Iris van Herpen )

solargraphy

2009-09-04T13:21:00.002+01:00

These have been some of my absolute favourite photographs for some time now.

"... six months of the sun's luminescent trails and its subtle change of course caused by the earth's movement in orbit.

The lowest arc shows the first day of exposure on the winter solstice, while the top curves were captured in the middle of summer.

Its dotted lines of light are the result of overcast days when the sun struggled to penetrate the cloud."

( justin quinnell )

risto bimbiloski

2009-09-04T12:20:00.002+01:00

( assembly NY )

post-payday wishlist

2009-08-31T13:20:00.002+01:00

1. bullet necklace from Bonadrag (I'll have to search for a suitable substitute on etsy though...)
2. spike bracelet from River Island
3. heels from Topshop
4. stripe oversize tee from Monki
5. scarf from Topshop
6. shoes from Topshop
7. jeans from... Topshop

rough cut

2009-08-28T22:22:00.002+01:00

( Zoe Kendall )
Be sure to take a look at her "Precious Creatures" collection too. It's a little too freakishly wormlike for my comfort zone (also reminds me of those little creatures that inhabited Ursula's lair in The Little Mermaid) but still very cool.

sogno romantico

2009-08-26T20:54:00.003+01:00

( tfs )
I'm really liking the chaos and overkill of the textures in these.

ain't born typical

2009-08-25T19:18:00.003+01:00

Alison Mosshart

the way we pictured the world no longer seemed adequate or accurate

2009-08-24T20:47:00.003+01:00

Abstract satellite images of earth. Incredible...

MacDonnell Mountains (Australia), The Optimist (Kalahari Desert, Namibia), The Great Sandy Desert (Australia), The Great Sandy Scars (Australia), Karman Vortices, Ghadamis River (Libya), Iraqi Military emplacement, Dasht-e Kavir (Iran), Akpatok Island (Canada), Aleutian Clouds (North America).

( source )

incomplete, yet with absolutely no sense of loss

2009-08-24T20:33:00.004+01:00

etchings by Susan Aldworth
Susan Aldworth's art explores the nature of consciousness. In 1999, the experience of observing her brain live on a monitor during a diagnostic brain scan triggered an ongoing fascination with the relationship between the physical brain and the sense of self. Since then Aldworth has worked and collaborated with doctors, neuroscientists, neuropsychologists, etchers, artists and musicians in pursuit of this elusive project. She has observed numerous brain scans in hospitals and undergone research brain scans herself to try to make sense of the material basis of personality. In parallel with these investigations she has experimented with etching techniques in collaboration with master etcher Nigel Oxley and developed a radical method whose chemical processes are analogous to those in the brain that might be responsible for personality.

Found at but does it float, my favourite blog right now.

so when you really love me darling...

2009-08-20T14:39:00.002+01:00

From Topshop. I've been trying to curb the amount of impulse buys I make, but seriously, I had to have this! It's a little too large for my dainty child hands, so I might pop it onto a chain.

alidra alic

2009-08-10T12:16:00.002+01:00

This is the kind of jewellery that would have had my old jewellery tutor foaming at the mouth. I can't count how many times she complained about pieces that were "too raw" and looked like "things were growing out of them". I really enjoy a little slight repulsion on the otherhand. The first thing I thought of when I found Alidra Alic was the 1988 film Akira.

I must admit though, I've slightly scarred myself now by reading about screw worms and "Mongolian Death" worms this morning.

( source )

cats in the post

2009-08-08T23:46:00.002+01:00

( James Ari King )

today's random wants...

2009-08-08T23:38:00.002+01:00

Shoes from Faith.
Velvet skirt and knitted jumper from Topshop.
Harness from All Saints.

my whole existance is flawed

2009-08-08T14:42:00.004+01:00

I just realised he's engaged now. Haha, damn, there go all my teenage fantasies.

2009-08-08T14:18:00.002+01:00

On a side note, my father has been going on for years about how he wants a goat for the garden. We nicknamed the scenic route to my grandparents house "the Billy Goat Way" when we were younger because of all the goats scattered along the roadside.

quoth the raven, `nevermore.'

2009-08-03T13:00:00.002+01:00

Aguri Sagimori F/W 08

my little tornado, my little hurricano

2009-07-29T22:34:00.002+01:00

I love this video, so intimate.

library of dust

2009-07-27T18:46:00.003+01:00

“... these canisters hold the cremated remains of patients from an American psychiatric hospital. Oddly reminiscent of bullet casings, the canisters are literal gravesites. Reacting with their ash inhabitants, the canisters are now blooming with secondary minerals, articulating new metallic landscapes.”

Library of Dust by David Maisel. I'll definately be buying his book come payday on Friday.

( source )

tell the harpies that land on your bed post...

2009-07-24T22:39:00.002+01:00

Nina Ricci Spring 2008 RTW.
One of my favourite palettes.
( source )

in labyrinths of coral caves

2009-07-24T14:41:00.004+01:00

( source )
(editing to add, the maker of these has an etsy shop where they sell little coral necklaces. It's empty at the moment however.)

Two of my favourite things meshed together!
Also, check out my friend Rachel O'Malley's knitted picnic at Streaking Scarlett. So twee!

high tide

2009-07-22T21:18:00.002+01:00

Not to sound trite, but I really can't express how much I love Jane's most recent outfit at Sea Of Shoes.

i want...

2009-07-22T20:49:00.004+01:00

Brogues, Office (because my current ones are a bit scruffy).
Dress, All Saints.
Boots, River Island (about £100 cheaper than the All Saints military I've been lusting over, week and a half to mull these over but I can't see myself deciding against them).
Padlock bracelet, All Saints (though I'm waiting to hear back via email about the nickel content of this since the store staff didn't seem too sure... more on that topic later).
Orion vest as per the below post, All Saints.
Mesh tshirt, American Apparel.

What I really want more than anything though is this Alexander Wang bag, boo.

nebula

2009-07-21T23:03:00.003+01:00

( Christensen Astro Images, Hubble )

so long marianne

2009-07-17T11:13:00.003+01:00

Lookbook picks from Topshop's Fall collection "Marianne".

( source )

Chiharu Shiota

2009-07-13T17:16:00.002+01:00

If you live nearby London, you can see her work currently in the Hayward Gallery until September. I doubt I'll be able to make it :(
( source )

cuckoo

2009-07-13T11:38:00.002+01:00

Topshop, £50
wantwantwant

who is the lamb and who is the knife?

2009-07-13T10:46:00.005+01:00

Back from Mallorca with epic tanlines. It was rather relaxing, just a week of browsing little jewellery shops, reading (see below), taking long walks, listening to Florence and the Machine and watching my father eat his body weight in miniture octopi.

I'm about 3/4 through Catch-22 but without a shadow of doubt it's become my new all time favourite. Next on my reading list are The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco and Kafka of the Shore by Haruki Murakami.

don't say you know we've gone andromeda

2009-07-03T18:05:00.004+01:00

( ffffound, flickr )

Going away for a week to be beside the sea :)

sick of social graces

2009-06-30T19:41:00.004+01:00

"This season Takahashi notes that he was inspired by white, fluffy creatures with luminous eyes called "Graces." These creatures, invented by Takahashi, keep their distance from humans. A secret organization called Gila, he says, has succeeded in breeding and protecting the Graces. Gila also has played a crucial role in fostering a relationship between both the Graces and the human species. To illustrate this notion, Takahashi made dolls (which looked somewhat like a cross between an alien and a monkey with luminous eyes and a light on the tip of their tails), which rested on the shoulders of a few of the mannequins that were set-up in the center of the gallery space."

Jun Takahashi's Graces. I came across this exhibition on Sea Of Shoes. I'm crazy about the concept behind this. They strike me as benevolent and innocent yet slightly melancholic and haunting. So eerily beautiful.

Another I sorely wish I could have gone to... hell, going to Tokyo in general. 9 years in the waiting. I love the peculiarity of things like this.

( flickr )

by the crescent disc rising amethyst

2009-06-29T23:05:00.005+01:00

( gucci s/s 09, A. V. Max, flickr )

Always had a thing for precious and semi-precious stones, cut and uncut. Especially agate, look at the textures! The symbolisms they represent still fascinate me. When we were little, my brother and I used to casually collect them in little plastic cases from the Ulster Museum (they're probably still in our attic). I even based my final A-level art project (that's only one page of prep) two years ago on them (it was something like a choice between minerals or enjoyment I think...).

Ignoring the horribly gaudy chain, I'm loving the idea of the bottom necklace. Easy DIY. Sometimes I seriously wish I'd kept on jewellery & silversmithing instead of textiles...

its got lots to do with magnets and the pull of the moon

2009-06-29T17:13:00.003+01:00

Some more Sarah Moon. Won't be the last of her here.

she's a work of art and i should know

2009-06-29T10:37:00.005+01:00

( source )

whiplash girl-child in the dark

2009-06-22T15:56:00.003+01:00

Favourite picks from the H&M Fall/Winter 2009 lookbook.

The below garments will have deserving places awaiting them in my wardrobe.

Were I also daring enough/could somehow get over my slight distaste for velvet this dress would be mine in an instant. The huge bulging sleeves are something very special. Teaming them with the peplum belt above is just genius (something else I'm lusting after).

Some of the menswear lookbook photos were equally as good. Aim this winter is to adapt back into something other than tights and leggings.

( source )

streaking scarlett vintage

2009-06-15T20:54:00.003+01:00

I'm taking over my friend Lauren's blog, Streaking Scarlett Vintage, which runs alongside her little vintage selling empire, so anyone reading this ought to have a little peak over there too.

And while you're at it, you should nip over to her eBay vintage shop.

a room with some lace and paper flowers

2009-06-15T20:36:00.003+01:00

"you pretty thing" my man says, "but i bought you beautiful dresses"

2009-06-12T17:02:00.004+01:00

I came across this Kate Moss for Topshop dress last Tuesday in Manchester. The photos do not do it justice. Honestly. I picked it up and ran to the changing rooms while my friend told me how "me" it was. I just adore it, the muted blues, the pansies that aren't overly twee and the fit oh my word the fit. I've never put on a dress before (apart from my sixth year formal dress) and thought how it was actually perfectly made for me! It was unreal. I need this dress it my life, I can't wait until payday in two weeks time.

My last official day in Manchester was lovely, hanging out with friends in Mr Scruff's Cup Cafe. I highly recommend the Heidi Pie (sweet potato, goats cheese and spinach) with gravy & mushy peas.

This entry was difficult to write. Fat cat Jess is flailing all over my lap in ecstacy and she's just too cute to ignore for 5 minutes.

cabinet of curiosities

2009-06-07T13:30:00.005+01:00

( 1 , 2 )

I need to visit this library, the Real Gabinete Português de Leitura in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It completely fills all my allusions towards neomedievalism and "fantasy" (not to totally geek out, but, you know...).

I'm so enamoured with the aesthetic of books, particularly old battered ones. A couple of my friends in Manchester study Design & Art Direction and their tutor, Sue Platt has done some wonderful things with books.

I adore handmade notepads (I'm so particular about writing only on brown paper though! Anything else has to endure a nice long bath in tea or coffee...). I take my notepads everywhere with me, I'd be lost without them. I'm forever whipping it out to jot down thoughts or note down things to remember or look up. People always ask at this point to have a gander through it, but to me that'd be like them having a little insight right into my brain. No thanks.

Interiors

2009-06-07T00:47:00.003+01:00

My little uni flat is so sad and depressing now I've carted all my things to the new house (what an ordeal!). I'm looking forward to painting my currently lilac bedroom come September. The landlord is so good, he's going to reimburse me and everything for the paint. So long as I don't paint it matte black...

Dirty creatures, tiny animals

2009-06-05T19:31:00.003+01:00

Just Like a Woman (Bob Dylan cover)
5:55
Tel Que Tu Es

Calming the snake

2009-06-03T17:52:00.003+01:00

Recent purchases:

Lace body from & snakeskin print crop top from Topshop, lace bandeau from Urban Outfitters, Octopus necklace from Etsy, Patrick Wolf Vulture tshirt from the gig, Blood is the New Black tshirt from Urban Outfitters, camera pouch from Etsy

The Vulture tee is ridiculously large at the moment so I'll be attacking it with scissors at some stage. I've started eyeing up printed tshirts again after steering so clear of them for years now. I really have to get my paws on a tee like this somehow. It'd be easy enough to do a transfer print. ( credit )

However the most epic tshirt I've come across lately is this "Mermaid Danila Polyakov" by Konstantin Gayday, SS08 ( source ). What I wouldn't give to wear a little something Danila Polyakov inspired.

What's the time Mr. Wolf?

2009-06-02T21:36:00.005+01:00

Sunday night a friend and I went to see Patrick Wolf. My god, he is just such a beautiful and serene young man in person. So talented and so modest. I think we both fell a little in love. He jumped down into the crowd during Tristan and pushed right past us, staring us in the face. If only my battery hadn't died just beforehand. I still got some decent photos though (the new camera works a treat at gigs).

I'm packaging my whole life into boxes at the moment. In a week and 24 hours I'll be back in Belfast. I was clearing out the papers in my bedside table and came across this extremely similar Dazed & Confused editorial I had tore out (along with a bag of Tayto crisps I forgot all about!!). I'm usually very adverse towards neon but I can definately get on board with this kind of UV makeup I think.

Choking on Adam's Apple

2009-05-29T00:47:00.003+01:00

I saw Angels and Demons last night (Ewan McGregor, yes please!). I've got to say as contrived as the ending of that book is, I still adore it and it's all too familiar vicariousness (I think I remember fittingly listening to Tool's 10,000 Days album whilst reading it. I have no shame for some of my musical tastes). All it really did was resurface my desperate desire to visit Rome and the Vatican City. That and my entirely random fascination for Biblical religion (historically, not spiritually) and its associated iconography. I'm completely geeking out about my chosen lectures next year being on the obsession of the apocalypse and the Book of Revelations within art, literature, music and film.

There's something so intense about European Catholic churches and cathedrals. I'm so badly cursing the PC at home right now for crashing and losing all my photos from Vienna 3 years ago.

( flickr )

Tomorrow I'm going to pick up a couple of books by Umberto Eco and finally get round to buying some Dante Alighieri. Now that I have time again to myself to read (though I really ought to finish the other two books I'm in the middle of first!).

Multi-pass

2009-05-26T21:56:00.004+01:00

I have such a girl crush on Milla Jovovich. She can be so beautifully masculine. Time to watch The Fifth Element I think (another of my favourite Luc Besson films).

We should have each other with cream

2009-05-18T20:50:00.002+01:00

( ffffound, maya.bird )

I'm ridiculously ill and want nothing more than to snuggle up with my cats :( only 3 weeks.

(Claudia, Jessica)

(Fraser, Lila who passed away and I miss the most)

(Fraser)

El Día de los Muertos

2009-05-16T12:16:00.005+01:00

Topshop released their Day Of The Dead collection on their loobook yesterday.

I came across artist Sylvia Ji.The colouring in the last two are just incredible.

A girl called Sara's Sylvia Ji inspired photography.

I bought the first Illustrated People jumper below (in this style, so comfy to laze about in) in the Topshop sale, but I'm really considering the other one now too... (summer clothing, what?)

Nickel rashes have sprouted up again thanks to my penchant for cheap jewellery (I never learn...) and my throat feels like I've swallowed a giant spider overnight. I really must make a point of selling on all my cheap jewellery.

To do today:
Tidy the post-apocalyptic deadline mess
Drink my body weight in tea

Where the crickets sing

2009-05-14T18:56:00.002+01:00

The Dead Weather

2009-05-09T21:51:00.002+01:00

I came across something pretty downright incredible in my eyes whilst toiling over my programme journal all day and listening to The Kills.

The Dead Weather

These guys are like my ultimate superband. It's comprised of vocalist Alison Mosshart (The Kills), guitarist Dean Fertita (Queens of the Stone Age), bassist Jack Lawrence (The Raconteurs and The Greenhornes) and drummer/vocalist Jack White (The White Stripes and The Raconteurs). I've been telling everyone and anyone who may or may not care this evening. Their first album Horehound is due for release sometime this year.

And just for extra measure...

A little of Alison Mosshart & Jamie Hince's on tour photography.

Squid Rings

2009-05-03T23:14:00.004+01:00

Inbetween watching The Mighty Boosh (for the first time might I add, and I love it!) whilst on the exercise bike and doing my laundry, I've been scouring Etsy this evening for earrings. I used to have an obsession with buying new ones, my collection is a tad ridiculous, but I'm now either bored of them or else my ears just can't cope with the weight of my favourites. Boo.

I came across Octopus Me and I think I'm a little in lust. My sad little student budget means it's not to be however.

Usually me and little holes and clusters don't mix... I get freaked out by bubbling rice! Kind of funny since octopi are one of my favourite sea creatures.

Keep Candles Handy

2009-05-03T15:38:00.004+01:00

I've been so busy with uni and the house I've forgotten all about this little thing. I still have PJ Harvey photos to post and manymany new purchases I would like to share with you all. Unfortunately, my camera gave up the ghost... a half hour before Bob Dylan came on stage on Friday. Not that I could see him very well, but him & his band were just oooh incredible! Another entry for that as well I think at some stage. I've come to really enjoy doing bigger things like that alone. I get to meet so many more interesting people.

For now, an editorial from May 2009's ID. I've got a busy evening of tidying the empty flat and doing more sock designs. I have the new Patrick Wolf advance to keep to company though :) (less than a month until my friend and I go to see him. My life as begun to revolve around gigs. Pearl Jam are touring August as well now).

Just let it be yeah yeah yeah...

2009-04-23T20:59:00.002+01:00

The rest of my yesterday:
Helping to sell cupcakes for Manchester Dogs Home
Going for sushi
Falling in love with a Marc Jacobs jumper in Selfridges (which I can't find any images of)

(I am in dire need of a new camera)

Clare Tough & knitting

2009-04-21T19:45:00.002+01:00

( Clare Tough, graduate MA 2004 of Central Saint Martins )

How incredible are those shoes!

I would expect a lot of knit inspiration posts for a while. Being back at uni means more knitting, more research, yum! I'm finding my search for knitted interiors a lot more successful so far as well. My weave tutor is still sceptical about applying knit to interiors, but I'm determined to prove him wrong.

We're being taught how to knit socks on Thursday, bless (as well as a introduction to crochet? YES). Our tutor is wants us to design a pair each to display altogether (washing line? It would be so sweet) but it looks like only my friend and I are equally as enthusiastic about this idea.

I'm off to do a little online yarn shopping!

PS. PJ Harvey & John Parish - Sixteen, Fifteen, Fourteen
I'm ridiculously excited for Yeah Yeah Yeahs tomorrow, but I am wetting myself about seeing these two on Friday.

The girl kicked dirt on her blouse

2009-04-20T23:07:00.003+01:00

( Geronimo, wind cries amy., pollyharvey.co.uk )

Cloudberries, Michael Longley

2009-04-16T23:27:00.002+01:00

You give me cloudberry jam from Lapland,
Bog amber, snow-line tidbits, scrumptious
Cloudberries sweetened slowly by the cold,
And costly enough for cloudberry wars
(Diplomatic wars, my dear).

Imagine us
Among the harvesters, keeping our distance
In sphagnum fields on the longest day
When dawn and dusk like frustrated lovers
Can kiss, legend has it, once a year. Ah,
Kisses at our age, cloudberry kisses.

I have had the best day, separately, with two people who mean very much to me. The latter especially. We played pool for hours, talked about our ambitions, Rome, whilst I read his poetry.

It's such a shame I have to go back to Manchester on Saturday. I'm looking forward to spending my summer in Belfast more than ever.

So this is the ship they say is unsinkable.

2009-04-15T11:15:00.002+01:00

3 years short of a century ago today the Titanic sank. I never cared a huge deal for the film, but seeing as the ship was built in the city I live in, we learnt a lot about it and Harland & Wolff in Primary school.
(aside from the accents and my parents, seeing the H&W shipyard cranes is one of the first things that makes me feel at home again when I come back).

Belfast Titanic City

I came across this Titanic-style editorial by Eugenio Recuenco a while ago, I thought it the perfect time to share.

Dance like a jellyfish

2009-04-15T00:12:00.002+01:00

Arcylic on plastic bags by Kara Daving

Before Attack, Hoist A Black Flag

2009-04-13T18:30:00.002+01:00

This is such a good shoot. Well. Most of it. I can't get on board the one particular image of a 27 year old sat in a skate park with 15 year olds.

Some more Rodarte.

That hair! ♥

I think after the numerous months I've lusted after these All Saints military boots (ever since the store opened here) and my failure at trying to find a suitable, cheaper imitation, it's safe to say I'm not going to get these out of my head until they're mine. It is my birthday in 11 days afterall... and getting my job back over summer is looking very optimistic.

Why is the rum gone?

2009-04-13T16:52:00.002+01:00

I wouldn't say no to anyone who offered to whisk me off my bootstraps with some Cap'n Morgan.

Sabyasachi

2009-04-13T10:41:00.002+01:00

Some more of Sabyasachi Mukherjee's Spring/Summer 2009 collection, Sanctuary. It is an eclectic collection loosely inspired by the paintings of Emil Nolde and Paul Gauguin. Loving the sheer blouses covered in large sequins.

She sells sea shells by the sea shore.

2009-04-12T23:00:00.009+01:00

I've been gorging as mentioned before on Guylian chocolate shells all day. Maybe that's why I'm still looking at runway at 2.30am. I'm not used to eating chocolate.

I really have a thing for scallops, whether singly or grouped to mimic scales. They're the most simple kind of seashell. I always think back to the Portaferry Seafood Festival my brother and I would go to with our dad when we were younger, how we bargained with him in return for pretty much clearing out the stock of free oysters (because we had no shame obviously and the organisers apparently couldn't say no to two little children).

I saw the most beautiful cream, sheer, beaded shrug in Topshop the other day (which isn't on the website, boo). Please be in Manchester come loan time!

I bought this teacup set on Etsy last summer. So cheap, only $10 all in at the time (which was around £5, boo current exchange rate). It's one of the most beautiful things I own. It sits on my shelf at uni beside my sea urchins.

The Spring 2009 collections were bursting with inspiration taken from scallops. Here is a few of my favourite picks.

Christopher Kane, Spring/Summer 2009. This reminds me of shape making class... creating garments ideas from simple 2D shapes. As a whole, I don't like this collection. I detest animal print. But the sheer scallops above won me over.

Chloé, Spring/Summer 2009. This colour palette is perfect. Chartreuse, beige, cream, bluebell, green, and apricot. I'm not usually into summer fashion, but this collection is something special. In particular the sheer forest blouse pictured right.

Eley Kishimoto tights, Spring/Summer 2009. Honestly, I didn't really like the garments themselves in this collection. A little too twee for my tastes. But the tights! Scalloping and dip dye? What's not to adore.

Sabyasachi, Spring/Summer 2009. I'm a bit new to Sabyasachi but good god do I like what I see! I feel a post all of his own coming on in the morning.

Jean Paul Gaultier, Spring/Summer 2008 couture. Just because I do love mermaid fashion.

I am already grown up, I just get older.

2009-04-12T18:38:00.004+01:00

Léon the Professional is my all time favourite movie. The most capivating thing about this film (aside from Gary Oldman's spectacular as always bad guy portrayl)? A 13 year old Natalie Portman's performance as Mathilda. It is flawless. As is little Mathilda's style.

(click for bigger)

Other things that are making me very happy this weekend:
1. Guylian chocolate shells. All my aunts and uncles have come to Belfast for easter weekend. I now have enough chocolate to last me the rest of the year.
2. Magners (not Bulmers) cider. My dad always makes sure we're in constant supply when I come home now. I've been sat in the garden all day cider and book in hand.
3. Beautiful boys with dreadlocks.
4. Plastic garden flamingos.
5. A young 1991 Eddie Vedder.

A Private World, Tim Walker

2009-04-11T16:27:00.002+01:00

Red hair nostalgia. Another of my favourite editorials.

This last one pretty much sums up my taste exactly.

Cobwebs

2009-04-11T15:27:00.005+01:00

Not a day goes by anymore where I don't regret giving my mother the go ahead to give my 14 year old self's mohair sweater to the charity shop. Albeit the thing was pink and black horizontal stripes, but it was the perfect sweater to laze around in. I think after breaking up with my boyfriend of the time in 2007 I went out of my way to give myself a new image, something that wouldn't associate me with him. I even dyed over my signature red hair to black (although, the years of dyeing it red were really taking its toll). Since then I think I've regressed back to who I really am. I'm grungey, messy, scatty. And I'll be attacking my hair no doubt with bleach over the summer.

I've seen a lot of DIY versions of the Rodarte Spring/Summer 2009 collection, and I think it's about time I tried my own. Since I've been on the waiting list for the embroidery project for 3 weeks now, I switched to the knit project which focusing on garment construction which is even more reason to give it a go. Now to work out a colour palette...

make me confess, shut your mouth, rip my dress

2009-04-09T12:48:00.001+01:00

I love this trainwreck of a woman. She is everything that is ugly about women, but still so scathingly beautiful.

(polaroids from Katie Jane Garside's exhibition darling, they've found the body at the woom gallery)

Tomorrow I need to get out of the house for sure. Today I'm just content sat with one of our cats Jessica nibbling on my fingers.

Wonderland & The Disappearing Dress

2009-04-08T15:22:00.000+01:00

The lectures at University of Ulster were so much more interesting than the ones I get now at Manchester Metropolitan. For one, my lecturers then didn't rely so heavily on their thesaurus'.

"They are humid prepossessing Homo Sapiens with full sized aortic pumps."
Honestly, it's like listening to Joey's adoption recommendation letter for an hour every Monday.

That aside, the lectures at UU introduced me to Patricia Belford (who ultimately helped me make the tough decision between Textiles and Jewellery Design) and consequently Helen Storey.

My biggest regret of 2008 was missing out on her exhibition of Wonderland at The Ormeau Baths. She teamed up with Tony Ryan (The Polymer Centre at Sheffield University), and Aoife Ludlow & Patricia Belford (Interface at University of Ulster) to create garments constructed of a water soluble polymer which gradually dissolve over time. Gives new meaning to disposable fashion! (nevermind hopping between four-season-a-day Northern Ireland or rainyrainy Manchester).

I repeat. BIGGEST REGRET.

Mix I

2009-04-07T23:14:00.000+01:00

Beirut - Nantes
♥ Bob Dylan - Billy 1
♥ Dinosaur Jr. - Feel The Pain
♥ Indigo Moss - Suicide Song
♥ My Brightest Diamond - Tainted Love
♥ Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - From Her To Eternity
Nine Inch Nails - Not So Pretty Now
Pixies - Wave of Mutilation
PJ Harvey - 50ft Queenie
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Venice Queen
She & Him - Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?
♥ Sonic Youth - I'm Not There
T.Rex - 20th Century Boy
♥ The Black Keys - The Breaks
The Coral Sea - Fell
The Decemberists - The Rake's Song
The Kills - Fried My Little Brains
♥ The Urges - The Urges Theme
♥ Tim Buckley - Song To The Siren
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Soft Shock

I could really have kept going with the Dinosaur Jr. I'm having a real relapse on them (not that that's a bad thing). The ♥ are my absolute must listens at the moment.

Scarves

2009-04-06T19:14:00.000+01:00

If I could only wear one accessory for the rest of my days, it would be scarves. They make an outfit to me. I feel so naked without one. I need to invest in more chunky knit scarves (I have either lost mine or had them stolen in shitty bars), but since they are out of season now I may just try handknitting a few (if I'm going to continue being a knitter, I need to tackle my fear of knitting larger things - although I'm doing quite well with the machine knits).

I adore this girls look. I find neutral, muted colours so much more exciting (this proves to make my textiles colour book rather tough since my tutor reckons my colour palettes always look the "same").

1. Mira Jakobsen 2. Slåinmejifolie Doepel 3. Marla Singer 4. N ! 5. Paul-william De silva

La terre n’est pas assez ronde pour m’étourdir autant qu’toi

2009-04-06T13:21:00.000+01:00

http://www.battleship.etsy.com
(closed for the moment)

This lady's handmade parcels are stunning.

More on globes and maps later. I'm hopefully doing a short 3 week embroidery project on them when I get back to Manchester, if I didn't sign up to late.

Rubik's Cube

2009-04-05T16:28:00.000+01:00

I spent my Sunday learning how to best rubik's cubes under the wing of my brother (he does them in less than two minutes).

I am a pro now.

1. yellow nose piggy bank 2. untitled 3. So many ducks... Ducking hell 4. White Rabbit 5. Bambi 6.Little Donut Monster 7. The Rainbow Connection 8. Barbara 9. Merfolk in the sea

They just don't make toys like this anymore.

Mariano Vivanco

2009-04-04T16:50:00.000+01:00

From Dazed & Confused June 08. This is one of my favourite editorials, it's so anti-glamour and grunge. I adore the muted colours. The male models make it as well. It's so rare I'll come across an editorial in which the men are the most striking thing to me. It helps that long haired men make me weak knee-d.

Hello

2009-04-04T15:29:00.000+01:00

I am Jen, I am 19 (soon to be 20), and I live between Belfast and Manchester. I love textiles, all things under the sea, the many things that remind me of my grandparents, tea, vintage jewellery, beautiful clothes, steampunk, men who make me laugh, good books, good music, good films and good company. This blog is a continuation of my 1st year textiles journal of the work I do, the things that inspire me and just the things that I like.