Golden Globe Fashion

It's that time of year again, I love movies and fashion, so it's like Christmas all over again :)
Here are some of my favorite dresses of the night. I love Tina Fey, and she rocked it in a beautiful gown with vintage flair by L'Wren Scott.

 I thought Jennifer Garner looked really amazing, her dress is by Vivienne Westwood which is a surprise because Vivienne is usually over the top.

Adele, won for her amazing song on the Skyfall soundtrack, and she looked awesome, I think she dresses really great, she knows who she is and doesn't try to be super trendy but knows how to look wonderful. Her dress is by Burberry Prorsum.

 I like that Lea Michele likes to take risks, like this beaded halter by Elie Saab......gorgeous!

 I love Lucy Liu in Elementary and I thought this dress was wonderfully unexpected. It reminds me of Jane Austen for some reason, of course this kind of dramatic, romantic creation is brought to you by Carolina Herrera.

This one kind of took me by surprise, Cody Horn, who I'm not really familiar with (she was in Magic Mike?) In a pretty drape-y modern ode to a Grecian gown. Anyway I like it... check out more by Vionnet

And best hourglass goes to Sofia V. and JLo in very different styles but both looked great

Sofia wore a beaded or sequined  Michael Cinco gown.

 and JLo in lovely lace Zuhair Murad gown.

Much better than past plunging neckline styles she's worn.

pictures from here and here

As far as awards go, I have seen Silver Linings Playbook, Lincoln and Argo and I think Lincoln should have won for Best Picture. What looks did you love? Did all your favorite movies and shows win? Are you excited for the Oscars? Are you going to see the best picture showcase?

Love to hear your thoughts! Happy Monday :)

Painting and Fashion

Over the past couple of days, I have found various stories online that are all about painting, in one form or another.

The first is about company that paints ads on walls, I didn't even know large companies still used this form of advertising, I am pretty sure I do not have ads that are this cool in my city scape.




STORYBOARD: Wall Dogs of New York from Tumblr on Vimeo. Check out more here



Then I found this awesome recreation of Van Gogh portrait done with photography. Even if you don't like Van Gogh, you gotta admire this guy for interpreting a work of art in a new and clever way. You gotta watch the video not just look at the still. The photographer, Tadao Cern, has an interesting story. He was an architect and then decided he wanted to try something else. He takes wedding photos, and likes to do different experiments like the Van Gogh as well as portraits of people while they are having blasts of air blown in their faces. Think comically cartoon versions of what your face would look like if you fell at an alarming fast rate.



Revealing The Truth from Tadao Cern on Vimeo.

And finally, I was stunned(along with the rest of the world) to see Kate Middleton's first official Royal portrait. She's so pretty and vibrant, and the portrait does not capture that at all. I keep thinking couldn't someone see where this was going & said to the painter, thank you but we have to go in a different direction...... I hope she get's a better one sometime soon, but until then I thought I'd share some of my favorite outfits of hers thus far.

Alexander McQueen + Velvet = Awesome

Amazing in a red wrap dress by Beulah London

A flowing lavender dream also by McQueen

Not many people can pull off an intricate interwoven bodice, but she can.....beautifully. I was surprised this was a vintage dress,it looks so modern to me.

This one is one of my favorites I love the lace detail.
Pictures from here and there
Hope everyone is having a great weekend.

head in the clouds

It has rained a lot the past few days, it was so nice to see the sun and the happy clouds on the way home. It kinda got me thinking about a sketch idea that has been bouncing around.

colorful clouds make me happy

I want to keep playing with this idea, it's not quite the version I saw in my head.

Also, I stumbled upon this awesome USB hub with USB drives shaped like toast! 

Over the top? Maybe a little but I think it's adorable in a nerdy way.

There's even different types of toasts

In other food related news, I finally got my first piece of pie of the new year! It had been over a month, we didn't get to go over the holidays, when I had nice leisurely days off perfect for pie. But pie is also good after a crazy hectic week. Hello, Merry Berry :)

yes, the pie is awesome enough to get a close up

I was checking out Moschino's handbags recently and they have these fun novelty bags. I can't decide if I like the paper boat, or the painted tea cup, they are both cute and hilarious.

What do you think about novelty handbags? Do you or would you carry one?

Fashion, Happiness & Etsy

Trying to focus more on the little things that are fun and happy in life.
I got to wear my new raincoat today! Yes, I got it from Target, they still have some sizes on clearance.

My friend, Jenn is a sewing whiz, and one of the best quilters I know. She's just added some super cute baby quilts to her shop. She makes them out of vintage sheets, definitely a one of kind heirloom.

It doesn't get much cuter than that :)

I made my first treasury in her honor :) See all of the items here.

just a snap shot

As far as jewelry goes, I have been looking for an agate/druzy necklace and I found a really great shop.This necklace is so pretty and bonus points because it's purple. It's a pretty big pendant but maybe I can pull it off.

see more

Ok well that's all for now. I'm gonna go paint as my drawing of the day. Hope you are having an awesome week :)

Randomness

This week has been very busy and I find I get super lazy on the weekend, I know I should be up doing more but I really enjoying sleeping in and laying around watching movies.

I did manage to try a new side dish and I made a pot of soup with rotisserie chicken, beans, pasta, celery and a packaged garlic rice and quinoa blend. It was pretty good.

The new side dish was sweet potato tater tots by Alexia. I like sweet potatoes, but they get cold so fast so I wanted to try them prepared a different way, they were crunchy and delicious.
I might try to make fries on my own, we'll see how motivated I am to do that in the future ;)

I have been doing my drawings each day, and last night I did a quick painting with my crusty Crayola watercolors. I accented with a pen,  she's scruffy and cute. I am going to continue experimenting with paint with no expectations. I can't be disappointed when I don't have a specific outcome in mind :)

winter hat with flower accent

Here are my other drawings, bunnies, cats and a raccoon.

  A floral accented forest monster and floral accented letters. 

I was thinking how cool it would be if an elephant could spray paint out of his trunk.

I also went to the movies and saw Promised Land, the performances were really great! Matt Damon, Frances McDormand, and John Krasinski all have their different strengths and it was wonderful to see them together. The acting was really superb but it got me thinking or dreading rather, what will become of our environment and Earth in general.  I try to do my part, recycle everything I possibly can, and be thoughtful in my actions. Anyway I won't dwell on this ......  :)

Also I got this cute mug from, where else, Target!  This will have to serve as my dachshund

fix for now. 

so cute and silly :)

They have a cute circus theme for Valentine's Days home decor. With cute plates and cups.

Look at those cute little monkeys

They also have this dog shaped candy dish, but I'm not sure I really like it.

It's ceramic and kinda reminds me of Johnathan Adler but...I'm still not completely sold.

See more here

Ok well that's all for now. Hope everyone has a wonderful week :) I'll be back with more midweek.

Artsy Fun

I mentioned in an earlier post, I wanted to get my art appreciation in on my long weekend.
I was successful, I love going to museums and examining different techniques and viewpoints, it definitely recharges the batteries. I got to see Kaw's Companion one last time. I know some people think he's stuff is weird or not really "art" but I love his playful take on pop culture.

that's me in front of Companion

I also went to the Amon Carter to see the Phillips Collection. It was pretty cool, even better it was free! I loved the first painting in the exhibit, Time and Timelessness (The Spirit of Creation)
by Augustus Vincent Tack. It is a huge piece that greets you as you make your way to the exhibit.

It looks amazing in person this small picture does not do the colors justice. He was inspired by the colors of the Rocky Mountains for this piece.

see more here

 

I also love looking at art museum gift shops, so much cool stuff you never knew you needed. Like little pocket shaped note pads. These are cool because they are pocket shaped and the paper is textured. I like smaller drawing pads because I'm more likely to squirrel them away in my purse which means I can get to them anytime. I choose these notebooks to do my drawing a day in.

see more here

Another cool thing I saw was a toy similar to a Mr. Potato head, if Mr. Potato head was abstract sculpture! These little guys were so cute and can be arranged in a ton of different combinations.

I thought it was pretty cool thing, maybe I will experiment with sculpture some time soon.

see the whole collection here

Here's my first drawing of the new year, I'm just trying to get back into the swing of things, by sketching on a daily basis. I really want to focus on my technique and come up with some new fun characters. I've got a punk rawk mermaid, a birdie in a winter hat and scarf and some other random creatures. I'm off to work on my #2 drawing and some other stuff too. Happy Wednesday!

 

New Year New Goals

I am taking advice from A Beautiful Mess, and making simple, achievable goals so I can implement new practices easier and be less likely to fail because they aren't complicated and lofty.

1. Eat 1 serving of fruit and veggies a day. A couple years ago, as I have said before, I went on a plant based diet kick, no processed foods, and no meat. I really enjoyed the flavors of food more and I had energy and felt better and lost weight. Since then I haven't really been planning meals or interested in cooking. I am hoping to change that in 2013. One serving of fruit is easy, I cut up an apple to eat at work later, it's filling and good for you. Then my one veggie at dinner will mean I have to start planning better for meals. We are thinking about what we are going to have in our garden so I am excited, it's always more fun to eat fresh produce that you have grown yourself. I know this will impact my life in a huge way because I have been successful before. I will eat less drive thru, and unhealthy stuff which will beneficial to my wallet and my waistline.

I like to add cute personality to everything :)

2. Set aside time to draw twice a week. I have noticed lately, even though I have been busier at work and distracted with the holidays, I have not been setting aside time for  myself to draw and just be creative. I am most creative in my sewing room, I just rock out to my ipod, there is no tv, so less distraction. I always feel creative when I am in my spot. Lately though I have been watching tv and trying to draw at the same time, it doesn't work as well. I know I feel better when I make myself separate and go to my special spot with no distractions, and my end result is better because I am focusing only on that. I know if I do it at least twice a week, it will be more of a habit and maybe I will get even more done.

Scribbly owl

3. Do more sewing. I got kind of burned out with sewing lately, mostly softie wise. But lately, I have been thinking more and more about different clothing alterations I want to do, or embellishments.
I have not wanted to sew clothes in a really long time,( even though I majored in fashion design lol)
so I am going to take advantage of that. Make my own version of things I see at Anthropologie for example: appliqued tops or embellished jeans.

sequined V neck and star printed jeans from Gap

Lace inset pullover

metallic star pullover

4. Plan for the future and enjoy the present. I really want to go on vacation, possibly to Europe this is going to take a lot of planning and a lot of saving, but I'm excited to have something I'm actively working towards. I haven't really been on a vacation since I was in school, I went to England for spring break. Life gets busy and often I don't take advantage of opportunities, so I'm going to try to start doing that more, hanging out with friends and doing crafts or having a theme party.  Just making more of a deliberate effort to enjoy every day.

I really love Dior and British cabs, I took this at Buckingham Palace

me (I'm on the far left) and some friends on a lion in Trafalgar Square

Find Joy in the small things concept sketch

two friends hanging out on a swing set, a concept I started working on last spring

5. Decorate and appreciate my space. I don't really decorate, I've been just kind of lazy and not really interested. I have done my share of DIY revamping and painting and I never really thought it was worth the effort until recently. I finally framed some prints I bought on etsy, and I'm excited to do more with my room, maybe even paint an accent wall! I have quite a few new prints from Christmas, and I'm slowly adding elements that I think will add to my happiness and inspiration. I'm also working on organization on my terms this is a slow but steady process lol.

I love Tim's Sally expressive use of color

What are some of your goals for 2013? Happy New Year Everyone!