Fall Accessories Wishlist

It may not even be August yet, but I can't wait for the fall.  I have always been a much bigger fan of the fall than the summer.  It reminds me of new beginnings, school supplies, and a back-to-school wardrobe.  While I may not be able to afford a brand-new wardrobe, there are a few accessories I could probably splurge on here and there...

1. Anthropologie Dusky Roads Mary-Janes

2. Stella McCartney Boston Bag

3. Alex & Ani Tree of Life Bangles

4. Balenciaga Wallet

5. Frye Rogan Engineer Studded Boots

6. My Pet Octopus Necklace from Modcloth

7. La Mer Bali Stud Watch from Urban Outfitters

8. Kenneth Jay Lane chandelier earrings

9. Fur Felt Bullet Cloche from Hats in the Belfry

Can it be fall yet?

Pleasantly Surprised- The Pretty Reckless

Okay, so we all know that Taylor Momsen is really, really, really obnoxious.  In every interview she gives, she comes across as a rebellious, annoying, naive teen who will probably look back on what she said ten years from now and attribute it to being young.  That being said, I feel as though I had no right to say anything about her actual music talent until I listened to her band, The Pretty Reckless.

So I took to myspace for a listen.  And what I found, I was pleasantly surprised by.  Yes, she still sounds like a naive teenager with her lyrics about "someone mixing her medicine" (what your Adderall and Flinstone's Vitamins?) or "I'm just 16, if you know what I mean, do you mind if I take off my dress." Yes, that would be child pornography.


Either way, I will admit that the girl can sing, and the music is kinda fun.  And maybe her being so obnoxious appeals to the naive, rebellious teenager in me.  Ya know, the same one that metal band Kittie did appeal to in my younger age.  Or the one that Courtney Love still does appeal to.

But a word of advice:  Momsen, if you want your band to be taken seriously then stop talking.  Because with every interview you give, you lose credibility and make people hate you even more, and it doesn't matter how good of a musician you are, in this pop culture climate, you can't survive without an audience.

Hipster Must-Watch: The State

Thanks to the power of instantly streaming Netflix, I get the opportunity to rediscover a million shows that I never really knew existed.  One such show is The State, the short-lived sketch comedy show that I've heard buzzing about for a while.

This sketch comedy show that aired on MTV for 29 episodes launched the careers of Michael Ian Black, Thomas Lennon, and Ken Marino.  Sketch comedy, which was huge in the 90s, has somehow essentially died in our modern television (aside from SNL, but that's a duh).  The State brings us back to all that glory that made sketch comedy so cool in the 90s.  Sketches on government, the environment, and spoofs on popular television commercials remind me of my childhood.

The only problem is that watching The State has made me terribly nostalgic for MTV in the 1990s.  Ya know, the days of MTV Unplugged, Tabitha Soren, and actual music videos.  Pretty much everything before MTV decided it was going to worship the consumer-culture of spoiled brats and girls pregnant way before they should be.  The days when MTV had shows on that required actual talent.  When MTV actually had some sort of credibility as a subversive television station that broke the pop culture barriers and made it cool to be different (ahem, Daria).

Oh MTV, how I miss you.

Hipster Must-See: Brick

I am currently spending my days working for a small, independent film production company.  One of the perks to this job is that I get to spend hour watching independent films as part of my "research."  One of the films I kept hearing about over and over again was Brick.

Rian Johnson's 2005 crime mystery has an all-star cast of up-and-coming actors including Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Lukas Haas (both hardly up-and-coming), Emilie de Ravin, Matt O'Leary, and Nora Zehetner.  Taking inspirations from old spaghetti westerns and "Cowboy Bebop," the visuals of this film are amazing.  The plot takes cues from old crime dramas and almost has a film noir feel to it, but all set in high school.  

Brick really is a film unlike very many I've seen in recent years.  I definitely suggest you take a couple hours and watch it.  And hey, it's streaming instant on Netflix, so no excuses!

Lukas Haas plays "The Pin," and his costume was modeled after Barnaby from Dark Shadows

Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays our fierce hero and Nora Zehetner the not quite "damsel in distress"

Style Inspiration: Mad Men

I have been a bit apprehensive about doing a style post pertaining to Mad Men for quite some time now.  This is mostly due to the slew of fashionista bloggers out there worshipping both the style of Betty and Don Draper alike.  But, with the season premiere just around the corner, I thought it was time to honour the show that has given me fashion inspiration before I even watched it.  And what an appropriate way to celebrate my 100th post!

You see, I have been a collector of vintage clothing for ages, and it just so happens that the hourglass waistlines and full skirts look pretty tremendous on me, so the late 50s and early 60s style has been a go-to of mine for years.

I adore the flower print dresses, and on more than one occasion I have claimed to wanting to dress like I'm rushing a sorority circa 1962.  Pair that with some sparkly costume jewelry, clip-on earrings, or maybe an oversized cocktail ring and I'm sold.

Unfortunately, dressing like it is 1963 all the time is no longer practical in this sweltering and filthy city.  You can only get away with second skin dresses and matching heels so often.  So I steal a few touches here and there to make it more practical.  Lately, it's been all about the liquid eyeliner paired with a heavily saturated lipstick.  I'm addicted to MAC's Lady Danger (definitely my signature colour), Impassioned, Morange, and Girl About Town for these purposes.

I also love adding vintage broaches to my dresses.  I have been lucky enough to come into a few of these over the years, but you can find them on eBay for super cheap.  It probably doesn't hurt that Christina Hendricks looks absolutely phenomenal in all the 1960s styles.  No wonder Prada and Louis Vuitton both stole the 1950s/60s inspiration for their upcoming seasons!