Rainbow Brites

Meadham Kirchhoff - Runway LFW Spring/Summer 2011

All images found here

Velveteen Dream

Topshop Exclusive

Chelsea Girl at River Island

Asos

Toast

Dr Martens Avery

I have no idea where this will lead us. But I have a definite feeling it will be a place both wonderful and strange.

I am a bad blogger, there is no denying this but in my defence I have been very busy, both professionally and creatively and sometimes so much is going on that blogging inevitably becomes an afterthought. Thankfully the coming winter brings with it a slightly less crammed diary allowing me time to indulge in some frivolities. At the moment this mostly involves wearing a very fluffy, very unflattering dressing gown, whilst drinking toffee apple cider and watching Twin Peaks on the Horror Channel.

I have been a fan of the series since it first aired in the early 90s when I would watch it secretly in my brother's bedroom after bedtime as a pre-teen. It made very little sense to me then and yet I couldn't help but be captivated by the utter strangeness of it all. Amazingly this is the first time that the entire series has been shown on British TV since its original run.

Happily the theme music is once again stuck in my head and my nightly fix is ensuring that daily life at the moment is tinged with a Lynch-like surrealism. It has also added to my already ridiculous obsession with visiting the Pacific North-West and I regularly fantasise about Mr Lola and I feasting on cherry pie and damn fine cups of coffee in roadside diners as the rain pours in sheets overhead.

Would-be lovers Audrey and Agent Cooper

If Only....

Opening Ceremony Velvet Lace Up Clog Ankle Boots £325.00

Burlesque of North America

I'm going through an Arcade Fire-specific obsession at the moment. This tends to happen to me when a band I like releases a great new album. I get really into them all over again and start You Tubing them, reading interviews, seeking out random and obscure facts. Today I delved deep into the merchandise section of their website and came across these AMAZING posters by artist Wes Winship of Burlesque of North America. I can not stress how insanely I love these and I think it's because they kind of sum up a lot of what I like in art and design. The colour palette is divine, the dynamic Constructivist compositions, the collage, references to sci-fi and the city and the beautiful typography.










I would love to own every one of these and put them up in a white walled room with a bench and sit and stare at them all day. A bit like when I visited the Tate Modern in March and found the Russian Constructivism poster room (below), I actually thought I'd died and gone to heaven.

Stuff in Magazines

An obvious benefit of teaching for a living is the lovely six week summer holiday you are granted every year. Lovely, unless like me you decide to foolishly undertake a Masters and end up spending those weeks sat at a desk writing essays. Add to this: two poster commissions, one for a club night, the other for an art exhibition, an installation piece for that same exhibition, a camping holiday and a festival and it equates to an exciting but far from relaxing summer break. My own fault I realise. For now however my priority is that dreaded essay and so it is at times like these that I really need a big stack of magazines to break the monotony of text book boredom. An editorial treat every few hours keeps me sane. These are some of the things that caught my eye this week.

Topshop winter coats past and present: That leopard number looks suspiciously like the one hanging in my wardrobe from last Autumn. Oh well, it shall be dusted off and paraded once again. This year however it shall be alternated with the brass buttoned navy cape number taking centre stage below.

Elle Sept 2010

Hair inspiration: Karen's curly wurly ponytail, black wiggy hair and rainbow red heads at Givenchy.

Grazia 9th Aug 2010

Vogue Sept 2010

Cath Kidston: The Lola homestead has a smattering of Kidston; crockery, towels, drawer liners, rose and lavender lotions however I had yet to purchase any of her garments, the fit too frumpy, the hemlines too low. However her offerings for the coming season have turned my head. The velvety bodice number in teal wings its way to me as I write. I shall team it with clompy boots for a Grungy Guinevere look.

Cath Kidston catalogue August 2010

Reviews of Best Coast - 'Crazy for You' everywhere!: This album is basically one long song about boys and weed but what a sweet sweet song it is. I especially like to sing along with Beth in the car despite having the singing voice of a strangled kitty cat.

NME 7th August 2010

Always catching my eye Karen.

Elle Sept 2010

Styling The Runaways: I rarely buy 'In Style' but this article sold it to me this month. I am very excited about this movie for so many reasons: my favourite grumpy girl crush Kristen Stewart sporting the world's only covetable mullet, 70s girl group exploits and all Joan Jett approved, what's not to like?

In Style Sept 2010

Sherlock Quiz: As if they had to ask! Just when I thought Matt Smith was the 'one', along came Benedict Cumberbatch. Can I have both please?

Grazia 9th August 2010

Make Over Betty: This was always going to happen of course. Like all those lame American high school movies where the 'geek' is clearly a stunner underneath her NHS specs, Betty has been groomed within an inch of her life for the final season. So predictable, such a shame. Minus the clown costumes there will be hardly a reason left to watch Ugly Betty.

Grazia 9th August 2010

The Last Defender of the Sprawl

Arcade Fire 'The Suburbs': Amazing album, beautiful cover art.