BORA AKSU fall/winter 2013.

since spring is hardly upon us, i may be getting ahead of things here, but ever since i saw this collection, i've been obsessed with it. the light, flowy materials are romantic, drawing me in, and combined with a tie-like addition here, a blazer there, i was sold on this coming season's menswear addiction. also sold on the plum used in many of the garments-- just enough color to not overwhelm me. oh, and have you seen the headpieces?

THE HEADPIECES.

the headpieces and makeup make for a look that is "classically futuristic," dating back to 1927's metropolis-- each pretty little crown topper is a piece to remember, and it's easy to imagine a microchip implanted in one, somewhere amongst the lace and sequins. widely spaced, long lashes make for huge eyes, and life is breathed into each figure with a touch of pomegranate on the lips.

i really can't get enough of this. watch the shows, folks. you won't regret it.

till soon,

music: no bones -yeasayer

finally!

as promised, one of my recent drawings. it's weird how much my basic portraits have changed since taking classes here at school, and this is just an example. where i still like to draw my eyebrows really cleanly in most drawings, i've changed my style in outlines of faces and noses and even lips. i've also added in shading that just wasn't there before. i can't wait to get back to my watercolors at home since i haven't really used them here, so i can get some larger-scale works done with that medium plus some ink.

i also can't wait to see just how much my work changes over the next semester. or next couple of years. or, you know, my lifetime.

till next time, people. till next time.

pretty in pink.

one of the things i didn't have going into the city was a guide of all the right little shops to go to. no matter how many google searches i did, i kept seeing the tourist-blown shopping centers, and even the shops i found in haight and mission were just things i happened upon by chance. in fact, i only had recommendations from locals on maybe four local shops, and i only had time to go to two of those.

a great thing, though, can be found just outside san francisco.

oakland houses pretty penny, a vintage shop that reaches way above and beyond expectations for completely wonderful vintage pieces at affordable prices. and people shrug off the Yeah Affordable thing, but if you're paying sixteen dollars for a blouse with its own story and unique look that sets you apart from the modern-day manufacture, you're doing pretty well.

the prints, colors, details, and materials that these guys bring in are enough to grasp a person for hours. or if you're looking for something in particular, you can find everything organized by color, and staffers are the best at guessing sizes for you. and if your skirt or shirt or dress needs to be taken in or up, they offer alterations. and there are shoes, and accessories... and the choicest menswear.

i have a coin bank where i throw all my change, and it never really amounts to anything, but having this place in the area actually gives me a chance for those pennies to really be pretty.

ha ha ha ha

check the photos for some random things, some pictures of the shop, and some of my scores. click click for higher resolution.

leather skirt, "always a lady" sweatshirt, pink blouse, PRETTY PENNY

i originally was going to make this post really Pink themed, and i found out through doing so that despite my hair color, pink is almost never in my clothing repertoire. does anybody else have this weird thing where they never dress in one particular color? or where they only dress in one particular shade or two? just curious.

till next time,

music: sunshine, lollipops, and rainbows -lesley gore

smilin', smilin'.

roomie pictures with a fujifilm instax mini.

i didn't get to take pictures of my outfit that day, but i did really want to get pictures of my hair-- i was wearing it all wrapped up like bear ears with my floral headband-- and then my roommate was there and we just took pictures of each other because it's just straight fun with instant film cameras.

now, i'm balancing a tiny bit of halloween fun with intense sessions of midterm studying for my last test on monday. i have a little bit more free time on my hands now because i decided to take one of my classes another semester. i'm focusing more on how to take care of myself and pursue personal creative endeavors while still having a really set schedule.

but anyway, pictures. my roommate is forever lovely.

sidenote: i need to find a solid pink watercolor brush pen so i can make paper mini-me's again, this time with pink hair instead of red. time for more illustrations.

anyway, all for now,

music: dancing shoes -arctic monkeys

a stirring.

this past week, i looked through photography books in the campus library to try to find something that interested me, to find some inspiration outside the internet, for a class assignment. i thought i was looking for a fashion photographer by definition-- patrick demarchelier, annie leibovitz, mario testino-- but i came across a book called tribe, a book of photographs by hibiki kobayashi, that had image upon image of different people from different disappearing tribes. there was more than an amazing emotional connection through the eyes of the subjects, there was also a quality to the images that i likened to an editorial or beauty shot from a glossy magazine. there were piercings and gauges, makeup and clothes, that i might expect to see inspiring a vogue-like shoot on grunge-punk chic or the newest "tribal" look for summer. i liked it.

and that's when i got a little bit irritated and confused, and i didn't know what to do, because instead of photographing these people in their homes, this photographer chose to place them in front of a white background. like a glamour shoot.

the last picture i really paid attention to was a photograph of a young girl with a large hoop in her nose and a bindi on her forehead, wearing a floral print dress. i really could have just described half of the hipster kids in existence. but is that wrong? i've heard that it's acceptable to wear a bindi if you receive one from a hindi woman, i've heard that it's never acceptable to wear one unless you're hindi, and i've heard that if it makes you feel beautiful, you should wear one, because it's a beauty piece just as as well as it's said to protect against bad luck and many other things.

the same goes for all the hype that surrounds images like this, this, this... the list goes on. it seems like a bunch of overprivileged kids outside of their own culture, maybe even sexualizing other cultures, being offensive.

i even get nervous when people ask me about my religious inclinations every time i wear a circle scarf with the back part as a hood, since it looks like a hijab. where is the line, anyway?

AND, even if there is a line, should it be as heavy as most set it to be? i understand things like urban outfitters' stumble in naming some undergarments "navajo print," since that's actually a specific tribe of native americans (whoops), and i don't really like using "tribal print," either, but when can people borrow from other people for inspiration? when is it respect and when is it just a matter of people not being able to share?

i'm not even sure where i stand on this topic, in the end. i'm just starting my interest.

till next time,

music: 20 dollar -m.i.a.

mary katrantzou fall/winter 2012.

illustrated.

traced.

project fifty-two, part four.

i need to start posting more of these at once.

music: sylvia (robotberget remix) -miike snow

project fifty-two, part three.

shirt, gift, american apparel / jeans, $20, cheap monday / boots, gift.

music: bruises -chairlift

project fifty-two, part two.

music: strictly game -harlem shakes

hey everyone, it's spring! more to come soon!

spring-colored mind.

music: wings out -glowbug