Love and Loathing in Melbourne

We turned 1! LIM's very first birthday has passed us by without so much as a shy giggle, so as we have missed the party we will honour her instead with our very first Love and Loathing post, which will become a regular feature from now on.

Maudrey and I are huge huge fans of Diana Vreeland, the most inspiring woman who made such pronouncements as "elegance is refusal" and "why dont you tie black tulle bows on your wrists?" She is famous for her "why dont you..."'s and so here we have some of our very own.....

LOVE

• Agyness Deyn- what can we say?(Pic from wenn)

• Hats. They protect us, sure, and they are mandatory at beaches and festivals, but try a proper one (ie not baseball or surf visor) down the street! They will be so warm in winter and keep your hair dry too.

• Brooches. Fix them upon yourselves at every opportunity- dresses, cardigans, shirts, jackets, why not? They look gorgeous and add a jewellery-like effect without weighing you down too much.

• Natural fibres. No, I dont mean hemp or scratchy linen, I mean cotton and silk and all things nice. Nicer against your skin, much nicer for your body temperature and natural cooling devices (ie, sweating) and so much more chic than nasty blended-poly-things

• Handkerchiefs. I'm sure your grandmother has given you some dainty ones with your initial embroidered on them or just some pretty flowers, so why not use them? You can use a different one each day and you are helping to save the earth, too.

• Bunches of flowers (Valentines Day!) are always divine and a solid bunch of one type of bloom is so striking

• Has someone done you a favour? Dig out your frilly apron and bake them a cake or slice as a thankyou, instead of boxed chocolates or supermarket flowers

• Wear bright nail polish as an accessory. Hot orange and pink look fabulous against black, or wear black itself for some ultra-chic polish

Also; Pink; Elle Magazine (US, not UK); extreme haircuts; 70s glamour; proper underwear that gives a nice shape; personal tailoring so things sit just right; bars where the music is low enough for you to talk; Romy and Michelles High School Reunion.

LOATHE

• Rachel Zoe. The woman admits to tanning! And she has the premature ageing to prove it. Not cool enough for Marc Jacobs, not cool enough for us.

• Midriff. Absolutely unacceptable anywhere bar the beach. No one wants to see your muffin top! We all have one, most of us manage to keep ourselves covered.
  

• Cargo Pants. Despite what some people say, they are NOT making a comeback. Nice try, Just Jeans, but we don't buy it.

• Tanning. Obviously uncool, but still the teenagers are going for it. Pale is so lovely. Think porcelain, alabaster, smooth, delectable.

• Burgundy polyester suits with pantyhose and runners. Enough said.

• Really messy hair with bows and floppy ponytails. The schoolgirls love it, but they are not doing themselves any favours, hanging outside McDonalds in Camberwell or Swanston St wearing neon tracksuits under their schooldresses.

And finally; too-short skirts; too-short shorts; makeup that is meant to have a "tanning" effect but just looks dirty; chewing gum with your mouth open; extremely loud, public mobile conversations; dead straight, flat hair; stripy highlights.

Did I mention I love Hel Looks?

I love Hel looks. It's my favourite street style blog and it inspires me to attack Melbourne street style. Check this out:



Linda (27)
"My friend Piia has made these Kaksi-Två leggings. They give a wow effect to every outfit. At this point in time I need comforting clothes and this second hand cardigan is just perfect for that purpose. Boredom and Moomins inspire me."

Lusthaves

Oh why is it that when I don't have money I do things like browse net-a-porter and see things like this gorgeous marc jacobs cuff watch? Its is not helpful for me to see such things! I am doing well not spending money on crap things and clothes although I broke that yesterday when I bought Australian Vogue. It is now classified as a crap thing because it is annoying and out of date and the Lagerfeld Confidential DVD that came with it is not full length and we STILL have to wait until AUGUST to get it here in region 4. Totally over the poor efforts of VA!

ahhh, right.

I just scrolled to the bottom of the blog to check the stats thingy when i saw.... my new years resolutions. hahaha, went my brain, thats right, we made RESOLUTIONS, didnt we!

Bugger! Completely forgot. And its only the friggin 5th of Feb.

However, I can at least report that some of them are going well. I've been walking (soooo strenuous), I've bought some Vo5 hot oil things that seem to be ok, I havent bought ANY crap, which is totally awesome, really, havent bought any crap magazines, hooray, but the saving money thing isnt really happening. I mean, I'm not spending my savings, but I'm not really saving any more than the usual, and hence, dont have any money to be buying anything special.

However the other stuff I decided like looking for new jobs etc is going well, so perhaps that will all change within a few weeks and I'll be on an adult wage rather than a 16 year old wage, and there will be room for proper savings.

Meanwhile how BORING is Halston? Proves my theory that Rachel Zoe is old news, but still, I expected more.

Again meanwhile did anyone else see Rufus Wainwright on the weekend??? I went Friday night and I think I can safely say he rates in my top 3, and it was the best thing I've seen in YEARS. Hilariously funny, with fabulous costumes, the band were incredible, and it was just soooo fun. I never realised how witty he is, or the extent of his campness. So good. I tried to go again Saturday night but couldnt get the money, but if anyone tells me he did a different set, I will die. I took this pic, and I love glow in the dark suits!

Retread Threads

An interesting snippet from the Age Sunday Life mag...

"Rather than spend a fortune on new gard, thrifty fashion obsessives now "remix" pieces and customise op-shop fashion finds and post photos on the web. One Flickr group is devoted to the sport. It started in September 2005 and now has more than 6000 members. The best stylists walk the streets- not the photoshoot or runway backstages, explains Tricia Royal, the group's creator- The real innovators are you and me.

Remixing has its rules: originality is key, as is not reproducing a look from a fashion shoot. Lingerie and nudity are no-nos; in fact, the remixers who draw the most praise seem to pile on as many clothes as possible." (Kirsty Munro)

...with almost 30,000 outfits posted there is heaps to keep anyone inspired towards individuality.

Remember that postcard Granpa sent us from Florida of the alligator biting that womans bottom?

Thats right, we all thought it was hilarious. But, it turns out, we were wrong. That alligator was sexually harassing that woman.

I think of this quote every time I see this ad:


I wouldnt class myself as a "fan" of Puff Daddy, and yes, I still call him that, cos I think P Diddy is ridiculous and no grown man in his right mind would call himself that, unless of course his real name is Sean John, and thats what he likes to go by when he is pulverising his opposition in the fashion world, see example:

"Fashion is about speaking out, having that swagger, having that confidence, and Michael Kors' collection wasnt better than mine....I'm fashion. I'm full frontal fashion. I'm in your face.....Michael Kors is my man, and I'll shake his hand and congratulate him, but he aint as fly as me".

This upon Michael Kors winning Menswear Designer of the Year.

Anyway. I dont like Puff because I feel that he thinks he knows what women want, and what attracts them. And there are a lot of men that do that well, but I dont believe Puff is one of them. The thing about the ad that gets me is that it seems like he thinks "this ad makes me look like a sex MACHINE and this hot woman cant get enough of me she is PUTTY in my HANDS" where in actual fact, it looks more like the poor woman is thinking "I cant escape, this man is SO up himself and WHERE ARE HIS HANDS GOING???" She looks like she said no, and he thinks she means yes. She looks unconscious. It sums up so much about Puff its almost funny. He sure is full frontal fashion, and he sure has that swagger, but he aint as fly as he thinks. And the perfume smells foul. Hopefully it was a woman perfumer who mixed it and she put in a healthy dose of Mortein so any poor girl who is given it by her "trendy" boyface and wears it is at least repelling pests like Sean John.

Tram Tales

On the tram on my way to work today I saw a man, reasonably elderly (like, 65?) wearing the standard beige slacks and matching beige collarless jacket. Where it got interesting was that he had paired this charming neutral ensemble with a lovely pair of cream and blue snakeskin lace up shoes... and a hot pink belt. The belt was special as you could only see it when he moved and the jacket lifted up. And it got me thinking- does he secretly love pink? Is it a kind of gay symbol? Is it just the only one he owns, and he bought it cos it was cheap? Or (and this is what I'm hoping) is it deliberate, and deliberately clashing with those ridiculous shoes? Is he wearing this as a style statement?

I love people watching. Particularly when I can invent a story about these people. I wonder every day what motivates people to choose their outfits. I believe there are people out there who are completely unaware of fashion and choose clothes purely on function and purpose. Its chilly, I'll wear my polarfleece zip up cardi on my way to work. I have to walk, I'll wear socks and sneakers over my stockings. But what about people who go to effort, yet still pretend they dont care about fashion?

Like the women who glare at you on the tram and huff around like they are far too busy and important to be interested in flimsy silly things like high heels, and they wear solid comfortable shoes they can get their orthotics into, but they have a sheer burgundy top on with some diamantes and a flower brooch? Were they just after a bit of prettiness, to soften them? Or did they think "work today, I'll wear that nice red top". Whats the thought process?

My other favourite conundrum is the incredibly overdone young woman. She's got hair so blonde it looks like it will snap clean off in chunks, she has a headband, big earrings, a necklace, a low cut singlet, a mini vest, a belt, an armful of bangles, extremely tight jeans, boots over the top, and soooo much makeup they look kinda like they found some clay on the way to work and rubbed it into their skin. And then they have more mascara than you own at home on, with pale pale pink barbie lips. Are they 100% on with fashion? Are they revered and adored by their friends? What on earth do they wear to go out?

About half the time I see myself in a window somewhere and wonder why on earth I thought my outfit was a good idea, usually because I havent tried hard enough or chose the safer option. But after years of doing this I am finally starting to learn to get a bit wilder. This includes high heels and makeup.... ok I havent actually worn high heels out during the day just to shop but I am working up to it!

I am hoping that when (and it is when, not if!) I get a new job this will coincide with a change in wardrobal direction. I am thinking heels for work, perhaps even eye makeup to work, much much more fashion risks, and a lot more extravagance. I want the clothes I wear to express how I feel. And I dont want people to see me as a safe, moderately stylish/classic dresser. I want them to think I am fashionable! And always look great! (This may be aiming to high).

The thing that made me decide this is in the new Harpers Bazaar they have an article on "cool girls" which says that while Chloe Sevigny makes the best dressed lists often these days, she spent 5 years experimenting, creating her own style, and often ending up on the worst dressed lists, until she got it right for her, and people started admiring her style rather than freaking out about it. I think I've got five years to stuff around while I suss out mine.