Friday Jams

Friday Jams

"As each degree of temperature drops, Mariah Carey grows stronger. She dances around her home, knowing she will be relevant soon." @gayathomedad"

This tweet cracked me up cause we know all of this is true--so very true.



Soon Mariah soon...

Life Hack

Life Hack--The Book App on Iphones

Okay--one of the best things about the latest ISO upgrade for the Iphone 5 and above has been the addition of the Books app.

                                                              This One--Super Easy

What I love about this app is that it is it has all the same benefits of the kindle in a small size--including a wide selection of free books, short stories and samples of best sellers... The search subjects are just as diverse from Amish Romance to Urban gay romance to the latest Dan Brown or classic Dorothy Parker. And the best part of the app is that it doesn't suck all the juice out of your phone, the screen flips from white with black text to a black screen with white text depending on the lighting and the letter and graphic quality is great with no eye strain...

                                              Though I am not opposed to sexy glasses 

It is my favorite time waste ever and a great way to have something on hand whether you need to kill time, distract yourself on a commute or cheer yourself up when on the go... This is one of the apps I honestly use and great thing to have handy for all the holiday travel you'll be doing this season!

                                       Unless You End Up Like This Guy-Lucky Bastard

fashion Files

Holiday Highs and Lows

It's almost that time of year--nonstop parties, dinners and get togethers for everything from Thanksgiving all the way through New Years Day... And while girls can easily slip into a multitude of dresses--one stop dressing frankly--guys are always stuck doing that suit/khakis/blazer kind of thing because most--not all--have no idea how to dress up, be comfortable and still themselves... But between the formal looks, dressy casual and ugly sweaters there are plenty of unique ways to dress up the season and everyone can use a few ideas

Velvet

There is nothing that screams the holidays as much as velvet in your look--thick, warm and soft, classy without being to fem--velvet is the go-to material when it comes to the season. You can see here in this picture the multiple ways to wear it whether with a casual top, tie and jeans, full suit or even a velvet tux. I find the best way to wear it is with a string dark jean, simple button down shirt and formal shoes or high end boots

A blazer like this with a black jean and button down shirt is hands down my favorite look and can easily be made more punk trend with simple accessories like formal triangles for the collar like these tips from ASOS

Formal Flannel
This is one of the more manly and warmest of the party looks for this season... I love taking a quality low-end item like a flannel shirt and dress it up with something formal like fitted vest or solid colored bow tie and sweater combo.

This is a simple yet layered look that in a holiday color scheme can look playful yet semi formal without the stiffness of a coat or formal pants. You can also dress up the look even more with some unique add ons to take it to the next level:

Suspenders can go over or under the vest for a nice thinning look to the overall chest area-from Topshop

Tie pins are the big thing right now in menswear--they add a more finished look and keep everything in place; kind of like a Spanx for your tie--this one is from Topman

You can even go more rugged and do something fun like the arm garters here--kind of Gatsby/gangster sort of vibe--you can find these at ASOS right now

Holiday Sweater

So we all know the ugly holiday sweater party is a new addition to the social calender--meant to be fun, usually bar based and something meant to be unflattering... But it doesnt have to be that way:

But even as this lovely holiday card shows us; you can spice these sweaters up with a good button down underneath to make the look coordinated and a bit more pulled together. The other thing--and this is unpopular--is you can also wear holiday sweaters and not have it be ironic... There are plenty of websites now giving us holiday flare without the overly ugly aspect

I love this simple yet fun holiday sweater from River Island--and it's not too Christmas so I can wear it through out the season

Tuxedo Done Down

If you're lucky--or just really connected--you might be going to a super formal event and need to break out the tuxedo look... whether you go for a rental or buy/own your own (I suggest indochino.com for amazing suits and tuxes custom-made with styles, cuts and materials updating each season) there are still some ways to update and personalize the look:

                       I love the idea of tuxedos with plain baseball caps--but only with the flat brim

You can do a simple fun cap like the poor hat here--or the classic fedora

I also love a tuxedo with chucks--though take a risk and match the color of the bow tie or handkerchief for a solid pop of color

Or abandon the tie idea all together and go for a ascot instead of the usual bow tie--this can add a bit of swagger and unexpectedness to the whole look...


I guess the biggest thing to take away from these suggestions is to have fun and play around with fabric, color and layering for your holiday looks... Use these ideas as a springboard for choosing your own perfect balance of accessories, patterns and looks for the various holiday gatherings and stick out!!!

Obsession

Obsession

After 10 plus years with the same bed frame, I've been thinking it is time to adult up and get something nice for Johnno and I to share... It's hard because I am picking about any piece of furniture much less something that I will use everyday like a bed. But I figured with OCD about that type of stuff that I would try and spend my time hunting one now and figure out if I can afford it later and voila

It's not happening yet but honestly if it was any more perfect it would have Rory and Matty carved into the metal itself. Metal, strong, orange and just everything--I'm in love.

Inspiration Monday

Inspiration Monday

I love art but there will never be enough time to see it all... Paintings, sculpture, murals, fashion, furniture, jewelry, textiles, mobiles, photography... Even if I won a million dollars and could travel around the world I still would only see a sliver of the works out there... Which is why all the new museums itemizing, sorting and posting their collections on-line has become one of my favorite things to hunt down on the internet...




                                          Watchmaker: Johannes van Ceulen

It's inspiring to see all the various works out there that are currently not displayed and in the past would be considered forgotten but instead have been restored to the public eye... The only bummer is that you cannot just snag the jpeg of the website and post it around since the museum owns the copyright of these images.





                                Laura Newell Veissi by Clara Louise Bell

Until recently

Back in May the Metropolitan Museum of Art posted over 400,000 pieces on their website with a special distinction--OASC or Open Access for Scholarly Content which means that while you cannot make a profit off any of these images--you can repost them for free anywhere without fear of violating copyright and having them pulled down.... Which means not only can people go through the website and find new art to love--they can post and repost and expose it to anyone in the world...



                                           Blue I by Fritz Bultman

  

Now all you have to do is go through the archives to find it--and the MET is one of premier museums in the world. It's like the world's best scavenger hunt!!! For the most beautiful things ever. Here's the website-- http://www.metmuseum.org/collection

Designer: Emanuel Ungaro Date: fall/winter 1987–88

Happy hunting!!!!!

(all images are from the MET Collection and OASC rated)

Fashion Files

Fashion Files--Tis the Season

One of the best things about the holiday season is gifts--giving the perfect ones to friends and family plus getting even better ones for yourself... (I manage this by keeping an updated gift list on myregistry.com--like updated all the time. I'm a shopping whore) One of the hardest things is trying to find something for everyone--even harder to shop for guys who want to be fashionable but not to fussy--which I think screams the t-shirt as the perfect gift.

And since Fashion Files is all about looking for unique and fun places to find clothing pieces--here's a list of some of my favorite and most unique places to shop for t-shirts for both guys and girls...

Threadless.com

The classic and most original t-shirt site--known for having it's users create and designs in order to get mass produced... It's the usually the best price point and they do some killer sales for the holidays such as the 12 dollar sale. The designs range from pun based to goth to cartoon and can be worth a look if your intended has a goofy sense of humor.

Outofprintclothing.com

This is the place to find the perfect shirt for the nerd on your list--Out of Print carries t-shirts, sweatshirts and iphone cases with prints of famous book covers... Besides the obvious choices such a Catcher in the Rye, Of Mice and Men and Pride and Prejudice, they have a great collection of childrens books for both adults and children, poetry covers as well as lesser known classics. While the prices might be more than the average graphic tee, these shirts are high quality and great printing technique

Welovefine.com

This is the best t-shirt company for all your geek friends because We Love Fine does t-shirt designs of all your favorite childhood things but with an adult twist. Carrying everything from "My Little Pony" for your Bronie buds, "Jem and the Holograms" in 80s Art Nouveau style or street takes on "Sesame Street" characters--everything you ever remember from childhood cartoons, video games and TV shows is here. The only warning I have for this company is to order sooner than later and double check the sizes--they can run small

Buymebrunch.com

Simple is the name of the game with Buy Me Brunch t-shirts--classic block lettering, quotes from YouTube videos and 80s music videos, simple color schemes... What I love about this company and it's t-shirts is how it is no frills which makes the shirts stand out even more--because you almost dont see what they say at first and they always get a double take.

Imaginaryfoundation.com

Going in 180 degrees the opposite direction--Imaginary Foundation features bright graphic designs based off of science, philosophy, and psychological imagery. The shirts are more expensive but are lush with color and messages--the weirdest thing about the company is it' "about us" page--it reads like a total cult but a fashion forward one

Rageon.com

Rage On is the most expensive of the websites on the list--but with it's heady and on point mix of pop culture couture t-shirts it can be worth the expense. It's designs feature celebs of all types in clean, brighter large than life prints; you can get a screaming Oprah on a tank top, a collage of Robin Williams paparazzi photos on a t-shirt or famous film stills with quotes on them. The shirts are made of a spun polyester to prevent shrinkage and color fading which seems to be why the high price point--totally worth it for your hipster friends.


And that is just a few of the best t-shirts companies out there for this holiday season... Do any of you have new ones I should be searching out for this Christmas? If so--leave a comment and I'll update the list if it fits!


(and no--I was not paid or swagged by any of the companies in this post--I just love their shit)

Thursday Truths

One Year In

This post is a little late--I think because I didn't know how I would sit down and write it in the right way to give it all the meaning and thought it should. I dont know if there is a proper way to sum up a year in a relationship--much less the first year in a marriage.

It's tricky

As Johnno is fond of saying, the first six months were rough between his company laying him and a bunch of people off, moving out of the Dollhouse ahead of schedule, just trying to figure out how to live one on one... Also--and no one tells you this--you're prospective of your relationship changes once you are married. It's not like I didnt think Johnno and I were forever before the ceremony and rings but once you've done all the pomp and circumstance things take on a different weight.

Your problems become his problems and vise versa--things like health insurance and cars and family issues all become tied together... You hesitate before you buy yourself a new pair of jeans, make more of an effort to pay attention to the mechanics of the relationship, you worry about not just tomorrow but a thousand tomorrows down the road.

It's scary shit

And you sometimes freak out and squabble and learn to breathe and to settle in, you realize how heavy forever can be no matter how much you love each other and you put more effort into the details of the day to day because you know forever is a long time and you want to make it special. You feel the value of knowing one fight doesnt mean you can pack up and leave, the world can be a bit more scary when you are not together and you take solace in the knowledge that this--whatever it is--is the two of yours to make into whatever you want it to be.

It's a hell of a ride 12 months in....

Adventure Time

Adventure Time :FIDM

One of the things I have been trying to do more of is take adventures throughout out the city of LA... Honestly with out the help of the Groupon/Living Social type apps I wouldn't be finding as many ideas of what exactly there is to do around the town...

Obviously one of my favorite things is fashion--so when I heard the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising  was having a showing of Emmy nominated costumes I tricked the husbear into heading downtown. The clothes ran from everything from Sleepy Hallow to Downton Abbey to Portlandia: you're not allowed to take photos of the clothes and yet:

 This is one of the two pictures I was able to get of the Downton Abbey costumes--what you cant tell from TV or these pictures is just how fragile and ornate they are... There is something to be said for the high quality of the hand sewn pieces and yet it is impossible to see how they could take care of such pieces. Everyone had to be rich back then

Another fun thing with the exhibit was that mannequins were made up of a weird paper technique for various elements such as the curly hair styles. Also they would tell you the name of each costume's character--such as they outfits belonging to Edith and Rose from the London trip in the last season.

Unfortunately, I couldn't sneak many pictures--and some of the pieces there were kind of everyday wear from shows like 'Parenthood', 'Castle', and 'American Horror Story'. (Honestly--I wish I could have gotten a picture of the Myrtle outfit.

                     Seeing this outfit in person was INSANE--ask Johnno about me almost fainting

But there was also a lot of various period pieces in the show such AMC's "Hell on Wheels" and "Mad Men" but the best pieces of the whole show really were the outfits from "Salem". I was amazed at how much effort and expense was put into these costumes--it's even weird to think how much you don't pay attention to costumes outside of the high fashion/girl fantasy shows. But even there in the showing there were some head scratchers...

                         These are the pieces from Portlandia AKA Silverlake on a Tuesday
At the end of the day I was glad we were able to go and enjoy the full showing--I also learned that FIDM has constantly changing free shows for the public--including ones where you can adopt pieces of period clothing from as early as the 16th century which I think is cool as shit... Now that would make me a patron of the arts

Inspiration Monday

Inspiration Monday-Christopher Pike 

If you were a teen reader in the 90s through today at some point you probably read one of Christopher Pike's books--to this day when I bring his novels up in conversation people's faces light up as they recall their favorites... "Remember Me" about a ghost named Shari trying to solve her own murder, "Chainletter" about a group of friends stalked and killed for not following the game, "Witch" about a fate and death and when not to mess with either...

                                       Nothing creepier than looking at your own corpse 

It's a testament to his writing that Pike has stayed on our radars for so long--he is one of a handful of people who inspired me to write along side Judy Blume, Jane Austen, F Scott Fitzgerald among others. And when I think about why he stayed with me--and helped create young adult popular enough to make the NYT best seller list--it's easy to see that he did what few people in the genre were doing at the time.

He wrote about real shit.

Sure his books had murders, other worldly creatures in some, teenage psychos in others, but where Pike's strength was at its best is how he wrote about "adult" issues for teens. Characters could be gay or racists, they would talk about sex and drugs, abortions and divorce, they smoked and swore as much as they sighed and held hands. They had deep thoughts and philosophies about things like God and politics, they had real relationships with parents and peers, they weren't always pretty or kind or fun to be around. But there was a solid base of honesty in the stories Pike created and a bond between his reads and himself that he rarely ever broke.

To this day I still believe his series "Final Friends" is Pike's masterpiece--well plotted, complex characters dealing with real things and yet still high school students in the best sense of the word. It is a series that I would die to see made into  a mini-series or short run TV show, something that I always bring up when the conversation turns to inspiring books for myself as a writer. To this day without prompting I can name off all of the characters and what happened to them throughout the series without blinking an eye which is the mark of powerful writing in any format.

                                          Honestly--just looking at this cover give me the chills

Jam of the Day

God Only Knows--British All Stars



I am obsessed with this cover--mostly due to the unique British superstars mixed throughout the video and not just the obvious ones--Eliza, Nicola, Danielle.... Just so pretty and special