Fashionista #1

Ok, every week I seem to do a round up of clothes I've seen and liked so here we go.

I saw a girl wearing this extremely cute top during the week.

Today's Outfit. Yesterday

Working in an office means I have to wear a suit and sometimes, cross-dressing tendencies or not, it does get a bit frustrating to see the girls come in wearing various outfits and I feel that I'm doing bad by undoing my top button. Never liked ties although I'm considering getting some Tenth Doctor ones and maybe a red Shaun of the Dead one and maybe some 80's style Gene Hunt ones. My Dad still has some quite 80's ties. Anyway, the one article of clothing I'm most jealous of is the fashion suit jacket with the turned up patterned sleeves (apologies for the small picture but it's the best I could find).

Fashion suit jacket

 Wonderful. Wish I could wear one.

Olympics

I can't really avoid the Olympics living and working where I do.

I can't say that I'm that interested in sport generally. I might watch the football when England are in a major tournament, probably in a pub to soak up the atmosphere, but other than that no. However I do recall the Seoul Olympics in 1988 mainly because I saw all these posters with 'Seoul '88' on and I had no idea what it was only being 9 years old at the time.

The London 2012 Olympics has been creeping up and suddenly its here. I work in London and quite close to Hyde Park, one of the big venues, and travelling right past the Olympic stadium at Stratford on the train. Travel is probably going to be a bitch but the first day wasn't so bad although I'm not looking forward to it. A lot of people are leaving the country so that may balance with all the people coming in.

The promotion troubles me too. I still don't like the logo, it's trying too hard to be edgy and cool. There's also of course the thing you see. Do you know the thing? Ok, so I'll explain the thing but I'll warn you that once you see it, you can't unsee it so skip below now if you don't want me to warp your mind with my twisted humour. well, not MY twisted humour, I didn't invent this but at some point someone realised that the picture is basically Lisa Simpson giving a blow job.

London 2012 Logo

Then we also have the mascots, Wenlock and Mandeville. I don't mind them that much and I love the taxicab lights on top of their heads. However one reason for mascots I would expect is to give something for the kids to enjoy. You get the kids interested the the characters will be very popular and lucrative and with this in mind I have to question a couple of things. First of all, they need expressions, a smile at least, and then there's the dip. One of them, I think it's Wenlock has a little dip above the eye and this makes it look like he's frowning and a bit evil. Seriously, all he needs is a small black goatee beard.

Wenlock and Mandeville

McDonalds have also plastered posters all over the tubes and they are beginning to annoy me. They're based on their campaign about the different types of people who use the restaurant. For example, the ways they eat fries like "the bottom of the baggers" and now it's the ways we watch the Olympics like "the nervous peeker" or "the air puncher" which is all well and good and I find it quite smart but then you have "the showing-the way-er" or "the peckish pick-me-up-er". THESE ARE NOT REAL THINGS! Ok sorry, got that out of my system now. There's even a promotion for the next winter Olympics near Hyde Park, a cat in a scarf with an igloo on an ice floe. Considering how hot it's been lately, it was quite funny. Lots of people are arriving with big pieces of laminated square card around their necks. 

Despite everything though, I can't help feeling the buzz around it all and the sense that I'm living through history. Smack bang in the middle of it (well, off to the side anyway) but it's a wonderful feeling. The opening ceremony was marvellous and I'm sure things will calm down as the games get underway. I'm sure I'll take all that back when I'm bitching about travel next week.     

Clothes

Another kind of jumbly post this time.

Just finished watching Primeval and first of all I must say a word about Ruth Kearney who plays the tech girl Jess. As well as being cute as a button she wears such wonderfully smart clothes as well. Mini skirts that are not too slutty (although some seem too short for the character) and cute tops. Now that is a smart wardrobe for a modern girl. I would love to dress like her perhaps on a night out to a restaurant or bar, the smart casual kind of look.

Ruth Kearney as Jess in Primeval

I saw a girl on the tube the other day wearing the strangest outfit, well I thought it was anyway, but it was glorious. She was in her twenties, a short brunette (which I have to say is most definitely my type) in a top and green leathery jacket. So far, so indie chick I guess but she then has a tartan skirt on. Not the kind of cute short and pleated that I just adore but an old lady woollen kind of skirt. This was topped off by shoes that were really strappy and showy; the kind you would expect to be worn by an overly made-up bottle blonde in a skimpy dress. I say none of this to insult her, you understand, but this outfit really stood out to me and I sometimes wish I could, or had the confidence, to wear such eclectic mixes of clothes like Japanese girls seem to do.  

Clothes have always intrigued me. People swapping outfits always look fun because a style is very individual and you are passing that on to someone else. A pink-loving bimbo and a goth girl switching togs would always be fun because neither of them would choose that outfit for themselves. Even people wearing the same outfit as another like this still from Suburgatory which started on E4 this week.

Dalia shares her style with Tessa in Suburgatory

The show was a bit like Mean Girls but it will be fun to see how it develops. Recently makeover show Snog, Marry, Avoid has had a new host for the new series in the shape of attractive comedienne Ellie Taylor. The basic idea of the it is that it's a make-under show featuring girls being stripped of their hair extensions, make-up and fake tans for a more natural look. This is a guilty pleasure of mine and although I haven't seen may episodes of the latest series, it has featured Ellie trying out many of the fashions involved like the Scouse Brow or dressing as a WAG.

The below picture is a promotional shot for the show featuring Ellie next to an overly made-up and tarty version of herself. This is the kind of stuff I love; people taking on different personae and looks through clothes. What you wear tells a lot about your personality.

Ellie Taylor and Ellie Taylor in Snog, Marry, Avoid

I'll always remember one day back in 2004 when I wore 3 different kinds of clothes. I had an interview early that day so I had to get up early and put my best suit and tie on. I wear this every day now, I must look quite the young professional which is quite scary. I didn't get that particular job and it remains one of my worst rejections. I came back home and changed back into my regular jeans and t-shirt. Later on I went to work dressed in older clothes: tracksuit bottoms and a big fleece. Three different looks in one day. It may not sound much but this kind of thing sticks in my mind and there's something I could write about it but I'm not sure what.    

A Change Would Do You Good

This is A Change Would Do You Good by Sheryl Crow from 1996 and I absolutely adored this video at the time. Everyone swapping roles and clothes all over the place, this was just awesome. I watched it again recently and didn't realise the amount of well known people in it, Molly Shannon Jeff Garlin from Curb Your Enthusiasm, Mary-Lynn Rubikscube (or whatever) from The Larry Sanders Show etc. At the time I just recognised Ellen DeGeneres because I was a fan of her sitcom, Ellen. Of course, if you hadn't guessed, I loved the boss turning into his secretary in that long red dress.

Yeah, so this was an early influence on me.

My Week #4

Hey everyone.

Yup, not many updates this week. I really do mean to start posting properly at some point about areas of my life past and present.

This week I've largely been feeling like shit. I've had a cold all week that still hasn't cleared up not to mention various parts of my body aching. I had a day off work and went back after that which perhaps I shouldn't have done but then I would have just been hanging around the house thinking that I could have gone in to works after all. Erm ok so dresses and skirts then...dresses and skirts...oh ok here's something I've noticed recently, the rise in girls wearing patterned wellies.

This is just a brilliant idea, how come no-one has thought of this sooner. This is Britain for God's sake, it rains here constantly so how come stylish wellies haven't come about before? I'm surprised we don't have umbrellas with more pictures on like avatars. It's all you see of people sometimes.

Speaking of going out, this time last week I was at the London Film and Comic Con which was so much fun as it always is. I met Freema Agyeman, who played Martha Jones in Doctor Who and John Simm. John, of course, played the Master and Sam Tyler in Life on Mars which is one of my favourite genre series amongst many other roles. Human Traffic is still a great film about 1990s club culture.  I always thought he was the type of actor who didn't do these kind of shows so I was surprised to see him there and he was the person I mainly went to meet even though I do this show every year. I've always wanted to meet him.  

My Week #3

Ok, so again I've meant to post different things this week but I've not had time so I thought I would be lazy and do the jumbo update which will probably include a lot of stuff that you're not interested in.

Anyway, I got a Kindle recently which is something I never thought would happen. At first I thought it wouldn't be much use especially for me as I have so many actual books to read already. Over time it became more popular and I suddenly cottoned onto the fact that it's like the book version of an iPod and that really appealed to me. A couple of my friends have also released e books recently and I wanted to support them. My housemate was selling his, so I bought it and have been reading with it all week. I'm really enjoying it although that may just be the novelty. There are so many books on offer now and they seem cheaper and easier to get so I can really see myself using it more.The only trouble was when I tried to download my first book, the billing address on my credit card didn't match my new one. I haven't used Amazon since I moved house last year. So I ended up with a call from the bank which always puts the frights up me since I have been a fraud victim twice before. Still, it got sorted out although they called my old number at first so I had some explaining to do to my parents.

After that I ended up watching Pirates of the Caribbean 4. Now, everyone moans at these sequels but, although the first movie was better, I still really enjoyed this. I went to see The Amazing Spider-Man yesterday and can't say I was that impressed with it. I don't see why we had to have another reboot for a start and although Andrew Garfield is a good actor, his Peter Parker was very furtive and geeky, he's just too much of a pretty boy. Martin Sheen was good as Uncle Ben though but overall it didn't feel fun enough for a Marvel movie.

Rose and Thorn

I saw this wonderful image over the Codex of Corruption run by the lovely Victoria Hyde and just had to repost it here. The juxtaposition between the two images is wonderful, two very different girls in the same pose with one the dark side of the other. The reflection in the mirror of the alternate bedroom is a great detail too and the closet full of weapons suggesting that the other side is bleeding through.

I don't know too much about this but it's the cover art of DC's National Comics: Rose and Thorn #1 by Ryan Sook, due for release in September. I know virtually nothing about the character but this is enough to intrigue me into reading.