Treasure Chests

I am after an old vintage wooden jewellery box, kind of like a 'treasure chest'. It needs to be big enough to fit chunky jewellery with sections insde so they don't all tangle up...

There are some that I have found online (below) which fit the bill but it would be more fun to pick one out in person. My lovely boyfriend wanted to get me one for Christmas but wanted help choosing it. He was hoping to take me to Windsor for the day to have a look but what with the overload of deadlines I'm not sure when I'll have the time for that.

Any suggestions on where to look are very welcome! 

We are hopefully going to Brick Lane/ Spitalfields/ Swanfields Market on Sunday so will have a look there... Wish me luck!

Tavi: Born to blog

Sorry for the lack of festive posts, although I did warn you they would probably not happen due to me being too busy eating / drinking / doing family things etc.

I have just been writing a chapter for my dissertation about Tavi, the 13 year old fashion blogger who took the industry by storm back in September by skipping school to sit in the front rows at New York Fashion Week. Her blog 'Style Rookie' includes catwalk analyses, her thoughts on fashion and images of her in fashion forward outfits, mostly made up of designer and vintage finds.

But why is it that the media has gone mad for her? So she's 13 and she probably doesn't fit into all the clothes she blogs about but she's respected by the industry. She's graced the cover of magazines Pop and Love, contributed to The Pop blog and become muse to Kate and Laura Mulleavy of Rodarte. When looking at what the media has said about her in the past, it is clear that not everyone is so supportive of her but she has done well, closing in on half a million hits per month (says Pop).

Tavi's Front Cover for Love

Tavi’s generation grew up with the Internet and technology surrounding them so it is easy to see how she came across blogging at an early age (she started the blog aged 11). To the older fashion audience, she seems to be a novelty act, but although it is less common for people of her age to be blogging about fashion in such a knowledgeable way, teenagers worldwide are logging on to social networking sites such as Facebook and Bebo and networking with people they have never met. 

‘I learn a lot interacting with people on the internet’ Tavi told Pixie Geldof in an interview for Love Magazine.

Pop described Style Rookie as ‘a perfect example of a young girl from the suburbs of Chicago using technology to expand her world and then using it to expand ours’.

Tavi's Christmas Eve outfit

Will she be as popular once she's in her 20s, who knows? But for now, she's dedicated to her blog (she even posted on Xmas day!) and is having fun with it so good luck to her..

http://tavi-thenewgirlintown.blogspot.com/

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve already... Usually a good thing but with so much work to do over the holidays I am not as overjoyed as I should be. I'm treating myself to Christmas & Boxing day without my laptop (so that I don't feel guilty and return to my dissertation).

I'll be too busy eating, watching Christmas films, drinking Baileys Hot Chocolate and recovering from eating too much to post for the next couple of days..

I hope Santa gets you everything you wished for - My dad treated me to the best gift I could've asked for for Christmas and I am now a very happy bunny (or maybe reindeer is more appropriate at this time of the year?). Thanks Mum & Dad x

Found this picture when Googling Christmas Eve.. thought I'd share it!

Wishing you all a very happy christmas x x

My year in pictures

January

Back to our flat in Epsom after the Christmas holidays

February

First lot of snow of 2009

March

Group Project at uni on Gareth Pugh

April

Internship at a London based PR Agency

May

 Internship at Drapers Magazine 

June 

Arrived in Sorrento before...

July

... continuing to tour Italy with Paul - Capri, Pompei, Vesuvio and Rome

August

The annual break in Broome Park in Kent with my family

September 

Quick trip to Israel for a wedding before starting my third year

October 

The birth of Fashion Etc.

November 

The month of the theatre: Oliver, Sister Act and Marilyn & Ella

December 

Weekend in Berlin

 

A bit of German Tush

When I visited Berlin, earlier this month, I made sure I picked up some German fashion magazines. The first chance I got to visit a shop that sold magazines was at the airport on the way back  (when I had little money left) so I only brought back a couple, one of which was Tush.

Unfortunately I couldn't understand much of the content, apart from some of the titles, which seem to be in English, but I enjoyed looking through the editorials anyway...

This issue: 04/2009 had the slogan 'BEAUTY, STYLE & SEX APPEAL' on the cover which I can see translates within the magazine. The editorials seem very focused on hair and makeup, which I don't usually notice much, but really enjoyed looking at on this occasion...  

There was a fashion story about make-up at the shows, which was illustrated beautifully (see below)...

as well as close up photography such as below...

There was even a photoshoot in which a swan models scarves. There was a particularly nice image of the swan with it's wings spread out, but unfortunately I don't have access to an a3 scanner now that I'm back home for christmas...

There is a section devoted to men's styling...

and even a story on blogger Bryanboy (not that I can understand what it says)...

There was however a small section at the back in English which I guess is for the benefit of people like me who buy foreign magazines at airports... It's a nice gesture but it's only 7 pages (only 5 of which have text) and didn't include the pages I had wanted to read when flicking through.. I suppose other people might've preferred these stories but it sort of made me think that there wasn't much point in 'teasing' me by adding English if it's only a few articles.

Anyway, I still enjoyed flicking through the German part and would recommend it for the aesthetics (it might help if you also speak German!)

Brittany Murphy

Shocking news last night - Brittany Murphy died, aged 32. There's been plenty of speculation about the cause of her death so I'm not going to get involved in giving any false information...

I just thought it would be nice to pay tribute, as I thought she was a great actress. Obviously Clueless (which I used to watch pretty much every Sunday on video when I was a kid) was her first big hit but I also remember her as Sarah in Sister Sister way back in the days of sitting watching Nickelodeon all day...

I first came across her playing a serious role in Girl, Interrupted, although she wasn't a main character. She starred alongside Winona Ryder and Angelina Jolie, playing an anorexic girl who lived in a mental hospital and was abused by her father. 

Her big hit that really blew me away was Don't Say a Word, with Michael Douglas and Sean Bean. If you haven't yet seen this movie, you should! 

Then, in 8 Mile, she played Alex, girlfriend of B-Rabbit (Eminem) in 8 Mile. The only scene I really remember her in was when her and Em have a quickie round the corner in the factory. I Think it's fair to say she made less of an impression on me in this film...

Brittany also starred in many other films including Sin City (which I am ashamed to admit I have never seen) and less serious films such as Just Married, Uptown Girl and Riding in Cars with Boys.

RIP

Avatar

Yesterday I took a trip in the snow and ice to the Imax cinema where I saw the eagerly awaited film of 2009 - Avatar. 

The film, directed by James Cameron is the most expensive Hollywood movie to date, with a budget of $237 million (£144 million). Cameron is most famous for Titanic, which was a huge success back in 1997, and The Terminator films. 

Avatar has been on the cards for 14 years whilst Cameron waited for 3D technology to advance in order to cater for his extreme vision. Rightly so, the special effects were extremely impressive, especially in 3D where I felt like I was almost running through the forest with Jake Sully (Sam Worthington's character). It's hard to describe the beauty of Pandora (the planet inhabited by the Omitacayan race) but the visuals throughout were outstanding.

I think it's definitely worth going to see properly at the Imax rather than in 2D on some small screen.

Watch the film's trailer at: www.avatarmovie.com

Nine

I can't wait for the film Nine (not to be mistaken for 9, another film confusingly out at the same time!) to be released on Boxing Day. What a great line up: Penelope Cruz, Judi Dench, Sophia Loren and Daniel Day-Lewis to name a few. 

I am less excited about Nicole Kidman who I've never really liked for no particular reason and unsure wether to be excited or nervous to see Fergie (Black Eyed Peas) try to act.

The film is based on original 1982 broadway production and is directed by Rob Marshall, also famously responsible for Chicago and (less famous for) Memoirs of a Geisha. I've watched the trailer a few times in anticipation and already have the theme song 'Be Italian' stuck in my head!

IMDB synopsis: "Nine tells the story of Guido Contini (Daniel Day-Lewis), a world famous film director as he confronts an epic mid-life crisis with both creative and personal problems. He must balance the many women of his life, including his wife (Marion Cotillard), his mistress (Penelope Cruz), his film star muse (Nicole Kidman), his confidant and costume designer (Judi Dench), an American fashion journalist (Kate Hudson), the whore from his youth (Fergie) and his mother (Sophia Loren).

Copy the link below into your browser to see the trailer:

http://www.apple.com/trailers/weinstein/nine/medium.html

I'll post a review once I've seen it... Can't wait!