everything

let's say these images are a metaphor for my current state right now. weird times. 

marcel the shell with shoes on...

...to brighten up your day 

a very David Lynch Halloween: Part 2

Let's take a trip back to the town of Twin Peaks for more Halloween costume ideas/general weirdness.

Hands down the scariest character in Twin Peaks is Bob: terror personified in double denim. If you are fortunate enough to own jeans with a jacket or vest to match, you really should consider him as your costume inspiration. Bob has really long greasy, grey hair which might be the most disgusting combination you can think of so its perfect for Halloween. Rub some dirt and talc in your hair and you’re golden. This might not be an obvious choice for a girl's costume but who cares? Break free from social norms. 

Audrey Horne is one of the coolest characters in the show, with her displaced 50s style and her perfectly placed beauty spot. If you want to dress as Audrey all you really need are some saddle shoes (improvise with some cheap white tennis shoes and a black marker) and a tight skirt and an even tighter sweater. You have to remember to act coy, yet seductive at all times and be willing, if the situation arises, to sway to some music on your own in the middle of a room. Don’t be shy, you’re Audrey!

If you own an entirely red outfit consider spending Halloween as 'The Arm'. This one requires some dedication as you will be learning some new skills: first, learn a few lines of backwards dialogue played forwards (I think that's how they did that.) second, master some of his sweet dance moves. Think the robot but smoother, with a little bit of the hustle thrown in. As I always say, learning new dance moves isn’t just for Halloween

There's also Shelly Johnson. For her you'll need a sea-foam green waitress uniform and some burly guy to be your mean husband named Leo. Don’t let him push you around though. 

Or there’s Donna: Laura's relentlessly overshadowed BFF. It's not surprising because she is extremely boring except for in that one episode where she wears sunglasses and kisses James through some prison bars. If you go with Donna as your costume be prepared for no one to talk to you all night.  

If you want to spend your night feeling like a super nerd dress as Laura's cousin, Maddie. Get some unnecessarily large glasses and wear a lot of plaid. Show no skin whatsoever. Except for your face which is mostly obscured by the giant glasses anyway.

Leland (Laura's father) is a pretty wacky guy. I mean, his hair turned white over night. He also has a penchant for singing really upbeat songs at inappropriate times. Just wear a suit for this one. Or just don’t be Leland. He’s kind of the worst. 

And don’t forget moody (and super boring!) James with his whiny singing voice and endlessly furrowed brow. For this you will need a bad haircut and a leather jacket. 

Or maybe you’re more of a Dr. Jacoby, a fan of all things Hawaiian. 

If you’re a real fan, maybe you feel like going as David Lynch? 

 The most time and effort should be spent on the hair. David Lynch is well known for his gravity defying coiffure and this look could probably be achieved with some careful back combing and hair spray. But remember! it has to look natural and carefree! Otherwise you might end up looking like Eraserhead. Which is fine, but it's a totally different ballgame. 

 Now, if you want your hair to permanently emulate Lynch's then I suggest you get it cut quite short on the sides while allowing the top to grow long (not that you asked).

 

see the difference? 

lazy links

a subtle yet sexy idea for Halloween make-up 

the rules of Halloween

adorable spooky cupcakes

a scary house and other great photos

I can't stop listening to this song!

costumes never looked so comfy (which one would you choose?)

tell me one good reason why this isn't a necessity?

another Halloween themed baked good

(image source unknown)

TWO BEINGS SEEN/MET ON SAME DAY IN HONG KONG

(guest post by my brother Gabriel)

I've been living in Hong Kong for over two weeks now and if nothing else it's a place with a lot to see. I don't mean the sights like museums, I just mean seeing. Dramatic visuals are commonplace and I've even grown fairly accustomed to my window view from our 20th floor apartment, which must encompass at least a hundred buildings (not counting the distant ones), many of them very tall. The view also includes the smallest bit of harbour (visible between two buildings--they'll probably fill that gap soon) and on the occasional clear day, quite a bit of sky. But this guest post is more about close-ups, not about wide angles. And these are two living things I saw close-up today, one right after the other, first the man (who knows Jackie Chan) and then the dog (with legs the size of a log). 

A very David Lynch Halloween!

David Lynch movies are so mysteriously unsettling that they are perfect inspiration for some very odd Halloween costumes (in my opinion). It's time to put some work into Halloween because terrifying zombies and ghouls are so hot right now. 

Wild At Heart

Now, if you are truly desperate to still look more sexy than scary this Halloween, follow the lead of Lula. Think super tight dresses, permed hair and lot's of dancing. If you are lucky enough to have a Nicolas Cage lookalike hanging around, wrangle them in to dress as Sailor, proud wearer of a Snakeskin Jacket. Remember to repeat his famous line all night : 'This is a snakeskin jacket! And for me it's a symbol of my individuality, and my belief...in personal freedom.' 

If you have a few more friends who don't know what to wear, suggest Lula's crazy mother, Marietta Fortune. I would draw my inspiration from the scene where she covers her face entirely in lipstick. Make sure to always be holding a Martini glass.

 Perdita Durango (blonde short hair, huge dark eyebrows) or Willem Dafoe's character Bobby Peru... it would help if you already look like Willem Dafoe..

Twin Peaks

(dont read on if you have never watched this (but intend to) as there are slight spoilers...but only slight)

If you haven't watched Twin Peaks... go watch it now! Right now! It's great. Yes, it's weird but so few things are in this world so just embrace it. Tons of great costume ideas from this one.
There's Agent Dale Cooper, for which you would need a trench coat, a suit, mug of black coffee, slicked back hair and very strong moral fiber.
Laura Palmer, this one's fun because you can choose to be pre or post-mortem Laura so it's either "she's dead...wrapped in plastic" or prom queen with a dark secret.
There's Nadine (eye patch, red hair, cheerleader outfit, super human strength), and The Log Lady (log, big red glasses, warm sweater, lots of chewing gum that you stick to things.)

To be continued...

eighty-eight miles per hour

So a few nights ago we found out that they were showing a special late night screening of Back to the Future at the movie theatre. I know this isn't the first time I'm writing about Back to the Future, I'm not super obsessed with it or anything but it's obviously pretty great. Nevertheless I will continue. 

Things that are great about late night showings of old movies:

You can sit in any seat you want! Over here, they have these more expensive but obviously better seats called Premier seats. Originally there were like 5 in each screen now it's hard to find the non premier seats and they are always in the best locations for viewing. But they cost more money so you know we skimp and go for the cheapo seats because we're not jerks. But on late night viewings you can sit anywhere!! Premier seat, right in the middle. Perfect. 

Another great thing is that there was barely anyone there. People always ruin movies for me..whether it be that they are eating super loud potato crunch snacks or they are constantly checking their phone which means I get my eyes burned or maybe you're lucky enough to sit in front of some seat kicking teenagers or people who laugh nervously when they are uncomfortable in scenes that aren't funny (Black Swan)... so this was good for me and my grumpy high standards for movie going. About fifteen people, all there for the same reason. No drama. 

Back to the Future was released in theatres in 1985 and I was born in 1987 so there was no way I was going to get to see that one on the big screen. It's really exciting getting to see old faves at the movies! And also you feel like you're cool that you know about the screening and also that you can prove that you obviously love the movie a ton just by being there. So I was already really excited about it.... and I was pleasantly surprised that watching this movie in a theatre made it so much more enjoyable!

I guess when you watch movies at home you're never really as fully into it and you know you can always get up to get food or whatever.. so really you're not paying full attention always. 

You take the movie for granted. 

Things I noticed in Back to the Future that I never noticed in all my years of watching it:

1. People in this movie don't walk in straight, forward lines. They pivot, spin, walk backwards A LOT! 

I guess that's what happens when you are freaking out about stuff. 

2. George McFly (Crispin Glover) and Marty are hilarious on screen together. HILARIOUS.

3. The photo Marty keeps looking at of his siblings is one of the funniest things in the movie. His brother looks about 45 but is dressed like an 8 year old and he's waving at the camera! You don't need to wave! Just smiling and making eye contact is enough. 

4. I realised how simple it would be to dress like Marty McFly, if you were so inclined. I own a red puffer vest just like him!! Ok, I wore it a lot when I was 11 but I'm pretty sure that's when I stopped growing. 

5. In the last scene where Biff is not a jerk anymore, he has the most awkward gestures such as putting his hand weirdly high up on his hip. But it sort of works. Oh and his tracksuit is just right.

Ok so there are only five points but still, it just goes to show you that there's always more to experience from your favourite things. 

Here is a list of more old faves that I would like to watch at the movie theatre:

Death Becomes Her, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Annie Hall, Rosemary's Baby and Ghostbusters.

You can probably tell that I have super good taste in movies...

What movies would you LOVE to see back at the theatre?

hats & overalls

I have been noticing a lot more hats this year than last year. I think it's great because hats just have this way of turning what might be an average outfit into a super glamorous one! I love wearing hats although I haven't quite mastered wearing hats like these pictured below. You definitely have to have the right attitude to pull it off I think. Or perhaps the attitude comes from wearing the hat? Chicken and egg? Who knows!

source

I've also been seeing overalls (dungarees) this year which is not completely unexpected, I guess everything has to become fashionable again at some point. I wore dungarees a lot as a kid and I always felt pretty cool in them but you know, as an adult it not only takes a special pair of overalls but also really good styling to come across as a cool, hip lady and not.. slightly hip farmer gal. 

Not that that's a bad thing, but you know.. overalls can be generally pretty unflattering so when it's done well it just looks really good and effortless. 

(I found a lot some of these images on tumblr and don't know the original source. bad blogger. 

the top and bottom photos are linked!)

so this is what life has been looking like lately. in an edited way.
1. I saw this drawing in an underground (literally) art exhibition. It was in a big empty parking lot with some other work. I love this so much!
2. Tough decisions on this day. (we have never been able to find this elusive "Coy Pond" after four years of living here.
3. She does this sort of thing all the time. I guess she likes the feel of the plastic? Of course it's way to tempting to pick the bag up by the handles and hold her in it but.. that's only happened once.
4. Bedroom window
5. Living room window
6. Double rainbow!! Is this meant to be good luck? I have decided it is.
7. Holy cat eyes Batman!
8. I want to feel as comfortable as she looks for once in my life!
9. Our weird living room. Notice all our lovely art. We love to art. One of those paintings is actually really art, done by a Haitian woman and I love it.
10. We happen to live near one of the best gelato places. Gigi's. I ordered Gigi flavour with Banoffee Pie flavour.
11. Best Friends.