Sweet potato gnocchi

But my stomach hurts

This makes me want sushi

lockdown, drag out

air, water, fire by ed ruscha. i heart my new job like no one's biz.

Im making this scarf drunk i keep pricking myself!

This pumpkin empanada looks better in person and not half eaten

This dude is lame he has fake gold chains on his hoodie!

Meg is playing my fave song ever!

Meg is rocking out!

Cat club is lame but meg rulez

Wow!

Smokin on the balcony

I always get stuck at this light. Im listening to echo and the bunnymen.

These people are online but a lot of people are "hiding" i bet

Gil's mum made fun of my cat on myspace

This is cookie muffin's mypace, u can be our friend if u want. We love potions made by children.

I havent used my french phrase a day calendar since july 10

Feels like prison

Cookie and davy jones

Karate kick. Kung fu grip. Jujitsu flip. Its fun to the power of 3.

And he totally knew who i was, what?!

I just met jason schwartzman!

La skyline downtown im drunk

Seriously she rulez

I loves the megs!

Megalonius jamming at warehouse

Super ridiculous warehouse party

Rainy la traffic

Sending this from my phone...

...bc this mobile blogging blows my mind. Pls digg www.la2day.com/fashion/its_easy_being_green

Whoa!

I can blog from my phone? Really?! This is going to rule!

guerilla style

This was crazy. I was lucky to find out randomly that No Age would be playing a show at the LA River on Saturday afternoon, so of course I dropped everything and went. How many chances do you get to see a totally awesome band play outdoors, only a few feet away from a river no less! It was amazing. Unfortunately, the cops intervened after only 4-5 songs, but that was long enough to really enjoy life on a Saturday afternoon, listening to cool music echoing through nature, and watching a dude in a coon hat shred with the water flowing along behind him. Here is a video of it from their Myspace, but it doesn't do the experience any justice at all. I'll post a picture later.

The Return of the Top 10

I realized I haven't done a Top 10 in a while so this one's for you! I post this under duress so forgive my hasty annotations...

10. Famima - Basically an upscale 7-11, this Japanese import is really neato. Where else can you get cereal, toilet paper, M&Ms, Japanese snacks and candy, sushi that won't kill you, and turkey and brie paninis till 2am? Certainly not your regular corner store!

9. Earnest Sewn skinnies - These have always been a favourite but recently they just started to fit again. Praise the Lord! And thanks to vegan food as well.

8. Chez Les Ye-Ye - Sunday nights at Mountain Bar = French pop dance night! In Chinatown, who knew? The crowd is a bit sparse, but who cares? Any place I can go to have a beer and hear "Roller Girl" pretty much rules.

7. Irina Lazareanu - She is my favourite model. I find her so striking, and I'd be lying if I said my bangs weren't completely inspired by her.

6. Opening Ceremony - This Olympic-themed boutique started in New York but now has a Los Angeles outpost. It's like a labyrinth; each corner you turn you will find new rooms, nooks, and surprises! Hard to find labels like Proenza Schouler, Mayle, and Rachel Comey, up and comers like Souvenir and Katy Rodriguez, and even pieces from Topshop. Barneys has dropped to silver, and this place is the new gold medalist for me.

5. Weirdo Rippers - This album by No Age, a Los Angeles punk duo, has been getting a lot of acclaim since they got signed to SubPop. Just recently they have been featured in publications like i-D and The New Yorker. Pretty amazing for a band that regularly plays The Smell, which graces the album cover. It's a nice piece of work, very stripped down, raw, but still manages to be pop.

4. Sirens & Sailors - An adorable boutique in Echo Park that is a haven for LA designers, and indie designers from all over. They carry a great selection of obscure labels, for those with a true appreciation for the offbeat.

3. 323 necklace - Scored this area code necklace at the above mentioned store. LA is home now!

2. Potions Made by Children - This is my friend's...er...band. Okay, yeah they're a band! A good one. And their videos will make you laugh and coo.


1. Downtown LA - I don't know if this can be considered a well-kept secret anymore, but downtown is the new Eastside. Everything my little heart desires is here: Dance Right at La Cita, cheap but ridiculously fresh sushi at Hama Sushi, bands and crazy parties at the 6th St. warehouse, bargains at the Alley (just beware of fakes!), and more and more and more to still be discovered.

Aaaannd another...

Just released a new article for la2day. It's about my absolute favourite vintage store. Check it out.

Scream! Cry! Pray! Confess!

At the risk of seeming like a dopey and doting fanatic, I must share this video! The Mae Shi, my favourite Los Angeles band, has released a video for their crowd-pleasing tune, "Run to Your Grave". For those who aren't familiar with them, they are an experimental pop band that messes around with omnichords, light-sensitive synths, wireless guitars, and basically anything that makes noise. They are certainly the most superfun band you will ever see. If you don't believe me, check out the video. Watch them rock out, and just be too cute for words here.

Support!

Hey BOS readers, please check out this article I wrote for the style section of la2day.com here. It's about a really beautiful LA-based clothing line called unhee. Thanks!

Je t'adore, Monsieur Lacroix

Milan and Paris Fashion Weeks have come and gone, with many standout collections from my usual favourites. I loved the art-student-chic at Chloe; the signature jewel tones at Lanvin; the fresh monochromatic styling at Moschino; the whimsical prints at Wunderkind; the easy dresses and separates at Marni; and the Gatsby-esque paperdoll ensembles at Miu Miu.





But the collection that really mattered--the collection that had me nearly falling out of my seat in complete and utter delight--was Christian Lacroix's. I couldn't believe my eyes as I perused through look after look, being overstimulated by the array of illustrious prints and exquisite hats. I thought to myself: This is inspiration incarnate. To call these pieces 'gorgeous' is an understatement. Monsieur Lacroix has produced a nearly perfect collection that is both timeless and avant-garde. His brilliance has me asking: Karl who? Miucca who? Nicholas who? There is only Lacroix.



View the entire collection here.

Hannah Takes the Stairs

Take a digital camera, point it at amateur actors, and....GO. No real script--just young people contemplating out loud about work, life, love, and everything else debilitating about being twenty-something. It sounds like a recipe for disaster, but there is something there. It's something I just discovered called Mumblecore--an American independent film movement that employs all of the above. Cinema verite meets French New Wave, with a sprinkle of Woody Allen and a dash of Richard Linklater.

Hannah Takes the Stairs is the most recent release under this genre. It's been widely criticized for being "pretentious" or too "indie". What does that mean? Isn't it pretentious to break a film, or filmmaking style down based on having an indie/hipster following? The critics (actually lay people/paramount hipsters who find it impossible to come down from their soap box) refuse to see this film for what it is. It's a simple story about a girl who's not sure what she wants, so she has to bounce through relationships to find what makes her happy. It is conceived somewhat experimentally, though the idea of improvisation is not new in filmmaking. To me, there's nothing wrong with taking an old idea and running with it. It's kind of exciting that director Joe Swanberg has brought this style back in the age of boring trilogies and high-octane action flicks. I need something I can relate to, and this film is it.

The element of improvisation makes it hard to believe you're watching fiction. When you see Hannah and any one of her men kiss, it feels as if you're there, awkwardly spying on them. When the actors speak, it's like you're witnessing their thought processes. Their speech is slightly disjointed, yet always articulate. Greta Gerwig as Hannah is amazing--with every perfectly timed sigh, every truthful insight. Some people may find her observations about chronic dissatisfaction and the manic nature of crushes mundane and palpable. For me, however, it can be very inspiring to hear someone verbalize things that cross my mind on a daily basis. I can find myself in a character like Hannah, which is what's so engaging about this film. I hope one day I can have a happy ending much like hers. Bathtub, trumpets, and all.

Trailer:

an anomaly of adventurously layered clothes

As I write this, I am wearing a deep jewel-toned blue mini jumper, eggplant grandpa cardigan, dangly emerald and cubic zirconia costume earrings, and a navy blue and white lace flapper-style "hat" (which isn't a true hat since it basically just sits atop my head, held down by tiny tabs that act as more of a headband). I honestly have no plans to leave the house--so why, you ask, am I dressed as though I'm going gallery-hopping, or cruising Eastside haunts to schmooze with hipster glitterati? It's called playing dress-up! Thanks to the recent New York and London Fashion Weeks, I have rediscovered the endless pleasure of ogling yourself in the mirror as you explore the vast possiblities of accessorizing and intermixing prints (or even matching head-to-toe!).

Not since the Fall 2005 Ready-to-Wear Collections have I felt this inspired by fashion. When John Galliano sent Gemma, Anja, and Stam down the runway in oversized striped sweaters, to-the-knee crocodile boots, aviator-style jackets and sunnies, with hair that fell perfectly over one eye--I wondered if there could be such perfect visual styling again. A few seasons later, I am absolutely cuckoo over dreamy collections from the likes of Eley Kishimoto, Phillip Lim, and my front-running favourite, Matthew Williamson. I love it because it's a little bit street, but still quite girlish and charming. Quirky is back, which is a fun shift from the romantic sophisticate look I've been a fan of for some time now. Dresses are beautiful and easy, but sometimes too easy. Style is about pieces and how you put them together; that's the challenge and that's what makes it worthwhile.


It's exciting because I feel like fashion is moving again--upside down, sideways, but most importantly, forward. I look back on my college years--a time full of memorable fashion moments (i.e. the blue and green plaid minidress that I broke while skating down a hill, my boyfriend's baggy shirts over miniskirts and black tights, my cherished white faux-fur hat that old men used to make fun of, my green wallpaper print winter coat that was the envy of every girl who crossed my path, grandma sweaters galore). With my newfound inspiration I feel like I can revisit the girl I used to be--an anomaly of adventurously layered clothes--but start fresh with the taste and intuition I have since cultivated.

bat for lashes-fur and gold

i may be jumping the gun by writing this but i am in love. i have silly love affairs with albums but i am knee-deep, take my breath away in love. i haven't felt so intensely about an album since 'takeoffs and landings' during sophomore year of high school. i was turned on to bat for lashes about a month ago when my friend noel showed me their eerie but cool video for the song "what's a girl to do". i was entraced. singer natasha khan rides her bike down a gloomy road with her puppet friends behind her, singing the song we have all sung before. "what's a girl to do" is about not knowing how to tell your boyfriend that it's over without breaking his heart. the rest of the album is magical. i'm going to see her in philadelphia later this month and i cannot wait. so many different instruments are used like the harp, viola, and the fiddle and they mesh beautifully with khan's voice. i can only imagine what the live performance will be like. her lyrics are amazing. her voice and the harmonies in each song blow me away. she has that teardrop in her voice that makes you sad and happy at the same time. just like 'takeoffs and landings', every song is so relevant, no matter how you feel about life. and so worthy of putting the whole cd on repeat. my personal favorite is 'sarah', is about the girl we all want to be, wild and free. i haven't been so excited about music in a long time, i'm smitten. if you like girls with actual talent, you will love this album.