Thursday, July 14, 2011

Finnish Style (who knew?)

Today I stumbled across the Finnish style blog Hel Looks. I guess given the level of personal style I know to be prevalent in other Scandinavian countries I shouldn't have been so surprised, but surprised I was at the creativity, elegance, diversity etc. of the looks on the streets of Finland.
One interesting discovery was the prevalence of Vagabond Shoes. A quick look at their website has me wanting these booties very badly:

Free shipping in the UK! Hm, might have to get some English relatives to send me some...
Also, I had of course heard of Marimekko but had no clue they make clothing...including this adorable dress which I would happily wear (but sadly, would not pay $215 for):

All in all an illuminating discovery...perhaps I need to accept my old Swedish nanny's invitation to her Finnish vacation house sooner rather than later!

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Bridesmaids


I did not like Bridesmaids. At all. I really wanted to, but I couldn't. Maybe my expectations were too high, but I felt like though there were some hilarious parts (most notably anything with the amazing Melissa McCarthy), they were too few and far between to make up for the cliched dreck in between.

This movie was billed as "finally a comedy by the ladies, for the ladies." And that's something I can get behind, especially with that cast of amazing comediennes. But I was profoundly disappointed by what I saw in the theater, and I'm shocked that people are heaping praise on it for being a "realistic portrayal of real women."

Can someone please explain to me what is "realistic" or "touching" about a grown woman completely losing her shit at her best friend's bridal shower, screaming obscenities while maniacally destroying the decorations? It's not charmingly real, it's off-puttingly unreal, not to mention psychotic. The fact that some women cried during this scene because "who hasn't had that one big fight with their best friend?" makes me question my own sanity. Me. I haven't. I can honestly say I have never screamed the words "Are you fucking kidding me?!?" in front of mixed company before going on a destructive party-ruining rampage. I don't know any woman who has, and thank goodness for that.

I just don't understand why being a pathetic loser and total bitch makes Kristen Wiig's character "realistic." Not to mention, any woman who would be dumb enough to engage with the fucking asshole that is Jon Hamm's character deserves whatever she gets. He has to literally pull out his dick and suggest she "take a nap in his lap" before she realizes he's a prick. Most of the strong, independent, realistic women I know would have run far, far away after the first drunken "but he's so hot" mistake. If they even gave him the time of day to begin with.

Ellie Kemper, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Maya Rudolph and yes, even Rose Byrne (who was hilarious in Get Him to the Greek) were all criminally wasted in what was supposed to be a female-centric comedy. They all looked so sassy and potentially hilarious in the poster, only to be brushed aside in the actual film. Even Kristen Wiig, whose manic SNL characters have always made me laugh in the past, only had one really satisfyingly funny scene, and it was because her character was hopped up on anti-anxiety meds. Ellie Kemper is a whole lot funnier than a scene where she throws up on someone's head. She is better than that--they all are--and I wish the script could have been too.

The movie was entirely too long and rambling, with so many concurrent and oddly disconnected storylines that what should have been a straightforward leading-up-to-the-wedding-finale plot ended up feeling, well, pointless. Why did I just sit through 2 hours of Kristen Wiig embarrassing herself? And the answer is not "for the good of women everywhere." I mean, was it really necessary to have two separate "baking redemption" scenes? Especially when that ended up going nowhere story-wise for the character. She doesn't go back to baking or announce her resolve to open another bakery. She just makes two random cakes in the course of all the craziness. There were also two separate "Kristen Wiig acts like an idiot at her depressing day job" scenes. Why? Why two?!? It's almost like they didn't edit anything out of the final version of the script. "I know, let's add some craaazy British roommates! I know, let's add some weird thing with her mother going to AA all the time even though she's not an alcoholic! Ooh, and then the mother can make eyes at the mechanic guy so we know she's taken care of romantically. After all, an unattached woman might as well not even be a woman! Hahaha!"

Speaking of, Officer Rhodes? Totally unnecessary, and anyone could tell he was the eventual love interest from his very first scene. It's that kind of cliched predictability that I was hoping Bridesmaids would avoid, but nope. There had to be a sweet, charming, not-too-handsome guy for her to end up with. Otherwise, what's the point?!? Certainly not the beauty of female friendship!

All in all this movie seems to share a definition of "womanhood" with the recently launched xojane.com (a website billed as "where women go when they are being selfish, and where their selfishness is applauded"), and that's not a good thing.

Sorry, ladies of Bridesmaids...better luck next time, and I hope to see all of you in better movies soon.

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Paper Art

I already posted on toilet roll art a while back, and now the same website, Bored Panda, has two more posts about paper artists.
The first, a German artist called Simon Schubert, creates art just from folding paper:



The second, Peter Callesen, creates art just from cutting paper:



Pretty neat, no?
d.

Drinks Inspired by Artists

In keeping with my apparent recent theme of "Just Reposting from Flavorpill" (ha!), had to post this gem. Check out Drink Inspired by Famous Artists. I wasn't expecting them to be as tongue-in-cheek or clever as they are. Here are some of my favorites:
Georgia O’Keeffe’s Fuzzy Vulva
- Vodka
- Peach schnapps
- Honey syrup
Mix with bone of dead desert animal.

Vincent van Gogh’s Green Fairytale
- Absinthe
- Sugar cubes
- Water
Garnish with your own severed ear — because it’s coming off anyway. Better to chop it off while you’re still sober enough to make a clean cut.

Marcel Duchamp’s Urinal Scorpion Bowl
- Dark rum
- Brandy
- Orange juice
- Orgeat syrup
Serve in actual urinal, and share with friends. Anyone who doesn’t want to drink out of the urinal is an ignorant traditionalist afraid to break the shackles of bourgeois conformity.

One of the commenters also mentioned a drink inspired by Hemingway: "this delightful little punch in the face called Death In The Afternoon. Which is, quite simply, Absinthe mixed with ice-cold champagne." Given that I am currently reading the drunkfest that is The Sun Also Rises, that sounds like a worthwhile pursuit...
In the meantime, we're drinking Jameson & Ginger for tonight's Always Sunny episode.
Cheers!
d.

Friday, October 8, 2010

Art Cakes

One of the pages in flavorpill's list of pop culture cakes is on cakes inspired by visual art, and I just had to re-post their awesomeness.
Who wouldn't want a cake based on the work of Warhol, Picasso, Hirst, Banksy, or Mondrian?!?
(Pollock)
(Warhol)
(van Gogh)
(Picasso)
(Mondrian)
(Banksy)
(Hirst)
I'm particularly fond of the Mondrian and Banksy cakes, although the Warhol and Hirst ones are pretty darn cool as well.

Saturday, September 25, 2010

Brian Wilson Raps?!?


Apparently so.
"My name is Brian/and I'm the man./I write hit songs/with a wave of my hand."
This is just so incredibly strange. From the manic giggle at the beginning to the awkward clips of various Beach Boys tracks, it's just...wrong. Although I have to say there was one portion that sounded a bit like the Beastie Boys. Who knew?

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Infinite Photo


This is ker-azy!
On the National Geographic website, they have an "infinite photo" of the National Parks consisting of images like the one above.
Click on the main image to zoom in and find it is made up of tons of smaller images.
Zoom in again to find that thoseimages are also made of smaller ones.
Etc.
I think the gorgeous shots of the parks are a perfect showcase for this technique.
Check it out!

PS. Tooling around the NatGeo website led me to a selection of vintage parks posters. They sell these in postcard forms at the national parks and I think they're awesome. The one below of the Grand Canyon is pasted into my scrapbook from my first trip there.

And here are a couple other good ones:

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

YouTube's Most Pathetic Videos

Check out this site with videos that have zero views on Youtube. You can be the very first person to lay eyes on wonderful specimens such as the one below...

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Latest Flickr Upload

Got around to scanning a few rolls of film and the fruits of my labor are up on my flickr. Included: Berlin's Festival of Lights and various travel adventures. Go check it out and enjoy :)
schuh
royalness
scalder
treek
unter den rainbow
tumbling
mashup

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Stories What I Wrote

I wrote some stories.
______________

A former drug-sniffing dog once sat upon a mound of corpulent crawlers. His teeth were as big as marshmallow feces and his laser contact lens squinted against the brush of the hot sun.
"Hello!" he cried desolately as the woods rang with sorrow.
Echoing the consonants of her childhood she sang a joyous song to the heavens and beyond.
Slippery little daisies skipped along the plain, all the while gently but firmly shooing little g-nats off their bodily areas.
Turquoise goats in turtlenecks polished their monocles and uttered "I say" as they lowered their eyes contemptuously.
"I'll have the leaves!" he declared while pointing his finger definitively up.
Raisin Buns for All was their mantra as they chanted and nodded for dear life.
Spreading his wings the cauliflower muffin soon escaped into a popcorn-land of mysterious opportunities.
It was, in effect, stunning.
________________

A woven mat of God-knows-what blocked his way to that distant glowing green.
"Avast-ye, spy-rakers!" escaped from the damp and gnarled maw of the captain whose ship, The Pink Elephant, was said to dance upon the waves like so many dancing elf-shoes.
Penelope Pie sang a song of defeat as she twirled her hair into shapes beyond human consciousness.
His eyes melted in pleasure when first he beheld the sensuous scene.
He studied physics beyond the mortal realm and knew that when he could comprehend her miraculous hair-shapes then she would be his.
Sputtering all the while his faithful sidekick spouted challenge after challenge but could not convince the student that there is no such color as neon brown.
"Eat your pickles, mongrel!" cried the desperately unhinged physicist. "My labcoat can save only one of our immortal souls."
That thought carried him out the window, never to return.
_______________

Sparkling jewel-like leaves studded the filament of purest silver jutting out from within. Goldenrod spikes climbed atop the oft-misunderstood lemon yellow javelins.
"If you only knew what I am capable of," she stated calmly while pondering the acceptability of combining the words 'rock' and 'soccer'.
Berries of all types climbed the cliffs, panting but determined, and poured toward their destination as milk pours to cheerios. Filling every crevice of their cheerio-like environment the gathered orbs of berry crowed into the banana sky.
"Leap onto your scab-ship and away from my extrapolations!" he yelled for the thousandth time. But she, as usual, refused to understand his pleas.
Her magenta confirmation slip flapped for a moment at her pocket's edge before leaping decisively into the evening wind. Grabbing for it could not stop its glorious flight of freedom and she wept as she realized how soon her doom would come.
_______________

When I lept into the lilac-tinted era of mismanaged necks, I decided to create a mandate on the wanton use of different dress lengths. It was a topic dear to my heart and excellently well-thought-out. For example if a passing someone-or-other were to allow for two dress lengths in the same garment.
"Is he single?!?" she squawked at a volume loud enough to disturb others. "I've been into beards lately, except on that dude-guy who is advanced in years."
"What ho lassie" the mustachioed source of her derision suddenly snorted. "I've just caught you a rabbit. Doesn't that count for something?"
"Pink and blue rain couldn't save you now," she muttered, calling forth an image of a loud obnoxious boy almost falling but not quite. Soon enough, the sewage treatment plant was disguised as a children's playground and the purple-threaded fate of humanity descended upon the scene.

Edith Zimmerman

I just found a link today to a column on The Awl called 'Letters to the Editors of Women's Magazines'. The hilarious Edith Zimmerman posts actual letters and then some of her own versions. They are so funny I literally smashed my head into my keyboard. Then I read her blog and some of her many very short stories and continued to crack the eff up. Not to mention this amazing article for the Huffington Post, 'How to Make Your Husband a Nice Dinner'.
On her blog she also recommends Tom Oatmeal, who's pretty freakin funny as well.
Read it!

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Detroit


About two years ago, I went to Detroit, Michigan to do some research at the Detroit Institute of Arts. Though my topic really had nothing to do with Detroit, other than that a very rich man had once lived there and bought a painting I am very interested in, I was instantly struck by the empty decay all around me in that city. It was the middle of winter, cold and barren, and the walk between my little bed-and-breakfast and the museum was strewn with huge old mansions, boarded up and abandoned, on still and empty streets. It was kind of magical, in a way, and certainly fascinating. I found myself dreaming of buying or squatting at one of these mansions and starting an artist collective.
I wasn't able to do so at the time, but it seems I wasn't the only one with the idea. An article in today's NYT, "Wringing Art out of Rubble in Detroit," discussed the growing creative community that has colonized Detroit's wide, empty avenues and broken-down buildings. Transplants from the hipster havens Portland, San Francisco, and Brooklyn as well as random places like Montana are banding together to come up with creative ideas, from installations to urban agriculture to selling a plot of land one inch at a time, which seem somehow easier to bring to fruition in a city this barren. One quote in particular describes this phenomenon to a tee: "There’s an excitement here...There’s a sense that it’s a frontier again, that it’s open, that you can do things without a lot of people telling you, ‘No, you can’t do that.’” This sensibility really reminds me of why creativity and creative lifestyles seem to flourish so well in Berlin--and also why that may soon not be the case, if the uptight German police continue to crack down as they were beginning to do during my time there. In a city that is "left behind," artistic types are free to create in the empty spaces. As one artist put it, "I'm really interested in the idea of our relics."
I couldn't have said it better myself.

PS. I found the image on this short post about Detroit from a couple months before my visit there.

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Matchstick Art

Check out these awesome sculptures by David Mach, made entirely out of matchsticks!



Apparently he sometimes sets them on fire.

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Janelle Monae

Looove this video of Janelle Monae's song "Tightrope." Plus the album is hot! Go nab it, I'm know I'm going to :)

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

My Drive Thru

Apparently Converse has a series called Three Artists, One Song where they bring together three artists in the studio to write and record a new song. The most recent one is called "All Summer" and is a collaboration between Kid Cudi, Vampire Weekend guitarist Rostam, and Best Coast. You can download it on the Converse website, linked above. I thought it was aight. But it led me to the first song in the series, "My Drive Thru," which I really like. It's a collaboration between Santigold, Julian Casablancas (of The Strokes), N.E.R.D. and Pharrell. Check out the awesome video below!

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Jason Miller Antler Lights

What could be a more appropriate design trend for me to report on than light fixtures made from antlers?
Jason Miller makes great ones. I waaaant!



Brandon Thomas Baunach over at Design Crack had it right when he wrote "one of my favorite uses of antlers is chandeliers. Why? They create beautiful shadows." But I have to say, I am also seriously diggin that awesome table lamp. If I had an extra $270 hanging around I'd snap it up good.

Harvey

I had the pleasure of watching this wonderful film last night for the first time.

It was funny, smart, and touching all at once. I can't believe it was made in 1950, it seems so far ahead of its time. James Stewart was nominated for an Oscar for his role, and Josephine Hull won one for hers.
Speaking of Josephine Hull, I couldn't help noticing that she looks exactly like Rip Torn in drag.

Apparently they're not related, but the resemblance is spooky, though I couldn't find any pictures that really do it justice. Take a peek at the clip above and see if you agree.
I want a copy of the portrait Elwood has done of him and Harvey!

I liked this quote in particular: "Years ago my mother used to say to me, she'd say, "In this world, Elwood, you must be" - she always called me Elwood - "In this world, Elwood, you must be oh so smart or oh so pleasant." Well, for years I was smart. I recommend pleasant. You may quote me."

Temporary Secretary


Would you ever believe this is by Paul McCartney?!? Very strange. I want to hear this in a DJ set.
I've been on a total Beatles solo career kick lately...it started with getting Oh Yoko!, one of my favorite songs ever, stuck in my head.

Then I moved on to What is Life...

I'm just missing Ringo. Any suggestions?!?