Tune TUNE Tune

Here's a choon for your Monday everyone.
The Black Keys, who are fucking awesome, have collaborated with a few hip-hop legends and have produced a slick mix of rap and rock, under the band name Blakroc. This is one of many songs they have done with Mos Def.
 I heart them so much, I almost don't want to share.

Got my hair did!

 So even though I went for a golden blonde dip-dye, sadly it came out orange flecked with lighter orange because of the red (but actually purple) home-dye I had slapped on it before.
 I was a bit freaked out at first that I looked ridiculous but now I actually like it, it looks like the ends of my hair are on fire and when it fades in two weeks, I'm going to pop back to Bleach London, who did my dip-dye by the way. They've only been open as a salon for six weeks and they are part of Dalston's famous nail salon, Wah nails.
 It's a really cool,laid back salon and they do some pretty crazy colour dyes.
Mine was pretty tame in comparison to the girl next to me who was getting yellow fading into orange and then into pink!

 They've done hair for Keira Knightly, Sienna Miller, yet are not massively expensive. I even got a free magazine that all the hair stylists have put together, showcasing and interviewing new rock bands called "The Beat.".

 Back in two weeks to erase some of this ol' ginger on my head. Have a little look at their Bleach London Blog

Hello Bow!

 Me and the Boyf's paperwork finally went through on our new(rented) flat in Bow, East Lahndahn!
 YAY
 We move in the 1st of December.
  Can't believe I've finally migrated East again having been born there twenty-two years ago in Wapping(!).
 I will miss West, I'm sad to leave it but I'm excited and intrigued to see what mischief I will get up to in East.
 I will post pics and details as soon as my feet are firmly on terra East.

Photo du jour...

 Brigitte Bardot - 1956 x

The song stuck in my head today...

Cat Stevens warbling out 'Wild World', one of my favourites.
Ooh Baby baby, it's a wild world...

The song stuck in my head today...

Audience by Cold War Kids.

On another note...

 What the hell happened to Mara Wilson, the adorable little girl from 'Miracle on 33rd Street' and 'Matilda'???
In no way did I see that coming, bless her. No wonder she disappeared.

Accoustic version of Starry Eyed by Ellie Goulding.

Amazing!!! Her voice is tremendous.

Bad shoe omen

Today I lost one of my work-shoes ON my way to work. I was searching for a lipliner in the bottomless pit of my handbag, and this resulted in me absent-mindedly tossing one of my chelsea boots aside and only remembering once I was at work.
Luckily I had the shoes that I was wearing, a pair of black, lace-up, Victorian style ankle-boots that I got from Portobello market a few years ago, and they were probably about twenty years old then and falling apart BUT they were black and if my managers didn't peer too closely, they wouldn't notice that I looked like the Oliver Twist from the ankles down.

 After work I was in Old Street, running to the Boyfriend's office to collect the paperwork for our new flat from him so's that I could get it to the Estate Agents before six, and while skipping across a busy main road, as I reached the other side I suddenly heard a crack and the fucking heel and sole of the boot had snapped off and was flapping behind me uselessly.
 I hear a Northern accented voice behind me go,
 "Aw that's shit" and turned to see an trendy East-End guy shaking his head at my poor shoe.
 "You're probably used to walking home bare-foot anyway."he said over his shoulder as he went down the stairs of the underground.
 "Bloody cheek! Do I look like that kind of girl!" I looked down at my trampy Victorian boots and thought
 yes. 
 I hobbled down the street as nochalantly as I could, trying to catch people's eyes as they gazed down and noticed my boot, shrugging my shoulders and smiling as if to say "I know, how embarrassing is this?' trying to find a shop that sold SuperGlue or something.
 Five minutes later I was in a Sainsbury's and the security guard was tying a bit of old, manky, white plastic cord he's found in the stock room around my boot to keep the sole from coming off in front of a queue of customers waiting to pay. I couldn't bend down myself because my skirt was too tight.

 The worst part was having to take the tube home to Fulham. It was fine while I was in East.
Nobody really raises an eyebrow at a white piece of plastic around a boot in an area where people wear gameboys as necklaces and the boys wear leggings.
 As soon as I got to zone 2, people started whispering about it I swear.

.

Roots of envy

So I'm still not red. But I am green...

 ...with envy! 

 To add to my disorientated state of annual hair covet, I've fallen in love with someone else's hair! I'm cheating on red!
I don't know her name but she has a blog called 'fashion toast' and I'm totally into her grown-out roots. Very Drew Barrymore right now. Hopefully she won't mind me using her photo's as I'm completely bigging up her hair-do.

 Hmmm....whattodo whattodo whattodo

Oh Marilyn, je t'adore encore..

 I was probably about seven years old when I was first introduced to the legacy that is Marilyn Monroe, by my mother.
 She was a big fan of the iconic blonde and would let me read her collection of wistful biographies and cuddle up with me on Sunday afternoons to watch Monroe's films such as 'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes', 'Seven Year Itch' and my all-time favourite 'Some Like it Hot'.

 I was fascinated, even at an early age, by her husky tones dripping like honey from her big red lips, her lazy, come-to-bed eyes and her extraordinary hour-glass curves that she accentuated with her famous shimmy-shimmy sashay (which I later found out was supposedly down to her cutting off a small piece of one of her stiletto-heels so that her hip movements were more exaggerated when she strutted. I tried to copy this with one of my first pair of 'Ravel' heels when I was about thirteen, but ended up with a frayed mess of a clompy heel and a limp that was not far off from a Sea Captain with a peg-leg.)

 Me and my gay best friend Ben at age eight or nine, both had vintage Marilyn barbies amongst our vast collection of dolls that cost a small bomb (Mine was circa. Gentlemen prefer Blondes, his was from Seven Year Itch, complete with a miniature version of that infamous white dress) We even bunked off school one day, just to go to a pop-up Marilyn Monroe Museum Exhibition somewhere around Embankment.

 I know it's been said before, and I am not the first Marilyn fan but I really do love that gorgeous blonde bitch.

 Anyway, if your in Paris next week and not only a fan of the legend herself  but also love photography, you should check out Richard Avedon's exhibition, featuring 60 of his original photographic portraits of various icons such as Twiggy, Jean Shrimpton and including Miss Monroe, on and from the 20th November.
 Voila la details! : Christie's Paris, 9, avenue Matignon, 75008 Paris, tél. : 01 40 76 85 85.

Photo du Jour

Dior Illustrated: René Gruau and the Line of Beauty at Somerset House

Be still my fluttering heart!

 René Gruau's iconic fashion and beauty illustrations for Dior go on show at Somerset House from the 10th of November. The exhibition focuses on his work for Dior, with more than 40 original illustrations for Christian Dior Parfums on show, including:

• Vintage perfume bottles
• Sketches
• Magazines
• Poster adverts

As well as his beautiful illustrations, I will be gushing over John Galliano's selection of Dior haute couture dresses, apparently including a special dress designed by Galliano in honour of Gruau. 

Vintage Mossy

 A raw and intimate photo of Kate and Johnny Depp, back in the day when they were lovers.

 Johnny looks a bit like a greasy heroin addict who's overdosed and died mid-coitus. Kate looks minxy.

Paper Horse Eyelashes by Paperself

  How amazing are these zebra eyelashes, £13 from Paperself?

 They caught my eye as I've just bought a room divider for my flat with a white background and a big black zebra in the middle.
I've ordered it off ebay for a bargain from a UK artist Martina Gee, who has an online shop featuring her hand-painted called "Aladdin and Pandora" which can best be described in her own words as

"A veritable Aladdin's cave of gorgeous gifts with ab amazing selection of shabby chic and rustic items for your home, garden and conservatory. Jewellery ranges include inspirational taxco silver masterpieces, swarovski crystal fashion items and our renowned fork bangle and spoon ring range."




No, I don't know what that last bit's about either. 

Amazing films from yester-year... Funny Girl

One of me, my mother's and my gay best friend Ben's absolute favourite films, starring the stunning and talented Barbara Streisand and the sexy, brooding and foreign Omar Sharif.

 A hilarious performance from Streisand. Belting such classics as "Don't Rain on My Parade" and "People", all set against a decadent and glamorous backdrop of the Broadway in New York in the early 60s (watch out for the show girl scenes - swoon!) and with Bab's boasting some jaw-droppingly beautiful outfits, it really is the perfect girly, hangover day film.

A quick camera perve..

The Olympus E-P1 is on my wish list for Christmas after I lost my brand new one this summer, on the train on my way back from a festival in Berlin, on my birthday.
 This was all in due course after not only waking up in a sweaty tent after 3 hours sleep, but then picking up rubbish for 5 euros a bag so that me and the Boyfriend could afford the train home on which I lost my precious Olympus, or "Lympy" as it was fondly known. (I've de-nounced the whole day and am in fact still only 21).

 It is a sexual camera, and I love it's boxy, silver, retro style, like something straight out of the 70s.
It takes great, artsy photo's and it looks not only cute hanging around your neck, but it makes you look like your the reeal deeal man.

 I miss you Lympy.

The song stuck in my head today...

Written by Melanie (no surname, like Madonna I guess), it's also in one of my favourite films ever, Boogie Nights.

Paper Bunting making a come back

I've just ordered this cute-as-fuck paper bunting from a very quaint English website www.devonbears.com. I got a pastel-ey, paisley, patterned pack and one of vintage Union-Jack bunting to put in my flat...somewhere.     www.devonbeardesigns.com

FaceFuck your relationship.

 I get moany texts from the Boyfriend. He's seen a small photo of an old photo album of mine crop up in the right right hand corner of his Facebook. These little trips down memory lane that Fuckbook have started thrusting upon us, nicely reminding him of my old photo albums, nicely reminding him of the time I was bent over thrusting my bum into my now-ex, but then-boyfriend's lap at a party, laughing drunkly at the camera together. Boyfriend is understandably not happy and I have to fiddle about so it blocks him from seeing certain albums.
 I don't delete them. He doesn't ask but I know he wants me to.
I haven't kept them because I'm hanging on to those photos, wistfully reminiscing over good-times gone.  I've kept them because a lot of those albums are ahmazing! A lot of insane outfits, cringeworthy poses and pictures of a skinnier, younger me!

Mac's Venomous Villains collection!

Just saw these in Cosmo, and thought the packaging was so cool. Gorgeous colours too for winter. I love the vampy Snow White queen-esque red lip colours. Makes me want to be a bitch.

I'm going in for La Roux

I got a text from a friend of mine asking if anyone wanted their hair done by her mate Yasmine because she was looking for models for a cut or colour. This prompted me to spiral into the sort of hair dilemma I'm faced with at least once a year since the age of thirteen my hair's shit, I looked so much better blonde, why did I dye it brown, look at it just sort of lying there on my head, I'm going to change it again.. so I started fantasising about having it all dyed a dark red wine colour.
 My boyfriend said he thinks it's sexy, and although some people go "Oooh no, what about Cheryl Cole?"  Well I've done peroxide blonde, black, brown with highlights etc. and now I had my made my mind up, I was going to be Jessica Rabbit not Cheryl fucking Cole.
 So I texted Yasmine a few times enquiring when and where, and she replied that she would let me know when my appointment was and I got really excited. Then, after contacting her some more, her texts stopped and eventually she texted me that she was all booked up. Liar.
 Distraught and confused, I nipped in to Superdrug after my getting my nails done (so cheap in Hounslow!) and made the bold decision to buy a dye-at-home kit. I think I chose Spicy Red or something and tragically it came out a sort of mauve colour. Boyfriend weirdly thinks this Barney hair is still sexy. But THEN find out that my friend Tasha AND my old boss both have appointments with her that week!
 I gave Tasha strict instructions to tell Yasmine when she went in for her appointment that I wanted my hair red, I needed her to do it, I did it myself in desperation and it's gone purple and would she help me please. But I think by this point she was a bit freaked out that even her clients were getting messages through to her from me and I haven't heard anything since.
 So anyway, now I will be paying someone as soon as I can get time off work to make me look less like an Eastern-European cleaner.
 I don't even know if I want to do it red now, you know where you are with brown.