Wednesday, August 14, 2013

One Easter Sunday


I found this really old pictures when I looked on facebook and asked the creepy all knowing search bar "Photos of me I would like." I was scrolling down all the photos, and these little gems came up and reminded me of a funny little story. 
Easter 2008 my friend came over to my house and we decided to escape instead of stay at my lame family get-together. We decided to stop by Walgreens and wander around the deserted downtown San Francisco and take pictures. I think I might try to do something like this again sometime soon. Jesus, 2008 feels like/ is a lifetime ago isn't it?

Monday, August 12, 2013

Miley for Harpers Bazaar




How about we don't pretend like these photos aren't beautiful and she doesn't look stunning. I think I might have become a Miley fan recently. When exactly did that happen?

Friday, August 9, 2013

It's Just One Thing


I found this band a couple months ago when they came to Geneva as the opening band to Lucy Rose. I really wanted to go, but I couldn't find anyone who wanted to go with me. I thought this was a cool cover of Amerie's "One Thing" that epitomizes how covers can make something completely new out of a song. They take this hip-hop song that is pretty old and not even in a cool throwback way, and makes it this cool indie song. I love it. They also have an interesting electronic vibe. Check them out. 

I would have written more about this, but I'm kind of just using my blog as a way of saving songs and bands I like. So yea. 

Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Amanda Please!

Today, I wanted to talk about something that I've inexplicably had strong emotional reactions to this past week: Child Star Downfalls. While normally I am not one to follow tabloids and celebrity gossip (I always rolled my eyes at my friends in high school that read Perez religiously), recently I can't help but follow the downward spiral (and potential comebacks) of my favorite actresses of my youth that seemed to have jumped off a cliff into crazy land since middle school. While this obviously includes our favorite tabloid starlette Lindsay Lohan (LiLo is apparently what we're calling her these days), I'm going to save her for another day after I've fully meditated on her appearances of Chelsea Lately (I heard it worthy of a sigh of relief and maybe even hope?) and Oprah (Oh dayum girl, the O pulls out some big questions in that preview!)

But recently Lindsay hasn't been the only child star getting all the attention for her downward spiral, which is probably a welcome change for LiLo. In fact, Lindsay looks pretty stable in comparison to a recent downfall: Amanda Bynes. Obviously, there has been no escape for the jokes about Amanda Bynes recently. When I first saw posts about how absurd and crazy Amanda Bynes tweets were, I was convinced they were some horrible parody account. After all, Amanda Bynes at the time was no where close to the limelight and her twitter account wasn't even blue check verified--definitely a parody account.

 But alas, I was wrong. Since then, not only has her accounted been verified but her tweets have gotten more outrageous and her crazy escapades have catapulted from random social media outbursts to real life crazy (and concerning) drama. Yet, even for this past summer, I was kind of sad for Amanda but still like whatever sucks for her, who cares. But my emotions started really coming out when I played the mustache game to Easy A. Now maybe it was the fast rate I was going through my Saranac Beers (check 'em out, Upstate New York classic) or maybe I was indeed more attached to Amanda Bynes than I had ever realized, but I was getting pretty emotional. I had completely forgotten about her role (and a pretty funny and convincing one at that) of the leader of the Christian group at Emma Stone's high school, which doubled as the leader of the mob against Emma Stone's character. In it, she was perfectly funny--so funny in fact that she was not entirely overshadowed by the rising star and incredibly quirky Emma Stone.


Up until that night, I had only remember Amanda's role in She's the Man as her last performance, so her recent demise was sad but who knows what she's been up to since then? But there she was, perfectly healthy, still acting, still funny in a movie that came out my freshman year of college. And now where was she? Front center of tabloids, dunking her dog in gasoline and completely off her rocker. Recognizing just how quick this descent must have been was the most shocking and saddening discovery. Now don't get me wrong, you're not about to find a crazy, highly emotional video of me screaming to the general public to leave Amanda Bynes alone (remember those crazy Britney days with even crazier Britney fans?). However, Amanda Bynes' downfall and tabloid attention has left me with more of an emotional reaction than any other starlettes crazy downward spiral.

So here's to the Old Amanda that I grew up watching. From your funny (but often incomprehensible) sketches on the Amanda Show. Here's to all the hot guys you had as co-stars in What I Like About You. Here's to the time you made me cry in your performance in What A Girl Wants, even though it was a comedy. Here's to helping me prepare for moving to France in high school when I watched She's the Man in French 100x because I knew every line by heart in English. Here's to you knowing how to act like a crazy christian so well some people probably didn't even realize you were making fun of them. But most importantly, here's to you getting over what ever the hell you are going through right now. You should get help. Maybe turn to your recent bud Emma Stone, who alongside Jennifer Lawrence is the poster child for 'down to earth and quirky hollywood starlette.' JUST DO SOMETHING. Because I don't want to start tearing up about your fall from grace when I watch She's the Man. Not only would that be pathetic and would all my friends make fun of me, but that would just ruin one of my favorite movies and no one wants that.

Now, if you hated this post. Don't worry, I'm not planning on becoming a huge celebrity gossip blog just yet. However, like I mentioned before I'm probs going to do some commentary on the LiLo Chelsea Lately appearance. Come on! Apparently, she was funny and I just smell a comeback for her on the horizon. After all, Amanda has already stolen her biggest child actress fail position she can only go up from here!

Monday, August 5, 2013

College Fashionsta: The Chiffon Blouse


I decided to be a little lazy today and post an article I wrote a while back for College Fashionista. I thought it was still applicable for our summer weather this year, and I thought this girl looked super cute on the beach. Oh and did I mention, I'm rejoining the College Fashionista team this semester after my hiatus abroad. Look forward to some more witty comments and stories about how much my mom hates my clothes in Facebook posts and tweets in the near future. 
When I was younger, I always thought that the best way to dress for the hot weather was with shorts and a tight tank top. In my mind, just having a minimal amount of fabric on would automatically make me feel cooler in the heat. Unfortunately, this was not the case. Instead of feeling a breeze, I would cook in my little outfit.
What I didn’t realize at the time was the key to keeping cool was not about the amount of material but the weight of the material. After having gained this invaluable knowledge, I have changed my summer staple from a tight cotton tank to a chiffon blouse. But beyond the convenience for weather, a chiffon blouse can add an element of elegance to any outfit. And when I say any outfit, I mean any outfit.
For instance, you can take a casual approach such as this Fashionista. She used her chiffon blouse as the perfect item for a day at the beach — creating a polished look while serving as a cover-up. There are many options for the casual chiffon top. Some, such as the one worn by this Fashionista, are tank tops, while others come with interesting backs and most come in a huge array of colors. These types of choices are sure to please every type of personal style for your weekend look. But you can also use the chiffon blouse to create a more professional yet youthful look at your summer internship. Just take your favorite chiffon top and pair it with a high-waist skirt and some pumps.
One of the challenges of this season’s chiffon blouses is that they tend to be sheer. But this see-through quality should not deter you from picking up this trend. Instead, there are many ways to approach this challenge. For a more modest approach, I suggest investing in a nude cami. This level of modesty will be crucial to transform your chiffon blouses into work apparel or for your family get-togethers this summer. But when you’re ready to be a bit more risqué with your outfit, you might consider just a lace bra underneath. When starting off, you will probably prefer using a pale color lace. This chiffon and light lace combination will create a dreamy affect.  But with more courage, use bright colors for a fun pop under your blouse. 
However or wherever you choose to wear your chiffon blouse, it is sure to add a level of elegance and creativity to your outfit. Although some of its characteristics are a little daunting, I assure you that once you find your solution, the chiffon blouse will be your summer go-to.
This post was originally published on College Fashionista June 25, 2012. 

Thursday, August 1, 2013

What We're Listening to: Lorde

But everybody's like Cristal, mayback, diamonds on your time piece.
Jet planes, islands, tigers on a gold leash.
We don't care, we aren't caught up in your love affair.
And we'll never be royals, 
It don't run in our blood
That kind of lux just ain't for us. 
We crave a different kind of buzz. 

So probably the main thing I do at work all day is go on spotify. I really never used it before but since I work from 8:30-4:30 in a basement of an old funeral home, me and the zombies have plenty of time to listen to some jams. Originally, I was listening to Pandora, but I was getting pretty sick of listening to the exact same 7 songs over and over again. I was hearing NOTHING new. So switched over to spotify so I could at least have some control over my playlist. To my surprise, spotify was also great at finding me new music. One of the artists I've become obsessed with is Lorde.

When Lorde originally came up on my spotify radio, I assumed it was so crazy indie weirdo chick based on her super strange indie illustrated EP cover. I assumed she went to some sort of liberal arts school and lived in Brooklyn or maybe someplace even more obscure. But despite her strange cover, her music was really catchy. I loved the use of background vocals that reminded me of my chorus days. I often feel like musicians rely far too heavily on pure electronic sounds these days in their production, but Lorde uses both these new methods with vocal embellishments that make the sound more unique and spooky.
Lorde was first discovered by Universal at a talent show when she was thirteen, now she's sixteen and just came out with her first singles this past year. The single that really got her some buzz online and made her a huge sensation in her native New Zealand was Royals. This song, besides being super catchy, is really relatable. She talks about how she and her friends listen to artists like A$AP Rocky or Lana del Ray who just talk about drinking Cristal or walking a tiger on a leash. Basically, they talk about lifestyles that are completely unrelatable to her broke sixteen year old friends who are trying to scrape up enough cash to buy some booze for a party. The music video perfectly illustrates the mundane character of teenagers real life. It's nothing like these music videos or Skins, but just kids watching tv and driving around the suburbs.

How she manages to stay so relatable is because she writes her own lyrics and music. And an even bigger plus, she writes her own stuff without talking exclusively about her ex-boyfriend or some boy she has a crush on (cough cough Taylor Swift). Lorde's ability to write lyrics with meaning and a continuous theme while incorporating catchy hooks and nice beats is why she's going to be a mainstream success that will not end up in my "guilty pleasures" playlist. I think Lorde is a kiwi to watch this year as she works on her first album. I also think she's an artist to watch out for in the next five years or more. After all, she's only sixteen and both her vocals, lyrics, and composition capabilities can only mature from here.

this is the song that really uses the vocal backgrounds

Catch Lorde in concert this week August 6 at le Poisson Rouge in NYC and then in LA on August 8th.