Rain.

Still raining, ya'lls. It's making me itch to have you listen to this...



I love the sparks-as-rain, and Tina is hotness as usual.

Enjoy,

Elissa.

Come on down to my creepy abasement, I've got candy...

I've always been a big believer in the phrase "pride goeth before a fall" (I also subscribe to its opposite, "Lack of dignity leadeth to public pajama wearing".) Therefore, it could only be so, that every time I try to photograph myself in the below-pictured skirt, something goes wrong with the execution. You see, I've developed a tiny, tingling urge to become ModCloth's Blogger of the Moment-- a lovely lass posts photos of themselves in ModCloth garb, emails them a link to that post as proof, and somebody mulls it over a bag of Veggie Booty and comes up with a winner.

I wonder if it's the expectation of reward that jeopardizes my portraitry-- as you can see:

And too bad! It was a rather successful outfit that day. Blouse (actually a dress): vintage, thrifted. Skirt: Modcloth's Paddington Skirt. Shoes: JC Penney. Bag: thrifted. Jewelz: thrifted.

In the words of Steve Albini vis a vis his experience producing Bush's album Razorblade Suitcase, "You can't polish a turd." I've sincerely tried, but I do feel rather like I'm entering a half-breed into the AKC Show.

Diffidence goeth before a solid begging, so here goes: Modcloth, I love this skirt! Can I get some love for my Photoshop finesse?? I mean, it's all tape-y and vintage-y and err-thang! The goldendoodle has bows in its hair for chrissakes!


Not sure if I can properly enjoy anything that comes out of abasing myself, but-- hey, try something new every day, right? We'll see what happens...

Speaking of seeing what happens, Grizzly Bear's video for their beautiful driving-through-the-woods song "Two Weeks" is the ultimate experiment in delayed gratification:



Getting a little grizzly myself,

Elissa.

Hot-cha!

Hope you all are enjoying the long weekend... trust that I used mine to great effect. Every first Saturday of the month is Columbus' Gallery Hop. And, while the grizzled of us will moan and groan about it, eventually we get out there and have a helluva good time.

Here, I fawn over a 1953 Buick in a hat: Urban Outfitters. Scarf: Valvoline. Tank: Target. Belt: Thrift. Skirt: NY&Co. Shoes: MIA.

We also went on a tour of the city's oldest cemetery. At the end of the tour, the guide announced that there is a photo contest going on; one of 12 winners get their photo into their widely-collected calender... so I expect you may be seeing the Greenlawn Cemetery for yourselves, here, pretty soon! That, plus a wedding dress fitting, a party and a marathon snooze-fest have made for a pretty excellent 3 days. Here, the song that's been stuck in my head:

Empire Of The Sun - Walking On A Dream


Have a great week,

Elissa.

Whatever happened to Saturday night?

Today, my sweets and I looked at eachother and said, "Well, what'll it be? I work out, you work out, we cook something and then we...ahh... zzzz....." So, rather abruptly, we decided to drop everything and run to the nearest amusement park. And at 70 degrees and breezy, it couldn't have been a better day.

Feelin' the groove with my backup skeleton choir. Jacket: thrifted. Dress: Urban Outfitters. Tank: Express. Boots: Urban Outfitters.

After, we checked out my friends' band, the Wet Darlings and had an all-around fun-ass time, listening to good music, drinking drinks (I endorse the vodka & soda with a lemon), dancing dances (I've been studying up on my Ciara moves). It's been awhile but I present to you one of my favorite songs about nights out.



Learning dances, brand new dances,


Elissa.

Workly woes.

Ai chihuahua! It's been a long time since I've been hornswaggled by computers, nonetheless Macs, but today seems to be the day for it. I'm trying to edit a video and between software, hardware and all of the other issues, the going is suh-low.

Luckily, my ensemble seems to be working. The jacket is a Forever 21 creation and it is one of my favorite pieces that I've had in awhile.

Jacket: F21. Tank: Urban Outfitters. Jeans: Cheap Monday. Shoes: Thrifted by my sweet! Necklace: Some India-centric store in NYC. Umbrella: Not sure!

Bracelet: thrifted.

I've been stuck to the following song the last few days, and luckily for me and my wish to have blog-relevant music, the video is about escaping work frustrations:



Powering through,

Elissa.

Long drives, noxious fumes.

I spent most of today driving around in the country for work, and chasing down a potential new opportunity. I also took some time out to make good on my promise to demonstrate exciting new frontiers in khaki-skirt wearing.

Shoes: Steve Madden. Skirt: Target. Shirt: Forever 21. Shades: vintage shop.

Unfortunately, a case of The Awkwards afflicted my shooting, and therefore my ability to properly demonstrate the awesome shape of this shirt, which is like a delicate, drapey, letter "A"-- longer on the sides and shorter in the center. I love it muchly.




The shades I picked up at a vintage store in town called Flower Child. It's operated by the guy that did the sets for "A Christmas Story". The original 1960's tag was still on them, and I love them for their mad-scientist/goggle properties and "squoval" shape.

Mmm... the sweet smell of biodiesel.

Metric, by the way, makes great driving music. Behold this video for "Help I'm Alive" which, while a fan video, is a particularly good one, appealing to my love of collage.



I'm positively chuffed by the number of entrants in The Contest! If you haven't yet entered, there's still 3 1/2 days left to enter this random drawing for an iPod Shuffle!

Good night and good luck,

Elissa.

Give it away, give it away, give it away now!

I seem to have a charming effect on children lately; previously, my relationship with children was one of mutual avoidance. However, directly after I shot this photo and was going to my camera to check the results, a little girl broke free from her mother's hand to hug me and say, "I love you." I know. I didn't even have any candy on me.

Dress: thrifted. Shoes: Nine West. Earrings: Target.

I feel weird telling you these stories, because I fear they come off a bit smug...

Smug bitch!

...but really I'm just sharing my utter bewilderment with you. Children love ladies in black, I suppose, and soon, one of you will too! Even though there is no candy in my bag, there is this...

Ta-da! A brand spanking-new iPod Shuffle!

...the prize for this latest contest!! Everything you need to randomly listen to songs that you love (I load mine with gay nightclub music for working out), including the Shuffle itself, earbuds and dock.

How to Enter:

1) Follow me on Twitter, then leave a comment on this post.

2) Post about this contest on your own blog, then leave a comment on this post.

3) Become a follower of this blog, then leave a comment!

You can say anything you want, but I'm hoping your comments will include which album you can't wait to get next, as I'm always looking to expand my repertoire. ;)

You can enter this contest any time between now and July 5, 2009 at 12 pm. The winner will be randomly generated, and posted on or around July 6.

Good luck everyone!

Yours,

Elissa.

On Me Today

The Kaiser Chief's "Never Miss a Beat" pretty much sums up how I'm feeling today...




I learned nothing. I did nothing. I didn't go to school. I want crisps. Didn't flash a referee, but sure wanted to.

Thermal: Target. Sweater: VintageTea on Etsy. Denim Mini: thrifted. Tights: Target. Boots: Gift, thanks Wendy!

In other news... my sweetness and I have potentially found our brand new place! It is, in a word, a fantasy. We put in the application yesterday, so we're still waiting to hear back. Hopefully, I'll have some pictures to share soon! My fingers are locked in cross formation!

This means, all extraneous items must go! Everything in my Etsy store is $5, yes $5 plus shipping. So many other tasty things I haven't had the chance to list, but I'll be working on it. I'll letcha know.

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Weekend Travel.

This weekend, my sweetay and two of our friends loaded into a van and drove six, snowy hours to Chicago, mostly to see Les Savy Fav.

image via Brooklyn Vegan

Tim Harrington loves yellow, but has trouble keeping it on.

The show started at 10pm on Saturday night, so we had a whole day to fill-- at my sweetay's suggestion, we poked around some vintage stores, with the added surprise of tracking down a vintage gown he'd found online! Sometimes I wonder, "Where the hell did I get this dude from?" And then I say to myself, "Who cares? All I know is I'm not letting him go back!"

These two were clear winners-- le sigh! Spaghetti straps are too thin for my bustliness, and strapless gowns seem a bit dated to me. These are modestly pretty, and also my exact size. Unfortunately, they were already sold by the time we go to the shop. However, I did come away having learned two important things: a) If you see something you like, jump on it like it's a ball pit on a trampoline, and b) ladies who deal in vintage wedding gowns are bat sh*t crazy. Like, lipstick-on-the-teeth, spirals-for-pupils crazy. I say this with love.

So, while I didn't come away with a dress, the next place we hit up yielded the most perfect wedding style shoes:


These $12 beauts were found at Hollywood Mirror, your average graffiti-walled, vintage store-cum-costume outlet. With clear vamps and acrylic heels, gold soles, and gold bejeweled hotness at the toe, these pristine 1950's era slingbacks-- in a perfect size 8.5 no less, are too damn good to be true.

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The bird and the bee.

I wish I could find The Bird and the Bee's performance on Jay Leno the other night for you... they did "My Love" off of their new album ("Ray Guns are Not Just the Future", which I love, love love) that came out yesterday, and it was all about hand-clapping, foot stomping, and vinyl Sixties shifts, all tied up in a vaguely Calypso-sounding bow. The Bird and the Bee remind me of Bat for Lashes or My Brightest Diamond.

Below, a song off their first album-- retrolicious and addictively pretty!

Tasty...

I know I should probably be over looking at pastel, giant bows, and desserts, but I could watch Lily Allen's video for "The Fear" three times over in a sitting.

Lily Allen is pretty polarizing, and I'm typically, mildly "against". However, this song is such a pretty foil for its dark lyrics, that I'm starting to forgive (in spades!) her awards-hosting antics with Elton John. Her voice is smoother, and she looks better than ever-- rekindling my desire for Cher Hair and spurring regret for all the brown Mod dresses I've cast away at the thrift.

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Baby, can you get that rock for me?

I loved this picture of the most darlingly prim Marcine at first sight:

If you've never seen her before, she is an adorable little lady in the most vintage of ways! Check out her blog here.

That color! The perfect length! The off-beatly coordinating umbrella! The little shoes! Mwah! I wonder... is she into Pizzicato Five?



Shelving CD's today, I remembered that I was supposed to get into Pizzicato Five, but got distracted by Cibo Matto. When I perused the liner notes, this image startled me into exclaiming to my co-worker, "Hey! I know this girl who--- uh--- hmmm..." the story, like all stories that originate from the internet, quickly died on my lips. All I knew is that the girl from Pizzicato Five looks awesome and I had to see --and hear-- more.

And the sound is even better! Unless you hate all things good and right, there is no way you will not love P5's fun retro pop!

#21?

Spin magazine just released a list of their 20 Best Music Videos of 2008. Strangely missing, in my opinion (I could really do without Vampire Weekend's #19 spot bid, or Radiohead's #5) is Lykke Li's video for "I'm Good, I'm Gone". I love her giant, fluid outfit, the creepy little twins and the musclebound lasses, but the video most appeals to one of my pet causes, ageism. I love that she makes the elderly people in her video relevant, active, and able to participate in popular culture.

Also overlooked are Justice's videos for "D.V.N.O." and "D.A.N.C.E." --- both, any graphic designer/80's TV Fan/ T-shirt lover's wet dream... !

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Can you dig it?

So, the absence of "things to do" put me in a Cowboy Junkies/Red House Painters/Mazzy Star funk. I credit Lady Sovereign's new, "The Warriors"-inspired song and video for pulling me out of it:

If you've never seen "The Warriors" and you love fashion, you must watch-- the whole thing is on Youtube (the same way I caught Britney Spears' "Crossroads"-- ha!)



I especially love the purple-lame vested gang at 3:30, the American Apparel gang at 4:22, and the "Qui, moi?" gang at 8:08.

So... we're gonna have to bop if you don't enter the contest! (Some call me The Master of Segueways, but I'll settle for "A" Master).

Bomber: thrifted. Minnie Mouse tee: thrifted. Menacing Chain: thrifted. Headscarf: thrifted. Sweats: Target. Shoes: Miss Sixty.

It ends TOMORROW, December 19 at MIDNIGHT! All you have to do to enter is leave a little comment on the Contest Post about your favorite holiday doin' and one winner will be drawn at random to receive your very own keepsake copy of Beavis and Butthead Do Christmas, retailing used for $45 on Amazon, mailed just in time (I hope, but you never know this time of year) for you to enjoy it with the family (or probably not) come Kwanzaa.

Come out to plaayyyy!

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Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm thankful for many things--- my health, my sweetay, my ability to access higher education, but most relevant to the blog, I'd say on a very basic level, I am thankful for being able to access the Internet. I think that the great many of us who do often forget there is an incredibly wide swath of people who don't or can't have access to the Internet. Having access to the visual, audio and intellectual resources that the Internet bears is a blessing, indeed. How many, many things would we be unaware of --for better (puppies!) or worse (goatsy), but usually better-- without it?

Speaking of blessings, I hope you all have abundant sweet potato casserole, a seat next to the relative that criticizes your tube dress/lace bib statement necklace outfit the least, and safe and happy travels!

Here to follow, for your palate-cleansing pleasure, a helping of travel-related music videos:

Alex and Zach, this one's for you:

Sadly, there's no video for this one (maybe this'll cue my first foray into making a one?), but it is a righteous sexy slow jam about planes, and you gotta hear it:

Snow.

Hooray! The first snow of the season came today, in big, fat, sloppy flakes falling fast and frenzied.

Effin' A. Ground Cover.

Usually winter is really not my bag, but I've got a wedding to plan and winter is the most -- bridal -- of seasons. I've always wanted to get married in the fall, but this spring, I worked this vintage wedding gown show at the Art Museum and fell in love with this gown from the 1970s--- full length, and instead of a veil or headpiece-type thing, it came with a long, hooded cape that was trimmed in white fur and designed to tie at the neck. Sigh!

My sugah and I want this wedding to be the first of many beautiful parties that we'll put on as a married twosome. I'd like to elope first (Vegas? Paris? Burning Man?), to take the pressure off of the day-- let it serve one purpose (multi-family gala) instead of too many.

Below, a collage I've put together of some of my wintry wedding inspirations...

Angular crystals, smoke, whitened branches, crisp stars, albino peacocks, cool Hitchcockian blondes with high contast, clean style; and faded into the background, enlarged subzero-tolerant bacteria.

And also, you have to hear this song (if you haven't yet) by the Fleet Foxes that I first heard a couple of days ago, and just about had a winter-gasm...

Planet Yearn

My boyfriend made the awful mistake of showing me this video the other day...



... and now the slow and steady thrum of thoughts that tell me to get giant, statement glasses a la Iris Apfel, Joy Venturini Bianchi or this lovely lady has now elevated itself to a whir. Tragically, these frames are hard to find--- go to any eyeglasses store, in-person or online, looking for "unique frames" and they show you options that look like they were made for for a fifty-something art teacher from New Mexico, or a graying European techno-enthusiast.

So... it's off to do some creative hunting.

I'm much opposed to American Apparel's foray into vintage, however, unwillingly I'm into these:

Kind of sporty looking, and not terribly adherent to the aviator trend. Unique enough to be different, but versatile enough to stand up to casual wear and business, feminine (though not girly) frocks or a t-shirt, blazer and jeans. Long-lasting wear, my friends, long-lasting wear.

I love the color of these (blue eyes, blue glasses... mmm?), and they also come in purple, red, yellow, and green, but I have a sneaking suspicion that these tread to closely into bandwagon-iness... Also, they could do terrible things to a face which is neither relatively narrow nor particularly angular. They're a pretty decent deal at $50, and I assume returnable, so an experiment may be on.

The "vintage Cazal" search on my Ebay is well, well worn... I ran into a guy on the street once who was wearing a pair matched with a sleek grey suit and the demurest pair of Ice Creams I'd ever seen. I've been obsessed with their angular coolness ever since. I still have yet to find Ebay Cazals that suit my parameters exactly, but they are definitely a trip to look through.

On my glasses-browsing journeys, I always notice that sunglasses styles tend to be more experimental than regular eyeglass styles... is there anything preventing getting their lenses removed and replaced with prescription ones?

I've been obsessed with clear and white frames for glasses for awhile (wood, too, if you can ever find a pair!) However, on a fair blonde such as myself, the effect can sometimes be milky and washed-out. These Chloe sunglasses from 80's Purple have a heavy opacity to the frame which make it a more promising white-framed bet for me, and coupled with the bronze... I think the effect could be youthful, intelligent and subtly funky, like a Sixties aristocratish academic type who has an in with the Middle Eastern art crowd.

Holy crap! Not sure if they pass the long-lasting test, but if $385 (their latest bid) were disposable to me, I would get them right this second, then switch to a wardrobe of exclusively grey, white and black.

Claw Money is getting to be one of my favorite brands of jewelry, but they also have these, the holy grail of sunglasses too. I love the idea of red frames, but they always seem to remind me of Sally Jesse Raphael. These are more rock show than talk show (I'm sorry, I couldn't help it!) and I believe, with clear prescription lenses could be fun and robot-y as opposed to vaguely Kanye-like in their sunglassed rendition.

Anyone else out there have some good ideas? Or better yet--- great pictures?

I leave you now with the most adorable video by one of my favorite glasses-wearers--- whose glasses inexplicably turn to shades and then back...




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