SUNDAY MATINEE ♥ GYPSY & ORRY-KELLY

Recently the original playwright of GYPSY, ARTHUR LAURENTS,  passed away, which made me want to do a post on the film because it's really a gorgeous fun musical. (Laurents also wrote West Side Story, another one of my favorites starring Natalie Wood.) I know not everyone can handle a musical, but in my home we grew up with them...we grew up with all kinds of old movies. And, to this day, my brother and I are uber movie buffs. Gypsy is one of those must-see films if you are into costume design or costume history because it's so gorgeous that way. And of course with Natalie Wood (I already mentioned she is in many of my all-time fave movies) and Rosalind Russell (who always ends up wearing the most amazing get-ups in her films), it's a good film to watch. It's also a sort-of doc about the real burlesque star Gypsy Rose Lee, which you can see real film of below. The costumes are credited to one Orry-Kelly. (If you love vintage, you might have come across an old debutante dress with his label on it.)

EVENING GOWNS BY ORRY-KELLY

After painting murals in a nightclub, Orry George Kelly (his birth name) was discovered and started to work at Fox East Coast studios, then ended up moving to Hollywood (1932) where he worked for the first Warner Bros. studios and then all the other greats like RKO, Universal and MGM. He, like Edith Head, designed for all the great actresses. And when you see Natalie Wood's costumes in this, you'll see why he was so revered. Everyone always goes on and on about the big designers of Haute Couture and Pret-a-Porter. But a lot of the styles came from these big-time Hollywood film costume designers. It's why I think so many people miss out on the references...like, I see a ton of old movies in almost all of Marc Jacobs' collections. I can look at some of my shoes and name the film that it was influenced by....stuff like that. Also interesting, Howard Shoup isn't credited in the film, but he is credited on IMDB as one of the costume designers, so I'll have to research that a bit more. 

ORRY-KELLY WITH KAY FRANCIS AND HIS SKETCHES. AMAZING.

Orry-Kelly was nominated for an Oscar for Costume Design for Gypsy. He also won three Oscars in Costume Design for three other films (Some Like It Hot, Les Girls and An American in Paris...all amazing films), which is also why if you're into fashion or aspire to work in fashion that you ought to know who he is. If you have some time to absorb it, on a rainy day when you're tired and you need something light-hearted to watch with fantastic costumes as well as a bit of real-life story, or you love burlesque, have some tea and watch GYPSY.♡

really gorgeous everything...including the set.

natalie wood has the most amazing figure....like shirley maclaine's.

can you see the beginnings of what britney (spears) wore many many many years later? can you see how similar it is?

what she's wearing in this scene is a ma zing.

with rosalind russell, whom i also love love to watch.

gorgeous period/stage costumes.

gorgeous film still from gypsy

i wish i could have found more images of her other costumes...but you'll just have to watch the movie!

THE ORIGINAL GYPSY ROSE LEE BELOW:

AND GYPSY ROSE LEE PERFORMING IN THE MOST AMAZING OUTFIT:

more sunday matinee ♥ chelsea girls

images from sinlesslinks.com, poohtiger-allgoodthings.blogspot.com, doctormacro.com, julianstark-moviesandotherthings.blogspot.com, sensesofcinema.com,moviemobsters.com, todressvintage.blogspot.com

SATURDAY SHOPPING ♥ BLUSH REVIEW part 2

Wow...I was quite surprised to see how popular part 1 of the Blush Review was with all the reviews out there on the Web. But happy about it, nonetheless. So here is the BLUSH REVIEW part 2. I am going to include a couple of other blushes I found in my make up case that I do like, even if I haven't really used them too too much. So...here we go. 

TODAY I'LL FINISH OFF WITH THE JEMMA KIDD BLUSHES, PAULA DORF, ELF BRONZE/BLUSH DUO...AND I'LL ALSO BE MENTIONING AN OLDER KEVYN AUCOIN HYPER PINK POWDER BLUSH AS WELL AS A SURPRISE MENTION OF A WET-N-WILD DUPE FOR ORGASM. OR CLOSE TO IT.

JEMMA KIDD CHEEK ID COLOR ADAPT BLUSH

JEMMA KIDD CHEEK ID COLOR ADAPT BLUSH

When I saw this blush in a Jemma Kidd tutorial vid', I was in love. This is exactly the type of blush I love and have been looking for to replace the Pixi Water Blush I've been using. Similar color, but more "dew" and less dryness. I don't exactly understand the concept...well I do understand it, but I'm not sure it actually works that way on everyone. It's supposed to bring out your natural flush and sort of stain your cheeks that way. It does look gorgeous on and it's easy to apply and the packaging is amazing (I am a big fan of Jemma Kidd products). But it just doesn't last on me. And I'm not an oily-skinned girl where it's going to just slide off. So dunno. The verdict is still out on this one. I think it's a good one for me to take if I'm on a job and I want some refreshment later in the day. And it also looks good on the lips. But for the price, I expect it to work. Again, it could just be my own skin and not the product at all. As I do trust JK products.  $18.00 at Target.

JK JEMMA KIDD STAIN,FLUSH, BLUSH CONCENTRATE IN MASQUERADE

JEMMA KIDD STAIN, FLUSH, BLUSH CONCENTRATE IN MASQUERADE

I couldn't really find a good image of this blush. It's much brighter than the image. Almost a coral-y vibrant pink color...but very deep in hue. Very pigmented. And I'm not sure she's even selling this anymore as I couldn't find it online to link for you to buy. Again, I love the color on the cheeks, I love the feeling of the creaminess and the dew and the brightness of the shade. But, again, it does not stain. It doesn't last very long. I literally will look back in a few minutes and it's faded a bit. Dunno what's up but maybe this is why it's not being sold anymore. But the color is amazing and again again, I do love her products so I'm going to keep trying with it. 

PAULA DORF CHEEK COLOR CREME IN CHA CHA

PAULA DORF CHEEK COLOR CREME IN CHA CHA

This is a rich rich fancy girl product in my opinion. It's pro quality. It's deep deep and dark in the pot. But when you brush a bit on your cheeks (I prefer using a brush with this even though with most creme blushes, I usually use my fingers), it gives a really lovely dolly pinky look. I've only used this a couple of times, but I've been happy with it. I also love the name Cha Cha because I think it immediately tells you this is not a blush for the wallflower girl who just wants a hint of nude peach on her cheeks. :) It's not cheap, but it is a good product. It's $23 at Dermstore.com. I know for some of you, this will become your holy grail blusher. I didn't really include it in this review, but another Paula Dorf blush worth mentioning is the powder blush in Baby Face, which is very soft and peachy and much less dramatic but equally gorgeous and dolly. I do love how that warms my face up. It's on sale here for $15! A steal for PD which are premium beauty products.

AND THE WINNER IS...You won't really believe it, but oh well! :)

ELF CONTOURING BLUSH & BRONZING POWDER

DOESN'T REALLY SHOW THE COLOR HERE. BUT UP CLOSE, LOOKS LIKE A DUPE FOR NARS ORGASM BLUSH AND LAGUNA BRONZER.

BUT LOOK AT THAT! LOVELY LOVELY.

ELF CONTOURING BLUSH & BRONZING POWDER

Yep. This is the blush I've been using every day for about 3 weeks. And I LOVE LOVE it. I haven't really used the bronzer on the right which is clearly a dupe for Nars Laguna. I don't really need bronzers unless I want to look really sun-kissed (when my body is super tan). But the blusher on the left...it's GORGEOUS. The packaging is really nice, again a copy of -Nars. I'm really loving this. I don't know what else to say other than when I put it on (with my ELF blush brush), I'm instantly warmed up and I love how it looks on my skin and it lasts a pretty long time. And for the price....ONLY $3 on the ELF site (LOVE THEM), it's worth trying. I've even seen a slew of YouTube reviews that claim this is a dupe for the Nars duo. ELF are so great in that if you are seeking a new look or to experiment with a new type of product, they allow you to do so without breaking your bank account. I mean, I bought the Nars Orgasm blush and I returned it. Maybe I'd like it again now that I've been using this for a while. But I've been so so so happy with my ELF blush that I'm not really interested in abandoning it for its richer sister. :) You can see how gorgeous the colors are in the close-up above. So think about it. Clearly I love rich product, but you can see how many of them don't last and so I wanted to give this a go and I'm so happy I did. 

Another honorable mention or two at super opposite ends of the universe are an oldie but goodie and a drugstore brand. First is the Kevyn Aucoin Pure Powder Glow in Myracle. It's hot hot hot pink and very pigmented. And very expensive at $37. But it's one of my favorite things I own and I do like it every once in a while. Plus, I love Kevyn Aucoin (ever since I was really really super young) and I love having this blush with his name on the package. It's too bad we lost him so soon. Imagine all the products and looks he'd be creating if he was still with us. :( The other blush at the other end of the spectrum you might want to try just for fun because it's so damn cheap and pretty is Wet-n-Wild's Color Icon Blusher in Pearlescent Pink. Which is also of a Nars Orgasm vibe. It's only $2.99 at any drugstore. Definitely worth trying.

KEVYN AUCOIN PURE POWDER GLOW IN MYRACLE...LOOK AT THAT PINK! VERY BABYDOLL.

WET N WILD PEARLESCENT PINK BLUSH...LOOKS SO MUCH LIKE NARS ORGASM.

That's it for now. Hope you enjoyed that. If you have any questions or anything, do let me know. These posts are really long, and I didn't want to keep going on and on. I have so many beauty products to review, so keep a looking for those in the future and thanks for reading, lovelies! x♡

more saturday shopping ♥ magazine clutch

all images either my own or from makeupalley.com which is a great site for reviews.

GIRL FRIDAY ♥ CIBO MATTO (YEAH!)

I received a press release this week with some awesome news that Japanese girl duo known as CIBO MATTO were re-uniting with a new album and a new tour! Back in 2000-ish, I was in college studying journalism and graphic design/industrial arts and working as a PR director for some very successful streetwear brands, and all we listened to then was really Japanese Pop music. And it was all really really good. I've wondered where all those bands are now, like Buffalo Daughter, Takako Minekawa, Pizzicato Five, Cornelius, Fantastic Plastic Machine and Cibo Matto. I used to send all of them clothes which they loved and I ended up befriending Yuka and Miho (from Cibo Matto). But time went on and we all lost touch and I never really heard very much about the girls or the other bands. So it's really nice to hear. They're working on new material, so I'll put some of my older favorites on here with some info about them...and then in the coming weeks, I'll do some other posts for you on some of the other Japanese Pop bands/artists that you might not know about. I'm really thrilled for Yuka (Honda) and Miho (Hatori) and I wish them total success!♡

;

CIBO MATTO 2011 TOUR DATES
6/21    Seattle, WA - Neumo's
6/22    Vancouver, BC - Fortune
6/23    Portland, OR - Doug Fir
6/25    San Francisco, CA - Bimbo's
6/26    Los Angeles, CA - Hollywood Bowl w/Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO rule!)
7/12    Brooklyn, NY - Brooklyn Bowl
7/14    Chicago, IL - Lincoln Hall
7/16    Toronto, ON - Mod Club
7/18    New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
7/19    Washington, DC - Rock N Roll Hotel
7/20    Boston, MA - Brighton Music Hall

more girl friday ♥ artist kelly tunstall (no...not the music lady...the painter)

images from NPR

THURSDAY SHOE ♥ VALENTINO...OR ZARA?

I've never bought one thing from "fast fashion" brand/shop ZARA. Though, I must admit, I have had more than one friend who was/is a super super Zara boutique fan. I dunno why I haven't really bothered too much. I'm not a super shopper...maybe that's the reason why. But I saw these Zara Patent Leather Slingback Sandals with a jeweled square bow in deep caramel and thought they were amazing. First, the color is gorgeous. Looks much richer than they are...plus, the jeweled bow is awesome. The heel height is great, too, for a run-around shoe. But the thing that got me immediately when I saw them was the fact that they look so much like the current Valentino collection. Which makes them even better. No, they aren't Valentino (but the current Valentino isn't real Valentino, either, if you really think about it), but they only cost about 60GBP. Pretty amazing for a dainty,  amazing (and amazingly girly) shoe. (Amazing!) I think you'd feel a little more like a fancy girl wearing these even if the rest of your outfit was super simple. Seeing these makes me want to keep an eye and ear on the Zara brand and see what they'll do next.♡

that looks like an expensive shoe.

so valentino

 

more thursday shoe ♥ bambi heels

images from zara.com