new lace sleeves

as promised, here is an update of my arty goings-on.

to practise making the curtain for my final piece, i've done a few sewing trials with lace flowers & netting. i bought supplies at the weekend, and got waaay too much - why must i always get flustered in fabric shops & buy far too much?! now it seems i have enough netting to make a pair of full size curtains.

i couldn't find any flower motifs, which originally was a bit disappointing, but i found some lace/ribbon with flowery patterns which i'm really pleased with.

i've been playing about with different designs, trying to recreate a real "net curtain" feel. this was the first pattern i did, basically i was just working out how to actually sew things to netting!

i quite like this pattern, but i think it might be a bit dull. and it doesn't quite have the ethereal effect i'm going for.

i'm sorry for the terrible photo quality by the way, the focus on my camera is a bit dodgy since i dropped it & the netting was obviously always going to be tricky to photograph.

i think this is one of my favourite designs so far, it's exactly the cutesy, but not too cutesy, feel that i wanted.

if that makes any sense at all.

i think i'm going to combine this one with the one below;

although i don't want it to be a repeated pattern type thing, i think it would look better if it was a bit more scattered about.

well, not scattered exactly. but something along those lines.

this is my pencil drawing of my friend charlotte squashed against a window, from the photograph i posted a few days ago. i stuck it in my art sketchbook a while ago as part of the "experimenting with techiniques" stage, so i'm going to photocopy & trace it for my final piece. which i guess is sort of cheating, but it is my own drawing.

i'm actually really proud of it, i think it's one of the best things i've ever drawn.

& i apologise for the egotistical nature of that above statement.

i never rode my bike down to the sea

today my father returned home after being away the whole day & asked me why i was still wearing my pyjamas.

i was not still wearing my pyjamas.

i was actually wearing my new laura marling tshirt.

i really, really love it!

apart from the fact that it is seriously huge. i'm not kidding, it goes almost to my knees. they had no smalls left at the stall so i went for a medium. whatever, it's clearly a dude's medium.

it also says laura marling underneath the "i speak because i can" bit, but you can't see that because i had to tuck it into my skirt, so that you could actually see my skirt. i did tell you it was huge.

here's the whole outfit.

i put it with some turquoise tights (mother's) because some of the filled in bits of the letters (i literally have no idea how else to say that) are a really pretty blue/green colour which seemed to suit the tights.

i think they sort of go with the skirt as well, in a quirkyish way.

hey, it doesn't have to match!

also, hello curly hair.

i'm growing to like my hair now i think, although the fringe still sucks. so yay! for hair accessories.

i don't think i've actually put a photo up of this finished before, but anyway, this is a bag i bought in a charity shop & then added a chain & some ribbon to it. which i think (hope) is kind of cute.

anyways, i took this to the laura marling concert so obviously (in my head) this made sense for a themed outfit.

did anybody else watch frock me today? i thought it was bloody awesome, i love alexa chung & henry holland! it's great to have something british & fashiony on the telly again, & i loved marina & the diamonds' teddy bear print dress!

i've been doing quite a bit of sewing over the weekend for trials for my mock net curtain thing i'm making for my art project, i'll take a few photos & post them later in the week when i've got a bit more time.

all i have to do is dream

it's taken me a really long time to come up with a idea for my final piece in art, but today i think i made a bit of a breakthrough. as i said before, my title is windows and doorways but i think i've strayed from that slightly.

i found this picture on we heart it a while ago and, frankly, it's amazing. i think i'm going to do the girl in acrylics, then for the curtain i'm going to buy some netting & some flower motifs and sew them on. i'm not going to stick the curtain bit on though, i think i want it so that it can be lifted off. i actually hate things that are completely flat. i mean, i love drawing, but i'm really not all that good at it & i prefer to do something that has a bit more to it.

as you can have more than one final piece for this exam (and because you have to use at least some primary images), i'm going to draw this portrait in pencil. to make it a bit more interesting, i'm going to make some shutters (ie, some card flaps) that open up & put them over the top. i think i'm going to use oil pastel 'cause it gives a really good textured effect for wood, & my art teacher said i need to think about what to put on the back of the shutters.

i'm not sure what to do for this really. i was thinking as the expression on her face is kind of distressed, i should have a "trapped" theme? because then i could have a drawing on the back of the shutters that was her "dream", like maybe a landscape sort of thing.

hmmmm i really need to think this through. if you have any ideas, i'd really love to hear them!

i wrote an epic letter to you

it's twenty two pages front and back, but it's too good to be used,

and i tried to be a girl who likes to be used, i'm too good for that,

there's a mind under this hat.

my friend jess & i went to see laura marling yesterday which was possibly one of the best concerts i have everrrrr been to! the theatre was a really old, really beautiful place so unfortunatley i wasn't allowed to take any photos, because a man shined a torch & shouted at me.

she was supported by an australian band called boy and bear who were a lovely folk group, reminscent of mumford & sons crossed with a bit of nick drake & bob dylan. so yeah, awesome. then there was another girl called alessi's ark which was a good act, but a little twee i think.

laura marling herself was lovely, she had two "act" type of things, first a country-folk set with her more lively numbers, and then an acoustic set which was just beautiful. she was really funny & lovely as well, i love it when artists actually connect with the audience, because really they owe most of their success to us, to be frank.

i thought some of the music was really inventive & original, she played quite a few new songs (for another new album out later this year, eeep!) & her backing band - who seemed to be made up of lots of other different bands, probably given to her "troubles with the fiddle player" who i presume is her ex charlie fink of noah & the whale - seemed to be made up of all the other acts that night. there were double basses, bass guitars played as cellos, maracas & banjos everrrrywhere!

oh, i bought a tshirt as well which hopefully i will post about at the weeeeeekend.

you can leave your hat on

so yesterday, i got my haircut. i'm not entirely sure how i feel about it yet, i like it straight (which my hair never is on a day to day basis) but curly? i think it may be too short.

excuse the hideous eye bags here, i hate taking pictures of my face.

see, i like the fringe pinned back... but it just won't stay that way when curly.

my hair is very uncontrollable, i have a double crown thing & a weird hairline where it just grows UP so yeah, goodbye side fringe.

it does make me feel oddly british though, which is a little strange. i think in some ways it reminds me of this lovely lady;

(although less wonderful, obviously)

& is a bit like a female version of these boys' hairstyles;

but perhaps this is just me wishful thinking!

i do like it straight i must admit, i tried it out with my bowler hat & felt unbelieeeeeeeeeevably english - which is odd, as i've always felt more in touch with my scottish roots than my english ones.

possibly acceptable?

oh, and that necklace is made from the brooch i posted about a couple days ago. mother said it was a bit "twee" but i like it (:

i fell in love at the seaside

two days of solid spanish revision has nearly driven me insane.

on a happier note, today i finally posted the form for my provisional driver's license, yay! hopefully it should arrive in the next two weeks or so, & then i can get on with some lessons.

last weekend we went to the beeeeeach, which was lovely;

we went in the sea (only briefly, it was unbelievably cold!),

struck sea poses (yes, i am gazing out to sea in a wistful manner, that is how i roll),

struck more sea poses,

clambered over rocks in a precarious manner,

jumped off rocks & perfected the busted pose.

(if anybody out there remembers busted, i actually love you.)

i won't forget to put roses on your grave

today has been filled with psychology revision. woo! *insert sarcasm here*

yesterday, in my long list of purchases, i completely forgot about a little brooch i bought from a silver stall at the train station.

i actually love it! it was only £2 which to me seems quite cheap, everything on the stall was priced differently as the guy was working it all out by weight. i love the little rose in the middle, it's a blue version of an awesome yellow necklace i picked up at a car boot sale last july.

the only beef i have with this brooch is that it has quite a vicious catch which bit a bit of a hole into my jimi hendrix tshirt, & if it does it again i WILL get rid of it. brooch, you have been warned...

it's only rock & roll

i went to the beach yesterday which was grrrrreat. i'll post a few pictures later maybe, i didn't take my camera so i'll have to steal everybody else's photos!

we did a bit of shopping in town as well, & i bought a little bit more than i meant to.

i am finally the owner of abbey road on vinyl, this makes me very very happy.

i just love this record so much, i listened to it today & it honestly just sounds better on a record player. the sound is deeper somehow, i don't know how to describe it.

i think the artwork is beautiful too. so simple, but just lovely. i love the sense of humour in it too, the girl walking past covering the oh-so-secret postcode.

continuing the music-y theme of my purchases, i also bought the laura marling NME. i don't normally buy it, but i had to seeing as laura was on the front. i actually found it really interesting reading about different musicians' takes on the music industry (apart from rihanna, seriously, just stop talking).

another spur of the moment purchase was this quite lovely straw boater from primark (yes, primark. i know, i know). i don't really like the black band it has, i think i may replace it with a more colourful ribbon because, well, i like colour. and also because it'll make it look less primark-y.

i got this rolling stones tshirt in the post yesterday, it was 99p from drink tea be content's ebay.

i really love it, it has such cute sleeves!

love the sewn on rolling stones logo!

i love the worn-ness of the tshirt, you can only really get that genuine vintage look (even if it's not vintage!) from ebay, or by thrifting. i also adorrre the obscure design.

i apologise for the image heavy post today, but i had much news to share (:

oh, and thank you to amber of error for my award, it is very very appreciated dear!

hunky dory

sundays. the days when really you just can't be bothered to do anything but laze around, listen to music or watch tv. or maybe this is just me. but anyway, today i am staving off psychology & spanish revision, & i thought now would be a good time to post about the musical tag award i was recently given by duffle coats & mittens - thank you!

i have to list 10 bands or artists in no particular order, & then answer the following questions.

1. the beatles

2. bob dylan

3. david bowie

4. the kooks

5. jimi hendrix

6. grateful dead

7. laura marling

8. bruce springsteen

9. the rolling stones

10. marvin gaye

now for the questions;

- what was the first song you heard by 6?
this is actually very difficult for me to remember! i think it was box of rain, as that is the first song off the very first album of theirs i listened to.
- what is your favourite song of 8?
i think it would have to be either thunder road, so young & in love, or rosalita (come out tonight). sorry for being so indecisive, but i really can't choose!
- what kind of impact has 1 left on your life?
oh, a huge impact! i think anybody who knows me, & in fact anyone who reads this blog, will know this. my clothing is influenced by them, my outlook on life, the art i draw, the posters on my walls - i even went to john & paul's houses in liverpool.
- what is your favourite lyric of 5?
"will the wind ever remember, the names it has blown in the past, but in its crutch, its old age & its wisdom, it whispers "no, this will be the last"" from the wind cries mary.
"angel come down from heaven yesterday, she stayed with me just long enough for afternoon tea" from the acoustic version of angel.
the whole of bold as love, i love that beautiful song. jimi is generally thought of as a guitarist more than a lyricist, but i think his words have an amazing power.
- how many times have you seen 4 live?
ha! once, but i was actually in the first aid room for most of the concert having passed out about 10 minutes in.
- what is your favourite song of 7?
rambling man, ghosts & her cover of johnny flynn's the wrote & the writ.
- is there any song of 3 that makes you sad?
no, not really. although the slower parts of changes have occasionally brought a tear to my eye.
what is your favourite song by 9?
i must confess i have only heard their eary 60s albums, but my favourites are brown sugar, dead flowers, and you can't always get what you want.
- how did you first get into 2?
well, i had always heard people talking about "bob dylan, the poet" & his reputation is widely known. i listened to a greatest hits album of his that my step-father had & i LOVED that, which led me onto listening to some of my dad's albums & i received the times they are a-changing and the free-wheelin' bob dylan for christmas. my love for his music has just grown and grown, it also helps that i have friends who love him too & that i can discuss his music with.
- how did you first get into 3?
well, my mother & father met through mutual friends at a david bowie concert so right from the start he's always been an influence, but i never really actively listened to him until i heard that the kooks' name was inspired by the song kooks on his hunky dory album - which i now own on vinyl.
- what is your favourite song by 4?
ahhh so many! i love seaside, tea & biscuits, eddie's gun and sofa song. i am a bit of an obsessive fan, so i have lots of favourites off bootleg albums too.
- how many times have you see 9 live?
never, they don't really tour massively. i would have loved to have seen them back in the 60s though.
- what is a good memory concerning 10?
i used a picture of him in a collage for the final outcome in one of my art projects, & we were presenting our work to the class (which i totally hate!) & my art teacher, who is scottish & very mad, went "oooh who's that? marvin gaye? SEXUAL HEALING!" this was a pretty hilarious, if embarrassing, moment! although it was really only embarrassing because no-one in my class had heard of him & thought that "sexual healing" was, well, my teacher's feeling towards him rather than one of his most famous songs.
- is there any song by 8 which makes you sad?
quite a few actually, bruce really knows how to tug those heartstrings. his ghost of tom joad album is all pretty sad, mary queen of arkansas, if i should fall behind and especially 4th of july, asbury park (sandy) are very emotional.
- what is your favourite song of 1?
oh my, this is serrrrriously tricky! it's just going to have to be a big list i'm afraid; here comes the sun, i saw her standing there, twist & shout, i've just seen a face, i'm looking through you, strawberry fields forever and, frankly, their entire back catalogue.
- how did you become a fan of 10?
my mum's always been a big fan of motown & soul songs & i guess it just filtered through. also, i listened to a lot of him on last.fm.
sorry for the ludicrously long answers, but i tend to go on a bit when it comes to music!
i choose to tag nothing but a vision trick, error & .

bubble toes

la la laaaaa.

today was a bit nothingy, i went to a spanish oral revision thing at school which was really helpful (& made me less bloody terrified). there was only three of us there which was a bit awkward as me & one of the guys are really good friends, but we both seriously don't get on with the other dude. it actually wasn't too bad though, as he wasn't as insufferable as he normally is.

after that me & my friend went for a bit of a walk around which was great because he is HILARIOUS & it was lovely & sunny.

then i went & bought some minstrels to get change for the photo booth, so that i could get the photo taken i need for my driver's license - which i am FINALLY sending off for tomorrow, yaaaay!

also, i was going to buy the new NME with laura marling on the cover (they're having a new look re-launch kinda thing, & there are 10 different covers) but they didn't have it, bummer.

sorry for this rather lengthy depiction of my day, i promise i didn't intend to ramble as much! now to the crux of today's post; ebaaay!

i've become obsessed with buying music on ebay recently, i think because often it's so much cheaper than buying from HMV & it is a better alternative to free downloading because it doesn't make me feel bad (:

anyway, i bought brushfire fairytales by jack johnson & i walk the line (remastered) by johnny cash, which are both excellent albums.

i've been looking for a genuine vintage pocket watch on ebay for some time now so i can make my own version of the necklaces you see everywhere these days, but they're all either stupidly expensive or there are too many bidders. i found this cute sewing machine clock which i'm going to make a necklace out of, along with some pearly beads, when i get the time.

this was my outfit for today, with the skirt i got for my birthday.

the weather was being really weird today, so i decided to stick with tights. although i think for my beach excursion on saturday i will be braving the bare legs, eek!

skirt - gift, tights - dorothy perkins, vv brown tshirt - concert, cardigan - h&m, necklace - car boot sale.

adieu dears, i am off to watch the lovely russell howard, have a lovely weekedn everyone! (:

the bell jar

i can't believe i forgot to say happy easter yesterday! i am such a fool. so, rather belatedly, i wish you all happy easter tidings.

i am such a procrastinator at the moment, really i should be using these holidays wisely to revise for up-coming exams, finish my english coursework & do some serious artwork but my attention span just isn't what it used to be - damn you internet! i will get to working soon, i just had a complete mental block today with my english literature coursework which was quite disheartening, & just put me in a sucky mood for the rest of the day.

anyways, a couple of days ago i received the tshirt i ordered from lazy oaf last week. normally, their stuff is a bit out of my price range but they have specials every now & then at discounted prices, so i decided to buy this i read books (men's!) shirt for only £10.

eeeep! isn't it cute? i love the fact it has a moustache made out of a book.

i know it really isn't sunny enough for shorts minus tights weather just yet, but it was pretty warm & i was looking for an excuse to wear these liberty print shorts. i bought them last year in the topshop sale for £15 - reduced from £35 i might add! - and have had hardly any chance to wear them as we had such a dreadful summer last year. in fact, i think i only wore them once!

i love the print so much, it's just so cute. the shorts have little pleats too which make it look more like a skirt, which is good as they are actually a bit too small to rest on my hips & have to be worn high-waisted.

this necklace was a gift with some others for my birthday last year i think, & i am sad to say i have never worn it before. i picked it up today & it matched the colour of the design on my tshirt EXACTLY. i love cute little coincidences like that! i picked the badge up at a vintage fair not long ago, i just lvoe the quirkiness to it.

shorts - topshop, shirt - lazy oaf, necklace - gift, badge - vintage fair.

PS. the title of my post refers to my favourite book lately, & i thought this would fit with the shirt. it also kind of explains how i feel about the pressures in my life at the moment. which i realise sounds disturbing when you consider the plot of the book!

i'd like to thank the academy

i know i've been posting sporadically lately, & for this i do apologise. i've been feeling rather listless of late, with only school & exams on the horizon. but have no fear! i will be venturing out to the beach next saturday, & i have some gems arriving from ebay shortly so i shall post about those (hopefully!) in due course.

first, i'd like to say an amazingly huge thank youuuu! to the lovely people who have given me awards (:

i keep forgetting to post about them, but please don't think this is because i'm not grateful!

i received this you're so lovely award from amber at error. thank you amber!

i have to award 6 people so, here goes;

e

duffle coats & mittens

a beautiful mess
much love
thoughts from an addict
and fashion peach

i also received this award from laura at stars & shoes and from kat at fashion peach. thank you both very much, this does mean an awful lot to me :')
now i have to pass this on to 12 others;
error
a daisy chain dream
a thought is the blossom
because geography case studies suck
abbey karson blog
drink tea be content
charlotte
oh emma
in bug's drawers
jess loves fred
la petite fille avec la vie de la mode
leaves with stripes
now that my mammoth tagging session is over, i leave you with promises of posts yet to come.
& thank you from the bottom of my heart for these awards - to me it's still a surprise that people actually want to read about my silly little ramblings!

gentlemen take polaroids

i recently discovered poladroid from someone's blog, & i am beyond obsessed.

basically, you download the software, drag your picture over to the polaroid camera, wait a few moments & you can see it develop on your screen. it has totally realistic polaroid-y sounds, & you can even shake the photo to make it develop faster.

it seriously produces some awesome results & you can set how dark or "vignetted" you want it to be. these are some of my favourites.

my beatles rubber soul record.

inside the eden project, where i went a bit photographer crazy.

hallowe'en cupcake. YUM.

one of the necklaces i made.

one of the photos i got my brother to take for my art exam (you can faintly see his reflection just above my left ear).

necklace i made, with the wooden piece my friend joanna made me.

imagine, the beatles story museum in liverpool.

the beatles sheet music in the hard day's night hotel.
okay, i just realised a lot of these are beatle related. i do apologise, but the obsession must continue!