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Words of Wisdom from a European Wanderer: Part 3
So we’ve talked about what to pack, how to dress and how to control your spending during European winter but we have yet to discuss the secret to looking European chic this winter. I will take this moment to temporarily name my self the ‘Fashion Spy From Oz’ as I report to you on the trends that will be hitting our shores any time soon.
Fashion Spy From Oz Observation 1: The Military Ankle Boot
This shoe was glued to the feet of literally every Parisian, Londoner and Berliner walking the pavements of these cities. Think a normal military boot, ankle height but folded down and lined with wool. Men, women and children wore them in every dark and dreary colour of winter and in many cases there were high, wooden heels attached to those that belonged to the ladies. Don’t even think of leaving the house without these this winter, despite the fact that it is rarely cold enough to pull out such extreme measures.
Fashion Spy From Oz Observation 2: The Fur Coat
Of course this is slightly irrelevant to city dwellers in Australia as we’re not often met with temperatures below 10 degrees, however if you are adamant, you could slip it on over a singlet top or t-shirt and carry on the trend anyway! Opt for browns or greys and more of a feathery, cropped look rather than a big, cuddly bear imitation. And don’t forget to go faux friendly, unless you enjoy having red paint thrown on your brand new coat (although I’ve heard that only happens in America).
Fashion Spy From Oz Observation 3: Chandelier Earrings
It’s hard to accessorise when your covered in beanies, scarves and gloves but unless you’re wearing a balaclava your earlobes tend to make an appearance. This winter European fashionstas were adorning them with large, dangly earrings, crafted into intricate patterns and covered in gold. Yes gold is coming back according to our northerly friends and whilst it’s not everyone’s best friend, it will definitely help your mates locate your face under all those winter layers.
Fashion Spy From Oz Observation 4: Oversized Handbags
My final observation is not the biggest surprise of all, as oversized handbags have been clogging up our footpaths for quite some time, but Europeans are maintaining that bigger is better. Hide your clutches under your beds and hang your shoulder bags on your clothes racks, it’s time to bring that massive tote back out and dangle it from your forearm. Watch out public transport commuters, the morning headaches are about to resurface.
Fashion Spy From Oz, over and out.
By Melissa Kehagias
30 Mar 2011, 8:32am Blog Street by admin
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The Future is Here
The atmosphere is one of unrestrained feverishness. Although all in attendance are would-be strangers, for the next several hours they will move, drink and dance as if they had known each other for years. This is the Future Music Festival, where clubbers come out from hiding in dank, murky nightclubs and into the day, overrunning the park and transforming it into a musical playground.
As the crowd moves into the park it disperses into splinter groups, each breaking off to see various acts only to reconvene at the main stage. The crowd moves as one, no longer individuals but a sole entity surging to the dizzying beats of the music.
The majority of the revelers are 18-30 and follow the philosophy of Generation Y; live in the now. Social rules are fluid, only restricted by the edict of the festival organisers. It’s do as you please, not as you should. The dress code is sporatic; some wear the stock standard singlet, shorts and thongs and some are clad in eccentric, idiosyncratic garb. The only constant is hyper colour and wayfarer sunglasses.
The stronger-willed take on a drill sergeant approach, herding their group with shrill commands. The like-minded follow along whilst the inebriated fall behind. Communication is soon reduced to short, sharp sentences and frantic hand signals, with an ominous hum of incoming text messages filling the air.
The music evokes tidal waves of emotion. People turn to hug their friends declaring that they’ll “never forget this!” only to erase the memory with copious amounts of hard liquor. The songs bring the crowd into a cult-like state, chanting the lyrics as if they were anthems unto their own sovereignty.
As the sun set on the last set of the day, the enthusiastic trek to the next part of the festival, the after party which ironically, takes them back to where they began; the nightclubs. The streets become a moving rave with songs from earlier that day are slurred and stumbled through rather than sang and there is frantic dancing at every red light.
The line for admittance is probably the first break anyone has had all day and it appears to be difficult to stop completely. People push against the walls to hear the pulsating beats from inside and others attempt to create a dance floor on the pavement. Once again the crowd are all for one and one for all. People share around anything from water, to chewing gum to cigarettes.
Inside, the atmosphere is a more intimate imitation of the festival. Music from the same artists blast from the speakers but instead of the playground earlier, the party is now confined within walls. It is apparent that their world without rules is slipping, as the bouncers and bar staff slowly bring the crowd back to reality with threats of eviction and refusal of entry, not to mention the dreaded notion of the sun rising, ending the event undoubtedly.
The crowd, disheveled and exhausted file out back into the streets but now, they simply move into taxis or remove their shoes for the walk home. Future is over and it’s back to the real world.
- Paige Richards
18 Mar 2011, 11:14am Blog Street by admin
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Missing: One Original Hip-Hop Group.
I found myself in a startling predicament yesterday. I, an out-and-proud music snob, uttered the phrase, “They ruined Give It Up by KC and The Sunshine Band!”
I was responding, of course, to the audio-assault that is the new direction that will.i.am has decided upon for the Black Eyed Peas, and their unfortunately-titled track Love U Long Time. Not content with sampling the above mentioned ‘Sunshine’, both will.i.am and Fergie (which baffles me as she can really sing!) are auto-tuned to unrecognisable levels chanting to each other that they’ll ‘love them long time’.
What happened to the innovative, multicultural group of ‘Behind The Front’ and ‘Bridging The Gap’? The one that used to use their music as a social commentary, instead of promoting binge-drinking and “freaky-deeky” girls. I used to place the blame squarely on Fergie. I envisioned a modern-day Yoko Ono whose hooks of ‘let’s get retarded’ grated on my ears like nails on a chalkboard, but now I see that it is really will.i.am to blame.
At first I couldn’t bear to think that the man behind the brilliant verse on Joints and Jams could be responsible for the current heavily sampled, heavily auto-tuned soundscape of 2010, but I see now that he is simply a product of his own drive for innovation. By his desire to create and produce cutting edge tracks for the masses, he has become a parody of his former self. I can’t help but think about what would happen if 1999’s idealistic, urban hippie Will met today’s pseudo-robot incarnation.
I’m just thankful he’s withholding the demos he cut with Michael Jackson. If I were to hear an MJ5000 instead of a human voice, I’d lose all hope in music.
-Paige Richards
8 Mar 2011, 3:47pm Blog Street by admin
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Words of Wisdom from a European Wanderer: Part 2
Shopping in Europe is one of the most exciting things to do – for me anyway. Dancing along Rue de Rivoli in Paris and skipping along Oxford Street in London fills me with exhilaration and blinds me to all the crazy Europeans that are attempting to bowl me over. However the amount of money that slips through my fingers is always a catastrophic issue, so I decided to come up with a technique to control how I spend my money on clothes, and maybe this will help you too.
First things first, if you’re on a budget then one of the most important things to do before leaving the land of Oz is to budget everything – this includes giving yourself an allocated amount to spend on clothes and accessories.
The next step is to look at your wardrobe and decide if there is anything you need to buy. A new jumper because the one you’ve been wearing every day for the past three years has completely unravelled? Or maybe a pretty dress to wear to that party that has been inconveniently scheduled for the weekend you get back? Then make a list and write these items on it. If, however, you intend for your shopping spree to be focused on “wants” rather than “needs” (like so often is the case) then allocate your spending money to only buying one of each item. What I mean by this is that if you buy a jumper on your first day in Berlin, and two weeks later in Switzerland you see the most amazing spotted, yellow jumper you have ever seen, you are in no way allowed to buy it. One jumper is enough, just as one dress is enough, one pair of shoes is enough, one pair of jeans is enough and one extremely expensive designer handbag is enough (on this particular item I once again speak from experience. Budget well.)
Make sure to always bring along that annoying friend who whines that their feet hurt or that they’re hungry so that they can also whine about the fact that you have bought too much. Please refrain from throwing European coat hangers in their faces; they hurt no less than Australian ones.
There is also one major rule when shopping in Europe (or anywhere really), if you’re not sure you like it, or you don’t think it fits well, or you don’t know what you’d wear it with, DON’T BUY IT. It maybe only be 20 euro, but it’s 20 euro that could buy you about five bottles of wine from a Spanish supermarket or that one pair of stilettos you have yet to tick off your list. This is also the point when you tell your whiney friend to “shut the hell up” and take them to McDonalds for a European Big Mac.
By Melissa Kehagias
4 Mar 2011, 10:44am Blog Street by admin
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Words of Wisdom from a European Wanderer: Part 1
I have just arrived back from a two and a half week holiday travelling Europe in near freezing temperatures and as I reflect on my wonderful adventure I am bombarded with memories of the night before I left Australia. It is one of the scariest and most destructive evenings that one faces when preparing for a trip, a night when one specific question hangs over your head, “what clothes do I pack?”
Now, I tend to think that packing for a winter holiday is a lot more difficult than packing for a summer one. For summer, you simply throw in some shorts, a few t-shirts, a couple of cute dresses and a pair of thongs. When you arrive, you spend a little time at the beach and all of a sudden you’re walking around the Mediterranean looking like a glowing goddess.
For winter however, it’s a little different. For starters there’s the age-old question, do you or don’t you pack those dorky thermals your mum made you buy on your last family holiday? My answer to this is: if it’s forecast to be less than 7 degrees at any point during your adventure on ice then pack the thermals or risk a near death experience. And always wear two pairs of socks, I speak from experience, my toes will never be the same again.
The toughest challenge you will face when travelling in winter will be trying to look fashionable whilst at the same time looking like a large, foreign, ball of cloth. You want to be warm yet trendy, chic yet comfortable and you want it all to weigh 20kgs or less [unless you’re lucky enough to have a 32kg limit]. Once you factor in those five coats you need to co-ordinate with your outfits and those seven pairs of boots you need so you can alternate daily, you’ll soon realise that there is room for little else and that it’s rather expensive to pass your whole wardrobe through customs. So here are my words of wisdom:
Empty out your suitcase.
It’s all about necessities. Forget five coats and go with a maximum of two, forget seven pairs of boots and once again opt for that magic number two. Try not to overload on long sleeve tops, take a couple of dresses and a few pairs of pants. Don’t forget your winter accessories like gloves and scarves, but one or two of each is enough. Now if you’re silently, or loudly, freaking out that this isn’t enough clothing, then I have the perfect remedy. Shopping.
If you’re lucky enough to be budget-less then go nuts and shop the city out. If you’re on a skin-tight budget then I offer you this very well known secret, H&M. This store is a godsend, there is one on every corner in every city and it sells up to date fashion for the price of peanuts. Budgeting or not, you can buy all those pretty clothes you wanted to bring with you, have the up-to-date winter fashions before the first Autumn leaf falls in Australia, and you can throw all those daggy clothes you brought with you straight into the closest Parisian bin. Voilà!
By Melissa Kehagias
2 Mar 2011, 7:40am Blog Street by admin
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The end of summer inspires a change in style…
Although we are still in the midst of one hot summer, our glossy fashion magazines remind us that winter is indeed fast approaching. It’s hard to contemplate the idea of woollen coats and crochet berets as we swelter in the heat, but it’s good to know of some options that you can wear for the cooler days ahead.
Here are my top five style solutions for the upcoming transeasonal change.
- 1. Kimono-style jackets
Casual yet chic, kimono-style jackets are great to throw on over a singlet with a pair of skinny leg jeans. They have made an appearance in stores this summer, most constructed from floaty floral and leopard-print chiffons, and were seen commonly paired with denim cut-offs and black bandage dresses.
These are still an option for autumn, but for the days with the lower temps, opt for one made from a soft jersey – not heavy but enough to keep you from getting a chill. To see what all the hype is about, check out the British brand Topshop and Nicole Richie’s House of Harlow, both of which have some beautiful designs.
- 2. Small lace-up boots
Let’s face it; compared to a European winter, Australian cities are generally never cold enough to require hiking boots and a ski jacket (though don’t let me stop you if that’s your kind of thing…). So if you’re trying to decide what boots to invest in for this winter, I would say go for the ankle-height lace-up boots – you can wear them all year around.
They are small and light enough for summer festivals, but you can also pair them with some grandma-knitted socks for winter. And for that time in between? They were made for it. The lace-up style is also perfect for that military inspired look, without going overboard on any macho-ness.
- 3. Patterned tights
Perfect for pairing with that cap-sleeved cotton summer dress or that jersey-knit skating dress, tights are the ‘it’ item for that transitional faze. It is also a relatively inexpensive way of styling your outfits because it means you can retain clothing from the warmer seasons by simply adding hosiery.
If you want to avoid looking too much like a school-girl, you can find a wide-range of patterned tights (polka dots and all) in most department stores. I would recommend looking at Leona Edminston’s range of vintage-inspired tights stocked at Myer stores.
- 4. Leggings
Before you all tell me that leggings are for the lycra-loving tweens or gym-junkies only, I have a proposition to make. You know that bright kaftan you thought was only suitable for lazy afternoon cocktails at the beach? Well don’t go putting it away in your wardrobe just yet. Let the colours speak for themselves and wear them with a plain black pair of leggings – ankle-length. Then pop on a pair of patent nude-coloured heels, and ta-da, you have an outfit solution for the cooler-month cocktail parties!
If you don’t really like the idea of exposing your booty in some hip-hugging lycra, try a longer length kaftan (cue the exotic kaftans of Camilla Franks).
- 5. Lightweight pants
For a long time, I was a sceptic. I was one of those people that just hated wearing pants. No matter how many pairs I tried on, they were the wrong shape or embraced a pattern that reminded me of my PJs.
But just this summer, I found a pair of 100% viscose, cream and black patterned pants from Forever New. They were comfortable but with a tailored-edge, lightweight and to top it all off, on sale. I have worn these pants numerous times over the summer, but they are also the type of pants that I know will still be suitable for the upcoming months.
So start looking before all the heavier pants dominate the stores – you won’t know how good they are until you find the right ones!
By Laura Parr
24 Feb 2011, 4:30pm Blog Fashion by admin
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The Rise of “The Fall of…”
I distinctly remember where I was when Michael Jackson died. After a flood of messages woke me up, I spent the morning in my apartment glued to the television, flicking between stations to see if it were really true. Like the rest of the world, I watched as the story unfolded; Whether from grief, disbelief or simply shock, the world was thrown into a disconcertion not seen since the deaths of Elvis Presley or John Lennon. The entire scene was unlike anything I’d ever seen before, but what struck me the most was a paparazzo’s comment that when he sold his photograph of Jackson in an ambulance, he would be able to retire.
It’s a morbid commentary on our society that our cultural obsession with celebrity has entered into such a macabre territory. We love artists on their way to success but once they achieve it, we love nothing more than to watch them fall. We all have commented on celebrities we think are ticking time bombs a la Amy Winehouse and Lindsay Lohan, and reveled when news breaks of a pop star going to rehab. Like the old adage says, everybody loves a good tragedy. Lady GaGa summed it up perfectly in a recent interview, when asked whether she’s worried about falling prey to the Hollywood curse she responded, “That’s what everyone wants to know, right? What is she going to look like when she dies … when she’s overdosed on whatever they think I’m overdosing on? Everybody wants to see the decay of the superstar.” And the sad part is, that’s completely true.
In late 2006/early 2007 that’s exactly what the world got when Britney Spears went into free fall, divorcing her then-husband via text message, shaving her head, losing custody of her children, and eventually losing control of her financial and business interests. And, unfortunately for her (fortunate for us) it was all played out in the tabloids. It was as if because she was famous, she was seen as a character, not a person, and when she was taken on psychiatric hold, people failed to see a young woman in desperate need of help but rather viewed the footage in the way they would a scripted television show. Major news outlets even had pre-prepared eulogies ready to run if the worst were to happen, but probably the most heartless reporting on the situation came from controversial celebrity blogger, Perez Hilton, who instead of expressing concern for a woman in trouble, commented that “Friday was the busiest day we’ve ever had on perezhilton.com! Over the course of 24 hours, we had over 10 million page views. 10,089,428 to be exact. That’s insane! Thanks, Britney!”
It seems as if we’re all on celebrity death-watch again with Charlie Sheen’s recent battles with drugs, with even “Two and a Half Men” creator Chuck Lorre making light of the situation through his production company vanity card, “I exercise regularly. I eat moderate amounts of healthy food. I make sure to get plenty of rest. I see my doctor once a year and my dentist twice a year. I floss every night. I’ve had chest x–rays, cardio stress tests, EKG’s and colonoscopies. I see a psychologist and have a variety of hobbies to reduce stress. I don’t drink. I don’t smoke. I don’t do drugs. I don’t have crazy, reckless sex with strangers. If Charlie Sheen outlives me, I’m gonna be really pissed.” The world really is on edge to see the highest paid television actor of recent time self destruct – as long as it doesn’t interrupt the filming of their favourite sitcom’s season finale.
Whether it’s through a morbid fascination or strictly an extension of our celebrity obsession, a celebrity’s death will always make headlines and will always sell papers. Consider it the catch 22 of celebrity, people will always try and tear them down while they’re living, but in death they become more. As John Lennon put it, ironically in an interview with Rolling Stone five days before his own death, “People want dead heroes, like Sid Vicious and James Dean. I’m not interested in being a dead fucking hero, so forget ‘em.” Unfortunately for John, that’s exactly what the public craves.
24 Feb 2011, 4:17pm Blog Street by admin
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blearing lines of entertainment.
HBO
TV is the new cinema. From the cheesy and kinky True Blood to the angst of Mad Men TV is starting to become your favourite indie of the moment and big Hollywood Oscar bait all rolled into one. Yeah, there is still the existent of soap operas and Glee but TV is now becoming something you just don’t want to watch hangover.
If any show represents this the most it’s Boardwalk Empire. Its Martin Scorsese produced, its pilot costed $18 million and it gives Steve Buscemi his first starring role. It’s lush and almost perfect in showing Prohibition Era Atlantic City and even has a low rent version of Scorsese favourite Leo Dicaprio (The Dreamers Michael Pitt). There’s violence, drama, sex, politics, vintage showgirl glamour and everything else you can expect from a HBO-Scorsese hybrid. To put it in its simplest: it’s everything you expect from a movie fleshed out and not something you are embarrassed about watching. Oh, it if it matters it has also won a bunch of awards.
Boardwalk Empire begins in March on Showcase and the trailer is available here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6Ra8PdXa9k&feature=related
Photo: HBO.
15 Feb 2011, 4:26pm Blog Street by admin
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Junk Food Television, Or How I Stopped Fighting it and Learnt to Love ‘Jersey Shore’.
As much as I hate to admit it, I love Jersey Shore.
It’s not because of a case of fashion envy a la Sex and The City, or because I relate to the cast the way I do with Friends or How I Met Your Mother, but because of morbid curiosity. This group of 20-something New Yorkers are vapid, shallow, and hedonistic, and I just can’t get enough.
I like to think that reality shows that following the lives of excitable but essentially aimless party people are insulting to an audience’s intelligence, but it’s undeniable that they’re entertaining. It’s like watching another species walking in our world, so much so MTV has capitalised on our anthropological desires in their marketing campaigns, “[the show] exposes one of the tri-state area’s most misunderstood species… the GUIDO. Yes, they really do exist! Our Guidos and Guidettes will move into the ultimate beach house rental and indulge in everything the Seaside Heights, New Jersey scene has to offer.”
It is much more than mindless escapism, there’s great philosophical arguments that really make you think such as Angelina in season one debating hospitality versus retail, (”This [T-Shirt shop] is below me, I’m a bartender, I do great things!”), to Snooki’s weekly bursts of genius (”That’s the reason why the ocean is so salty, because of all of the whale sperm!”). I’ve learnt how to GTL, how to dodge grenades and landmines, and how to perfect the boutique cocktail, Ron-Ron Juice. I’ve picked up their language and habits. It’s becoming an unhealthy obsession.
As with other similarly-premised reality shows, like Big Brother and The Real World, you feel as if it’s junk food version of television, that is, you know that it’s unhealthy but it feels so good to gorge yourself on. It’s very easy to teeter over to the dark side though. There’s been times when in the grips of a Jersey marathon, I’ve been asked my opinion on world issues and I’ve had nothing to say other than, “Well, I don’t know about that, but J-Woww and Sammi just had a cat fight!” After majoring in international politics, that sentence leaving my mouth was me hitting rock bottom of reality TV addiction.
I won’t lie and say that I don’t sometimes indulge in my guilty pleasure, season three has just started! But I like to think that I’ve learnt how to strike a healthy balance between the real world and the Shore, the first step was to admit I have a problem.
“Hi, I’m Paige and I’m a Jersey-holic…”
11 Feb 2011, 11:03am Blog Street by admin
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Designer Clothes, Art Collections, and Hip-Hop?: The New Breed of Rappers.
Hip-Hop has always been synonymous with violence, gang glorification, and misogynist lyrics but a new trend is leading rappers to change up their baggy pants and chains for well tailored suits. Given the growth in popularity of the genre (and in the rappers’ bank accounts), the formulaic cop-hatin’, gang war-declarin’ lyrics of the past just don’t translate today. It’s hard to take Eminem rhyming about being “true to the streets” when he’s got an Academy award. Even Jay-Z has changed his previous gangsta stance to rapping about “being up in TriBeCa next to DeNiro”.
Rather than fighting the privileged lifestyle they now lead, this new breed of rappers are embracing it. They aren’t about drinking gin and juice and drive by’s, they’d rather sip Chandon on the Upper East Side. Through Kid Cudi’s hazy “Pursuit of Happiness”, Jay-Z’s urban Sinatra persona and Kanye West shift from rapper to artist, it is proof that you don’t need to have a police record to be respected. As Nicki Minaj mused in Rolling Stone, “At one point you had to sell a few kilos to be considered a credible rapper…but now it’s like Drake and I are embrac[ed for] the fact we went to [performing arts] school, we love acting, we love theater, and that’s okay”.
In their film clips, you won’t find them in dingy nightclub scenes throwing cash at strippers, there’s are highly stylised, fashionable shoots (or in Kanye’s case, 35 minute long short films) throwing back to the artistry of music greats like Michael Jackson and Madonna.
Although not the first to start the trend, Kanye is the definitive poster boy for this new genre. He is an art aficionado, he has interned for several designers, and worries more about wearing a dinner jacket during the day than gang colours. Imagining himself as more than a name attached to an “explict language” sticker, his latest LP, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, replaces regular fodder of murder, crime, and poverty with intense self reflection and a critique on the lifestyle fame allows (and on a more shallow level, model and designer name drops). A far call from Snoop declaring “1-8-7 on an undercover cop”.
Rather than succumbing to a stereotype enforced by their precursors, these artists are trying to shift the genre into something greater, bringing style and a social conscience into rap, and they’re doing it in a three piece suit.
3 Feb 2011, 9:57am Blog Street by admin
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