AWESOME gARTments

Black Milk is an awesome clothing company introduced to me by an awesomely out there friend, and now it's probably one of my most visited websites.  Aside from the fact that they work under a strict anti-sweat shop policy, are accessible exclusively online, and produce awesome colourful designs (many of which are limited edition, so you feel oh-so special when you wear them around town and have to tell pining enquirers that they no longer make them), they have also built for themselves a really loyal online community of fans/followers/addicts.  Some of the most awesome designs are the Black Milk classics for which they are famous (galaxy prints taken from authentic NASA photographs of space) and copies of famous artworks THAT YOU CAN WEAR.

So far I have:

 "The Kiss" By Gustav Klimt

 

 

"The Great Wave Off Kanagawa" by Katsushika Hokusai 

              

"Garden of Earthly Delights" by Hieronymus Bosch

But recently I feel like they've lost their way a little, producing not-quite-so-awesome collections of Star Wars-inspired prints and patterns of junkfood/garish graffiti.  So Black Milk creatives, if you happen to stumble upon this post and bother to read this far, here are some really awesome core artworks that I think you have missed out of the collection, and should definitely consider for your next:

"Ophelia" by John Everett Millais

(HOW awesome would this look on a swimsuit??  Not to mention primed for a meta image...)

"The Girl With The Pearl Earring" by Johannes Vermeer

 

(This beauty was made for a dress, or maybe a swim.  Black is ultra flattering, and the cracks in the paint picked out with gold nylon would be every torso's dream.)

"The Vitruvian Man" by Leonardo Da Vinci

 (This one kind of speaks for itself, and definitely channels the same vibe as the ancient maps design already on Black Milk...)

"The Metamorphosis of Narcissus" by Salvador Dali

 (I LOVE Dali, so I just couldn't make a list of awesome artworks to wear without including this one.  Printed around a dress would be awesome (although preventing the eggs from highlighting one's breasts could be tough...) Leggings might be a better plan.  I think they'd look a bit tie-dye from a distance, which is always a bonus.)
  
Or even just this one:

 (Probably more suited to a tshirt than a pair of nylon leggings, but I'd definitely rock a Dali-suit if it came in a swim.)

So there you go, Black Milk.  I expect to see at least one of my awesome suggestions in the next line please!

I Could Walk For Miles With You

Another track I literally cannot stop listening to, with a weird and wonderful video to ice that already beautiful cake.  I've spent the past couple of days trying to decide what it reminds me of.  I keep thinking Dirty Gold, Youth Lagoon, Beach House... It gives me that same end of summer glow, but I'm not sure any of those are quite right.  Maybe I just feel like it reminds me of something unnameable, and really it's the nostalgia it evokes that makes it seems so familiar.

Anyway, the name of the project, "Pure Bathing Culture" seems pretty apt.  I feel like my soul is being bathed in liquid gold every time I listen.  Enjoy.

Digitize

So I think it's about time I got a digital camera.  I've always had an analogue SLR.  It was my first proper camera, first real photographic experience and, frankly, first love.  My gorgeous Pentax K1000 will always be my baby, but I've recently realised that I'm not really taking it out as much as I should.  I love film.  I always will.  But it is expensive, and clearly I keep having scanner problems. And to add insult to injury (quite literally) the camera is made of metal and weighs a tonne, so whenever I walk around with it strapped over my shoulder I end up with bruises all over my hips.  It's great for taking to special occasions, where I know there will be moments to capture, but I really want something light and practical to take around with me even when I don't plan on taking pictures, just in case. 

A few years ago I had a compact which was just great for freshers week and taking out to clubs ant parties because it was so terrible and cheap that it didn't really matter if I lost it.  And of course, I lost it.  I never found a replacement.  Ever since I seem to resort to my awful Blackberry camera when I see something out and about that I'd like to capture (see latest post), and this seems almost sacrilegious when I care so much about photographs.

I went through this photodoc phase last year and was convinced that I wanted to become a photojournalist, and promised myself that I would save up for a really decent DSLR.  Thank god I'm over that phase.  Not only was it unrealistic, but a DSLR would only add to the problem I'm trying to solve.  What I really want is a bridge camera.  Something as small and practical as a compact, but with the handling and quality of a DSLR. 

Enter the Fuji X10.  Okay, I'm a little embarrassed to admit that one of the things I was initially drawn to was the look of the thing.  Having always worked with vintage film cameras, I am comfortable with the way they look, and the way they look makes me happy.  Unfortunately I am far too aesthetically minded.  Okay, shallow.  But I don't think you can be really seriously passionate about anything visual without being that way.  So yes.  I like the look of it.  But, aside from this, it has GREAT REVIEWS on handling (very similar, in fact, to an old analogue style of handling, so I can dive right in without feeling overwhelmed technologically), image quality and it's LITTLE!  I can carry it around all day in my handbag, round my neck, wherever, whenever, and still know I'm going to take great quality photos.  And hopefully it will make my blog look a bit nicer too.

Autumn Daze

I think living in an urban bubble for the past 3 years rendered me blind to the beauty of seasonal change.  I realised this when walking my dog the other day.  We were caught in this amazing dusky light that you only seem to get this time of year, and I wondered if I had actually forgotten what Autumn looks like.  Now, back in Norfolk, Autumn is everywhere.  Here in the countryside the trees, en masse, actually turn orange enough for you to notice; dozens of game birds engage in sparring matches outside my window; and carpets of conkers appear out of nowhere on the roadside.  I think I had a bit of a sensual reawakening actually.  I love moments like that because I realise, if only for a second, that it's not so bad here, and it's sometimes fine that I'm alone, because I have these huge great sprawling skies to look at every time I go outside, and a happy little furry friend who loves me unconditionally every single day. 

Your Drums

So I've been listening to Radio 6 a lot recently, and one song that seems to keep coming up over the past couple of weeks is "Your Drums, Your Love" by AlunaGeorge.  As a result I've had it in my head for what seems like EVER and I can't stop listening either.  I'm not quite sure why I like it so much.  It's not my usual cup of tea, and I normally hate the cheap chipmunk voice effect, but this time it doesn't seem so tacky. 

Is it just me?  Am I broadening my musical horizons or have I contracted Norfolk-induced madness?  I did find myself raving about a dress with a picture of a pug on it the other day (in hindsight, it was NOT a great dress).  Perhaps living so far from civilization just removes any sense of refinement and taste from the soul of a seemingly on-trend being.  Or maybe I'm just falling in love with anything Tom Ravenscroft tells me is cool.

Give it a listen.  What do YOU think?

Fire and Ice

Last year I spent 4 months in Iceland.  I wish I had blogged about it at the time, but I'm so terrible at committing to these things with even a crumb of immediacy!  So as I'm doing this blog revival thing, here are a few photos I took whilst I was there.  The black and white ones didn't seem to scan very well from film, but I'm sure you can tell how beautiful it was even with my poor scanning skills!

Bosnian Caricatures

When I was 18, I went interrailing in the summer before uni.  We visited a string of places, concentrating on the central portion of the Eastern Bloc in Europe, including Prague, Budapest, and a variety of Croatian towns, cities and islands.  But Bosnia was the first place that has EVER moved me in that way that seems impossible to articulate, the same passion you get from professional travelers and writers who truly fall in love with their destinations.  It had such an effect on me that for at least a year afterwards I was obsessed to the point of buying a number of books and films about the place.  Despite everything it's been through, Bosnia seems to be a nation of enduring smiles, kind eyes, and somehow, through all the scarring and the bullet-holes, Beauty.