Female Performers of the Harlem Renaissance

I've been reading so much wonderful Harlem Renaissance literature for my exams over the past few weeks. I'm fascinated by the descriptions of Harlem in the 20's -- the nightclubs, dancers, singers, dandies, and darlings of the stage...
Here are some inspiring photos of beautiful Harlem stage performers from Discover Black Heritage's photostream on Flickr:

Come,

Let us roam the night together,

singing.

I love you.

Across

the Harlem roof tops

Moon is shining.

Night sky is blue.
Stars are great drops
of golden dew.

In the cabaret

The jazz band's playing.

I love you.

Come,

Let us roam the night together

Singing.

["Harlem Night Song" by Langston Hughes]

Back from the Polls...

UPDATE: YES WE CAN!!!!!!! Congrats Obama!! We look forward to a better, kinder, smarter, more compassionate, more forward-thinking America!

Fur Cap: Need It, Want It, Have to Have It!

Again, Garance Dore's photos leave me speechless, and this girl is just too cute for words. I'm totally in love with this Russian fur hat...

Luckily, Urban Outfitters has a similar version on their website (it also comes in brown):

Faux Fur Pillbox Hat, $28.00

Is It Just Me?

Cinderella

Rainbow Bright



Charlie Chaplin



Cruella DeVille



Mary Poppins



Little Red Riding Hood

[All photos from Facehunter.com]

New Haircut: I Finally Did It!!

You may recall that just a short time ago I was pining for a messy 80's bob haircut ala Sherilyn Fenn of "Twin Peaks" fame. I thought about it for several months and just couldn't get up the nerve to do it...but, my damaged, unruly, dry locks really needed a change, so I got it all chopped off this weekend. It feels so much softer and healthier!! I did cry a little at first, and I really don't like the shortness of my bangs [ but they will grow quickly, right??]. I went to Forever 21 yesterday and bought 4 new flower/feather headbands, a black cloche, and a black, knit stocking cap (all for under $45, mind you) to further encourage acceptance of my new cut...I think it's working!?!

New goodies for my hair...

With a face like Sherilyn's, you can pull off any haircut...

Tesoros Trading Company: Little Gifts on the Cheap

I love giving gifts, but as I've grown older and accumulated more acquaintences, co-workers, and social networks, it has become harder and harder to always come up with something creative and thoughful for the various occasions that arise. I've come to appreciate the act of giving "little" gifts -- gifts under $10. I'm not talking about an anniversary or Christmas with the family, but rather, events like housewarmings, birthdays, dinner parties, etc. I try to consider the personality of the recipient [unless I don't know them well, and then I always just give wine], and I try to give something slightly off-kilter or unique...so when the person looks at or uses the gift [albeit small], they will remember me!

I discovered Tesoros Trading Co. while living in Austin, and their website is chock full of great little imported oddities under $10. I often order 10 or more items, so I have cool stuff stocked away when I need to grab a gift and go...

Mermaid purse mirror, Peru. $5.00.


Lucha Karate Toy, Peru. $8.50.


Heart Milagro cards, Nepal. $2.00

Floral Oven Mitt, Vietnam. $8.00.

Floral coin purse, Guatemala. $8.00.

Copper Heart, Peru. $6.00.

Sequined multi-color orn, Bangladesh. $5.00.

Floral Wrapping paper, Vietnam. $8.00


I love the oilcloth-print floral paper with a little black ribbon:

Happy Halloween To Everyone!!

Halloween is Every Day

Halloween is Every Day by Nothing Elegant

All items are from: fitzsu.com
Citizen Kite, Falco, $58.
All Black Playing Cards, $15
Crucifix Clothes Brush, $95
Animal Shot Glass, $28
Ballistic Nylon Rose Corsage, $175
Gorilla Ash Tray, $38

Eiko Ishioka's Horror Aesthetic

[Thanks for bearing with me on my Halloween/Horror obsession; I know not everyone is quite as fascinated by it as me. Only three days to go...!!]

Ever since Coppola's Dracula came out in 1992, I have been intrigued by designer Eiko Ishioka's creepy imagination -- she won an Academy award for her design work on that film, and she also designed costumes for The Cell and The Fall. She has worked on numerous stage productions, as well as Cirque de Soleil, and Bjork's more-eerie-than-usual video for "Cocoon." Here is a sampling of her work so far...hopefully there is more to come.

The designer herself:


From The Cell:


From Bjork's "Cocoon":


Costume designs from The Fall (2006):


Some of her own designs:

From Dracula: