Ang Bandang Shirley Scary Debut! W00t!

Saturday, October 25, 2008 Jonette 0 Comments

Dear Ladies and Gents, I am very proud to announce that the Scary Debut album launch for Ang Bandang Shirley was a complete success! There were awesome people and awesome costumes to be seen, drinks to be had, and hap-hap-happy dancey music to rock to! True, my head and feet hurt from the heels, the cigarette smoke, head-nodding and dancing, but what the hell! My cousin-aunt Selena and her bandmates are made of unadulterated, authentic, concentrated joy and awesomeness, and make up 100% of your daily dietary allowance of Happy!







Pictures and videos shall follow shortly, soon as I retrieve my uploading cable from my workstation. At the office. (Silly, silly girl.) a shout-out to NineMoons and Guia for taking time off their busy schedules to head-nod, dance, and join the throng of costumed indie-folk and music lovers.

Copies of the album was sold as the band played, and it features a pocket-sized and headphoned pinoy Kokeshi doll, looking askance at cork stamps and petite religious items. The back cover shows the same doll at rest, snuggling on the warm comfort of a cotton towel serving as insulation for tasty, piping-hot balut. (Subliminal Message: Buy the CD. You want to buy the CD. You must buy the CD. You will buy the CD. Tomorrow!)




For the non-Philippine-bound readers, do feel free to enjoy the band's unique sound with this finely-crafted playlist.The songs may be in Filipino, but the music will make you want to fall in love with Living all over again.

The Birthday Dress: Raise the Hemline

Wednesday, October 22, 2008 Jonette 0 Comments

... and alternatively titled How I May Have Had a Terrible Lapse in Judgement of Taste.

Remember The Birthday Dress? Right. I was all too happy to finally go on a long break for my birthday last week with every intention of resting, baking, and sewing, sewing, sewing my eyes out.

Hm. That didn't quite come out all too pleasant.

Come to think of it, with a lineup like that, I'm not going to get much rest done, am I? Well...The first project aching to be finished was the Birthday Dress. With the straps repositioned, it needed to have its hem shortened, and how. Just how much?

Ye Gods! The Large Viking Sings!

I'm sure the feeling is mutual.

Of course, as always, before doing any snipping or sewing, I put the dress through a good hot iron pressing to make sure I'd cut precisely and evenly. I was pleasantly surprised to find the dress' material was soft, silky, and cool to the touch after a session with the iron.

Next, came the cutting. And sewing in the hem.

And here we are.

The dress seemed like a pretty good idea at the time. So did taking it out for a test run at work. It went fine at the start, but I slowly started realizing a lot of other things I could do to make it ehem, decent.

Lessons:

• Invest in a good strapless or convertible bra. I couldn't help but wince at the realization, but I swallowed it down all the same. I've had a terrible history with the strapless bra, and was reluctant to try one one again. Nonetheless, no matter what your bust size is, all women need support in one way or another. (and that goes for me, too.) If you're big busted, like me, it's imperative you get your loveys the support they need. they do deserve to look good too, after all.
  

• In this regard, I believe small-breasted ladies have something very good going on for them, too. Most fashion options are very much open to them, and going sans bra can be quite chic or indie, depending on how well they can carry it off. It's all about attitude and confidence. Which brings up a lesson that demands to be written:

• If you're a busty woman, for god's sakes, don't go out without a bra! As mentioned above, your lovelies deserve all the love and support they need when stepping out, too. However, if you're absolutely positive about the lift and firmness of your lovelies and can brave the stares, whispers, giggles and whatever pettiness people can do, I salute you. (Heck, if you can pull it off with flair and panache, come see me and I'll buy you a drink!) Although I do admit, I'm rather partial to nipple petals or pasties. For a much more comprehensive look at going braless in public, here's an impartial view on the subject. ( Warning: if your bosses or coworkers go white at the sight of boobies, perhaps it's best to read the article at home. ^_^")

I've half a mind to sew up a bit of lace to the bodice to give it a Sabrina neckline, or to modify the straps and add small sleeves to give it an off-the-shoulder look. (Puff sleeves might be nice.) The goal? to raise the neckline a few inches higher, at least two to three inches below the collarbone.

Bottom line? It's no use scandalizing your workmates and bosses, or giving them the fright of their lives... unless you enjoy doing so with unapologetically irreverent glee. (It might be a good idea on your last day of service before moving on to the next job, if that's your thing. ^_^"")

The Illustrious and Immortal Dita Von Teese

Thursday, October 16, 2008 Jonette 0 Comments

Science loves Dita von Teese, and so do we. Wonderbra has struck gold with having her design their latest line of lingerie. Here's the full commercial for it.




Here's a brief newsbite of the campaign's launch. Don'tcha just love the gigantinc swinging bra? ^_^




Dita von Teese speaks her mind about fashion, the art of burlesque, and corsets.



And last but not least,she shares How To Look Good in Underwear.

Keep breathing, baby

Thursday, October 16, 2008 Jonette 0 Comments

Hello everyone. I'm still alive, pretty much breathing and kicking and plotting world domination at tiny intervals. Work's been pretty much taking up a lot of space in my head, but that doesn't mean my crafting ideas aren't settling down and keeping mum either. Thankfully, I'm on leave until Monday next week, and I fully intend to rest, touch base with family members, and cath up on the growing monstrosity of the project pile in the living room. (Sigh)

Ah, finally. Enough space and quiet to hear yourself think.

In the meanwhile, here's a video for your Cute of the Day:



Enjoy! :)

Trailer: The Duchess

Wednesday, October 08, 2008 Jonette 0 Comments

Here's yet another movie I look forward to relishing.

I sincerely feel I may fall in love with The Duchess as I fell in love with Sophia Coppolla's Marie Antoinette. I'm a fool for lush, well-researched and executed historical costumes, all thanks to Theater in college and in particular, the unsinkable, unflappable and commanding influence of Professor Ogie Juliano. (I have much to thank this teacher for all the tough love and inspiration, god bless him wherever he is now. I'd love to write more about him in a future post. ) I'm not sure how he'd approve of Marie Antoinette, but you just can't say No to fabulous costumes.

The Birthday Dress: Strap Work

Tuesday, October 07, 2008 Jonette 0 Comments

With only 5 days until the Big Day, I thought it'd just be fitting to bring out The Birthday Dress and give it a nice do-over.

Back when was still in college, my mom bought this lovely teal dress for me, it was nicely shirred from bodice to waist and flowed like a dream. There were two things about it that stopped it from ever seeing the light of day. One, the dress' skirt was beyond floor-length, and two, although it had a sweetheart neckline, the straps were placed in positions that were unflattering for my shoulders and chest.

Well, then. Can't let such a pretty go to waste now, can we? ;)










... And here we have our final strap position. I'm really very happy with how the repositioning changed the way the bodice behaves now. It now reminds me of the upper part of a vintage bathing suit, though I can't quite place my finger on what era just yet. Ack, I'm just happy. :)

I've already sewn the straps in place doing it over thrice for strength. Next Stop: skirt length.

Just a Wee Bitty Taste...

Tuesday, October 07, 2008 Jonette 0 Comments

... of posts to come.

Hello, everyone. It's good to be back after a restful weekend, and it's just been photos, photos and more photos for the past week. The projects are begging me to finish them, but not while work is getting the better of me. Nonetheless, here's the roster of of write-ups I do intend to finish one way or another:

• The Birthday Dress
• Slacks-to-Pencil-Skirt: Redux
• The Dressform
• Clair's Scarf
  
• An Evening at Xocolatl
• Spaghetti and Oat-Meatballs
  

So yup, that's pretty much it, and before the Big Day (my birthday) hits as well as a slew of other events come around, I'd best get crackin'.

But first, sleep.

Anime: Gurren Lagann

Thursday, October 02, 2008 Jonette 0 Comments

I may have said in a previous post that Herr Strauss keeps me afloat, but I haven't really said what rocks my socks off.

Click Play to listen to the music.



Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann is a super robot show unlike any robot show I've seen or enjoyed. while most other Mecha anime have a very structured, almost militaristic look and setup, Gurren Lagann charges into the opposite direction, and with very good reason. The visuals and character design have a strong rock aesthetic, in my opinion, and I'd never seen it fit a super-robot show more than this one.

The mood of Gurren Laganncan swing from bad-ass to ridiculous to touching. It's unpretentious, and it's a show I'd strongly recommend to the 10-to-12-year-old age bracket.

Here's a glimpse at the shows first opening sequence.

Ureshii: 2

Wednesday, October 01, 2008 Jonette 4 Comments

嬉しい (ureshii):

To be glad, happy, delighted, joyful, overjoyed, cheerful, pleased, contented, grateful, elated, jubilant, exultant, ecstatic, euphoric, enraptured thrilled (to bits), over the moon... you get the picture. ;)

1) Pretty colored ink pens, in pink and purple. The pink pen has been officially christened, and has been used to draw a pig in holy rites. It will now continue to draw and write cute things from hereon, such as flowers and eyelashed furry critters, and I am pretty and I love you. The purple pen shall be released for darker, unholier purposes, such as shading the box of your choice and writing down social security numbers.

2) My teeny hot rod of an office mouse. It's teeny alright, at two-and-a-half inches of length. It's something I got for my work station as a replacement for the the large one that broke. Some of my office-mates squee over it, and some poke at it and chuckle.

3) a pretzel cookie with almond icing. As purchased from the meals-and-sweets corner in the office pantry. It's baked by a co-teacher of mine, the lovely and bashful Ate Marga. Sweet treats soothe the soul. (that was a lot of S's, too.)

4) Terry Pratchett's Wee Free Men. I now know for myself why he comes highly recommended by my friends, and why Neil Gaiman was very happy to work with him on Good Omens. It's a riot to read, and anyone with half a sense and an open mind may benefit much from this book. Oh, and witches do not wear pointy hats. All the time, anyway.

Come to think of it, here's a list of books to enjoy, as the title suggests, To Treat Harry Potter Withdrawal.

5) Jim Henson's The Storyteller. I managed find all nine episodes, plus the four episodes of Greek Myths. Fwee! Lost childhood, here I come!

6) Shimotsuma Monogatari, or Kamikaze Girls. What happens when a Biker Girl and a Sweet Lolita share an unlikely friendship? visit the Official website here.

7) Marc Chagall's The Birthday. I love how surprising and dreamy and sweet this painting can be. View the entire piece here.

8) Historical dress-up dolls on the internet. As nipped from this charming doll base website.

9) sleep, sleep, glorious sleep.


-- For the photo-journaling enthusiasts looking for something to pursue, the 365 Challenge may be just the thing for you. Is it your birthday? a national holiday? an anniversary? Christmas? Hannukah? Talk Like a Pirate Day? Towel Day? Now's you chance.



Meanwhile, this waltz keeps me afloat today.