Good Intent

I am so glad I have an NZ hook up so I can get this album - since there is not a US release date yet. And guys, how good is that video?

I wish my spontaneous dance parties looked a bit more like that.

Starting Clean and Fresh

If you had the chance to move across the planet, what would you bring along? Everything you own? The bare minimal essentials? This is my current dilemma. I'm leaning toward the minimal side of the spectrum, but funny thing - I like stuff. I like stuff a lot. I like all my shoes and bags and coats, I like all my books - oh, my books! - I like my files of magazine clippings and notes, I like my knick knacks and souveniers and tchotchkes. I will store some things here in the states, so I don't really have to say goodbye (and maybe after a spell of living without the miscellany I can get rid of some), but what to take?

I am moving to a first world nation, one that speaks English and has a (mostly) western world mindset, so I don't have to plan on things I take in terms of what will not be available to me in my new home. But there will also be something comforting in bringing my stuff with me to this new corner of the world; I'm hoping it will make my new place feel like home.

So tell me, friends of the internet, what would you bring? What could you not live without? What would you leave behind? Would you find this a fun or distressing challenge?

Shopping Bag

My lovely friend C and I recently ventured out into the garment district of LA to find some oilcloth - you know, that plasticy fabric cheesy summer tablecloths are made of? She had a few projects in mind and I was just along for the fun. But the prints we found at Michael Levine's were so darling I couldn't resist getting a few pieces.

I finally figured out my first project with one of the prints - a floral on a lovely ochre green background. I happened to have some leaf green and deep maroon canvas laying around from previous projects and appropriated some to serve as the lining and base of the bag. I attempted to use this diy design by the very talented Renske Solkesz of The Dress I Made. (I've used it before on a different project and it is fast, easy, and looks like it takes more skill than it does.) But because my seamstress skills are subpar, (and I was slightly distracted by reruns of StarTrek on netflix...) I messed up the stitching (because I messed up the cutting and aligning of the lining with the bag) on one of the tabs. So I improvised. I tucked in one tab on itself and hey! instant pocket!


The other tab I folded over and it formed a flap to close the bag. But I still needed to attach a strap, and I like that the original plan holds the bag closed. So I ran the strap through the closing flap (and I may later attach a snap or such to keep it in place), and it holds the bag closed when the strap is held tight.

Not perfect, but I like it. Pretty color combo, useful, and my shoddy skills didn't even mess up the bag beyond help. It didn't turn out as originally intended but that's never stopped me from enjoying something before!

Calculated Costumes

Early next year my dear kiwi and I are moving to New Zealand for a couple years. This involves plans and schemes for various details - things like visas, storage and shipping of belongings, and finding new jobs and a new home. But, being me, I am also setting in motion a plan for one specific aspect of my belongings: my wardrobe.


I have trained as a costumer, in an amateur sense, and since I started doing that as a teenager, the ideas behind planning out a specific character through a series of costumes developed parallel to my sense of personal fashion. Often, when I'm picking out my outfit for the day or trying on new pieces at a shop, I'm asking myself what role I will play. Responsible adult? Quirky teacher? Urban party girl? Whatever the plan for the day, I've got an outfit to make me feel the part.

But moving to a foreign country means having to make some very (hard!) deliberate choices about what comes and what doesn't. Between luggage and shipping, I can only bring so many things. But I also don't know what sort of job I'll have, where we'll be living, and what kinds of new activities I will do in my down time. This means that I need to have a wardrobe that is flexible enough to serve a wide variety of purposes but which is as compact as possible. For me, this sounds like a fantastic challenge/opportunity to plan out an ideal wardrobe and curate my current collection to suit.


This is going to be a bit of an ongoing process for the next few months, as I finalize my written plan and start to sort through what I have, what I need, what I am making, and what is getting tossed. I will do my best to share my process here, from outfit inspiration to drafted plans, to final results. And I will appreciate every bit of advice you have to offer - because it turns out it is much harder to plan for every occasion in life than to plan for a series of scripted scenes. Look for the "Calculated Costumes" label if you want to follow along during this process!

Sun Ain't Shinin'

Spontaneous dance party, anyone? Yes? Well, ready, set, go!

This band is so much fun. I just discovered The Asteroids Galaxy Tour and am seriously digging their album Fruit. The video* for "The Golden Age" is on the main page and it is So. Much. Fun. How much do you wish you were at that party?!

*Does that video look familiar? The short form is a Heineken commercial, which is actually how I discovered the band in the first place. Yup. I'm not a very good hipster.