the girl & the robot

You Work For Them

2010-08-30T21:31:00.001-07:00

These guys are amazing!
youworkforthem.com

TOKYO22

2010-08-30T21:24:00.000-07:00

I found this profile on the Behance network (great for inspiration!). They go under TOKYO22 and i really am liking the photoshoping feel with these images. The step and repeat action can be quite dramatic when it comes to fashion images.
Check out his website for the full range of his work

Ben Crick - Design

2010-08-30T21:12:00.000-07:00

Ben Crick is one top notch designer from Sydney. His typography is very strong, simple and of course bold. He also dabbles in all other forms of design and photography, and is defo worth a look.

Photos by Jack Toohey

2010-08-30T21:08:00.000-07:00

The mighty young Jack Toohey produces some amazing imagery. At a ripe age of 17 his style is very a-la film, but he doesnt use it. Shame. None the less, his style is candid and friendly and well worth a look.

Bored to Death

2010-08-12T22:18:00.000-07:00

The HBO series Bored to Death (Jason Schwartzman and Ted Danson) just did a photo shoot of them stealing the Harpers September issue. Seems fitting as they are supposed to be private dectivites in the series... I love this series and this shoot looks like it would have been so much fun to be on.
It was shoot for the September Issue of Harper's Bazaar by Frederike Helwig

Sebastiaan Bremer

2010-07-28T21:56:00.001-07:00

I stumbled over this fella, Sebastiaan Bremer, earlier today and love his new series of photographs. The new series is in his medium works range, and remind me of old negatives from the 1960s and 1970s that have grown mould on them. I used to go through my mum and dads photos for days and look at these blotches on the negs... if you develop them they come out fuzzy and if they are colour negs, you can get some crazy colours happening. These two images are just an example, so make sure you go and Have a look.

(RED) and Nike

2010-07-28T21:48:00.000-07:00

Now, some people know that i love me sneakers, and then some of those people know that i love my Nikes. And i really love it when a company or brand that i wear/buy does soemthing good.
Nike has teamed up with (RED) and have done something great. They have made a pair shoe laces and done a massive campaign to fight the global food crisis.
Check the campaign here
The video is well worth a look.

Earphones

2010-07-28T21:40:00.000-07:00

Panasonic released these earphones, and if i saw them on a shelf i would buy them instantly. It is such an awesome design for the packaging. Clean and Simple.

Laurent Nivalle Photography

2010-07-28T21:28:00.000-07:00

Laurent Nivalle has just photographed The Le Mans Classic, which is a vintage sports car event in France. Now i love cars and i love vintage, so now i want to go to this event. I adore Nivalle's use of cropping in, and the idea of looking down on the subjects.

Check the full collection here they are beautiful.

Cult Streetwear Book

2010-07-28T21:21:00.001-07:00

The other day at work, one of the fashion ladies gave me this book. Apparently i suit it more than them, which i took as a positive thing. Ive seen this book around and was happy to devote half of the Monday afternoon flipping through the pages of it.
Cult Streetwear doesnt just give you the pretty pictures, it also gives details of the people behind the brands. Which is something that I think you should know if you wear one brand enough.
The layout and design of the book is so clean, which i am also a fan of.

Find it here

Match This...

2010-07-05T19:29:00.000-07:00

Now if i smoked i would like those puppies with matches... its just a little bit more romantic dont you think? Anyway speaking of matches, how cool are these? Mucca Design has designed these match packets in theme with a neighbourhood area, Condesa.
Very appealing.

David Bailey

2010-07-05T19:12:00.000-07:00

So today is my second day back at work after 5 weeks off, and i keep coming across the photographer David Bailey. Now i do love this snapper. For starters he was a fashion photographer for Vogue and also helped create the "Swinging London" look and feel in the 1960s.
These two images are my favourites of Baileys from this period, also being 2 of my fav actors aswell, esp Sir Michael Caine.

Got Milk?

2010-05-23T23:40:00.000-07:00

I have started to drink milk agian lately. Purely on a money saving scheme, as at work we get free milk. Seeing i dont drink coffee i double my usage and use it for cereal. Anyway, the packaging is lame, boring and i really dont like it how lite milk is pink. Makes no sense.

Then i saw this.

Now this is more like it! A graphical design, that still tells me its healthy and its milk, but does it in a fresh modern way. It was Designed by Audrée Lapierre from Canada. Her quote about the design is "Nutritional information becomes the main goal of the packaging, while still carrying a powerful branding by combining an expressive form with useful information.”

Tofu Head

2010-05-23T23:33:00.000-07:00

Tofu kinda scares me.
Is that wrong?
I mean i grew up knowing that it makes my sister sick, due to her allergies, so i asumed the same would happen to me. So i avoid it. But there is something about the texture of it that grosses me out.

This picture makes my case.

Designed by Jean-Maxime Landry from Canada. This is a packaging solution playing off the alphabet, creating a product akin to alphabet soup, only in tofu form. Look at it. I mean LOOK AT IT! Its mellowing in a form of liquid without expanding or changing shape. Thats isnt right. Gross.

I much prefer this kind of Tofu.

The photos of Gregory Crewdson

2010-05-23T23:16:00.000-07:00

W.O.W.
And so i mean wow.

Crewdson's images are just amazing! Straight out of a film set. He makes large scale photographs that are staged exactly like a film set. he has a crew of directors, special effects people, a lighting team and actors to bring these magical shots to life.
I recently watched a docomentary on ABC iView that was about American photographers and he was featured in it. Then i saw an image of his on the Three Drunk Monkeys Blog. But i only just googled him today - wish i did it before!

Paul Rand for IBM

2010-04-27T21:35:00.000-07:00

I have been looking old school vintage design alot lately. I guess i am trying to find something that pushes me to design something new. When i look through my inspiration images folder i always see the work of Paul Rand.
Rand designed some pretty freaking cool stuff, but his most famous would have to be the IBM logo design and then their product work. Still used today, the IBM logo was first designed in 1956 then the striped logo came into play in 1972. Still looks pretty cool to me.

Paul Rands website

Dapper Beer

2010-04-27T21:13:00.001-07:00

These guys have really jazzed up the bottle of beer look!
Dapper beer has had a revamp to make it look, well more dapper!

Make mine a double

2010-04-27T21:08:00.001-07:00

Black Elf is a premium vodka in Europe, and they have just released their new packaging for the standard and premium versions of vodka. Although they almost look like salt and pepper shakers, i still would buy both if i saw them on the shelf.

Photo Comp - Help me Win!!

2010-04-27T17:39:00.000-07:00

So there was this photo comp, and i snapped a photo while at work and entered at 5.28pm last friday when i really should have been in the lift running to get out of the building for the long weekend.... Anyway i made it to the final 5 and now i need you to vote for my image so i can win a lomo camera! So go on, vote for photo # 5 please!

vote here

The brief was to take a photo with the words "i love lomo" in it somewhere and by using a source of light.

Haniboi

2010-03-29T23:09:00.000-07:00

Haniboi is an illustrator/designer based in London. His work has a fun and quirky cartoon feel about them. Hit him up here

Mirror me this.

2010-03-29T19:29:00.000-07:00

This is my sweet new mirror! I have been looking for one of these for a while now and we stumbled across it on sunday at Rozelle markets. For $35 i snapped it up!

Designer Hotels

2010-03-10T14:57:00.000-08:00

So after booking flights to Morocco and Madrid yesterday i have set myself the mission of finding a place to stay. I normally stay at the local backpackers when i travel, but seeing this time i am going with my boyfriend Michael to Morocco i thought i would step it up a little bit and go something more up market. I have always wanted to stay in a traditional raid, overlooking a medina, with old tiles on the walls, open french style doors and the noise of the food market drifting up with the smell of the food cooking below. Not too much to ask is it? I think not. But then i stumble across this AMAZING website Design Hotels and i think all of my dreams have come true, but with a price tag of 330 euros a night.
Check the photos for Morocco, truely stunning!!

R.I.P. Corey Haim

2010-03-10T14:26:00.000-08:00

Lol Keegan

2010-03-03T17:55:00.000-08:00

This week I am also loving the images from Lol Keegan. I came across some of these while trying to find a cover image for the mag i work on, and well... 2 hours later i actually went back to work. Keegans images are sexy. He makes the objects into these sassy things that i want to own, even though i wouldnt look twice at them normally.
His clients include big names such as Puma, Conde-Nast and Christian Louboutin.

Check him here

James Joyce.

2010-03-03T16:56:00.000-08:00

I am really loving the work of James Joyce this week. Must be the bold colours with the underlying reality check that his work can include.

Check his site

James Hopkins

2010-02-03T17:56:00.001-08:00

Anyone want to recreate one of James Hopkins works with me? I think these are so awesome!

have a look at the full collection here

Death Bear

2010-02-03T17:35:00.000-08:00

This bear could actually be onto something! Death Bear is a project from Club Animals in New York, and is offering a weird but in some ways a good service. Death Bear comes to your door and collects things that you want rid of in your life, (think along the lines of your old boyfriends hoodie that he left months ago, or your collection of photo albums) and then he stores them for you in his cave. I am unsure if you can ask for your items back after the project has ended but it is certainly a better way to rid your mind of objects then boxing them up and pushing them to the back of your wardrobe.
So if you are in or around New York in Feb, get the Death Bear to help you out

Fun Things

2010-01-31T15:20:00.000-08:00

Trying to avoid work during your last few days at a place of employment can prove to be quite stressful. And then you stumble across something that you adore, for me it was this pair of stockings from Les Queues de Sardines.

I mean how damn cute are they? I love the black ones, 40 euros you say? yes damn expensive too, so i am going to have to hold my breath and try and find them when i am in Europe in June. Or maybe hunt down some cheap knock off pair in Spain.
But if you want to look at the full range of these non conservative tights, have a looksee here

Australa Day

2010-01-25T16:32:00.000-08:00

So its Australia Day, or as some call it Hottest 100 Day. And yep i am being kinda unAustralian by working today. So i thought that i would still do the normal Australian things that i do almost every other year. Here is my check list:
1. Can of Coke
2. Radio tuned into 105.7FM
3. Twisties
4. Swimmers (although i am indoors at the monet, i am still hoping that i can make it to a beach or pool sometime today)

Acceptable in the 80's and/or the 90's

2010-01-20T17:50:00.000-08:00

So after an early morning chit chat about our time in the 1980s and the 1990's here at work, I pretty much have decided that I must of lead a much different childhood to all the other girls in my office. We started by talking bout what we watched on telly after school, and who we looked up to and who our heart throbs were. Not one person was the same as me, to which I was quite shocked at. So today I have taken on the choice of compiling my top people from my childhood.

I guess it kinda started with 7up. Strange really but I was obsessed with Fido Dido. My best friend in primary school and I had the full matching outfits. White sneaker, black jeans – cuffed, white t shirts, clack jacket – preferably denim, and to top it off we both scored the free Fido Dido hats that they gave away in a drink promotion in Franklins. Ally and I were quite the tomboys for about a year, that and both could roll our eye lids inside out.

Then there was Belinda Carlisle.

And you can’t see there and tell me you never like her, she was HOT. Her first album titled Belinda didn’t get much play here I don’t think, but it was with her second album Heaven on Earth that struck gold. When I mentioned this song in the topical conversation this morning, I was told by one person “isn’t that a new dance song?”… I thought wow, sheltered. Belinda Carlisle makes Karaoke seem bearable.

After Belinda I go to Debbie Gibson.

That Electric Youth album cover was on top of our record pile at home for months and months. Slight bit of trivia for you aswell, she sung a duet with Craig McLachlan on stage in the early 90s of You’re the one that I want from Grease. Somewhat mildy amusing!

Television wise how can I go past Parker Lewis Cant Loose.

For starters it was pretty much based on Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, secondly they always synchronize their swatches. Parker Lewis was played by Corin Nemec, who was the coolest guy out.

Always dressed with class and always had a catch phrase at the ready. He coined the phrase “Not a Problem” when faced with any school issue, and for him it never was a issue, he always came out on top. Parker and his two buddies, Mikey and Jerry were pinned as the 3 most likely to succeed and with group headquarters hidden above the school gym, who wouldn’t! I believe that for many years I asked my mum for a swatch watch for my brithday, needless to say I am still waiting for it!

Another telly show that got me in from the get go was Saved by the Bell.
This cast was pretty set, and to be honest I don’t think many of them have ever shook the typecast that they have after acting in this show. But none the less, my hero from this show was Tiffani-Amber Thiessen.

As Cheech said in her blog post, her character Kelly Kapowski had “that all American girl-next-door smile and a body built for sin”. Which in turn she actually did. Thiessen went on to play the bad-vixen girl on 90210 (the good and original series). The main thing that got me about Tiffani growing up was her hair and clothes. Back when I used to wear a mid drift top and be proud and matching scrunchie in hair this girl was my idol. One Christmas, a friend at the time got the 6 main cast members as barbie dolls when her dad came back from the US. Jealousy was a curse!

But getting back to 90210, my favourite character from the Beverly Hills teens was Brenda.

Brenda Walsh was the bitch of a daughter who stood up to her parent and goody two shoes brother and looked hot in her bad boy boyfriend’s leather jacket. Man I wanted to be her. The girl has sass after all, and to hang out at the Peach Pit after school would have been high on my list too, especailly with the young Luke Perry hanging off your arm!

UK Bound!

2010-01-19T18:16:00.000-08:00

Today marks the day that I became a very lucky lady and got a flight to the UK!!! Bring on late May and an early trip to the International Airport!

The Decemberists play the Metro

2010-01-19T18:11:00.000-08:00

5 reasons why this gig was great.

*The lead singer that controled the crowd (and the glasses and beard didn't hurt either)
*A guitar play off ending in guitars behind the heads. Note: Guitars not played in tune.
*A guitarist on stage wearing a fixie hat that defiantly isn’t a hipster.
*The lead singer making the whole venue laugh at his jokes, even if some were shit making fun at Australian jokes that your Great Uncle from the UK would make
*Bringing out the extra drums for The Rake Song

A big thanks to Brother Dan for letting me tag along!

Aloe Blacc

2010-01-18T13:39:00.000-08:00

And another one I seemed to have missed! This one dates back a few years, but somehow very early at work this morning I found this nice lad called Aloe Blacc and I adore his music! The Californian native has been around the traps since 1995, being part of the “indie rap group” Emanon (not too sure if I like the genre of that group…). His last solo album, Shine Through was out in 2006 and I really love the soulful feel that most of the tracks have. If you have time, type him in and listen!

Bubble 'O Speech

2010-01-17T22:18:00.001-08:00

So somehow i must of missed alot while working and not blogging lately. I have just stumbled upon this wonderful British rapper going under the name of Speech Debelle. Her track "Spinnin" is very poptastic, and i need a like button for it!

Direction

2009-12-17T20:24:00.000-08:00

So over the past couple of weeks, I have been feeling somewhat empty. Its not because I am not happy here in Sydney, fucking far from it. The past few months I have been the happiest that I have been in ages, but somehow I feel as if I am missing something. A lot of people around me are all starting to settle in and seem quite content with them selves. Some have also been saying that they have started to base things on being “personal” and the “work” related, like that each of us should be happy in each of them. I started to separate things in my head into these 2 sections and I got lost. I feel that if your not happy in your “work” area, your “personal” area can suffer. And then I started to think, well which one do you work on first, work or personal?
But I guess that’s not the point.
The point with me, I guess is that I am beginning to feel that I have no purpose. I feel that I am OK at what I do for a living, but im not great at it, but I honestly don’t have the drive to push myself any further (which to me is quite bad). I guess there are just going to be a few hurdles coming up over the nest few months and I really need to sort out which direction I want to go. Anyone got a map?

X marks the spot

2009-12-17T20:01:00.001-08:00

X seems to mark alot of things, alot of spots and not alot of treasure. But when you put two X's together you get something wonderful, and i dont just mean signing off an email with 2 kisses. The XX is a band, if you have been hiding under a rock lately. From London, this bunch of 20 year olds are going to play Laneway festival in late Jan and I am highly excited by this. I have been playing them all day today and making my fellow workers finally listen to some decent music our office.

Macaroni & Cheese

2009-12-07T16:42:00.001-08:00

I just ate macaroni and cheese for the first time ever, dont really rate it. Glad i didnt eat it when i was a kid and that i stuck with ruce bubbles. They were much more fun.

Justin Thomas kay

2009-12-06T17:38:00.000-08:00

Justin Thomas Kay is a fab designer and one awesome typographer. Based in NYC he mainly freelances in the realm of editorial, print and apparel. I really love his strong and tight type lock ups, which sometime rely on graphic link ups. He can take words and punch them into something which is eye catching and visually grand to look at.

Find him here: http://www.justinthomaskay.com/

Musical Chairs

2009-11-17T17:32:00.000-08:00

Is there such a thing as an over achiever when it comes to music? Or is it just put down to this one person being uber talented and doing good things? And what happens if the person is modest about it or even all up in your face about it? Do we give them the respect that they deserve, let it slide or put it down to a serious case of musical chairs?

Everywhere I go music wise of late, people are promoting the album by the “Supergroup” Them Crooked Vultures. The new band consisting of Dave Grohl (a man with many bands on his CV – Foo Fighters, Nirvana, Probot, QOTSA), Josh Homme (everyone’s favourite musical redhead from QOTSA & Eagles of Death Metal) and finally John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin).

Now I totally understand that these 3 names make people ooo and ahh when placed all together in the same room, but do they deserve all this attention when honestly will they make it past one album and one whirlwind tour to sell a truck load of merch? I am going to sit those concerts out, and not because I don’t think the music they are producing id crap, its catchy… but I am sure the hype will be around for months afterwards.

I guess another person that could fit into this genre is Mike Patton. Now I guess I am going to be a little biased on this certain individual as I do think he is a GOD, but with this number bands under your belt you may start to wonder… Faith No More, Peeping Tom, Mr Bungle, Tomahawk, Fantomas, Zu, Lovage, The Dillinger Escape Plan and Booya Tribe.

Mr Patton has been apart of many more groups along the way too, I mean just on albums that his vocals have featured on goes over the amount of 40. So does Mike have a few problems with commitment and likes to jump ship, or does he just go with the flow and spreads his seed around? And not that I am complaining on this, I do love a Patton vocal on the odd occasion (OK almost everyday).

In Australia we have Tim Rogers. Front man for You Am I, The Twin Set and also The Temperance Union, he has also done the solo project thing with 4 solo albums released by 2007 and he has also done a separate album with Tex Perkins.

To be honest I do love You Am I, seeing them at the Enmore for a fee of $12 when I was 16 with my fake ID seemed the be all and end all, but lately he does fall into this over achiever area for me (the album Hourly Daily remains separate, as I bought it from a porn shop on George Street when I was 17, more than likely with the same fake ID).

But it does raise the question of are these people in a great demand or do they just need the attention?

Movember Lights

2009-11-17T17:14:00.000-08:00

More Tee's

2009-11-10T17:06:00.001-08:00

So I know I have posted about the rad as tee on Only NY before, but this one wasn’t on their site before!! Marlin on a shirt, who would have thunk it?

And also today I had another quick look at the Rockers NYC site and found think beauty.

Kinda a little 1980’s goth coming out in this design but I think it works. Wear it loose & baggy and splash it with black jeans and red kicks and your in.
Find it here http://www.rockersnyc.com/

Good Vs Bad

2009-11-10T13:58:00.001-08:00

Travelling via train every morning does have its good side, the freebies given out when you leave the turnstiles at Town hall Station. Yesterday and today the gods of free stuff have blessed me with individual portions of Berocca, as if they knew deep down that I really needed one. Then once you walk up the stairs and hit the footpath you get a muesli bar for your mid morning snack, or for me breakfast. It reminds me of walking around the city of Tokyo and everyone handing you the little packets of tissues. And then with all the free food that I also get from work everyday, I think I could live off this stuff.

But then again, travelling via train every morning does have its bad side, the cost. $3.40 one way or $6.20 return, when I buy my ticket at 8.30am. Just to go 3 stops and spend a grand total of 7 minutes on a city rail, sticky floor train. I think I am going to have to haul my body out of bed earlier and walk to work and home again.

The Tourist Route

2009-11-03T14:57:00.000-08:00

Why do tourists get up so early? Is this a common rule that all of them must adhere too upon entry into a new country? I think they must have to sign a sworn statement saying that they would do so, because when you are on holidays why would you want to get out and about before 8.30am? And before you say, “how do you know that they are actually tourists?”, trust me know. They have all the tell tale signs… the New Zealand city stamped t-shirt, the Velcro sandals, the Dutch brand backpack and a foldout map tucked in the back pocket of their cargo shorts.
And why would you want to wander around a city before most business open or people start work? I mean you would have to battle the peak hour buses and trans to get anywhere, the que at Woolies at Town hall is crazy that time of day and the queues at every coffee shop I walk past on my way to work are out the door. I understand if you had to get to the airport or to a early morning bridge climb, but are there any attractions worth seeing before 10.30am in Sydney next to a sunrise?
When I travel I guess I take the laidback approach. Sleep in until my body wakes me up (or until the cleaner tells me too), take as little as I can out with me during the day, leave the guidebook at home and wander down as many back streets as possible. Of course I go and see the major sites, I mean who goes to Paris and doesn’t sit at the Eiffel Tower? But I somehow feel that the people from out of town visiting Sydney feel like they are missing something if they don’t hit the streets early.
The only time I got up super early was to go and see the Tokyo Fish Markets which were defiantly worth the 4am wake up call my friend and I had. But believe me the rest of the time I was safely tucked up in bed until at least 9am.

Bob A Job

2009-11-02T18:09:00.000-08:00

When does a job become a lifestyle rather than just a way to pay the bills? When you stop caring about your pay packet and more about the work that you do? And how many of us are really that happy about our current career paths?

I went for a job interview this morning and it was for a position that really doesn’t take my fancy. I mean it is a good job and would be a stable company for a long term role, like you could really have a solid input into the direction the company would grow in. However I feel like it would be almost a side step from what I had planned with my change of career at the start of the year but the money is better than what I have going on at the moment which always is a good thing. In a sense I wouldn’t be side stepping that much, I would technically still be in the design area, just in the other suburbs of it, ie: Chatswood. The massive down side is that you wouldn’t be surrounded by other creative people, just office workers and paper pushers. There wouldn’t be anyone to get design advice from or someone to offer their creative criticisms.
So what to do? Would you take the higher pay and have the creative sacrifice, or do you stay where you are currently, which is barely the minium wage, but you have some input into the work? At the moment I really feel like I am treading water, waiting for something to come and get me. And I am not a patient person at the best of times, and that feeling is pushing me towards moving on and taking the other job.

Honestly I am the type of person that would work for next to nothing if the job was rewarding in other ways and if I believed in it. I feel that if I had a mentor of some kind I would be better off and I would develop my skills further and be happier with them. Then also staying with that studio/agency for a solid amount of time. I just think that I would learn so much more and be a better designer at the end of it. Dream job I know, and seriously how often do they come along?

I guess I am just wanting the job thing more now as a lot of other things in my life have fallen into place lately. As my mum always says, you cant have everything...

Flip Flop Off

2009-10-28T19:56:00.000-07:00

Last year my old Editor told me she could predict what I would wear the following day, and without telling me she would be close to correct every day. She would tell her PA the day before and for 3 months straight they keep a tally of what she predicted and then what I showed up in the next day. At the end of the 3 months, I was called into the “oval office” and given this spreadsheet on my work attire. She started the conversation by saying “What is it with your Australians? No matter how cold or wet it is outside you always wear thongs”. And fair enough, the facts were on paper… the spreadsheet told me so. For 2 months, 3 weeks and 2 days I wore thongs to work, only opting for converse sneakers on 3 Fridays when I was apparently going out dancing after work.
Before this I had never noticed my shoe wearing or lack of wearing in this case. But thinking back I do have a habit to walk barefoot around the office sometimes…

Now this memory only popped into my head an hour ago when I was walking down a busy Pitt Street on my lunch break towards the bank, when this man stopped me and pulled me aside. The conversation went along these lines…

Man: Are you Australian?
Me: Ahh, yes…
Man: What is it with you Australians? (please re read his parts with a English accent)
Me: Im sorry?
Man: You people always wear thongs, are your feet not cold?
Me: No they are not actually
Man: Is your neck cold?
(I stare blankly at him…)
Man: Well its just your wearing a scarf… its like your feet are in the Tropic’s but your neck is in Russia!
Me: (looking down at my feet) well I never really thought of that this morning
Man: Well do you check the weather reports?
Me: No
Man: I think you should. He then walks away…

Now I know I don’t have the most awesome taste in clothes or that I am so up there with fashion of the current day… but what is wrong with wearing a scarf and thongs?!? If I wasn’t so shocked and in awe that a stranger stopped me to tell me off in the street I would have taken him on in a debating argument on the matter.
Is it such a conflict of interests to wear a scarf and thongs? Hasn’t the trusty pair of havaiana’s become a staple in all wardrobes of both men and women? And hasn’t this guy been to Bondi on a Sunday afternoon? Shouldn’t he be fitting into the stereotypical mould of the English backpacker and donning his own pair of flip flops, billabong shorts, bonds singlet and red raw sunburn?

Epic

2009-10-28T15:48:00.000-07:00

Epic Win!

I got me some Faith No More tickets this morning.
Today is going to be a grand as day now. Mike is streaming his vocals though the earphones, seriously these tickets are not leaving my hands today. I can not stop smiling. To see the line up of members from The Album of the Year album, is going to be something else. Don the red suit Mike Patton, we have a date in February.

Chase that feeling

2009-10-25T18:45:00.000-07:00

PACKLAB

2009-10-22T22:51:00.000-07:00

I want to go to PACKLAB school.
PACKLAB is the packaging and Brand Design Dept at the Lahti Institute of Design in Finland. They work closely with the industry to conceptualise and create designs that push boundaries. And some of the work is amazing! Below is Anni Nykanen’s popcorn concept, and you know I heart popcorn.

Buy Cheap, Buy Twice

2009-10-22T22:35:00.001-07:00

New Look Coke Can??

2009-10-22T22:24:00.000-07:00

Stumbled across these images on a few different design blogs this afternoon, while trying to avoid as much work as possible. Designed by Dzmitry Samal the shape of the tradition coke can has become so much more geometric. I really like the concept, and how each section could be a different colour... it could actually work. But then again design quialies dont sell products off a shelf do they?

Check out Dzmitry Samal full range of work here
www.samaldesign.com

Photo Blog

2009-10-19T14:36:00.000-07:00

In case some of you didnt know, i have a second blog, just for my photographs. you wont find any of my jibber jabber over on the other one, just some pretty pictures.

eye-take-photos.blogspot.com

Generation i

2009-10-18T16:08:00.000-07:00

So we have the Baby Boomers, Generation X and Generation Y. I think we should now be in the Generation “i”. I have been noticing that everyone I seem to walk past lately in the streets has white earphones draping down their bodies. I normally am one of these people too, but yesterday I went for a stroll without my beloved music and actually listened to the world. And again this morning walking to work, I didn’t don the earphones; I just walked in music-less.
Now I understand that almost everyone on the face of the planet has an ipod or iphone these days, I mean I have the phone the pod and the shuffle, and I understand that they each do have a great purpose. I couldn’t do an overseas trip with my ipod, or a long drive in the car without it. But I am starting to think that I somehow rely on it a little too much. It’s almost like one of my senses has been taken over.
Take travelling for example, you are wandering around a new city or town that you have never been to before, there are so many new sights and smells that you can take in, yet you have your earphones in with some song from an old playlist you made 6 months earlier streaming into your ears. The sound of a new city also evokes a feeling and emotions and then a memory in time. I get that having music when travelling is a necessity but wouldn’t you want to take it the sound of the locals at the bakery having a conversation while they purchase their loaf of bread? Or the chit chat of people on a train on their morning commute? Or if you are sitting in a park eating the local cheese and drinking the local vino, would you not want to be surrounded by the locals doing the same? If you are in a country that speaks another language, don’t you try to half work out what they are talking about, or imagine what they could be talking about? I just feel that if you had your ipod in at times like these you would be missing so much about that moment. We travel to see new sights and experience different cultures and places. We do this by sight, touch, smells and sounds.
This also goes for the same situations in your own city and suburb. I grew up in the suburbs and my memory of child hood is the yells and screams of all of the kids in the backyard or yelling marco polo around our pool on the weekends. I don’t want to get all insightful and crap but, have those days gone? Last time I went home to mums, I looked over the back fence and the next door neighbours kids were on their laptops with earphones in.

Don’t get me wrong, I am a full supporter and believer in the ipod and that it certainly does have a purpose in life with me. And I do not know what I did without my iphone some days, but I also think that it has taken over my life a little too much. Good on Apple for doing this, in the mass market scale of things, but I kind of just want to take a step backwards and open my ears so to speak. Lately I feel like I have been missing some things by working 6 days a week, and by having the lifestyle that I have had over the past 12 months. Surely it wouldn’t be that bad taking a step backwards and just enjoying the mundane things in the everyday that we almost don’t even think/hear about?

Arcade Fire - Neighborhood Number One

2009-10-15T20:44:00.000-07:00

And if the snow buries my,
my neighbourhood.
And if my parents are crying
then I'll dig a tunnel
from my window to yours,
yeah a tunnel from my window to yours.
You climb out the chimney
and meet me in the middle,
the middle of the town.
And since there's no one else around,
we let our hair grow long
and forget all we used to know,
then our skin gets thicker
from living out in the snow.

You change all the lead
sleepin' in my head,
as the day grows dim
I hear you sing a golden hymn.

Then we tried to name our babies,
but we forgot all the names that,
the names we used to know.
But sometimes, we remember our bedrooms,
and our parent's bedrooms,
and the bedrooms of our friends.
Then we think of our parents,
well what the hell ever happened to them?!

You change all the lead
sleepin' in my head to gold,
as the day grows dim,
I hear you sing a golden hymn,
the song I've been trying to sing.

Purify the colours, purify my mind.
Purify the colours, purify my mind,
and spread the ashes of the colours
Over this heart of mine

iPod Magic Moments # 1

2009-10-14T17:25:00.001-07:00

Don’t you like it when your sitting down at your desk at work, eating some food that your mum cooked for you, and a song comes on through your earphones that makes you sit up and go “hey, I remember these guys!”. Then you spark into a full blown research analysis of said band which leads you into listening to their back catalogue for the rest of the day.

Well today’s “hey, I remember these guys!” is VHS or BETA.

I was caught up in this today by their song Cant believe a single word, and it has speed up from there. This band can make dancing like a fool, cool again at a rock concert. I can just picture a load of kids with skinny skinny jeans on and hair sprayed hair, doing that lean forward then back, then repeat dance move with a hand clap thrown in for good measure (picture Vince Nior from The Mighty Boosh but without the sparkles).
VHS or BETA fit into the realm of band such as The Rapture and The Killers, just without the The. More dance dance than The Cure, and more pop culture then Duran Duran. Songs are packed with hooks and I quite like them.

i would like for my birthday...

2009-10-14T01:32:00.000-07:00

Only NY

2009-10-12T23:00:00.001-07:00

Only NY has some rad as tee's that i would love to get my grubby little mits on! and a bag to carry them in

find them here

http://www.onlynylives.com/

An open letter to all marketing people

2009-10-07T20:58:00.000-07:00

Dear Marketing,

Please write your briefs correctly before giving them to a designer. Believe it or not, but we actually use these letters & words on a page as an outline of what you what designed. Sometimes it can even cut down time spent on designing your poster as well. As much as I would love to have ESP, I don’t, therefore can not foresee you wanting yet another logo in the top right hand corner instead of some negative space. Just jot it down on your already perfect* brief and email it to me BEFORE the due date.

Thankyou

Sarah Holmes

*perfect means this A4 poster shouldn’t take 8 hours to design for you

Wanderlust

2009-10-06T19:38:00.000-07:00

A year ago today I was in Tokyo, Japan with two good mates going to see Radiohead for the second night in a row. This was my first overseas trip since coming back form the UK 2 years before hand, and now a year later I find myself planning my next big trip. Already with Glastonbury tickets in my hand for the 2010 festival, I know that I will have to end up in the motherland at some point. But where to before that? And I say before as I know I wont be able to hold out here in Sydney until then.
I am a wanderluster and proud of it.

So here is my short list of places that I would like to hit in the not too distant future, and as most things in my life they are in no order.

South by Southwest – although this music festival is a little earlier than I would be hoping to escape too, I have always wanted to go to Texas and attend this 4 day festival. And i know i am being the biggest music groupies by even putting this on my list but hey, which of you wouldnt want to come with me? On lead up to the SXSW festival I would somehow coincide a road trip of the US some sort to the event. This would just ad to the build up of the music festival. And of course I would have a car load full of my music festival buddies in tow.

India – I mean why not? It has been on my list of places to travel to for over 5 years. I passed up India for Morocco in 2006 and have been itching to go since. 2010 marks the year that the Commonwealth Games are on in New Delhi in October, so surely I could spend a good 4-6weeks in April/May before the city gets overrun with UK and other Aussie Tourists? Hmm maybe, May is the hottest month of the year or India… 50 degrees… maybe I should re think this one.

Rwanda – I should have gone and done this last year with my friend Jane, but didn’t. So is life really! And now it ends up on my list again. Now I don’t want to be all Dianne Fossey on everyone, but I have always wanted to trek into the mountains of the Kibale Forest and see the chimps and gorillas. I honestly think it would be one of the most magical moments in your life. Seeing such animals in the wild and knowing that they are so close to extinction.

Trans Siberian Railway – Again something that I have had in the back of my mind for a while. Overland from China to Russia in a train just sounds so romantic to me. Need I say anymore?

Japan – yes again, for something like the 5th time. This country just amazes me every time I go. The people are friendly, the transport system is super fast and dedicated to being efficient (take note cityrail), the sneaker shopping is fab, the food is yummo and living is reasonably cheap. Japan wasn’t what I thought it to be when I first went and it took some time for me to become adjusted to it, but once that happened I fell in love with the place. Everything is so readily available for you, vending machines are god. From underwear to council estate size colas to beer or a bottle of wine, these things are open 24/7. The culture is amazing. People are very traditional, they support the communities and every Sunday you can find a sake drinking competition that even I can take part of.

To Dunk or not to Dunk…

2009-09-30T20:53:00.000-07:00

So for a while I have been throwing up the idea of getting Nike hi tops. I have always been a low cut kinda girl (no not that kind of low cut), even with my converse collection, but there is something with a set of nice bright hi tops with tights and a short skirt that makes me want to buy a pair. Lily Allen was my Air Max 90s inspiration, so you never know…
So looking around on the interwebs lately I feel torn between two lovers. Blazers and Dunks. I have always looked to the Blazers first as I like the strip around the sole of the shoe with this cap at the front.

Then I saw these bright young things on the Size? Website over in the UK. And I am faced with the question “To Dunk or not to Dunk?”

Ever since Chi Chi showed me this store I have been logging on and drooling over several pairs since she left me 2 months ago. Yes, I think I found love. Although these Dunk Premiums have a slight Lakers feel going on in the colour way, I adore them.
So my reasoning now shall be, these bright purple Dunks and then these solid black Dunk Hi AC Tier Zero’s. Which have just hit the market at Atmos in Japan, so fellow sneaker people, who wants to pick me up a pair while your all in the land of the rising sun next week?? Huh, huh?

Three Way Tie

2009-09-29T23:11:00.000-07:00

Nimbus Vador

2009-09-27T22:17:00.000-07:00

My good mates Bridge and Kid Zoom are taking the Aussie Art Talent to NYC on Oct 1st. They both are in the show Nimbus Vador with fellow Australian, Anthony Lister. This would be the place to be...

Drawing a Blank

2009-09-27T21:32:00.000-07:00

Am I the last one to jump on the band wagon?
Did I miss the boat yet again?
Should I repeat kindergarten?
Should I go directly to goal and not pass go?
Why have I not found the rapper Amanda Blank before?

I think I have a new Idol, watch out Karen O…

This grrrl is HOT and she has a bank full of talent. Coming straight out of Philly she has a wicked tongue on her and I’m sure she is set out to prove everything wrong. This lass has already worked with some of the biggest names in the music biz, Ghostface Killah, Yuksek, Diplo (squeal) and she was the voice on that fuckin’ awesome song of all time Bump by Spankrock. Come to think of it I’ve seem this lady live in action with Spankrock at the Becks Bar!

Listening to Something Bigger, Something Better currently and I just want to go out and dance to some hip hop, in some new sneaks. Her tunes are really quite addictive, her gun-magazine samples and laser-gun effects make the songs bounce well with her soft MCing in this track. Some could compare her to a MIA or Santigold, but I think her rhymes are much dirtier and layered. From what I have heard so far, Ms Blank knows how to have a good time, and I wouldn’t say no to a live show hers.

I honestly am going to go out and buy this CD of hers this week, and believe me it is going to get played on repeat. Tracks like Shame on me and Might like you and so going to make it on one or two playlists this summer. yet the song Gimme What you Gotwhich features Spankrock, is a top fav after one listen. The dirty as back tracking would be so good to hear loud as possible in a place like Fabric London.

New style icon too maybe? Or too early to call? I think this grrrl will pick up the pace where MIA has us left on. I can see my new wardrobe already.

Keeping The Faith

2009-09-24T16:48:00.000-07:00

Over the past 10 or so years, my music taste has changed quite considerably. 10 years ago I was 17 and in my final year of high school out in the burbs of Cherrybrook. My friends and I were the grunge kids of the year, hanging out near the art rooms, smoking loads of ciggies and always ditching PE and sport to smoke pot in a stranger’s backyard underneath a trampoline. I still to this day don’t know whose backyard that was. There was a lot of punk music thrown around back then, and we always talked highly of old school bands of the day, like Soundgarden and the Offspring (Spoonman is still an all time classic). At the time my sister was working full time and as with any older sibling, you did take notice of their tastes but not so they would notice. My sis Vikki kept talking of this dance group and I quite liked them. I remember playing them so loudly through mums record player in between 3-5pm so she wouldn’t yell at us and also so my “alternative punk” boyfriend at the time didn’t know I was listening to dance music. It was my dirty little secret.

However 10 years on, 5 studio albums and 1 Greatest Hits later I am still head over heels for the band Faithless. And im sorry anything that the three grounded members of this group touches turns to gold for me. Maxi Jazz, Sister Bliss and Rollo seem to make every single mix tape I make for myself or a friend.

They spark some of my favourite moments in time, like in 2006 when I was full of depression after a long term relationship break up and I ran away to London, listening to Faithless when I was touching down at Heathrow and I couldn’t help but smile knowing that I was going to be alright. The actual song was “I Want More” off their 2004 album No Roots, and when Maxi Jazz comes in it gets me every time.

More oneness, less categories,
Open hearts, no strategies.
Decisions based upon faith and not fear.
People live right now and right here.
I want the wisdom that wise men revere

Although it was probably a sad moment in my life so far, all I remember of that time is Faithless and returning to London to find my feet again, which I did on the dance floor at Fabric. Other moments in time with Faithless are driving back down the coast and listening to Salva Mea so loud that I blew my speakers in my old car and then getting those goosebump that you get when some electrical happens. Seeing Faithless live in 2004 was just amazing and I will never part with the shirt I bought on that balmy October evening.

2006 saw the release of To All New Arrivals, the bands latest studio album. This album has many undertones, both soical and political. It also features Robert Smith on vocals…Wallop to that. I mean can this group get any better? They have teamed up with George Michael, Estelle, Cat Power, Robbie Williams and Anthony & the Johnsons, gave Dido a leg up in her music career (bad move leaving Dido) and have provided us with so many dance floor anthems.

If you have 4min 40sec spare in your day today, please go and listen to Music Matters, it will put a smile on your face. Oh and remember, God is a DJ, it’s a girl too and I have the t shirt to prove it.

Noise Pollution

2009-09-22T21:18:00.000-07:00

Imagine if there were earphones that are sold as a scam so that when you plugged them in everyone else on your street corner/train carriage/bus could also tune into your music. But in turn they were allowed to comment and dissect your taste in music…. Wouldn’t that be fun? Well no based on two reasons a) my music taste is awesome and B) I don’t really care what everyone else thinks of my music taste.

This bring me to my issue of the day... why do people suddenly think that if they can hear the slightest mumble from my earphones that it gives them the right to throw an evil towards my direction? I don’t believe I listen to my music loudly when in the public eye, and plus I would be either listening to Interpol, The Editors or Faithless. So why jump on your soap box and disrespect me and my choons? I could totally understand if I was listening to my music through a speaker phone or something of the like, making the song crackle and sound like it is being shouted through a mega phone but I am not that naff, or in a school uniform. So I put it to you people on the corner of Elizabeth and Park Streets why be a hater when I have my volume at halfway? You should be embracing the experience and frantically writing down the name of the song and the artist so you can hurry home and start your itunes download. Next time I will offer you an ear and a class in Music Education 101

Sunday Sessions

2009-09-20T19:39:00.000-07:00

Nothing can beat a Sunday Session, where you find some mates and some sunshine, eat food and drink. Mine yesterday started off on a friendly scale in Paddington with Yanni, then closely joined by Brother Dan. Food and beer is what brings us closer. Feeling the joy of a ‘its almost summer’ we took it up a notch and ended up at the cricks, drinking more cider, with more cider on the side. 10 hours later I find myself at a pub in Slurry that I dislike, still with a drink in my hand. I remember saying in my head take yourself home Shifty Sherlock, which I did. But when does a Sunday Session turn for the worse? When the first glass breaks? Because if so I did that at 1.45pm upon leaving the first pub. Maybe that was a sign of things to come.
Can a Sunday sess turn into a Monday Madness? The last Monday Madness I endured was a few months back when a few of my fellow unemployed friends and I jumped from the Darlo bar to the Gaslight and one of us ended up trying to moonwalk on the front bar, before jumping down and then scampering off into the night. I don’t think anything could beat that. So what does one do then? Do you continue the session through into tonight for a quick beer, as if it was a Sunday after the night before? Or do you cut your losses and realise that you had work today and still do tomorrow?

I think i am a backpack snob

2009-09-15T15:50:00.000-07:00

I have always had a thing for backpacks. This sounds so naff, but I like the design of them, they have functionality. I have never been one of those people that carries multiple bags with them, its all or nothing with me. I remember being in high school when all of my friends had the Billabong and Ripcurl bags and then the A4 folder in their hands, yet I had some no name red backpack which I think was $8.95 from target, which fitted everything including the Tupper wear lunchbox. Once I was in uni it was still pretty much the same thing. All of my friends had handbags yet a friend and I had these small Mambo backpacks that everyone looked down on. This is where my backpack snobbery started, and it still continues.

Currently I have a Gravis Staple Japan Backpack, and no I didn’t just get it based on the name having Japan in it, although it is cool now when I think about it. I love this bag, it is the perfect day trip bag. It fits all my camera gear in it for a music festival day of shooting. It doesn’t look empty when it is. Oh and it is comfortable. I have it in black but I do like the Gravis camo pattern that you can also buy.

Last Saturday I saw that Gravis have a new range out, and I am liking what I see. The Hubble Backpack is very pleasing on the eye and im sure the back too. It is pretty much made for skaters though, due to the skateboard straps on the front. At $70 a pop im thinking that my new addition to my bag collection will be the grey version of this baby…

Oh my gwad, I am such a nerd.

Andreas Gursky

2009-09-15T05:07:00.000-07:00

Gursky is a modern day landscape painter. Except he paints with his camera, so i like him even more. I came across one of his pictures today in a design brief and it lead me on a journey through his portfolio. Gursky photographs are visually stunning, he captures the modern day landscape in a powerful way. If you want to see one in the flesh get down to the MCA, as they have one of his pictures for you to gawk at.

Stan the Man

2009-09-15T04:52:00.000-07:00

Today i thought of little Staney and how tres cool it would be to have him welcome me home after work. I actually forgot that he wasnt staying with us now, :( I think i am going to have to move to a place where i can get my own little version of Stanley.

Ode to AIR

2009-09-11T00:31:00.000-07:00

Last week's favorite song was AIR's newby called "Sing Sang Sung" and it is already high on the playlist for this week, and its only monday. I have always considered AIR to be up there in my i can listen to them at any time bands and looking back at their back catalogue has just confirmed this statement in my mind.
I found AIR with their album Moon Safari. It was out 1998 but i found them a few years later at Art College. "Kelly Watched the Stars" and "All i Need" were amazing songs then and still are now. One of the best moments in time for me was watching these guys play "All I Need" at V festival in 2008 just as it started to rain, and just when i was lifting. Im actually listening to it right now. *Shivers* I never really got into the lady singing on this track, Beth Hirsch.. maybe i should.

Other AIR highlights for me include "Alone in Kyoto". When my sister said to me a few months ago that she wanted to walk down the aisle at her wedding to this song, i couldnt agree more. This track is stunning, strong and not overwhelming. It has a certain type if patience about it. When it was included in the film Lost in Translation, it tied the film all together for me. Also when i have travelled into Kyoto i always have this song playing to me.

AIR's album 10,000Hz Legend has two of my fav songs ever on it. "Radio #1" always reminds me of living in London and having nothing better to do then put on Radio 1 and dance around in my lounge room in my trackies. It was such a random time in my life, but was so much fun, and full of new things and new people based all around music.
"The Vagabond", well i mean how can you go past Beck singing on this one? Well that and a harmonica? Beck is such a great artist and for him to team up with AIR and make such an emotional, yet happy tune gets me. The line 'i could loose myself right here' and ' i do my best not to worry about things' sums me up in a 5.37 minute song.

Then you have AIR making the soundtrack to the movie The Virgin Suicides. Based on the book by Jeffrey Eugenides and directed by Sofia Coppola this movie helped launch film careers for both Kirsten Dunst and Josh Hartnett, (however i loved Kathleen Turners performance). The opening track on this album, "Playground Love" has an amazing film clip based around a piece of chewing gum, please watch it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mQ4reLS8Lo

This brings me to AIR's last album, Pocket Symphony. Three years in the making, i think this album was quite strong in many aspects. I have read that on this album the duo experimented with some traditional Japanese instruments. This ties in nicely with many of the Japanese named songs that AIR have had throughout their tracklisting history.
The single "Once Upon a Time" is quite fitting, pleasant in a way but also very fairytale like. As if you are going on a journey to an unknown place. The song "One Hell of a Party" is such a dark tune, but has a realm of reality. Like a drunk night followed by the morning after. And with my sexy man Jarvis Cocker on vocals how could you go wrong? Seriously!
The album cover also i love. By artist Xavier Veilhan who is known for his interdisciplinary artworks.

So this brings me to the point of why did i miss their sold out Sydney show at the Opera House?? I myself do not know the reason why, and i dont think i ever will. People have told me it was magical and dream like, unlike anything else, and that they had goosebumps during the whole show. This photo just cements this in my mind.

Image taken by Mark Metcalfe

Office Politics

2009-09-08T21:08:00.000-07:00

I have been struggling this week with some office politics and how to deal with them. I have been combating them with a few different methods, none of which seem to be working. For example, Situation: people talking about you, they think you cant hear but you can Action: walk past them at a safe distance a few times and smile, if they still talk about you start to confirm or deny the things they talk about, still from a safe distance, about 2 metres.
Today has really taken the cake for me. Nothing seems to work within publishing and its office politics. So I went out and bought “In Cold Blood” by Truman Capote and have directly placed it on my desk where about 50% of the office can see it.

The issue is BIG

2009-09-07T23:24:00.000-07:00

So I have been a purchaser of The Big Issue for a little while now, and there is one thing that always gets me when I buy it. Why are the people selling the magazine so friendly yet anyone who see’s you buy is gives you evils? Lately I have been buying the mag from this fella cnr of Park and Castlereagh Street and we have a little chat. But when I turn to walk away, there are all these suits staring at me. And I mean full on staring, like your mother would if she could you doing something naughty and you knew she was going to use your full name to call you on it.
About two weeks ago I bought the Johnny Depp issue (I mean why wouldn’t you?), and there was this middle aged man, stopped on the footpath just looking at me and the seller. I did not know what to do, I mean why should I want to do anything? And then today another suit man did a double look at the seller as if he is in the wrong.
I am a full on advocate for the people that sell The Big Issue. They are trying to turn their lives around no matter what their history and it is something positive. People like these suits to stare down at the sellers, should be tripped over or spill red wine on their brand new silk ties. If these middle class people just bought one issue and read the sellers profiles, maybe they would change their opinions and gain a reality check

where its at mid week

2009-09-07T21:08:00.000-07:00

mid week beers are all the better when there are a few free ones in tow, then cheap longnecks after that. so if you like either of those things and some very cool artwork come down to the oh really gallery in enmore on wednesday night from 6pm. this week they have smc3 showing his wares.

I don’t care if your ugly, Tattoos make you hot

2009-09-02T22:14:00.001-07:00

I have been going through a tattoo phase in my life. It May be down to my addition of Foxtel into my life and shows such as LA Ink and London Ink, or it could be down to people around me are more open to such things. Many moons ago, my ex was planning his tattoo, he wanted me to get one with him. I turned up my nose at it. Given that when I last saw him, it did look like a Nazi Germany POW stamp on his arm, I am so very glad I did turn down the offer. But since moving into the city I have been noticing more attractive designs of tattoos on people. It has made me realise that I am finding guys with arm and leg tattoos much more attractive. An example of this was last Saturday at the markets with Amelia. This tall guy walked past and the first thing I noticed was this colourful tattoo sleeve down his left arm. It was so detailed and I just had to look at it. I think I also proclaimed my love for him as he walked away, heres hoping he didn’t hear me. On discussions of this male, I was told he wasn’t much on the eye, but from what I remember he was! Even apart from the art on his skin.
So this has thrown the thought up, do I suddenly find people of the male variety more attractive if they have tattoos? And if I do, is it down to the whole “bad boy” image? Or the fact that he can handle pain? I have asked a few of my girl mates, and they do agree with me. Tat’s maketh the man.

A good friend of mine, is now a tattoo artist and when he was learning the art, I saw him gain more and more tattoos on his body. To me this made him more attractive. The fact that someone wants to place something permanently on their body, shows true commitment to something. And if the person takes time to think about the idea and the meaning of the tattoo, it shows depth of character. These are qualities I really admire in people.

I am not going to admitt that it is the "bad boy" image thing, as apparences do mean alot to me, but i think it does has something to do with it.

Good looking People and ipods

2009-09-01T21:29:00.001-07:00

Walking to and from work in the past few weeks, I am starting to see a lot of people with white ear phones draping down their bodies. I May happen to be one of these people on the odd occasion too. Walking my way home, the scenery can be dull and often full of construction, so when I see something I like I tend to take notice. This does cover the opposite sex too. Being the judgemental person that I am, I wonder what these good looking people have playing on their ipods. If they have the look down pat, I do hope that they music lives up to the clothing attire.
Some of these people even have a little strut happening. Yesterday I saw this fella, walking up William Street towards Hyde Park, and he had the full on swagger on like he was swinging from side to side in tune to the music he had streaming through his ear phones. I was half imagining that he had a little of Rosin Murphy going on in those ear phones, as that would have made his actions understandable and also favourable. I would have also let him get off with listening to The Gossip or JT, purely based on his dance moves. His wardrobe for the day consisted of dark demin tight jeans, Nike 180’s, plain white Tee and black backpack. Strong outfit. Based on his clothing I also would have let him get away with any 1990’s hip hop.
And on Monday there was this guy who was going crazy on the air drum kit while walking down Liverpool Street. This made me giggle so much. I was tempted to go up to him and ask him what he was listening to, but I didn’t want to interrupt his moment. He would have lost his timing and would have had to start back at the beginning of the track and build the tempo all over again. But I would have stayed and watched him quite happily.

So this has got me thinking… when I see these people walking to work or on their way home, I am starting to put together a playlist for each of these people. This is done with 5 tracks, based on outfits, shoes, dance moves and/or hand actions. For this to happen I do need to watch the person in question a little more closely than what I would rather in passing or following for a block or two.
So for example, man in question wearing the solid outfit would have these songs on his playlist, in no order
1. Ruby Blue – Rosin Murphy
2. Fancy Footwork – Chromeo
3. Creator – Santogold
4. Det Lilla Livet – Familjen
5. Golden Skans - Klaxons

Lets hope he has all on his ipod, cause if he does, he’s a keeper.

Hard Cover, No Jacket

2009-09-01T17:43:00.000-07:00

The boys at Oh Really Gallery are in full celebration mode this week, and are starting the weekend off in great birthday style. For their 1st birthday they are putting on the "Hard Caver, No Jacket" exhibition, opening at 6pm. Hard Cover, No Jacket is a great concept, all artists had to do their thang on a book cover. And with some of my fav artists jumping on board, it will be a great show. Come down to see Ape7, Beastman, DrewFunk and KidZoom’s creations first hand.

IN FULL BLOOM

2009-09-01T17:38:00.000-07:00

IN FULL BLOOM is another WeAreTheImageMakers production and is opening tomorrow evening at 6pm. It is show casing some of the best artists in Australia so you asll should come down for a look.

Crap Day, Nice Night

2009-08-31T03:33:00.000-07:00

After one of the most horrible days i have encountered, i have sat down at the computer at home to have one of the most inspiring evenings in a very long time.

Spending a solid 9 hours of really just trying to look busy at my pathetic job, i was going to just throw it in and quit. Doing a design job but only having basic production duties sucks balls. You become to feel under rated and under valued, with that feeling on top of a hangover that kicked in over 24 hours too late, your head does feel like mush in no time at all. Mine took a grand toll at 9.26am and at 9.45am after a demeaning email the berocca just wasnt going to cut it.
I realised today that food and cookbook just are not my bag. It doesn't inspire me at all, and how can i design such things if i dont even want to look at them myself? I look at bright colours, contrast, bright light blow outs, text that is unreadable, images drawn over and paintings that are made with spray cans.

But the past 3 hours i have been trawling my way around the interweb's and man'o man have i found some cream pickings!!! I now feel all get up and go like, just at the end of the day instead of the start. So now i am going to start looking for a new job, something that actually is creative and that i can really throw myself into mentally. I am also going to take my camera out tomorrow and shoot photos on my way home with Chi Chi's 10.5mm fisheye lens (i am very excited for this Chi!!!).

This may make no sense to you at all, but it does to me. I now feel all creative like. Yay!

Attitude Chair

2009-08-31T03:06:00.000-07:00

This is the SHIZNIT!

This is the new Attitude Chair, designed by a New York designer call Deger Cengiz. It features a second pair of hinged legs that click into place when you lean back. This is any back row rebels dream chair, and with only 13 ever to be made and at $500US a pop, you better hope that the back row kids have rich mums and dads.

Cengiz webite can be found here

http://www.degercengiz.com/

I like your type.

2009-08-31T03:01:00.000-07:00

I really am digging this typography... it is so organic and very 1950s art. I can imagine it in dark greens and purple, almost like Sydney Long painting but with words. Alike to Si Scott's work but alot more simple and easy. Anyway if you like it too, you should check out the designers website.

http://www.meandmypen.com/

Arts & Crafts

2009-08-24T04:38:00.000-07:00

If i had my own house, i would defiantly try to make one of these.

the sun hurts my eyes...

2009-08-23T05:55:00.001-07:00

so i want these to make them feel better

Creepy Interview

2009-08-21T04:45:00.001-07:00

Perth lady Creepy, who in person is anything but, has a interview on The Vine for his new solo show in Melbourne. Check it out here
http://www.thevine.com.au/entertainment/photos/creepy-interview.aspx

Shoe porn

2009-08-21T04:01:00.000-07:00

Mum, i think ive grown up.

I have fallen in love with shoes. Not an instant lusting i admit, but something that has grown on me over the past few months. Lately i get shoe envy. If i see a lass with nice kicks on, i want them. If i see a gal with cute little heels on, i want to be 4 inches shorter so i can wear them.
But NO MORE, i shout! Im giving in, heels and all. Yes thats right, heels. I have officially and honestly never owned a pair in my life. Actually never worn a pair longer than what i have when i have swapped shoes with Janice on the dance floor. My only issue is the height thing. I dont really like being the tallest girl in the room, i mean its tops at a music concert, but when your out at the pub you feel a little bit overpowering. But i am willing to give it a go, heck lets even call it a social experiment.

So social experiment, where do i begin. I am thinking with these.

Tattoo Idea...

2009-08-18T02:45:00.000-07:00

So i have been throwing up the idea of my first tattoo for about 3 years now. About 2 years ago i drew something that i really liked and thought, "Hey ill get that". I was so sold on this idea, then i gave the drawing to a mate to scan it in, and he lost it. I since have re-drawn it over and over again, expanding the idea and seeing different shapes etc. About 6 weeks ago Chiz went and got her arm tattoo, and i was very tempted to get that drawing done on me. But i whimped out.
Anyway i have been watching alot of Miami & London Ink on Foxtel lately and i have rehashed the idea of finally getting my first one done. On Sunday night, an old episode was on that i watched at Chi Chi's and Daves months ago. The tat wasnt my cup of tea so to speak but the style was amazing. Old school Japanese style, with a fair bit of colouring which really made these tat's for me. the placements of the tat was also quite cool, on the back of each calf muscle.

So that got me thinking.
What about a twin set of tattoo's? One on each side, facing each other or even repeating each other.

I quite like this idea, kinda doesnt have any exact relevance to me, but you could read alot into it... like past and future, good and bad, Dr Jeckle and Mr Hyde. The number 2 also has some history with me in a few of my past relationships. I seem to alot of things twice in my life when i think about it too.... so the thought of having 2 of something on is starting to fit.

Then i was like OK, this could work, but what do i get?
I started to look at tat's that i like, and they all were the old sailor style and the Japanese style that the lass, Nikole Lowe, does on London Ink. This style has a constant flowing to me. And you could style something to match you that wouldnt date (that much...). So what else do i do when i need inspiration? I look through thousands of images on my computer and hundreds of postcards that i have collected over the years. And i keep coming across a painting that i have been collecting for years and an artwork that i really adore.

It is called The Great Wave Off Kanagawa by Katsushika Hokusai. This piece is apart of a series of woodblock prints called Thirty six views of Mt Fuji.

So what i am trying to say is maybe getting this on me. At first i was like, ugh can i do this? And i started to think out what it means to me blah blah. But it looks cool and i love the print. Everytime i go to Japan i see this print, and even though it is palmed off as a tourist thing now, i still love it. The first 2 times i went to Japan i chased Mt Fuji and didnt get to see it (the number two!), then the third time i caught a glimpse of it, then in October last year i finally got to take in all its glory.
SO, if i did go with this idea for a tattoo, could i pair it by itself, or how about with another print from Hokusai's series?

Hmmm, im almost sold on this, but it comes down to the placement of both tattoos. If i was to do the twin set thing, i want one on either side of my body. The chick on London Ink got her's on her calfs, but i was thinking a little more higher. I was talking to someone not too long ago and they told me they had a tattoo on the back of their thigh - i wish i could remember who you are. So placement wise, how about high on the back of my thigh's, under the butt cheeks, matching up on both sides. I love the placement idea, so im defo going to get a tattoo on each leg there, someone just tell me that the design is good so i can get it done!??!!

George is leaving the building

2009-08-17T05:51:00.000-07:00

The lovely George is heading back home to the UK, and what better place to spend her last SAturday night then Spectrum. There was dancing, disco, gang signs, losers trying to take over our dance corner and someone fell over at least once - more than likely me. Sad to see you go George, expect many a visit soon. Emu hand has been raised, if you get lost along the way xx

I like my new shoes

2009-08-11T04:23:00.000-07:00

Childhood Chocolates

2009-08-10T04:02:00.000-07:00

Remember Fantales? The caramels dipped in chocolate that if chewed wrong they could pull your baby teeth out? Yeah well im eating a whole packet of them right now. Man these things take me back to Pennant Hills park on Saturday mornings after Netball, when i used to con my dad into giving me $2 to go and buy 50 fantales and 10 red frogs from the canteen. Then i would proceed to make myself sick by eating them all. Those where the days.

Phoenix play the Enmore

2009-08-05T18:28:00.000-07:00

Last night, Yanni and I went to see Phoenix at the Enmore Theatre. After having dinner and desert (and no we did not share our desserts) at the Courthouse, we ventured down to claim our usual standing pozzie at the back of the Enmore. The four sexy French men turned into 6 for this tour, and delivered a strong set. Starting with the new single "Lisztomania" almost everyone in the crowd started to bop along. They keep going by playing some of my all time tracks EVER - "Everything is Everything", "Napoleon Says" and "Too Young" i had a few OMGZ moments.
Coming back with a mellow version of "If i ever feel better.." for the encore, they picked up the tempo for the finale by giving a full rock out of "1901".

If Napoleon says to me, take off your coat, take of your long johns too - I would, especially if he was a French man, in a long sleeves shirt tucked in. Wallop

Image Supplied by Graham Denholm

New blog name

2009-08-04T06:09:00.000-07:00

So i have been tossing up whether to change my blog name for a while. Starting with "when you come back, ill be gone" back in December last year.... This became too depressing for me, i wanted something more uplifting. Then i swapped to "the quiet life". Then realising that i dont really have a quiet life.
Alas, what to do! When all else fails, steal!! So i did.

"The girl & the Robot" is a song title from Röyksopp, who have been getting a few spins on the iTunes recently.

The album Junior is already making a mark in my 2009 top 10 list. Röyksopp are a duo that come from Norway. The pair have been creating electronic choons for some time, and for the girl and the robot song they teamed up with Robyn.
So i though why the heck not eh?

Me and my Grrrl

2009-08-04T05:21:00.001-07:00

This is my girl. I have known her since i was about 15. I have been seeing her off and on again since then. She's real pretty. Some people called her Madame de la Porte, especially this one guy called Jean-Marc Nattier. Thats me on the left.

Melting Moment

2009-08-03T23:30:00.000-07:00

So i am having a moment.

I feel as if my life is somewhat falling into place, yet in another way i have no control over the things happening around me. OK so i have decided to stick it out in Sydney after weeks of mulling over the thought in my head of leaving Oz for a distant shore on a one way ticket. About 3 weeks ago i fell apart and just wanted to run. This is still quite tempting, but i just cant do it, for several reasons that i will not put on here. But this does have its downsides. For one i have to face up to myself and understand that i do have responsibilities here and need to take hold of them. Today was a hurdle for me. I did something that i half did not want to do, but now am glad that i did take the chance to do it. I still feel hurt but im also glad. Strange really. This situation didnt turn out as i had hoped a few months ago, but i have learned alot from it, as i hope they have.

I am glad that after 3.5 years, my life feels at ease. The thought of where i was over 3 years ago, scares the heck out of me. I was messed up, so very messed up, and now i look at myself and I feel quite happy. That is a feeling i haven't had in quite a long time. But what has got me in this certain moment is that how i got to this happy point. It comes down to the people around me of late, especially in the past year. I found these certain people who pick me up and put me back together, kinda thing. They have never spoken down to me or had expectations of me. Never taken me at face value and given me respect. Values that should be a standard in relationships but often are not.
2 Years ago i formed a relationship with a work colleague and in a short space of 2 weeks we became best buddies. She is still my best friend. At the time when we met we bonded over shit working experience with a large photo agency, as much as we both dont like to admit it, as we hate that place, if we both hadn't been there we never would have met. This girl is my drunken phone call, my shoulder to cry on, my "i just ate 2 king size twix bars, is that bad?" girl and my 200 emails a day bitch. And with the new pact that we have formed over the past weekend away, i am sure that more fun times shall be had. Rock on i say.

Then there are the people who you just happen to click with. That you can chit chat for hours with, day after day and not get bored. These mates keep me grounded. Over analyzing every single detail then laughing about it, and doing it all again the next week. I like those days, talking shit about shit.

Looking back to that bleak time in my life when i had no support network around me to now, i am a very lucky person. I know that when i get my outback house (with a wrap around veranda), in the middle of nowhere, these people will come and see me no matter how many different pieces of denim* i shall be wearing.

* Think of the TV show "Blossom"

The Doves @ Metro Theatre

2009-08-02T06:21:00.001-07:00

This gig was a comedy of errors for me last Thursday. Being still with a gammy foot, the walk from home to the Metro proved harder than i thought... then was the wait in the pit for the band to come on. After forgetting a spare compact flash card, i was left to shoot on one camera with 3 lenses, a hard act. I ended up going with a 50mm for the gig. Some shots are OK, but i know that i could have done heaps better if i actually was prepared. Such a pro i tell ya!

Post Byron Wrap Up

2009-08-02T06:06:00.000-07:00

Back almost a week now and i have only just remembered to do this! It shall be done in the form of pictures, as they capture a thousand words, almost i cant remember certain points over the entire weekend.
All Getty shots taken by Mark Metcalfe, please see www.gettyimages.com

Rad Poster

2009-08-02T06:01:00.000-07:00

Ode to NYLON Magazine

2009-07-28T20:46:00.000-07:00

If i were a magazine, i would want to be NYLON.
I picked up the current issue coming home from Byron bay on Monday and could not put it down at all. Front to back read within 2 hours. I think that is a record for me.

For starters, it has the almighty Karen O gracing the front cover. Thats a score one and you havent even opened it. I mean look at that glove she is wearing, H O T! I started to look back at a few covers by NYLON over the past year or so and was remembered by some other awesome covers.....

And then there is the spreads on the inside..... these set on Rila Fukushima was in the August 2006 issue of NYLON and still is one of my fav magazine spreads.

Sydney Design

2009-07-27T22:21:00.001-07:00

Sydney Design is upon us once again, and i for one am a little bit excited. Next to the noice logo design by Marcus Piper of "one8one7" fame, there is also a few interesting events happening around this festival.

This is one of the events that is marked in my calender...

http://www.sydneydesign.com.au/sd09/exhibitions/eye-saw/

I'm a little Teapot

2009-07-27T20:55:00.000-07:00

My collection of Teapot's has somewhat slowed down in the past 6 months. Shame really as i was on such a roll with them. Next to my one off Moroccan Teapots which i bought while backpacking through there in 2006, i have a few tin ones from the 50's and silver ones with have been given to me from little old ladies.

This one of the elephant i also own, but just in black. I have been looking for a white one to pair him up with for about a year now. I think i have the rip off design one, but for a whopping $5 who cares? If anyone does see a white one, please let me know....

And then i found this........

http://www.sydneydesign.com.au/sd09/exhibitions/the-sydney-teapot-show-2009/

So going to make the mission and go to that!
This got me thinking and searching for about a million images of teapots, and i thought i would share my favorites. The ones that i would buy outright and the naff ones that would always go at eye level on a shelf.

Then i saw this one, which would complete any book shelf collection.....

Splendid Happenings

2009-07-22T21:54:00.000-07:00

So i have packed my bag and i am about to limp out the door to head to Byron Bay and have myself a Splendid weekend at Splendour in the Grass. After having quite a full on weekend last week i was looking forward to a quiet week with my own thoughts and also some job hunting. This all turned on its head yesterday when i was out with Chiz. I am reminded of the Faith No More song "Its always funny until someone gets hurt....", yeah then its just hilarious - which it was as we continued to drink on. Well walking from one pub to another i decided to fall over, gracefully of course, and bugger up my ankle once again. So now i am seriously heading to Splendour on my best foot, as its my only foot. So with this in mind, and the fact that i may have to go and see my new best friends at St John's before any of the action begins, i thought i would talk you through my new timetable plan of action.

So its a given that i am going to start my Saturday on a slow intro and work my way upwards, beginning with Manchester Orchestra. I saw and shoot these guys in Jan of last year, without knowing a thing about them. They supported Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and also were in for the Laneway's Festival. These 5 young guys blew my mind. They have this close knit vibe on stage and the lead singers voice gave me goose bumps, HONESTLY.

When they dropped their 2nd album a few months ago a didnt give it enough time. But lately it has been high on my rotation, and its climbing still. The main single "Ive got Friends" makes me want to bop along in a festival crowd and sing so very loud.
These guys are going to be my high light of the festival, big call for me i know but i am excited to see these guys again.
So thats at 1pm... from here in on the first day, i will be following Jane and the gang to see some good Aussie bands.. We have Yves Klein Blue, Little Red, Art Vs Science and of course Bluejuice. I am sure that at this point of the day it will get messy!

When 6pm rolls around, i think i will be in fine order for the very nice young French man Yuksek. I also got to shoot this guy last year, this time at Parklife. Im not always 100% on shooting DJ's but his guy was fun. I love how he really gets into his beats and tunes with the live crowd. And not to mention his dress sense!

Then as the dark sets in, we have some traditional bands to kick on with. Juggers are making their home coming at Splendour. I am quite excited with this. I was a major supporter of these 3 boys in 06 and 07, and they made the end of Falls festival last year go off so i may pop in to say hi. But the main acts that i need to catch a small glimpse of on this night will be Janes Addiction, Bloc Party and the Happy Mondays. I am not sold on the Bloc Party.. as that i dont know if i would care to half of each of the other two to see the entire set of Bloc Party. They disappointed me when they played at the Hordern the last 2 times, but i guess nothing beats the metro theatre.... But their new song is quite Electro and i do looove my electro.
Janes Addiction apparently are still in the States though, with one band member quite ill. And as the rumor has it, they may not make it here to play. Which would be a let down for this weekend as the Doves have apparently pulled out aswell.

So that may be my Saturday...... As for Sunday, im running late now and havent even looked at that time table!! That will be something for the plane.

Employment Benefits

2009-07-20T23:34:00.000-07:00

Got offered a job today, and i am thinking already on how to spend that first pay check.... these puppies are an option, a good option.

Slightly Obsessed... but in a good way?

2009-07-20T19:31:00.000-07:00

So, i am currently thinking that i may be slightly obsessed with someone i have never met. I listen to his dolset tones on the J's approx 3-4 times a week and would like to hear them more frequently. Please let me introduce you to Vijay Khurana.

*sigh*

And to make matters a little worse, he is reporting from Splendour in the Grass this weekend. And if you didnt know, I too shall be making an appearance there this weekend too. I honestly am thinking of making it my mission to track down this man and proclaim my love for his voice. But i put it to you, this is a bad thing? Having a crush on a fella based on his voice and ever so sharp wit?
I guess it can be related to the whole groupie syndrome, where ladies follow dudes in bands around etc etc. I have never been much of a band groupie, although i have dated boys in bands before (i always seem to get the bassist...) i have never openly chased a man, let alone one that only exists to me through the FM radio.

I mean he obviously has good music taste, Double J shirt, rocking the whole LP thing.... and finally having the 3 day facial hair down pat. But can one actually do this? Normally quite a shy lass, I am unsure. Although given a little dutch courage and a little bit of sunshine, anything is possible..... correct?