Happy New Year!

Fisherman's sweater

I love this new sweater from
Topshop. I will just ignore that it goes against all my classic clothing rules (baggy jumper with leggings? Why would I want to look like a balloon on a stick?).

Christmas Times

    

Getting Literary

I love this old Monocle fashion spread.
 

Despacio at Hammersmith Town Hall

We spent last night at Hammersmith's town hall at Despacio, the James Murphy (LCD Soundsystem) / Too Many DJs project. Think hipster school disco with a 50,000 watt sound system. Speaking of which, the sound system was incredible and pretty much took on the role of overpaid, over-entouraged star of the show. It requires a crew of fifteen, can kill everyone if is turned up to full capacity and has apparently pretty much bankrupted James Murphy.  It was a bit surreal as though it was plenty loud, you could still hear each other speak on the dance floor if you wanted to talk. 

The feeling was a weird mix of nostalgia and cutting edge, with the the town hall's municipal fire doors and corridors telling my subconscious 'you're back at school' and McIntosh amps and haircuts telling me another story.

 

There were nice cocktails from Clove Club - including Despacio Punch and Black Bull; cold coffee, salted caramel and vodka -  and a choice selection of tacky Christmas decorations to feast the eye upon. 

 

James Murphy and Too Many DJs gave a nice interview to the Guardian with their favourite Christmas party tracks here. It includes the revealation that James is an acquaintance of David Byrne "but we don't call and chat about Breaking Bad or anything."

Well done, you got dressed.

It's been a while since the last outfit in front of the bookshelf but the weather has made it most necessary.

You can't really see, but this shirt is burn-out velvet. How delightfully 90s! It should really be worn loose and cropped, but I think the world probably saw enough of my midriff during my Spice Girls phase as a 12 year old (I had a dance routine to Say You'll Be There! Kids, eh).

 

Laters!

Book covers

Like Penelope Trunk, I have a very large and tottery stack of books in my room. I don't have much time to read fiction now apart from when I'm on holiday, but I keep buying. I am especially weak for £1 classic fiction paperbacks with 60s covers. I don't care that I have too many!  Great book covers should be as cherished as great album covers.

"The story of Penguin's cover designs parallels the emergence of graphic design as a profession. This discipline, combining strategic thinking, a strong visual sense, organisational ability and craft skills  to implement them all, only developed slowly... There started to be a separation of page design and cover design, an increasing use of commissioned designers, photographers and illustrators, and an embracing of new type setting techniques.  The developments and changes seen in Penguin covers also reflect the increasingly sophisticated attitudes of publishers and readers towards design questions. The dilemma from any publishers point of view is whether to use a a cover to promote themselves or or the individual title." Penguin By Design

 

Double Indemnity - 1940s style

I am in 40s style swoon at the moment. Why don't the shops make more slinky long black dresses with bell sleeves?

I would do screen grabs of Double Indemnity awesome costumes but I only have it on Blu-Ray :(

Console yourselves and read more about Edith Head's costumes for Double Indemnity here.

Soup!

I have decided that soup is the answer to all my problems! Weight, saving money, weight. Everything can be addressed by substituting restaurant food, Pret sandwiches and all the other junk I eat for soup.

Here is my latest creation - cheap as hell and healthy as you can get with cooked food - Carrot and Corrainder Soup.



And here is a literary soup reference from my collection of food quotes (every girl should have one!):

"She bought some calvesfoot jelly, some essence of beef and a bottle of aspirin. She got to the door, then went back and bought a packet of rusks. Altogether it cost her sixteen shillings, which left four shillings in her handbag and eleven pounds in her post office book, but she couldn't draw any of that until tomorrow. By the time she came back, the kettle was just boiling. She made the beef tea like her mother used to, in a glass with a teaspoon to stop it cracking, and all the time she glanced towards him, as if she were afraid he was dead." The Spy Who Came in From the Cold

Sinister seaside grandeur in Deal

I took these pictures in Deal over the weekend and quite like the 'Nighthawks' feel of them.






Deal is a very overlooked seaside town in East Kent and a great place to take photographs. You can read my guide to Deal here.

The Rite of Spring

I love these Russian pagan costumes from the film Coco and Igor.

2013 actually marks 100 years since the first performance of the Ballet Russes Rite of Spring in Paris. An audience riot erupted and the journalist and photographer Carl Van Vechten claimed that the person behind him got carried away with excitement and began to 'beat rhythmically' on top of his head!































 There is an interesting radio programme about the Rites of Spring here and there are great photos of the costumes of the Ballet Russes here and here.