Today's Inspiration- Ira Korman

This week has been a great one for genoming (not that I got as much done as I wanted to, but I did see a lot of exceptionally cool stuff). One of my favorites was Ira Korman's Memento Mori series, in which the artist does extremely realistic and soft charcoal drawings of photobooth pictures found in antique stores and that kind of thing. Why is there nothing more magical than old photobooth pictures? I think it may actually be the privacy of a curtain and tight space brings out an intimacy you just don't see in other photographs. Anyway, here are a few of the photographs that are on display until December 20th at Koplin del Rio in LA, but you can see more at the gallery's website here.

from artweek.la

from www.complex.com

from artsy.net

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November Fashion Inspiration and What Worked in October

 November Fashion Inspiration

So, I am going to go out on a limb and guess this won't be the lookingest month for me, but I figure if you just make a habit of still trying even when your body is putting up a very strong fight for you to look crazypants.  I started to get a couple things that lend themselves to being squishy and nursing. In November, I probably won't graduate out of maternity clothes, but I am still hopeful to come up with some good stuff. Here are some of my inspirations that I am thinking about:

from https://www.etsy.com/listing/118763439/nursing-necklace-teething-necklace-for?ref=favs_view_20

from https://www.etsy.com/listing/192898439/flower-mama-nursing-necklace-with-fox?ref=favs_view_18

Nursing and Teething Necklaces- I didn't even know this was a thing, but it is pretty genius, and they can look pretty nice. I know this might be more helpful in a few months, but I like the idea of having chic looking jewelry that is meant to be in a baby's mouth/ covered in slobber.

The Boy got me a nursing cover that looks like an infinity scarf, and I bought 2 more big blousy button ups like this one to wear for Thanksgiving (I hope!), so this (minus the boots, which is a shame because they are amazing) is basically my plan for postpartum nursing outfits- warm, layered, with fabrics that pull away from my body rather than sticking to it.

I have also started thinking about getting dresses that work for nursing without being too dowdy, and was looking at dresses like this one. Perhaps a battle for another month, once I have a better sense of what I am working with (because I have never had a worse sense of what my body is going to be doing in 4 weeks, 8 weeks, etc). Still, it's kind of fun to be working on a whole new game plan again!

What Worked In October

 I don't have a ton of pictures from this month, because I mostly have to remind The Boy to take the weekly picture for BBG's book. This is when we hosted the Apple Pancake Breakfast at our house. The sweater was a mistake, I think, this turned out to be my best maternity dress- lower cut neckline (seriously, this is important!) and it doesn't cling at all.

 When my Mom came to visit, she bought me two new shirts, both of which are the right kind of clingy and mostly look nice, I think. It makes little sense that clingy would still look better once you have expanded to this level, but it really does help the situation.

 Probably my best effort for the month- I bought the sweater for after the baby comes (I thought it looked like fall and Christmas so it should fit the coming seasons. I still am not sold on the big baggy sweaters in general, but I do think it looked nice and feels cozy. Also, thank the heavens for boots. They are like a fresh haircut- you don't have to do much to look put together if you have boots on.

 This outfit went out with boots too, but they didn't make it through the shelf-building process. Leggings, boots, and a dress worked as my uniform this month (and will probably get me through November as well). Also, the bangs are almost completely grown out, which means I will have to cut them off again.

I don't even care how dorky this is. On Halloween, I wore it with hair clippies that look like skeleton hands. Because I am classy like that.

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Pinspiration- 10 Halloween Cupcakes

 Halloween welcomes the most creative treats of any holiday, and every year, I become slightly obsessed with the good ideas put on display. You can probably mark a correlation between the kind of evil the holiday is supposed to be about and the pure delicious evils of sugar of all kinds, but since I am not one for being scared, these are my favorite parts of the holiday.

from mybakingaddiction.com

10. A Pumpkin Cupcake- Ok, this decoration is underwhelming if you are going for a big decorating bang, but just imagine this with orange-colored frosting and a stem. It's not a far leaf, and pumpkin-flavored things are totally Halloween. Also, I really hate the weird anti-"basic" thing which seems to me to just be yet another way to make it ok for people to talk shit on women based on entirely artificial and unimportant criteria. You know what is WAY more boring and overdone than pumpkin spice lattes? Talking crap on girls who drink them. It's not an opinion worth having. I'm bored already. On the other hand, I feel like I would be pretty psyched if I got to eat one of these cupcakes, and like I said you could tie the flavor in with slightly more "pumpkiny" decorations.

from cupcakediariesblog.com

9. Graveyard cookies- The idea is so simple, and as this blog did, you could probably pull it off all in accessories, but I would also love to see these cupcakes stepped up another level or two. Could you dye the cookie to look more like a gravestone? Pipe in some grass? Add in some zombie hands coming out of the dirt? Still, it works as a great pin, because it inspires all sorts of ideas!

from thecupcakedailyblog.com

8. Ghost cupcakes-Ack! So cute, but it does make your teeth hurt just from looking at it. I mean, that is a lot of frosting! I was thinking you could have a hershey kiss underneath the frosting to try to keep it clean.

from skinnytaste.com

 7. Mummy cakes- I have used this guy before, but it is so damn cute, and might have a much better ratio of frosting to cake than a lot of these do. Great option if you want to try something that isn't quite so treat-y.

from indulgy.com

6. Finger cakes- We just watched Hocus Pocus tonight (I wonder what the exact years you have to have been born to like this movie are- 83 to 90?) and SJP and Kathy Najimy have a finger fight right at the beginning. I like the spirit of that here.

from  allhallowsdesign.blogspot.com

5. Vampire Cakes- Really, this cake is all about the hairline. Don't you miss when all vampires had hair like the Count? Can someone (PAG) explain the history of this hairstyle to me? The two sharp teeth hanging out the mouth are also adorable. I feel like making a cupcake look this good would be a challenge, but they nailed it.

from damndelicious.net

4. Spider cupcakes- This one has floated around on pinterest a lot, and for good reason. Super cute, and just gross enough to seem a little more appropriate for the holiday. I just love the little googly eyes and the legs coming off the cake.

from mrsgreene.com

3. Witch's Brew Cupcakes- This is genius. I love the switch of wrapper to change how the whole thing feels, and I want them to be the sandwich kind of cupcake so the frosting is on the inside. Also, kudos for the pretzel tie-in, because some people (not me, but I know those people exist) who really love their salty with their sweet.

from sweetology101.blogspot.com

2. AhhHhhh! Real Cupcakes! I thought these were really sweet monsters. Nothing too scary, but I bet you could add arms or jaws to make them even more fun!

from parents.com

1. Skeleton Cupcakes- I have been loving skeletons this year, and I feel like this guy has a lot of wow factor without too much fuss. 15 minutes extra effort? Not exactly scary, but cool. I have done the skeleton thing with cookie cutters (take a cutter of anything and make it a skeleton- I promis you it will be appropriately creepy), but these cupcakes are also adorable.

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Today's Inspiration- Jody Alexander's Ruby B

Today I had a special project to finish for Artsy, and I couldn't be happier, because I discovered yet another truly amazing artist. Jody Alexander works as a librarian in Santa Cruz by day and as a book artist and collector by night. She spins her own narratives around found books and texts, but the ways she transforms them are unlike anything I have ever seen. New favorite for sure. Here are a few images from her "The Odd Volumes of Ruby B" series, which you can read more about here (no seriously, click the link. You will see beautiful things).

from www.seagergray.com

from www.jalexbooks.com

from www.herringbonebindery.com

The total femininity and precision of what she is doing moves what could be just an original idea into something that feels precious and rare. The embroidery on the pages is unlike any I have seen before. When a collector makes her own objects, I think she captures that magic that drives those archival instincts in the first place. I think this work is magic.

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Unmined Costume Inspiration- The Grand Budapest Hotel

Alright, I probably won't win an award for this, because it is new this year, but Wes Anderson movies are always costume inspiration goldmines. Also, I would just love to see more men out in mustaches and purple formal wear (though if you have bird-like/Brody-like features at all, you owe it to the world to go as the villain). I also think Agatha might be a fun costume for a girl? Anyway, here are some inspiration pictures.

from cphpix.dk

from manlovesmanatees.tumblr.com

from esquire.com

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Unmined Costume Inspiration- Patti Smith and Robert Mapplethorpe

You can only go this route if you are absolutely sure that you are the coolest f-ing person you know (or I guess if you want to try to identify those people). This is one of the most important art friendships of all time, and everything you read about them and their relationships with each other and others is kind of mind-boggling. It might be a fun costume for two friends who aren't necessarily a couple.Robert Mapplethorpe was one of the most iconic (and definitely most controversial) photographers of the 20th century, and Smith was a musician, a poet, and his muse.

This one is slightly trickier because their look is iconic, but not necessarily a singular vision. The most iconic picture of Mapplethorpe is either his late in life self-portrait or a self-portrait he took with a bull whip (I think it would be difficult to go out that way). The photograph that immediately comes to mind when I think of Patti Smith is this:

from en.wikipedia.org

So come on, who doesn't want to go out with amazing hair and suspenders? Why have suspenders not come back for women? Here are some other pictures of them together:

from anothermag.com

from nickdrake.tumblr.com

 What you Need (Probably a lot of the same things either way)

Appropriate Hair (think bangs or feathering)

Very tight jeans

Leather

Black and White, masculine style

Hats

A Vintage looking camera (think mid 70's to early 80's)

Most Importantly, a kind of proud look of indifference and total badassery

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Unmined Costume Inspiration- Albrecht Durer

Albrecht Durer is one of those artists that even if you don't know much about art, you would probably recognize some of his work (the bunny, the rhino). Not only is the man one of the most talented of all time, a proponent for the modern concept of copyright, and the King of the Northern Renaissance (given this title only by me), but he is also damn sexy and weirdly on some trends for someone dead hundreds of years. So, if you happen to already be a hipster, he might be the perfect choice for you.

from www.oneonta.edu

from en.wikipedia.org

What You Need

Curly long hair, given either by God or a Wig

Fake Fur lined coat

A Beard

A Paintbrush or Durer print, if you want to give people a clue

A Very manly floppy hat

A Generally Dour look on your face and beautiful hands

So, go old school and laugh at the fools dressed like Andy Warhol (it's done already!)

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