Thursday, September 30, 2010

oh how it flies.


so i know for the month of september i haven't posted much at all.
i was planning to have about 5 more posts than usual...
how shall i compensate for lost time?
i'm thinking i make an effort to get a few more outfit posts together.
exciting news is that there are a fair few band interviews coming through, so that should be awesome.
i'm also going to get all of my film developed, which should be exciting, or so i hope.
i'm feeling a bit anxious at the moment, and a bit empty inside without him around, but that's ok.
i had an awesome day at the beach for a friend's birthday, a bit tiring but i'm thinking i definitely want to head down there again sometime soon.
i know for everyone in the northern hemisphere fall's just drawn an end to it's first month, and lucky us, we're finally starting to feel the heat again.
it's quite daunting knowing that the first month of spring has just gone by. i suppose it's been 4 weeks [[and when you put it in weeks it seems so insignificant]], but i guess it's been one full of accomplishment for me.

how's everyone's septembers been?

rena.



i'm slowly running out of candid photos of life in general to post on the blog, so i think it's time to get out and do a bit of hardcore photography. whatever that may be. i tried taking photos like tommy ton does, but i just look like some creepy stalkerish kid. the funny thing is i'll never be pleased with a photo so i'll stalk the shoes/bag/jacket/band tee down the street, like prey, and subsequently realise what on earth i'm doing, and walk back the way i came.

so i'm hoping these art camp candids aren't too cliched, especially the final one. it was a stroke of luck i managed to find that on the window of the house in the first picture, and i'm not even sure how it got there. and i've always loved those trees, i want to go back and take more photos, but i'm thinking a repeat of the same thing won't have the same effect.

toodles.

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

about time.

claudia + edwina on art camp
i realise i haven't posted any 5-song playlists recently. 
i generally don't really have a theme for my playlists, [[i.e. genre, idea, motif]] i don't know why. i think it's more of a spur-of-the moment, what do i really like at the moment type of thing... i might try a theme today. 
-smiley-
the love's gone for a week or so, so i'll be blogging a bit more, perhaps... and working. 

1*time-pink floyd
2*when i come around-green day
3*last night-carolina liar
4*starlight-muse
5*a dustland fairytale-the killers

rena.

hope you enjoyed the few photos of life in general
life's a party. live it.

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

clichéd crossed the line.

original photography, art camp
so i've probably brought this up before, and i don't think i created quite enough of a stir. 
as the title of this post suggests, i am once again going to comment on the disturbing amount of reblogging done over there at tumblr. 
the original idea of having, writing and creating a blog was to have people contribute their individual thoughts and ideas to the internet, where it could be accessed by a wider, international audience. 
so tumblr, i ask you. why allow the reblog button? what spurred such an idea? you've automatically allowed thoughts and created ideas like:

"i don't need to take my own photos, i'll just reblog them off someone else's tumblr"
"it doesn't matter if i reblog this photo off this tumblr, it's just a click away"
"i'm allowed to do this, i don't care, it looks cool"

the result you get is:

a generation trained to tolerate plagiarism, and are uncreative 
[[i know there are also millions of you who are a testament to this statement]] 
and no longer aspiring to create because they can just use someone else's work and claim it as original.
already i see those who post original work annoyed and requesting others to delete reblogged posts, 
or photos. 
so truth is, the internet was created for faster, efficient communication of ideas and messages. 
but what messages are we sending  by reposting sh*tloads of photos of girls smoking, wearing less than decent clothing, sick on the side of the road, and allowing so many tumblr urls to involve some kind of swear word [[sorry about my previous one]]. simply, these teenage girls are desensitising themselves to certain ideas that are just immoral, yet they are so overexposed it's simply "ok" to be so.  
am i going to sit here and permit ideas to pass by? no. 
so here's my little input. just wanted to say something before someone decides to click that button mindlessly.

[[i mean honestly, i see girls at school [[and if you're not sure how a apple mac works, go to your local mac store]], just scrolling through tumblr and dragging the photos onto their desktop, and subsequently posting them one by one and creating a jam of the same photos]]
i only follow around 35 people on tumblr, and yet i see the exact same photos in the same cycle, on the same day, all over the place. [[but i also follow the likes of community [[the tv show]], some of my friends, [[i.e. calvin + hobbes, you'll meet her soon]], and others.
so tell me that fashion, and photography, music, and art are circular.
that appropriation is, well, appropriate. and taking inspiration from other material isn't unfair. 
but this is too much.
all in all, i blog because i hope to inspire. 

and here's an ugly word to describe this situation/idea/rant/thought of mine:

ugh.

rena.

do you think this phase will last? or is blogging/tumblr for these teenage girls [[not necessarily]]
 [[haha, this is so ironic]]
just a passing fad?

brand: Miss Unkon.








all photos taken from the miss unkon website
how divine are these colours? 
there's such a nostalgic naivety to miss unkon's pieces, and combined with perfect detailing makes
me want these pieces all the more. it's hard to believe the brand was really only conceived a few years ago.

check out more on the website

rena.

Sunday, September 26, 2010

back.

hey guys!
i'm back! -insert gasp- [[i hope]]
so there are a few things that have happened over the past two weeks. it's almost exactly two weeks since i last blogged. 13 days off, but i'm doing this at night, and i'm not sure whether that counts for anything. 
first of all, how is everybody?
 i'm feeling rather random, perhaps a little confused/lost/not sure [[see what i mean?]] 
well, i went to the circus on the 17th. the Great Moscow Circus, which arrived in town recently. it was pretty spectacular and a nice way to end the school term before we all headed off to camp. 
these colours were unintentional, but oh how lovely they are

two days later, i boarded a bus which i would then spend the next ten hours of my life in. 
oh, joy. it was a strange trip, and thinking back to it now, i don't really remember much. i savoured my music. it wasn't really my music, but it was my friend's iPod, which i had previously synced my music library with. i savoured the food i was cramming into my mouth, knowing full well the next 6 days involved ingredients such as powdered milk, microwave rice [[which was cooked/charred in a wok]], salami, cheese, etc. [[so looking back on it now, they're not so bad]]
during the week we climbed rocks while carrying 20kg packs, which consisted of everything we were to sleep in, wear, eat, drink, and cook with. oh, and climb with. 
the water we drank was retrieved from wherever possible, and on one night we even ran out. 
hiking through bushes while countless branches scratched your skin raw. the unbelievably searing pain running through your legs.
silly ones, this is exactly why i chose to participate in this camp! 
56 kilometres of sheer will power. did i mention it was all along the Victorian coast? pretty darn adventurous. so while i may seem like i'm whining, or complaining, [[and by the way, i have reason to be doing so, i still cannot walk properly]], it was pretty much one of the best experiences i've had.
i learnt to deal with different characters, with perception and with challenge. 
in the end, i may just will definitely choose to do something as crazy as the past week again. 
and by the way, miley cyrus, it's not always an uphill battle. sorry to have to break it to you, but there comes a real problem when you're at risk of tumbling to certain death falling/slipping/sliding onto a mass of rocks from the top of a sandy hill. 
if you thought Bondi Beach was a hike on a Sunday morning, you just try hiking along this beach, [[i.e. the one we did]], interpreting the map incorrectly, and subsequently realising you'd covered about 3cm, rather than 10. [[this translates to: you've done 3km, not 10km, and you still have another 17 to go]]. 
anybody else out there tried wandering aimlessly in a river for 2km, trying to find the shallowest route to take? loved it.
so the moral of this "story" is, nothing. but i must tell you all, i now truly understand the meaning of "Where is My Mind"- Pixies. i almost lost my mind hiking endlessly along the beach on that last day, and it was the only song running through my head while doing so. my head really did almost collapse with nothing in it. 

rena. 
[[sorry about the text heavy post, i hope you enjoy the pretty colours of the pictures]]
*this begs the question* why didn't i just set up a post queue? i guess i was a bit busy. if the photos from the disposable turn out somewhat awesome, which is what i'm hoping for, i'll scan them for you guys.
enjoy your weekend/hope yours was excellent (:

did i mention i'm finally on holiday? wooh! today the love + i took a ridonculously 
[[that's not a real word, international readers :D]] awesome trip down to the...
you guessed it...
beach! 
being 15 we did what all 15 year olds do: build sand castles, eat mint/choc chip ice-cream, dig sand holes and bury each other. no photos though.
-jaw drop-

all original photography, by me.

Monday, September 13, 2010

interview: Alien Space Bats

hey guys,
here's a bit about Alien Space Bats, in case you didn't know them already...
i'm referring to the Australian band, of course. they answered my questions in a good old paragraph, just the way i like it. [[dude, their first 3 influences are: the pixies, radiohead, and smashing pumpkins]]. only my three favourite bands! 
[[i can't really single any band i listen to down to favourites, it's just too hard]]
from john, of Alien Space Bats:

I would say we are quite influenced by 90s rock music and can see a little of that projecting into our sound. It is still a
pretty new thing but i guess basically i would describe it as rock n roll. Touring and playing shows all over has always been
something I would love to try with the band, so hopefully in 2-5 years time we can be doing that, but who knows maybe it'll be rehab
and writing albums in prison hahaha. We have all been playing some kind of musical instrument for quite a number of years, but i started
drumming ~8ish years ago. Our Bassist Tim came up with the name for the band, I think it came about from some readings? I don't really have a good story
for the name, it's kind of a mystery to me hahaha.
I am really into dance and eletronic music, so going raving is always a bit of fun. But music is probably my biggest hobbie.

i hope you can decipher this and see the questions i asked.
i'm free! i'm done done done with all my work! until final yearlies come up next term, but that doesn't matter, because for now, i'm done! can't explain the freedom i'm feeling right now.
nothing's changed though, i'm still sleep deprived. ahhhh, spring, i love you.
oh, that reminds me, i need to:

  1. get my photos developed
  2. get my camp gear ready
  3. get a disposable camera for camp, which means i'll have all my photos on funky film which looks totally awesome! i'm rather fond of disposables...
  4. clean my room
  5. just a random though... ever get that feeling you're starting to hoard too much, but you don't want to throw anything away?
rena.

light.

light.
a bit of light, the stella mccartney vest being the inspiration piece.
here's a bit more polyvore for you. i'm almost done with my assessments, and then i'll be able to get back to normal posting. but i have camp next week so i'll get a few posts in the queue, and see what else i can do. oh, and after the week of camp i have my spring break/holiday! happy happy me.

rena.

Saturday, September 11, 2010

mono.

monochromatic 1.
why 1? it's my favourite colour scheme. each of these pieces are serious wants.
so i finally got round to doing something.
what is time consuming and somewhat intriguing on a saturday night, and may just up my fashion insight? polyvore, of course.
i fill my sets with monochromatic stuff i love, because frankly, i wish i owned all of these.
then i could layer like a crazy motherf**ker. [[that was uncalled for]]

anywho, hope this inspires you!

rena.

sorry about the posts [[or lack thereof]], i've been really run-down and tired recently, and crammed with schoolwork, nonsensical thoughts, and music/sleep deprivation. not too fabulous a mixture, one may say.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

one cool kid.


daniel johns. he has got to be one of my major idols.
i mean, he and his band [[Silverchair]] started out at 15.
hold on. i don't mean the started out at 15, their career as a band did. no, they got together as
12 year olds and practiced like crazy, until they won a competition on SBS for their song 'Tomorrow'
[[if you're listening, yeah, the boy could sing like that at 15]] he's now 31 and still rocking out in the same pants, with the same talent.
this prompts one big string of thoughts:
i'm 15! what am i doing that's particularly productive? nothing much...
i wish i could do something cool right now.
something so awesome, and inspiring it'll make a difference.
so, there's my goal. but here's the glitch:
to be achievable, a goal needs to analysis at all angles. 

what exactly will i do?
when will i complete it?
what skill do i need? [[i.e. how?]]

i mean, sure, i may take inspiration from everywhere, but it's kind of hard to wake up and
realise your life purpose. i want to make music. but hello, how on earth am i supposed to get there?
i want to be a photographer, someone tell me how. i've done all this research on the 
internet, wondering how i'm supposed to get anywhere. being 15 may have its restrictions, but
not enough to stop me from doing something real. now i just have to find it.

daniel johns; he looks rather crazy. but as an angsty teenager, i fully comprehend his facial expressions
pictures found on google image search

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

fourteenth outfit post.


i don't like flash...excuse the blurriness
camera didn't work for me today.
my face didn't work for me today.
the sun set quickly today.
stayed home today. 
i guess painting helped a lot. *art therapy*
i'm wearing...
1*floral dress from father
2*i love billy shoes
3*random bangles
4*vintage bag i found

i'm being rather whiney lately, sorry about that...
oh, and apologies for the low-res looking photos. they were shot on the Canon 550D, i guess the breeze went a little crazy, and i refused to use flash, so the ISO was up a bit too high...therefore,
noise! [[and photos that look like they were taken on my phone]

rena.

Monday, September 6, 2010

knuckle sandwich.

taking a selfy of a hand is no simple feat
so today i found the charger for the camera. i once again did not have time to
shoot the outfit post i wanted to, sadly.
why is that? i had to sort out my wardrobe for spring. and let me tell you now, there are items in there i forgot i even had. the goal for me now is to circulate/wear each piece
 at least once these coming months, before the next sort out/clean up.
well, here's a picture of my ring + the love's together, i hope that's somewhat sufficient, for now.
we're very different in terms of style...but i guess mine was just a spur of the moment-girly-thing.
this picture isn't doing either of the rings justice, though. 

i think i'm beginning to exhaust. so i may just be 15, and apparently it will get worse, but does anyone, anyone out there have some way to get to sleep?
some way to stay asleep?
i love my sleep, but my body won't let me have it. i wake up ooh, say 1-3 times on average, per night.
it's irritating.
and now spring has arrived with it's *lovely* pollen, and hay fever has come my way. 
i won't stop posting though, but this blog may stray a little from fashion for the time being...

rena.

Sunday, September 5, 2010

got killed by ten million pounds of sludge.

crap, this photo is too cute for its own good

so you can probably figure out by the title this is not the "long awaited" outfit post.
in fact, this is going to be some kind of a rant. a vent, perhaps, and if you choose to read, then read on?
i'm annoyed. why?
because recently, i downloaded the free 4 track sampler for the Pixie's Doolittle 20th Anniversary Concert. [[clickety here to get to the website and do the same]]
and every time i listen to them live, i die a little inside. 
why? because, in march this year, i missed out on their concert to australia. and i seriously, i kid you not, want to turn back time. i'm beyond frustrated and i just have to say:

i f*cking love the Pixies. 
[[no matter how ironic it is that i missed their concert]]


so yes, this is going to turn into a 5-track-mix-post now.

1*gouge away-pixies
2*no cigar-millencolin
3*the headmaster ritual-the smiths
4*monkey gone to heaven-pixies
5*1997-washington

how was everyone's weekends?

rena.

Saturday, September 4, 2010

random harvest.


starring: greer garson, ronald colman.
i watched this movie tonight. it was a work of art. i absolutely loved it, circularity being the main theme.
it tells the story of a man who lost his memory during world war 1, and a music hall dancer who found him on the streets of melbridge... and that's all i'll leave you with. oh, keep a look out for the
 book as well.
you must watch this 1942 classic. closer to the end you'll see greer garson donning a lovely fur coat. and ronald colman is absolutely amazing in it, especially at the beginning.

rena.

Friday, September 3, 2010

interview: The Frail Marys.

So recently I sent Brisbane-based band, The Frail Marys, a couple of questions regarding the band/their music, and here are there answers! Their music is raw, strong, and reminiscent of names such as Millencolin, the Pixies, and even Blink-182. I suppose I was impressed upon seeing the awesomest list of inspiration, so here you go...
1*How were The Frail Marys first conceived?
The Frail Marys were conceived when William (Liam), met James (Jamie) who was standing outside a yuppie den wearing a Dead Kennedys shirt, looking confused and completely like a fish out of water after being forced out of the venue by stern looks of disapproval due to his apparel. A conversation ensued about music and it was decided we should start playing together immediately. We were joined six months later by Tim on bass and rehearsed with a few desperados on drums and were predictably abandoned by them one by one until we found Kai to complete the line up. It has been bliss ever since.
2*How would you describe your work?
Our work is rather raw, disorganised, passionate, sincere, diverse garage music.
3*Where do you see The Frail Marys in 2-5 years time?
I see the Frail Marys hopefully supporting You Am I and touring non-stop on an independent label. Hopefully.
4*What kind of message do you want your music to convey?
That you don't have to wear spray on jeans, sport labyrinth inspired haircuts and incorporate 10 synths and 20 samplers into a group in order to get people to shake it.
5*Any other hobbies outside making music?
Knitting, cooking, fantasising, walking, reading etc.
6*Who/What are your influences?
We are mainly influenced by groups as diverse as the Pixies, the Saints, Scratch Acid, the Scientists, the Cruel Sea, Blur, ELO, The Smiths, Janes Addiction, Nirvana, Syd Barrett, You Am I, Pete Doherty, Dusty Springfield, Motown, the Velvet Underground, Jim Morrison's blatant disregard for his good looks and health.
7*When did you start playing your instruments?
I started playing guitar around 2004, Jamie started playing guitar around 2000, Tim started playing bass around 2007 and Kai has been playing drums since the womb.
8*How did you come up with the name of your band? I was raised an Irish Catholic and thought it was cheeky play on words. No sac religious intent by the way.
9*Our last interviewee, Denis, of Pensive Penguin, would like to ask…who is your favourite mythological character and why?
My personal favourite mythological creature would have to be the Siren (Seirenes) or Naiads who in Greek mythology would lure sailors and their ships into rocks by singing. It was said that if their calls were not heeded by the sailors, they would kill themselves out of shame.
10*Do you have a random question for the next band?
To the next interviewee, who would you rather see set on fire? Luke Perry, Jason Priestly, Brian Austin Green or Ian Ziering?
photos taken from their facebook page

i'm not even kidding you right now. if you're looking for some fresh sounds, and like me enjoy the artists listed above, i'm telling you right now: you will be impressed. 
check them out here and tell me what you think.
how was everyone's week?
to tell you the truth, i'm on the brink of extreme exhaustion, and currently not even looking at anything fashion related. no, dearies, far far from that. at the moment i am...

looking at spongebob merchandise on ebay. what has my life become? but no, i do sincerely love spongebob.
have an awesome weekend, and i'll be posting something exciting/outfit-related saturday/sunday, depending on how my time goes.

rena.


oh, and kate moss ending the deal with topshop? woah..

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

brand: Secret Squirrel.


i simply cannot get over Secret Squirrel. and that's that. 
ever stumbled upon a line of clothing you wish never ended? for me, that brand would be Secret Squirrel. [[the flow of the fabric is just right]]
when something just hits the perfect balance for you, and you're suddenly overwhelmed with obsession? that's what i'm talking about when it comes to Secret Squirrel. the fact that the brand is Sydney based, and that the designers in fact started at Glebe Markets, a market i'm very familiar with [[in fact i've had a stall there multiple times]], just adds bonus brownie points.
perhaps if you aren't getting my meaning, you should see for yourself. 

i'd also like to say a big thank you to all of you lovely followers, because the moonchild has just hit...

100 followers! [[+2 now]]

i'm so happy there are so many of you out there who support me, my writing, my ramblings and my amateur attempts at fashion blogging, which hopefully will be well, not-so-amateur after this great feat. [[note the sarcasm..]] -insert smiley, which looks weird italic, the reason i don't put smileys although i'd really love to-
this month i have a couple of band interviews for you guys, many more much needed outfit posts, more playlists, and hopefully more inspiration, [[starting with Secret Squirrel]]
oh, and it's one of my best friends, Jemma's birthday today. so, happy birthday Jemma!

happy spring, southern hemisphere children! 

rena.
i'd very much like to own all of these... and many many more, i assure you, i saved every single one of their looks, and can't help flicking through them in class...