Dress Me Mag

Peace Out Blogger

2012-04-13T22:34:00.000-04:00

We've moved on to wordpress. You can find new posts (and our old ones) at http://read.dressmemag.com!

Arango House

2012-04-11T13:07:00.000-04:00

That post about the Dwell/PST architecture contest has me looking up California modern designs again. I was particularly struck recently by these images of Arango House designed by John Lautner. Now, this house is actually in Acalpulco, Mexico, but the Frank Lloyd Wright trained architect is well know for some of his California designs and his style certainly carried over here.

Cat and Maus.

2012-04-10T11:49:00.000-04:00

Summer vibes are coming fast. There is that spring scent on the wind that tickles ones memory and in an instant calls up flashes of lacksydasical days spent over past summers. Moments devoted entirely to whim, broken down with no structure, moving on pure instinct. These flashbacks often come oversaturated and washed out, that moment before your eyes fully readjust from the battery of a camera flash. This feeling is of course probably aided by the fact that many summer photos turn out the same way. It is as if the film was swimming in the same summer daze as the memories. These photos from Maus. are a glimpse into that haze.

DM Playlist 4.2 - 4.8

2012-04-08T14:30:00.001-04:00

These are the song of the day selections from April 2nd to April 8th
B F R 16 (Ate) by Daisuke Tanabe

Biocritical by Satol

here, in heaven 4 & 5 (CFCF Remix) by Elite Gymanstics

Limbo by Pazes

Sunlight by Dehousy

DumDum by Baauer

I'm so This Way by BE∆CHES

Modernism x LEGO

2012-04-08T14:07:00.002-04:00

I haven't been shy in the past about showing my love for California architecture. I think we've also made our taste for modernism clear. With these interests, I couldn't resist going through the entries to the LEGO building contest that asked entrants to construct an original home design inspired by California mid-century modern architecture. Dwell and Pacific Standard Time teamed up to run the contest as if it didn't already sound enticing enough. There were quite a few entries that I enjoyed. Many caused some serious nostalgia, picking up on some of my favorite elements of L.A. architecture such as building into hills and of course the attention to natural interaction with constructed spaces. Below are a few of my favorite entries, the rest can be found here.

Pink and Black

2012-04-08T13:23:00.000-04:00

Dress: Juicy Couture // Bottoms: Current/Elliott // Jacket & Shoes: Zara // Bag: Marc by Marc Jacobs //

It is starting to feel like Spring time in the city again, which always feels like a citywide attempt to work color into our otherwise colorless wardrobes. Since most of my wardrobe is black, if I am going to wear color I usually just pair it with black pieces. I am looking forward to summer where I can just wear dresses without pants or tights!

Happy Easter

2012-04-08T12:47:00.001-04:00

Happy Easter! Here are some Easter inspired photos from Jordan's photography blog.

Candy Typography Casts Sweet Spells

2012-04-07T21:11:00.000-04:00

Last night we were working on a project using gummy letters from Haribo. When we were finished we decided to make words with the piles of letters that were left over. This set of words came from a collage that I made. Jordan hung it on the wall ages ago and whenever I am in bed I like to look at it. I am not sure where I got them from but I think they are lovely in a dark way. As lame as it sounds, seeing the words spelled out with candy reminds me how important it is to speak sweetly to people.

Symmetry yrtemmyS

2012-04-07T12:52:00.000-04:00

Symmetry is something that I've always loved to use for composition. I mean, supposedly its natural to be drawn towards symmetry, right? I thought it might be interesting to take some of the photos that I've shot and flip them to make symmetrical images. I think the results are kind of interesting, and it affords a new way to look at my photos. While in some the mirroring is quite obvious, in others, I chose more abstract images, so that the mirroring might be more subtle.

New Shoes

2012-04-07T12:29:00.001-04:00

Top: Gap // Jeans: J Brand // Jacket & Shoes: Zara //

I am starting to feel like these shoes from Zara are the new Lita for the fashion blogging, outfit posting crowd. One has to assume that for a shoe to get Lita level popularity there must be a good reason behind it. I decided to get to the ‘sole’ of the situation by finally buying a pair myself.

The design of this shoe is minimal, contemporary, and interesting. For me, it is nearly perfect for a polite black heel. Despite how into these shoes I was before I bought them, I had my doubts about the function of the shoe that had prevented be from buying them sooner.

I have never bought a pair of shoes from Zara before and therefore felt skeptical
They look like they will give you blisters if you wear them for walking purposes
Considering that I only buy shoes that I think I will be able to walk in for at least a mile and a half, I wasn't sure if these would be comfortable enough

Although they were comfortable, I did end up getting blisters (thankfully there was a drug store two blocks away when I decided that I needed bandaids). This could have partially been the result of me jumping around, which I guess isn’t something you shouldn’t be doing in heels anyways. If you are interested in getting a pair I would recommend them, for only $50 I cannot really complain.

Night Slugs

2012-04-06T13:03:00.001-04:00

After taking a look at the visuals of Ghostly International in a previous post, I began thinking of other labels whose style I enjoyed. Night Slugs was one that immediately caught my mind. Rather than the more historically mindful, eclectic approach of Ghostly, Night Slugs has a much harder edged, modern aesthetic. This makes sense given that unlike the more atmospheric focus of Ghostly, Night Slugs is concerned with music that has its feet firmly rooted to the dance floor. Their look is much more immediately cohesive. This is in part due to the minimal use of texture (or rather, obvious texture) on their covers. The digital look that the covers give off certainly matches their brand of music.

Lil Silva - Night Skanker

Girl Unit - IRL

Kingdom - Dreama

Jam City - Magic Drops

Bok Bok - Southside

Issue 8 Cover Moodboard

2012-04-06T12:32:00.001-04:00

Top [ Left: John Singer Sargent - Daughters of Edward Darley Boit | Right: Diego Velazquez - Las Meninas ]
Bottom [ Left: Rodarte for Lula | Center: Louis Vuitton S/S 2012 Collection // Siri Tollerød | Right: Siri Tollerød for Lula ]

Plexiglass Playtime

2012-04-04T02:59:00.000-04:00

Top: Rag & Bone // Cardigan: Marc Jacobs // Bottoms: Current/Elliott // Bag: Marc by Marc Jacobs //

When making thoughtless purchases while shopping for clothes, shoes, accessories, etc. it is not often that I find myself buying something just because I feel like it. However, when it comes to stores full of supplies, materials, tools, and organizational tools is a completely different story. Those are the places where my sense of reason seems to fail me and instead is replaced with thoughts of every project that I could possibly do. Usually I can shake it but if I see something that I honestly think will make me more productive or organized, or that will make my living or working spaces more organized than my dreams of becoming Martha Stewart level organized can get the best of me. This was almost the cases on Monday when Jordan and I braved the extremely crowded China Town to go to a store on Canal St., which is appropriately named Canal Plastics.

In my opinion it should be called 'Plexiglass Playtime' or 'Designer Plexiglass/Acetate Jewelry is Overpriced & Will Scratch' or even 'You Paid More Than $100 for That? We Will Make it for $2 but You Will Not Get a Bag to Carry it in'... seriously, your plexi crystal dreams can come true here. In fact, buy a pair of pliers and some jewelry findings and you can DIY something similar to Miu Miu, buy some ribbon and you can DIY something similar to a necklace from Marni, or you can buy some adhesive and rhinestones and you have a DIY version of a Pucci bangle. I should warn you though that the store is a serious trap if you are like me and get tempted by industrial supplies. In my defense, you may think that plastic is irrelevant to you now but just wait until you are faced with a selection of plastic in every color, opacity, reflectiveness, size, thickness, shape, etc. that you can imagine. I have a feeling you too will find yourself realizing that you do in fact need the largest sheet of 1/4 inch of onyx black plexiglass that they have once you get inside.

I did not end up getting that (although I wanted to), but I was tempted by all of the $1 square swatches of different colored plexi, which are conveniently located in the front of the store. While holding about five different colored squares, I realized that I was being ridiculous and I decided to put them back and make my way to the dimly lit aisles in the back of the store. After getting what I was looking for I headed to the front and checked out before I was tempted with anymore unplanned plastic decisions. When we were finally out of the store we noticed that the lovely weather that we experienced on the way there had decided to check out as well and instead we wandered back through a cold Soho and through somewhat disorienting gusts of wind. The rest of the night was spent sorting out the work for the week.

Automatic Doodling

2012-04-03T14:43:00.001-04:00

The automatic nature of doodling has always attracted me in a similar way to collage, as I described in a previous post. For all of the same reasons it is a perfect way to move past the negative feedback loop that is created by the pressure I put on myself when I attempt to make everything that I create exceptional. So when I hit a block recently, I started doodling. The pattern that I use in these images is one that I have been using in doodles since I began developing it in my senior year of high school. At the time, I was heavily interested in graffiti, and a lot of the forms that are employed in the pattern are those that my hand had picked up from sketching letter forms. Similarly, the collaged/pasted/edited/subverted elements of these images comes from that artistic background. It shouldn't be too hard to see where graffiti roots would play a role in drawing on or covering other people's work.

Being a graphic designer, I do not focus on naturalistic representation most of the time, instead looking to perfect my typography. As a result, my ability to render images that are faithful to their sources has fallen. Many of my friends are illustrators, and particularly skilled at create naturalistic images. This causes me to expect a level of work from myself that is really beyond what I'm capable of at the moment. When a drawing doesn't come out the way that I want it too, rather than work off of the problems, I will attempt to skip the early steps that I need as a foundation to move forward. This only hurts my ability to render in the end. Doodling like this plays an important role because it provides a stress free situation in which I can work, so that I can clear my mind and build my skills in later attempts.

Into Miu Miu Star Print

2012-04-02T23:28:00.000-04:00

Ever since stars started appearing on garments I have been into them (remember the Chanel SS2008 collection). As a side note: I am not talking about the stars from American flag motifs. I had not really seen that many star printed garments until I was in Acne over the summer with my Father and he bought a black tie with little white stars on it. From that point on I have been into star prints (officially).

When I found a black dress with white stars on it at H&M in the fall, similar to the tie that my Dad had bought, I was extremely excited and I figured that my star print obsession was over for the most part. However, after seeing this pair of red star printed jeans from Miu Miu I am realizing that I am not over it yet. The jeans are my favorite, but I would wear a whole star printed outfit from Miu Miu (pictured above) if I could. I made the picture for you so you could get a sense of how great it would be.

If you do not believe me, try it for yourself (and then send me a picture so I can tell you how badly I want to be your best friend and how great you look)! Bottom / Top / Jacket: Miu Miu //

Collage: Freedom from College

2012-04-02T20:06:00.000-04:00

Collage has come to my rescue once again. I find that it has repeatedly helped my deal with creative slumps. It is perfect, because it requires neither strict use of skills nor high concept. It simply allows the creator to get ideas on a page quickly. Now, of course, mindless collages that are merely excersizes in composition may not be the most interesting, but the freeing nature of the work can result in something far greater than originally intended. Additionally, I've found that they can help break the feedback loop that entraps me. At times I feel like I am not creating enough, or enough good work. That leads me to self doubt, which only causes me to cease creating and dwell on my past mistakes, rather than moving forward. Collages offer a stress free mode of work where I can be free of the notion that every mark I make must exude my brilliance.

The Indecisive Moment

2012-04-01T16:11:00.001-04:00

I'm starting a new movement in photography. I feel like alll of my work recently has been pinned down in relation to Bresson's concept of the decisive moment. Now, from what will follow, it may seem that I am against Bresson's method of street photography, but this is not the case. Don't misenterpret my words here. I love the dramatic tension and lively narrative that Bresson's work captures, but to only love one form of photography seems quite dull to me. From here on out, I am interested in exploring the indecisive moment. The stillness, the relaxation of spaces that exist unmoving. The innanimate spaces that stoicly accept the atmosphere cast upon them day, after day, after day. The languid pace at which these scenes transpire affords a more medatative image, one that gives the illusion of relying not on timing, but rather simply on ability to see and mechanical skill. Of course, this appearance is false. The actor is simply one which we do not recognize immediately. It is the aforementioned atmosphere that takes the front of the scene here. The repetative nature with which the atmophere acts is the core of its indecisiveness. It is a moment that only happened once, yes, but due to the lack of agency that we afford the actors we are unable to recognize the moment's individuality. Through affixing this title of the indecisive moment, the viewer is forced to question whether or not the image being presented is in fact indecisive, bringing about inspection of the seemingly mundane with renewed vigor. To begin exploring this concept, I thought I'd look into the work of Andreas Goroncy. Of course the thought I presented above are my own, and as the creator of these photos Andreas Goroncy is entitled to apply meaning, I just thought they would present an interesting illustration of my ideas.

DM Playlist 3.26 - 4.1

2012-04-01T15:35:00.000-04:00

Check out a roundup of our songs of the day for this past week after the jump

RobotEatingDragon - Hertz Donut

LOL Boys - LDR

Anenon - This is What I Meant

gLAdiator - Wreck It

Raspian - TERRAFORM

Polkadot - Soft Hands

Bwana - Can't You Just

TOMO 77

2012-03-31T16:55:00.000-04:00

I've been trying to look back into more illustrative creators for inspiration lately. It is always important to step away from the backlit screen and the monotonous feel that is brought about by every tool being broken down to a keyboard/mouse interface. Even when the work isn't necessarily hand done, it often carries a very organic feel. This work from TOMO 77 definitely fills that need. TOMO 77's influences seem to stem from that pop-psych sensibility, weaving together lineages of pop artists such as Richard Hamilton and revered design studio Push Pin. The resulting collages give off the look of an immediate message, but after examination it isn't quite as obvious as it might appear.

Me x Kate Moss for Supreme: A Note on Tattoos

2012-03-30T15:54:00.000-04:00

Photograph: Marielle Sales

Photographer Marielle Sales took this photo of me during a recent shoot we did together. I did not actually realize when I picked up the piece of torn off poster from the ground to show it to Marielle and Jordan that it looked like I was the one holding a cigarette for a Supreme ad. It wasn't until she told me not to move that it all became clear.

After seeing the photograph I actually have a new perspective on getting a tattoo (this is only in relation to myself, I think tattoos look extremely cool and approrpriate on everyone else), which is something I have always been curious about. I am not sure if this is correct logic but I have come to realize that if I do not like the way that they look on me when my head is on Kate's body then the likelihood of me liking them on my own body is not very high. Does this mean that I am going to stop putting on temporary tattoos? Not a chance.

Powerhouse Museum

2012-03-30T15:17:00.000-04:00

When I saw that there was a Powerhouse Museum commons on flikr, I instantly (and foolishly, I'll now admit) assumed that it was in some way related to Powerhouse Books. I went to build this post with a totally awesome story about how I worked under the guidance of a few people from Visionaire to help create a book of Time Square photographs from the 80s for Powerhouse as a Parsons class. Unfortunately, these two Powerhouses don't seem to be related. I was fooled by similar logos (although, to be fair, how many ways can you format a lowercase ph?). Still I enjoyed looking through their collection, and made some interesting finds.

Ghostly International: Some Music Visualized

2012-03-29T20:27:00.000-04:00

Ghostly has been one of my favorite record labels for quite a while. It releases some of my favorite music, drawing on a stable of artists that as a whole typify a style of music that I love. This can be distilled as what Ghostly refers to as SMM. As they describe it, "a mysterious acronym that encompasses enigmatic ambient and experimental music with an emphasis on textural and melodic expanses". Indeed, many of our late night DM work sessions have been soundtracked by the Ghostly SMM compilation. Along with a solid aural appeal, the label puts out some strong visuals. Their attention to aesthetics can be seen on their website, both in the design, and in the Ghostly store, which promotes a range of desirable items. In fact, a few years ago I bought Mariel a typography based game from said store.

Their album art is always appealing, and representative of the sounds it encases. These are a few of my favorites (I tried to do away with bias based on the music they represent).

Matthew Dear - Slowdance

Dabrye - Two/Three

Tycho - Dive

Com Truise - Galactic Melt

Lusine - Lucky Numbers: The Ghostly International EPs

Baltic Beauty Elena Perminova vs. Bracelet by Moniva Vinader

2012-03-29T03:29:00.000-04:00

Source: tumblr // Fiji Gem 18-karat rose gold-vermeil spinel bracelet by Monica Vinader: 350.00 //

Ever since I first saw this picture of former Russian model Elena Perminova, wearing this possibly pale lavender or blue but most likely just grey Chloé coat, a pink (although some say orange) Maison Michel hat, and this pair of black (Zara ?) heels, I have thought her to be terribly chic. She is definitely on my list of Baltic babes.

My obsession with Baltic beauties may have something to do with my own Baltic heritage but I do not think I am alone with this one, it seems that along with a few other Russian names (you can read about them in the April issue of Vogue), Perminova is becoming a fashion week street style icon who never fails to deliver when it comes to amazing outfits. Along with the other Russian style stars, her outfits have a unique Russian touch to them that just makes me melt.

So, when I saw this bracelet by Monica Vinader the other day online I became extremely excited. The half gold half cord combination instantly reminds me of Perminova’s outfit. Also, let’s not forget the other similarities: the black, the rose gold, the bracelet’s black spinels/the jewels from the Chloé coat, and of course the ‘M’ on the bracelet and the ‘M’ on the hat. So lovely!

Joeri Bosma

2012-03-28T14:55:00.001-04:00

I really like the idea of a picture a day photodiary. Over the summer after my freshman year in Parsons I undertook a project where I was taking one picture every day. While it wasn't really that successful, I learned a lot through the process, and the structure of the system gave me a reason to really concentrate on image making.
I was reminded of this while looking through the flickr account of Joeri Bosma, who is posting a photo every day. Having never seen his work before, I can't say if the project has been useful for improvement, but it certainly has produced some interesting results.

Artefact

2012-03-27T14:03:00.000-04:00

This morning, I saw that a book I had been reading and left out was sitting on a table with perfect light on it. In that moment, I had the idea to make some photos of some of my favorite things in my apartment in that light. Unfortunately, as I didn't work quick enough and the light changed before I got a chance to take many photos. Still, I turned on a light and finished the job.

This is partially one of the favorite things in my apartment because of the story behind it. I was told to read it by a friend of Mariel's after visiting his apartment some time around 5 AM. The spontaneity of the event combined with the interesting content of the book makes me particularly interested in it.

Have I written about this before? Its possible, it seems a familiar subject. Either way, this Operation Doomsday re-release from Stones Throw was a gift for my birthday this past year. MF Doom being my favorite rapper, and Operation Doomsday my favorite of his solo albums, any copy of this album on vinyl would be prized to me. It is only made better by the alternate cuts included in this release, as well as the amazing packaging that it comes in.

I found this book of matches in the street one day and liked the design so much I decided to take them. I took a picture of them when I first found them and put it on my photo journal, Mindless Carbonation. I wanted to take a picture of the whole outer wrapping at once, but they've been folded for so long that making the package lie flat is impossible. There was once a name on the inside, but it is gone at this point, so I'll probably never know the source of the book. I like that though, my mysterious, strangely artful book of matches.

Every year I attend a Channukah party at which these glasses are distributed. Although they may not have been procured at one, they are generally referred to as my prize bar mitazvah glasses. This is probably the most fun item on this list. When wearing them, the lenses cause the light to diffract, forming a Star of David around any concentrated source of light. You can see an example of them in action below.

I don't know where this last item came from. It provokes a lot of questions that I'm completely unable to answer. It appears to be the smallest from a set of matryoshka dolls, with the word "Malevitch" hand painted on the outside. Where did it come from? What did the other dolls in this set look like? Who or what is Malevitch? Things I'll never know I guess...