of horsefeathers

summer skin

2012-05-27T21:39:00.001-04:00

summer skin - death cab for cutie

on peaks island, there are these bunkers from 1942 that are just abandoned

so a bunch of artistic people decided it would be cool to do some sick graffiti in them

and boyfriend and I decided to add to it

and also we took pictures

so here you go

i need to stop duckfacing oh my god i look retarded

Also we went to the beach and ate ice cream. It was a good day.

OH and I also got a job recently at a pizzeria, so I am officially a regular working gal. I'm a hostess. It's pretty brilliant really.

i'm waking up to ash and dust

2012-05-15T15:21:00.000-04:00

radioactive - imagine dragons (my new obsession omg)

flyfishing hat: vintage (my granddad's) // dress: Divided // shoes: Qupid

mmm yeah ok so i was bored. also my arm is part of the SONS OF ANARCHY.

See here's the thing, though... I get home from school looking relatively unrumpled so I take a couple photos for the blog.
And then two minutes later, I'm changed into boxer shorts and I'm eating ice cream. (Actually I look like that a lot, I just never post it because who'd read a blog about a total slob like I am normally?)

the shop is back up!

2012-05-14T15:49:00.001-04:00

vegan doctor who chocolate cupcakes (oh yes)

2012-05-11T16:33:00.000-04:00

So my friend Elyse and I periodically have Doctor Who marathons where we just sit down and watch like 6-8 hours of Who in a row.
We decided to make fancy cupcakes for this particular marathon.
Elyse is vegan (I'm merely vegetarian) so we made this recipe, which is actually DELICIOUS and when I used it to make a cake nobody knew it was vegan. It's amazing. As is the frosting.

I did all the ones except the TARDIS.

we basically had a ton of frosting left over so Elyse made the swirly one... we pretended it was the Time Vortex
so it would fit the theme, but really it was just loads of frosting for no good reason.

neither of us was wearing makeup, because DOCTOR DONT CARE
#YOLO

college tripping

2012-05-07T16:18:00.000-04:00

even though I'm a sophomore, my mother decided it would be a good idea for me to start looking at colleges.
so off we went.

our first stop was Boston...

the iPad kept us from getting lost; we used it as a GPS in the car... lifesaver, that thing is.

Then we went down to NYC and on the way stopped at Northhampton. It was suuuuuper warm...

We saw Jesus Christ Superstar on Broadway, which was fantastic.

Funny story; the night we were in NYC my friend Jonathan (who is a junior) was also college tripping there, so we went and wandered around Central Park together at like ten o-clock. We didn't get killed, but Jonathan did flip out a bit when we saw a raccoon. Also, we got kind of subway-lost. But it's okay. We got back in the end.

From all the ones we looked at, I most like...

Smith
Hampshire
Northeastern
Barnard

I'd also like to check out Holyoke and NYU.

I want to graduate already... ugh...

the pants

2012-05-02T16:06:00.000-04:00

sorry for not posting a lot, guys, I've been super swamped with school. I've scheduled a few posts every 4-5 days so you won't be wanting for a little bit.
if you like, follow me on Tumblr. I update that a bit more, just because it's easier to write quick little life-blips. I have a load of posts queued on that one too.

so on 9 April I decided to finally wear these pants.

High-waisted

mustard yellow

woolen

ski pants

from the early 60s.

They were my grandmother's.

I got some weird looks; The Pants even got sarcastically tweeted about.

This is what I aim for, folks!
#lolwhattrend
#whatisfashion
#idontfollowtrends
#trendsareforsillybitches

(also have I told you guys about my new boyfriend)
(he's adorable)
(he looks like Matt Smith and Benedict Cumberbatch made a child that had Amy Pond's hair colour)
(he's the bass player in a rather successful local band)
(he's going to Princeton next year)
(he's very smart)
(and likes going on weird adventures with me)
(it is very exciting)
(he's basically the perfect human being for me)
(it's very odd)
(I keep expecting him to be gay or something because he's too good to be true)
(so yeah)
(he lives in the next town over so we can't see each other all the time)
(but it's okay because he has a car)
(and also he called me last night just to talk)
(which was adorable)
(nobody ever calls anybody anymore)
(*dies*)

candles and cut flowers

2012-04-19T15:57:00.001-04:00

just a little arrangement I'm using as an altar. it's in the one spot in my room that actually gets sunlight.

by the way, this is my paganism. not slaughtering goats or writing in blood. just a lot of candles from IKEA and herbs from the garden.

cloves banish negative energies and clear your head (plus I adore the way they look and smell)
white candles for peace
green candles for nature and prosperity
a statue of a woman to represent the feminine energy that is the core of (my) witchy-ness
and other bits and bobs that just make me happy.

oh, and this was just a sketch i did for art class... the theme was supposed to be metamorphosis.

FASHION // flapper

2012-04-05T18:20:00.001-04:00

So I made a flapper dress.

Used:

2 yards black polyester-rayon (dress was bias cut)

6.25 yards black curtain fringe

metallic gold and silver thread

I didn't use a pattern, because I was working from my own design. (below)

I was going to cover the entire thing in fringe, but it was SO expensive I ended up doing only four rows on the chevron tilt and doing embroidery on the top.

I really love the back; it's quite deep.

So yeah, I wore it to school today. Fun fun.

LIFE // FASHION // landed in a very common crisis

2012-04-01T10:52:00.000-04:00

fluorescent adolescent // arctic monkeys
^these guys were amazing in concert btw. lead singer? so sexy. ^

So I broke up with the boyfriend — will have to find some other way to wear the fantastic prom dress, I suppose — and my friend Lily (you remember gorgeous Lily) decided that a photoshoot was the best way to make me feel better.
So I cut up a sheet and rolled around in the dirt — literally — and then we took photos.
It worked.

see?

lily's walking stick

isn't her hair just fantastic?

i just had to, she makes such a pretty skeleton

i just like the word

possessed lily is possessed

and possessed olivia is also possessed

rrrrk.

ps: happy april fool's day!
it's my father's birthday today, too
basically all i've done is lay in bed on tumblr, but i did convince one of my friends that i was pregnant
it was hilarious

LIFE // FASHION // indian summer

2012-03-18T19:47:00.000-04:00

indian summer - the doors

it was seventy degrees today

photoshoot time with ayanah and jackie

hair and makeup by me

oh and i found my prom dress

it's betsey johnson, and i'll be wearing it with combat boots as shown

.......PROMbat boots........

everyone, please watch this

2012-03-11T14:09:00.001-04:00

i just need to say this, okay?

seriously, people. wtf.

feel free to comment; i have only one rule: do not attack others or me based on religion. don't tell me i'm going to hell. don't say gay people are going to hell.

because that will not be tolerated.

THAT is not Christian.

THAT is idiotic.

thank you for listening.

let the unfollows commence.

(follow-up 17 march)

LIFE // FASHION // the camera's on and you're alive again

2012-03-01T19:04:00.000-05:00

carmen — lana del rey

Now, long overdue, here are some of the shots from when my friends and I went into the city. They're all out of order, but basically we're all wearing either glasses and/or clothing of mine, being super hipsters with our Nikons.

dress: 90s // ripped tights: DIY // shoes: Carmen1 // coat and gloves: Forever21 // glasses: Urban Outfitters // hat: Grandmother

one of my favorite photos ever: me and miranda sucking down some black coffee because it was freezing

I took this one of Miranda

Bull Moose Music — those who live in Portland will understand its allure.

miranda in my boots (Forever21)

Isn't she gorge? my sweater (Forever21), her peacoat

RECORDS RECORDS RECORDS. all my favorite music on records. BULL MOOSE FTW

I think I might want to try putting rings over those gloves... there's some interesting black diamond rings for sale here that I might want to try... black + glitter = my life.

I went outside Starbucks to get this one of Miranda and Ayanah

epic graffiti.

me taking Ayanah's portrait.

BY THE WAY
I dyed my hair black on Sunday
—mmhmm—
and will be posting photos
as soon as I take some
it looks pretty snazzy

LIFE // some creepiness for you

2012-02-20T22:13:00.000-05:00

In which my friends and I dress up as dead people and break into houses.

I. My friend Ayanah slept over last night and we had some fun with eyeshadow.

straight faces don't last long.

II. The next day we met up with our other friend Miranda, and wandered around Portland for a while taking photos (next post!). Then we broke into a house near where Miranda lives.
Well, an abandoned house.
From the 1800s.
Filled with cool stuff.
Like letters dated 1899.
You'll see.
I've mentioned how long I've been looking for a house like this, right? Years. This one? Perfect.
I love abandoned buildings with a burning passion.

i went in first. Ayanah was quite a bit more enthusiastic about climbing through broken glass than Miranda.

what's on the walls, guys. what is that. seriously. what.

all three of us with our Nikons... dressed like hobos... that's how we roll.

this is one of my favorites. the front door.

into the attic.

hey Aya, good to see you too.

the shower.

from left to right: history book, poster for a feedstore in "Yarmouthville" (nowadays just Yarmouth, ME), a 1917 National Geographic, a Victorian birthday card, and a change purse, a brooch, and a 1899 letter on top of another history book.

Miss Agnes M Call, Freeport, ME. not even a street address.

Check out E.T.Hathaway's phone number: 68•2. Mmmhmm. Yarmouthville.

cheque from June 28, 1910

every modern convenience, $2.00 a day. In 1899. Yeah.

rug catalogue.

there were a bunch of letters to Mr L. E. Ross. This one's from 1900, and as you can see below, someone wanted to buy his horse.

early 70s, I think? This was the most modern thing in there. After this, the house was boarded up. It was only recently unboarded.

victorian postcard. how amazing is she? I want to be her. look at that hat.

presumably one of the house owners in the 50s.

the basement.

Aya with her jugs.

the exterior.

"no trespassing..." ah. yes.

So that made me very happy.

LIFE // clearly I am a time traveller

2012-02-10T11:57:00.002-05:00

A friend of mine found this photo from the twenties.
I clearly joined up with the Doctor and went back to the Jazz Age to become a flapper.
Because no, this is not me. This is an actual 20s photograph. Just for clarification.

Oh, and if you have a tumblr, here's mine! Send me a message if you'd like me to check out your tumblr.

LIFE // don't believe a word that i haven't heard

2012-02-08T08:03:00.000-05:00

meadowlarks // fleet foxes

These photos are from a shoot I did with my gorgeous friend Lily. She's an amazing redhead, and I love her freckles.
I'm in the 90s dress I might wear to prom. I'm not sure what Lily is wearing — except for the shoes, it's all hers. I did our makeup/war paint and the henna on both of us.
Photos of her are by me, and vice versa.

yeah, i got stuck...

And this is just a couple shots from my room last night.

victorian russian earrings

FASHION // and we will put the lonesome on the shelf.

2012-02-02T19:40:00.000-05:00

you and i // ingrid michaelson

I'm warming my hands with my breath here, because it was seriously freezing out there. You know, with the snow and all.

top: Forever 21 // hat: somewhere in Ireland I can neither pronounce nor remember // skirt: Delia's // shoes: Camilla1

Oh, and I got asked to prom by my best friend. So that rocks my world.
You make me happy, sweet boy.

FASHION // i will leave this town just to sleep underneath your bed

2012-01-28T16:47:00.000-05:00

corner of your heart // ingrid michaelson

So I'm feeling a bit better — well enough to go shopping. Twice, actually.

Last weekend I had my mother drop me off in Falmouth, and I happened to meet up with my friend Ross there. He helped me shop — aka, held all my things and went to go fetch stuff while I spent money — and I ended up with a blackJuicy Couture purse ($10), a red suede Cole Haan bag ($15) and a new pair of boots ($15, and in the outfit below).

Story about the shoes:

When I was trying to decide whether or not to buy them, Ross decided to offer this helpful contribution:

"I like them. They're like snow boots. Like, these are what you would wear if you were looking for the Abominable Snowman in Scotland."

"Ross, the Abominable Snowman lives in Tibet."

"You don't know that."

"And I'd be wearing more rugged shoes than this."

He just looked at me. "No, you're OLIVIA. You would wear those."

"...you're probably right."

shoes: Qupid // shorts: I.L.U // sweater: Luxe // hat: made by my granny // necklace: Nordstrom

Today I went again with my sweet friend Jackie. I bought this super-soft sweater and these cheetah print shorts together for $10.48 at Goodwill (oh, Goodwill, how I love you) and now I'm just sort of having a lazy day.

And my hair is in fishtail pigtails. That is all.

For the record, I'm not just posing when I pull on my pigtails. I do it a lot. Too much, actually.

LIFE // mono

2012-01-20T13:41:00.000-05:00

FASHION // hitchhiker on the road

2012-01-11T17:41:00.000-05:00

hitchhiker — neil young

Thanks to Kaylin for taking/modeling for this shoot. Furs and glitter and tall shoes and hitchhiking glam gypsies.

I feel like we needed more jewelry, but whatever. I'm going to get my cartilage done soon and I'm thinking some of these beauties might be in order...

On Kaylin » shirt and furs: vintage // jeans: American Eagle // shoes: Forever 21
On me » dress, furs, and hat: vintage // sweater: Forever21 // shoes: Camilla1

FASHION // snow white skin ebony hair lips as red as blood

2012-01-06T18:35:00.000-05:00

snow white // xandria

Sooooo two very exciting things about this outfit. I must say, it's one of my favorites in a while.

One, how amazing are these shoes?! They came yesterday. They make me like literally 6ft.

Two, I made a skirt. My first-ever piece of real, wearable clothing! I didn't have a pattern or anything, I just sort of went for it, and it turned out pretty good. I used linen.

I realized I kinda love the whole super pale / dark lips and hair / dark circles around eyes look.
It feeds my obsession with Russia and Grimm's fairy tales at the same time.
And it's good because I have very pale skin, dark features, and am always tired.

(By the way, have you ever actually read the original Grimm stories? I have a book of them, and I grew up on them — not the kid/disney versions — and they are damn dark. Everyone dies and gets eaten and cursed. Snow White and Rose Red was always one of my favorites.)

PS: new look. good or no? I had only portrait shots to work with, so I kept reflecting it againandagainandagain until it got long and skinny enough. Then I drew a little banner and scanned it in.

LOVES // current obsessions

2012-01-04T18:11:00.000-05:00

001. New backpack.
I thought I'd give you guys a tour of my schoolbag... it's a new one from Urban Outfitters, I'm pretty pumped.

002. Huge eyes.
America's Next Top Model is like candy to me — I know it's crappy but sometimes I just indulge. And the All-Star Cycle? Ohmygod Allison Harvard is my favorite person ever. Her eyes are frickin gigantic. I pretty much threw a hissy fit when she lost to Lisa.

003. YouTube makeup videos.
My obsession with her eyes led me to troll YouTube for hours, hoping to improve my makeup routine (my foundation is particularly icky). I hold fast that the internet was invented to keep me from doing my homework or anything productive whatsoever.

004. Ingrid Michaelson.
Her songs are all SO PRETTY. The lyrics especially make me want to die from the amazing. They're so deep and gorgeous and well-spoken.
This one is my favorite.

005. Cat sweaters.
After months of searching, I finally found one. You can see it in the video.
Hipsterdom level up.
Sigh.

006. Grimm & Pretty Little Liars
Fairy tales + crime show = ohmygodfreakout. And Monroe is so. adorable.
AND PRETTY LITTLE LIARS IS BACK *dies*

LIFE // 2012

2012-01-01T13:10:00.000-05:00

» my friends and i on new year's eve. «

I'm sure that your friends on Facebook and Twitter have already overloaded your feeds with their New Years Resolutions, and what they did when the ball dropped, and how glad they are to have a fresh start, blah blah blah. So I won't add to the mix, because you know as well as I that nobody really cares except the person who posted it.

I didn't make any resolutions last year, and I'm not a big fan of those big grand "I WILL LOSE A THOUSAND POUNDS" or "I WILL BECOME A BETTER PERSON WHO HELPS OLD LADIES CROSS THE STREET" sort of resolutions because I'd never be able to keep them and I'd just get angry at myself...

So I'm staying small and making my only resolution to drink at least two liters of water every day (versus the zero I drank last year). Look, I even found an article to keep me on track. Thank you Google.

There we go, that's all I'm going to say. Here are some unpublished photos from last month that never made it to the blog.

the gingerbread house i made this year

and the bûche de noël my mother and i made

FASHION // BEAUTY // oh, those russians

2011-12-30T18:33:00.000-05:00

rasputin — boney m

note to self, taking self-shots in a cramped space, in the dark, without a tripod, is NOT a good idea.

simple cat eye using eyeshadow.

tights: H&M // dress (worn as skirt) and sweater: Forever XXI // TARDIS necklace: Etsy

FASHION // dowdy in sweatshirts

2011-12-28T17:15:00.000-05:00

I always feel weird wearing sweats. But I got a sewing machine for Christmas that does all this neat embroidery stuff, so I tried it out on that big old sweatshirt I rescued from lost&found.
I like it.

sweatshirt: unknown // tights: H&M // shoes: Forever XXI // hat: Ireland // nails: Harlequin by Material Girl

oh, and do you know how hard it is to take pictures in the pitch-black with self-timer and no flash?
hint, it's hard.
but also entertaining.
and also it gets dark here at 4:00pm.

Also just bought these little beauties. They should be here in early January. Yeep. Expect me to wear them every.day.

Noticing a pattern? My recent post titles have all been lyrics from the songs at the bottom.
one (blake's got a new face) // vampire weekend

LOVES // things do to for christmas

2011-12-24T07:26:00.000-05:00

Traditions are great. Really, they are. Our family has the really odd one of having paella every year (not sure how that got started).

And let's not pretend that we all don't get up just a bit earlier on Christmas day. Come on, admit it, your brain hasn't recovered from being seven years old and super-pumped for Santa. (My own story of losing belief in the Tooth Fairy, Santa, the Easter Bunny, etc, is actually kind of a strange one. It's at the bottom of this post.)

So in the hour or so before normal humans awake, what do you do?
Grab your laptop, of course, because I have a couple things you absolutely MUST do.

One, read about Krampus.
If you aren't good this year, Santa's buddy Krampus will tie you up in a sack and eat you.
I was raised with books about evil fairies, and Norwegian trolls who ate children, and the original Grimm and Hans Christian Anderson stories where most of the characters end up brutally murdered, and two parents who actively encouraged me that there were several ghosts in our house. Krampus just comes naturally to me.

Two, watch A Nightmare Before Christmas.
It's like a Christmas movie AND a Halloween movie, and the main characters are all dead. It's fantastic. As a child I watched it year-round (and let's not forget about similar Tim Burton masterpiece Corpse Bride).
Seriously it's a fantastic movie. I want to live in Halloweentown and Christmastown at the same time, but mostly I'm just curious about the sketchy circle of trees.

Three, Christmas dubstep.
Do I really need to say anything else?
No I don't.
So here's some of my favorites.
Carol of the Bells — favorite song ever to begin with... and then there was BASS.
Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy — some ballet company SOMEWHERE has to dance to this.
Jingle Bells — but of course.
So now your Christmas has either been stripped of childhood joy, or made a whole lot awesomer.

Four, yes, go watch some Glee.
Go on, we all know that Glee is like Christmas crack.
It's so cute... my brain is melting. And their love triangles/squares/pentagons/hexagons/heptagons/etc are hilarious. And then there's that one Irish guy with the fantastic accent! I love Irish accents.

Oh, right, the non-believer story.
Well when I was newly seven and at the peak of my tooth-losing, I was looking for something in my parents' dresser. Instead, I found a tin of teeth. My teeth.
My seven-year-old mind immediately jumped to OH MY GOD MY MOTHER KILLED THE TOOTH FAIRY.
This is the kind of child I was.
I then proceeded to search the house — which was a former WWII army barrack, as at that time we were living with my grandmother on Great Diamond Island — for the Tooth Fairy's tiny corpse.
I didn't find it, so then I was like ooohhhhhh. no real Tooth Fairy. gottttt it.
But I still don't think my mother's forgiven me for pegging her a murder.

❦ Merry Christmas! ❦