This is what happens when I'm home alone...

Don't ask :)

Vintage jacket- $5 from American "thrift store". That's charity shop to most of us!

More than all the stars in the sky...

I received this gorgeous, beautiful, twinkling, sparkling vintage jacket for Christmas and I LOVE IT! The sequins are so delicately sewn on and it seems like each sparkle was put in by hand. I love how with each movement you make, even if you try to stand completely still, it still sparkles like the brightest star in the sky.

BTW-This is my 100th post!!! Only a hundred posts ago I had just the tiniest idea of what a blog was and now I am a hundred posts in with a handful of lovely followers and commenters-  so thanks :)

"It was one of those moments of perfect tiredness"

I have had the best, if slightly exhausting weekend. On Saturday I went to see Cinderella as a ballet at Saddlers Wells. The dancing was flawless and truly magical to watch, and the costumes were beautiful and looked very authentic, however the ballet didn't exactly stick to the traditional story. To be honest, I think "Cinderella" is a misleading title. I don't ever remember being read a bedtime story in which there were prostitutes and fights, and although I liked the idea of setting it in London during the Blitz but I'm still not sure about the whole thing. I was a little disappointed by the production as I had seen Edward Scissor Hands which was also by Matthew Bourne and that was amazing; the best ballet I've ever seen. Cinderella certainly did not live up to the standards that Edward Scissor Hands set.

I then continued my busy day by seeing Billy Elliot at the Victoria Palace Theatre with a few friends for a birthday party. My friend has been in it as one of the dancing girls and had been going on about how fantastic it is and I have to say, I completely agree with her. The acting is brilliant and very moving- I cried. A lot! The choreography is so creative and looks amazing and the set is very clever and uses the space really well. Billy's singing wasn't the best in the world but so much else was going on that it didn't really matter. One thing I found quite odd- but not in a bad way- was that I could see behind that stage! I could see the actors after they walked off or were getting ready to walk on. That was quite disconcerting but added a little extra something! I would definitely go and see Billy Elliot again, and have recommended it to all my friends.

On Sunday I went to another course at the NPG. I've said it before but I'll say it again- The National Portrait Gallery is the only place I've found that does courses (free) for teenagers, and for that, I am eternally grateful. So as I was saying, I did a photography course with two friends and it was really interesting- we looked at the portrait exhibition/ competition and even met one of the photographers. We then got introduced to different cameras, lenses, lightings and backgrounds and got to experiment and try them all out. I'm not exactly an expert with cameras so it was a really informative, but still really fun, way of learning how different lenses affect the photographs and what different lighting could do. My favourite was a pin hole lens (I'm not sure if that's the proper name for it). I know I'm going to explain this really badly but I'll try anyway- it basically took a really, really long photograph (like the photograph of the shoe shiner- he's the only one you can see because everyone else is moving and he's staying still) so you could move around and jump in and out and swap with someone etc, then it gets a really eerie, spooky result! Sorry for writing so much, well done if you got through all of it!! Here area few of my pictures from the NPG.

Alexander McQueen Genius of a Generation by Kristin Knox

I have a terrible confession. Although I claim that Alexander McQueen is my favourite designer, I realize that I did not even know his first name. I know- it's shameful. I was oblivious to the fact that he is Lee McQueen with his label replacing his first name with his middle name, Alexander. But I know now, thanks to this book. (By the way- I learnt a lot more from this, not just his name!)

This is the first book to be bought out after Lee Alexander McQueen's tragic suicide in February 2010. Although it does not have every catwalk show included, some repeated images, not every famous creation and not every detail , this book is a beautiful collection of fantastic carefully picked images with interesting and engaging writing.

The pictures really are beautiful, such a brilliant quality and full page so that you can enjoy them in all their glory. My two favourite pictures of the entire book are the dramatic knitwear (page 29) and the model being sprayed in paint (page 15).

For only £10 on Amazon this book is definitely worth every penny.

p.s It's not just me who gives no recognition to the name Lee McQueen- if you type that into Google it comes up with the winner of the Apprentice, not the world famous designer!

Here are some reviews of the book that I thought were really interesting:

- http://www.fashionmefabulous.com/2010/07/book-review-alexander-mcqueen-genius-of.html
- http://www.ameliasmagazine.com/fashion/alexander-mcqueen-genius-of-a-generation-book-launch/2010/05/20/
-http://blog.booktopia.com.au/2010/05/19/alexander-mcqueen-genius-of-a-generation/

On another note- HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! I hope you all have a wonderful 2011 and that there are many good things to come. Any New Year Resolutions? I have decided to try and teach myself to play guitar- I just hope it lasts longer than when I decided to take up gardening (that lasted 4 days!)...