Thursday, February 26, 2015

VELVET CASHEW SUNSHINE SMOOTIE

Well hello htere internet! I have not been much around it as you can see. Or, actualy: may think, because that's not entirely  true. Time away from the internet would do many rather good I think, but  I have not reated myself to more books or long walks lately instead, just had more work to dig into and and more emails to answer and workouts to go trough. And take care of other essential things like fixing metallic curls for a robot's wig at three in the morning and putting crystals on tiny pants.

But meanwhile here's a smooth smoothie in a pale yellow colour to suit the season, as over here is seems spring really is on it's way!

This one has half a banana, froxen mango and a few bits of fresh pineapple, a spoon of organic peanutbutter and was blended out with cashew milk. "So good!", as Dag said.

Thursday, February 19, 2015

4 x RANDOMS



I had big hair.


These cherries defied winter and are still hanging in there.

Dag on one of the wood horses in Tapiola. I rode them too as a kid, but back when there were many of them in different colours. Many were also rather high. Not safe enough for today's standards I think.


And then I wore a little animal print.


Sunday, February 15, 2015

Premiere Vision Spring/Summer 2016



As always I approached Premiere Vision with pent up excitement. I always find learning about upcoming trends extremely insightful, particularly when i have the opportunity to learn how they came into fruition.

Unfortunately I missed the Autumn/Winter 16/17 WGSN trend presentation due to being unable to locate the room. By the time my colleague and I had found the venue the doors had been closed which, as can be imagined, was a huge source of frustration for me.On the plus side, WGSN is so well organised that it uploads the same trends onto it's website within a few weeks of the event.


One of the parts of PV I was most excited for this year was the press club. This year is the first where I have been emailed a free press pass which enables me to take photographs without being frog marched into a corner and forced to delete the images. This has been a great way of refreshing my mind about the trends- it's always great to have a prompt to jog your memory. As you can see I have still made my usual trend response boards, but I have also been able to include photos of how the PV trend area was laid out.

The Premiere Vision trend area and Indigo.

Photos of the fabrics shown in the Premiere Vision trend area.

There were 17 trends for Spring/Summer 16 , titled as follows:
contrasting, blurry visions, automatic writing, freehand sketches, ethnic markings, milky blossoms, sketchy, sweets, animal chatter, little jokes,hatching,large geometrics, apache geometry,interlocked geometrics, comic book style, teeming flowers, in the bush. 

I have decided to merge some of these trends into one to create a smaller pack of 10 trends:
comic book florals, apache geometry, foliage(in the bush), ethnic markings, automatic writing and hatching, freehand sketches, milky blossoms, 80's floral(contrasting), conversationals, blurred visions.

From what I saw at PV, the majority of print trends(excluding the digital ones)have a strong freehand, handcrafted feel to them. Gaining immense popularity on the runway in recent seasons with prolific designers like Diane Von Furstenberg, Burberry and Antonio Marras jumping on board, it is unsurprising that we are now seeing a vast array of hand drawn/illustrative/painterly prints.













This girl can.....

Around September last year I created this piece of artwork..


Although not a particularly breathtaking piece of art, this quote from author R.S. Grey quickly became my motto. I am of the firm belief that you can achieve anything you set your mind to.

Towards the end of last year I became more aware of my increasing unhappiness in London, brought on by nothing in particular and everything in general. Common sense dictates that if you aren't happy with you life then you should change it. So that's what I sought out to do. One of/the only perk to not having a boyfriend is that I'm not restricted when considering possible job locations- I have no one else to consider in my decision making....selfish but true. In the spirit of this I applied for jobs in Denmark, Sweden, Germany, America, Australia- I was open to anything! I went to secret interviews on my days off work in a desperate attempt to satisfy my need for change(hence the lack of blogging). 2 months later and no news from the interviews. I gave up. I went for a freelance interview and decided I would move back to the North and freelance until I had found some balance in my life. 

Apparently this was against some divine plan as 4 days after making this decision I received a phone call to say I had been offered the job in Germany!!!! So... on the 10th March I will be uprooting my life for the second time and moving to Dusseldorf to be Print designer for girlswear  at C&A's Clockhouse brand. I AM SO EXCITED!!!! I speak no German and have never worked in childrenswear. This is such a challenging opportunity and I cannot wait. 


Anyway...I wanted to focus this blog post on the new Sport England 'This Girl Can' campaign and the increase we are seeing in motivating and empowering women particularly through social media. Which I guess ties in to the piece of artwork at the beginning of this post. 

'I jiggle, therefore I am' sounds about right for me :)

" This Girl Can is a national campaign developed by Sport England and a wide range of partnership organisations. It's a celebration of active women up and down the country who are doing their thing no matter how well they do it, how they look or even how red their face gets." (taken from the campaign website) 

The campaign challenges the way the media has portrayed women over the years. It avoids airbrushed images and shows women as they are regardless of sweat dripping and fat jiggling. Finally a realistic and empowering image of women, one that we can actually relate to.


Back in September last year Emma Watson became the face of the #HeforShe campaign which brought the issue of gender discrimination to the forefront of the worlds attention. For so many years feminism has been associated with a negative stereotype, the heforshe campaign not only encourages women to be feminist, but also encourages men to speak on the behalf of women. 

We seem to be experiencing a new wave of feminism, far removed from the days of fighting for women's suffrage. Over the recent years we have seen an increase in positive feminism- women standing up for their rights; for their education; for their freedom of speech. I have recently been reading 'I am Malala', an amazing account of how a young girl, Malala Yousafzai, made a stand for educating women in Afghanistan. Definitely worth a read if you haven't already.


With the mass kidnapping of 300 schoolgirls by Nigeria's Boko Haram in April last year and a resurgence of India's rape crisis in the headlines after the Badaun gang rape/murder, crimes against women constantly appeared in the headlines of 2014. It seems that, as a reaction to this, 2015 is a year of action; a year of motivating and empowering women; a year of encouraging feminism.  

Recently I saw the below poster for the design museum in a tube station. I could not love this more. It is so relevant to the industry I work in and I will be making sure I see the exhibition before I move to Germany.


So....2015 A year of female empowerment.. a year where this girl can, and she will!






Saturday, February 14, 2015

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!


Happy Valentine's Day everybody!
I am contiuing with my tradition of something heart shaped.

The roses are not for me though -Eddi is away in South Africa and I apparently have no secret admirers either ;)  but for our students that will receive them after they have performed (for the very first time) at the burlesque debutant ball tonight.

The cholocate however is from me to me.

Friday, February 13, 2015

TREATS


My PT sessions are back! To illustrate this I have a highly informative picture of my super shaky hand that feels like it’s stuck in grip-mode after a hard workout (and yes you can also check out my nails with their icy winter manicure).

I worked out with my personal trainer for ten weeks last winter, and it was the best money investment I had made in a long time. You really get to push yourself in a new way. Plus get a bunch of new moves to work on. And, it really is something of an investment, not only from the money point of view, but also (cheesy sentence alert:) an investment in yourself because you know, your body is the one thing you have to live with your whole life. So at the end of last year I gave myself a present when the tax return money came and got myself a set of 10 new sessions. A great decision, once again.

I have always worked out, sometimes more, sometimes less, even though it seldom makes it here more than in a mention or two. What I really loved doing was Savate; French (kick) boxing. I’ve always liked martial arts. I used to do Tae Kwon Do when I was in my late teens. But then my knee got fucked up (a friend sat on my leg so it turned the wrong way, kind of, and things broke) and I had to take a break and then other things came up and I never returned. The reasons I then quit savate about seven years ago were that my working hours in the harbour were so hard I seldom managed to work out on a schedule. That, and that my other knee got fucked up (things broke during a jumping practice) and I had to have an operation and take a 6 month break. Afterwards I returned but when I started performing the bruises all over did not really fit in. Now I live too far from the boxing gym for it to be convenient and my nails are too long to fit in the boxing gloves. But one day I will return! (Add to list of things to take up again). Because, there is no such thing as too old.

Speaking of which; being older today than yesterday, as we all are, I remember reading a blog post from some 19-20-21 year old fashion blogger quite many years ago (I must have been about 26 or 27) where the young author was posting some red carpet celebrity pictures. She was being surprised and impressed that this one celeb woman (can’t remember who and don’t care) could be in such good shape at the age of thirty four! Well, this of course was met with some  amusement from many older (or, “older”) readers that stumbled by, and also by me, not because I didn't think thirty-something was that old back then, but mostly because I had always though I would be in a helluvalot of better shape at 34 than I was at, say, 22 or 26. See, even though I was working out regularly at that time I also went out and partied very regularly. I always thought (and was perhaps hoping) that at 30-something I’d be working out more smart and more dedicated, going out less and having less drinks. And so on. And, ta-da, so indeed I am! After childbirth few will have the same measurements back as one had when 21, but I am in better shape now, in a smarter way, than I’ve ever been before. Moving around for a living also helps, and now of course also because of the pilates training. Being healthy feels good, but I consider myself to be the kind of person that will never get super duper I-will-start-an-instagram-account-about-it fit, neither do I have the need to, because, well, chocolate and red wine are also totally awesome things in this world. But when I’m 34, which is this yearI’m going to be ripped! (or then not, you know, because chocolate. But I like saying it just for fun.)

I also gave myself another treat - a set of vouchers for Liangtse Wellness (a Chinese medicine wellness center). (To illustrate that is the tiny little tea pot you are served tea in when you wait, and later a content me in those small gold pyjamas you get to wear during your treatment.)


I got a gift card there from Eddi for Christmas - I had been planning to of there for years but I am the kind of person who is really bad at getting such things done for myself. Now as I was at it I went all pay-now-think-later and got myself that voucher set.  But it was a good pey first think later moment, because nothing beats someone kneading you aching head for half an hour. Well that would then be one whole hour (and perhaps some other things as well. But it definitely makes top ten of certain lists at least!) My relaxation for the ongoing year is guaranteed.


Now if I could only learn to treat myself to do my book keeping on a regular basis and to fall earlier to sleep at night things'd be even better.

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

PAINTING


You know I love animations and stop motion in particular!

Jon Rolph painting a Piet Mondrian in legos. Yes that sentence makes sense.


Monday, February 9, 2015

A LITTLE WOLUME ON TOP


 I don't like to tease or back-comb my hair. When setting my hair with curls it gets enough volume for what I normally am after, but sometimes when I want something more of a bouffant I go for hair fills rather than teasing. But not all hair fills are the perfect solution either, as I often feel my hair keeps sliding off or forming gaps in the middle.


But you can of course also get some volume into your hairdo by how you choose to lay your hair - this sideway-swirl-do gives some height by itself. You can then add to it by using just a little fill (which also makes securing the 'do eaiser) that will stay well in place.

We'll get back to the how-to in another post really soon, along with a good hint for a light and easy hair fill. But - if you'd like to learn how to roll it live, plus get some other small tips and trix when it comes to different vintage inspired do's,  I am throwing a 2-part vintage inspired hairstyling workshop next weekend!

The workshop is held in our studio in Lauttasaari on Friday evening (the 13th) and on Saturday the 14th in the day with setting the hair in the evening and brushing it out and making hairdo's the next day- fancy hair for Valentines Day! Held in Finnish, also English or Swedish if needed. See the event page for more info and how to sign up: Set those curls & style your locks!

Friday, February 6, 2015

Pre-fall 2015 Print trends

At long last I have finally finished the Pre-fall 2015 print trend boards. Just in time for Premiere Vision and the Fall 2015/2016 collections to come out next week.

The boards below show the trends I have picked up on through the Pre-fall collections. If you think I have missed any please let me know as it's always interesting to see what other people pick up on too! 




Houndstooth appears to be rearing it's head once again but in a much more contemporary way with oversized houndstooth motifs rearranged to look less harsh. Versace has absolutely dominated this trend with houndstooth motifs taking over the entire collection.




I am basically in love with this new take on geometrics. I've really enjoyed watching this trend develop from the A/W14 Prada show and the recent trend for Matisse style cutouts to this 70's infused trend of juxtaposing geometrics. My favourite collection for this trend is without a doubt the MSGM range where colourful shapes have been layered on top of each other to create a robotic print.


It has been creeping in to collections for a while now but Pre-fall 2015 saw designers make a unanimous move towards 70's styling, colour schemes and prints. Bell bottom sleeves, flares, turtle necks and boho maxi dresses were all popular shapes and layering seems to be key for this trend. With Barbara Hulanicki(founder of 70's powerhouse label Biba)returning to create a capsule collection for Biba after 39 years it is obvious that the 70's is making a huge comeback. No doubt this will continue as the dominant theme for the Autumn/Winter 2015 collections. But what next...the 80's maybe?I guess I'll find out at Premiere Vision next week!


    Naive, simple florals in bold flat blocks of colour have begun to be the trademark print for this 70's trend. Art nouveau florals are also emerging, reminiscent of the Biba prints of the 1970's. 


Another trend I love is the folk floral trend. Dark bases with bright delicate florals seemed to be present in so many of the Pre-fall collections. My favourites are the prints from the Alice+Olivia, Thakoon and A.L.C collections which are reminiscent of the dot work florals from Valentino's S/S15 collection. 


 The newcomer: Persian rug patterns......This was a predicted trend in my Premiere Vision report back  in September and I'm quite excited to see it starting to work it's way into the runway collections. Taking inspiration from tapestries and Persian rug motifs works best with deep,rich colours. I have combined this trend with paisley prints as I feel they sit together nicely to create a new ethnic trend. Definitely a trend to watch out for in the Fall 2015 collections.



So those are my trend boards for the Pre-fall 2015 collections. Next week is Premiere Vision and I have been lucky enough to have been sent a free press pass from the event organisers. Hopefully I will be posting a dazzling new set of PV trend boards next week with upcoming trends including photos from the event. :)




WHITE ON WHITE WITH SPARKLE; WINTER PHOTOSHOOT


Today I had a ice queen-themed shoot for my winter act with Asko Rantanen. We had been waiting for a suitable day with the right weather and amount of snow for some time already and today everything was just right! It was a productive day and the results will be great. The act itself has not been that special, one of my so called "dinner numbers" (i.e. one that you can easily do anywhere, mainly just an aesthetic act that perhaps has more surface than depth to it. Which is totally alright.), but I started been developing it bit by bit this year and also adding to the costume, making the whole thing evolve into something more one day. And well now I better work on it because I'm getting awesome pics, heh.


I only used part of my costume though; I had a modified sheet for the skirt instead of the actual sateen one (it will thank me later, I am sure).

A big part of shooting is just setting it up and preparing and, when outdoors especially, correcting the clothing and props and and and... This time we shot without an assistant so there was a lot of concentrating going on.


Everything is not serious business though, especially not after a couple of hours in the snow.

As you can see... well, who could resist not doing this anyway?
(Me, actually. I did learn some things as a kid.)



Our last location was just around the corner of our house. Dag joined us and we took the sledge there.
(Note my very gracious winter queen boots and xxx-layers of socks underneath.)

Behind the scenes shots also by Asko.