Whenever I feel afraid I whistle a happy tune

I am officially the worst blogger ever. I don't know why, but recently blogging has just not made it to my to-do list and I feel terribly about it. Often times I start projects and never complete them and I desperately don't want this blog to turn out that way. To rekindle the flame I think a music post is in order. To be honest, I really have no authority in music posts whatsoever, yet nothing compares to the feeling that rises inside you when a really really good song comes on the radio and dramatically alters your mood. Also, nothing compares with the immense satisfaction of knowing you were the first one to listen to some indie artist when their music gets played on MTV. So here it goes, please enjoy.

Please Don't Touch - Polly Scattergood

And We Danced... - Macklemore

Brighter Than Sunshine - Aqualung

Toothpaste Kisses - The Maccabees

Introducing Palace Players - Mew

Golden Train - Justin Nozuka

One Week of Danger - The Virgins

Walls of Jericho - Animal Kingdom

Lights & Music - Cut Copy

Beach Baby - Bon Iver

Time On Your Side - Emily Jane White

Shout Out Loud - Amos Lee

Healing Hands - Citizen Cope

Rumble+tumble

I now have a tumblr. It's a bit of a work in progress and I am not completely sure how it works, but if my terribly long musings on fashion bore you, it is mostly pretty pictures I love.

Paying homage to the most fabulous sisters ever

I have been infatuated with the Olsens since I was seven years old singing the 'great Hope diamond what's in your brother's dresser drawers' songs to their little detective series. After that I hopelessly copied all of their mannerisms from Passport to Paris and When in Rome. When Mary Kate pioneered the 'hobo chic' look I wasn't all too certain how I felt about this extremely striking girl dressing herself in layer upon layer of thrifted sweaters and topping it off with glasses bigger than her face. What I did admire though was the panache these girls always have seemed to have for being stylistically different than most of their mainstream counterparts.

The evolution of their style is really something for record books as both of them went from label mavens to full-on bohemian goddesses. I also admire their prerogative to be individuals in their style. Ashley definitely has more refined, elegant taste and Mary Kate is a bit more rock 'n roll, but this is what makes them so perfect. If you don't like what Mary Kate wears to the after party, then you'll probably like what Ashley wears and vice versa. Basically, if you think you're too good for the Olsens you should really check this out and then reconsider your decision.

Why Vogue remains a necessity

Enough said. Her pale pink one shoulder Valentino dress is the 'if I could only have one dress in the entire world it would be this one' dress.

Boldness stands alone among the wreck

I get irrationally excited when my Urban Outfitters catalog arrives in the mail. The whimsical photography and wildly hip clothes are too perfect to not devote hours to appreciating. While right now I don't really have hours, let alone minutes, I will share my four favorites from the Spring 2010 catalog.

Also, if you're looking for some wonderful new music, I have been listening to Mumford and Sons as of late and they are wonderful. Try "Awake My Soul" and "Little Lion Man" as starters, I promise that you won't regret it.

Oh Sandy,

I distinctly remember the first time I watched Miss Congeniality; it was during my geek-to-hottie-transfomation-movie obsession (think Grease and The Princess Diaries) and I knew from the moment she snorted while laughing that this actress was not only brilliant, but fearless. From Miss Congeniality to Hope Floats to The Proposal Sandra Bullock has had me laughing and crying for years, yet something really special happened in The Blind Side.

Tonight when Ryan Seacrest intereviewed her, Sandra commented that she's incredibly pessimissitic when it comes to herself and that she's always the first person to "poo poo" her work. Incredibly pessimisstic or incredibly humble? Her performance in The Blind Side left me with tears in my eyes and hairs standing up on my arms. The poise and determination she exuded in this role should be an inspiration to aspiring actresses everywhere and a lesson that sometimes you must be silly first in order to be taken seriously later.

I also commend Sandra Bullock for her wise fashion choice tonight. She radiated a calm beauty with her incredible Marchesa gown that matched perfectly with her golden statuette. Also noteworthy was her hair which was center-parted straight perfection that lended the focus to the gown instead of some outrageous hairdo. I could not be happier that Sandra Bullock won the award Best Actress tonight nor could I be happier that she did so in a stunning, refined, and elegant gown that will have fashionistas everywhere trying hard to stop the drool from running down their chins.

Why tomorrow will be a good day

Not only are the Academy Awards tomorrow night which promises lots of beautiful gowns to swoon over and lots of train wrecks to make fun of, tomorrow the Jean Paul Gaultier for Target collection hits stores. A little preview of my favorite looks below:

Because I'm a gypsy...

A friend introduced me to this Shakira video and my combined love for Rafael Nadal and all things bohemian made me fall in love with it. Enjoy!

If Anna Wintour is God then I'm an atheist

The real star of The September Issue: Grace Coddington.

I just finished watching The September Issue and ended the movie with an all too quick proclamation of my love for, not Anna Wintour, but Grace Coddington. I used to view her as merely the lady whose featured picture in Vogue would also include a cat and a lot of bushy red hair, yet I now know her to be a woman of incredible strength with true knack for aesthetics.

The movie surprisingly was a type of tell-all for the Vogue set which depicted Anna in an excruciatingly honest light. The brutal cut-throat honesty of the documentary highlighted exactly why Anna is at the top of the fashion world; she takes no prisoners. Aliken her to that girl in high school that you hated for her better-than-thou attitude, but befriended all the same to ensure your place on the social ladder.

Working at Vogue, like living the sorority life, spills over with catty behavior and fabulous clothing. Contrary to the typical sorority girls though Vogue women are trained professionals constantly reestablishing the importance of fashion in a world that as Anna so succinctly sums up "most people fear."

Gilded and guilty

As I spend hours perusing all of the fall 2010 runway collections I must admit that more often than not I shake my head in disappointment at safe and typical collections that each designer seemed to settle for this season. Balenciaga elicited yawns from me, Nina Ricci failed to make me smile. Something obviously was wrong.

The exception this time is Balmain. Oh Balmain! Balmain evoked the devilish adolescent inside of me and made me want to immediately act out in immature and rebellious ways. While most designers appealed to an older age group with more office-appropriate garb, Balmain made his statement clear. What's the point of being young and fabulous if you're going to wear a butter yellow pinstripe skirt with a white skirt? There isn't one.

Balmain captures the grandeur of 17th century French royalty while maintaining relevance in today's society. The gold dresses were (of course) my personal favorites. If you're going to rebel and do crazy things because you can you might as well look as great as possible. And if you do decide to drain yourself of all that teenage angst you may need a little help from Balmain.