Feathers and Lace

Sweet and Surreal

2010-12-18T15:15:00.005+13:00

I love these wonderfully sweet and whimsical illustrations by Alessandro Gotardo. The little musical elements are a nice touch too :)

Source

Shanghai World Expo

2010-10-10T22:10:00.000+13:00

This years world expo was held in my city of birth, Shanghai! The world expo (or world's fair) is held every few years, with the main attraction being the national pavilions created by participating countries to showcase their culture and technological advancements. This year, 189 nations took part, to the theme of "better city - better life", with an emphasis on being environmentally friendly.

The inverted red pyramid is the China Pavilion.

Visitors outside the China Pavilion.

"Expo organizers required that all the structures—including the Denmark Pavilion, pictured here—use nonpolluting materials from renewable sources and be designed to limit energy consumption. The holes in the building’s facade provide ventilation and natural light during the day; at night they bathe outdoor pathways in light. "

South Korea - love the colours and squares, it kind of reminds me of pixels?

Egypt - it looks like a Nike box!

New Zealand :)

Inside the Russian pavilion - it's like Alice in Wonderland! It's supposed to be a "model of future cities based on the imagination of its children" Clever idea!

Phew that was a lot of buildings to sort through, maybe I'll do a part 2 next week.

Sources
1|2|3

Garden of Wonka

2010-09-18T18:03:00.005+12:00

Wow, I can't believe I haven't posted since June! I've made a new goal to post once a week, I think that will be manageable.

In the meantime, here are a few photos from some sets I've been meaning to post:

Trees Photographed in Infrared - Don't these look amazing? It's like something out of a dreamland, they look like cotton candy!

How beaches looked 100 years ago

And a clever little ad for Photoshop CS4

2010 FIFA World Cup

2010-06-16T20:44:00.006+12:00

It's soccer world cup time again! I'll be honest, I don't know much about soccer, but I love all epic sporting events. Also, New Zealand actually qualified this year for only the second time ever - the first was in 1982. I was cheering for the All Whites in their first match against Slovakia on Tuesday, I'm so happy we managed to get a draw (considering we lost all three games in 1982), that last minute equalising goal was intense!

Here are some stunning photos courtesey of Boston.com; the ones of the audience are my favourite, I love seeing all the emotion and passion of the fans.

Source

Cartoon ladies for Dove

2010-03-28T12:49:00.002+13:00

This is from several years ago now, but it's one of my favourite ad campaigns ever, so I thought I'd just share it here. I think it's very creative and memorable - Marge is perfect for selling anti-frizz cream haha - and everyone knows about my love for the Simpsons.

What are some of your favourite ads?

The reason I haven't posted for a month...

2010-03-14T21:40:00.004+13:00

So it's all over and done now, but I LOVE the Olympics. I have been known to basically put my life on hold for two weeks once every two years; it's just something about all the emotion and competition and ~olympic spirit~ that I love, there's nothing else quite like it.

Oh and FYI, figure skating is my favourite sport.

Aww Plushy and Johnny! <3 I'm loving his show at the moment, I really hope they do a second season!

Colouring book paintings

2010-02-04T13:38:00.000+13:00

I was just browsing deviantART today when I came across a trend of taking colouring book pages, and colouring them in the style of a classical painting.

My favourite is this one of Aurora from Sleeping Beauty by yumedust

source: 1 | 2

Here are some others I love:

1. Mar-ka, 2. meMilly, 3. Sam Nielson
4. Ryan Wood, 5. loish, 6. ddrbean
7. lil-blue02, 8. britt-ish, 9. elestrial

I think it's such a clever idea! Apparently it was all started by Ryan Wood. They're all so beautifully done, they make me wish I could paint (digitally or otherwise). Alas, this was my last attempt at drawing Disney princesses - done when I was 15. Oh god, I feel old.

Ribbon Scarf

2010-01-31T12:01:00.000+13:00

Two or three years ago, I was at Spotlight where they were having a $1 (per ball) yarn sale. I ended up getting 20 balls of this ribbon because it was so cheap - I loved the colours, they're like neopolitan ice cream! I had no idea what I was going to with it, so I just left it in a closet and figured that something would come along.

Fastforward to three years later, and the ribbon is still sitting in my closet. I finally did find something to make though, the "Yo drop it!" scarf from Stitch 'n Bitch Nation. The pattern is super easy and fun to knit:

-Knit 2 rows in garter stitch
-Knit 1 stitch and wrap your yarn over your needle 3 times (you can wrap it more/fewer times to adjust the length of the dropped stitches) for one row
-Knit 1 stitch and push off the wrapped yarn for one row
-Repeat until scarf is desired length.

I love the dropped stitches because they show off the ribbon's texture, and they help your knitting grow quickly.

Shoes!

2010-01-15T13:13:00.003+13:00

I'm not really a girl that wears heels very often, (it's usually comfort over fashion for me...) but I've recently acquired two pairs of beautiful high heeled shoes (both on sale!), so I've been wearing them around the house in an effort to be comfortable in them.

1) These mary jane pumps look amazing in profile, but the pointed toe makes them so painful! I'm hoping that if I wear them around the house, I can break them in. They were only $17 too! (12USD/£7)

2) Not really sure what to call these, but I liked the buckles and the (fake) wooden heel. They're surprisingly comfortable too.

Three gloves and a video you must see

2010-01-10T13:31:00.005+13:00

First of all, to the folks visitng my blog from the Sofia Coppola Tumblr (thanks guys!) here's a direct link to the Miss Dior Cherie post. I hope you like it!

Totoro mitten - pattern by Brella on Ravelry

I picked up the knitting needles again shortly after my last post, and I've made two things so far - a pair of cheat's fingerless gloves (pattern here) and one Totoro mitten! I saw them on Flickr and just about died from the cuteness, but I thought they might be a little too advanced for me. Nevertheless, I went ahead and now have one semi-succesful mitten. It looks alright in the photo, but I assure you that it has a few gaping holes and some other mistakes - also I'm not sure if I have enough white wool left, so I'm not sure if/when I'll be making the second one. Maybe when my knitting skills have improved a bit, I'll just start over with some new wool.

On another note, here's an incredible video I came across on Digg the other day - you won't believe your eyes because it is ALL IN CGI. Mind = Blown. (It's best viewed in full size, and if you're interested, there is an HD version and some making of videos here.)

The Third & The Seventh from Alex Roman on Vimeo.

Happy 2010!

2010-01-08T01:09:00.005+13:00

Happy 2010 everyone! (I know I'm a bit late...) I can't believe we're already one decade into the new millenium! I still have a bag of party popper streamers from new years eve 1999 :) (photo above)

Since uni doesn't start again for me until March, I've been looking for some projects to work on so as not to waste the time. I'm thinking of taking up knitting again! When I was in high school I went through a big knitting phase that yielded several ugly hats and scarves - my only successful item was this pink kitty hat. Unfortunately, I've never worn it as it doesn't get that cold here in winter! Nevertheless, I picked up some lovely purple yarn at Spotlight yesterday (for only $1 a ball!) I'm not sure what to do with it yet, but I have my eye on this owl sweater.

Also, I managed to complete Project 365 in 2009, so I'll post that here as soon as I get the photos organized (I think I have about 700 photos I have to sort through...) I'm thinking of posting them as a collage for each month.

Happy Holidays everyone!

2009-12-24T18:00:00.004+13:00

Our leaning Christmas tree of Pisa ;)

Thanks to everyone who visited my blog in 2009, I can't believe we're at the end of the year already! I wish you all a safe and happy holiday season,
and hope the new year brings you peace and joy. See you in 2010!

Exposing my geekiness...

2009-12-14T17:09:00.008+13:00

Room 25 - that was my year 3 classroom, I believe.

When I was a kid, I had the rather geeky hobby of stamp collecting. It's probably a bit of dying art now, but back in the day, the post office here had a club for kids called Stamp Hunters (which I was a member of ^^) that sent out a monthly magazine and whatnot - more than ten years later, I'm glad to see that it still appears to be running! (albeit online).

Anyway, I thought I'd show off a few of my favourites here:

My family is from China so I had a good supply of mail from Asia.

This was a collection of odd letterboxes from around the country.

Can you tell that I loved animals as a child?

There used these packs of random stamps that you could buy relatively cheaply, each with a different theme - this particular one was horses, obviously.

Here in New Zealand we live in the earliest time zone in the world, so in 1999 we had the honour of being the first country to ring in the new millenium! The last sunset and first sunrise were photographed and made into these first day covers.

Well I hope you found that interesting and not too boring! I do collect some other strange things, so they might be making an appearance here soon ;)

Miss Dior Cherie

2009-12-03T15:00:00.000+13:00

I found a sample of this perfume in a magazine and it smells so good! It's very clean and feminine without being sickly sweet. Why is perfume so expensive! (this might go on my Christmas wish list...) Anyway, I had a look at their website and it's adorable, and almost certainly made to draw in teenage girls. Here are some screenshots:

The TV ad was directed by Sofia Coppola (I loved Marie Antoinette!). While I'm not a big fan of the music, it certainly is beautiful. I love the dreamy pastel-coloured view of Paris, it's what I imagine Paris to be like (since I've never been there), though I'm sure the real thing isn't quite as whimsical :)

MasterChef and Pizza

2009-11-30T18:05:00.004+13:00

So the Australian series of MasterChef has been airing here for the past few months, and despite me vowing thatI wouldn't watch, it became oddly compelling towards the end. One of the contestants, Julia, taught the other chefs how to make pizza and I wanted to give it a go, the recipe is here.

I added some olives and skipped the mint because I didn't have any, but I'm happy to report that it was delicious! I plan to make my own sauce next time, the store bought stuff was too salty for me. Also, it's amazing what a difference a pizza stone makes; when I tried making it before, the base would be soft and not completely cooked; it's nice and crisp with the stone. (You have to heat it for a long time for best results though, be careful not to overheat your oven!)

This was my lunch the next day: toasted sandwich with leftover pepperoni and mozarella, and coleslaw (recipe here).

A new addition to the pop culture shelf

2009-11-25T19:16:00.004+13:00

So, after I mentioned how much I enjoyed Watchmen two posts ago, I made a little paper model of Rorschach! (You can download it from CubeeCraft - most of their models are very simple to make, all you need is a craft knife to cut slits, no glue required!)

Somehow I don't think they would all get along too well ;)

Here he is with the Joker and Barack Obama. (And yes, Obama was printed in a different scale so that's why he's a different size.)

I might need a Doctor Manhattan one now...

Glee!

2009-11-19T14:24:00.003+13:00

Are you a gleek? I actually was in the choir in middle school, if that counts for anything. Anyway, I only just started watching this show about a high school glee club last week, but I got interested in it from listening to the songs on YouTube. Here are some of my favourites:

And of course, there's the one that started it all - Don't Stop Believin' (I think I prefer this version to the original).

I also have to mention that I love Emma's style! (Played by Jayma Mays, who you may remember as Charlie from Heroes and Ugly Betty) She has the best outfits on the show (wish I could've found some better pictures); here's a quote from the show's stylist, Lou Eyrich, about their approach to styling her:

"We wanted to make her look like everything’s so neat — perfectly ironed and tucked-in shirts with matching belts, shoes and pins. We wanted to make her stand out from the other teachers. She’s always so happy and excited, so we wanted her outfits to represent that sunny disposition. In the pilot, we made her look much more teacher-y. Now we’re having more fun with her character, keeping her bright and unusual. Quriky is the word. Emma’s also always in stacked Mary Janes or T-strap heels. It takes the outfit down from being too stylish or too sexy. It makes her look prim and almost old-fashioned." (From Entertainment Weekly)

I really should put more effort into dressing myself... hopefully I'll get some more outfit posts here soon.

Current obsessions

2009-10-27T21:50:00.005+13:00

I'm halfway through my final exams at the moment (this post is being written as I procrastinate studying for my genetics exam), just two more to go now! One on Saturday and another on Wednesday, and then I'll be free! So here are two fandoms I'm currently in love with:

The Breakfast Club

screencaps

How is it that I have not seen this movie before now?! I only recorded it a few months ago when it was aired as part of a John Hughes tribute. I watched and loved so many of his movies as a child, Home Alone; Curly Sue; Beethoven... looking on Wikipedia now, I had no idea that he also wrote 101 Dalmations (the live-action version) and Flubber! But I'll admit I had never really seen many 80s movies at all. For some reason I always thought that I wouldn't be able to relate to teenagers from (nearly) 25 years ago now, but I guess we're not that different after all :)

Side note: you can find a fantastic blogger's tribute to John Hughes here.

Watchmen

source

Ever since the movie came out earlier this year, I've been wanting to read the comic book (I always prefer to read the book before seeing the movie). Well it took me about 6 months to get to the top of the waiting list at the library, but I finally managed to read it last month.

I thought the characters were all quite realistic, and I liked that most of the superheroes weren't clearly good or bad. Surprisingly (to me), Rorscach became the character I empathized with most. The artwork is so detailed, you can really picture the story in your head. Even if you don't like comics, I think you should give it a chance.

For the love of chocolate

2009-10-27T17:38:00.004+13:00

I just randomly took this series of photos the other week. I've never tried doing anything like it before, what do you think?

Flake is my favourite chocolate (well, one of them), I love the light and crumbly texture. It's just a little problematic to eat, haha.

Now I have my tripod back I hope to do more outfit posts in the future (as soon as my exams are over!) One of my favourite clothing stores closed down recently, so I have acquired quite a few things as of late ;)

Movies I want to see: Spring Edition

2009-10-17T21:47:00.007+13:00

The trailers section on the Apple site makes me want to watch so many movies! Sometimes I think trailers are better than the actual film, they show all the best parts and they usually have good music too. Case in point: I adore the song they used for Where the Wild Things are (Wake Up by Arcade Fire), I think it just fits so well with all the scenes they used. When I see the actual movie I always think something is missing when the trailer music isn't there, haha. Is that just me?

2 Million Minutes: I've always been interested at how education differs around the world (2 million minutes refers to the amount of time you spend in high school). It's a documentary that follows students from the United States, China, and India during their senior year of high school. It does seem a bit skewed against the US, but I'd still like to see it.
An Education: I wasn't planning on seeing this until I saw Carey Mulligan on Letterman... she definitely won me over. I think the poster is beautiful too.
Unmistaken Child: This one is a documentary about a Buddhist monk and his search for the reincarnation of his master. The whole process sounds fascinating to me.
Whrere the Wild things are: Like everyone else, I read/had this read to me as a child. I'm curious to see how it translates to film since the book is so short. (The trailer looks great)
The Lovely Bones: I already raved about this here!

(You can find all the trailers for the above movies here, except for 2 Million Minutes which can be found here)

P.S Would anyone like to help me out and join Lockerz? I'm need to invite 20 people and I'm almost there. If you're interested, just click on the button in the sidebar and leave your email address, it would be much appreciated by me. Thanks!

The Princess and the Frog

2009-10-10T14:31:00.002+13:00

You know, I was starting to think that I *may* be too old to still be seeing Disney movies (though who am I kidding, I just saw Up last month) when I was completely won over by the first five minutes of The Princess and the Frog (a lot of the scenes are still unfinished, but I thought it was quite fascinating to see the sketches and the animation process):

Is it just me, or does the little girl's pink dress reminds you of the good fairies from Sleeping Beauty?

Anyway I'm so glad Disney is doing 2D animation again! Now onto some stills from the movie:

The background is so gorgeous here... and I love the frog, haha.

Not a huge fan of the first poster... I think it's a little too busy. I much prefer the one on the right. Oh and that's totally the crocodile from Peter Pan, Y/Y?

I think I may have to make another post on old Disney movies, what are your favourites?

Image sources: 1 | 2 | 3

A Fairytale Family

2009-10-03T22:10:00.000+13:00

I'm back! Sorry for the extended absence - I've been super busy with tests and assignments at uni, but things are finally getting a little better now so I hope I'll be able to post more regularly :)

One of my favourite models is Natalia Vodianova, and I just think this photo set with her family is so lovely and whimsical! Everyone is beautiful and the setting is gorgeous, it really does look like a fairytale.

This one reminds me of Alice in Wonderland...

Love the matching dresses :)

Source

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter!

2009-09-16T16:30:00.000+12:00

If like me, you're on the mailing list for Universal Studios, you would have got on email today announcing that the Wizarding World of Harry Potter will be opening in Spring 2010! (That's actually a lot earlier than I expected, it seems like they just started construction not long ago!) As a big Harry Potter fan (I know, who isn't?) I just had to post some of the new artwork that was released:

The exterior of Hogwarts. I really hope I get to visit one day!

Olivanders

The Owlery

One of the rides - Flight of the Hippogriff

[all images via Mugglenet]

I particularly like the name of one of the stores (I think), Filch's Emporium of Confiscated Goods! (You can see the full set of images here in the Gallery)

Now I'm just left wondering when the encyclopedia (or "The Scottish Book" if you've heard J.K. Rowling's interview on PotterCast ;) - it's on episodes #130 and #131!) will be finished?

P.S I have a very busy two weeks ahead of me at university, so I may not be able to post for the rest of the month. You can however, still follow me on Tumblr or Twitter (and let me know if you have one! I'm always looking for new people to follow :)) I have some great posts planned and I hope to be back in full force soon!

Love you all,
Louise ♥

Fred Flare

2009-09-08T15:10:00.004+12:00

rain parade mini umbrellas
Are these the cutest umbrellas or what? (Not such a cute price tag though, $34!!)

I have come across fredflare.com a couple of times before, but I had never really browsed their store until a few weeks ago. They sell clothes and accessories, but I think the real gems are in their "at home" section - it's full of cute and quirky (and mostly unnecessary) items, exactly the stuff I"m drawn to ;)

Rubik's Cruet salt & pepper mill

Rubik's cube salt and pepper grinders? Yes please!

personal library kit

"Personal library kit" I think I am OCD enough to use something like this when lending books to friends XD.

crocodile staple remover | ice invaders ice cube tray

Crocodile staple remover and Space Invader ice cubes. AMAZING.

Albert Einstein action figure | edgar allan poe action figure

Einstein and Edgar Allan Poe action figures? As the person that has THIS on her desk, I love these :)

500XL GIANT earbud speakers

It took me a moment to figure out what these were, they're iPod speakers! How clever.

They have some cute clothes too, I was particularly interested in this dress - it reminds me of Alice in Wonderland! I made a set in Polyvore to demonstrate:

Alice in Wonderland by triffintum featuring BB Dakota dresses

Perhaps it's a good thing they don't ship internationally, it may be too tempting for me :)

Bacon and Mushroom Risotto

2009-09-06T01:20:00.002+12:00

I finally got myself a Tumblr! I didn't really "get" it before, but I think I'm starting to understand why people like it so much now... let me know if you have one in the comments, I need some people to follow! ;)

Anyway, it's my mid-semester break at the moment, so I've been home all week. Since I have to make my own lunch, I decided to try making risotto on Friday (you can see my first attempt here). Also, if you haven't made it before and want a good tutorial, I recommend reading this one by The Pioneer Woman. She's awesome.

Your ingredients (well, most of them - kudos to everyone that posts recipes, I'm terrible at taking photos of each step! I had everything all lined up and then started cooking without taking a photo. D'oh.) I just got this recipe off of the soup can.

Fry up your bacon, garlic, and onion. (I was very sad to discover we were out of onions. I am so prepared.)

Add your rice and mix it all together.

And then throw in your mushroom soup.

Then just add in your stock (about 1/2 cup at a time), and gently stir until it's all absorbed.

Like this, see? Taste a couple of grains every once in a while and just keep adding stock and stirring until the hard bite is gone. I read somewhere that it should take about twenty minutes, but I found it was longer than that.

And that's it! I suppose it's not the most appetizing looking of foods, but it's creamy and delicious and that's all that really matters, right? :) Also, you can easily change the recipe to suit your own tastes, it's pretty flexible.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups of arborio rice (FYI, about a 1/2 cup of uncooked rice is enough for one person)
1 can of mushroom soup (I'm sure it would work with any other soup too)
2-4 cups of chicken stock (or whatever other stock you prefer)
3 rashers of bacon (chopped up)
1 onion (diced)
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup of grated cheese (optional)

1. Fry the bacon, onion, and garlic until the bacon is brown and the onion is soft.
2. Add the rice and mushroom soup.
3. Gradually add the stock (about 1/2 cup at a time). Make sure it's all absorbed before you add more. Repeat until the rice no longer has a hard bite.
4. (optional) Add cheese and stir until combined. Serve immediately.

Fifi Lapin

2009-08-31T14:00:00.000+12:00

a spring collection

I can't believe that I had not discovered Fifi Lapin before now, but I came across her blog by chance last night and I'm in love!

For those of you who don't know, Elle magazine calls her "the world's most stylish bunny". She shows off her amazing wardrobe on her blog, where she posts her daily outfits. (You can also check out her Etsy store and the Fifi Lapin shop - I want that Slumrabbit Millionaire print!)

She even designed some prints for LeSportsac!

Source

I could not find any information about her creator, but whoever it is, they must be very creative indeed - I only wish I had thought of it first! ;)

I think she's my new style icon.

Threadcakes

2009-08-24T15:57:00.000+12:00

I'm sure most of you know about Threadless, the website where you can submit t-shirt designs to be rated and printed for sale. Well, Threadcakes is a spin-off by Chris Cardinal and Threadless.com that steps it up a notch and challenges bakers to turn their favourite Threadless designs into CAKES, of all things. The results are incredible, and I think I'll just let the pictures speak for themselves:

Noah Express by Jennifer Flynn, based on original design by Matheus Lopes & Michael Bisparulz

(3D winner) I think this is my personal favourite, I can't even begin to imagine the work that went into this! Take a look at a few of the step-by-step photos:

(full set here.)

Imposter In The Bird Hotel by Alex Waite, based on original design by Michelle Li

(2D winner) This one is amazing - each "room" is an individual cake!

Check out all the other amazing entries here. Personally, I don't think I could ever eat any of these, they're far too good to look at!

All images from Threadcakes.com and Threadless.com

Alice in her Oxford Wonderland

2009-08-14T17:14:00.007+12:00

With all the buzz about the new Alice in Wonderland movie, I thought I would share a little bit about one of my favourite childhood books, The Story of Alice in her Oxford Wonderland. Here's the blurb from the inside flap:

"Alice Liddell was not just any little girl. Without her, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland would never have been written. Se was the girl who inspired Lewis Carroll to tell the story when they were rowing on the Thames on 4th July 1862, and pestered him to write it down afterwards.
Lewis Carroll's real name was Charles Dodgson, and he lectured on mathematics at Oxford University.
This book is partly imaginary story of the friendship between Mr Dodgson and Alice Liddell. Mr Dodgson was an expert at stories, riddles, games and puzzles, which are just as much fun today as they were a century ago; Alice was his favourite child-friend.
They were on friendly terms with bats, dodos and a number of monkeys. They turned dogs into cats and a handkerchief into a rabbit. They played antipodean croquet, and discovered the magic of the number 42.
But the nicest thing about Mr Dodgson was that he treated children with respect, which few grown-ups did in those days. The text and illustrations in the book are based on the real facts, and there are also lots of Mr Dodgson's splendid photographs, funny drawings and back-to-front letters."

It's mostly a semi-fictional story (I think I missed this part as a child, I thought it was all real XD) about Alice and her friendship with Charles Dodgson, interspersed with real photographs and beautiful illustrations. (There's also a biography of their later lives in the back)

There's even a map of all the locations in the book!

This was always my favourite page ;) I want to scan it and make a paper doll...

Unfortunately I think it's now out of print, but I looked on Amazon and they still have many used copies available there (the American edition is known as The Other Alice). It is technically a children's book, but I think it would be much appreciated by all fans of Alice :)

Some love to brighten your Thursday

2009-08-13T10:00:00.001+12:00

You may have already seen this in the blogosphere, but I couldn't resist posting some of the beautiful photos from Chris Craymer's book, Romance.

The couples are all real and you can feel the love in every picture. Chris himself says:

"When I first started this project I just wanted to make one test shoot with a couple. The first attempt was with two models who weren't a real couple and frankly it rather showed. Somehow, the pictures lacked emotion, so I tried the next shoot with a real couple who were really going out together. This proved far more successful and from there I just kept on asking the models who inspired me with if they were interested in doing a shoot with their partner. I was specifically looking for people with a strong sense of personal style and individuality and in the end I worked with street cast couples as well as models." (From Dazed Digital.)

Source.

See more here.

The Lovely Bones

2009-08-10T15:00:00.000+12:00

Stills from here.

The trailer for The Lovely Bones came out last week and now I can't wait to see the movie! For those who don't know, it's an adaptation of a book by Alice Sebold, about a girl who is murdered and watches her family and friends from heaven as they cope with her death.

See the trailer here!

Saoirse Ronan was so good in Atonement, I'm sure she'll be great in this too.

I love the music (one of the tracks is "Alice" by the Cocteau Twins, I believe) and the scenes in heaven, it looks so beautiful and surreal at the same time. It does look a bit too action-filled compared to the book, but that's probably just for the sake of the trailer.

All screencaps from here.

Oh and I have to say that as a New Zealander, I'm very happy that Peter Jackson is the director :D (He's lost so much weight, he looks so different from when he did all the Lord of the Rings stuff!)

Tiffany Keys

2009-08-05T15:39:00.000+12:00

I was browsing the Tiffany website a few months ago (because I'm all about looking at stuff I can't afford) when I came across these beauties:

My favourite is the second one from the right...

Personally, I think it's a great idea, keys represent so much mystery and intrigue - they could open a secret diary, or a door to another world... I may or may not have read The Secret Garden and Alice in Wonderland too many times as a child ;)

These won't be unlocking anything anytime soon, but they're so pretty to look at, I don't care :) Now I just need to hunt down a cheaper one for myself...

See the whole collection here!

Gossip Girl in Vogue Korea

2009-07-29T16:55:00.000+12:00

I'm afraid to say that I don't watch Gossip Girl, but I do know they have great outfits on the show! I just thought this spread was very cute and fit the theme well.

Side note: when I was a kid, I wanted to go to a private school because I thought they had cool uniforms. Of course, my dream was shattered when I went to a public school and there were no blazers or ties, just this. *Ahem* Seriously though, why don't most schools have better-looking uniforms? I would have appreciated something like this, haha.

More from the same issue in this thread.

Cirque du Soleil

2009-07-25T11:43:00.000+12:00

Sorry for the recent lack of posting! Uni has just started again this week and I'm also sick. I'm starting to feel better now though :)

Anyway, I was first introduced to Cirque du Soleil in 2005, when Quidam toured New Zealand. I didn't know much about them at the time and I was reluctant to go because I wasn't a huge fan of circuses. Boy did that change! I fell in love with them that night and I've been to every show that's come here since then: Varekai in 2007 (which was especially cool for me, because I'd watched Fire Within (it was a series about the making of the show) the year before, so I like knew all their names and everything XD), and then Dralion last Friday - my parents love them too, so I'd gotten tickets for my dad's 50th birthday :)

The aerial pas de deux, one of my favourite acts in Dralion! By the way, it's not really the same but you can find almost all the acts and trailers for the show on YouTube :)

I don't know if you can tell here, but they're balancing on lightbulbs in pointe shoes.

source

So I'm definitely biased, but I highly recommend that you go along if they're ever in your city!

Bookbag

2009-07-15T22:33:00.000+12:00

Recently I finished two excellent books that I wanted to share here - I'm always looking for new books to read, so please feel free to leave your recommendations in the comments!

sources: 1 | 2

I had been hearing lots of good things about The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon, so I was very happy that I'd finally gotten to the top of the waiting list and was able to get it from the library.

After finishing it in one day, I have to say that you must read it! It's about Christopher, a fifteen-year-old autistic boy who sets out to solve the murder of his neighbour's dog, only to discover much more along the way. What I really liked about it was that I felt like I got a glimpse of how an autistic mind might work, and it was very insightful. There are also little drawings and diagrams throughout the book, which I appreciate seeing in a novel ;)

The second book is Breakfast with Tiffany by Edwin John Wintle, which I actually first heard about at another wonderful blog - Coco's Tea Party. It's a true story about a 40-something gay New Yorker who takes in his rebellious niece, Tiffany. It's very much a Raising Helen type situation (if you've ever seen that movie). I also felt a tiny bit of a connection to Tiffany, as I was also a thirteen-year-old in 2003 (when the book takes place) - little things like the premiere of 8 Mile are mentioned, which I remember going to see with my friends in intermediate (middle school) :) It's both hilarious and touching, and a great read - I also hear that it may be made into movie, so I'll be keeping my eye out for that.

Oh and by the way, I finally caved and got a Twitter. If you like, you can follow me here :)

Chilli Chocolate

2009-07-10T14:06:00.000+12:00

My friends and I like to use going to the movies as an excuse to buy chips and candy, and last week was no exception.

I saw these Lindt blocks at the supermarket and I had to get one, I mean I love spicy food and chocolate, so why not? :)

The verdict? It was pretty good! I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it wasn't very spicy at all (although like I said, I like spicy food so I might be biased). It just tasted like very smooth dark chocolate with a bit of heat at the end, kind of like those liquer chocolates, but not bitter. It's quite unique, give it a try if you see one!

source

The movie was great too! We love animated movies, especially if they're in 3D ;)

Google's Doodles

2009-07-05T22:28:00.000+12:00

I've always loved how Google manages to creatively alter their logo for holidays and other special events, so I thought I'd share a few of my favourites here.

Leonardo Da Vinci's birthday

Roald Dahl's birthday - So much nostalgia in this one! Matilda and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory were among my favourite books when I was a kid ^^

First day of spring - Another kid's classic ;)

Joan Miro's birthday

Anniversary of first demonstrated laser

Dr. Seuss's birthday! TOO AWESOME FOR WORDS.

Earth day 2009

Sources: Dr Seuss | All others

Emma Watson in Teen Vogue

2009-07-01T22:00:00.000+12:00

I just thought this whole shoot was lovely, the styling is beautiful (look at all those fierce clothes) and Emma Watson is so pretty, I thought it worked really well. The setting is gorgeous too!

I love the outfit in this one, I wish I could dress like that in real life ;)

You can't really at this angle, but the heels on those shoes are insane 0_0

Full set of images here.

Can't wait for Half-Blood Prince to come out! Just 2 weeks to go now :)

2009-06-28T17:53:00.000+12:00

R.I.P Michael Jackson, you will be greatly missed.

sources: ohnotheydidnt; mjjpictures

Some recent buys

2009-06-25T17:43:00.000+12:00

I had my last exam yesterday, so now it's freedom until July 20th! Hopefully I'll be able to post more frequently now, maybe every second day or so?

My mum bought me these belts when she was in Singapore last month, they're so cute! I think the red one will be nice with my black polka dot skirt...

And this, my beautiful new Swatch! I had one when I was 13 but I accidentally broke it two years ago and I just haven't had a watch since then. They don't sell them in New Zealand for some reason, so I paid my parents to get one for me while they were overseas ;) Now I just have to get used to wearing one again, I'm too used to checking my phone for the time!

And lastly, my mum (she loves to shop) went to a makeup sale last week, and got 20 sample size bottles of Shiseido moisturizer for $40! (25USD)

I had my last exam yesterday, so now it's freedom until July 20th! Hopefully I'll be able to post more frequently now, maybe every second day or so?

Orisinal

2009-06-11T14:34:00.002+12:00

Please excuse the lack of posts, I just had my first final exam (microbiology) this morning so I've been pretty busy! I'll be done in two weeks though, so I'll try to post more often during my winter break. (Yes it's winter here in the southern hemisphere haha.)

My friend introduced me to this site a couple of years ago, and I'm glad to see it's still up and running (although I don't think it has been updated for a while). Orisinal is a collection of whimsical flash games by Ferry Halim.

The graphics and music are lovely, and the ideas for the games are brilliant; whether its catching bees in soap bubbles...

Bubble Bees

...or guiding a bear over traffic...

Sunny Day Sky

...or helping a little frog who can't swim...

Hydrophobia

...and is this not the cutest game ever?! (It involves stacking pigs to reach a cupcake. I'll say no more.)

These Little Pigs

Here are some more of my other favourites:

High Delivery

Cats

Have fun!

Frets on Fire and JamLegend

2009-06-06T14:54:00.001+12:00

I first came across Frets on Fire a while ago when I was looking for a Guitar Hero style game (because I'm too cheap to buy the actual one). After a few months of playing, I have to say that it's a great free alternative! The graphics are pretty good and the gameplay is essentially the same, except you play with your keyboard (more fun if you have a desktop computer). It only comes with three songs but you can download more (the actual Guitar Hero songs are also available if you know where to look :)) or make your own. Check out their wiki for more information.

Download it at their site (Mac and Linux versions available too.)

If you would prefer not to download anything, there's also an online option called JamLegend. You can play online, create an account, challenge your friends, etc. It's a little bit temperamental on my computer, but it's good fun. Rock on!

Gordon Ramsay's Lasange Al Forno

2009-05-31T16:15:00.001+12:00

My first attempt at making lasagne was me trying to use up leftover spaghetti sauce and a box of dried pasta sheets that had been in the kitchen cupboard forever. Unfortunately I didn't have enough sauce so half the pasta was still crunchy when it came out of the oven XD. So as to not repeat this incident again; I followed a recipe, and even tried making pasta from scratch! (Mainly because we don't have a square baking dish and I end up with tiny shards of pasta if I try to break up the dried sheets)

I was really surprised at how simple fresh pasta is (although I probably shouldn't have been), the most basic recipe is just flour and egg. The one I had called for a ratio of 100g flour : 1 egg, but I found that was too dry so I had to add water... and then it would be too wet so I'd add more flour. Oh it's a fine balance XD. I don't have any photos of me rolling it out unfortunately (it's pretty easy if you have one of these things) - I have new found respect for all the food bloggers out there, it's hard to take photos of every step when your hands are covered in flour!

Making the meat sauce... I get pretty unorganized when I cook.

Ready for the oven...

Baking...

The finished product! It tasted great and yes, all the pasta got cooked :P

Tea party dress

2009-05-26T18:12:00.000+12:00

I'm a little disappointed at how low those heels look in the photo... they certainly don't feel like it! XD

I haven't been shopping for a while, but I went to a sale a few weeks ago and found this lovely "tea party dress" (I love the name) from Max for $20! (about $12USD?) I did wear it to uni with a long sleeved top underneath and a coat last week, but it's gotten colder since then so it'll probably have to sit in my closet until spring - we seem to have skipped autumn and gone straight into winter this year.

Food!

2009-05-21T18:37:00.001+12:00

My parents are overseas at the moment, so I've been having fun cooking dinner this week. I don't cook that much normally, but I think I really should do it more often.

On Sunday night I made Japanese curry. It's pretty simple, you just brown the meat, add water and vegetables, and put in the curry paste (it comes in boxes like this) at the end to thicken it up. If you want more detailed instructions, I found this video very helpful:

Perfect for the chilly nights we've been having in Auckland lately! Short days in winter are so depressing, I can feel the sun starting to getting low at 2pm :(

Tonight I made risotto for the first time (these are the leftovers, it's very filling), using The Pioneer Woman's recipe (I halved it and added some shrimp too - it was a little too cheesy for my taste, but still delicious!) I was a little intimidated about making it, but I was surprised at how easy it was. It's a little bit time consuming, but you just have to keep stirring it and be patient haha. Definitely give it a go if you haven't made it before!

Coming up next: Gordon Ramsay's lasagne! What are your favourite recipes?

Papercraft

2009-05-15T17:24:00.001+12:00

I went through a phase last year where I was obsessed with making paper models, and as a result, the computer desk now looks like this: (excuse the bad lighting)

Readymech (except for the cyclops which is from Toypaper), all the animals are from nifty.

Oh and then there's this in my room:

They're supposed to be the same size, but I accidentally printed them off in different scales so now I have a giant Joker and a tiny Obama... They're both from CubeeCraft (You'll want to make everything if you look at the pop culture section, they have everyone from Elmo to John Locke!)

I prefer these because they are quick and easy to make, but if you're really up for a challenge, go to the Canon Japan website. They have a large selection of animals and vehicles (among other things), but my favourites are in the architecture section, they're so incredibly intricate:

(Left to right: 1 Sagrada Familia, Spain; 2 Niko Toshugo Shrine (Yomeimon); 3 Basilica of Saint Peter, Vatican; 4 Sultan Ahmet Camii, Turkey; 5 Byodoin Phoenix Hall; 6 Notre-Dame de Paris, France.)

Aren't they amazing? I tried to make one of the castles once (and failed haha). Maybe someday...

The Simpsons do Paris

2009-05-09T01:15:00.000+12:00

As a huge fan of The Simpsons, this was one of the cutest fashion spreads I've ever seen! It was actually published in Harper's Bazaar in 2007, but it was so cool I had to share with anyone who hadn't seen it. It features the Simpsons with a cartoonized Linda Evangelista wearing various designer outfits (which are all real! You can see comparisons here at ohnotheydidnt).

Marge is so pretty with her hair down! Haha.

My personal favourite - check out Homer and Karl Lagerfeld!

Maggie's in the handbag. XD

I thought it was a brilliant idea, more magazines should do stuff like this!

Marie Antoinette

2009-05-06T16:52:00.000+12:00

I watched Marie Antoinette for the first time this weekend, and I have to say that I loved it! It was the prettiest movie I've seen for a long time, the costumes and scenery were so beautiful and detailed... I could go on all day, but I won't bore you :)

This is the scene with Converse shoes that I've heard about, Sofia Coppola said she put them in to show Marie as just a typical teenage girl.

My favourite, as you can tell from my header haha.

Hello!

2009-05-04T22:07:00.000+12:00

Having sort-of maintained a livejournal for the past few years, I've finally decided to step into the world of (proper?) blogging. I think this will be a nice place for me to share the interesting things I find, I hope you'll enjoy it too :)

So, a little about me... I'm Louise, a nineteen year old Chinese girl growing up in New Zealand. Right now I'm a second-year university student, studying biology and computer science (my dream job is to work at Google).

I think that's enough for now, some real posts coming soon ;)