Saturday 26 May 2012

Last-Week Girl: 26 May 2012

Last week was all about catching up with people, and a lot of eating. I could list everything I ate but I think it might be quite disgusting. It was also the week that I finally exchanged on my flat (and not before time, all my summer clothes are in storage and I'm sweltering in this beautiful weather)! I'm moving the weekend straight after the Jubilee weekend so I should be packing and planning. Instead I'm dreamily flicking through past issues of Living Etc and desperately pinning away. After months of living in limbo land, it's really great to feel that I'll be settled, and also to allow myself to indulge in a spot of fantasy decoration.

Last night I headed out to the So If You're Lonely club night at the Buffalo Bar, all kinds of mid-00s indie. It made me strangely sad and utterly jubilant all at the same time. Here's some glittery fantasticness from the Long Blondes. I've a hunch that Kate Jackson didn't eat as much as me last week.



I'm off to Copenhagen next weekend and then, yes, moving so not likely to visit this land for a little bit. Have fun people, go out and enjoy the sunshine!

Saturday 19 May 2012

Last-Week Girl: 19 May 2012

Ah, and so another week has rolled by. If you bumped into me on the street and asked me what I'd been up to, I'd probably rant to you about ongoing flat buying dramas. Looking at the list below, it's been obvious I've been doing some really quite nice other things too and I should generally shush with my moaning a bit. So I will try.

Last weekend was quite gentle: Robo H and I went across to Brick Lane for a mooch around and then had a Vietnamese meal for linner (this is our word for those massive 3/4pm meals you have on a weekend - they're the new brunch. Also called lea when we're feeling at our most Northern). In the evening we did a lot of watching of Portlandia on Netflix. Sunday, more of the same with added football excitement and some of these.

My clothesmaking class continued on Monday. I always walk in a 6pm feeling at my most stressed and tired and leave three hours later completely relaxed: the joys of concentrating on doing something other than being angsty.

On Wednesday I went to the opening of the Faces of the Sixties display at Proud Chelsea which was stuffed full of people who looked like they were probably faces in the sixties. I wrote about it for the oh comely blog here. The next evening I went to Sadler's Wells to see Ballet Revolucion. I know nothing about dance and this was a nicely popularist show and the dancers were undeniably amazing. I could have done without the routine to Enrique Iglesias's Hero though, and not so keen on the audience whooping when the male dancers took their tops off.

And then Friday. My friend was lucky enough to get us tickets for the xx show at Battersea Arts Centre. It was goose-bump inducing stuff and the music sounded perfect within the space of the hall. I'd managed to watch them a few years back at a gig at Hoxton Hall which was just as magic - I'm not sure why their music sounds so right in these older spaces. On a side note, someone should give Jamie his own radio show. His spoken voice is so well paced and perfectly paced I could have sat and let him talk to me all night. Alas, I had to share him with hundreds more adoring fans.

And that was my week. Tell me about yours.

Saturday 12 May 2012

Last-Week Girl: 12 May 2012

Okay, in a bid to counter my rubbishness at regular posting, I've decided to try out doing regular weekly updates about what I've been up to, and to prove I have a life other than staring into a computer screen (truthfully lots of my life is spent staring into a computer screen).

Last week was one of those weeks when London just seems to work: amazing culture, food and people with very little effort. Of course, when London doesn't work, like when you queue for 90 minutes to eat somewhere or get stuck on a tube, it's the lowest level of sucky, so I like to revel in the 'good London' moments.

One example of London working: After previous failed efforts, I finally got to try out the Pitt Cue Company food without any queueing. I went with my new beau (who, as I obviously have to give him a ridiculous nickname, I'm calling Robo-H for reasons that will become clear later) to satisfy some of our Man Vs Food induced meat craving. Boy, was it nice. I'm still drooling over the bone marrow mash. We then waddled, full of food, over to the London Sci-Fi festival where we saw the Japanese film Robo-G (ha! see what I did?). It's heartwarming and bonkers and not really that sci-fi all at once. Thanks to that this song has been rattling around my head. All week:





On Sunday we made the most of the bank holiday, donned our best '50s rebel outfit and went to Stumblin' Slims. Rock n Roll is fantastic fun to dance to but repeated two minute blasts of franticness sure does take it out of you. Especially when my jive repertoire is limited to about two dance moves.  



For a cultural fix, on Monday I head over to the Leighton House Museum in Holland Park with Sian. One of the Victorian palaces of art, it was the opulent home of nineteenth century superstar artist Frederic Leighton. I'd been longing to see it since working on The Cult of Beauty book. It's wonderful, especially all the beautiful middle Eastern ceramics and tiles, and gives a completely different perspective on Victorian decor. 

On Wednesday I went to party 1990s style at the Friends gig at the Scala: it almost had me wishing I still owned a pair of cycling shorts. 

Thursday saw my flat being scoped out as a possible location for a new TV drama being set around Brixton. Judging from the scout's reaction to the space, I don't think we'll be chosen but I'm looking forward to seeing what they were actually looking for when the series eventually airs on channel 4. In the evening we enjoyed free tickets to The Sunshine Boys showing in the splendour of Savoy Theatre. Danny DeVito was hilarious and, trying to write this in the least patronising sounding way possible, it was really interesting to see how the older members of the audience responded to the subject matter of the play. 



Which brings me to yesterday, which saw the launch for a book I've been working on, The Ambassador Magazine. The Ambassador was a trade magazine which aimed to promote British industry in the late 1940s and 50s. It's a dry concept which masks a fascinating story. Founder Hans Juda approached the magazine with missionary zeal and set about the enlivening the subject matter in the most interesting way possible. They worked closely with artists and set up elaborate photo shoots, such as this one of Barbara Goalen on the roof of a textile mill in Lancashire, draped in some of their fabrics. It was photographed by Elsbeth Juda, Hans's wife. Elsbeth is now 101 and was able to attend the launch - the mini-speech she gave made me well up. I finished a busy week by running over to Shepherd's Bush Empire to see Ladyhawke. The crowd was a bit too Friday-ish piss up for my liking but Pip looked beautiful with mermaid-style locks and a seeming ever growing confidence. I'm looking forward to getting her new album as the last one is still on constant play on my iPod.

Hits on this blog have been going a bit bonkers due to some googling action following the sad death of uber-hairdresser Vidal Sassoon. I wrote about his film (which I'm still to see) here and Janey Ironside's verdict on his hairstyles here

And that's it for now. Phew. What have you been up to? 

Sunday 6 May 2012

So Last-Year: Peter Stults film posters

Long time no write etc, etc. I've been in a strange state of limbo recently for various tedious reasons and, for once, looking at pretty clothes and stylish ladies hasn't seemed to work as a distraction. For work though, I've been having to look at lots of pictures of stars from the golden era of Hollywood (my life is so hard, I know) and have spent a lot of time wondering why today's equivalents don't seem so beautiful, witty or, well, as golden really.

Perhaps that's why this collection from Peter Stults actually made me want to sit down at my computer and share them with someone. They're remakes of twenty-first century film posters in the style and with the stars of yesteryear. They're also very reasonable, only £20.30 each from Colette.


I seem to know a lot of people obsessed with Drive at the moment. That would translate pretty well to the 50s I think and I'd definitely pick Dean over Gosling.



If I'd buy one of the designs, it would probably be this Rushmore reworking: partly because it's my favourite film out of the selection and partly because it features my second favourite Audrey.



Ken Russell does The Big Lebowski with Zappa, Bowie and Pop? The mind boggles.

See the full range of eight designs here

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