Andre 3000 meets a Regular Girl at the English Seaside, in Winter

Remember when Andre 3000 rocked bow ties with loud coloured shirts and mismatched trousers. Imagine Andre 3000 became a real person, by the English seaside, in late winter/early spring.  My look seems a bit in that spirit- it's geeky, it's odd and slightly show-off-y, but still feminine.

What do you wear to the seaside? A polka dot bikini? A sundress? What do you wear on a late winter/early spring day? A shirt might not be the most obvious choice, but it was mine.

Requisite shot on the pier with the sea and windswept hair? Check.

Outfit: Hot pink shirt, Joe (a Canadian clothing line, similar to Sainsbury's); tassle earrings, Tallulah Tu; hair clip worn like a flower bow tie, Accesorise; dress, Warehouse (5 years ago).

I wore my brogues all weekend and felt the polka dots and blues were a little nod to the sea.

Outfit: Blue shirt, Mark's Work Warehouse (Canadian shop); polka dot skirt from a wicked Oxfam in Torquay; shoes, Asos.

Do your clothes celebrate spring yet? I'd love to be wearing pastel prom dresses, but alas, the temperature and my pregnancy may yet prevent this.

Lana Del Ray Album Review

Critics often like a subtle record. Lana Del Ray's 'Born to Die' is the opposite. It is operatically dramatic in a kind of 'Notice me, I'm an inch from your face,' sort of way. It tells the story of the kind of love that will either tragically kill you and immortalise you, or bring you redemptive, everlasting life. The love she writes about will be familiar to any 15-25 year old feeling like their love is simultaneously the most intensely wonderful and painful experience of their life.

Appropriately, my copy of 'Born to Die' cracked only two days after purchase.

In my head, in an interview, Lana Del Ray would come across as some sort of contemporary hybrid of Jane Birkin and Edie Sedgwick: enigmatic, tortured and knowingly sexy. I'm sure Lana Del Ray (or Lizzie Grant) would be pleased with this vision, working hard to craft her own contemporary Lolita. Unfortunately, when I actually heard her in interview, she had little of this fascinating ambiguity. She sounded Taylor Swift-like: having that all too positive, no sense of irony, young female popstar quality: niceness. Fortunately, her music is far more alluring.

'Video Games' is representative of the rest of the album, lyrically and sonically. The album is dominated by her forlorn, stylised voice over top of lush orchestration and darkened electronic production. Half of the songs, like 'Video Games,' are slower numbers, reminiscent of Portishead or Goldrfrapp. The other half are more dance-y club tracks, ready for remixing by Samantha Ronson in an L.A. club.

At times, her 'I would do anything for love' persona is grating, insofar as the man she seems willing to do whatever for, seems largely undeserving. However, ignore the lyrics or just accept that they're pop melodrama that conveniently rhymes ('You were sorta punk rock, I grew up on hip hop/But you fit me better than my/favourite sweater' is a particularly terrible example), and you'll be devoured by her sumptuous sing-along melodies.
 
Summary: Lana Del Ray has received so much hype, you might wish to ignore her album, assuming it's just another unjustified media explosion. However, you would miss what is an incredibly catchy album that will result in numerous other girls trying to copy her style, and fail miserably.

4/5 Stars. It's memorable and striking.

Have you heard her album or any of her other songs? Do you believe the hype, like I do?

Fashion for 8 Year Olds

All too often the girls section leaves me wishing I was smaller.

Then I discovered Marks and Spencer and realised that some things in the girls section were big enough for a grown-up, who hasn't really grown-up in taste.

Much of Marks and Spencer's 'Older Girl' range is in sizes up to 16 years old. These aren't for tiny little girls either. I wear a size 8-10 in UK sizes (about a US size 6-8) and often find that the 13-14 year old range fits me fine. The faux fur coat and sequin skirt I wore for New Year's Eve (seen below) are both a size 13.  I'm more than double this age.

I bought the coat over a year ago, thinking it to be very Marianne Faithful, circa 1964. There were similar ones that looked more like a snow leopard or a Yeti this year.

In shoes, I wear a UK size 5-6 (US 7 1/2-8). In girls Marks and Spencer shoes, I wear a size 4-5. The bedazzled ballet flats below are looking forward to being worn with summer dresses and jeans and were £14. There are a non-bedazzled version on the website, if you find the bling tacky.

Why should you consider the childrens' section?
1. It's about 30-50% cheaper than an adult range.
2. The quality is just as good and often slightly better than the adult range. Kids clothes and shoes are made to be worn by children running in mud, climbing trees, never ironing them and generally ruining them. However, these same children are bought these items by parents who want the items to last. Manufacturers often use slightly thicker fabrics, reinforce the seams and generally make sure that the quality is good with children's clothing.
3. If you don't like to reveal too much skin, head to the girls section. Most parents don't want their daughters looking like a pop star. 
4. Even if you're not small enough for the clothing or shoes, bags aren't any smaller because they're in the girls' section.

It's true that a lot of the clothes in the childrens' section are designed for the tastes of an 8 year old. But a lot of them are also designed for the tastes of their parents or a slightly older child.

If I go into any clothing store, chances are, there are maybe about one or two things and often nothing that I might actually consider buying at some point. It's not really any different with the kids' section.

This is obvious, but I should mention that the selection is vastly superior in a big store and is much more extensive than what is available on the website.

Do you buy anything from the kids' section? Any kids' sections that you recommend?

P.S. This is not a sponsored post. I've just enjoyed items I've purchased from the girls' section at Marks and Spencer.

Through the Looking Glass

How do you escape winter? Maybe you're one of those people who just chooses to enjoy it. Congratulations. I'm not worthy of your zen acceptance.

Short of going to a Carribbean island, if you're looking to be bathed in light, warmth and humidity, go to the glasshouse (or greenhouse, if you're North American).  

This glasshouse (at Waddesdon Manor, in Buckinghamshire) sells pretty mirrors set in reclaimed windows. They make one's gaze feel more dreamy.  

 A close-up of the sculptural orchid behind me in the earlier photos.

The photo below is more than a little tense and intense- my apologies. It's just the only one taken that shows the entire dress. I loved its simple lines, which emphasise the shouting red colour. Inevitably, I've destroyed its perfect minimalism with accessories, but I don't really like to leave things alone.

Outfit: Dress, Next; necklace and belt from charity shops; Spats to inspire some jazz hands, Asos. 

What cheers you up on a gloomy day? Baking? The Beach Boys?

Incognito in Oxford Blue

Oxford is a the quintessential English university town for a reason. It's hard not to feel more clever/inspired/cynical/disdainful of contemporary architecture when you're surrounded by stone, spires, columns, clever students and bicycles. Not wanting to become one of the minions of tourists/aspiring students on university tours, I had a plan to go incognito. A hat. A detective's hat to go unnoticed. Philip Marlowe and Inspector Morse would have understood it perfectly.

The Oxford blues would also help the disguise, coupled nicely with the tan ribbon camouflaging itself against the sandy coloured Cotswold stone. Struggling to see myself through the intense camouflage, there needed to be some colour added, like a light reflective jacket for running at night. Clashing pink earrings, orange brick lips and a turquoise scarf seemed to suffice.

As you can see, the hat and the gold and pink accents make an otherwise classic/boring work outfit a little more interesting/bizarre. 

Outfit: Hat, earrings and necklace, Accesorise. There ares still all sorts of hats and Art Deco-ish necklaces in the sale; blue pea coat, gift; blazer, from Korea; Oxford blue striped top, Marks and Spencer; navy trousers, Next.

Admiring The Artist

The Artist (directed by Michel Hazanavicius) tells the story of George Valentin (played by Jean Dujardin), star of the silent screen. The film begins just before the rapid extinction of silent films and tracks George's demise. The downward trajectory of George is opposite to the rapid ascent of the new sweetheart Peppy Miller (played by Berenice Bejo). Valentin, in fact, gives the energetic Peppy her start, impressed with her dance moves and flirtations. She becomes the star of the talkies as Valentin is rejected by the studio that wants fresh meat for the talkies.

Image from heyyouguys.co.uk

Even though the film is entirely silent and the story is set in Hollywood with English titles, the film is quintessentially French. Hazanavicius delights in physical humour, a stylish eye for detail and charming characters who create a joie de vie. Although Valentin's wife leaves him and he ends up in squalor, there is a sense that each of the characters are ultimately good and innocent. None of the characters have really done anything wrong, they are just victims of situations and history. The end of the silent films coincides with the beginning of the Great Depression and George's personal descent.

Ultimately, this is a French romantic comedy and the audience waits for the destined lovers to find one another. This is a cute, funny, simple film perfect for a date or evening with a girlfriend.

Image from grammassewingcabinet.com

I just feel sorry for Berenice Bejo, the female lead. She is given the most exquisite art deco dresses and looks effesvescent and entirely charming throughout. I'm sure she's stunning in real life, but unless she sticks to period dramas, will she ever look quite as perfect?

Similarly, Dujardin becomes a French hybrid of George Clooney and Fred Astaire. His comedy has a wink and a sparkle to it. I dare him to find many roles 1/10 as precious.

Summary: Great, light film to see. Pity the actors. 3 1/2 stars out of 5.

Music from 2011 I Might Actually Listen to in Five Years

I've seen a lot of the 11 best of 2011 or 12 for 2012. I'm not that knowing. But I would like to sell you some decent music from 2011 that I may actually listen to in five years time. With luck, you might listen to it once or twice.

1. The Noah and the Whale album Last Night on Earth. These guys aren't rockstars, but the songwriter, Charlie Fink, is very good and their melodies and lyrics are catchy yet teetering on profound. Last Night on Earth has been called a concept record (oh no) and I guess it is, if you consider the idea of songs addressing similar themes as a "concept record." Don't worry, this isn't a prog rock concept album.

It's an album about the youthful desire to escape the small town or the suburbs. It's about the formative experiences of becoming a musician. Think of it like a pop rock Blakean Songs of Innocence and Experience. For example, the song Just Me Before We Met tells the story of sitting with a current girlfriend looking at old photographs as she laughs, 'At all the bad hair cuts and smoking cigarettes/ A lustless romantic trying hard to impress.' You do get the sense of young Charlie Fink nostalgically remembering the traumas of youth and wanting to be a musician, but trying hard not to make it seem too contrived a path. 

In short, if you didn't buy it in 2011, consider buying the album in 2012. 

My song of 2011 is by Glen Campbell. I wouldn't have predicted that the rhimestone cowboy himself would come into my heart, but alas, his bleak lyrics yet upbeat song is oddly life-affirming. The song is about a man, Glenn perhaps, in the twilight of his life, reassuring others not to worry about him. He declares:

    

     Don't pin your own hopes

     Don't pin your dreams

     On misanthropes

     And guys like me

If you can listen to Lana Del Rey's Video Games than you can more than handle Campbell's Any Trouble. I hope you'll love it in a 'is this one of the saddest yet warm songs I've ever heard in my life?' sort of way.

 

Edited Cover of the Year. It's from a terrible 1980s song. I do the 1980s shuffle dance when I hear or think of the original- think Rick Astley style dancing. This cover of Higher Love is featured in the LOVE FILM advert, and I am fascinated by this unexpected rendition. Listening to the entire song was disappointing (slow and horrible dripping sensitivity), but edited for the commercial, it's amazing.

Bonus clip of Rick Astley in his finest hour of dancing like a hipster. The denim on denim was also a look.

What music has surprised you this year? Any that you think you might listen to in five years?