Thanks to Friend #194 who asked a question that I thought I would attempt to answer in a blog post. In my post about "What is always cool", I mentioned Converse sneakers. Her question to me was whether it is just marketing that makes Cons cool - she asked what the difference between a K-mart remake and the real thing are in relation to their 'coolness'? I have been a-pondering.
I get what she is saying, sometimes wearing the right item can be enough. But, I have to say, that people care about brands, whether we like it or not. I had the privilege of heading off to school camp, (being pregnant in a sleeping bag is an interesting debacle...) I wore my silver Chucks and the kids noticed. Students who had never spoken to me before mentioned my shoes... Converse sneakers are cool right now. But here are my thoughts on Friend #194's questions...
Firstly, I have been reading quite a bit about style lately. I am sure it is uncool to go to the town library and seek out books on style, but that is where I found some great books filled with tidbits of advice on making a wardrobe timeless and functional. I also learnt a lot of hogwash about owning only certain items in certain shades, and how to store fox stoles - on fox, I say! But something rang out, you never regret buying quality, I have found this time and time again. I have been suckered by the sale rack at Target and bought zany fashion items for $3.44 because they were such a bargain, but these items were doomed to Lifeline from the time of impulsive purchase. On the other hand, there have been times when I have bitten the bullet and paid a wee bit more for a quality item, to then have something that lasts and lasts and stays in great condition for more than a season. I have had my Chucks for well over a year and they have been to Tonga and New Zealand, I wear them with shorts and jeans and they are still looking pretty new.
Secondly, I have also mentioned this before in older posts, cool things have a story. Converse began as an independent company, sometime around 1908, wanting to make a product that didn't follow the crowd but stayed true to its brand. During WWII they made shoes and apparel for American servicemen. They have redesigned their shoes many times and have been able to make basketball shoes a fashion accessory for basketball players, rock & roll stars, students, and of course, cool mums dropping kiddies off to school.
Thirdly, being individual is cool. Friend #286 has a pair of hand painted Pumas - cool because they are so unique (he is also cool by the way, not just his shoes). Friend #612 is cool because she loves op-shopping and wears a mini dress as a maternity skirt - she sees possibilities in things. Being an individual is something we all strive for and I can't help but wonder if buying imitations of things made by major corporations takes away some of the shoe's intended individualism. I think that there is a time and a place for quality, story and individualism. Some cool people out there wouldn't think Converse shoes fit this criteria. Does Converse tick all the cool boxes for you in this instance? Dunno, but for me, it does. I think they are cool.
"And there you have it - for now... The best stories are the ones that don't end - the ones you just keep adding to and adding to - all the while marveling at the creative, disruptive, optimistic, courageous ways things evolve from being what they were, to what they are, to what they will become." This is the final sentence from the 'Heritage' section on the Converse Website... Who wouldn't want to say this about their life? Cool, very cool.
Check out the Converse Website (its cool) at: Converse Aus/NZ
Friday, July 16, 2010
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Red, Black, Grey and White
I seem to always have full circle moments when I am left thinking, "Hey, I think I have been here before." Let me enlighten you on my rickety train of thought.
I have a five-year old daughter. She is so beautiful it can break your heart, long blonde hair, big brown eyes, rosy cheeks. She is a stunner. But, my oh my, can she talk, argue, whinge and excuse herself with an ever eloquent tongue. My mum is very understanding and gives great (if not whacky) advice, but I cannot speak ill of my five year old to her. Why? Because my dear old mum gives me 'The Look'. You know, 'The Look' with powers you receive only when your own children have had children? She looks at me with that withering, all knowing 'Look' that says, "Yup, you were exactly the same". Sigh, she is usually right. I did argue... A lot. Especially with my dear mum. About everything. A lot.
For example, when I was in pre-school (for reference sake I was nearly five) my mum and I had a war raging about one of the outfits I was assigned to wear for church. Mum had made me a black and white houndstooth checked, wrap around skirt, it was darling. But, the shirt she bought to match it was a red t-shirt. When Sunday approached, I would refuse to wear this outfit, insisting that my mum had no idea about what colours matched and that you COULD NOT wear black, red and white together. Me being small and my mum being older, I was forced against my will to wear this outfit, in fact, if one day you have the privilege of seeing my official pre-school class photo, you will see me wearing this outfit. I wore (possibly under force) a green frog necklace to finish the ensemble off. And flip flops - but I am not emotionally ready to discuss this yet.
At the time of writing this blog, I am pregnant. I think I have a cleverly assembled ensemble of clothes that can be mixed and matched to make several outfits. I have leggings, dresses, skirts and long sleeve shirts that all match. I have either made them or bought them in range of colours so as to maximise their flexibility. But, it wasn't until one of my dear year eight students pointed out an obvious trend, that I had my full circle moment. All of my maternity clothes are red, black, grey and white.... Full circle. How could I not have noticed that these are my favourite colours to wear? I herein dedicate this post to my mum, whose sense of what colours match far outshines that of a five year old.
Huh, look left, then look right, check out the colours I chose for my blog. Funny.....
I have a five-year old daughter. She is so beautiful it can break your heart, long blonde hair, big brown eyes, rosy cheeks. She is a stunner. But, my oh my, can she talk, argue, whinge and excuse herself with an ever eloquent tongue. My mum is very understanding and gives great (if not whacky) advice, but I cannot speak ill of my five year old to her. Why? Because my dear old mum gives me 'The Look'. You know, 'The Look' with powers you receive only when your own children have had children? She looks at me with that withering, all knowing 'Look' that says, "Yup, you were exactly the same". Sigh, she is usually right. I did argue... A lot. Especially with my dear mum. About everything. A lot.
For example, when I was in pre-school (for reference sake I was nearly five) my mum and I had a war raging about one of the outfits I was assigned to wear for church. Mum had made me a black and white houndstooth checked, wrap around skirt, it was darling. But, the shirt she bought to match it was a red t-shirt. When Sunday approached, I would refuse to wear this outfit, insisting that my mum had no idea about what colours matched and that you COULD NOT wear black, red and white together. Me being small and my mum being older, I was forced against my will to wear this outfit, in fact, if one day you have the privilege of seeing my official pre-school class photo, you will see me wearing this outfit. I wore (possibly under force) a green frog necklace to finish the ensemble off. And flip flops - but I am not emotionally ready to discuss this yet.
At the time of writing this blog, I am pregnant. I think I have a cleverly assembled ensemble of clothes that can be mixed and matched to make several outfits. I have leggings, dresses, skirts and long sleeve shirts that all match. I have either made them or bought them in range of colours so as to maximise their flexibility. But, it wasn't until one of my dear year eight students pointed out an obvious trend, that I had my full circle moment. All of my maternity clothes are red, black, grey and white.... Full circle. How could I not have noticed that these are my favourite colours to wear? I herein dedicate this post to my mum, whose sense of what colours match far outshines that of a five year old.
Huh, look left, then look right, check out the colours I chose for my blog. Funny.....
Friday, July 9, 2010
Cool ad - Old Spice
If you watched the 'Gruen Transfer' you may have seen this ad... Hilarious and COOL!
Check it out ... The Man Your Man Could Smell Like
This was taken in one shot - amazing - love the last line - unfortunately Friend #1 is randomly attaching this to anything he says...
Check it out ... The Man Your Man Could Smell Like
This was taken in one shot - amazing - love the last line - unfortunately Friend #1 is randomly attaching this to anything he says...
Friday, July 2, 2010
In search of the Ultimate Red Lip Gloss
I thought I would glam up a bit for an outing, so I dug through the sultanas and Medicare receipts in the bottom of my handbag to find my favourite Chi Chi Lip Gloss. I applied it liberally only to find that it had gone rancid - not cool. So I threw it out and decided it would be quite an easy mission to find me a nice new red lip gloss. Ha!
I was shopping in Brisbane with my three best friends and we were poking through the make-up department in Myer. Faithful friend #643 walked with me as I went through all the major brands of make-up in search of the ultimate red lip gloss. We came upon the 'Kit' make-up counter, boy, was it cool. Fabulously named products and great packaging. We found a great red lip-gloss but it was in a tube, no wand and I thought it was a bit expensive at $19.95.
How silly I was not to purchase that item. And I have been kicking myself for weeks as my quest for my perfect lip-gloss has cost me dearly (am not going to write a dollar value as Friend #1 is reading over my shoulder).
I went straight to Myer in my home town the next day, thinking I could just buy a replacement Chi Chi one and be done with it. So I searched and tried on and purchased an identical replacement to the one I had thrown out. However, it wasn't until I got home and tried it on that I realised that the people at Chi Chi had slightly changed their formula or the name of the product, or I got the name of my lipgloss wrong. So, instead of a lip gloss to make me look groovy and fresh, I kind of looked like a blow up doll. Sigh.
I then bought a Sugar Baby lip-gloss which was darling. It had four shades of lip gloss in a very cute little compact. I could blend the shades into various combinations and the honey perfume was delicious. Although the texture, smell and packaging were great, the colour was not red. So my search continued.
In a spurt of desperate need for this item, I made a last ditch effort and decided I was not leaving a certain department store without a lip-gloss meeting my needs. Unfortunately for my five year old daughter, she was with me, poor lass. I methodically went through all the major brands; Revlon, Maybelline, Covergirl, Chi Chi (again) and Bourjois. Some were okay, but mostly they were rosy pink concoctions that were not what I was after. I found a close example in the Australis brand but the only one they had left had been opened and the ladies at the counter told me not to buy it as teenagers are known to try things on - eeewwww (they also told me to just put it back on the shelf - double eeewww!). By this stage my hand was looking very bizarre with every shade of pinky red stored on the shelves, now smeared on my hand. I went back through the department and stumbled upon the Rimmel display. There in a glossy red tube with a wand stood my current lip gloss. It is called 'Volume Booster, Lip Plumping Gloss' in a colour called 'Allure' costing $16.95. It is not quite as red as it could be - but dang it is close, but not as close as the 'Kit' one found weeks and weeks earlier.
The moral of the story? If you find something that is really really close to what you are after, it is worth paying a couple of dollars more to save yourself the angst of looking for something that you have already found. This can also be applied to that t-shirt you saw and loved, but thought was a wee bit too expensive, but your search for something similar took up large portion of your life - if you love it, it is at a decent price, buy it and spend the spare shopping time enjoying your purchase.
I was shopping in Brisbane with my three best friends and we were poking through the make-up department in Myer. Faithful friend #643 walked with me as I went through all the major brands of make-up in search of the ultimate red lip gloss. We came upon the 'Kit' make-up counter, boy, was it cool. Fabulously named products and great packaging. We found a great red lip-gloss but it was in a tube, no wand and I thought it was a bit expensive at $19.95.
How silly I was not to purchase that item. And I have been kicking myself for weeks as my quest for my perfect lip-gloss has cost me dearly (am not going to write a dollar value as Friend #1 is reading over my shoulder).
I went straight to Myer in my home town the next day, thinking I could just buy a replacement Chi Chi one and be done with it. So I searched and tried on and purchased an identical replacement to the one I had thrown out. However, it wasn't until I got home and tried it on that I realised that the people at Chi Chi had slightly changed their formula or the name of the product, or I got the name of my lipgloss wrong. So, instead of a lip gloss to make me look groovy and fresh, I kind of looked like a blow up doll. Sigh.
I then bought a Sugar Baby lip-gloss which was darling. It had four shades of lip gloss in a very cute little compact. I could blend the shades into various combinations and the honey perfume was delicious. Although the texture, smell and packaging were great, the colour was not red. So my search continued.
In a spurt of desperate need for this item, I made a last ditch effort and decided I was not leaving a certain department store without a lip-gloss meeting my needs. Unfortunately for my five year old daughter, she was with me, poor lass. I methodically went through all the major brands; Revlon, Maybelline, Covergirl, Chi Chi (again) and Bourjois. Some were okay, but mostly they were rosy pink concoctions that were not what I was after. I found a close example in the Australis brand but the only one they had left had been opened and the ladies at the counter told me not to buy it as teenagers are known to try things on - eeewwww (they also told me to just put it back on the shelf - double eeewww!). By this stage my hand was looking very bizarre with every shade of pinky red stored on the shelves, now smeared on my hand. I went back through the department and stumbled upon the Rimmel display. There in a glossy red tube with a wand stood my current lip gloss. It is called 'Volume Booster, Lip Plumping Gloss' in a colour called 'Allure' costing $16.95. It is not quite as red as it could be - but dang it is close, but not as close as the 'Kit' one found weeks and weeks earlier.
The moral of the story? If you find something that is really really close to what you are after, it is worth paying a couple of dollars more to save yourself the angst of looking for something that you have already found. This can also be applied to that t-shirt you saw and loved, but thought was a wee bit too expensive, but your search for something similar took up large portion of your life - if you love it, it is at a decent price, buy it and spend the spare shopping time enjoying your purchase.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
So, am I cool?
I have been baffled by the whole concept of cool. When I first had the idea for this blog, I must have been feeling pretty hip, pretty happening; but now, a few months down the track, I wonder if I would know cool if it hit me in the face. This is not an invitation for those cool people out there to actually hit me in the face, by the by.
So I thought I would ask around. But who to ask? My friends are all too lovely and would tell me that I am, in fact, very cool and give me reasons etc etc, but it is not the same as asking someone who would tell me the truth no matter how much it hurt. So I asked Friend #1, who instantly said that of course I am cool, but there are various notions of what that means. He stated that to a surfing, tattooed, mud-wrestling hippie - I may be the epitome of boring. But, to another full time mum, part time teacher with a deep desire to be cool, I may rate higher on the cool scale. He also said that I need to define the difference between style and cool - it was then that my brain started hurting and I asked him to please pass the salt.
I asked my sisters. Who else could really know me and have a historical point of view of who I truly ruly am? I sent each of them a text simply asking if I was cool and would explain why I needed to know at a later date (I am too chicken to mention my blog to them....) Sister #2 did not reply - and the reasons for this could be two fold; 1) She thought my question was stupid, or, 2) She had been eaten my her neighbour's feral children. Sister #1 replied as bluntly as expected and said that no, I am not cool, but more along the lines of cute and quirky.
Herein lies the conundrum. I have been working my whole life at being cute and quirky, because I think that these are cool qualities. So I can only surmise that cool is individual. Of course there are some universally cool things out there and also some things that are anti-cool (see previously posted lists), but I believe it basically comes down to individualism and how this is portrayed.
One of my friends, who I believe is cool, collects things, not Snoopy McDonalds toys, but fine China and black t-shirts - I think this need to collect is cool. Another friend, who I believe to be cool, will wear the same Ben Sherman t-shirt until it is thread bare and then buy a brand new t-shirt - I think this thriftiness and sense of style is very cool. Another friend again, is obsessed with craft: she scraps, she sews, she cooks AND she writes two blogs - passion is cool.
Therefore coolness is acting out your personality not dependent on trends or fashion, but simply on a core sense of being true to one's self. This is my quest - and coolness is my Holy Grail.... Should I mention here that Monty Python rates below moulding fruit on my cool scale?
So I thought I would ask around. But who to ask? My friends are all too lovely and would tell me that I am, in fact, very cool and give me reasons etc etc, but it is not the same as asking someone who would tell me the truth no matter how much it hurt. So I asked Friend #1, who instantly said that of course I am cool, but there are various notions of what that means. He stated that to a surfing, tattooed, mud-wrestling hippie - I may be the epitome of boring. But, to another full time mum, part time teacher with a deep desire to be cool, I may rate higher on the cool scale. He also said that I need to define the difference between style and cool - it was then that my brain started hurting and I asked him to please pass the salt.
I asked my sisters. Who else could really know me and have a historical point of view of who I truly ruly am? I sent each of them a text simply asking if I was cool and would explain why I needed to know at a later date (I am too chicken to mention my blog to them....) Sister #2 did not reply - and the reasons for this could be two fold; 1) She thought my question was stupid, or, 2) She had been eaten my her neighbour's feral children. Sister #1 replied as bluntly as expected and said that no, I am not cool, but more along the lines of cute and quirky.
Herein lies the conundrum. I have been working my whole life at being cute and quirky, because I think that these are cool qualities. So I can only surmise that cool is individual. Of course there are some universally cool things out there and also some things that are anti-cool (see previously posted lists), but I believe it basically comes down to individualism and how this is portrayed.
One of my friends, who I believe is cool, collects things, not Snoopy McDonalds toys, but fine China and black t-shirts - I think this need to collect is cool. Another friend, who I believe to be cool, will wear the same Ben Sherman t-shirt until it is thread bare and then buy a brand new t-shirt - I think this thriftiness and sense of style is very cool. Another friend again, is obsessed with craft: she scraps, she sews, she cooks AND she writes two blogs - passion is cool.
Therefore coolness is acting out your personality not dependent on trends or fashion, but simply on a core sense of being true to one's self. This is my quest - and coolness is my Holy Grail.... Should I mention here that Monty Python rates below moulding fruit on my cool scale?
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Never Cool
These are the things that I think are not and never will be cool (mark my words)
1) Snot
2) Smoking
3) Kids who swear
4) Bad Breath
5) Badly fitting jeans
6) Mono-brows
7) French Toilets
8) Creeping Underwear
9) Telemarketers
10) Cellulite
1) Snot
2) Smoking
3) Kids who swear
4) Bad Breath
5) Badly fitting jeans
6) Mono-brows
7) French Toilets
8) Creeping Underwear
9) Telemarketers
10) Cellulite
Friday, June 11, 2010
Always Cool
I am really into making lists. I list everything; the jobs I do in a day (I will go back through my diary to add things I have done, just so that I can put a neat little tick beside each one), shopping lists, holiday job lists etc etc etc. So, given my passion for lists, I thought I would, over the life of this blog, compile some lists of things I think are timelessly cool.
Endlessly Cool Fashion Items - Gals
1) Almost anything on sale...
2) Jeans - don't worry about brand or price, go for what is flattering - if you can find this at K-mart - bless your cotton socks - I cannot...
3) Esprit - classic cuts, cute t-shirts and the best jeans for my rounded bottom
4) Converse - classic sneakers, great with jeans and a hoodie
5) Op Shop items - can be one off amazing things
6) Flat patent black shoes - even better with buttons or buckles, worn with jeans, trousers, dresses and skirts - very cute!
7) Scarves - I have a fav scarf bought in London, but am going to explore different types of scarves as part of my look
8) Tights - make the legs look longer and I feel give my butt a nice little lift if wearing a straight-ish skirt
9) Cute t-shirts - choose quirky designs or added bits like buttons or screen print, great with denim skirt and Havianas for a summer afternoon in a park
10) Trench Coat - mine is Ben Sherman - just had to add that, trenches are a great midseason item as well as being able to be worn over cute argyle vests or sweaters. Or team with items 2,4,6 and 7 for a cute outfit for the school run...
Endlessly Cool Fashion Items - Gals
1) Almost anything on sale...
2) Jeans - don't worry about brand or price, go for what is flattering - if you can find this at K-mart - bless your cotton socks - I cannot...
3) Esprit - classic cuts, cute t-shirts and the best jeans for my rounded bottom
4) Converse - classic sneakers, great with jeans and a hoodie
5) Op Shop items - can be one off amazing things
6) Flat patent black shoes - even better with buttons or buckles, worn with jeans, trousers, dresses and skirts - very cute!
7) Scarves - I have a fav scarf bought in London, but am going to explore different types of scarves as part of my look
8) Tights - make the legs look longer and I feel give my butt a nice little lift if wearing a straight-ish skirt
9) Cute t-shirts - choose quirky designs or added bits like buttons or screen print, great with denim skirt and Havianas for a summer afternoon in a park
10) Trench Coat - mine is Ben Sherman - just had to add that, trenches are a great midseason item as well as being able to be worn over cute argyle vests or sweaters. Or team with items 2,4,6 and 7 for a cute outfit for the school run...
