Back-to-School

They're messy, but I love chalkboards. During my last trip to Lowes, I picked up a quart of the chalkboard paint. Don't know what I'm going to do with it, but I'll let you know.

And seriously, why buy or long for a Cy Twombly when you can create your own original art? Totally inspired by this giant chalkboard-paint covered canvas hanging on the wall. An inexpensive and creative way to fill up wall space!

Source: country living and architectural digest

Just When You Thought You'd Seen It All

Me pain-stakingly painting beige polka-dotted fabric pink. Who does that?! Yes, now you've seen it all.

Film is Not Dead

Filming on an Arri-S 16mm camera in the rain this morning was so much fun. No. No it wasn't. That line was supposed to be typed and read in Sarcastica. Shooting in the rain was cold and miserable. And it left me with the sniffles. *sniffle*


On a side note, doesn't this cupcake look like Conando?

Dear Internet...

I am eagerly awaiting Coco's return to late-night come-September. In the meantime, I shall watch and rewatch THIS gem of a video displaying Conan's fantastically entertaining invisible-string dance.

May the fleas of a thousand camels infest the crotch of the NBC executives who screwed with Conan's career and may their arms be too short to scratch.

NBC... TO THE GROUND!

Craving

Like Garfield, I'm dreaming of lasagna. It's been pouring here in usually-sunny Los Angeles, and some warm, cheese and tomato-sauce coated pasta tonight would really hit the spot. THIS recipe (thanks, Jo) should make my tummy smile.

Better Together

Unable to fall asleep last night, I went online and bought myself a pair of Smurf blue tights and le cub a pair of hot pink socks. *teehee* As Robin Williams once put it, "You're only given a little spark of madness. You mustn't lose it.” Damn right. Looking forward to the arrival of our geeky footwear.

Flashing is Fun II

My first lip-sync! Created in Flash. See it HERE.

Sunshine

This 50s Alvin Lustig Ring chandelier I spotted on 1stdibs makes me smile. Yes, I do realize that this is the second chandelier posting made within the past month. I can't help it. They're all so sparkly... like vampires exposed to sunlight :)

Beep-Beep

Gesso'd my cardboard van for the zoo pick-up scene in THIS film. I then added a second coat of paint (see the bottom photo). Third coat with additional details to come. And ooh, some gloss or lacquer would be nice, no?

Here Comes The Sun

I love this photo of the Beatles. Available for an arm and a leg at 1stdibs.

Live What You Love

Well don't mind if I do...

Le cub's lil' sis, aka my future sister-in-law and bridesmaid, bought me THIS print for Christmas. My mantra for 2010 :)

Rain, Rain, Go Away

The wet weather has Beans depressed. I tried to cheer him up with a new pug friend I picked up while in New York. Beans, meet Pork!

Poof

Le cub and I have picked out "outfits" (not a manly word) for our upcoming engagement shoot with Max and Margaux. We are, however, still in the market for some bold accessories.

Socks for le cub. He's been looking HERE.

Poofy headband for le cougar. I'm seriously considering the above-pictured ban.do confection. Mmm, whimsy.

top: jill thomas
middle: seventeen
bottom: max wanger

I Just Called, To Say

I love yoooooou...

I need to call my parents.
Haven't spoken to either of them in a while.
I'm a bad daughter.

Friday, January 15, 2010

Empire State of Mind

Attend Cinematography from 9-12. Drop Beans off at Rebecca's. Pack my bags.
And I'm OFF to the Big Apple! New York, how I've missed you. Le cub and Tiff? You two too :)

Love Story

Le cub and I have been putting off save-the-dates and invitations as they're a sad reminder that we need to finalize our guest list. Too many friends, and not enough space at our venue to include everyone. Sorry! We'd set out to put-together an intimate ceremony composed of friends and family, but it turns out friends at our age are all hitched or dating! The count was instantaneously doubled! This led me to resolve to not make any new friends in the new year. I'm only half-joking.

But seriously, save-the-dates and invitations. It takes a two... Le cub and moi. We brainstormed last night to come up with something good and uniquely us. Seeing that I've been having a good time fooling around with watercolors (see here), a little illustrated "love story" will likely may way into our invite envelopes...

A lovely break from working on my film.

Pictured: My original engagement ring! Le ring pop in blue raspberry.

It's Black It's White

As MJ pointed out, "It don't matter if you're black or white..."

*swoon*

Still swooning over Oscar de la Renta's Spring 2010 collection. I can't wait to pick-up my dress!

Details

The nose piece for Ethel's glasses... they should be painted black as well, huh? Thoughts?

"Beware of the person who can't be bothered by details." - William Feather

Tying the Nut

Came across this kooky wedding topper on Etsy. The squirrels are "tying the nut"... teehee.

Na-ma-skar!

That's "hello" in Hindi...

Behold, my Indian granny (one of the extras). Was going to include a Bindi dot on her forehead, but there wasn't enough room! On her forehead, that is...

Extra-Extra

Ethel's fellow zoo-goers. Based on the fabric swatches I bought at Joann's, this is what I came up with. Won't be showing up on Project Runway anytime soon!

Hey Bebe

Le cub was born in St.Paul, MN on April 5th, 1982.
He was a very heavy baby.
The doctor thought he was a set of twins.

Le cougar (that would be me) was born in Northridge, CA on November 13th, 1979.
She was born hairy.
There was even hair on her back.

Here's the Plan

Work. Work. Work some more. Grr.

Here's my vegetarian lion in the works. His afro is in dire need of some highlights and yes, he's still missing his bottom jaw. What part of in-the-works did you not understand? I kid you :)

Paid a visit to Joann Fabrics in Glendale. What a dump. I sprouted three white hairs while waiting in line. Grr. Bought some needlepoint supplies. But for the record, I do not know how to needlepoint. Hehe. But I'm going to try to figure it all out with the help of the internets. Yes, all the internets. I think a title page created with needle and thread could be a nice touch, don't you?

Finally, I have a new girl-crush. Her name is Caitlin McGauley. She is wonderful. THIS is why.

Brain Farts

The women on this season of The Bachelor are co-co-nuts.

Second visit to the Smog Shoppe today. With Rebecca. This pug's for her. (Yes, he's sporting a tighty-whitey.)

Kit Kraft of Studio City. Maybe I love you.

New York City, T-3!!!

Do invitations get more beautiful than THESE? Maaaaaybe. I want to make my own...

{D'oh. Smog Shoppe visit has been rescheduled. Folks there are busy. Meh.}

Save-The-Date

So many to save...

My BFF and matron-of-honor Pammy, is back in the country! While jet-lagged, she began planning my bachelorette party! Yes, already! (I'm not having an engagement party... nor am I having a bridal shower, so this should be fun.)

Destination? NEW ORLEANS, baby!!!

I Had a Dream

That I was the proud owner of this Edison-bulb chandelier hanging at Gjelina.

Ahh... if only dreams came true...

Image source HERE

Flashing is Fun

Adobe Flashing, that is.

A stylized run-cycle featuring my old hairy man with a temp-background HERE. Improvements will be made!

On Your Marks, Get Set

Go!

This combination of DwellStudio Gate linens with Anthropologie peacock dishes excites me. Matching, but not matchy...

Image taken from Madam Stewart's site, HERE.

Arf-Arf...

"Do the doggy bounce... Arf! Arf! You know you wanna do it..."

Built the doggy skeleton and am now covering it with Sculpey III. I'd originally wanted to have the dog be black (like Beans!), however, I ended up settling for a shade of cocoa (#1657) out of fear that black would be difficult to photograph. As you can see, I've still got loads of work remaining (the dog's coat needs to be smoothed out, its collar still needs to be made, eyesballs would be lovely, and then ooh, a nose would be nice)... Aaaaaargh. What I would give to go to bed NOW!

So Long, Farewell

It's hard to say good-bye...

Le cub's on his way back to San Francisco (driving). *sniffles* But lucky for me, he was able to work remotely this past week... Which means we had loads of fun...

Picked out our "outfits" (men don't use that word) for our engagement shoot with Max Wanger. We both made sure our outfits were good for action shots...

We also found time to enjoy fantastic grub together at two places we'd been itching to try. First, we ventured on over to Sushi Nozawa (home of the famed Sushi Nazi) in Studio City... Then we inched our way over to Gjelina in Venice on Saturday. Yum, yummy, yum~ Reviews posted on My Tummy Smiled.

My cub's the best.

America's Got Talent

My always-hungry bridesmaid and favorite travel buddy (together we've been to Seattle, Venice, Rome, Florence, Miami, Cancun, Mykonos, Barcelona and Marrakesh), Tiff, sent over her eight-limbed self-portrait and adorable family portrait. Her dad has a beak! She drew this when she was 5 years old, and like le cub, was creating masterpieces at a very young age :)

In the Flesh

Ethel in the flesh.

I'm struggling with her dress. I can't sew for my life and am trying to create one with a glue gun. Needless to say, my method is backfiring. Grr.

Real Love

I've already got a beautiful wedding gown in the works - one that I won't be seeing until April or March - but as lovely as it is, the dress is restricting and frankly, impossible to boogie in. But le cub and I envision a wedding reception filled with music and dance. *Jersey Shore fist-pump* Which means a second dress that allows for maximum "dance-age" is necessary...

After searching high and low, I found it. I found "the one"!!! The above-pictured Oscar de la Renta gem is the dress I will be changing into after our ceremony and dinner. This dress is probably doesn't appeal to all people (asymmetrical designs are an acquired-taste), but to me, he's perfect. (Yes, Oscar is a "he".)

Don't tell anyone, but I think I love this lil' number more than I love my wedding gown...

And my last dress for the December Taiwan ceremony? (Traditionally there are multiple outfit changes.) FOUND IT! No photos of this one, but I do have a close-up of the YUM-meh fabric swatch. *swoon*

Mission accomplished. Wedding wardrobe, done :)

Four Eyes

Such a pain to keep Sculpey/Fimo clean. Finally did it. Here's Ethel and the start of her face. The eyeballs were baked separately and fit into sockets. They can be shifted with a small pin (at the center of her pupils). As for her glasses (they're not finished... still needs a bridge), I wanted them to look a little less matte than the rest of her, so I painted over the baked-clay with acrylics. Think I will be doing some repainting with gloss in order to make them even shinier. And ooh, they're currently be held on by soft clay. Final version of Ethel will have her glasses glued down...

Happy Feet

Taking a break from building my stop-motion characters and props and shopping for socks online. Mens socks! Keeping in mind that le cub's groomsmen will be sporting white shirts, charcoal gray or black pants, and THESE mismatched ties, which of these Happy Socks should we pick? Oh, the paradox of choice...

Head's Up

Ethel's head. A work-in-progress. Foil core. Sculpey overlay. Not edible. *sigh*

What a Girl Wants

I desperately want electrolysis. I'm not THAT hairy, but fine little hairs do sprout up on my arms occasionally, and I hate it. And my pits. I want them fresh and clean 24/7 as well. Know of a quality defuzz consultant? Please, do share.

Created a new character to build in Flash. I have yet to name him, but in the meantime, let's refer to him as OHM. Old Hairy Man. His story is going to be one involving a vending machine. And yes, it's going to be epic.

ONIK ONIK

Le cub was home (Minnesota) for the holidays, and look what he brought back for me! He was a very talented first grader.
ONIK-ONIK!

Must frame.

Tying the Knot

Mismatched skinny ties for le cub's groomsmen :)

Like Father, Like Daughter

While back home in Taiwan, I found a framed photo of my "ba" as a tot. (He's stuffing his face with what looks to be a dinner roll, and yes, he's wearing diapers.) In the same drawer was a snapshot of me as a tot. (I'm stuffing my face with a plate of cake. Little has changed since my early-years.) Get a load of the identical "huh?" expressions on our faces. I am definitely my father's daughter.

Oh, Valentino!

When Julia Roberts got made over in "Pretty Woman," she did so at Valentino. That said, when given the task of picking out evening gowns for le cougar and cub wedding reception in Taiwan (brides typically change three times at traditional Chinese weddings), my mother and I headed straight for the timeless designs of Valentino. Yes, I have a very nice mom. Since she wore orange and gold (festive alternatives to red) to her own wedding way back when (click HERE), I wanted to do the same. Here I am, all five-feet of me, trying on an orange and light-gold Valentino confection back in Taipei. I love the fluffy bow perched on my booty. The dress was, coincidentally, on sale... so le cougar mom and I took it as a sign and purchased it. One dress down. One more to go...