pow, wow!

the sequel to a previous post on the membertou 400 celebration in halifax.
i went 3 days, about 5 or 6 times in total. it was a fantastic cultural experience.the culture is so vibrant; in history, traditions and dress. i have never actually experienced anything like that first hand. i had always seen it on tv or in movies but never in real life.

the best part was one of the midnight dance and song sessions. i had ran from work to check out the buffy sainte marie concert (which i missed, and am also extremely bitter about) but was happy to find hundreds of people in a circle watching many different native tribes dancing and singing.

if you can imagine it was the middle of the night, glowing teepee's all round, a crystal clear evening and stars over head, native song and dance blasting across the commons . the whole scene was seriously beautiful and haunting in a way.
ANYWAYS, besides me wanting to lay there and bask in the glory of the evening (and the day time sun the other 4 times), i sucked it up and pulled on my photojournalist-thinking-hat and got down to work.. if only for a few moments :)

here are a few photos from my day at the festival. i will post more whenever i really get around to editing them. :) please excuse the half-assed attempts at the more or less pseudo-photo-journalistic captioning.

halifax commons was set aglow with ever changing led-lit teepees (aren't they beautiful!!!)
dancers show off their immaculate costumesall tribe dance, in a display of beautiful colours and movements
emele neufeld, 18, has been participating in traditional dancing since the age of two. neufeld explained he was 'thrown into it' at a young and oblivious age but understands the importance of his heritage and carrying on traditions.

the glowing teepees attract numerous visitors who watch in awe of their ever changing colours.a young native girl is the center of attention as she is the only contender for her age category for traditional dance
young dancers prepare to compete infront of judges and hundreds of anxious on-lookersthe embroidered rose on wilma simon's wrist and arm represent her young and timid daughter.joe googoo and family shave and tan a fresh moose skin in the traditional way, using pointed tools made out of moose shin bones.wilma simon sings a traditional song about the destruction and despair that arose after the first settlers encountered her people.an elder takes part in fancy

bikini season

in the past i have been a pretty avid collector of bikinis but as the years go on i find that i bother with them less and less. probably due to the fact that as you get older your summers become less like summer vacations and more like long weekends.

i have dreamed for the summer vacations of elementary school and junior high. perhaps all of this dreaming has finally paid off! i head out to portugal sometime next week, i will be taking a language course there but they will go no later than 1 or 2 pm in the day which leaves OPTIMAL beach time!

minus the course (which i feel i will be happy to get up and go to each morning, *knock on wood.) it will basically be a summer holiday; sun, beach & surfing for 2 months.

and what do sun & beach call for? bikinis of course! it is also time for a new style of bikini. i forever am buying bikinis that i will be able to do some REAL swimming/wave jumping in, but usually find the saggy bottoms floating around my ankles, or worse, tumbling in the foam a few meters away.

so the season's new bikini style might be the perfect and fashionable solution to my saggy run-away bottoms - and i refuse to wear sport bathingsuits. i am on the hunt for the perfect 50's style bikini..or something else interesting on the way!

so far, these are the most beautiful 50's style bikini & trunks i have found! they come from a beautiful designer Frances May!i however will not pay almost $300 for a bikini. but it is some fantastic inspiration!

free people seem to be a constant source of beautiful clothing. this patchwork one with button is really cute!

i am in love with LA based company Shay Todd's handkercheif bikini. easily worn with a pair of shorts - ready to go! you might get a ridiculous tan..but atleast it's great for swimming! or perhaps this floral beauty from ASOS!
and i lied, if sporty can always be done in THIS kind of way, sign me up.

maaji cut-out sport contrast swim suit also found at ASOS:

sadly, i cannot order online as i had hoped, as i will be gone before my package could possibly arrive. maybe i will just have to wait until i arrive in portugal!

plan b(razil)

ah, and portugal finally bites the dust.

c'est la vie.

until 2014 christiano..

atleast we have a back up team. go brazil!

combat baby

i never find that i fit or enjoy wearing one particular theme or style. so, a favourite is intermingling them. it balances out an outfit (you dont get too much of one thing), its usually easier to work with and it makes for a way more fun outfit that is probably wearable in many different situtations.

i got a pair of combat boots a little bit ago now but they havn't made their well deserved debut on the blog. so give a round of applause for my fantastic new boot edition. YES. i finally do have a pair of big ol black boots to kick around in. next will come the small studs to fancifyyy them. :)
h&m flapper top, vintage fedora, ecote urban behaviour skirt, silver maltese cross necklace, 30$ combat boots (army surplus store on robie)

and howabout a few mj moves for you.
and to stick with the theme, you might as well listen to this:



oh how i love you metric, and combat boots!

sea creature

my favourite animal

lunenburg night walk

quite a few weeks ago i went to lunenburg. it is such an adorable little town, everything seems to be so pristine and well kept. i didn't really have my camera on me in the daytime, so i challenged myself to gather some interesting night shots that evening. every once in a while i'll give myself little "challenges"..really its so my teachers don't yell at me when i come back with absolutely shit all next school semester.

lunenburg is literally dead after probably about 8 pm. not a soul walks the streets! so this is what i had to work with.. but i do quite enjoy photographing scenery and found objects. enjoy.

an ode to an ozzy

i was browsing my old piczo account - hilarious to say the least - and i came across an album titled ozzy.

ozzy was a dear friend of mine. a dear friend indeed. he was fantastic to hang out with and quite hilarious at most times. he was a very curious little thing too. he enjoyed things such as peanut butter, cheetos dangling from sticks by string, yogurt and playing in dryer vent tubes or planters.

yes, ozzy or ozwold was my pet ferret. unfortunetly he got very sick and died about 3 years ago now.. but i still think about that little guy lots.

anyways i feel that he totally deserves a post, and so all of you can see how adorable he was!

ferrets make fantastic pets. and i can't wait until i have my own place with steady living arangements so i can have a bajillion of these little guys.

*****

unlike some ferrets, EVERYONE got along with ozzy. my lovely pup sadie loved him to bits! they even would sleep in the same bed together ^_^


a face that more than a mother could love..we questioned his sexuality at times..dearest oz, we miss you. xox.

"borrowed" not bought

i have come to realize that i seem to wear everyone's clothes, but my own. my two favourite "closets" seem to be my grandmother's and my father's, but i wear clothing from every single member of my 6 person family, not including some from my grandparents and great grandfather..

but hey. it only keeps the options open. extremely open!!!

this next picture is one example. it was taken one lovely sunny haligonian afternoon. one not too hot, and not to cold; my favourite!

vintage fedora, jean jacket from garage '03 (OH YEAH BABY!), grandmother's turkish scarf, grandmother's syrian purse, father's black tee, value village dezi boots.

a inspiração

i enjoy visiting my favourite clothing websites but sometimes all you need from them is a little bit of inspiration.

a good clothing outlet and a little bit of hope and determination is all you need when it comes to finding an outfit or creating a look.

i am an avid believer in the 3 R's, reduce, reuse and recycle so i practically live and breath frenchies or value village or random haligonian second hand shops.. and with no shame! they help the environment and your wallet! (and are usually much more unique!)

anyhow, i recently discovered this kelly green dress by finders keep online...but during my checkups to dressed in time in halifax i came across this fantastic piece that would fill the void for a baggy, button up playsuit, but without filling my brain with a guilty conscience for spending a lot of money.

this comfy vintage turquoise piece came to $25.. over $80 dollars less than the kelly green one. the only difference is that mine is a romper (which i actually enjoy more!) ..and after a bit of an altering by yours truly it fit perfectly!

video-lidioo

this post will eventually be a tribute to a few more of my favourite videos/songs.

but first, let me give my littlest sister CLAUDIA a shoutout. (this will make her feel popular). well actually she is sitting beside me right now and has got the impression that i am going to give her a little bit of webspace to put down her current thoughts and feelings.

well, this is your lucky day kid:

*****

"with my cat turtle and my nobel prize winner sadie, drinking some spring water on this fine evening. .. ya, that'll do it."

"is that it?"

"ya."

*****

so. to get back to the original point of this post (before i sit down to finish watching the opening episode of season three of trueblood!) i am going to link some of my utmost favourite songs and videos! i am a bit too lazy/anxious at the moment but plan to putforth more effort on my next post which may or may not be later tonight!

crystal by new order. i have long searched for the name of this excrutiatingly adorable lead singer and i finally found a forum that gave me the name "ROD HULL". i am going to make a sad attempt at something like a missing persons ad: if you have any information on this boy, please let me know. ASAP.

"young folks" would have been by far too predictable. but peter bjorn and paul have paired growing plants with a new wave pop song. and immm loving it



next up. butterfly by crazy town. and don't judge me.. because i know there are PLENTY of you closet crazy town lovers and those of you who are in denial about how much you secretly love this song. i have met a few of you over the years, but i know there is more.

i actually think this video is quite beautiful, and the contrast between the scenery and band is quite funny, but anything with fairies, flowers and pretty colours andddd you've caught my attention. probably for longer amounts of time then i would like to admit.



bowerbirds: in our talons. what a delightfully slightly haunting song. i want a pet dancing crow!


DANCE by justice. just a really freakin fun dance song and a really amusing video!



another great band to dance too, metronomy! this video is just really fun too.



there! that is quite a brainful of great videos to handle for one evening, but enjoy! and let me know what you think!

a makeover - marie antoinette style

i've lost my cell phone, i've misplaced my laptop computer cord.. and i am busy at work all the time!
i've barely had time to upload photos taken from the past few weeks! this is getting out of hand! but soon enough i will be on my way to beautiful lisbon to soak up some sun, and some portuguese grammer no doubt!anyways how do you like the little facelift the blog has been given?
i sat down to watch the other boleyn girl last night because i really enjoy period movies such as those. but i suppose i was previously spoiled by "marie antoinette" and it got me thinking about how in love i am with that movie and how much it seriously needed a dedicated post by me!

marie antoinette is one of my "go to" movies, i seriously cannot get enough. its got a great cast, it's quite subtly funny, the contrast in classical and contemporary music/elements is fantastic. the soundtrack hosts artists like new order, siouxsie and the banshees, radio department and the cure. how fab!
anyways, the movie is pure eyecandy; with magnificent colours and beautiful compositions. kirstin dunsts also is amazing in this role. i suggest you all see it!
the over all feeling of the movie is also somewhat of an inspiration since the start of this blog. if you know the movie well, you will completely understand what i am talking about!

annie liebovits also had the pleasure of shooting this for an issue of vogue in 2005. here are a few of the shots.
oh what i wouldn't give to be a dauphine.. or atleast one in this movie!

a house of leaves

ahhhh, i have been so busy lately and my computer was previously being used as the medium connected to the amp at the restaurant so i have been without it.

i find that when i dont have regular access to a computer or internet. i just really don't give a darn about it. it reminds me when i was in newfoundland for about 2 months, two summers or so ago. my cellphone had zero connection for about 3 months as we were sailing around really rural parts of quebec and newf...and there was no internet connection to pick up around the docks..so i went without! it was kind of strange, but very refreshing.

but at school and when i have my computer around it seems that i am forever logged onto msn and such things, leaving my browsers open JUST incase someone needs to get a hold of me. but it feels nice knowing that, although it sometimes appears like it, i am not actaully a slave to msn, the internet, or my computer. i CAN go without it! and quite easily it appears.

anyways, for these reasons i havn't been able to update, and im slowly coming to terms with that. anyways because im actually currently on my father's computer, i am going to update with an old fav song of mine..

by a fantastical, sometimes mildly annoying, but wonderful band called animal collective.




it kind of makes me want to run wild in a forrest..speaking of which, here is another favourite song AND video of mine. infact, i think they're almost perfect...some definate nudity heads up.

slapdash turned systematic: the awesomeness of google pt I

as it's late..and was feeling extremely lazy, i was only going to post a tiny thing as i have admitted before i feel truly dedicated to this stupid virtual space that is literally nothing more than 0 and 1's... but it is sort of like a special memory box. or..never ending closet that i can fit whatever i so desire in!and, one of those things, would be, if not ian astburry himself, this photo of him. *drool*but as i was googling for this image i happened upon a cool button that may or may not have been in existence for a long time already. but it is the "photos SIMILAR" button.

when you search for a picture, under some pictures there is a link that when pressed will link to other photos that have been deemed "SIMILAR" or linked in some way by google.
imagine my surprise when i clicked that button (hoping to find a larger resolution photo so i could look at ian in all his furry hat wearing glory, at a much more appropriate size!!!)but unrelenting good ol bobby's was pretty much all i got but i particularly enjoyed this "SIMILAR IMAGE"...but i love google. and aside from being the best search engine for interesting and entertaining things, the search engine itself is a constant source of amusement!

i inserted the word tomatos.. and clicked similar links until i some how ended up in a wheel of teenage mutant ninja turtle.. perhaps it really is no more systematic as it is slapdash. i guess thats up to you to decide.

here is another example of the endless amusement google has to offer.

type in any general word and verb into the search engine and watch what top searched items in canada pop up in the automatic menu box!!!!sorry for being horrible but the results are simply ridiculous! is anyone as easily as amused as i am...

and thus concludes segment one of google's sheer awesomeness.

samba nova dance party

as i mentioned in the last post, i spent about 8 hours at the samba nova concert at the north street church in halifax. samba nova is a group of about 20-30 performers that specialize in brazilian samba music. the dance party was a benefit for one of the late members, Mattieu Keijser, and all the proceeds went to his two children.
the concert hosted numerous other bands playing brazilian samba-jazz, samba-reggae, african influenced music and more. there was even a traditional nova scotian fiddle tune mixed with several brazilian samba drum beats!!! it was definitely a delicious taste for the eyes and ears, and i suppose the body as it was listerally a non-stop dance party!

i was there basically running a canteen that pipa restaurant catered for, but on the off periods i did have the chance to take some photos! this was also my first time shooting an event ANYTHING like this. i have never shot a band or a musical event before. how did i do!?

*****

a member of samba nova adds a jazzy twist to the traditional percussion based music of carnival samba batucada.

creating a true brazilian carnival feeling, samba nova joins the enthusiastic guests on the crowded dance floor for their final song of the evening

two samba nova members keep the beat while playing an upbeat maracatu song

daniel macneil, of Mas Cencerro, (my personal favourite of the evening, *drool*) brings a delicate and detailed element to the percussion music with the european lute.

dancers took to flat shoes and bare feet for optimum dancing power! during samba nova's dance party benefit on saturday evening.

mainstreaming

since i have been way to busy to upload, edit, or post elaborate blogs. here is one to tide anyone who bothers reading this thing over, and one to make me feel accomplished in my blogging-dedicatedness... (sp?...ha..)

anyways, i just got back from a long, but amazing night at a brazilian samba concert and dance party. i was selling snacks and drinks a la pipa restaurant but got to listen to nearly 7 hours of the most upbeat, incredible dance music you could possibly dream up... but that's another story, on a future post...

SO as i got home at around 1 am i slumped down onto my couch and ofcorse, my younger sister simone had mtv playing. it was the countdown and i finally listened to and watched that whole "telephone" song by lady gaga and beyonce (and the dreadful music video of miley cyrus' EEK) AND found it to be a strangely... strange but appealing video. i can really appreciate a lot of the elements in this video, and its just quirky enough to make it a serious contender. i particularly liked the jail dance scenes.


ANYWAYS the video led me to think of another mainstream video that i actaully have decided is really quite cool, even if it is a bit skanky, but hey, who isn't these days.

the other video is RUDE BOY, by rihanna. okay i lied, maybe she is a BIT more skanky than the average seeing as she agreed (and seems to be enjoying) to sing a song completely dedicated to one man's 'boner', for lack of a better word!

anyways, once you get past the lyrics of the song. the video has a funky pop art urban jungle kind of feel that i am really loving.

a grand celebration

grand celebration, for grand cheif membertou.

as requested i am spreading the word about this fantastic event taking place this summer, near the end of june, in halifax. the city is hosting Membertou 400, an event celebrating the first mi'kmaq or native canadian to be baptised 400 years ago (hardly an event to be celebrated one would think...) with aboriginal tribes coming from across canada for a 4 day event of reenactments, dancing and singing.


the event is directed at celebrating the multiculturalism and diversity of canada and the strong tie we have (or should have) to the natives of this country.

i can't explain how excited i am for this event. pehaps my love began for the native american/canadian culture when i first saw disney's pocahontas.. and then again after that massive mi'kmaq project in grade six (yes, all you sir charles tupper-ers remember that 'ol thing!)

but want to know the best part? legendary buffy sainte-marie will be playing a live concert during the beginning date of the halifax festival venue. yes. buffy sainte marie my friends, AND its free!
anyways i have required a media pass for the event and plan to spend every waking minute at this festival!

so come join me, and thousands others in celebrating important canadian history and taking part in this unique multiculturalism event. the event is free to the public as well, so how could you not! visit or take part: all the information you could need is here!

and to get in the mood, here is a few of the promotional videos for the event, as well as some of buffy's ^_^ (who knew she had such a prominant place on sesame st show!)





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mideval times

slacking in the posting department lately as well. besides being constantly on the go, a lot of it has to do with me shooting in raw, and it being a pain in the but to load and reformat. perhaps ill start shooting in jpeg for these sorts of things it would definitely make my life that much easier/quicker!

anyhow, this beautiful pale blush tone sheer chiffon dress from british topshop makes my life. the clasps on the front, which i have failed to detail remind me of some sort of medieval peasant-y top. and i love every bit of that idea! paired with leather boots, zara black acid wash denim, vintage glasses, and KBG Studio leather bag (i threw on some tassels to give the bag more of a boho look.. i love tassle and fringe anything! ^_^)