So, it’s pretty grim outside at the moment, isn’t it (unless you’re in sunnier climes than London town)… but I’ve found just the thing to brighten up your day. I came across these images in the archives of the always-inspiring blog Design*Sponge, and had to share them with you. This is another home that I’ve fallen pretty hard for, especially since it involves my current fixation: cushions with pom-poms (or anything with pom-poms, come to that). But mostly because of the glorious burst of colour in every room. It doesn’t matter how gray it is outside, the vibrant interior would be an instant mood lifter.
This Georgian conversion in Glasgow belongs to Fiona Douglas, a designer who started her business Bluebellgray along with her fiancé, Phil, after studying painting at the Glasgow School and then realising her passion lay with textiles. Clearly influenced by colour and all things floral, Fiona’s designs are strikingly unique, and she ensures that everything is printed and made in the UK for an authentically local feel.
Fiona believes that, “It’s ok when things don’t match, if you love it, go with it!”. I couldn’t agree more.
{images via Design*Sponge} Bluebellgray’s collection currently includes limited edition cushions and throws as well as lampshades and bone china mugs, with a new bedlinen line and fabric range coming this spring. Here are some of Fiona’s creations that I’d love to find a place for in my home:
{Secret Garden cushion / Poppy cushion / Cornflower cushion / Magnolia lampshade / Meadow wallhanging}
And how much do you want to go home and colour coordinate your books now?!
With the release of Oscar-tipped Black Swan (for my review, see here), ballet is now having a resurgence. Many girls had a brush with the graceful pastime growing up – although I swiftly traded ballet shoes for less refined riding boots – and although it may not be something that we actively take part in anymore, there is still that fascination that compels us to go see The Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty et al. The music, the costumes, the romance of it all… it’s completely captivating. Impressionist Edgar Degas was so entralled by the ballet world, that over half his works depicted dancers:
{The Rehearsal of the Ballet on Stage by Edgar Degas via AllPosters}
Taking inspiration from the outfits and themes within Black Swan, here are a few pieces to help you embrace the trend and maybe even pirouette around your living room when no one’s looking:
1. Dorothy Perkins nude shoulder sequin dress – £30
2. DSquared2 slash neck sweatshirt – £150
3. Steve Madden Fifi heels – $99.95 (approx. £62.50)
4. Manolo Blahnik Catalina heels – $418 (approx. £261)
5. Lipsy ribbon necklace – £18
6. Essie nail polish in Ballet Slippers – £9.50
7. Topshop skirt by Meadham Kirchhoff – £20
8. Hermione Harbutt Odette feather headdress – £265
9. Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb Tutu eau de parfum – £74.50
10. ASOS drop earrings with feathers – £12
11. MAC lipstick in Dubonnet – £13.50
12. Rare Paprika pleated skirt – £25
13. Faster by Mark Fast cropped ballet top – £150
14. Topshop Vestry pink ballet pumps – £18
If subtlety is not your strong point and you want a full-on Swan-Queen-the-part-should-have-gone-to-me-not-Portman moment, then this OTT number by Rare could be for you. The original design by Marchesa was one step ahead of the ‘ballet chic’ game back in 2009, and Lively later pulled it off with prima ballerina aplomb (also seen here). So… the question is: are you confident enough to raise the style barre? (Yep, I went there):
{*Topshop Rare Opulence Corset Ballet Net Dress}
You know how it is – if you had to give up your Blackberry/iPhone/laptop, it would be like losing a limb. I’m exactly the same. Sadly the practice of handwritten correspondence just isn’t done anymore, and the closest you’ll get to a formal ‘thank you’ following a dinner party is a hastily-assembled text message. But if one of your New Year’s resolutions is to show your appreciation or to show you care by putting pen to paper (remember writing… the thing you did before the invention of the keyboard?), then I have just the answer.
London-based Romeo + Jules – a business born of, “boy meets girls who loves stationery. Boy suggests that girl should turn that love into more than just an expensive hobby” – produces bespoke letterpress designs, alongside a range of modern through to classic creations, all with a beautifully vintage feel.
The talented husband and wife team work closely with clients in order to capture their personalities and style, and translate it into a set of one of a kind stationery, through the use of colour, font and texture. If you require something a little more effortless, then their website showcases a variety of affordable designs from headed paper to party invitations to charming notecards. Here are some of my favourites:
{all images via Romeo + Jules}
How pretty are they? Happily Romeo + Jules are generously offering a 15% discount exclusively for readers of {what you fancy}. Merely give the code ‘FANCY’ when ordering.
So next time you want to send a message that is unmistakably from you, put down your phone and opt for snail mail. After all, aren’t the best things in life worth waiting for?
When my friend asked me if I fancied seeing Black Swan, I had visions of the following: a struggling ballerina (who maybe lives on the wrong side of town) has to nurture her inner talent in order to perform a final dance that raises lots of money to save the community centre, whilst romancing an easy-on-the-eye male lead and perhaps having some kind of make-over (like taking off her glasses or letting her hair down) in the process. It became apparent within about 20 seconds that this was no ‘Step Up 2: The Streets’.
To summarise (without giving the game away), Natalie Portman plays Nina, a shakily timid yet gifted ballerina who wins the lead role in Swan Lake, in which she is required to play both the sweet, virginal White Swan and the evil, seductive Black Swan. The wonderfully French choreographer, Thomas Leroy (played by Vincent Cassel, who is one string of onions away from being Hercule Poirot), swaggers his way through the film, taking full advantage of the power he holds over the wannabe prima ballerinas… even creepily calling the out-of-favour Beth (played vividly by Winona Ryder – all that time off ‘shopping’ clearly did her acting prowess the world of good) his “little princess”. Which made you instantly want to take a shower to rid you of the sleaze. Anyway, his aim is to coax the concealed femme fatale out of Nina, so that she can shine as much in the Black Swan badass role as in the White.
After a couple of, shall we say, European suggestions, from the fey tyrant, Leroy (as in, ‘the King’… oohh, that’s what that’s about…), the breakthrough, or indeed breakdown, for Nina comes when she is befriended by the vivacious and free-spirited Lily (played by Mila Kunis), who fascinates the former with her lack of apparent inhibitions. Tattoos? Check. Recreational drugs? Check. Staying out past curfew to infuriate Nina’s already unstable mother? Check. Activities that will excite the male audience? Uncomfortable check. However, Nina soon fears that Lily is after her starring role, and so begins the rapid (compared to this film, Nemesis at Alton Towers is achingly slow) decline of her mental state. Which was never very solid in the first place.
I’ve never been one for horror/psychological thrillers, but this one’s a humdinger – director Aronofsky really pulled out all the stops with Black Swan. Even when there is some pretty ballet dancing on screen, you have a sense that any second something creepy and unexpected is going to happen. Remember that music in Jaws that gives you advanced warning that the scary bit is about to go down? Well, imagine that music playing for the entire film. Seriously, there’s no respite. Just as you think you can breathe again, Portman snarls, her eyes turn red and you’re back on the edge of your seat (I should have asked for half my money back, I never used the whole thing).
As for the cast, Portman is 100% deserving of the accolade that she is currently receiving. She certainly embraces every aspect of the role, from her shockingly fragile ballerina frame to the range of emotion that changes in her face every second. Her eyes in particular are mesmerising. This is no run-of-the-mill, two-dimensional Hollywood actress… she is astounding. The rest of the cast, too, compliment her performance, especially Kunis, who I’ve been fond of ever since Forgetting Sarah Marshall.
So, what have we got here? There are so many underlying themes it’s enough to give you whiplash – perfectionism, bulimia, body dysmorphic disorder, rebellion, competitiveness, coming of age, sexual predatory behaviour, hatred of your mother, mental illness… to name but a few. The film feels like it’s been shot with a hand-held camera, making the picture grainy, jerky and claustrophobic; with lots of behind-shoulder shots (I don’t know what the professionals call this… I call it ‘irritating’). There are hallucinations abound, intensified all the more by the score, which is like Tchaikovsky on acid. The music was so loud that I feared for my ear drums (if only it had the same affect on my eye-sight… that, I could have done without). Gore, too, is dished out by the bucket-load, with lots of bloody toes and crunching bones for your enjoyment (which I’m guessing is a metaphor for concealed pain behind the beauty. Oh, I totally get this whole symbolism malarkey).
In a nutshell, did I enjoy it? No… no, I can’t say that I did (enjoyment for me means playing with puppies or picnics at the beach, not hiding behind my hands in a seat that cost £14). Was it an astonishing piece of cinema that I’d watch again in the safety of my home? Abso-swanning-lutely.
Btw – if you have seen it, and you’ve been trying to return to your happy place ever since, please take a look at this. Carrey, also a genius:
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