Crazy Famous - Bette Allotte

Announcing Fail at Yankees Game

Daily

Sometimes, I have to wake up before the sun has come up. My eyes are half-closed and I’m feeling around my room to find the door. I’m certainly not awake or functioning, so how could I be expected to make any decisions (important or not)? That’s right - I can’t be. Therefore, when I comes to dressing myself, I must have a “go-to” outfit that I know looks good and that is “easy, breezy, beautiful” (to quote Cover girl...can’t believe that I just typed that) without the danger of looking the way I feel (just rolled out of bed).

Here it is:

It’s pretty simple - Black H&M jeans, some shirt that I found on sale at Urban Outfitters several years ago, and my beat-up shoes that look as if they’ve been through Vietnam.  I cannot forget my favorite sunglasses (origin unknown as they were being thrown out by my mother and I saved them from the trash) and my everyday scent, CK One. It’s such a lovely scent mostly because its feel changes quite drastically depending on the wearer. Also, it's unisex. I don’t know why I like that fact, I just find it interesting and it complements my androgynous tendencies. 

Six-year-old boots

As for my hair and skin, if you are at all curious, I don’t do much of anything. I like to wash my hair the night before and it just dries in its haphazard way. I use Suave shampoo because it’s cheap and it works fine on my crazy curls. I do wash my face with cleanser twice a day and moisturize...even when I’m not functioning in the morning. Sometimes I wear make-up (not those mornings, though) which just means a small amount of eye-liner and mascara, or a little lip-color but NEVER both. I'm not quite sure who would be interested in this vague description of my primping but if anyone is interested, don't hesitate to comment and ask.

iPhone 7 Commercial

Commercial for the iPhone 7

Buy Less.

If those of you reading this blog are anything like me, then you are probably young, hopeful, and incredibly broke. You have very little to spend on frivolities like clothes, jewelry, shoes. That’s fine...well...that’s fine if you budget and prioritize. In other words, think about what you really, really, really want. For example, I am currently saving up for a decent pair of sunglasses. Ones that aren’t $5, break immediately, and then need to be replaced. This process ends up being more expensive than just spending a bit more once for a quality pair.

Club Masters

Furthermore, If you make the effort to buy fewer items (1-3 pieces) per season (3 month grouping), you will end up with a wardrobe full of good quality and well thought-out items. Choosing what to wear in the morning will be so easy. You’ll just pick out anything and be confident that it’ll look good. Oh, I almost forgot - fabrics. Pricer clothing is not just made better (not by three-year-old Vietnamese babies), but it is also made out of better fabrics. The difference between polyester and organic cotton, for instance, is incredible. Wearing nice fabrics makes you not just look good, but also feel good. This is a good thing to keep in mind particularly for people with sensitive skin. Some fabric blends can make one’s skin break into a rash. I know that the previous example was a bit extreme, but I assume that y’all get my drift. 

Muji

When I lived in London, Muji was my favorite store. It was a few blocks away from my apartment and when I wanted to go out for a walk in the chilly and grey London weather, I would seek refuge in Muji's warm and minimalistic environment. Muji is the essence of the relationship between style and technology because its products are simple, made of sturdy materials, aesthetically beautiful and serve an incredible number of functions.

This is what Muji has to stay about themselves:

"MUJI is not a brand whose value rests in the frills and “extras” it adds to its products.

MUJI is simplicity – but a simplicity achieved through a complexity of thought and design.
MUJI’s streamlining is the result of the careful elimination and subtraction of gratuitous features and design unrelated to function.
MUJI, the brand, is rational, and free of agenda, doctrine, and “isms.” The MUJI concept derives from us continuously asking, “What is best from an individual’s point of view?”
MUJI aspires to modesty and plainness, the better to adapt and shape itself to the styles, preferences, and practices of as wide a group of people as possible. This is the single most important reason people embrace MUJI.

MUJI – in its deliberate pursuit of the pure and the ordinary – achieves the extraordinary."

Today, while in Manhattan, I saw that there was a Muji location in Chelsea and, incredibly excited, I nearly tore through the glass doors separating me from the haven I so craved. The interior is beautiful. Not because of any decoration or opulence, but because the arrangement of the products is so pleasing to the eye. The colors are neutral and subdued and the prices are quite fair. My purchases included:

$6.75

A lovely box to keep small pieces on my dresser in order.

$6.75

A file organizer for my desk.

$2.25

A pencil case...self-explanatory I hope.

$3.25

A pen/mechanical pencil duo. Very cool.

$1.25

An acrylic travel case.

Photographs

iPhone7

iWant, iNeed, iPhone

How to Build a Basic Wardrobe.

loveaesthetics.blogspot.com

So you’ve decided that now is the time to cull and streamline your wardrobe. That’s excellent! With this decision comes, as I’m sure for many of you, confusion. You are probably thinking, “What do I do now? What do I toss or keep? Why am I crying on the floor in the fetal position?” Don’t worry! This step-by-step tutorial will make this mess of fabric pretty much disappear. 

Step one:

Take everything out of your closet...everything...down to your last pair of underpants. Now comes the hardest part of this entire process - you must try on EVERYTHING you own (stop cringing for just a minute while reading this step, otherwise you might not see the rest). Anything that doesn’t fit properly, doesn’t look good, or you have not worn in the last year is no longer part of your wardrobe. Of course, if there are things that you find to be sentimental and therefore, you cannot part with them, keep them separate and keep very few. 

Step two:

Make three piles: Keep, sell, and donate. Hopefully, you should understand that the pile you’re keeping is the stuff that is flattering and well-made. The sell pile should be things that have been worn lightly and are in good enough condition to reap a decent resale value. A good place to sell your clothing is on ebay. Lastly, the donations pile could be everything else, within reason (throw out old underwear, ok?) You can give clothing to the Salvation Army or even drop it off at thrift shops in your neighborhood. DO NOT THROW OUT CLOTHING...if you don’t have to. It can be repurposed or reused by someone else. 

Step three:

Understand your body. What that means is look through your remaining clothing and identify what it is about your clothing that merited its keep. What you might begin to notice is that you are enticed by similar silhouettes, colors and fabrics. Perhaps, if you’re like me, you go for structured, black pieces. 

Step four:

Organize your closet in whatever way you find logical. Mine is organized first by color (which isn’t hard because everything’s black), and then by type (i.e. shirts, skirts, dresses). 

Step five:

It is imperative to have a list of basics, or staples, to always have on hand to make getting an outfit together almost too easy. It is from these basics that you create countless ensembles with which you can pair any statement piece, if you so desire. For my basics, I like to stick to neutral colors like black, grey, tan and white. Then, I add colors like turquoise and amber to add interest.

Here is my list:

Black jeans

Blue jeans

Black blazer

Black coat

Black button down

White button down

Black dress

Sunglasses

Black boots

Black belt

Tan belt

Black pencil skirt

Leather jacket

Grey t-shirt

Striped t-shirt

Step six:

Shopping should now be an easy task. You now know what looks good on you and what pieces are necessary for your closet. At this point, instead of shopping sale racks every weekend, you should be saving up for good quality pieces that you love and don’t just buy because it costs five bucks. 

Good luck!

Timmy. cont'd.

Interview with a cool person. cont'd.

Here is the edited version of my conversation with Timmy, enjoy!

Hot Stuff.

Dark Days, Light Dress

Just because it's winter doesn't mean that one must dress in gloomy shades. Light and airy pieces can always be worn when they are paired appropriately. 

front

back

This is a lovely dress that I found on Romwe. It's crème-colored, backless, and ultra-femme. For me, at least, it is the ideal dress. Sophisticated and feminine, yet interesting with its small defining details. This dress, had it not been backless, would be girlish and even juvenile. Its rosy color and large bow do it few favors in the 'womanly-dress' category. Having the back bare, however, adds sex appeal with class. For everyday, a dress like this would be best paired with rougher pieces like Dr. Martens (or their cheaper H&M counterparts) [fig. 1]. Wearing boots with a dress instantly makes the dress less formal  and more suited for going to class or doing whatever normal people do. For the evening, pair this dress with something simple and timeless [fig. 2]. You can never go wrong with a black, heeled shoe...never. It's always beautiful, always classic and, most importantly, looks good on everyone with any body-type. 

fig. 1

fig. 2

__________________________________________

front

back

This dress, on the other hand, has an older quality to it. It's a little bit retro but still very classic with its simple lines and structure. While the first dress had a dangerously young quality to it, this dress sparks the opposite concern. For a casual day, the spiked loafers [fig. 3] add the right dangerous quality. For evening... you guessed it, the black heels [fig. 2] will look awesome. 

fig. 3

Timmy.

Interview with a cool person.



I was lucky enough to sit down and talk to Timmy, who is a perpetually cool person. Timmy, a futball fan/expert, was kind enough to share with me some fascinating tidbits of his life:

Q: So why did you choose St. John's?

A: I graduated High School as a Junior and my parents didn't want me to go to Arizona, which is where I wanted to go to school cuz they have a very good communications program which is what I was majoring in at the time. So i came to St. Johns and then I decided that I didn't want to do Communications anymore, I wanted to do Journalism and since St. Johns, I knew, had networks and stuff like that in journalism...yeah.

Q: How did it happen that you graduated a year early?

A: I really don't know. I just took all the classes I was supposed to and I always accelerated at a really high rate and stuff like that. I finished all my Math classes in 9th grade, all my English classes were done by at least 10th grade so by eleventh grade it was just doubling up on a couple of History classes which were a breeze also so next thing I knew I was graduating.

Q: What are some of your favorite bands/artists right now?

A: Well, I don't listen to bands except One Republic and I always thought One Republic was from England, but they're actually from Colorado and I learned that today and I was kind of just appalled by that. Yeah, I was like, "What?! Really?!" Their voices sound like in the songs, they always sound like they're from England. Eh, I'm kind of ruined now. But I usually listen to Hip-hop and R&B so J Cole, Chris Brown, I listen to a lot of underground music. I have a lot of friends on campus that do their own type of music so that's where I kind of listen put my ear to more. Radio's really killing songs these days so unless I really get attracted to it and it's worth the download on my iPod, I really don't listen to too much commercial radio, more of just what I like to hear.


Q: When did you get into sports?

A: Sixth grade, I was really good at soccer. I was supposed to play for the JV High School soccer team. But the summer of, I was playing just a regular game with my friends and I got clipped in the knees and then it started to cause inflammation in both my knees so I couldn't run anymore cuz the inflammation would burst out when I would start to do any activities and then I developed arthritis in my feet so pretty much from the knees down, I'm not allowed to do anything active. That killed my whole career of playing soccer so I was like, alright i'll work through the other types of it and that's you know, writing for it, maybe coaching, stuff like that.

Q: I'm sorry to hear that. I'm sure you're extremely upset/disappointed. Did it come to a certain point where you came to terms with it and said, "ok, well since i'm not playing it's ok if I do other things?"

A: Yeah, I mean, you know, at first it was just like "ugh, now all of the stuff I want to do I can't do." I'm not a very religious person but I do believe god does things in mysterious ways and now, that path from playing soccer led me to working harder on the books, graduating early, it also opened my mind to other kind of sports. Not just soccer. I started to watch a lot more basketball, football, baseball and a lot of kids in my own age-group, they were already watching this stuff and they knew so much stuff and they were like "how do you not know that?" and I was always focused on soccer cuz coming from a European-based family, all that came from Europe, nobody being born American, it's soccer, soccer, soccer. For me it was always just soccer. When I go to Europe, I play soccer whether it's in Macedonia where visit my aunts and uncles or when I was in Germany visiting my grandparents I'd always play soccer. Sometimes when I went to Greece I would also be playing soccer. That was always the transcendent, I was always playing soccer. That was what I loved but after that I opened up more to the American sports, baseball and basketball and stuff like that.

Delilah.

Interview with a cool person.

What made you interested in photography:

“I feel like when you take photographs, it captures all the beauty that is hard to find. And everyone has a different opinion about it and that makes it more beautiful.”

What do you mean by “beauty that’s hard to find?”

“Everybody...

*Laughs hysterically*

I feel like everybody just walks without noticing anything and they don’t really pay attention to details.”

Do you feel that your photography translates into your style, the way you dress, the way you carry yourself?

“Yeah, I think so. I think my photographs have a similar feel to them when you look at it - same as my clothing does when you look at it.”

Do you have a favorite color?

“I used to but not really anymore. I just look at colors like colors. I have no idea what that means. *laughs* ”

What kind of photographer do you want to be?

“I want to either be a fashion photographer or maybe, just sitting and taking pictures of random people and how they interact with the things around them.”

Isn’t that just the kind of photos you like to take now?

“Yeah.”

What inspires you, normally?

“I think everything inspires me, well, I think music inspires me the most for my photography. I think all our senses are similar. I think that hearing music is similar to how I see things, I guess.”

"Alice" Delilah ©

"Flowers" Delilah ©

"Katrina" Delilah ©

Pet Peeve(s)

You know what really grinds my gears?
When people pretend to be stupid. Pretending to be incompetent doesn't minimize responsibility; it only puts it off until a point where it's too late to start learning. I won't feign expertise on the matter of intelligence, but almost everyone has at least some degree. The individuals who say that they do not are merely lazy.
Be passionate about life! Passionate does not have to be loud and obnoxious. It can be quiet and reserved, yet proactive. Passionate to the point of not giving up when all odds are against you.
I suppose, then, that the pet-peeve I meant to write about is weak-will.

But wait... there's more.
Why do people eat Splenda? It is the most repulsive and annoying food habit. I'd rather people chew with their mouths open or belch loudly in lieu of mixing Splenda into their coffee. First of all, it's a chemical. This is not news because most things we consume in this country are chemically altered. Just think about Entenmann's or McDonald's. Understanding that it's made completely unnatural is one thing, but understanding that it's a by-product of poison should be the winner. Yet, it isn't. Second of all, it doesn't even make you thinner. The way Splenda molecules work is that they latch onto any kind of lipid (fat molecule) and hold tight. This harks back to their DDT (insecticide) days before they were transformed into sweetener. Anyway, this doesn't make you thinner because as soon as these molecules reach your fat cells, they preserve them and don't allow this fat to leave your body... ever. So this sweetener, advertised as zero calories, actually makes you unable to lose weight. Logical, of course. Lastly, it exacerbates cancer. Remember how the molecules hold on to fat cells? They also hold on to cancer cells. That means that no matter how clean your family medical history is, or how much orange juice you drink, if you have Splenda with your coffee, dormant cancer cells will grow and thrive.

Courtesy of tumblr.com

Yum.

That makes about as much sense as this
----->

Photographs

 Skyline (Night & Day)

This is the view of the sky from my street. Where I live, there isn't really much to look at or photograph so I decided to photograph the sky- it is beautiful everywhere.

Building

This is my house. It looks exactly like every house on the street. However...

Building Close-up

The red door is unique to our house alone. When I was younger, I was permitted to paint the front door. This is the only mark I have made on this structure.

Nut Just Lube

An interesting and unfortunate name.

Branch tangled in a railing

This is the real 'A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.' I think it is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen.

People in motion

These people are all going to different places, yet they are all dressed exactly the same. I took this photograph while driving (my middle name is Danger) so I, too, was in motion.

Aloe Vera Juice (Very gross).

A woman once recommended that I drink this so that I would never get sick. I felt I was going to be sick just by looking at it.

Fujifilm x10

This is the Fujifilm x10

It is the more affordable sister of the x100 model. The most beautiful thing about this camera is its size. It is halfway between an amateur's point-and-shoot and a professional-grade SLR. It is sleek, shapely, and has a 2.8 inch LCD monitor. The most fascinating thing about it, really, is its appearance. It is designed to mimic the original German and Russian film cameras like the Praktica and the Fed, respectively. 

Fed 3

Praktica

The x10 has 12 megapixels which is not much in today's market, but because it is a fujifilm, the quality is, arguably, comparable to a Nikon. As well, its features are pages long including underwater shooting, super-macro zoom, face-detection, and HDMI output. 

Here are some sample photographs:

All courtesy of fujifilm.com

The most important thing about this camera is, of course, the quality of the images. It is clear that the macro-zoom is as advertised in the first image. Furthermore, the colors are brilliant and saturated. 

The Fujifilm x10 is the perfect intermediate camera, not just functionally, but also aesthetically. 

Two American Tourists Kidnapped

A bedouin in Egypt
courtesy of travellingboard.net 

Egypt has seen a sharp decline in one of its main industries - tourism. After the reported kidnapping and release of two American tourists by Beduin gunmen, one is forced to reflect on the safety associated with traveling to Egypt, say Liam Stack and J. David Goodman reporting from Cairo.

Juxtaposition

It is my favorite literary tool as well as an aspect of life that I notice most.

This is a posed photograph.

Not much really needs to be said, but I'll say it anyway. 

My grandfather, grandmother, and mother agreed to stand in Elliott's play-pen for this photograph. Elliott is clearly very confused. 

As well, each person in the cage seems to be completely in his/her element. 

How-to #1

It is often difficult when caught in a fanatical moment, to think rationally. Seeing shoes that are exactly what you have always needed can make for tears of joy, then empty pockets, then tears of desperation because there is no money left for food.
This is an online shopping how-to but by no means is this intended for exclusive use - you have to go out into the world and walk a bit as well.

Step 1
So you found the boots that make you cry.

If you can't make that out, it says $278...

And you may be saying to yourself - "look at that hefty price tag! Oh well..."
STOP RIGHT THERE.
There is never a time when it is appropriate to purchase something immediately without seeing some competitive options.


Step 2
Think about what the item you want actually is, without all the specific-to-brand advertising. These boots are, in essence, engineer boots.


This is precisely what you should type into google. Then scroll down, don't be lazy. Often the best deal will be more obscure than you'd think.

Step 3
Find it. Find the deal if it kills you.

Whenever you see the word 'Target,' think of it as your guardian angel. Don't be shy, check it out.

Step 4

Would you look at that. It is practically the same boot.

Step 5

Do some comparisons to make yourself feel even better about your awesome life.

Hah. Target even gives you free shipping.

Gloat at the person nearest you even though he/she probably will not care.

DONE.

When in...

Paris. The epitome of style and class. 

The building pictured is called Le Sacre Coeur, or The Sacred Heart. It stands on the top of Montmartre, a neighborhood in Northern Paris, where artists sit surrounding the square and draw portraits of passersby. This is the same neighborhood where gypsies with braided bracelets grab your arm and persuade you to buy the bracelet that is now tied tightly around your wrist.

I took all of these photographs in December of 2010. 

Le Sacre Coeur 

Le Sacre Coeur (Close-up)

View from Montmartre (Day)

View from Montmartre (Evening)

Tourists walking at Montmartre

An old door with new messages

A bit of humor.

A bit of technology.

I found the door pictured on top particularly beautiful. It has the Russian word 'зарусь' "graffiti'ed" on it. It means, 'for Russia.'

The next photograph may be in poor taste but who cares? It's funny.


Also pictured is an orange Vespa. It was parked by the long staircase down from the hill of Le Sacre Coeur.