Check it: Lord of the Rings is Still Awesome

If you’re like me, you’ve gone through the past months waiting with baited breath for video updates about the upcoming The Hobbit release. Such a mass team effort on costumes, art, stage, and setting coming together is always an amazing thing, especially on such large-scale productions.

I was tickled pink when this gem popped up on my go-to video blog (if you can call it that) wimp.com, showing how Peter Jackson’s original Lord of the Rings films made not-so-small actors appear as their halfling counterparts using the not-so modern technical magic of forced perspective.

While I couldn’t find a video for it (sorry guys), I also remember from the special features in the latest Star Trek film that J.J. Abrams also used forced perspective in a clever (and frugal) way by placing a barn in the background of a scene set in Kirk’s hometown. It was just a perfect scale miniature of a barn placed a distance away from the actors in the shot!

It’s always nice to know that even the creatives with monstrous budgets still make effective use of some of the simplest and cheapest tools in the game. Personally I find it inspiring that such easy things can have such high-quality results.

What’s your simple trick for fancy creative endeavours?

 

Hauntingly Beautiful

You know that feeling when you see something you think is beautiful but you’re not quite sure why? This is the way I feel about Albino, a collection of portraits done by Brazilian photographer Gustavo Lacerda.

Gustavo has been researching and gathering subjects with albinism, people most commonly referred to as albinos, since 2009. These portraits capture the beauty of and within each of his subjects, resulting in remarkable images with gorgeous colour mixes.

When was the last time you saw something that you weren’t quite sure why you were attracted to? What was it?

If I were a Rich Girl…

Designers all over the world are starting to look for new outlets to grow their brands. This could mean an eyewear line, hotels, home goods, and/or makeup. This also means a growing trend in designer children’s wear, and It’s starting to make me wish I was 3 years old and born to multi-billionaires.

My favourite collection of  kid couture has to be Roberto Cavalli‘s; filled with fairytale illustrations, medieval flourishes, and peter pan collars, It’s like a dream wrapped in an adorable fantasy. An adorable fantasy that costs just over $100 for a girl’s size jersey top.

The mixture of age-appropriate shapes and Cavalli’s namesake super-luxe patterns and fabrics makes for a winning combination. The Cavalli name doesn’t come cheap though: The girl on the above right is wearing silk and the girl on the left’s jacket cost around $711 USD.

Leopard Baby Set – Approx. $212 USD

Ivory Bubble Shorts – Approx. $165 USD

Girl’s Black Floral Print Trousers – Approx. $267 USD

Girl’s White Top with Rabbit – Approx. $116 USD

Floral Bodysuit with Diamante Logo Charm – Approx. $112 USD

What do you think? Too much to spend for children’s wear, or should the brief time spent at a certain age be fashionably celebrated to the max? Even if you disagree with the theory, everyone can agree that these clothes are intensely adorable.

Don’t Be Such a Chicken

Ever feel intimidated by size negative models or pore-perfect celebrities selling glamour and luxury in the pages of your favourite magazine? I’m lucky enough to attend classes with the fashion-focussed which lends itself to a helpful community of ladies and gents open-minded to wearing anything and everything, in turn allowing for easy access to expressing whatever fashion moment strikes without judgement. This is certainly not the case for most people, put under the unspoken pressure to fit in and blend into their daily lives while succumbing to a fashion stereotype for their body type.

Fashion photographer Peter Lippmann may have been thinking of this (or maybe he was just thinking the textures would be amazing), when he shot this editorial spread for Marie Claire 2 magazine of lovely ladies adorned in the latest and greatest designer jewels… the ladies being chickens of course.

Not only do I find this editorial fabulously original and beautiful, but it serves as a nice reminder that if a bird can look that fabulous, we don’t have to worry about adding a little glamour into our styles any day.

Check It: JuBaFilms

So I was doing my daily internet video roundup (today’s splendour including Epke Zonderland’s insane routine, my Daily Grace, and re-watching communitychannel’s walrus-clap-inducing return preview video), when I came across a video amazing.

That video was this:

And then I hit up the Youtube, and I found them. JuBaFilms. Or as I shall now call them, “Sweet-Mother-Of-Holy-Saint-Lord-Christ-How-Did-They-Think-Of-That Films”  (no trademark… yet…). Their stuff is AMAZING.

The crew is based off four crazy-talented individuals, Julien Bam (dancer, creator), Gong Bao (dancer, creator), Michael “Hillli” (film and acting), and Vincent Lee  (music man extrodinarie). Each of their films features a comic-like editing quality, astounding cinematography, increasingly impressive graphics, hilarious visual jokes, and above all jaw-dropping dance skills. Stories are well-developed and portrayed, and most are word-free, making them oh-so internationally accessible.

To see more of this talented bunch, check out out their YouTube channel and/or their website.

OMG: Givenchy’s Fur Glasses

I was taking a envy-fueled romp through style.com’s Fall 2012 Shopping Guide when I came upon these little babies.

Riccardo. When I said I had my eyes on some fur this season this is not what I meant…

They say all fashion ends in excess (see: 1ft.+ tall 70’s platforms), and these glasses seem to be taking the “fashion ♡’s nerds” movement to the edge… and I’m not sure it’s a glorious one. While a little fuzz (velvet anyone?) can make an everyday item wearable while still being texturizing and interesting, I can only see the shag bringing on sneezes.

If you feel like rocking some face-fur (I can’t talk about this in any way that doesn’t sounds slightly vulgar ok?), these too can be yours from your friendly Bergdorf Goodman at the special order price of $1200.

Thoughts? Opinions? Could you rock the Bifocal Beast?

Fashion on Film: Kpop + H&M

Pop music videos are usually used to promote the image of a particular band or artist as luxurious, rich, and desirable. This is especially true when it comes to kpop, or South Korean pop music, in which artists (known as idols) are themselves the product being sold along with a fashion concept.

As a fashion student, it’s a part of my everyday life to keep updated on the latest and greatest things going down in the fashion industry. As a poor fashion student, this means stalking out the latest updates on H&M collaborations and lining up at 3am to get a little luxe in my life.

I’ve been pleasantly surprised to find some pieces from these H&M designer collaborations popping up in various kpop music videos this year. Here are some of the thrifty but oh-so-stylish wares being worn (PS. music videos hyperlinked to the song titles!) :

U-KISS “Believe” : Marni for H&M, $59.95

Block B “NalinA” : Versace for H&M, $149.95

Z:EA “Aftermath” : Marni for H&M, $34.95

Personally I think it’s a brilliant business move: all the impact of high design with minimal costs means the production budget stays low, allowing for more income in the  long run! What do you think? Have you spotted any budget buys in music videos you’ve seen?

Consider me aMAZEd

All photos credited to Colossal

So if you have any ties within the human race, you know that right now the 2012 Olympic games are going down in London, England. Every day my house is greeted with footage of amazing feats of physical and mental fortitude being displayed by the Olympians, save a few choice badminton teams, and I’m increasingly inspired to go out and try to learn something/anything half as well as these athletes know their sport(s).

The athletes aren’t the only things rising to the occasion though. Brazillian Artists Marcos Saboya and Gualter Pupo, in collaboration with Hungry Man production company, have erected a labyrinth made up of 250,000 books as part of the London 2012 Festival. Footage of the labyrinth project, called aMAZEme, as well as footage of the public’s interaction with the space, will be posted on the aMAZEme site [site to be published at a later date]. As well as the fun and pure art of interacting with the structure, there will also be touch screens posted around the formation for visitors to search and read content, as well as daily performances by literary figures.

I think I just nerdgasmed.

The structure is based around a basic rendering of the fingerprint of J. L. Borges, an Argentine writer who’s works focussed on dreams, religion, mirrors, libraries, and (you guessed it) labyrinths.

The exhibit will be up for viewing until the 26th of August in the Southbank Centre Clore Ballroom. If any of you lovelies happen to be in that area A) you should go, and B)  I hate you. Find out more about the event through London Festival‘s website.

For those of us continentally challenged, we must satiate ourselves with this amazing video of the labyrinth’s construction. Le sigh.