I Can't Help Myself

I can't help myself... I can't stop thinking about my soon-to-be final project (see prior post for info). 

I've found some photos that are similar to what I want to design.

A Celine piece.

1940 McCall's pattern

1943 Butterick pattern

I like the overlapped front of the Celine design and Butterick pattern, and the apparent comfiness and hood of the McCall's.

'40s floral

And while there was a lot of focus on floral prints for home dresses and such, I couldn't make a long jacket out of fabric like that (TOO much pattern). I'm thinking a green for the base color.

Also, I'm hoping to honor the floral-ness and plan on doing a felt+embroidery giant flower on the overlapping side, with the center of the flower being a pocket.

I can't wait to get back to my apartment to break out my colored pencils and attempt my first real design sketch! I have a penciled one on the back of a chemistry mock exam:

I gave in and took the picture with Photo Booth, which is why the word 'pocket' is backwards.

So yeah... this is the first of probably ten bajillion for my final potential project.

I haven't even started on my "Fashion during Fascism" paper yet, so I might get even more influence from the '30s-'40s for this.

Alright, well, either paper writing or sleeping. Either way, that means NO MORE BLOGGING. What an addiction.

Curtis OUT.

madgirl world

madgirl world - A cute designer, originally a theater kid.

Otherwise, I'm working on a design for my costume construction class. We have to make a 'final project'. We have to present on Nov. 23rd what we want to make... I'd rather figure it out now and start prepping for it. I want to do something "big". Not size-wise, but challenging-wise. I have a sketch drawn, which I would post, but my camera on my phone is broken :(
But soon enough.

I might be auditioning for RENT with Asheville Community Theater at the beginning of December... I'm currently trying to decide whether it would be too embarrassing and not worth it...

Tomorrow is Halloween! Pictures of my costume will be up soon!!! Huzzah! Everyone be safe and have fun...

I'm supposed to be working on a paper for my Biology lab. Oi vey.
Paper writing, here I come!

Curtis OUT.

Asheville Fasion Links

Push Asheville Fasion - I missed the fasion show that occured in July. Sad. Maybe next time.
Asheville Fashion Conspiracy - The webiste is a bit out-dated, but cute.
Eco Friendly Clothing : Asheville, NC - I'm in class right now or else I'd actually watch the video. But in the video info box there are links to sustainable clothing stores in Asheville.
Mountain Xpress : Street Style - Similar to my ideal blog concept, they take photos of cutely dressed people in Asheville.
HATCH / HATCH facebook- A non-profit that supports creative innovators. At their gathering this past year, there was an activity called 'Fashion Groundbreakers'.

11:11am, make a wish!

Again, off to chemistry.

Curtis OUT!

Halloween, part I

Last night Psych Club sponsored 'Psych Night'. I'm part of that club, so I dressed up like a nurse and helped pass out 'pills'- better known as candy.
I helped make phobia boxes... Mysterious boxes with unknown contents. You are supposed to overcome your fear of the unknown and touch what's in the box. Then, there is a creepy feeling thing inside and some people have crazy imaginations about what they feel.
We also had paint and paper to make Rorschach blots. Fun stuff!

After that, Madeline and I went to the Sigma Nu club party. They provided a shuttle to an unknown location. Lots of dancing and being ran into by drunk people, but it was fun.

So the picture in this post is what we wore to the club.

My next opportunity for being costumed is Halloween night at Madeline's party, where I will indeed get a photo of my '70s get-up. Nick kind of matches with me.

Alright, well I should be using these valuable minutes to study for my chem exam, but I've kind of given up hope.

Post on Monday!

Curtis OUT!

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For the Love of Cats

Cat People Are People Too

A charming and sweet blog (via NYTimes) about owning cats in NY and how people are judged for that. Especially women who own cats and live alone. It's not as crazy as you think!

I'm hoping to have a post up about my Halloween costume by Saturday night (the first Halloween party of the year!). Wish me luck on that.

Curtis OUT.

Agnetha, Part II

As promised, the Agnetha Faultskog blog post. A blonde, slightly bucktoothed beauty, compliments of Sweden. Within twenty years after her birth in 1950, she had topped the charts in Sweden of her own accord. In the summer of 1969, she met Björn Ulvaeus and the groundworks of ABBA was born. 

Anyways, this is just to show some of the more accessible photos of her and to describe how her fashion fit in the with the trends of the 1970s.

The female hairstyles of the early 70s were natural and long, with natural bangs (if any).

There was, of course, the disco fever: hot pants, spandex, stretchy sequined tops, lycra, belled sleeves and pants, gold lame, jumpsuits, platform soled shoes, and much more. Basically anything that would look flashy under a disco ball and bright lights.

Shorter skirts and dresses embraced the idea of greater female independence. Flowery prints of all types (this one looks like it could be upholstery for a couch or curtains...?) were frequently used. Full calf-length boots (platforms or not) were also very popular.

Sadly, I cannot fufill all the 1970s ideals for fashion, but I'm going to try my best. I will have a post up at least by next weekend of my costume for Halloween- Nick and I are going to a costume party Saturday night, so I'll have to be ready by then!

Time to write a paper about anti-Semitism in Italy in the mid 20th century and study for a biology lab practical. Oh, and take a chemistry quiz. Huzzah.

'Til then, my dears.
Curtis OUT.

Goodwill, 10-11-10

So Nick and I went to Goodwill in search of costume pieces for Halloween. When I was giving up hope, I found this size 6 skirt mixed in with the 10-12 sizes. We mutually decided that this skirt HAD to be a part of my costume. 

It wasn't until we got to the register (having both the cashier and the woman behind me gushing about the beauty of this skirt....?) that it was pointed out the original price was triple digits. If you can see underneath the $224.90/111.90 price sticker, there is another sticker with the actual original price- $375.00

If you notice the Goodwill receipt, a certain "PINK WOMEN SKIRT" cost only $3.75, and, as my good friend John pointed out, I paid only 1% of the original price.

Now, why was this skirt so expensive back in the day? Here are my guesses:

-It is 100% silk (besides the sequins obviously).

-I found contradicting information about when the company was founded (1980 or 1995? Big difference.) but either way, it looks like it's targeting older spunky women with money, and the price tag has the Saks Fifth Avenue logo on it.

-The designer company (Chetta B - Evening) has a particular style of upscale clothes- 

An exquisitely detailed modern line. Chetta B is the ultimate in elegant versatility for sophisticated woman catering to day and evening with delicate and unique fabrics, each garment will be treasured. Available at Dillard’s, Macy’s, Lord & Taylor, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdales, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom’s, and other fine specialty stores. Price ranges from $120 to $300 retail (Castle Hill Apparel Inc.).

-And... It's just awesome! Wouldn't you pay $375 for a fine piece of sequined clothing as such?

As usual, I'm procrastinating things that actually need to get done... like getting myself dressed and walked to school.

As always, more updates later, and I still owe my post related to my 70s costume. 

(If I 100% decide to use this sequined skirt, I'll probably end up cutting off the bottom and turning it into a miniskirt, true 70s style).

Curtis OUT.

A Food Blog and other random ramblings

So... I did a Brittany Curtis version of StumbleUpon...
I was trying to find help via google images for the Lewis structure of aspartame (FML chemistry) but was intrigued by the other strange images that happened to be next to molecular structures... Such as wounded Iraqi children, how uranium has affected children, and a bunch of other random images (centered around cats mostly) from a blog with the url http://sweettaterblog.com/. So, instead of reading about the disfiguring affects of war or uranium, I checked out the blog that had lots of cat pictures. I am also super behind on my long list of things I should have been doing today... such as:
-MasteringChemistry (online chem homework thing)
-Chemistry flash cards
-Interview questions for my teacher observations
-Typing up my observations/insights from teacher observing
-Studying for my Biology Lab Practical (FML)
-Starting data analysis on the biology mosquito lab info
-washing my hand-wash-only clothes
-sweep/dust the rest of my room
-I'm sure there are a bajillion other things

Part of the issue was I got distracted by wanting to perfect my ideal for my Halloween costume. Hopefully I'll put up my findings tomorrow AFTER I get all of my random things done. (Or maybe late tonight, computer in lap on my bed, when I should be asleep).

Alright, I'm dog sitting for Nick so I must go attend to Zeek the dog.

Curtis OUT.

Halloween is Near...

Agnetha Fältskog

So, I'm posting this here and am planning to edit it later with more information. I'm doing a 1970's style costume, and Agnetha from ABBA is a good role model for that.

More info later! Chemistry class now.

Curtis OUT.

10-9-10, 5:30 p.m.
Adding some more links (more for me than you... teehee!)
Some related to my other inspiration, Christina Lindberg:
http://www.myspace.com/christinalindberg/photos/680209
http://mrcollinsgrindhousemovieblog.blogspot.com/2009/06/why-i-love-christina-lindberg.html
General 1970s stuff:
http://www.pastreunited.com/id192.html
http://www.imdb.com/chart/1970s

A test...

I have a droid x, and I'm trying an app that is supposed to let me post from my phone. Hopefully it will work!
I've attached a picture of my cat to see if the photo uploading works too.

In costuming class.

Curtis OUT.

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Lies

I lied in the post before last, saying the last post would detail my potential (and probably dream-like) plans for this blog. So I apologize for the lie, but want to make up for it with my 'plan'.

Part One
What I would love to do is find people willing to basically be interviewed about their clothing- I take a picture (with my 8MP camera phone) and ask them questions about what they are wearing. Such as:
How important to you are the clothes you are wearing? (simple answer or maybe a scale from 1-10)
Describe your style (if you feel you have one) in three words.
Do you know what brand your clothes are?
Do you know where your outfit pieces were purchased from?

Blah blah blah. I could go on forever. But yeah, I'd track people down, take a picture, ask questions, post the results as a blog.

Part Two
Choose either a part of one of an outfit of someone I interviewed, or a popular fashion trend, and explain its origins. Where it came from (place and time), who originally wore it, where it was worn... What kind of fabric it is traditionally made of. Basically mini-research articles. Or maybe cover a new designer or something. General information.

Part Three
Similar to Part Two, but definitely NOT relating to anyone I interviewed... This would be a critique of a style, trend, fabric, clothing combination... And I obviously would not want to blatantly be rude to people who took time out of their day to answer my arbitrary questions. But basically me being a fashion critic, probably fully based on my fashion sense opinion. Slightly dangerous.

So, that's the outline. I'll probably do an article or two related to the general information/historical background stuff before delving into critiquing and interviewing.

Alright, actually need to do chem work now. Wish me luck.

Curtis OUT.

Activist

So today I took part in the Education Rally sponsored by sds (students for a democratic society). It was based aroudn the concept that the money spent on the occupation in Afghanistan could have been much better spent on education. I gave an impromptu speech about my mom losing her job due to budget cuts. It was intense. Then we marched around campus and shouted the education related slogans.

Sidbar: I was super nervous the whole time because I left my backpack (and my $350 cell phone) in the blatant open and was seriously hoping that no one was going to be an asshole and steal my stuff.

The head of the club asked if I'd like to be put on their special 'discussion' email list; it's for people who want to help organize everything. I said yes, of course.

There is a little bit of activist in everyone I think.
Mine got sparked today. I like giving speeches about things like that, instead of a speech about a book I read or explaining facets of fascism in front of the class. I'd much rather talk about emotions...

This blog post serves two purposes:
Noting my participation in a rally, which is a new thing.
Procrastinating the chemistry work I have open in a different tab.

Curtis OUT.

The quick update

I think the last actual post was in March... or May, one of those M months. I actually had my old blog posts exported and imported onto this account (the url username being brittanyanncurtis now as opposed to the old brittanycurtis username, now associated with my gmail account instead of yahoo). So I'm doing ANOTHER 7 month update.

I finished second semester at Catawba College, made the Dean's List. Said tearful goodbyes and watched my good friend John (among others) graduate. I went home to our rental house in downtown Brevard and started working at Rockbrook Camp for my second summer. A kitten adopted me as her mommy, and I'm the proud parent of Delano (aka Della since she is a girl). In July, we moved back to the house we own on Island Ford. Stressful but necessary. Wrapped things up at work, moved to an apartment in Asheville less than a mile from campus. Now attending UNC-Asheville. I am taking 5 classes with a total of 18 hours.
The classes are:
General Chemistry (3 credit hours)
Gen Chem lab (1 credit hour)
Ecology and Evolution (3 credit hours)
Eco and Evo lab (1 credit hour)
Intro to Education (3 credit hours)
Intro to Educ. technology lab (1 credit hour)
Costume Construction (3 credit hours)
Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini (3 credit hours)

I also work at the student calling center on campus about six hours a week in the evenings, three hour shifts. Basically, I call alumni and friends of the college and ask them for money. Difficult on the self-confidence but usually rewarding.

Still lacking in the close friends department. I have my boyfriend, Nick, and my best friend, Madeline, but other than that... just people I see in class and occasionally have conversations with.
I am also volunteering at Mission Hospital (St. Joseph campus) on Fridays for three and a half hours.

Well, time for chemistry lab. IGKM.
Next post will detail some possible acutal plans for this blog.
Huzzah!

Curtis OUT.