March, 2013

  1. Left my Heart in Montmartre

    March 27, 2013 by Emma

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    Is the title too cheesy? I just couldn’t help myself, I do love a good rhyme. I’ve just got a final few pictures from my weekend in Paris. I hope you’re not getting too tired of them (or of my hat! I swear I don’t wear it everyday, I just feel so much more myself with a chapeau). I think my favorite neighborhood in Paris has got to be Montmartre. It’s a bit out of the way from the heart of the Paris, at the top of a hill that offers the most amazing views of the city. Montmartre is the old artistic district of Paris, where Dali, Monet, Picasso, and Van Gogh all lived and worked for a while. It’s still populated by artists, and the main square is full of elderly painters sitting beside their art and caricaturists offering to sketch a quick portrait. Every turn offers up picturesque alleyways and charming cafes. I honestly could have spent all day wandering the streets. But I had one more stop to make in the Left Bank: Shakespeare & Company, my absolute favorite bookstore I’ve ever been to. The walls are covered with books and the floor is cluttered with overstuffed armchairs, inviting you to stay and read for a while. A dream of mine is to live and work in Shakespeare & Company at some point, as they let artists and writers sleep in the attic in exchange for working at the register.

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  2. My Week in Pictures #3

    March 24, 2013 by Emma

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    I turned 21 earlier this week! Ahh, I feel so old! It’s hard to believe I’m officially an adult, I certainly don’t feel like it. I had the most lovely day– after waking up nice and late, I opened the package I had gotten from my family. My mom had scoured the vintage stores in Hawaii and sent me a bunch of earrings– she knows me so well! That afternoon, my friends treated me to tea at the Laduree at Harrods. We were the ridiculous group of girls artfully arranging our desserts to get pictures! And in the evening, I went to see The Phantom of the Opera with a friend from school. It was ridiculously cheesy, but so much fun. I haven’t seen the movie in ages and had forgotten how bizarre the story is. My 13 year old self somehow thought that the Phantom was the ideal man. While I now realize how creepy he actually is, I feel like this explains so much about my taste in guys…

    On Saturday, I went on a little daytrip to Wales with a couple of friends. We had planned this ages ago, thinking that Wales would be lovely in the springtime. Unfortunately, we woke up to a layer of snow covering the ground and gusting wind! Nevertheless, we had a lovely time. The highlight of the trip was definitely visiting the ruins of Tintern Abbey. They were just so magical. I couldn’t help but come up with an idea for a photoshoot, it would make such a gorgeous background for something very 1800s via 1930s mysticism. Too many ideas and not enough time!

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  3. Prancing through Paris

    March 21, 2013 by Emma

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    I’m still in a daze from last weekend in Paris. I had such a lovely time– it’s hard to believe that a city like that can exist. Wandering through the Tuileries and window shopping on the Champs-Elysees, I truly felt like I was in a movie. It didn’t help that I watched as many films set in Paris as I could get a hold of before I left! When I packed my suitcase on Thursday night, I was on a sixties movie kick, so I must say, my clothing choices were rather inspired by Audrey Hepburn in Funny Face. Hopefully I managed to convey a bit of Audrey and not merely a foreigner trying to look as stereotypically French as possible! At least I didn’t wear a beret ;-)

    My friend and I took the eurostar from London first thing Friday morning. It was quite an ordeal, actually! I had gotten so used to flitting about between countries without problems while in Amsterdam last semester that I forgot how long going through security can take. We just had time to grab a coffee to keep us going and hopped on the train. Two and a half hours later and we were in Paris! After settling in to our hostel (we stayed at St. Christopher’s Inn– I’d definitely recommend it!), we went out to explore the city. Since the sun was shining, we decided to head straight to the Eiffel tower. I always contemplate going up it, but never manage to work up the courage. Some day! From there, we walked up to the Arc de Triomphe, along the Champs-Elysees, and through the Tuileries. I absolutely adore the Tuileries, the gardens feel so quintessentially french with children sailing toy boats in fountains and elderly couples sipping coffee among the trees. Had it been a bit warmer, I would have gladly people watched there all day. But, as always, the weather had other plans for me! To warm up a bit, we headed onwards to the Louvre. I had always been told that it was a massive museum, but had never realized how large it actually is. I’m a pretty hardcore museum goer, but even I had to quit early! We hit the main attractions on our abbreviated tour– the Mona Lisa was lovely, but so hard to actually see through the layers of glass and barricades. My favorite had to be the room full of Botticelli’s though. We had great plans for the evening, but we ended up back at the hostel and fell asleep the moment our heads touched the pillow!

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  4. My Week in Pictures #2

    March 17, 2013 by Emma

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    I could not have had a more amazing time in Paris. It really is the most magical city– I don’t think I could ever tire of visiting. This past weekend the sun was shining and there were hardly any tourists about! Judging by how sore my legs are, my friend Ryan and I probably walked the whole of Paris. I don’t know how those French girls manage in their heels on those cobblestones! Our weekend mostly consisted of wandering about and poking around different shops, cafes, and museums. So, basically the ideal trip :)

    I’ve got much more to say about Paris as soon as I catch up on my homework (and go through the millions of photos I took)!

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    Earlier this week, I walked in a fashion show for NARS makeup. It was in this stately building near Hyde Park– much fancier than I expected. So I was feeling a bit nervous on my way in! It was so much fun, though. It’s always tough being the new-girl, as all the other models knew each other, but I needn’t have worried as all the girls I met were absolutely lovely! I got all dolled up with a smokey eye and a super tight ponytail. Apparently my hair is rather unruly– I was being chased around with hairspray cans and bobby pins all morning! I really liked my outfit too– I was wearing a dress and jacket from Sameulla Pallmer. It had a really fun “college prep” look. I wanted to keep that jacket so badly! There were four different collections being shown and I loved the others as well.

    I love runway. The energy backstage is amazing and you just feel so powerful when you’re on the catwalk. I didn’t realize until I turned around that there was a massive projection of my face on the screen behind me as I walked. I actually think I’m glad I didn’t know! After the show was over, I got a goodie bag full on Nars makeup. I’m having fun with all my new products and wearing blush for the first time! I just hope I don’t get used to the expensive stuff, because I’m going back to my drugstore makeup when it’s used up!

    Hope you all had a lovely week! Did you get up to anything fun?

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  5. My Week in Pictures #1

    March 10, 2013 by Emma

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    What a week! Very busy, but what’s new? I just got back from spending a day in Brighton. I fell in love with that city and am already planning when to squeeze another trip into my schedule. After a bit of wandering along the beach, my friends and I headed up towards the heart of the city. We took a tour through the Royal Pavillion, which was absolutely insane. Think orientalism times a million with a generous splash of tacky. There were sculptures of dragons holding up massive chandeliers and banquet halls where dinners with over 100 courses were served. Obviously, I loved it! I wish they would have let you take pictures inside, but alas, you’ll have to go there yourself to see it! We grabbed a quick lunch and headed off to do some shopping in the Lanes. We stumbled upon an antique market called Snoopers Paradise and I just about went to heaven. I could spend hours looking through antiques. And the store had a photobooth! I can never resist a good photobooth so, like the good blogger cliche that I am, had to take a couple quick snaps. Unfortunately, we weren’t very good at squeezing us all in the frame, so you only get me and my friend Ryan!

    I’ve been doing a lot of drawing in museums for one of my art classes. This week we were studying the Rococo period, so I drew from a Fragonard in the National Gallery. I love drawing in public, even though I get so self-conscious about my work. Last week, when I was drawing from an Italian Renaissance painting, a super cute guy sat down next to me and pulled out his own drawing supplies. Five minutes later, I look over and the guy next to me had created the most stunning replica of the painting in front of us. I swear, he was Michelangelo reincarnated. So, I just left. What else was I to do?

    Earlier this week, I did a ballet inspired shoot with a final year student from the University of East London. It was so fun! I really loved the concept and Jess, the photographer, was great to work with. We did some film shots too– can’t wait to see how they turned out. We worked with a really talented (and sweet!) makeup artist named Lorna! I was so pleased with the makeup she came up with that I left it on for the rest of the day. A bit much for my evening study group?

    Now I just have to get busy with all my coursework :O