August 23, 2012

paint away

So I had originally made plans to go to the beach with my friends. I knew I was going to have a little shoot for a post, but my plans got washed away. My friend suggested we go into the city, and I didn't have a problem with that since I needed to go get my watercolor supplies. So that was the first thing we did, and I was so happy to find everything in the store for so much cheaper than online. I really don't understand how that works out, but it did. I really wanted to start watercoloring because I just felt like I needed another creative outlet. I use this blog mostly for creative reasons, but sometimes I don't want to post so much because I feel like it would be so obnoxious to talk about me wearing clothes ALL THE TIME. I really also don't like the idea of having so many of my outfits on the internet. I decided to do watercoloring because I felt like it would be easier for me. I've tried acrylics and oils before, and I just feel like it takes so much color combining to get a specific color. I was just really attracted to watercoloring, it may be because I see so many beautiful watercolor pieces that are so abstract. I love that because I'm not a realistic person when it comes to drawing or doodling. I often just do a lot of different things and I'm satisfied with it. My drawing skills are not comparable to Leonardo Da Vinci (fact: I almost typed Leonardo DiCaprio which is semi accurate if you consider 'his" drawings in Titanic), to be blunt I'm not too good. Yet I see so many watercolor pieces that include drawings that aren't perfect, but the doodle effect that they portray makes sense. I just feel like watercolor can be so simple, yet when you include the color you create so many different emotions.

I think emotions are another reason I chose watercolors. I sometimes go through really strong emotions, and I don't know how to let them out. I've always envied people who could write, draw, or sing because I feel like they can do somethings so passionate with their emotions to create beautiful works of art. I've tried a lot of things to express my emotions, and most things just don't seem right sometimes. I mean fashion is something I use to express myself, but there's only SO MUCH you can do with fashion. That's why I wanted to take up something else, because I think it's so important to have more than one hobby. Watercolor pieces to me are so beautiful. I really like the way the paint and water come together to almost dance across the pages, using the brush as a guide. It's not like most paints that stay a certain color, watercolors change over time. When you put them on the paper, they seem so much darker and restless, yet as they dry they seem to settle down and lighten up in color. I just thought it was also romantic, yet the way the paint sometimes spills across the lines of a drawing is almost tragic and beautiful at the same time. I just really feel like I can put so many emotions into watercoloring, so it makes sense that I use something that portrays so many emotions to me.
I tried to take pictures in front of the gates of Maiden Lane, which is so beautiful to me. The Gates of Maiden Lane set aside an alley full of wonderful treasures. Maiden Lane is home to Chanel, Marc Jacobs, Prada, and so much more. It's almost like the gates of a palace. I also loved the way you could see the beautiful pillar/statue of Union Square. Of course the San Francisco fog wan't helping me take pictures. The pictures came our really foggy, but I liked the way they they make everything seem a little sad and mysterious. It reminds me of the old pictures you see of people in the city, it's a lot of nostalgia I guess.
Zara shirt, H&M pants, thrifted red shoes, thrifted bag
When I first saw this shirt, I fell in love with it. We first met at the Zara store in SF. I loved the scarf attached to it, and it just looked really chic. I didn't end up buying it until I saw it on sale online. I love wearing it, especially in the city. I love how it blows in the wind, and I love covering my face and feeling like I'm in a Middle Eastern desert.
I saw this wonderful Amy Winehouse memorial on Haight. They have a lot of these dedicated to artists who have passed away. I always wanted to take a picture, but there are always people around, but I finally got my chance. There is a plant in the middle, which I like because to me it symbolizes a phoenix rising from the ashes.
Here is my first attempt at watercoloring, I really liked the way the paper I used to sample the colors turned out. It reminded me of lipstick smudges on a napkin. The colors look really good together. I was trying to find the perfect shade of red.
Here's my first piece. I have always been obsessed with teeth and lips. I already knew that I was going to paint this even before I bought my paints. I just really wanted to do it, and I liked the way it turned out. I love the combination of white, black, and red. I am going to post more of my pieces, just to show you guys what I am working on...and so we have something more to converse about.

August 12, 2012

scarab beetle

While at family parties, I usually take the time to separate myself from the rest and either just sit there and catch up on the internet's info. Scrolling through Twitter, Instagram, etc. all on my iPhone. This party wasn't any different. After 2 Venti Iced Coffees, I had just enough energy to get a little photoshoot going. I had been wanting to shoot this shirt for a while now. I got it a couple months back from my local Goodwill. It's a pretty trippy shirt. The shirt from faraway looks purple, but up close you can see it is a combination of a wine color and a teal print of waves. In the sun the shirt changes colors. As I move, the sun hits the shirt at different angles causing to look like different shades of colors. It reminds me the way a beetle sometimes has that variation of color whenever they are hit by the light.Unfortunately I couldn't catch the variation of color in pictures, but I mean I'll leave that up to your imagination.
The has a nice print on the inside too. It is the same print as the the outside, but just that the waves are in a cream color. The shirt really has oriental shine to it, being from Thailand and all, and the silk just gives it such a smooth texture.
Thrifted shirt, H&M pants, Thrifted shoes
I also always feel a little extraterrestrial in this shirt. It must be the shine it has to it. It gives me Zenon, Girl of the 21st Century vibes at times. It is just a combination of a lot of vibes, and I really like that. I think it makes people guess more when they just see me sitting there all by myself.

August 08, 2012

Vogue encounter

Well while the cover of Vogue's latest September issue is still being talked about, I thought I would share my opinion and a little Vogue related story. When I saw the cover I was so shocked. THE HAIR. THE RIBBON. THE DRESS. Those stood out to me the most. I personally didn't like the hair. I thought it was just weird and just plain confusing. For a minute, I hated the cover. After staring at it longer and letting it sink in, I saw it in a different perspective. To me it looked like a statue. It was sculpted to present the biggest issue of Vogue EVER. The ribbon that adorned the masthead seem to be celebrating Vogue, in a time where digital subscriptions were at a rise; while print sales of the issue were declining. Those 120 years of style had not gone in vain. This cover shocked most of us, because US Vogue is usually much more conservative. The fact that Anna Wintour let Grace Coddington go all out for the cover was impressive, much more than most people appreciated. I really feel like this cover celebrates the art and symbolism of fashion, and it also sends out a shocking cover to a newsstand covered with pretty little covers this month. This was clearly a sales tatic. Gaga and a shocking cover? Of course it will catch most eyes on the newsstands, which leads to more sales. So while some complain about the ribbon or the hair (which I know see as a sculpture of hair on a sculpture of beauty), Vogue will have one of the biggest sales for an issue. You guys all know you will still be buying it. And now for my story:

It was a normal morning. I had just eaten a light breakfast, and was preparing to wash the dishes. I used any excuse to procrastinate having to wet my hands and dry them out with dish soap. After having checked my instagram and twitter over and over, I contemplated the important events in life. Gaga was tweeting saying she was texting Anna Wintour to get her to release the cover of the September Issue, which has the popstar on the cover. I was thinking "girl who do you think you are??? Like yeah you're one of the biggest popstars out there, but you have no power to decide when the cover gets released". However, I was also thinking that Gaga did have a point to want the cover to be released and it wouldn't hurt to be released early. So I was doubting whether or not the cover would be released.

After much procrastination, I was about to wash the dishes when I saw my first emails of the morning rushing in. I had three. I mostly get promotional emails from brands or magazines. This was no exception. I had a Little Monster newsletter,which I usually delete before reading. I then had a letter from The BTW foundation, which I read really quick and then moved onto the next one.

I started out reading the email from Vogue, I thought it would be another "personalized" subscription offer, however when I read the content I was shocked. I VICTOR VERDUGO HAD WON THE VOGUE SEPTEMBER ISUE SWEEPSTAKES. I thought, "this must be spam!!! They could have hacked the system and got everyone's email". However, I noticed that it didn't ask for any more info or to proceed to the link given. It just said I won, and had to sit tight until I got it (not those exact words). I was still in doubt, I ran to the bathroom and called the number of Andee Olson. It took a few rings before a woman answered. She didn't say hello or said who she was. All she said was "Vogue" in a slight accent. I froze. I was in contact with someone at Vogue. Never did I think I would say that. I stuttered and said I had received an email saying I won the Sweepstakes, "is this true?". I was so mad that I couldn't think straight. The glamour of Vogue was getting to my head. I was so overwhelmed. My dad, who was in the process of cleaning the bathroom was knocking on the door "what are you doing in there!?? Don't sit on the toilet seat!!! It has bleach!!!!!!"I wanted to yell at my dad "DAD IM TALKING ON THE PHONE WITH SOMEONE FROM VOGUE, LEAVE ME ALONE!!!!!!!". The Vogue girl responded, "yes it is true you won the sweepstakes". How was she so sure?!? I replied "OMG THANK YOU". This all happened in a time lapse of 3 minutes.

I told my dad, "OMG I won the Vogue book!!!!!!!" He was totally confused, and I didn't care to explain. He then wasn't shocked since I said the book cost about $40; yet, that book to me cost a million!! I went on twitter to share my exciting news in my overwhelmed tone. After hours of enjoying my news, I went online to remember when I entered the sweepstakes; which was not too long ago. That's where I saw it. THE BEST PART ABOUT WINNING WAS THAT I WAS GOING TO RECEIVE A SIGNED BOOK BY ANNA, GRACE, HAMISH, TONNE, ANDRÉ, AND MORE. That all had the worth of about a billion LIVES in my eyes. My heart could not take all this excitement. Vogue: The Editor's Eye was a book I wanted to buy as soon as I heard of it. My dream is to be an editor, and Vogue is the pinnacle of that dream. It was all just so perfect. I saw it like inspiration to pursue my dream, with even more motivation than before. I felt so blessed. 

Let me tell you how I won, just so you can see how I didn't expect winning. When I heard about the Sweepstakes I initially thought you had to guess how many pages where in the book they offered as a prize. HA! That would be easy! All it would take is a quick visit to the Amazon listing of the book. I entered the number of pages of the book. I was sure to win! Vogue hadn't thought this through, it was all too easy. Then I read the rules. I didn't have to guess the number of pages in the book, but I had to guess the number of pages in the September issue of Vogue; which would be the biggest yet. GREAT, I ruined my chances to win. However I saw that I was still able to win. I just had to ask a friend to join the Sweepstakes using my personal link. I asked my friend to play, and told her what to guess. My friend has no interest in fashion, so if she would have won...I would get the prize (well I hoped I would). I didn't think about it anymore. So when I received the email I knew I won because I referred a friend to join. That one entry, out of the 10 I could have gotten if I referred more, had won me the best prize ever! 

You can see why I was so baffled about winning. I just appreciated more and felt like it was meant to be. I was meant to win a book signed my many people I admired. It was all to remind me to stay on track of my dreams. I know the road is going to be tough. I know it isn't as winning a book. I'm just going to work even harder now, because I know I can really accomplish a lot if I just forget the obstacles and focus on the result of my hard work.
Here is the only picture I could find of the cover, it's shitty but you get the idea.

August 03, 2012

Hombré

t-shirt I dyed myself but got at school, Zara harem shorts, thrifted loafers
You know sometimes I just casually go online and just look at clothes, and if something REALLY pops out and has free shipping (I hate paying for shipping) I'll probably buy it. When I saw these shorts on the Zara website I just knew I had to have them because: 1) I always wanted harem bottoms 2) Zara has free shipping. So when they arrived I was thrilled; actually I was confused because they look so weird when you're not wearing them. They reminded me of a tote bag or a parachute. I just put them on and they looked great once on my body. My mom hates them, and my dad asked me "umm what are those" when I put them on this morning. He passed the test though, since he took me shopping to Trader Joe's while I paraded down the isles. I've shown you all my shirt before. When I actually thought about wearing the shorts for the first time, I had planned another shirt from Zara but I didn't want to Zara you guys all out (if that is even possible). I really like this shirt, because I feel like it makes a statement, being supportive of LGBT rights, but it also is nice just for lounging along in life.