'We are Electronic Performers'

YES!!

RED CARPET SEASON.

I love watching these award shows--so much I went out of my way to make the font red and it doesn't even matter if I've seen the nominated films or not. I didn't see the biggest winner of the night (fucking The Social Network). It actually makes me want to see the movie less and I don't know why. But whatever, I watched them like a giddy 6 year old. Now that I think about it, I didn't see most of the films that were nominated this year with the exception of seeing Black Swan the night before (will have its own mention in another post) and sleeping through Inception. I just enjoy the spectacle; the Oscars are really the best, but I'll take the Golden Globes. I didn't watch the pre-show this time around, but I got the idea.

Angelina Jolie

in

Atelier Versace

Honestly, when does she not look perfect?

She is almost fail-proof. There are so many people this gown would look wretched on.

She owns this colour. It's the perfect shade for January.

Natalie Portman

in

Viktor + Rolf

I feel "eh" about this dress.

It's so rare I like anything strapless & the colour is too innocent after such a dramatic role.

But maybe it holds some symbolism...

Anne Hathaway

in

Armani Prive

I can dig this for sure!

It reminds me of a disco ball all rolled out and made into a dress.

I love the flare on the shoulders & what this colour does for her.

Helena Bonham Carter

in

Vivienne Westwood

Okay. I don't really like how anything looks on this woman.

However, I appreciate her style and what she tries to do, but she just doesn't pull it off for me.

She has great concepts, I like the idea of two different shoes and of course, Vivienne Westwood, but it's not the dress, I feel like this dress could be great on someone else.

I just feel she looks sloppy all the damn time. She always looks sour too.
If you're going to dress crazy, you have to be fun and bubbly as hell.

January Jones

in

Versace

Ha. How hilarious. You can tell this is a Versace from a mile away.

The colour is perfect for her, but the cut not so much.

The strength of this dress comes from the colour.

I just think she is someone that doesn't need to show so much...

like this dress belongs on Megan Fox.

Emma Stone

in

Calvin Klein Collection

Wow. I loved this dress. The cut is phenomenal.

It went remarkably well with her hair colour too.

Does anyone else think she looks a tad like Lindsay Lohan?

But a better looking Lindsay Lohan?...

Tilda Swinton

in

Jil Sander

When I first saw her come out I thought "woah, she looks so high fashion".

Ultra masculine, she is in with the trend, but what I don't like is the two tone.

I think it would look better all one colour or if the shirt was black & the pants were some bright jewel-tone.

Lea Michelle

in

Oscar de la Renta

I have never seen Lea Michelle in anything, but this gown makes her blogworthy.

I love Oscar de la Renta and I love this gown. I love the color. It's reminiscent of Gwyneth Paltrow's Ralph Lauren gown back in 1999. I don't know why she looks so irritated in this picture, but this dress is amaaaazing.

Catherine Zeta Jones

in

Monique Lhuillier

I really like this gown. It reminds me of moss or something.

I love the shade of it and I love that it looks so cool and textured.

I'm shocked I like it because it's a strapless dress, but she gives it power.

Olivia Wilde

in

Marchesa

How fun. I feel that she could wear anything and it would be okay.

It's a bit prom-y. But that is what makes it fun. She should be chewing bubble gum.

Leighton Meester

in

Burberry

Aw, a gossip girl! I really like this dress.

I love how it is long sleeved and has a certain movement to it.

It was a really good choice.

Jayma Mays

in

Alberta Ferretti

Holy shit. I love this dress. Apparently this chick is in the show Glee.

I had no idea who she was until I came across her in the slideshow.

Very good.

Mandy Moore

in

Monique Lhuillier

I don't hate it!

perfecttttt shade of blue.

Sandra Bullock

in

Jenny Packham

I think she looks really good. I like the bangs.

The dress is good and very innocent like with a soft flow.

A good choice for her.

all pictures in this post came from style.com

Ah. Some very good dresses this year.

I should make my way over to E! and try to catch the 590,234,983 replays they air of the Fashion Police.

If you want to see Japan...

Then this is the post for you, my friend!

Oh, Japan; It's been too long since I've posted any pictures of your wonderful territory. I picked a few of my favourites out of nearly 500 photos. I tried to keep them in order in accordance to events. Enjoy!

I was extremely fond of walking around and snapping pictures of people with reckless abandon.

I wanted to get a feel for what this country was all about and that includes its people.

I also was really curious about how everyday folk dress for school/work/etc.

Here are some school kids that I snagged a shot of on our first day.

Aw. Father and I. I feel like we barely have any pictures of us together, so I thought this was nice. This is just after I took the picture of the school kids above. We were heading to lunch.

I loved their walk signs! Each time I said "DICK TRACY! YOU MAY WALK NOW!"

How was I not going to post this?? This was in Machida.

Ah. This made me so happy. It was official; I was in Harajuku and needed a marker of it.

This was the one place I wanted to be. A huge motivator (besides my family, of course) was knowing that Harajuku would be there for me to float around while wearing something absolutely bonkers.

This is a picture of me and my sister-in-law, Miyuki.

We were trekin along in Harajuku and decided to cozy up and get a picture of us :)

This was the Oriental Bazaar/Dior right next door.

This was along the streets of Harajuku which reminded me of Michigan Ave/State Street...except more ritzy for sure. And CLEANER.

An outfit that was along the main streets of Harajuku.

Clearly you can see why I loved it here.

Also in Harajuku. They are all looking at my camera and they all looked kinda spooked out.

I told you I was a crazy street picture taker.

My brother and I on the train coming back from Machida.

I have my matcha green tea in hand.

We went to Kamakura to see the big Buddha! This was really neat!

Us in front of Buddha.

My big bow headband was one of my favourite purchases, along with my tail.

This was where the real tradition kicked in.

We stayed on an Army base for the majority of the trip on Camp Zama

We went upto Harkone to stay in this awesome hotel.

It was very, very traditional and it was great to have the technology gone for awhile.

What a beautiful place!!

My bed for the night! I wanted to be close to the window and these beds were SO comfy.

The room was actually quite large. There was a full "sitting" dining room, two bathrooms, a washroom, a sitting area, and two balconies. After our large dinner (some pictures below) my brother and sister-in-law came up to the room (after my dad had gone to bed) and we stayed up late talking. I loved this night so much. I can picture myself in the room perfectly.

This hotel/atmosphere will most likely be something I'll never experience again.

Our view from the balcony. I still feel so lucky.

Oh, Japan cuisine--you were certainly tricky!

(I lost a lot of weight) heh.

Part of the same dinner.

And still the same course. I actually find myself CRAVING this.

You take that raw beef and they give you some boiling water and you pop that in there...

WOW. It was perfection.

To know how big this dinner really was....

There were 7 of us (one baby)

Wow. Can you tell how happy I am that they had brought rice along with our 12+ course meal?!

I felt extremely awful for not being an adventurous eater, but there is only so much raw ::insert anything with fins here:: I can gnaw on. So yeah, there I am with my beloved rice!

This was the washroom. Bathrooms are not in the same area.

What I thought was hilarious was that EVERYthing in this room was in Japanese.

Except the fixtures were in French. Ha.

This was the Hot Spring. Hot water from the mountain flows into this tub.

You can add more water to it, but it is almost always hot and full.

You also have to shower before you get in here, because, well, the water doesn't really drain.

So ya gotta get scrubby before hoppin in the spring.

This was a rose outside of our hotel. This is kinda artsy, right?

We got on the ropeway the next day. This was such a groovy time. We went passed Mt. Fuji and took it to Lake Ashinoko,

View from inside!

This was a huge tour ship that took us across the lake to our destination where we would be having lunch.

View from the ship. What a beautiful sight.

I took some pictures of this, but really wanted to soak it in.

This is a picture of my dad and I on the boat. This picture is so funny to me because I feel like it sums up our relationship. I probably made some "wise ass" remark and my dad is giving me his famous "what the hell did you just say?" look. It's hilarious. You'd have to know our dynamic to get it, I suppose.

This was on the last day. Miyuki and I went out shopping together since I didn't really have a chance to shop very much when I was there (believe it or not).

This bathroom was so cool! I had no problem modeling for it.

We were so lucky to have seen a dance competition on our last day there in Machida!

I was so excited and wanted to run out there, grab a fan, and do a lil jig myself!

I hope these photos gave you a good taste of Japan. Again, I wanted to capture so many aspects of the country. I wanted to post so much more, but it would be getting a little ridiculous. What an amazing experience. I still can't believe it. It seems like it happened so quick (except that damn suck-the-life-out-of-you flight) I miss it so much and I miss the people that reside there. Japan is efficient and definitely holds a certain funk to it. If you want to see anything else or anything specific I might have, email me! Tessaabee@gmail.com

-Tessa

Balloons that fell from above.

Finally back in the game. After lazing around the week before New Years and technically the week after, I feel back in the swing of things (especially with finally being back at work in Naperville). New years was fantastic this year. Eric and I checked into the Hotel Monaco on Friday equipped with bottles of champagne to ring it all in. The Black Keys were in town for a few nights and we checked them out on the Eve (see setlist). It was nice to be out and about among people, but the crowds typically tend to suck at these kind of events, especially with my height. I just get lost in seas of shoulders, but being short has its advantages. You can watch them performing 'Everlasting Light' HERE which was just before midnight and then you can see the celebration/balloon drop HERE.

:: Veuve :: The Black Keys on New Years ::

2011 has gotten off to a really great start ::ferociously knocking on wood::. I've already had such awesome encounters with such great people and I hope that continues to be the case. I always seem to find myself among good company. I just find myself feeling very secure in this new year. It's all really in my own hands. I'm enjoying time spent in the Orland Park store. It's nice to be working on my own and "run the shoppe" at my pace. It's a completely different environment than Naperville and I enjoy both, but in different ways.

I am still dying to see Black Swan (and The Virgin Suicides, damnit). I have a feeling it will be my new obsession, but I also think it will hit me really hard. I snagged the January Vogue (and then it came to my house days later... [Laura- I am planning on giving you my spare issue!]) and I did a little reunion jig because of the beloved 2004 issue featuring Natalie Portman that featured wonderful Escada dresses and an exquisite gown by Oscar de la Renta and of course a beautiful story about Natalie Portman. I was a Sophomore in High School.

2004

2011

Now I'm nearing the end of 22 and, of course, I skipped everything else and read the story; I would have loved the opportunity to train like she did for that role.

"The dance training for Black Swan started a year before the film, with two hours a day. Six months later we ramped it up to five hours a day, and the last two months it was eight hours a day, because we added choreography and cross training, so I was also swimming a mile a day. The discipline was good for the part—it hurt a lot; your body is in constant pain.” Like most dancers, she survived on coffee and ibuprofen, and slept five hours a night."

While she had to endure endless amounts of pain, I would love the ability to be able to train extensively while getting paid to do it instead of dishing out cash for coaching, which is a huge reason why I hardly skate anymore. I wish they were filming something about skating and "needed" me to skate 6 hours a day while undergoing coaching and advanced training. It would be like re-living my youth all over again.

I need to find an empty studio ASAP. I need a little studio time with this song for sure. I have undying urge to create a routine for this song. CHECK THEM OUT! I have really been diggin' The Jezabels this year and I'm definitely excited for them to start touring around.

GAH! Why must the NFC be aired over FOX? It's disappointing flipping from CBS where the high picture quality is impeccable. I miss football season already, although technically it's still upon us. I've devoted my Sundays to them for weeks, but it's nice to see how it will all come together after a pretty good season for the Bears, although I'm not expecting miracles. I expect to see the Patriots in the Superbowl this year, they've had an astonishing season, but that's nothing new for them.

So what goes better with COSMIC LOVE than COSMIC BROWNIES?!?

I woke up craving these for some reason today. I haven't had these since I was, like...15? They were a big motivator in me going to Jewel this morning. It was a great little reunion when I ripped open the package and scarfed the little two chocolate squares down with reckless abandon. Don't worry, I waited till I got home to do this. Some good times for sure.

No go buy some Cosmic brownies and listen to Cosmic Love.

**For cat lovers; sing "The Dog Days Are Over" to your feline friend.
(this version of the song makes me cry every time, heh)

Toby is aiming to learn more in the New Year as well!

-Tessa

Almost 2011. What a title!

I'm afraid tears may be shed at the stroke of midnight this year.

2010 was so good to me. I spent most of the time being 22. Golden.

I saw all of my favourite artists (lacking David Byrne, of course).

1) Florence + The Machine (and I got the setlist!)

2) Natalie fucking Merchant (!!!!!!!!) (got a setlist here too! :D)

3) Spoon (twice)

4) Metric

5) Thom Yorke (Atoms For Peace)

6) Passion Pit &

7) Modest Mouse.

We will close out our year with The Black Keys in the city tomorrow. I'm so anxious. I have done so much this year. Eric and I took a wonderful vacation to Savannah and Hilton Head and we took a quick five day trip to Portland and a few getaways in the mix. I traveled to Japan and saw my niece for the first time and got to visit with my brother and sister-in-law for the first time in 4+ years. My Nephew, Jack was born and he was the first baby I've ever held (I'm baby weird for sure) and he rocks. I moved out of my house and I love living with my best friend, it's been such a great experience. So many great experiences this year!

As much as I like to dip around in the past, I sure do like to wipe that slate clean and settle complacently into a new year. Although, it will be more than complacent, because that seems like a dull state to be in. I will settle enthusiastically into 2011. How dreadful the age 23 sounds. I hope to make it a fun and beautiful year, I won't let the number get to me.

So in my last post I mentioned PJ Harvey. This is hardly something to skim over. The past few weeks have been profound in terms of musical adoration. I liked her before, but I now love her work. This song in particular; The Dancer. When I hear this song, I feel like she is scraping my soul, or it makes me feel like I'm home but I can't explain why. I can see it being on the list of songs I permanently love. Speaking of lists, Terri Hemmert (my favourite DJ ever) was talking about how the British Magazine, Q, posted a list of the top 30 albums released over the past 25 years.; see here. I can only imagine how hard the list was to compile, but it's fascinating to see the results (keep in mind, it's not an American source).

But alas, tomorrow is the last day of the year and again, like a broken record, I am sad to see it go. I anticipate 2011 because I believe that although 2010 was great, I believe that I will go into 2011 with more sense and perhaps more motivation. I learned a lot this past year, but I know that I will learn even more this year. I hope everyone has a beautiful new year. Spend it wisely!

-tessa

He who creates the clothes....

annnddd scene.

Finally. Christmas is over. You know, I actually feel bad writing that. I love Christmas. I look forward to it for months. I long for that "Holiday spirit" that revs up right after Halloween (although, I miss many aspects of early fall by the time Thanksgiving hits). Unfortunately so much goes along with Christmas that make it extremely irritable and exhausting. In the end, it is always worth it, but it's hard telling yourself that along the way.

I got some great gifts this year. People were so generous. Eric got me subscriptions to W, V, Nylon, Bazaar, Vanity Fair, and Pop as one of my gifts. That should keep me busy for months to come. I am so amped for all of them to start coming in the mail, I will be feverishly reading about fashion aimed at all different targets. Unfortunately Pop only delivers twice a year :( I wish it were four, at least it'd be consistent with seasonal change.

I feel like I've been in a schlump lately, but only in certain aspects. In most ways I am extremely fulfilled. This is such a hard week on me emotionally year after year. I think I just feel the need to reflect and wrap it up as we move on to a new year. I'm so anxious. I am nervous about leaving the wonderful, wonderful age of 22. I never want it to end. I just have bad feelings about all the other ages, I knew 22 would be golden, but what will 23 hold? I guess I have three more months to battle my concerns and lay them to rest.

Now aside to something for the eye to gaze at as the pre-fall 2011 has been unveiled. Zac posen, as I remember, used to be one of Natalie Portman's favourites. She used to always wear things from his collections and I believe that she put him on the map. I seem to always go back to Natalie Portman. But it's just too easy. She resides in one of my favourite issues of Vogue ever. February 2004. I also am a fan of her work in films so it just seems like an obvious person to target. While I still have not seen Black Swan, some odd curiosity swept over me to see who she was going to wear to premieres. Which brought this whole new excitement over me(*TANGENT ALERT*); Tom Ford said in his recently published interview in Vogue, "I'll wait to see who is nominated for the Oscars. Then I offer to dress one person." I cannot wait to see who he selects! It might just be Natalie Portman, although pregnancy presents itself, but it's not like he can't add a few stitches and seams ;)

So back to what I was originally trying to do with this was....

Emerald green dress is by Stella McCartney and the center one is Zac Posen.

Unfortunately I couldn't separate these pictures.

and see, they're friends too, his "muse". How cute! Also another one of his designs.

But moving away from Natalie Portman, we can nicely transition into Zac Posen. Pre-Fall 2011 is out and about and it couldn't be any more different than the spring 2011. Not that it's supposed to-and that's exactly what I like about it. I have to respect an artist whose work moves so fluidly and can differ from project to project. Of course, there are designers have that "Oh that is so and so" kind of familiarity and I can admire and respect that. Zac Posen has always had a funk to his style; youthful and eclectic. His work seems to be maturing and nicely! I love artists that can transform themselves to match the project they are working on [see; PJ Harvey]. I'm not sure that necessarily happens with Zac Posen, but I just wanted to make a note of admiration among those that do. Pre-fall feels like a mood piece. a Dark one. It's like the Gashlycrumb girls go glam. I like it. I like it's rigid sense of "cold is coming". Maybe it is the stance and darkness of the models. Spring 2011RTW is full of flamboyancy, sex, and femininity. I love it.

So here; we have Spring 2011 RTW by Zac Posen

and now here is a glimpse of his Pre-Fall 2011 Runway

Sorry for making this look rather broken.

This monday started with Daria.

Wow. Reckless abandon.

This month has dipped down to ridiculously low temperatures which leaves me scrambling for 50 layers of leggings each morning and my uggs. These aren't the most fulfilling clothing options, but I'll take it. I'm learning the art of the "bundle up". I'm staying warm, well, almost warm. It is nearly impossible for my body to retain heat for any period of time lately. Unfortunately, writing has to take a backseat to the Christmas run around. I always anticipate this time of year so much, but once it arrives, I always find myself stressed and less than whole. I anticipate the box to come of all the awesome gifts I ordered for people. Now I must go get ready, I still have 49 more leggings to find.

-tessa