THE OWLS ARE NOT WHAT THEY SEEM

One of my all time favorite TV series ever is without a doubt Twin Peaks.

There is just something about the dreamy world of Twin Peaks and it's characters. Not to mention all the small crazy details and jokes that the series were filled of. And, of course, the music of Angelo Badalamenti (a lot of the things
 that Lynch does).
I've watched the series several times over the years and also when it originally aired the first time in Finnish TV , although some of the irony I didn't catch until later; I was still rather young then.  I probably will watch it several times still. I thought Twin Peaks was something everyone had seen, but alas, I was wrong. Some of you will obviously need to correct this matter.

(source of above image: In Twin Peaks)

I had a total crush on Agent Cooper when younger. Well I wasn't alone.

And Bob is of course the scariest TV character ever! To be completely honest, I used to close my eyes in the Bob scenes. He was actually a character that was born by accident as he was a set designer who happened to be caught in a shot.

He totally manages to go all BOB in a  off scene shot too! (source: last day on the set ot Twin Peaks )
I'm sorry if I'm feeding anyones bob-phobia here with the images. I read the late Frank Silva was a very nice guy in person. IT IS JUST TV. Ok yes I still close my eyes in the Bob scenes.

The Black Lodge with all doppelgangers running around also freaks me out.

So, I am of course, very much looking forward to the 25-years-later return of Twin Peaks (next year).
Next week however there is a three-day Twin Peaks spectacle at Gloria (something of a live interactive performance-concert thing), and I am weeping a little bit that I can't attend-  it sold out right away before I even had a chance to notice. Some of our students will be there as One Eye Jack's girls for the setup and I'd totally hop in myself but I have a rather heavy pilate education weekend from morning to night coming up anyway so I'll just have to let that one go (sniff) and stick to my DVD's of the series. And the interwebs.
And Julee Cruise.

LOW KEY AND A LITTLE FLOWERS

This is how I dress up for work sometimes...

Atelieri O.Haapala was, as usual, present at the Helsinki Burlesque Festival a few weeks back with their pop up atelier. Here's one of my performer photos for this year, I love it!

The number I premiered was one I had planned for years. I spent a lot of time working on the costume, although I did not do everything myself. The headpiece, with leaves that turn into fans, was, as you know,  made for me by Fiona Timantti Millinery, and many of the flowers I used for my clothing was made by Anastasia, The Crazy Flower Maker. There is also a dress, which you can't see here, that Olivia Rouge sew me.

Although I had the costume ready planned in my head for a long time I sought up some inspiration pictures to go along while putting it together, some of which you can see here:

(pictures from retronaut.com)

You can see more of Atelieri O.Haapalas fabulous festival photos here.

BEFORE THE SHOW, BACK IN THE DAYS

Cabaret artists and chorus line girls getting ready in the 1920's.

Source: Vintage Everyday.

RED LIPS AND A WINK

'Tell me a story'-heels from Modcloth.

And their sweater twin. (From Sheinside.)

Plus their purse cousin (or cousins, as there are several in the series)  from Lulu Guinness.

I actually got the sweater out of a sudden idea to kind of look like it and wear it with waved hair peeping out of a black - or possibly red - beret, red lips and pair it with tiny black hotpants, dark tights and chunky heels. Would have made a nice combo;  I thought the knit would be kind of oversized and hang loose on my shoulders. Which it didn't. It was kind of fitted and with the fluffy mohair it made me feel like an albino orangutang instead. So I'll pass that look onto some tiny tiny petite person instead :)

SHANGHAI

My black floral dress has something of a cheongsam feel over it, which brings my thoughts to warm humid colonial nights, paper lanterns and the early thirties.


And behold, my decade long fear of long hems in day time use is over (after my arty-boho-hippie years; I had an overload back then) - it feels rather great on! Comfy and flowing.Wooh-yey! Must get some more. Also this dress is the kind of non-sweaty polyester, which is a plus.

I wore the dress with heels when inside but with a pair of low lace up boots and my beret for outside which actually felt rather casual. The dress is vintage seventies, from Hoochie Mama Jane.
The silk hair flower was a gift from Anastasia last year and the hair do a quick five minute one rescue; I had an oil mask in that did not quite wash out on the first try. And if someone want's to know the nail polish is Kure Bazaar's shade macaroon and lipstick Zuii's Sugarplum, both natural and organic.

TILE PORN

The same craftsmen that have been building the kitchen in the countryside house switched to the empty space behind the kitchen, turning it into a bathroom. I have great dreams for the tiled floor.  Some ideas are of course out of range -you know, kind of like they have had this same guy painting them by hand them since the 1800s and made by very special clay that only he knows how to handle or something so that they are priced accordingly, the way that you can only afford to put them in a tiny tiny space unless you live in a mansion and the price per square meter is totally of no difference-but let's see what we can come up with...

 

(Image sources: Remodelista, Houzz, Marrakech Design, Stiltje,  Original Style Victorian Floor Tiles, The Kitchn)

UPDATES AND INSPIRATION

As comments come and go, sometimes more, sometimes less, I've made these small positive reaction buttons for you after each posts. As most of you probably have noticed by now. (In fact I've had them for over a year but as my template is so old school they would not show and I had to ask my old pal google for help, which usually solves most problems, the technical ones at least). 

Then, I don't know how many of you ever browse or  notice the tags, but those of you who do might have seen some strange words among those lately, which would be tags in Finnish. If you wonder why, the reason is that I am part of a new inspiration network for Finnish bloggers, which was launched today.

Indiedays Inspiration is a site hosted by Finland's most popular blog portal Indiedays, gathering posts in a feed from 300 of the most interesting blogs over here. You can find and follow new blogs trough the inspiration site.

I totally suck at following anything, I never log in to Bloglovin' anymore for example, but I've tried out the inspiration site before it launched and it actually works quite easily, you can just pick articles from the flow, gathered under headlines such as fashion, food, lifestyle etc (hence the tags in Finnish I mentioned) without following anyone in particular.  Most of the blogs are in Finnish, some in Swedish, a few in english (like mine, well, obviously).

What else? I am having weekly giveaways over at my Facebook site  (which yes, you have to like to be able to join) at the end of each week. You can find the competitions straight trough this link: http://bit.ly/PonDjs
There will still be contest over here at the blog as usual every now and then too!

Last, my affiliate for this month is Aha! Shopping which offers you a 5% off, equal to their silver membership duiscount, with the coupon code: freelancers! Add freelancers to the coupon code bar and press validate before checkout and you're good to go.

FRIDA KAHLO GOES TIKI PIN UP GOES PREGGERS

Quite a lot of contradictions there in the head line yes.

But that however was the inspiration.

Yesterday I did something I haven't done in a very long time, rarely ever; I went to a burlesque party where I did not perform. Weird. The event and theme was spring awakening (although I think Summer Awakening would be more in it's place by now, oh yes!) so I went all bazookas on flowers, fruits and big beads, warming up at home with Phyllis Dillon, Hawaiian guitars and pine apple juice (instead of tropical drinks, sniff).

The jewelry is old, my flowers from a plant store and the sequied kiwi shoe clips made by my fellow Bitty Tinker Bell.



Remember this dress? From Teneriffe earlier this year (when HAHAHA my bump was so small. And I thought it big then, well, of course I did :) I altered it a bit by 'sweethearthing' the neck line and adding shoulder straps to make it less tourist beach and more dressy.

If you're out in Helsinki tonight and are in the mood for more quality partying there's a dresscoded 20's themed speakeasy at the casino. Not for me though, even though I'd have a great outfit and all (the gold-and-blue one I made for HBF this year) ; but after getting up at eight in the morning to finnish off sewing some tassels for the not only one but two bachelorette burlesque dance workshops I held today I am totally worn out and will leave the late night dancing for somebody else who will not give birth in a few weeks...

So now I'm out in the countryside making pineapple-banana milkshakes with Eddi instead! Even better.
But the band starts playing at eleven, if interested.

THOMAS ALLEN

I've been meaning to post this for about a year! (You should see my lists of "to post about" ...it's pretty long.)

But anyway, I am a huge fan of Thomas Allen's diorama art work, cut out from vintage paper backs!
Here are a few examples:













You can find Thomas' blog here.
Photos source: Foley Gallery.