Just, Do It?

You know how we all have that one new years resolution that's stays as nothing more that a new years resolution all year round? Or that post-it that's always hanging around in your room (but you wish to ignore), reminding you of that little something you "need to do"... Yeah, you know which one I'm talking about. Well for me, it's always been *Reminder: Go to the GYM - or rather join a GYM.

So I did. For the first time in my entire life, I sold by soul to the Devil, and joined the GYM... together with my sister. It took us about a month to actually get started, but now, I'm happy to say, I'm in pain. But the good kind of pain, you know? Like, the one that's actually worth it. I even got a new pair of fluorescent-nike-shoes, which totally get me in the "exercise" mood when ever I put them on. The only thing missing is a new @theGYM playlist to really pump things up!

Anyway, I found the new Nike "BE FREE" Spring / Summer campaign pretty cool - and relevant - to this post... plus the collection is amazing! Love the colors.

So, moral of the story... Just Do It, seriously!

http://vimeo.com/19286902

Blonde Ambition

Ok, so I think I've made it pretty clear I have a huge girl crush on Blake Lively, but can you really blame me? No, I didn't think so. And specially not after what you're about to see.
As I've mentioned before, not only was she chosen to be the image for CHANEL Mademoiselle, she also happens to be Karl Lagerfelds new BFF ... oh, and she's dating Ryan Gosling - Yes, who wouldn't want to be her.

Anyway, it's been easy to keep up with Blake and Karl's growing friendship and working sessions thanks to Chanel News, an entire blog dedicated to what happens behind the scenes, on and off the runway, the VIP parties we do not have access to, etc. It's pretty amazing to see how a campaign or a collection comes together, especially when you hear it first hand from Monsieur Lagerfeld.

So today, you have the privilege of going behind the scenes of the CHANEL Mademoiselle campaign, enjoy a beautiful blonde pose for the camera, adding one (or two) leather goods to your wish-list - and then look at the final result on the actual Chanel website.

I know all of this sounds difficult, but, try not to hate her. After all, she's only human.

... Pff, yeah right!

http://chanel-news.chanel.com/en/making-the-ad/video-the-mademoiselle-campaign-with-blake-lively/  

So Me // So You

Originally this post was suppose to be dedicated to the new song / video "Embody" from french electro artist, SebastiAn. I saw it last week and loved it, but decided not to blog about it until today, because I usually save the best party songs for the weekend, for obvious reasons.

So, the song is an instant finger-snapping-shoulder-bouncing-hip-swinging tune, that should make anyone and everyone wanna dance to it... if that's not your case, you really should get yourself to the doctor, soon.

Now let's talk about the video, or rather about it's creator So Me. He's the guy responsible for some of the coolest videos ever made, such as "D.A.N.C.E" from Justice, Kid Kudi's "Day 'n' Nite", "It's Working" from MGMT, among many others. The video should evoke the exact same feeling and the song and it should be pretty easy for you to relate to the young boy who stars in it.

Ooh, he also has a cool blog where you can find behind the scenes footage on "Embody" and other So Me projects >>>  http://so-me.coolcats.fr/ 

  
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awtiZEiiAE8 

Not the Animal, the Band!

Tonight, Mexico City will groove to the (almost) entirely instrumental sounds of Tortoise. Although the band has been together for more then a decade, I honestly had no idea who they were up until a month ago, when I found out they were playing here.

So, I went on YouTube and found a couple of really good songs, accompanied by some pretty good videos too. So, for those of you attending, enjoy! For those of us not attending, here's a preview of what we'll be missing out on.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zRJftR_508

Mind The Gap

The image below has no relation what so ever to the blog... it is purely a favor for my sister. It will be gone soon, I promise. She's a graphic designer too, and a pretty damn good one, although this is not her best piece of work. I will do a post on her someday and clear this mess up. 

      

But for the time being, just ignore this.

Never Too Much Help

We are all aware of the heartbreaking situation that Japan and it's people are going through right now. In addition to the severe damages left behind by the earthquake and the tsunami, thousands of lives were taken, many more are still missing, injured and / or homeless.

Japan has often donated when other countries have experienced disasters. Now it is time for us to "Help Japan", whether it is by donating online, via SMS, or sending supplies or economic support to your local Red Cross. If you don't have money, be creative! Design a logo (or get a friends to do it) print it on t-shirts, totes or stickers, sell them, then donate what ever you can get out of that! Remember every little bit counts.

Here are some other ways people are trying to help... More ideas? Go on twitter #helpjapan

"For Them" - A cologne by Libertine Louison made for the town of Minami Sanriku which disappeared after the tsunami. You can buy it online for 35.00 euros - All profits will be donated.

http://www.techniqueindiscrete.com/













Collette Loves Japan! - Several designers have contributed with the french store in order to help raise fonds for the country's disaster relief. 100% of the proceeds of sales will be directly donated to the Japanese Red Cross Society.

http://www.colette.fr/#/page/5599/colette-loves-japan/

Sexy Little Things

"Life is short, filled with stuff. Rest in peace"... or at least thats what Yuki Chikudate and James Hanna, from Asobi Seksu (colloquial Japanese for "playful sex") think.

Although the Brooklyn based band has been well known in the indie scene since 2004, receiving great reviews for their first two studio albums (Asobi Seksu and Citrus) the band has almost completed writings songs for their third record, and will hit the studio sometimes this summer.

Asobi Seksu has always been known for creating musical textures: soft, cloudy dreamscapes for their slower songs and guitar blasts and windstorms for their energetic tunes. But what truly distinguishes them, though, is their ability to refine pop in a way not many can achieve. Their songs aren't just "pretty" but they're melodically rich and incredibly catchy.

I just heard two of their latest releases and I believe this time they've realized they have great great potential to become one of New York's best.

So... Click. Listen. Love.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLNXdT06oDU&feature=related   

The Place To Be

As Friendly Fires once said: "One day, we're gonna live in Paris"... well, I don't know about the "we'll" part, so let me rephrase that: "One day, I'm gonna live in Paris" and one day I'm gonna attend Fashion Week. Maybe I wont get to sit front row, or go backstage and chat to Karl Lagerfeld, or get my picture taken by The Sartorialist (as I wait for the next show to start). But one day I will be there and it will be absolutely fabulous.

I will wear lovely clothes and have a great camera to take pictures of all the gorgeous people (wearing even lovelier cloths) and I will drink champaign and smoke my cigarette, and shop between shows... ahh, merde! My life will be so cool. All of this with a handsome and charming french male by my side, of course. 

Anyway, back to reality and back to the actual 2011 Paris Fashion Week. Well, I'm sure there's a lot to say about all the great shows, but a picture's worth a thousand words, so enjoy...

Oh choices, choices!

In life, we are often faced with these little things called choices. Vodka-tonic or cranberry-vodka? Vanilla or chocolate? Get rich or die trying? A white Ipad or a black Ipad... Yeah, thats the big decision that's been haunting me for the past couple of days. They are both so beautiful I can't seem to make up my mind.

I have, however, decided I'm gonna have it engraved. so it should look something like this >>
pretty cute huh?

So, I think I'm gonna wait a little longer, maybe go meet them in person, see which one will get to be my new BFF.

Oops! ...I Did It Again

Yes, I disappeared... yet again! Ahhhh, you have no idea how much I hate not posting anything for more than 2 days, seriously. Especially when there are so much to post about. I've literally made a list of things I needed to talk about over the past week or so. 

So lets get cracking!! 

MUSIC:

Justice - Looks to me like the french duo has something BIG hiding up their (leather) sleeves, and they're being quite mysterious about it too. Today, their official Facebook account appeared completely blank, leaving only the groups basic information and this intriguing  image...   

Rumor has it, this is the cover of their newest (and very much awaited) single, titled "Civilization". It has also been said their new album is scheduled to be released sometime this year. 

(Holy sh*t, I hope these are not just rumors)

Classixx - So they might not be as big (or mysterious) as Justice, but my favorite LA duo is also back with a new single "Into The Valley". Last year they worked with Jeppe (Denmark) on their a happy / up-beat / california style hit single "I'll Get You". For this new piece the guys invited singer Karl Dixon to work with them, and the result is a catchy, very Classixx tune. 

And last, but certainly not least: The Stokes. The video for "Under Cover Of Darkness" premiered last week and I have to say, I'm a very happy fan. The video is cool. The song is cool. The guys look oh, so cool. There is just nothing I don't love about them. 

Just watch it! 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_l09H-3zzgA

    

     

And The Oscar Goes To...

By now, you've had a couple of days to recuperate from the endless Oscar parties... or at least post Oscar madness. Who wore the best outfit? Were Anne and James cute and funny or a complete mess... the list goes on forever.

However, this years nominees for Best Picture were truly amazing, which inspired Lez Mark, a young american designer to created a series of posters illustrating all ten nominated films, using only black, white and red.

As a graphic designer it's always cool to see how other young designers are approaching certain themes; what inspires them, what technique or compositions they're using, and how effectively they work as a whole.

Does any of this make sense? Haha

  

Smells Like Cheese...

If you're currently living in Mexico City (or near it) and you're a live-music-lover, you've probably hear of the "Spring Quesadilla Tour"... yeah, it's that mini music festival featuring Yeasayer + Ok Go! + Edward Sharp and the Magnetic Zeros and Local Natives - which will be held on March 25th.

Now, I have good news and bad news with relation to this matter:
The Bad News - If you've already bought your ticket, you should probably stop reading this post right about now... it's about to get ugly!

The Good News -  If you haven't, you might as well get them NOW!! Or at least before March 21st, which is the last day of the promotion. Yes, PRO-MO-TION! That word we love hearing, because it usually means we get something free or cheaper. In this case, you get $200 off the original ticket price... which is, pretty damn awesome!

So, recommendation of the week, GET YOUR TICKET ASAP. I have a feeling that "Quesadilla Situation" is gonna get real tasty! See you then.    

A Party In Your Mouth

There was a time when Pepsi wanted to conquer the world of soft drinks. They tried getting inside the consumers head by using pop idols, starting with sweet Britney, but that didn't work. Then they tried a sexier Britney, plus a Beyonce, a Pink and an Enrique, but that didn't work either. Then they pumped things up a little by used athletes, hot athletes, like David Beckham... and that kindda worked, but, not enough. Since then, it's been pretty much the same story.

Coca Cola on the other hand, started out withe the traditional 1950's Diner ads. Then came Santa Clause, the cute polar bears, the Happiness Factory, and, oh yeah... Daft Punk!! No, I'm not kidding.

The French duet Daft Punk in association with Coca Cola just came up with Pepsi's worst nightmare: DAFT COKE. The limited edition package design consists of one silver and one golden colored bottles  symbolizing their trademark helmets, and will be available to the French public (only) at the end of March... I know, it was too good to be true.


Anyway, this has to be the coolest thing to have happened 
in soft drink industry since... for ever! If you think about it, 
it's like "A bottle of fun - a party in your mouth"


... Let's see you do that Pepsi Kick!

Jagged Little Pill

A while back she was on the cover of british VOGUE. Last month it was NYLON magazine doing a spread on her. This month it's teenVOGUE. Oh yeah, she's also the new face of CHANEL and Hudson Jeans.
So, if you add all of these things together, what do you get? Yes, an "IT Girl", and not just any ordinary IT Girl, for that matter. What do you get when your mother is a seventies supermodel (Jerry Hall) and your dad's the most famous living rock star to ever walk the planet ( Mick Jagger)...? If your first guess was Lizzy Jagger, you're half right. But, I'm talking about the second offspring produced by this turbo-couple, Georgia May Jagger.

But what is it about her that's got everyone (and I mean everyone) so excited? Well, it might be the fact that she has her own line of Hudson Jeans coming out soon. Or that Karl Lagerfeld chose her, out of many others to be the new CHANEL girl. Or, that she just moved from London to New York to pursue a career in photography. Or maybe, it's because she's a 19 year old with the face, body and style of a fully developed woman. Or that the gap between her two front teeth makes her so unique every photographer want's to take her picture.

Or perhaps, it's the fact that despite all of the above, Georgia May is just the girl next door. Yep, apparently she's as normal as you and me. She only does half time modeling so she can concentrate on her school work. She has a rock star boyfriend, but is frequently rejected by the gig's bouncers, 'cause she's still underage. And she spends most of her time with room-mate and older sister Lizzy, at their East Village loft, cooking soup and knitting.
      

Well whatever it is, whether it's her genes or her jeans, there's something very special about little miss Jagger... I personally love following her on twitter, lol, but that's just me.

La Donna È Mobile

Ladies and gents... I think I just fell in love. Ok, not really "in love", but something like it.
So I was snooping around Garance Doré's blog (as I always do) and well it's London Fashion Week, so she was talking about how Parisians take this opportunity to shop around Top Shop (which, surprisingly, hasn't opened in Paris) and how New Yorkers do the same with COS (which again, hasn't opened in the US).

I was reminded how much I love COS myself, so I decided to do some more snooping over at cossotres.com. So there I am, looking at the lovely clothes they have, thinking how much I'd love to be in London right now... when I click on MAGAZINE. And there she was; a short, blond, mature,  Italian looking woman, Franca Sozzani. I recognized her face from somewhere, and I definitely recognized the photographer (Scott Shuman) but I had no idea this familiar face would become my Role Model.

Yep. Two minutes into an interview done by Carlo Antonelli, and I was already falling in love with this woman. She's not only the editor-in-chief of Vogue Italia, but she's passionate and wonderful at her job. And everything that came out of her mouth was just so inspiring and amazing to read... plus, her sister is the founder of "10 Corso Como", which is like the coolest store in Milan.

Anyway, I don't want to spoil anything by getting into details, so here's the end of the story, if you're interested... which all of you should be after my public declaration of love.

http://www.cosstores.com/gb/site/home__start.nhtml#column4-pagemodule-0

The Pink Continues...

Look, even MTV Hits is going pink! Check out this video from MTV Hits Australia by Julien Vallée and its "making of"...very very cool!!

http://vimeo.com/19259679             http://vimeo.com/19416981

Power To The Pink

Is it just me, or is pink really "IN" this season? Over the years I've had a couple of pink acquisitions, maybe a t-shirt or a notebook, but really, I've never truly considered myself a pretty in pink girl. I don't know, I guess I've just never felt comfortable in it. I have like this ... that was until recently.

Yes. I'v been seduced by pink... and I'm strictly talking about the color here, not the singer, ew! And I mean, of course, it's all relative, it's not like Im going from zero to Barbie or anything. But I have found myself looking through the pink-insh racks or section lately, and I've also been inspired by a couple of glamourous ladies rolling around the internet. Never the less, my pink-thermometer hasn't really been affected by this notion.

Now graphically speaking, I do believe pink has a huge potential. It is such an attractive color, that the combination of a bright / neon pink with any neutral color (form white and beige to grey and black) can have a massive visual effect. (Ohh, I also love the pink meets mint-green combination, very nice)

So whether you're wearing it or using it for an artistic purpose, PINK is the color of the moment + it's making a statement!  

Guitar Heroes

It took five years, three more albums and two sold out shows for the Brooklyn duo, Ratatat, to finally greet their mexican fans again... and trust me when I say, it was well worth the wait. I  was lucky enough to watch their DJ set in New York this past summer, as part of the PS1 Warm Up party. They were pretty awesome then... but on wednesday night, they really really took it to a whole other level.

Despite the fact that the place was small, the bar a mess, and the lack of air conditioning was driving the crowds insane, the stage came alive the minute two tall, slim, long hair dudes walked in. Their personal style and body language evoke  nothing more than casual-coolness; their music, anything but casual. It is hard to say a group is truly unique these days, but it would be harder comparing them to anything else out there.

Their trademark sound, a fusion of indie rock, electro-beats and a smooth touch of hip hop, combined with some very unusual and totally awesome visual projections, made it inevitable for the spectators to groove to the music and enjoy a full 14 song set, which included all my personal favorites, such as "Seventeen Years", "Wildcat", "Lex", "Loud Pipes", "Mirando" and their latest single "Neckbrace".

So yeah, it was an amazing show. If you were there, you know the feeling. If you weren't, better luck next time!                

Learn A Little...

Traveling: one of life's biggest pleasures. I mean, what's not to like about discovering new places and  cultures, enjoying the scenery, the food, the people... the language? Ok, so sometimes communication might get in the way of finding that super cool store you once saw in a magazine. Or might get you the wrong plate at a restaurant... or even worst, might keep you from talking to that gorgeous local having coffee next to you.

I could go on, but I think you get what I'm saying. Learn the language!! Or better yet, LIVE THE LANGUAGE!! I just saw these four videos form EF (Education First) encouraging students to learn another language and travel around the world... OMG, they are so beautifully done, you're gonna want to jump on the next plane. The question is... where to?

Paris. You get croissants, cigarettes and spend your day at the café terrace. Yep, no guilt either.








http://vimeo.com/18886355

London. Don't let the rain scare you away, there's always tea and biscuits and they call you "dear" and "darling" all the time.







http://vimeo.com/18967093

Barcelona. There's tapas, the beach, tapas... oh, and more tapas.









http://vimeo.com/18952185

Beijing. In case you're feeling a bit more adventurous and looking for something really different.







http://vimeo.com/18969157

PROPS OF LOVE

You might be really into Valentine's Day. And if you are, thats great. We're glad you've found the love of your life. But the rest of us are going to be drinking somewhere we can ride out this Hallmark holiday by drinking some bad-ass cocktails, listening to hard-hearted music and standing not much in the way of romance.

Ha! Yeah, right... No, but seriously. Valentine's Day. That one day of the year you either really love, or you really hate... both of which are completely acceptable.

So today, I had two options: either write something on how "romantic" and "beautiful" love is, or, get all psycho bitch and tell the world that love is just a dialogue and that you can survive on ice-cream. But neither really fits my personality. Yes, Im single. No, I've never been heartbroken. So why choose, when I have the best of both sides? Exactly!

I'm no love expert (although sometimes I feel like Im teaching love as a second language) but once again, music makes it all better. So here are two "playlists" and a couple of phrases for you to enjoy on a day like





"I have lots of boyfriend, I mean, Im not a slut. But different guys are interesting for different reasons."

"Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a guy puts on cologne and the go out and smell each other."

"Love is still humankinds hot topic. Yes, love is wicked, yet, it is all we know."

"It's nice to be loved. It can never happen too late"

"Fact: Most woman love hot men. Most gays love hot men. Most hot men love themselves"

"Love is a dangerous feeling"

"The heart wants what the heart wants"

"You love, love, love it. And then you're happy it's over"

"I want a lover I don't have to love. I want a girl who's too sad to give a f*ck"

""I want a lover I don't have to love. I want a boy who's so drunk he doesn't talk"