Things I Love

As I was walking home from school today I noticed that there was something different about the mountains. I hadn't noticed as I walked to school because I was going to be late for institute and I was fairly devoted to the task at hand. Imagine, if you will, my surprised when I looked up and saw, sprinkled among the green and tan, ORANGE and RED! I love the fall. It is my favorite season.

Another thing that I love, or rather, things, are the windows in the costume shop. They let in light. They let us know what the weather is like in the outside world. You might think this is a funny thing to be glad about but when you've spent several years in a costume shop without windows, you'd be happy with about anything. The windows give us a fantastic view of the canyon AND a view of any car crashes on 400 North and 1000 East.
Like this one! It wasn't too serious but it was rather exciting. Plus, it was nice to be able to fill people in on the reason why the traffic was backed up.

This last one doesn't have anything to do with views or windows or seasons. Well, it does include seasons if you are referring to a series of plays. The first play of the Utah State Theatre season is open! I took this shot during the last night of dress rehearsal for the Glass Menagerie. My camera isn't well suited for the stage lights. I'll figure it out, eventually. I think the show really turned out. I'm proud to say I was involved.

If I notice anything else interesting or noteworthy, I'll try to take a picture and blog about it.

You can only handle so many Top Model entries anyway.

It's ready!

The last dress rehearsal for The Glass Menagerie was tonight and I can honestly say I am pleased with the results. Even though I have designed shows in the past I felt like a designer this evening. It was sort of weird. I designed my first show five years ago so it's not really a new thing. What is a new thing is designing in graduate school. CRAZY.


Anywho. After rehearsal I watched the new episode of ANTM with my roommate, Clarissa (thank you Tivo.) While we were watching we both had the same thought about this girl:



This is Sundai (yep, like the day of the week or a delicious ice cream treat.) We've decided she is a combination of this person :
and this person:
Mix the two together and you get Sundai. Sure, she looks kind of surly in her make-over picture but she's really bubbly and cute. Would you look surly if you had to wear a rope bikini? I think you would. Bikini rope aside, she is so stinkin' cute and bubbly and Kristen Chenoweth-y! Really!

Jumping to another topic...I've been pretty busy recently with school and stuff so I've fallen behind on my blog reading. It took over an hour to read the new entries and to finish this post.
I almost don't want to know what it would have been like if I wasn't a fast reader and a decent typist. Dang.

Coming up later this week: Pictures of my family! In Logan! Visiting me! Wahooo!

I have been very busy this week...

So, why am I blogging?

I am done* with this:

*I'm ready for dress rehearsal on Monday, it's a type of done.

I need a serious break from this:

Renderings for design studies, due on Monday! They'll be ready. I hope. I've been listening to audio books as I work. They are entertaining AND there is nothing visual to distract me! I've made my way through Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon and I'm currently listening to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (don't judge.)

I took this picture as I was walking home yesterday. Unfortunately, I'm still figuring out the best settings on my camera so it looked much better in real life. The sky was a brighter combination of yellow, orange and purple. The ground was a fantastic mixture of greens and blues. I guess the silhouette isn't too bad. It reminds me of an art project from third grade.

Just a reminder for anyone who reads this (this means you, Mom) The Glass Menagerie opens this week! The show runs from Thursday the 26th through Saturday, and then next Wednesday through Saturday. The seating in the Lyric theatre is general admission so arrive early to get the seat you would like!

OVERLOAD

First up, I had artist hands today at school. They haven't been this dirty since, well, I was an art major and we were drawing with charcoal. I don't know I was so messy today with my pencils. I look like I've been high five-ing a chimney sweep.








Secondly, my toothpaste contains mini breath strips. It makes me giggle.

And now, for something that doesn't make me giggle.

Wednesday nights have officially reached a new and horrific low. The geniuses at the CW have decided to showcase models in not one, but TWO shows. You know a show is bad when America's Next Top Model looks pretty good in comparison. It's called "The Beautiful Life: TBL" and it is awful. First off, why add "TBL" to the end? Why not the beginning? Why do it at all? Unfortunately the title is just the beginning of the mayhem. Here's the recap of tonight's episode:

This cycle is made up of "petite" models, all 5'7" and under. How in the world would you make these freakishly short models look taller? HAVE THEM POSE WITH JOCKEYS! Jockeys! Seriously. All mocking aside, the pictures were kind of cool. But, before they could pose with Jockeys, the girls had to meet with the head of Wilhelmina modeling so he could determine their potential. One girl was sent home right then and there. She was the one who reminded me of one of the girls on The Soup but I couldn't find her picture so hopefully these will suffice:

Anyway. It was sort of sad because right before she was eliminated she said something along the lines of "I'm so happy to be here. This is such a great opportunity." Don't speak too soon, it usually doesn't bode well.

During the episode there were several of the girls who were acting, well, just about their age. Sundai and Erin were acting like dumb 18 year olds while Kourtney was acting like a dumb 18 year old despite the fact she is 22. Ouch. I like it when people who are adults, act like adults. Anyway, on with the episode. The girls posed with Jockeys and horses. I was sort of surprised it wasn't a bigger disaster, it is only week two, after all. My favorites Brittany, Kara, Nicole, and Laura all did well. They made up the top spots. Bianca (who is moving off of my favorites list) complained about her hair and looked really awkward in her photo. She was in the bottom two, again. But, once again, she made it to another week on the show. Hopefully being in the bottom two will knock the attitude right out of her (although judging from the previews for next weeks episode, the attitude is intact.)

And next up is "TBL." Oh, it was BAD. I guess that everyone has a space in their heart for a show/movie/music group/whatever that is just so bad it is hardly even in guilty pleasure zone. Well, I don't have enough room in my heart (or time in my schedule) for this show.

Here are my favorite cringe-worthy moments:

1. Zac Posen yelling, "I need a sew-er! I need a sew-er!"

Okay, so I realize that you, Zac Posen, are indeed a successful and real-life fashion designer, but calling a stitcher a "sew-er" is just wrong. What, are you next going to refer to your cutter/draper as a slicer/flinger? I could understand if the designer was untrained like Lauren Conrad but, Zac Posen? Last time I checked he was a legitimate designer who has been working for years. I mean, he studied at Central St. Martins for crying out loud! Do they have a research department? Who do the writers talk to when they are coming up with this garbage? Why didn't Zac Posen say anything? What the heck.

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2. The run way finale.

I'm no fashion expert, but I've been reading fashion magazines for over a decade now plus I watched enough fashion shows on-line to believe the finale. I seriously doubt that it would allow for a model to just STAND there looking shocked while rose petals rain down. Seriously? Really? Double ugh.
(Special ughs are reserved for the dress and the styling. I would really like to know who is responsible for the clothing and styling for this show. I predict that if Stella McCartney was on the show, the geniuses would dress the models up in fur and send them down the runway in leather shoes. Yeah right like Stella McCartney would get involved with this.)

.

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3. "Signature" runway walks

Once again, I'm no expert but past experience has shown that walking in a runway show with your arms swinging with wild abandon is NOT a good thing. Neither is stomping so hard that you look like your Jimmy Choos might punch a hole in the runway. Jay Alexander would totally have their heads. Just in case you didn't see the show, arm swinger is on the left and Stompy McStomperson is on the right. I'm not going to lie, they were really fun to imitate as I was telling my roommate about the stupid show. Did I mention the head flings by Stompy? It was almost as bad as McKey's signature pose.

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4. Best. Quote. Ever.

Dude on the right is vacationing in NYC with his family who are from a farm town in Iowa. Farmer Dad is griping about the cost of the meal when he utters the quote of the night:

"We'll be paying off this family vacation for the next three harvests!"

My friend Lacy posted some awesome comments about a preview of this show. You can find it HERE!

Whoa. (I just wish I had a picture of the family and not of two of the model/stars. Nothing says farmer from the midwest like a plaid flannel shirt.)

The Glass Menagerie opens a week from tomorrow. HOLY CRAP!!!!

Fa-fa-fa-fa-fashion

I bought a jacket last week on a really great one day sale (thank you 6pm.com!) It arrived today in a totally beaten in box (what, did you drop kick it, UPS guy?) The contents were unscathed and I am so excited to wear this when the weather cools down (ooh, it's pretty chilly in the mornings now.) Enough with the comments in parentheses, here are some pictures from the Internet:
The front and...
the back.
It is adorable from every angle AND it is actually more khaki than white which I think is a plus.

Today was a great day. Not only did I get positive feedback on my work in design studies but it was the premiere of America's Next Top Model! Yes, I AM one of those girls. I love this show for all its ridiculousness, all of its improbability, and the almost inevitable obscurity awaiting the "winner." I LOVE it anyway! I also "love" the trench coat leotard that Tyra is currently sporting on the show's web page. How I wish I could have posted it here. I think she's catering to Lady Gaga and her penchant for leotards and jackets. Why not combine the two???
I'm getting side-tracked...

Here are the girls that I think will do well: (may be subject to change.)



First up is Bianca. Sure, she isn't really pretty in a traditional way but she looks interesting. Bianca was in the bottom two this week because her attitude towards her make-over and her photo shoot look. Her first picture wasn't bad, it was just her attitude. This usually scares the attitude right out of the contestants (atleast it did for Keenyah in cycle 4, she made it two the final four.)

Next up is Brittany. I thought she was really cool, blonde hair and black eyebrows. Unfortunately make-overs were early this year and now she sports dark hair. She went from interesting to "Meah."


Last season there was a model by the name of Allison who proclaimed a fascination with bloody noses. This year we've got one who claims her childhood nickname was "bloody eyeball." Gross. Despite the fact that she's downright weird, Nicole seems like she has a lot of potiential (for the competition.) Plus, her natural coloring is gorgeous. She might be weird but she's really pretty.
Laura is another one who is kind of weird but her weirdness stems from the fact she grew up on a rural farm (as if there were any other kind.) Anywho, she's not really accquainted with fashion but she takes BEAUTIFUL pictures. I was surprised.


Last up is Kara who I'm not entirely convinced is under 5'7". She looks like she is 5'10" without those ugly boots. She kind of looks like Gisele Bundchen-Brady but without being so in your face. However, that might not be a good thing for Kara. Apparently Kahlen from cycle 4 didn't get work because she looked like Carmen Kass. Yeah, it doesn't really make sense. I mean, it would be really hard on me to look like an established supermodel. Some people have it REALLY hard.




Did I mention that this season all of the models are 5'7" and under? Why 5'7"? That is the height of Kate Moss, the short supermodel. I love that even "short" modeling is out of the question for an actual short person, I'm not even tall enough for that.

Good thing I have other interests and talents ;)

Walking on Broken Glass...

In seventeen days, dress rehearsals start for The Glass Menagerie at Utah State. I spent the first week back at school pulling items from our stock and making decisions about what we will build for the show. Before I go any further, "pulling" just means I went down to our storage room and chose items that will hopefully fit the actors. "Build" sort of means what it usually means except we apply the word towards costumes instead of houses or buildings. (What else do you build? Honestly, I can't think of anything else. I must be tired.)

Anywhoo, I thought I would give an update on my first two weeks of school. And what better way to update people than with pictures? The first picture is of the rack of costumes for The Glass Menagerie. It's a small show with four actors and time for hardly any costume changes. We are going to build three dresses, two for the actress playing Laura and one for the actress playing Amanda. It always makes me excited to see costumes go from sketches to actual costumes, even when it is someone else's design.
Here is another view of the costume rack: Amanda's dress before:

And after, with the addition of gold lace and a belt. I think it looks much better.
It is terribly exciting.

School has been very different from last semester. I only have two classes with meeting times so I've been spending a lot of time in the costume shop. We had costume fittings on Tuesday and we had our publicity photos this afternoon. I was pretty nervous to see how it would all turn out because this is my first grad school show. I was also worried about how Aubrey's hair would turn out because the wig isn't ready yet. I styled it and it looked okay. Most of all I was relieved that she wore a hat for most of the pictures. Those two events by themselves aren't that stressful (especially when the photos involved only three people) but it was compounded by the fact that the musical, Sweeney Todd, was cast this week. We spent most of today measuring actors and singers for the show. There are over forty people. It's like West Side Story all over again! I'm glad that I'm an assistant to the designer and not the designer, it's a big job.

I'll post some more pictures when I remember to take them. I had planned on taking some of my own pictures during publicity photos but my camera was being used in the fittings in the shop. We don't know a lot of the cast so as we get their measurement, we take their picture! It's all very handy.