Posts Tagged ‘Fashion’

The vixenry and aristry of Darkgarden.com

Dollys and Dandys, how much do I love living in the Bay Area, a treasure trove of creative swirly heads who put up their tent pole to create  a sublime subculture out  of history, a little steel, a bit of steam, a little lace and quite  possibly, a snifter of absinthe. This, my kumquats is where myself and the mister are spending our weekend: in a sliver of history that might have been. Make sure you check out the launch of Dark Gardens haunting and haute new Dollymop line at the fab fashion show on Saturday night: Alterna-bridal (and boudoir) looks to be displayed. Mon Dieu! See you there!

Event of the Season

The Nova Albion Steampunk Exhibition returns to the San Francisco Bay Area March 12-14, 2010 presenting a world of polished mahogany, leather and brass, where steam power, airships and clockwork are the cutting edge of technology; a neo-Victorian experience, spanning from the 1830s to the early 1900s and from cultivated London to the rugged coast of San Francisco. The Exhibition has moved to the Hilton Garden Inn in Emeryville, CA for 2010, preparing to host an estimated 1000+ attendees. It will offer a huge Traders’ Concourse and over 25 programs in three tracks including academic presentations, panel discussions and hands-on “Maker” workshops. Our Guests of Honor are: James Blaylock (Author of Homunculus, The Digging Leviathan, Land of Dreams), Phil and Kaja Foglio (Artists of Girl Genius), and Jon Sarriugarte (Maker of The Golden Mean, Electrobite and much more). Appearances also include “Steampunk Scholar” Mike Perschon, Tor Books Editor Liz Gorinsky and acclaimed new Steampunk author Gail Carriger (Soulless, Orbit Books).

New for 2010 is an amazing outdoor Exploratory Steam and Kinetics Enclosure, featuring The Golden Mean snail art car, Tom Sepe’s “Whirlygig Emoto” hybrid steam motorcycle, and steam vehicles, boilers, Pandemonium and Caliope from the Crew of the Neverwas Haul!

For evening entertainment, Exhibition guests can trip the gaslight fantastic at the Steampunk Ball, don their Steamy best to compete in the Costume Competition and gather for the illustrious Party-at the Center of the Earth. Special $99 room rates are available at the hotel for Nova Albion guests on a first-come, firstserved basis and can be booked at: www.steampunkexhibition.com/hotel-reservations/.

The Nova Albion Steampunk Exhibition is a celebration of all things Steampunk, from Gaslamp fantasy to clockwork mechanicals, and everything in-between. The event is a chance for fans, authors, makers, tinkerers, adventurers and folks of all stripes to gather, converge, discuss and experience the excitement and the possibilities of an alternate History-That-Might-Have-Been.
$60 Early Bird tickets are on sale now at: http://www.steampunkexhibition.com/tickets – prices will increase to $75 at the door.

Photography: Russ Young
Excerpted from www.steampunkexhibition.com

You had better believe, I will make it work....

When it comes to Project Runway, I am an self described addict. This is possibly because my husband and I both went through rigorous university design programs and remember all too well that fatal “1 hour til show time drama” that strikes fear into the unprepared or disorganized creative. They don’t call them “deadlines” for nothing.

Project Runway Thursdays are sacred: we pore over the menu, decide on the libations, theme, and take turns cooking all manner of delicious cuisine with our fav PR double date couple (who can always be counted on for the random snarky comment). That said, I believe that this season is, well, “Meh…” From the judges standpoint, let’s face it, it’s Kor-less. I mean, how can you top this standout comment: “your outfit looks like something an Appalachian crack whore would wear.” How much more descriptive can you really get? How can this man ever be replaced for sheer blistering sarcasm and that discerning sense of style and entitlement?

As well, on the nefarious interloper tip, where’s our  Santino, Jeffry Sebalia, or Kenley Collins to upend and demoralize the rest of the team? If I had a dime for every time one of them said “I’m not here to make friends” I’d have a house in Pac Heights!

But for pure creative innovation, the quirky kid from Baltimore who manages to be sweet as pie (and right there with the back handed compliment), and of prodigious talent there is none other than our favorite boy, Christian Siriano.

His Coco Chanel meets streetwise punk design sensibility can be runway, club way, alterna-bridal or couture. He is a fan favorite because he possesses a quality that many of the PR contestants lack: irrefutable charm. And as luck would have it we all get to meet the boy wonder Tuesday Oct. 13th at 2 pm at Saks Fifth Avenue on Post in SF for his book signing (and I suspect to celebrate his new show). I took one look at my insane calendar and realized that I must, simply, make it work….

See you there, and of course, make sure you look FIERCE!

Where and When

SAKS FIFTH AVENUE
Tuesday, October 13 –2:00pm
Book signing
384 Post Street
San Francisco, CA 94108