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Style Icons And Inspirations

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Sorry I haven’t updated in a while. I was more focused on doing my Tumblrs and watching movies. In the space between my last post (about the dearly departed Vintage TV livestream) and now, I’ve lost my camera, bought another one, got tickets to Glastonbury (yrly), got enough money to buy some clothes, gone to a celebrity jumble sale where I met Caroline Flack and Gemma Cairney, watched about 25-30 movies, and met my mum’s new boyfriend. Anyway, here are my current style inspirations and icons for the coming summer. Seeing as I’m on the plus size side of things, I’m focusing less on trying to lose weight fast – which would make me look like I was melting – I’m focusing on being happy whatever my weight. An epiphany of sorts. So who and what are my muses for the hot weather? Y’all better know that this post gonna be long.

Photo Kevin Mazur/Getty

Rihanna – bantu knots and dark lipstick galore! For more bantu knot goodness that doesn’t make you look like Crazy Eyes, see also:

Gwen Stefani at the 1998 VMAs, thirteen days before I was born.

90s latina prostitute ladies I found on Tumblr.

Photo Joe Scarnici / Getty

Kendall Jenner – the best dressed Kardashian by far.

(photo Isaiah Trickey / FilmMagic)

Lorde – I really love her hat and of course I adore the dark lipstick.

This photo of Tiffani-Amber Thiessen as Kelly Kapowski. Nothing else. Just this photo.

Bettie Page – hair goals

And some choice music videos:

So in short? Ghetto dominatrix Soul Train dancer.

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Music Videos That Vintage TV Play All The Goddamn Time

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I really like Vintage TV. I only really watch the 90s stuff and Mellow Vintage, but I’ve been noticing there’s not much variety for music videos even when it’s on shuffle. I’ve separated this into two categories, ones that are played way too much and honorable mentions that get played a lot but less than the first category. Mind you, it’s a bit biased because it’s Mellow Vintage and 90s stuff only, maybe with a bit of genre-related stuff mixed in.

PLAYED WAY TOO MUCH
– The entire discography of Bryan Adams, most notably, “All For Love”, featuring Rod Stewart and Sting, as well as all the songs you’ve never heard of.
– The entire discography of Simply Red, most notably “Something Got Me Started”
– The entire discography of Kirsty MacColl, not so much now because they were madly in love with her back in December
– The entire discography of Beverly Craven, which consists of “Promise Me” and those two songs that weren’t “Promise Me”.
– The entire discography of Sheryl Crow
– 10cc’s “I’m Not In Love”, during every Mellow Vintage segment during the weekend.
– Aerosmith’s “I Don’t Wanna Miss A Thing”
– M People’s “Movin On Up” & “Search For The Hero”
– The Commitments’ “Mustang Sally”
– Beverly Knight’s “Sister Sister”. This is the only Beverly video I’ve ever seen on Vintage (alright… I may have seen Feel The Flavour Of The Old School just once), she has way more good songs that should play on that channel.
– Rick Astley’s “Cry For Help”.
– “January, February”, that old song by that one lady.
– That Alison Moyet video with Dawn French
– Lenny Kravitz’ “Are You Gonna Go My Way”
– The Vintage TV special version of Elton John’s “Crocodile Rock”, which, because there’s no proper music video, they just sloppily put a whole load of Pathé stock footage of circuses and make a video from it. They should just use a live performance of it.
– The Vintage TV special version of Roy Orbison’s “Pretty Woman”. See above, but replace Pathe circus footage with Getty footage of Julia Roberts circa Runaway Bride. They really should just use a live performance of it.
– Ace of Base, “Cruel Summer”, and less so, “All That She Wants”. Always remember that “Beautiful Life” is the best music video of the 90s.
– David Grey, “Babylon”.
– R Kelly, “I Believe I Can Fly”

PLAYED A GOOD BIT
– The Fugees, “Killing Me Softly”
– Queen’s “These Are the Days of Our Lives”
– Elvis Costello’s “She”
– The entire discography of the Bee Gees
– Everything But The Girl’s “Missing”. The original version, even though I’ve seen the remix played twice.
– That Roxy Music video where Bryan Ferry is behind a brown curtain
– Rod’s “The First Cut Is The Deepest”. Actually, Rod’s whole discography.
– Blur, “Girls & Boys”
– That Barry White video where he’s playing the piano [Just The Way You Are]
– Alanis’s “Hand In My Pocket”, and, to a lesser extent, “Thank You” and “You Oughta Know”
– Dodgy, “Staying Out For The Summer”
– George Michael’s “Jesus To A Child”
– That Eric Clapton song from Phenomenon (mid 90s John Travolta movie about psychic stuff or something). There’s a music video for it which they should use, but they sloppily play a live version in which he’s doing Duelling Guitars with two other men. Actually, they don’t really play it anymore.
– Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On”. See above, it’s a live performance a semitone or so lower beginning with some freak Cirque du Soleil performance. There’s a music video for this which is the video every other music TV channel plays.
– Seal’s “Kiss From A Rose”. See above
– REM’s “Shiny Happy People” and “Losing My Religion”, the former more than the latter. “The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonight” is never played on there, but it’s one of, if not my favourite, REM songs ever, alongside “The Great Beyond” and “Imitation of Life”.
– Massive Attack’s “Safe From Harm”
– The Eels’ “Last Stop This Town”. I’ve only seen it twice, but I think it would be played a lot in the weeks to come. EDIT: Boy I was wrong.
– Belinda Carlisle’s “In Too Deep”. I’ve also only seen it twice, but I think it would be played a lot in the weeks to come.
– The Cure “Friday I’m In Love”
– James’ “Sit Down”
– Crowded House, “Four Seasons In One Day”. I swear this vid is so GIF-able.
– Bjork’s “Venus As A Boy”. Not complaining, I love it.
– That Janet video by Herb Ritts
– Michael Bolton’s “How Am I Supposed To Live Without You” and “When A Man Loves A Woman”, but regrettably not “Can I Touch You… There?”
– Madonna’s “Rain” and less so, “I’ll Remember”
– Mariah Carey’s “Without You”
– U2’s “Shamu” “Mysterious Ways”

EDIT 28/03/14: Cleverly, it seems that whenever they play a video a lot in a short timespace (rn flavour of the month is Belinda Carlisle’s “In To Deep”) then it’s usually for promotion for appearing on a Vintage TV original program (Belinda has recently been featured on the show Needle Time)

OT: As for dieting and exercise, first, I might be getting a gym subscripition if I’m old enough as one just opened across the street from me, just a minute’s walk from my house. And secondly, tomorrow I am only eating fruit and vegetables in preparation for a 5-day master cleanse. Because I want to be Beyoncé.

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A 15 Year Old’s Cheat Sheet To The Oscars

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Ok… today is Oscar night! Where glamour, glitz and more glamour meet under the Hollywood heat. It’s going to be quite a fun night, but when you actually watch it, it’s just a sea of “I’d Like To Thank The Weinsteins”. And even worse, I’m tweeting from @neonnettle through after hours and possibly missing my French lesson for this! So, in the spirit, here’s a cheat sheet of what you will expect at the Oscars.

Jennifer Lawrence doing what she’s most famous for doing – eating.

Aah… we have got some bright stars nominated this year. Jennifer Lawrence will continue to be Just Like You. Jennifer, ever since that cash cow that Lionsgate is calling “The Hunger Games” has been in her presence, has been the lady who has been saying that being a bit fat is beautiful and she likes to be Just Like You Too. She’s been nominated for Supporting Actress playing 70s Mob Chick Or Something in American Hustle.

Stunning.

Also nominated for Supporting Actress is The Beautiful, Lupita N’Yongo. This is The Beautiful, Lupita’s debut performance in the states, and the fact you can rub her bald head and she can give us a thousand watts of her smile and bring world peace to this world because she is The Beautiful, Lupita N’Yongo is saying something. Not only that, The Beautiful, Lupita Woke Up Like This, so her beauty is eternal. Also, because she is playing a slave, she un-ironically gets her boobs out in this performance. Way to delve in.

Not shown: Brad Pitt yodelling

Speaking of 12 Years A Slave actors whose names you can’t pronounce, Chiwetel Eyjafjallajökull And A Partridge In A Pear Tree is being nominated for Actor as The Man Who Spent 12 Years A Slave. He, unlike The Beautiful, Lupita, is not that Beautiful, unless you count Kinky Boots. No, I didn’t know it was him either. It’s been nine years, guys. Also nominated for this movie is Brad Pitt.

You know he’ll narrowly miss out.

Also nominated is The Criminally Robbed, Leo DiCaprio. Ever since Titanic… no, Gilbert Grape… no, Critters 2, he’s been A Hearthrob and has been nominated for Actor because he’s in his umpteenth Scorsese movie, “The Fuckin Wolf Of Fuckin Wall Fuckin Street, Motherfucker”. Skinny Jonah Hill has been nominated for Supporting Actor for the same movie, but that’s because he’s skinny.

Never forget.

Oh, Dallas Buyers Club. One of two leading factors for the so-called “McConaugheissance”, and will possibly make Jared Leto a runway Oscar winner. Yeah, Jordan Catalano. Yeah, the guy from 30 Seconds To Mars, Oscar Winner. I can’t believe it, but he’s playing a sassy, transgender woman, so the bodily change will give him props. Same with Christian Bale in American Hustle.

NO DIFFERENCE

L: Sandra, 2012. R: Sigourney, 1979. LOOK. NO DIFFERENCE.

Gravity… um… like it’s 90 minutes of Sandra Bullock riding through zero gravity in a tank top and knickers. So Alien without the aliens and with George Clooney then? Mind you, I haven’t seen any of the movies this year.

I swear the whole movie is Joaquin looking like this while Siri Johansen does Daisy.

Her won’t get nominated for anything noteworthy. It’s a movie, and it’s solid, but not good enough to beat 12 Years A Slave or Fucking Fuck Fuck Fuck. And Joaquin Phoenix hates the Oscars anyway.

who the hell is cate blanched almonds

Blue Jasmine will get script at least, but I’ll forever remember this movie as the Woody Allen movie with Andrew Dice Clay in. No, not Cate Blanchett. Andrew Dice Clay.

I still haven’t seen this movie and I can already tell it’s a better Steve Coogan movie released in 2013 than the mess that is Philomena.

And why the hell did Philomena, the British mess that was a joke from the start, get nominated for bloody anything? Like even my Dad knew it was a total joke. We did not need it. It’ll get forgotten in the next few days after this.

Ellen’s Oscar outfit for today.

Ellen DeGeneres is hosting tonight. Expect dancing, awk-ness and more dancing. She’s cool. She’ll give everyone a good air. Hopefully, Seth MacFarlane would not appear and start singing “Ellen DeGeneres, we saw your boobs in If These Walls Could Talk 2”. We don’t need that.

Harold Ramis had both till he got fat.

Harold Ramis had both till he got fat.

The In Memoriam part, you will cry. Phillip Seymour Hoffman will be shown as a smiling fat man who has great talent. Peter O’Toole as a skinny charmer who has great talent. Shirley Temple will be shown singing On The Good Ship Lollypop, I guarantee it. Paul Walker will be omitted because he has little talent and was in a franchise movie. Then again, so was Phillip.

Also confirmed to attend are Angelina Jolie (who WILL steal the show with her big red lips and mastectomy, and will bring waves of sultriness to kill The Beautiful, Lupita), Biddlydiddly Cottonbottoms (man who sucked on a lemon and became an overrated teen heartthrob), Sidney Poitier (old black man who was the Denzel of the 50s), Michael B Jordan (young black man whom is going to be the Denzel of the 20s), The African Queen, Whoopi Goldberg (the pre-The Beautiful, Lupita), Kim Novak (old and senile), Jamie “Butt Out Jeans” Foxx, Goldie Hawn (who probably has a prolapsed vagina), Jason Sudeikis (Olivia Wilde’s baby daddy), and Sally Field (wut). As well as Jessica Biel, John Travolta, Rob De Niro, Zac Efron, Chris Hemsworth, Charlize Theron (also stunning), Anne Hathaway, Kerry Washington’s baby, Christoph Waltz, Daniel Day Lewis, Will Smith, Bill Murray, Jim Carrey, that black chick Viola and Kristin Bell. Performing will be some hipsters, Idina Menzel, Bette Midler and U2. And afterwards would be all the parties, including The Vanity Fair one (where The Beautiful, Lupita is a dead cert to attend, and so will Jessica Chastain out of thin air) and the Elton John one (where Michael B will say “Hey” then hop over to the Vanity Fair one.

As for everything else, I’ve stopped watching Looking (L) and started watching RuPaul’s Drag Race. Thank god they got Kelly out. She was boooooring. Could have been like Willam 2.0 but was too lacklustre to be like Willam. Totally.

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Remembering John Henson

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As you know, John Paul Henson, the son of Jim and Jane Henson, died Friday of a severe heart attack. I met John once, maybe twice. I remember times when I went to see him and Katrina and Gyongi (pronounced JIN-jee). I don’t remember ever recalling Sydney – Gyongi might have been pregnant at the time. This was nine/ten years ago, so excuse me if my mind is blurry.

I knew John through my Dad. Dad knew Ellis Flyte (costume designer and Zanzibar fanatic), who was married to Brian Henson but they split up around 2000 – when I met Brian in late 2002, he was with Mia Sara, and I saw her too. (I thought she looked a bit like a low-budget Meg Ryan, but that’s a different story.) I met Ellis too, about five times, but I haven’t seen her for over five years. I remember going to a Christmas dinner she was holding in 2006 and watching Buffy. I met a girl there whom I was joking about the show with, but I forgot her name.

Anyway, onto the story. I was five or six at the time. Me and my Dad went to see them at his big house up in Hampstead. We socialized for a bit, then I decided to watch some Tweenies and Balamory on the DVD player – this was during the first days I discovered DVD. We went up to the heath, socialized a bit again, then went for dinner to some dim sum place. Me and Katrina were playing under the table and blowing air through our straws. Good times. It’s a day I’ll never forget. But often my mind thinks that the Dim Sum and the trip to the heath were on separate days. Mind you, this was a decade ago.

So, RIP John Henson. You and your family gave me great memories. Oh, and if the rest of the Hensons and Ellis decide to stumble across this, it’s Tom Johnston’s daughter. Can me and Katrina have another hullabaloo?

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TV Review: Looking – Season 1, Episode 2 “Looking for Uncut”

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Looking
Season 1, Episode 2: “Looking for Uncut”
Starring: Jonathan Groff, Frankie J Alvarez, Murray Bartlett, O.T Fagbenle, Raul Castillo & Lauren Weedman (Absent this episode: Andrew Law, Scott Bakula and Russell Tovey)
LAST EPISODE: The integral plot points were introduced, Patrick went on a date and threesomes erupted.

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Before I get into my thing, I recently read in the Metro [British Tube-based newspaper for commuters] an article about Jonathan Groff and this very TV show. I didn’t get to read it all the way, but I remember that both Groff and Patrick are 28 years old. And I can’t be arsed to upload any pics.

This episode begins with Patrick looking like a U-haul lesbian and Agustin helping him, because they are moving things into a car. They make this remark: “You’re such a racist!” “I’m Latino!” “You’re from Coral Gables [, Florida]”. They and Dom joke about fuck buddies, because Pat wants an uncircumsized Mexican for a fuck buddy. They end up in the car listening to techno music and being paranoid. San Francisco is beautiful:

So they go into a basement apartment – Agustin’s in Oakland. “What if Frankie got done up the butt by 20 muscle bears?” Pat asks to Agustin. Pat wishes Agustin goodbye. Dom gives it three months before he comes back. Pat gives it five or six. The music is now indie, and not techno. No, actually, it’s techno. San Francisco is still beautiful.

Dom meets some heavy-accented guy at a cafe. It’s Ethan! They finally get to introduce him properly. Ethan wants them to start again, and Dom is astounded. There’s an in-joke about a framed collage of nude men shaped like a unicorn:

We’re back at the video game workshop… no, screw that, he’s working from home and he searches “Uncut Latin Cock” on Google Images. Well, we know what’s a popular search these days! Dom’s on Grindr, not looking for Uncut Latin Cock. He finds a 28 year old twink, and he appears in a blink of an eye. They live in the same aparment block, then they have sex. First actual sex scene on the show!

So Pat is meeting up with Richie on the street, and they go on a date. Richie has Jesus on his necklace. They drink some beer and it looks like the beginning an anti drink drive PIF. There’s a song on that Pat likes. Dom and Roommmate Girl – Doris – talk and eat (I think) pineapple. Or is it cheese? Now back to Pat and Richie, and they club in the Castro. And they are dancing to a song which goes “Take me to your mommy’s for dinner! Take me to your mommy’s for rice and beans!”. Then Agu and Frank are eating pizza and watching a drag show.

Now, Pat and Richie are dancing to Erasure in the club. It’s like that episode of Buffy where they’re in the Bronze, and everyone is slow dancing to some indie song, except for one couple who are looking at the camera and doing some quasi Macarena, but if it was Erasure and everyone was doing the quasi Macarena. And Richie might be moving into Agu’s room, and Pat offers him mac and cheese. They kiss, and here it goes!

Cut to Dom in a hotel with Ethan. Slow chat. They dump each other and swear a lot. He goes “Once a methhead motherfucker, always a methhead motherfucker!” Richie and Pat are close to getting it on, and Richie has very tight jeans. Unfortunately, Richie leaves Pat to go back home. Meanwhile, at Agu’s, he’s putting the unicorn gay porn frame picture up in his undies, and cut to Patrick eating kale salad with chicken – actually his mac and cheese – and talking to Agu. Turns out, Richie is cut, and Patrick calls himself a racist. End of episode, replay of Erasure song.

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TV Review: Looking – Season 1, Episode 1 “Looking for Now”

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Looking
Season 1, Episode 1: “Looking for Now”
Starring: Jonathan Groff, Frankie J Alvarez, Murray Bartlett, O.T Fagbenle, Raul Castillo & Lauren Weedman. (Absent this episode: Andrew Law, Scott Bakula and Russell Tovey)

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“Looking” is supposed to be the gay male version of already-exisiting HBO show “Girls”. Instead of Lena Dunham at the helm, almost annoyingly so, it’s musical theatre actor Jonathan Groff, known to most TV viewers as Rachel rival Jesse St James from Glee. This is a review of the pilot episode of the show, which aired on the 19th January 2014.

The show begins with two of the characters in the park, giving him a handjob, kissing and having a cruise. Then Jonothan’s character – Patrick -‘s phone starts ringing and he drops it. Afterwards, he starts talking to his two best friends about the job (“You’re a pervert now! You gotta wear those colours with pride!” “I’m not taking me with you ever again”). Then they go on the bus, and then they are at the most empty club ever. Or is it a house? It’s a house, where they are smoking joints in the garden.

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The next morning, Patrick wakes up to the sounds of sex. It’s one of the two guys from last night – Agustin – and his boyfriend Frank! They talk about vegan teachers and one of them is late. After sex, Agustin talks to Paddy about Instagram-filtered guys with lazy eyes. Then Dom is talking to his roommate about his ex-boyfriend being in real estate, then they agree to stay home and watch the view.

Patrick works at some CGI studio and he needs to find a roommate and boyfriend. Agustin’s a welder/artist-mabob and he has another boyfriend called Scotty. Dom is a waiter.

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Later, Patrick has a date with a guy named Benjamin, and they chat. The same time, Agustin, Frank and Scotty talk about meeting at a Cinco de Mayo party, then Scotty shows his tattoo – Dolly Parton’s signature. It turns to a threesome. Patrick hops on the bus and goes to a party, and meets Richie, a club promoter who reminds me of the late Angel Melendez.

Dom gives his boyfriend some lamb (I’m hungry!) and Patrick and Richie introduce themselves on the bus. At the party, Patrick says he gave Benjamin the wrong card. Then Patrick talks to another guy at the urinal. Dom goes to the party too, and asks Pat about his moustache. There’s some guy in a jockstrap and bear mask dancing, and then there’s this show with the guy and the bear mask and jockstrap.

Lastly, Frank and Agustin smoke a blunt and Dom leaves a message to a guy named Ethan – the real estate agent. And Patrick goes to Richie’s party. So that’s that.

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The episode is short and sweet, and Scott Bakula and Russell Tovey haven’t appeared yet, But Ann Magnusson – late 80s performance artist turned early/mid 90s actress – did as the lady in the art welding thing that introduces Agustin to Scotty. She only has two lines, even though she got a co-starring credit. We may see more of her in the future.

On a non-Looking related note, Miramax has a tumblr!