Thursday, July 16, 2009

The good old gray L train



Contemplation on permanence while riding the L train: The issue is no longer a demure butterfly on a shoulder, revealing a bit of risk-taking character come a sleeveless summertime. Now, body art is so extensive that it must be factored into choosing a wardrobe. The issue is how to go beyond a solid color tunic when there is an encircling tiger tattoo on the right arm and a Lakshmi (I think) on the left. The result: much better than okay, with a paisley top more black background than ornamental figure. The designs echoed the rococo ornamentation of the body art.

An accent note: And no Feria prismatic hair color for this highly decorated lady. The flat black looked great. Amidst the feather earrings, metallics, and oversize bangles, the tendency is to tone down the accents. One way to tone down the bling of a dozen spangle bracelets is to tone down the finish. Apropos of flat (and evoking memories of the matte lipstick phase of the 1980s), Concrete by KnockOut Cosmetics is not only matte, not a glint to it, it’s gray as, well, a concrete wall. This is definitely not to be matched with the newly resurgent gray, a wholly owned subsidiary of corporate dimness struggling hard to contribute to the parent coffers. Better confine this gloom to your fingertips and wear with a blowsy floral, to scare back Nature with a whiff of Modernism. It’s a good thing that at the nydesignroom, Clash (as in clashing patterns) is not just an iconic rock group.

Almost forever
Excuse the digression folks. Style can deteriorate to an empty fashion statement unless you mean it. Tattoos by definition used to mean it, and short of dermatologic expertise, still do. This choice of adornment remains pretty permanent. Attempts at domestication, cooptation, and commodification are already well under way. Think last year’s holiday Heart Tattoo purse from Gucci featuring Rihanna, who not only sports rather furtive tattoos (check out 7confessions), but also has been reported to wield the needle herself. Wear your tattoo on some animal’s skin and carry it around. It’s less of a commitment that way. And the charity they give money to is UNICEF. Weren’t the Halloween nickels lucrative enough? It’s all a hell of a long way from the merchant marines.



http://7confessions.blogspot.com/2008/01/rihanna-loves-her-tattoos-photos.html
http://tinyurl.com/l7cduu
Concrete is available at miomia: https://www.shopmiomia.com/index.asp?

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