New York: I'm here!

I finally made it! After 22 hours of flying, I finally found myself smack-bang in the middle of a traffic jam in Manhattan. I'm trying to shrug off vertigo and jetlag (nothing a spot of shopping can't fix) in preparation for tomorrow's ticker tape parade to celebrate the Yankees winning the World Series.

I have to admit I'm pretty amped to catch a glimpse of Japanese superstar and Yankees designated hitter, Hideki Matsui.

Hello there...

Could I be a bigger numpty?

I got all excited when I saw this flyer, thinking there was going to be a mad sale while I was NYC. Silly me - in the USA, 10.11.09 means the 11th October 2009, not the 10th November 2009. Duh Freddy!

Is Melburn really all that?

Dave and I made our (now) annual pilgrimage to Melburn last weekend. As I am currently in the middle of deciding to make the big move south, I kept my eyes and ears peeled over the weekend for more reason why I should (or should not) move to the 'Burn. I'm still sitting on the fence, so I decided to rate my little getaway to see if Burncity is a winner or a loser...

1. So long, sucker
By now, y'all would have seen and heard the amusing rockstar antics of graf legend-turned-diva Revok displayed whilst he had his now famous vandal vacation in Melbs over the past few weeks. Some of his work was quite ballsy, like this stomper on the Westgate, which we thought we'd get to see on our way into Burncity.
Funnily enough, Hooks/Revok had been replaced by this clever number at the hands of Treo/ID.
I'm giving Melbs 1 point for the locals lads sticking up for what's theirs!

2. The Causeway
We stayed at a modern little business hotel called the Causeway, right smack bang in the middle of Burncity. I'd definitely give Melbs 1 point for the Causeway. But if I move to Melbs, I won't need to stay there any more. Minus 1 point.

3. Crablicious
Dave and I have a special spot we like to go for din-dins while we're in Melbs where they don't mind so much if you eat with your hands and make a mess of yourself. Clay Pots in St Kilda.
They give you bibs and encourage you to eat more and more. We ate sea urchin, scallops, crab, prawns and mussels amongst other things. It's delicious. Melbs, you get a solid 1 point for this fab joint.

4. Don't try this at home, kids
Yeah, I know you can get Cold Rock in Sydney too, but I'm more likely to try something new when I'm out of my comfort zone. For example, different flavors of ice cream. I'm strictly a vanilla girl. Usually the furthest I'll go is hokey pokey, or the occasional cookies'n'cream. Even at Cold Rock I generally get vanilla and 1 or 2 mixers, like gummi bears or cookie dough.

But this time I went over the edge. Vanilla with nerds and sherbert. I think my head imploded. 1 point for getting my balls out in Burncity.

5. Yellow Bird
Cool cafe, shit weather. Yellow Bird is a neat little spot on Chapel Street that makes really nice food and doubles as a bar at night. Would have been nice to sit outside except the umbrellas they had out front didn't shield us from the stupid Melburn rain. At least Dave got his rocks of touching the curtains. I'm giving the 'Burn 1 point for Yellow Bird, but minus 1 for the weather.

6. Everfresh Studio
The boys at Everfresh were nice enough to let us come have a stickybeak around the studio the night before they had their (now infamous) party. It's a pretty rad studio. 1 point.

7. My happy face
Dave took this photo of me on the tram on Friday night because he said I was really happy. I was. I guess sometimes Melbs can have that effect. 1 point. Or maybe it was just really great seeing Dave? I'll give Melbs a bonus point just because I'm so happy - total 2 points.

8. Bettina in a VIDEO GAME?
We saw the new Grand Theft Auto ads for the first time in Melbs and Dave came up witht the legendary call that it looks just a cartoon version of out mate B.
The likeness is almost uncanny - here's a photo of B and I from a while back when we dressed up for a work Christmas party (that's her on the left and me on the right). She's even dressed the same. I'm giving Melbs 1 point for being the first place to remind me of how funny it was later that night when I had to cut her out of that Chinese dress... but minus 1 point for reminding me of how much I'll miss B if I move to Melbs.

9. Not-so-Fresh when the cops turn up...
The Everfresh party was pretty good until the cops showed up. So I'm give Melbs 1 point for knowing how to throw a good party; 1 point for this guy who showed up in the dopest Marty McFly costume (including actual hoverboard):
Minus 1 point for the harsh attitude displayed by the Victoria Police and 1 point for the Vic cop who seemed to be checking Spice...

10. What is Ironlak Frenzy?
Answer: What get when you cross some of Auckland's best writers, a Melbourne laneway and a shitload of Ironlak. Phats, Diva, Saves... it was definitely 20 hot minutes in this tiny alley way. There were peeps on bins, on crates, cans hissing, punters mesmerised...
Then the cops showed up cos people where complaining about the fumes. Only in Melbs could 10 or so people bomb a laneway in the CBD and get in trouble because the paint fumes were a bit woofy. I think I love you Melburn. 1 point for being so cool.

Final Scores
For Melbs: 13 points
Against Melbs: 3 points

Burncity is the winner!

D.I.Y. Original Fake x Reebok Freestyles

Ever imagined up a pair of fantasy kicks? I do sometimes.

And when I saw these amazing Original Fake shoelaces in Tokyo earlier this month, I just knew they'd be perfect in a brand new pair of white sneakers.
I love a good sheltered workshop - and I love sneaker collaborations - so I decided to create my very own D.I.Y. sneaker collab. And instead of just lacing them up and shoving them back in the box, I decided I'd make it into an online tutorial for everyone to enjoy :)

Here's how make your own D.I.Y. Original Fake x Reebok Freestyles in just 4 easy steps!

Prep time:
10 minutes

Materials required:
1 x fresh pair of white Reebok Freestyles
1 x fresh pair of Original Fake shoelacesStep 1:
Remove boring, white laces from Reebok Freestyles.
Step 2:
Lace Reebok Freestyles with awesome Original Fake shoelaces.
Step 3:
In true Kaws style (see the eyes in the logo below), cross your velcro straps.Step 4:
Enjoy you're beautiful new D.I.Y. collaboration!
Please Note: As far as I'm aware, there are no official Original Fake x Reebok Freestyle collabs past, present or future. I made these for my own enjoyment!

Just Do It

I think I just found my ultimate Halloween costume. And they have instructions on how to make it! Click here.

Graf Couture

You know you've made when you're invited to work on an editorial for French Vogue. Loads of fashion blogs are fronting this shoot in a frenzy of graffiti-meets-couture posts - but I suggest you get the real deal direct from the horses mouth. Kaws blog.
The shoot was put together by Photographer and Director, Mario Sorrenti, who invited Kaws to collaborate (and I love collabs). If you haven't heard of Sorrenti by name, there's no doubt you'll know his work. Sorrenti's 1993 photograph of Kate Moss for Calvin Klein Obsession is arguably one the most prolific and memorable for both the brand and the model.
When I first looked at Sorrenti's flicks, I thought to myself 'remove model, insert Lady Gaga'. And not necessarily to the benefit of the shots. As beautiful as I think Sorrenti's November 09 Vogue editorial is, I'm a bit over the Lady Gaga thing that's seems to be sticking to almost everything like flies to shit right now.Although I have to admit, I do like the lace mask.

But as much as graffiti couture is so hot right now according to all the fashion blog hype saying this shoot is God's gift: it's really nothing new. One of the most iconic examples of fashion design-meets-graffiti comes in the form of the late Stephen Sprouse. Sprouse was using graffiti in his couture as early as 1983. Here's one of his 1984 sketches:
Of course Sprouse's designs are now iconic and easily recognised as part of recent Louis Vuitton collections.

Beginning in 2001, Sprouse began working with Marc Jacobs on a collaboration collection for Louis Vuitton. The results looked a little like this:
Since Sprouse's untimely death in 2004, Jacobs' has gone on to spearhead a number of Sprouse-inspired collections for Louis Vuitton (I'd love a pair of the 2009 leggings!).
All this couture shit has pushed graffiti fashion prices a little out of reach for ordinary folk like myself (US$600 for the Sprouse leggings is a little steep). If you still want a little slice a graffiti couture but can't afford the price tag, there are some alternatives. Here are just a couple of my favs... Check out Sex and the City stylist Patricia Field's pieces that pay tribute to Sprouse. You pick up Pat's signature leggings for US$68 or a tote for just under US$200. A lot easier on the bank account than Louis!
Or Insa heels.
Or of course, you could check out some of Kaws' very own Original Fake line. Not much for the ladies though, unless you're down for something over size...

Seperated at birth?

Why oh why didn't I think of putting my kicks on for a photo when I was dressed up as a Geisha? Dumb ass.

Who Tang Clan?

The buzz sweeping my feeds at the mo is the Wu Tang Clan tour happening in Melbourne and Sydney at the end of the month.
I'm not gonna pretend I'm a fan, because I'm not. I'm not going to say I listened to them back in the day, because I didn't. I'm not even gonna say I like any of their tunes - because I don't. And to top it off, I think their merchandising is super fugly. But I know who they are, and after a little digging, something has me seriously confused.

There seems to be some discrepancies over the lineup. Promo pictures can be deceptive...

The full Wu Tang lineup is as follows:
- Ghostface Killah
- GZA
- Inspectah Deck
- Masta Killa
- Method Man
- Ol' Dirty Bastard (deceased)
- Raekwon
- RZA
- U-God
- Cappadonna

But it appears that the Melbourne & Sydney shows won't exactly include a full lineup. Of course, Ol' Dirty Bastard is dead, so that's a no brainer. Ghostface Killah has his own tour at the mo, and according to his website, he'll be playing in Aspen the night Wu Tang play in Sydney and Boulder the night they play in Melbourne. Method Man has been arrested on a 33K tax evasion charge, so that counts him out. Cappadonna has only been a full member since 2007, so he's hardly part of the original lineup. And U God was locked up in the klink for the best part of Wu Tang, so he's kind of a token member.

That leaves 4 original (participating) members who'll be touring: GZA, RZA, Inspectah Deck & Raekwon. So this is where I get confused - how can they call it a Wu Tang Clan tour, when literally half the original participating members won't be there?

And did I mention tickets for the Sydney show are $90?

I really appreciate getting what I paid for. When I saw Faith No More in August, it was the real deal - the full original FNM lineup. But the Wu Tang tour seems to be a front if you ask me.

It's kind of like when you go to see Nine Inch Nails, and the only original member is Trent Reznor. It may as well be the Trent Reznor, featuring songs by Nine Inch Nails. It's not particularly satisfying, and you'd probably be better off sticking on a CD on and listening to it in the comfort of your own living room instead of sweating it out in a moshpit full of 16 year olds.

It reminds me of that scene in the movie Rock Star (Markie Mark, Jennifer Aniston) where Izzy Cole pulls a fan out of the audience and leaves him on stage to replace him - and no one in the audience seems to notice or care.
It reeks of desperate, greedy fat cats thinking up new ways to make money. But there are alternatives...
You can keep it real and go see NAS instead. He's playing in Melbs on the 28th and Sydney on the 31st. But the risk is he might play heaps of new stuff and not much old stuff.
On the upside, Qbert is supporting NAS (and if I could, I'd go just to see him play). No faking!

Home again, home again, jiggity jig

I'm back in Sydney. And it feels so good to be home. The past few months away have been brilliant, but exhausting! So now I'm home, it's time for some rest and relaxation.

I was meant to go painting today, but the shitty Sydney weather put the kibosh on that. I even did a rad babushka character. Oh well, hopefully next weekend. Until then, I'm having a True Blood marathon.
And it's awesome. It makes Twilight look like Hi5. I love it!