Monday 31 August 2009

Saying it as it is

I had come upon Stratos Bacalis and his work long before I read this tweet mentioning his new article, titled Why should designers blog. For those of you who may not know it, other than being a professional architectural designer, Stratos Bacalis also runs one of the most acclaimed fashion doll blogs world-wide, called The Fashion Doll Chronicles. And apparently, he can write too. Some people have it all...

Why should designers blog? was written for and published in issue 14 of the South African DESIGN> Magazine. Other than being amazingly well-written, this article is also a real eye-opener for the professionals of design. Here's an extract, the part that seemed more appropriate to be mentioned here in this blog, given the situations we greek fashion bloggers have gotten ourselves into during the past.
[...]The obvious reason to blog of course would be networking. Getting in touch with colleagues, possible collaborators and clients from all over the world is a tempting option for the designer/blogger. Richard Haines, illustrator for In Style magazine, J Crew and 5 star luxury hotels, is wondering why not most fashion designers don’t have their own blogs, especially the more famous ones. And having such an immediate and easy way of communicating between them, it makes realizing projects that much easier. It also provides an easy access to the designer for his clients, who can comment on their projects without spending time on time-consuming telephone calls from a city 500 km away. The instant feedback one gets on his work through the blog is as valuable a tool as any. Writing also improves the designer’s communication skills, in writing and otherwise, while at the same time providing a nice variety and distraction from a routine workload.[...]
Read the entire article here.

P.S. Seems appropriate to also mention Sal's personal encounter with one very famous fashion designer, who happens to blog. Makes your heart warm...

Wednesday 26 August 2009

Cream dress

As promised, here's the dress I got instead of that one:

Tried it on for the first time back then.

Fell in love instantly...

...but waited patiently.

Now it's mine, at 50% off!

(excuse the crappy outfit photo, I hate having to take pictures at night using flash but sometimes I don't have a choice)

Dress, BADILA. Necklace, Pull & Bear. Ring, Accessorize. Shoes (bought back then), ZARA.

Tuesday 25 August 2009

10 things you don't know about me

Tagged by Natalie of Naked Tile. I've already done a 5-random-things version before, so I may repeat a couple of things.
Here it goes:


1. I can't use nail polish. It's a personal quirk. My nails feel like they're suffocating when I try to, so I quit trying a long time ago.
2. I was one of the first kids in junior high to get a mobile phone (overprotective parents who wanted to know my whereabouts) and one of the last to start wearing sunglasses. I used to hate wearing them.

3. Many of my guy friends like to call me McGyver or Bob the Builder because I love fixing things up and finding solutions to technical problems. Although now that I think about it, owning a proper tool case, complete with a power drill and a sander, must have had something to do with it too.

4. I can't play cards, charades, any board or electronic games without getting bored instantly, with the exceptions of Tetris and Trivial Pursuit. I'd also love to try Twister one day.

5. I really like watching football (soccer for Americans), preferably with the boyfriend and/or friends. I would love to be able to play as well, but being a girl, the boys never picked me for their team...

6. ...but I can't pair football-watching with beer. I gave the yellow thing lots of chances to prove itself, but I recently decided that I just hate the taste of it!

7. Weird as it may sound, I also don't like ice-cream, cake, chocolate, candy or any sweet stuff in general. My taste buds get sweetness overload after just one spoonful of the stuff.

8.
As big as my clothes and shoes collection might be, I love my book collection even more. My over-stuffed black EXPEDIT is my baby.
9. I never read the horoscope in magazines. No, not even a glimpse. My friends think that's weird.

10. I'm not afraid of cockroaches. Not that I love them or anything, I'm just able spot and kill them without batting an eyelid. Same with snakes, only I don't kill them. And I find mice too cute. But, I get totally petrified just by seeing a tarantula printed on a magazine. Seriously, I can't even touch the paper.

And yes, this is my hand holding a baby mouse I found in the garden this summer.
Thanks for the tag Natalie, and sorry it took so long. Procrastinator, you see...

[all pictures mine, except Bob the Builder]

Monday 24 August 2009

Birthday girl


I'm back in Athens after a quite gruesome 12-hour trip by ship. But I can't complain much, as it's my birthday today! So, I'm having the day off... Intense studying starts tomorrow. Hope you have an excellent day too!

In the picture, my best friend's present: An amazingly cute glass pin, handmade by a friend of hers. Absolutely love it!

Saturday 22 August 2009

Nenyaki wears it well

I was so happy when a couple of weeks ago I received this picture by my lovely reader Nenyaki:

Nenyaki won one of the three Attrattivo brooches in my give-away a few weeks ago, and kindly made the effort to send me the inspirational outfit-with-brooch picture I had asked for.

I love the colour combination and seeing the brooch worn in such an unconventional way, on the pocket of her skirt. And let's not get into the picture's background, I'm sure we're all awfully jealous right now.

Thanks girl!

Thursday 20 August 2009

Kitty has taste, lacks manners


Apparently, our newly adopted kitten really likes shoes. Not wearing them, more like chewing on them. And the newer the shoes, the happier he is. I think Alecca has a similar issue with her own Persian beauty, who is quite appropriately named Miu.

Here he is showing some "love" to my latest obsession, those yummy snakeskin flats by Bronx, yet another of my favourite footwear brands. Got those beauties in Amsterdam last month, for €30 down from €60 and I've already declared them as my new favourite sandals. How could I not?

Wednesday 19 August 2009

Faltso shopping

faltso_lopi
No trip back home in Samos is complete without a visit - or several - to my favourite little shop, FALTSO boutique. This time, I tried on a perfectly laid-back maxi dress by A.L.E. but I chickened out of buying for two reasons: Firstly, I really can't think of any time or place where I could rock a maxi dress at this time in my life. Secondly, my profile view looked heavily pregnant.
I seriously *need* waist definition to look good.
faltso_eva
Much unlike Eva, the boutique owner, who rocks any shape or style. I mean, I also tried on the BADILA dress she's wearing right here in this picture, and I looked even more pregnant than with the A.L.E. one! Contrary to Eva, who always looks perfect. I'm actually talking her into starting her own blog, as I believe all her outfits are worth documenting. The first step was made and faltso.blogspot.com is already running. Now, all we have to do is wait for the some outfit pictures... Can't wait!

Of course, I didn't leave the shop empty-handed. No way sir! But that will be a post on its own...

Monday 17 August 2009

Still summer, but not for long

Silly me, I've been on the island for so many days, without posting any pics to show for it...
So, here's an example of what I've been up to:

A motorboat ride with the family - including the dog - around the island, while getting slightly jealous of other people's sailboats. Feeling the wind on your sails is much more stylish than a red inflatable boat with a a smelly, noisy motor.

Not that Ludi the dog minds it!

Life on the island is fine, but I'm starting to feel homesick of my own cozy apartment... What can I say, I like my own space.
And sleeping in my old childhood room is starting to get 0n my nerves!

Monday 10 August 2009

Blue and green and a little kitten


New flip-flops from Accessorize.


New multi-coloured necklace, Accessorize (on sale). Green tank top, H&M. Blue backpack, ALDO. Off-white skirt, ZARA. Leather belt, Massimo Dutti. White-rimmed aviators, Von Zipper.


Kitten, stray.

Oh my, what a horrible blogger I've been, right?
Well, you can see my excuse directly above. My sister and I found this little kitten in our yard last Wednesday, the day we flew back to Samos. With our luggage, this time. We haven't decided yet on the little one's name, so if you know any cool male kitten names, then by all means, fire away!

Oh, and I've been too lazy to edit all of the pictures I want to show you from Amsterdam. If you still want to see some, I'll get to it this week, promise!

Tuesday 4 August 2009

I'm back, my suitcase is not


Yup. That's right.

As I've already complained all over twitter and facebook (and usually I'm NOT a whiny person) ALITALIA managed to stay true to its name as a lousy luggage handler and leave all three of our suitcases in our transfer airport. This means that, while I'm back in Athens from Amsterdam, my suitcase is currently vacationing in Rome.

Along with almost all of my new buys, of course...

Hope to get it back soon and in one piece, as I'm leaving once again for Samos island tomorrow... Alas, my camera was in my hand luggage, so regular posting of my adventures in the Netherlands will start soon... Feels good to be back!