Chelsie on Reading and Old Newspaper Ads

Like Katie I have been a pretty avid readers from an early age. Though Katie has a much stronger exposure to the classics, I do not. My early reading went from Archie comics, to Sweet Valley High, directly to whatever was hanging out around the house, which was mostly man fiction (adventure, spy, legal thrillers, that my dad picked up at the airport during his mostly weekly business trips). Oddly, my interest in reading did not lead me towards being a librarian, instead that was a whim when my friend J. went to a career fair and told me it sounded interesting. One application to one school later. Bam! I just as easily could have gone to Australia to become a teacher, and I practically did. I mean, Australia, for a year? YES… but no.

So, to segue into my topic, late this summer I was talking to a colleague who was telling me about the show Bones, which I had heard of, but knew nothing about, thus judging it to be boring. Then she mentioned Kathy Reichs, and I was like, what?! I did not realize the connection to the books, which I knew were still going, but I had not read them since late nineties. Then commenced my mad marathon watching of Bones, which I now adore. A couple weeks ago I caught up to the current episode.

Now I am reading her first YA book, Virals, and I am so psyched to finish it. Yay! Dinner break can not be here soon enough… Yes, I work tonight.

And now, a newspaper ad for 1890′s dresses. I found this while doing some research for a library patron on the old microfilm machines. I really get a kick out of some of those old ads.

That corset vest, belt, looks very utilitarian to me. Though there seems to be no practical utility there. I feel a little constricted and machine-like just looking at it. As soon as I scanned this one of my co-workers though I would be going to the thrift store to immediately recreate this. I have not yet attempted. The Little Bo Peep makeup might be the biggest challenge to pull off.

The Glam, The Glitz, The Jillabeeya

There are few places I have been with a more skewed sense of reality than Dubai. From springs and green grass in the desert, to islands built in the sea, basically this is a place where limits only exist when the money has run out. But there is a beauty here. The newest buildings that tickle your mind with creativity, the perfectly turquoise waters that are warmly inviting but cool to touch, and the sand hills that match the camels silhouette. But for myself , one of the most beautiful sites to see in Dubai are the women who make up the small, but regal, Emirati population. Their style and clothes are like none I have ever seen elsewhere, a mix of both religious tradition and modern creativity. Now, there is a disclaimer here; I am no expert on this world of dress, and I am no expert on the religion of Islam. This is simply my general surveillance out of my times spent in Dubai, and of course, could never apply to each and every woman living in the UAE. What this piece is intended to be, is a loving observation (and slight jealousy) of how the Emirati women epitomize glamour, beauty, and class. So pack your camel milk, wrap up your dates, and float with me on a cloud of hubbly bubbly into a small but far from humble world in the middle of the desert…..

First you have to start with the abaya. This long black cloak drapes generously to the ground, with at least a few inches left to glide along the floor. The cloak is wide enough to hide any hint of a persons shape, but don’t let this fool you into thinking it is unflattering. If anything, this extra fabric literally flows around the women, giving off an air of mystique and curiosity that they are literally floating by you. Depending on the occasion or time of day, the abaya will be laced with embroidery, jewels, fabric or sequins. That’s not to say they whipped out the be-dazzler that morning, though nothing is wrong with a be-dazzler. The quality of these embellishments can be seen miles away, and the intricacy, colour, and designs are one way of taking a simple concept of clothing, a black robe, and making it that persons own (as any style lover does).

Details of the abaya, this one embracing some twilight love

More details, how much do you love these sleeves?

Secondly, you find the shaila or hejjab, the head scarf that covers the hair as per tradition. If the abaya has an embellishment, shaila will match it like an 80’s child’s shorts will match their scrunchie. It will be whirled up and set upon what I can only assume is a hair bun, to achieve a height at least a few inches above the head. Whenever I see the height of the shailas, I think to how I like to tease my hair to create body. So I suppose this method is what can been seen as the Emirati’s version of ‘oomph’. Also, while some women who adorn a hejjab will tuck in all their hair, Emirati women will leave a little bang peaking out, revealing their jet black hair. Oh, my jealousy continues!

Golden vision

 

Oomph-age!

Thirdly, because style goes beyond clothing, you’ve got to note the accessories! These are essential in completing the look, and again can add creativity and fashion to what can otherwise be a very simple look. Watches, bracelets, handbags, sunglasses and the shoes; these are blinged out and catch your eye like a fish on a hook. I don’t follow ‘high’ fashion by any means, so I cannot tell you if these are the latest Channel bags or Tiffany tennis bracelets. But I have heard that they likely come from the most famous fashion houses, and by all means they look as they could be. Its another element to the Emirati style that is not to be missed.

Perfect example: belt, handbag, earrings, sunglasses, and phone. Its all there and all necessary.

Speaks for itself.

Finally, and this is something I note with my Arab relatives as well as Emirati women, is the makeup. Unashamedly bold and flawless. The half inch black eye liner, rouge stroked cheek, and ruby lips put the final touches to an look that is alluring, classical, modern, traditional, extravagant, and unique.

Note how the lips match perfectly with the "fur".

I love the rainbow effect here, the colour is amazing.

But enough talk, more photos to further showcase the glitz and glam that is the Emirati style….

Flamingo Makeup

As a follow-up to our podcast, in which the Interrobangs talked about the whats, whens and whys of our makeup choices, it turns out we’re not the only color-applying creatures out there.

New research shows that flamingos apply oil from glands near their tail to enhance the pink color of their feathers and attract mates. Hmm, perhaps the expression “vain as a peacock” needs a species change…

Flamingos Apply Makeup to Impress Mates

Daily Think Podcast – In which the Interrobangs discuss makeup

Prompted by No Makeup Week, the Interrobangs had a very important international business meeting, via Skype, to discuss makeup. The result lies in this podcast. Enjoy!

The direct link is here. Right-click and you can save it to an audio device. The podcast is just over 26 minutes, in mp3 format.

 

 

Millie’s Take on Makeup

So, a couple of days ago I posted about No Makeup Week, and said I’d post more about the subject later. There’s more on makeup in the works at Interrobang HQ, though, so stay tuned.

I’m of two minds about makeup. I like it in that drawing on your face is fun, and I have the eyeliner and eyeshadow to back that up. I don’t like the assumption that as a woman, I should spend a considerable portion of my time painting my face into acceptability. It’s fine if I want to do it because green eyeliner is fun (and looks awesome on me, but it’s another thing entirely when I’m not supposed to leave the house without it. I have breakfasts to eat and buses to catch, and if that means that I don’t have five minutes to spare to futz with creams and powders and stuff, then out the door I go without it. I should note that I’m lucky to have pretty clear, rosy skin, with enough flush to it that I don’t have people asking me if I’m tired or ill if I don’t wear blush. I don’t even own blush (gasp!). Also, those people are nosybeaks.

So my relationship with makeup is pretty simple, actually. I wear it when I feel like it, and don’t feel compelled to wear it. I’ve been surrounded by people who’re tepid at best about makeup, though. My Mom rarely wore any (and only foundation at that), my Grandma would wear some lipstick for fancy occasions (but again, little else), my Dad never said anything about it one way or the other that I can remember, and I remember my Grandpa saying something about “gilded lilies.” My Aunt was the exception, with a makeup drawer bristling with lipstick and bright red nail polish, but I never got the sense that she thought it was compulsory either — I always thought that she just liked it, so wore it when she felt like it. (I was totally fascinated with her red toenails as a little girl.) A.’s not really keen on makeup, but as with so many other things, realizes that it’s really none of his business one way or another, and has never said boo about it.

In some small ways, wearing makeup is a defiance of all the “ehn”-ness that I’ve been surrounded with. It’s a quiet assertion that I decide how to present myself to the world, that I decide what’s right for me, and that I make my own decisions. I’m sure that doesn’t come across, though, in a society that pushes women to wear makeup not as an assertion of independence, but as evidence of enforced insecurity and femininity, and that bothers me. There’s no way I can communicate my context, and I worry that I’m inadvertently feeding into the dominant narrative of compulsory warpaint which is so harmful to so many women. I don’t want to do that at all — I’d like to undo it! — but makeup is a touchstone of independence, and that’s important to me, even if breakfast and sleep always take precedence. Giving up a touchstone of independence do avoid feeding into an image of femininity seems entirely counter productive, even if I suspect I’ll always have mixed feelings about wearing makeup.

Like I said, there’s more in the works, but in the mean time, what do you think? What’s your relationship with makeup like? Did you (or are you going to) participate in No Make

Chelsie on No Makeup Week

I’m a little bit late on this, but in following with Millie’s post on ‘No Makeup Week,’ I thought I would post my own picture.

On Friday, the day of this picture, I went to the dentist. The dentist’s assistant asked if I had the day off school. I’m pretty sure she meant high school. So I just said no, I had the day off work, and didn’t want to embarrass her further. At least I could still pass for a high school student in the movies, thus, I could still have a long, illustrious, and diverse acting career.

I often don’t wear makeup, and my skin doesn’t blemish too too often. I find when it does, that makeup just makes it more obvious that I’m trying to hide something. Sometimes I use makeup to brighten up my face or to finish off an outfit. I wear makeup when I have extra time after getting ready to work, and tend to think of it as a crafty artistic thing. But if I wear too much makeup I sometimes feel self-conscious, because people might notice and make a big deal of it. Kind of like you don’t want to get a drastic haircut and have everyone fuss over how different you look.

Quick Post: No Makeup Week

I (Millie) don’t have a lot of time right this moment to do a proper blurb about this, but Rabbit Write is having a No Makeup Week this week (Sept. 20-27) to examine her (and other women’s) relationship to makeup. She’s looking for commentary, participation and stories from other women, and is inviting everyone to send her a picture of their bare face. She’s got links to all the posts she’s written so far, as well as contributions from other women, at this page. When I’ve got a few minutes, I’ll do up a proper post about my relationship with makeup, but that’s likely to be in a few days. It’s scholarship season, and there’s a few things around the department that I’ve gotten roped into doing, so I may be scarce around these parts until the end of the week.