Zana Bayne SS 2014

My love for buckles and harnesses and all things constricting and painful-looking is well documented, so it probably doesn't come as a surprise that I'm a big fan of Zana Bayne - and while it's been a long time since I've paid any attention to fashion week, as soon as I saw the first photos of her showcase in Paris, I knew I had to share them. They're right up my alley, from the elaborate leatherwork to the whimsical backdrop of roses, dead twigs and hydrangeas.

And I am absolutely in love with that leather harness skirt thing above. I'd wear it with vinyl leggings and a simple black shirt, I think.

But not right now, because NaNoWriMo has officially begun and I can't be bothered to wear real clothes. Bring on the pajamas and the thermal blankets and the fingerless mittens and the copious amounts of tea. I've got a novel to write.

xx




[images: Solestruck & Zana Bayne]

Times Like These #2

There's something about the end of October, you know? I bet you do. Maybe it's Halloween, or maybe it's the time change, or maybe it's NaNoWriMo looming in the distance. All I know is that, to me, this is the brightest time of the year, and no days feel quite as hopeful as these.

Well. To the pictures then. Mornings have been foggy. I decided I'd learn how to knit. I finally learnt the proper way to achieve the winged eyeliner look. My mom and my sister and I spent an afternoon, early in the month, setting up a huge Fall-themed flower arrangement for a school event. I dropped by Porto for a book launch and lunch with friends. I have officially unearthed my coziest lazying-around-the-house cardigan. Finishing up my butterfly lockets. My white orchid, fancy as ever. I need to organise my laptop.

And that last shot. It's not particularly good but I recently bought an adapter for M42 lenses, and can we please, please praise how great it is. The photo was taken with a Canon EOS 500D and a 42-year-old Helios 44-2 lens, and let me tell you... I think I've found my new default set-up for snapshots. Yes.

I'll go outside and take proper pictures with it one of these days.
xx

Acrobatic Taxidermy

Back in August, I dragged my sister all the way to the lovely Casa Andresen to see the work of spanish taxidermist Antonio Pérez Rodríguez. I'd been inside the house only once before, for an interactive exhibit on... yes, well, insects. I am pretty sure the target audience was "six-year olds and their parents", but I didn't let that stop me - and I ended up meeting the photographer behind Portugal's one and only butterfly field guide, so it was a pretty awesome day.

Anyway. Antonio Pérez Rodríguez started his taxidermy work with no previous training when he was fourteen, and has been going strong for forty-four years now. His specialty is what some have called "acrobatic taxidermy", or the placement of animals mid-motion, sometimes defying gravity, as if frozen in a photograph. His work is a far cry from the static, academic taxidermy you're used to finding in museums, and I will hunt and hurt whoever tells me this doesn't qualify as art, because... seriously, look at these pictures. The man is amazing.

I was blown away by the exhibit. Walking in, we were given a brief explanation of what we were about to see... and a head lantern. The animals were all set up in the dark, so it was up to us to find them as we made our way through the house. Pictures were allowed, but I confess I had a bit of a hard time taking them.

Well... if you're in Porto until November 13, I can't recommend this enough, by all means awaken your inner taxidermy connoisseur and drop by to visit these masterpieces.

xx