The Necessity of Reinvention of the Popstar

The Necessary Reinvention of the Popstar in a Postmodern World

Reinvention is the only way for a popstar to stay relevant because we live in a postmodern world where everyone has ADHD (according to a friend on twitter). We don't have the attention span required to put up with a person remaining the same ol' person all their lives. You need to continually come up with new concepts to keep millennials entertained.

Artists who have figured this out:

Madonna

Rihanna

Nicki Minaj

Lady Gaga

EXO

I will focus on EXO and Rihanna because they are the two most exciting musical acts right now, in the East and West, respectively.. 

Early Thoughts on K-pop

I've recently gotten into a band named EXO. I still do not consider myself a K-pop fan as I am not into any other K-pop groups/artists. I am not a fan of the genre, just a fan of this latest boyband under SM Entertainment (SME). That said, by way of EXO, I have been learning much about the genre in the past month. I think its important for me as a non-Western Westerner* to jot my impressions down now, while K-pop is still new and fresh to me, and while I'm still amazed and shocked by the wonder of it all. These are some preliminary thoughts.

Chronicles: Last Day of July

I haven't done a Chronicles: A Day in the Life of the Misnomer for some time (read: in two years.) so I've decided to do one now. I want to do one today because I had a flawless day, for the most part, and I just want to tell all my followers (read: Isabel) all about it.

A Very True Quote From a Writer I Loathe

Like anybody can tell you, I am not a very nice man. I don’t know the word. I have always admired the villain, the outlaw, the son of a bitch. I don’t like the clean-shaven boy with the necktie and the good job. I like desperate men, men with broken teeth and broken minds and broken ways. They interest me. They are full of surprises and explosions. I also like vile women, drunk cursing bitches with loose stockings and sloppy mascara faces. I’m more interested in perverts than saints. I can relax with bums because I am a bum. I don’t like laws, morals, religions, rules. I don’t like to be shaped by society.

Charles Bukowski (taken from tumblr via aeloquence)

My Top Five Favourite Fashion Blogs

Wow! It's been awhile since I posted about fashion! Lately I've been into skin care and make up quite heavily and my blog has reflected that. However, I wanted to make a really quick post on my favourite fashion bloggers and say why I like them so much.

5. Walk of Fashion - My blogger friend Isabel had to make the list, even though she doesn't blog strictly about fashion. She's also really excellent as reviewing make up products and at detailing her skin care routine and stuff of that nature. However, when she does talk fashion, she does it really well! My favourite feature from her used to be the Interview a Fashion Blogger (Girls of the Blogosphere) segment which was unfortunately discontinued quite a while ago. Still a lovely blogger to follow though - and she covers a wide variety of topics such as lifestyle, skin care, make-up, bags, royal fashion (she's really on point with this one!) and nail polish!

4. Crack Cosette - I just never know what is coming next with this one, and thats what keeps me interested. I also love how she stays so true to the European aesthetic and palette. Like, some European bloggers try too hard to be urban or edgy or ethnic, and its just really embarrassing when you know that that is not what are about naturally or even what they genuinely feel comfortable in. She sees that there is still a lot of unexplored beauty in woolly fabrics, and pastel colours. I guess I just like how she resists trends but still manages to do new things with a very classic style.

3. The Sartorialist - At least one street blogger had to make the list and it had to be Scott Schuman. What a legend. The blog of his beau, Garance Dore, is more than a little wonderful as well. But Scott, Scott is amazing. He has the keen eye for detail that a great street style photographer requires.

2. Karla's Closet - I think I actually love this girl. Her style is just so...flawless. I know that word is bandied about a lot, but her attention to detail, to texture, and her fearlessness to adjust pretty clothes demands the word flawless. Since I started following her blog in 2010, this girl has been on point with every single post, and she only started in 2008! As in she took two years to perfect blogging, while others (me) never quite get the hang of it! The camera work is flawless, the editing is down... The whole blog just has such a uncluttered, stylish layout. For me, an aspiring minimalist, her blog is just so clean. That's the word! Clean. Her approach to fashion blogging is just so clean.

1. Style Pantry - If you are considering becoming a beauty blogger, don't go on her personal style page, because you will be discouraged. She can't be topped. Its just not possible. Just throw in the towel and walk away.
No seriously, her bravery with bright colours, ethnic prints and massive, billowing maxi dresses is to be revered. She is just so bad-assly excellent at all things fashion. Plus, as I'm a Caribbean girl, I can really appreciate all the bright colours and light, airy maxi dresses. I feel like if I were to live in the USA and I had all the resources and shops and everything, I'd have a style that was very similar to hers. Her style speaks to me on a very personal level.

Bonus fashion blog:
Style Tao - I really love Miray. She's a phenomenal street blogger. I actually think she might be as good, if not better than Scott, but her blog doesn't seem to get nearly as much flow for some reason, so I plugged her here. Guys, please check her out! She's photographed for Vogue and everything! :)

My Make-Up Routine

Disclaimer: cr. slimmer_jimmer according to Creative Commons terms of use

So my make-up routine has changed significantly for two very particular reasons: 

I Want! I Want! I Want! (But that's Crazy)

So, I am not rich. And now I'm trying to finish up my education, I haven't been working for most of this year, in order to finish my studies as quickly and cleanly as humanly possible. So actually, I am not just not-rich, I'm pretty close to poverty as I haven't been working since March. Anyway, the problem with this is that I have very expensive taste, especially when it comes to skin products and cosmetics. My wishlist is very extensive and includes correcting serums, night creams and a mud mask, but my immediate concern is mascara.

My L'Oreal Lash Architect is on its last legs. Because I am not the sort to dutifully change mascara every three months, I just wait till all the product is definitely gone. I have been using this mascara for so long that the Lash Architect has since been discontinued (and replaced by Lash Architect 4D.) Anyway, a new mascara is long overdue for me. And I have had my eye on Chanel Inimitable for YEARS!!Here's proof:

My old twitter

So yeah, that tweet is from 2010. I wasn't joking when I said I've wanted it for years. I could have saved for it and bought it ten times over in the past 3 years but I haven't for the following reasons:

1. I can't find Chanel cosmetic products for sale anywhere on my island.

2. Online shopping is a no-no for me as I'm a former shopaholic and I still don't trust myself with a credit card.

3. Mascaras that cost US $30 or more give me anxiety. In my currency, that's double, $60! I have real trouble justifying that price for mascara.

Anyway, because of my expensive mascara lust, coupled by my lack of dinero, I will probably sadly compromise by buying a drugstore mascara, but a nice drugstore mascara! L'Oreal makes really good, reasonably priced mascaras, and I see one with my name on it! Their original Lash Architect was really good to me, so now its my favourite drugstore brand.

Now I've got my eye on their L'Oreal Voluminous line, but they have so many products with such confusing and eerily similar names that its hard to choose! I think I've narrowed it down to Voluminous False Fiber Lashes and Voluminous Million Lashes Volume Excess (what a mouthful!).

I also think Maybelline might do the job, but I am scarred by their Lash Stiletto Voluptuous that I bought years ago by them which I hated. To date the worst mascara I've ever used was by Revlon, but I don't even remember what the exact name of it was. I probably blotted it out of my memory because it was so bad. Anyway, Maybelline's Lash Stiletto Voluptuous wasn't much better.

I realize I am talking about mascaras as though you guys even know what the needs of my lashes are, shame on me! Everyone's lashes are different. I haven't even said if my lashes need a mascara for volume, or one for length! Well, my lashes are naturally curly and quite long, but they are extremely thin and rather sparse, so I definitely need a thickening, volumizing mascara. However, many volumizing mascaras seem to clump a lot, and there is nothing more I hate than clumpy lashes; they look so fake!  I think the problem with volumizing mascaras is that they tend to have very thick wand bristles, in order to deposit as much product as possible on to the lashes for super thickness. What I liked about the Lash Architect was that even though it's mainly for length, it also made my lashes look much thicker, and even better that hat, it really separated and organized them really cleanly and beautifully.

Honestly, though I need volume, I'd give up volume for length if length meant better separation and no clumps. For that reason I might go ahead and get the Lash Architect 4D, even though its for length and not volume, in hopes that it is as good at separation as the original Lash Architect was (my old HG, I am devastated it was discontinued).

Anyway, enough about me! What is your HG (Holy Grail) mascara and why do you like it so much?