The new video for Lady Gaga's Born This Way premiered today. I don't know if I'll do another big write up about it like I did for her Grammy performance (Lady Gaga's Born This Way Fashion Explained) but you can check out this "Cheat Sheet" from MTV to see where some of the visuals comes from. Of course there's still a lot of McQueen and H.R. Giger but it points out some other influences that are interesting as well. Overall I really enjoyed the video and liked how the themes introduced at the Grammys were carried over. What did you think of it?
Yeap, it is just to let you know that 2 months of 2011 have gone. Now into 3rd month.
I could not believe that March is here. And it means I would be busy again. Not at the shop, but with my family's matter. Renovation for the new house should start soon, but so far no sign of works done in the house. Hubby said we would be moving into new house this year, so I guess the contractor is taking his sweet time. Not much to be done anyway, just some extension works and fixture works.
It is time to hunt for little girl's primary school. Since my staff are doing alright in the shop, I would be able to go out and do my personal stuff. We are still deciding on her school. Headache thinking about it. Either we place her in the primary school near our new house (which is really near, about 10 minutes walk) or I have to drive all the way to Tabuan (about 20 - 30 minutes depend on traffic). Definitely a Chinese primary school, just have not decide which one yet. Hmmmm.....Distance, time and other factors need to be considered. I am thinking of not putting her in baby sitter anymore when she is into primary school. So I would be taking care of her by myself then.
And not forgetting my income tax. Have been procrastinating for 2 months now, so better get down to it soon.
I gave my Baby Jay Anmum Essential since he was a baby. Now he is in Stage 3 (1 year old above). Never change his milk formula.
Since my boy is taking Anmum Essential, it is rational for me to check its website and I found this good website. On how to have a connected child. Every child is born with 100 billions brain cells, but not all are connected. So development of a child's brain actually start at very early stage, i.e. during pregnancy. Every parents would love to have a connected child. A child that show intelligence and maturity beyond their age and often caught you off guard with their antic and behaviour. Just like this little girl in this video.
Want to know more? Check out connected tots. I love its interative games and stories. My girl is more eager to play than her baby brother. Why not? She did not have such privilege when she was small. My boy may not appreciate them now, but no harm get connected with him on those stuff, right?
It is that time again. Time to review and submit your taxes. I know everyone dread about doing their taxes but with good tools and guideline, it is actually simple. What is so great about taxing? You can save and pocket more money in your pocket that is. Like myself this year I would need to report my business tax as well since I started my business back in May last year, but with Turbotax, both my personal and business taxes are combined and hassle-free.
Nowadays, everyone is talking about tax maximisation. Why not? It is a great way to save as it gives more tax deduction and accurate information at the same time. And not forgetting those with properties, will have better investment return too.
Have you done your tax extension form 2010 yet? It is still not too late. Just simple click and fill here and there, and you can even have an accurate Turbotax comparison as well. Isn't filling your tax sounds fun and simple now?
I did not do anything to my hair since the last treatment last year. Even with the CNY that just concluded, I did not do anything. Probably because I am undecided on what to do. Colour, perm or new hair cut.
A bit bored with my current hair style. I have been browsing around for the latest trend and pixie is the in thing. Wonder it suits me or not?? Hmm. Deep in my heart, I worry it does not look right for me and I am not an extremist (you can say, not so adventureous when it comes to hair) too. Well, maybe I will get some trimming and treatment instead. Can feel my hair is not that silky and healthy anymore...Got to make appointment with my hair stylist one of these days.
This video came out a little while ago but it's the latest from Kerli. So far I really like the direction she seems to be taking with her new album. It seems to be very optimistic and cheerful. Her first album, Love is Dead, has a bit of a darker feel but there are a few songs that are bright spots.
Here's what Kerli herself said about Love is Dead:
"A lot of the songs I wrote when I was really depressed, and then the later songs I wrote after coming out from my depression, so the theme of the album pretty much is overcoming obstacles and overcoming the darkness. I’m really grateful for all these experiences because I believe that until you are absorbed by darkness you can't overcome it and face the light."
I'm really glad to have more songs about her "facing the light" so to speak. Her music hits are nerve with me and gets my creativity and positivity flowing. Her amazing visuals add to that as well. I should have an Army of Love nail art tutorial up sometime this week or next :)
I've been lacking on updating on Bundays! I have to get better about posting cute bunnies. Hopefully this epic Mario bunny of epicness makes up for it a little bit :)
This week hasn't been the best but I'm going to try my best to make this coming week better. As long as I keep doing things (like writing blog posts) I believe things will continue to get better and better.
I wanted to list a few of my favorite beauty products right now that are $5 or under. There are lots of awesome products out there that don't cost very much so I wanted to share them with you :) When I can I'll put a link to where you can buy the product but a couple of the things on the list are from ebay.
It's similar to a body brush except that it's for your face.
How much does it cost?
$5
What do I think of it?
I got one of these in my stocking for Christmas. It comes with a plastic cap to protect the bristles which is really helpful when I take it back and for from my house to my boyfriend's. I really like it and feel like it helps my clean my face more thoroughly. It scrubs off dead skin and leaves my face feeling fresh and clean.
2. Magic Hair Tape
What is it?
It's basically a piece of velcro.
How much does it cost?
$0.50- $2
What do I think of it?
I love using this when I'm washing my face or doing my makeup. It keeps my hair out of my face but doesn't leave a crease in my hair like a clip would. You can actually find some fancier ones that look like super cute bows but for now I just have the rectangular ones. To find them just search "magic hair tape" on ebay, a bunch should pop up and a lot of them have free shipping!
I've been using Rimmel eyeliner since I was 15. It's super pigmented and has fairly good staying power. It goes on smooth and can be smudged nicely for a smokey effect. I like to use it mostly on my bottom lash line or just the outer corners of my eye to give them an extra pop. 4. Burt's Bees Replenishing Lip Balm with Pomegranate Oil
What is it?
Lip balm made with bees wax.
How much does it cost?
About $3
What do I think of it?
I love this lip balm. It really helps keep my lips healthy and while it smells nice and doesn't taste bad I don't end up licking it off my lips like I do with a lot of sugary lip balms.
5. Strawberry Hair Rollers
What is it?
Adorable sponge hair rollers.
How much does it cost?
$0.99- $5
What do I think of it?
They're super cute and comfy. They don't pull on your hair and if you want you can sleep on them with no problem because they're soft and squishy. You can curl your hair either by sleeping with them in or by wetting your hair, curling with the rollers, then using a blow dryer. You can also find these on ebay.
6. Wet n Wild Color Icon Eyeshadow Palette in Lust
What is it?
A pallet with 6 shades. Three of the shades are matte and three are shimmers. You can mix them together or just use mattes or shimmers depending on your mood.
How much does it cost?
Around $5 but you can find it cheaper if you wait for a sale.
What do I think of it?
This is my favorite eyeshadow pallet right now. All of the colors are super pigmented so you only need a tiny bit of product. When I go to visit my boyfriend during the weekend I can just take this with me because it's super easy to go from a day to night look.It's nice to know that no matter what we end up doing I can be prepared while not having to take a bunch of makeup with me.
I try not to waste any food on the table. Even my daughter knows that I hate wasting food. I consider it as throwing my money into the garbage cans. So when ever I see my daugther did not finish her food or simply play with her food, she will know she will get a long-winded scolding from me. I would told her that she is one lucky girl to have food. Some children from other parts of the world sleeping with hungry stomachs at nights and it is a blessing for her to be well fed.
It is tricky to teach her not to waste food. At almost 5, she is at a rebellious stage now. Fighting back, arguing back and even with her antics, it is a task to educate her. She may not be a perfect child, but I feel that as a parent I should guide her to the right direction.
I will only allow her to take food when she wants to, not when she have to. It means to say that I want her to know that when she is hungry, she have to eat. It is hard to have her follow a specific time, i.e. 12 o'clock lunch time, so I will only feed her when she telling me she is hungry. Otherwise if I feed her before she is hungry, she will not finish her plate. I can easily store the food away for her, but the emphasis here is for her to ask for food when she wants to eat.
I also give her option to choose what food she wants to eat. When it comes to her favourite food, she seldom waste them. Slowly introduce new food to her. That way she will appreciate new food.
When ever we go for grocery shopping, we will hunt for "value for money" food. Nothing expensive. With rising prices in basic goods and commodities, it is a struggle to keep everything within our budgets.
My children may not know what is expensive and what is not; they only know what is stored in the fridge. They do not know what brand is that vegetables or cold storage now. However children learn fast by example, so they will learn what is in and what is not. So, as a parent, we should not waste food ourselves. Children learn what they see and if they live seeing mummy and daddy wasting food they learn that wasting food is really okay - no matter what mummy or daddy says. So, do as you want your kids to follow.
Happy Chap Goh Mei. It marks the ending of celebration for the Year of Bunny. No more CNY songs, fireworks, firecrakers and lion dances. Another year, another challenge and more goals.
Hope this year will be a great year for me and family. Abundance of opportunities, happiness, lucks and health, just like this basket of fruits.
(picture courtesy of my mum)
Happy Chap Goh Mei everyone! For those singles, enjoy your orange throwing into the river tonight. For married ones, enjoy your 2nd Valentine celebration. *wink*
I'm seeing a lot of confusion around the internet about why Gaga is wearing strange prosthetics. I've also seen a lot of people worried that she has some how gotten implants in her forehead (it's just makeup don't worry!). There's also been lots of disscussion about how the look contradicts the message of her new single Born This Way.
I'm not an expert on McQueen, fashion, or Gaga but I'm a fan of all three so I'll do my best to explain what I've noticed and provide visuals. If I mess something up feel free to correct me (politely please). I'm sure I'll muddle something up in all this because of the amount of brain fog I'm combating right now.
Ok lets start with the single cover for Born This Way.
Gaga has pointy shoulders and protruding "horns" and cheek bones. All of this looks very similar to the makeup that was used during Alexander McQueen's last show and collection while he was alive.
During this particular show (Alexander McQueen's Spring 2010 Ready To Wear Collection) Gaga's Bad Romance was premiered.
Since then there have been lots of call backs in her work to this specific collection. Of course the Bad Romance video itself is full of McQueen's creations. Since he died shortly after that video was made I think Gaga has tried to put tributes to McQueen in lots of her work; the newest being these prosthetics which were worn by the models during the show. She is honoring her friend and an artist who greatly inspired her. Born This Way was released on February 11th, 2011 which marked the one year anniversary of McQueen's death.
As you can see the show had an otherworldly/ futuristic feel to it. Some of the pieces are definitely reminiscent of H.R. Giger's alien designs. Everything down to the model's hair seems to be inspired by them.
Some pictures of the collection followed by some pictures of H.R. Giger's work:
Ok now on to the Grammy's. Gaga arrived in an "egg". On Leno she said the designer (Hussein Chalayan) preferred it to be called a vessel. It resembles a pod which keeps with the alien theme thus far. She was interviewed by Ryan Seacrest recently and said that she said inside the vessel for 72 hours before her performance.
“I was in there for about 72 hours. It was a very creative experience. It was time for me to really prepare and think about the meaning of the song and get prepared for the performance. I really wanted to be born on stage. The creative vessel was helpful for me to stay focused. We had it backstage so that I was able to really stay in this sort of creative, embryonic incubation."
She emerged from the vessel for her performance. The outfits for both her and the dancers were very muted which was quite different from what we normally see from Gaga. It drew most of the focus to the movement of the choreography. It was very much the birth of a new era and album.
She still had the prosethetic accessories from the single cover on.
While being interviewed by Jay Leno she had this to say about Born This Way:
"It's so full of love and spirit, and I think that it's the spirit that people are reacting to the most. I just want everyone to rejoice and celebrate and be unafraid to be happy with music. It doesn't always have to be so dark, it doesn't always have to be so sexy. Sometimes it's wonderful just to celebrate life and kind of go to church with it, you know?"
And she seemed to go to church with her hat and her organ solo.
She continued the theme by wearing what she called a "church hat" while in the audience.
The other outfit she wore that night was a bit more scifi.
She worked the prosthetic shoulders and face pieces into every look. On Jay Leno the next night she was still sporting them.
She had this interesting thing to say about what Born This Way and her Grammy preformance meant:
"to signify an artistic birthing of a new race within the race of humanity that bears no prejudice against anyone"
So for those who think the prosthetics take away from the meaning of Born This Way consider for a moment that maybe Gaga is expressing an evolution and a rebirth through her use of theatrics and special effects. She's trying to create a new breed for anyone who has ever felt alienated or strange for any reason.
I hope this made it a bit clearer for those wondering why she had those funny things on her face. I'm sure there's lots of stuff I missed when talking about this, feel free to point things out in the comments.
I'm going to end this post with her Grammy's performance.
, has a bit of a darker feel but there are a few songs that are bright spots.
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