#CandidlyNicole

I used to be super obsessed with ‘The Simple Life’ when I was a kid, and I'm more than happy to admit it. Not only did the show revolutionise the reality TV genre and kick-start the whole ‘celebutante’ thing (man, I’m SO glad nobody says that anymore), but it also proved to be extremely entertaining – all thanks to Nicole Richie. Despite Paris Hilton being the focal point of the series, ‘The Simple Life’ would’ve never been the same without Nikki and her remarkable one-liners.

  

Sadly enough, the show ended in 2007, and the girls each went their separate ways. As we all already know, Nicole became a fairly successful designer and occasionally reminded us of her comic genius; Paris’ home was burglarised by ‘The Bling Ring’, and she did a show about making new friends that no one cared about. Apart from that, both women took a backseat in the world of celebrity. Because, you know, the Kardashians took over it.

Anyway, luckily for us, Nicole’s back on the small (laptop) screen with her new web series, ‘#CandidlyNicole’, and, trust me, it is hilaaaarious. Each episode, based on one of Nicole’s tweets, is about five minutes long and follows the 31-year-old as she embarks on various adventures such as removing her ‘tramp stamp’ (which she never actually does), learning how think like a drag queen and finding a date for her friend. Ohhhhh, yes. 

The only annoying things about this series is that the episodes are SO DAMN SHORT! Like, seriously, can someone give the girl a proper show?? Please?



So Lady Gaga Has Released The Music Video For 'Applause'...

 

So incase you live under a rock - or merely don’t live your entire existence on Twitter, Lady Gaga has released the music video for her new single ‘Applause’. The video, directed by fashion photography duo, Inez & Vinoodh, showcases Gaga in various guises, from a David Bowie -esque androgyny look, to embodying a Beatnik performance artist (which was my favourite portrayal in the video personally).

The concept of art is heavily influenced in the visual, and although the video is in typical Gaga wacky fashion, for me it lacks something. The video almost comes across as quite random for me. While ‘Applause’ is your catchy, run-of-the-mill EDM track, the video for me needed to be spectacular in order to boost the track to another stratosphere.

This may be a new ‘era’ for Gaga, but the music is still exactly the same. This isn't exactly surprising, revolutionary news, but I still feel a tad of disappointment. I guess Gaga has already met her peak musically and even visually.

Hopefully when Gaga performs ‘Applause’ live at the MTV VMA’s she’ll give us something else to work it, because, honey, this isn’t it.

 

See the video below. Thoughts?

Chloë, My Love

I may have already said this, like, a million times, but Chloë Sevigny is one of the coolest people on Planet Earth. Period.

Turns out, her fifth collection for Opening Ceremony is not too bad, either. The latest collaboration between the 90s fashion icon and the coveted American brand is all teenage angst and nostalgia and, well, me, aged 15. And I totally love it!

It’s also quite obvious that the garments heavily reflect Ms Sevigny's personal style, which, I guess, makes them even more desirable for Chloëholics like myself. Yeah, definitely not complaining.

Here are some of my favourite A/W 2013 pieces:

What do you think of Chloë's latest collection for Opening Ceremony? 

Maison Martin Margiela And Couture

 

Can I just have everything, please?



James Franco: Psycho Nacirema

 

For starters, apologies for the lack of posts recently. I’ve realised that when there’s not that much to do, you wanna do even less, and, obviously, this summer’s been no exception.

Anyway, a few of weeks ago, Leah and I went to our favourite boy James Franco’s exhibition at Pace London, and much to my surprise, ‘Psycho Nacirema’ was... well, entertaining and fun. Inspired by Alfred Hitchcock’s legendary 1960 classic and the 'Fatty' Arbuckle case, the actor slash art-maker has skilfully constructed a very believable life-size interpretation of the Bates Motel – and it’s both gory and hilarious. There are quite a few questionable objects (gummy ducks?!?); red paint’s been splattered everywhere, and the excruciating amount of ‘Marion Crane’ portraits and video projections will keep you well aware that you’ve stepped into Franco’s insanely bizarre world.

Some people (including myself) might doubt James’ creative output, and although ‘Psycho Nacirema’ won’t strike you with extreme originality, it manages to evoke a spectrum of emotions which, I think, is definitely a rarity nowadays. Or maybe I'm over-exaggerating (as per usual), and it's simply his boyish charm that keeps people interested. Either way, you won't be bored.



All images by me.