while I’m loving life here in sunny Palm Beach, and my amazing husband has allowed me to not work and just be one of those ladies who goes to pilates everyday, I’ve decided it’s time to get my other passions going again. You know, the stuff I was trying to work on before I was forced to put everything on hold for four years.
I’m going to slowly start diving again, and I’ll post up my adventures on my other site, Going Down. There’s a new twitter handle to go with that site, @GoingDownOnline So, if you’re into scuba stuff, or just wanna see me drowning, follow along there.
My other site, ShrimpTank, which was my old company is going to get re-done as a fashion blog. Not just any fashion, but about clothes for tiny people like me. Do you know how hard it is to find clothes when you’re 4’11” and have a DD bust? I’m going to keep my Shrimptank Twitter account for that. The site isn’t really going yet, but it’ll get there eventually. Hopefully one day my own clothes will be up on there!
So that leaves this blog, which has really become the place where I rant about the entertainment industry, or about other stuff in general. So for my everyday, just Sarah stuff, I started a new @TheSarahMonahan twitter. I hate @TheWhoever accounts, but it was really hard finding a name I liked. Apparently there’s a LOT of Sarah Monahan’s out there.
So well done to the couple of people who noticed me starting new accounts. I wasn’t going to say anything yet, till I got some new content up on both sites, but also don’t want to worry anyone that people are impersonating me.
So, if you’re on Twitter, and you like the sound of any of the above topics, go follow my new accounts.
I just wanted to give a shout out to the folks at Anatomie Style.
I travel a lot these days, and thanks to Travel Fashion Girl and her awesome website, I’m learning to pack even smaller bags than I used to. I’ve always liked the concept of a capsule wardrobe, and living full time in an RV, culling my closet is kind of essential. I also hate lugging my clothes to the laundromat, and I actually enjoy hand washing my clothes in my Laundry Pod. It’s good exercise.
So lots of the travel guru’s raved about Anatomie pants. They can be hand washed, and air dry super quick. They’re ultra light weight, but still look like dress pants. I found a deal on line at Neiman Marcus Last Call, and I ordered a couple pair, to see if they were worth the price.
They arrived, and I loved them. So much so, that I knew I needed more. Matt and I were headed to Miami, where Anatomie has their head office. So on my last day in Miami, Matt drove me over to their 4th St location, which is listed on their website and FB page. As we pulled up, Matt wasn’t sure we had the right location. It looked like a warehouse. It was their warehouse, and they had just moved in. When I opened the door, they looked a little confused, but when I said I was looking for clothes, they jumped right in.They were setting up an area to be a showroom, and even had a changing area. They introduced me to Alesia, who asked about the clothes I liked, and who then sorted through the racks, and searched out the back, and I think she had me try on every pair of pants they made, in an effort to find me some that I loved. The couple pair I already had were way too long, but Alesia assured me they had a tailor on site, and could alter my pants right there if need be. Thankfully, we found a couple pair that made my ass look great, and that were short enough they didn’t even need hemming! I could have gone crazy, and I wanted to buy a tonne of stuff, but that would kinda defeat the purpose of downsizing my wardrobe. I did however indulge in two pairs of pants, the Andrea and the Kate, both in navy. I got three tops, all in white. The Trina, a Bailey Jacket and a blossom top, which they don’t even have on their website yet. Matt was very patient, and sat there while I tried everything on, giving a yay or nay on each item. I’ve never seen him give so many yays before. Everything was super soft to the touch, and I’ve already washed the pants, and can attest to how quick they dry. I’m super excited about my new stuff, and I packed today for our trip to Italy and Greece next week, and thanks to Anatomie, I crammed everything into one small backpack. So be on the lookout in the next couple of weeks for lots of Instagram pics of me in Italy wearing Anatomie stuff. Go follow me now. You know you want to.
Andrea Leggings and Bailey Jacket
Oh, and I didn’t even notice till later when I got back to the hotel and was playing with the clothes, but the tags on the pants were actually luggage tags. Super cute idea.
So Thank You to Alesia and everyone at Anatomie for making stylish travel clothes, and more so for letting me run free and try on everything you make at your warehouse. I think even Matt had fun. He didn’t even cry when I handed over my credit card. 😉
Oh, and word to the wise, you might find the clothes cheaper on Last Call, but Alesia said they’re factory seconds… If you’re in Miami, go check out their headquarters. I got to see stuff that wasn’t in stores yet, because it was either a sample or next seasons stuff. Plus, if you need anything altered, they can do it right there. So worth the trip.
So it started in 2014. People thought that there was sexism on the red carpet at awards events, because people asked women about what they were wearing, but didn’t ask men the same questions.
I get that women want to be treated as equals. It must annoy married couples who walk the carpet, or attend junkets, and when they compare questions at the end of the day, she was asked questions about whether or not she wore spanx, and he was asked about what role he wants to take on next. I get it, the women don’t want to be reduced to nothing more than a mannequin.
But I’m also conflicted. These are people who are on a red carpet, attending an awards ceremony. They are people who play make believe for a living. It’s not like they’re at an event celebrating scientists, or nobel laureates, or even a charity event. These are not people who have found a cure for cancer. They’re not celebrating that they’re ending world hunger, or putting in a bunch of water wells in remote areas. It’s a bunch of people who work in the entertainment industry, patting each other on the back over who made the best entertainment. Sure, some of the movies are about good causes. Some help to bring light to important issues. Some winners even used their acceptance speech time to bring light to their causes and campaigns.
The red carpet however, has evolved over the years to become it’s own little event. There are probably millions of people who watch the red carpet festivities, and then switch off the rest of the event. Honestly, I don’t give a shit who wins best actor, or best movie. I do like to see some of the behind the scenes people recognized. There are thousands of people involved in making a motion picture. The actors are just a few of them, and yet, they get all the recognition.
People enjoy the red carpet. Everyone loved watching Joan Rivers on the red carpet, (I can’t believe they left her out of the Memoriam section) and then people spend days discussing who wore what. Fashion Police is always most popular at awards season. When an actor is in a movie, they are told what to wear, what to say. Seeing people on the red carpet you get to see old Hollywood glamour. We see people dress up, and hopefully, a little sense of a persons style. Truthfully though, these days, most people just have their stylists do everything for them. The fashion industry spends months preparing for Red Carpet season. They devote weeks making dresses that these women will wear on the Red Carpet, hoping that will translate to sales down the line. Designers provide gowns, sometimes worth thousands of dollars to these people. It’s not just the women either, plenty of male actors are not only getting free suits, but they’re also being asked on the red carpet “who are you wearing?” George Clooney is always being asked what he’s wearing. Jewellers drip these people in necklaces and bracelets. There are millions of dollars in diamonds at one event alone.
The whole reason that designers are providing these outfits to these actors is because they know they will be asked, “Who are you wearing?” It’s priceless advertising. If we stop asking these people who they are wearing, will designers slowly decide to stop providing stars with outfits and fittings for free? Will we go back to the days when you had to actually shop and pay for your own dress?
People’s Choice Awards dress.Another one of Mum’s creations.
When I went to The Logies, and the People’s Choice Awards while on Hey Dad, nobody was gifting dresses. You had to get your own. One year, I went in a tuxedo, with a brightly colored cumberbun and bow tie. Usually though, my mother made my outfits. Bless her, for all we don’t talk, I do admire her seamstress skills. She made almost all of my clothes growing up, even my school uniforms. She made my high school formal dress. Sure, I look like Princess Diana, but I didn’t look like anyone else there. Plus, Princess Diana was a trendsetter, so it’s OK. However, I doubt that if I were to attend a red carpet these days, that my mum would be willing to make me a dress. Which means I’d either have to go shop on my own, spend days trying to find the right dress, hope nobody else bought the same dress, have it tailored, and then, if I was asked on the Red Carpet who I was wearing, I’d have to decide whether to give free advertising to a company that I had paid to wear, or simply give the “it’s vintage” answer. <- Yes, when someone says It’s vintage it means they bought their own dress. Or, I could hope that I don’t get asked Who I’m Wearing. Hmm, maybe the campaign is for people who got snubbed and weren’t provided a dress. I hadn’t thought of that…
Anyway, I know it’s shallow. I know it makes women feel objectified. I know it’s the new thing to not want to be asked what you’re wearing, or at least ask more than just just. It has been tried before though. Here’s an excerpt from The Hollywood reporter. Ryan Seacrest tried eliminating the “Who are you wearing” question in 2010, and was criticized heavily for it. “Hey Ryan, Talk to the Dress” read a New York Times style column headline that detailed the backlash from fashion bloggers. “It was almost like he wasn’t that interested in the designers,” designer Nicole Miller said. “He seemed more interested in the celebrities and their careers.”
Maybe people are ready now to have more questions on the red carpet than just ones about fashion. Or maybe people should just accept the fact that the Red Carpet IS all about the outfits, and save the deep and meaningful conversation for their actual interviews with talk show hosts and magazines… Or they could get a blog and bitch, I mean, discuss all they want like I do here. The Red Carpet is always optional. If you’re really offended by the current line of questioning, you could boycott it altogether. You could always just avoid people like Giuliana Rancic who you know is going to ask you that question, and stick to the more serious reporters. Or, you could learn to move a conversation in the direction you want. Let them break the ice with a question about your outfit, and then steer the conversation towards your chosen charity, or cause, or attempt at world domination. You’ve only got about 90 seconds though, so try not to get too deep.
She even put the tartan as beading on the sleeves.
Otherwise, I hope your mum is skilled enough to do this type of scalloped neckline.
As I lay in the tub in the RV tonight, looking at the two towels on the hooks, it got me thinking.
Why is there a difference between beach towels and bath towels? Why is it socially unacceptable to use a bath towel at the beach, and vice versa in the bathroom?
When we got the new RV, we bought some really like Calvin Klein sheets and towels. Around the same time, I had seen some really nice coach beach towels that I thought would look great in the bathroom. Sure, they’re supposed to be beach towels, but they’re soft and pretty, and the browns match my RV fabulously. Why can’t I be a rebel and have beach towels in my bathroom? Who made that a thing anyway?
It’s probably some consumerist marketing ploy to make people buy more stuff.
So I’m going to live by my own rules. Matt prefers the Calvin Klein towel, and I like my coach towels, so we have one of each up. I think if you want to brighten up your bathroom with some funky beach towels, go ahead. Break the interior decoration rules!
So this is super exciting. While most of us only dream of being special enough to actually attend Fashion Week and see all the designs up close as the models sashay down the runway, this year they’ve decided to make it easier for all of us normal people to get a taste of the action.
Mercedes Benz Fashion Week will be livestreaming the events. So now, whether you’re stuck at work, or like me, living overseas, you can still see the action. Invite a few friends over, pop a few bottles of champagne, and have your own Fashion Week party!
Lets face it, while the Logies are fun, and a cute little get together for Australian talent, along with the seemingly obligatory international act and guest presenter, the Logies isn’t a big deal outside of Australia.
Sure, everyone gets together, has a drink, there’s some awards passed out, but it’s not the Oscars, the Emmy’s, the SAG Awards or the Bafta’s. The event isn’t televised around the world, with hundreds of millions of people watching from all over the globe.
So when Australian Fashion week falls on the same week as the Logies, I can understand why the big designers aren’t falling over themselves to make sure the locals are wearing their stuff. They simply have a bigger event going on. One that WILL be seen all over the world.
But, while Alex Perry, J’Aton and the others are focused on Fashion week, this does leave enormous opportunity for up and coming designers to finally get a dress on someone. It’s hard as a new and emerging designer to get anybody to pay attention to your dresses if they’ve got some big name designer willing to gift a dress to a star. However, with all the big names not offering their wares, it’s a great time for actresses and their stylists to be making friends with the next up and comer, and start making long lasting friendships.
I hope all the young designers out there are also taking this opportunity to reach out and get their dresses on everyone. Trust me, while the girls can’t get a major designer, they’ll be very grateful to be getting a dress, especially one that they know won’t be worn by another girl that night. Or worse, that they have to go out and buy off a rack somewhere! You might get lucky, and if you get it on a star who then makes it to an awards ceremony in the US or the UK, they’ll remember you, and might choose one of your dresses again for the international awards, where you‘ll get big time exposure. My tip – looking at all the Home & Away people making it in the US right now, get your stuff on one of them. Any of them!
It’s also a golden opportunity for any of the stars who want to dabble in fashion to dress themselves. If I was walking the red carpet this year, knowing I wasn’t going to be constantly trumped by a Dior or Versace or Alex Perry, I’d totally take the opportunity to wear my own design. I’d design it, have it made, and swagger down that red carpet. I’d make sure I was photographed with everyone, especially the international guest, whose photos might make it overseas. A star couldn’t ask for a better year to wear their own designs.
I know I made fun of the Logies a little, but they are a good time, and excellent exposure for people within Australia. I hope everyone has a super fun time, whether they’re getting their drink on at the Logies, or oogling the beautiful new stuff at Fashion week.
I’m super jealous of those of you who get to attend both!
I’m going to slowly start diving again, and I’ll post up my adventures on my other site, Going Down. There’s a new twitter handle to go with that site, @GoingDownOnline So, if you’re into scuba stuff, or just wanna see me drowning, follow along there.
So that leaves this blog, which has really become the place where I rant about the entertainment industry, or about other stuff in general. So for my everyday, just Sarah stuff, I started a new @TheSarahMonahan twitter. I hate @TheWhoever accounts, but it was really hard finding a name I liked. Apparently there’s a LOT of Sarah Monahan’s out there.
