Horrifying Trends That I Love #4

Hello lovelies,

I'm here with another embarrassing trend-related confession. Right now, I'm really in love with floral prints. That's right, floral prints. The self-confessed tomboy, who has barely stepped outside of the black/tartan box is in love with clothes covered in flowers. I've never been big on floral prints before - in fact, I've been known to screw up my nose in a very ugly fashion, or run screaming in the other direction. But they've won me over with the black-based floral prints that seem to be doing the rounds at the moment. Lately the floral prints I've been seeing seem to be more funky, and less princess than usual. Black, bold colours - and at work I've been seeing the floral print mixed with exposed zippers, studs and at like, which are all completely up my alley. Here's a few of the floral-printed things that really take my fancy:

Floral Stuff by Miss Peregrin featuring Dr.martens boots

Perhaps I'm turning into a girl after all? Hah, or not.

Until next time, xo.

What I Wore Today/More DIY Madness

Hey there my beauties!

This was what I wore today, until lunch time when I got called in to work. So, after I work the weekend and Monday, I will have worked six days in a row. FTW. But also exciting, is that fact that I reconstructed the shirt I'm wearing. Another one of my 3 for $15 Jay Jays babies, I like to call it the Ribcage & Spinal Cord. I did the slashy-tornado back thing, resized a little, and added the red sleeves. Also, I'm in love. I wish I worked somewhere that I didn't have to take this shirt off when I go in tomorrow. I may even sleep in it, that's how much I love it.

Outfit Rundown:

Oh no, I'm a Jay Jays whore today!
The t-shirt (before recon), belt (2 for $15), and pinstripe pants ($5) all come from Jay Jays.

Headwrap thing: Tree of Life, $8

No shoooes.

Also, my TAFE materials arrived today, and I'm so excited. I'm doing two short courses, one in Basic Dressmaking, and the other in Pattern Making. I'm doing up a little study plan right now, so that I know when things are due. It may or may not be highlighted in neon green. Yay! In other news, tomorrow I'm going to make a dress out of one of these handy 3 for $15 t-shirts.

Until next time, xo.

Things I love Thursday!

Yay, it's Thursday! And Thursday is a little bit like Friday, because I have the day off tomorrow. Hmm, what did I love this week you ask?

MY 21ST BIRTHDAY PARTY! - Seedy karaoke bar, private room, pool tables and an enormous drink tab. Enough said. Or, if not, here's some pictures that say much more:

Oh hai! We can has awesome nao?

Oh look, I sing something that is probably Avril Lavigne. Only cooler, cuz it's me, right?

Only the cool kids congregate around the pool table.

I love that I look like I'm wearing some kind of Catwoman suit here.

The Boyfriend being passed out on by someone who actually wasn't drunk yet. LOL.

They feel pretty, oh so pretty.

I love me some of this picture right here.

Look, intoxicated people dance now too!


The Boyfriend and I - before the shiny crown started hurting my head.

Other happiness gems: my new sewing machine; 3 for $15 t-shirts at Jay Jays; "I want these in the biggest size you have" - in reference to said t-shirts; "I know this is supposed to be a barrel of monkeys joke, but you know most of these are apes?" - in reference to one of said t-shirts; hot chips ; rearranging the walls in Ladieswear so they look pretty; head wraps from Tree of Life; bucketloads of inspiration; lots of time with The Boyfriend; the way cats lay around the house in Summer; enrolling in my TAFE courses, & lots of kissing.

It's Thursday guys! What do you love?

Until next time, xo.

DIY Madness!

Hello there lovelies,

Long time no see ay? I assure you, I haven't died in a freak gasoline fight accident, oh no. I've just been super busy, first anticipating my 21st birthday party, then attending it, and then being completely in love with my brand new sewing machine. For those in the sewing know it is a Janome DC2101 - freaking sweet. It's certainly a big change from my old machine, which may have in fact walked with dinosaurs (aww, don't worry old machine, I still loved you). This one has lots of fancy things, such as an up-down needle button. Hey, don't laugh! That's a big luxury to me! Anyway, I made three skirts last night (plus, sketched out ideas for a skeleton back t-shirt, and a t-to-dress reconstruction).

Note to self - next time, make sure you have the skirt on straight before taking pics. This skirt was made from a t-shirt found on a 3 for $15 table at Jay Jays. Obviously, the pattern was meant to be suspenders, but I thought "you don't just use suspenders to hold up your pants", and made what I refer to as The Garter Belt Skirt. So easy to make! If you get a shirt the right size, then it's really just a matter of cutting, hemming and adding the waistband.

Pacman! (Once, next time remember to put the damn skirt on straight!). This used to be a Jay Jay's womens tank top with a Pacman print on the front. As you can see now it is a fairly indecent skirt. Once again, cutting, slight reshaping, hemming - and the addition of cute little back pockets! Man oh man, do I love me some Pacman right now.

Now this is probably the most complex project I've ever undertaken. This is not a reconstruction people, but a for reals from scratch skirt. I picked up the tartan material for $2.50 from the op-shop, and the zipper once upon a time for 50c. The tutorial I used for this skirt was made by the awesome Max California. I made my skirt a waisted skirt rather than an underbust skirt - and it did come out slightly shorter than I intended! I'm tossing up adding another layer to it, just for the sake of my dignity, but time will tell. I'm so proud of it!

So there's a nights worth of crafty endeavours for you! By the way I'm finally enrolled in my first set of TAFE courses now - a basic dressmaking course, and a patternmaking course. I can't wait for my materials to arrive, I'm so excited! What have you all been up to?

Until next time, xo.

Mike Posner + Gigamesh + Grindin Chart

Oh, the Grindin chart. The monthly list of the world's fifteen best songs (fact, not opinion) rarely features any of the cuts I've submitted for potential inclusion. Let's face it: Grinders simply aren't in love with Top 40 the way I am. On top of that, the dudes and dudettes on Grindin are all superstar DJs, producers, and bloggers and thus consistently have a grip of tracks the rest of the world (myself included) hasn't yet been able to get their paws on. Granted every single song ever featured on the list has ended up being simply huge (again: fact, not opinion), but I'm left in the dark relatively often. Oh well. However, I managed to sneak a pick onto this list this month, so please celebrate with me the recognition of Skeet Skeet's downright filthy "Tik Tok" remix. Then peep the video for the Gigamesh remix of Mike Posner's "Cooler Than Me," yet another song that I tried (unsuccessfully, as it were) to get on the November chart. Sigh.

1. Erol Alkan and Boys Noise - "Waaves (Gonzales Remix)"
2. Jose James- "Blackmagic (Joy Orbison's Recreation)"
3. Florence + the Machine - "YGTL (Renaissance Man Edit)"
4. Little Jinder - "Youth Blood (Bok Bok Remix)"
5. Roska - "Elevated Level (Kingdom Refix Feat. Brandy)"
6. Buraka Son Sistema - "General (L-Vis 1990 Remix)"
7. Hostage - "Valhalla (Momma's Boy Remix)"
8. Boris Dlugosch - "Bangkok"
9. Deadboy - "U Cheated"
10. Deadboy - "Heartbreaker"
11. Simian Mobile Disco - "Cruel Intentions (Maurice Fulton Remix)"
12. Dubbel Dutch - "Trollsta (Round Table Knights Remix)"
13. Hot Chip - "Take It In"
14. Ke$ha - "Tik Tok (Skeet Skeet Remix)"
15. Untold - "Stop What You're Doing (James Blake Remix)"



Disclaimer: I haven't yet watched this video. In fact, it may not even be a video at all. I'm on a bus, the internet connection is piss poor (I mean, it's a bus after all, not the Dartmouth College library), and I'm just anxious for y'all to hear the track. No patience whatsoever.

P.S. Click here to check out some pictures of the Posner + Wale + Gym Class Heroes concert I opened for a couple of months back.

P.P.S. I'll put up a Posner pic later. Flippin' bus internet. Too slow for much of anything. Predictable.

Wiley + Chew Fu

Wow. Chew Fu. I feel like the dude was starting out about the same time I was starting up Panda Toes. I was a fledgling blogger and he was just a wee producer churning out electro remixes of Top 40 cuts one after another. And now look at what's happened: I'm still running a goofy site with a moderate readership and he's off producing tracks for Wiley. Always good to see that others have accomplished heaps in the amount of time you've done more or less nothing.

Wiz Khalifa

Khalifa's latest mixtape, Burn After Rolling, is probably one of the better among the best rap releases of 2009. Going over tracks from Empire of the Sun and Pink Floyd, Khalifa has always been about crossing over into different genres, but as he flows over Jay Rock's All My Life, there is little doubt that he has hit his stride. Here's "This Plane" from Deal or No Deal which drops next week.