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dress, dresses, melche shutilforc, victorian maiden, wishlist

Dresses for the Summer

christinahopgood
Since I’m going to America in their Summer (my Winter), I’ll need some nice cool dresses to wear!  And all the great brands are coming out with new dresses for Summer in Japan!  Here are my two favourite that I’m considering buying:
First is another Melche Shutilforc beauty.  It comes in two colourways, this gorgeous brown X pink, and a cream top X light blue floral skirt.  This was only released today I think!
It also has a detachable halter neck with frills.  Cute!  I also really like the underskirt peeking out.
Which colour would be best on a paleface like me?
And this lovely Victorian Maiden summer dress.  It comes in three colourways: this one (cream and purple flowers), cream and yellow flowers, and black and white gingham.  I think I’d go for the cream and yellow colour.  This is still on reserve, due to come out in May.
I’m not usually a fan of fully shirred items, but this is done very well.  It’s nice and understated.  I like the ruffled neckline.  It looks so cool!  Able to be worn without a blouse for maximum air flow!
One thing these dresses have in common is that they’re quite casual.  I could wear these to the shops, or to a cocktail party, depending on my shoes and how I wear my hair.  I like clothes like that!
To be able to wear them in America for what I’m doing, it’s important to be able to breathe and move easily.  A lot of dresses I’ve bought (thankfully not the expensive ones!) are really pretty but constrict my giant rib cage* and so never get worn.  It’s kind of a shame!  I would like to fix them but don’t want to fail and ruin a lovely dress.  The Melche Shutilforc dress looks a little constricting but the VM one looks amazingly comfy.
I added these two dresses to my Wishlist, because in all honesty, I wish I had them.
life

Haven’t updated in a while whoops!

christinahopgood
It’s going to be a busy month ahead for me!
I’m performing my first recital of my Honours year next Friday the 29th.  It was a bit of a rushed decision to put it so soon, but I realised that next month is going to be amazingly busy with rehearsals and performances for the Canberra International Music Festival and I’d better just get it out of the way.
So!  I’m playing Marimba Concerto no. 2 by Ney Rosauro.  He’s a cool dude!  I saw him play that piece in 2009 when he was visiting Sydney (he’s from Brazil) and all the Canberra kids trooped up to hang out.  He also was judging the Percussion Eisteddfod which I played in the next day.  He was really nice and interesting – just like his compositions!
I just had a rehearsal with my accompanist (and friend) Ella this morning.  I think it’s going to be okay.  But gosh I’m nervous!  And I seem to be getting a cold just in time for the Easter weekend!
Here’s a lovely blurry photo of me and Ney Rosauro at the Percussion Eisteddford in 2009.  See how long his arms are compared to mine?  They’re like twice as long as mine.  No wonder he puts so many big intervals in his piece.
I can’t believe I’ve had that skirt for so long.  I need to make a new one.
life, percussion, travel

Time to spill the beans…

christinahopgood
I am going to America!
(Just for a couple of weeks).
I have been accepted to the Bob Becker Ragtime Xylophone Institute which will be held in Delaware this August!  Ragtime xylophone music is something I’ve always had a lot of fun playing, and I’ve even decided to do a themed Ragtime recital this year.  Ragtime is old-timey jazz.  So, it’s fitting that I’d want to go to this workshop this year.  Bob Becker is The Guy for ragtime xylophone.  He’s a famous percussion dude!  I’m going to learn a lot from him.
Conveniently, there’s a simultaneous workshop on Jazz Vibraphone which Charles has been accepted to!  It’s being held at the same university and we can share a room!  This will be living the dream – we’ll both be going to do awesome separate things in a cool place with famous people!  Learning lots and playing music all day!  Then coming home and being together in the evening!
While I’m in America, I’m thinking of going to New York for a few days to see all the things!  I’d love to see Central Park where Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers roller skated.  I’d love to catch a They Might Be Giants show – but I don’t know how to do that.  And I’d love to go to Tokyo Rebel, since I’ll be there a lot sooner than I’ll be in Tokyo.  Fun times approach!
Here’s a video of a great percussionist Morris Palter and his group playing a rag called Jovial Jasper.

Here’s the video of my last Recital (third year).  I played a rag at the end BY BOB BECKER, so skip to 35:40
labyrinth, polyvore

Labyrinth Polyvore coordinates?!

christinahopgood

So a while ago when I was bored, I made up some co-ordinates on Polyvore of my favourite two characters: Jareth and Sarah!  Since I’m a girl, I made the Jareth outfit out of girls clothes!  A girl Jareth!Jareth
I am really very fond of those boots by Demonia.  The VM blouse is my favourite blouse in the whole world, which I own!    Then I thought I’d prissy the whole thing up with pretty gloves, sparkly nail polish, and eye shadow.  Of course you can’t do Jareth’s hair without a bunch of hairspray, so that’s in there too.
You would think that Sarah’s co-ordinate would be easier, her being a girl and everything.  Not so!  I wanted to do the ballgown look, because her normal look is so 80s it hurts my eyes.Sarah
So I had no choice but to use a short white Lolita skirt.  I’m not sure if this is a petticoat or outer skirt, but it’s quite pretty.  The blouse is VM of course.  I think I did much better with Jareth – this looks too much like a wedding ensemble.  It’s hard to wear white dresses without looking like a bride!
dress, wedding

Mind: blown

christinahopgood
I just read this blog over at Painting The Roses Pink about lolita weddings.  She posted up the usual stuff, churches, cakes, invitations, and dresses.  But some of the dresses blew my mind!  They’re by a Japanese brand called Sugar Kei, which as far as I can tell, rents out amazing wedding attire.  Maybe that’s what Japanese people do for weddings – rent dresses instead of buying.  Sounds sensible, but a bit sad to give it back afterwards!  Anyway here’s the eye candy:

Speaking of wedding dresses, my parents brought my Nana’s wedding dress from 1940 home from Melbourne.  She left it to me when she died in 2009.  She actually wanted ME to get married in it a few years ago, but I politely explained that I wasn’t getting married and I also wanted to buy my own dress.  It’s 70 years old so quite dated!  It’s a bit damaged, but in pretty good nick for something so old.  I might steam the creases out and take photos some time!
Dresses!