Happy Gobble Gobble nom-nom Day!

To all of you in the USA, have a Happy Thanksgiving!

You can bet that I'll be gobbling up good eats. Arisu-tan shines on any food-centric holiday. It's where my nom'ing skills come in handy.

Today's post is just a quickie; I'm currently working on a style guide for the blog, which will feature a specific character and a detailed guide on how to get their look. It will feature garments and where you can get them so that you can create either an outfit or entire wardrobe based on that character. V. exciting stuff. Also, it was brought to my attention that my blog doesn't have comments! So I'm going to be fixing the coding for that v. soon. Sorry about that! I really do want to see your comments, so feel free to drop me an email.

Also just wanted to share with you the present I did for my niece's first birthday. I have a goal to infect this child with Japanese and Precure (mwahahaha), so I bought her the "Oshiete Suite Precure" (I should have taken a picture but I didn't (￢0￢) but here's what it looks like http://static.hlj.com/images/ban/ban964437.jpg, http://item.shopping.c.yimg.jp/i/j/toyskameta_oshiete-suite-precure).  Anyway, I made her a Suite Precure card to go with it, I'm rather proud of it lol.

I hope everyone has a good holiday, I'll be seeing you soon. Good bye, good night!

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”
+ Howard Thurman

Fashion Focus: the Graceful Edwardian

Kanade is the Cure who strums the Graceful tune: her colors are feminine, pale, and classic. I knew that when I picked Kanade, I was going to be designing something soft and vintage.

When I design, I like to compile pictures that inspire me. Anything from food to fabric to interiors; in Kanade's case, I pulled together quite a few things.  Yes, pictures of pastries. How could you compile a Kanade file without pictures of pastries, I ask you.

So I looked at the drawing board-- the Suite drawing board that is. I kept studying the school uniform, Kanade's casual wear, and Rhythm's costume.  I was a little torn when trying to place a time period on the clothing. I like choosing a historical time period to pull inspiration from, because when I design, I tend to bring in vintage/retro/historical elements. I knew immediately with Kanade that I wanted something historical.

After bouncing around the 20s a little (looked at a LOT of Jeanne Lanvin), I ended up going a little further back and choosing Edwardian. The line, the silhouette, the layering, and the strong feminimity mixed with a certain air of power were just what I wanted for the Rhythm collection. So I'm going to share with you some images that inspire me, from the design to the colors to the feeling I get from the picture.

Just a little "into the head of the desinger" for yah (^___^)

Good bye, good night!

“The quality of the imagination is to flow and not to freeze”
+ Ralph Waldo Emerson

The not-so-tranquil day of me

I don't like girl-world.

Girl-world is where I work. No, it's not a juvenile pink-infested theme park; its just the way I refer to my job. That's because I work in a store (which shall go unnamed) that is filled with fashion, feminiminity, and f* up behavior.

It's like a paralell universe where the rules of kindness and respect disappear into a complex web of female manipulation.  Where else is a person nice to your face, only to turn around take advantage of you for their own gain (?・・) ? My favorite part is when they justify their actions to themselves. You can excuse it all you want to honey, at the end of the day, you're still a backstabbing meanie-pants.


I am a fashion student, so professors are always telling us that we should work in retail because its like the trenches of the fashion world, and we need that experience. Personally, I don't know how long I'll last. I'm too spoiled from living with boys. I've gotten used to laid-back behavior and minimal drama.


However, giving up is not my style. Instead, I'll show those caddy chickies my fighting spirit recipe!


that's right. I WENT THERE!!

I REGRET NOTHING!! o(≧∇≦o)

...... that being said, I'll leave you with some Precure pics, again from my collection. Today's (very light) assortment is Cure Mint! (ergo the blog title, a poorly executed pun on Mint's intro speech).

Good night, good bye!

 

“I believe in the imagination. What I cannot see is infinitely more important than what I can see.”
+ Duane Michals

Linens and Lace

okay, no linens. but i has lace.

While I'm still in the early phases of design, I decided to pull together some trim and fabrics that appealed to me as possibilities for this collection.  So I raided the trim drawer at school (mwahahaha) as well as my own collection, and gathered up some options for detailing on the Cure Rhythm wardrobe.

There was an abundance of wide eyelet trim at school, so should I choose to use that, I know that I'll have plenty to work with. Some of the laces I had are in smaller quantities, therefore if I decided to use them, I will be limited where I can utilize them.

My point and shoot camera stinks u__u. but blurry Rhythm is still cute.

Going back to my color choices, I think a few of these really suit the soft, vintage off-white colors. There are a few pure whites in there (though my photoshopping makes it appear as though there isn't), because I intend to really play on Rhythm's signature white.

hide and seek (=^･ω･^)

 “To raise new questions, new possibilities, to regard old problems from a new angle, requires creative imagination and marks real advance in science.”
+ Albert Einstein

Great Rhythm ~Fantastic Belltier~

“Imagination is the one weapon in the war against reality.”
+ Jules de Gaultier

Color Palette: Cure Rhythm collection

Part of the core content in p&p will be the tracking of my fashion project: to create a personal wardrobe based off of Cure Rhythm. This ties in with my goal of eventually creating a line inspired by the characters of Pretty Cure. 

But since that is QUITE an undertaking, we'll be starting a tad smaller (´∀`). Ergo my Cure Rhythm collection.

Even though the pieces in this line will be based off of Rhythm's iconic Cure uniform, I will be deviating quite a bit. Essential design elements and details will come from her, but each piece will be unique in design (i.e. it doesn't actually LOOK like her uniform, just inspired by).

all THAT being said, this post is just an initial mock-up of my color palette for this line. I looked at dozens of images to sort of get direction for the pieces. I want to stick mainly to white, but use key accent colors that are soft and romantic.  I'm feeling very vintage for this piece. Like mixing in classic with modern, feminine, like an outdoor tea party with paper lanterns.  That sounds very peaceful, no?

“Imagination is the beginning of creation. You imagine what you desire, you will what you imagine and at last you create what you will.”
+ George Bernard Shaw

A little about being Pretty & Powerful

its a slightly corny title, no? but it gets the job done.

For years, I have been a fan of magical girl ("mahou shojo") animes. Specifically, Sailor Moon and Pretty Cure.  I guess I never gave much thought to the fact that I eventually would (or ought to) grow out of them. Then again, I still haven't "grown up".

Thankfully, I'm not alone. There seems to be a gaggle of 20-somethings who, despite being mature, active, goal-oriented young women, still have an interest in the habitually assumed juvenile genre. And who's to say why? Is it the action? The enchanting transformations and attacks? Or the light-hearted stories and emotional plot twists?

Maybe its all of those. Whatever it is that pulls young women into these shows, its obvious to me that just because a young woman enjoys mahou shojo, doesn't mean she's childish.  That's what a p&p girl is. She is mature and vivacious; an exciting young woman, perhaps going through college or just emerging (or almost starting!).  She is technical or creative, perhaps both, and enjoys utilizing her abilities (or "powers" :D) to make the beautiful world she dreams of a reality.  Just because she's an adult doesn't mean she's abandoned imagination. No adult should.

So with that being said, I'd like to welcome you to Pretty & Powerful, a blog that celebrates empowered and inspiring young women who champion what it means to be a "living, modern Magical Girl".  No where on my journey through life was there a road sign that said "abandon imagination here". I present to you here the world that I live in. It's not always easy; its hard, but its worth fighting for. It's a world where I'm free to use my imagination, to create, to dream, and to love; I want to share it with my fellow magical girls.

“Limitations live only in our minds. But if we use our imaginations, our possibilities become limitless.”
+ Jamie Paolinetti