Parallel Parking Lessons from Judy Funnie

 

“Parallel parking” is a phrase that can incite fear and anxiety throughout teenagers and young adults around the world, or at least in North America. My first exposure to this idea was during an episode of Doug (when it was still owned by Nick, not Disney, remember?), in what Wikipedia tells me was its third season.

One of the best, most hateable and most enviable characters on “Doug” was his own older sister, Judith Anastasia Funnie, the cool 16-year-old beatnik who quoted obscure literary works and had impeccable fashion sense.

I remember that episode: Judy couldn’t pass her driving test because she couldn’t parallel park, so she played a car-racing and driving arcade game, but that still didn’t help.

 

 

What finally helped was when her mind was taken completely off of things by her annoying younger brother and mum, yammering away at her in traffic. The lesson then: stop stressing about your license, and worry more about your passions, your art, the meaning in your life.

 

Judy once told her brother "YOU are the liver and I am the ONIONS!!".  I’m 21 and still can’t parallel park well. But maybe one day, with more practice, I can be the car.

How to Wear Gaga: Her Most Outrageous Looks into Everyday Styles

We all (well, many of us) admire Lady Gaga's dramatic, theatrical fashion. But we can't exactly go strutting around the office pants-less! So what to do? Here I show you how to adapt four of Lady Gaga's outfits to real-life situations. As a bonus, none of the items in this post are over $50 USD!

OUTFIT 1

For this outfit, I've added to the length a little bit, and changed some of the pieces. However the main aspects of the red/black contrast, lace tights, and cowl are still in play. This would be great for a day out shopping with a retro-glam twist.

Gaga Inspired 1 by clomid featuring BC Footwear shoes

Items in this set:

Red Pleated Neck Dress, 16 GBP

BC Footwear Limousine - black suede, $45

ASOS Leather Tarnished Stud Fingerless Gloves, $31

DROPINSKI, $12

Black Lace Linked Tights, 8 GBP

OUTFIT 2

This outfit is semi-formal as well, and I think would be great for the spring or summer. Notice that I've kept the idea of crystals with the accessories (necklace and earrings), but everything else is simple.

Gaga Inspired 2 by clomid featuring Dorothy Perkins shoes

Items in this set:

Fenn Wright Manson Square Neck Vest Top, White, Size 18, 23 GBP

Camille Silk Blend Skirt, $20

Grey stud cuff pumps, 20 GBP

Osprey Headband, $24

Double Diamond Shape Hoop Earring, $12

OUTFIT 3

This one is a bit harder to make non-formal, so I've kept it dressed up. You could wear this to a fancy dance, the theater, or the opera. I've kept the idea of the face mask by using a mini-veil from Forever 21.

Gaga Inspired 3 by clomid featuring Suzy Smith bags

Items in this set:

Red Floral Lace Low Back Dress - Dresses - desireclothing.co.uk, 25 GBP

Red Bow Court Shoes, 18 GBP

Suzy Smith Heart Lace Over-Body Bag, $36

Antonia's Antique Style Crown Stud Earrings, $19

Mini Veil Clip, $6.80

OUTFIT 4

This look is by far the easiest to pull off in a casual environment. I've changed the leggings to jeans, and the sunglasses to some that are easier to pull off.

Gaga Inspired 4 by clomid featuring Forever21

Items in this set:

Women: Women's Long Layering Tanks - Bright White, $8.50

Cuffed Blazer, $23

Womens Skinny Jeans - Black Shredded Wash, $50

Classic Wedge Pumps, $20

W.A.T Faux Pearl And Diamante Long Gold Chain Necklace, 23 GBP

And how do we reconcile this look with everyday life? Any ideas, readers?

How to beat the Monday-morning blues

Mondays have somehow grown to be one of my favourite mornings. Crazy, right? Still, sometimes they're tough. Here are some ideas to help you get through things.

HOW TO BEAT THE MONDAY MORNING BLUES

1. Take  minute, drink a cup of coffee, and read the paper. Do the crossword puzzle or wordsearch. Read about the crazy things that might be going on on the other side of the world. In short, take some extra time (I like 1-2 hours) to just relax.

 Annabel from Blushing Ambition shows us how to look stylish yet comfortable.

2. Instead of freaking out about what to wear, reach for the simplest outfit -  a t-shirt and jeans or leggings, if you can wear it to work/school. If you start the week off in 4-inch heels, you'll have blisters for the rest of the week. Go for runners, flats, or a kitten heel.

3. Pack (or make) yourself a nice lunch. It can be made of leftovers from the day before or something you just throw together in the morning. But even PB&J is better for you, and gets you going, more than some $8 cafe panini.

4. Plan something good to do in the evening. My Monday evening pleasure is watching House in front of the tv. Watch some of the myriad of shows on, or give yourself a slow patient manicure for the week ahead. You'll have something to look forward to during the day!

5. Make sure your cell phone / iPod / laptop is fully charged. There's nothing worse than sitting on public transit and having to listen to the tons of jabbering conversations going on around you, or arriving to class or work and realizing you can't display your presentation. Plug everything in Sunday night to be sure Monday goes well!

DIY your own t-shirt scarf

HOW TO: Make your own 'Necklush' Knock-off
AKA TURN AN OLD T-SHIRT INTO AN AWESOME SCARF

There used to be a really awesome tutorial for this on thisolddress.blogspot.com, but she seems to have deleted, so I've made up my own! Note that I can also make these scarves and sell them for $5 a pop, but the tutorial isn't too complicated so I encourage you all to make your own. 


What you need:

• an old t-shirt, preferably seamless OR a long rectangle of t-shirt material
• any decorations you want
• scissors (optional: seam ripper)

Steps

1. Get an old t-shirt, making sure that it is a bit stretch but doesn't have too much spandex in it, if any. Important note: You'll get the nicest looking scarf is you choose  a t-shirt without side seams. This can also be substituted by using a long rectangle of t-shirt fabric and sewing it at one end.

2. Cut off the t-shirt just below the armpits, now you have a huge fabric loop. (If you're just using fabric to start, skip this step).

 

 

3. Using a stitch-ripper, scissors, or your fingers, take down the bottom hem of the t-shirt so you have more fabric to work with. Pull out all the little thread bits.

3a. If you want to decorate the fabric, do so now. You can use paint, tye-dye, or anything you want. If you do, just make sure you wash it by hand when you do so, otherwise the colours might bleed. Also, stretch the edge of the fabric to check which way it rolls first. Decorate so that it'll be on the oustide of the roll.  I used acrylic paint, and let it dry over night.

4. Cut across the giant loop horizontally, so that you get a bunch of loops. I make mine about an inch wide, but you should do this free-hand rather than using a ruler. Precision isn't necessary!

 

  

 

5. Stretch out each of the loops individually, so that the fabric rolls up. Then gather them up so that you have a group of all the loops around your hand. If you painted the loops, you may want to dampen them and let them dry before putting the scarf together, since the water helps remove some of the stiffness from the paint.

 

my loops before washing.

6. Cut a small rectangular strip - around an inch by 6-10 inches - from the collar or sleeve scraps. Then wrap this and tie it around all of the loops at one point. If you used some fabric sewn together at one end, wrap the strip around the seam. Trim the ends or tuck them into the rest of the strip.

 

 

7. Voila! You're finished. You can wear it just once around your neck, loop it twice, or even three times around if you used a big shirt.

 

the finished scarf

 

modeled by yours truly, this is wrapped twice around my neck.

There you go! Like I said, I will be offering these for sale, $5 for plain fabric or $7 for decorated. Contact me if you're interested. Otherwise, DIY up a storm!

Send me any questions if you have them!

on hacking telephones

A week ago, I got an LG Keybo/env2

Until now I'd been working with an outdated piece of metal reminiscent of a carphone.
But there was one thing bugging me - I'd really like to have music ringtones, not just the 'quasi-multicultural' tones that Telus supplies you with. And buying ringtones from the Telus website? Each one is $3 or up.


So, the following is a complete guide to how I hacked my new phone.

HOW TO PUT YOUR OWN RINGTONES

ON AN LG KEYBO / env2

You will need:

• an LG keybo/env2
• the USB cord which came with your phone
• BitPim (download here)

1. Plug your phone into the computer using the USB cord. NOTE: Your phone screen will bring up a prompt, saying 'Connect phone to USB port?' and giving you the options 'Yes/No'. DO NOT CLICK ANYTHING ON YOUR PHONE. PRESS NO BUTTONS. It is the phone being in 'limbo' that allows Bitpim to access it.


2. Run BitPim


3. Click 'Edit' > 'Settings'. Do not click 'Detect Phone' right now, BitPim will recognize it incorrectly.

4. Enter the 'Phone Wizard'. Scroll down under models to 'LG8800 (Venus)', select, and press next.
NOTE: Yes, this is the incorrect model number for the Keybo/env2, but its correct model number will not allow you to edit the files.

5. Select the Port that says 'LG serial' underneath when you select it. It should be COM(#).

6. Click next, then click Finish. Do not try to 'detect phone' again.

7. Click the 'View' menu at the top, and select 'View Filesystem'.

8. A column will pop up in the middle, with a folder and a + sign. click the + sign to expand the folders. *Be patient, it may take Bitpim a couple of minutes to read the folders.

9. Expand 'brew' > 'shared' > 'ringtones'

10. Copy and paste the ringtones you want (in mp3 format) here.

11. Click 'Send Data to Phone' icon (at the top of the program). Check the box beside 'Ringtones' only. Click okay.

12. Your phone will immediately try to reboot itself. BEFORE IT IS FINISHED, REMOVE AND THEN REPLACE THE BATTERY. This interferes with Telus' requirement that mp3s are digital copyrighted. If you do not do this, you won't be able to set your mp3s as ringtones.

13. Start up your phone as normal, no longer attached to the USB/computer. Look in 'My Ringtones', you should now be able to set your added songs as custom ringtones!



If you have any problems with this method or tutorial, leave me a comment here and I'll try to help you out with it.

All the best,

Emily

Surviving Valentine's Day

SURVIVING VALENTINE'S DAY

Here are some suggestions I've come across, and things I've thought up, that will keep your Valentine's Day from only making you sadder, no matter your involvement.

• treat yourself nicely, you deserve it! Dress up in your best clothes, throw your hair in a chignon or spike it up with gel, or go to a spa for the day
• dance to loud, loud music such as Does It Offend You, Yeah? and know that no one will tell you to turn it down
• make a batch of iced cupcakes, and eat at least half of them by yourself.
• sleep in! Rest is always needed.
• remember that it's just a day! In less than 24 hrs, it will be over.
  
• do a personal arts and crafts project. This can be anything from an inspirational collage to taking a sharpie and drawing moustaches on every single picture in the newsapaper.
• if all else fails, call up some other friends and talk to them, about anything!