#fakearabproverbs

I looked through many news articles online and a lot of them were just so depressing and upsetting.  I know that's the real world and bad things are happening everyday.  But this late in the semester so close to major due dates I needed something a little more amusing and a little lighter. 

I found an article on the Global Voices site about a trending topic on twitter.  The article is entitled "'Coup Today, Gone Tomorrow' and other Hilarious #fakeArabProverbs". Link

The article is about funny tweets with the hashtag "FakeArabProverbs".  There is so much news and information coming out of the middle east that is sad and troubling.  Apparently some Arab Twitter users have started a funny and satirical way to express issues and concerns of their nation along with silly stereotypes.  The topics they cover are anything from women's rights to food.  

Another popular grimly humored hashtag is "PalestinianPickUpLines"

So while going through the dark daily news articles just check these hashtags to add a little dark humor to your day. Some get a little racist or a little dark and twisty but you have to read them in the spirit they are given. 

Her blog always "Brightons" my day

My favorite blogger is a southern girl by the name of Brighton Keller.  She is from the same hometown as me, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  Her blog has really grown over the last few years.  She started her blog titled Brighton the Day in 2011.  Her mother started a shoe line and she wanted to use the blog to help with promoting the brand.  Currently living in Dallas and working as a full time CPA her blog focuses on fashion and her day to day life, including; must have gift ideas, home decor and fun and inspirational quotes. 

I love her mix of city style and simple southern charm.  I usually check her blog once a day at Brighton the Day Blog  I also follow her on Pinterest at Brighton the Day Pinterest.  Along with her blog her Pinterest is quite beautiful.  She has many inspiration boards filled with beautiful images.  

In addition to fashion I am also really interested in home decor and decorating.  Brighton posts a lot of interior inspiration pictures as well as her own photographs of her personal home decorations.

She lives a very busy life. Working a full time job as well as helping run her mothers shoe line she always manages to post on her blog, pinterest and instagram.  They are all very well curated and I love her sense of style.  Her collections of images are truly inspiring and I  have loved watching her online presence really blossom over the last few years.  

curation

I created a board on my already existing Pinterest account dedicated to the designer Olivia von Halle.  To find images to fill my board I simply searched in Pinterest "Olivia von Halle" and found many results.  I pinned a few images.  Some had captions and some did not.  To find the source of the photograph if it was not already sited I could just do Google Image Search.  Many of the photos were just sourced through the Olivia von Halle webpage.

Link to Olivia von Halle board: click here

I found Johanna Blakely's video titled "Lessons from Fashion's free culture" very interesting.  The idea of recreation and reinventing is just so prevalent in the fashion industry and in design in general. I think there needs to be some level of fair use in all industries. You can be inspired without copying.

Until next time,
xoxo HCH

R e M i X

I really enjoyed watching the four part series "everything is a remix".  I guess I have never really thought about it in those terms.  I know with design, at least, it is always said that we are never creating anything new, everything has been done, we are simply recreating. 

One of my favorite quotes from the video was "creation requires influence". 

I always find it to be a constant challenge when looking to things for inspiration and trying to find your own voice but mimicking your inspiration.  There is a fine line between copying your inspiration directly and straying too far away from it that there is no resemblance. 

It was also said in the video "All artists spend their formative years producing derivative work" and I totally can relate to that.  I feel like for the two first years of the fashion design program I was copying basic patterns and basic figures.  From those basic copied originals I was able to learn and understand and move on to create my own original works of art.  

The first remix I shared on Diigo was a song.  It is a remix of the popular Miley Cyrus song Wrecking Ball.  It came up one day a while back on one of my Pandora stations and I was really into it.  I think it's a good mix of the original and new fun beats.

Here's the link: click 

The second remix I shared was a little different.  I shared an article I came across during the Spring 2015 fashion shows.  It is comparing Alexander Wang's garments to tennis shoes.  Seeing them side by side you can clearly see the inspiration.  It is crazy how he transforms sneakers into chic silhouettes. 

Here's the link: click 

I learned from this weeks lesson that everything is protected under a copyright law which I found very interesting.  I makes me, as an artist, feel a little more secure about sharing things.  I also found the creative commons video intriguing.  I think that is such a powerful tool to be used in the field of education. 

Until next time,

xoxo HCH

Olivia von Halle | Designer Inspiration

For my focus I have chosen designer Olivia von Halle.  She is a sleepwear designer based out of  London, England.  Olivia first presented her collection in 2011.  She has a strong design career history as a trend forecaster. She has worked with major companies such as Louis Vuitton, Gucci and Lamborghini.

The reason I have chosen Olivia Von Halle as my focus is mainly because of her idea of her customer. Her customer is a reflection of herself and she says,

“Coming home from evenings partying with friends, she would long to ditch her sky-high heels and constricting outfits for something glamorous enough to enjoy a gin and tonic in before sliding off to bed. Inspired by the lounging pyjamas worn by Coco Chanel and her contemporaries in the 1920s, she started work with her tailor to design the perfect pair of pyjamas.”- Olivia Von Halle

     I understand her customer and I believe that my customer lives a very similar life style to hers. My brand concept brings together “a mix of city socialite and southern charm”.  I enjoy creating classic tailored pieces made in colorful patterns, bold colors, and lux materials.

     Olivia’s company is a new one and they have only been around a few season.  While the collections are small and only include a few pieces that come in multiple color ways, the styles and fabric choices are on trend and contemporary yet, classic.

     

     Currently her collections are sold globally. In New York you can purchase Olivia von Halle at Saks Fifth Avenue, Journelle, La Petite Coquette, and Bonne Nuit.  Her items can also be purchased online at such retailers as Net-A-Porter, Nordstrom, and Gift Library.

Her pyjama sets range from $300.00 for a tank and short set, to $850.00 for a floor length robe. All of her pieces are 100% silk.   

Her work and her brand have been a huge inspiration to me and creating a vision for my brand.  I have had the idea of my customer for a while, but coming across her collection last semester just solidified my choice to create this brand based around this over privileged, high maintenance customer. Who I have fell madly in love with.  She is incredibly fun to design for. She is so playful,yet poised.  There are no limits

Until next time,

xoxo HCH

Your identity, your privacy

IDENTITY

From the reading in the book You are your Brand it brought up some questions that I wasn’t quit sure how to answer.  “What makes you special?” “What do people like about you?” “What are your strengths/ weaknesses?”  I think I have an idea of who I am but, is that who I want to portray myself as on the Internet.  I want to be true to who I am, I don’t want to lie.   Should I answer these questions in a very specific way that is tailored for a certain group or market, or should I have answers that will appeal to the masses. 

Creating a brand and an image is somewhat of a daunting task.  This online identity you create for yourself will always be there.  Even if you change your style or your outlook on life your old identity will be there.  It is just something to keep in mind when creating a brand.  I want an identity that is classic but that can also grow.  I want identity that is geared towards a certain market but I want to make sure not to exclude anyone.  I want to have answers to those questions in regards to my brand that I believe in and that I am passionate about.  

PRIVACY

I want an online presence, I need an online presence.  I want to be able to market my brand and share my vision with the world, but how much is too much?  How do you go about dividing your personal life from your work life?   How do you keep them separate?  Should they over lap, you are your brand.  From the reading in the book Net Smart I had many thoughts.  One of the main things that came to mind is what are people's immediate reaction when they see me online.  When they look at my Facebook profile do they have a different reactions then when they read my LinkedIn profile?  I hope so, but how different is the reactions.  Do I have two different online identities?  I want it to be a smooth transition from my personal identity to my creative identity that is my brand. 

I have many questions that have been left unanswered for now.  I really want to figure out who I am and who I want to be online.

Until next time,

xoxo HCH

seeing myself through the eyes of the internet

I went on to www.google.com

In the blank space I typed "Hillary Higginbotham" and hit goggle search.

This is what popped up.....

And I was like um no Goggle thanks but I do know how to spell my own name. It's Hillary with two Ls....I'm sure about that, thank you. 

What came up after the incorrect spelling of my name was a few Facebook accounts, one being mine own. The first image that came up was a picture of me from my LinkedIn account. My LinkedIn came up with a few other MySpace and Pinterest accounts that were not mine. 

I scrolled a little further and found an old school presentation I made on Prezi, which was kind of interesting to see. 

I got bored with the web search so I hit Images. There was a few of my profile pictures from Facebook that came up and then a lot of pictures of unfamiliar women. I kept going through the pictures and found this gem.....

It was a photo taken of me and my best friend a few years ago that I guess was posted on an FIT blog. It was a good memory that Google brought back to me. 

Over all, googling myself was a pretty interesting experience. It brought back a few things that I had left in the past, all were positive, thank goodness. 

Until next time, 

xoxo HCH