I’m having some trouble sleeping nowadays, which means I spend most of my nights watching movies instead. A few days ago I saw “Girl, Interrupted“, and was pleasantly surprised. Not only is Winona Ryder wonderful as always, but to my delight I discovered that Brittany Murphy was in it too. I loved her in “Sin City” and “Spun“; she possesses that rare combination of being some sweet little thing and being rather insane, just like Christina Ricci (another favourite of mine).

After having rediscovered Brittany Murphy I did some research on IMDb, and learned that she plays the lead in a movie called “Love and other disasters“, which looked like a mainstream romantic comedy. I watched it last night, and yes, to some extent it is very mainstream and predictable, but I found that I liked this much better than, say, He’s Just Not That Into You. Perhaps it’s because it’s a British production, or maybe because it’s sort of a metafilm (you know, a film discussing films). But I think the main reason might be Brittany Murphy.

In the movie she is charming and adorable (though not sickeningly so), has a very interesting wardrobe (except for a horrible yellow-tunic-and-cropped-tights-thing which we won’t get into), and her Holly Golightly-inspired fringe is styled in so many different ways I was very impressed with the movie’s hair stylist. You’ll just have to see it to understand what I mean, but I am seriously considering getting a fringe like hers cut and then watching the movie again while making notes of all the ways hers is styled.

And just because I have this crazy girl-crush on Brittany Murphy right now, I made some Polyvore-outfits based on some photos of her, as you might be getting a little bored with my attempts at being a photographer

Went to see Coco Avant Chanel today. Like many other bloggers out there, I was a little disappointed in the fact that they focus so much on Coco’s love life and so little on her career, but there were so many lovely things to look at (and listen to!) that I was swept off my feet anyway. Audrey Tautou is perfection, the costumes are insanely interesting, the music was beautiful and I love the French language. Go see it, I say!

Pearls: random, trenchcoat and button-up: H&M, belt and tights: Lindex, shoes: Eurosko.

And for your information, I have the best Boyfriend in the world. I know lots of you will jump up and claim me to be wrong, but hear me out: not only did he see the movie with me perfectly voluntarily and without even complaining. He also always automatically adapts to my slightly slower pace when I’m in heels. And get this: not only does he not mind taking lots and lots of outfit photos of me (since I like to have many to choose from), but he even exclaimed “this is fun!” at one point. All in all, a perfect evening, wouldn’t you agree?

“We didn’t know exactly what the nomad vampires would wear, but Catherine wanted a kind of rock-and-roll look for them, and she also had the idea that these were killers who collected trophies.”

Wendy Chuck in Twilight – the Illustrated Movie Companion.

I’ve always had a weakness for the bad guys (particularly in the movies… trust me, I’d pick Sylar over Nathan any time). They get the better songs in Disney movies, can be blissfully imperfect and are usually better dressed. The only negative thing about bad guys in general is that their appearance can sometimes be a bit predictable. You know – dark, tight clothes, lots of leather and dark eye makeup. Which is precicely why I’m amazed by Twilight’s nomad vampires.

Very much different from the usual gloomy, colourless villain-uniform, their clothes have tons of personality, seem to be almost randomly combined and also look worn. Another thing that makes their styling concept so brilliant: not only do the bad vampires look, well, cool (sorry for the unimaginative choice of word), but the clothes also make their behaviour seem even more evil. Nobody would expect pure evil from someone wearing a soft, fluffy white fur that would not look out of place on a little bunny. Not until they’d seen Twilight, at least.

Sorry, I’ll stop gushing now. Instead let me tell you my way of achieving a rockstar-vampire look all on your own. Of course, you could simply go hunting for items that closely resemble the ones worn in the movie, but what would be the fun in that? Firstly, it might become quite expensive; second, it might end up looking like a costume; and third, you’d have to be incredibly patient, both to find the very best items, but also while waiting for them to arrive by mail (since you probably wouldn’t find a complete replica of all their items in your local mall). Instead, you might continue reading this post, and achieve that nomad vampire look in your own way.

A GOOD START:

♣ Look for clothes with a slight vintage feel, or perhaps simply items you’ve worn so much that it shows – though in a classy way, not with weird stains that won’t come off.

♣ Pick natural fabrics such as leather, silk, cotton, denim and fur (whether faux or real I’ll leave to you). Synthetic fabrics such as polyester or lycra would not age gracefully, and would therefore not be very practical for a vampire who whishes his/her favourite item to last a couple of decades. 

♣ Do the unexpected! Combine pieces regardless of decade or ethnicity - just look at Laurent’s combination of dreads, a brocade waistcoat and 70’s leather jacket! There is no reason why a victorian shirt couldn’t look great with leather pants, as long as you…

♣ … keep the silhouette in mind. All our rockstar vampires seem to lean heavily on the 70’s silhouette, which looks long and lean. Imagine Victoria in that final scene wearing not that long slinky number, but a cute little dress with a 50’s cut. Not quite the same, is it?

♣ Go easy on the accessories, and wear pieces that have a story, that mean something to you. Hopefully it won’t be trophies of people you’ve eaten, but perhaps a vintage piece you found in some hidden shop, or something you inherited from a family member. Accessories with a history will look much more like you than something you just bought because it was trendy.

♣ See if you can avoid black, or at least black leather. Instead go for various earth shades – in Twilight the good vampires tend to wear cool, pale colours, whereas the bad ones dress in warmer, brownish pieces. A splash of colour (”Kiss me, I’m Irish“, right?) can keep it from looking dull.

FOR THAT LITTLE EXTRA…

♣ Confidence, darlings! No point trying to convince the crowd (or yourself!) that you’re a scary vampire if you look insecure or like you don’t like attention. Our evil vampires are proud, sexy and slightly cocky – which might be easier if you know you look aboslutely irresistible, and also happen to be pretty much invincible, but give it a go even if you are only a mere mortal… I can keep a secret, nobody will have to know.

♣ Put on the perfect soundtrack. To achieve that slightly-evil, slightly-sexy mood, merely put on Blue Foundation’s Eyes On Fire. Works for me every time, though anything by Muse is also wonderful for getting the energy up. The right music can also insert a little something in your walk, which is oh, so essential as we don’t have our own magic carpet to walk on.

♣ Perfection is boring. Messy hair, a glimpse of a bra or clothes with visible wear can be wonderful stylistic elements, but don’t forget that this also applies to your behaviour. Sure, the vampires have an undeniable grace, but the main point is that they don’t fuzz over tiny errors. It’s all right to freak out a little if you’ve got a tracker coming after your mortal girlfriend, I suppose, but the evil ones seem prety much carefree and nonchalant. Who knows, you might even find it liberating not to worry all the time…

♣ Work with what you’ve got. If you happen to be tall, blonde and muscular, well, good for you, but I think everyone can manage an evil vampire look. It’s really more about showing your personal taste and making a lasting impression, than about having a certain appearance.

Pardon for my absence, darlings – my baby (also known as MacBook) was away on a little holiday with my boyfriend. It was so stressed the plastic had actually cracked in some places, but it has returned now, as good as new. I have a lot of (in my opinion) great posts planned, but for now you’ll have to do with getting to know me a little better – I was tagged by the ever-so-lovely Ariella from Pearls In Your Hair. So without further ado:

What is your current obsession? Various aspects of grooming, such as discovering new ways to style my hair, or how to fix my nails. I blame the approaching summer, which means less clothing and more… Airam.

What is your weirdest obsession? Image-googling varios celebrities (mostly Christina Ricci, Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman) and saving the pictures on my baby. If you looked at my image-folder without knowing me, you’d probably think I was a little… yes, obsessed.

What are you wearing today? A floral-patterned, black&white dress with a fifties cut, the black and shiny jacket from Gina Tricot, lacy underwear and ancle socks.

What’s for dinner? We just had some sort of grilled meat, potato salad, green salad and sparkling water outside on the lawn. And bananas stuffed with chocolate, packed in silver foil and grilled, for dessert. Now I can barely walk.

What’s the last thing you bought? Dinner. The last fashionable thing was a tartan pencil skirt – I’ll show you guys soon!

What are you listening to right now? The sound of Boyfriend trying to hook up a film projector he borrowed from the library at school – he’s experimenting with creating a small cinema in his room (quite nerdy, and really fascinating).

What do you think about the person who tagged you? She’s got such a lovely, feminine style that’s very inspirational, and does some great work when it comes to picking and combining colours.

If you could have a house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you like it to be? London. Not only because I love the city, the language, the shopping, but also because it would enable me to travel pretty much anywhere without a lot of fuss (living in the Northern part of Norway makes you long for that, I promise!).

What’s your must have piece for summer? Heels. I can’t really wear them in the winter because of the weather, so this summer I intend to go a little crazy.

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go? To the Park Hyatt Hotel in Tokyo, and lounge around in my pink wig while pretending to be Scarlett Johansson in Lost In Translation.

Which language do you want to learn? I’d love to brush up my French to make it fluent, and learn Italian properly (I only know a couple of phrases), but recently I’ve found myself wishing I knew Spanish, too. I’ve got a lot of work to do, don’t I? *laughs*

What’s your favourite quote? “I dress for the image. Not for myself, not for the public, not for fashion, not for men.” Marlene Dietrich.Who do you want to meet right now?

Who do you want to meet right now? Frida Kahlo (if she could be alive for the encounter, of course). She could teach me so much.

What is your favourite colour? Red for lipstick, black for sheer items, yellow for blue days and deep blue for the sky.

What is your favourite piece of clothing in your own closet? The shiny jacket I’m currently wearing. If something happens to it, I’ll just have to live the rest of my life naked, I think.

What is your dream job? Being a professional artist, touring the world with my band. And writing the occasional article for Costume (a Norwegian fashion magazine).

What’s your favourite magazine? Costume – it’s the only Norwegian magazine that writes solely about fashion, not about celebrity gossip, true-stories-from-ordinary-people’s-lives or how-to-drop-ten-pounds-in-two-weeks. Nothing compares.

If you had $100 now, what would you spend it on? A new microphone. And fabulous underwear.

What do you consider a fashion faux pas? Too dark foundation, and using short tunics with only sheer tights beneath it (I’m sorry, honey, but that’s not a dress!).

Do you admire anyone’s style? Yes, and you can find most of them in my (newly updated!) list-of the-mont-page. Though I wouldn’t say no to Scarlett Johansson or Gwen Stefani’s wardrobe, either.

Describe your personal style? A little bit rock, with a touch of pop, a sprinkle of soundtracks and a splash of cabaret. In both my music and my way of dressing, if you were wondering…

What are you going to do after this? Watch “Let the Right One In” on Boyfriends just-made cinema. I’ve got a thing for vampire movies, and the book was fantastic!

What are your favourite movies? Lost In Translation. Moulin Rouge. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Léon. V for Vendetta. Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Sweeney Todd. Twilight (got a post coming up about that, by the way…). Black Snake Moan. Dancer In the Dark. Edward Scissorhands. Finding Neverland. Frida Kahlo. Mirrormask. The Man Who Cried. Sin City (see, of you put periods between them, the list doesn’t seem so long).

What’s your favourite fruit? Strawberries? No, wait , that’s defined as a berry, not a fruit, right? Oranges, then.

What inspires you? Movies, music, touches, drawings, dancing, people, the weather, my sisters (I’ll send you that belt soon, Cookie, if you want to. It saved my evening!).

Give us three styling tips that always work for you: Red lipstick. Messy hair in a high bun. A dress that’s so fantastic it doesn’t need anything else.

What do you do when you “have nothing to wear” (even though your closet’s packed)? I’ll either wear a combination I’ve worn several times and know I’ll feel comfortable in, or I’ll wear a combination so strange I know I’ll get some sceptical glances that day. I think it’s my way of saying “I don’t care! Screw you, world!” (Pardon my french, you sensitive readers, but sometimes a brutal word is needed.)

…

The rules are: Respond and rework – answer the questions on your own blog, replace one question that you dislike with a question of your own invention, and add one more question of your own. Then tag eight other people. I’m lazy, so I’ll only tag five (but don’t you guys feel even more special?): Nothing Elegant, Bittelitt Britt, re:gine, Miimosa and Stian.