television muses

Don't you always wish that you could raid a tv show character's wardrobe, because he/she has such great style? I always find myself in awe of television costumes, so I decided to pair some characters' styles with each of the 10 major styles:

Sleek Siren
TV Character: Joan from Mad Men
Dress: ModCloth
Cardigan: Wet Seal
Blouse: Alice and Olivia
Bangle: Nicole Farhi
Skirt: Style Bop
Necklace: Farfetch
Pumps: The Outnet (Louboutin)
Purse: Chanel
Earrings: Kenneth Jay Lane
Lipstick: Besame for ModCloth

Miss Minimalist

TV Character: Alicia from The Good Wife

Dress: Michael Kors

Skirt: J Crew

Pants: J Crew

Top: Helmut Lang

Jacket: Maxmara

Heels: Miu Miu

Earrings: Michael Kors

Cuff Bracelet: MTWTFSS Weekday

Purse: Miu Miu

Necklace: Lanvin

Ring: Topshop

Eyeliner: Rimmel London

Badass Beauty

TV Character: Abby from Primeval

Dress: Versus

Pants: Current/Elliott

Skirt: McQ Alexander McQueen

Purse: Gucci

Leather Jacket: MuuBaa

Earrings: Tarina Tarantino

Shirt: Religion Clothing

Boots: Steve Madden

Necklace: ModCloth

Bracelet: Diva

Eyeliner: Nars

Belt: Topshop

Lipgloss: MAC

Vintage Visionary

TV Character: Lucy from Boardwalk Empire

Dress: Jigsaw

Top: Theyskens Theory

Clutch: Monya

Skirt: Erdem

Fur Jacket: Anna Sui

Necklace: Dannijo Bea

Heels: Modcloth

Earrings: 1928 Jewelry

Ring: Kabiri

Headband: Wet Seal

Lipstick: Yves Saint Laurent

Trailblazing Trendsetter

TV Character: Cece from New Girl

Dress: Herve Leger

Jeans: True Religion

Jacket: H&M

Heels: ZiGiny

Bag: MG Collection (Amazon)

Tank Top: H&M

Ring: Charles Albert

Necklace: Forever 21

Skirt: Ashish

Wrap Bracelet: Presh

Fierce Feminine Fashionista

TV Character: Sookie from True Blood

Dress: Suzannah

Jean Jacket: Topshop

Earrings: Oscar de la Renta

Skirt: Jane Norman

Bag: NV London Calcutta

Necklace: Bee Charming

Shirt: Peacocks

Belt: Dorothy Perkins

Boots: Acne

Bracelet: Melinda Maria

Flower Ring: Harrods

Lipgloss: Lord & Berry

Casually Chic

TV Character: Amy Pond, Doctor Who

Dress: McQ Alexander McQueen

Bag: Roxy

Necklace: Modcloth

Skirt: Dsquared2

Bangles: Kate Spade

Leather Jacket: Topshop

Sweater: Marc by Marc Jacobs

Scarf: Amazon

Boots: Oasis

Belt: Warehouse

Earrings: Debenhams

Avant Garde Artiste

TV Personality: China Chow from Work of Art

Dress: Chloe

Earrings: Kyler by Joy O

Jacket: Alexander McQueen

Belt: Linea Pelle

Leaf Hair Clip: Philippa Holland

Top: Valentino

Bangles: Topshop

Necklace: Danielle Stevens Jewelry

Feather Skirt: Calypso St. Barth

Collar: Asos

Ring: Liz Larios

Heels: Giuseppe Zanotti

Eyeshadow: Nars

Urban Glamazon

TV Character: Jay from The Fades

Dress: Vionnet

Sneakers: Miu Miu

Ring: Topshop

Jeans: McQ Alexander McQueen

Bracelet: Asos

Blazer: Topshop

Earrings: Betsey Johnson

Clutch: Muze

Sweater: (unknown)

Eyeliners: Revlon

Necklace: Bauble Bar

Bohemian Bombshell

TV Character: Alex from Happy Endings

Dress: Etro

Skirt: J Crew

Boots: Strategia/JFK

Belt: Romwe

Ring: Kate Spade

Top: Stella McCartney

Cardigan: All Saints

Necklace: Kate Spade

Cuff Bracelet: Pree Brulee

Earrings: Forever 21

Bag: Fossil

Lipgloss: Nars

Speaking of TV, I am currently obsessed with Face Off, Being Human (UK) , Suburgatory, Modern Family Parks and Recreation, Billy on the Streets, PR All Stars, New Girl, Raising Hope, The Office, the Daily Show, the Colbert Report, the Walking Dead, and Justified. Did I miss anything?

nerd capital of the world

I am super upset. In early march or may or whatever, the ticket sales for Comic Con went on sale and instantly sold out. I wasn't near a computer to buy tickets at the time, so I didn't get any tickets. I ALWAYS go to Comic Con. Siiiggghhhhh... Since I'm not going this year, I thought I should make a list of the things I will miss dearly.

Cosplay

I will miss the wonderful cosplayers. What is cosplay, you say? Cosplay is when you dress up as a character from a book, movie, video game, etc. and then act like him/her while you're in costume. There are thousands of cosplayers at Comic Con that love getting their pictures taken, so why not pose with Superman? Or maybe gangsta Darth Vader? Who knows who you'll meet at that extraordinary convention.

Celebrities

Yep, that's Stan Lee.... Celebrities are a big part of the Comic Con experience. They provide glamour (and even more insanity) to the annual event in San Diego. Just last year I met the cast of Being Human and the talented actor Zachary Quinto. The year before, I saw the cast of Glee, Heroes, and the icon Stan Lee himself at a few different panels. Panels are informational sessions where casts of movie/shows, writers, comic book artists, etc. talk about upcoming movies, books, and numerous other projects. The audience usually gets to ask questions, which can be very entertaining, especially if an enthusiastic fan professes their love to a celebrity, or some other attendee asks a very specific question about episode 12 of season 4 of Battlestar Galactica.

Masquerade
This make look like just some more cosplayers, but they are part of an event called the Masquerade. This is when a large number of brave cosplayers perform a short skit in front of an audience and are then judged on their costuming craftsmanship by an esteemed panel of costume professionals. I only went once to this fantastic event, and I nearly died... of awesomeness. Even though it goes on well past 12am, I absolutely loved seeing the costume creators and they're usually humorous skits. Some outfits were bad, some were good, and some were impeccably made.



Booths
If you've ever gone to Comic Con, you would know that you get bags and bags full of free stuff. Posters, keychains, postcards, but usually fliers. I remember one time I got a little container of hand sanitizer that was given out to promote the movie Zombieland, and in another instance my friend (who was also in the Pokemon video) and I got to show our superhero strength by lifting a  mini van for the television show No Ordinary Family. Plus, I always sell my Comic Con swag on eBay, which usually proves to be very profitable.



Artists
Because I love to draw and paint all the time, I always make my way over to the artist section on the main floor of Comic Con. There, you can meet comic book artists, illustrators, and other very talented individuals. Some of the most unique artists can be found there. Who knows, maybe I'll get a booth there someday!



Latest and Greatest
This goes hand in hand with the booths, but I feel this deserves it's own section. At Comic Con, you will find the "latest and greatest" in every possible realm of nerdom. For example, last time I went to the convention, I got to try the video game Just Dance 2 before it went on the market. While this may just seem like a way for businesses to bring they're products to Comic Con attendees (and that applies to the whole event), it really is so much fun to see the "latest and greatest" stuff before everyone else does. The picture above shows the booth for The Walking Dead, in which you could take pictures with grotesque zombies. Cool, eh?

Well there's what I'm going to miss about Comic Con. If you go, however, I am forever jealous of you. Please feel free to post what you like most about the annual "nerd prom" in sunny San Diego.

television, television

In television news, the end of one of the many TV shows that I religiously watch came to an end on March 20th. That show was Big Love. There is no doubt that I will miss the notoriously disfunctional family that is the Henricksons. Even though the last episode did show a little bit of the family's life after the death of patriarch Bill, I would have love to seen even more. Farewell, Big Love. :(

"Game over man, game over."

Now if you love British television as much as I do, then you must watch Being Human and Doctor Who. If you do indeed watch these shows, you HAVE to know that Being Human just had its finale and Doctor Who will be returning on April 23rd. So basically, if you watch those shows but didn't know the previous information there is something seriously wrong with you.

Now if you do not watch Doctor Who or Being Human there is something even more wrong with you. You can't really understand how great these shows are if you don't watch them. It's like saying that you don't like a certain food, but you haven't even tried it; you may indeed like that food. So I urge you to please consider watching these shows.

Let's see... What else has been happening in television...

There's a new adorable couple on The Office! Well actually, they've been quite cute every since they first fell in love, but everything just got a whole lot crazier in the hit comedy. That's right, Michael Scott and Holly Flax are engaged! Ok, we still all love Jim, Pam, and baby Cece, but it has been about time that Michael finally starts a family of his own. You can see the proposal here:

Cute ain't it?

So who's going to be the new Scranton Regional Manager? None other than Will Ferrell! This should be nothing less of pure insanity.

Personally, I can't wait to see what happens on these awesome TV shows. We'll just have to wait and see. :)

fierce: on and off screen

BEING HUMAN WAS A-MA-ZING!

The season premiere aired just this past Friday and I'm still raving about it. It's so rare to find a show that is written, acted, and directed so well as Being Human. I truly hope everyone who reads this may have a chance to watch this show. Plus the British accents are quite awesome as well. ;)

Anyways, I've been reading Tim Gunn's book titled, "Tim Gunn: A Guide to Quality, Taste, and Style." Most of you most likely know him as the helpful instructor from Project Runway. One of the sections from his book that really intrigued me was all about fashion mentors. These are people who inspire your style and you can relate to them. I've noticed from friends and such that people tend to copy celebrities styles, rather than create they're own outfits that pay homage to they're style mentor. Note: a mentor does not have to be super  famous.

As I was pondering who my style mentor would be, many people came up, such as Zooey Deschanel, Anna Paquin, Lenora Crichlow, and even Lady Gaga.

Zooey Deschanel has been in some of my fave movies, like Elf, 500 Days of Summer, and Tin Man. I love her 50s style and, of course, her adorable hairstyle. I love that retro look!

Anna Paquin's southern style on True Blood is really cute, but I also love her red carpet looks. She has worn several Alexander McQueen looks, including the one shown above, and always seems to take fashion risks. She's the kind of person who doesn't care what any fashion critic says, because she knows she looks good.

I couldn't help but put Lenora Crichlow from Being Human in here. Like my other fashion mentors, she has taken risks and worn an awesome McQueen dress. Also, she's not super skinny like many actresses tend to be, and she knows how to dress her body well. Gotta love the brits!

Perhaps one of the biggest risk takers ever known, Lady Gaga always influences me greatly. She seriously doesn't care what people think about her style. I personally am always fascinated by her outfits. It's funny how people say they dislike what she wears and blah blah blah blah, but are they fashion risk-takers? I think not. If they really cared so much about what Gaga wears, they would've been her stylist.

And as my rant comes to an end, I urge you to find your fashion mentors. It seems like a great task to complete, but really it's quite fun! I found out quite some about myself and my mentors through my research.

Good Luck! ;)

time-wasters, fashion philosophy, and true fandom

More about fashion I suppose....

I submitted two more designs to Garmz so please, please, please vote for my designs!

Here's my 50s inspired prom dress: http://www.garmz.com/mika-elan/50s-prom-nerd

And here's my Egyptian inspired prom gown: http://www.garmz.com/mika-elan/egyptian-prom-goddess

If my designs get enough votes, they might even be made into actual clothing pieces! Which would be awesome ;)

Anyways, another cool fashion website is Polyvore, where you can create customized outfits for whatever theme you choose. It's really cool and neat, but at times can be kinda a time-waster, like garmz.

On that note, I have been on lookville recently and posted some questions... I swear, some of the people on that site are so serious about fashion. Why not be crazy with your outfits a little? People don't seem to realize that fashion is about taking risks and surprising you with unique and new ideas that have never been seen before. Unfortunately, some people do not understand that and choose to believe that only trends of the moment can be "fashionable." Those people need to save themselves before they start looking like they walked out of Wet Seal. (hint hint)

What to talk about now... hmmm.... I'll think of something eventually...

BEING HUMAN COMES BACK ON THE 19TH IN THE U.S. I am soooo excited :)

If you haven't seen that show you better start now. Like NOW... It is so good.

Oh, and I have been watching the American Being Human on Syfy as well. I like it, but it's not as awesome as the British one. Even though Josh the werewolf is quite funny. ;)

oh your sweater is so delightful

The holidays are here (finally) so I suppose I should talk about holiday stuff.
And boy there are a lot of things to talk about.

First of all, DOCTOR WHO CHRISTMAS EPISODE!!!

This has like NEVER happened before. By the time the Christmas episode comes to America, it usually airs around March and that's not nearly as fun as watching it on Christmas Day. I am soooooo excited.

   

In other TV news, Christmas Specials are airing on pretty much every channel known to mankind. Just last week The Office seasonal episode entertained audiences through Dwight and Jim's snowball "battle" and Michael's ongoing heartbreak with Holly. On Community, viewers got to see into Abed's complex mind through clay animation.



Ok that's enough of tele talk. Onto clothing.

Oh 'tis the season for awkward Christmas cards with awkward families posing awkwardly with awkward ugly Christmas sweaters. You know exactly what I'm talking about. In fact, you might even have one coming to you in the mail, or you have been a part of one.

Every family has an awkward family photo, and perhaps even a Christmas one. A necessary component of these conversation starters is the all-important ugly Christmas sweater. These extremely artistic pieces reflect the awkwardness a family. They've gained so much popularity, people are even having ugly christmas sweater parties.

I think it's so awesome that people are embracing the "ugly Christmas sweater" phenomenon. It is so nerdy couture. Happy Holidays, from Mika Elan. ;)

awards seasons greetings

Unlike most people, I actually watch award shows.
I know that they are basically a waste of time and money, but I find them very interesting. What will get Best Picture this year at the Academy Awards? Who will get Best Actor/Actress for a Drama/Comedy or Musical at the Golden Globes?
Ok, so there may be TOO many award shows out there, but at least I get to speculate and be astonished. Now, I haven't really seen that many, or any, of the nominations for movies, but I certainly have seen most of the TV shows.
Another thing that fascinates me, the red carpet fashion.
I know, I know. Everyone tends to hate that half hour or so before the actual awards show. So, I decided to dissect red carpet fashion a little by looking at what makes a red carpet look a "red carpet" look. Here's what I found:

Floor-Length Hems

I suppose that should be a given. About 90% of the dresses there were long.

   

Provocative

Even though Christina Hendricks and Halle Berry are definite hotties, their dresses added to their bombshell statuses.

    

Solid Colors

Yep. Not a lot of patterns happening on the red carpet.

    

Super High Heels

Ouch. At least they don't have to walk around that much. I think.

Well, I didn't get very far with my research. Basically, red carpet dresses are all very similar. Fortunately, there are certain celebs that choose to wear pieces that are truly unique and don't necessarily fit the "red carpet" style.

    

These lovely ladies chose to twist the normal red carpet-ware by choosing dresses that are truly different. Notice how both are floor length and Ms. Barrymore's is solid color. Both are somewhat odd, especially Barrymore's, but still very beautiful.

So, if you refuse to watch the Golden Globes or any awards show for that matter, please consider watching the few upcoming. Think of what I've said here and look for the "red carpet" style in each dress. I'm sure most of them will fit all of the parameters. ;)

passion for fashion

Haven't blogged in a while. :(
In other news, the season finale of Project Runway was so disappointing. It was clearly obvious who the TRUE winner should have been! *cough* Mondo *cough*

I loved Mondo's collection the best out of the three, but alas he didn't win. In fact, the judges were split with their opinions. Ultimately, Gretchen won with her bohemian style clothing (shown below).

In other fashion news, I found another awesome website called Garmz. On this site, aspiring designers can show they're fashion sketches and hopefully rack up points from other designers. When the design gets a lot of hype, it is the considered to be made into an actual garment, and it will eventually be sold on the website.

Of course I have an account on there: http://www.garmz.com/mika-elan/cheshire-cat-coctail-dress

If you join, please vote for my design! ;)

really? seriously?

Wow I haven't posted in a loooooooong time..... I swear I will post more often! I PROMISE!!!
Ok the Being Human finale was AMAZING!!! I am not going to tell you any of the details. You have to watch it yourself otherwise I'll ruin everything.
I drew Annie, George, and Mitchell for my art class. All three can be viewed on deviantArt: http://www.mikamoo2u2.deviantart.com/

Anyways, I got this mini catalogue in the mail displaying all the creepy, crazy costumes available at some party store. Wow. Here are some that I saw that made my eyes burn.

Sexy Freddy Krueger. AUGH MY EYES!!!!

There are some really sensible people out there. None of which created this idea for a boy's costume.

Now I ain't sayin she a gold digger.

Lil' Pimp's mom.

Oh yeah. Thats REALLY sexy.

There are TRILLIONS of terrible costumes..... Go forth and find one more awful then the ones I have selected. I DARE YA

homemade masterpiece

Hey y'all. ;)
So when I was watching Being Human a couple weeks ago, a commercial came on for a video tribute contest for the show. I told my bff at once about the contest and we squealed in excitement.
So we thought about possible scenes to re-enact. We have a friend that looks EXACTLY like George but he was busy. So we decided to choose a scene with Annie because I kinda look like her. ;)
And then I thought my bff looks a lot like Amy Pond from Doctor Who so we added her in there too. ;)
If you watch Doctor Who and Being Human you'll think our video is pretty hilarious. And it is.
Here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNNRZL2KWcw
Enjoy our masterpiece! ;)

british love

Some of the most emotional, lovely, awesome, and wonderful TV shows are from Britian. If you're from America, like me, then you have to watch these programs on BBC America. If you do not get BBC on your tele, then you're missing out on some of the best tv shows out there.
Here's a list: Being Human, Doctor Who, Primeval, Top Gear, The Choir, Survivors, Come Dine With Me, Torchwood, etc.
Unfortunately, Torchwood, Primeval, and Survivors are over, but you should definately buy the DVDs online.
Here's the link to BBC America's website: http://www.bbcamerica.com/

From monsters to aliens to dinosaurs to sports cars, BBC America will sure to have a show (or several shows) that accommodate your television taste buds.