Right Off Broadway, frnkiero

all these pics were taken by me

Sunday, the 26th of July 2015 I attended my very first concert, it being frnkiero andthe cellabration.

And I thought my ears were going to bleed profoundly.

 

Though I don't know a lot of the words, I am fond of this band and I really enjoyed myself. The venue itself was rather small, so no matter where we were, we were pretty close to the stage, and it was crazy. Being my first concert, I was very overwhelmed by the sheer loudness and shocked at how loud it could be. After I got over myself, it didn't seem too crazy loud and got used to the sound being right on me. I loved the atmosphere. The opening act was The Homeless Gospel Choir. At first, I wasn't a fan, but then I grew to like the music. Contrary to the name, it was just one guy, Derek Zanetti, and he had quite the sense of humor. It was just Derek and his guitar for the opening, and the crowd loved it. He talked with the crowd and began every song with "This is a protest song" and he has such a unique personality; couldn't have asked for a better dude to open such a great concert, he even came on to sing a song with Frank. And, before frnkiero and the cellabration came on stage, they had this weird recording playing of Frank just talking for like five minues. 'Twas weird. Once they finally did come on, though, it was great. Frank sang with such emotion, it was crazy.

He was also sweating pretty hardcore, and, for some reason, kept on spitting like a geyser into the crowd. Since they had to leave immediately after playing they couldn't meet or sign anything, so they played their whole discography! Even though they wouldn't be able to sign anything, I was stoked they'd be playing literally everything they'd ever sang/wrote. I recorded my two favorite songs, Weighted and Stage 4 Fear of Trying, on my camera and took so many pictures. In one of my recordings (Stage 4 Fear of Trying) you can hear the audience finish this one part that Frank didn't sing and I think that'd be so great as an artist to hear. I am in love with concert-going.

From this experience, I know that I really want to go many more concerts in my future, especially one in which I know most of the songs and words *hint hint: twenty one pilots*.

 

     Derek of The Homeless Gospel Choir was in the back at the merch table signing stuff at the end of the concert, and my pals and I met him (why Frank wasn't there, I'm not sure). Boy, was he supe'chill. I got a cassette tape signed by him and a Polariod of a cool flower I snapped right outside the venue signed as well. We also got my friend's father to snap a pic of us with Derek with my Polariod cam and then Derek kept the picture! I dunno if I looked good in the picture or not, but I hope I did.

 

     By the end of the night, I had a frnkiero necklace, a signed THGC cassette tape (with digital download, of course), a signed Polariod pic, and a frnkiero guitar pick that my pal caught and gave to me. We were SO close to getting a drum stick, but it was just out of our grasp. I also stink stankin' forgot to get a fricken shirt doggonitt. The FIATC shirts were super cool, too, the one I wanted had "No Fun Club" on it and was long sleeved. Now I can't find it on the website, and it's so frustrating. It was a fun night on the town, though.

 

Soon enough, I'll be posting some pics of the outfit I wore the night of the concert. And, maybe one of the videos I shot at the concert. Maybe. If you guys want me to post it, let me know in the comments, and I probably will. It was an amazing experience, thanks for listening to me share!

Whatever, It's A Pencil Bag

School is coming up, and after seeing some really cute pencil bags on Pinterest, I decided I should find myself one. One bag I saw online had simple white canvas with "plants are friends' stitched in along with some lil stitched plants. I thought that was adorable, so in search of a blank pencil bag I headed to Target, then to Wal-Mart the next day. Not able to find a bag of any sort I liked, I decided I might as well make one.

 

excuse the profanity, haha

     Just the other day I got some cross stitch fabric (blue and white, both size 14) and, wanting to try my hand at cross-stitching, decided that's what my pencil bag would be made out of. Following the directions of this tutorial, I got to work. I started by picking and printing off the pattern I chose, which was a little unicron (yes, unicron), of course.  Printing is optional, but I did because it makes the process of stitching a lot easier on the eyes. Using the blue aida material and some plain white cotton for the lining, I snipped out the pieces I'd need. Rather than using regular thread, I got myself some nice embroidery floss, which is particularly used for cross-stitching. For my purposes, I pulled apart the floss so that I had only four strings for each piece I used. If you use floss, you'll know what I mean, but normal thread works just as fine. To stitch in the unicorn, I used a small hoop, but that also isn't necessary; half way through, I stopped using the hoop because it was easier to not to. Usually, using the hoop leaves an indention, so I had to run a hot iron over it to get the creases out. I would suggest flipping over the fabric and NOT ironing straight onto the image stitched. I did and it left some burn marks or something on the white of the unicorn. After finishing the stitching, I made a quick Jo-ann's run and got a purple zipper. Fortunately the tutorial I used was pretty explanatory, because sewing the zipper on was rather difficult. Sewing the pieces together, on the other hand, took no time at all; the longest point was me deciding whether or not I should put a tag, and I decided against it. For two days, in my spare time, I stitched this little gem together and I have to say I really love how it turned out.

hot iron burn marks are barely visible, thank gosh

     What I spent the most time on was the cross-stitching. Piecing the bag together was quick; I've sewn a bag before and I've sewn a zipper before. Cross-stitching, on the other hand, was a new experience for me. But, I have to say, I wish I'd known what cross stitching was earlier. It's a simple method that has so many variations. Pixilated images from video games and whatnot are super simple to transform into a cross stitch pattern. There are also websites and programs that can be used to make your very own patterns from most images. Pic2Pat is a great pattern-making website I discovered on Pinterest. It's free and easy to use. Cross-stitching is fun, simple, and not all that expensive. Most floss skeins are only about 40 cents each and the aida (cross stitch fabric) is pretty cheap and can be bought in large quantities. Though it can be quite time consuming, the finished product is well worth it.

     I plan on making several other cross-stitched things and look forward to sharing them! If you have any suggestions, just drop them in the comments below, thanks!

The 1975

While out looking for Blurryface, I happened upon The 1975 CD on clearance. Chocolate, their song that hit the top charts, was the only song I had heard before. Even though I had heard only that song, I loved the style of music and trusted my iTunes radio station that I'd like this artist.

     On the way back home from the store, I popped the disc in and listened. I have to say, I really like almost every song; a few are just, bleh, but the rest are amazing. The style of the music is so unique and the singer has a very distinct voice, I like it. I guess the sound is almost retro. Like with most, I don't have a 'favorite' song out of this CD, but I really like She Way Out and Chocolate a lot. This isn't the kind of music I'd jam out to, but instead chill to. It's nice to draw to and relax to. The disc and case is very simple and pretty and I love the way it looks. The vinyl is so pretty, too. I think I even saw one that was pink. The 1975 isn't my favorite group, it's more of an acquired sound, but they are good and I'm still getting used to this new style (at least new to me).

     Another group with a similar, retro sound I recently discovered is The Wombats. One song I had heard by them a long while ago on my Bastille iTunes Radio Stations was Jump Into the Fog, but I never looked into it. After listening to their album This Modern Glitch on YouTube, this disc got added to my extensive list of music to purchase. I'm pretty sure the vinyl was also at the place where I got my Bastille vinyl, so I may check back there for it. With this new path, I'll be posting lots of musical trash and treasure I find!

 

I may have said this before, but soon I'll be posting a picture of all my CDs together in a stack to allow you a look at my lovely collection. I'll probably include what each disc is and my favorite song(s) from each album. I also have a lot of fashion posts are the way, so don't go off the grid yet!

Not Matte About This

Product Review: Sally Hansen Big Matte Top Coat

 

Recently, I've purchased Sally Hansen's Matte Finish top coat, and I have to say I really like it. Many reviews and tutorials on a matte finish have warned of the difficulties of acquiring this look, but I have to say I had no trouble getting it on. I also read how this top coat amplifies blemishes in the polish, but if anything what mistakes I made with the color just got blurred by the matte finish. The only thing I have to pick at is that the flat-ness fades or something after a few days. Most polishes loose their newness a little over a week after being painted, but the flat look lasts half that time. All I did to fix that was just a quick swipe over all my nails with the top coat and-bam-flat! By the time the matte fades, though, I'm already ready for a different color.

     Since getting this finish, I've tried this gorgeous lapis lazuli blue and plain black, both colors I love. Flat black is such a chic color and can coordinate with just about any look. Not only is it trendy at the moment, it's a tried-true classic that won't ever be out of style. I personally do not like glossy black nail polish, it's just no my look, I much prefer it's flat counterpart. Black is a lovely color, done right, and doesn't make you an emo. Deep blue, on the other hand, is very bold (as well as the black), and is rather difficult to work with style wise. Of course, not every outfit has to be perfectly planned with your nail color of the day, but sometimes it's nice to have it all flow together. For me, I used the blue as a bold pop of color with rather neutral and simple looks. If coordinated well, I think this blue would also look great with an array of colors. I didn't experiment much with outfits and the blue because the color chipped away after only a few days. It wasn't because of the poor quality of the polish, it was Essie, but it was because I had been going to the pool often while wearing that color and I guess hit the sides of the pool enough to wear away my nail lacquer.

 

     Overall, I really like this product and definitely recommend it to any person trying to achieve that big matte finish. Other than it's short life expectancy, Sally definitely came through and delivered another great nail product.

My rating: 8/10 for it's lack of longevity

Getting My First Vinyl

For a while, I've been talking and debating about starting my own vinyl collection, and I've finally done it. While at Vintage Stock in our nearby mall, I wondered over to the used and new vinyl/CD section and finally decided it was time.

     V-Stock has a great collection, so obviously there were more than one I wanted to get. I remember there being a Red Hot Chili Peppers record, but I didn't know the album, so I did not get that one. There was also twenty one pilots' Vessel vinyl, which I was extremely excited to see, but also didn't get because I now plan on purchasing that online (it is the same price there and online). The online Vessel  vinyl I know is clear (like see through), and since I was unable to open up the record in the store, I didn't know if it would also be a clear record. There was also a Florence and the Machine (album Lungs) record, but I'm not too familiar with that music, so I didn't purchase that one either. Most of the vinyl, even though mostly used, was very expensive, which kept me from getting a few that I liked. But, then my brother pulls out a Bastille Remixed record, for only $10.99. It was a

lovely sight. I liked a few of the remixes that I had heard, and since it was Bastille, knew that this was a worthy purchase. I was still stuck between Bastille and Vessel. The deal breaker was the price: Bastille Remixed was ten dollars cheaper than Vessel and I hadn't brought much money with me in the first place.

     I've yet to listen to my actual record yet; the only record player I have available to me is at my grandma's house. But, I have listened to the Remix album online and I like most of the songs! My favourite would have to be the remix of Laura Palmer. Hopefully, we will be getting a record player at home, and I'm very excited that purchase will happen eventually. As my vinyl collection increases, the need for a player will be more evident to my family. Currently, I am searching for a nice looking cassette player to double as a clock in my room, and I've yet to find one that suits me. I have quite a few of cassettes, but the one tape player we have doesn't work, so I've been itching to get a working player to have in my room. To get: a cassette and record player.

'Bad Blood' CD vs. 'Remixed' LP

 

     This is the first issue of Expanding My Music: Vinyl Edition. As I get more physical music including CDs, cassettes, and vinyl, I will be posting it! Next on my wishlist is either Vessel or Blurryface LP. (I also learned today that "LP" refers to records)

Bastille Embroidery

What would you do if band merchandise is out of your reach? Well, I went ahead and made my own. Since I have such issues finding band shirts I like, or at least finding places that sell shirts I like, I decided to make my very own shirt.
      What I used:


you can probably see the butter stain

• black fabric
• blank shirt
• embroidery hoop
• black, embroidery thread
• sewing needle
• scissors (that's a given, right?)

     Bastille is a group I adore, and their merchandise is rather bland or unavailable to me at reasonable prices. I don't recall what compelled me to make this shirt, but I did and I like the way it turned out. Their logo is rather simple and, as I assumed, easy to recreate, even with embroidery. With a blank, grey shirt I started

brainstorming ideas I wanted for my Bastille shirt. After flipping through a stack of papers in my fashion folder, I found I had their logo already printed out in the size I'd need it. To make it easy on me, I just traced the letters from the printed image onto a sheet of wax paper. The difficult part was clipping the letters out after tracing them. I then pinned the letters onto black fabric and painstakingly cut fabric letters from the wax paper ones. At first, I had just planned on stitching the black letters on, but I did and they looked too... unprofessional, I guess. So, I then got some thick black embroidery thread and double threaded it in a long-ish needle and embroidered each letter completely; covering the fabric letters all together. I used an embroidery hoop to make sure the material was pulled taut; using a hoop just makes it a LOT easier, but isn't necessary. Even though it took a long while to complete, I am very satisfied with the results. The most difficult part was honestly making sure that the letters were even and not slanted. Sounds easy, but constantly tugging at the material causes even pinned fabric to get pulled out of place. The B is a bit higher than the rest of the letters, but it isn't too noticeable, I don't think. Once finished, I was worried that when I washed it the thread would come undone, but it didn't! It has actually survived a few washes, so I have to say I am pretty proud of my handy work in the shirt industry. Now I have a Bastille shirt to add to my growing collection of band merch.
     Next, I plan on doing a twenty one pilots shirt or a Panic! At the Disco shirt. Not sure yet, but I'll keep you all updating as I continue to try out new methods of shirt making and whatnot. I've found some new things to try when it comes to tee making, so a lot of what I'll be posting in the near future will be my journey in the craft of tee-shirt designing. Stay tuned for my next creation!