DRIP DRIP

I got better from my “mysterious” illness and back pains, thanks to a combo of anti-biotics and liquid magnesium (this stuff deserves a post in and of itself, seriously!). But then I found myself in a rut. It took all I had in me to leave the house for an hour or two to go draw in a cafe with Andrew. But I wore my nice new ASOS raincoat, anyway! I am not totally cool with still having to wear a raincoat and boots in mid-May, but oh well. At least now I can look good, or rather, “appropriately dressed” when it’s drizzling out.

Sorry I’m always smoking in photos. I’m always smoking in general, though, so at least it’s honest! Also, my rain boots are from Marc By Marc Jacobs, my umbrella is from I DUNNO, my glasses are from a brand called “KISS”, and my sweaterdress is from H&M (this is the garment I always default to when I can’t decide on an outfit, I love it).

ASOS HAUL

Hey! I don’t normally make these kinds of posts, but I’m sick and kind of bored, and I love copying Bronny because she’s a Baberaham Lincoln. This is what I just ordered from Asos!!

a) Plastic Rainmac ! Ok I live in Vancouver, OK? I need a raincoat. I have a decent one that’s pretty ugly/utility from North Face that I wear to like the gym on the rare day where I actually exercise, but I’ve been looking for a more traditional one for a long time. I’m not big into how shiny it is, but I love the cut and I love a yellow raincoat so let’s just grab our brellies and wellies and call this good enough (I am not English).

b) Okay Bronny has this too! And it’s reasonably similar to the skirt I wore in my last outfit post, but it’s black and white! and midi-length, which I’m told is the most ~flattering for my bigbumbody. I would wear this with a plain white tank, cool shades and 70s sandals in the summertime. Can’t wait.

c) Hole-y cardigan in grey. It seems like no matter how many cardigans I purchase, I can never seem to layer them well and I often go out in a sleeveless dress and jacket in the middle of winter. I like that this has some texture to it, and I like the cropped silhouette.

d) “Spot Pac-A-Parka”. The British apparently have a confusing idea of what a “Parka” is, but this looks like a reasonably cute mid-season coat, which I apparently can’t get enough of. 

e) Cord Peg Trousers in Rose. Pink pants for spring!! These will look just fine with loose tanks and plimsoles.

f) Spot Trousers …Possibly my most questionable/potentially regrettable choice. They look comfy anyway. 

I also bought myself a whole whack of “vintage” style lingerie from Secrets in Lace because I am a lady. Or I am an awkward tomboy nerd trying very hard to be a lady. Either way, it just feels like the right time to start carefully shovelling my breasts into a bullet bra.

K.I.S.S

So I guess, in a way, to dampen the resounding douchechill we’re feeling as Canadians right now (and in my case to forget about what an old lady I feel like since my back is really REALLY bad right now and how I’ve woken up incrementally more crippled with each passing morning and I’m afraid to go to a doctor), Andrew and I went to check out Nuba’s new location at The Waldorf Hotel in Vancouver. We’re layabout shut-ins, so we hadn’t actually even been to The Waldorf yet, despite it’s status as The Place To Be in Vancouver and the fact that they hold events I am actually interested in. The last time I visited was at a friend’s wedding reception in the Tiki Lounge years ago, long before the renos. 

It didn’t disappoint! Although, as much as I appreciate how true to the building’s heritage the renos and decor are, I do really prefer the atmosphere in Nuba’s West Hastings street location in the Dominion Building! For those not in Vancouer, Nuba is some of the tastiest, most veggie/vegan/health friendly Lebanese food you can find. In addition to the two locations I’ve just described, they have a third kind of takeout lunch spot closer to yaletown. Where you can grab the best falafel wrap the city has to offer. I ordered (and actually ate) a surprising amount of food. Haloumi, Hummus, Tabouli, Baba Ganoush, Falafel, and my favourite… Najib’s Special (FRIED LEMONY CAULIFLOWER WITH TWO DELICIOUS SAUCES)! Yum. Basically so long ago it qualifies as another life, I dated a guy who was an original part owner and I never even bothered to try it until like two years ago. Now it’s one of my favourites.

They played “Needle in the Camel’s Eye” by Brian Eno, which is a reasonable segue into my “good books”.

Also it exists in one of my favourite Vancouver neighbourhoods. Kind of an old, industrial district close to the Burrard inlet on the North side of Hastings East. I used to live not far away, and I loved to ride my bike around there for hours at night. I’d like to see more businesses popping up there, without the area becoming completely gentrified, but that’s a total pipe dream probably.

Anyway, I wore:

Glasses - Vintage
Jacket - Thrifted Gap
Necklace - House of Harlowe
DEEP V - AA (bought with “incentive” $$ when I worked there)
Skirt - Filippa K
Stockings - Calvin Klein
Shoes - SAS* 
Bag - See by Chloé 

OH! Before I forget, if you’re looking for a great cut/colour in Vancouver, please visit my friend Barbra who just began work at Beehive Salon! Believe it or not, I met Barbara when _I_ was in hair school (for like two minutes). Barbara finished what I only started, and now she’s one of the most talented hairdressers I know (I only know talented hairdressers, though). She’s really great with colour, texture, bangs and length! 

She did the baleage ombré dyejob on me that you see above! I wish I would have made more of an effort to do my hair for the photos so you could see how great my colour and bangs are right now, but instead you get my dirty, cowlicky, product-heavy bedhead. 

Go see Barbara at Beehive!! 

* The shoes are ones I’ve been kind of weirdly coveting for years. They’re granny/nurse/waitress shoes and they’re supper supportive and comfortable. I bought them in a fit of desperation when I was downtown a few weeks ago; the other 7$ H&M shoes I was wearing ended up in the trash. I’ve been ruining my back with paper-thin flats for years, and I needed to bring something sensible into the mix. Pretty much the opposite of “sexy”, but I can live with that.

TREVOR & MAREK

I hung out with Trevor and Marek for a few sunny hours yesterday while they played chess in Marek’s mom’s backyard.

These were edited with K.Miller’s photoshop actions + a few of my own sneaky tricks. 

SPRING RAIN

It’s easy to miss all the changes going on outside, because the unrelenting drizzle inspires a certain hibernation-mode. It’s a time to put your nose to the grindstone, but don’t be afraid to pop your head out every now and then. Summer’s coming and it will be here before you know it.

Also; it should be noted that all tortiose-shell and calico cats are named “Patches” and assumed female, by default.

FACIAL PRODUCTZ

Hey! Someone, somewhere asked me to do a post about beauty products. Since I am lazy and still (still!) busy setting things up around here, I thought I’d just write really quick and dirty about my skin care “regime”.

There exist a number of catch-22s that one comes across when “trapped” in the “misogynist” “prison” of “performing femininity”. Your skin has to be dewy, nubile and soft while keeping a matte, porcelain texture and somehow not showing any signs of oil or pores. Your hair has to be full, thick and voluminous without being dull or frizzy.  Here you have three choices; you break free from your shackles and exist on the fringe in a community of likewise people, you live your life in horrible bondage attempting to live up to an arbitrary beauty standard that doesn’t actually exist anywhere. Or you shrug and deal with whatever solution is “good enough” and go on being the girly, product/style-obsessed individual that you are (while still being aware of your role of supporting a system of fascist beauty standards).

Whatever, I’m a ball-biting feminist, but I like having “enhanced” femininity; pretty skin, pretty hair, pretty clothes. I define what pretty is for myself, but it doesn’t mean that I don’t shell out major dollars for anything with tasteful packaging and empty promises.

My skin is OKAY. It exists in this wonderful “transition period” where it’s still slightly acne prone and oily, but starting to wrinkle-up and become dry in certain areas too. Also, did I mention it’s sensitive? It’s sensitive, too. I smoke, I often don’t get enough sleep and I drink coffee. So my skin is just OKAY. Nothing short of a miracle (hint: they don’t exist) will change this.

I’ve been using my current ~regime for over a year now. It’s not miraculous, but every aspect of it addresses a specific issue without exacerbating another one. If that makes sense. Also, for the most part, these products last a good while if I exercise moderation when using them. I use all the cleansing/acne products + eye cream before I go to sleep at night, and I just use the jurlique cleanser and Bobbi moisturizers when I wake up.

(from left to right, clockwise)

1) SHU UEMURA CLEANSING OIL - Usually I use the pink one (balancing), but that was sold out when I went to replenish, so I’ll be using the purple one (brightening) in the interim. These work really well at getting rid of every last smidge of makeup on your face (and I use a pot-eyeliner that’s essentially grease paint), without ravaging the delicate skin around your eyes. They leave behind a slight film of moisture too, which I believe protects you from getting too dried out when you cleanse.

2)JURLIQUE BALANCING FOAMING CLEANSER - This is really gentle, yet it does a good job of minimizing oiliness. I read a good review of it once, and I’ve been hooked ever since. This leaves your skin feeling really refreshed and clean without stripping it and leaving it taut and dry.

3)PROACTIVE 3-STEP SYSTEM - You’ve seen the commercials. This is the only thing that keeps my mild adult acne at bay. It’s not perfect, but if I stop using it, I break out. Nothing else has worked so well. Usually I skip the toner because I find it a little too drying, but I’ll use it if I’m PMSin’ to try and reduce the amount of breakouts I experience during that ~special time. 

4) BOBBI BROWN HYDRATING FACE CREAM & HYDRATING EYE CREAM - These are probably my most prized facial products!! Previously, I had a lot of trouble locating a face cream that moisturized enough without making me break out. I had a really bad experience with Creme de la Mer, where my face wound up covered in tiny, angry bumps, and I had to give it to my mother. Basically anything that has mineral oils in it causes me to break out terribly, and unfortunately a lot of old lady creams are chocker-block full of mineral oils! Bobbi’s creams are MAGIC! Honestly! I know I said no miracles, but these are. Almost. The face cream is really rich and super hydrating, but at the same time almost acts as a primer (I haven’t found a single primer that hasn’t also caused me to break out big time), giving you a bit of mattification and plumping up your creaks and cracks. It also won’t cause your makeup to slide off your face midway through the day. The eye cream soaks right in and completely obliterates that “crepe paper” look that my eyelids have been sporting lately, without irritating my eyes and making them water all day, which basically everything else does.

Also, wear sunscreen (I use a foundation with SPF built in), drink lots of water and eat your fruits and veggies! Taking b vitamins, fish oil/omega 3 supplements, and antioxidants doesn’t hurt either. My morning tablet collection is enough to choke even the most seasoned pill-popper, but I truly believe in the power of supplements.

So there, to whoever asked, I hope that helps! I know everyone is different, but this is what (mostly) works for me.

PS: Speaking of quick and dirty, I did an embarrassingly hasty re-design of the blog. I’m still tinkering with it, so I hope it doesn’t offend you horribly! I’m also working on setting up a twitter specifically for thefullnilson, so add me if you like! I hope to get it off the ground later tonight. I’m hoping to eventually move to wordpress, but that’s a future future future project ^_^

MISC DEBRIS

Hello! I’ve made various ambitious promises of specific posts, but I haven’t made good on any of that yet. I’ve been really distracted with (still) getting everything set up here, various projects and trying to keep it positive and fun in the face of certain adversities~!

I found out a little while ago that I didn’t get accepted back into Emily Carr University of Art and Design to carry on with my undergraduate studies like I wanted to. It was a pretty big blow to my ego, since that is the very reason why I live here in Vancouver, and it seemed for a long time like fate and aligned stars and everything. So I took it in, did a little bit of sad drinking and spent a few days thinking about what to do. I remembered that my instructors from a one year design program at a local community college said that I could return to that program and finish it any time I wanted (do you see a pattern of not finishing things I start? I do). So I’ve been emailing with them, and I’m going to reapply to the program and start it all over again (rather than wait for the off chance of someone dropping out and me being able to be an “insert” for the second half of the program). Hopefully the reason my applications was rejected at Emily had more to do with admin policy than the actual quality of my work (since I was at one point offered admission and attended the school part time for three years), and I can maybe transfer if I decide I really need to spend another three or four years getting a potentially useless degree. I have other plans, but I don’t really need anymore doors shut in my face at my ~advanced age~. 

So as you can see I’ve been feeling pretty bratty, which probably explains the above photo.

Also I’ve been drawing pictures of beautiful girls I know from the WWW in maybe a desperate attempt to stay relevant as an “artist”.

This is beautiful Gabi of http://www.youngfatandfabulous.com. I have been friends with Gabi on the internet for like six years! Whoa. And I’ve been really lucky to see her transform into a superstar (Did you know she is MTV’s first official Twitter Jockey?). I’ll stop namedropping now, but this girl has a place in my heart for life, for real.

And this is Stina of http://nofutvre.blogspot.com. Another internet friend, I’ve had a raging girlcrush on Stina for ages too. I apparently only have crazy/sexy/cool friends, but Stina might be the coolest. She has perfect taste, the most serious DIY ethic I’ve ever seen and, well, just look at her face.

If you can’t tell, I sadly used my bad scanner (the one that came with my cheap-o printer) to scan the Gabi drawing before I remembered to take out my good scanner for Stina’s drawing. I dunno what I’m going to do with all these drawings yet (there are more pending!!), but I’ll scan ‘em all proper when I figure it out.

Anyway peace out ! 

Hey dudes! We have been so insano-brain busy setting this place up. It has exceeded my wildest (well, not really my wildest, there is no TV in the bathroom and my bed doesn’t fly, like in Little Nemo) expectations. I really thought I would miss having old fir floors, a cute little balcony, skeleton keys, a clawfoot tub and HEATED honeycomb tiles in the bathroom… But really as soon as I was presented with a dishwasher, ensuite laundry and a separate room for an office, I changed my tune. So much for romance! 

It has provided us with some unique challenges… For one, moving downstairs is not as easy as it sounds. It means you’ll think you can do everything by yourself, so you won’t call for adequate help in time, and you will spend two twelve hour days walking up and down stairs carrying awkward, heavy objects. Since the landlord (to whom you are the only tenant) will now occupy your old space, you need to make sure you leave it in tip-top shape, so he’ll keep being really nice to you. There’s another twelve hours. Once downstairs, the sloping ceiling and low bulkhead in the bedroom meant I had to be rid of my beloved PAX wardrobe system from IKEA (I really did think I would live upstairs forever - and no one could afford to give me a decent price for it and in the end it couldn’t be moved downstairs without being destroyed) and look for a solution that would fit (IKEA’s STUVA system for babies to the rescue!). We’re still grappling with inadequate storage (especially for two ~creative artistes~ - JK, but we do have a lot of gear and supplies) and how to put up beautiful decorations and meaningful artworks.

Also, would you believe it’s a “basement suite”? Personally, though I’m obviously a bit biased, I think it doesn’t feel like one. Don’t rule them out!

Anyway, enjoy those stupid cellphone pictures. Once we get the office more set up, I will make a blog post proper — I have a lot of handy tips for renters (I’ve now lived in 8 different rentals for a total of 10 years!) and handy tips for shopping IKEA (guess what I used to furnish those 8 different rentals!!!) and elsewhere for rentals while on a budget. 

A QUICK ONE WHILE HE’S AWAY

As I wind up to move, I thought I’d squeeze in one more update because it may be a while before I’m organized or motivated enough to do it again. I have a lot of packing, moving, unpacking, building, organizing, decorating and adjusting to do. Probably a lot of chain smoking, aggressive music listening and exhausted drinking too. I am actually, legitimately sorry that all I make time for is outfit posts lately. On one hand, it’s shallow and boring, on the other hand it’s easy and self-indulgent. The latter being two descriptions I’m entirely comfortable with.

This is something I just threw on to go to IKEA for the umpteenth time in the past few weeks. It won’t be the last, either. This is kind of how I dress most of the time, I guess? I put more effort into my makeup than I do with my outfits most of the time. Sort of residual tom boy status, I guess. Yesterday I got a pretty creepy-ass anonymous comment on one of my posts about black tights (I’m fairly certain my standard reading demographic doesn’t use words like “classic” and “elegant” unless in jest, and I’ve had an inundation of fetishists perving up my flickr account [PANTYDUDE20, I’M LOOKING AT YOU]), but I’d already forgotten about it by the time I got Andrew to take the photos. So black-tights pervert, if you’re reading this, FUCK YOU. My self-indulgent outfit photos are not your porn. And I’m neither “elegant” or “classic”, and I like it that way.

Sunnies: SUPER
Jacket: H&M
T-shirt: Splendid
Bag: INSIGHT
Skirt: American Apparel
Tights: Calvin Klein
Shoes: F-Troupe 

I wear these shoes almost everyday, and I think they’re nearly ready to give up the ghost (leather soles, Vancouver, irresponsibility etc.). I’ll be real sad if they do because I don’t think they’re manufactured anymore. 

Anyway, see you again when I’m less of a frazzled nightmare! 

PxNxW

I am loving the weather and atmosphere these days. Sometimes I start getting wanderlust or wanting to move, and then days like this happen and I’m reminded of the moody, magic beauty of the Pacific Northwest. It’s all Gus Van Zant movies and Nirvana songs and teenagers drinking and screwing and holding satanic rituals in wet cedar forests and rainy and moldy and gloomy. I know it seems flakey (and probably a little too “current”) to describe things this way, but I can’t help myself.

I am trying out a long dress! I haven’t worn a long dress like this since I was a teenager screwing in the forest (JK! Hi Mom!)! I used to have a similar plain black maxi tank dress that I also wore with docs. The past few years have been all about reviving and paying homage to my inner adolescent ghost.  

Dress: Asos
Jacket: Asos
Boots: Doc Martens
Ring: Asos
“Crystal” necklace: local shop
Other necklace: House of Harlowe
Umbrella: asian dollar store (I buy them in bulk, practically) 

The photos were a collaborative effort between Andrew and I.