Tokyo, Tea & Me

So everytime I aim for a text rich blog post, I come up with a bunch of no-need-to-explain images culled from the web. And when I want a less wordy post, I seem to find all sorts of things to say and take the longest time in doing so. SPOILER: this is probably going to be one of those posts.

Here, let me distract you by a gorgeous picture:

This blossom of springtime was found on the blog, My floor is Red. Posted by a lovely beauty named Nathalie Maggiori, this is a blog that chronicles well executed daily outfits and artfully shot photos. One gets the feeling the Nathalie lives life fully in front and behind the camera.

Six months ago, I had never heard of My Floor is Red, or the Style Rookie, or Another Day to Dress Up. I'm a late-bloomer, so to speak, and this world of fashion-blogging was completely unknown to me. Enter The Sartorialist, and that changed everything. The original intent for the Citizen's blogging was to promote the happenings at the Citizen Rosebud, and we at the Citizen Rosebud thought of blogging as more of a marketing instrument than a work of mixed media/ART.

Then the blogging bug bit, and I've become completely smitten by the act of blogging, which is sooo much more than a post or two, but a wonderful way to share in a global community of individuals who love the things you do, and to be inspired (and hopefully inspire) to see the world in a slightly different way. So blogging for me is just as much about checking in on my blog-mates' blogs, like Emily's Pamja Libra: A Look Book, and Marta's Weirzbowawitka than about posting my (almost) daily posts.

And then there's the street-fashion blogs. THE CITIZEN IS IN LOVE !!!!! Seriously, had NO idea how much I love street fashion. LOVE IT! So the blogs that have stolen my heart  have been street fashion blogs the creme de la creme being Wayne Tippet's Photography at Streetstyle Aesthetic, Tommy Ton's Jak & Jil Blog, the Street Hearts, of course the grand-pappy of all street fashion blogs, The Sartorialist.

Then there are the wonderful street photographers. Great writing and stories and photos all about fashion can be found at the amazing Street Style by Polka Dot. And I have to mention the incredibly warm portraits taken by a New York photographer at The Photodiarist. She actually has TWO blogs, one of her black & white photography and one of her color photos. Both are always a delight to look at. Here's a picture she took of the springtime magnolia blossoms:

And then, my darlings, there are the Tokyo blossoms. Shit. I would say one of the biggest thrills this past year for me has been exploring the fecund and exploding world of Japanese street fashion. To say it is taking over the world, just may be an understatement. While I have enjoyed the wacky street fashion photos of these street savvy Fruits over the years, the influence and impact of these Tokyo teenagers has been keenly felt and seen in designers and others cities the world over. Last year, in far-away places like  Helsinki & Copenhagen, for-christ-sake, the Harajuku fashions was cited as being the biggest influence on their style.  The following photo is courtesy of TokyoFashion.com

I warned you this was going to be a rambling post, didn't I? And this coming to a little tea-time chat about MY photos, or recent lack thereof. I've been unhappy with my little digital camera, and have been unable to take full-length self-portraits of my outfits, and while I've been fortunate to have found a few friendly volunteers to take my pic, haven't been too happy with the result. I've gone weeks wearing adorable outfit after outfit, but can't always find the right time or place to chronicle it.

Recently we've acquired a beautiful mannequin off Ebay, but there is something lacking in the shot of outfits on it. It COULD be my poor photography skills, or just that clothes on mannequins lack the personality and charm a person adds to outfits. See Another Day to Dress Up for an example of great outfits propelled by OOooodles of CHARM & PERSONALITY. So I've sort of accidentally stopped taking photos, and so have relied upon the wealth of the informationsuperhighway to illustrate this blog. I hope you don't mind.

But today, I'm going to try to get out there, camera in hand and take some shots of my day. Maybe even my outfit. We'll see.

If you've made it this far, hats off to you. I'd like to thank-you for the wealth of your attentions!

xo. xo. -Bella Q