VIA «Current inspiration | Art»

Şanlıurfa Museum Director Müslüm Ercan said the Şanlıurfa Museum Complex, which opened last month, was home to many precious artifacts. “One of these artifacts is this mosaic,” he added.

He noted that the mythological poet Orpheus’ mosaic was believed to have been created in 194 A.D., and that it was being displayed in a special area in the museum.

In the mythological story, Orpheus goes to Hades to ask for his wife, Eurydice, after she received a fatal bite from a viper. Skilled at the lyre, Orpheus softened the heart of Hades, who gave him permission to take back Eurydice to the world above, provided that he not look back at her until both had exited the underworld.

Orpheus, however, looked back at his wife after he had exited the land of the dead, but before she had also crossed the threshold into the world above. As punishment, Eurydice was immediately taken back into the underworld, this time forever.

“A source of inspiration for many philosophical schools, Orpheus is a figure that decorates the ground of many rock tombs since it is related to the underworld and death. In our mosaics, Orpheus calms wild animals with his lyre and all of the animals gather to listen to his music,” Ercan said.

Found at Dallas Museum of Art

Ercan said they had made attempts to repatriate the mosaic when they discovered that it was on display at the Dallas Museum of Art. “The Culture and Tourism Ministry sent a letter to our museum to examine the issue. Its style was exactly the same as the Şanlıurfa region’s typical Syriac mosaics. With the detailed work of the ministry, the chief public prosecutor’s office and the museum, the mosaic was returned from the U.S. in 2012.”

After returning from the U.S., the mosaic was put on display at the Istanbul Archaeology Museum for nearly a year before being returned to Şanlıurfa.

The Mosaic of Orpheus, dated to A.D. 194, is known as the earliest Edessa – the Hellenistic name for Şanlıurfa – mosaic that archaeologists have yet dated. The mosaic was taken abroad by smugglers after its discovery by J.B. Segal in 1950 in Şanlıurfa.

Source: Hurriyet Daily News [June 10, 2015]

The singer, who is currently dating footballer Wayne Bridge, was dressed in a short striped navy, white and peach dress with a suede dark brown leather jacket.
She finished off her look with a pair of oversized sunglasses and a pair of brown peep-toe ankle boots.
Frankie arrived at the radio station with her bandmate Una Healy, who was bright in a strapless tangerine-coloured maxi dress with gladiator sandals.
WAG style: The Saturdays singer appeared to have taken some inspiration from Victoria Beckham's short crop which she displayed in 2008
The girls had made a pit stop to pick up breakfast and a coffee ahead of their radio appearance.
Frankie has recently spoken out about her relationship with footballer Wayne, who she has been dating since January, and believes Waynecan be trusted and won't stray.
She told More Magazine: 'You can’t ever say for sure that someone would never do that, but Wayne’s different.
Summer style: Frankie and her bandmate Una Healy were seen looking lovely as they arrived at a radio studio
'We don’t hang out with other players, and I’m not really interested in being a WAG.
We’ve both had past relationships that were in the public eye.
'This is more private, and so much nicer. Things are going really well. I’m so happy.'
The Saturdays have been busy this week and yesterday the girls sported a whole host of summery looks as they arrived at the BBC Radio 1’s live lounge Maida Vale studios to record a session.
Out with the old: Frankie decided to change her signature side bob style into a shorter crop
Anybody in? Frankie was seen knocking on the window of the building before she was let in with her fellow Saturdays
The band also have a number of television appearances in the next couple of weeks before they take to the festival circuit this summer.
They're on Graham Norton's chat show this Friday, before T4 on Saturday and both Daybreak and Lorraine on Monday.
Mixed styles: Rochelle donned a pretty peach dress with a patterned scarf while Mollie wore the same printed T-shirt that Frankie wore yesterday
They're gearing up to release their next single All Fired Up ahead of the release of their as yet untitled third album later this year, ahead of their All Fired Up Tour in December.
source :dailymail

VIA Feeling a bit posh? Frankie Sandford sports new elfin crop hairstyle just like Victoria Beckham's old do

VIA Jeremy Wagner's Armageddon Chord

Kiss Nail Dress

Hello everyone! It's been a while since I've posted - I've been keeping busy! Today I want to talk about my experience with the Kiss Nail Dress kit that I received in my Love VoxBox from Influenster! I received this product complimentary, for testing and review purposes, and I'm absolutely thrilled to share with you!

Kiss Nail Dress kits equal "ultimate fashion for tips and toes!" I adored the sparkly, animal-print pattern I received, called Bodysuit. Applying these nail stickers could NOT be easier:

1. Peel the sticker off the backing
2. Line up the sticker on your nail
3. Smooth down, watching for bumps or air bubbles
4. Fold over the excess
5. File!

I had so much fun applying these nails one night when my friends were hanging out in my apartment. They laughed at my exclamations of "Wow!" and "This is so easy!" Sure, the pattern was not something I would normally gravitate to, but I ended up loving it!

According to Kiss: With 28 strips in each package, you can cut up your extras to create designs that can be used on top of polished or artificial nails. Nail Dress doesn’t dry out the way other polish strips can, so you can save them to use on your next DIY mani. A nail design booklet is included in each package, just in case you need a little inspiration.

I kept my nails dressed for over a week - that means multiple showers, hand-washings, etc. They stayed perfect the whole time! I'm looking forward to trying other Kiss Nail Dress styles (with 18 different patterns, the possibilities are endless!). They can be purchased in major chain drugstores and mass retailers like WalMart, CVS, and Walgreens, and they cost around $6.99.

Thanks to Influenster and Kiss for sending this wonderful product my way! I was lucky enough to be able to attend NYFW for the first time this year (eek), and my experience was definitely incredible. From the street style photographers everywhere outside Lincoln Center ready to shoot you when you walk out, to the crazy amazing designs inside the shows, I had a blast. For those of you who didn't get the opportunity to attend, here's a recap of some of my favorite shows.

VIA Kiss Nail Dress from Influenster

I don't consider myself to have poor time management, in fact I'm organised. Really organised. Like chill out Reana Louise and put the filing system down organised. However, I find I have no time this year. Yes I work, yes I study full time, yes I have a social life (admittedly a bit small and pathetic), but I do that every year. So who's the culprit? What's to blame? Sewing.

I've been dreaming about sewing?

I'm obsessed - did you know that Well of course you didn't because I'm telling you now, but I do! All the time I think about it. Whenever I leave the house I'm dissecting other people's outfits thinking how was it made? How does it sit like that? Will that warp? How hard would it be to get those stripes to line up? I'm mad, totally sewing mad I tell you!

And it's not like I'm overly fecund, I've only produced a handful of garments. So much of my time is spent scouring the inspiration, blogs, and communities in the big time-sucking device that is the internet. And then there's this blog - which is so much fun being able to express ideas and ask questions to people who love sewing as much as I do (I already bore my friends with art, I can't push this on them too).

But it's not as bad as I might be making out, it's so rewarding creating something and then wearing it. But what about you guys? Are you as obsessed as me, or do you take sewing in your stride? Is there anything else that you're obsessed with?

My swishable floral dress is completed and I'm really happy with the result!

Especially the way it fits... I'm not going to bore you with all of the details, just a quick run through with links to techniques. If you have any questions, please ask me!

I practically snatched it from the poor postman. You see, I live in a house of girls and a fair bit of online-shopping happens around here. Much time is spent out the front with tea-in-hand eyeing his arrival down like vultures - so hopefully he's used to it. Talking of online shopping my roommate just bought this dress from modcloth, how pretty is it? As you know I'm buying zero clothes this year so I have to live vicariously through them. Thank god they have such great taste!

But back onto my original point... New bikini pattern means I'm now ready to buy some fabric! The only problem is I think there's a secret kingdom of gorgeous and appropriately priced stretchy bikini fabric that is hiding from me. I've done a bit of hunting at the local fabric shops but their lycra is more 5th-grade-gymnast-team than hot-woman-strutting-about-Europe. Where is all of the good swimmer fabric?

So far 'Beach Animation' from Tessuti is winning, the only problem is that I think the pattern might be a little too big? One butt cheek might look like a giant flower, and the other a dark navy space? Is it Ok to have a lop-sided butt? I definitely don't want the flower in the middle.

I've scrummaged through etsy too and couldn't find anything that felt 'right'. And then I need lining! Picking fabric for me is one of the fun tasks (unlike hemming, or ironing- snore) but I feel this is something I need a little help with.

So come one... give me your secrets! Have you found some swimwear fabric that you're dying to use and would be willing to share the source? Do you know where the secret kingdom of luscious lycra is hiding?

VIA Sewing is Taking Over My Life

VIA Fashion Inspiration

There are few people who haven't heard of Bethany Hamilton. She was the 13-year-old amateur professional surfer who had her arm bitten off by 4.3 m tiger shark while surfing off the coast of Hawaii. She lost 60 per cent of her blood, but miraculously survived and returned to the world of professional surfing a champion. Her inspirational tale is the subject ofSoul Surfer; a film that follows her personal struggle to overcome her debilitating injury.
Directed by Sean McNamara (Raise Your Voice, Bratz), this is notJawsmeetsBlue Crush, but rather a Disney-esque version of events. Sure, this is a fairytale, so heart warming sentiments and inspirational monologues are to be expected. But somewhere between lines like “love is bigger than any tidal wave or fear” the film succumbs to family movie cheesiness. Written, produced and directed by McNamara,Soul Surferis elevated by a trio of strong performances from AnnaSophia Robb as Bethany and Dennis Quaid and Helen Hunt as her parents. Robb is beyond convincing and beautifully balances Bethany's vulnerability and inner-strength. Quaid and Hunt are fantastic as the supportive and highly likable parents. Their love for each other and their family has a tangible presence and one of the best scenes is when the Hollywood veterans take to the waves for a surfing/bonding session. Plus, Hunt is undoubtedly one of the most naturally beautiful women in the bizz. At 47 she rocks a bikini and in close-ups it’s clear to see she hasn’t had a spot of work done; she’s aging gracefully and looking all the better for it.
Also good is Jack Nicholson's daughter Lorraine Nicholson as Bethany's best friend Alana Blanchard and formerHerculesstar Kevin Sorbo in a meaty role as her dad Holt Blanchard. The Blanchard’s were close friends of the Hamilton family and responsible for saving Bethany's life that day when they dragged her to shore and used a leg rope as a tourniquet. These days Alana is better known for having thebest assin international surfing.Based on Bethany's autobiography of the same name, the surfer has always attributed God and her faith for getting her through the traumatic ideal and back on the board. The Christian elements of Bethany's life are certainly not skipped over. In fact, they're perhaps covered too extensively and the powerful Christian themes are likely to ostracise some viewers. American Idol winner Carrie Underwood's performance as a Christian councillor doesn't help. Her big screen debut is so terrible, you would be happy to throw yourself into the mouth of a tiger shark to escape her wooden and preachy portrayal. Her sense of superiority and righteousness would be excruciating enough, but Underwood sports heavy makeup throughout the film which seems especially ridiculous when she's working in the slums of Indonesian in the aftermath of the Boxing Day tsunami. A Christian missionary with more eye shadow than Hedwig from the Angry Inch strips any sort of believability from the situation.
Despite its shortcomings,Soul Surferisn't a wipe out. It's an inspirational, family-friendly film that might over-do the cheese, but that doesn't mean it can't please.
Soul Surferis out Thursday, May 26.

VIA One thumb up

The petite singer was dressed in a pair of pale blue dungarees a grey jumper and had her hair tied up with a bandanna placed across it.
The wannabe was dressed was also wearing thick gold earrings and a pair of rose printed Dr Martin boots which made for a bizarre combination but with a distinct look taken from the Coronation street character.
The petite singer appears to be constantly experimenting with her style and doesn’t appear to have found her signature style just yet.
Could be twins? The 17-year-old's appearance looked similar to Coronation Street's Hilda Odgen's style
She is not only a fan of donning interesting clothing but has gone under the tattoo needle no less than eight times and has covered her frame in interesting inkings.
Cher, who found fame on the X Factor last year coming fourth behind Matt Cardle, Rebecca Ferguson and One Direction, has been busy working on her debut album.
Rising star? Cher was jetting out of London yesterday as she finishes the final touches to her debut album
Earlier this month the teenager posted a video of herself auditioning dancers for her debut music video working hard to ensure that they ‘gel’ with her.
In the video, Cher says: 'The auditions are going really well. I'm really glad there's bedroom dancers as well.
'I'm looking for fresh-faced people, just people that mix in with the crowd and just back me up really.'
source: dailymail

VIA Who's the inspiration today Cher? Miss Lloyd appears to be channeling her inner Hilda Odgen at Heathrow

Alice In Wonderland: Johnny Depp

Weirdo. Loner. Outsider. These are some of the terms director Tim Burton uses to describe himself. You will notice `creative genius’ isn’t one of them, however, the term is being thrust upon on the quirky filmmaker thanks to Tim Burton: The Exhibition which opened at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) in Melbourne on Thursday. The show is an extension of an exhibition curated by the Performance Center Alexanderhoehe, Iserlohn (Germany), which attracted more than 850, 000 visitors and made it the third largest exhibit at MoMA ever, behind Picasso and Matisse.

It is a remarkable feat for someone who is firstly, not a mainstream artist, and secondly, alive.

“Most of this stuff was never meant to really be seen,” says Burton, sitting cross-legged in an ACMI room in his signature uniform of black jeans, a black shirt and black oversized cardigan. His famous curly hair frizzes out at all ends and his hands, fluid and always moving, add to its state by running through it as he describes the `freedoms’ of being labelled a weirdo.
“As soon as society says you’re a weirdo, then you’re a weirdo, whether you like it or not,” says the 51-year-old.
“After a certain time you just accept it and it gives you a sense of freedom because if you want to wear a bag over your head society will just accept it because they thought you were weird anyway.
“Like when I was at Disney they thought I was weird, so I would work under my desk for half the day.
“Sometimes if they couldn’t find me I’d just be in a dark cupboard working, like my private confessional.
“So there’s an amount of freedom when you’re categorised a certain way. “
Growing up in Burbank, California, Tim Burton was fascinated by the visual image and spent his formative years sketching, painting, animating and filming what he saw around him.
“When you circle outside of society, when you’re kind of, you’re not in there, you’re looking at things,” he says.
“A lot of it has to do with feeling out of society so you have a lot more observation.”
These observations make up the first part of the exhibit, Surviving Burbank, and include, among dozens of sketches and early short films, a handmade book he submitted to Disney in the 1970s and the accompanying rejection letter. Several years later Burton achieved his goal and began working at Disney’s Burbank studios as an animator. Some of his early work for the company was as on family hits The Black Cauldron and The Fox and the Hound, which Burton physically shudders remembering.
“I was never good at drawing foxes, especially the cute ones,” he says.
“That’s why I can’t look at the exhibit because it freaks me out too much.
“I know they’ve done a good job, but it’s like seeing your dirty laundry hanging up. “`Oh there’s my underwear from 1973 and there’s some dirty socks.’

Personal embarrassment aside, the exhibition is an in-depth look at the creative processes and twisted imagination of Burton, featuring more than 700 works including drawings, early films, sculptures, concept art, installations, puppets, costumes and cinematic ephemera. The second part of the exhibition, Beautifying Burbank, follows Burton’s step away from the Disney studio and his first early film and animation works, including his rarely seen Japanese kung-fu version of Hansel and Gretel and better known works Frankenweenie and Vincent, the latter based around one of Burton’s great inspirations — horror movie icon Vincent Price.

The final section, Beyond Burbank, looks at his feature film career, which has spanned over two decades. From his early works, such as Beetlejuice and Edward Scissorhands, to more recent films like Charlie and The Chocolate Factory and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street, Burton has made the leap from cult to commercially successful filmmaker. His latest film, Alice In Wonderland, has grossed more than $1 billion at the international box office and gone on to become the fifth highest grossing film of all time. But Burton is quick to write-off his recent success and says if spending half his lifetime in the movie-making business has taught him anything, it is that filmmaking is a `humbling process’.

“I remember after making Batman I thought `oh, that was a success, I can go and do anything now’,” he says.
“And so I went and pitched them Edward Scissorhands and they gave me a completely blank look.
“Nobody wanted to do that and nobody wanted to do Ed Wood, so I had to go about it in other ways.
“Then I remember pitching a musical version of The House Of Wax with Michael Jackson that he was into but they, the studio, were definitely not into.
“It’s always a struggle to make a film.”

Despite the many `challenges’ faced when trying to get a project off the ground, Burton says he has faith that everything works out for a reason. He cites the studio not letting him have Sammy Davis Jr play Beetlejuice as an example, because `it opened the door for Michael Keaton’ who also went on to play Batman in Burton’s two adaptations of the comic book superhero. Another near-miss occurred when, after three hours of auditioning, Burton talked a young Tom Cruise out of wanting the role of Edward Scissorhands, which was later filled by Johnny Depp, who has become a frequent collaborator and one of Burton’s closest friends. Failed projects and major successes go hand in hand for Burton, who says he has learned `not to regret anything’.

“I don’t really regret, it’s always important not to,” he says.
“Every movie I’ve done, whether it’s turned out or not, I’ve still enjoyed aspects of it, you know?
“I mean I think the one I got the most slack with is Planet Of The Apes because that was messing with a classic.
“But I still enjoyed seeing talking apes."

One of the highlights of the exhibition is the 2.7kg costume Depp wore in Edward Scissorhands (above), which is stationed at the entrance to the exhibit along with one of the scissor hands on display in a glass cabinet. Other featured works which will have the legions of Burtonites, the name given to passionate Tim Burton fans, gushing is the famous outfit Michelle Phfieffer wore as Catwoman in Batman Returns, original puppets from Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas borrowed from the Disney archives, costumes and sketches from Alice In Wonderland and the Burtonarium, a carnival tent buried deep within the exhibit which houses a light emitting sculptural work by Burton called Carousel (pictured at the very bottom).

ACMI Head of Exhibitions Conrad Bodman says the `diversity’ of the exhibits represents Burton as a filmmaker and goes a long way to explaining his loyal fan base.

“One of the things that Tim has always done is work across a range of film genres - action films, animated films, family films, horror films - and I think all of those types of films have different audiences and when you pull all those inspirations together in the one place, people want to come,” he says.
“What we’re showing in the exhibition is a lot of original concept artwork for his major feature films and we’re kind of looking at the process of his feature filmmaking over the years.
“People can see that often the hand drawn is the starting point for some ideas and then that turns into a visual reality for a whole process of development.
“Tim still does a lot of that kind of drawing, painting and making puppets for himself and people will be fascinated to see that process in action.”

Unlike many other filmmakers, Burton says he has been able to maintain his artistic integrity and stay connected to his creative roots by separating himself from the industry.

“I don’t live in Hollywood,” he says.
“I moved away many years ago and once you start doing things they try to treat you as a commodity, a thing.
“You know, you spend your whole life to be recognised as a human being and then they try to tag you as a thing.
“Like `oh, you’ve done this and that’s what we expect’ so I don’t go back and look at my films too much because I try not to become a `thing’.
“I try to keep human... no person or people should be described as one thing.
“I think everybody has lots of different aspects to their personality.
“Some are dark, funny, sad, there are so many words for each person.”

Considering Melbourne was originally to be called Batmania, after one of it’s founders John Batman, it seems appropriate that it is to be the home of Tim Burton: The Exhibition, which runs until October 11. Already ACMI has experienced a fevour amongst Burton’s Australian fans, with all of his public appearances selling out within 24 hours of going on sale and hundreds of fans queuing through Federation Square to be the first to enter the exhibit when it opened on Thursday and have copies of the exhibition guide signed by Burton himself. It is ironic that his work and films are so accepted by the society he once considered himself `outside’ of. It is a phenomenon best summed up by Burton’s partner and regular collaborator Helena Bonham Carter, with whom he has two children. In a book on the art of Tim Burton she says: “When I see him surrounded by flushed and hyperventilating young fans I feel it’s a triumph of the lonely misunderstood outsider child he once felt he was. Now he’s the most understood misunderstood person I’ve come across in the world.”

In the meantime Burton says he is enjoying a lull between live action projects, while busying himself with a feature-length adaptation of Frankenweenie (concept art), due for release next year. He emphasises the stop-motion animated film is the only project he is working on and committed to, despite online reports which have linked him to adaptations of The Addams Family and super-natural TV series Dark Shadows, both which he blatantly denies were ever `considered’.

“That’s why I never go on the internet because it always seems like I have some sort of evil clone out there that is doing all these projects,” he says.
“I’m still recovering from the last one.
“Whenever I read this stuff I get tired, I think `God, I must be busy’.
“The studios often have a release date before they have a script, which is such a mistake.
“I’m trying to get out of that and, you know, into this strange concept of having a script before you announce a release date.”

P.S. I did the good Samaritan thing on Sunday and took some boys I babysit to see The Karate Kid. Considering what I endured sitting through that movie, karma better have a pet unicorn heading my way! And while you're in the laughing mood, you must must must watch the video clip for The Karate Kid theme song: Never Say Never by Justin Bieber, featuring rapping from Jaden Smith. Hopefully this is not an indication that Smith will make a rap song to accompany every movie he makes, just like his dad. But seriously, when you look young standing next to Justin Bieber then it's time to stop rapping and get back in the womb.

VIA Picasso, Matisse and... Tim Burton!..