slick.

considered to be the largest off-shore oil spill in the united states' history, the tragic deepwater horizon spill has ravaged and devastated the u.s. gulf coast.

the initial explosion of the rig on april 20, 2010 killed eleven bp workers and injured seventeen others. the aftermath has claimed the lives of countless birds, fish, dolphins, turtles and other marine life, and the oil is still oozing out of the wells and busted pipes at around 4,200,000 litres per day, destroying just about everything in its path.

this has forced cessation of fishing in the disaster zone (coastline of louisiana, mississippi, alabama and florida) and had a severe impact on the jobs and livelihoods of those working in the fishing and oil industries throughout the area, not to mention the numerous volunteers working to minimise the damage, and the adverse effect the spill will have on tourism and the local economy in general.

these are just a handful of images from the disaster..

(photos: sean gardner via reuters, dave martin via ap photo, sean gardner via getty, photos 4-6 from sydney morning herald)

xx

oh sookie!

sure, i'm not really into the whole vampire zeitgeist that's taken over the world right now and i've never read nor watched the southern vampire mysteries/true blood series, but how can you not love this - snoop dogg has dedicated a song to the tv show's protagonist, sookie stackhouse (played by new zealandish actress anna paquin who you may remember from she's all that).

who knew OGs were into vampires? oh wow, totally just had a vision of snoop dogg in his velour tracksuit and slippers watching true blood and eating ice cream on the couch (he must get the munchies pretty hardcore).

yeah, the song is kinda terrible but snoop is the king of cheesy, fun tunes (sensual seduction, anyone?) and his car is the greatest thing i have ever seen.. makes me wanna pimp my pulsar with some gold hundred spoke rims.

props must go to the d.o.g. for rhyming 'sookie' with 'mary-jane cookie' and 'true blood' with 'true bud' - that's some lyrical genius right thurr.

xx

sunsets.

if you're in brisbane, you may have noticed that the sunsets over the last week or so have been prettttyyy spectacular. i managed to capture a few shots and here they are:

xx

b&w.

(music, models, photography.. blondie via rock archive, rihanna in 'rude boy', mick jagger via rock archive, lady gaga, model julia shvets, lara stone for calvin klein, model jessica stam, helmut newton x 2, hmmm.. not sure where this came from)

xx

in the pink.

(photos: romance was born designers anna plunkett and luke sales in vice magazine, nirrimi hakanson, the selby, nyree mackenzie, unsure, leigh lezark, unsure, via coldam, bitter by twenty via touristmagazine)

xx

rebecca manning swim.

although winter is technically upon us, queensland doesn't seem to have received the memo. with daytime temperatures still up in the mid-20s, i think it's quite alright to talk about swimwear..

rebecca manning swim is another shiny new brisbane label worth checking out (must be something in the water).

the label comprises bikinis, one pieces, kaftans, and various other cover-ups which are designed to be lived in - from beach to lunch to pool-side people-watching and maybe cocktails in the hotel lobby as the sun is going down.

formally trained as an artist, bec designs her own exclusive prints which are integral to the label's point of difference. these patterns coalesce with innovative cuts that are experimental without compromising on fit and feature serendipitous details - think bikini ties tipped with teensy gold skull charms. oh, and it's all made in australia using sumptuous italian lycra.

have a squiz at the pics of bec's summer 10/11 collection at rafw.. i am obsessed with her combination of cherry red and sky blue:

and my favourites from summer 09/10..

(photos 1, 2 & 4: the daily telegraph, all others supplied by rebecca manning)

rebecca manning togs (that's queensland for 'bathers', fyi) are pretty special stuff and really do need to be seen to be believed - the photos just don't do these babies justice.

bec's next show will be the swimwear group show at brisbane's own mercedes benz fashion festival on sunday 8th august at 2pm. tickets are currently on sale through qtix and you can view the entire mbff program here.

have a fantastic weekend!

xx

ashish.

if you are a topshop addict, you may already be familiar with ashish gupta's designs.

the delhi-born, toronto-raised and now london-based designer is the sultan of sequins (yep, i just coined that) and his aesthetic is a true representation of his multicultural upbringing - american pop cultural symbols played out in the rich, exuberant colours of india, with a london chic that makes this label soooo covetable.

here's karla from karla's closet babein' out in ashish on whowhatwear in (undoubtedly) the hottest track pants EVER:

ashish has been available exclusively in australia on mycatwalk for a little while now but the current range has just gone on sale! okay, so the prices are still way out of my reach (dresses are down from $1500 to $990) but if you've got some cash to splash, i highly recommend you purchase the following (all of them!):

(all photos: mycatwalk.com)

xx