An ill-fated foray into the bewildering world of overpriced beauty products

So I just tried out my new Frederic Fekkai Au Naturel shampoo. Hmm. Usually his products are a delight and this one, being free from the twin evils of sulphates and parabens (seriously, not a clue what they are), should have been extra wonderful. In actuality, not so much. Turns out you need some of those parabens and at least a handful of sulphates if you actually want to clean your hair! I won't go into details but lets just say my hair was involuntarily left looking like Kurt Cobain's after a 3 day heroin binge ten minutes before I had to leave for school. Not even my trusty Philip B Shin Shine spray could rescue the perilous situation atop of my head. But it does smell like green tomatoes so, y'know, silver lining and all.

Crystalise

Sorry for the hiatus; it's the last year of school and to quote Bad Boys II (which you should always do), this shit just got real.

Coming up, details of this weekend's spending spree at the most incredible Native American store near my house. Amongst (many) other things I bought the above crystal and 18ct. gold pendant which came with nifty hooks so I can make it into an epic hanging earring if ever the desire to emulate a buccaneer strikes me.

Saw Up in the Air this weekend - the ravages of time have finally caught up with George Clooney by the way - and hit up my favourite place to eat; it's open 24/7 and does the best hamburger in town. All in all, good times.

Notorious

(Cashmere Smiley jumper from Colette)

I'm on Bloglovin's Top 10 Hot Blogs Right Now list! Thank you to everyone following me on Bloglovin, keep 'em coming!

Decadence to the MAX

Trying out my new gold leaf nail varnish from SpaceNK. My nails now veer wildly between looking like I've come from an alternate Dynasty-themed universe and that I should work in KFC.

Gangsta

DSC07904, originally uploaded by karakablack.

I was wearing this YSL ring at a friend's dinner the other night. One guy wanted to know what it said, assuming it was 'fuk da police' or something, to which I had to respond 'er..no actually it says yves saint laurent..'. Street cred plummeted.

Highly Practical Winter Coats

To deal with all this snow we're having I've enlisted (left to right) Alexander Wang, Jeremy Scott for Adidas Originals and Burberry

Currently

(I love how they all clearly got together before shooting this cover and were like 'guys let's all rip our jeans the exact same way because that's what rock and roll is all about' - followed by a bout of high-fiving)

Just to keep you updated on the rich tapestry of my life:

Currently wearing: Adidas Originals bright red leggings in the style of the royal tenenbaums, grey topshop oversize beanie, M&S mens grey cashmere jumper, James Perse white v-neck tee, fur boots, turquoise beads and gold cross

Currently watching: JERSEY SHORE

Currently listening to: The Ramones' cover of Surfin Bird - it must be noted that this song leads to madness

What's he doing in Africa? He'll melt! Oh that's the charm of it? How delightful.

Behold! The Gucci + Unicef Snowman in Africa bag. What the photos may not show is the incredible detailing and the scale of work that has clearly gone into making it. The leaves go all the way under the sides and cover the bottom of the bag - I half expected to find a little rainforest inside but unfortunately no... This bag gets me thinking about all the other children's books + (tasteful) designer collaborations there could be.

I'm thinking:

Curious George and Lanvin - little bananas and cushy black velvet = yes.

Eloise and Chanel - it HAS to happen

Dr Seuss and Marc Jacobs

Madeline and Dior

In fact, there's seems to be a general sense of regression occuring at the moment in fashion: Where The Wild Things Are for Opening Ceremony, Barbie + Christian Louboutin (even that ungodly combo of LV and Spongebob...) Hmm what is this all about?

Happy Epiphany

Today's the day of the Epiphany (well not really, it should be on the 6th but got moved forward or something, I don't get Church calendars) which is basically when the three kings rocked up on the nativity scene. Got to eat some Galette Des Rois which is a cake eaten today as part of some tradition that involves gold crowns, hiding under the table, finding china in your cake and all kinds of bizarre rituals.

Собрание

For those of you lunging for the 'inappropriate content' button, I am not condoning the smoking of cigarettes, I am simply appreciating this pack from an aesthetical point of view. Black Russian Sobranies make me think of dark and slightly seedy nights in Moscow and Tom Ford.
In fact I have compiled a little Sobranie-inspired collage for you as well.

Candida Höfer scans

The quality of the scans isn't amazing but her work certainly is.

11th Dimension

Best Night Of My Life. Official.

So imagine the scene:

My friend and I have just seen Julian Casblancas at the HMV Forum - amazing - and are getting our merchandise on at the t-shirt stand when some guy comes up and hands us these passes. So turns out he was the keyboardist and imagine our excitement when he asked if we wanted to meet Julian! I was sceptical at first what with being a cynical Londoner and envisioned 'Julian' would be found in the back of a blacked out van round the back but we threw caution to the wind and wound up backstage watching rockers like the lead singer of the Cribs milling around and waiting for the J-man himself to arrive. Which he did and ohhh my goodness the rock god is even more immense in person. We out-grinned the cheshire cat on the ride home and have remained smug ever since. Fin.