Book Review 4 Man Repeller: Seeking Love, Finding Overalls- Brandon Nguyen

"If people remember nothing else about me when all is said and done, they should remember my other life mantra: when in doubt, add a motorcycle jacket. Heck, even when not in doubt, just add a motorcycle jacket."  This is probably the best quote in the book Man Repeller: Seeking Love, Finding Overalls by Leandra Medine. In the book she uses fashion as the highlights of her life, and a reference to remembering those memories she had in the past good and bad. 

She is called a Man Repeller for her fashion choices, from high wasted denim mom friendly jeans to the selective use of her crop tops. She also turn looks that are man getting to Man Repelling with a turban and a stack of arm parties to the high havens. I was happy when crossing this line in the book, because in a way I wish I could be just like her, be known for my fashion and maybe nothing else. Her fashion is fun and energetic with a combination of colors, prints and lavish accessories.

In the book she has a mild tension between the ideas of more is more and at times less is more, and this quote backs her more is more theory. Where there is never too much, and that if you’re going to leave the house remember to stack on another set of bracelets by Lavin. I enjoy this kind of mentality from her, as she states earlier in her book of the weight problems that she dealt with and that she was also taught in a traditional Jewish school, where she had to dress modestly as it was being a prestigious school in Manhattan. This is in a way her reaction to that restraint, as she is now able to be care free with her fashion.

Another aspect of this quote I like a lot is that people in this world are going to think of you in different ways. And that the most powerful impact to help them remember is the way you dress and how you carry yourself. So if you have the one goal of being remembered in the night, to Man Repellers standards, just wear a t-shirt with high wasted jeans and a chunky Celine chain necklace and the mini Clair bag by Chloe will surely help you with that goal.   

(This is a photo of Leandra in a all double denim look with a motorcycle jacket, and some crazy shoes.)  

Coco Chanel the Legend and the Life reading response 3

 

        “Women think of all colors except the absence of color. I have said that black has it all. White too. Their beauty is absolute. It is the perfect harmony.” Chanel to me is a fashion god, or maybe a fashion war lord against the movement that more is more. But, as I'm reading this quote, I find that is interesting that she only finds the colors black and white are meaningful to her. I understand her point of view in the era of World War II, and how she was raised in the church by nuns that where like super mean, but why the loss of color? 

           In my personal life color is everything to me, if the shirt is not in the color I want I don't get it, or a bag. But, let's be honest here, I love every color no matter what. But, to Chanel it seems like the loss of color was something beautiful, apparently no color is the best color. And, to me that seems like such a boring thing at times. Like really how lame would that be to only wear black and white all day. What do you do in the spring and summer, where the weather is screaming for color? Sorry, Chanel but that's the only stance I have against your fashionable views, color. 

         But, In the book there is also a mention of how she wants this push for minimalism. With this push she wants there is the birth of the Chanel suite. The Chanel suite was something revolutionary at the time. This look was born from WWII and the military, such as the pockets to keep your backup lipstick, and the boyish figure that it gave to the female form. This was a reaction, to the current style full length skirt and the dramatic tops with all the ruffled details that seemed to be growing. 

          And it's shocking to see how this would be the force to help influence other designers like Saint Laurent. Where, in his case he copied some of Chanel works, but she only looked at that as an act of flattery. This is also what I think is an important mini section in the book when she shows humorous side to her. Instead of getting angry at the situation, she blows it off, and also sees this that her work is going somewhere good too. And, as this section comes to an end there is also an interesting part inside of me trying to connect the references today's modern world.

          Today, Chanel is a global power house, if not the fashion power house in the world. And that there are so many people that pull her designs as a reference for their work. Unless, you work at Zara then you’re just copying her, like is that the Chanel cropped blue tweed jacket from the fall and winter 2014 show, yeah I thought so. But, back to the real situation at hand, like this book almost seemed timeless when reading it. Because, of the connections I have with Chanel I have today, the house of Chanel was founded in 1909 so it's been over 100 years now. But, the house does not seem that old when it comes to the fashion. And maybe that's the essence of this book, that Chanel is timeless and that it's with her influence that fashion today will be forever timeless. 

(A photo of Coco Chanel working on her fall winter collection, in her studio.)

 

The Bell Jar Reading Post 2

“Wherever I sat-on the deck of a ship or at a street café in Paris or Bangkok- I would be sitting under the same glass bell jar, stewing in my own sour air.” I sat there, after reading this quote in a feeling of shock and an also a since of “Holy crap this white girl need to get it together”. Like it sounds like this girl need massive PSL (pumpkin spiced latte). Or, maybe a new Chanel medium boy bag in the oil slick leather.

 But in reality this quote did give me a puzzling challenge to wrap my mind around. On one hand, I did not know why it was so hard for her to move on from her past experiences. To me they did not seem that bad for a person her age. I mean at this point in our lives we probably all seen what a penis looks like. Thanks to the help of sexual education in public schools.

But, then the in same aspect, the obvious part was, I’m not her, and I’m not Esther. So I could not relate to her and understand her experiences, being usually happy as I am, I could not understand this feeling of sadness that she was going in circles about. I have felt

deep sadness, but I always find some how to get out of it. So her suffering to me in that manner, was hard to understand.
               However, the other part of this quote that got to me was the idea of being trapped in a glass bell jar. I believe that Plath was trying to establish a since of a never ending hell. A since the new normal, and it was this idea of creating a new normality that also did give me a puzzle to solve. If Plath was truly writing about this idea of creating a new normal, then what makes something normal? I think we all have heard that quote of the spider and, the fly and, chaos and, more fun stuff. But I never gave it a second thought after reading this book by Plath.
               How I interpreted this idea, was that as amazing, graceful, or beautiful any moment may be, one will become emotional numb to experience itself. Like, buying a new bag. The bag is only new for that moment, then that moment passes of it being new. The same can be applied to our emotions and how we feel. Such as, sadness or happiness, will no longer affect us when time is able to move on.
               However in Plath’s vision, of this idea was taken to the other end of the spectrum. Where one must face their feelings, and suffering as a never ending cycle. So the bell jar now, becomes a limitation on time, and it’s this limitation on time that makes Esther’s feelings never ending. Thus, she can’t move on from her experience form the past, and it almost makes her emotions a part of her. And, an ugly part of her that won’t end.
                   And yet as sad all of this may seem, the thoughtful part was that, I also felt a since of personal reflection as a reader. The feeling was profound but at the same time so subjective. It was also in this chapter that I felt so connected to the main character too. To her, the past experiences she has felt where traumatizing, and that to some of us that might be the norm but also we all consider different things as traumatizing to us. So in this aspect to me, it makes her seem more human, because she does feel pain and suffering. However, not the physical pain, but it’s the one inside that makes her seem more real, more human.

(This is a photo to show the perception of how a bell jar works. The perception is that it keeps the object inside of itself when the object stays in that state when in the jar.) 

The Bell Jar Book Review 2 Brandon Nguyen

“Wherever I sat-on the deck of a ship or at a street café in Paris or Bangkok- I would be sitting under the same glass bell jar, stewing in my own sour air.” I sat there, after reading this quote in a feeling of shock and an also a since of “Holy crap this white girl need to get it together”. Like it sounds like this girl need massive PSL (pumpkin spiced latte). Or, maybe a new Chanel medium boy bag in the oil slick leather.

 But in reality this quote did give me a puzzling challenge to wrap my mind around. On one hand, I did not know why it was so hard for her to move on from her past experiences. To me they did not seem that bad for a person her age. I mean at this point in our lives we probably all seen what a penis looks like. Thanks to the help of sexual education in public schools.

But, then the in same aspect, the obvious part was, I’m not her, and I’m not Esther. So I could not relate to her and understand her experiences, being usually happy as I am, I could not understand this feeling of sadness that she was going in circles about. I have felt deep sadness, but I always find some how to get out of it. So her suffering to me in that manner, was hard to understand.

               However, the other part of this quote that got to me was the idea of being trapped in a glass bell jar. I believe that Plath was trying to establish a since of a never ending hell. A since the new normal, and it was this idea of creating a new normality that also did give me a puzzle to solve. If Plath was truly writing about this idea of creating a new normal, then what makes something normal? I think we all have heard that quote of the spider and, the fly and, chaos and, more fun stuff. But I never gave it a second thought after reading this book by Plath.

               How I interpreted this idea, was that as amazing, graceful, or beautiful any moment may be, one will become emotional numb to experience itself. Like, buying a new bag. The bag is only new for that moment, then that moment passes of it being new. The same can be applied to our emotions and how we feel. Such as, sadness or happiness, will no longer affect us when time is able to move on.

               However in Plath’s vision, of this idea was taken to the other end of the spectrum. Where one must face their feelings, and suffering as a never ending cycle. So the bell jar now, becomes a limitation on time, and it’s this limitation on time that makes Esther’s feelings never ending. Thus, she can’t move on from her experience form the past, and it almost makes her emotions a part of her. And, an ugly part of her that won’t end.

                   And yet as sad all of this may seem, the thoughtful part was that, I also felt a since of personal reflection as a reader. The feeling was profound but at the same time so subjective. It was also in this chapter that I felt so connected to the main character too. To her, the past experiences she has felt where traumatizing, and that to some of us that might be the norm but also we all consider different things as traumatizing to us. So in this aspect to me, it makes her seem more human, because she does feel pain and suffering. However, not the physical pain, but it’s the one inside that makes her seem more real, more human.

(This is a photo to show the perception of how a bell jar works. The perception is that it keeps the object inside of itself when the object stays in that state when in the jar,) 

Fast Fashion.

Fashion, to me is about the game of ferocious speed, and the book the Bell Jar by Sylivia Plath underlines that to me. I feel as if there is a since of the idea of speed in the first four chapters. As the reader, it caught my attention like a fire storm gone bad. I could relate to Esther (the main character) in many aspects. From her life challenges to her goals that she's completes, and every step in between.

Esther is apparently an amazing writer, and here paper wins her a trip to New York City. However, she gets tossed in to writing for a major magazine and has to compete with other girls to get the position. At this point, a lot of girls in her position would be happy to get the chance to work there. But to Esther she does not see this at all, she feels a since of displacement form the new environment that she is in. She also, early on starts so see the disconnection with herself.

            I completely feel for this poor white girl. I mean, I always feel this since of I don't belong here all the time. From new city's or locations, and even at times social events. So it's understandable to see how Esther can have the feeling of lose in a big city like New York City. I think it's the sense of self-doubt that's gets a lot of is in the end. I'm excited to see how she deals with this problem in her life.