Men's Steampunk Clothing!

By Tamyka Bullen.

A few years ago, I learned about the Steampunk culture and it fascinated me immediately. I want to go into a brief history behind of this culture. Steampunk is a sub-genre of science fiction that invented non-existing steam-powered machinery, especially in a setting inspired by industrialized Western civilization during the 19th century's British Victorian era or American "Wild West" in a post-apocalyptic future. These steam-powered machinery may be considered as anachronistic technologies or retro-futuristic. Never know if they will be happening in the distant future time when the number of human population decrease to brink of an extinction.

Currently, steampunk is treated as fashionable, cultured, an art and perhaps an architectural style. Traditionally, the steampunk incorporates fantasy, horror, historical fiction, alternate history or other branches of speculative fiction to make it a hybrid genre but not always necessary. Interesting about the term steampunk was brought in the literature in 1987 to describe all those fictious steam-powered machinery mentioned in classical novels written by well-known figures such as H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, Philip Pullman, Scott Westerfeld, Stephen Hunt, China Mieville and more.

I wished we were in the Victorian period so I could wear steampunk clothes but realistically, they were too heavy to wear with those tools. I envisaged myself to wear this outfit you see in the picture below..


I imagined what men's clothes looked like...and I bet that their clothes had stories about themselves.

1. This man puffed his fancy pipe while carried his weapon behind his back. He wore common Victorian clothes. I wondered what was the story behind this picture. I guessed he was in a war-torn country where the government was deeply corrupted. If I was in the war-torn country, I wouldn't wear it because it required hours to dress it up, then put this heavy machine on my back. I would pant heavily while carry it when travel long. He didn't look so peaceful. Not a happy guy!


2. I wondered what happened to those three men who all of a sudden wore steampunk clothes in the 21st century? Perhaps, they were tired of seeing advertisements printed on clothes to coerce people to consume more until they became penniless. You never see advertisements on steampunk clothes and they always look polish while modern clothes come in from bum to polish.


3. Look at this tattooed and pierced man! He looked like he was just coming on the stage behind the curtain. I assumed that he was a famous illusionist who needed googles when performed magics. I envisaged his name should be Zachary Kilmt.


4. I believed that this red-haired man was highly skilled in trades! Anything needed to be fixed, take them to his place that is hidden in dense forest. You will notice his lovely treehouse. Sigh...what a magic!


5. This dignified-looking man steered his small passenger pick-up aircraft for a long time. He inherited this business from his one time thief mom. YES, I am serious and that was how they had this aircraft by stole it from other thief named Kevin Goodie. Kevin from the other picture, he always hid his face because he didn't want to be recognized by polices.


See below the real Kevin Goodie...


6. This man in the picture was a police. Hunting after Kevin Goodie was his long life-dedication! Look at his gun! We should be afraid of him. FYI...this police was not so sweet.


7. This lady craze dude never stopped fooling around with ladies! He loved to wear black steampunk clothes but didn't like to wear devices. When his eyes caught a pretty lady, he took off his clothes in a few seconds and said GRRR... True story, all his potential ladies ran away from him!


8. Oh my gosh...This guy was a long descendent of the famous playwright and poet named William Shakespeare!!! He is Henry Shakespeare. He writes a series of Zombie Romance books.

Beads Girl!

By Tamyka Bullen.

I really love beads for many reasons, they are very colourful and come in different shapes. You can find beads in many cultures everywhere! For my spare time, I make bead necklaces to donate to non-profit organizations to help them to make profits from it. So far, it works well! Here what I made....

1.This necklace suits a person who wears flashy clothes.


2. I was trying to make necklaces and bracelets of various styles to match people with various personalities.


3. I got the pendent from the Cuban lady a few years ago. I made a necklace out of it. I think it suits free-country people well.


4. This silver necklace and silver bracelet are perfect for people who are sophisticated.



5. This is my favourite necklace because it reflects my personality perfectly.


Buying beads are not always necessarily expensive. There are some stores on Queen West Street in Toronto that sell beads with discounts and sometimes sell wildly cheaper like a few cents!

Britain's Most Beautiful Woman

A year and a half ago the British media made a big fuss about the woman above, Florence Colgate, and called her Britain's Most Beautiful Woman because she was "mathematically perfect".

The idea was that her face was perfectly symmetrical and well proportioned. And that symmetry was beautiful.

Well a year and a half later I am going to call BOGUS!

I am not saying the photos are photoshopped (although they probably are), but what I am going to say is that I don't think she is that beautful.

Why?

Because she is boring to look at. It is too perfect, too symmetrical and waaaaaaaay too boring.

Her face has almost no personality.

And call me a naysayer if you want, but I think it is a person's personality that bubbles forth and makes a person MORE beautiful because of the way they smile, make faces, show emotion. The photo at the top for example is more bubbly than the symmetry photo above... but neither of them are bursting with real emotion.

Now here is the thing... I also think the whole thing was a scam to promote people to get facial reconstruction surgery / plastic surgery, etc. People would see the media articles and go "My face isn't symmetrical! I should get surgery..."

I wouldn't be surprised if the whole thing was organized by the plastic surgery industry in Britain (which by the way, is one of the world's leading places to get plastic surgery).

I even checked. See the graphic below. Eyelid, face, neck, brow lifts surgery statistics all rose in 2012. Even the statistics for men concerning the face rose dramatically in 2012 - for men! Which means even men were going out and getting eyelid surgery, face lifts, neck lifts, etc.

It really makes me an advocate of makeup.

I would much rather see people try to beautify themselves with makeup than slowly turn themselves into monsters using plastic surgery.

Just google plastic surgery mistakes sometime... or look at all the celebrities who have ruined their faces with plastic surgery. Or even ruined their careers.

Remember the actress Jennifer Grey from Dirty Dancing?

You wouldn't recognize her today. She had a nose job a few years after Dirty Dancing and her face is now unrecognizable. See the before and after photo below. That nose job ruined her career.

And personally I thought she was more attractive with her original nose.

Tank Tops Rock

Call it sheer simplicity, but tank tops rock.

Here is why...

Tank tops require very little effort to put on.

Tank tops are cheap and inexpensive.

They look amazing.

Tank tops are great for exercising in or just hanging out casually. (But they are definitely NOT business casual.)

They are just all around easy to have, wear, use and look great in.

Archery Fashion Chic

Archery has been a big thing ever since all the archery movies that came out in 2012.

But frankly it only seems to be getting started. The sport of archery has seen a renaissance since the mid-2000s and all the recent archery movies and TV shows are just jumping on the bandwagon and pushing the sport into hyperdrive.

Actors like Jennifer Lawrence (photo on the right) are doing a lot to promote the sport of archery, and especially for women this means an activity women can excel at without having to worry about what the rest of society thinks of them.

eg. Like the stigma around female weightlifters and bodybuilders. So unlike bodybuilding women archers can exercise and have their cake too. (Although try to keep the cake to small portions, we are watching our waistline.)

But what about fashion and archery?

ARCHERY FASHION TIPS

#1. Tight Fitting Clothing.

Why? So the bow string doesn't rub against your clothing while you are taking a shot. Don't think of this as a limitation either. Think of it as a way to liberate yourself and explore your options.

#2. Dress for the Weather.

My advice? Wear tight fitting layers so that you can shed those layers whenever you want, depending on whether it is too hot or too cold.

#3. Wear a Sports Bra.

If you are a very busty gal this is going to be a must. The sports bra will flatten your breasts out more and the bowstring won't be rubbing against them in an awkward fashion.

#4. Arm Guard.

Leave space on your bow arm for an arm guard to protect your arm. You can even make your own arm guards (also known as bracers) using rawhide leather. Just cut out the shape of the armguard, poke holes in it with a knife, and then use a shoestring to stitch the sides of the armguard together like you would ice skates.

#5. Gloves.

You will need archery finger gloves or a release tab for your arrow hand, but for your bow hand some people like to wear a glove. My recommendation is to buy either weightlifting gloves or cycling gloves - because they will give you more grip and be fairly comfortable. Try them on in the store to make sure they fit and only buy gloves that feel comfortable to you.

#6. Hat.

Keeping the sun off while doing archery is a big deal. Baseball caps work, but they are a pain because you have to take them off every time you shoot. Feel free to experiment with floppy hats that fold back while you are drawing it back.

#7. Shorts or Skirts?

If it is very hot outside you are going to be tempted to wear shorts. But skirts work equally well, depends whether you want a tan or not. I don't recommend wearing pants or jeans if it is super hot outside however. The good news is that none of these below the waist fashion choices really matter for archery. You can wear a ballerina tutu if it makes you feel good.

#8. Shoes / Boots.

Wear footwear that gives you lots of stability. Archery is a sport about form and you want to be perfectly still and balanced while you make your shot. Wear shoes that give you the ability to balance easily - which means anything with heels is automatically not an option. (The photo below of the Asian girl wearing high heels is ridiculous!)

#9. Get a jacket that is tight fitting.

This goes back to #1 at the top, but basically many jackets are rather bulky and not suitable for archery. Try on a number of jackets in stores and try to find one that is comfortable, fashionable and form fitting.

#10. Costumes!

For fun you can also try medieval costumes - but try to follow the tips above so that the clothing is still suitable for archery and the weather / etc.

If you are looking for archery lessons in Toronto I recommend hiring a personal trainer from CardioTrek.ca.

Also check out the following pages:

Archery Equipment

Archery Lessons

Archery Rules

Toronto Archery Range

Toronto Archery Clubs

Toronto Archery Blogs

Choosing the Perfect Wedding Dress

Every girl dreams of how she will look on her wedding day, which is why choosing a wedding dress is one of the most important aspects of every wedding. The dress will appear in all wedding pictures, is the one all of the bride’s friends and family will see, and must be an expression of who she is. In addition, it is important to choose a dress that fits the bride’s body style and complexion to compliment her look. However, there are several common mistakes that bride’s make when they go shopping for the dress for the big day. By avoiding these errors, wedding dress shopping will be less stressful and it is more likely the bride will find that perfect dress.

Bringing Too Many People

Even though this is the most important dress a woman will wear, bringing ten people often becomes counterproductive, as each of those ten people will have an opinion and those opinions will rarely be the same. Most bridal gown consultants recommend no more than one or two people when the bride first sets out to find the perfect dress. Most brides bring a mother or sister, while some include the future mother-in-law in the process. The bride needs those with her who will be honest even when everyone else in the store loves the dress and the bride does not.

Shopping Too Far In Advance

Because many couples are opting for longer engagements, brides sometimes begin shopping for gowns too far in advance. It is important to have all the other wedding details determined, such as venue and bridesmaid gowns, before choosing a wedding dress. An embellished gown with a huge train may be beautiful in a large church, but will not be suitable for a beach wedding. The color of bridesmaid dresses may also determine whether the bride chooses white or off-white, as dresses come in many different shades of white. However, wedding dress consultants caution brides not to procrastinate in their dress shopping, as dresses take anywhere from five to eight months, and often need alterations once they arrive.

Demanding a Different Size

Wedding gowns, like most formal wear, are sized differently than other types of women’s clothing, and often run one or two sizes smaller. This means that a wedding dress for a woman who wears a size five normally, may need to purchase a nine, or even an eleven. Brides often claim that they plan to lose weight before the wedding, but that rarely happens. Bridal consultants say to purchase a dress in the size that fits when the dress is ordered, as it is easy to take in a dress that is too big closer to the wedding, but much more difficult to let one out. If a bride gains weight between the time the dress is ordered and its arrival, there are alteration options available, so there is no need to panic.

A girl’s wedding day is one of the most important days of her life, whether they plan a large, lavish wedding with all the trimmings, or they choose a small, garden wedding in someone’s backyard. Therefore, by avoiding these common mistakes, wedding dress shopping can be less stressful and the bride is more likely to discover that perfect dress. Learn more about wedding dress shopping and bridal shops in Spartanburg SC at DimitraDesigns.com.