Retail Art

Fashioning Cancer: The Correlation between Destruction and Beauty

Gown photos from CNN

Ever wonder what cancer looked like under the microscope? Maybe. Ever wonder what cancer looked like on the runway? Probably not. Now that you actually may be wondering, Assistant Professor Jacqueline Firkins in the Department of Theatre and Film from the University of British Columbia-Vancouver has provided us with a glimpse of what that may look like. 

Assistant Professor Jacqueline Firkins

The gowns are described as "disturbingly beautiful considering it is something so deadly".

Astrocytes in the brain work to keep neurons healthy. Green dye outlines the cells' cytoskeleton, while the red dye highlights specific membrane channels. The blue dye shows the cell nuclei. Watching the structural changes that cells undergo help scientists better understand cancer.

When they are cancerous, astrocytes from the brain become gliomas. These cells are stained to show off their cytoskeleton, which determines the cells' shape and affects their ability to move. More movement among cancerous cells indicates a more destructive form of cancer.

Astrocytes, or glial cells in the brain, grow in a culture dish. The blue areas are nuclei that contain DNA, while the green areas are gap junctions -- tubes that connect and allow adjacent cells to communicate. Gap junctions help regulate normal cell growth; interference in these communication channels can lead to cancer development.

This slide shows an injured brain filled with dying neurons (stained green). During cancer progression, cancerous cells kill nearby healthy cells so they can keep growing and spreading.

This image depicts small intestine tissue — the blue color shows the cell nuclei (DNA) and green color is localized to membrane channels called pannexins. Membrane channels like these contribute to the microenvironment that can either enhance or inhibit cancer progression.

In this microscopic view, cancer cells of a brain tumor (red) metastasize, invading normal brain tissue (blue and green). The cellular images that inspired the fashions come from the lab of University of British Columbia scientist Christian Naus.

A brain tumor, represented by the black area, grows in a culture dish. During metastasis, cancer cells break away from the primary tumor to spread to other areas of the brain and into the body either through the bloodstream or lymphatic system.

Brain cancer cells show the interaction, represented by yellow areas, between gap junctions (green) and cell growth factor (red). The interactions between these two proteins play a critical role in transforming normal cells into cancerous ones. 

The purpose for her project is to to inspire deeper conversations about disease for women. Firkins aims to encourage dialogue about cancer, beauty, and body image by designing and exhibiting 10 ball gowns inspired by microscopic photos of cancer cells and cellular systems.

 People hardly have any idea of how many variations of cancerous diseases exist. Firkins found a creative way to expose the topic and encourage us to see the traits that describe the woman undergoing treatment. She states, "My hope is that somehow through fashion, I more closely tap into what a woman might be feeling about her body as she undergoes the disease, but simultaneously reflect a strength, beauty and resilience. 

Read more at UBC- Fashioning Cancer



Video Provided by Canadian Press and Justin Smallbridge

This is great example of finding inspiration anywhere and seeing potential in unexpected things.

Midi Madness

All the summer trends that I love happen to be the midi everything trends. Midi rings, Midriff baring crop tops and midi skirts. Best part is that you can combine all the trends to make a super cute outfit! 

Midi Rings

Crop Tops

Midi Circle Skirts

Fitted Midi Skirt

Fashionable Faux Pas

H&M Magazine Summer 2014 has made it official. Apparently the more wrong it seems, the better. Those long lived fashion faux pas are out the window this season. I'll I have to say is... You don't have to do it just because everyone else is doing it. Wear what makes you feel most like you, whatever that may be! :)

Overalls, scrunchies, character sweatshirts, fanny packs, mom jeans, socks and sandals, Birkenstocks, and jellies shoes. <-happy about that one :)

Flower Pedals Into Fashion Design Illustrations - Inspiration Is Everywhere

Grace Ciao, a 22-year-old student from Singapore, uses a clever and original way to draw her fashion design illustrations.

Read more at BoredPanda

JESSICA MCCLINTOCK HAS RETIRED

One of the many Jessica McClintock dresses I wore in High School. 

PROM FAVORITE JESSICA MCCLINTOCK HAS RETIRED & IS NO LONGER MANUFACTURING DRESSES

I came across this article and I had to post something about it because I had lots of high school dance dresses deigned by Jessica McClintock. I remember I was always so proud to tell people the designer of my dress because it made me sound so cool. When people asked where I got it I would proudly say "the Jessica McClintock store." It was a proud moment because it wasn't a mall dress that would most likely be seen in 4 different colors at the dance. 

Now we can add our beloved high school prom dress designer to the list of things my friends and I will reminisce about when we have kids. She will go along with, tape players, portable cd players, "Macintosh" computers and the internet dial tone.

Her retirement marks one more reason our kids will look at us like we are old, and the sad end to beautiful Jessica McClintock dress options for future dance goers. 

My older sister's Jessica McClintock Junior Prom dress. We still have it because I want to make it a steampunk outfit.

BE...

Creativity In All Forms

Alright, so I just realized I have not updated you all on what I have been up to and why all of these "trend" posts have been happening more often than usual. One of my cousins is getting married next week. How does this explain anything you ask? I have been living in a military community out in the smack dab center of Texas. I do lots of DIY projects to stay busy.

As of last week I have been fantasizing about Los Angeles (HOME!) and the fact that I would be going back to make my cousins wedding. Los Angeles to me is where creative inspiration is around every corner, at every dirty dive and in the shiniest bathroom in the South Coast Plaza mall. Trust me there is a ton of wonderful inspiration in Texas but nothing like home.

I personally enjoy fashion and like following trends the good, bad and the ugly. When I still lived in California I enjoyed going to Hollywood where you can see an eclectic, creative, group of people who are very much themselves and show it in many ways but especially their style.

So the week leading up to my trip to LA I decided to write about all that inspiration. I figure, why not? It's a blog based on creativity (inspiration/empowerment) so why stick to just one form?!

Out in my modest (depending on the area) country town in Texas I have little motivation to really get dressed in the morning because I spend most of my days at home making stuff. So if I do get "dressed" (hair and make-up too), I am lucky if someone other than my hubby will see me. Nothing wrong with just him seeing me put some effort every once in a while. But, every girls worst nightmare is wearing a cute outfit or recreating the perfect salon hair and then having it all go to waste because no one saw you in it (sorry hubby you don't count because you say you love my morning hair just the same). I know you ladies know what I'm talking about!

I am currently in LA, so lets see what other inspiration I come across out here!

Retail Art

Trend Alert: Sandals/Heels with Socks are No Longer a Fashion Faux Pas?!

InStyle.com

 I was previously undecided about runway fashion bringing back overalls and scrunchies for the summer, but his is a whole new world of wrong. There are so many things that look "fashionable" on the runway, but without the the high-fashion atmosphere this trend is a huge flop. Check out this season's sandal/sock wearing fashion!

Now that it's a look on the runway, there is no doubt we will begin to see it on the streets. Beginning with celebrities, most recently the Olson twins.

But there have been others...

Sara Jessica Parker, Chloe Sevigny, Kelly Osborne and Rihanna

Only way I think I would be willing to wear this trend would be with some closed toe heels. 

Two looks I didn't think were terrible.


At the end of the day these are just my personal opinions, I think with the right attitude and cofidance people can pull this look off. 

I decided to post these 2 pictures from my Tourist Birthday Party a few years ago... notice my friends footwear. Yep, socks and sandals. Who would have known fashion would be where is it today?!

Fashion is About Aesthetics, a Woman's Beauty is Not!

 I wrote a blog in April called, #NOMAKEUP #MFD #BECAUSEIMBEAUTIFULANYWAY. 

It's about beauty. I skim the topic of how media and advertising has molded us to think about beauty.

 My main point is "...articles have inspired me to voice my opinion about it (perseption of beauty)...but this time not pointing the finger at the advertising agencies (I guess they are just trying to sell products) but instead, looking at ourselves and changing the way we perceive beauty in ourselves and others. " 

My statement about how we perceive beauty still stands, but this company has now joined in the fight to change the social standard and I am ELATED by it! 

British Department store DEBENHAMS set new standards for their models. Not only is the fashion spot on, but it's far more realistic than anything we have seen to date. (The company is diversifying but they do still have your "standard" runway models. Either way, I think this is a great start.) 

Fashion is about aesthetics, a woman's beauty is not!

Beauty is not about the physical it's about personality, it's about confidence. It's about supporting one another and accepting each others differences. 

After all, that is what makes you, you isn't it?

Peoples descriptions of us are not what should not define who/what we are.

Amputee Woman = Beauty

Short/Tall/Chubby Woman=Beauty

Light Skin/Dark Skin Woman = Beauty 

Curvaceous Woman = Beauty

Amputee/ethnic Woman=Beauty

Age/Male/Hair Man/Woman = Handsome/Beauty

*Yes, these social pressures also apply to men

Here is an excerpt from the Inquisitr Article about Debenhams.

"As previously mentioned on Inquisitr, the department store that is looking to ban airbrushing feels that they have a moral obligation to customers to provide a realistic image.

“Here at Debenhams we believe that anyone can look fabulous in our range – which is why we’ve decided to break with convention…” says their blog regarding diversity in fashion.

They assert that they “want to help customers feel confident about their figures without bombarding them with unattainable body images,” according to The Daily Mail.

Read more at http://www.inquisitr.com/1257984/beautiful-models/#kkPYh2p2jxDwClhv.99

All images were used from the Inquisitr article called, 

British Department Store Sets Beauty Standard For Its Models, And The Images Are Inspiring.