2 for 1 Book Review

With the festivities and travelling I totally got behind with writing my book reviews. I totally completed my last two books for the year which were both fantastic and compelling. I do love a inspiring book and just as much love a psychology which to put in a nutshell were exactly the genre of books I read. So here goes. Book review one and two!

The Book Review: 11/12 November Edition 

Liespotting: Proven Techniques to Detect Deception

by Pamela Meyer

This book has to be one of the most thought provoking books I've read and most applicable techniques to apply to daily life. For someone like me; highly gullible and trusts everyone (much to my detriment) this book has become an almost life line, especially since my current endeavour with footwear will see me going through a number of the examples mentioned in this book. For any of you  thinking of staring a business this is a must read! Word of warning (though) the techniques in this book don't only help you with business it uses examples in daily life too so you may become more aware of those around you doing just as much fibbing in personal life along with career goals, as the saying goes you can't unknow what you already know, you cant unlearn what you have already learnt.

The Book Review: 12/12 December Edition 

A Year of Yes

by Shonda Rhimes

I have been a huge fan of Shonda Rhimes since I first watched Greys Anatomy, which was around 4 years ago, yes i'm late to the Greys Anatomy fan club, but once I set my eyes on it I was hooked and mostly because it was my vice in the first year of my Dad passing away it seemed like my therapy. Then came Scandal which I became obsessed with and then of course How To Get Away with Murder. Im aware by now that I'm totally addicted to tv series and I have convinced myself that there is nothing wrong with that especially when they are all written by Shonda Rhimes. This book is a little snippet of Rhimes life that documents her year of saying yes to any opportunity that came her way. Unravelling some of the situation she wound up in simply for saying yes and the ripple effect it has had on her life following is seriously inspiring and encouraging especially if you are feeling stuck in rut - try saying yes to the next opportunity that lands in your lap and see where it will take it i'm pretty sure it will change your life in ways you weren't expecting.

The Book Review: 9/12 September Edition 

Dangerous Girls

by Abigail Haas

I was recommended this book by my best friend, who devoured this book in all of three days, I had to get in on the action and see what all the hype was about. As you all may have figured out already I can be extremely impatient - I like to get to the end of the book as quickly as possible to completely review my judgement on the book itself. This book I have to say completely tested my patience (or lack there of) it took me a little while before I got into the book (Since I've decided that my preferred genre of novel is behavioural psychology and psychology books in general) but when I eventually did I couldn't put the book down. I guess that is the power of the writer - Abigail Haas, who so carefully carved this book into a really dark and wild book with ups and downs that have your heart pumping. I absolutely loved this book and would recommend it for a great fictional book that will have you on a roller coaster of emotions for all the characters in the book. (£6.99 with Amazon Prime)

Vogue Review 

Dolce and Gabbana

The first week of a new month is something I always look forward to. It means my next instalment of Vogue is due, as soon as it drops through the letterbox I'm eager to see whats in store. The March issue is always exciting because of its transitional content - the time of year where you ditch your thick winter coats (hopefully if you're living in England) and start to think about your summer wardrobe. This doesn't mean only your clothes it means your shoes too! Now the first couple of pages pretty much give you a preview of what to expect for the coming months, the stand out pages in the last few years have been the Dolce and Gabbana spreads which are usually four pages strong. Naturally my eyes immediatly took me to the shoes which were blooming gorgeous. Encrusted, embellished, blinging, fringed, embroidered you name it they've got it. The colour palettes are bright and bold with luxe embellishing and integrally love for Italian heritage like most of D&G's branding. The shoes aren't cheap but what great statement shoes are? Its definitely worth having a look at their website and having a flick through this months Vogue, if not for the Dolce and Gabbana campaign then for the inspiration for what to purchase for your summer wardrobe!

News

Killer Heels Exhibition - Brooklyn Museum NYC

About a month ago my very thoughtful boyfriend surprised me to a 5 day trip to NYC for my birthday. Anyone that knows me will know just how much I love everything and anything NYC related. Infact one of my dreams would be to eventually move out there. So you can just imagine the ball of tears and shock I was in when he told me at Heathrow departures that we were infact going to NYC and not Rome (which is where I thought we were originally going) Little did I know he had pretty much planned half of the trip with things that I have always wanted to go and see. As fate would have it there just happened to be an exhibition on heels and of course that also got placed on this list. So on day one we headed out early just to do that - the Killer Heels Exhbition at the Brooklyn Museum. (I know girls I’m on to a winner with him!!)

The exhibition was an absolute must see for heel obsessed women. Eastern Parkway is the nearest subway station to the exhibition and takes you practically straight to the front door of Brooklyn Museum. The building itself is beautiful, and just what you would expect of a museum. We paid $15 each, but this was optional. You can pay nothing or as much as you like. The suggested amount at the counter was $16 each.

Brooklyn Museum

The exhibition took you through the ages of the shoe, starting off with the development of the heel through to the present day heel, and just how far they have come in terms of design, conventionalism and pure crazy ideas for heels that can be adapted to look like art work on your feet. The best part of the exhibition was physically looking at a shoe that I had seen in the media but not managed to see in person. The use of visuals and digitial media made the exhibition varied so it wasnt just shoe after shoe which for even a shoe addict like me can get slightly repetitive and dull. There were tiny snippets of recordings throughout the exhibition showing the creative process of a shoe with the designer developing their ideas of a shoe design, designing the ‘last’ that the shoe will be moulded around through to it being put together. This for me was very insightful, I love to watch and follow how other shoe designers develop their work and how they record their work so that I can better mine to.

(Sorry the Images are blurry, the whole exhibition was super dark, so some images I had to take on my phone instead of my SLR and I couldn't use the flash within the exhibition - Typical!)

Architecture and Shoe design was a section of the exhibition that really caught my attention, having an architecture degree I have always noticed a connection between architecture and shoes but was never able to really define what made them so similar untill reading a caption in this particular gallery. It gave my thoughts about the relationship between fashion and architecture some perspective; 

"Architecture and shoe design share some concerns: enclosure and protection; The relationship between structure and facade; and the expressive harmony of solids, voids, and contours. The consideration of stress points, loads, flexion, and achieving elevation makes the comparison even more compelling when it comes to high heels"

sorry its blurry!

I ended up purchasing the 'Killer Heels - The Art of the High Heeled-Shoes' book that was dedicated to the exhibition and set me back around 30$ but when you are a shoe and book collector its pretty hard to turn away especially when you have already flicked through the book. The book features a number of shoes from various designers that were exhibited and some extras just to add to the collection within the book. A good buy if I do say so myself. Most definitely a coffee book but for me a source of inspiration from some of the top footwear designers in the world. 

I was completely seduced by the display of shoes within the exhibition and don't think its confined to just mad shoe lovers either, it makes for pretty light viewing (I went with my boyfriend and even he didn't find it to strenuous to go through) and I would recommend having a visit if you are in NYC.