So I hadn’t been planning on dressing up for Halloween at all until about 45 minutes before launch time – sometimes it feels like getting dressed up these days qualifies as “work.” By the time I had resolved to pull the trigger on an actual costume, I was rather stumped – my wardrobe has dwindled decisively over the course of my transient lifestyle.
By pure fluke, however, I had wandered into the “Free Room” at my local thrift store earlier that day and found this pristine early 60s ivory brocade A-line… not something I would normally wear, fit so well and was free-not-to-mention, that I scooped it up. Not having time to dramatically alter my hair, a half-assed Betty Draper of Mad Men was pretty much my only option.
While I’m addicted to Mad Men, I’m not usually one to costume myself as the Flavor of the Year. But considering that about 48% of the population likely dressed as characters from Mad Men, I could be overstepping by using the jaunty little word- fluky – when I tell you that my best friend Richard in Vancouver had corresponded inadvertently by dressing as Betty’s philanderous husband, Donald… but that’s just the way I am.
Rich photos by Janos Sitar and Jillian Mccavour
Amber photos by Abraham Cooper
Mad Men photo from Fabric Magazine
I’m loving the hair, & I was kinda shocked I found your lovely face in one of my town’s local bar’s flyers
other than that I love reading your blog.
keep it painfully hip <3<3
-Denisse
We, of course, knew nothing about this. And, Denisse, we’d really like to know the name of your town so we can, perhaps, have a go at the “sexual piñata.” This is the best day ever.
The image is below. Let me prepare you… I am never going to stop laughing at this. Ever
The following post is Rory’s reaction (he’s the handsome devil with the thumb on the right). Who was the other guy, you ask? No idea. Another victim of bad photoshopping… which was also inflicted on my formerly 2D digital boobs (I mean, you can’t pull off a Hooters shirt ironicly if you own actual boobs. C’mon).
Wow… this gives me the cold dead feeling in my insides previously reserved for films by Todd Solondz.The photo is taken from the Awesome All Day Good Will Tour outside of Fayetteville. I’m not sure who the hispanic stubbly guy is but, I’m choosing to believe that he is Diana’s new boyfriend Lorenzo Lamas.
My Spanish is wonky, but I’m pretty sure the flyer roughly translates into:
October 23rd
“NIGHT OF SOLIDARITY”
For tornadoes and people suffering from tuberculosis
LIVE BOOZE of 8-11
And yes a Tornado can coincide with a tuberculosis, they are the two love lives in the Jungle at night!
Discuss this with your sexual Piñatas!
And yes a Tornado can coincide with a tuberculosis, they are the two love lives in the Jungle at night!
When Agent Ribbons (vaudeville outlaws, theatrical bandits, our only hope of making it out of monotony alive…) rolled into torrid Tucson like a three ring circus of unquestionable awesomeness, we were excited to reimburse the stratosphere some of our couchsurfing karma. Natalie Ribbons, Lauren Hess and their fanciful dancing bird, Christopher, hit the road from my old stomping grounds (Sacramento, CA) and have been on the lamb since January. We couldn’t let them make their escape with out documenting their dangerous levels of va-va-vaudeville vavoom.
I was feeling a definite Bonnie & Clyde streak brewing. Voila, our very first band shoot!
They chose their performance outfits from the “Painfully Hip Closet/Room” for their performance at the gorgeous Solar Culture Gallery – a mustn’t miss in Tucson – which they rocked without question. After the ensuing spectacle, they left the crowd hankering for more and decided to sing for their supper at the Red Room later that same night. Better believe they had the entire restaurant up and dancing! Quite the feat… especially when late night mozzarella sticks are involved.
photographer: Ryan Mihalyi
styling: Diana Deaver and Amber Mortensen
Hair and Makeup: Amber Mortensen
Special thanks to Stacey and to Solar Culture!
Is it Vaudeville? Or “cabaret-inspired victorian punk garage?” Pictures are always nice, but I’m going to let Natalie’s green wiggle dress do the talking:
If you are a touring band rolling through Tucson, and would like to raid our styling skillz and alliances with amazing photographers like Ryan Mihalyi for some promo shots, launch us an email at painfullyhipATgmail.com!
I don’t know if a red carpet event qualifies as such if it starts at 8am at a discount department store and there is no booze or paparazzi involved… If, however, it means that a corporation spoils the spit out of you for 24 hours, then yes, I attended a red carpet event. In Glendale, California.
Thank you very much to TJ Maxx for inviting me, putting me up at the Hilton and then, so very kindly, offering to buy my “return” leg to Tucson. You could say that the price of my interstate move was on the dime of a corporation. That’s how I roll. Thanks again, TJ Maxx.
Two rad DKNY dresses. The one on the left is, like 99% off. Or was it the right one.
Anyhow. Style expert and TV personality, the lovely Alison Deyette, explained to us the ins and outs of why off-price retailers, Marshalls and TJ Maxx are so effing rad. In the words of legit wordsmith, Well-Heeled With a Mission:
TJ Maxx buyers travel 40 weeks out of the year to speak to vendors all over the world.
Off-price retailers engage in “opportunistic” buying, i.e. when forecasting mistakes, canceled orders, or overproduction result in more items that a full-priced retailer can buy, an off-price will come in and buy the merchandise at vastly discounted prices.
Most of the merchandise at off-price retailers are in-season, and are released at the same time as full-priced merchandise at department stores. (i.e., you can find a dress at Nordstroms and the same dress at TJ Maxx in the same week.)
Off-price retailers have a fast turnaround time of as short as 2-3 weeks from the time a shipment is ordered to the time that the products are delivered, processed, and shown on the floor.
Department stores have the option of shipping back merchandise they don’t sell, but off-price retailers’ purchases are final.
As you know, I am not huge into “labels” and “names,” but I do, indeed I do, appreciate quality and a good deal when I see it. At this TJ Maxx, I managed to score:
A cozy blouse for $1
A gorgeous liberty print tiered halter dress by Grass (missing the neck tie – a 2 millisecond fix) for $3
Some Amplify styling mousse with moisturizer sample for $4
An amazing zebra print backless one-piece swimsuit for $15
And… a pair of wowza 70s-licious cornflower J Brand jeans made out of the softest denim in the known universe. I literally had to close my eyes as I smoothed them on. Only $39. A splurge for me, but leaving them in the store would be akin to leaving my first born on Michael Jackson’s doorstep (Ok, sorry! Even I cringed at that one. TOO SOON).
I am currently editing photos from the Preen Glam Rock Fashion Show! Here’s a teaser:
These WILL be joining the ranks of my closet soon enough. That is legit vintage python. BELIEVE.
All images were either created by the Painfully Hip Design Collective, used with permission, or found on the web and believed to be in the public domain. If any images that appear are in violation of copyright law, please let me know and i will remove them immediately.
Thanks for reading,
Amber
painfullyhip at gmail.com
