Rethink Black Friday

Black Friday has always bothered me. When I was younger I could never figure out why people would want to wake up at 3 am to camp out in front of a store, two things I hate combined camping and lack of sleep. As I got older I noticed a huge shift, stores opening earlier and earlier. It's become almost this "Apocalypse Now" style mission to go out and buy a television.

Why not do something different this year? Support a local business, more specifically support your local record shop. The 28th will be Record Store Day throughout the United States. It's a day to celebrate the magical places known as record stores, the places where you can bond with someone over music. There will be exclusive releases that you can only buy that day and of course you can spend the day browsing through the crates.

I am extremely excited about some of the exclusives and I am counting down the days until Friday. I am the most excited for "From Genesis to Revelation" by Genesis

"From Genesis to Revelation" was released in 1969 and when it was first released it didn't sell well and was usually placed in the religious section of the record shop, I'm sure there were some surprised listeners. 

The Beatles, The Kinks, Joey Ramone, and David Bowie are also some of the artists that will have albums for sale you can see the complete list here http://www.recordstoreday.com/SpecialReleases

You can find out which stores in your area are participating here http://www.recordstoreday.com/Venues

You Always Remember Your First

Do you remember the first album you purchased, the first physical album? The album you saved up for, the one you couldn't wait to listen to all the time.

I was seven years old when I bought my first album, "Middle of Nowhere" by Hanson and I'm surprised it didn't wear out. It was my very first and for about a year my only album. I listened to it constantly and now my family makes fun of me for it.

Anyway, I remember saving up to buy it and when I finally bought it I couldn't wait to drop it in the tray of my little boombox and press play, it was magical.

I can also remember my first record, I found it in my parent's record collection "Whipped Cream and Other Delights" by Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass. Subconsciously, I think it's one of the reasons why I love modeling, the album cover is so striking and I wanted to be the whipped cream lady. The music is good too.

So, do you remember your first? What was it?

Last Taste of Summer

I love the transition from summer to fall, the sunsets become more magical and the air becomes crisp. I got to work with Camerin photography last Sunday and she captured the changing of the seasons in the photos. She was a pleasure to work with .

These remind me of fall, the photos evoke feelings of crisp fall air

The clouds reflected in the water are gorgeous. Veronica, the photographer, did a great job editing. It makes me think of how summer seems so infinite

The lighting in this of golden end of summer sunsets, the lighting was beautiful that evening 

You can find the full set of photos on Camerin Photography's photobucket page here and my facebook page as I add them www.facebook.com/obf0908

A Romp in the Sheets

Two weeks ago I had a photo shoot with Curtis Scott Dunn Creative Projects (https://www.facebook.com/CurtisScottDunnCreativeProjects), please give his page a like.

We were inspired by Douglas Kirkland's photos of Marilyn Monroe. I've always loved his photos of her, She was wrapped in white sheets, the photos were softly focused and she looked as if she was laying on clouds.

Douglas Kirkland has written about his shoot with Marilyn, he wrote about how nervous he was. Could you imagine getting the chance to work with Marilyn Monroe?

I have been modeling for four years now and it's taken me those four years to gain the confidence to finally get some implied nudes in my portfolio, I had so much fun I am wondering why it took me so long. 

I was a little nervous when I got there. To me, a good photographer not only takes good photos but he will put the model at ease, thankfully I've had the opportunity to work with a lot of photographers that one can't help but to feel comfortable with. Curtis Dunn is one of them, by the end I was completely at ease and having a lot of fun. 

There are more photos from this shoot on my Facebook page (http://facebook.com/obf0908). Enjoy!

Burger Time with Chris Crois Photography

Sunday night I met Chris at a 50s style McDonalds for our third shoot together. I believe that this was one of the most entertaining shoots I've done, there are some interesting people out at 10pm.  Since we were close to the street and next to a stop sign there were people hanging out of their cars taking photos of up with their phones. We have fans!

Half way through the shoot two couples got out of their car and walked in the McDonalds and a couple of minutes later one of the men walked out and asked for a photo with me. The rest of his group came out and started narrating my every move, It was really hard for me not to crack up.

The workers at McDonalds were extremely nice and allowed us to take photos inside, the inside is like stepping back into the 1950s. 

It was a fun night for sure! There are more photos from this shoot, to see the rest of them visit my Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/obf0908 and make sure to "like" Chris Crois Photography's page https://www.facebook.com/crois6

My Turn as a Blonde

I have been busy, I love my blog, but I've had so many things to do this summer and it's been difficult to do everything I want to do. I always have so many things I want to accomplish in the day but my mind is making plans for 10 people, I over plan myself every day.

I had the pleasure of working with Thomas P. Woodward (http://tpwstudios.co/) again at the beginning of the month. I had my first shoot with him in April of this year and posted about it in my post "A Day in the Life"

I love modeling and acting since it gives me the privilege to step outside of myself. In my latest shoot with Thomas P. Woodward we decided to go with a Marilyn Monroe, blonde bombshell theme.

My Mommom's gold dress got a chance to be showcased at this photoshoot. It's one of my favorite 50s dresses

I am looking forward to the photo shoot we have planned for this week. To see more photos from this photo shoot visit my facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/obf0908

Movie Spotlight: Pleasantville

Have you ever wished you could beam yourself into a T.V. family? I did this a lot when I was little, I watched a lot of T.V. especially classic shows. My all time favorites were The Munsters and The Golden Girls, I always wanted to live with The Munsters since they were such an awesome family, everyone thought they were so weird but they were so loving.

Part of the reason I love the movie "Pleasantville" so much is the main characters actually get beamed into a T.V. family.

"Pleasantville" came out in 1998, my parents got it when it came out on VHS. I watched it and instantly fell in love with it, I notice new things every time I watch it and I understand it a lot more now than I did when I was eight years old. 

I'm sure that "Pleasantville" helped to spark my love for vintage, I really wanted a lot of the clothes in the movie. 

 Reese Witherspoon's character complains about wearing her 1950s bra, she said "I could, like, kill a guy with these things." Personally, I love the "bullet" bra look. 

 The mother, Betty, wears a lot of smart suits in the movie. I would love to raid her closet.

Look at those fantastic glasses

I could watch Pleasantville over and over again and not get tired of it. The movie is visually stunning and the plot is very thought provoking. People often think of the 50s as a perfect decade but it wasn't the paradise people make it out to be when they get an attack of nostalgia. 

So, what are your thoughts on Pleasantville?