Hollow-Star.net

New theme/layout as we transition into a new season.  I also did some autumn cleaning & tidied up my tags, categories and links.  Summer isn’t over, but it is into the transition stage where the nights are still warm but fall is definitely sweeping in.  We’ve been having on and off sunshine and thunderstorms here and I’m loving it.  Here are some things I’m looking forward to for fall:

An accessory trend seen on Sparkle*Shelf is cocktail rings.  Summer is all about laidback style, but fall seems perfect for more dramatic accessories.  I already have a clunky ring that Donny bought me when we started dating.  It isn’t expensive, but I still want to get it sized to fit if I can, as it dangles off my finger a bit & I’m sick of wearing it as a thumb ring. I might also stock up on some even gaudier pieces.

After a few months of freedom for my legs, I’m also down to rock the tights again, and these ones top my list:

These tattoo tights are spendy, but I am in love with them.  God knows I’d snag them the first chance I get, and I would feel like a lame ass having to admit it wasn’t real ink when guys comment at the bar, but they are gorgeous.  It almost makes me want to get some real ink on my legs - somewhere I’ve never considered getting tattooed.  As Nylon suggests, you can always get a thin Sharpie and draw on your own tights… perhaps a D.I.Y. project in my future.

One of the best parts of fall is of course Halloween.  Last year I had a chill sushi date with the lover.  This year I am hoping for something low-key but much more festive.  For festivity, you can’t beat these Vans Hi-Tops.  These kicks are perfect to rock from now into November - I would love them with skinnies and a black cropped jacket.

Last Halloween I didn’t really dress up, but I thought about putting together a Cleopatra or Nefertiti costume.  Lucky for me, Egyptian-inspired pieces are supposed to be big next season.  S*S says to be on the lookout for “hieroglyphic prints, King Tut imagery, and ancient mummy graphics, as well as dark kohl-lined eyes paired with piles of gold jewelry“.  I’m stoked.  Not only has dark eyeliner forever been the one item I’d take on a deserted island, I have been obsessed with Egypt for even longer.  I hope to see this trend popping up in stores where I live, as I will have tons of fun with it.

Lastly, sort of along with fashion, along with the new season comes new TV shows & episodes.  I watch my share of reruns but don’t usually get excited over premieres other than Top Model.  Due mainly to other female bloggers’ *obsession* with the show, I do, however, plan on watching the season premiere of Gossip Girl.  I am also considering checking out the new 90210, even though I have never seen a single episode of the original.  If you want to keep up on the shows with me, you get them all in a row - GG starts back up September 1st, 90210 hits the air on September 2nd, and America’s Next Top Model launches a 2-hour premiere on September 3rd.

I wrote a post about ANTM Cycle 11, but for those of you who don’t follow the show, I am also taking Katy’s lead and filling out Friday’s Feast (although technically it is 2:30am on Saturday).

Appetizer
When was the last time you had your hair cut/trimmed?
May 28th by Ginger! She trimmed and layered my hair and we ran errands and ate delicious bar food.

Soup
Name one thing you miss about being a child.
The older you get, the more you need the people who knew you when you were young.
I miss my childhood best friend Rebecca. Technically we’re still friends but don’t really hang out anymore.  We used to cook ourselves Top Ramen and camp in my backyard with photos clipped from Teen Beat taped to the inside of our tent.

Being a child is nice, but as adult I have more freedom & power. I remember being a kid, wishing I could control what I eat and when I go to bed. I love being an adult and making my own rules.

Salad
Pick one: butter, margarine, olive oil.
Definitely olive oil, although what I use most for cooking is SmartBalance spread.

Main Course
If you could learn another language, which one would you pick, and why?
I took Spanish in high school.  I am nowhere near fluent, but would like to be. People speak Spanish around me everywhere I go, it seems, and I’d like to know what they’re saying. Once I overheard a little Mexican boy who lives near me and his mother talking about how they liked my shoes. They had no idea I could understand them, so it was a true compliment. I also think that Russian sounds sexy and I would love to be able to write and understand Asian languages.

Dessert
Finish this sentence: In 5 years I expect to be…
Married? Hopefully married and maybe with a baby.  My five year plan is to support myself freelancing or possibly part-time jobs while taking design (and maybe business) classes.  Continue working for myself but with a degree make more money at it.  Marriage plans begin when we can afford a house, basically.  I also intend to maintain the friendships that are important to me.  I hope in five years (I’ll be 27) I am toned and skinny and host parties and have a garden.

With back-to-school season coming, new clothes and reinvention are on students’ minds. To this day, I relate September with a clean slate and polishing up my look and my identity. A big part of this was always as a student.  Each year I would pick out a new 3-ring binder (last year’s would now be set aside for my poetry and novel attempts) and begin a collage to cover the front.  The inside would consist of subject dividers with colorful write-on tabs.  Forever the perfectionist, I would painstakingly write out “Algebra”, “Chemistry”, “English”, all in my finest penmanship but rarely up to my standards. If only I had Color labels to keep my binder looking neat.

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I am obviously a huge ANTM fan, so the biggest bit of news/gossip in my world when I came back from vacay was Sarah telling me that America’s Next Top Model Cycle 11 Contestants have been announced!  You can see all of the girls here, but here are my two favorites just from the photos (click to enlarge in new window):

Elina (age 19) is originally from Ukraine but currently from Seattle, WA (go Northwest!).  She has a tattoo & her bio says she is ‘unemployed’.  I am sort of guessing she’ll be a bitch, but I hope I like her.

Sheena reminds me of Claudia Kishi from the BSC books (y’all know what I’m talking about) and is getting my For The Win right now.  Sheena is a Hostess & Go-Go Dancer, and I hope she is likable on the show.

There is a lot of talk about contestant Isis, who has spoken with Us Weekly about the fact that she will be ANTM’s first transgender contestant.

“My cards were dealt differently,” she told the mag.  Isis is 22 years old and was born physically male although she identifies herself as a woman.  GLAAD president Neil Giuliano said,

“We applaud Tyra Banks and The CW for making this historic visibility of transgender people possible,” Giuliano said.  Isis herself has said that while she does like to help others, she is on the show to follow her dreams.

My opinion is that her inclusion is badass - risky and no-rules, just like fashion - but I also know she will never win.  Still, the first plus-size model on the show had little chance of winning either, but eventually Whiney took the title, so perhaps Isis will set a new precedent.  I’ll be excited to watch Cycle 11 to see how Isis does and how Tyra - God bless her - exploits the hell out of it.