Style Tips -- 30th June 2008
[ 1 July 2008 ]
Next time you have to make a nerve-wracking phone-call, put on your best, most fabulous pair of shoes. March around your room in them for a bit, pluck up your courage & then dial on your feet. (You always sound more authoritative standing up!)
Open yourself up to new kinds of music. Gregorian chanting, classical music, drumming circles, jazz, mind-blowing electronica, waltzes, turntablism… There is something magical in every musical genre, which can speak to a part of you that was previously untouched. Make it your mission to listen to something different & observe how your body reacts.
Wear a sparkly bikini top under your clothing. No one else needs to know, but you will have shimmering ta-tas!
Start making yourself a charm bracelet full of meaningful totems. Collect charms which mean something to you & remind you of past successes or future goals. (Everything on my charm bracelet has meaning, & when I wear it I feel like having those things near me moves me closer to what I want.) I’ve found the best range of charms on Ebay, & I particularly like Velvet Violet‘s shop.
Experiment with Bach flower remedies. Flowers in liquid format dropped onto the tongue? It all sounds very romantic, doesn’t it?
Listen to The Cure during a thunderstorm. (Read Poppy Z. Brite for extra bonus points! Eyeliner optional.)
Super-love & cupcakes,
Gala
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I love the first one about phone calls! And I love that you’re doing more style tips!
shimmering ta-tas = best phrase ever.
& i agree with char – i had missed the style tips!
xo
I really liked these tips, and I’ll keep that in mind next time I have to make a difficult phone-call! Thank you!
The phone call idea is very true. In addition to having a clearer, more authoritative voice when standing, the extra confidence of your favorite shoes will make for an easier time.
Did I tell you how much I love having you in my time zone?
xoxo,
A.J.
I really like the first tip gala. when it comes to nervous phone calls i’m always pacing and fiddling, but putting on some spanking fab shoes will definitely add some confidence to strut my stuff. I’ll do it next time!
For the second tip my friend and I had planned a music exploration date, where we shared each others taste in music and also discovered other genres. He listens to old school hip hop and metal, whereas I often listen to acoustic and rnb. It was very invigorating to listen to other kinds of music, especially to have a taste of your friend’s ear candy. My cousin used to listen to Gregorian chants when he was studying, which used to be annoying and oddly soothing at the same time for me.
My friend wore a fluoro pink bikini with black love hearts over it under her top for uni one day. Definitely made her feel fabulous :D
I love your Style Tips Gala~ they always make me feel spontaneous :)
I love the phone call tip! It is certainly true that you sound & feel more in charge when up on your feet… and what better to give you a confidence & fabulousness boost than a fantastic pair of heels.
Unlike AJ you are so not in my time zone (anymore!) it’s 1am here… so time to catch some ZzZzZzZzz…
I’m loving your style tips too Gala! I like the idea of wearing a sparkly bikini top, and the flower remedies sound interesting!
you have inspired me to start a charm bracelet! i just started trolling through velvet violets store & would have so much trouble limiting what i buy to just one bracelet. maybe i’ll have to make many charm bracelets – one for every mood! thankyou :)
Gala, I love the phone call tip! I’ll try it next time I have an important phonecall to make! I need more confidence in talking on the phone :)
Also, I recently became a fan of jazz and I have to agree with you when you say that it ‘can speak to a part of you that was previously untouched’
I agree with everyone about the phonecall idea – I’ll definately have to try that soon (although hopefully I won’t need to make any nerve-wracking phonecalls)
hello!
i can vouch for bach remedies!
my boyfriend and i adopted a rescue beagle 1.5 years ago and we found that he had leash aggression based on a fear of other dogs. this would only happen when he was on leash. playing in the off-leash area, he was totally fine!
after consulting with a animal communicator, she suggested trying some bach rememdy essences.
well, it seems to have worked. he doesn’t howl, lunge or go crazy when we see dogs on our walks anymore – the most he does is a howl or two if he has any reaction at all.
specifically she told us to use: – rescue rememdy (for anxiety) – star of bethlehem – heather
other dog owners that i’ve met start adding drops of the Rescue Remedy to their pet’s water a couple of days before flying with them to ease their anxiety!
That first tip, the phone tip, wow wow wow how empowering! There is nothing like a pair of heels to give you a power boost. This is a great tip, Gala!!
And Poppy Z. Brite!!!! Oh yes, she is such a great great author… I love her biography of Courtney Love.
And the Cure are always lovely… my boyfriend and I are planning to use “Love Song” at our wedding for our dance!
You’re a totally doll, Miss Darling!xox MWUAH!
You bring me so much happiness that Sometimes Gala I swear you’re God. :D
gala, it’s your shoes! blogs.lexpress.fr/cafe
Where the HELL did you get thouse awesome shoes from?
charm bracelets are seriously one of the best accessories to own! i started one back in 9th grade and 7 years later i still wear it a lot and add charms to it (it’s not complete yet). and people love looking at your charm bracelet and asking what each little charm represents. only down side of charm bracelets is they can be hard to wear when writing lol
I’m TOTALLY starting a charm bracelet! And wearing fabulous shoes whenever I make a phone call. I
I’ve been lurking around your site for months now and I must say you are my favorite! Everytime I come here I feel positive and I rush off to put on some lipgloss. Thanks for brightening my days :)
p.s. can’t wait to try the nerve-wracking phone call tip!
I love the idea of secret stylistic empowerment. And as someone who STILL has a bizarre fear of making phone calls – I make my hubby call for pizza every time – I’m especially grateful for the shoe tip. Hurrah!
Leanne — I love the idea of your music exploration date! I think one of the best things ever is spending time with someone you like while they explain to you about the kind of music they love. They can say why this or that bit is important, what works, what to listen for… it’s so good!
Anna — Hee! I only have about ten charms on my bracelet at the moment, one day I would like to have the entire thing packed with charms!
Natalie-Jayne — I’m pleased! I went to see the NY Philharmonic play in Central Park last week & it was really fabulous.
Helen — Nerve-wracking phone-calls are good for the spirit! It pushes you & encourages you to reach further!
happy d — That’s so good to know, thank you for sharing! I have never used them but my assistant thinks they work wonders… which is why I mentioned it!
Dayna Desastre — I loved her biography of Courtney too! I always loved imagining them sitting together & hanging out, swapping stories as part of “research”. Haha. & the pictures of goth Courtney in photobooths made me soooo happy!
Vixxie — Haha, oh my! I can assure you I’m not! ;D
B — A goth shop! HAHA! I love them! They remind me of these Louboutins: www.net-a-porter.com
katya — I hear you! I wear mine on my left wrist so it doesn’t get in the way :>
Another phone call trick- smile! It sounds ridiculous, but smiling while you’re on the phone, even if you don’t feel like smiling, makes you sound more open and happy to speak to someone.
Hmm…while I have no sparkly bikini top, sticking sequins to my bra would be fun! And I love any activity that takes place during a thunderstorm. So glad I live in the midwest, we get loads of them!
Oh, gala… listening to the cure during thunderstorms is perfect. & the bach flower remedies are really intriguing. i’d never heard of anything like that before, but i may just have to try it now. i think these are some of your best style tips ever.
p.s. the picture in the right bottom corner is awesome.
Great tips! I had a charm bracelet given to me which I’m going to dig out. Rachel’s tip about smiling on the phone is so true also. Have to think about where to get the shimmer from :P
Thank-you for this: it’s good to know that I’m not the only one who gets really nervous about certain phone calls.
...I would love to listen to the Cure in a thunderstorm, although there are hardly ever any where I live. I adore the Cure, my current favourite song is probably Just Like Heaven, definetly what I would listen to.
What would be your Cure song of choice in a thunderstorm? I’ve always wanted to go to the mediterranean so I can have Siouxsie and the Banshees on, in a warm rain shower, and with Hibiscus flowers in my hair. Sorry, I always go into massive detail…
Hi Gala and company!
Check out this awesome Charm-of-the-Month Club! You get a charm bracelet and a charm each month for a year!
mdesignboutique.blogspot.com/2…
Its at M Design Boutique (http://www.mdesignboutique.com) where there are also tons of cute charms.
I am a Charm Bracelet freak! I have one for travel, one for my pets, one “general”, one for Summery things…I’m hooked on this cute idea.
My friend Nicki and her 4 cousins all keep charm bracelets together. They buy 5 matching charms for the bracelets once in a while to commemorate times they spend together, etc. So cute.
Oh…there is also this one that yields a $5 donation to a Humane Society for every purchase: mdesignboutique.blogspot.com/2…
ok I guess it’s time to start a charm bracelet…
oh, and speaking of a fabulous pair of shoes, I saw these and thought of you… www.shopbop.com/pixel
love the tips!
I love these, thank you! :D
I dont know how you do it but there’s always something here that is relevant to my life!!! I’ve bee volunteering for a little while now with a youth run aid and development organisation – and it involves a lot of phone calls to high schools trying to get teachers to let us speak to their students and it is soooooo nerve wracking!!! Panic inducing even!
This is a very fabulous new way I’m going to try conquering my fear! I dont know why I didn’t think of it before – the right shoes can fix anything!!!
Thankyou!!!
Bach flower remedies are awesome! I take Rescue Remedy & love it. Although I often wonder if it’s the strong taste of brandy that calms you, or the herbs!
Smiling while you are on the phone as another nonpareil suggested is a winner, it was a staple when I worked at a telemarketer (ugh!), you can feel like a bit of a fool grinning ear to ear – but the other person can’t see you and will just think you are lovely!
LOL @ shimmering tatas… The shoes and phone call are good advice. I believe the rest should be fierce, too. Studies show that people do better in interviews and on tests when they’re dressed professionally. :]
Hee hee, I often wear crazy bikini tops under my boring work clobber, brightens up my day and sometimes other’s too if the halter neck straps poke themselves out! XXxx
I can second that the Bach Flower Remedies are wonderful. I have been using it for over 2 years.
My classmates introduced me by it we were having exams and i also got an almost fulltime job and had this serious stress-moments in wich i just felt like i couldn’t move or think straight and ever since i always carry a Rescue Remedy Spray with me (its a combination of several Flower remedies). Its very handy you only spray a bit on your tongue and thats it. It helps me to relax whenever i get in situations that makes me anxious, feel uncomfortable, stress. Since the iTC i also started to use the Walnut Remedy, just 2 drops in my bottle of water. Part of the Description is ‘of great use when we are trying to break away from established patterns in our own thought or behavior – for this walnut is often referred to as the ‘link-breaker’‘ And it works really well together with EFT.
Oh and sparkling bikinitop thats such a fabulous idea!!
I love charm bracelets! My mother started collecting little charms for me when I was only a baby, from friends and overseas trips – now I have quite a bit of a collection, and am wearing them constantly! I consider them like little good luck trinkets – and if I’m not wearing the charms on my wrist, I’m attaching a whole bunch of them to a plain silver chain – I love the jingly noises they make, letting everyone else know that you’re on your way! Thanks for the tips, Gala. xoxo
“Energetic signature” of the flower – how delightful!
Wow, I’m totally convinced that I want a charm bracelet now. I’ve been pondering it for ages but I’m definitely going to buy one after seeing all those cute charms Velvet Violet has! My mum’s best friend has had a charm bracelet for years — she has so many charms, I don’t think she could even manage to fit one more! If I ever have a daughter, I’m going to get her a charm bracelet and buy a new charm for every birthday she has — I think it makes it really special if you collect them slowly like that. :)
And you’re so right, it’s an excellent idea to expand your taste in music! I used to only allow myself to listen to “rock”, but I realised it almost depressed me to be stuck on one genre of music all the time — I still love all the music I did before, only now I have absolutely no problem dancing around my room in my pjs to Britney Spears, it’s kind of invigorating. ;)
The Cure are awesome! And you have me intrigued by Poppy Z. Brite, her stories sound really different and kind of scandalous…I love it! I’ll definitely have to check out her work.
Cheers for the tips, Gala!
i couldn’t find the email you button.
anyway here goes, i recently started a fashion blog and no ones been on it yet. i would love for you to tell me how it is + what i can do to improve.
j’aime antoinette
You found those shoes in a goth shop!? I thought it was stock photo of louboutins or mcqueens!!! Jealous!!!! I am going to have to keep my eye out for a pair of those.
Gala, it’s actually ridiculous how much you inspire me. Every week I come away from your blog with a new idea or motivation! My 21st is coming up and my parents have been racking their brains trying to think of what to get me – now I totally have it, a charm bracelet would be perfect!! xoxo
I love the idea of music exploration… My gorgeous lover is one of the only people I’ve ever met who genuinely listens to absolutely everything where music is concerned – classical, jazz, bigband swing, electronica, punk, Oz-rock, country/folk, as well more ‘standard’ stuff. He’s taken me to my first raves, and it’s only through him that I’ve discovered how much I love country-influenced music! Emmylou Harris, Lyle Lovett, Johnny Cash, Gillian Welch, Lucinda Williams etc etc. And he’s also put me onto bands that were kind of ‘before my time’ like Morrissey and The Triffids. Love, love, love it.
I would love a charm bracelet. I love reading this site because it lets me indulge my girly side in my fantasy life! I work as a pretty hard-core barista and so all I ever wear at work is work-boots and old jeans (coffee is quite acidic so it completely wrecks your clothes), and I can’t wear jewellery on my hands, and there’s no point in having pretty nails. All my daily feminine indulgences are make-up related! I’m such a tomboy in so many ways, but don’t come between me and my MAC, ha!
galaa, is there no icing treat for this month?
ive been waiting to buy it, but i havent heard anything about one.
hehe i always waltz around & smile at myself in the mirror when making important phone calls.
living alone rules.
p.s. i wasn’t aware you took the photo of the shoes, i need those babies for work!
do you know the brand?
I could have used a powerful pair of heels today! I went around asking for applications and seeing if people are hiring, and i got all stuttery at one point and i felt like a dweeb!
but i don’t want to be a waitress anyway!
Rachel — Smiling while you do any kind of speaking is a really good trick. I do it when I record my podcasts!
Feen — Hmmm, I don’t know. That tip actually came from my real experiences: on Saturday I listened to Standing On A Beach while it stormed outside. But I think Disintegration is their best album ever ever ever, no contest!
kara — Those shoes are FABulous!
x Miss Corrine x — I love the jingly noises they make too. I am addicted to wearing noisy bracelets!
Aish — Ms Brite’s work is great, especially if you’re a 14 year old goth. Haha! Lost Souls & Exquisite Corpse were my favourites.
eclair — Yes! I saw them in the window & I squealed & dragged my friend in. She almost bought a pair too, except they didn’t have her size! & a charm bracelet for your birthday is such a good idea… pick out some charms which will inspire you for the next phase of your life!
Kirsten — Aw, that’s fantastic. Being introduced to new music is one of life’s great pleasures, I’m sure of it.
roobin. — It’s on its way! I have some really cool things in the works, but it is taking time. Sorry about the delay! I am working on it, I promise!
Rachel Radness! — The brand is “The Highest Heel”. & in fact, you can buy them online here! www.snaz75.com/hh
Gala, how on earth did you know that today my job started requiring that I make one horribly intimidating phone call after the next?
Anyway, great advice as usual!
Yesterday, I overheard my dad singing The Cure at the top of his lungs while working underneath his car. He’s a huge, macho guy who listens to Bob Seger and Muddy Waters, so I was really surprised! I can’t imagine him ever buying a Cure album.
He didn’t notice me, but it made me unbelievably happy for some reason. It’s weird when we realize we’re more like our parents than we thought.
As for me, I haven’t been able to stop listening to Satyajit Ray soundtracks for the past few weeks. I would highly recommend him for anyone looking to broaden their musical horizons. Perfect for deep introspection on a rainy morning while drinking herbal tea and giving yourself a pedicure.
Oh I wish I’d read these before last night when I rung my best friend with the very close chance that it’d be my recent ex that would pick up! Luckily he didn’t (they flat together) but I bet I wouldn’t have been so nervous if I was wearing my favourite heels!!
Here’s another:
celebrate Patrick Wolf’s birthday! Someone on the Livejournal community says, “Have some of my Baileys. Let’s drink it from a shoe, like it’s supposed to be drunk.” (Let’s also wear fabulous shoes and listen to mash-ups with Brazilian music, but that should happen every day!)
thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!
i just ordered that pair + 2 more!
Thanks for the two secret tips – to wear some bold babelicious heels for phone confidence (which I definitely need at the moment..) And secret sequinned boobies!
What’s on your charm bracelet, Gala, & what do they represent? =)
The tip about the shoes couldn’t have come at a better time. I have one of those nerve-wracking phonecalls to make this very evening!
ARGH!! The Cure! I LOVE the cure!!!
And I heart thunderstorms too! Sounds like a plan!!
Now to get it to storm…
I have a charm bracelet I inherited from my mum with charms of her travels across the world and now with quite a number of my own to boot. It’s huge and heavy and jingley and I adore it! It’s always a conversation starter too.
Just a quick question for you Gala. I’ve been looking at some shoes online but I cannot for the life of me find even two shoe size conversion charts that give me the same conversion of Australian sizes to American sizes. I’m a size 6 AU but I’ve been told that’s anywhere between a 6-9 US. Argh! So I’d be really interested to hear what you have found in terms of your AU size in comparison to your US? Cheers in advance! xx
gala you’ve just saved me :)
i had to make a phone call that i really didn’t want to make to my new college and i was so nervous my legs were shaking.
and then i remembered what you’d said in yesterdays style tips and put my hot pink heels on and everything was FINE!
thank youuuu :D!
and keep doing what you’re doing
don’t know what i’d do over breakfast without your blog :) xoxo
I’ve done the last one, listening particularly to the Cure’s Disintegration. It has an eerie, yet mystical, kind of feel to it. Plus, partnered with a thunderstorm just enhances that mystical eeriness.
:)
When I read the first bullet I interpreted it as dial with your toes! (!) And why not?
Gala, what charms do you have on your bracelet? I’m really interested.
Melissa – Oh my god I was looking at your site and I love love love your aprons and omg they bracelets are AMAZING
I was struck for an outfit looking at those…
This has renewed my OMG fashion thing I’ve been lacking lately(which has reflected in my clothes… t-shirts, shorts and speedo flip-flops. Totally comfy albeit a bit frompy =\)
I think “shimmering ta-tas” is my new fave sentence of all time.
That idea about phone calls is the best.
thank you anonymous,
your comment wasn’t harsh, it was just the truth, plain and simple.
Thank You,
Antoinette
I was totally thinking about the sparkly bathing suit tip a few days ago too. When you can’t bring yourself to the seaside, bring the (oh-so-glamorous) seaside to you, right?