Life's a bitch. YOUR bitch!

Funny how even though I'm 25 (as of 15th January), I actually look younger now imo thanks to the Vulcan-pixie cut hair I got at Mahogany a couple of days later. A couple of people have said my new look reminds them of Winona Ryder, which is extremely cool as I always think she looks gorgeous with short hair ^^ I really dig that vulnerable waif look, especially as it's so different from the haughty madam look that I've been pimpin' for the last year or two ;)

Me

Winona

Went to the doctor's yesterday because I noticed my hip playing up when I was at an aerobics class with my mum (just got back from visiting her in Somerset). Turns out that doing your best impression of the Human Pretzel at literally hundreds of photo shoots for nearly 5 years isn't so great for your joints, so I've got to take cod liver oil and ibuprofen and go back for physio if it doesn't go away by itself after a couple of weeks.

It doesn't really hurt but the worst part is that I have to "rest", which means only low-impact exercise, so no aerobics DVD :/ I did 10 minutes of straight-up toning exercises this morning, then the only workout that I felt like I should be allowed to do on my DVD (the 10 minute "low impact fat-blaster"), then half an hour of yoga. The yoga seems to have REALLY helped actually, and lots of things in my spine cracked in a very satisfying manner while I was doing the twists :)

Today is Liam's and my seventh anniversary, so I booked the day off. When he finally wakes up I'm making his requested breakfast in bed (mushroom omelette with soya sausages and coffee), then  we're going to see Black Swan at The Phoenix. It looks so cool, and being by the same director as Requiem for a Dream makes it seem even more promising :)

I feel like as this is a modelling blog I should probably post a modelling shot before I go and get the coffee brewing, so here is my first nude shot with the new hair (sorry if you already saw me tweet it yesterday)!

Photographer: Martyn Davis

Styling: me

Location: Adrian Pini Studios

Martyn likes the Discworld AND Manson. We got along very well!

PS: The title of this blog doesn't really have anything to do with anything, it's just a funny quote from one of those wolf posters on 4chan :p

"How It Was Done" in nighttime Soho!

This blog will probably be more interesting to photographers than anyone else- specifically photographers who like the first pro photo I've seen of my new haircut, that I tweeted earlier today :)

Somewhat larger and better version here :)

This photo was taken by Jonathan Ryan, one of the most creative and talented wedding photographers working in the South of England, and he was kind enough to explain how he took it on Flickr. Here's my paraphrased version with my own added input in case anyone else likes this effect and fancies giving it a whirl!

*  Step 1: Take one Mahogany Hair model with own leather jacket. I believe this one is about £75 from Bon Prix, although I got mine on eBay for £14 ;p
*  Step 2: Add one MAC makeup artist (in this case, James McGulgan), arranged and paid by the model
*  Step 3: Hit the dirty-sexy streets of Soho at dusk with said model and two assistants and find a suitably grungy garage/ warehouse door in a backstreet with one of those vile orange sodium lights over it to create that nice shine on her (dark) hair :)
*  Step 4: Then add:
"SB800 in small Lastolite softbox on camera right with CTO gel held by Davide [Assistant 1]
SB800 with small grid on camera left with CTO held by Picsfor [Assistant 2]
... Whibal set to a guestimated 3,800 in camera (because it looked cool) and warmed up a couple of hundred kelvin in post (because it was slightly too cool on a proper screen).
f/2.8, 1/10s hand held"
*  Step 5: Say to the model, "Oi. You. Do some posing" and watch her go! (Jonathan didn't actually say anything like this, he's much too nice and polite. But he could have done. Lol)

Job done!

I am a regular Mahogany Hair model and MAC addict, have an ever-increasing designer street fashion collection and live a 40 minute tube ride from Soho, so this shoot was kind of made for me ;)

Lulu and Lush + new Mahogany Hair!

Just got home and finished scoffing my dinner after another day of having two modelling jobs crammed into one day. Gotta love living in London! And to coming home to hot broccoli and stilton soup after street fashion in Soho for a couple of hours, om nom nom.

Anyway, before the fashion shoot this afternoon, I was modelling for Antony Licata, the Mahogany Hair Salons Creative Director, in Oxford Street, to demonstrate The Crown Affair collection. I think this is the shortest my hair has ever been and I think I like it :) It certainly worked really well for the fashion shoot I zoomed over to Soho for afterwards! Less so for my taken-in-the-bathroom-mirror SPs, but hey.

I have no idea why these came out so grainy oO Makeup courtesy of James McGulgan @ MAC!

Thursday was another day of two-jobs/one-day; shooting portraits in the morning then modelling for Lulu and Lush at their launch party in Shoreditch in the afternoon. I got put in the shop window in beautiful retro lingerie and fed champagne and cupcakes for four hours. Now there's a way to earn a living!

© Steve Hart

I've also been personally invited to attend a casting for Cradle of Filth's latest video, which is rather exciting! The only potential problem is whether I'd even have time to shoot it if I was picked (they've already been kind and understanding enough to set up a separate casting for me as I'm already booked for an all-day photo shoot on the date all the other girls are going >.<). But it is nice to be asked. I've been a Cradle fan since I was 14!

New(ish) hair and Asian Tour!

Check out the cute new haircut I got (plus obligatory blue-black tint) modelling for Mahogany Academy today. I kind of wish I was taking it to Tokyo as well as Hong Kong, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur! Maybe next year ;)

I look freaky without makeup :s

Tomorrow I'm off on my three-week Asian Tour, so please be patient if you're waiting on a reply to a message as I may have limited internet access out there. I'll be back in London 1st December :)

Here's my current itinerary, in case anyone's interested!

10th Nov: fly to Paris and transfer onto plane for Changi, Singapore
11th Nov: arrive in SG (6.45 pm local time) and crawl to my hostel
12th Nov: jetlag recovery!
13th Nov: my first Asian photo shoot! & having Singapore tea and chicken with the studio owners afterwards :)
14th Nov: sightseeing
15th Nov: flying to Kuala Lumpur & shooting there in the afternoon
16th Nov: checking out the city in the morning and then shooting from 2 - 10 pm. I'm going to ask the taxi driver to take the most roundabout route possible back to the hostel so I can check out the famous KL lights without getting mugged :p
17th Nov: visiting the Batu Caves! I'm SO excited about this one! I'll have to get there really early so I can have a proper look and still get back to the airport for 2 pm and fly to Hong Kong (long day!). I'll be getting the cable car from the main Hong Kong island to Lantau Island and staying between the Po Lin Monastery and Lo Han Temple :)
18th Nov: visit the Big Buddha and Po Lin Monastery
19th Nov: hiking to the top of the Peak to catch the sunrise, when you can see the whole of Hong Kong! I'll be posting millions of photos when I get back, I expect ;)
20th Nov: checking out of my humble hostel digs, going back over to Hong Kong island and checking into my own 5* suite at this hotel in the centre of the business district and shooting there all day
21st Nov: shooting on location in Hong Kong
22nd Nov: flying to SG and checking back into Footprints
23rd Nov: getting a Singapore Sling at the Raffles Hotel!
24th Nov: sightseeing
25th - 28th Nov: shooting, shooting, shooting, shooting!
29th Nov: last day in SG
30th Nov: flying to Amsterdam
1st Dec: flying from Amsterdam to London

It's going to be very tough not seeing Liam for 3 weeks, but returning to him and London in the full swing of Christmas should be very lovely indeed :) <3