A Royle Artiste

A couple of weeks ago, 

a friend posted on Facebook about needing a pianist for a photo shoot. 

1. I'm a pianist and 2. I love being in pictures, as you've probably noticed. 

So naturally, I commented on his status, and a day or so later, he asked me to be his subject for a photography project. 

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Let me tell you a little bit about my musical endeavors first:

Some of you may know a lot about me, 

but what you probably didn't know is that 

I've been playing musical instruments since I was a little girl.

I began with flute in the 4th grade, then moved on to violin at the end of 4th, piccolo in 8th, piano in 8th, and just this past semester, I finally picked up the guitar that's been sitting in my room for the last 6 years and started to play.

Anyway, enough with the bragging and back to the real reason for this post!

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Last Tuesday was the day of the photo shoot. 

I got up at the crack of dawn, and made myself beautiful.

(Actually it was more like 8am, but that's like the crack of dawn for college kids, right?)

Of course, it was one of the days that the temperature was in the single digits.

(That's what I get for living in Ohio . . .)

I made my way over to the dance building, all bundled up and yet still frozen to the core.

I swear nothing can keep out the cold.

We did the photo shoot in a dance studio, with wonderful morning light streaming in the windows and nothing but me and my guitar, and a piano of course.

Here is the final product of that magnificent morn.

Enjoy the pictures and check out the profile below to get to know the photographer, 

my friend Royle Mast, a little bit better. 

And the piano calls my name...
Copyright Royle Mast

Royle Mast

Commercial Photography major

Ohio University Freshman

Project: Take a portrait of someone (particularly an artist),

and then photograph them in their element.

This is such a laid back picture.
The daylight in the windows is fantastic.
And I sincerely felt like artist in these pictures.
Copyright Royle Mast

It was a pleasure to work with Royle on this project.

And these pictures turned out amazing if I do say so myself.

"Love is like playing the piano. First you must learn to play by the rules,
then you must forget the rules and play from the heart." -Anonymous
Copyright Royle Mast

Mr. Mast is truly a Royle artiste.

Portrait with my guitar pick...
Copyright Royle Mast

Get the look:

Geometric print collar dress - Forever 21

Gold lame sweater - JCPenney

Pink flower ring - Avenue

When boredom ensues . . .

. . . or when avoiding schoolwork, DIY happens. 

Last weekend was the 1st weekend of Spring Semester, and of course, I already had 80 pages of reading, a paper to write, and one thousand and one meetings to go to. 

Talk about easing into each semester slowly, huh?

After working and doing schoolwork, I still had MORE schoolwork to do.

So instead of slowly anticipating my impending doom/death by excessive brain intake,

I decided to do a little DIY* craft.

I currently write for Thread Magazine, 

an on campus publication at Ohio University that is dedicated to fashion.

Check out the latest issue on outhreadmag.com,
and check out my DIY Elbow Patches piece entitled Elbow Room on pages 70-75.

That's my name in the masthead! My very first masthead!
(in Thread Magazine, under writers)
BTW, mustaches are in! Be prepared for an abundance of them in future blog posts.

At the release party* for the October 2012* issue, 

we were given these adorable little plastic Thread cups. 

They're clear with black writing, or so mine was until last weekend when I decided to spruce it up.

__________________________________________________________

Let's change course for a minute. 

I will say that I personally believe glitter makes everything better.

Since sophomore year of high school, I've been glitterizing* everything in my path, 

including the faces of my fellow flagline girls.

It can be seen as an addiction, but I like to think of it as an asset. 

Plus who doesn't like sparkles!?

To prove my point, here are a few other ladies that must agree with me:

"Have you ever thrown a fist full of glitter in the air?" -Pink

"Some girls are just born with glitter in their veins." -Paris Hilton

"Glitter is my makeup of choice."-Ke$ha

"She who leaves a trail of glitter is never forgotten." -The Glitter Guide http://theglitterguide.com

You can probably predict what I did to my cup . . .

I GLITTERIZED IT!

And here's how it turned out:

Go to the bottom of this post to find out how to glitterize anything you want!

It makes a good statement and a superb conversation-starter.

And lastly, it's a glitterized piece of sentimental value that will now have a secure spot on my shelf for the rest of my life.

*DIY = Do-it-yourself - usually refers to some kind of project; in my case, the crafty ones.

*Release party - a fabulous event that magazines throw when an issue is released. Food and fun is usually provided. Ours take place in the Jbar on Court Street. (Athens, Ohio)

*October 2012 issue of Thread Magazine

 http://www.myvirtualpaper.com/doc/thread-magazine/thread_oct2012_mvp/2012102101/#0 

Check out my story on pages 18-19 about designer Rag & Bone's 2012 men's fall collection.

*Glitterize - verb. The act of adding sparkle & shine in the form of glitter to any object. (Yes, I coined a word!)

Get the look . . . of the cup!

I taped the parts of the cup that I didn't want to be glitterized.

Then I used a can of spray adhesive on the cup, and quickly added the glitter in heaps. 

Get rid of the excess glitter by shaking the item gently, and there you have it!

Side note: I added the different colors (silver and blue glitter) separate, 

but you could always do them at the same time!

Materials bought at JoAnn Fabrics.

Ha Ha Haute Bob Saget

Comedy event at Memorial Auditorium
 Bob Saget AKA Danny Tanner
For Mature Audiences Only

So last night I was preparing for an evening of laughter, and of course, I wanted to wear something fun.

I decided on a nice pair of jeans and a colorful button-down/sweater combo, 

but we'll get to that later.

Also on my mind was the idea that going to a stand-up comedy show would be a perfect date. 

Laughing the whole night away to inappropriate jokes is an easy-going casual way to get to know someone. You can also get to know their personality better. If they can't laugh at certain jokes, it could be a conversation starter. Maybe later you can ask why they don't like those jokes? Or if they hardly laugh at all, maybe they don't have a good sense of humor? And what fun is that?

Needless to say, fellas, if you're reading this, take my advice and go for the entertaining comedy night 

. . . and make sure to laugh. 

And I'm not going to lie, this event and outfit choice were both good excuses to take a picture like this one below.

Pink, blue, pastels, Oh my!
And my nail polish even matches...

Being a blonde with blue eyes certainly makes it easier to wear pastels . . . 

so it's obvi* that half of my closet is pastel.

Also some people tend to think that pastels can wash you out, 

but when you're as white as a ghost (like myself), 

there's nothing that can't wash you out.

Let's face it, any color in the rainbow could "wash me out", 

but I can't let that stop me from wearing what I want to wear. 

And that's okay!

I'm pale and proud!

Don't you love my pink curtain?

I call this preppy nerd chic. 

Argyle patterns and button-downs are classic pieces that everyone should have in their closets.

Throw them together and you'll have "class for days."*

Those little bird earrings are some of the cutest and quirkiest in my collection.
Betsey Johnson for the win!

Aaron Kleiber was absolutely splendid. I thoroughly enjoyed his act, and I loved that he incorporated some of his family members into the hilarity. He's unquestionably a talented comedian and I would enjoy seeing him again sometime, maybe with him as the headliner??

He was also quite excited when I told him that I was going to post about him on my blog. He deliberately went to a group of people in the lobby at Memorial Auditorium and said, "I'm makin' the blog, I'm makin' the blog!" He put a smile on my face, so SHOUT OUT to Aaron Kleiber for being awesome! http://www.aaronkleiber.com

 And here he is!

Me and Aaron Kleiber after the show!
Photo by Alexa Pressman

Bob Saget's performance was exactly what I expected. Nothing more, nothing less.

He was as vulgar as I prepared for and as funny as I hoped for. 

His vulgarity did not take away from his performance, and he made the show quite personal, picking on audience members, deliberately improv-ing, 

and saying what a great audience we were. 

He definitely had the audience riled up at every moment,

but the beer that was being served probably helped with that. 

He also happened to mention that he was quite comfortable on our stage, 

and he gave several nods to Ohio University 

(mostly about it being a party school, but still).

He has certainly paved his way as a comedian, but he will never be anything other than

clean-cut, prim, and proper Danny Tanner that I've always loved. 

I'll add in for any of you that might want to know that Bob Saget was wearing

 a charcoal grey suit and black converse. 

Saget undoubtedly got the preppy nerd chic memo and he was rocking it.

After waiting out in the freezing temperatures for at least half an hour, 

the fabulous Danny Tanner . . . oops I mean Bob Saget, finally appeared outside. 

He was kind and clearly cold, but he was quite a good sport when it came to pictures.

The camera I was using happened to have two flashes, and he kept moving,

so I ended up with 3 pictures of him instead of one!

This was the best of the three...

Also if you can't tell from the picture, he is an extremely tall man . . . kind of a giant actually.
Photo by Hillary Duncan

*Obvi = short form of the word obviously and/or obvious

*class for days = way of being. The art of being extremely classy for an extended period of time. In a sentence: Audrey Hepburn had class for days.

Get the look: 

Blue argyle sweater - Forever 21

Pink striped button shirt - Old Navy

Blue bird earrings - Betsey Johnson

Forever Make Up Lipstick (Color: Rouge Artist Natural) - Sephora

I also wore American Eagle Jeans and riding boots from JCPenney.

And my coat in the last picture is from Forever 21.

Allison Ann Sharpe

Here she is, folks. Allison Ann Sharpe. Your photographer for Ritzee Rose.

Allison is my lovely roommate at OU and her specialty is strategic communications 

which basically means she can sell you just about anything.

What a goddess!!
That key around her neck is the key to your heart. ;)

Mention sports and you'll win her over, especially with golf.

Believe it or not, she's an avid golfer. She even owns clubs and everything!

That's more than I can say for myself. 

The cutest collection of turtles currently occupies her side of the room.

(not real ones of course) 

Nicholas Sparks is Allison's favorite author, and she doesn't mind watching the movies either, especially the ones with hunks! ;) 

Mr. Sparks, if you're reading this (which you're probably not), but if you are, 

Allison would like a signed copy of The Notebook. hehe :) Please and thank you. 

That lighting leaves me breathless...

You can often find her with a pick in her hand and a guitar on her lap. 

Her music artist of choice is Secondhand Serenade. 

Her store of choice is Forever 21. 

Now you may be asking yourself why I didn’t tell you my store of choice . . . That’s because any place that sells shoes, dresses, and accessories all within a couple hundred feet of each other is fair game for my shopping addiction. 

Unlike me, Allison just happens to exercise a little bit more control when it comes to retail.

And when it comes to fashion she's perfectly happy with a pair of jeans, a simple sweater and some riding boots.

Here she is doing what she does best. 

Lastly, she may not always be the one in the pictures, 

but always remember that none of these amazing pieces would be possible without her. 

Love you Allison! 

Pictures taken by Camille Rose Smith

Get the Look: 

Burgundy/white striped sweater, oversized yellow sweater, jeans - Forever21 

I told you it was her store of choice!

Riding boots - Kohls

Key necklace - Lauren Conrad by Kohls

High socks - Sonoma (Kohls)

Camille Rose Smith

Welcome to Puttin' on the Ritzee Rose.

Hello everyone. I am Camille Rose Smith, and I am the voice of Ritzee Rose.

These stairs were the perfect find! 

My passion for fashion (sorry to be corny) knows no bounds. 

I long for my monthly issue of Glamour* and my red lipstick. 

On College Green in freezing temperatures.. Brrrrr..

Marilyn* covers my walls and 

Dance Moms is my 

show of choice.

There's not an inch of spare room in my closet, but that doesn't stop me

 from buying that cute dress in the window at h&m 

or another black blazer from Madewell, 

and don't forget that luscious pair of brown 

Just sitting on a bridge...

Steve Madden motorcycle boots. 

I love to read basically anything, and I'm always up for suggestions. 

I especially enjoy fantasy novels and movies.

Think LOTR*, The Hobbit, Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, etc. 

Gavin DeGraw is my favorite musician. 

I'm also a huge musical theatre junkie. 

Don't ask me which musical is my favorite, because I probably won't be able to choose. 

Yay for symmetry!!

I am an Old Hollywood inspired, vintage fanatic with a college kid budget. 

My playground is Ohio University and journalism is my future.

“The sunset faded and blended from pink to peach to mango in a smoothie in the sky. 

For as long as she doesn’t love me, I will love her.” 

― Jarod Kintz, A Story That Talks about Talking Is Like Chatter to Chattering Teeth, 

and Every Set of Dentures Can Attest to the Fact That No.

*Glamour magazine is my absolute favorite. I hope to one day work there! 

*I hate to say it, but if you don't know who that is by her first name, this probably isn't the blog for you.

*LOTR = Lord of the Rings By: J.R.R. Tolkien 

Get the look: 

Black printed dress, white sweater, navy blue skirt, burgundy statement necklace - Forever 21

Gold and silver gem statement necklace, gold ring, and black lace-up booties - Charlotte Russe

Black tights - JCPenney

Black Character heels - local dance store

Black boots - Thrifting!!!