new things...

Hello dear friends,
Apologies for the drought on this poor old blog. Perhaps someday I will have enough time and energy to come back to blogging regularly but for now the occasional update is, unfortunately, all I can promise you. That said, I have some really exciting projects brewing for 2015! The first of which is the new music video for my song WAVES from my debut album Charade (which came out last year in case you are new here!  :) We shot it at the very end of last year in the snow and it is finally finished! So without further ado:
       

      

The second mater of business is this great article my pal Rebecca Darling (of Rococo Vintage) wrote for the Huffington Post about wearing vintage in which she sweetly features a few oldies but goodies from DJRD along with photos of several blogger beauties including the delightful miss Ashley Ording! Check that out here:

Until next time, thank you, you lovely people you! for continuing to keep this space alive despite the slow trickle of new posts.

Sending my love!
xMeg O

MY LAST SHOW OF 2014

Hi Kittens... Just wanted to let you know that my band and I are playing a show at Hotel Cafe in Hollywood tonight at 7PM! Come on down and kick off your holiday break !! xM

Hotel Cafe 
1623 North Cahuenga Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90028
https://www.hotelcafe.com 

Liner Magazine - Vol. 4

I was so thrilled to take part in this shoot and interview for Liner Magazine last month. It's a beautiful independent magazine started by a really creative and talented gal named Kelly Searle. She also acted as Photog and Hair/Makeup for this particular shoot which was even more of a treat.  Here are a few screenshots but please check out the whole issue below.

We ended up with a lot of great photos - too many to use in one editorial, in fact! so perhaps I'll share a few more in the near future!  Happy Monday!

xM

ALBUM RELEASE DAY!!! CHARADE IS HERE

I'll be back later in the week to share a few of my favorite NYFW collections but I wanted to let you dear people know that my debut full-length album CHARADE came out today! It is now available worldwide via Bandcamp, iTunes, Amazon, etc... links below.

BANDCAMP: megolsen.bandcamp.com

ITUNES: CLICK HERE                AMAZON: CLICK HERE

Scissors + Fire will be the first single and it gets its debut right here on the blog! enjoy. xMeg

it's 2013 montage time!!

As is tradition here on Don Juan's Reckless Daughter,  I thought it was high time that I did my 2013 year in review.  Going back over this year's posts only reminded me that it's been a fairly quiet year here on ye old blogge but it's been so far from that in my day to day life - let me tell you! Between music, music, music, travel and several other endeavors my free time has been next to nil.  As you may know, I started the year off by releasing my very first EP, Deal from the Bottom, making a video vignette for my first single and playing many shows.  By about April it was clear that I wanted to finish writing and recording a full-length album and that lead to my decision to launch a Kickstarter Campiagn back in June. Thank you to all of you lovely readers who contributed to making that a success.  You know who you are and you are my moon and stars! The album comes out in the next month and I could not be any more excited or nervous to share it with you! but... I will have to save that for another post. 

As I was compiling photos it dawned on me that 2013 was a great year for my vintage collection. The only issue being that nearly none of it got any DJRD screen-time and I should remedy that in 2014. Our little house in the hills (with no closet space) is now filled to the brim. Some day soon, I wager, "the Brit" and I shall be sleeping on piles vintage dresses, antique costumes and feathers. Though, lets be honest, there are fates far worse that that! 

2013 was a huge year for me and I am so excited to dive into 2014!!  I hope all of you had a splendid holiday and I wish you the very best in 2014!  It's crazy to think back to 2008 when I started this blog…so many people from the very beginning are still popping by but there are so many lovely new faces introducing themselves.  Thanks for sticking it out even when the blog got put on the back burner!

Much love,

Meg 

Photoshoot with Michele Beckwith

Just before my trip to England (pictures coming, I swear.) and France I got the pleasure of working with a very talented San Francisco based photographer, Ms. Michele Beckwith. It was such a joy to watch (and work with) a photographer who is as passionate about film and technique as Michele. It made me want to go out experiment more with my own film cameras that have been collecting dust for the better part of the year, unfortunately. Anyhow, I thought I would share a few photos from the shoot with you here on my blog...enjoy!

Photos by Michele Beckwith 
Co-styled by Michele & Me
Wild hair courtesy of "the central California coastal winds" ;)

thoughts on SS14

It's been more quiet than usual on this blog during the recent fashion week(s) but I was most certainly paying attention to the happenings in NY and London. So I thought it might be a laugh to share a few shows/presentations that stood out for me...

HONOR //

I loved everything about this show from the hair and makeup down to the pointy shoes (a pointy toe is not usually my cup of tea but I think they work magically here!).  This is 100% right up my street - powerfully feminine with the slightest bit of an edge.  I would gladly wear all of this collection next spring...you know, in case anyone from HONOR is listening!


ANNA SUI //

I always enjoy Anna Sui but something about this show surprised me because appealed more to that ethereal bohemian child in my psyche rather than the usual 1960s MOD doll Anna Sui conjures up.  side note: the backdrop was painted by Miss Alia Penner and was inspired by the psychedelic design collective, The Fool (of Wonderwall fame) which was a really nice touch.

Bonus: Luisa Beccaria (Milan FW)

I'm also going to throw in an Italian designer that I really knew nothing about until stumbling upon her   collection this week. While some of the collection a little more buttoned up than I prefer, other pieces (like these^) are simply stunning and oh-so -sensual. T'would be wonderful to prance around in a sun drenched field sporting one of these beauties, no?

Now, some honorable mentions because frankly I'm too lazy to collage all of them this evening! Sea, Peter Jensen, Red Valentino,  Samantha Pleet!  I'm sure I missed some good ones - it's hard to keep up! What were your favorites??  Of course, the Paris shows haven't happened yet and I always love those iconic designers so I'm sure some of that will pop up here or on my Pinterest.

Before I bid you adieu, I'll leave you with a couple of iphone photos from my gig at the Hotel Cafe last week which went exceedingly well if I do say so myself. so much fun...

MY KICKSTARTER ENDS TODAY **Update** IT FUNDED!!! :D

Seeing as though I've been updating everywhere else I figured I should pop by the old blog to do a little Kickstarter last hurrah promo post! There are mere hours left so if you have been thinking about pledging it's now or never! Every last penny will help me get this new album out there into the universe.  Click here to visit my Kickstarter!

back soon! xMeg

The Wild...

Just wanted to drop in to mention that I was profiled over at the Wild  talking about my music, fashion and various other ramblings :)

back soon! xMeg

With a Little Help from My Friends: My Kickstarter Project

Hello lovely readers! Now that I am feeling back to my normal non-feverish self I wanted to post about a project I launched last week more or less from my sick-bed. But perhaps I should back up a little…  Since releasing my EP at the start of the year I've been plotting (and being asked by many people)  when I might go into the studio to finish recording a full-length album.  Recording is quite a pricey endeavor. Even with dear friends who help make it all a bit more affordable it's still several thousand dollars to make a full-length album.  I know and have pledged money to a few people who have gone the crowd-funding route for music and it has worked out well for them.  I've also backed to several non-music projects as well - from funding the launch of a fashion line to helping someone sail around the world to donating a little to help someone pay for medical bills. When it works and is done well I think crowd-funding is genius and it really helps people get their projects off the ground.  Which brings me to my Kickstarter Campaign… 

I am raising $6,000 - a little over half of what it will cost for me to make and manufacture my debut full-length album.   As of right now,  the campaign has been running for 5 days and I'm only at 6% of my goal :( which is worrisome because with Kickstarter it's all of your goal or nothing! So… I need to ask a little favor. Whether you are a fan/friend of my music, my blog, or just me in general, please consider making a pledge.  A pledge of just $10 will get you the digital download of my new album when it is finished later this year. A $4 pledge will get you a digital version of my EP - that's actually a dollar cheaper than buying it on iTunes or Bandcamp!  There are several different incentive levels from pledges ranging $1 to $1,500 and believe me when I say every dollar counts.  Did I mention the stellar video I made for the campaign will sick with the flu? here's that little "gem"...

So that's it. I don't want to bog down my blog with Kickstarter propaganda but this project is very important to me so I want to make sure everyone knows about it! If you can't afford to pledge please tell someone you know about my project!  There will be a Kickstarter link in my sidebar for the rest of the campaign. thanks guys & gals!

All my love

xMeg 

more music musings

Rest assured that there is very much an on-going internal debate here at DJRD headquarters (aka my brain) on just how much of my music-related happenings I should post about here. But... I decided to go ahead and share with you this little guerrilla-style "vignette" I created for my song "Corners of Bars" (with the help of a couple of lovely pals) because a) it does have a little bit of fashion happening and b) it was so ridiculously time consuming. We filmed most of it in and around Hollywood, other bits up on Mulholland drive (basically my neighborhood).  I'm calling it a "vignette"because we had more or less zero budget, no professional grade help, and really no grand plan apart from a rough treatment.    Anyway, with out further fanfare here it is....




outfit notes:
dresses: Vintage
lips: OCC lip tar in NSFW
shoes:  Mia
hair pin: Alexandra Grecco

thanks for reading! back soon!
xM

life according to iPhone

This week has been crazy but in the best way (apart from what happened in Boston - which is beyond horrible and my thoughts are with everyone effected).  I'll be posting a couple of music related updates soon but first I thought we would catch up with my iPhone since its been a very long time!  Here is what the past couple of months looked like...

starting with... dress up fun & snoozing with Charlie

band practice & heart cookies

 a stack of cats & twin peaks inspired apparel 

 the results of my first furniture refinishing project & a stack of pups

my EP release show & a peak at Conan O'Brien's stage!! (ps: where I saw james franco live...meow) 

 patti smith & the usual silliness (mwah!)

me & Britt (one of my best ever friends) & amoeba music

 amazing cat art find & that one geezer ;)

more band fun & in two states at once

 attempting to thrift in Nevada & one too many bunny Peeps!

proof that even the devil sleeps! & my second favorite flowers

spring cleaning & my no makeup/sunday morning face

PS: I wanted to give a welcome! to you new readers and a big thanks to Bekuh at Secondhand Sundays for the lovely post! :)

back soon! xo

color me vintage

I snapped a few photos this afternoon of my favorite dress as of late.  I unearthed it a the Rose Bowl some months ago and bought it for next to nothing. Not a usual color for me but, again I've been really drawn to color recently.   Meanwhile,  I am still learning how to use my new DSLR which is deceptively different to my old one even though it is the same make.  But I'll get there...  

I've also been working on a little music related video project which I will share with you as soon as it's wrapped up.  Now I'm off to enjoy some sunshine and then on to band practice for my LA show later this month!

outfit details

dress - vintage

shoes - remix 

lips - revlon's just bitten kissable™ in "precious"

teensy music update

                      *iphone photo by Brittany Erickson
                                       
Thanks to all who came out to my EP release show on Tuesday despite the rainy streets! I should have some proper photos to share soon but I just wanted to give you a peek and also let you know that I  took part in an interview over at UKbased music blog, Say it with Garage Flowers so... if me rambling on about all sorts of music related things is of interest you can find that HERE!

Back soon with our regularly scheduled programming... xo

FW inspiration and other things

Ok, as promised, I am posting a few of my FW2013 favorites today. Starting with one of my favorite labels of late, Red Valentino. I love everything about this collection probably as much as I liked the last one. Just pure perfection...

for the full collection visit style.com

I also really loved the 60s twiggy vibe of the Anna Sui show this time around. She is so constant in her color scheme but without being totally boring and that is no easy task. those greens and blues really caught my eyeballs!

 more at style.com 

On to another 1960s inspired collection...ahhh, Chloë for OC... there are always at least 5 items I want from each of 

her collections and this was particularly true for Fall 13. Very 60s Youthquake mixed with definite hints of 90s and some questionable track suits but we should expect no less, as miss Sevigny is a 90s poster child.  I want all of the coats and the white dress for a start!

see more here at style.com

Lastly, I was going to post Marc Jacobs' FW13 collection because I am a magpie and it was sparkle-tastic but... upon second glance I realized there was a whole lot of fur in it...like A LOT...and, honestly, I felt funny posting it here because it's not exactly "in tune" with my code of ethics. Anyway, so look it up if you are interested.  I have to say I loved the crazy huge and messy hair at Marc by MJ (probably because mine looks like that most days) so I'm posting that instead!

Now, perhaps I am out of sorts but I was mildly disappointed at some of my usual NYFW favorites this season.  London, however, is proving slightly more inspiring! 

In other news - I am playing in LA tonight!  It is my EP release party so please come on down if you are in town and say hello! xo

reckless heart

Hello cats & kittens! I hope everyone in NY (and elsewhere) is enjoying their fashion week! I'm in LA this time around but definitely inspired by what I've been seeing online so I think I shall be posting a couple of NYFW related posts in the near future.  In the meantime, a quick reckless daughter wardrobe post!

Clearly, the secret to this time of year here in Los Angeles is layering - albeit a few less layers than you might need in many other parts of the country.  The weather here can be so schizophrenic... is it spring? is it winter? Heat on? AC on? It can get up to 80 degrees during the day and into the 40s that same night. Pretty exhausting!  The point being, I've been really into layering over sleeveless dresses lately so that I can quickly strip down (meow.) if the heating comes on full blast but I can also bundle up if I walk outside and suddenly it is winter again.  This little cotton cardigan/jacket (obviously Chanel inspired) is from Zara is perfect for layering most days and its thin enough to wear under a full-on coat. I wear it to work all the time.

outfit notes:

dress & necklace: vintage

boots: madewell

cardi/jacket: zara

music notes:

I thought I'd post another track from my EP in honor of my upcoming EP release show - which I have been tweeting about here and will post details about soon!