Music Spotlight: Lana Del Rey

Why hello lovely dolls, for this months Music Spotlight I have decided to share with you the work and fashion from an artist I have been obsessed with since she first came up on the tumblr scene. The magnificent, the beautiful, the stoic, the glorious Lana Del Rey. I first came across Lana while on tumblr one day and stumbled across her Born To Die music video someone had posted. After watching the video I was so impressed with her voice and the beauty and sadness from it, after that I had to know more.

 

(still from Born To Die)

When her album Born To Die was released I could not wait one more minute to purchase it. After listening to the entire album I could say without a doubt it was earth shattering. So few artists can put together a complete body of work that is breathtakingly cohesive with itself like she does. And in a day and age where most music sirens only care about having the next big single she is definitely in an elite group with a few other queen divas who shall remain nameless. Every song on that album is just amazing, my personal favorite being Blue Jeans. With an extended version of her album named Paradise that includes eight unreleased songs as well as a short film under her belt, Tropico, she really is a force to be reckoned with.

(still from Blue Jeans)

At this point in her career she is considered a full fledged fashion icon appearing in an H&M campaign as well being featured on the covers of Vogue, Glamour, Nylon, and Interview just to name a few. She is a testament as to what old Hollywood glamour was and what is truly missing from the music heroines of today. She is an icon all her own. 

(H&M campaign)

This brings me to an exciting new piece of news. Now not being a stranger to lending her voice to a feature film a la The Great Gatsby's "Young and Beautiful"

which was no let down in my opinion. Her old Hollywood sound was perfect for the 2013 remake starring Leonardo DiCaprio. She will be lending her voice yet again to a Disney classic in the upcoming film Maleficent starring Angelina Jolie. The film will be the story of Maleficent and how she became one of the most villainous characters in Disney history. Once Upon A Dream, which if you remember correctly was in the original Sleeping Beauty has just been released however sung by yours truly Lana Del Rey. I am truly in love with the song as well as am so excited for the movie. Through and through Lana Del Rey is a timeless soul and continues to invigorate listeners with her angelic voice. I personally can not wait to see what more comes from this incredible songstress.

Once Upon A Dream by Lana Del Rey

Disneys Maleficent

Thanks 2013, You've Been Real

Hello Friends,
A year has literally gone by since my last posting, and with 2013 coming to a close it has gotten me to do a lot of reflecting. Going into the New Year I have decided to not set myself "resolutions" per-say but something along the line of aspirations to try and achieve. I know I know I'm going to sound like one of those annoying people who say things like "Im going to lose weight this year" and end up quitting the gym after two weeks. I want to set realistic goals for myself and have those goals actually mean something. So here are the following aspirations I hope to achieve this coming 2014.

• Read more books-I feel like I've lost touch with getting lost in a book for hours, which was my favorite thing to do growing up. 
• Spend more time with friends-My best friends and I have all just gotten so busy and let our professional and academic lives interfere with just hanging out and making memories with each other.
• Make better health choices-I know what you're thinking, but Im talking easy steps. Like drinking more water and limiting junk food. Slow and steady to being fit. 
• Blog-Spend more time working on this blog, I know I said that last year but I have to buckle down. And not only with this blog, but make youtube videos, tweet more, take more selfless etc.

So there you go, these are the things I am going to try an achieve for myself through out next year. I have to keep myself motivated, I have to come up with interesting ways of keeping things fresh and keep myself focused. So that being said, what happen to be your guys resolutions/goals/aspirations for this coming year? What did you do to celebrate?

Tonight my two best friends, Jacque and Jesse aka The Twins, went to Starbucks, where I got an Iced Americano for the first time a la Lucas and Jenny (Google them if you must) and I have to say it was quite good. After that we went to our friends' house to go get mexican food at this place called Sofia's. My burrito was ok, not the best, but still good. Then we ended up renting Insidious 2. Which was so freaking awesome if I have to say. Now I didn't watch the first one so I was a bit confused at the beginning but once I knew the premiss of the story everything clicked. And I gotta say this was such a good movie. Just the way it was written and how it referenced back to the first and the whole flashback/space time continuum scenarios. It was a perfect mix of terrifying and just the right amount of comic relief. I loved it, two thumbs up. Watch it if you haven't. So thats how I spent my New Years Eve. Pretty low key, if you don't count some major couples drama that occurred which I wont get into. Maybe next year I will go balls out and party it up. Who knows? Well, heres to another year gone and hopefully more of this blog in the coming future. Have fun, be safe, and live it up. Because these are the days of our lives (movie reference, you figure it out).

xoxo

Music Spotlight: Hurts

Hey Everyone!! So glad to be back, now I'm going to be honest and admit my lack of blogging was just pure laziness. I just haven't felt like giving my blog the time of day. Which is kind of sad to say the least, but it's a new year and hopefully a new beginning for Compliments Can Kill. Heres a little catch up for you, I recently opened a shop on Etsy and you can find the link on my homepage, as well as I started a new youtube page and am planning out some videos for the distant future, you can find that link on my homepage as well.

Now to introduce you to a band I've recently discovered. They are a british duo and they go by the name of Hurts. I came across them while I was just browsing some other blogs the other day and decided to check out their youtube videos and I was impressed.

The band is made up of british natives Theo Hutchcraft and Adam Anderson. After a few attempts at being in bands together the pair decided to go on their own as a duo, which was a momentous decision because soon after it catapulted them into viral success. Their debut album Happiness has sold over one million copies worldwide and has been in the top ten list of various european countries.

Not only is their music breathtakingly amazing, but their style is so elegant and dapper. The look they go for from what I've seen of them is clean simple lines with an aura of chic elegance. It reflects in their music as well. Speaking of which I would have to say that my absolute favorite song from them has to be Illuminated, it is just so haunting and beautiful, and the video for it mirrors in that style. Please do yourself a favor and give them a listen. Your itunes will be grateful. So go ahead and watch Illuminated down below.

Summer Tweed

Blazer:Thrifted Shirt:H&M Jeans:Social Collision Boots:Dr Martens 

This is an outfit I threw together for school, something simple and well put together. I just wish I had a photo of the necklace I wore, its amazing. Maybe another time soon. The only thing I don't like about this photo is my hair, its rather unfortunate.  

Bloglovin

Just a quick post

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

DIY: Braided Necklace

Hey guys! So I wanna show you how to make this braided necklace that i am rocking. 

First you wanna start out with an unwanted t-shirt like this one below.

Next thing you are gonna wanna do is cut it in half or so.

Then you wanna cut that piece into long strips in order to get braided.

So you want to take three strips of your shirt, and start to braid it. I went about an inch before I got out the sewing kit and sewed the ends together to make the braiding process easier.

So once you have braided all the way to the other end, sew the three strips together.

Once you are done what I did I sewn on some chain from an old necklace and bam! Instant accessory.

What Im Wearing:

-army shirt

-black shorts

-dr marten boots

-diy necklace

ps at the moment I can not find this shirt anywhere!! Its gone missing.

Thats all for now, I hardly slept and am wicked tired. But I have to clean my kitchen. Kill me now please. 

Music Spotlight: Big Bang

So every month I feature an artist or band I have recently discovered, or maybe introduce you to someone I have been listening to for awhile, and not just anybody. Bands or artists who I feel have an amazing flare for fashion or a certain unique style. Last month I featured Australian model/rapper bombshell Iggy Azalea, for which you can read all about here! So lately I have been getting into kpop, korean pop for all of you uncultured folk. And I happen to come across this south korean based band named Big Bang. They are considered to be one of the most successful asian acts in the world what with their hit songs Last Farewell and Haru Haru. I would have to say my favorite song would have to be Fantastic Baby, not only is it catchy and the beat is really good. But the music video is amazing! Who ever did the styling for it bravo!! Take a look at a few stills.

It is beautifully styled, but I have to say out of the five members this one below is by far my favorite.

From his pastel blue hair to his editorial good looks with a sultry deep voice to match, to me he is a solo star. And to think I don't even know his name. His fashion styling in this music video is by far the best, very high fashion meets mostly varying military fusion. Not to mention at one point he is in a hair color matching pastel suit and fur coat. So amaze! They are an amazing band and this song is great to get your heart pumping whether it be during your cardio session or if you're having a solo dance party in your bedroom. Furthermore please feel free to take a look at their music video for Fantastic Baby down below. I urge you to educate yourself. Have an amazing life and look forward to tomorrows post. I have no idea what it's going to be. Ta

Oh and P.S the giveaway is now closed. I will choose someone at random and announce it in the next few days.