Artists

The tears were real during last night’s 2017 Golden Globes.

michelleleighwrites Leave a comment

Last night was full of beautiful long dresses, sparkling jewels, and a dapper host in Jimmy Fallon. But the true inspiration were in the messages within the powerful speeches given by some of the most talented women in this industry of film, tv, and music. As a writer and someone who feels that creative pull and that need to be artistic, these words sung out into the world by the women I admire, in a field I hope to have embrace me in my future, were taken to my soul and felt. They were inspiring and they were hopeful.

Viola Davis presented Meryl Streep with the Cecil B. DeMille award. Her speech was funny giving us insight into their friendship, yet powerful as she explained how much Streep has meant to her and her career.

“Her artistry reminds us of the impact of what it means to be an artist, which is to make us feel less alone.”

“You make me proud to be an artist. You make me feel that what I have in me — my body, my face, my age — is enough.”

Meryl Streep‘s acceptance speech was about having empathy in the face of this world we live in today, as she criticized Donald Trump, calling his real life faults a performance that broke her.

“Hollywood is crawling with outsiders and foreigners, and if you kick us all out, you’ll have nothing to watch except for football and mixed martial arts, which are not the  arts.”

“We have to remind each other of the privilege and the responsibility of the act of empathy…As my friend- the dear departed Princess Leia said to me; “Take your broken heart, make it into art.”

Emma Stone‘s speech was about perseverance in the face of rejection.

“This is a film for dreamers and I think that hope and creativity are two of the most important things in this world and that’s what this movie is about. To any creative person who has had a door slammed in their face either metaphorically or physically… to anybody anywhere really who feels like giving up sometimes, but finds it in themselves to get up and keep moving forward- I share this with you, thank you so much.”  

It’s times like these when you see that sometimes, Hollywood breaks the mold, and special gems are born to shed a light and pave a way.

 

And onto the fashion…

[I don’t care about brands they could wear Target for all I care…but these gowns were gorgeous…so if you really want to know who they are wearing, I’ll leave that to E!’s Fashion Police. ;)]

 

Mandy Moore in stunning navy. She was the first one I saw who really made me fall in love with the fashion of the night. The neckline is something different for her I think but she still looks absolutely classic. The earrings match perfectly and I love her simply sleek middle part.

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Emma Stone sparkling in stars. She never disappoints, ever.

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Gina Rodriguez, my Latina queen. She is my favorite of the night. This dress was like poetry in motion as she walked on that carpet- the tassels just swayed. And what a beautiful color against her gorgeous skin tone. SLAYED.

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Also on the sparkle trend is new comer and young actress Millie Bobby Brown. What a little sweetheart! I love her sleek hair and her bright lip, I love that she still kept herself looking her age in a cocktail length dress.

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Hailee Steinfeld. Can we just take a moment. Anyone who rocks a flowy lavender number, just gets me. What a red carpet steal! And the top and netted plunging neck line make it edgy.

 

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Lily Collins was next on my favorites! I adored this entire look. Her hair, her makeup is AMAZING, and that dress.  Total princess. She came for the best dressed Trophy.
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This one never changes. Her face is still as young and fresh as the 90’s- #NeverBeenKissed. I love her beachy waves, and her smokey eye, I love her dark nails and her dress is just BADASS. It’s still really feminine but funky, in that Drew Barrymore way. What a class act.

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The yellows were also a bit of a trend, here we have Viola Davis sporting a bright yellow and Reese Witherspoon in a pastel/baby yellow. Both beautiful, both stunning. Viola Davis is someone who I cannot quite get over when I see her on screen. Every time she speaks, I am willed to listen. Reese Witherspoon is a heart, she’s a Hollywood gem and I will never not love her and her sweetness.

 

I had to include a black dress in here….because well let’s be honest, black is never going to be replaced by anything else. It’s chic, it’s sophisticated, it’s sexy, and so is this gown that Kristen Bell is rocking. I love her understated hair and that smokey eye/nude lip makeup combo. It really was the way to go, she really let that sparkle talk. #ThatNecklineTho  Also I love how it is long sleeves and her diamond cuff bracelet lies on top of the sparkly sequins. Paired with that black velvet clutch…now you have a fashionista. I have a new found love for all things velvet. Hello 90’s.

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And last but not least, I wouldn’t be a fangirl if I didn’t acknowledge that Jimmy Fallon is adorable and did great (what with the 12 minutes of air time he actually got, haha) and Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel actually walked the red carpet together. What? Is this new? In all honesty it made me happy. Earlier I joked as I said “You know you’re getting old when you are actually happy to see your ultimate celebrity crush happy and walking the red carpet with his wife.” Haha. Although “Trolls” didn’t win, it looks like Justin and Jessica won the night as cutest couple. 😀 (Although how bout Ryan Gosling being such a gentleman and thanking Eva Mendes in his speech! #SWOONINGEVERYWHERE)

Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel are a major miss in these clashing patterns, and Biel shows how the night’s daring low-cut trend can backfire at the Golden Globe Awards on January 8, 2017 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)

 

*I do not take credit for any images, links to videos/other articles, or videos used.*

-<3-

For my creative souls out there

michelleleighwrites Leave a comment

QUICK BLOG UPDATE:

Hey guys!

Before I get into what this post in actually titled. I just wanted to clue you in on some things. I have been vlogging as mentioned, but I haven’t edited anything yet,(things have been busy and this holiday season has me exhausted.) So the vlogs will be up at a later date. I have more footage than I thought-initially I planned to just do one massive vlog, but at this rate-it would end up being really long-so I’m probably going to have to break them into smaller vlogs.

Also today I did a lot of ground work for the writing of  my newest short story series; Welcome Home. Good stuff coming your way…and I will be posting a new chapter soon.

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XO

Michelle

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Dear Creative Souls,

It’s a beautiful thing when it just comes naturally isn’t it. When that light sparks and a fire is ignited inside you and your fingers can’t type as fast as your mind is going.

It’s such a rush and that’s when you feel like you are doing what you were always meant to do.

But, sadly it isn’t always that easy. In fact more than likely it’s a difficult task to handle on the regular.

I’ve always been creative. Even as a kid, I was always pretending and playing.

And I have always said that if I had a job that I really loved, it wouldn’t feel like work to me.

But you know what -being creative is work. It is some of the hardest work you can do.

It is mentally and emotionally exhausting. So much of your heart is displayed to the world for other people to comment on and critique.

And when the inspiration and the ideas stop, the failure you feel is much more personal and internal, than if you just failed at a regular job related task.

So what do we do when we lack inspiration? When our lights go dim?

Do we give up?

Are we supposed to just accept this fate.

This momentary lack of inspiration.. is it going to be forever?

There are so many creative people in this world, who have missed their calling.

Or who have moved on from their creative talents, because it wasn’t the sensible or “adult” thing to do. Because life pushed them into a corner and they needed to stray away to make ends meet.

It’s no secret that the creative souls struggle. We put ourselves in unhappy circumstances sometimes. We let our creative souls suffer. We sit behind a desk, we turn into daily robots, and crunch numbers.

It’s no place for a creative soul.

I see emotion in things. Love.

I see colors. I see patterns.

I’m trained to analyze and to dig deeper.

What is the meaning behind it all?

So much beauty comes from art, film, music, photography, writing.

These things we treasure, these things we used to escape our stresses.

These enjoyments.

Yet these are the people who struggle most to make a living.

The cost of life is higher than ever, and gone is the artistic feel at times.

It’s all about the benjamins.

I understand money is important.

Do it for the green.

But if something isn’t right and you feel it in your soul, you are doing it wrong.

It’s time to find that passion you once knew.

Weather it’s painting a blank canvas. Or writing that book you always wanted to write.

Stay in the crummy job, stick it out.

But only long enough until you find  some place else to turn to, a job that feeds your creativity.

Because we can’t let the arts die.

I work with kids and I can see how it’s changed.

It’s all academic.

You ask a math question. A million hands go up.

You ask them to talk about their likes, their interests, they freeze.

It’s uncool to be creative, since when?

It fills me with such joy, when I see a child express their creativity, when they are proud of a product they’ve created.

That’s what being a kid, is all about.

It’s that piece of child that should stay within us always.

Allowing anything less, is stealing childhood moments from them, they can’t get back.

So what do we do here?

When we start to notice that artists get the short end of the stick?

So many artists have back up plans-in case.

Why can’t being an artist be the goal, the attainable goal?

This itch to create, to move onto more…to keep going-to climb out of our rut.

Those are the real signs.

They are the pushes.

It’s so easy to get comfortable in life, to feel safe.

To settle.

But when you think about that, is that really living?

What would the artist in your soul do?

Think about it.

-<3-

 

 

 

 

 

One Tree Hill Music Feels

michelleleighwrites Leave a comment

**No Monday Post this week. Boo! I know, I broke my streak. But I was actually away in Atlantic City celebrating my brother’s 30th birthday with my family and I didn’t have time to schedule anything worth posting. So I’ll just let that one go, and give you a sick ass Thursday post full of one of my most favorite things…MUSIC. Hope you dig it! 😉

I’ve spoken about my love for One Tree Hill many times, and I am sure that I’ve even dabbled in expressing how much the music on that show inspired new ways of listening to music for me.

I may not have been the biggest Peyton Sawyer fan, but I can safely say that because of her emo “I hate my life” teen angst attitude, I was catapulted into learning the ways of appreciating new music.

Then as Haley James became a songstress and TRIC was born, the music become it’s own character on the show. And for me this character was so well beloved.

I can’t tell you how many times I’d be watching an episode and a line in a song would just tweak my heart and I’d go on a search for that same song with a fury. Cue the greatest One Tree Hill fansite: oth-music.com. This site gave song by song for every episode and it was a lifesaver. If I hear a song, my mind will usually be able to register whether or not it’s been featured on One Tree Hill, and then it can usually tell what scene or bring me back to the days of middle school into high school when that show was LIFE for me and my friends. That time is so special to my heart and it lasted 9 years. Longer than most relationships usually last. So hey what the hell…oth music is my boyfriend. 😉

Here are some of my most treasured songs featured on the show. Anything Gavin DeGraw, Michelle Featherstone, Sarah McLachlan, Susie Suh, or Bethany Joy Lenz was pretty much a staple on the show’s music scene. And because of the show, my musical ear kind of transcended my usual pop radio feels into something much more rich with feeling and understanding. A new aged relatability was born. My best friend was the facilitator for this. She would call me up just to read me lyrics or make me mixed CDs full of songs from One Tree Hill and The OC. I still have them! Pretty sure she was the one to find the music site too. TV shows use music to elevate it’s scenes and the material written. It can take an ordinary chat between friends and make it a life lesson, or can take a heartbreak one particular character is going through and make you feel it in your soul. Music is the universal language. And in some epic way, everybody knows how to speak it- it’s a beautiful thing.

My Ultimate One Tree Hill Favs Playlist- 

1.  Go On My Child– Michelle Featherstone

2. Stay– Michelle Featherstone

3. Sunday– Michelle Featherstone

4. Belief– Gavin Degraw

5. For Blue Skies– Strays Don’t Sleep

6. Boston– Augustana

7. Broken– Lifehouse

8. Dark Blue– Jack’s Mannequin

9. Lesson Learned– Ray LaMontagne

10. Hold You In My Arms– Ray LaMontagne

11. Hear You Me– Jimmy Eat World

12. I Shall Believe– Sheryl Crow

13. The Good Kind– The Wreckers (Michelle Branch & Jessica Harp)

14. Run– Snow Patrol

15. Fallen-Sarah McLachlan

16. It’s Only Life– Kate Voegele

17. More Than Anyone– Gavin DeGraw

18. I Don’t Want To Be– Gavin DeGraw    *Duh? #ThemeSong

19. Look After You– The Fray

20. Hundred– The Fray

21. Maybe– Everly (Bethany Joy Lenz & Amber Sweeney)

22. Halo– Bethany Joy Lenz as “Haley James Scott”

23. Huddle Formati0n– The Go! Team

24. Perfect Now– Sarah Blasko

25. Lavinia– The Veils

26. Say It Ain’t So– Mozella (Weezer cover)

27. Something To Believe In– Aqualung

28. What Are You Afraid Of– West Indian Girl

29. Wires– Athlete

30. Return To Me– Matthew Ryan

31. Lights And Sounds– Yellowcard

32. Silence Is Easy– Starsailor

33. Re-Offender– Travis

34. Everything– Fefe Dobson

35. Be Yourself– Audioslave

36. Sidewalks– Story Of The Year

37. Lie In Sound– Trespassers William

38. Seasons Change– Susie Suh

39. All I Want– Susie Suh

40. They’ll Never Know– Ross Copperman

41. Lightning Crashes– Live

42. Can You Sleep– Courtney Jave

43. When The Stars Go Blue– Bethany Joy Lenz & Tyler Hilton (Ryan Adams cover)

44. Missing You– Tyler Hilton (John Waite cover)

45. Never Say Never– The Fray

46. See Me– Rob Giles

47. Save You– Matthew Perryman Jones

48. Like A Man Possessed-The Get Up Kids

49. 100 Years– Five For Fighting

50. She Has No Time– Keane

51. Everybody’s Changing– Keane

52. Hallelujah– Kate Voegele (Leonard Cohen cover)

And this my friends is just the tip of the iceberg…when it comes to great music from the show. Seriously YouTube it, Spotify it, and just bask in the wonder that is music and lyrics and all things One Tree Hill. And if you’re like me and a major super fan of the show, than you will get some serious nostalgic feels. Enjoy! 😀

*I do not take credit for any images or songs/videos used.*

-<3-