It's used for lipstick stashing, cell phone holding, car key cramming and wallet hiding. Ladies and gentlemen may I introduce to you: the purse. Attractively priced, it comes in a wide array of colors, shapes, sizes, and uh, smells. That's right! Available in any color in the rainbow and then some, and shaped in every design possible, you can find purses resembling a fish to a purse with a million zippers. Although not always a fashion statements, purses are practical as well as pretty.
Handbags have been essential to fashion history ever since people have had something precious to carry around with them. Only the items have changed over time. In the 16th century, handbags took on an air of practicality. These purses or satchels were carried by men and were often made of leather and held together with a drawstring. In the 17th century, women started carrying handbags underneath their clothing, sort of like pockets. By the 18th century, a reduction in the amount of underclothing worn by women started the trend of a 'must have' handbag. Wearing a bulky, leather purse would ruin the look of their clothing, so fashionable ladies started carrying handbags called reticules which were very similar to the handbags men carried, only smaller and made with a printed fabric instead of leather.
The term "handbag" first came into use in the early 1900's and generally referred to hand-held luggage bags carried by men. These were an inspiration for new bags that became popularized for women, including handbags with complicated fasteners, internal compartments and locks. With this new fashion, jewelers got into the act with special compartments for opera glasses, cosmetics and fans.
Without this essential fashion statements, all the little important things would be left at home. The errands wouldn't get done and the keys would never be found. Without a purse, life would be complicated.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Spirited Away review
Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away is equal parts visual masterpiece, nightmare-inducing fable and packaged pantheism. Imagine a Grimm fairytale expanded for more than two hours and then riddled with Eastern religion. Although it's artfully done, this imaginative work may be too dark and hostile for school aged children.
In the beginning of the movie, Chihiro and her parents are on their way to a new house in the suburbs. Chihiro is upset and resentful because she is leaving her familiar life behind and is unsure of what's to come. She lies in the backseat of the family car, clutching a bouquet of wilted pink roses, her last tangible connection with her old life.
As they stumble upon a vacant tunnel, Chihiro's parents urge her to explore with them.
They come upon a deserted Japanese town, with a tempting steaming buffet of food waiting for customers. The parents help themselves, while Chihiro explores the vacant town. She returns to find her parents have turned into giant, slobbering pigs. As darkness falls, the town comes alive with spirits: dark, formless blobs, floating masks and cloaked apparitions. This peculiar place turns out to be a resort where the spirits recharge on hot tubs and fine dining, cuisine that includes once-human pigs.
Forced into an inhumane nightmare, Chihiro is befriended by Haku, a boy who works in the main bathhouse. Since humans are unwelcome in this world, he convinces her to get a job by working at the bathhouse. She must submit to slave labor to stay alive and have any chance in saving her parents from being eaten by the spirits.
Chihiro witnesses several otherworldly transformations; Haku morphs back and forth between his human form and a flying dragon. She also undergoes changes when she becomes "See through!" and Haku casts a spell over her to relieve numbness in her legs.
By the time Chihiro is morphed back into her own world, she finds that no time has passed and that her parents are waiting for her at the entrance to the tunnel. This now brave little girl, runs to catch up and is ready to explore.
Intended as a tale empowering children to face change, the film wants to diminish their apprehension over experiencing new things by showing how Chihiro conquered bigger obstacles. She bravely faced fear and uncertainty in an attempt to save Haku's life. Hard work and inner decency served her well as she found her way though the strange, new surroundings.
In the beginning of the movie, Chihiro and her parents are on their way to a new house in the suburbs. Chihiro is upset and resentful because she is leaving her familiar life behind and is unsure of what's to come. She lies in the backseat of the family car, clutching a bouquet of wilted pink roses, her last tangible connection with her old life.
As they stumble upon a vacant tunnel, Chihiro's parents urge her to explore with them.
They come upon a deserted Japanese town, with a tempting steaming buffet of food waiting for customers. The parents help themselves, while Chihiro explores the vacant town. She returns to find her parents have turned into giant, slobbering pigs. As darkness falls, the town comes alive with spirits: dark, formless blobs, floating masks and cloaked apparitions. This peculiar place turns out to be a resort where the spirits recharge on hot tubs and fine dining, cuisine that includes once-human pigs.
Forced into an inhumane nightmare, Chihiro is befriended by Haku, a boy who works in the main bathhouse. Since humans are unwelcome in this world, he convinces her to get a job by working at the bathhouse. She must submit to slave labor to stay alive and have any chance in saving her parents from being eaten by the spirits.
Chihiro witnesses several otherworldly transformations; Haku morphs back and forth between his human form and a flying dragon. She also undergoes changes when she becomes "See through!" and Haku casts a spell over her to relieve numbness in her legs.
By the time Chihiro is morphed back into her own world, she finds that no time has passed and that her parents are waiting for her at the entrance to the tunnel. This now brave little girl, runs to catch up and is ready to explore.
Intended as a tale empowering children to face change, the film wants to diminish their apprehension over experiencing new things by showing how Chihiro conquered bigger obstacles. She bravely faced fear and uncertainty in an attempt to save Haku's life. Hard work and inner decency served her well as she found her way though the strange, new surroundings.
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