The Power of Disguise

In my Mythology class a few years ago, my College Professor explained that you can learn a lot about a person by their disguises. Halloween itself is an archetypal holiday where people dress up as someone they admire, fear or want to be like. This lecture stuck with me as I learned about theatre, writing and the choices I've made for my costumes. Every character I have dressed up as is someone I admire or aspire to be.

When I was ten, I wanted to be just like Sailor Moon. She was brave, powerful, kind and beautiful. I dressed as her for Halloween because I admired her courage, kindness and her ability to overcome any obstacle thrown at her. Sailor Moon was my favorite character because I wanted to be just like her.

Belle has always been my favorite Disney Princess, and when I read the original fairy tale of Beauty and the Beast, I admired many elements of Beauty or Belle's character. Belle is kind, true to herself and very smart. Her love of stories is something I relate to. Belle is also brave, and made the decision to stay at Beast's castle on her own to protect her father. I can't even count how many times I've dressed as Belle for Halloween. She's been a role model of mine for a long time. 

Yuna is my favorite Final Fantasy heroine, because she taught me how to find my own path, despite what I believed people expected of me. Yuna is a character that represents hope, courage and wisdom. Her difficult path made her stronger, wiser and insightful. As Yuna learns how to overcome obstacles, she discovers who she wants to be. I look up to Yuna's ability to face adversity and create her own path.

Serah was only in Final Fantasy XIII for a short time, but I was able to relate to her. Not only did we share the same name, but we have similar fears. Serah was afraid of becoming a burden, and even though she couldn't change the past, she guided her sister and the lcie to change their fate. In FFXIII 2 Serah is a main character with a difficult quest ahead of her. She makes the decision to do something instead of sit and wait for things to come to her. Serah doesn't let fate control her, she creates her own. This is why I dressed as Serah for a convention.

Alice has quite the story in the Tim Burton film. During the time when the movie came out, I was facing a big decision about facing fears, living my own life and not focusing on the expectations of people my age. I remember watching the film, and feeling exactly like Alice the entire time. All I wanted to do was run away. I didn't want to solve my problem. I wanted to run from it, as far as I could. But by the end of the film, I realized, just like Alice, that the only person who could solve my problem was myself. If I never faced that fear, I would never grow and change into the person I wanted to be. I dressed like Alice because I admire her bravery, and I believe that one day I will slay my own jabberwocky.

Lizzie Bennet is my current role model. She's smart, creative and cares for her family. Lizzie is even my age, or turns my age at the end of the show. Lizzie's character is a beacon of hope for my generation. She lives at home, and has a hard time deciding what she wants to do in the future, but she never gives up, and stays true to herself. She knows that she's not perfect, but she accepts her flaws and learns what she wants to do in her life. As a modern day Lizzy Bennet, Lizzie's character is a wonderful role model for the twenty something generation fresh out of college. I hope to be as creative, clever and true to myself as Lizzie is.

Every Halloween, I dress up like a character who inspires me, or who I aspire to be. A few other characters I remember, but couldn't find pictures for are : Megara from Hercules, Queen Amidala from Star Wars, and Mulan.
What about you? On Halloween do you dress up as a character who inspires you, frightens you or who you aspire to be?

Lizzie Bennet Polyvore set

The last episode of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries has happened, so I had to do a tribute to the series and the amazing character of Lizzie Bennet. Ashley Clements herself suggested the dress from Modcloth since the original outfit is sold out at Macys. I had to find a key necklace to go with it, and I had to add the I love Darcy bag that she admitted to carrying around while Lizzie was at Pemberly Digital. The books are an accent to Lizzie's love of reading and I had to find a pair of Anthropologie earrings because Lizzie loves Anthropologie. Her signature plaid shirt was also required, and I found a pair of boots from nine west to complete the set. I will miss loving Mondays and Thursdays for the Lizzie Bennet Diaries, but this story will always mean something to me.
You can find the set here:  http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/set?id=77090165

You know you're a Lizzie Bennet Diaries fan when . . .

"A single man in possession of a large fortune must be in want of a wife" is a universal fact, not opinion.
You've heard "My name is Lizzie Bennet and . . . " at least 97 times now.
You know about "the most awkward dance ever."
You appreciate the wonders of costume theater.
Things in your life are not just interesting, they are "illuminating"
You've heard two different stories about Batman and Darvid.
You cheered when a website was taken down.
You support team Figi.
You have a love hate relationship with snickerdoodles.
Maria Lu is part of your fandom.
You understand the importance of a beret and bowtie.
Big sun hats and fancy scarfs make you think of southern accents and obsessive schemes to marry off daughters.
You know that a company called Collins and Collins exists.
You watched a demonstration on light bulbs and light switches.
You've seen the green bean gelatin.
You know how dangerous cutting coupons is.
You love Mondays and Thursdays.
You've heard about the list of reasons that Lizzie is perpetually single.
You've seen Netherfield.
You want to work for Pemberley Digital.
You know about Domino.
You suddenly want to visit San Francisco.
You know/ love the brand Anthropologie.
You love Jing.
You know that "everyone deserves tea", "nothing gets done without achohol" and "cake solves everything."
You love the word verisimilitude.
You know who showed up at Lizzie's house in the rain last night.
You know that Darcy can be Fitz, and Fitz can be Darcy.
Anniekins creeps you out.
You know that in San Francisco "The hills can be quite unforgiving."
You've seen that Mcdonalds commercial.
You know that Mr. Collins was once a zombie lover on CASTLE.
You use the word grug to describe a grope hug.
You follow a cat on twitter.
You were at John Green's night of awesome.
You know about Daniel Vincent Gordh's competition with Taco Bell.
You've seen Bearcy.
Plaid button up shirts have a whole new meaning to you.
You follow fictional characters on twitter, pinterest, tumblr and youtube.
 LBD does NOT stand for little black dress.


 I made this list for Once a while back, and I decided that The Lizzie Bennet Diaries had to have one. Feel free to comment and add to the list :)

LBD 30 day challenge day 27: Favorite outfit

The Inkprint Bloom dress from Anthropologie. I love this dress, and I have my own thanks to information from Ashley Clements. It's one of my favorite dresses and it's up there with Belle's Armani Exchange lace dress. Other favorites are Lizzie's star print dress and her Bar III dress from Macys.

LBD 30 day challenge day 24: Best impression of a character

I loved Lizzie's impression of Catherine De Bourgh. The dog is the best part :)

LBD 30 day challenge day 22: Favorite episode

Episode 78: The Lizzie Trap

This is probably my favorite episode because so much is going on here, and it's balanced nicely. Lizzie is ready to make new friends and live in the moment. Gigi gives her an unexpected one by literally shoving Darcy toward her. First we see that Lizzie has changed her opinion of Darcy, and then we see Darcy being a gentleman. Both of them show a softer side that we've never seen before, and Lizzie especially shows that she doesn't want to offend him. The interesting thing about this episode is that both Darcy and Lizzie are testing out the atmosphere. Last time they saw each other, they weren't on good terms, and much has changed since then. I really loved Gigi in this episode, putting on an act and plotting with Fitz to bring Darcy and Lizzie back together. It shows how much Lizzie and Darcy have changed, and how similar they are.

LBD 30 day challenge day 21: What keeps you watching?

The clever dialogue, the modern day twists and the characters keep me watching The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. It's a habit to watch every Monday Morning, before I even write or blog and every Thursday morning before work or during my break. It's a great story and the modern day version is something
I can relate to easily. I'm curious how close they follow the novel and how much will change to reflect modern ideas and ways of life.

LBD 30 day challenge day 20: Lydia adorbs or annoying?

I never liked Lydia in the novel. She was so selfish and constantly cried for attention. She runs off with George Wickham, then brags about being married to him, leaving her family to patch up the situation. She never really bonds with her sisters, too busy bragging about herself to care about the difficult situation she put them in. Every interpretation of her is negative, so I was pleasantly surprised to find positive aspects in the Lydia of the Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Yes, this Lydia cries for attention, but we see her concern for her sister. When Lizzie is sad, Lydia tries to cheer her up by being goofy and obnoxious. Instead of running away with George Wickham, Lydia learns from her mistake and decides to be more open and honest with Lizzie. This is a good transformation, because it makes this Lydia more misunderstood than selfish. Her cry for attention is really a struggle to find who she is and what she is capable of. So I think Lydia is inbetween adorable and annoying. The annoying stuff is an act so she can feel in control of her life while the adorable part is her real character shinning through the mask. This was never explored in the original novel, but that could have been the motivation behind Lydia's actions.

LBD 30 day challenge day 19: Character you are most like

When I'm around people I know really well, I'm a lot like Lizzie. I goof off, talk a lot and joke around. I'm also constantly analyzing everything that happens in my life and try to figure out the reason people act the way they do. I also love to read, and I consider myself a little witty, and hopefully charming.
When I'm around people I don't know, I can be like Jane. I'm a little shy, and I don't show my feelings at all if I can avoid it. I like to busy myself with work and projects, and I talk very little depending on the company. So the real me is more like Lizzie Bennet, but the less confident me is like Jane.

LBD 30 day challenge day 18: Favorite ship

This one is a tie. Of course I love Darcy and Lizzie because they're perfect for each other, but I also like Bing and Jane.  Darcy and Lizzie are both similar in matters of pride and prejudice (not just a shout out to the novel.) Darcy's prejudice comes with his view of people, especially Lizzie's family. His pride comes from the social status that he believes in, and what he expects of himself. Lizzie is quick to judge and does so often without reflecting on her judgements. This is her prejudice. She judges people based on what she hears and witnesses. Her pride is her personality. She has a habit of wanting to stand out, and her opinions will be heard, regardless of their exaggeration or bias.
Jane and Bing are different. They have similar dispositions, and both of them are kind, caring and trusting of their family and close friends. There's something charming about two similar personalities, but they are not identical. Bing values his friend's opinion over his own feelings. Jane doesn't show her feelings right away, but she trusts them completely. Although status is an important part of the novel, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries makes the issue different. Jane becomes busy to get her mind off off Bing and she doesn't sit around waiting for him to return, she changes. So even though Jane and Bing are both kind and caring, they respond to situations very differently.
That's why my favorite ship is tied. Darcy and Lizzie are a conflicting couple. Jane and Bing are a sweet couple. Both of these relationships reflect the personalities of the characters very nicely, and help them grow and learn.

LBD 30 day challenge day 16: A character you'd want to see on the videos

Mr. Bennet. Although I doubt we will see him in the videos, he does know about them and has a tumblr where he discusses what he thinks of them. It would be cool if he appeared in the last episode because they did make a blog for him, and all the other characters that have blogs have been in the videos. He is portrayed by Lizzie a few times. 

LBD 30 day challenge day 13: Favorite quote

"I forget nothing." - Lizzie Bennet

Every time someone asks her about the amazing detail in her scripts, they ask Lizzie how she remembers the exact words they said. This quote shows two things. One, that Lizzie is an observer who pays attention to all the people she meets. Two, Lizzie is clearly a script writer for the show (In other words, when the writing is obvious, this is Lizzie's cover for the story details that she remembers.)
I have many other favorites including Lizzie's impersonation of Darcy:

"I dislike smiling. It contorts the face." - Lizzie Bennet

LBD 30 day challenge day 12: Favorite friendship

Charlotte Lu and Lizzie Bennet. These two have a powerful friendship that faces the ultimate trial when Charlotte moves away, but once Lizzie visits Charlotte, it was like their big fight never happened. These two have been through a lot throughout the series and they are always there for each other when they are needed most.

LBD 30 day challenge day 11: Priates or ninjas?

Hmm, that's a tough one. I'm going to say pirates because I don't know a lot about ninjas, and the pirate ride at Dinseyland is one of my favorites.

Here's the video where the question is from:

LBD 30 day challenge day 10: How involved are you with the interactive side?

I'm pretty involved actually. I follow all the characters on twitter, and I follow Lizzie and Jane's tumblrs. Most of the news that progresses the story is on twitter and tumblr. The pictures they post and the conversations that they tweet are just one way to keep the story interesting. I've asked about a few of Lizzie's outfits and I've commented Jane's tumblr. I follow Pemberly Digital on facebook and twitter . . . need I say more?

(From Lizzie's Clothes Tumblr)

LBD 30 day challenge day 8: Favorite actress

Ashley Clements! I loved her reading of The Fault in Our Stars, which sounded so different from the Lizzie character. I also think it's neat she has a tumblr and twitter. She even started a tumblr for all the clothes in the show because so many people asked about them.

LBD 30 day challenge day 7: Saddest moment

When Lydia finds out about the video. She comes in, probably expecting a lecture from Lizzie about George Wickham, and she gets one, but not in the most gentle way. Lizzie thinks that Lydia agreed to the video, and knows about it. She's so mad at Lydia that she doesn't even assume Lydia doesn't know. Both Lizzie and Lydia receive a shock when Lydia discovers the video. Lizzie realizes that Lydia had no idea, and Lydia realizes that she doesn't know George Wickham at all. I thought this moment was more sad than Jane discovering that Bing left town. What Lydia discovers is mortifying and cruel. What Lizzie discovers is that she doesn't have faith in her sister at all.

LBD 30 day challenge day 6: Best costume theater

Charlotte as Caroline and Jane as Darcy. This scene was so great, and I thought they did a great job with their personalities.

The Lizzie Bennet Diaries So far

Whoever made this did a great job!

LBD 30 day challenge day 5: Funniest Moment

Darcy as Fitz
One word: Priceless.