and nowhere to go
click for details
dresses 1 – by mymilkglassheart on Polyvore.com
dresses 2 – by mymilkglassheart on Polyvore.com
dresses 3 – by mymilkglassheart on Polyvore.com
don’t look down!
Hope you can take a break from the weekly balancing act and enjoy your weekend!
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- This past Saturday night, I totally enjoyed a spontaneous, tipsy, and dressed up dinner at Avalon where I suddenly and wholeheartedly was converted to the virtues of (rare) lamb. Oh my god! Rosemary infused lamby goodness! The boy and I cleaned our plates and it’s just what I needed. We enjoy food far too much.
- Edy’s limited edition coconut pineapple ice cream is THE DEVIL!
- I will say it again, Julia Wertz is my hero.
- This letter of complaint about Virgin Airline’s food is one of the funniest things I’ve read in a while.
- I love this sentimental sterling silver bread tag pendant!
- How much fun would the program Lectra Fashion PLM V1R5 be to play with?
- I wish I could’ve seen the Chinese New Year festivities with my own eyes! My god the dumplings!
- This video of all the pictures a couple took while vacationing in Japan is so frantic!
- An alum of the French Culinary Institute Manhattan returns to judge midterms.
- Ninh Wysocan is a jewelry designer from Guam, and graduate of RISD who delicately crochet’s silver into whisper thin necklaces as well as creating substantial cuffs like this one being sold at Barneys. Even this retains an airy feel.
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I find it funny how hearing a new song for the first time can sometimes make you physically uncomfortable and then suddenly, weeks later, you think it’s the sexiest thing you’ve ever heard!
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I’m so excited that Kate Bingaman-Burt of Obsessive Consumption is coming to 1708 Gallery here in Richmond! (Showing with 3 other artists, March 6 – April 11)
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If you happen to be near Seattle on or after February 5th, check out this show at 108 Occidental Gallery. It’s the first solo show of an old friend and mind blowing painter of the hyper-realism style, Brien White. We miss you in Richmond, Brien!
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- The end of Circuit City has put a few friends in a tailspin, I recently purchased my laptop from them so god knows what will happen when this thing eats it, and their current “liquidation” sale is complete joke. 10% off? Thanks.
- Astrology everywhere. Grow up.
- I noticed my face powder for touchups didn’t seem so fresh anymore so it was time to get a new one. I use L’Oreal True Match. The colors on the little sample sheet that disappear on your face are the ones to match. Well, I am the lightest shade available! When I was a child I could get so brown in the summer, I looked Middle Eastern, now I’m as pale as a goth kid.
- The first peeks at McQueen’s collection for Target have been released. I’m really not feeling it while everyone else is going nuts. Sloppy basics. That’s what I see. This dress is the only piece that looks like more than 10 minutes of thought went into it and those shoes are not screaming springtime.
strap me in
The Spring couture shows started on Sunday in Paris and lovely eccentric mustached John Galliano revealed his collection for Dior. I’ve always admired Galliano’s ability to make fantasies a reality with his couture clothing but they are always so excessive and almost like period pieces, there’s just no way you can relate them to real life. His shoes are an entirely different story. I love what this crazy little man does with shoes. I can totally see myself wearing these. The open strappy front is very much like Ann Demeulemeester’s “it” shoe in her S2009RTW collection but I like these so much more. They are wedge-like but that teeny heel tap could take some getting used to. Still, their center of gravity is what I prefer in a shoe so I don’t think they would be hard to walk in at all. The white and black are my favorites.
(photos: style.com)
darkness
I have tried really hard to avoid all the pre-fall collections considering I’m dying for warm weather and I’m completely over my current wardrobe right now but I can’t ignore Lanvin. Alber Elbaz is my all-time favorite little designing pork chop and he’s done it again for 2009. He carefully designs to flatter the female figure, is a master of drapery, always creates the season’s “it dress”, and really didn’t hold back on decadent details for this collection. While I wouldn’t style the separates the way he chose to, the dresses are always standalone masterpieces.
(photos: style.com)
fuchsia and sunshine
These bold pops of color are refreshing in the massive sea of monochromatic futuristic design I usually gravitate towards.
This $1/2 million home in the Netherlands designed by Marc Koehler Architects still maintains a wide open floor plan and clean lines. This home is part of a movement towards a more enclosed environment, providing privacy and utilizing wide glass expanses carefully, with seclusion in mind. The yellow kitchen could become old after a while but the warm fuchsia is an element I could get used to (via Arch Daily).
This housing project in Slovakia designed by Vallo & Sadovsky Architects involves 21 multi-level dwellings, each level having its own terrace and carefully separated areas to ensure parents their privacy. From the floor plans, it appears that the brightly colored paneling is storage space (via Arch Daily).
nachos
Well, I missed my vintage photo for Friday so instead, you’re getting a close-up shot of a squirrel eating a nacho courtesy of cuteoverload.com. Enjoy your weekend!
organic matter
This is a dream outfit I put together on Polyvore a while back. Just wanted to squeeze it in. Back in the day, I was all about the cowl neck but got over it a few years ago. I really like this excessive take on draping though. I’m thinking those earrings would be an easy DIY job. I may have to go foraging in the woods soon. A matte finish on some twiglets would be simple enough to execute. (Click for details.)
taco flavored kisses
I am not going to use this post to bash Valentine’s Day. I’ll admit I’m not a big fan of the holiday. While I believe the popular version originated with sweet intentions, it has morphed into another victim of the marketing machine. Having this opinion though, is the same as being an atheist on Easter. No one wants to hear it. This holiday is important to a multitude of people for reasons that deserve respect. Many people will be missing loved ones who are gone and all these sparkling hearts and images of couples embracing just pour salt into the wounds. Sometimes we need sentimental days to compartmentalize our feelings.
This is the first Valentine’s Day in years that I have been in a relationship. Last year, I got dressed to the nines and went out for drinks with two dear girlfriends. We had a blast and didn’t feel sorry for ourselves. The year before that, I totally felt sorry for myself and stayed home watching TV in my pajamas. The year before that I was taken out to a fantastic dinner by a friend who needed a date and then bailed when I wasn’t needed anymore and hung out with another friend and caught a terrible cold. I can’t remember much beyond 3 years ago because any other past V-Day hasn’t been worth remembering.
Holidays are always stressful and loaded with expectations. It’s up to you to approach the situation in a way that’s healthy and suits your idea of fun. Just like on New Years, if you’re just not in the mood to brave the crowds and the dinner reservation insanity, and you’re more in the mood for curling up in bed alone (or not) with a pint of ice cream then by all means, go for it. The holiday falls on a Saturday this year so there will be endless opportunities to create a low pressure evening surrounded by friends, if you happen to be single (or not). (Go see this show if you can!!!)
With Valentine’s Day only 3 weeks away, there’s going to be a relentless torrent of blog posts in the near future that are going to focus on this holiday. Frankly, I was already sick of the pink/red combo when I went out on the day after Christmas and the stores were already setting up their cupid drenched displays. I have no intention of giving you clever ideas for the holiday. All I’m saying is brace yourself, have fun coming up with a creative expression of your feelings if you’re so inclined, find out what would make you the happiest on that day, and if you don’t have someone to provide that for you, give it to yourself!
How would you like to spend Valentine’s Day?
xoxoxo
decals
I’ve been seeing a lot of wall decals lately and even though I don’t have any personal experience with them, I think they’re fantastic! Considering the labor involved to apply wallpaper that inevitably is going to become dated and will be an enormous pain to remove… I think removable (so they say) wall decals could be a fun way to add some interest to your interior. They are also incredibly inexpensive. Most are made from latex and are not reusable once removed so you better have a plan and a steady hand. Here are some of my favorites. (I don’t know why I gravitated towards a lot of organic designs for this post but there are plenty of graphic ones out there too!)
First off, this is from a Swedish design blog and I really have no idea if this a decal or not. It should be. I LOVE this! (click for larger)
These Elly Nelly “wall graphics” are from an etsy-like site called Supermarket that you really need to check out. You can order them in a multitude of colors and some are quite whimsical and suitable for a child’s room.
Not just limited to walls either!
This decal inspiration is from an actual art exhibit called “Human Nature” by Peter Holst Henckel. I love the large format and the layering of art on top. The close placement of the art is intriguing as well. (via Apartment Therapy)
Blik Surface Graphics has a really nice selection but it’s their Threadless designs that take the cake. They also feature other artists as well as students from the Savannah College of Art and Design and the classic designs.
Really, I could post a few dozen different wall decal companies online right now. It’s an enormous market catering to those who want to personalize a temporary situation or are just in no mood to deal with a major decorating overhaul. It may take a bit of digging to find exactly what you’re looking for. An etsy search for “wall decal” is bursting at the seams with designs that rival established online stores.
Oh, and don’t forget about stencils… god… so many stencils out there! Check out this new book by stencil master Ed Roth, if you don’t mind a little paint!
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