Dum Spiro Spero

My Commercial for QVC

2012-01-23T23:49:00.001-05:00

I shot this commercial for QVC a couple of weeks ago. Shop all day tomorrow (Tuesday) QVC's 25th annual California Gold Rush sale. English tutor by day, model by night...

I hope you all have a lovely Tuesday!

Jazz Age Baby

2012-01-18T12:05:00.000-05:00

Here's a litte photo (and shopping) inspiration for you this Wednesday morning.

The large photos are from either Harper's Bazaar or Vogue in the late 90s or early 2000s. As a teenager I ripped these pictures out of the magazine and after all these years, they still hold great visual appeal for me. The actress is a young Winona Ryder.

These gorgeous shoes (which are technically Edwardian in style, not Jazz age) are available for pre-order right now. They are from American Duchess. You should check out the shop and blog; the girl behind the brand is seriously fabulous-- and she sews!

And finally, Behida Dolic handmakes beautiful hats. Definitely take a peek at the gallery in her Etsy shop and if one strikes your fancy, send her your measurements and she'll make you a custom hat. They're gorgeous (as is her model, Helena Bianca) and would smarten up any outfit. A girl can dream, right?

Five Things Friday

2012-01-13T21:41:00.000-05:00

Five things I'm grateful for this week:

1. Time with my sister. Having a married sister who has a very time-consuming job means that I don't get much quality time with her. This week, though, we took Cole for a walk at the dog park (he's afraid of all the other doggies, silly bear!), then rented a movie, order Italian food, and settled in for a cozy evening together.

2. Work! I really enjoyed being off from work for three weeks during the holidays, but my wallet is definitely feeling the strain. Not only did I start working again at the language school where I work 30-something hours a week as an English tutor, but I also shot a "commercial" for QVC. It's nice to be doing a little modeling again.

3. Friends coming together. One of my gifts (I think) is bringing people together. I love introducing my friends to other friends; it makes for a wonderfully interconnected group. My friend Morgan is a close friend from college. We took class together (fashion illustration) and did a study abroad together in Paris. She's awesome-- smart, gorgeous, savvy. I can't say enough nice words about her. Meanwhile, Matt and Corrie are my best friends in the world. I became close to them when I met Corrie at a model casting. We shared a bit of our life stories, and immediately clicked. They're two of the most loving, wonderful people I know, and I'm so thankful that God brought them into my life. Anyway, last week Morgan was in LA working as talent/stylist on a commercial when the producer decided they needed another actress. Morgan immediately thought of Corrie for the part (they know each other from the days when we were all living in NY), and voila, Corrie booked her first commercial in LA. Morgan sent me the above picture of her, Matt, Corrie, and their 6-month old baby. I wish I could be there with them, but it warms my heart to see my friends gathered together.

4. Warm weather. I wasn't looking forward to returning to the Northeast after my time in Texas, but with temperatures mostly in the 50s, it hasn't been bad at all. I walk four miles roundtrip to work most days, so the temperatures have been great for easing me back into winter weather. Next week will be much colder, but the milder temperature will have hopefully helped me to acclimate from sunny Texas's weather.

5. Music! One of the great things about January is that it gets you thinking about what's most important to you. Music-- more specifically performing it-- is something I value very much. On Tuesday I attended the rehearsal for the Newark Symphony Orchestra. We're practicing Ravel and Debussy for our March concert. Yeah! Tomorrow I'm meeting with the group of women that I play quartet music with. We'll meet up, play for a while, break for a potluck, and then play some more. It's wonderful. Really.

What are you grateful for this week?

What's Your Dream Talent?

2012-01-07T12:31:00.000-05:00

Sometimes I think about the special talent I would have if I could have any talent I wanted. My dreams usually come down to just two: I'd LOVE to be able to draw really well (i.e., be an illustrator) and/or I'd love to play guitar (or ukelele) and have one of those throaty, mellow chick-with-a-guitar voices. And if I had to choose between the two talents, I'd definitely go with the singing/guitar playing.

I found this video today via a post of Facebook, and yep, this pretty much sums up my dream. If I could sing and play guitar, then I could find a boy and we could sing and play together! I think I'd happily sing the day away.

I love the song, too! What would your special talent be?

Five Things I'm Grateful For Friday

2012-01-07T00:09:00.000-05:00

This past week we were in Cherokee, Texas (population 175) to celebrate New Year's. My aunt and uncle live there and my cousins live a short drive away in Valley Spring, Texas. We all hail from South Carolina, so we used to gather there during the holidays, but after my grandma died, it all sort of came to a close. This was the first year since her death in 2009 that we gathered together during the holidays. My parents went, as did my niece, and we had a splendid time shopping, eating, and enjoying the beautiful weather.

via Restored Style

One of my New Year's resolutions is to stop and take time to be grateful for the blessings in my life. Here are five things I'm grateful for this week:

1. The beginning of a new year, which enables me to wipe my slate clean and begin anew. (Of course, I know my slate is already wiped clean by the blood of Christ, but the turning of a calendar year helps me to reinforce that in my head.)

2. Time with my beloved niece. I'm particularly grateful that she got to come with my family to Texas and meet her aunts, uncles, and cousins for the first time.

3. That I've gotten to grow up being exposed to the country, the suburbs, and the city. My family moved to the heart of suburbia when I was a teenager, but much of my family lives in more rural areas. When we go visit them, we ride horses, go fishing, shoot guns, eat plants and animals from the wild... it's very thrilling and shows me a different side to life. As an adult, I've spent most of my life in the world's big cities (New York, LA, Dubai, Mumbai...), and I'm thankful that I've gotten to experience that as well. Sometimes I feel like that song-- "I'm a little bit country and I'm a little bit rock 'n roll."

4. Sweet doggies. Last week we got the call that my sister's dog had died after getting into chocolate. It was a sharp reminder to value the time we have with these sweet creatures. (Click here to view an interactive chart that shows how much chocolate is toxic to a dog). My aunt's dog, Tee, became my best friend in Texas and at night she would curl up with me on the couch where I slept. I truly believe there are few joys in life which are more sublime than having a dog planted next to you, blissfully asleep.

5. Family. My family moved around a lot while I was growing up (by the time I was 13, we'd already lived in six different cities which were scattered from Texas to South Carolina to Delaware), so seeing relatives was a luxury reserved for holidays (and often bookended by 13-25 hour drives across the country). I've never gotten to know my aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents very well, but when I'm with them I do feel like family and I cherish every moment. It was such a blessing to spend my holiday with that bunch of crazies :) They may be crazy, but they're my crazy.

What are you grateful for this week?

Thoughts on Creativity

2012-01-06T10:21:00.000-05:00

"What we airily label creativity typically blends so many features: risk-taking, perseverance, problem-solving, openness to experience, the need to share one's inner universe, empathy, detailed mastery of a craft, resourcefulness, disciplined spontaneity, a mind of large general knowledge and strength that can momentarily be drawn to a particular, ample joy when surprised, intense focus, the useful application of obsession, the innocent wonder of a child available to a learned adult, passion, a tenuous (or at least flexible) grasp on reality, mysticism (though not necessarily theology), a reaction against the status quo (and preference for unique creations), and usually the support of at least one person-- among many other ingredients.

In the throes of creativity, a lively brain tussles with a mass of memories and rich stores of knowledge, attacking them both sub rosa and with the mind wide open. Some it incubates offstage until a fully fledged insight wings into view. The rest it consciously rigs, rotates, kneads, and otherwise plays with until a novel solution emerges. Only by fumbling with countless bits of knowledge, and then ignoring most of it, does a creative mind craft something original. For that, far more than the language areas are involved. Hand-me-down ideas won't do. So conventions must be flouted, risks taken, possibilities freely spigoted, ideas elaborated, problems redefined, daydreaming encouraged, curiosity followed down zigzagging alleyways. And sort of unconsidered trifle may be fair game. It's child's play. Literally. Not a gift given to an elect few, but a widespread, natural, human way of knowing the world."
~Diane Ackerman, One Hundred Names for Love, p. 245

Ackerman's next sentence (which I didn't want to include in the quote above, but which I think is true and needs to be said) reads: "With the best intentions, our schools and society bash most of it out of us. Fortunately, it's so strong in some of us that it endures."

The Maid-Servant at the Inn

2011-12-25T20:35:00.000-05:00

“It’s queer,” she said; “I see the light

As plain as I beheld it then,
All silver-like and calm and bright-
We’ve not had stars like that again!

“And she was such a gentle thing
To birth a baby in the cold.
The barn was dark and frightening-
This new one’s better than the old.

“I mind my eyes were full of tears,
For I was young, and quick distressed,
But she was less than me in years
That held a son against her breast.

“I never saw a sweeter child-
The little one, the darling one!-
I mind I told her, when he smiled
You’d know he was his mother’s son.

“It’s queer that I should see them so-
The time they came to Bethlehem
Was more than thirty years ago;
I’ve prayed that all is well with them.”

~Dorothy Parker, The Maid-Servant at the Inn

I think this poem is particularly beautiful. Read through it again and let it sink in. I pray you all had a wonderful day with those you love, and I thank God for sending his sweet, perfect son incarnate to earth.

M E R R Y

C H R I S T M A S

D E A R

F R I E N D S!

It's Beginning to Look a lot like Christmas!

2011-12-24T12:04:00.000-05:00

Just some photos that I took last week to document what our house looks like at Christmas. I love this time of year!

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9:6

23 and 1/2 Hours: What's the single best thing we can do for our health?

2011-12-15T18:36:00.001-05:00

A doctor/professor answers the old question, "What is the single best thing we can do for our health?" in a completely new way.

A Message to Women from a Man: You are NOT "Crazy"

2011-12-14T22:35:00.000-05:00

I'm reposting the following message (which I first saw here) because as I read it, I couldn't help identifying with the whole thing. As a child, I always balked at the assertion that I "threw like a girl." I was a girl, thus I threw like a girl. Duh. And what was wrong with that anyway? As an adolescent, I first encountered the common argument waged against women when men think they're being irrational (note that I've never had a woman say this to me), "You must be on your period." Again, it didn't make sense. The so-called cause of our irrationality was PMS, which stands for PRE-menstrual syndrome. It's a phenomenon that's supposed to occur before a girl gets her period. Duh, again. The article below if an interesting read, and is, in my humble opinion, sad but true. How many of us face daily or weekly emotional manipulation which is accepted by us because to do otherwise would mean we're irrational or hypersensitive? If this rings true, read on, dear reader, read on:

*********************************************************************************

A MESSAGE TO WOMEN FROM A MAN: YOU ARE NOT "CRAZY"
Yahsar Ali

You're so sensitive. You're so emotional. You're defensive. You're overreacting. Calm down. Relax. Stop freaking out! You're crazy! I was just joking, don't you have a sense of humor? You're so dramatic. Just get over it already!

Sound familiar?

If you're a woman, it probably does.

Do you ever hear any of these comments from your spouse, partner, boss, friends, colleagues, or relatives after you have expressed frustration, sadness, or anger about something they have done or said?

When someone says these things to you, it's not an example of inconsiderate behavior. When your spouse shows up half an hour late to dinner without calling -- that's inconsiderate behavior. A remark intended to shut you down like, "Calm down, you're overreacting," after you just addressed someone else's bad behavior, is emotional manipulation, pure and simple.

And this is the sort of emotional manipulation that feeds an epidemic in our country, an epidemic that defines women as crazy, irrational, overly sensitive, unhinged. This epidemic helps fuel the idea that women need only the slightest provocation to unleash their (crazy) emotions. It's patently false and unfair.

I think it's time to separate inconsiderate behavior from emotional manipulation, and we need to use a word not found in our normal vocabulary.

I want to introduce a helpful term to identify these reactions: gaslighting.

Gaslighting is a term often used by mental health professionals (I am not one) to describe manipulative behavior used to confuse people into thinking their reactions are so far off base that they're crazy.

The term comes from the 1944 MGM film, Gaslight, starring Ingrid Bergman. Bergman's husband in the film, played by Charles Boyer, wants to get his hands on her jewelry. He realizes he can accomplish this by having her certified as insane and hauled off to a mental institution. To pull of this task, he intentionally sets the gaslights in their home to flicker off and on, and every time Bergman's character reacts to it, he tells her she's just seeing things. In this setting, a gaslighter is someone who presents false information to alter the victim's perception of him or herself.

Today, when the term is referenced, it's usually because the perpetrator says things like, "You're so stupid," or "No one will ever want you," to the victim. This is an intentional, pre-meditated form of gaslighting, much like the actions of Charles Boyer's character in Gaslight, where he strategically plots to confuse Ingrid Bergman's character into believing herself unhinged.

The form of gaslighting I'm addressing is not always pre-mediated or intentional, which makes it worse, because it means all of us, especially women, have dealt with it at one time or another.

Those who engage in gaslighting create a reaction -- whether it's anger, frustration, sadness -- in the person they are dealing with. Then, when that person reacts, the gaslighter makes them feel uncomfortable and insecure by behaving as if their feelings aren't rational or normal.

My friend Anna (all names changed to protect privacy) is married to a man who feels it necessary to make random and unprompted comments about her weight. Whenever she gets upset or frustrated with his insensitive comments, he responds in the same, defeating way, "You're so sensitive. I'm just joking."

My friend Abbie works for a man who finds a way, almost daily, to unnecessarily shoot down her performance and her work product. Comments like, "Can't you do something right?" or "Why did I hire you?" are regular occurrences for her. Her boss has no problem firing people (he does it regularly), so you wouldn't know from these comments that Abbie has worked for him for six years. But every time she stands up for herself and says, "It doesn't help me when you say these things," she gets the same reaction: "Relax; you're overreacting."

Abbie thinks her boss is just being a jerk in these moments, but the truth is, he is making those comments to manipulate her into thinking her reactions are out of whack. And it's exactly that kind manipulation that has left her feeling guilty about being sensitive, and as a result, she has not left her job.

But gaslighting can be as simple as someone smiling and saying something like, "You're so sensitive," to somebody else. Such a comment may seem innocuous enough, but in that moment, the speaker is making a judgment about how someone else should feel.

While dealing with gaslighting isn't a universal truth for women, we all certainly know plenty of women who encounter it at work, home, or in personal relationships.

And the act of gaslighting does not simply affect women who are not quite sure of themselves. Even vocal, confident, assertive women are vulnerable to gaslighting.

Why?

Because women bare the brunt of our neurosis. It is much easier for us to place our emotional burdens on the shoulders of our wives, our female friends, our girlfriends, our female employees, our female colleagues, than for us to impose them on the shoulders of men.

It's a whole lot easier to emotionally manipulate someone who has been conditioned by our society to accept it. We continue to burden women because they don't refuse our burdens as easily. It's the ultimate cowardice.

Whether gaslighting is conscious or not, it produces the same result: It renders some women emotionally mute.

These women aren't able to clearly express to their spouses that what is said or done to them is hurtful. They can't tell their boss that his behavior is disrespectful and prevents them from doing their best work. They can't tell their parents that, when they are being critical, they are doing more harm than good.

When these women receive any sort of push back to their reactions, they often brush it off by saying, "Forget it, it's okay."

That "forget it" isn't just about dismissing a thought, it is about self-dismissal. It's heartbreaking.

No wonder some women are unconsciously passive aggressive when expressing anger, sadness, or frustration. For years, they have been subjected to so much gaslighting that they can no longer express themselves in a way that feels authentic to them.

They say, "I'm sorry," before giving their opinion. In an email or text message, they place a smiley face next to a serious question or concern, thereby reducing the impact of having to express their true feelings.

You know how it looks: "You're late :)"

These are the same women who stay in relationships they don't belong in, who don't follow their dreams, who withdraw from the kind of life they want to live.

Since I have embarked on this feminist self-exploration in my life and in the lives of the women I know, this concept of women as "crazy" has really emerged as a major issue in society at large and an equally major frustration for the women in my life, in general.

From the way women are portrayed on reality shows, to how we condition boys and girls to see women, we have come to accept the idea that women are unbalanced, irrational individuals, especially in times of anger and frustration.

Just the other day, on a flight from San Francisco to Los Angeles, a flight attendant who had come to recognize me from my many trips asked me what I did for a living. When I told her that I write mainly about women, she immediately laughed and asked, "Oh, about how crazy we are?"

Her gut reaction to my work made me really depressed. While she made her response in jest, her question nonetheless makes visible a pattern of sexist commentary that travels through all facets of society on how men view women, which also greatly impacts how women may view themselves.

As far as I am concerned, the epidemic of gaslighting is part of the struggle against the obstacles of inequality that women constantly face. Acts of gaslighting steal their most powerful tool: their voice. This is something we do to women every day, in many different ways.

I don't think this idea that women are "crazy," is based in some sort of massive conspiracy. Rather, I believe it's connected to the slow and steady drumbeat of women being undermined and dismissed, on a daily basis. And gaslighting is one of many reasons why we are dealing with this public construction of women as "crazy."

I recognize that I've been guilty of gaslighting my women friends in the past (but never my male friends--surprise, surprise). It's shameful, but I'm glad I realized that I did it on occasion and put a stop to it.

While I take total responsibility for my actions, I do believe that I, along with many men, am a byproduct of our conditioning. It's about the general insight our conditioning gives us into admitting fault and exposing any emotion.

When we are discouraged in our youth and early adulthood from expressing emotion, it causes many of us to remain steadfast in our refusal to express regret when we see someone in pain from our actions.

When I was writing this piece, I was reminded of one of my favorite Gloria Steinem quotes, "The first problem for all of us, men and women, is not to learn, but to unlearn."

So for many of us, it's first about unlearning how to flicker those gaslights and learning how to acknowledge and understand the feelings, opinions, and positions of the women in our lives.

But isn't the issue of gaslighting ultimately about whether we are conditioned to believe that women's opinions don't hold as much weight as ours? That what women have to say, what they feel, isn't quite as legitimate?"

see original article here.

The Exercise Finder

2011-12-12T17:26:00.000-05:00

Click here to go to site.

It's the time of year when people start thinking about exercise routines. (Okay, maybe not just yet, but in a few weeks when it's New Year's Resolution time.) I found this website via Pinterest (love that site!) and you can click on the body parts to get exercises to target each muscle group. Better yet, the exercises don't seem to require any special equipment.

In other news, I've started doing pilates and am hooked on Blogilates.com. Are y'all familiar with that website? It's great. There are a TON of different videos and the girl who leads the workouts it totally positive and upbeat. It's really fun to work out alongside her.

According to the New York Times, people tend to gain 1 pound over the holidays (with overweight people putting on more). That's not so bad, right? Well, the bad news is that once that pound is gained, it is unlikely that it'll ever be lost.

Hopefully this will give you some ideas for how to get in shape in the New Year!

Reminder

2011-12-11T01:28:00.001-05:00

Found here

I need to have this one drilled into my head so that I stop pursuing things which do not lead to life.

For Him

2011-12-09T23:21:00.001-05:00

Someday I'd like to go
to Atlantic City with you
not to gamble (just being
there with you is enough
of a gamble) but to ride
the high white breakers
have a Manhattan and listen
to a baritone saxophone
play a tune called "Salsa
Eyes" with you beside me
on a banquette but why stop
there let's go to
Paris in November when
it's raining and we read
the Tribune at La Rotonde
our hotel room has a big
bathtub I knew you'd like
that and we can be a couple
of unknown Americans what
are we waiting for let's go

~David Lehmen, May 2

So Many Books, So Little Time

2011-12-07T23:23:00.001-05:00

You can't get a cup of tea big enough, or a book long enough to suit me.
~C.S. Lewis

I took a trip to the library tonight (a little monsoon-esque weather didn't thwart me, no siree!). I haven't finished the last two books I started (I do intend to), but that didn't prevent me from getting a few more. Is it just me, or are libraries just about the best things this side of heaven? Books fill me with awe-- do you remember that scene in Beauty in the Beast when Belle goes to the bookseller?

Belle: Good morning. I've come to return the book I borrowed.

Man: Finished already?

Belle: Oh, I couldn't put it down. Have ya got anything new?

Man: (chuckle) Not since yesterday!

Belle: That's alright. I'll borrow... this one.

Man: That one? But you've read it twice!

Belle: Well, it's my favorite: far-off places, daring sword fights, magic spells, a prince in disguise!

Man: If you like it all that much, it's yours!

Belle: But sir?!?

Man: I insist!

Belle: Well, thank you, thank you very much!

Yep, that's how I feel about books too! (Oh, side note: I went to the movies last night and couldn't help noticing that Beauty and the Beast is coming out again in theaters in 3D on January 13th. Yay!)

I haven't done this in a while, but here are a few of the books that I picked up tonight (in no particular order):

WHY I PICKED IT UP: I'm definitely NOT pregnant, but this book was on display and caught my eye. It talks about different factors that influence pregnancies and babies. Interesting, right? Also, my bff, Corrie, had her baby not too long ago, and I'm the proud Godmother, so anything about babies interests me at the moment. (I also have a slew of friends at the moment who have babies or are expecting-- it's just that time in life, I guess.)

WHY I PICKED IT UP: Selected by Caroline Kennedy, it's a collection of poems that cover all aspects of womanhood. I have a friend who emails out a poem a day with his insightful commentary following. It's making me appreciate poetry in a whole new way. While flipping through the book, my eyes fell upon these intro lines to a poem:

oh this man
what a meal he made of me
how he chewed and gobbled and sucked

in the end he spat me all out

I was hooked, and the book came home with me.

WHY I PICKED IT UP: I'm intrigued by the idea of choosing to be happy. I desire to be a person who is satisfied with my life. The author spends one year setting goals for herself and making every effort to find happiness in the life she has. I'm going to follow along on her adventure and see if it holds any secrets for me.

WHY I PICKED 'EM UP: I'm a sewer-- a skill I use primarily in making clothes for myself. I want to learn how to embroider, or more particularly, to do beadwork embroidery. I love clothes from the 1920s, and I can't help but notice that beading seems to be a hallmark of that time period. I'd like to work some beading into my designs if I can manage to get the hang of it.

What about you? What are you reading these days?

How to Make a Snowflake

2011-12-05T11:25:00.001-05:00

Every winter I do a snowflake post. I loved making snowflakes as a child. I even remember that the way I met my sixth grade best-friend-to-be was by gifting her a snowflake with silhouettes of bears carefully cut into it (she loved bears!). And, believe it or not, the keyword that brings the most views to this blog is "how to make a snowflake." Strange, right?

I guess it wouldn't be December if I didn't do at least one snowflake-inspired post. For those of you who want to refine your craft, check out this how-to from instructables.com. Below are two snowflakes that the author created; one is a seahorse and the other is love themed.

Once you've gotten the hang of things, surf on over to these posts (here and here) to see some snowflake crafts.

O Parakeet of the Lissome Star

2011-11-30T21:58:00.001-05:00

"...(W)ho can say why two people become a couple, that small principality of mutual protection and regard? Couples are jigsaw puzzles that hang together by touching in just enough points. They're never total fits or misfits. In time, a pair invents its own commonwealth, complete with anthems, rituals, and lingos-- a cult of two with fallible gods. All couples play kissy games they don't want other people to know about, and all regress to infants from time to time, sine, though we marry as adults, we don't marry adults. We marry children who have grown up and still rejoice in being children, especially if we're creative. Imaginative people fidget with ideas, including the idea of a relationship. If they're wordsmiths like us, they fidget a lot in words."

~Diane Ackerman writing about her relationship with husband Paul West in her memoir, One Hundred Names for Love.

Yay, yay, yay! I found this book at the library the other day (indeed, it jumped off the shelf at me!) and I'm so excited to read it. I first heard about it from an interview with Ackerman on NPR. The book tells of her writer-husband's stroke which left him completely incapacitated and more significantly, without any vocabulary at all. She nurses him back to health, and somehow, rather miraculously, coaxes his brain into remembering it's former glory. The title refers to the names that West gives Ackerman as terms of endearments. While most people would simply call their beloved something along the lines of "honey-pie," his poor addled (yet still creative) brain christens her with monikers such as, "O Parakeet of the Lissome Star," and "Delicious Pie of the Alternate Sheepfold."

Prairie Style

2011-11-28T16:19:00.001-05:00

Did you guys do any Black Friday shopping? I definitely did. Last year was my first time, and I guess I enjoyed it because this year I went back again. Last year I did the whole 4am thing, but this year I decided that unless you want one of those limited big-ticket doorbuster items, there's no need to be there at that time. I slept in, and around 8:00am my mom and I trekked off to the local JC Penney store.

Prairie-inspired collage via here

So what did I buy? Clothes, of course! One of my favorite looks from the runways is what I'm calling "the prairie look." I LOVE what the Mulleavy sisters did for Rodarte Fall 2011 RTW (with clothes inspired by one of my favorite films, Terrence Malick's Days of Heaven) as well as Anna Sui's Spring 2011 RTW. (Her collection was also inspired by the same film. Seriously, if you haven't seen it yet, you should; Days of Heaven is one of the most beautiful films, cinematography-wise, I've ever seen.)

Yesterday my sister and I went to the dog park with her two cute Papillon puppies. Here's my take on the prairie style:

Prairie Dress: JC Penney, purchased on Black Friday
Duster sweater: Simply Vera Vera Wang for Kohl's, purchased on Black Friday
Riding Boots: vintage

And here's the handsome little Cole Bear. Isn't he a cutie?

Sewing Challenge- Necklines with Bows

2011-11-21T11:44:00.001-05:00

I just saw these images from the Dior 2012 cruise collection (via here) and was immediately smitten with the bow detail and the off-the-shoulder neckline. My fashion designer brain started to imagine what the pattern must look like. I don't think it would be that hard to draft a pattern for this, assuming that I had the time. It's cute, no? (Scroll down to see the closest detail shot that I could find).

And while I'm posting pictures from this particular collection, I'm going to throw in this one. I LOVE that shade of green-- it may very well be my favorite color.

Craft Tutorials

2011-11-21T09:35:00.001-05:00

I love these tutorials from across the web:

Lex's tutorial for how to make boot socks or leg warmers.

Coats UK's tutorial for a "criss-cross T."

Wayward Daughter's peter pan collar tutorial.

Trend Report: Native American Prints and a Pet Peeve

2011-11-16T08:59:00.001-05:00

As a child it would frustrate me to no end. I'd see a dress or shirt that I wanted, and inevitably, my mother would say I could not have it because the garment wasn't well made. I'd furrow my little brow in consternation and she would patiently point out the various flaws. Often the stripes or design would not match up (a minor problem that affected the design, but not the functionality of the clothing) , and at other times, one could see that the fabric was not cut on grain (a more egregious error that would result in ill-fitting clothes). Reluctantly, I would hang the offending dress back on the rack, and walk away wishing my mother wasn't such a stickler about these sorts of things.

Fast-forward to today, and I am my mother. Learning how to sew has made me much more aware of these small details and when they're not done well, it annoys me.

I've been lusting over so-called Aztec prints. They're popular this season, carrying over from the summer and now popping up in sweaters and jackets. I love the above coat from BB Dakota, but can you guess my major complaint? The jacket retails at $130 and yet they did a terrible job of lining up the print on the jacket. Those large diamond designs really should have been centered at center back and center front and the panels should all have been cut so that the designs match up.

They're beautiful coats, but it's this lack of attention to detail that prevents me from buying this coat (which would still be true even if the coat retailed for a lot less).

What's the solution if you're a precisionist like me (and my mom)? Make your own, of course! I love the Ahwahnee Coat from Wearing History Patterns. Now, onto finding the perfect fabric. Any suggestions for online fabric stores I should check out?

This Took Forever

2011-11-10T14:09:00.000-05:00

I know all of you fellow seamstresses out there feel my pain. Anyone who sews, knits, embroiders, or indeed, any sort of handiwork knows that these projects take A.Lot.Of.Time. Right? And yet, friends* (and strangers) constantly prevail upon us to make them something or to help with their projects. Or even worse, thankless friends* fail to appreciate the work that we put into our homemade gifts. Knitters speak ominously of the "Sweater Curse, " (see Never Knit Your Man a Sweater Unless You've Got the Ring) and the Selfish Seamstress boldly proclaims, "... I only want to sew stuff if it's for me." You get my point.

These labels, sold by Sublime Stitching, do a great job of conveying, "Yes, I made this. Yep, I worked really hard on it!" Perfect for all of your projects, no?

*I should note that I don't make things for my friends very often (I guess I'm a bit of a selfish seamstress, too), but when I do, they do tend to be very grateful.

A Mosaic of Them All

2011-11-09T16:55:00.001-05:00

"Winter is an etching, spring a watercolor, summer an oil painting, and autumn a mosaic of them all."
~Stanley Horowitz

I love these pictures of fall (found here).

And this one:

Suzie Q

2011-11-09T10:07:00.000-05:00

My dear friend Susan V for Chaps Ralph Lauren (and Kohl's). I love getting a catalogue in the mail with her beautiful face on it!

Campus Envy

2011-11-07T11:40:00.000-05:00

Over the weekend my boyfriend, sister, brother-in-law, and I went up to Princeton, New Jersey for a conference on suffering. We arrived early on Saturday and sat in the historic chapel as Pastor Ligon Duncan expounded on Psalm 88. After lunch, I sat in a seminar led by DA Carson on Suffering and the book of Revelation. We snuck out during the musical interlude to walk around the Princeton University campus, and boy, am I glad that I did. The campus is beautiful and it was the perfect fall day for a stroll. I'm totally jealous of the lucky students who get to study at this university. I think the landscape and the old buildings covered in ivy would naturally inspire me to want to read books all day.

Sheet Music Star Wreath

2011-11-02T10:01:00.001-04:00

Last year I posted a couple of posts on making the Starbucks wreath. I just spied this sheet music star wreath via the CRAFT Magazine blog and I'm definitely smitten. The original post can be found here and the tutorial is here.

Isn't is lovely?

The Life that is Waiting for Us

2011-10-26T16:58:00.000-04:00

"We must be willing to let go of the life we have planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us."

~E.M. Forster (via Pennyweight)

An Ever-Fixed Mark

2011-10-21T22:04:00.003-04:00

Let me not to the marriage of true minds

Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:
O no! it is an ever-fixed mark
That looks on tempests and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark,
Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.
Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle's compass come:
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.

If this be error and upon me proved,

I never writ, nor no man ever loved.

~William Shakespeare, Sonnet 116

One of my favorites. I also love this modern day translation that I found here: (oh, Shakespeare, you romantic, you!)

Let me not declare any reasons why two
True-minded people should not be married. Love is not love
Which changes when it finds a change in circumstances,
Or bends from its firm stand even when a lover is unfaithful:
Oh no! it is a lighthouse
That sees storms but it never shaken;
Love is the guiding north star to every lost ship,
Whose value cannot be calculated, although its altitude can be measured.
Love is not at the mercy of Time, though physical beauty
Comes within the compass of his sickle.
Love does not alter with hours and weeks,
But, rather, it endures until the last day of life.
If I am proved wrong about these thoughts on love
Then I recant all that I have written, and no man has
ever [truly] loved.

Newark Symphony Concert

2011-10-20T18:42:00.000-04:00

Here's the flyer for the Newark Symphony Concert this weekend. If you're in the area, be sure to come out and see us! The music stunning-- especially the solo violin in the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto. Be sure to bring your student id if you're a student so that you can get a discount on your ticket.See you there (I'll be playing in the second violin section)!

Secret Heart

2011-10-12T10:35:00.000-04:00

I'm listening to this one on repeat today-- Feist covering the Ron Sexsmith song, Secret Heart.

Secret heart
What are you made of?
What are you so afraid of?
Could it be three simple words?
Or the fear of being overheard?
What's wrong?
Let em' in on your secret heart

Secret heart
Why so mysterious?
Why so sacred?
Why so serious?
Maybe you're
Just acting tough
Maybe you're just not man enough
What's wrong?

Let him in on your secret heart
This very secret
That you're trying to conceal
Is the very same one
That you're dying to reveal
Go tell him how you feel

Secret heart come out and share it
This loneliness, few can bear it
Could it have something to do with
Admitting that you just can't go through it alone?

Let him in on your secret heart

This very secret
That you're trying to conceal
Is the very same one
That you're dying to reveal
Go him them how you feel
This very secret heart

Go out and share it
This very secret heart

Ode, Written in a Visit to the Country in Autumn

2011-10-12T00:51:00.000-04:00

What voice console the incessant sigh,
And everlasting longings for the lost?

~John Logan (1748-1788), from Ode, Written in a Visit to the Country in Autumn

The Beautiful Voyage

2011-09-29T21:30:00.000-04:00

I've always found myself drawn to the adventures of Odysseus, his loyal wife Penelope, the various machinations played out in the Trojan War, and of course, fair divisive Helen (see Of Menelaus and Helen).

And then there's Ithaca, the famed island home of Odysseus, which he endeavors for ten long years to get back to. He is captured and spends seven years on Calypso's island. After escaping, he is waylaid by the witch Circe, a cyclops, a whirlpool, the legendary Sirens... and the list goes on and on.

Oh, but Ithaca, beautiful Ithaca, and fair Penelope, his loyal wife, beckon him homeward.My coworker Bob emailed me the following poem which I really enjoyed. It echoes that old adage about life being about the journey and not the destination.

Ithaca

When you set out on your journey to Ithaca,
pray that the road is long,
full of adventure, full of knowledge.
The Lestrygonians and the Cyclops,
the angry Poseidon -- do not fear them:
You will never find such as these on your path,
if your thoughts remain lofty, if a fine
emotion touches your spirit and your body.
The Lestrygonians and the Cyclops,
the fierce Poseidon you will never encounter,
if you do not carry them within your soul,
if your soul does not set them up before you.

Pray that the road is long.
That the summer mornings are many, when,
with such pleasure, with such joy
you will enter ports seen for the first time;
stop at Phoenician markets,
and purchase fine merchandise,
mother-of-pearl and coral, amber and ebony,
and sensual perfumes of all kinds,
as many sensual perfumes as you can;
visit many Egyptian cities,
to learn and learn from scholars.

Always keep Ithaca in your mind.
To arrive there is your ultimate goal.
But do not hurry the voyage at all.
It is better to let it last for many years;
and to anchor at the island when you are old,
rich with all you have gained on the way,
not expecting that Ithaca will offer you riches.

Ithaca has given you the beautiful voyage.
Without her you would have never set out on the road.
She has nothing more to give you.

And if you find her poor, Ithaca has not deceived you.
Wise as you have become, with so much experience
you must already have understood what Ithacas mean.

~ Constantine P. Cavafy (1911)

Wanted: Turn-of-the-Century looks

2011-09-27T16:49:00.000-04:00

Last year while watching the film Heaven Can Wait, which stars the divine Gene Tierney, I took a few screen captures of her look in one of the scenes.

As the movie is set in the early twentieth century many of the looks are too costume-y to wear today, but this one, I thought, could still be pulled off (of course in an appropriate setting. I'd love to wear a look like this when I play in my orchestra concert next month.)

My mom got in the mail the other day a catalog from a company called The Pyramid Collection. The clothing in the catalog was definitely a bit quirky-- an odd combination of new-age skirts, steampunk- style jackets, and goth trinkets. And, even though I don't usually wear that sort of stuff, some of the pieces turned out to be quite cute. The velvet skirt below immediately made me think of Gene's outfit from the film.

Next up, finding a blouse. These pictures had me googling "heirloom sewing." I'm definitely crushing on Gibson-girl blouses.

Au Revoir Summertime

2011-09-22T23:50:00.001-04:00

It's the last day of summer today. Time to say goodbye to warm weather and welcome fall and then winter. But, before I say goodbye, here's a last tribute to the glorious summer.

I actually watched this film last summer and took a bunch of screenshots but never got around to posting them. The film is called Summertime and it was filmed in 1955 and starred Katherine Hepburn.

I really liked the film when I watched it. It's about an aging woman who has never been married. She takes her dream vacation to Venice, Italy alone, and although she's quite independent, she realizes along the way that some experiences are meant to be shared. She ends up falling for an Italian man, but the film has a bittersweet ending.

At the time, the film really resonated with me. I was single, and feeling like I would never meet someone. I pictured that it would one day be me vacationing alone in Italy, meeting a man I was drawn to, and then having to go back to my mundane life.

I recommend watching this film. The feelings portrayed in this film ring so true-- it's none of that saccharine tripe that characterizes so many romantic comedies. And the fashion! I love her wardrobe. She is so cute--in one scene she buys the cutest pair of red shoes and then gets all gussied up for her hot date with the Italian man.

I love the salmon color of this dress. And the matching bow. I remember loving the other girl's outfit-- her little wasp-waist and the off-the-shoulder blouse.

The white shirtmaker dress is pretty cute, too. Notice she's wearing the same salmon bow in her hair. She falls into the canal at one point, and I loved seeing her undergarments hanging out to dry.

And of course there's the not-to-be-missed scenes of everyday Italian life:

At one point they take a day-trip to a nearby island (Burano, the so-called Rainbow Island). I love her cute outing dress.

And then there's her jumper that she wears in the last scene on the movie. Did I mention that I want a jumper to wear over a turtleneck?

Goodbye Summer! I'll miss you and can't wait for your return.
In the meanwhile, be sure to check out this movie. I highly recommend it!

Mad about Missoni

2011-09-15T16:47:00.000-04:00

A silence hung heavily in the air. The shelves, once stocked full, were bare as a post-menopausal woman's womb. What remained behind were odds and ends strewn across the floor and hung sloppily on racks.

Empty shelves at Target

Apocalyptic vision? Nope, I'm talking about the aftermath that followed the Missoni for Target launch.

Years ago, when I lived in New York, I worked for Missoni. Twice a year for a week at a time, I was booked to model in the showroom in their store on Madison Avenue. What that meant for me was that I got to try on every sample in each season's collection-- from shoes and stockings to scarves, accessories, dresses and more. Those crazy stripes really worked their way into my subconscious, but I was never able to afford anything.

Enter the Missoni for Target line. I thought my dream of owning Missoni was about to come true, but alas, it was not to be. By the time I got there yesterday evening after work, the only Missoni items left were children's clothes, and a lone pair of heels (in my size!). The good news (I'm trying to look on the bright side) is that I did not go crazy spending tons of money on everything Missoni. And, I wasn't put in a position where I had to choose what to take home with me and what to leave in the store. It's okay. Really. Or at least that's what I'm telling myself.

If only I were a 7-year-old girl, this skirt would fit me.

But wait... what's this? Is that more Missoni I spy? At Forever 21? Huh? Is there a Missoni for Forever 21 collection? Hmmm... this is curious...

Missoni for Forever 21?

Don't be fooled, ladies! Yes, that looks like Missoni, but it's not the real deal. Tricky, tricky Forever 21!

In related news, do think that's a Missoni for Target shirt that Charlie is wearing? Lucky fellow... I wonder what time he had to get in line in order to get that shirt?

Oktoberfest Sneak Preview

2011-09-14T17:31:00.001-04:00

The Oktoberfest Dress

This is a sneak preview of something I'm whipping up for this weekend's Oktoberfest festivities. I used a vintage pattern (from my great aunt's collection) and turned it into a dirndl dress. The yellow flower-print fabric comes from my mother's stash of fabric and is probably at least twenty years old. I'm almost finished sewing the dress-- I need to adjust the hem and add a back zipper and then this dress will be ready for a spin on the town.

On another note, I'm sorry that I disappeared from the blog for a bit. I was in Vermont for most of the summer taking German language classes at Middlebury College. I had intended to keep the blog updated (although all of my entries would have had to be in German-- that's one of the conditions of the "Middlebury Pledge"), but I ended up being so busy going to classes and studying that I hardly had time for anything else. With any luck, I'll be able to get some of my summer photos posted. Vermont is seriously gorgeous! Anyway, I've missed you guys. I'm going to ease back into this blogging stuff, but I do hope to be more committed!

Rilke on Writing

2011-08-30T00:12:00.000-04:00

"Search for the reason that bids you to write; find out whether it is spreading out its roots in the deepest places of your heart, acknowledge to yourself whether you would have to die if it were denied you to write. This above all-- ask yourself in the stillest hour of the night: must I write? Delve into yourself for a deep answer. And if this should be affirmative, if you may meet this ernest question with a strong and simple, "I must," then build your life according to this necessity; your life even into its most indifferent and slightest hour must be a sign of this urge and a testimony to it."

~Rainer Maria Rilke in a letter to Franz Xaver Kappus, February 17, 1903

How Will You Manage?

2011-05-15T00:49:00.001-04:00

How will you manage
To cross alone
The autumn mountain
Which was so hard to get across
Even when we went the two of us together?
~Princess Daihaku

Happy Mother's Day

2011-05-08T23:14:00.001-04:00

Sweat·er [swet-er] --noun

1. (a) garment worn by (a) child when its mother is feeling chilly.

~Ambrose Bierce

H a p p y M o t h e r ' s D a y!

Mom circa 1981

Mom and my brother, Ryan

Erin, Ryan, me, and Mom

Happy 40th Anniversary Mom and Dad!

2011-05-08T16:44:00.000-04:00

Yesterday, May 7, 2011, was a milestone in my parent's lives-- they celebrated their fortieth anniversary of marriage together. They're in Texas for the weekend visiting my aunt and uncle, but I wanted to give them a shout out on my blog. These two pictures are from their wedding day. How cute are they?!?

H A P P Y A N N I V E R S A R Y M O M & D A D !

Caution in Love

2011-05-04T01:08:00.000-04:00

"Of all forms of caution, caution in love is perhaps the most fatal to true happiness."
~Bertrand Russell

We'll See...

2011-05-02T00:15:00.000-04:00

I spent the afternoon watching Charlie Wilson's War. Just heard the news that they killed Osama bin Laden.

It made me think of this quote from the movie:

There's a little boy and on his 14th birthday he gets a horse... and everybody in the village says, "How wonderful. The boy got a horse." And the Zen Master says, "We'll see." Two years later, the boy falls off the horse, breaks his leg, and everyone in the village says, "How terrible." And the Zen Master says, "We'll see." Then, a war breaks out and all the young men have to go off and fight... except the boy can't 'cause his legs (are) all messed up. And everybody in the village says, "How wonderful."

And the Zen Master says, "We'll see."

I'm in Vogue!

2011-04-22T12:56:00.000-04:00

I've been meaning to post this for a while, but time seems to have gotten away from me.

If you happened to pick up the March issue of American Vogue, you might have seen me in an advertisement for QVC and Mally Cosmetics.

Of course, you might not have seen me either, as I'm not really the focus of the photo. But, yep, that's me... The behind-the-scene shots from the December shoot can be seen here.

We have a Son. His Name is Spork.

2011-04-11T09:08:00.001-04:00

I think these letterpress cards by Sapling Press are too cute! (via Oh Captain, My Captain)

I Will Wait For You

2011-04-11T00:03:00.001-04:00

My friend Jeremy is trying to convince me to memorize poetry (the idea being that I can store up an arsenal of poems which I can recite to myself as a form of encouragement during times of need).

Anyone who reads my blog knows that I love poetry. I usually stick to classics, but I discovered this young, black poet the other day on YouTube and LOVED what she had to say.

She speaks about waiting for God and His plans as well as waiting for a husband. Check it out and let me know what you think. Maybe I could attempt to memorize this? It would be awesome to be able to recite this!

I Like Large Parties-- They're So Intimate

2011-03-28T11:46:00.001-04:00

"Anyhow he gives large parties," said Jordan, changing the subject with an urban distaste for the concrete. "And I like large parties. They're so intimate. At small parties there isn't any privacy."

~F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

What Poetry Does

2011-03-24T21:26:00.000-04:00

“Poetry makes the half man whole by saying the things which he feels but cannot say.”

~Clyde Kilby, Poetry and Life (New York, Odyssey Press, 1953), p. 3 via here

"The aim of good prose words is to mean what they say. The aim of good poetical words is to mean what they do not say."

~GK Chesterton

Write Music!

2011-03-23T11:50:00.000-04:00

"This sentence has five words. Here are five more words. Five-word sentences are fine. But several together become monotonous. Listen to what is happening. The writing is getting boring. The sound of it drones. It’s like a stuck record. The ear demands some variety. Now listen. I vary the sentence length, and I create music. Music. The writing sings. It has a pleasant rhythm, a lilt, a harmony. I use short sentences. And I use sentences of medium length. And sometimes, when I am sure the reader is rested, I will engage him with a sentence of considerable length, a sentence that burns with energy and builds with all the impetus of a crescendo, the roll of the drums, the crash of the cymbals-sounds that say listen to this, it is important.So write with a combination of short, medium, and long sentences. Create a sound that pleases the reader’s ear. Don’t just write words. Write music."

~Roy Clark, Writing Tools via Justin Buzzard

June 1940 Paper Doll with Clothes

2011-03-02T16:28:00.000-05:00

Back in December, I posted Miss Carey's paper doll wardrobe (from April 1941). Now, I'm back with clothes from Cousin Sally's June wedding. I'd love to have her trousseau especially the day dress with the cargo pockets and the turban.

Jack and Jill Magazine, June 1940 (via The Paper Collector)

A Beautiful French Film...

2011-02-16T23:50:00.001-05:00

To have another language is to possess a second soul.

~Charlemagne

I think I've neglected to mention this before but when I'm not modeling and globetrotting and doing, you know, glamorous stuff (can you hear the sarcasm?), I do something else.

I teach English to international students at a language school. I work one-on-one as a personal tutor to mostly students in their twenties-- people hailing from China, Korea, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Turkey, Colombia...

It's a W.O.N.D.E.R.F.U.L experience. You know that bumper sticker that says, "I touch the future; I teach."? Well, that's how I feel. Everyday I get to work with some of the best and brightest young people from these countries. And, I get to (help) teach them a language-- English-- which can only serve to further them along. It's an awesome feeling.

I discovered this stylish little French film-- an advertisement for EF Language Schools- via this blog. I LOVE it (especially because I studied abroad in Paris and ADORED.EVERY.SECOND). The video sums up everything that is wonderful about learning a new language.

A Day Late and A Dollar Short

2011-02-15T01:59:00.000-05:00

Fred and (not) Ginger in Holiday Inn

H A P P Y V A L E N T I N E'S D A Y

I always say "Better late than never." I hope you had a lovely day!

We Interrupt This Regularly Scheduled Program to Bring You...

2011-02-14T01:47:00.000-05:00

I haven't posted in two weeks, and I break my blogging fast by sharing this:

via here

Why did I post this? Because it's so near and dear to my heart. My favorite response on the chart is, "If they don't like your hairy legs, they're not really your friends." I think I have used this very thing as a friendship test.

Ballet Flats

2011-02-01T16:32:00.002-05:00

Olivier Theyskens' Theory

I desperately need new flats. My standby for years were a pair of M.I.A flats that I replaced twice. I'd just order a new pair of those except that the last pair that I got must have been made in a different factory since the leather was different (cheaper with none of the buttery softness that I had come to love in the previous pairs).

The ballet flats above are velvet (I seem to be on a kick!) and lovely. They're part of Olivier Theysken's new collection for Theory. They also come in black and in blue but at $325 are out of my budget.

Two Things at the Same Time

2011-01-30T15:57:00.000-05:00

I don't really seem to be able to handle doing two things at the same time. To wit, I've been posting semi-frequently on a different blog, The Great Vintage Sewalong of 2011, and have dropped off the face of the earth here at Dum Spiro Spero.

Here's what I've been busy working on:

Isn't it cute? The dress is from 1941. I'm making it out of a deep pink velvet. And I'm hoping to have it completed by Valentine's Day.

I've sewn it up in muslin once, made some alterations, and sewed up the bodice part again in muslin. This is how it looks:

I'm happy with my progress, so I'm ready to cut it out in the fashion fabric and to proceed.

It's a vintage dress party over at the other blog. Do stop by and check out all the fun garments people are making!

National Penguin Awareness Day

2011-01-20T23:59:00.000-05:00

Happy National Penguin Awareness Day! I just found out that January 20th is Penguin Awareness Day. I love penguins!

Here are some facts about penguins (via here):

The tallest penguin reaches the height of four feet and is called Emperor Penguin. The smallest penguin has a height of 1'3" and is called the Little Blue Penguin.
The rarest penguin is called the Yellow-eyed Penguin. It is named that because of its eye color and also because of the two yellow strips on its wings. There are only 5000 in the world today.
Penguins have a filter just below their beaks. This filter purifies the salt water from the ocean when they drink.
The mother lays the eggs and the father keeps it warm while waiting for it to hatch. Because they live in colder regions, the egg needs extra warmth to hatch. Thus, the father takes up the role.
Penguins don't always go to land to sleep. If they find danger on shore, they can take small naps in the water.
Unlike other birds, penguins have their own sign language to communicate. They communicate not only with their voice but also by waving their wings and nodding their heads.

When I was living in South Africa last year, I got to visit a place on the Cape where you can swim and interact with the penguins. Have you ever seen penguins go up stairs? It's really cute!

Aren't they amazing!?!

Happy Penguin Day!

Lions and Tigers and Dinosaurs, Oh My!

2011-01-19T01:05:00.001-05:00

Haha! I had to share this. The other day (week) when I went to the Pre-Raphaelite exhibit in D.C., I also made a pit stop at a certain Smithsonian museum. My comrade in arms that day was a very special Chinese student whom I know from the English language school where I work. Her one request was that we go to "the museum where Night at the Museum takes place." I never saw that movie, but I had a hunch that it had to be the Museum of Natural History. Mengdi didn't believe we were in the right museum until she saw the dinosaurs!

That's me being silly, but I have to admit that seeing those large skeletons is pretty awe-inducing. I don't think I think of dinosaurs as really having existed-- at least, not until I stand next to their giant bones. Their sheer size is unfathomable!

Trailer for Human Planet

2011-01-17T23:53:00.000-05:00

The trailer for this show looks amazing... watch for the eagle eye view of the Burj Khalifa (next door to where I used to live) in Dubai-- it's a super cool shot. The cinematography of the show looks like it is going to be pretty incredible.

via Take Your Vitamin Z

Florals and Ginghams

2011-01-17T13:03:00.001-05:00

I am seeing a trend for spring in floral and gingham prints-- I LOVE it!

Here are some images from the D&G Spring 2011 campaign:

via Life in Pics

The oversized-gingham print is my favorite look and I love it used in a playsuit. The maxi dresses are really pretty and the short floral-print dresses remind me of the early 90s-- especially the tiered peplum skirt.

Can you tell I'm ready for spring to hurry up and get here?!?

You Were Never Lovelier (1942)

2011-01-16T23:49:00.000-05:00

I just finished watching the Rita Hayworth and Fred Astaire film You Were Never Lovelier, and as always, loved the 1940s fashions.

I recently read that Fred Astaire said that Rita was his favorite dance partner. I can't find the direct quote, but apparently he said that he could teach her a new dance routine before lunch, and by afternoon she had learned the whole thing and was ready to perform.

Here are few stills from the film:

Do you notice anything special about this dress? She has two giant hooks-and-eyes which are used to fasten the shoulder straps to the bodice. Isn't that super cool?

I love the lace doily aspect of the dress on the left! Below you can see a side view of it. Also, plaid seemed to be in style for evening dresses in the 1940s. Notice how the plaid fabric of the skirt is mirrored on the sleeve and along the neckline.

Oh, lovely Rita! Rita wears several dresses throughout the film which feature an illusion neckline. She looks incredible with her lithe dancer's body and the style of dresses reminds me of the work of designer, Peggy Hunt.

Help Make a Little Boy's Wish Come True

2011-01-15T15:25:00.000-05:00

One of the blogs that I regularly read {Bits of Beauty} wrote the sweetest post the other day. Jenn's son's birthday is coming up very soon (he will be 8!), and instead of asking for presents, he has asked that money be donated to Charity: Water in his name. Click here to be redirected to the Charity: Water site where you can donate $8 for Aidan's 8th birthday!

Jennifer Connelly in charity: water Public Service Announcement from charity: water on Vimeo.
Are you familiar with Charity: Water? It's a charity that builds wells so that people in developing countries can have access to clean water.

Did you know:

RIGHT NOW almost 1 Billion people on the planet do not have access to clean, safe drinking water.
Unsafe water and lack of sanitation cause 80% of diseases.
More people die each year from unsafe water and lack of sanitation than from all forms of violence (including war).
a $20 donation can give 1 person clean water for 20 years.
100% of what you donate goes directly to fund water projects in developing countries.

Aidan is hoping to raise $800, which would give clean water to 40 people.

Won't you help grant an (almost) 8-year old boy his birthday wish by donating $8 to Charity: Water?

2011-01-14T11:35:00.000-05:00

Go gingham! I love this dress!

This one is pretty too, and makes me think of Gertie's red lace dress that she made herself.

And yes, I'm still into the 70s maxidress. I love them but they never seem to be long enough for my 5'10" frame.

All pics via Life in Pics (It's the Etam Spring 2011 Campaign)

Jewelry/Jewellery

2011-01-13T01:55:00.002-05:00

Just some of the lovely items you can find at EricaWeiner.com. Does anyone need gift ideas? (And can I add that I love just about everything she sells?)

Oliver + S Contemporary Sewing Patterns for Children

2011-01-12T00:24:00.001-05:00

Aren't these sweet? I just discovered this line of sewing patterns for children over at Butterick and McCalls-- each comes with a 5" paper doll! Click here to look at all of the Oliver + S collection.

Photographic Genius: Meet Julia Margaret Cameron

2011-01-10T01:33:00.000-05:00

Over the weekend I got a chance to go to D.C. to visit the National Gallery of Art where I viewed the exhibit The Pre-Raphaelite Lens: British Photography and Painting, 1848-1875 (through January 30, 2011). For those of you who don't know, the Pre-Raphaelites were a group of English painters, poets, and critics who joined together in 1848 to reform the art world. These men intensely disliked the changes that artists like Michelangelo and Raphael had brought about in the art world and desired to return to the way things were before Raphael et al. (hence their name, the Pre-Raphaelites).

The exhibition catalogue

Pre-Raphaelite art is decidedly one of my favorites. I have always been drawn to their love of nature; their use of of bright, jewel-toned colors; and their drawing of inspiration from Romanticism and Medievalism. Although the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (as they fashioned themselves) was quite small, being made up of seven men, their circle of influence was quite large. Some of my favorite artists (John William Waterhouse, William Morris, Edmund Leighton, Edward Burne-Jones, Aubrey Beardsley) were all influenced by the work of this movement.

The exhibit focuses not of the paintings that one typically associates with the Pre-Raphaelites, but with photography. It's broken up into two parts-- one focusing on landscapes and the other on portraits. It's an awesome exhibit filled with beautiful photography; if you're in the D.C. area before the end of the month, I definitely recommend stopping by. You can also view highlights from the exhibit here.

One of the highlights of the exhibition was the work of a photographer I had previously never heard of, Julia Margaret Cameron. Her portraits are exquisite, and look so much like what photographers are doing today. Check out some of her work:

The Mountain Nymph, Sweet Liberty (1866)

Gardener's Daughter (1867)

The Kiss of Peace (c. 1869)

Julia Jackson (1867) (The mother of Virginia Woolf)

Two Girls with Umbrella (1864)

Beatrice (Oct 19, 1870)

The Princess (1874)

Julia Margaret Cameron is amazing, right? The coolest thing about her is that she did not discover photography until she was 48 years old. Her daughter gave her a camera as a present with a note attached which read "It may amuse you, Mother, to try to photograph during your solitude at Freshwater."

Gareth and Lynette (1874)

Ophelia Study (1867)

The Shadow of the Cross (1865)

Come Alice

Whisper of the Muse

Sir Galahad and Pale Nun (1874)

The Echo (1868)

The Rosebud Garden of Girls (1868)

Venus Chiding Cupid and Depriving Him of His Wings (1872)

Iago (1867)

Marianne North in Mrs Cameron's house in Ceylon (1877)

I have to cut myself off from posting more pictures-- Julia Margaret Cameron has an amazing body of work, and these pictures are just the tip of the iceberg. Go forth and Google!

The Bermuda Triangle of Productivity.

2011-01-07T19:23:00.001-05:00

Haha! This is spot on! If you substitute Google Reader for Twitter, you would have a clear picture of where the majority of my time goes these days! See also this post entitled Why I Never Get Anything Done.

via Take Your Vitamin Z (via Kevin Cawley)

1/1/11

2011-01-01T23:49:00.000-05:00

I hope you all had a great time last night for New Year's Eve and today as you rang in the new year.

Below is that wonderful scene from the end of When Harry Met Sally where Harry professes his love to Sally. I love that line where he tells her "It's not because I'm lonely, and it's not because it's New Year's Eve. I came here tonight because when you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of you life to start as soon as possible."

Enjoy and best wishes for 2011!

1940s Paper Doll

2010-12-29T21:37:00.000-05:00

I would love to "borrow" any of these from Miss Carey's closet. I was going to list my favorites, but looking at it again, I realize that I love them all! Images via The Paper Collector.

Jack and Jill Magazine, April 1941

To Have Another Language

2010-12-27T22:59:00.001-05:00

"To have another language is to possess a second soul."
~Charlemagne (Karl der Grosse)

She Makes Even Winter Look Good

2010-12-27T00:06:00.000-05:00

Discovered via Anja, this cute Polish girl knows how to dress for all seasons. Now, where can I find a super-wide chunky scarf?

Quick New York Trip and Photo Shoot

2010-12-24T00:06:00.000-05:00

I just got back from New York where I was shooting something very special with makeup artist superstar, Mally Roncal, and her fabulous team at Mally Beauty. I've been working with Mally on QVC since back in June and I can say that I'm a HUGE fan of her makeup line and love the whole Mally family.

Here's a few backstage pics from our shoot yesterday:

Stay tuned for more... The rest of the Mally models and I will be on QVC working with the Mally team on New Year's Eve.

Facebook Friends

2010-12-18T02:54:00.001-05:00

I found this cool visual online; it provides a graphic of friendships via the social networking site, Facebook. I think my favorite part is that I can look at the map and see my connection to friends in South Africa, Brazil, Germany, the UAE, Australia, and India.

Click here for full screen view

Oh, worldwide friends, I miss you so!!!

Raise Money for Charity Just By Surfing the Web

2010-12-16T23:37:00.000-05:00

Download Google's "Chrome for a Cause" extension for the Chrome Browser and begin surfing the web. That's all you have to do-- and Google will donate money (up to a million dollars) to the charity of your choice based on how many tabs you open.

The five participating charities are:

The Nature Conservancy
Charity: Water (my favorite!!-- started by my friend and visionary, Scott Harrison)
Room to Read
Doctors Without Borders
Un Techo Para Mi Pais

10 tabs= 1 tree planted

10 tabs= 1 book published and donated

25 tabs= 1 vaccination treatment provided

100 tabs= 1 square foot of shelter built

200 tabs= 1 person's clean water for a year

So, what are you waiting for? Download the extension and start clicking! This initiative runs through Sunday, December 19th.

Beautiful Women are Invisible.

2010-12-16T22:58:00.001-05:00

I finished watching Elegy today via Netflix Watch Instantly. It is an interesting film, and while I didn't love it, I do recommend it. It stars Penelope Cruz, Ben Kingsley, Dennis Hopper, Debbie Harry, Patricia Clarkson, and Peter Sarsgaard.

Mark Twain on Developing a Writing Style (i.e., Read!!!)

2010-12-16T21:09:00.000-05:00

"Let us guess that whenever we read a sentence & like it, we unconsciously store it away in our model-chamber; & it goes, with the myriad of its fellows, to the building, brick by brick, of the eventual edifice which we call our style."

~Mark Twain in a letter to George Bainton, October 15, 1888

BRILLIANT A Capella version of Twelve Days of Christmas/Todo's Africa

2010-12-16T01:32:00.002-05:00

My blog strikes me as really impersonal.  I don't post many pictures of me (I don't know why-- for some reason, I get quite shy about the way I look in photos), and I don't write much about the personal stuff that is going on in my life.  I like blogging-- it's about the only thing I stick to these days-- and I love blogs where I feel like I get to know the author a little bit, but for some reason I remain pretty closed.  Friends that know me well would probably agree with that assessment-- on the surface I seem pretty open, but then once you get close to me, you'll find a wall.

I'm not sure why I just wrote that.  I think I'm apologizing for just posting another YouTube clip instead of something of substance.

That's a great lead-in for the video (<--- sarcasm).  But, you really should watch it.  That is, if you haven't seen it already.  I showed it to my sister yesterday and she was already familiar with it, which means to me that it's already really out there, as my sister seems to know less of the popular culture than I do.  Anyway, it's an a capella group singing  a Christmas medley.  It's worth watching because of the brilliant twist toward the end, where they blend The Twelve Days of Christmas into Todo's Africa.  I LOVED it.  Let me know what you think!

Zooey Deschanel (She & Him) Sings!

2010-12-15T02:07:00.000-05:00

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas might just be my favorite Christmas song (along with Baby, It's Cold Outside, which, incidentally, Zooey covers as well.  Oh, and I love O Holy Night.  And All I Want for Christmas is You.  And Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring...)

Below, Zooey sings Have Yourself... for Conan O'Brien.  She's lovely.  And she has a nice voice, too.  Sigh.

Link via Cover Lay Down.

Vintage Holiday Labels

2010-12-13T17:26:00.000-05:00

available here

I love these kitschy-retro labels that Heidi Kenney at My Paper Crane came up with. She is not a fan of the ones available in the store, so she created her own. They're free-- simply print on cardstock or sticker paper!

Snowflakes!

2010-12-10T16:47:00.000-05:00

I seem to be transfixed by snowflakes. They're so delicate-- just look at Wilson Alwyn Bentley's groundbreaking photography work to be inspired. And while the real things are pretty magical, I also like snowflake crafts! These two projects definitely caught my eye:

DIY Glittering Doily Garland via {Bits of Beauty}

The Art of Making a Paper Snowflake via Here's Looking at Me Kid

Both websites provide great tutorials for each project.

Of course, if you don't feel like getting out all of the art supplies, you can always make a virtual snowflake at Make-a-Flake. (Ignore that message about needing Flash 6-- you probably already have it, so just click on the link where it says you already have the plugin.) Making virtual snowflakes is a blast-- you should check it out!

Happy Thursday: Gratuitous Alpaca Pics

2010-12-09T11:33:00.001-05:00

This post started out as something different. Truly it did. But, then I googled "Alpaca," and suddenly I had a very different post. (Don't ask why I was looking at pictures of Alpacas on Google...)

Look at these friendly faces! Aren't they cute? Happy Thursday!

via

The Dresses of Peggy Hunt- Exquisite Details

2010-12-04T12:03:00.001-05:00

I recently subscribed to the Colette Patterns blog-- I seem to be a sucker for anything sewing or fashion related.

The dress that first caught my eye. Isn't the tromp l'oeil lace bow fabulous? I wish I knew the technique to make something like that!

On Wednesday, the blog featured pictures of dresses by Peggy Hunt which made me stop what I was doing and immediately go in search of more information about this dressmaker.

Peggy Hunt was born in 1892. She began as a home sewer who enjoyed making clothes for her baby daughter, but her dresses were soon noticed by the owner of the department store where she worked. Mr Haggerty, of Haggerty's Department Store, asked her to sell some of her designs in his store. The rest, as they say, was history. (Biography via here.)

Peggy Hunt's trademarks were illusion necklines, appliques, and lots of lace.

Peggy's granddaughter Jacqui lovingly keeps her grandmother and mother's (also a designer) memory alive by buying their dresses wherever she can find them, and by sharing the pictures of her collection via her Flickr photostream.

I love the pale pink of this dress along with the tulle skirt. I can see this one at a red carpet ceremony!

I really think Peggy Hunt's use of sheer overlays is genius. This top would also be beautiful as just a blouse.

This Peggy Hunt dress is one of my favorites. I love how modern it looks-- like something you'd buy from Anthropologie!

Mmmm... Italian Cashmere

2010-12-02T12:19:00.000-05:00

The J. Crew Catalog came in the mail yesterday and I was instantly taken with this sweater. How cute is that gathering into the yoke? And the contrasting buttons! Alas, the price is a little steep at $158. But, soooo cute!

25 Days of Giveaways from McCall's, Butterick, and Vogue Patterns

2010-12-02T12:07:00.000-05:00

This just in! Every day for 25 days, the McCall's Pattern Company (who own McCall's, Butterick, and Vogue Patterns) is giving stuff away. For Free!!!

In order to qualify to win, you must be an email subscriber to Butterick.com, McCallPattern.com, VoguePatterns.com, or ClubBMV.com. Sign up for their newsletter on any of those sites.

So, what can you win? Yesterday's winner won a DVD by sewing guru Claire Shaeffer, while today's winner will win 2.38 yards of beautiful silver-colored crepe-back satin. Stay posted to see what tomorrow's offerings are.

Do you want to know something fun? This is my best friend Laura on the cover of the Winter/Holiday 2010 Vogue Patterns Catalogue. Isn't she lovely? Laura and I met at a casting in NY aeons ago. We were roomies for several years-- first in Manhattan and then later in Brooklyn. Next time you go to the fabric store you can say, "Hi Laura!!!"

I Love the Rain

2010-12-01T02:05:00.001-05:00

It's raining cats and dogs outside. If I were in Australia, I'd say it was bucketing. The rain is falling so heavily (and the wind is so strong), it is practically going horizontally. You get the picture.

I'm not much of a fan of the rain, but, as they say, every cloud has a silver lining.

I have been craving proper Wellington boots ever since I watched Keira Knightly and Sienna Miller tramp around in them in The Edge of Love. They're something of an obsession for me.

Loeffler Randall

But, THEN, I saw these on The Purl Bee's blog. Yes, the one pair look like traditional Wellies, but then look how cute and practical the little booties are. I'm smitten!

Purl's stirrup socks. Buy the pattern here.

AND, it gets better. Purl has created a knitting pattern to make the perfect pair of stirrup socks to wear with the boots. You can buy the pattern from them, or you get a free pattern when you purchase the rain boots.

The rain isn't so bad after all, is it?

Gratuitous Puppy Pictures

2010-11-27T23:37:00.000-05:00

Some people are into cats. I, however, am decidedly a dog lover. Specifically, I like little dogs. Consider these two examples:

Aren't they cute?

The top photo is of Casper, a chihuahua. He belongs to my aunt and her family. Casper weighs 3.6lbs (1.6kg) but he doesn't let his small size slow him down a bit. He thinks he's the biggest dog in the house.

Cole (9lbs, 4.1kg) is a papillon. The name of the breed comes from their distinctive ears-- the size and shape of them resemble butterfly wings, and papillon is the French word for butterfly. Cole is my sister's dog, but I've convinced him that he belongs to me. He keeps me company throughout the day, and sleeps in my bed at night. The only think I don't like about him is his long white hair that he sheds on everything.

There you go. Dogs are one of my chief pleasures in life. One of the best things about being home (as opposed to globetrotting) is being able to cuddle with the little guys.

Clemson versus Carolina-- Birthday Wishes

2010-11-27T22:04:00.001-05:00

It has been a wonderful couple of days-- my aunt and two cousins from Charleston drove up to Delaware on Wednesday; international friends An'aam, Ahmed, and Mengdi joined us for Thanksgiving; my niece, aunt, and cousin and I woke up at 3:30am to go shopping on Black Friday; and today is my dad's birthday.

It is my dad's particular birthday wish that Clemson University beat University of South Carolina in the football game tonight. For those of you not from South Carolina, there is a HUGE rivalry between the Clemson Tigers and the Carolina Gamecocks. Families tend to be for one side or the other; my family falls squarely on the Clemson side. (Dad graduated from Clemson in 1972. We grew up with tiger-themed decor, and as a child, I even painted my dollhouse orange with purple shutters).

My mom decided to throw a Football-Birthday party. She decorated in orange, and made a bunch of food. We've been sitting around the television set since 7pm, and since I'm not the biggest football fan, I decided to document everything via the blog. It's always fun to look back and see what you were doing on a particular day-- don't ya think?

The cousins: me, Cody, my brother Ryan, and Alex

I would like to say that Dad is going to get his birthday wish. Alas, things are not going too swell :( We've got one quarter left, and Clemson is far, far behind. Still, it's a memorable day, and my mom's party was a great idea.

Happy Birthday, Dad!!! We love you!

Playing With String

2010-11-25T19:25:00.000-05:00

I like to think of my blog as a repository for really cool ideas that I might want to revisit later. It makes a better folder to store things than my computer which has a tendency to crash, or at the very least, to become disorganized.

The added benefit of posting things here is that you might also see something that inspires you. If you make anything, be sure to let me know so I can take a gander!

DIY Friendship Bracelet tutorial here

Broomstick Lace cuff here