Valentine's Day special

My love list:

1. Full-skirted party dresses
2. Dinner dates
3. Maps of all kinds—fold-outs, globes, atlases, Google…
4. "Going for a drive"
5. Cinema with a capital “C”
6. Spring scents
7. Painted fingernails
8. Gelato (I want two scoops)
9. The Beatles
10. Surprise bouquets
11. Local treasures
12. Laughing from the inside out

(I’m sure if I’d ask my sister about what she loves her list would include freckles, nose wrinkles, and honeysuckle—not that she wouldn’t also agree with my list. These are common interests! But, what do you love?)


I like Valentine’s Day, and my feelings about it are still wrapped-up in those shoeboxes that we all seemed to have re-purposed and decorated to collect eclectic mini-greetings from our grade school classmates.


Nowadays this holiday tends to be much more elaborate, but still it’s nice to look back on when some candy hearts and a well-penned “I like you” did the trick. Oh, and don’t forget the grocery store valentines, with a favorite superhero on them.


And that’s a reason why I like Kate Spade is doing these days. And I’m not even talking about the charming, charming clothes, shoes, and accessories! Kate Spade is paying homage to the holiday that people love to love (yes, there are others—but let’s not think about them now) with a playful “favorite things” approach. Why not send one of the free e-postcards
to a special friend?


Also, these shots depict my sister modeling after the Kate Spade magazine ad, which reminds me of a fun date idea: I lately discovered these little guides at a bookstore, art museum gift shop, or someplace like this. Anyway, they make so that you can take a tour of your own city and learn all sorts of interesting facts. I like the architecture-focused guidebooks best.

Kate Spade’s catalog-in-a-video is both dreamy and quirky, and I love the muted primary colors. We think the girl in the song is teasing her boyfriend, which isn’t so nice of her, but what he says is so sweet:

“I love you more than everything. And compared to you everything means nothing.”

Happy Valentine’s Day! I wish you all kinds of love.


Thank you, Oleg, for the candy hearts.

2010 Retrospective: Exploring

[Hiking fashion]

First, a little music for you.



Now that I've been to Scotland, “exploring” has a new meaning to me. I picked-up an Edinburgh guidebook while I was there this last summer, and I'll never forget the command on the cover (probably uttered by a Scottie dog): “Don't be boring, go exploring!” This was a little day trip that I'm so glad that I took. I remember still being in England and talking over my whim of heading farther north with a friend that I had just met, and she advised: “Edinburgh is a city not unlike San Francisco—its charm is readily apparent.” I so enjoyed the castles, bagpipes, Laura Ashley store, tartans, toffee pudding, and tea shops.


After coming back from this magical adventure in the United Kingdom I’ve sought to incorporate many of the elements that I experienced and enjoyed into my everyday, and it should be noted that most of these do not have to do with city life. Sure, I went to Edinburgh, and London too. But my happiest times were spent in England’s Lake District (again), where the green is really green and the blue is truly blue.



After being in the Lake District this time, I felt compelled to make hiking part of my life on a more regular basis. This may sound silly, but at the time those hikes felt almost life-changing. I always chose to go on the most difficult excursions. One of the things that I learned about myself on this trip is that I like to accomplish tasks of great difficulty: the difficulty is proportionate to the feeling of accomplishment. When we reached the height that we had been aiming for, the view from that place was just so lovely. I felt as if I had earned it. Back on stable ground, everything seemed better: jokes, taking a shower, food, etc. Maybe it was just the endorphins and fresh air that made this so! And, I counldn't help but be proud of the healthy apples that had grown in my cheeks.


If this sounds good to you, maybe you should consider joining your local chapter of the Sierra Club, too. Autumn enjoys hiking as well and this fall created an outfit inspired by this pastime. She suits the season, wearing orange and brown, and I love her hat's classic style. She will stay adequately warm in corduroy culottes and comfy sweatshirt.



Lastly, I hope that you will enjoy this poem by William Wordsworth of the Lake District, capturing the excitement of exploring and hiking:

Stepping Westward

"What, you are stepping westward?"—"Yea."
—'Twould be a 'wildish' destiny,
If we, who thus together roam
In a strange Land, and far from home,
Were in this place the guests of Chance:
Yet who would stop, or fear to advance,
Though home or shelter he had none,
With such a sky to lead him on?

The dewy ground was dark and cold;
Behind, all gloomy to behold;
And stepping westward seemed to be
A kind of 'heavenly' destiny:
I liked the greeting; 'twas a sound
Of something without place or bound;
And seemed to give me spiritual right
To travel through that region bright.

The voice was soft, and she who spake
Was walking by her native lake:
The salutation had to me
The very sound of courtesy:
Its power was felt; and while my eye
Was fixed upon the glowing Sky,
The echo of the voice enwrought
A human sweetness with the thought
Of travelling through the world that lay
Before me in my endless way.

2010 Retrospective: Los Angeles Leisure

[How to do the Hollywood Bowl]

Dear friends,

I am sorry that you missed the festivities of this past summer. They were wonderful and included two concerts for me at the Hollywood Bowl. We took these pictures when my sister Autumn came along, with the homemade picnic that she made.


This is how the Hollywood Bowl works: You will need a picnic, of course, and homemade is certainly preferable. Autumn's is sandwiches made with turkey, fresh watermelon slices, lemonade in glass bottles, and something sweet to eat. You will pack these in your own version of the “picnic basket.” At the height of summer in July when this was, these portable food hampers become more expensive than ever, but you can improvise. My sister uses a natural fiber tote, and a wood box that she found at a gourmet food shop in South Pasadena. Add to these some plates, utensils, and napkins (these design-y ones came from IKEA) as well as a quilt for comfort, and you're ready to venture out.


But, wait! Don't forget to dress appropriately! Overall, your outfit should reflect the eclectic mood of the Los Angeles arts scene, which explains Autumn's interesting skirt. It is in fact two skirts, an almost vintage-looking floral one worn over a white eyelet one. This look works because both skirts are cotton. The show will start before the sun will have set, which necessitates some good sunglasses. Autumn wears her cheerful cherry pair well. You will also need a warm cover-up (not pictured) for when night falls.






This is the order for the evening: You should take the tram. Unless you live or work near the Hollywood Bowl, the tram really is the best option for ease and travels there from several convenient locations. Once at your destination you're free to spread out your picnic and people-watch, but please try not to stare too much at the darling baby up ahead. It's rude—but I agree with you that her parents should have thought better than to bring her to such a late-night event...

You can sway, dance, sing along, harmonize—whatever you would like—when the concert starts, because what better bliss and heaven is there than being alive and young and enjoying live music outdoors in the summer?

This is my advice should you in future find yourself fortunate enough to go to the Hollywood Bowl.

Sincerely,
Ashley(-o)



P.S. We saw the adorable Zooey Deschanel of the band She & Him peform the song “I Was Made for You,”
among other delights.

How to sew

[White shirt]

My sister Autumn made this stylish white chemise. Yes, that's exactly right, and I am impressed. She had some help, however, and it was in the form of Common Thread Studio.


This summer past she discovered this little shop on South Pasadena's Mission Street. This is not your grandmother's sewing shop and offers a modern take on traditional handicrafts.

Common Thread Studio is more about expertise than fabric and notions, and there are classes for beginning sewing, serger basics, silkscreen printing, alterations, and making such items as “bourgeois” travel kits and aprons with pot-holders. You can also attend their “open studio” to use their professional equipment and pretend that you are a high-end designer working on a couture creation!


During Autumn's lesson she cut-out the pattern (provided by the teacher) and sewed a few seams. After this great start, my sister was able to take her cloth home and complete the rest of the project.


But, I want so many things, and sometimes it's rather funny to listen to me. Earlier this year some of you may have heard me say that I want a purple purse, which is based on an image that I have in my head, vaguely associated with lush ski vacations. To complicate matters further, the leather must be of a certain jaunty shade and the metal findings of a proper shininess.

So far my search for the perfect satchel has been as unsuccessful as my finding delicate gold adornments like these. Don't pity me though, I've lately found a coat in leopard faux fur that I love...


From time to time I should remind myself that simplicity is easier and sometimes far more elegant. Look at my sister in this blouse. Thin, crisp, and well-shaped with a hint of eyelet, this blouse is deceptively simple in appearance. The custom close fit makes this look. Please don't mind my name-dropping another lovely white shirt-wearer.


Common Thread Studio
1011A Mission Street
South Pasadena, CA 91030
626-799-2265


P.S. Audrey Hepburn wore cat prints at least once so there's no need for me to feel gaudy.

Just dance

It’s been quite a week, so this time we’ll have more music than words. And pictures—we always have those, don’t we?


My sister and I have fallen for the Aldo ads. I think that they are about shoes, but I can’t be sure. They are just so brash and sweet and rock-and-roll. And there was a kind of music video once, but I can’t find it online now.


Anyway I have a question: When did rock stars become rock stars? I don’t mean to take a philosophical turn here, but I just wonder sometimes…


Incidentally, we love this song by the Bird and the Bee:

One night a meteor came to my door
And he asked me to dance
One night a shooting star
He traveled far just to ask me to dance.

Local note: The Griffith Park Observatory reports that a meteor shower will peak early tomorrow morning—between 2:21 and 4:44AM—and “observers may expect to see 10 to 18 meteors per hour, although the shower sometimes produces more.”


I think that’s hot.

Stand-in

This is my brother James—doesn’t he look handsome in his dress shirt with built-in tie? This is the shirt that he’s wearing when kids his age exclaim, “You look nice, James—but why did you dress-up so much?”


And then my brother explains that it’s just a nifty shirt.



Talking about versatile, what do you think of this English story?

Thinking Outside the Box

When the bright telephone box in the village of Westbury-sub-Mendlip, Somerset, was decommissioned, residents were reluctant to let the iconic kiosk stand empty. Instead, they turned it into a book exchange, providing the local community with a library of ever-changing stock and a village talking point. It is open 365 days a year and is even illuminated at night for anyone wanting a bedtime story. The exchange ensures the phone box will serve the village for many more years to come.

Isn’t the idea of no-longer-in-service phone booths being used as lending libraries wonderful? I think it’s charming, especially since the booths are the British red kind. (Librarians talk about “bookmobiles,” vehicles designed to serve as libraries, all the time, but it’s sometimes the simplest ideas that are the most interesting to me.)

James requested that I add this music, from one of our favorite movies, "My Neighbor Totoro."


Article credit: Country Living (British Edition), April 2010.

It came!

My Chanel “Latin Lover” “look book” came, and you know? They sent it FedEx!