Paris

A friend just told me she is headed to Paris in the fall and I keep thinking that sounds lovely......

Source: None via Julia on Pinterest

It makes me want to grab a striped top, scarf, sunglasses, lean slacks, some pretty ballet flats and GO!

Source: google.com via Courtney on Pinterest

Well Played

Jimmy Fallon, Justin Timberlake and The Roots
History of Rap- Part 2



The rap songs in this medley are:
0:03 The Breaks -- Kurtis Blow
0:12 The Message -- Grandmaster Flash
0:25 Express Yourself -- N.W.A.
0:31 Bring The Noise -- Public Enemy
0:36 It Takes Two -- Rob Base & DJ EZ Rock
0:53 Push It -- Salt-N-Pepa
1:07 Ice Ice Baby -- Vanilla Ice
1:17 The Choice Is Yours -- Black Sheep
1:26 Insane in the Brain -- Cypress Hill
1:36 Let Me Clear My Throat -- DJ Kool ft. Biz Markie & Doug E. Fresh
1:53 Party Up -- DMX
2:02 Hot In Here -- Nelly
2:17 In Da Club -- 50 Cent
2:34 Hey Ya -- Outkast
2:48 A Milli -- Lil Wayne
2:54 All I Do Is Win -- DJ Khaled ft. Ludacris, Rick Ross, T-Pain & Snoop Dogg
3:06 Teach Me How To Dougie -- Cali Swag District
3:22 BMF -- Rick Ross ft. Styles P
3:44 Just a Friend -- Biz Markie
4:42 The Breaks -- Kurtis Blow (again)

Tiger in a Jar

All recipes should be this beautiful

beet cake from tiger in a jar on Vimeo.

Music

Documentaries on my List

Bill Cunningham New York

Bill Cunningham New York Trailer from Gavin McWait on Vimeo.

Page One


Coast Modern

Coast Modern Film Trailer from Coast Modern on Vimeo.

Vidal Sassoon

No one said this would be easy

Gross Guest Bathroom Floor (Requires Smell-O-Vision)

The last time I visited this place was April 2nd. Still not getting any better at updating which may have to do with actual updates in real life. You see home improvements don't happen on their own and I have become a bit of a weekend warrior trying to pack in as many projects as possible. I don't mean to brag, but I have gotten pretty good with a power drill. Since April 2nd, I have been busy mowing the lawn weekly (a very new, but healthy additive to my life). I also learned about removing 50+ year old bushes from around my home. Luckily, my neighbor recently taught me the proper way to pickax at stumps. She even joined in on the ritual which I am highly thankful for such a kind neighbor. The calluses on my hands are still healing. I am also thankful for the gentleman I hired to remove the 50+ year old stumps with his very impressive machine. If you need a certified stump remover I've got the guy. I will gladly share his info with you.

I have plans for this yard, but it is a multi-year plan. I always feel good when I read The Brick House updates on improving the exterior of an old home. I feel some solidarity with this couple as I can understand everything described from laments to victories. I however don't think I can take on painting the exterior on my home. I am currently visiting all my possible options which may also have to happen on a multi-year plan. Only time will tell. I did get some mulch recently and I am hoping to at least cover up the massive holes left by the stumps and give the yard some semblance of trying.

On the inside, things are progressing. I have someone working on removing the smelly guest bathroom floor (don't ask it is gross). I recently painted one of the guest rooms which was inspired by a room designed by Christiane Lemieux. I hope to be able to update on this soon. I am hunting down the look for less at this very moment. In the last few weeks I have hung blinds so I no longer live in a fishbowl. I am now working to remove all the wallpaper from my kitchen and guest bathroom. I will need to secure someone to fix said walls and then I will be ready to paint them and possibly hang some curtains. It feels good to write this down and possibly hold myself too it. Hopefully more updates soon. I have lots to share.

Ranch House

I said I was going to write about updating my ranch home in 2010. It is April and I have not made any entries. I need to rectify this situation. Work is happening. Change may be coming at a slower pace then I expected. I am learning the same hard lesson the rest of the country is learning "change does not come easy." It seems this house updating has created a bit of a recession in my bank account, but I digress. I will say that those broken down windows you see in this picture are no longer there. I now have airtight, double hung windows that will keep the outdoor elements where they belong outside. Since the 180 day winter (that NEVER happens here) is over it is time to start thinking about cleaning up the outside. Not sure where this journey will take me or at what rate this will be accomplished, but I am ready for the next battle. I am thinking Palm Springs Modern for my inspiration. Let the summer commence.

Broken Bells- Vaporize

Broken Bells: James Mercer (the Shins) & Danger Mouse collaboration. I love the sound of a Hammond Organ. The Album officially out March 2010.

Portland or "I want to go to there"

I have this town on the brain lately. The Frugal Traveler's coverage of the food cart scene might have something to do with it. I think I have some research and maybe a ticket to book in the near future.



A few places to get me started with my research (in random order):

Frugal Portland

Food Carts Portland

Ace Hotel: Portland

Design*Sponge Portland, Oregon City Guide

This is Naive: Lo-Fi Portland

NYTIMES: Saved By Design in Portland

Old China Town

Voodoo Doughnut

Little T American Baker

Give Pizza A Chance

Clyde Common

Willamette Valley

Patricia Green Cellars

Toast to 2010

I completely deserted this little place marker of all the things that catch my eye in 2009. I hope in 2010 I am able to get back into documenting all the wonderful things that interest me including mid-century design as well as the 1954 gem of a home I snagged this year complete with wood paneled rooms, original bathrooms, and a vast yard that will keep me very busy come this spring. Hopefully I will document some of the updates I will be making while working to keep the original aesthetic of the home. This here is a photo of my rotating aluminum tree that I could not wait to put up this year and the beautiful bank of windows in the living room. So a toast to a new year and new beginnings in 2010 with plans to visit here more often.

Monocle has opened a shop

Perhaps is it bad timing, but the magazine for very expensive tastes has opened a shop in London with plans to open another in the United States in L.A.

Story in the New York Times travel section.

Blossom Dearie

We lost a beautifully unique voice this past weekend. I thought it only fitting with the sentiment of LOVE in the air (and let's face it we could all use a little LOVE right now--no matter how cynical you may lean). Sit back, relax and listen to a little Dearie against the backdrop of Breakfast at Tiffany's.

These are some lovely lyrics about love. Wouldn't you agree?

If you've never been in love
And you're longing for the happiness it brings
Try your wings

If you're hungry for the sound
Of a lover saying sentimental things
Try your wings

Even the tiniest bluebird
Has to leave its nest to fly
What a bluebird can do
You can do too, if you try

If you've always had a dream
But you've been afraid that it would not come true, hitherto
Fall in love and you will find
That it's just what you've been dreaming of

A first love never comes twice
So take this tender advice
When it comes, try your wings
And fly to the one you love

If you've always had a dream
But you've been afraid that it would not come true, hitherto
Fall in love and you will find
That it's just what you've been dreaming of

A first love never comes twice
So take this tender advice
When it comes, try your wings
And fly to the one you love

Thank you Blossom for some beautiful music

I would like to "speak easy"

(photo from Esquire's Best Bar's in America)

A speakeasy refers to a patron's manner of ordering alcohol without raising suspicion — a bartender would tell a patron to be quiet and "speak easy". I am always on the lookout for unique places to visit in other cities. Bourbon and Branch in San Francisco has been added to my list of must stops. Besides passing a few hours in this establishment I would not mind taking their classes on Cocktails 101, Rum, and Absinthe at their Beverage Academy.

(Photo of Russell's Room from Chow's coverage of the Tenderloin district)

Written up here.

Might have to hit Dottie's True Blue Cafe too.

I want some muscle

The 2009 Dodge Challenger SRT8

I know this is not environmentally correct nor do I have any need to have a muscle car in my life, but I love the look of the Challenger SRT8. I spotted a creme one on the road the other day and I can't stop thinking about it. I want to drive like Bullitt for a day!

Everybody has a story

More info here.

Yes We Can!!

Via Funky 16 Corners

The work of real MAD Men

Mad Men: Smoke gets in your eyes

The New York Public library (NYPL) is currently hosting a retrospective of cigarette advertisements from the 1920's -1950's called Not a Cough in a Car Load: Images Used by Tobacco Companies to Hide the Hazards of Smoking. The purpose of the exhibit is to "tell—principally through advertising images—the story of how, between the late 1920s and the early 1950s, tobacco companies used deceptive and often patently false claims in an effort to reassure the public of the safety of their products."

If you can't visit the exhibit in person check out the catalog of images online.

Makes me want to watch Thank you for smoking again

Via ResourceShelf

Serenbe

Inn at Serenbe front gate

A few weeks back I had some time to waste while a waited for the dealership to fix a known defect on my vehicle for a ridiculous amount of money. I am still bitter! So with time to waste (and some hostility toward an era in which warranties or quality no longer exist) I resorted to reading the "magazines" in the waiting room that were really just advertising and marketing supplements for local businesses. I was trapped so I flipped through the glossy when I came across a three page story (I mean advert) for the restaurant the hil on the Hill 30 minutes south of metro Atlanta with much of the ingredients coming from the community farm.

I had never heard of this restaurant or the 900 acre community called Serenbe nestled within a rather large green space called the Chattahoochee Hill Country which is owned by individuals working to promote a sustainable development within a vast preserve. The Serenbe community boasts about their homes built on the land without mass grading, a biological wastewater treatment system, vast green space, organic farm and restaurants supplied by the locally grown produce. I am intrigued to check out this community for myself.

Hopefully this place will live up to all the things it boasts and does not have a manufactured feeling. I signed up for their restaurants weekly menu updates and the offerings sound very tasty. I look forward to learning more.


The Farmhouse at Serenbe

Restaurants at Serenbe

Our Health

Healthiest Nation - Move

The video was developed by BrightHouse, inc.

Learn more about the Healthiest Nation initiative

Personal Style

Photo from New York Times

Iris Apfel was recently named on to Vanity Fair's 2008 International Best-Dressed list. A woman that knows what she likes in her choice of accessories, colors, clothing, mix of fabrics and the cut of her modern coif. Apfel has a bold style that is all her own. In 2005, the Metropolitan Museum's Costume Institute had a retrospective on her style entitled Rara Avis: Selections from the Iris Barrel Apfel Collection.

A true original--I love a woman with a style all her own.