{p.s. In the next few days I'll be posting on Instagram and intermittently on Twits...}
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Sunday, March 11, 2012
GOODBYE WINTER SKIES...
The last winter photos from a roll I shot in Regent's park when it snowed, and on winter walks in Greenwich park.
Bonjour spring.
Friday, March 09, 2012
UPKEEP...
It makes me very happy to rejuvenate clothes. I always go by the principle of quality over quantity and I'm surprised at how many people still don't get this. Buy three well made, but relatively expensive, pieces of clothing per year, wear them for ten years vs. buying a whole new wardrobe every season from the high street: Guess which is more economical?
I am seriously hardcore about this: I'd prefer my clothes to last at least fifteen years, so I wouldn't have to replace things I love that I've searched for high and low to find the perfect, cut, colour, fabric etc again. I've thought of having a dressmaker I know remake a few pieces that became too sad looking to wear, but that I was too sad to part with. Nothing lasts in perfect condition forever, however well made.
The things I really love are the things I end up wearing a lot, so I've learnt to look after them. I can sew, which helps with repairs and I'm on great terms with my dry cleaner and shoe repair man. Now I have the fabric de-fuzzer/de-bobbler, I will never have to shop again! My god, that thing works! I don't know where this thrifty make-do and mend side comes from, but I do remember my dad welding pieces of bicycle tyre onto the bottom of his tennis shoes to repair them when I was a child... I promise I will never go that far. (In his defence he was born during the second world war and grew up with rationing, which didn't end in the UK until 1954.) But I get coats re-lined when they look tired, I get my shoes re-soled and heeled often (professionally!), I hang everything properly, put my cashmere in boxes with anti-moth stuff, get things dry cleaned, sew loose buttons back on. My wardrobe is generally a well oiled machine.
And people think I'm insane to do this. No, really, they do. It just makes sense to me - why would I throw stuff on the floor or not take care of it? When I worked in swanky designer stores people would often try things on and leave them in a tangled heap on the changing room floor. And I bet they did that at home because their maid would go round and pick everything up and get it dry cleaned. Since many of those people went shopping on Sloane Street all day every day anyway, they probably forgot all about an item having worn it once (I have stories which illustrate this but I cannot tell!) and just went to buy more. Also not economical - though if you spend your life going shopping with your husband's black Amex card and having facials every day you probably don't care!
It's not just about money - I'm not sitting there with my de-fuzzer hoping the batteries won't run out because I can't afford to buy any more. It genuinely makes me happy that a Miu Miu coat that I couldn't wear for years except for gardening or dog walking - or something else I never do - I can now wear again in civilised society.
Friday, March 02, 2012
ONE BEAUTIFUL THING...
At last, I scored a second hand edition of Allure to complete my collection of Diana Vreeland books. The others are: Diana Vreeland by Eleanor Dwight, Why Don't You - The Bazaar Years by John Esten, The Eye Has To Travel by Lisa Immordino Vreeland and of course, D.V. by D.V. Is it possible to do a PhD in a person?!
Allure was always the one I was fussy about: I didn't want the new (2010), smaller edition - but I didn't want to pay a fortune for a first edition. Finally after years of intermittent searches I found a second edition of the original large cloth bound book in near perfect condition. And it is large - I'm going to have to buy a bigger coffee table to accommodate it.
The book of 165 black and white images selected by D.V. with her commentary recorded by Christopher Hemphill is quite unnerving to flick through, when you're used to seeing thousands of images a day. Here, some look like photocopies, or are reproduced from paparazzi pictures. How long would 165 images take to scroll through on tumblr - 20 seconds?
The arrival of this book coincided with the arrival of what I've felt as a sea change for me, to do with the internet and blogging - and primarily about imagery. I feel and really hope that it's going to end up being a positive change.
I could never get into tumblr. I always want to know WHO took the picture, WHERE or WHO is it, what's the story behind it? Pinterest is sometimes better for this, but often you click back and back to find the source, only for it to lead you to a random uncredited tumblr post. It infuriates me so much! It's not even totally to do with the issue of crediting, just that scrolling through an endless stream of imagery, even beautiful inspiring imagery ceases to be that...inspiring.
Of course if the original of any one of those images were put in an empty room on a white wall, it would still have an impact, but - as I joked to a friend this week: haven't we finished filing all the photos of Jane Birkin by now?
The way I choose to see it that it was necessary for people, once suddenly exposed to this huge trove of incredible iconic images on the internet, to catalogue and sort them - to make sense of them. But now it feels as if they're being sorted and re-sorted almost mindlessly. It's like gorging on photos until you overdose. That's how it feels to me anyway, and that's why you won't have seen many external images here - or many images at all lately. I'm obviously re-cleansing my image chakra - ommm.
Imagine Vreeland having to clip out tiny pictures from newspapers that caught her eye and get them blown up bigger for her inspiration board. And many of those enduring images getting re-blogged a million times are from Vreeland's era, or rather reign, at Harper's Bazaar and Vogue.
(Yep, it was a lot easier for me to pull the below picture from Google Images and at a better resolution than its reproduction in Allure. I still had to look at the book for the credit though, as it was nowhere to be found online.)
As Vreeland says in Allure:
"...it's the suggestion of something else. Of course, nowadays, nothing suggests anything - except advertising. We've all seen far too many pictures. I think the visual road has become over-travelled and over-crowded." She said this in 1980 - pre-internet!
I feel that it's time for the internet to go in the direction of producing things that are new, of value and of genuine beauty and originality. Not that no one is doing that at all, but the general, mainstream direction of the bloggy/inspiration part of the internet has to go that way. I feel it's going to happen soon.
Allure was always the one I was fussy about: I didn't want the new (2010), smaller edition - but I didn't want to pay a fortune for a first edition. Finally after years of intermittent searches I found a second edition of the original large cloth bound book in near perfect condition. And it is large - I'm going to have to buy a bigger coffee table to accommodate it.
The book of 165 black and white images selected by D.V. with her commentary recorded by Christopher Hemphill is quite unnerving to flick through, when you're used to seeing thousands of images a day. Here, some look like photocopies, or are reproduced from paparazzi pictures. How long would 165 images take to scroll through on tumblr - 20 seconds?
The arrival of this book coincided with the arrival of what I've felt as a sea change for me, to do with the internet and blogging - and primarily about imagery. I feel and really hope that it's going to end up being a positive change.
I could never get into tumblr. I always want to know WHO took the picture, WHERE or WHO is it, what's the story behind it? Pinterest is sometimes better for this, but often you click back and back to find the source, only for it to lead you to a random uncredited tumblr post. It infuriates me so much! It's not even totally to do with the issue of crediting, just that scrolling through an endless stream of imagery, even beautiful inspiring imagery ceases to be that...inspiring.
Of course if the original of any one of those images were put in an empty room on a white wall, it would still have an impact, but - as I joked to a friend this week: haven't we finished filing all the photos of Jane Birkin by now?
The way I choose to see it that it was necessary for people, once suddenly exposed to this huge trove of incredible iconic images on the internet, to catalogue and sort them - to make sense of them. But now it feels as if they're being sorted and re-sorted almost mindlessly. It's like gorging on photos until you overdose. That's how it feels to me anyway, and that's why you won't have seen many external images here - or many images at all lately. I'm obviously re-cleansing my image chakra - ommm.
Imagine Vreeland having to clip out tiny pictures from newspapers that caught her eye and get them blown up bigger for her inspiration board. And many of those enduring images getting re-blogged a million times are from Vreeland's era, or rather reign, at Harper's Bazaar and Vogue.
(Yep, it was a lot easier for me to pull the below picture from Google Images and at a better resolution than its reproduction in Allure. I still had to look at the book for the credit though, as it was nowhere to be found online.)
 |
| Diana Vreeland at Vogue 1966 ©James Karales/Look |
"...it's the suggestion of something else. Of course, nowadays, nothing suggests anything - except advertising. We've all seen far too many pictures. I think the visual road has become over-travelled and over-crowded." She said this in 1980 - pre-internet!
I feel that it's time for the internet to go in the direction of producing things that are new, of value and of genuine beauty and originality. Not that no one is doing that at all, but the general, mainstream direction of the bloggy/inspiration part of the internet has to go that way. I feel it's going to happen soon.
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Friday, February 24, 2012
THE QUOTABLE L. CERAND...
Go here and read this, written by her. Below, some highlights:
'Glamour is constructed, elegance is acquired, and charm is innate.'
'I no longer cultivate friendships that would be based on anything other than my simple, straightforward and honest desire to get to know the other person better.'
'Simplicity, in all things, is worth the pursuit.'
'It’s no honor being the best-dressed person, either; it’s a sign to find a more beautiful room.'
'....I’d rather have one decent dress that I washed every night in the sink than wear polyester.'
'Elegance is forgiveness, in the most comprehensive sense of the term, and the understanding that everyone would like to minimize the anguish that is a natural part of life, even if they don’t necessarily know how or where to begin. There is today, and now.'
Thank god she's coming to London soon.
Thursday, February 23, 2012
BLOGGERS + CATS...
I had wanted to ask Laura to do Bloggers + Cats for ages - I knew she liked cats, but it wasn't until I saw her interview on Tales of Endearment and saw Laser's photo, that I could confirm she actually had cats she lived with. (As well as an amazing collection of vintage clothing, great style, beauty and being super smart to boot.) I'm fine with asking complete strangers to be interviewed about their cats, but it helps with the whole not coming across as crazy thing if I'm 100% certain they do in fact, have cats. And I like to know the cats' names - it's more civil.
It was Jaja of July Stars (my very first Bloggers + Cats interviewee with Quincy!) who first told me about Laura's blog Sighs & Whispers, which is an amazing repository of classic magazine editorials and images from the '60s, '70s and '80s that I can get lost in for hours. Thank you Laura, for taking part in this - and sweet Misha and Laser (excellent names). Misha looks so much like Lola in some photos, that at one point I thought I'd mixed my photo folders up. Total doppelgangers. And the attacking sounds strangely familiar... Enjoy!
The basics: What breed are they, how old, how did you come to live with them, why did you call them Misha and Laser?
Both of them are tabby strays. Laser is around 9 years old and Misha is seven. I adopted Misha as a kitten from an animal shelter in Williamsburg- she was named Misha as, at the time, I was doing Russian studies at university and wanted a cute Russian name for her. Laser belonged to a friend of mine who stayed with me for a bit and honestly wasn't together enough to take care of a cat. We've been a happy family for six years.
How would you describe their personalities? Are they friends?
They are friends but they definitely weren't at first! Misha has a reputation as a massive bitch but she has really mellowed as she's gotten older- she used to attack everyone who came in the house but now she is actually quite loving to everyone. Laser is a real gentleman- elegant and friendly, he is basically a dog in cat form. He follows me everywhere and sits on my lap at all times.
What are their respective favourite foods?
They only eat Wellness Indoor cat food so they like that! I occasionally give them wet food (Laser has difficulty digesting it) and they are always excited for that, whatever flavour.
Do Misha and Laser have preferred lounging locations? Any signature poses?
They spend 95% of the time on my bed, except Misha does enjoy finding random places to lounge- such as in the display of my 1950s bar. Laser's signature position is with his paws crossed- a very gentlemanly pose. Misha's is probably anything that emphasizes her Buddha-like belly!
What is a day in the lives of Misha and Laser like?
Since I travel so much I have an automatic cat food feeder that goes off at 6am - as soon as they hear it start to rumble they jump off my bed and pig out. Most of the rest of the day is spent laying on my bed, trying to sneak into my walk-in closet (where they are not allowed), playing with a furry mouse that hangs off my bathroom door and causing destruction to my recycling. Misha also enjoys standing on my laptop keyboard and opening up lots of random programs.
Do you have any amusing/weird/cute Misha/Laser moments or stories you'd like to share?
Nothing in particular stands out- everyday with them is a delight and I couldn't ask for better cats!
Quickfire round:
Birds or mice? Birds, definitely!
Sunlight or radiator? Sunlight.
Tap or bowl? Bowl, but always fresh.
Lap or laptop? Both!
Snuggling or stretching? Snuggling.
Cats or humans? Humans - my ex boyfriend has a cat and when we all lived together it was always my two cats vs his.
It was Jaja of July Stars (my very first Bloggers + Cats interviewee with Quincy!) who first told me about Laura's blog Sighs & Whispers, which is an amazing repository of classic magazine editorials and images from the '60s, '70s and '80s that I can get lost in for hours. Thank you Laura, for taking part in this - and sweet Misha and Laser (excellent names). Misha looks so much like Lola in some photos, that at one point I thought I'd mixed my photo folders up. Total doppelgangers. And the attacking sounds strangely familiar... Enjoy!
The basics: What breed are they, how old, how did you come to live with them, why did you call them Misha and Laser?
Both of them are tabby strays. Laser is around 9 years old and Misha is seven. I adopted Misha as a kitten from an animal shelter in Williamsburg- she was named Misha as, at the time, I was doing Russian studies at university and wanted a cute Russian name for her. Laser belonged to a friend of mine who stayed with me for a bit and honestly wasn't together enough to take care of a cat. We've been a happy family for six years.
How would you describe their personalities? Are they friends?
They are friends but they definitely weren't at first! Misha has a reputation as a massive bitch but she has really mellowed as she's gotten older- she used to attack everyone who came in the house but now she is actually quite loving to everyone. Laser is a real gentleman- elegant and friendly, he is basically a dog in cat form. He follows me everywhere and sits on my lap at all times.
What are their respective favourite foods?
They only eat Wellness Indoor cat food so they like that! I occasionally give them wet food (Laser has difficulty digesting it) and they are always excited for that, whatever flavour.
Do Misha and Laser have preferred lounging locations? Any signature poses?
They spend 95% of the time on my bed, except Misha does enjoy finding random places to lounge- such as in the display of my 1950s bar. Laser's signature position is with his paws crossed- a very gentlemanly pose. Misha's is probably anything that emphasizes her Buddha-like belly!
What is a day in the lives of Misha and Laser like?Since I travel so much I have an automatic cat food feeder that goes off at 6am - as soon as they hear it start to rumble they jump off my bed and pig out. Most of the rest of the day is spent laying on my bed, trying to sneak into my walk-in closet (where they are not allowed), playing with a furry mouse that hangs off my bathroom door and causing destruction to my recycling. Misha also enjoys standing on my laptop keyboard and opening up lots of random programs.
Do you have any amusing/weird/cute Misha/Laser moments or stories you'd like to share?
Nothing in particular stands out- everyday with them is a delight and I couldn't ask for better cats!
Quickfire round:
Birds or mice? Birds, definitely!
Sunlight or radiator? Sunlight.
Tap or bowl? Bowl, but always fresh.
Lap or laptop? Both!
Snuggling or stretching? Snuggling.
Cats or humans? Humans - my ex boyfriend has a cat and when we all lived together it was always my two cats vs his.
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