20 December 2010

Moxie is a must.

Red lips, one of my favorite fashion accessories. The dewy contrast between rouge and pearl highlighting your best feature, that telling smile, moxie showcased at it's best. I know red is loud, but it's also playful, whimsical and rather lovely. A playful nature has the ability to intoxicate the world with happiness, and that is exactly what was shared with Miu Miu's 2011 Resort Collection. Hues of hot pink and celadon jumped out from a backdrop of nudes and navies, all presented with complete unabashed fortitude. The accessories were as stacked as my magazine piles and, of course, the make up was very perfectly turned up. At Lanvin for H&M the colors were turned down, but the attitude was all moxie. Tulled tees and show stopping tights mingled in among deep plum dresses and faux fur jackets. Green lips replaced my shade of choice, but with this quirky collection it truly was the perfect pucker.

Needless to say, moxie fills many runways during fashion weeks around the world, but it's also a complete necessity in everyday life. Make moxie a must in yours. Smile, won't you?

Love,
C

05 December 2010

Simply Awkward.

I do try to seem composed, put together like the many others I see milling about, but the truth is I like unicorns. I don't think you can prevent awkwardness if you like unicorns. I don't necessarily try to be different, but rather always try to be myself. However, the "myself" that I'm made of likes wearing high-waisted trousers with ivy print, gets nervous in front of guys she likes, sings showtunes at the gym, and always finds herself believing in things that are, to most, merely fanciful. So, I'm simply awkward. I guess I just never learned how to contain my imagination, but honestly, I never wanted to. I know that being the girl who trips... a lot... and says things without thinking may sound like an arduous life to lead, but really it's quite wonderful.

I guess some of these imaginative wonderings have found their way into my wardrobe, but with inspiration from designers like Alice + Olivia, Erin Fetherston, and Marc Jacobs who wouldn't want a bit of awkward filling their dresser drawers?
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I'm completely head over heals for these looks... literally :/

Love.
C

29 November 2010

I Love The Selby.

I love this photographer. We just met, but I'm filled with wonder when I look at these precious moments captured in the blink of a shutter.

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Photographer, Todd Selby, photographs creative people in their homes. Actors, writers, stylists, directors, editors... if you're right brained and successful, chances are you're on his list. These are some of my favorites, but please do check out this fantastic site for much, much more: The Selby

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There is something so beautiful about the way we are, when in our homes. The people we share that time with and the things we do, this defines our character in a way that our bustling outside lives cannot contain. Thank you for the beauty, Selby. Enjoy!

Love,
C

24 November 2010

Good Morning, Starshine.

I'm finally back to my sweet little blog, so bleak last month. Sad, really. Clearly THAT just will not do! To start, a singular welcome home entry.

Over the past few months, and particularly this last month, I've grown so much. I look out into the world through new eyes, and although I am still unable to make out what is destined to come, I love that I am now able to look around and see the beauty that surrounds me. I don't know where this path will lead, but at least I'm able to see where my feet are landing as I go!

I cannot and will not regret anything that has happened. This life is too precious to look back, when everything ahead of me looks so lovely. All of it has brought me to this exact place of complete joy, and that is a wonderful thing. I love what I'm doing, where I'm going and every single person that fills my world. Ha! I promise I'm not all peonies and unicorns, however these two things are quite wonderful. Days are hard, work gets difficult, time isn't nearly enough; yet I'm doing what I love, with those I want to be around and it is truly fantastic. I honestly believe that we are all born with these innate gifts, and when we nourish what we've been given and constantly feed that with which we've been entrusted, we find our place in life. It is what allows us to become beyond ordinary. I know where I want to be and I love that I'm there.

Love.
C

24 September 2010

Flappers And Philosophers.

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"Either you think, or else others have to think for you and take power from you, pervert and discipline your natural tastes, civilize and sterilize you."
-F. Scott Fitzgerald

F. Scott Fitzgerald was a contradiction to convention. He spoke directly to his generation, exposing seedy truth behind social hierarchies while unveiling the modern age across The States. His works make you feel powerful and weak, hopeful yet hopeless. Today, on the birthday of this magnificent author, celebrate with me by looking back at some of the original cover art that adorned his great works, and the outfits fitting for them in our modern age!



The great tales Fitzgerald told never withheld the truth. They cause you to stare directly inward and see who resides at the heart of your being. Take pride in what you find there. How boring to be the same! It's a great thing to find yourself, but a greater thing still to share it with the world...

Love.
C


The Great Gatsby (amazon.com); 3.1 Philip Lim Spring 2011 RTW (style.com); The Beautiful And Damned (amazon.com); Oscar de la Renta Spring 2011 RTW (style.com); This Side Of Paradise (amazon.com); Prada Spring 2011 RTW (style.com)

22 September 2010

Patterns Inspired.

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As human beings we are drawn to pattern. It is how we interpret our world and make sense of reality. So, clearly as my eyes made their way over this highly pattered Suno Dress (OpeningCeremony $830), my sense were filled with utter delight... not to mention their perfectly placed three-quarter length sleeve, ready and waiting to usher in the cold. A delightful bit of inspiration for a little Fall find of your own, I must say!

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If you need a good place to start, Archive Vintage is playing host to an amazing SALE.SALE.SALE. Trust me, this Vintage Vera cotton pull over (ArchiveVintage $68) isn't the only über inspired piece you can walk away from there. Enjoy your adventures!

Love.
C

19 September 2010

An Interview: The Shining

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This is something so new and so exciting for me. Interviews! There are so many wonderful and inspiring stores that have become my little muses over the years. As new stores turn up, so will I to get the skinny on what they're all about and how they came to be. This week I had so much fun chatting with the delightfully sweet owner of The Shining, a beautiful new boutique jewelry shop on Henderson Ave. This store is full of whimsical charms, stackable rings and rough cut gems that would give any jewelry box something to envy.

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So, hi! What's your name: Vicki Tollemache

Do you own the stop or is it a collective: No, I own the shop. It's just me. I'm the owner and the only employee, so I'm here every single day.

What made you want to start a jewelry shop: I had always wanted to. I did an entrepreneurialship degree at North Texas and at that time I thought clothing and jewelry. There's tons of clothing shops, so in the end I thought jewelry because there isn't one. I've seen [boutique] jewelry shops in other cities and loved them, and I just thought, "Dallas could do with one of those!"

Why did you choose to open The Shining in Dallas: I lived here then moved away, went traveling for awhile, started writing my business plan. I know people in New York and LA, and people always say "That's a better city", but the fun part about Dallas is that there's a lot of opportunity to build something rather than go somewhere where there's already things being built. So it's more like, you come here and you start something small. It's kind of like you're a bigger fish than if you went to a city that already has a whole established thing going on.

What made you choose a Henderson Ave location: I just wanted to be near shops that would attract similar kind of people. So for me it was either "We Are 1976" or "Bow & Arrows". Somewhere where someone was doing the same thing that I wanted to do, and then I just wanted to be next to them!

What's The Shining's style: A lot of the jewelry is nature based or inspired, like animals or cast natural objects. I'm a big fan of metal or kind of anything quirky... like a little different.

What would you say is like a good standard everyday piece someone can find at The Shining: I would wear most of these everyday! All of Catbird and the smaller lines that are just like silver pieces, I would wear everyday. I have tons of silver necklaces with a cute little seahorse charm or a unicorn horn or little vampire fangs... I would wear all of those everyday. We have big chunky statment pieces, which don't say everyday to me, but I wear this giant ship ring everyday. Haha! To me that's like an everyday piece! That's the thing I like about jewelry, with clothes if you love something you can't really wear it everyday. If you do people start to say... "Are you gonna wash your clothes?" And with jewelry you can wear it everyday, so it's totally worth the investment.

Tell me about the furs that you carry: Fur is really big right now... My roommate laughs at me, because I like to wear these big wolley coats. I always tell her I kind of like to dress like I'm a muppet. Haha! I like it when I feel like I'm a creature, so I like fur because it makes me feel like I'm a little creature. That's why I think so much of the jewelry is nature based. So, there's no philosophy to it. I like the fur because it just reminds me of the animals, and I like to feel like a creature!

All of your jewelry is so layerable: Especially Erica Weiner... I'm having a hard time keeping her in-stock! All of her stuff looks really good together, and it's reasonably priced. She does these stacks of vintage bangles and vintage gumball machine rings. It looks really good and you can just keep buying pieces and layering it on. I'm a big fan! I like mixing metals, I think everything should be layered. More is better... that's my philosophy!

Whose you're favorite jewelry designer? I don't know if I have a favorite. All the designers I carry here, I like! One of my favorite pieces, I don't even know who made it, it's this snake bracelet that my mom got me in Alpine, Texas. You know? I mean, I really love the designer All For The Mountain. She does all these futuristic pieces and they're just so different from anything I've seen. I'm really into that right now, but everyday it changes! I just think it's cool.

What's in store for The Shining, what's coming up? I'm getting a whole bunch of new lines in! Two should be coming in within the next few days. Then, I'm going up to New York to do market week. I'm hoping to come back with more from the designers I already have and two other lines that will be coming into the store from that. We are going to do a big party with some of the girls that work at Barcadia for Halloween! Then... we're going to have this big thing November 1st that I can't even talk about yet, but I'm so excited about it! Just stuff like that.

So, I was kind of worried about my last question, but now I think you're going to like it. What's you're favorite mythological creature? Well, probably, it's so cheesy but I've always had a huge thing for unicorns... and I sell unicorn horns here!

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16 September 2010

Dancing And Smiling.



I love this song and I'd be lying if I said I hadn't spent my morning dancing around my house to it! What a fantastic way to start the day. I'm so thankful for the work I'm doing, the direction I'm going and the people who are standing next to me along my way. I truly have such an amazing life with the most wonderful friends, and I find myself smiling at times just thinking of the opportunities ahead. Although rough times will come, right now I can just grab a brush-microphone throw on a pair of socks (necessary for sliding on wood floors) and dance wildly around my place! Enjoy life today!

Love.
C

15 September 2010

Living And Loving.

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"Happiness is usually attributed by adults to children, and by children to adults."
~Thomas Szasz

Big Thought, a non-profit organization promoting arts in education, has created an after school program for children to engage creatively in a safe environment. So, I get to spend my afternoons fostering creative thinking in kindergardeners! It's the best job but I must admit, they are teaching me so much more than I could ever teach them. Life can be so hard at times, but on days that I find tough to get through these kids show me there is so much to treasure! Imagination can take you anywhere, just yesterday I was on a space odyssey with great battles abounding and laser beams to watch out for! Oh, and their hearts are enormous, unafraid to love everything about everyone. They care for one another, forgive easily, lend a hand when someone needs it... It's funny how a child can help bring you back to the world the way it should be. I cherish the moments these little wonderers give me and find so much inspiration in how they view the world. Moving through life at such a fast pace can make it easy to forget your heart, but at the end of the day that is where you'll find your true happiness. Love big, always!

Love.
C

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14 September 2010

Local Artifacts.

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Antique stores are my little anthropological adventures. I love exploring aisles and aisles of trash and treasure so loved or so hated by the ones who finally gave them up. The lighting is always somewhat dim, dust lightly floats up as you shuffle through, and the smell of decades of debris comforts me just so. You see, I practically grew up in antique stores. My parents have always loved scouring the miles of goods filling huge warehouses with everything from furniture to jewelry. They'd take us to the ice cream parlor, found in most antique places, so as to make it more enjoyable... little did they know I loved these Saturday afternoon explorations.

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My brother found a way to entertain himself by always beelining it to the antique coin area, while I became interested in old-fashioned thimbles and vintage books! Ugh! The books. I loved their hard covers embossed with the most beautiful swirls, the delicate pages that had yellowed over time and the illustrations... now these were the most important because at the time I was still new to reading but, nevertheless my imagination was great and I had the most wonderful time diving into these marvelous novels.

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Jump to today, and those memories make for the most wonderful journeys into stores like White Elephant. I fell in love with this place after my first visit, and have been back far too many times to count! Each adventure finds me lightly strolling around the whole store, mentally decorating in my head. A sun bleached window screen to place over your mantel, lamps and vases to illuminate your rooms, piles of wood to fill an unusable fireplace... my mind races with the possibilities! I'm smiling even as I type, that's how much I love this place. My heart just swells with happiness when I find places that feel like a childhood memory. It's like I'm home again. You know? I think I could go for a strawberry cone today. Yes! A strawberry cone and a trip to White Elephant.

Love.
C

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13 September 2010

Insectocycle.

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Cocktails on the front porch of Lustre Pearl, a warm summer breeze, hula hoopers whirling their way around the front lawn as I sit and talk life and times with my gorgeous friend, full of the best practical and loving advice... you'd think life in this moment was just about perfect, and I'd have to agree! The Rainy Street area of Austin is a treasure trove in the mists of discovery, a street full of quaint southern cottages slowly being flipped into these perfectly comfortable bars. Genius! Oh, but it gets better... as we were walking up to our delightful retreat, we passed the most whimsical mode of transportation since the wardrobe... Insectocycles. While not actually their "official" name, what could be more fitting for these Austin Bike Zoo half bug, half cycles? Nothing, in my opinion, oh and they immediately made me smile. Naturally, I had to go back in the morning to capture what these little gems had to offer, a brief pause to enjoy the simple splendor of the unordinary!

Love.
C

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11 September 2010

Succulent Dinosaurs.

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I love being in Austin for reasons like Plaid Pigeon. It reminds me of all the wonderful things that can be created with a little imagination and a lot of thinking outside the box. I was so excited about what I found in this delightful little company, I just had to immediately stop in and share these wonderful gems. Easy to care for succulents, growing mainly out of prehistoric creatures, will find a comfortable place in any home. I chose to put a not so prehistoric, pale pink giraffe in my newly decorated living room. A perfect complement to a crushed light blue velvet couch, I believe! If dinosaurs are not your thing (uh? but who doesn't like dinosaurs), then you must buy one of their gorgeous little terrariums. There are some made to hang by a window and others that would look delightful on a dresser. These petite, perfectly kept worlds are held inside delicate glass and capture the feeling of a Midsummer Night Dream. One where fawns like to prance around and hidden fairies are sure to be found! Ugh, if only I could live in a world so beautiful...

Love.
C
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10 September 2010

A City of Color.

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Color surrounds are lives in more ways than the aesthetic. It describes our moods, changes our perceptions, signifies warning and safety and, if you so believe, fills our auras. As I flew into San Francisco and then drove on into The Sonoma Wine Country, color littered the city. In early August the sky woke up in a haze of grey, but it didn't take long for the sun to burst through the more than willing clouds to light the landscape in all it's colorful glory. From the Golden Gate bridge with it's rustic red to the rich green leaves dotted with red and white grapes, found in CA vineyards sprinkled along every few miles of land, inspiring color was everywhere. The most exciting sight for me, though, were these lovely lavender plants, with the palest of purple flowers sprouting from a deep celadon stem, all the while yellow and black bees buzzed around spreading pollen from one bushel to another ensuring the survival of the species. It was a dream!

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I explored, particularly, the Santa Rosa area where they hold the most fantastic outdoor market every Wednesday. Street vendors line Maple Avenue selling homemade granola, handmade feathered jewelry, flavored honey, crispy pita bread dipped into freshly made hummus, fruit like you wouldn't believe and then there was the ring table... UH! Love! Two women who scoured vintage shops and antique markets alike for the most unique hand adorning pieces one could ever hope to come across. I couldn't help but purchase two little treasures that day! OH! Have I not mentioned the food? So, there was food. Everywhere. Every kind. Good for you food, bad for you food. Greek food stood next to a mini donut shop, and an Indian stand stood proud in the mists of handmade goods vendors. A Mexican place was dishing out handheld tacos topped with bright, juicy tomatoes and vibrant green lettuce all paired with the shallow orange color of a mango agua fresca. A multi colored statue of Snoopy, an extension of the nearby Charles M. Schulz Museum, looked on as I choose to go with turkey legs and corny dogs, but at this market I could have very easily been on better behavior.

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This bursting city of color, that I was able to explore while visiting CA, will remain in my memories forever. I wish I could go back and continue the journey, but I know that no matter where life takes me, I'll always be ready for the color.

Love.
C

09 September 2010

Interesting Things I've Learned This Year, And The Clothes I'll Be Wearing In The Next.

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This lovely season the über talented Alexa Chung partnered with the fantastically comfy, chic label Madewell to create nothing short of a daywear masterpiece. As I make my way into a new life, I'll look back on what I've learned and move forward in a new skin... I'm sure it will all be made well. (Umm.. did I really just write that. Uh?)

-Always pair the outfit with the shoes no one else thinks will match... trust you, it will!
-Unexpected will never be boring.
-Go ahead, wear the headscarf!
-Big glasses are nerdy. Sexy nerdy.
-"Oh I'm sorry, do I not match today? Wait. I'm pretty sure I planned on that"
-Braids. Braids. Braids. Twist them up, wear them down... just put them in!
-Shop vintage. Not just for your closet, but for your whole house!
-Crafts make for brilliant endeavors.
-Travel! It'll be good for you.
-A margarita is always a good place to start.
-PAMA liquor. Buy some, please!
-Cocktails made with freshly muddled fruit... mmmm.
-New restaurants house new adventures. Try one!
-Meat tastes better than being vegetarian feels. Ha!
-Why have a smoothie when frozen yogurt exists?
-Once you go organic, 4 PLUs just taste icky. Always look for the 9.
-Drinking a cappuccino with a warm pastry makes me feel like I'm in Italy.
-Chocolate ice cream will never taste good to me... no matter how many times I try it.
-It takes two of my hands to fill one of a man's.
-When a heart breaks, you can actually feel it.
-Nothing beats family... Wait a minute, I knew this one already!
-True friends are the most precious jewels I could ever hope to adorn my world with.
-To truly love someone other than yourself is one of the happiest and most painful tasks.
-Age means nothing when you find a friend that's young at heart!
-Always be honest and always be true, and you will never regret what you say or do. (Oh, rhyming...)

Now onward, and in a new outfit no less!

Love.
C

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