Free People

I've had a Free People gift certificate since Xmas that I finally used today.
For tonight's dinner out with friends I am wearing...
This adorable Free People skirt:

A purple ruffle blazer (couldn't find a photo) (also Free People)

and the COOLEST shoes in the world I just got at John Fluevog's boutique in Wicker Park. I love.


I also got this romantic Free People lace top, which I plan to pair with a pair of dark blue skinny jeans:

Did you know...

by Jeak

Bridal Comb

Here are several brand new bridal combs that are now available in my bridal shop.

Fluffy Furball

This is right up my alley. Shao-Yen Chen’s MA graduate collection from Central Saint Martins. Incredible.

Tulle, Onyx, Agate and Pearls

Here are several new bridal necklaces I added to my new wedding accessories shop on Etsy. Most items are glass pearls encased in tulle. I used 14 kt gold filled chains and sterling silver chains on most of the necklaces, as well as agate, onyx, and calcite. (New materials for me!)

The Long Red Road

Last night we saw the play The Long Red Road directed by one of my FAVORITE actors Philip Seymour Hoffman at the Goodman Theatre. It was fabulous!
If you're in Chicago go see it. It runs until March 14th.

*image from www.manataka.org

Summer Dress

I love dresses. I especially love yellow dresses. Winter windy city living makes it tricky for me to wear pretty yellow summer dresses. This photo is making me rethink that.

*Image by ANNABEL MEHRAN

2010 Olympics

Did you find yourself sitting in front of the tv last night sobbing at Olympic figure skater Joannie Rochette's touching performance just days after her mother suddenly passed away? I lost it.

*photo from www.latimes.com

Redquoise Part II

Um, yes please.
Turquoise and red.
One of my favorite color combos ever.
From Charles Anastase Fall 2010 collection.

100 Years of Solitude

I'm the sort of person that treasures alone time.
So much so, that sometimes I think I might need to live in a house like this.
Seriously.


Islet near Heimaey, Vestmannaeyjar Archipelago, Iceland

Or this:

Laurentides, Province of Quebec, Canada

No one could bother me here:

Chapel on an islet off the coast of Kos, Dodecanese, Greece

Or here...

Small island on the Baltic, Porkkala, Finland

This would work too:

Mmmm, France

Never been to Nepal before...

Rice field north of Pokhara, Nepal

This screams LEAVE ME ALONE!

Buron on the board of the Aubrac, France

*From Fixxxer Posterous and A Cup of Jo

New Necklaces

Here are a few new necklaces I recently posted on Etsy.

Tuesday Poetry Post-Maya Angelou

Touched by An Angel
by Maya Angelou

We, unaccustomed to courage
exiles from delight
live coiled in shells of loneliness
until love leaves its high holy temple
and comes into our sight
to liberate us into life.

Love arrives
and in its train come ecstasies
old memories of pleasure
ancient histories of pain.
Yet if we are bold,
love strikes away the chains of fear
from our souls.

We are weaned from our timidity
In the flush of love's light
we dare be brave
And suddenly we see
that love costs all we are
and will ever be.
Yet it is only love
which sets us free.

*photo by Emillie

Cute

He's the Sean Penn of schnoodles.
Whatever that means.

In Memory of Julie Sennott 1978-2009

Amy, Julie and I. Us three were best friends during college. Running is what brought us together. We all ran cross country and track at Purdue University.

One year ago today, Julie was killed in a car crash. I'm still so angry about it. I'm angry about so many things. She was killed three months before her wedding to Michael. Her friend Jessica was also killed in the crash. Their partners, Jessica's husband, and Julie's fiance Michael survived the crash. I talked to Michael at the wake. He was so sweet and comforting in spite of being at the love of his life's wake. Michael died a month later from a blood clot that traveled to his heart, probably from the crash. Maybe he died of a broken heart. They were both so young. It still is so hard to believe. They are gone, just like that. Because someone was driving too fast on a snowy morning, they had to pay for it with their lives. Just like that, and the world will never be the same.

Julie has a twin sister, Jackie. Her strength amazes me. She just gave birth to a new baby a few days ago. That sweet child will never know his aunt Julie. I know Jackie will remind him of how incredible she was. Julie had an incredible attitude. She was so positive and fun to be around. She was brilliant...I mean, really, the woman aced everything without even needing to study that hard. She was very generous and had the most incredible sense of humor, ever. She was such a good friend. So loyal. She ALWAYS had my back. We were each other's wing men. She was a phenomenal runner. She was. It's so weird to say that about her. She was.
It's not fair. I don't get it. How do bad people get to live, and the good people die? There is nothing to get. That is life, I know, but it hurts and makes me angry.

To Julie. I miss you.

Born to Run

Running is extremely important to me.

I can't run now because of an injury.

A yoga injury. (I'm convinced my precious running would not hurt me so it had to be the yoga)

(It seriously was the yoga though because I only had problems when I started yoga, and when I stopped yoga but still ran, it went away, and when I started up with yoga again, the injury came back, and this cycle repeated over and over again until I couldn't even walk, let alone run.)

So instead of running, I'm swimming and lifting and reading about running and dreaming of running. The other night I dreamt my husband was trying to convince me to go to Mexico (that's right Seeley and Michael, Mexico) to run with the Tarahumara indians in the Copper Canyons. I dreamt this because of the most INCREDIBLE running book I have ever read, Born To Run written by Christopher McDougall. READ IT!! In this book he went on a search to find the Tarahumara, a hidden tribe with a history of distance running that would blow your mind. I don't want to spoil anything if you read the book, but it basically talked a lot about runners and how we are constantly getting injured, and went on a quest to find out that yes, we are indeed BORN to run (which I always believed I was!) and one of the secrets to preventing injury seems to be ditching our beloved running shoes entirely. I plan on trying this out as soon as I'm done with physical therapy and get some Vibram Five Fingers to protect my feet from the city sidewalks. (I'm going to transition into this of course and prepare my legs with strengthening exercises)

Bottom line: Baby were were born to run.

Appropriation

Cynthia Rowley did something really interesting with her Fall 2010 line this year. She knocked herself off. It's her response to what she calls the, "archaic idea that designers show a collection and six months later the product is available in stores.” It makes sense. Thanks to the internet, we can see any collection we want yet wait half a year for them to pop up in magazines and at stores.
Rowely essentially appropriates images of her current runway line by photographing the front and back of the outfit and printing it on a heavy cotton knit, which she then makes into a dress.

They are available at Gagosian Gallery's shop for one month.

Here is the original dress and the image on the bottom is the "fake" dress: