Come On, Irene

Photo by Mindy

I have spent most of today watching the news and various social network sites for information on the post-Irene apocalypse going on at home. This is my former apartment building. They say that the river has not crested yet and will rise another 5 feet in the coming days. More than a little glad I have relocated.

There has been massive destruction far and wide, from the Catskills throughout Vermont. Today all of the major bridges in the Capital District were closed as a 40 foot "runaway barge" with a 30 foot crane it on floated down the Mohawk. Several houses nearby were destroyed in a mudslide, while numerous others were flooded, and remain without power and water. Hundreds of bridges, homes and towns in Vermont were completely obliterated

Aside from a day without power most of my friends and family survived unscathed. Tragically, the father of a friend died of a massive heart attack while bailing out their basement after they lost power and their pump stopped working. I can't imagine what she is going through. To all the people talking about the "hype" of Irene, perhaps you should come visit New York or Vermont. Assuming you can find a helicopter to bring you there, since most major roads are currently flooded.

When There's a Will There's a Way

Being in the middle of nowhere will not stop me from shopping. Here are my new favorite earrings, bought off the side of the street from a man named Robert Eaglebear, who was beating a drum and singing a song about family and love. Behold!

Tomorrow, I love Ya

Traveling, both exhausting and fattening. I promise a real update tomorrow, where I shall extrapolate upon my India Hicks Lady Crush. In the meantime enjoy the fruits of my ethnographic labor, I think this girl is quite striking. The power lines really add that certain something to this photo.

The Modern Oregon Trail

Yesterday started my trek across the country for 9 days of field work in Washington. I have to say, I'm really disappointed to be missing Hurricane Irene. Apparently it's going to be one of the biggest storms to hit New York in a while, and personally I love the chaos of natural disasters. And the crazy people stocking up like it's the end of the world. And who knows, maybe it is?

Hurricane Irene is pretty bad ass. She hadn't even made landfall in the South, yet she was still able to eff up my travel plans yesterday morning.

Afterall, I have her to thank for the fact that after spending 12 hours in airports I was crazy enough ti pay $17.16 for a bar of chocolate, granola bar and coconut water. Thank god for reimbursement.

So instead of already being in the middle of nowhere, I'm enjoying my pimp hotel room in Seattle, hording the Crabtree and Evelyn bath products and working up the motivation to get dressed, pick up my rental car, and drive to the middle of nowhere. By the middle of nowhere, I mean Neah Bay. You might be happy to know that the nearest town to Neah Bay is Forks, Washington. YES, that Forks. The Forks of dazzling vampires and werewolfs in cutoffs. More to come on this intriguing topic after I consume all the complimentary coffee and cookies I can get my hands on.

Dying Days of Summer

Anyone who lives in the northeast, and dare I say, particularly upstate new York, knows that the beginning of August signals the end of summer. It's a sad truth. Soon we'll be wearing jeans and hoodies instead of tank tops and shorts. This is particularly unfortunate as I no longer have any pants that fit (I blame a combination of relationship weight and spinning).

It is, however, fortunate in that when I asked my hairdresser friend to allow me (yes, you know what I'm talking about here) to go back to being a true brunette, I did not receive much of an argument. Although it's darker than I intended, I'm rather pleased with the result.

I figure that by October I'll have lost most of my tan and should make a passable Snow White. Although I'm planning on going as Tinkerbell for the Disney Half Marathon in February, I might have to reconsider (that thought lasted five minutes, I will always pink pom poms and wings over crappy apples and super short dudes, sorry).

Lux also enjoyed the brief sunshine (it rained moments later), as well as chasing around unsuspecting honeybees. 

I was happy to get another chance to wear my favorite summer top (It's been terribly flattering all throughout my weight gain, in fact it may be my best friend). I hate it when Free People makes clothing that redeems themselves in my eyes (unlike this thing - seriously if you wear that in public the internet will collectively disown you). Whenever that happens my ESP kicks in and I miraculously become able to predict cash flow issues in my future.

Sadly, however, seems that the adorable bunnies living in our flower garden have chosen to relocate to a new flower bed. Kids, they grow up so fast!

New Trend I Love But Probably Won't Bother With

I am totally digging this new trend of matte and high shine black manicures.

Although as full disclosure the only manicures I ever get are the gel kind, and even then it's usually a traditional pink and white. They're amazing and last 2-3 weeks, whereas regular polish might last me 3 days at most. I don't know about you, but not only can I not justify paying $45 a week on a mani-pedi, I also can't afford it. Especially when I can give myself a pretty darn looking good mani-pedi.

That being said, I still think this look is totally awesome.

Style Icon: Daphne Guinness

Aside from having a pretty awesome name, being an heiress to the Guinness family and making a killing off her divorce to Spyros Niarchos, Daphne Guiness is one hell of a style icon. Seriously. She was on the International Best Dressed in the 90s and I think she's been rocking it since.

I love that she's a wealthy heiress with punk ass hair, crazy ass clothes and tons of class. Unlike so many other fashion icons, you don't see in tabloids her drunk falling down (huzzah!).

Oh, she is also 43 and three kids. I really love mom's that are badass, it gives me hope for the future.

How amazing is this body stocking? It reminds me of the body painting in one of my most favorite movies back when Brendan Fraser was attractive and Rachel Weisz, was just as hot as ever. If I had the body and the balls I'd totally wear this...not exactly where to, but count me in.

Here are some recent articles and interviews with Daphne ~

Daphne Guinness is Afraid of Beige & Daphne Guinness's Glove Story

Fashion Slump: Miu Miu Clogs

Your Task, should you choose to accept it, is to tell me wtf to wear with these Miu Miu clogs. I was thinking cigarette pants, but Elyse says that will make me look like a mom and instead suggests flared/bell bottom pants or jeans in a light wash or a skirt of some kind.

Oh, I know they look black, but they're brown velvet.

I bought them off the interwebs and thought them super cute, but didn't really realize how small the heel was, just a tiny 2.25"!My style is definitely gypsy-nomad, but I don't know so much about 70s boho...

Crafty Business

My record for making a baby blanket at this point is two years, so I suppose getting two done in 5 months isn't too bad. I made these for Tony's little brother and sister and managed to send both blankets off around their 6 month birthday, so holla to that.

Sorry these pictures are boring as hell. I was really not impressed with the pastel selection, but apparently pastels are what you give babies.

Likewise, it is apparently cliche to go with pink and blue, so I went with green and yellow (yes, twins, a boy and a girl)...Personally I think that's silly. Let it be known that if I have a daughter I will shower her in pink (of the neon variety) and if I have a son he can be decked out in all the blue in the world.

My reflections on this project:

• Crocheting blankets is a much better decision over knitting them. Fo' reals.
• Sewing a satin border on looks pretty but is a bitch.
• The lacy pattern and fluffy yarn were a bitch with the sewing machine so I had to sew them by hand, which I semi suck at.
• I have no freaking clue how to miter a corner so I just kind of winged it...which came out alright, but if you don't really know what you're doing (like me) I don't recommend it because it adds hours upon hours onto the project.

What do I think of giving handmade gifts? It's kind of a toss up. Handmade gifts take SO much time and effort. Some people do not appreciate them, they'd rather get a Burberry scarf or something trendy. Those people are not worthy of your time. For those people just run to the mall the day before Christmas and you'll be fine. However, I really like giving handmade gifts, and I hope the people who receive them enjoy them and use them for many years.

Recipe: Quinoa Burgers

So I am a vegetarian, Tony is not. Granted, while I am a shitty vegetarian, I am nowhere near Tony, who eats raw meat. Fo reals. It's really icky to me, but whatevs. He is, however, open minded enough to eat my vegetarian food, and is quite enthusiastic about it. Yay!

My brother took his not-girlfriend out to dinner at the Grey Gelding in Saratoga while she was visiting a few weeks ago and they raved about the quinoa burger. Quinoa is a grain with quite a bit of protein (which can be a bit difficult for us veges to get), and is a good substitution for rice. So I asked Google what quinoa burgers I should make and this is what I got.

Quinoa:

• 1 cup uncooked quinoa
• 2 cups water
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

To cook quinoa:
In a medium saucepan bring the 2 cups water and 1/2 teaspoon salt to a boil over high heat.  Add quinoa and reduce heat to low.  Cover and cook for 18-20 minutes, or until all water is absorbed and the seeds are tender.  Allow to cool for a few minutes.

Burgers:

• 3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese (or other variety, if you prefer)
• 1/2 cup cottage cheese
• 1 medium carrot, finely grated
• 3 eggs
• 2-3 tablespoons all purpose flour (start with 2, if they won’t hold together add the other one)
• 2 green onions, including white parts
• 1 /2 teaspoon Splenda or sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
• Olive oil for frying

To make burgers:
In a large bowl combine the cooked quinoa, cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, carrot, eggs, flour, green onions, Splenda, pepper, cumin, salt, and garlic powder.

Heat a frying pan and a couple teaspoons olive oil over medium-low heat.  Measure 1/4 cup and form into patties about 1/2 inch thick  - mixture will be slightly sticky.  Fry until golden-brown, about 4 minutes on each side.   Makes approx. 10 burgers.

Per burger:  Calories 132; Protein 8 g; Fat 5 g; NET Carbs 12 g; Sugar 0 g; Sodium 200 mg

My feedback on this recipe: 

1. I used a mix of colby jack cheese instead of chedder
2. I found that 3 tablespoons of flour was JUST enough to get the burgers to stick together, but they were still a bit gooey in the middle. I'll probably add more flour next time.
3. Um, brilliant idea: Why not make these ahead of time and freeze them? I'm going to pack them into some hamburger patty molds and stick them in the freezer for individual use.

This is SUCH a good low cal low carb recipe - eating these burgers is kind of like a healthier version of potato pancakes, and I found that 1 large patty and a side salad filled me right up. If you prep all the ingredients while the quinoa is cooking it takes about 20 minutes to put everything together.

Photo and recipe from Eating Well...Living Thin

Getting Back in the Groove

The crafty groove that is. I've made some slouchy hats for the first time in forever and I finally got around to photographing some of the hats that I've had lying around my house for ages now.

I'm starting to get the hang of my camera. There have been definite improvements. Evidence:

[Fairy Queen Hat]

[Garden Gnome Hat]

[Bedouin Hat]

 

[Cozy]

Some day I will conquer you Canon Powershot s95!

An Open Love Letter to Arthur King

Arthur King was a self taught modernist goldsmith whose work became popular in the 1960s and 70s. And I love it. It's super organic, using a lot of wax casting, raw gems and baroque pearls.



Totally gorgeous right? According to the interwebs he had shops in He had shops in New York, Miami, Paris, Havana and London, but there are no longer any stores or really central stockist on the internet.

I feel like this is the kind of jewelry mermaids would wear, floating around as they looked in their little shell compacts and applied sea urchin lipstick à la Ariel in the Little Mermaid. Maybe you'd find one of these rings someone in her cavern of treasures? Certainly not out of the realm of possibility. By the way, feel free to buy that first ring and send it directly to me. Free hats for life.

All jewelry from 1stdibs.com

L.L. Bean Signature

Has anyone else seen the new L.L. Bean Signature Fall Collection? I don't usually get L.L. Bean in the mail, but for some reason they just knew I was going to like this collection and sent me a catalog. Or someone in the data mining business sold them my information after realizing I spent the majority of my clothing budget at J.Crew. Who knows. I prefer to think it was the psychic powers of the universe pooling together to bring me British revival.

I'm eagerly awaiting some reviews of these pants. While I know it's a cardinal rule that no one looks good in tapered pants, some weird part of me wants to love them.

[Payson Pant]

They just look so good with those heels! Unfortunately, you probably need to be 5'11" to pull them off. Why can't there be more designs with petites in mind (that being said L.L. Bean Signature does have some petite pants and like, one skirt)?

And this shirt...a cotton wool blend, totally awesome, yet why can't you be a V neck? Us short ladies always look better in V necks, not to mention they're totes flattering to the bust!

[Cotton Wool Tee]

Lord knows I'm a sucker for wool. You can't live in Upstate and not have a closet full of it. When you're warm you're less miserable, and that improves not only your quality of life but, as any boyfriend and significant other will attest to, also the lives of those around you.

[Wool Tweed Hacking Jacket; Spring Point Shirt; Cotton Silk Shirtdress Print; Stretch Cord Skinny Pant]

I don't know, what do you think internet, can these styles be pulled off by individuals of average American female height (that's 5'4", for those of you not in the know). Yes? No? Maybe? I'm just skeptical of investing without reviews from shorties like myself. Although I probably could just get off my bum and trek to the local L.L. Bean and see if any of these are in the store.

Tony is also a big fan. I have to say, having a boyfriend who takes an active interest in what their wearing (yet is also straight, what a find!), is kind of awesome. It means I never have to justify spending hundreds of dollars on a pair of shoes and that I have a shopping partner whenever I want to hit the outlets.

[Wool Tweed Blazer; Hooded Chamois Cloth Shirt; 1933 Chamois Cloth Shirt]

These are his favorite picks for the fall, and being 6'4" he undoubtedly would look great in them. Curse you, tall people.

Here's another dilemma. WHICH SHOES TO GET? I've been thinking about the Ugg Adirondack Tall boots for a while now (either those or the Ugg Smithfield Boot, which I think I could find if I trolled ebay long enough), yet L.L. Bean's 16" Maine Hunting Shoe is SO similar, and slightly more rustic looking, as well as a few pennies less. So which aesthetic do I go with? And more importantly, which boot has the better performance (Trust me, no one wants cold wet toes. Ick).

So, what's your pick?

Marmora Cafe, Troy NY

Yesterday Tony (still searching for a nom de plume) and I went to Marmora Cafe in Downtown Troy. It doesn't matter what you order there, it will look and taste amazing. Seriously. Anything. It's by far and away my favorite place to eat in Troy, and the best middle eastern restaurant in the Capital District. And an extra bonus, it's really not that expensive at all.

Mmm falafel platter of falafel, several kinds of hummus, feta, olives grape leaves, salad and pita bread with a few added extras, some kabob filled with tasty meat. They seriously have some of the best falafels I've ever had. Added tidbit of knowledge: The owner and chef is a former engineer (but aren't they always?)

One of the best things about Marmora is that they have so many delicious vegetarian options. And they're also really nice about making substitutions, like when I want taziki sauce on my falafel wrap, even when they are clearly skeptical about the request.

I got the Mediterranean platter. Naturally it was awesome: falafel with sauce, salad with strawberries, pine nuts, carrots and cranberries, hummus, roasted red pepper hummus, soft pita bread, kalamata olives.

I spent the first half of the meal annoying the shit out of Tony by taking photos of him eating. It's his own fault for giving me the camera.

Also, the food is not really red, nor is Tony for that matter, but we were sitting under a red umbrella and I do not have sweet photoshop skillz (or photoshop for that matter).

Tony Got Me A New Camera

So now you have to look at pictures of my cat.

Yes, there's some bad photoshop going on in there on Lux's tag.

My Steampunk Bathroom

Clockwise:  Prints from Charmaine Olivia; Sea Horse print from Louis Adroit; Gulping Guppy Ring Dish from Anthropologie; Kraken Shower Curtain from Kraken Rum; Sea Anemone Bath Salts from For Strange Women; Set of 3 Sea Urchin Air Planters by RobinCharlotte.

It's so going to happen.

Tony and I have very different ideas about aesthetics. I am for sentimental antiques and he is for Scandinavian modernism. Ew. Yes to the wood ceilings, No to everything else. He is certainly somewhat skeptical about  my bathroom ideas, as evidenced by these recent conversations:

You know, that shower curtain could delay our trip to Egypt by 2 years...
Babe, I think you might be slightly exaggerating...

or


Pictures? In the bathroom. I don't like it. It's weird. Why? You don't go in there to look at the walls.
Yeah, but you spend time in the bathroom.
So, doesn't mean I want to look at the walls.
Well, the pictures are hot pirate girls.
Oh, okay.

I was recently in Old Alexandria with some friends while on a research trip. On one particularly hot and disgusting day we were wondering around, darting from one air conditioned shop to another and trying to eat our cupcakes before the frosting melted off. We wandered into this lovely home decor shop, European Country Living. I am not one for country decor, but I am one for down stuffed ticking sofas (Yes, please!). While taking photos of things I liked and sending them to Tony, we of course disagreed on what was going to be allowed to enter our abode. After much negotiation we decided to invent our own decorative style, "British Explorer." British Explorer consists of lots of dark wood, fairly simple pieces (and, fingers crossed, some sentimental antiques) accented by the odds and ends we plan on picking up along our travels. Sounds pretty awesome, right? I'm hoping that this means that the Moroccan wedding blanket I am dying for (sequins!), which Tony has no interest in, will become acceptable if we actually go to Morocco and get one ourselves.


How awesome will my bathroom be? Yes, incredibly awesome. I'm still unsure of what bath towels to go with but I figure since my bathroom does not yet exist then I'm probably ok for now.

On an unrelated note, I feel like everyone has cute blog pseudonyms for their significant others, "DH" for Darling Husband (Tony would  barf if he heard that one), "The Dish" "Dear Husband" &tc. Maybe I should just cal him "The Engineer"? Yet that is so boring, and he is so not boring. What dilemmas.