Sunday, February 28, 2010

Congrats, Kara!

My sorority sister just got engaged! You can help her have her dream wedding by voting for Kara and Sean at Crate and Barrel/Daily Candy's Ultimate Wedding Contest! One lucky couple can win a $100,000 wedding planned by top wedding planner, Jo Gartin. How fun! Good luck, Kara!

Saturday, February 27, 2010

Bond No. 9

Bond No. 9 offers fragrances that are inspired by New York City.Bond No.9

1. Andy Warhol Union Square - lily of the valley, green stem, blue freesia, white birchwood, amber, and musk.
2. Brooklyn, clearly - grapefruit, cardamom, cypress-wood, geranium Leaves, juniper berries, cedarwood, leather and guaiacwood.
3. Bleeker Street - violet leaf, cassis, jasmine, cinnamon, oakmoss.

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Julianne Moore for Bvlgari

Is this not the most beautiful ad you've ever seen? Julianne Moore is forty-nine years old.
Julianne moore bvlgari

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky


I got inspired to learn about my favorite couturière, Coco Chanel, after seeing the film, Coco Before Chanel the other day. I went to the bookstore in search of her biography (which they didn't have... Amazon, here I come) and came across this book: Coco Chanel and Igor Stravinsky by Chris Greenhalgh. I had to do a double take when I saw this title. I had no idea that Chanel and Stravinsky's paths even crossed. Stravinsky is one of my favorite composers, and one of my biggest influences. This book is about their collaboration, their relationship, and their passion for creative endeavors. These two gallant figures together is overwhelming! Read a synopsis by the Washington Times here. Did I mention that it is also a feature film? It debuted at Cannes 2009, but I couldn't find details on the US release dates...

Monday, February 22, 2010

Monday M-A-F

A movie, album and food that must be experienced simultaneously. This one is for Jennie!
Happy birthday, girl! Love you!

dirty dancingcindi laupercupcakes

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Hipster Puppies?

We've all heard the term "hipster" before, but is there an exact definition? We see hipster guys in their women's jeans and flannel shirts, and hipster girls in their ripped tights and huge, plastic glasses, but there has to be more about this culture that we don't know about, right? I consulted Urban Dictionary to clear up this matter, but the results were anything but concise. Here's the G-rated, less crude definition... skip to the bottom if you don't want to read it.

"Hipsters are a subculture of men and women typically in their 20's and 30's that value independent thinking, counter-culture, progressive politics, an appreciation of art and indie-rock, creativity, intelligence, and witty banter. The greatest concentrations of hipsters can be found living in the Williamsburg, Wicker Park, and Mission District* neighborhoods of major cosmopolitan centers such as New York, Chicago, and San Francisco respectively. Although "hipsterism" is really a state of mind,it is also often intertwined with distinct fashion sensibilities. Hipsters reject the culturally-ignorant attitudes of mainstream consumers, and are often be seen wearing vintage and thrift store inspired fashions, tight-fitting jeans, old-school sneakers, and sometimes thick rimmed glasses. Both hipster men and women sport similar androgynous hair styles that include combinations of messy shag cuts and asymmetric side-swept bangs. Such styles are often associated with the work of creative stylists at urban salons, and are usually too "edgy" for the culturally-sheltered mainstream consumer. The "effortless cool" urban bohemian look of a hipster is exemplified in Urban Outfitters and American Apparel ads which cater towards the hipster demographic. Despite misconceptions based on their aesthetic tastes, hipsters tend to be well educated and often have liberal arts degrees, or degrees in maths and sciences, which also require certain creative analytical thinking abilities. Consequently many hipsters tend to have jobs in the music, art, and fashion industries. It is a myth that most hipsters are unemployed and live off of their parent's trust funds."
*Where I work!

Thanks to my friend Whitney Eich for showing me this Tumblr gem called Hipster Puppies. They give [mockingly] accurate snippets of hipster culture, using man's best friend.

Oh, and let's not forget LATFH.com!

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Typography

There's something I love about this slightly nerdy art. For those of you who aren't familiar with typography, (I wasn't until recently) it's the art of arranging type into illustrations... a lot more advanced than your regular old ":)". I'd love to learn how to do this! I posted the pictures big so you can see the detail.
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John Lennon

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Typography Woman

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I love this one! A typography collage of Trento, Italy!

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Found on Art Text.

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Closet Envy

If only...
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Paris Hilton

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Jessica Alba

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These Cityscape Hangers by sixixis would make a great addition to my closet.


More to envy.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Mardi Gras !

Happy Fat Tuesday, everyone! Just two years ago, I was celebrating in Venice... if only I could be there now!
mardi gras, martedi grasso

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day!! I slacked on Christmas cards this year, so here are my Valentines I sent out. Excuse the bad photography.

Valentine's Cards

Saturday, February 13, 2010

More Gaga

Thanks to the Refinery 29 for drawing my attention to more Gaga finds. Honestly, I can't get enough of her! Check out these barbies designed by Veik- a doll "styler" from Beijing.


Lady Gaga Dolls, Lady Gaga, Veik Lady Gaga


Hope everyone is having a good Valentine's Day/President's Day weekend!

Friday, February 12, 2010

Zambaleta

It feels weird to say that I've graduated almost two months ago! You may ask what I've been doing with my time, besides taking a lot of weekend trips. I've been working at a non-profit organization called Zambaleta- a world music, dance and yoga school located in San Francisco's Mission District. We just opened in October of 2009, so we're in the process of building our community, and acquiring dance and yoga instructors. It's my job to create an online presence for Zambaleta, so you can help me out by checking out Zambaleta's Facebook, Twitter, and Yelp. We offer all sorts of amazing classes, catered to every skill level.

March 6th is our Carnaval event, which is a 12 hour jam session with food, drinks and dancing all day. We're celebrating the opening of our dance and yoga studio as well as our cafe! It's also completely free. Come by if you want to jam, or get involved with our community!

zambaleta

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

SF to D.C.

Tomorrow I'll be going on a very impromptu weekend trip to Washington D.C. to visit a very dear friend. I haven't been there since my 8th grade class trip! I grew up in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, so I'm excited to get back to my East Coast roots. I'll for sure be doing a big update once I get back on Monday. I can't help but to be reminded of Forrest Gump, and his reunion with Jenny at the Washington Monument. A big thanks to M&D!

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Gap & SF Moma

I didn't know this until the other day, but GAP and SFMOMA (SF's Museum of Modern Art) have collaborated in order to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the museum. GAP has produced a line of limited edition T-shirts designed by MOMA artists. These shirts can be found at thirteen locations throughout the Bay Area... including beautiful Burlingame (my hometown)! Great idea.
SFMOMA Gap, Gap SFMOMA shirts

Monday, February 1, 2010

Macaron Success

I've attempted to make French Macarons several times, and they always came out flat and crackled. After some research (thanks, youtube!) and some help from I Love Macarons, I decided to channel my inner "Suzie Homemaker" and get it right once and for all. Well, last night was the night! I made a basic macaron with dark chocolate filling... Stay tuned for more flavors! Happy February!

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The secret: Don't over beat the batter!