Prairie Underground

I've been looking for a good staple summer dress but everything I find seems so cheap and boring. I love these dresses from Prairie Underground (especially the 2 on the right) that are really cute and unique looking.

Original Photo-a-day

Long before taking a photo a day was as trendy and common as it is today, Jamie Livingston was taking a polaroid a day from 1979 up until his death from cancer in 1997. The photos are beautiful and heartbreaking as you watch his life through the decades. See the gallery here.

thanks to Lauren for sending me this really fantstic link.

My dream fruit

This article in the NY Times is totally insane. By eating a miracle fruit, Synsepalum dulcificum, your brain "rewires the way the palate perceives sour flavors" for an hour or so. Everything you eat tastes like sweet, sweet candy.

Read all about it, and the "flavor tripping" parties that are held, here.


Photo by Joe Fornabaio for The New York Times

New Ashley G!

Guys! In 15 minutes (2pm CST) Ashley G is going to have a fab etsy shop update! Ahhhh can't wait! I'm putting off my lunch break just for this, I've been meaning to buy one of her prints for a beeelion years.

Get your mouse ready to click here!

NY and I were meant to be

“There are roughly three New Yorks. There is, first, the New York of the man or woman who was born here, who takes the city for granted and accepts its size and its turbulence as natural and inevitable. Second, there is the New York of the commuter — the city that is devoured by locusts each day and spat out each night. Third, there is the New York of the person who was born somewhere else and came to New York in quest of something. […] Commuters give the city its tidal restlessness; natives give it solidity and continuity; but the settlers give it passion."
E.B. White, Here is New York
via swiss miss.

Up until recently I thought of New York has this temporary home for me to seek adventure, boost my career, fufill my 20something need for change, and then move back home when I was ready and start a family. This city is so chaotic that I always assumed I'd leave before it made me "hard". I didn't fathom the idea of planting my seed and growing some roots here. Having a family here, or being elderly here sounded awful. But you know what? In the last year I've grown more and more in love with this place. Maybe it's the sunshine, the increasing number of strollers in my neighborhood, or something's in the water, but I'm sticking it out for as long as I can. This place is amazing, and has changed my life so much I can't even comprehend it. I have been married, single, divorced, and now in a serious relationship in a matter of 3 years. I can't imagine going back home now, or anytime soon.

Florent Morellet recently said in a ny magazine article: “New York is the city of changes. People forget this is what they love about it.”

I'm a girl of changes, so I guess we were meant to be.
This is not to say that I won't change my mind, but I just needed to declare my love for all the people back home who assume New York is just another phase of mine.

photo by martha burzynski, one of my most talented flickr friends.

Great Read

Thank you to Erica* for recommending one of the best books I've read in a long time. I polished this baby off in 4 days.

*I'm such an ass-face for spelling your name wrong before, Erica! forgive me.

Somewhat obtainable Karen Walker

While $69 for a tank top is steep, $69 for a Karen Walker tank top seems...ok. I like that owning something from her line is...obtainable...and really, really awesome.

Mint Braided Singlet @ Creatures of Comfort (click on the photo on the site to see a closer version, shows the sweet raised-graphic detail)

via ny mag

Taking my own suggestion

While at times this blog may seem like a sign of a serious shopping problem, I don't often buy things I post about here. Once in a while, yes, but I'm pretty good at holding myself back on things I find online. Now in person...that's a different story..um. ANYWAY! Today I finally decided that I hate my purse to death and it was time for a Leather Store bag!

I'm really excited and will report back to you all on its awesomeness.

lost and found

lost and found, originally uploaded by .ultraviolett.

I'd like to crawl into this photo right now.

Nate Frizzell

Nate Frizzell's haunting piece graced the cover of today's Flavorpill and upon opening my newsletter I immediately thought, I have GOT to see more from this artist. There's something slightly eerie about them, yet I can't help but feel a twinge of sicky-sweet nostalgia.





Look, I even pulled myself out of a heat-wave with no a/c just ate too many pirogies coma to write this! That's how much I liked them.

The grass is always greener...

Girls like this make me want curly hair, despite what my mother drilled into my head about curly hair being the death of her and how she'd kill a man to have straight hair like me.

taken by peter @ super.fantastic.picture.time.

iro-iro

I hope you all had a fabulous weekend. I'm pretty sad that it's over and having an incredibly hard time focusing on anything today! I had to be dragged out of bed this morning, literally.

Groggyness aside, some dresses at iro-iro stood out to me on Polyvore. I can't decipher half of what is going on at this Japanese* clothing site, but I love what I see. Here are my favorites:









*apparently not Japanese! Korean maybe? (anyone?) That's what I get for assuming. Thanks Claire!

Green Owl Records Benefit CD/DVD

This caught my eye this morning on Daily Candy: Green Owl Records: a benefit for the energyaction coalition. With unreleased tracks from artists like Feist, Deerhoof and Of Montreal, and 100% of the profits made from the album given to support the EAC, I'm quite intrigued.

Find out more on the tracks and where to buy here.

Flourless Chocolate Walnut Cookies

Hey guys, I've barely had a chance to do much of anything today besides deal with technical glitches and presentations at work (it's one of those days that make me beg for this fabulous long weekend). So here's a quicky for you.

I made these AMAZING cookies the other night from a recipe Billy cut out of NY Mag that he thought we should make. (When he does things like this it makes my heart swoon that boys actually do cute things like that) They were SO easy even I could make them! Seriously, I'm a terrible cook. When we first moved in together, Billy asked me if I knew the concept of spices being added to food so it was more edible. Yeah.

So check the recipe out here and take my word on the sweet, sweet goodness.

Also, I only work 3 hours tomorrow and have Monday off, so there's a large chance I won't be gracing the internet with my presence until Tuesday. If that's the case, have a fabulous weekend! Billy and I are going to be huge yuppies and get massages on Monday, because I'm a fantastic girlfriend like that who felt it was a crime he'd never had one before.

Sexy Post #2, and other things

This was the first year since I've lived in New York that I haven't gone to ICFF because I don't have a special in on getting in for free this time, and quite frankly the show overwhelms me and makes me want to run back home. Somehow I have the ability to filter through all the shit on the internet and present to you what I love, but I'm unable to do this with a physical show. I think this is a funny little thing that sums up my generation, eh? Also if you met me in real life you'd know that I am one of the shyest people that walks the planet and barely talks, but here you probably think I'm a rambling self centered person who thinks she's pretty funny. In real life you have to get me drunk or know me for at least 6 months before I'm to the point of telling jokes outloud. The internet is my bff, is what I'm trying to say. I'd have only 1/4 of the imaginery friends I have without it!

Anyway, enough of my profound commentary on the internet.



One thing I wish I had seen at ICFF is this delicious Airia Desk by Kaiju Studios for Herman Miller. That is one damn sexy desk my friends.

Sexy Skies

Air Hostesses of Yesteryear, a really interesting and hilarious look at flight attendants of the past. Look at that hottie, I love the caption on wired: "this one appears to be rolling a joint.."

Diane Barcelowsky

I saw a little show of Diane Barcelowsky's work in the back room at Sloan this weekend, and was rather blown away. These images do the work no justice at all, they're so large and have such interesting details. Her website shows a body of work that's rather different from what was at the show, I'd love to see any other shows she has.

See the pieces there were at Sloan here.
See her website here.

Ruth Van Beek

Ruth Van Beek is a Dutch artist that makes collages from vintage photographs that are incredibly striking and have had me very captivated for the last half hour.

See them larger on her site for a better look.

Brevity

Love love LOVE these necklaces by Brevity. Available in stainless steel or black acrylic, they're simple, lovely and unique.

The Fall

Run, don't walk, to the nearest theater to you that's playing The Fall. I know it's playing at very select theaters, but make a trek if needed because it's amazing. Visually gorgeous, a really great story (dare I say heartwarming?), and great cast (get ready to have a serious crush on Lee Pace and want to adopt that little girl). Seriously, best movie I've seen in a while.

A case of the Mondays, #287

Hello, friends. I hope you all had a fantastic weekend, I sure as hell did. But I guess all good weekends that you want to never end lead to an inevitable bad Monday morning, eh? Ok, maybe that's just me. Somehow I thought wearing marigold tights with a loud patterned summer dress was a good idea, and halfway into my walk to work I realized that not only was it a bad idea, but I had to get them off my legs RIGHT THEN or I'd die of embarrassment of my allergy medicine induced insanity. I of course held off until I could dash into the bathroom at work, but now my not-ready-for-the-light legs are naked, scared and...effing freezing. A brilliant sun has given way to dark clouds outside, mocking my bare legs. Now I wonder if my legs look more ridiculous than they did in my marigold tights.

I tell you this story because writing my boyfriend a long whining email will result in either A. a reply that has absolutely nothing to do with what my email said, probably something about what he's eating for lunch or what the dog at his work is doing or B. a reply that says "life is tough toots". Hense telling all of you, dear readers, because you are a largely women who are probably like me and like hearing that you are not the only idiot who leaves the house in ugly tights or weather-inappropriate attire.

Luckily I'm feasting my eyes and wallet on this site full of vintage Etienne Aigner bags. Nothing warms me up like a nice cup of coffee Etienne Aigner.

Photo of Billy and Tom treading in some wheat in Stephano Arienti's great installation at the Lehmann Maupin gallery.

andy smith

oh you have no idea.

j/k, job!

andy smith illustrations.

BLU animation

MUTO a wall-painted animation by BLU from blu on Vimeo.


Billy just showed this to me and I'm floored. I love BLU so god damn much, this is totally insane. Can you imagine how much work this took? If you're not familiar with his greatness, see more here.

Etsy Find of the Day: Morelle

Really lovely totes by Etsy seller Morelle. They're so simple, but pay great attention to deal. They look really well-made and sturdy, which I can't say for a lot of the totes out there flooding this world right now.

Flickr: Vera

New flickr favorite: vera. So, so, so incredibly beautiful. There's something magical about her photos of people with their backs turned to her.





via ffffound.

united by books!

You guys are fantastic. It makes me feel so overwhelmingly connected to the outside world beyond this little box in front of me when I get as many replies as the post about book recommendations. I'm filled to the brim with suggestions now that I'm sorting through on wikipedia and amazon to make a decision, and a trip to the bookstore on my lunch break is planned! (the manhattan libraries suck ass, you have to wait on a list for ages to get a book and the closest to me is 3 aves away towards hell and is so gross I hate stepping foot in it)

Here they all are:

White Nights by Dostoevsky
Franny & Zooey (love it)
oranges are not the only fruit by jeanette winterson
anything by lorrie moore
david sedaris (read them all, I'm obsessed and can't wait for the next one!)
The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers (this floored me in high school)
The Dive from Clausen's Pier by Ann Packer
The Kite Runner (completely amazing, that reminds me to read his new one!)
unaccustomed earth by jhumpa lahiri (loved The Namesake!)
the autobiography of malcolm x
the fortress of solitude by jonathan letham
the yiddish policeman's union by michael chabon
anything by michael ondaatje
short stories by f. scott fitzgerald
Straight Man, by Richard Russo
Crossing To Safety, Wallace Stegner
The History of Love by Nicole Krauss (I forgot that I wanted to read this, def going to check it out now!)
Anything by Stuart McLean about the Vinyl Cafe
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The Little Prince by Antoine Saint Exupéry
Special Topics in Calamity Physics by marisha pessl
willful creatures by aimee bender
most anything by donald barthelme
the philosophy of andy warhol
king cat by john porcellino
the diary of a teenage girl by phoebe gloeckner
ANYTHING by Alice Munro
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro (this sounds so good)
Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson
Eva Moves the Furniture by Margot Livesey
Cormac McCarthy's The Road
many Haruki Murakami suggestions:
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle
sputnik sweetheart
norwegian wood
Hard-Boiled Wonderland
the End of the World


thank you thank you thank you

Out With Vegas, in With Vamp

Out With Vegas, in With Vamp, Swimsuits Offer More Coverage.

Super fabulous article in the nytimes today with really great photos.

enter hair tearing + fist clenching

I just had one of these moments at work. I have recently been branded the Computer Genius (note: I am not) and get really, really frustrating requests all day long.

more heeeelarious comics

via we are independently wealthy

Alexander Wang + Uniqlo

Super excited for Alexander Wang's line at Uniqlo coming out at the end of this month. mmmm!

read more about it

ps. thanks for all the fab book recommendations that are rolling in on the last post, I can't wait to check them out! Some of you have already suggested some of my favorite books, so I can tell I'll like the others.

I need your help: books!

Friends, I need a book to read. I'm in the mood for a good summer read. Last night I started re-reading The Rapture of Canaan for the 6th time. It's my favorite book of alltime, but I realized that I just need something new. I like sappy chick books and memoirs, but am open to new things. Reccomendations?

Also, sorry posts are sparse and lame lately. I'm suffering from, for the first time in my life, the most god-awful allergies known to man. I went to the allergist yesterday and found out I'm allergic to trees, plants, flowers, dust and mold! So hopefully my journey into finding what medication works for me will revive me back to my old self.

photo by boboniaa, looking adorable as always.

Etsy Find of the Day: Bottle Bottoms

I love these sturdy, eco-friendly glasses made of recycled glass bottles in the Bottle Bottoms etsy shop. They're a good excuse to throw some color into your dishes, though I wouldn't mind some made of clear bottles used as well (customs orders are available, it wouldn't hurt to ask!)

Lo Down

Apparently all I like to talk about lately is shoes. I'll try to talk about something else all week after I tell you this. I think the classic Vans are pretty cute, but I feel likey rather unflattering for girls, especially girls like me with Sasquatch-sized feet. But these Lo Downs are so fantastic! Their name says it all, they have a nice low-profile and I think they'd go nicely with dresses and jeans.

Montmarte Printed Scarves

Renee put some incredibly beautiful printed scarves available for pre-order in her Montmarte etsy shop. My government stimulus check just popped up in my good old bank account this weekend, so I'm feeling very tempted!

She also posted some fantastic African Mossi cloths that I'm in love with. We've had a piece of fabric up as a "temporary" curtain in our bedroom for 6 months now (story of my life) and I think one of these would be such a great replacement! Actually, all the fabrics on the website have me drooling.

Gifted Playlist For My Mom

She was very pleased.

Current Obsession: Moccasins

Have you ever been on a vacation and a style of something that's native to that area, or popular in that area suddenly gets stuck in your mind and you lose all ability to form a rational thought that maybe that thing will look ridiculous once you get back home with it? When I was in 4th grade my family went on a road trip from Seattle to South Dakota to visit my family (I'm actually originally from there but was very young when we moved away). Like girls coming back from vacations in Jamaica with cornrows and beads, I became obsessed with the idea of getting a pair of moccasins, against my mothers pleas to pick something else out. This of course was a very stupid idea and when I showed up to school with them on, it was like a bad dream where you show up naked. Humiliated does not quite describe how I felt.

So on the note of that tangent, I've recently been bit with the moccasin bug again and I want a pair badly. I've seen them popping up for a while now but it finally occured to me that they're a pretty nice little summer shoe I want to get- not to mention they fit nicely into the native trend that I love. Plus, I get the feeling I won't be laughed at this time. Here are my favorites I've seen around. It was hard to sort through them all, there are some very traditional styles, and some that are really just inspired by moccasins.



Clockwise from the top left: Minnetonka Kilty Suede Moc, A.P.C. Indian Moccasin, Jeffery Campbell Fringe Moccasin, Clarks Wallabee, Fairytales Are True Boat Moccasin, Sperry top-Sider Softie Moc, and Timberland Benin Ballerina.

thanks to Jenny's post for reminding me that I wanted to write about this.

Etsy Love

I think getting a package from an etsy seller is my favorite thing on earth. It's the most fantastic experience to get such a personal thing that reminds you they're a real person. Cutest package ever from my Mid West Vintage order.

Sadly I am slightly an idiot (ok a huge idiot) and measured my waist wrong for this belt. See, the belt length has to be BIGGER than your waist size in order to buckle, not the same (duh). So this little guy has to rest on my tummy over shirts rather than on my hips because it's totally a kids belt and only some kind of skeletor model could use this on their hips. But I think it works just fine. I've already been stopped 3 times by people asking where I got it.

ps. I know I missed a week of Etsy finds, but they will be back soon!

Mum

What are you all giving your mom for mother's day? My mom is impossible to shop for. She is not like your typical mother whatsoever (Andrea can attest to this). She likes to party. She prefers hanging out/dating people under 30 than her own age. She hates cutesy things or anything pastel. Her favorite band is Tool. She has a myspace page. I'm not entirely sure he has ever used her oven before. My mom is fierce in her very own way. I've started to run out of ideas on gifts because all the usual gift ideas make me laugh at the thought of giving them to her.

SO! Someone at work recently saved my life: you can gift custom itunes playlists! I'm not talking about burning your own playlist onto a cd, I mean a totally legal process of buying each song and it emails the recipient a link to the playlist to download! This is the most brilliant idea ever. It's cheap, my mom is constantly asking me to burn her new music, and easy as pie (pie like..me making pie, not my mom). Plus a digital mixtape is kind of adorable, no? I haven't picked it all out yet, but it will definitely include Hot Chip, MGMT, and Au Revoir Simone (I took her to see them when she was in town last and she was smitten).

But seriously, how about you guys?

Apple Jar

How rad is this little apple jar from the MoMA store?

Lost & Found

I dig these charm necklaces from Lost & Found made of vintage & found pieces.



Then I love this hot dog pin for nostalgic reasons. When I was 15 or 16 I had this puffy coat from the 70's that was red, yellow and orange. My boyfriend at the time called it my hot dog coat. One day he found a little tiny hot dog charm, which fit perfectly on my coat zipper. It was amazing. This pin reminds me so much of it, it brings a tear to my eye. Ah, high school.



And, cue bedtime.

Sandal Season

My feet are not ready yet, but they better be soon because sandal season is creeping up on me. Here are some of my current favorites.

clockwise from top left: catalina sandals, black suede saltwater sandals, vachetta sandals, lucien black sandal, t-strap flat sandals (the splurge), and starcrossed skimmer (I had these last summer and wore them to their death!).

Elena Hormiga

Elena Hormiga's illustrations make my heart flutter.

Swamp Donkey

Swamp Donkey Hairy Bones t-shirt. Only $13.99 for this awesomeness.

You might be thinking, Kate! I would really like to see some more of Swamp Donkey's drawings! Well here is a fabulous flickr set for your viewing pleasure.

I'm in the middle of designing/setting up a blog at work and it's getting confusing signing in and out of blogger for it. I hope I don't accidentally post over there about hairy monsters or shoes I covet, or how much I want to GO HOME because it's 76 degrees outside.

yellow sunday

After much debate, I finally decided to have our danish chairs professionally re-upholstered. Our quick fix IKEA solution was just that, a quick and dirty fix. I have nothing against IKEA, I'll use IKEA anywhere I can get away with it-and love it. Still, I knew a little thriftiness was in order, as the prior $760 upholstery job wasn't going to cut it. I ended up finding some fantastic Knoll fabric on ebay for next to nothing: $8/yard! I also purchased my own foam at a local fabric store. While still not as cheap as the IKEA solution, I did the whole thing for $340. The best part is that I'll be happy with them forever. Replacing furniture is not really in my future.
the break down:
foam = $100
fabric = $40
professional upholstery = $200
professional upholstery= priceless.
Ok, I couldn't resist. In all seriousness though, having something done by a professional can make all the difference. I couldn't be more thrilled with the result. And, to celebrate I made a Nilla Wafer pudding, just because it reminded me of childhood.



*yellow pillow by Martha of Uniform Studio.

More Rabbit On The Run

Remember Rabbit On The Run? Well, they strike even bigger for the ladies with this super hot geometric cape at Pixie Mart, which has loads of other fabulous things.

Portishead "3" Review

The new Portishead album is SO good. SO SO SO good. It's all I can listen to, over and over. Billy and I were debating over whether it sounded very different from their other albums and I have to say that it is the same good old Portishead, it just has a few songs that experiment with something new. I mean, their last album came out 10 YEARS ago! So if their sound was exactly the same I'd be dissapointed, but they did not stray too far.

Did I mention I'm into native-esque design lately?

Say hello to my new favorite dress/shirt. This is a bad photo that makes me look pale and midget like, but that's what I get for saying to Billy as we're walking out the door, "Oh pleeeeeaasse can you take a picture of me?! PLEASE I MUST BLOG ABOUT THIS!". I got a very belated christmas present from a cousin when I was in Seattle, a urban outfitters gift card, and when I saw this dress in the store I said to myself "please God let this fit me!"
I can't wear a bra with it, but luckily I have no boobs and its the kind of dress that doesn't show that fact too much. I can't find the same pattern online, but this is the dress here.

I heart Paul Rand

-Paul Rand

via Ace Jet 170.

I've been running batches on photos in Photoshop ALL DAY and I can't do much in InDesign at the same time on my ridiculous work computer so I've seriously read every blog in existance today.

Etsy Find of the Day: Mid West Vintage

While I love the awesome finds at Etsy store Mid West Vintage, I feel as though I couldn't pull a lot of the clothing off. I know plenty of fabulous people who could, but I'm not one of them. However, what I can get down with is some of the fantastic accessories. Here are my picks:






American West vintage purse, Navajo Belt (which makes me squeal with joy and I'm seconds away from purchasing it..ah..ah..must resist...), Country western vintage cinch belt (if it were my size it would be mine), Vintage Snakeskin Purse.