Cher and the Toni-less Dress

That time of year again when we all don our best gown for walking down the red carpet with all the other famous and fabulous celebrities, party all night, and are soooo glad we prepared an acceptance speech in advance.  It saved a lot of time up there at the podium.  NOT!!!!!!!

I love this time of year.  We get to watch all the celebrities walk down the red carpet, dressed to the nines, with fabulous makeup, jewelry, and clothing to die for.  Okay, so maybe that last part is not quite the truth.  Come on, admit it.  You are one of those people who gets on the internet  or watches the Joan Rivers program and checks out who was best dressed and who was the worst dressed, cuz, honey, there is waaaaaay more of the latter than the former.  I know I check it out.  But it is one of the most fun things to do at an Oscar party: Rate the Outfits!!!

There are always the perennially well dressed and then there are... well, people you know you can count on to wear pretty much anything that shows complete lack of not only fashion sense but common sense.  Does the word "Cher" bring up any fond memories??  Or the now infamous sort-of-gown worn by Toni Braxton, the woman with that sultry, sexy alto voice, who decided that she needed to wear as little as possible to an awards ceremony.  Lordy, it was bad.  I would post a picture of it here, but I don't want anyone to say they got PTSS from a post on my blog.  If you are looking for that special dress, get it goin' with this smart satin number from Unforgerttable Vintage.https://www.etsy.com/listing/88956195/old-hollywood-glamour-1930s-diva-bias?ref=shop_home_active_24



One thing we can count on is absolute fabulous bling to be worn by all female stars.  Harry Winston and Van Clef and Arpels get most of the attention.  I personally hope to be buried in anything either one of them make.  Of course, I would have to cash in my life insurance prior to my demise to afford said jewelry, proving you can take it with you. I was in Paris not too long ago and Van Clef and Arpels had a necklace in the window that retailed for about $1M.  I did not buy it but I took a really good picture of it. Now I am going to photoshop it and make sure I am standing proudly in a picture wearing the bling to end all bling.  The miracles of technology..... but to be sure you have some great bling, cruise over to DanPickedMinerals, where you will need a dainty little something to wipe the drool off your face after perusing Dan's sight.  Check out this:
https://www.etsy.com/listing/152141110/vintage-18k-gold-cartier-ladies-watch?ref=shop_home_active_24

You know you want it........


Makeup is usually pretty good too. Kiss, the rock group, has shown up for years in their usual facial splendor. Personally, I think they need a new look.  I always like to see the glamorous old Hollywood look, with the big, long eyelashes and matte makeup.  They were all so...well, just glamorous.  That is what Hollywood was and pretty much still is.

If you want to get dolled up, girls, check it out at KeepingitNatural.  Linda Hoffman, a woman who worked in the cosmetic industry when I did and now has her own line of gorgeous cosmetics, has this great cake mascara.  Now you can get those fab lashes for yourself.  I like cake mascara because it comes off much easier.
https://www.etsy.com/listing/82306520/creamy-cake-black-mascara-mineral?ref=shop_home_feat_1


Well, get ready for a really fun evening because I have seen several of the movies up for all sorts of categories and this year offers some great choices.  Have a fun evening everyone and stay glamorous!!!

Man and the Common Cold

WARNING:  This post is not for the Manly Men out there...                                

My husband came down with a mild case of the flu the other day, and being the Good Wife that I am, I became his primary caretaker.  Any married female knows exactly where this post is going........

Yeah, yeah, I know, you think this post is a gripe session; it's not. It's about pointing out the obvious and how we got there.  I often wonder why our significant others simply cannot conceive of who actually suffers the most when they get a cold or some other minor malady.  Okay, that is a lie.  I really never thought about it until I did this post.  Be that as it may, I think the question is how did we allow ourselves to be put in this position?  Is it nature, you know, the nester thing??  Is it the hunter/gatherer thing? Is it because we birthed them babies or are we caretakers by nature?  I challenge that last theory because, although I love my husband dearly, I have a very low tolerance for the whining and blow by blow description of his Disease of the Day.  Alas, I feel I am slipping into the abyss of, as Henry Higgins of My Fair Lady fame said, Why Can't a Woman Be More Like a Man???  If we stick with Professor Higgins' theory, most everyone would have selective hearing, make loud and obnoxious bodily omissions, know every baseball stat but forget to take out the trash, and worst of all, always leaves the toilet seat in the upright position.  I can't even imagine that.  Someone has to stay sane for the sake of humanity.

This is my first and last marriage, so having no experience on which to base my theory  -- wait, do I have a theory yet?? -- I called upon my longtime married girlfriends for a reference point.  Geez, I didn't realize that men had so much in common, other than being men.  I also didn't realize my friends also suffered when their spouses became ill with the slightest malady. Hmmmm....

So let's examine all the above theories I have not challenged.  How about the nester-thing theory?  Nope, think that is about when children leave home.  Then again, my dogs make their own little nests and leave really nasty stuff in it, so that really disproves that theory. Then we have the hunter/gatherer theory.  I think that is about men providing food and women like to go to the mall and exercise the credit card, something like that.  Again, not applicable. Which leaves us to the last theory... maybe the correct theory since I have previously stated I have no tolerance for whining.  I think the Birthing the Baby theory is the best explanation.  I have no children, no maternal instinct, so this leads me to believe that, in reality, women have done this to themselves.  Yes, I hear you from here, saying I am but a traitor to womankind.  But you know I am right.  We give birth to them, nurture those little darlings until they marry someone who is not good enough for them.... but I digress.  Anyway, you get the picture.

So the next time your adoring husband becomes ill at the slightest provocation, remember, you are not alone in your suffering. And to ease the suffering of womankind, check out these fun items on Esty, sure to give comfort to ... well, whoever at your house might need it.

This hot water bottle cover is made in cashmere, yep, cashmere.  I want one and I'm not even sick.  Think about how warm and comforting this is.  This is at TrulySimple.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/175769867/100-cashmere-hot-water-bottle-cover?ref=shop_home_active_1


Or after that warm and relaxing bath you took after caring for your loved one, slather on some of this body creme, get that glass of wine you have been thinking you need since about 10:00 this morning, and get some rest!!!  You can find this at FirebirdBathBody. https://www.etsy.com/listing/85838906/snowdrift-body-lotion-avocado-and-shea?ref=shop_home_active_5.  Brooke, the owner, takes great care in her products and you can tell.


And to put all this great stuff in, check out this beautiful medicine cabinet made by Ken Thiebert at Treehouse Woodworks.  I love the reclaimed wood and the beautiful patina that comes with it.  You just can't get that at Home  Depot.   https://www.etsy.com/listing/98797825/barnwood-medicine-cabinet-hand?ref=shop_home_active_18

 

Well, back to caring for my husband, a man who deserves the Congressional Medal of Honor for staying married to me, 'cuz it ain't easy being me. 

Bubba Shrimp and a Weekend in New Orleans

I know, just the subject line of this post will make everyone curious for the mere fact it involves the words "New Orleans" as if the city holds some dark, mysterious spell over us.  Well, maybe it does.  Stuff always happens when we go down there.  It seemed like the perfect storm had landed in New Orleans last weekend.  The traffic was at a standstill, complete gridlock.  Between road construction, Valentines Day, pay day, holiday weekend, start of Mardi Gras, and NBA All Star activity, the city was wild with excitement.

The youngest of our crew (not to be confused with a Krewe, the name of float residents called "Mister") was covering the NBA activities for ESPN, so that was fun.  My husband and I stood in the wrong line at a restaurant and ended up with a wrist band that got us entry to a party given by Dwayne Wade, the Miami Heat player. I cannot tell you how great it feels to be able to write that last sentence.  It makes me feel as if I were a VIP, if only through error.

But New Orleans is a city all unto itself, having not only its own culture but a language of sorts.  Most of us when having a 35th birthday, we turn 35.  There, you "make" 35.  If you are going over to your mother's house, you are going "over by my mama's."  If you are at a Mardi Gras parade and you would like a member of the Krewe to throw you a parade trinket, you scream "Throw me something, Mister."  The male members of the Krewe prefer, if you are a female, that you do this with bared breasts..... The parades at St. Patrick's Day, my favorite parade time, you can eat for a week afterwards as they throw carrots, cabbage, potatoes, anything that involves Irish stew, from the floats.  But you have to be quick or someone will run you over for a trinket of any type.  And when asking the current location of an individual, you ask "Where Yat?"

Then there is the food.  Need I say more?  Yes because I AM writing a blog.  Anyway, they have those fabulous beignets that are big balls of fluffy dough, fried, as most everything is down there, and then lots of confectioner's sugar dusted on top.  The coffee, a blend of chicory and arabica beans, will make your hair stand on end.  Warning:  There are those who are of the mindset that this stuff tastes like floor sweepings from the sawdust mill. This coffee is not for the caffeine-challenged. Of course, there is the Heart Attack on a Plate, which is code for Anything That has Shrimp in It.  As Bubba Shrimp from Forest Gump said, "You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it. Dey's uh, shrimp-kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There's pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, shrimp sandwich. That- that's about it."

My steadfast rule of visiting New Orleans is easy:  As long as no police are involved and no one requires medical attention, all is good.  Except for that one time...... we were in town for a Saints game and decided to have a drink in a very swank hotel, but the lobby bar was closed.  We met up with a couple who had just won $20,000 at Harrahs and they were looking to celebrate.  They offered for us to go to the upstairs bar with them and drink champagne.  What's not to like about that invite???? To make a long story short, at the table next to us sat a fund raiser for the person who currently occupies a house in our nation's capital painted with a color from Duron called Whisper White (see Lounge Slipper post...).  After a slight altercation, security did have to come and physically remove her.  Oh wait, there was one other time but that's another post for another time.

There are many artists in New Orleans who make and sell wonderful items on Etsy.   One is a shop called
Broile and owner Heather Greene, now a Katrina transplant in Saint Louis, has some hauntingly beautiful photographs of the real New Orleans.  This is a shot of the oldest bar in America, Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop.  It's fun to visit but it would be best if you like biker bars.
https://www.etsy.com/listing/56963580/jean-lafittes-blacksmith-shop-new?ref=shop_home_active_6




Another fun shop that showcases a true New Orleanian is scontrino1970.  Dawn Dragon-Ericsson makes all sort of fun trinkets that are indigenous to New Orleans, but I loved this customized tile coaster.  How cool is that?  Impress your friends with your great taste with a set of these.
https://www.etsy.com/listing/173831648/custom-monogram-tile-or-coaster-set-for?ref=shop_home_active_10

Well, time to go.  I would love to hear some stories of yours about New Orleans.  That don't involve the police...

John Paul George Ringo and 57 Channels

I readily admit I can remember watching the Ed Sullivan Show 50 years ago this week, although I was in early grade school.  We  had one of those black and white televisions that everyone had and we all gathered around to watch the show.  There was no screaming in our household, just watching the screen, glued to the events unfolding in front of our eyes. Those of you reading this post and not having the good fortune to have seen it live, you missed something. They were mesmerizing.  Still are today. Perhaps it was the first reality tv programming??


That Sunday night not only changed music in America but changed us as a nation. But maybe not for the reason you think.  Sure, the Beatles gave us music we had never heard before, that beat, those lyrics, and those haircuts. The clothing was out of this world, those round necked jackets that became so fashionable the next day, the boots, still in vogue today, and they brought us an awareness of Carnaby Street, with all its wild fashions.  Remember Twiggy?  I think maybe she started the Anorexia Look. And the Stones?  They gave us the unhealthy, drug induced androgynous look.  And who can forget the Mary Quant makeup and mini skirts??? High priestess of fashion, Coco Chanel, said that men would hate mini skirts.  Don't see how someone can get any more wrong than that.  What was not to love about the '60s?


We watched television in black and white because there was no color tv yet, but the Big Screen had it, Technicolor. Useless Factoid:  Why were the beginning and ending scenes in the Wizard of Oz shot in black and white?  The technology for color film was invented during the shooting of the movie.  The first and last sequences had already been shot and the producers decided it was too expensive to reshoot in color. Go figure.

But we all don't have that love affair with the "Boob Tube."  In fact, there are plenty of songs out there, performed by famous rock 'n roll bands expressing their displeasure about said invention.  Remember Bruce Springsteen back in 1992, "57 Channels and Nothing On"?  Doubt things have changed much except there are about 500+ channels nowadays.  I think my satellite provider has at least that much.  And who can forget, through the smoke and haze of the '60s, Mick and The Stones couldn't get any satisfaction because a man came on the radio, telling them more and more, some useless information?  But I digress.... Or maybe you know about the Red Hot Chili Peppers with "Throw Away Your Television" featuring a guy named Flea, who has blue hair.  Not that there is anything wrong with blue hair.  I just thought blue hair was for little old ladies. And there is the band Violent Femmes, who sang "I Hate the TV,"  a bunch of guys that REALLY hate the tv, which is pretty much the totality of the lyrics.

But we are a nation of television watchers, like it or not.  Etsy has quite of bit of stuff out there to help us feel right at home with our favorite form of entertainment.  Check them out!!

 https://www.etsy.com/listing/114390834/reclaimed-wood-media-console-tv-stand-48?ref=shop_home_feat_2

 This is a beautiful media console, perfect for placing that oversized television on top and great storage underneath. They use reclaimed wood and doubt the pictures can really reflect how gorgeous they are.   I love this piece because it works in a lot of different looks.  I only wish I had a place to put it...... You can find it at Atlas Wood Company.


And check out the crazy fun ring with a '60s tv test pattern on it.  This is at CurioCave and they have tons of interesting jewelry. They have another one with a color tv test pattern.


https://www.etsy.com/listing/102134199/tv-television-test-pattern-indian-chief?ref=sr_gallery_24&ga_search_query=test+pattern&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_explicit_scope=1&ga_page=2&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade
                                                                                               



Well, time to sign off and relax.  Think I will settle down with a glass of wine and -- what else --my favorite tv program??

Lounge Singers Wearing Soothing Slippers

We live in a 70-year old home which, as all 70-year old homes go, is in need of constant maintenance. The prior owners seemingly spared all costs when it came to maintaining the property.  Not only that, the paint colors they chose, well, as one of my neighbors explained "looked like Early Pottery Barn." Which got me to thinking about how those hideous colors got their name. And if I told you how I once helped with a Project Nom de Plume, would you really be surprised????

In order to rid myself of the homely paint colors on my walls, I had to make a trip or two to the friendly neighborhood paint store. I have been painting my abodes since the first home I bought so this was nothing new to me.  What was new to me was the really poor painting job the previous owners left me with and desperately needed to be examined, repaired, and most every prep step you can imagine needed to be performed. Sometimes there are people who should NEVER be allowed to have a paint brush in their hands.  Where are the Paint Police when you need them?

I traversed to my closest paint store and started perusing the paint selections.  If you have not done any painting lately, gone are the days of simply slapping on some paint and calling it a day.  Now you have to choose from To Prime or Not to Prime, Gloss or Matte (which sound more like lipstick applications...) and Suede or Pebbly. And if the amount of colors isn't enough to confuse you, the names of the colors aren't just blue, green and grey.  Many of them border on absurd.  For example:

Shop 'til you Drop is a funky shade of orange, as apparently this is the color you might turn if indeed you Shop 'Til You Drop.  Who knew??  Elevator Button, a gold shade, most definitely did not light up or hit any of my buttons. Lounge Singer, a taupy grey color, which indicates what shade your skin will be if you spend much time in this occupation. Or you could combine two of them for a theme:  Soothing Slippers and Oxygen White for those who are currently residing in a setting for the medically impaired. Or the gastronomically incorrect Curry Green, which insinuates you might get ill after seeing this color since curry is a shade of golden-yellow.  One is named after an '80s rock Band, Wham, called Careless Whisper, although I did find a shade called Sigh, which is what I was doing after cruising the paint section.

My favorite is one named "Iolite." The dictionary definition of iolite is "magnesium iron aluminium cyclosilicate. Iron is almost always present and a solid solution exists between Mg-rich cordierite and Fe-rich sekaninaite with a series formula: (Mg,Fe)2Al3 to (Fe,Mg)2Al3. ..." I did not know that.......

One of my sisters used to be a commercial textile designer and as such was not only responsible for designing but naming these gems.  One collection was about the galaxy and she was stumped and also in a hurry.  Enter me and a bottle of wine (see Orson Welles post...).  I'm not sure if it was the wine or what but it sure was a whole lot harder to come up with names than one would believe.  At first, we thought and mused over the names.  Finally, when the bottle was empty -- or we got sick of the project, can't remember which  -- we just started coming up with something, anything, to fill in the blank.  Then I realized why we have Lounge Singers, Soothing Slippers, and a lot of Careless Whispering going on.

But the Lounge Singer and Soothing Slippers reminded me of our cold weather and the little ice cubes that used to be my feet.  This offering from Etsy could cure that problem for me or anyone with this malady.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/163569187/felted-slippers-orange-handmade-felt?ref=sr_gallery_13&ga_search_query=slippers&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_explicit_scope=1&ga_page=3&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade

Or just looking for some really incredible footwear to show off your splendid sartorial taste?  Check out these!
 https://www.etsy.com/listing/162427650/20off-handmade-embroidered-shoe-women?ref=sr_gallery_37&ga_search_query=slippers&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_explicit_scope=1&ga_page=3&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade


But if you are looking for something really unusual to slip on your feet, cold or not, check out these fabulous
babies, sure to make you the envy of every BFF you have. Any Lounge Singer would be proud to wear them!!!

     
https://www.etsy.com/listing/113735938/custom-styled-shoes-inspired-by-the-ruby?ref=shop_home_feat_1

This weekend I am painting one of my bathrooms with Thunder Fog.  Sigh.........

Romeo, Juliet, and Smores

This time of the year, we turn our thoughts to romance and Shakespeare said it best in his play "Romeo and Juliet," a classic love story about a guy who meets a girl, guy gets girl, guy loses girl and then they both commit suicide.  Well, maybe that last part is not so classic, but who doesn't love that story??  I think the reason love comes to the forefront of our thoughts is because we are besieged with it by the incessant advertising done by mass jewelry stores, florist shops, and Hallmark cards.  It wasn't always this way...... it began as a liturgical celebration and still is in many countries. There are many Christian martyrs named Valentine.  This is because a gentleman named Saint Valentine of Rome, during the times of the ancient Roman Empire, was unfortunately  incarcerated for performing wedding ceremonies for soldiers who were forbidden to marry.  While he was in jail , he saved the life of his jailer's daughter, sending her a love letter prior to his ultimate and unfortunate execution, signing it "Your Valentine."

Then come the Middle Ages where Geoffrey Chaucer, the author of the book we all know, love, and have probably never read, Canterbury Tales, and his group started the whole courtly love thing.  Apparently, Mr. Chaucer wrote a poem to celebrate the marriage of Richard II  to Anne of Bohemia.  (We all have probably read this poem too.....) On to 18th century England, where the industrialization of Valentines Day began.  They started making valentine cards on doilies, hand drawn pictures, and candy to seal the deal with their significant other. Come the excess of the 1980s and jewelry retailers decided it was a good time to get in on the action and persuade the buying public (men....) that women like to get shiny baubles around this time of year.  Not to say we don't like getting them at ANY time of the year, just more so at Valentines' Day to commemorate your courtly love. It's one of those '80s throw backs that still hang around.

Back to the liturgical thing mentioned earlier.  Think how great it would be if we could have yet another fully paid holiday so banks could be closed, the federal and state governments could be closed, schools would be closed and we could all sit around, celebrating our love for our significant other by giving wonderful cards, drinking wine (see earlier post about Orson Welles....) eating candy, and women would receive fabulous bling.  What a holiday! Call your Congressman/Congresswoman today and espouse your support of what could be the greatest holiday in existence.  Tell them you saw it here........

If you can't afford serious bling for your loved one, there are a lot of different and fun items on Etsy to celebrate Valentines Day.  Here are a few:

For the Adult Set, the card choices are fantastic. I can hardly wait to give one to my husband.
https://www.etsy.com/listing/120426093/valentines-day-card-adult-sexy?ref=shop_home_feat_1

If you are looking for something incredibly fun to share, try this SMores Package.  Can't you just picture Romeo and Juliet, sitting by the fire, toasting some of these?  And ooey gooey chocolate has saved more than one romance!!.
https://www.etsy.com/listing/168793449/valentines-day-artisan-smores-gift-set?ref=shop_home_feat_4

 


Until next week, Happy Valentines Day!!!!