1,2,3,4 I love Feist and Sesame Street even more...

This vid has been around for some time, but I just stumbled upon it, amaz.

We love Stephen Sprouse

Concentrating, 1990
Christy Turlington for Stephen Sprouse, Fall 1990
Photographer, Lucian Perkins

More on Sprouse and LV's new tribute collection, website and book over on ChicShopper.

Now walk it out, single ladies

Deb just brought this video to my attention.


Thank you D. This is on a whole other level.

Love is blind

I am obsessed with this ring from Bittersweets NY. Diamonds spell out "Love is Blind" in braille.



Get it? Blind? Braille? Ok, just checking.

California dreamin on such a winter's day

Saturday Deb and I hosted a trunk show for the very cute Napa boutique Cake Plate which is owned by our friend Paige's sister.

The event featured cupcakes, champagne and some very cute clothes.

Deb and I actually hung up some pictures in our apartment. A mere 6 months after moving in.

I was a good recessionista and convinced myself this bracelet would make a better DIY project than purchase...

On Sunday Olive had her first day at the dog beach down in Del Mar! OMGGGGG.

The little pup was such a Nervous Nancy when we first got there and wouldn't leave my side. It was pretty funny. Finally she got a little brave and started running around and exploring with Dakotah and Lily... and then she fell into a tide pool!

SO BUMMED I did not get it on video, it was hilarious. Little wet pup.


She kept climbing up onto rocks and then would be too scared to get down, so time after time I had to pick her up, navigating the water in my wellies. She obviously has me trained better than I her.

Gina and I of course took a million pictures like the annoying pet moms we are...

I was pretty soaked by the time we left so X got me some carne asada chips and horchata and I was happppppy. So was the pup, she slept the whole way back to LA.

A feeling of accomplishment makes for a happy Friday...

Life as a garmento isn't always easy. In fact, it is downright miserable at times, especially in this economy. But every now and then, you see something come to life that you busted your butt to make happen and the feeling is WONDERFUL. AMAZING. B.A.N.A.N.A.S. I was reminded today that I get to CREATE for a living... which is pretty fucking awesome.

La Cage aux Folles

Chema Madoz "Untitled"
His exhibition "Objects" is at the Duncan Miller Gallery in LA until 12/27...
This barbwire birdcage evokes Magritte's famous "Treachery of Images". It is and it isn't...

I like to have my cake and eat it too...

This image makes me want to start singing the Divinyls. French Playboy is just toooo f'in cool for school. Lily Cole, my girl-crush Lou Doillon, the super awesome Anouck Lepere and now this bananas Marie Antoinette spread of actress Emma De Caunes. Would it be wrong to get the bf a subscription?

Why oh whyyyyyy?!

Agyness Deyn, you make me want to gouge my eyeballs out. Please go away...

Photo Cred: Jezebel

Baby, baby, baby

The bf and I haven't stopped singing this to each other ever since we saw this amazing episode together a few weeks ago... Classic.

But I love the music make you feel so high high high.

Saturday night we went to the Grand Reopening of the Hollywood Palladium. Slightly Stoopid and Bad Brains, tix thanks to Controlled Substance Soundlabs and the bf.

Ummm mosh pit? That sheeet is stooooopid. Pun intended.

What other shoes would I wear to a Slightly Stoopid show?

After drinking our dinner, we decided to make Cactus our dessert before heading to the after party.

... And then it started drizzling and the food comas set in. There ain't no after-party like a puppy-cuddle party anyhow.

Hot Child in the City. Runnin' Wild and Lookin' Pretty.

Organizing my iPhoto and came across these, oldies but oh so goodies. I heart MK.

You know you're not in high finance. Considering second hand underpants.

Ya'll will be very jealous to know that I attended a FotC concert this past May and somehow ended up at the afterparty with my friend Aviv, we chowed down on free Mexican food aaannnnd even talked to Jemaine and Bret (who I am pretty sure did not think we were very cool, but whatev). BUT what I want to know is, when the heck is this show going to be back on my teeveee??!

I'm in a New York State of Mind...

Image: Rodney Smith via Snippet & Ink

Recessionista

Now that it's official...

Image Cred: Vogue UK October 2008, shot by Mario Testino via EToday

Rise and SHINE!

Had a hell of a time dragging myself out of bed this morning. Coffee with soy milk almost gone, still not quite ready for my close-up...
Image Cred: Echo Morgan

Fashion Fades. Style is Eternal. ~YSL

It is without fail that YSL's ad campaigns, season after season, are some of my favorites. Kate Moss desperately waiting to be let inside of a store in the house's spring/ summer 08 campaign inspired a blunt bang shortcut that took me a few awkward months to grow out, and I still do image searches for the ads occasionally, for inspiration as well as just the fun of looking at them. Fashion porn if you will. In the campaign for spring/ summer 09, it is not a YSL store but the Hollywood sign that plays a starring role along side a supermodel. Shot by Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin, with guidance from Stefano Pilati, the campaign is called "Y's Up". If this shot of Schiffer, statuesque in front of the Hollywood "Y" is any indication, these advertisements won't disappoint. Hoooray for the return of the supermodel!
Image Cred: WWD

Wardrobe Malfunction?

A Janet Jackson moment is more classy than crass with the addition of Chanel Fine Jewelry. Image from Ten Magazine Summer 2006. When the internet is down at work, the old fashion mags come out to keep me company...

Lil' Miss Consumerist: Betty Pepper

I love to go and browse through the pretty pictures on NOTCOUTURE, tempting my little materialistic brain with lovely things I don't need at all but thanks to the website's pretty polaroids, suddenly desperately want. As I am currently stuck in the airport, waiting for my very delayed flight, with only my brand spankin' new macbook (Hanukah came early this year!) to keep me company, of course I'm participating in a little online window shopping. 


These rings are made out of pages of books and are my latest NOTCOUTURE crush. Their style name is Love's Labour Lost. Swoooon, I loves it. UK jewelry designer Betty Pepper's designs, and the materials she uses, such as books and vintage textiles in muted colors are relentlessly romantic. Have an old novel or piece of clothing with sentimental value you would like turned into a keepsake necklace or ring? You're in luck, as pieces can be commissioned. Her website is also a great place to get some DIY inspiration...

Willoooooowwww

Watching Willow has become a sort of Thanksgiving tradition in my family, which is either incredibly nerdy or totally awesome depending on your point of view. Ron Howard, George Lucas, a pre-flab Val Kilmer, fairies, hobbits, an evil queen, drunken brownies, sorcery, an unlikely love story and good prevailing over evil?...
I'm gonna go with totally awesome, thanks.

P.S. Val Kilmer married his on-screen love interest Sorsha ( Joanne Whalley) in real life and had 2 kids with her. He is also a Christian Scientist, which is pretty weird. I pass on this random trivia for your next cocktail party courtesy of pop guru Chuck Klosterman's IV: A Decade of Curious People and Dangerous Ideas, an awesome read. As this book is a collection of Klosterman's work for different periodicals, you can read the Val Kilmer chapter on Esquire.com.

Mika Ninagawa

I have fallen in love with the saturated hues of Japanese modern artist Mika Ninagawa's photography. As a flower-child Pisces, I couldn't be happier with her chosen subject matter: flowers, goldfish and portraits of women:
You can learn all about her collaboration with Shu Uemura over at ChicShopper.

Shameless Puppy Promotion

These pictures of Olive bugging the much older and wiser Luann courtesy of my bf's iPhone.

Captive on the Carousel of Time

Back in the good ole days, 2007 to be exact, I used to post random musing, rants and other nonsense on this blog. I was then offered a chance to write the fashion blog on Pricegrabber.com, ChicShopper (I highly suggest you check out this awesome blog, the author is totally cute and fashion savvy if I do say so myself), offering my insight into trends, clothing and the like to their shopppers. The days went by and life takes over and it seemed that the only blogging I really had time to commit to was for ChicShopper. So Valley of the Blogz fell by the wayside and I eventually hid all my posts as the thought of my unfinished ramblings existing in blogosphere purgatory rather depressed me. As much as I love the writing I do on ChicShopper, I have been sort of yearning for a more personal place to post my thoughts, especially the types of things that have no place on a fashion blog, such as shameless gushing over cute pics of my puppy or photos of an absolutely wicked good dinner the bf and I cooked up. So I guess I'm admitting to a bit of blogger-narcissism, assuming that someone, somewhere actually cares enough to check into Valley of the Blogz and see what book I am reading, what song is stuck in my head, or just how much I love Chuck Bass. BTW...

Then again, I could just posit that this blog is a meant for my number one fan, the woman who reads every single one of my ChicShopper posts despite thinking my taste is just a little too expensive: my mother. So this one's for you Momma. And now that we've got the awkward first-blog-post-why-am-I-writing-this explanation out of the way, let's get on with the cute puppy pics!!! And don't worry, all posts of yummy dinners made by me will include recipes...