Mustachioed

Trolling around boston.com and came across this picture of my friend* Mike! He's on the left. What a surprise!



It seems the Boston Globe has discovered a hip new trend that they've dubbed "mustache madness". Give me a break. Mike is cool. The Globe, however, is not.

*Actually more of an acquaintance. He's the boyfriend of a friend and he taught me how to tie a double windsor.

How low can it go?

It's a sunny day.

A sunny day that is 24 degrees, but feels like 12 degrees (thanks for the info, weather.com!). Why, oh why?!!!

I have not been riding my bike this month for a few reasons, one them being these frigid temps. I've ridden my bike during the winter in past years, but I know I'm getting weaker because the thought of getting bundled up to ride about 8 miles (more or less) into work (work! ugh!) is severely depressing.

If I was to toughen up and ride my bike, say, tomorrow, I would find major inspiration from this post on fopsanddandies.



Kudos and tally-ho to all you commuters, bike messengers and other brave souls who are riding your bikes this winter!

A Grand Time

This past Saturday was the Grand Opening of Grand, a new store in Somerville. The store carries a lot of items that have popped up on designsponge, notcot, and other design/decorating blogs in the past year. Which is just fine. I was happy to take a look at some Nantaka Joy notebooks in person as I've admired them online for quite some time. I was also jazzed to see a t-shirt version of my "Flock" print by Wayne Pate.

The space that Grand occupies is killer -- it was once a nickelodeon theatre, then a restaurant and auto repair shop. The building was gutted and renovated and Grand is now on the first floor. It's an open space and the owners have used that to their advantage, installing large vinyl pieces as wall art.

The horse wall behind two very lovely visitors.

I'm happy to see labors of love such as Grand open throughout Boston -- we need more of these places around! I just hope they last. I'm encouraged by the fact that in addition to stocking some excellent home goods and clothes, Grand will also show works by local artists. Since the owners themselves are local designers and artists, this makes sense. I hope their store is a success and that it turns into a destination! Now, if only Somerville was a little closer to JP.

Wise words from the T

Yesterday morning a slightly frustrated and mostly bemused T instructor encouraged folks to get in the train to clear the doors. She did this about 5 times, but never lost her cool. Once everyone was in and the doors closed she said something so refreshing:

"Let's just try an' have a good day."

Words to remember in the chilly days ahead (20 degrees?! and wind?! really?! oh lord).

Thanks Notcot

For leading me to this. And then this.
It's images like these that make me consider moving back to California.

So far

A few of my favorite pieces from the pre-fall collections.

Balenciaga!




Those slouchy boots give me the creeps, but I adore those ankle boots with the silver square toe. That vest on top of the cardi -- wonderful combination! I love the overall mix of textures and layers and the fact that, even with those two elements at play in most pieces, it avoids being clunky.


Lanvin!



That first dress is oh so relaxed and nonchalant. And I could LIVE in that brown-ish coat. I wouldn't even need a bag, what with all those pockets!

More to come, folks.

Credits: style.com

New Nina

I was smitten by the Spring 08 Nina Ricci RTW collection:

And there are certainly a few lust-worthy items in Olivier's Pre-Fall 08 collection for Nina Ricci:

But overall I found the collection underwhelming. And doesn't this piece* remind you of Prada's Fall 2007 RTW collection:

* Despite the critique, I do like this NR dress. Perhaps the similarity between the two lies solely in the fabric or technique used to treat the fabric. I suppose I could do some research to find out...or someone out there could just tell me! Does the Nina dress involve felting? The top looks felted to me. Will we see more of these textures on the runways?

Credits: style.com

Fictional lamps

The 2006 movie Stranger than Fiction was rather unfortunate.* The movie itself is unforgettable, but over a year after watching it I can't forget one thing about it -- the lamps! The set decorator, Ford Wheeler, did an outstanding job of furnishing the set with some of the most gorgeous lamps I've ever seen. Harold Crick's minimalist apartment was littered with mid-century modern light fixtures and furniture. Ana Pascal's colorful apartment had a stunning collection of whimsical and eclectic lamps.

I'm not kidding, these lamps are still on my mind. Apparently others were just as impressed with the set design as I was, and still am.

Sadly, a quick search of the interweb for images of these sets proved fruitless. Here's a (very small) picture of Harold and Ana instead.

If anyone knows anything about these fictional lamps, pass it on!

* Will Ferrell is a comedian, not an actor. Occasionally those identities overlap, but that is not the case with our man Will. His performance felt empty and awkward. Maggie Gyllenhaal and Emma Thompson were both gems, of course.

Opening credits

I am so inspired by the creative minds behind some of my favorite blogs, I felt the need to join the class and participate. So here goes. Sometimes I'll raise my hand and chime in, though I may just sit in the back and observe from time to time. I'll share those quiet observations as they come.

In any case, what am I doing here? I find that I'm interested in everything that creates a scene, in a movie, in a day, in a life. I'm attracted to the textures of the costumes, the witty dialogue, the mid-century lamp in the background, the tropical scenery that at once creates a sense of melancholy and joy. Rather than creating a blog about everything I'd like to create one dedicated to mise en scene -- not as intimidating as everything to be sure, but much more scenic!