interior design envy

this is what i aspire to create for myself: malene birger's copenhagen home



my bedroom is decorated in damask and toile patterns. the color palette is exclusively white and black save for two small throw pillows that are fuschia on one side and a tufted tuffet (see previous post for a picture) in pistachio.
i have been thinking about including different textures by adding a faux fur rug or throw and perhaps driftwood or birchwood logs.









i would also gladly add a few pairs of chanel shoes to my decor.

thank god for the lovely red dolls/decorating with books

My roommates and I recently hosted a 1950s-60s theme party inspired in part by our household addiction to Mad Men but mostly by a sweaty slipster 50s, 60s and 70s dance party we attended in Nashville at a sweet little hipster dive bar. Everything from the hairdos to the hors-d'oeuvres were meticulously researched to be era-appropriate. One partygoer who described himself as "a friend of a friend of a friend. You probably don't know me" informed me that he had been giving tours of someone's bedroom as an example of a "typical girl's bedroom. You know, the one with the copy of Valley of the Dolls." I was so distraught at the possibility that my room could possibly be typical and distracted by his spectacular pair of 1950s spectacles a la Harry Crane that I failed to consider how weird and creepy it was that a stranger was giving tours of my bedroom.

for bridge and rlday, who are the only people who read my blog even after it has remained dormant for, like, three months

I was sitting at my laptop in a sweatshirt and jeans IN JULY at 8:00am on a Wednesday procrastinating and hating this godforsaken corner of america that now apparently has 2 seasons: freezing fucking cold and disgusting sortof cold, WHEN I decided to google interior design porn. Who doesn't like creative porn on hump day? Anyway, there's this really amazing food porn site so, I figured maybe someone had done this with interior design. I was afraid (see: hoping) I would end up with like 57 bazillion porn results but instead since the googles is good at synonyms, a link to obscene interiors popped up. I thought it was pretty hilarious and then when I got to the end of the pictures Dave Eggers told me it was hilarious, so I knew that it definitely was hilarious and that I am brilliant and an aesthete. The guy who wrote it also has a blog which has thus far left me crying with laughter. Thank you, Justin Jorgensen for giving me the gift of laughter in the wake of the loss of Michael Jackson, if just for a few fleeting moments.

art makes legalese a little...easier

Aspirational rights and legal systems are complicated and often dry. We Are All Born Free takes the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, admittedly a fairly comprehensible document but not all that exciting if you aren't a lawyer or activist, and makes a colorful and engaging set of rights accessible even to children. Maira Kalman, an author, illustrator and designer is currently publishing monthly columns in the New York Times Op-Extra section online about American democracy. Her quirky, matter-of-fact observations about the history and current state of the American legal system add a dimension of humanity to the supreme and beauty to the mundane.

This children's book is appropriate for human rights advocates of all ages.

Each human right enumerated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is illustrated by a different artist. The proceeds from the sale of the book go to Amnesty International.

Maira Kalman is the author and illustrator of "And the Pursuit of Happiness"
about American democracy published in the New York Times.

After a visit to the Supreme Court, and the office of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Maira Kalman thinks about law, decision-making and women breaking barriers.

water water everywhere but not a drop to drink

Currently

reading: Choke by Chuck Palaniuk... between Choke and Fight Club I can't help but wonder how many sex-narcotics-alcoholics-etc anonymous meetings he has attended for "research" purposes.

thrilled about: free potable water and the end of that don't drink the water davematthews song looping in my brain! good riddance copepods and rotifers.
we can finally do this again:

celebrating: the 20th Anniversary of Sheff v. O'Neill

paranoid about: Swine Flu...ew, or should I say, oink

Everything is blooming most recklessly

elizabeth park, hartford, ct
march 15th or so

the roses are still a few months from blooming

but the greenhouse is in full effect

pineapple plant

bird of paradise flower

two lips

because I am a 16 year old girl...

Ed Westwick
English actor best known for his role as Chuck Bass in the main cast on the American television series Gossip Girl. He is also the lead singer of the English indie rock band The Filthy Youth.

woody allen and wanderlust

I recently watched Vicky Cristina Barcelona. Actually, I watched it twice in one weekend. I have never been one to watch just any movie repeatedly and certainly never in such quick succession. Typically, I am easily bored upon the second viewing, however a few films are able to capture my attention time again. It met and exceeded my hopes for the film, proving to be the artsy, passionate and wine soaked romp in Barcelona that the trailers promised and reminding me of the the wit and quirk Woody Allen's omnipresent voice (which in this case comes in the form of Christopher Evan Welch* narrating) brings to his films. Allen never allows romance or idealism to bloom eternal or unblemished. I will say that the narration is a bit jarring at first but I came to the conclusion that the juxtaposition between the practical and omniscient voice of the narrator and the fantastical and naively impulsive characters created a compelling tension.
Penelope Cruz's performance alone could warrant a repeat viewing of the film. Without having seen the films that her fellow contenders for best supporting actress acted in, it is unfair of me to say that she surely deserved the Oscar but I can say that her wild eyed, hot and hot tempered, intensely emotional portrayal of Maria Elena is one of the most arresting performances I have ever watched and one of my favorite film characters.
The film was full of Spanish guitar and giant canvases dotted, daubed and splashed with ochre, searing white and fiery red. The artwork featured in the film is that of Agusti Puig, a Catalan artist hailing from a small industrial town called Sabadell who has exhibited at galleries all over Spain, in London, New York City, Washington, D.C., France, Portugal, Japan and at esteemed international art fairs.

One of the most subtly sensuous and melancholy moments in the film takes place during a performance of Spanish guitar by Emilio de Benito.



To reign in the tempest of wanderlust and bohemian living that the film stirred up in me I have been listening to Rodrigo y Gabriela and taking paint to canvas despite not having the least idea what I am doing. Someone please make law school end so that I can flit about for a little while.

*Incidentally, Welch plays the role of the pastor in Synecdoche, NY, a film I absolutely must see again more so because I need to decide whether or not I loved it or was utterly bewildered by it. At least some of the bewilderment can be attributed to the fact that I dozed off somewhere in the middle of the film, which has far more to do with my own mild case of narcolepsy than the quality of the film.