just in time

it is snowing outside, just in time for me to leave... 

im doing my last packing inside, where it's cozy, listening to etta james and looking at the snow and making the lighting just how i like it to be. i know, so sappy. 

davis square gets better each time i come back- most recently, a new speakeasy type bar called saloon opened up in a basement space.  it was lovely- dark wood bar and wall moldings and warm crimson oriental rugs scattered about.  dim light, jazz music- you know, the kind of place where someone might in all seriousness wear a vest or bowtie or fishnets and fit in just fine.  highly recommended for that perfect mix of relaxed and still 'out and about.'

thank you to penney and linda for a lovely hour of tea and cookies yesterday afternoon- i loved helping you pin images to the design board for the new show and catching up.  forever thank you for the impact you have had on my life in such a short amount of time of knowing each other!  also wonderful to catch up with joanna (kurkowicz), and get my hands on her new album.  i was sorry to have missed nancy bauer who is on leave, but am definitely paying her homage by finally working my way through simone de beauvoir. 

being in boston: orchestrating a lasagne dinner with lots of sous chefs, going to burlington to lunch on lobster rolls and wagyu sliders with kathryn and evan near their work (going to burlington is absolutely comical every time, i am just such a fish out of water there), meeting up with sharon by her work in the north end to have lunch with her at boston sail loft, visiting all my old employers at shops, and just in general be back and live with friends and be free to do as i please. 

getting on a plane (again!) tonight, heading back to san francisco for a few weeks before i head out to tokyo. let's see how many coats i'm going to have to wear tonight through security to get my luggage to not be overweight. at least it's actually cold here...

back in boston

i'm sitting here, on evan and sharon's incredibly comfy couch, back in somerville for one last time...for, i'm guessing, quite a while.

davis square feels very small. it got me thinking about how anonymity can make people feel free; you aren't held accountable to (aka compared with) someone you were yesterday; you are free to be completely new every day. for me, anyway, it feels like some level of being a nobody makes me feel like i can grow and develop most naturally.  and, of course, without having to make small talk with a million acquaintances. i guess the moral of the story is, i don't want to live in a small town at this point in my life, especially if i've already lived there before!

so, i was reading blogs this morning (as i regularly do), and a blogger mentioned something about clothing being "locationally relevant." this is exactly what i have been talking about.  especially with multiple cities on one agenda, one has to think about practicality and also relevance, and then overlap so you don't end up with a ton of overweight baggage charges (which i also regularly do, and then unpack and repack on the airport floor). 

for example, this year, i think i will do a much better job of packing for japan (wearing denim in sapporo just did not feel relevant or appropriate at all). washington d.c. was still a wardrobe mess- what i now realize would have been perfect is a military-style parka, maybe in an olive green or dusty gray.  i don't own one, but i think it would also be great for san francisco, so i'll be on the lookout. my two outerwear options that i had with me, a leather jacket and a full length coat with fur, were perfect for new york but made me feel positively ludicrous in d.c. amongst polar fleece and suits. 

the thing is, it's not really about blending in, because i wouldn't necessarily wear polar fleece nor a suit.  but, it is about thinking about how your personal taste can be relevant within a certain environment. it's about being yourself while still engaging in and being present with the world around you.  being on the same wavelength, i suppose. so, here is to locationally relevant dressing. 

on another note, i bought simone de beauvoir's "the second sex" at strand in nyc...i'm working my way through it. i'm still in the parts about biology and ancient history about women in tribes and such- and so far, have found the information to be relevant to things i've learned in class but not to things in my own life- but i have a feeling that as i keep plodding along through the pages, this will change. 

Washington, D.C.

Being in Washington has been marked mostly by late night dinners and catching up with friends.  Nearly the whole Fairmount crew was reunited this weekend, and we spent lots of time doing nothing in the apartments of those who live here, pretty much ignoring the world outside.  We attempted to go to one museum on Friday, but as a group were more interested in the food trucks...however, the botanical garden greenhouse museum thing managed to be somewhat of a hit (there are lots of benches and you don't have to read much...American History Museum was well done but felt too much like being in class for most of us). 

Friday night we went back to a place we all had dinner at over the summer, Oyamel.  It is a sensuous spanish tapas place with orange petals lining the ceilings like a carpet of flowers and white candles dripping wax everywhere with infamous pitchers of margaritas.  We spent hours and hours there, per usual. 

After walking around ALL the monuments, Saturday night we went to Founding Farmers- industrial interiors with exposed beams and pipes lit with candles with fabulous southern food.  I had pot roast; it positively melts.  I would highly recommend both of these places for anyone visiting D.C.!

Now, just relaxing for a bit with Peter, Angela, and the kids, until I go to Boston on Wednesday.  I have lots of work and play to do there. Stay tuned. 

i love how straightforward you are

really, where else would you see this?

"the jealous husband" necklace at the met 

valentines get delivered via bus

dinner i made for meredith and zeb: pork loin, wild rice with cranberries and walnuts, salad, and california wine

hmmmm

lower east side, near my favorite tailor (hemmed 2 pants in 30 mins for $10), orchard tailor by fabian.

the perfect valentine

another few wonderful days in new york...the city lends itself to settings either massive or intimate, because there isn't the physical room for much in between. either you're at dinner in a tiny restaurant with one or two close friends, or you're at a huge city-wide event. either way, you're anonymous. as much as i love seeing all of my friends, and leisurely dinner parties, somehow new york isn't quite the place for that.  you need more space and more time for groups of 5 or 10 because walking and decision making become lethargic.

yesterday, meredith and i went to the museum of the city of new york to see a special exhibit on cecil beaton (fashion photographer, writer, socialite, costume designer). we then went on a stroll in central park, by the reservoir. the water looked beautiful next to the barren-ness of everything else. we then went out to lunch. it was nice to spend that time with her.

today, i sent my first suitcase from new york back to california. i am beyond excited to have all of my belongings in one place, and really set up shop (aka home), but i will be very sorry to leave this place.

i met up with lia at le singe vert, a little bistro seemingly plopped directly from paris into chelsea. we talked everything over beet salad and mussels mariniere.  we then headed over to the museum at FIT to see their new exhibit on american designers.  i saw the most exquisite red dress with folds of tulle swathing the ankles, and decided that if i ever walk down the aisle someday, it just might have to be in red (although i've long been somewhat anti-white dresses...).

as we left the museum we found a huge truck with clear siding, and inside was a free makeover station happening in promotion of covergirl / polyvore. after some free goodies and painted faces, we headed over to mood in the garment district to see what all of the hullabaloo over a fabric store was about. we browsed the isles (i looked for some lace trim for a blouse of mine and lia fell in love with a certain bluish grey marc jacobs wool) for a while, and then decided it was high time for dessert.

as we headed over to a train station, we stopped in a fur shop in the garment district.  we had to be buzzed in, and the shopkeeper was very wary of us (as if we didn't know fur was expensive!).  after a few minutes, she relaxed, and we tried on some hats.  i love random spontaneous things like that that you find in new york. we hopped on the train to the lower east side (i'm starting to think that here and the east village might be my favorite parts of manhattan...it's all interconnected with chinatown and little italy and is chock full of hidden streets and small gems...i just love it). we sat at peels, and shared elderflower tea and a sundae with salted caramel over candlelight.

valentine's day is very prominent in new york, the flowers spilling into the sidewalks from the bodegas, the bright foil balloons taking up space on the subway.  for me, at the end of the day, it's about spending meaningful time with those people you choose to spend the time in your life with, no matter what day of the year it is.  but since it does happen to be valentine's day today, i will say this-  i really couldn't have asked for a better valentine. thank you, new york, for another perfect day. 

at the met

me, sitting in a gallery at the met, happy as can be. 

white jeans / black suede fringe booties (that i have been wearing nonstop since december) / blue snakeskin silk headscarf / black envelope purse / my nana's wool and fur princess coat

you make me want to wear black leather

new york makes me want to wear a lot of black leather and do silly things like drink kombucha for lunch. if you don't know what that is, look it up.

san francisco makes me want to wear blue denim. i usually opt for black denim, so this is a change in mood.

boston makes me want to wear things i no longer have any desire to wear- like cardigans.

d.c.- well, i have no idea. somehow black hasn't fit the bill in the past, which is problematic since most of my wardrobe is black.

i always feel at home in every city (save for tokyo, maybe, when i feel the need to cover up more) in a perfect slightly sheer white tee shirt.

new york, i love the way you make me walk with a strong gait and the way you make me want to do my hair-- really really messy; nothing too precious. if you can even call that "doing" your hair. 

my kind of lazy day

Never have I slept so well in New York!  I woke up at 10, and had an open day ahead of me- with no worries about work or figuring out my life or being particularly productive.  My only motivation was pleasure.

I decided that today wasn't a museum day.  That felt too much like something I would do if I felt like I had to "make the most of" my time here.  But somehow being here felt like home, coming back to an old friend, this time without the same sort of pressures as I had in the fall- so accordingly, I spent the morning lazing about, listening to the street sounds, basking in the sun streaming through the one small crack between the buildings, and doing a bit of unpacking and repacking of my belongings here.  At about one o'clock, after filling a small duffel of things I didn't feel were worth shipping across the country, I headed downtown to Buffalo Exchange.  I spent my sweet time in the store. It's easy to be relaxed when you have no time pressure- long lines? No problem.  Want to look through every last garment on the racks?  As you wish.

I did a satisfying trade at Buffalo, always a great feeling when you get some interesting new pieces for old duds without spending a penny.  Then, I looked for food- I hopped into City Bakery totally expecting the full spread to be available at 4 o'clock.  I guess even in New York that's kinda late to be eating lunch.  So, I headed over to Souen to have my favorite jappa soup- a light, brothy concoction with fresh white fish and chock full of steamed vegetables and fresh grated ginger (see below!).  It wasn't super cold today, but the hot broth was really perfect.

I really wanted to spend the rest of my day in bookstores. I met up with Lia in Union Square after my meal and we headed over to Strand, where I finally found a beautiful vintage copy of The Second Sex (Simone de Beauvoir).  While Lia went to church, I sat in The Coffee Bean across the street with my camomile tea and new book. After church, we wandered around some more, and ended up bursting in the doors at Screaming Mimi's (vintage shop) just a few minutes before closing.  It was great to remember where things were, like where to drop off Buffalo's rejects (Goodwill around the corner), where to feed myself some decent and not overpriced food, where the bookstores are, or where the closest J.Crew is (haha, I definitely got my shopping down from all of those returns this fall!).

At around eight, we called it a night (how healthy and early!) and I came home, caught up with Meredith and Zeb, and plan to put myself in bed for another nice early night.  It's nice to be in New York for pleasure, but know my way around somewhat- not be a tourist, but not have to be a workhorse, either.

It's no fun to be forced to have a slow day if that's not where your pace wants to be that day- but having a leisurely day without feeling constrained by anything at all is really lovely.  I bought myself a week long unlimited metro card- I think it will be put to good use, because my kind of leisurely required 4 subway trips today. Maybe spontaneous is more the word. Who knows.

back in new york city

View from my jetblue window- greeted after a fitful night's sleep with a new york sunrise.

It seems so natural to be back here. Nothing at the apartment has changed- Maya the cat greeted me with her usual haughty-ness, and I promptly took a shower and started laundry as if I was coming home.

Lia and I decided to meet up at the Crosby Street Hotel, where they have a beautifully rich yet relaxed lounge / tearoom, where we are basked in warm light leaning on jewel toned upholstery with views of floor to ceiling windows overlooking a courtyard.  At $5 per pot of tea (we got one fresh lemon verbena and one berry blossom), what better place to catch up with old friends?

It started gently snowing outside (just enough for it to be beautiful, not past that thank goodness as we weren't properly dressed for real snow)! We strolled around SoHo in the snowflakes then headed to Brooklyn to cook at Lia's house for dinner.  She lives with an eclectic old woman in a crookedly beautiful brownstone in Brooklyn Heights.  We ate previously frozen ravioli with a made up sauce of olives and red peppers, very reminiscent of college, but made that much more classy with a bit of seltzer, good candlelight, and lack of talk about mundane things like work and weather.

I took the train home, just like it used to be. I caught up a bit with Zeb, it was nice to see him, and then went to bed early with full intention of sleeping for 12 hours.  It was weird being back here so quickly, so naturally, where the doormen all still remember my face and welcome me gracious swift openings of double doors, especially since the trip was so painless- 3,000 miles away, in just the blink of an eye.

Glassblowing

Had a fantastic time glassblowing today-

Something I had wanted to do forever, and finally had the opportunity to do it! I did a 6-hour one-day workshop at Public Glass in SF.  It was an intimate group of 3 students with one instructor.  I actually blew bubbles into molten glass to make a tumbler and a papeweight!  the activity was quite a bit more athletic than I had anticipated- lots of lifting hot glass on a stick (leverage!), working against gravity, walking quickly from one work station to another, and standing close to furnaces burning at thousands of degrees.