It's been quite some time, but November and December are always a little crazy.
E has been quite busy 'making stuff'- his Exquisite City contribution and a present for his brother that shall remain a secret for the time being, shh!- so the 'make stuff' bug has rubbed off a bit.
I've been crocheting this to wear to a holiday function (going as my mom's date):
I'm working with a nice, cozy white alpaca that I just love. I bought it at Nina, on Division. Nice.
I also made a skirt using Jenny from Wiksten's pattern in Stitch. Supersoft pinwale corduroy from Vogue...buttons that I covered in fabric myself and yet...The skirt does not fit well, but that's my fault. Such poor seamstress skills. I hate when I put so much effort in to something and it just doesn't turn out right. For now it's in my closet, awaiting a fresh eye.
Dear Village Discount,
It has been a long, rocky relationship, but we're through. At first you had so much to offer- your racks were plentiful and color-coordinated, your purses didn't have mold, and your shoes, oh! Your shoes. At first I was willing to give my time, energy and money to scouring your aisles in hopes of that one thrilling vintage find, be it clothing or a painting so odd I just could not dare pass it up.
Then, seemingly overnight, your aisles became piles of rags, your poor employees left to manage them. Your half price days ridiculous displays of human carnage, with patrons stopping where ever they pleased. Children running amok, despite your pleas in several languages not to leave them 'unattended'. For a while, I was able to over look this. Today, however, was the last straw.
Through the dust, grime and dirt; tirelessly, but politely, pushing through throngs of people; past an employee who actually threw a hanger at me and whacked my ankle, I saw it. The vintage find of them all- a cashmere, beaded, sequined cardigan. Could it be? Yes. My g-d, no stains. Satin trimmed edges. No frivolous buttons. Not one, solitary bugle bead missing. And in my size!
I die.
Wait. No! Don't end this sweet dream! Not another nightmare! Staples in the tag...evidence it was there...but where is the price? WHERE?!
Oh, Village Discount, I've endured your ridiculous policies before- remember the coat with the fur collar? How about that YSL dress you offered Jamie, then so cruelly took back? No price, no sale. No argument.
Sorry, VD, but I'm moving on to bigger better things. Real vintage stores. EBay. Maybe the prices are a little higher, but that's something I'm willing to accept for cleanliness, no children and someone willing to sell me something I deserve.
With a single tear,
Mindi
Addendum, posted to the asshole who removed said price tag:
Seriously. Are you an idiot, or just on meth? It is the Midwest, so maybe both.
No price, no sale. It's common knowledge. Don't think I don't know what you're up to- you see the item, think it's 'overpriced', try to remove the tag to argue with the manager, but oops. No dice. Well, don't f&*k it up for the rest of us, DB. We will find you, and hit you over the head with our thrift-scored Coach messenger bags. At let me tell you, those puppies hurt...when they're filled with bricks.
Links ahoy!
I'm dog sitting for the next week and a half or so on the North side of town in Lincoln Square. I tried to explore the neighborhood yesterday, but it was just a little crazy. It was a Saturday, so maybe I have to give it another go on a week day. I'd like to go back into Merz Apothecary to fulfill my sundries obsession (shampoo, facewash and soap, oh my!) and this place was cute (but a bit expensive).
At any rate, with some time to myself, and with E busy getting read for the Exquisite City show and creating the new Coathangers album cover*, I want to make some fun things for Halloween. I saw this post on Angry Chicken's blog** and the link that she gave to the Make website. YES! Shadow puppets! An excellent Halloween project.
*I love them! LISTEN TO THEM. NOW! Or don't, and miss out on the best song about boobies, ever.
**Take a few minutes (or maybe a few hours) to browse her blog. It's a fabulous resource for all things crafty, from making your own deodorant to the best method for sewing foldover elastic. Love it.
Tonight is a beer night. A beer and chili night, in fact. The weather is changing (YES. FINALLY!) and today was rainy enough to have recess indoors. Subsequently, the kids were nuts after lunch. Nuts. Thank the heavens tomorrow is a day off.
Hence, the beer.
Just keep my slightly tipsy ass away from these:
(from Oliveshoes.com)Hooray. With black opaque tights, the reason I love fall. That and pumpkins, the smell of leaves, the lighting, scarves...
I went to the Art Institute today. I had never seen
either of these paintings; the abstract piece, A Resonable Facsimile,by Arthur Dove, the landscape, The Artisit Looks at Nature by Charles Sheeler (both photos courtesy of the Art Institute's website). I'm excited to see the new wing open in 2009, but in the meantime, the massive collection of the AIC is on a subtle rotation. For sure, you can still see the 'famous stuff' (Wood's American Gothic, Hopper's Nighthawks) but some pieces are making their way into the light, so to speak.
Love it.I also saw some great clothing on the street. A girl wearing a fabulous printed wrap (or was it faux-wrap?) dress in orange and cream belted with a thin denim strip. Very inspiring.
A girl can dream, can't she?Listed on thefrock.com. Dior. Organdy. Amazing.I have never, ever been a girly girl. Even when wearing skirts I tend to somehow make them more fun that flirty (odd colored tights with giant pink Orla Kiely rain boots? Check!). I have also never been one of those girls who thought much about getting married, ie. where my wedding would be, the 'colors', the 'favors', not even what I'd wear.Then I saw this dress.
Holy moly. Seriously, it's Dior and, um, too small for me (le sigh) and really? If I ever spent $3800 on something it might be a car. MAYBE.It got me thinking, though. Audrey is pretty practical and she was 'Captain Sparkle Boobs' for her wedding. I guess there has to be a wedding to dress for, first, and that takes too much planning. I'll just stare and wipe the tear from the corner of my eye.So. Beautiful.
I love getting caught up in surfing the web. Reading my favorite blogs, and reading their favorite blogs. I've been so busy lately; staying at work far later than I should, making posters, organizing the lunch spray bottles, creating lesson plans. This website could take up the rest of my life, however. My friend told me about it, and was surprised (considering my interest in all things Scandinavian) that I hadn't seen it before.
I love the couple- what guts. It seems that in Europe (at least what I know of) that it's less about going with 'the herd' and more about going with how you feel. In that vein, the first thing I would do away with in American fashion is slogan t-shirts (adios, Abercrombie & Fitch! Ciao, most of Urban Outfitters!).
Oh, and if I had the time in the morning, I would do my hair like this 
every. single. day.
Summer is officially over, with school starting Tuesday. Although I hear it's supposed to be quite hot (more hot than it's been this summer! Wow, we really lucked out).
I was in Vermont last week, my yearly trip back North to visit my 'family'. I stayed with Colleen in Montpelier; that's the view from her backyard! I was also in Charlotte with Carmen, and in Richmond with Sasha and Ezra for a few days.
Activities included picnicking (uh, can that word be 'ing'd?), blue berry picking, walking, pizza making and lots of driving.
E is in LA for the weekend; kind of lonely here (never thought I'd say that!). I think I'm mostly lonely because of all the chores I have to do on my own tomorrow. Ugh.
I hate summer. Heat just makes me miserable. When I was young, I suffered pretty terrible headaches, and would cry- only to make the headaches worse. Headaches aren't as bad now, but I hate sweat behind my knees and jeans that you can't pull up because you're too sticky...and the sound of people dragging their flip flops. UGH!Today, though, I was driving home from work and the lighting was really beautiful. It made me appreciate the lighting that summer brings.My garden is producing jalapeño peppers faster than I can eat them. Awesome! I also harvested some green peppers, although we'll see how those go- it seems that 'our ant infestation' also extended to the out of doors, specifically the green peppers. I'll have to cut them open to see the full damage...
Back to school tomorrow, to teach clay animation for four weeks. YES! I really love teaching this class, and teaching summer school. It proves exceptionally interesting to see how kids are over the summer- yipes! I made a fun little video of a clay penguin tapping his foot (it's about 2 seconds long) to show the kids what we're going to be doing in the class.
I've been house sitting the last couple of days; it's nice. Kind of like a vacation from my roommate (nice guy, doesn't do dishes) and E, who is on tour with his band.
There are two chocolate labs here (so sweet!) and girls coming and going (they have two college age girls, who they didn't want to burden with taking care of the pups...enter, me!) but it's relatively quiet.
Gives me time to pine, again, over things I would like to purchase (see above) and make.
Last day of school- hooray!
The last month of school is incredibly hectic. Kids are starting to go through a sort of separation anxiety- whether they're returning hte next year and moving up a grade (they miss their teachers) or moving on to middle school (the 4th graders go to middle school, then jr. high).
This whole week was busy, but full of fun. Working in the library, we've slowly been collecting books, cd players, digital cameras, etc. that people checked out all year. It's kind of nuts. Lots of running around, making sure everyone is prepared for the summer. I also have to think about fall (that's just how I roll) so I try to keep myself organized. Rough.
At any rate, we're done and I'm exhausted. Yesterday was my absolute favorite day of the year- the Teachers vs. 4th Graders kickball game. Four innings of butt-kicking fun. And I am SO SORE. My feet (heels) feel like someone is shoving a hot knife into them (anyone else felt this? It's kind of weird...) and my back hurts. What is wrong with me?! So olde, I get an 'e'.
Desperately needing coffee, E and I headed over to Atomix. I haven't wanted coffee all week; taste buds have been affected by this cold (bronchitis!) for sure.
We stopped in at Sprout, one of my favorite stores. Things there are a bit expensive for me, but they have a great aesthetic and are incredibly nice and helpful. Every time I ask them about a plant I'm slowly killing, they stop and tell me different things I could try to save it, and alternatives (like, maybe some plastic plants? My suggestion).
Speaking of plants, my 'city garden' is slowly coming along. In an effort to cure my aforementioned brown thumb, my parents (who both enjoy gardening) gave me a birthday gift of two Earth Boxes and a bunch of seedling vegetables to plant. So far...so good. By summer's end I'll be eating tomatoes, green peppers, jalapeño peppers, boatloads of herbs (already started on those! Hello, chives in my egg salad) lots and lots of basil*, lettuce and kale. The last two are a crap shoot, as I've planted them from seed...we'll see.
*side note: Ethan is stoked about the basil, and keeps bugging me to plant more, as he recently discovered that 'yes!' he can cook. His pesto, a family recipe, is killer.
Home today, sick. This whole week has been full of colorful coughs, lozenges and lots of kleenex! Boo.
At least I get a chance, when I'm not achy and sleeping, to surf the web, finding...
On Kiosk:
You can purchase stock in Hell.
No kidding.
Beautiful clothing I can neither afford, nor do I have the ability to make myself (continually pining)...
Back to the kleenex.
