Gorgeous colors from Nars for the holidays in this gift set of four miniature-sized, high-shine polishes. Includes Purple Rain/Gothic Purple, Versailles/Champagne Gold, Jungle Red/Bright Red, and Orgasm/Peachy Pink With Shimmer for $30, available online and at select boutiques.
There are some images you can never tire of and Guy Bourdin has created hundreds of those. They are timeless, ageless and continue to inspire the subtle sexual fantasy that is a key component to selling fashion and beauty. Bourdin began working for French Vogue in 1954 after his photographs were shown for the first time in Paris in 1952. I love his imagery and am obsessed with the book Guy Bourdin by Alison Gingeras, which is still out of stock not only on the Phaidon website but also at The Strand. Another perfect gift for the fashion obsessed… If you can find it. His most recent book, ‘In Between’, published by Steidl, was released this past July and is slightly easier to find.
Recent FIDM grads and childhood best friends Carissa Simons and Lynsey Longo are launching their first collection for Spring 2011. The young LA-based designers have teamed up to create a small ambitious capsule collection for their line Ellie Lavelle. There are a couple of cute pieces like the gold jacket above, which I love and a short sleeve cropped crocodile jacket (not shown). But the ripped T-shirts need to be Continue reading
Love this video from Junip‘s new album, Fields (below). It reminds me of something my old film school friends from Bard would make (Ashim, Dale and Damon, I’m thinking of and laughing with you…) There’s a quirky dry sense of humor that I love about it. And the song is awesome to boot.
This is my new obsession. For some odd reason I don’t own a Jerome Dreyfuss bag which I need to rectify. In the meantime, I am enjoying scouring the goods and trying to make a choice. The bags are gorgeous, with just the right amount of hardware, ruching, and perfect colors, skins and leathers. Am also kind of obsessed with the little kid’s voice that shouts out the style names on the website. Love it! The bags are sold online as well as Barney’s and Fred Segal here in LA and NYC. You can also find them at stores all over France which may be where I finally get mine this month!
On December 1st in honor of World AIDS Day, when you indulge in a Red Ribbon Red Velvet Cupcake from Sprinkles it will be for a cause other than to just satisfy that 4pm sugar craving. 100% of the proceeds from the sales will be donated to the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, a global leader in the fight against pediatric HIV and AIDS. Hurrah for great excuses! Cupcakes are $3.25 each, $36 for a dozen and will be available at all seven Sprinkles locations nationwide.
Seriously, this has to be one of the most fun and genius ideas I have seen in a while as far as original foodie gift baskets go. Bar Keeper in Silverlake has come up with the Mixologist Cocktail Gift Boxes for the holidays, put together by some of LA’s most talented bartenders/mixologists. Each box has all the ingredients and tools you need to make amazing drinks at home like “Colonial Ties” by Eric Alperin from one of my favorite bars in LA, The Varnish, which for $100 includes:
1 Bottle Appleton Jamaican Rum Reserve
1 Bottle Old Overholt Rye
1 Bottle Absente Absinthe
1 Bottle Regans Orange Bitters
1 Bottle Fever Tree Club Soda
4 Brown Sugar Cubes
1 Peeler
1 Bar Spoon with Disk
2 Old Fashioned Glasses
or the “Oaxacan Angel” which sounds amazing for $120.00 by one of my personal favorite bartenders, Dave Kupchinsky… Continue reading
Thanksgiving may be over but there are still plenty of holidays and cold comfort food weeks ahead so I’m sharing my mashed potatoes recipe. Measurements aren’t precise so taste it in lieu of measuring. And just so you know, I don’t spare the butter this time of year. Health be damned.
What you need…
2lbs of white Idaho potatoes peeled, boiled and ready to mash
One pint of sour cream (light or regular, your choice)
1/2-3/4 cup shredded Parmesan, Romano or a mixture of both
One large stick of butter or margarine, again your choice
Salt and pepper to taste
Diced fresh chives to season with on top
The butter goes into the mash ASAP when they come out of the water (boil for about 20-30 minutes for whole potatoes), followed by the sour cream and Parmesan cheese, salt and chives. Continue reading
There is a fascinating profile in this week’s New York magazine on James Frey. After reading it I’m not sure why I am supposed to be appalled by the “writers factory” he’s created. I don’t really see the difference in what he’s doing and what book publishers like Alloy do or for that matter what many other people throughout the creative industries do with young ambitious talent. Whether it’s magazines that retain copyright for the work created by their young staff or event photographers that pay their young talent minimum wage and retain all the rights or agencies that pay nothing at all for their new hires. Full disclosure, I was and still am a fan of James Frey. I was horrified with the way he was treated by the media, especially Continue reading
