Olatz describes herself as Basque-born and Paris –raised, which might be the secret to her lovely sense of aesthetic. When Julian Schnabel first laid eyes on the beautiful Olatz, he must have been captivated by what he perceived to be art personified. For, she is just that, in manner, appearance and capacity for self-expression.  Olatz possesses the ultimate in classic beauty. Maybe it’s the way that the outer corners of her eyes turn upward, or the manner in which she smiles (ever so slightly) with her full pouty lips. Maybe, it’s the poise of her tall slim figure, swathed in billowing silk chiffon that makes me look upon this creature and feel that she is elegance defined.  But, she takes us further, as she mixes her Basque- born intuition with a Paris-raised tutelage to create the most sumptuous interiors that I have ever seen. She dares the visitor to explore her design with giant works of art and poetic antiques set against vast negative spaces. Every corner, every angle, every viewpoint hums a melody, and the overall impression is that of a full on operatic drama. Her talent gives me pause…

Olatz puts her talent to work designing interiors, silk lingere and bedding out of her New York shop.

Blogging from my sick bed, with a terrible fall cold, I set out to find a cure through  glittering doses of the glamorous life.

Via: rococcorevisited.com

-Via Kelly Wearstler’s “Rhapsody”-via portraits of elegancevia: The Little Red Tulip

LOVELY doesn’t begin to describe the work of my friend, the London based, millinery artist Bridget Bailey. Having worked in the fashion industry for over thirty years, Bridget’s work has evolved from the more traditional, into accessories and headpieces that are true works of art with a functional twist. Vibrant color, drama and a dash of whimsy are all ingredients in a recipe that yields her delicious results. Taking her inspiration from nature, Bridget’s approach to accessory design is fresh and lighthearted.

This fall, I sat down with Bridget to ask her a few questions about her work.

Kaki: What elements of your childhood do you think contributed most to your creative endeavors?

Bridget: I grew up in the countryside. My dad was a farmer and my mum is an artist. I have always been surrounded by animals and gardening, as well as the art thing. I was always making things and growing things then and now.

Kaki: How did you come to work in the accessories and hat designing side of the industry?

Bridget: I studied textiles at college in 1980. I did lots of hands on work with dyes. The first collection I made was a range of pleated fabrics. I showed my work to Jean Muir the classic designer of little black dresses, and she commissioned me to make cocktail hats for her catwalk shows. That is how the hat thing started.

Kaki: How would you describe your work? How would you describe a Bridget Bailey customer?

Bridget: My work is a combination: All the colour and richness of textiles mixed with the elegant lightness of millinery. I love the unexpected where the lid of a bag becomes a fascinator or you wear a pea pod instead of a rose. My perfect customer is a creative person: actress, writer or architect who likes to be witty and elegant.

Kaki: What projects do you have planned for the future?

Bridget: I showed a collection of jewelry pieces at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in November and had a great response so; I’m working on expanding that range. Getting the lightness and fun of millinery into jewelry makes a very fresh look.

Her flawlessly executed craft aside, Bridget is a delightful friend. With a kindly spirit she exudes life and a sincere curiosity for that which God has given us. She is a delightful combination of the same lighthearted freshness that her work exhibits. And I am grateful to have her as a friend.

Contact her in her London studio for commissions at: hats@baileytomlin.com

As promised. Thanks guys.

JF seemed much happier than he was the last time he was on the Review Show, when he irritated Paul Morley and Kirsty Wark with his honest critique of Tracey Emin’s exhibition in Margate (see the YouTube clip below), and also made a few pertinent comments about Paul Morley’s fellow well-heeled ex-punks.  Paul Morley has always struck me as a complete tosser (and I’m 46 and culturally literate, so I’ve had plenty of exposure to his career-defining tossiness), but I wish JF – who strikes me as a very nice bloke – hadn’t had to be the one to call him on it.  He was confident enough in expressing his opinions, but looked a bit uncomfortable.

This time, however, JF seemed much more relaxed. The panel discussed the new exhibition on death at the Wellcome Institute (one of my favourite museums), the film The Master, Ian Rankin’s latest Rebus novel, and an animated TV series about a dysfunctional family (cf. Family Guy).  The writer – sorry, I don’t know his name – was pretty funny, and it all went off well.

James Fox perched on a Review Show sofa, 16 November 2012

Once more, JF was wearing the neat dark brown jacket, dark indigo jeans and tan brogues that he wore throughout the History of Art in Three Colours, as well as on the last Review Show; this time, instead of a blue shirt and no tie, he wore a white shirt and a startling leaf green tie.  He smiled, he laughed, he found something interesting to look at on one of the monitors (or perhaps something was going on offscreen that had caught his attention) and although his body language was a little tense, he seemed to be enjoying the experience.

But I forgot to download it, and they don’t repeat the Review Show. The agony of regret!

You MUST tune in to my obsession of 2012! I feel as if I am the only American who knows about this. I discovered” Made in Chelsea” when my friend Lucy who lives in Wales started calling me Caggie (with absolutely no clear basis)! Never the less, there have been 3 seasons of Made in Chelsea in the British broadcasting area. I have watched them ALL (and some Jamie episodes twice!) via a website that streams shows from the U.K..  I’m truly jonesing for Season 4. Now, this twenty something crowd of “British Pretties” have come to the U.S. on STYLE! It’s on right now to be exact! Hurry turn it on!-The first season Gang

The quirky Ollie. He’s just a lot of fun. He makes me laugh out loud!My (by far) favorite, Jamie. He seems a bit ADD at first, but by season 3 he is both dashing and adorable. And for those ladies who are closer to my age…Yes, he does have a father (who sells exotic travel excursions) Hmmm…Wonder what he looks like?

Yes, 2 pictures for Jamie!The lovely Caggie, a true beauty.My second favorite, Francis- so witty, so smart!Caggie and lovely Millie MacKintosh.The bad boy, Spencer.

Everybody’s best friend, Hugo Taylor.

You must become obssessed too!

Anyway, turns out she works in a field that is definitely in my future and she knows my neighbour who lives 2 doors down. There were many things that we just seemed really in tune with and she said something alone the lines of, “I believe people come into our lives for a reason.”

I do think it’s funny (interesting not humorous) how things like that work. How you can not know someone, but be drawn to them in a certain way. How yesterday I didn’t know this person at all and by the end of the day I felt a sort of kinship with her because of similar experiences, common values, and an overlap of friends.

There’s another woman that I saw multiple times over the months of June to September of this year. I first saw her on a field trip at the end of last school year, though I’m not clear if she was with our school or not (as a visiting family maybe), or just happened to be at that particular park at the same time. I think I noticed her because she had cute braids and then I noticed she had a very blonde child and another small enough to be in a wrap still. And then this summer while my daughters were in swim lessons, we drove into the city for those. Turns out her young child had swimming lessons after my kids did. Then in September when driving K to her new school, I saw this woman again with her children, and then a couple days later we saw her in Walmart (which I try my hardest to avoid but K needed something specific for a school supply that we were having trouble finding). 4 times in 4 months in 4 different locations. I felt like I should maybe introduce myself as the Universe seemed to be suggesting a meeting. But I thought that might be a tad too crazy. “Hey, I really think the Universe is conspiring in our favour for us to be friends!” I have this sneaking suspicion though that if I do end up introducing myself to her, I will discover that we know some of the same people.

One of my now best friends was drawn to me through online forums and what was probably an awkward first meeting in person (I feel awkward a lot of the time but just pretend in front of others that I don’t). We met in person through another mutual friend of ours. She ended up sparking up some conversation in private messages focused on schooling and education choices and we were both young moms so we had that in common. She moved away and randomly sent me the book, The Time Traveler’s Wife, which quickly became one of my favourites. I thought it was really sweet that she barely knew me but she took the time and effort to send me a gift. When she moved back here we slowly became better friends over a period of time. Today, I couldn’t imagine not having her and her family in my life. I adore her very being and think I am so lucky to have her as such a good friend.

I am realizing what a small world it really is. Something that used to make me wholly uncomfortable has somehow become kind of reassuring. Like, if I just listen to the lessons being offered to me and take the opportunities for growth that are presented, it will be completely worth it. I already know so many lovely people, but there’s always room for more.

Autumn is normally all about low sunlight, sun flare and warm colors. But somehow I am loving the cold color scheme that we followed today. Works as well!

Photo via Emma’s Design Blogg

Before
Unused bathroom wall space due to broken cupboard door.

After
Our lovely hang it all replica

Ready to keep the towels of the floor and me a little (lot) less cranky every morning.

Thank you so much lovely ladies, I can’t wait until the other pieces arrive.

     Monica Bellucci just might be the most beautiful woman in the world! The model and actress was born in Umbria, Italy and discovered by the fashion industry at the age of 16. Most commonly known for playing Persephone in The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, she has appeared in over 50 movies.

     Besides her flawless skin and perfect bone structure, what makes Monica so impressive is her hourglass figure. And, by the way, she’s no human coat hanger! Monica sizes up closer to an 8 than the usual 0. Men can’t resist her, and I don’t blame them. Her natural approach to beauty and life, creates a type of glamour and sensuousness that is rare in Hollywood and the fashion industry, today.  She has a kind of “Goddess” quality that transcends the traditional standards of feminine beauty, suggesting depth of spirit, and a complexity of the soul.

]]> http://becausemy2012isacertifiedbestseller.wordpress.com/2012/11/04/i-am-not-an-extrovert/ Sat, 03 Nov 2012 18:56:56 +0000 Leslee http://becausemy2012isacertifiedbestseller.wordpress.com/2012/11/04/i-am-not-an-extrovert/ http://www.littlewolff.com/2012/11/03/choices-made-and-delayed/ Sat, 03 Nov 2012 04:02:21 +0000 Lila Wolff http://www.littlewolff.com/2012/11/03/choices-made-and-delayed/ As one of the items I finally decided on was on sale this week I settled in and planned out what I was going to order with my lovely gift certificates.

The first was the Replica Eames Hang it All, on sale until today.

Via Matt Blatt

The second a Replica Eames Junior DSW side chair in Red for Eve.

via Tempt Interiors NZ

And third a Replica Eames RAR plastic rocker in black.

Via eBay

I got online and added them to my cart and attempted to check out. A little message came up saying I would need to call customer service because my post code wasn’t in their shipping matrix. A little frustrating seeing that I’ve had goods shipped from all over the world without this issue but I put my big girl panties on and dialed the number.

The incredibly perky sales assistant went through my order with me with ease, until dealing with the post code issue. She then informs me that the order would have to go to head office and they probably wouldn’t get back to me until Monday. I’m a little annoyed at this point as I’m pretty sure that means I’ll miss the sale price, but really my own fault for procrastinating, so I’ll deal with it.

Then I mentioned the gift certificates, there was a brief pause and the sales assistant says the words I am not too thrilled to hear. You can only use those in store, so next time you’re in Melbourne or Sydney you can use them. My head nearly exploded when she then attempted to continue processing the order*.

So unfortunately I’m not sure when I’ll be using the gift vouchers which is such a shame, especially seeing I can’t even be sure they’ll have what I want in stock if we do make a special trip. I wasn’t even sure if I would post about this and I hate to whine because I don’t want any of the lovely gift givers to feel that I don’t still cherish and appreciate their gift as I really do. But I did feel it best to put this out there in case other non Melbourne or Sydney based people went to buy gift vouchers, there’s no warning on the website that they can’t be used that way (believe me I’ve trawled the FAQ’s, policies etc to check). I’d hate to not speak up and have anyone else caught out.

*Note to salespeople I am not going to reward shitty service policies by spending more money in your store, I would have thought that was common sense, no matter how cheerful your voice is.