Man Gifts

It seems kind of a challenge for me to know what to buy for a man.  What is a man gift?  Considering my taste and tendency to lean strongly towards items I prefer, it can be a challenge to edit my choices according to someone else's wants... Therefore take this variety with a grain of salt (or a shot of Gosling's). 

This post's disclaimer to Mr. M, please don't fret when you read this; barely anything from this list is making it under our tree (wink wink).

Needlepoint men's "slippers".  Yes they look like spectators.  It's pretty great.  I agree. 
(Mr. M loves his spectators that he wore during the second half of our wedding.)

Best book cover of all time - it's woven fabric.  It's an old book, hard to find, but looks amazing in a vignette! 
I did marry some adventure but have not read this story...yet.   

Verdura carved coral and gold strawberry cufflinks.  About $11 Large.  Carved. Coral.  Stunning. 

Stingray iPhone covers - gorgeous!  I love the variations on iphone covers.  And iPads.  Seriously it's the cover options that make me want an iPad.  Really. 

Duuu nuh...duuuu nuh.  Genius cufflinks. 

You know how I feel about this can, and what it contains, and the fact that it is seemingly unavailable in Southern California.  Mmm hmm. 
I wish I had some empty cans because I would consider doing an entire Christmas Tree devoted to Dark'n'Stormies. How great would these look against the pine? 

Last but not least, a gift of some time on the beach would be a nice present.  See even this bull likes the beach.  Doesn't he look relaxed?  I can sense it in his blank stare.  Very zen moment. 

Sugar Trunk Show This Weekend at TOGS in Greenwich, CT!

Hi Friends!  TOGS in Greenwich is happy to host a trunk show for Sugar this weekend, Dec 9-13 (Today through Monday) at their most recent location, 113 Greenwich Avenue. 

There's lots of little treats available for sale including earrings, colorful rings (see below), and unique necklaces including an incredible piece composed of links of pink angelskin coral. 

Chrysoprase nugget ring in 18k gold vermeil, $210. Sugar

TOGS @ 113 Greenwich Ave in Greenwich, CT

*Also, Tara Quinn Reilly has graciously offered her home as the site for a private trunk show on December 17th that will feature colorful and unique pieces of Sugar jewerly via our RI proxy, Genevieve Biswas Rozansky, and also exquisite treasures for home and family from Lizz De Villegas' collection.  Please email me at heidi@shopsugar.com for more information about this event. 

Heidi's Christmas List

All within reason I believe (wink wink).

Martin Katz stackable rings. Pink Sapphire or Peridot please.  And I might need like yellow diamond or white diamond to break it up.  And maybe a black diamond one for my alternative days.  Oh and then navy sapphires and white diamond ones for stripes!  Yes! 

Eddie Borgo cone bracelets. $600 for the gold-plated version.  I would wear this everyday.  (Oh and I would wear the stacked diamond and sapphire rings daily, too.  I need more appendages or a body double.)

Rick Owens distressed leather jacket.  To go with the black diamond stacked rings.  Gorgeous. 

I am building a look here folks.  Alexander McQueen purple mink miniaudiere.  Did I mention it's mink and would look incredible with above mentioned jacket and stacked black diamond rings?



Simon Paul Scott hoof and paw candlesticks.  Come on.  These are INCREDIBLE.  (Available on the Seventh Floor @ BG)



1977 Mercedes 450 SL Roadster.  Hello. 

Rolex Oysterdate pink face with stainless steel.  Pink Face.  Need I say more?  And it's vintage 1980s of course. 
(PS would look great with...black diamond rings...rick jacket...McQueen's mink clutch... It's beginning to sound like the 12 days of Christmas... Oh and driving that '77 Benz?)

I prefer the pink but this is a 1970s Rolex Oysterdate with an orange face and alligator bands.  Did I say anything about it being made in the 1970s?  Disco Deluxe.  Chic.

Will you be needing my shipping address or measurements? 

Merry Happy.  I hope your holiday is coming along as nicely as mine.  The only present I really wanted arrived a bit earlier than expected. 

Imagery for Imagination

I was looking for something to post quickly that would send a shiver of inspiration down my neck and into my fingertips...in order for me to get a bit of creative work done.  I think this should do it...

Happy (working) Sunday!

Design by Jan Showers

Nature vs. Nurture

I have never been the garden girl.  I appreciate a good garden and I adore flowers.  But gardening has never been my thing.  Maybe it's the dirt or the fact that I can kill every green thing that moves into or adjacent to my house.  I think I just want to show up and have it all blooming and perfect kind of like I live at the botanical gardens.

These little spots below are divine.  I could see myself enjoying the butterflies and whatnot there.

Those adirondacks are perfection.  Don't they just melt away your cares by looking at them?

I love Zinnias.  They are amazing.  Love.  Sunflowers are great for about a day until their heads get so big they cannot stand it anymore.  I love a playhouse in the garden.  My friend Melissa had one growing up, and I thought it was pretty normal to have a little house in the garden that was all yours.  That was really NICE and I wish I had an adult garden house now.  Maybe once we plant some roots...(SSM will be tending those due to my inability to get any root-bearing thing to thrive.)

Feeling Blue

Something pretty for Tuesday. You cannot have enough blue jewelry.  It looks great on everyone. 

Irene Neuwirth Lapis and Turquoise Earrings, $8,650. Barney's New York.

Monday Gear

It would be wonderful to face the week head on with a dramatic uniform like those shown below. Alas, it is not comfortable to sit for hours bent over bits of jewelry while wearing sequins (it's been tried).  I will focus on conjugating happy clothes to face the imminent week.

Chloe dress. Net-a-porter. I want to say this comes in around $10 large*.
(*I've been wanting to use that terminology for a while. It sounds so Brooklyn gangster)

Prada Fall 2011. In stores now. Love. It.
I know it doesn't "make sense", but fashion and style do not have to "make sense" to anyone but the person who has assembled the look and finds confidence or reassurance in their efforts.

Stacked

My mother wore bracelets when I was a kid, specific ones everyday.  I would hear them cling together when I would misplace her in a store and she was easily found. 

Suffice it to say I have enjoyed bracelets since I was a child.  I required more and more rubber bracelets, made heaps of friendship bracelets and collected stretchy plastic neon hearts to wear with my swatch watches (multiples please). As a "rebellious" teen I graduated to chains and broken rhinestone necklaces safety-pinned around my arms. Now when the mood strikes me I will choose to stack studded wraps, blingy baubles, gold chains, and animals.

The message is that this is a very personal way to wear jewelry, an easy way to mix and match and get away with some combinations that mean something to only you. It's about the only jewelry you can wear multiples of and get away without looking gaudy or amateur. I know where I got every piece that I wear and what each one means to me.  I hope these photos below inspire your interest and your aesthetic in stacking an arm load of bracelets.

Colors pop against that black and white we love so much.

I love a double watch! 

Bold triple watch move.  Inspiring.

Simple but I love the neon pop against this graphic print.

All silver and stainless is more understated.

I see elephants...

Ooh love the texture of the beads mixed with the other shapes and watch.

Mid-day Vacation

I love a good cafe. Street adjacent.  People watching.  Looking stylish and warm at the same time (easily done with our do-it-yourself scarf guide). There is even a magazine perched on the chair beside her. And a peppermill on the table.  It's a thoughtful spot when they leave you alone with a peppermill. 

More Insane Stripes



It's Monday. Let's admire something pretty...(cue the stripes).

L.O.V.E. these colors - and bold move with the ankle boots.  Again proving nearly any fashion risk works inside the confines of Paris.



Pink and red and striped all over.  Looks like candy.

Right to Bare Arms

My obsessions tend to overlap. It's the same skip in my style record that reminds me to indulge my neuroses and buy lots of stripes, grey sweaters, boots, and several fur vests.

I am sure I have rambled on about the virtues of the vest on this blog before. All I can hope for is that you either haven't heard my rant about vests yet, or that at least these photos (below) are new to your eyes. 

The vest is one of the most versatile pieces you can own (provided you live in a climate that supports versatility...if not, create your own climate indoors that supports vest versatility).  What a layering piece!  It looks incredible over, under, over and under, inbetween, draped over, inside, and nearly solo.  The bottom line is that the fur vest is chic.  And it keeps your arms free for other needs.  The fur vest keeps your heart warm, and warms your heart.  Awwww. 

Excellent use as an accent of color and texture to this parka look. 

Ooh, Tibetan curly lamb.  Love.  So soft.  I have one in black, it's longer, and I sort of look like a giant muppet in it.  But that does not make it less amazing. 

Black fur vest with bare legs, attitude not included (but enhanced by the cigarette smoking).

Fuzzy fur with sleek leather. In Paris of course. Where you can get away with almost any sartorial concoction provided you are within the city.  If foreign you may need to legitimize your style choices with le smoking.  Not that I am condoning that habit, I am just pointing out that it seems to be thematic. And allowed. 

Big vest, chubby vest, tall vest, stripey vest.  A vest for all! 

Ms. Moss wearing lovely gilet and looking perfectly styled.  Although I am sure she threw this on at the last second because of a chill or something.  (more on Kate in a later post.  stay tuned)

Olivia Palermo in a great fur vest, just the right length, color, etc.  Again the owner of another well-curated wardrobe.

Deer Season

'Tis the season to don your apparel.  Except that this deer sweatshirt (am I right, that is a screenprinted sweatshirt?) is part of the whole kitch fashion rugged fall throwback into the woods ironic to be wearing it to fashion week thing. 

I am not a "hater".  I like this (I could do without it being a "sweatshirt" though).  And I like animals.  As a matter of fact I have recently been donning my deer Cowichan sweater all over SoCal.  Possibly in an effort to feel something like Fall as I understand it. 

I haven't written in a while, and I connected to this streetwear picture. I thought I would share.  Although my recommendation is that you set forth to ferret out a vintage piece of woodsy animalia instead of mucking over to your local Outfitters (if you know what I mean, wink wink nudge nudge).

Multiply These Rabbits (Please)

If anyone reading this knows me by now, you know that there are some key elements in my "favorites" list. 

Jewelry, Animal Jewelry, Bunnies, Animals Personified, The Color Pink.

That list revealed, one can see clearly why I absolutely cannot find words to describe my love and admiration for the pieces of jewelry below. 

(*Thanks again to AHN for sharing, always an inspiration that Belles.)

Raymond C Yard Rabbit Waiter Brooch (diamonds, enamel, gold, etc etc. all the good stuff)
Please. He's wearing a bowtie and has a towel to serve the Champagne.



Raymond C Yard Rabbit Waiter Brooch
I mean this guy has a flower in his lapel and is carrying a Champagne bucket! Are those spectators he's wearing???




Raymond C Yard Rabbit Brooch Collection
*Come on now. There is a bride rabbit and a YACHTING rabbbit?!!?! Tell me you noticed the eye patch. Eye. Patch. Genius. The most sartorially correct jewelry I have ever seen.  And they are bunnies.
INCROYABLES (and Merveilleuses)!!!!!!!!!
(P.S. This collection sold at Christie's in 2001 for $80,000+ for the entire collection...a steal! reproduction rabbit waiter brooch (one) is $55,000 on the Raymond C Yard company website...)



Daniel Brush Cuff - 1988-1992. Bakelite, gold, rubies, and pink diamonds.
I don't have words for this bracelet. 

The Lost Art



I still write things down.  I love to write and use my penmanship (although it can swing from swoopy and pretty to socially disturbed).  My friend Kurt gave me an excellent book on handwriting analysis years ago.  Maybe that's why people don't hand write me anymore? 
Below are a few reasons you should put your handwriting to use, plus one adorable poster.  These Rifle Paper people have their adorable artwork down.  It's wonderful and so warm and fuzzy, I love!  These also make wonderful gifts! 

I would get a lot more done if this little guy was wearing his striped coat in my office telling me what to do.
From Rifle Paper Company, $8.



Modern day hieroglyphic rosetta stone...or cute animal pictures?  You decide. 
(since I already know my alphabet I am tempted to use these adorable animals in coded conversations...)
p.s. Thank God for the Quail, he really saves the day with the whole Q Animal Alphabet thing.
From Rifle Paper Company, $40.




They. Are. Wearing. Hats.
From Rifle Paper Company, set of eight cards $16

How I (want to) Roll

Since most of my travel is limited to domestic flights where I check a piece of mediocre luggage (hello, I overpack and will not drag that puffed out piece through security) I do not have the need to own bespoke luggage such as Globetrotter, LV, or Goyard. 

Typing those words makes me wish for a time when train cars were boarded with trunks and assorted monogrammed pieces. If Amtrak wasn't so dodgy between major cities I might consider donning a caftan and wafting from platform to platform followed by a uniformed steward pushing a cart piled with my must-haves for the next region... We have a thing for trains in my family, but I have to say these days it doesn't go much past underground commuter railcars and freight.

Since the next best thing to the Orient Express is private jet travel I must highlight the deserving luggage that has earned some time aboard a private people mover via sky, rail, or road.  They also make chic side tables...

Globetrotter, in orange.  Monogrammed of course.  The Crew and Globetrotter are in cahoots, but I am not sure about the monogramming status of a Crew purchased piece since I have not gotten that far in my "matched amazing luggage" Life Plan.  Yet. 



Do I even need to remark on this?  Union Jack interior.  Ooooooh.  Globetrotter likes to team up with designers to do chic linings. 

Darjeeling Limited custom luggage a la Louis Vuitton.  Quilted interior?  Amaze.  My things would look so much prettier if they were tucked gently into this piece of incredible usable artistry... 

The Darjeeling Limited Collection...numbered and monogrammed.  Of course the most important part, please admire the running safari animals.  GENIUS.  It was my favorite thing about the movie.  Most props/styling are my favorite things about a movie; and leave it to Wes Anderson to reel me in with some MJ collaboration. 

Proper Picnic

I love bringing the indoors out.  There is something so luxurious about an Oriental rug on a lawn or a lamp illuminating the evening on a backyard buffet. 

Now said, the reason I was attracted to the image below is obvious: dining room scene in lush outdoor space.  Chic.  But we also must visit the well done print-mixing which makes the rather cliche red-white-blue theme rather refreshing.  What cannot go overlooked, however, are the incredible navy and white gingham dining chairs. An ingenious use of a favorite (and in this case ironic) picnic print. 

Oooh...excellent picnic.



Sunday



There's only one thing missing from this picture, and it's not color.