A Change is in the Air

When you walk into 'Just 4 The Home', a beautiful furniture and accessories store on 14 Wall Street in Huntington, NY, you have the feeling that you're in NYC (without the price tag$) and that the eclectic pieces have been chosen with tender loving care... I have purchased a number of things over the years, with the help of their design staff and with owner Jack's careful attention to style, comfort, and price...

Some of their newer furniture and accessories have cleaner more contemporary lines, and some with an Asian inspiration...

Just 4 The Home

I'm happy that maybe we're finally seeing a move away from 'Country French' or '20th Century Drab' on Long Island, where young people decorate their homes like old people... Boring!!!  Wake up and mix it up, create your own voice that's fresh and not staid!  Look at top 'home decorating' magazines or go into the 'city' to see what's happening instead of just looking to a local decorator for advice, someone who wants to sell you the same old tride-and-true...

'ABC Home' in the city is a great place to really get inspired!  You can spend the day there and have lunch there at either 'pipa' for tapas, or 'le pan quotidien' for sandwiches and salads.

"Fragile: Handle With Care"

I had the privledge yesterday of getting a behind-the-scenes look at the installation of a beautiful exhibit, curated by Carole Jay, at the 'Art League of Long Island' which opens on Sunday.  What to do with the family on a frigid weekend?... get 'Cultcha' and have fun... the kids will love seeing the inner workings of Mr. Esser's  two story tree and 'mechanical butterflies'... oh, and Ms. Pickett's "Tree Drawings", that's right, THE TREES made the drawings with the help of the wind!  Ms. Palmieri, a local artist, created a 'Human-Size' honeycomb, so we can relate to the ever-dwindling, vegetable pollinating, 'Bee' population... and Ms. Kawata's recycled shredded paper sculptures are really COOL... the reception (an event complete with food and origami you can purchase to benefit Polar Bears) is Sunday, January 17th, and the show ends February 14th, so don't miss it!

Tom Steele

Maureen Palmieri

Joseph Esser

Pat Pickett

Tamiko Kawata

Winn Rea

Puneeta Mittal

Speaking of 'Shredding'...  Shame on you 'H&M' Megastore, as my kids would say, 'Epic Fail', for shredding perfectly good clothing and dumping them when they could have been donated to 'homeless shelters' in NYC... and how long have they (and others?) been doing this?

Favorite Room

'Still Life' photos from my bathroom this morning...

Dried Hydrangeas from my garden, Sabon skin products 

Perfumes and Postcards

Costume Jewelry Splay

My favorite room in the house was converted from a Bedroom to a Master Bathroom a few years after we moved in...  it's a reflection of me, with objects in it that have sentimental meaning, and it gives me so much pleasure everyday I'm there.  I hope you have a place in your home where you feel that way.

Is this 'Feng Shui'?  When I looked it up, Wikipedia say that the literal translation is "wind-water"...  Well, I don't know about the wind (maybe my husband does), but it is a place of water...

Baby Picture with Broken Frame

One of Two Mermaids from California

Antique Vase, a gift from my husband

Broken Vase from my San Francisco Years

Soaps from Spain

Winter Sunrise This Morning

Never Conquered... Always There!

As I sit writing, that all too familiar 'Hummmmm'...  song, NO... my clothes dryer, YES!  No matter how far we have come with technological advances, we're still left with the dreaded chore... LAUNDRY!   What are we to do, until Rosie from The Jetson's, or R2D2 from Star Wars comes along, a laundry programmed robot servant... is it even ethical or for that matter practical?

Archie

Some researchers from Vienna and Manitoba are building this sophisticated and creepy (as in nightmare) looking robot to assist humans with "routine tasks".

My favorite line at a party used to be... "that's great and all, but does it do laundry?".  I would get a chuckle and then silence... BUT I REALLY MEANT IT!

So back to the task at hand, one of the best tips I read last year was an article in the magazine, Real Simple, where a woman from Colorado said something that I thought was brilliant and liberating at the same time.  I do it to this day and it works very well.  By not sorting lights and darks with the kids clothes, you'll save a lot of time!  Why?... they'll grow out of them soon enough, and if you wash them together in cold water it works for the most part (with some exceptions).  Of course you still have fold (I don't mind this part) and put the clothes away (Yuck)...  or have the kids help...  HaHa, who are we kidding!  Actually, on the weekend I leave piles of folded clothes for them to put away.  What would be more helpful is if my 11 year old son would take all those presents for me out of his pockets, like school work, candy wrappers, gum, pens, money, etc...

My folding doesn't look like this... does yours?

Love to hear your tips or gripes on 'Laundry'.

 Oh,  p.s., if you enjoy reading my blog please click on the 'Ads' to show your support, thanks!

Wicking Wool!

SmartWool Socks at Garnet Hill

Below normal temperatures in New York has caused me to reevaluate some of my winter wardrobe... hence wicking wool! I remember when my husband took the kids hiking in October to the White Mountains we took a shopping trip to EMS (Eastern Mountain Sports), a serious outdoor adventure store where I learned a lot about wicking fabrics.  'Wicking' means that the fabric moves the sweat away from the skin to the outer surface where it evaporates. Clothing companies use words like 'insulation', 'breathability', and 'wicking perspiration'.  Cotton is a 'no no'... but quality wools like merino, alpaca and cashmere perform better than synthetics (unless they're woven with wool).  The merino wools from New Zealand and Australia aren't like those old ITCHY wools I could never wear!  While at EMS I was introduced to 'SmartWool', a great line of clothing, founded by New England ski instructors.  They have a selection of socks for hiking, running, cycling, trekking, city walking... so many varieties that I was dizzy!

Ugg Adirondak Boots,  Down Jacket,  Shearling Gloves at Garnet Hill

Accessories can be a reasonable (cost $$ wise) way to give you great style without braking the bank... I especially love this stylized argyle hat and the plum jacket and gloves above...  Here's to wicking away and staying warm in style...  Let me know your ideas for warm clothing?

Crochet Cashmere Hat at Etsy

FarmVille or Not?

This simple but addictive social networking game has over 62 million players since the game debuted in June 2009.  How many 'neighbor' invites have you had on Facebook?  Young children, college kids, and women, make up a lot of the gaming demographics.  Is it a desire for a more simple life, is it therapeutic, or just satisfying to create something from a seed, and see it grow and flourish right before your eyes, without the real dirt, grit and danger of real farming... virtual worlds are antiseptic.  Are you  putting your real household chores on hold waiting to harvest blueberries?

So my real neighbor invited me to play, should I, and risk an even worse 'laundry backup' problem (socks that never make it to the drawers), or do I succumb to this with the promise of 'utopia'?!  One thing I do know is that real chores are humdrum, working hard at something (i.e. a job, schoolwork) without seeing the immediate payoff is sometimes difficult too... so be sure to set short-term as well as long-term goals for yourself... now that we've begun a New Year it's a great time.  Enjoy FarmVille, if it's not taking away too much from the rest of your life!  As a visual artist ( and blogger too), I have my creative outlet where I can see my work grow... What's yours?
  

Lucky Fish!

Fish is a symbolic food (prosperity and fertility) eaten for the Chinese New Year and at one time for the Jewish New Year... so why not enjoy a delicious and healthy meal, and at the same time increase your chances for good fortune in the coming year... and if you don't believe... just believe how good these 'Fish Burritos'  taste.

Our friends made a wonderful 'New Years' party with an international food theme.  I chose Mexican food and my 'party idea' was to make each person a 'fish burrito' wrapped in paper with 'Instructions For Life' (yesterday's blog) from the enlightened Dalai Lama, just like a 'fortune cookie' only better.

The fish is sweet and crunchy, with a tangy slaw dressing over the cabbage, and 'Pico de gallo' for some spice and freshness.  I make it at home a lot, my kids love it and they're eating fish which is a plus, and it's even better with small corn tacos... 2 or 3 per person.

'Thanks' Sue and Rob for a wonderful evening and a great beginning for 2010!