Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

Macklemore and Ryan Lewis. This is one of the coolest videos I've seen in a long time. Chills all over.

Lady Post II

I am continually inspired by women who are strong enough to pursue their passions every day. It is a rare discipline in the art world to accept and execute the guaranteed grunt work at 8:30 in the morning, and as I get older I am both relieved and intimidated by this fact. This post’s specific assortment of heroines tackled what Andy Warhol repeatedly admonished as ‘just getting up and doing it,’ and I want to shout their stories from the top of the Empire State building. From overcoming sexual abuse with beautiful, gut-wrenching soul music to speaking out against a racist South in the sixties, all of these ladies put their stamp on the world while also keeping their noses to ground and focusing on craft. The truth is, if you record ten albums or write, direct and star in your own television show, waking up early and sacrificing certainty will come far before the unguaranteed praise. Finding an original and useful medium that you alone are able to speak through will push any woman (or man) to achieve something great, no matter their initial definition of success. So, get up. Do it. Every intentionally present moment of progress will outweigh that illusive ‘means to an end’ mentality. 

(Top to bottom : Maya Angelou / Peggy Guggenheim / Sharon Jones / Katharine Hepburn /  Maya Angelou 2.0 / Lena Dunham / Nina Simone)

The Casual Cat Eye

The lovely, talented and gracious Hayley Rose Maurer gave me another lesson in beauty last weekend. I am a sucker for anything related to the 1960's, so my questions regarded how to achieve the signature 'cat eye.' Her bestowal of wisdom is as follows :

         1. Start out with a preferably waterproof cream or liquid liner. (A pen is significantly easier to do on yourself.)

     
         2. Use a neutral eye shadow to contour the crease of your eyelids with a slightly darker shadow than used on upper eyebrow area. (This makes your eyes look more open.)
     
        3. Take your pen and line from the inside to the middle of your eyelid. (Try to stay as close to the lash line as possible.)
     
        4.  Then draw from outer curve of your eye to the middle of your lash line.
     
        5.  Add the signature ‘swoop’ at the end to create the ‘60’s cat eye. You can then go over the line again if a more dramatic look is desired.  (The key is to not go further than your eyelashes when drawing the ‘swoop’ so that you don’t look like Elizabeth Taylor from Cleopatra. We want to hint at the style, not be ready to step out under stage lights.)
     
        6. Mascara. Always mascara.
     
        7. Practice makes perfect!

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Ciao Venezia

I will be the first to admit that our time in Venice was far too short. Lolly and I wanted to know all the secrets and every hidden watery alleyway, but time simply wouldn't allow for it. We did our very best to absorb everything, bouncing from gelato stand to gelato stand, ordering house wine for 2 Euro and grabbing tickets to an opera! I was seduced by the romanticism of it all, not to mention the fact that I had never touched any man-made object that was one thousand years old. (Some of the apartments were still marked by roman numerals.) I would be just fine if Ernest Hemingway had taken me on a date here. And no, we did not get carried away with the magic of it all and sing 'That's Amore' the entire time.