Charles' Chic Chat

Perfect Combination: Late Summer...Dior...Mathis

2010-09-01T15:49:00.012-05:00

Christian Dior "Schuman" ballgown, 1950

Charles Lord "Fortura" Ballgown, Pricipessa Collection 2007

I love this song, regardless of the who's performing it...Frank Sinatra, June Christy, whomever! Its just one of the best songs ever written and composed. But when I stumbled across this version by Johnny Mathis....well, I immediately got visions of Labor Day weekend regatta balls on the North Shore of Long Island or in Newport....diaphanous, ethereal layered Dior-esque chiffon gowns swanning about candelit halls, setting ablaze the crystalline jewels decorating gown and wearer...the orchestra's dulcet melodies wafting through the rooms and out into the faintly crisp night air. Elegance immortalized in song and cloth.....

Dior "Schuman", 1950

Christian Dior, Vertical Line 1950

Christian Dior, Trompe L'oiel Line 1949

Christian Dior "Junon" ballgown, Mid-Century Line 1949

Sex and the City-The Movie 2

2010-05-29T02:08:00.008-05:00

OK....
Its 2:20am . Just got in from seeing the movie with my sister....
I just updated the status on my Facebook page to:
"feeling REJUVENATED, EMPOWERED, UNSTOPPABLE, LIBERATED, and GLAMOROUS!!!!"
And, Boy, do I!

Isn't it funny how the seemingly least consequential things can really alter your mood, change your perspective, and impact your life?!?! I went to the movie on opening weekend out of professional obligation. Yes, I wanted to see it, but anyone who knows me knows that I don't rush to the theater for anything. I get around to it when I get around to it. But everyone was telling me I HAD to see, I felt the expectation, and I wanted to see it with my sister because thats what WE do and I knew she wouldn't wait long. I even left a very fun party to go see it...and I'm glad I did!

I personally haven't read any reviews, but according to my sister, the reviews were less than glowing. Well, I think they are wrong. The movie was superb! While it was NOT the first movie by any stretch, it WAS INDEED EVERYTHING that the SHOW was!! It was light and witty and urbane and glamorous....it was simultaneously real (the emotion, conflict, and dialogue) and surreal (the costumes and settings)....everything we LOVE about SATC!
I guess because I didn't go in with any expectation, I wasn't bound to be disappointed. The goal of the first movie was to tie up loose ends from the show and give a proper send off. In order to do that, there had to be a lot of....well a lot of everything. A lot of drama, suspense, fashion, humor, everything. And honestly, I left the first movie feeling very SPENT- the total opposite of tonight. I understand they had to pack it all in, but it was a lot to digest in just under 2 hours. By contrast, the goal of the current 2nd film, I felt, was to entertain and to let us look into the characters lives 2 years later. There were no dramatic shift in character motivation and trajectory of their lives. That would have been very contrived and dissatisfying. Its purpose was to update and, always, to ENTERTAIN. And that it did!

I won't wax on about the fabulousness of the lines, and gags, and fashions, and set design. Everyone with eyes and ears and any sense of that which is indeed fabulous can clearly comprehend that message. What stuck with me was how simply GOOD i felt leaving the movie. At 1:30am, after being up 15+ hours straight and running non-stop in the heat all day, there was a Carrie Bradshaw-Preston bounce in my step! You know the "bounce"...that souicant little jaunt that she has as she lives her life that simply says "I'm fabulous and I know it and I love it!" And I had it. I can't say I had it everyday this week...even though I looked good everyday. But tonight, it was there and I could feel it....

Then I got in the car, and I thought about my sister's comments about the movie and how great I felt and I realized- or re-realized- that I AM CARRIE!
I have a fierce sense of style...
I have the same inner monologue....
I have the same insecurities...
I make the same kinds of stupid mistakes...
I try hard to fix them when I do...
I'm introspective...
I have marvelous friends I would do anything for and whose opinion and support I treasure...
I, despite ALL (and I mean ALL) the crap I am dealt and the lack of certain resources and the yet unfulfilled dreams, I live a very glamorous life that I constructed just for me that NOTHING can destroy...
I am utterly and simply fabulous and, as Aidan and John/Big told her in the movie, there is no other man like me...And I LOVE IT!!!!

I hadn't forgotten these things totally, but I had forgotten HOW MUCH they mean to me and how much they make me who I am. In that instant, as I entered onto the interstate, I felt this surge of power and self-possession...that "I AM Erica Kane!...I can conquer the world" confidence that defies ALL that attempts to contradict and say otherwise.

Just then, the 12"remix of "Save The Overtime For Me" by Gladys Knight and the Pips (1983, represent all the way baby!) came on... the windows were down and i was floating down the trafficless 440 bypass...the wind in my non-existent hair... looking and feeling every bit of SATC chic: eclectic, quirky, polished, precise,individual... glamorous as a 70's Vogue covergirl just beaming joi de vivre and exuberance of mind and spirit!

The feelings of despair and vagueness evaporated. The negative refrain of not being worthy of or able to find real love and understanding stopped repeating in my mind. The doubts about my career and financial success dissipated.
All that was present was PRIDE in ALL that I am...
a renewed sense of purpose in life...
a regained faith in myself to be more than able to make my dreams come true...
a determination to stay true to myself and not be dismayed nor persuaded to alter who and what i am...

And as the song played and ended, and moved onto "Adventures in the Land of Music" by Dynasty (1980), followed by Chaka Khan's "I Know You, I Live You" (1981), a DELUGE of creativity fell, and in a rapid-fire stream-of-thought, idea after idea flowed regarding how I in my own, creative, glamorously unique way could actualize my dreams and goals, but in a emphatic and altruistic way, so that not only I, but many prosper.
And all of this sprang forth from the deep, incessant well of immoderate and innate style, artistry, and soul that GOD placed within me at creation.

I got home and knew I had to write...to share this incredible experience with you, my friends and supporters...
To, unapologetically and without repentance, affirm who and what I am, to myself and to the world...
To proclaim and establish this personal RENAISSANCE.
And while this is an occasion worthy of note, I trust and hope, for you and I, that such a renaissance will occur daily...that our spirits, individual and collective, and GOD's grace may be renewed in us, every dawn and dusk.

And to think, all this from a trip to the "moving picture show"!

Semper Chic and Love!

Save the Overtime for Me (Remix) by Gladys Knight and the Pips

Adventures in the Land of Music by Dynasty

I Know You, I Live You by Chaka Khan

RIP Irving Penn

2009-10-11T23:24:00.004-05:00

Princess Ira Von Furstenberg in full regalia, photographed by Irving Penn.

Sorry Oscar!

2009-10-11T22:48:00.006-05:00

So my friend Oscar has been on me for a minute about having not posted anything lately.
Unfortunately, I cannot come up with an original thought! LOL!!

I have been so busy lately with so many projects, that my creative juices for writing or personal expression are stymied. I can't even get my thoughts together to plan my birthday party for goodness sake!! And planning a soiree is usually the most effortless of endeavors pour moi!

In my absence from blogging, I have designed my next collection. It is an amazing fall collection that I am hoping I have the wherewithal to actually begin to produce. I am sorda at a "build it and they will come" place with it, because I don't know exactly how or what to do with it after it is made. But it felt good just designing it... playing with the fabrics, editing the ideas, doing the croquis. Its been too long. I'm glad to know I still got it. But the common sense, logical, "man" side of me makes me hesitate in going into production until I have a clear vision of where to take it from there. And because I am stymied in my personal expression, as aforementioned, I can't quite get that clear vision I need to go forth.
I feel as Diana Ross would sing/ask "Do you know where you going to?? Do you like the things that life is showing you??" Which makes me think I should write a blog about Diana Ross...
Excuse me for rambling. But isn't that kinda what blogging is about?

In the meantime, here is a pic I found that makes me warm inside. I just love Sable!!!...

Inspiration: Erica Kane

2009-08-07T11:58:00.011-05:00

A digital collage I made back in 8th grade.

I was talking to a new friend the other day (shout out to Oscar!) and he asked me what was my seminal fashion moment. I told him several things. But the one that I left out that I think had more impact than anything else at a very young age was daytime television, particularly the character Erica Kane on All My Children, played by Susan Lucci.

As a child, I worshiped Erica Kane. My face would light up every time she was on screen. I replayed her scenes over and over til I could quote them line for line. I had her picture in a frame in my bedroom. She was the epitome of glamour and allure. Even today, I still have a very special place in my heart for Susan Lucci and Erica Kane. I even have that same picture, in the same frame, in my sewing studio.

The picture I have framed. I actually have a signed one and a copy that is framed.

Erica was always so stylish. From the opening credits that ended with her looking over her shoulder in a red, crinkled silk blouse with that kilowatt smile, hair feathered back in her own late 80's version of a Farrah Fawcett.

Before she spoke a word, her presence in the scene was known by her stunning wardrobe. When I first met Erica Kane it was 92 or 93, and she was the Founder and CEO of a multi-national cosmetic conglomerate called Enchantment, thus there were plenty of power suits and major evening gowns. The hair was always big...only challenged by the size of the clip-on earrings. Mmm, such good times!

But as I became a fan, not only of her but the show, I'd find older episodes from the 70s and 80s. (and thanks to that wonderful place called YouTube, there is no end to my pleasure!) As I unearthed this rare treasures, I really began to understand not only how Erica Kane became the cultural phenomenon she was/is, but how the character became a fashion icon. That lithe, petite figure of hers wore everything beautifully and that thick long, black, shiny hair was so full of body and life. It seemed that she had 2 or 3 wardrobe AND hairstyle changes an episode! All the while she is seducing every man who looks her way and is making her way to the "pinnacle of success" in the fashion industry. How on earth could a young boy who loved all things beautiful NOT be totally mesmerized by someone like Erica Kane?!?!

This clip shows Erica at the peak of her modeling career, but the beginning of her career as fashion icon...
(forward to 3:50 mins)

This next one is one of my favorite episodes and a STELLAR example of Erica Kane at full Ericanity! And the gown and jewelry is so dead on right now...looks like something Rhianna might wear. Even the hair seems like it would appropriate today, but maybe not all together as a look...

When I first saw this episode a few months ago, I sent it to my friends Aaron and Caroline along with this message:

"This is what living in NY and being in the fashion industry is supposed to be...or at least what I thought it would be! Watching this makes me so nostalgic and it makes me see how much Erica influenced me as a child! The way she was sitting on her couch telling Mark all about her dreams and plans, despite how unrealistic they were, was and is so me. I used to do that all the time with that same Erica gleam in my eye that I could conquer the world and no one could persuade me other wise. How things have changed... I still have a bit of that, but the sheer naivete that goes with it that makes it real, that makes it all seem within reach, is gone. :-(

But I will always, always have Erica! "

Erica: 1970s

Erica: 1980s

Erica: 1990s

Erica: Today

A Four Leaf Clover...

2009-08-04T18:09:00.005-05:00

One of my all-time favorite pieces: Charles James' "4-Leaf Clover" Ball Gown in white silk satin, black silk velvet, and white silk faille. Besides being absolutely gorgeous, its an architectural marvel. The book "The Genius of Charles James"- long out of print, but thankfully at the public library- details the 20+ layers of lining, interlining, interfacing and boning, necessary to achieve the pure form of the undulating waves that make this gown truly a remarkable example of garment design and construction.

To accompany this work of art, I am showing it to the melodic tune of on my favorite Quiet Storm classics, appropriately titled "Touch A Four Leaf Clover" by Atlantic Starr...

~Semper Chic!

Inspiration...

2009-08-02T18:37:00.003-05:00

My fall 09 look. Wait for it...

My Favorite Things

2009-08-02T18:15:00.023-05:00

C.Z. Guest in Mainbocher at her home Templeton in Old Westbury,NY

Opera Coats

There is nothing so elegantly extravagant in a woman's (or man's) wardrobe as an Opera Coat.
As is true of all design (being differentiated from art), the opera coat is essentially a utilitarian concept: a cover-up long enough to protect the wearer and their fine evening garments from the elements. But the beauty of the coat is how it goes about protecting. It does its job while retaining its own unique air of regality and decorum. And nothing makes for a grander entrance than a voluminous sweep of duchese, faille, ottoman, petersham, gazar, radzimir, brocade, matelasse, or tussah.

Far better than just a top coat and even more preferred than a fur (Hell just froze over!), an opera coat is so beautiful it can really stand on its own merits. But combined with a gorgeous evening gown or a man's or woman's tuxedo, it makes a striking complete evening look. Unfortunately, we don't see nearly enough of the opera coat these days. I hope to rectify that by including an opera coat in every collection I do. Its an essential for me, without which a collection would be incomplete.

Here are some of my favorite stylistas in some of my favorite examples true couture opera coats...

Deeda Blair in Chado Ralph Rucci in 2004

Hamish Bowles at the Met Costume Institute Gala

Andre Talley at the Met Costume Institute Gala

The Leontyne Opera Coat from Charles Lord's Principessa Collection (left) and Audrey Hepburn in a similar Givenchy number fromt he mid 60s (right

Audrey Hepburn in Givenchy

Marella Agnelli in Balenciaga

If One Picture is Worth a Thousand Words...

2009-08-02T16:19:00.001-05:00

I have nothing to add, just look:
http://ana-lee.livejournal.com/175226.html

Obsessions

2009-07-31T14:56:00.013-05:00

Sometimes I feel redundant. Redundant isn't the right word. Repetitive maybe?

What I mean is I keep coming back to certain things as a designer and a passionate observer of all things stylishly aesthetic. In this instance, I am referring to my obsession with the trapeze line and the shift.

I keep trying to move past it, but every time I see it I become intoxicated allover again with it. There is such a purity of line that, to me , compasseth all understanding (as the Bible would say). Its so effortless, so serenely elegant. I feel like fashion today has lost that completely. Yes, there is a panoply of easy to wear clothes out there, but the say NOTHING! As Kay Thompson said in DV style in Funny Face, "It doesn't SPEAK! And if doesn't speak to me, it won't speak to anyone." They maybe simple, but its not emphatic. I LIVE for emphatic simplicity in design. Even if there is a degree of exuberance, there still must me a simplicity about it. Like a Pucci shift or a jewel encrusted swing dress.

The opposite of this, which is also very prevalent in the market, is fussiness. I remember Polly Mellen in Unzipped saying "Fussy. Finished." LOL! And its so true. All the ruching, wrapping and furbelows...its just too much sometimes. There is no cleanness to it. Now don't get me wrong. I love the extras and the excesses of fashion. Anyone who ever saw a picture of me dressed up, would know that. But there has to be a balance in the market and in the consumers' wardrobes. For every ruched sheath,with epaulets, blouson sleeves, and asymmetrical neckline, and for every cotton t-shirt dress, you need 2 or 3 utterly simple, but strong shifts. I guess I feel there's not enough of that out there for me.

So even though I find something interesting about most of what out there today, and get tingles when I see something new that resonates with the inner "vainglorious vanguardist" in me that is always on the hunt for something marvelous and new, when I see the ineffable glory of a Norrell or Mainbocher or Balenciaga or Simonetta, everything else falls away and disappears from view and I want only it. What I am learning is to, as a designer, be ok with that. To do what feels right, what resonates, what speaks to me on that deepest, truest level and not worry about being a sensation or giving them the latest. To just do what I know and what I do best. And if that means I can't dress everyone, ok. The few I will dress, will be stunning and will be fulfilled by what I bring to them.

My Favorite Things

2009-07-31T14:52:00.010-05:00

I am currently obsessed with the music of Gino Vannelli. He's a genius.

This song is so damn funky! It evokes a louche SEXUAL feel like that of a Helmut Newton photograph.

This song has an equally louche, but more SENSUAL feel, more reminiscent of an Author Elgort.

My Favorite Things

2009-07-31T14:42:00.008-05:00

Shoulder Pads!

I know it UBER-trendy right now to rock shoulder pads. But those of you who know me, Know I have been pinning shoulder pads inside any garment I could since at least 2001!!!

Its not about a trend for me. Its about the perfection of silhouette. For me it gives a strong foundation for any garment. Everything falls from the shoulder. If you want a smaller waist , broaden the shoulder. I naturally have a strong shoulder, but the heightened perfection of additional half inch to 2 inches of height (not necessarily width), makes a great look sublime. And it makes my less than minuscule waist seem significantly smaller, without being femininely waspy.

The only problem with shoulder pads- in the vintage sense- are the ones of the late 80s, when the trend had reach literally gigantic proportions. If you pay attention, the shoulder pad of the late 70s to mid 80s focused more on height. The did not extend the width of the shoulder beyond its natural end. But somewhere around 85-87, the shoulder became exaggeratedly wide, extending the shoulder OUT another 3 inches or more. Granted, this did give a FIERCE wasp waist to the ladies and the guys looked like Gary Cooper on steroids, but it was a bit much and really cannot be re-applied to today's trend for a strong shoulder. (The exception being someone so aesthetically driven that they can work just about anything... read: Myself!!!)

Inspiration...

2009-07-31T00:36:00.003-05:00

My Look for Fall 09. Wait for it....

Charles-isms

2009-07-31T00:10:00.003-05:00

GLAM'MA-
Southern vernacular for "glamour".
Origins :Created by my friend Anthony Monday night when discussing why as a youth I preferred Dynasty over Knot's Landing. He said because I need "GLAM'MA"!!! Not glamour, but GLAM'MA! And he was so right!

To illustrate my point, enjoy one of my favorite scenes from Dynasty, featuring Alexis Carrington Colby and Dominique Deveraux...

And what the hell, this one too! Notice how very now Alexis' jacket is!...

Everday Life and Observations

2009-07-30T23:55:00.005-05:00

I miss Dynel falls...
I cannnot even express the instant Glam'ma!!!

Editorialism in Mainstream Media

2009-07-30T23:23:00.006-05:00

I came across this old commercial that I was mesmerized by when I first saw it as a child. It was for Lady Clairol and it featured models in the iconic 60's plexiglass bubble.

Seeing this commercial again made me think of several things...

First it reminded me of my favorite part of the film "Valley of the Dolls": the fashion modeling montage in which the main character Anne Wells becomes the Gillian Girl. The tone of the faux advertisement in the film and the real one for Clairol is identical, from the voice over to the swelling background music.
(forward to 7:20 mins)

My next thought was how straight out of the pages of Vogue magazine the Clairol ad seemed. Its a direct take from the work of photographer Melvin Sokolsky. This is one my favorites of his photographs, mainly because of the severe elegance of the Lanvin Castillo gown and the Alexandre de Paris up-do, but also for its amazing composition.

It struck me how amazing it was- the immediate affect high fashion had on mainstream media at that time. Sokolsky's work was and remains highly editorial...it was the product of the Vreeland era of fashion images, as compared to the preceding austere Carmel Snow era and the succeeding realism of the Mirabella era. Usually that which is highly editorial, whether hyper-sexualized in nature or pure flight of fancy and fantasy, is watered down considerably before it is given to the general public via television or some other less esoteric medium. But in this almost surreal epoque of the mid and late 60s, the image is a direct, unfettered representation of its original inspiration.

I feel we lack this today. I feel like for all the wonderful things still happening in high fashion and the striking editorial images still being produced, its not significantly or sufficiently trickling down to the masses. There is no glamour... no chic...no real INSPIRATION nor ASPIRATION. But maybe its just ole, nostalgic me?

So I pose the question, how do you feel the fashion editorial impacts mainstream media images today?? Is it watered down OR is high fashion accurately represented? Or do you think the reverse is true and that the mainstream media is influencing the editorial trends?

Chic Contentment

2009-07-27T13:55:00.002-05:00

This was written last night around 11pm...

~~~
I often feel like all I have is chic. Its like that Judy Garland song “If love were all”…”I believe that since this life began the most I’ve ever had is the talent to amuse”. So true. Amuse and exude style. The two combined is a powerful combination, no doubt. But it also can be excruciatingly lonely. Even when there are dozens around you , lapping it up, basking in the glow of glamour and the warmth of wit, wisdom, and compassion.

There are times when you want to put chic down…or the effort of chic, more precisely. You can’t stop being what you innately are. But the effort sometimes feels empty….especially when it has to be used as a filler for other things that are missing. Spending the late evening planning new ensembles for the week, or creating a new piece of jewelry, or dreaming of more elegant costumes for exquisite evenings that may or may not be on the horizon WHEN you really just want to be watching a movie, snuggly in the arms of one who loves you and whom you love in return. It gets played out real quick…especially when its nightly or daily over a period of time.

Chic is my passion. Its one of my raisons d’etre. It always will be. And as long as I live, I will be perpetually in pursuit of that which is chic. But I know there’s more and I want it and yet it seems to be so elusive for some reason. I come close, but it never lasts, or its never right. So I end up sitting in my den in some fabulous get up, with no place to go and no one to be in the moment with. Or lying in my bed, staring wistfully and wantonly at the ceiling with a magnificent jewel on my finger and maybe a mink piece in petting distance, listening to and FEELING Phyllis Hyman. I think I shall retire to the latter now. If wallowing in the truth of my emotions doesn’t feel right tonight, then I’ll just escape into a Bette Davis film…or maybe Hitchcock…something distractingly mesmerizing.

As I write this though, I think maybe the problem is that I keep expecting something to change. For the outcome of my efforts toward greater fulfillment to be different “this time” for some reason. Maybe I should resign myself to the fact that a chic life is all I am entitled to and to somehow make that and let that be enough…eliminating the desire and the expectation (and subsequent disappointment). I do feel I am worthy and deserving of something more and I guess that keeps me from complete resignation to the state of things as they are, but because I am worthy and deserving doesn’t mean a thing in this life. I still may never get it, so accept it and move on contentedly.

I suppose I should clarify for those who may misconstrue this. I have much more than just chic and am extremely grateful for the people and things I have in my life, as well as my many other sterling qualities. But chic is one of those things that is uniquely and solely mine…the way a real, great love is. So what I am lamenting is having only one passion- chic- rather than two: chic AND a love of my own. Why do I place chic on the same plane as great love? Because its exclusively my own. Even my wit and wisdom aren’t exclusively mine as I know many who have my same sense of humor and kind of wisdom…they are my friends. But there is truly no one with my exact same special brand of chic. But I digress…

Contentment with chic…correction:GREATER contentment with chic…we will work on that…
~~~

I ended up watching my tape of Judy Garland live performances from the 60s. Did the trick. :-)

Everyday Life and Observations: A Conversation with Life

2009-04-11T15:02:00.003-05:00

So I sent Life a note in the mail yesterday. It went as such:

"Life, I am tired of having to knock on your door every damn day. Hoping you will answer. Hoping you will give me what I am actually there for.
Why don't you come to my house and knock on my damn door for a change. You know where I live. And bring something decent with ya..."

The post office was especially quick. He called me up this morning. I answered on my gorgeous rotary phone. The conversation went as such:

Me: "Hello?"

Life: "I got your letter."

Me: "Oh really. That was fast. I was about to send you an addendum post card saying 'Or am I going to have just keep knocking till I knock your damn door down?!'
So why are you calling?"

Life: "To tell you that the reason I don't knock at your door is because the house you have built for yourself is too grand and intimidating. I am scared to even approach your gate, much less knock on your mahogany french doors."

Me: "Oh Life, you damn fool! Don't you know I built this for you. For you to come and live and bring all that you have, good and bad, with you. But you never come so I lock myself away in here because of you. You are the one to blame. Not me"

Life: "But I wanted to build your house. A real house. With you, over time. But you built your own house. A house of illusion, built of dreams, hopes, fantasy and the house of illusion you built is so grand, theres no way you'll ever leave it for a more modest, real house with me."

Me: "Thats not true, Life. I had to build this house because I had no place else to live. But I only wanted to stay here til you answered your door or until you came for me. I don't like this house as much as it seems. Its drafty, it doesn't keep out the wind and the cold. The colors have faded since my youth when I first built it. So come, already, and lets go build a real house together."

There was a pause.

Life: "Meet me outside your gates"

Me: "I don't know. I have tried to meet you before. All those times I knocked on your door. All those times I stood outside my gates, everyone else zooming by with their Life, waiting for you and you never showed up. You left me standing there, with my hopes in my hands, crushed, and running back into my maison d'illusions.
Promise me you'll be there."

Life: "I promise I'll be there, but I can't promise me I'll be what you want me to be or have waiting what you want me to have. I can only show up as I am, just like you can only show up as you are."

Me: "What about all those times you didn't show up?"

Life: "I always showed up. I just didn't have anything for you. So you didn't see me. Or you saw me and was disappointed that I didn't have anything or that I didn't have what you wanted and so you didn't take me in or go with me."

Me: "What else was I supposed to do?! What else was I supposed to see?! I wasn't asking for the moon and the sun and the stars. Just a little bit of....something, anything to let me know it was worth the effort, that I was worthy of something good."

Life: "I know, but thats just not how I operate. Its one of my many flaws. But if you love me, you have to take me as I am."

Me: "I don't know if I love you."

Life: "Then why don't you give up."

Me: "I can't. I don't know why, but I can't."

Life: "Thats because you love yourself and you love me and you love what we have even when its positively dreadful a lot of times."

Me: "Well..."

Life: "Just keep believing in yourself and in me. And keep meeting me and I know at some point I will give you what you need, what you want. Just try and be patient with me. Can you do that?"

Me, tears in my eyes, trying to breath: "I think I can."

Life: "Then meet me outside your gate, everyday, and I'll be there."

Me: "Ok. I'll try."

Life: "Thats all I ask. I love you."

Me: "I love you too."

Everyday Life and Observations

2009-04-10T11:22:00.004-05:00

Why dont I ever see drag queens or cross dressers in career separates or business attire?! No really. I know its funny, but its true. You never see it.
I have never seen one "show up and show out", as they say, in a Tahari suit, or something by Ellen Tracy, or even a St.John Knit. I personally would have a lot more respect for one who was walking around town, looking so pulled together for day.
And while, we are at it, I don't ever see them embracing current high fashion trends, at all. I have never seen one trying to adapt a viable runway look. Never have I seen one sporting something remotely resembling Lanvin or Giambattista Valli, or even vintage St. Laurent or vintage Balenciaga-- all of whom make/made clothes with silhouettes and porportions that would be very flattering to their "non-traditional" body types. Much more so than Cavalli, Versace, and Alaia inspired looks. And I am well-aware that they can't afford to buy these designers- who can these days- but you can definitely get the look for less. And if you are going to have something made, as many of them do, why not have something made that references Poiret or Mainbocher for a change rather than always Gaultier or Mugler.
Think outside the box. Think Nina Simone instead of Diana Ross. June Christy instead of Cher. Or lets compromise and agree on Jospehine Baker, the best of both worlds!
Just my thoughts...

Everyday Life and Observations

2009-04-10T11:15:00.002-05:00

Life, I am tired of having to knock on your door every damn day. Hoping you will answer. Hoping you will give me what I am actually there for.
Why don't you come to my house and knock on my damn door for a change. You know where I live. And bring something decent with ya...

Am I alone in these sentiments?

Everyday Life and Observations

2009-04-10T10:57:00.004-05:00

Isn't it funny how sometimes your mood and the weather sync up and at other times its completely opposite?

Some days, I wake up and look out the window, and its cloudy and rainy, and I get this warm, cozy feeling that makes me want to throw a scarf or cowl neck on and some shoulder pads and listen to slow jams. This is a good thing, for me. I call these Quiet Storm days. I like Quiet Storm days. I can't have too many in a row, because I need the sunshine or the mood will quickly change. I can deal with maybe 3 Q.S. days in a row.

Then other days, I wake up and I look out the window, and its sunny and bright, and I get this dragging, shiftless feeling that makes me want to lay about in my house coat and listen to "Good Morning, Heartache" and "Black Coffee". This is not a good thing. I hate those days. And whereas feeling good on a Q.S. day is optimistic, feeling bad on a sunny day, is even more depressing. Don't get me wrong, I can listen to and enjoy Good Morning Heartache and Black Coffee when I am in a great mood, but I FEEL those songs when I am in a low.

Today is a very cloudy rainy day here in Nashville. And when I woke up (for good, not the first time which never counts) and I looked out the window, instead of feeling Quiet Storm, I felt Good Morning Heartache.

So whats the point? The weather probably has little to do with it. That we are just going to feel what we feel, when we feel it, however we feel it, no matter what. So I guess all you can do is just deal with it and keep it movin'.

Now THIS is a marriage proposal!...

2009-04-09T16:05:00.003-05:00

Emails from an Ideal Life... (fiction by Charles Brown)

2009-04-02T22:38:00.001-05:00

Darling,
Hope everything is going well at work.
Can you stop on the way home and pick up some milk and tissue? And we're almost out of rum and we will probably need some for tomorrow night. Also, can you bring home from the office a few yards of that beaded midnight blue peau d'ange from last season? I think I might whip up a long tunic for the party. Thank you so much, Dear!
We're having chicken and roasted potatoes for dinner. I love you and I'll see you when you get home.
Love,
~

Emails from an Ideal Life... (fiction by Charles Brown)

2009-04-02T22:30:00.002-05:00

Congrats on the last collection! I heard the line was picked up by Galeries Lafayette...thats outrageous! And, don't say anything yet, but you are in the running for the September cover. I'm having lunch with Mimi O. next week and I am TELLING her she has GOT to get that ottoman suit and that champagne gazar cocktail dress from the collection.
I'll be in town on the 18th. Lets do lunch then. The Waverly Inn or 21? I'm not doing La Grenouille again with you...you don't know how to act!! LOL!
Luvs ya!
~

Emails from an Ideal Life... (fiction by Charles Brown)

2009-04-02T22:26:00.001-05:00

Darling,
Why didn't you wake me before you left this morning?? You know I hate waking up and you're not there. Well, you must have know how much I needed the rest.
Anyway, I hope you are having a lovely day so far, despite the rain. Don't dawdle getting home. The rain inspired me and I made a new Quiet Storm mix cd...from vinyl! Yes, all the crackin' and poppin' included! I am getting a bottle of Riesling, the pasta is in the oven, and I will start the fire at 5. Can't wait to see you...
Love,
~