Oliver Peoples & To Kill A Mockingbird

One of my favorite books of all time is Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird. Shortly after it was published in 1960, it was turned into a movie (1962) in which half of the money needed to make it was provided by actor Gregory Peck. Peck had such great respect for Harper Lee’s only published piece of literature, that one of his grandson’s was named Harper as a way to pay homage.

The film To Kill A Mockingbird earned Peck an Academy Award for best actor for playing Scout’s father, Atticus, which he has said was one of his favorite roles. As testament to this fact in some small way, the gentleman who played Tom Robinson (Brock Peters), the character Peck’s character defended, read Peck’s eulogy at his funeral in 2003.

With the 50th anniversary of the film right around the corner, the founder of Oliver Peoples eye glasses, Larry and Dennis Leight, are introducing a Gregory Peck frame.

After being approached by Gregory Peck’s son, Anthony Peck (who is also a loyal customer of Oliver Peoples) who now has the famed “Atticus” frames, he felt such a style would be something well-recognized and appreciated by the public.

 

Images via The Times Magazine

Coco & Rogers – Spring 2011 Collection

Model Annabella Barber is the focus of Coco & Rogers' Spring 2011 collection photographed by Henryk Lobaczewski and styled by the designer herself Vanessa Nguyen. With classic pieces that let a woman’s body do the talking, each piece welcomes the beautiful of the season. Located in Australia, Vanessa created Coco & Rogers in 2010 “. . . in a quest to create pieces which are equally striking on their own as well as complementary to the needs of a modern wardrobe.” And that she has certainly done.

Particularly inspired by the movie 1970’s film, Love Story, it injects Jennifer Cavalleri’s chic wardrobe of classic flared skirts and slim caftans with a dose of modernity through heightened tailoring and bold colour. Have a look. And to do some shopping and view more collections from Coco & Rogers, click here. And if you’d like to learn even more about the up and coming talented designer, Vanessa Nguyen, who just began her label in 2010, click here for a in-depth interview.

All images via Fashionising & Coco & Rogers

An Open and Tranquil Home

There is something soothing about white walls, high ceilings, wide open spaces and beckoning overstuffed furniture. This California home is calling my name as I long to get lost in welcoming all of the beauty spring offers, finding oodles of spots to snuggle up with a book during the day, throwing a casual dinner party in the evening and bathing in a serene spa-like bath after everyone has gone home.  How perfect would this home be for each of these scenarios?

Images via House Beautiful

Mango – Lookbook Spring/Summer 2011

Isabeli Fontana is photographed by Terry Richardson for Mango’s Spring/Summer 2011 collection. With colorful separates, spring certainly is being summoned.  View the video and more looks here.

All images RDuJour

Stand Up With Determination and Hope

“You have enemies? Good. That means you've stood up for something, sometime in your life.”

-Winston Churchill

There are very few people in modern history who played such a crucial role in how life is lived today. Without Winston Churchill’s strength of character, winsome ability to inspire, yet at the same time speak with conviction against almost all odds, history may have written a different outcome to World War II.

I find myself continually inspired by him with the more historical and biographical information I read. Being an avid reader and continually striving to learn and explore, Churchill earned a Nobel Prize in Literature, was the painter of 535 canvases, chose instead to follow his convictions, not partisanship and even after his death (at the age of 90), he still is a pillar of what is possible no matter what you are up against.  For a boy whose father forever felt he would be a failure, Winston Churchill was the farthest thing from such a description.

With his quote above, he reveals something so many try to avoid, especially women.  And I say that because so many times it seems that women are trying to keep the peace, to be the mediator, avoid confrontation, but I believe that in being liked by everyone, we allow ourselves to vanish and become anything depending on whoever we are with.

While it is true, we must pick our battles, I do believe that we must be willing to stand up for those ideals and rights that we find fundamental to a better way of life, to doing a job most productively, and to anything else that without deteriorates at the core our ability to live our best life.

How we go about standing up for what we value is almost as important as what we are standing up for.  We must broach the subject (whether it be with our colleagues, loved ones or community) in a way that is based in sound reasoning (not just because that’s the way it was done when I was growing up, etc), respectfully and good faith. 

We also, upon making the decision to stand up for what we believe in, must realize that we may lose some once thought to be coveted relationships. However, if we are being truthful, and if what we are standing up for is a priority to the foundation of how we live, than this is a reality that we must be prepared to accept.

Having said all of this, I would also advise continual education and updating on what it is that you believe in, and even more importantly, to research the other side no matter how deeply you disagree with it.  For understanding concretely exactly what the opposing argument may be, you are able to create an even sounder argument for your position.  And who knows, you may discover something you hadn’t realized that potentially changes your opinion of the other side for better or for worse. 

The key is to always seek knowledge, keep an open mind and once you have done this, you can stand firmly behind what you believe knowing you have done it with a clear and sound mind with valid reasons.

As Churchill teaches us, no matter what your situation, no matter how many times you are shoved aside, never allow cynicism to detour you, always believe that things can improve if you have the courage to do the dirty work and never stop learning, reading and trying new things.

Images: (1) Encore! This (2) Sebastian (3) Oh Fashion Model (4) Southern Sophisticate

Parisian Chic: A Style Guide by Ines de la Fressange

Parisian style radiates an air of self-assuredness, that indefinable je ne sais quoi that initially seems so elusive, and yet at the same time almost appears simple, uncontrived, perhaps effortless.

Inès de la Fressange, the premiere model for Chanel in the 80s and currently the brand ambassador for Roger Vivier, has graciously decided to share these coveted Parisian secrets of style in her new book Parisian Style: A Style Guide which is officially available Tuesday, April 5th.

I must confess, I was eagerly awaiting the opportunity to take in her tips, ideas and expertise for more than just a few months, and upon the delivery of my copy, it barely left my side until I was finished.

First of all, while the cover alone is captivating and impossible to miss with it’s scarlet red jacket and gilded font, the contents are just as creatively and vivaciously presented. With the feel of a large Moleskine journal, ribbon bookmark and all, additionally all of the photography of shops, products and destinations are by Inès, as are the drawings and hand-written lists. The the layout as well is playful, easy to read and unpretentious unlike what one might expect due to the topic at hand. 


Inès has clearly taken special care to create guide for all of us who are short on time and thus sometimes imagination, being sure to help us create a style that appears effortless, yet is full of great thought.

The Magnificent Seven are what is defined as the brilliant basics that are key to creating Parisian style in any scenario.  Modeled by Inès’ daughter Nine, each of these items are demonstrated as part of a complete outfit in order to better exhibit how to incorporate exactly what she is suggesting must be in our closet:

The Magnificent Seven:

1. A Man’s Blazer
2. The Trench
3. The Navy (cashmere) Sweater
4. The Tank
5. The Little Black Dress
6. The Perfect Jeans
7. The Leather Jacket

While this may be where many style books cease in their guidance, Inès has only just begun.  For each of the Magnificent Seven she shares more ideas on how to meld it into anyone’s wardrobe, a list of fashion faux pas, a lux celebrity style idea and a hall of fame reference which in the case of the navy sweater was Eric Bompard’s cashmere company. She is spilling the beans so to speak, sharing the secrets and letting us all in on where one can acquire the look of Parisian style.



And be sure, after sharing her tips on fashion, she continues on to accessories, the five essential bags, shoes, beauty, entertaining, and home decor.

Having lived in Paris for most of her life (although not born there, further proof that one does not need to be a born and bred Parisian to possess such style), she also takes her readers through her recommended shops, boutiques, hotels, restaurants, spas, and hot spots that would take more than a few travel guides to figure out when attempting to plan their next trip to the City of Light.




It is without reservation that I highly recommend Parisian Chic: A Style Guide as an informative, delightful and forever resourceful book that I am sure to pack for my next trip to Paris and have already begun to tweak my wardrobe accordingly – navy cashmere sweater, white jeans and ballet flats – my new go-to chic outfit. Thank you Inès!

And to view more of Inès Parisian chic style, click here.

Published by Flammarion
Pages: 240
Available for pre-order at Amazon $16.10

The Weekend . . .

Sunshine, walks, rest and open-ended nothingness. Yes, the weekend is here, and with it the month of April when flowers that have been tucked tightly under the soil begin to say hello again, and the grass seems to change a brilliant shade of green overnight.

A fun week it was with some posts that piqued interest {J.Crew – Fall 2011 Ready to Wear Collection} and news that excited me (Brad Goreski has his own show!).

After perusing the internet and many fashion runways, the quarterly newsletter was sent out early this morning titled Prepping Your Spring Wardrobe, as well as the weekly newsletter.

Here also are a few of the past week’s most popular posts:

*Why Not . . . Read? Part Une

*Cleaning Your Sanctuary – Tackle & Simplify

*Take More Responsibility

Whether you are heading out of town, have fun plans with friends and family or are taking some time for yourself, I hope you have the experience you’ve been hoping for, and I look forward to seeing you back here on the blog on Monday as bright and early the book review I’ve been dying to share with you will be posted on Inès de la Fressange’s Parisian Chic.

Images: (1) Baroque Simplicity (2) Simply Seductive

Links á la Mode – Fashion: Forever Evolving

A tremendous thank you to Collette Osuna of Statements in Fashion for choosing to include my post on Eric Bompard’s cashmere sweater as suggested by Ines de la Fressange. Below you’ll find the list of fashionable posts from the Independent Fashion Blogger’s weekly Links á la Mode. You’re sure to find some amazing posts by some talented bloggers.

Fashion: Forever Evolving

Edited by Collette Osuna of Statements in Fashion

Hello everyone! I’m super excited to be making my debut as an IFB Links a la Mode Editor this week. As I visited each link, I was reminded that each had the exact thing in common with the next, that Fashion is Forever Evolving.

From your Mothers fashion advice, a beauty “how to” video, or a legendary icons passing, fashion is always changing and taking form in a new shape. I am constantly thriving to acquaint myself with the “fashion unfamiliar.” This weeks links did just that for me. I’m thrilled to be a new member of the IFB family and cannot wait to see everyone’s posts throughout the upcoming year!

Links à la Mode: March 31st

• Color Me Blue Fashion: The Lazy Girl’s Guide To Style.
• Fashioned By Love: Carmen Dell’Orefice: Living Haute Couture
• Fashables: These Shoes Called My Name
• Fumiko Kawa: Redesigned Elle Homme shirt with clean cuts
• Interrobangs Anonymous: Feminism and the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire
• Independent Fashion Bloggers: Why Fashion Bloggers Should Love Instagram
• House in Tillford: Tips and tricks for getting the best bargains at designer warehouse sales
• Makeup & Jeans: A faux bronze look and entire glamorous face in 11 steps!
• Mallory in New York: Sephora Launches The World’s First Unretouched Makeup Ad!
• Mrs. Bossa: Does Pink Stink? How colour-coding gives the wrong message about girls
• Relatively Chic: 25 Ways to Help Japan Through Fashion & Art
• Statements in Fashion: Weekend Jean Lover: From Drab to Fab
• Styling You: Statement rings: Why you should wear one while drinking champagne
• Sugar & Spice: Fashion and feminism: unlikely partners?
• The Citizen Rosebud: A touching tribute to the inspiration of ICON Elizabeth Taylor
• The Loudmouth: Big mouth, bigger hair: My hair timeline.
• The Simply Luxurious life: Eric Bompard – Cashmere Heaven
• The Styling Dutchman Fashion & Finding Myself
• Tickle Me Chic: The “Plastic Surgeons of digital media”
• Those Graces: I Got It from My Momma: Style Lessons My Mom Taught Me
• T Minus T Plus: Baby Steps into Pattern Mixing

Take More Responsibility

While many banks and other financial institutions offer protections, advice and assistance on a wide variety of products and programs, there are a few things we can all do to eliminate paying for things we should be more than able to do by ourselves.

The excitement about becoming an adult is undeniably a stepping stone, but in order to be a grown up, we must behave as one which means taking responsibility.  As batman’s anthem reminds us, “With great power, comes great responsibility.”  The power in this instance is the weight we carry as adults in society, with our kids, in our communities and for today’s post, with our finances.  So why not get rid of the following protection and create a budget program for free as it will force you to be responsible and to do something you should, as a grown-up, already be doing.  Take the training wheels off!

1. Decline Overdraft Protection

If you know that the bank will not be paying those businesses you’ve cut a check too without having the funds in the bank, you will be less apt to whip out your debit card or checkbook.  And under no occurrence, should you use your credit card to purchase something when you don’t have the cash to cover it in your checking account (I’ve done it before, am well aware of the consequences and have learned this lesson the hard way.)

2. Don’t Pay for a Fancy Budgeting Program

It is unnecessary to spend more money to organize the money you aren’t already managing well. Instead, simply set up a checkbook register in an excel program as suggested by Melissa Tosetti in Living A Savvy Life with simple addition and subtraction functions for each month. At the beginning of your month, enter your paycheck(s), and deduct all of your mandatory expenses (as you would in a calculator). At the end or the beginning of each day, enter your expenses (eating out, groceries, etc), so that you know exactly how much you have in your account.  Without getting fancy, you can easily keep yourself managed, organized and your spending under control.

The thing to keep in mind is that we must control our money and not the other way around as Suze Orman reminds us, and as one of my favorite quotes that is pinned to my idea board states,

“I think the nicest thing you can say about a woman is that she lives well and she lives below her means.”

 

(Suggestion #1 suggested by Suze Orman in her book The Money Class)

Image:Simply Seductive

One Cookie Is All You’ll Need

The weekend is just about here and with it hopefully something sweet for you to enjoy – a date, time to unwind and relax, a quick weekend getaway, spending time with family, or dressing up for a special gathering.  Rest assured, if you don’t know where your “sweet” is coming from this weekend, I have just that certain something for you.

After all, it is Foodie Friday (or almost), and while chocolate chip cookies seem to be the most favored of all cookies, I thought I’d share something different with you that takes it up a notch.  How does a decadent cookie with not two, not three, but four different chocolates sound to your ever weakening sweet tooth?

A few years ago, while flipping through The Oregonian, I came across this recipe in Tuesday’s FOODday section. It originates from Sara Perry’s cookbook Deep Dark Chocolate: Decadent Recipes for the Serious Chocolate Lover, and it immediately became one of my favorite cookies.  These particular cookies are so rich that I honestly can only have one, but one is enough because you will savor each lush bite of chocolate upon chocolate as it overwhelms your palate.

Chocolate Cookies With All the Chips

Ingredients

• ¼ cup semisweet chocolate chips
• ¾ cup white chocolate chips
• ¾ cup milk chocolate chips
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• ½ t. baking soda
• ¼ t. salt
• ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• ½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 1 t. vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or leave it ungreased.
2. In a small bowl, mix semisweet, white and milk chocolate chips, whisk flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt until well blended.
3. In a stand mixer or with a hand mixer set on medium speed, beat the butter until creamy. Add brown and granulated sugars an beat on medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg until well blended, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as necessary. Beat in the vanilla until blended.
4. On low speed, slowly add the dry ingredients and beat until just blended, again scraping down the bowl as needed. Beat or fold in the chocolate chips until evenly distributed.
5. Drop the dough by tablespoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Bake until set and the tops have lost their sheen, about 12 minutes. (Because the dough is dark, the first batch will be the key to when the cookies are done.)
6. Let the cookies firm and cool slightly on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

You must be warned.  This is a special cookie.  Meant to be savored, relished and, if you’re feeling generous, shared with someone special. 

Image: simply luxurious

Style Inspiration

From stacked heels to simple clutches, flared jeans and bright wellington’s on display.  The ideas of how to dress for spring seem to be everywhere. Enjoy a some of my favorite images of the week.

 

Images: (1) Vogue and Coffee (2) nickelcobalt (3) theembellishment (4) Musings In Femininity (5)  Musings In Femininity (6) cognacandcoffee (7) Vogue and Coffee (8) Musings In Femininity (9) abundantpalette (10) Musings In Femininity (11) gthegentleman (12) Musings In Femininity

Brad Goreski Has His Own Show!

The good news has been released!  Brad Goreski from The Rachel Zoe Project fame has just been given his own show on Bravo, tentatively titled It’s A Brad Brad World. With filming having just begun, it is on the 2011/12 projected schedule.  Following Mr. Goreski to Paris Fashion Week, haute couture runways, the Cannes Film Festival and Menswear runway collections, as well as his general day-to-day activities, the show looks to have quite a lot of potential and already an eager audience.

Recently, Brad’s first style shoot was revealed in InStyle’s March 2011 issue with model Liya Kebede titled “Mad About Color”. Photographed by Giampaolo Sgura and styled by Goreski, he then styled British singer Adele for the April 2011 issue’s piece “Violet Femme” which he himself admitted left him a little star struck.

With Demi Moore and Jessica Alba has clients, Brad appears to be well on his way to having ample opportunities to make a name for himself and his talents in the fashion world.

Visit his new blog and follow him on Twitter for updates and below, take a look at both of his recent pieces of work in InStyle.

Images: (1) Source (last) Source & all others via InStyle