texas casual

salutations

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:20:00 +0000

this morning i started something new:

i ran to yoga.

did yoga.

was going to run back from yoga, but i couldn't feel my legs.

i discovered that yoga to the people has a 7am class on tuesdays and thursdays at their 38th street location. it's awesome and only $5/class. there were only 8 people as opposed to the 55 expected for the 6pm class. plus, i was done with my workout by 8am, and it was a true sun salutation. how cool!

at the end of yoga classes, the instructors read a quote for you to reflect on. today's quote was really great:

"Wherever your heart is, there you will find your treasure"
- Paulo Coelho Author of The Alchemist

the paris!

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 04:58:00 +0000

a few months ago on a very chilly nyc eve, i saw coco, before chanel at the paris! theater. it was quite glamorous.

photo (cinemeablend.com)

a few weeks after that, i saw a single man at the paris! equally as glamorous.

photo (designcrave.com)

i highly recommend the films and the theater, whenever you can. also, be on the lookout for my reappearance as julianne moore's character in a single man, i'm currently working on the big hair portion.

oh madison

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 04:25:00 +0000

ever since i started my new job back in october, i've done a lot more walking. from home to work and from work to home. specifically, i've been walking up and down madison avenue. i chose madison because "it's like being in europe."

or so some say.

i've found that the walk does a world of wonder for me, it puts a new spin on the day and there is just so much to see and enjoy. examples below:

in november, i walked up behind a family that was on their way to dinner. it was such a look into a manhattan family's evening. the mom had picked up the kids and the dad had met them on the corner, or at least that's what i got from eavesdropping. they were headed to a restaurant around the corner, and the dad had to tell the mother and daughter to "watch out". guess i got too close...
back in december when my mom and emily were in town, we ran into my mom's cousins, who were looking for chinese food. on madison. i had to tell them to go to 2nd ave, madison ave doesn't carry chinese food thank you very much!
the christmas windows in the ralph lauren kids store on 73rd and madison. amazing. but most amazing was the fact that the clothes for the 2 year olds were all white. WHITE. too much.
the french dress shop, with the extreme a-line dress always in the window. picture the dress that diane keaton wears in "father of the bride", but with a popped silk collar. always a different dress, but always the same display.
the designer consignment shops that are always closed at 6 on the dot. i can only imagine that they have the most fabulous stylings of old new york. if they closed at 8, i would be a much better dressed 25 year old.
madison is home to clyde's, the upper class pharmacy that makes appearances on gossip girl.
there are no starbuck's on madison, only nespresso's and coffee carts in the mornings. let me tell you, it's quite hard to resist the jelly donut from all those coffee cart guys, especially when you're on madison.

but honestly my favorite thing about madison ave is that it let's me daydream.

a few sweet things

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 01:40:00 +0000

today, i was just walking along, thinking my thoughts, livin' my life (as some would say) and these pictures below just happened to be there to add to my wishes and whims.

the below is a great little bookstore across from the school on 81st. my first fall here, i stumbled upon it and bought "Summer at Tiffany's" a cute little book about girls spending a summer in the the city during college in the 50's.

The picture below appeared immediately after i was thinking of what to get my sweet for valentine's day as well as what chocolate i should be buying myself. although this really did not quench either request, i loved the giant box of chocolates with the warhol-esque piece in the background and the giant size candy hearts to the right. i cant wait to have a house with a room painted bubble gum pink to put these in!

and while some may think the 100% raw varietal honey is a bit obscure, i think it fits right in with my sweet theme. how yummy would that be for breakfast on homemade bread with whipped buttahhh and a big cup of coffee?

anthropologie

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 04:40:00 +0000

a few weeks ago, i was lucky enough to receive an invite from my friend emily to a book signing at the Rockefeller Center Anthropologie store.

but really, the highlight was the champagne and empty store that we got to peruse.

if you've never been to new york city at christmas time (Nov. 1 - Jan. 7) then you have not the slightest idea of what a crowded store looks like. first, let me refresh your memories that most of the stores in Rock Center have 3 floors: basement, first and second. the basement is typically the men's section of the store, while the 1st and 2nd floors are devoted to women and/or kids. so, backtrack, three floors does not equal less crowded, it equals 3x as crowded at christmas time.

so retailers beware: 3x as crowded equals julia doesn't want to step foot into the store at christmas time, unless there is free champane offered.

note: this is not the first anthropologie event i've attended. my first was at the store opening in Austin, TX with danielle of so great. there was also free champagne at that event.

the big bang theory

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 04:23:00 +0000

a few weeks ago, one chilly, rainy, Friday night, i went to an event at the Museum of Natural History with a few handfuls of friends. this event was something we'd planned to go to for about three weeks, and everyone was quite excited. there really is a lot to be said about ending your work week by starting your weekend off with a gin martini with a lime twist and a museum event.

so anyways, the event was your typical NYC museum event, complete with hipsters and yo-pros (my newly created term for young professionals). there was also a dj/band (can't remember) who was pumping the bass through out the planetarium wing.

to escape the crowd, and ear pounding music we decided to hop into the glass walled elevator and get in line for the planetarium show. after taking seats in the white dome shaped room, the show began, as did the expansion of my knowledge.

sure, i went to school, and i paid attention (i was always very good, hated feeling like i was caught off guard), but i cannot for the life of me remember learning the intricacies of the Big Bang theory. and if i was in fact taught this theory, then it was not nearly as interesting as this show was. i learned so much!

and the best part was i got to go play with my friends afterward, like recess. although, i don't remember recess having wine, gossip and a coat check.

NYFW

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 18:29:00 +0000

this friday culminates this installment of New York Fashion Week. a week that arrives once every September and February launching the spring and fall collections of designers from all over the world. it's a week that you can either: completely avoid, become completely wrapped up in, or settle on something in the middle. every fashion blogger out there has their daily write ups on the shows they were invited to, critiques on the models, make up, hair, shoes, runway style and the celebs that are in the audience. i am not writing about any of these things primarily because i did not attend NYFW. i did however attend Fashion's Night Out, and let me tell you, it was fantastic!

first off, a little description. FNO was created by a few fashion moguls to increase retail sales after the slump they felt during the recession. translation: most of 5th avenue, soho, meatpacking and the rest of the nyc fashion meccas all provided free drinks and extended shopping hours. a few of them even promised celeb appearances. (oh my)

i started the night out at Bloomingdale's for a Martha Stewart Wedding's event because i was promised a... gift bag (what can i say? i'm a sucker for swag). it turned out though that the rest of Bloomie's was offering even more in the way of freebies! we took a picture, then got it autographed with Eli Tahari, (such a nice man!), drank from mini champagne bottles and noshed on popcorn for DKNY's birthday, oohed and ahhed over the wax statues of Leo, George and Mr. Pitt, and we even caught a glimpse of Gwen Stefani. it's too bad, but we missed Anna Wintour. (pics below)

after our star studded and popcorn highs we traversed the city to 5th avenue for a small visit to Cartier. best drinks of the night. the bar tender told me it was made of, "grapefruit juice, vodka and some berry juice!". Cartier was the hot spot of the evening for my gang of friends, so it was great to relay the star sightings. and by "relay" i mean brag whole heartedly, like a 12 year old. next stop was Versace for their runway of live manikins, and then onto Juicy because we thought we spotted Rihanna. we were mistaken, and took that as our sign to bow out gracefully, while we still could.

all in all it was a fab night, i saw plenty of people with shopping bags, and best of all it falls very nicely in with my free wine series that sadly lapsed over the summer.

stay tuned for next time!

pictures!

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 18:39:00 +0000

ok, i promise this will be my last post about prior noted engagement. but click here to see the pics from the big night. see if you can pick out where i was told there was a camera!

e = engaged

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 16:52:00 +0000

last night i got engaged to my boyfriend (now fiancee?) Seaver!

what?

some of you may be saying to yourselves: "wait, i thought julia said she had to be 25 first, isn't she still 24?" (that's true) or "it's not the 4th quarter yet, is it?" (also true, note: that was my revised guideline for when he could propose, really romantic huh?) so ya, he basically bucked all the "rules" i had laid down and surprised me.

There was a quarter involved and also a lovely ring. (he used the quarter to distract me while he pulled out the ring, it worked!). he also sensed my weird desire to be followed around by the paparazzi and hired a photographer to snap pictures of us on the walk from Tasti-D to my old apartment stoop. i was completely oblivious. the pictures from Susannah's shoot are coming later, but my picture is this:

after the pictures i called my mom and dad, who had known since JULY 4TH, talked to danny and emily, and emailed MB who's in Germany. then we turned the corner and went to a bar to celebrate with all of our friends. it was truly an awesome night and was more than i could have ever dreamed of.

no plans have been made yet, promise! and i'm hoping to push it off slightly until after our busy August and September fly by, but we'll see.

thanks for all the well wishes and congratulations, we're really so happy and happy to share this with everyone!

Free wine* *wine is actually beer this time

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 19:33:00 +0000

so it's been a little bit since i've attended a free wine event. i'm sure most of you are thinking that that series was an early spring thing i did, and for the most part it was. i'm not sure if it was the economy, my busy calendar or what, but now i'm back with another free wine piece! and this time, it's actually free beer.

the kind folks at welovebars.com are giving away beer for blog posts. according to their website, these guys run a group of bars consisting of: the Black Bear Lodge, Kingshead Tavern, Bullshead Tavern and Whiskey River. when you go to the site, make sure to listen to the tunes!

they claim the giveaway is in honor of the man who invented the global hypertext system (what?) which became the early internet. this all happened in the late 80's/early 90's when i was but a wee lass who though beer was disgusting. thankfully that is no longer the case! so bring on the beer boys!

much thanks to my friend Tushy who forwarded on the article.

(stolen) History Lesson

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 14:30:00 +0000

you may have heard that i'm going on a European extravaganza in a few weeks. more on that later.

but i thought you should all know the reason for this trip: the Huntly Hardie reunion, taking place in New Lanark, Scotland. my cousin Ben, (the oldest son of my mother's brother, uncle skip) decided to put a little bit of a history of the Hardie clan on his blog. it can be viewed here. i've also cut/pasted it below and added on a little bit of my own lore. enjoy!

A bit of history on my family, as far back as people with far more time than I, have been able to trace back.

Adam Hardie (1823 - 1879)
Born in Scotland, emigrated to Pittsburgh, PA, and worked as a blacksmith. His widow endowed some land to the city after Adam's death. Today Hardie Way, in Pittsburgh, remains a lasting legacy of the first Hardie on American soil.

George Edward Hardie (1870 - 1949)
Youngest of Adam Hardie's five children, he was an engineer and entrepreneur who had three children.

Joesph Hardie (1897-1967)
Those dates could be way off, I'd have to ask my folks on that one. Joe was a publisher who lived on Long Island (Rockville Center) and commuted by train every day to NYC. Was married to Edna Muller, my Great Granny who lived to be 102 years old. Great Granny was always very thankful that "her Joe" had taught her how to drive at a time when women drivers were quite uncommon. Great Granny finally gave up driving "the old ladies to church" when she was 99.

David Hardie (1925 - )
Gramps grew up on Long Island, graduated high school early and joined the 10th Mountain Division to fight in the Italian Alps in World War II. After the war, he attended Cornell University, married my grandmother , Joan "Nana" Dickey, and purchased his first farm in Danby, NY. In 1952, he purchased what has now become Hardie Farms Inc and raised his family in the farm house that I grew up in. Well known (at least by his grandchildren) for his slightly offcolor choice of pre-swimming songs: "I like to go swimmin with bow-legged women and dive between their knees...."

David "Skip" Ernest Hardie (1950 - )
My father, oldest of Dave and Joan's three children. Grew up at 31 Holden Rd, Lansing, NY, pursued varies undocumented post high school adventures, attended original woodstock music festival, hitchhiked cross country a lot, did a lot of skiing in Jackson Hole, sometimes attended Michigan State University, and eventually returned to the farm to help out Gramps. That turned into a pretty good idea, Hardie Farms has grown incredibly since 1952 and is a flourishing, state of the art, profitable, smoothly operating enterprise today. Married Mom (Holly Norris) around 1978 and raised four blond kids (me, Cait, Joe, Adam) on the farm. Check out the picture of Adam Hardie from the 19th century and Adam Hardie from the 21st century. I think I can see the resemblance, don't you?

this part added by me:
Ann Hardie (1958 - )
My mother, Skip's younger sister, grew up in above mentioned farm house, also participated in undocumented post high school adventures, attended Cornell University, followed my dad (Roger Yale, aka, Faja Raj) to Dallas in 1982. Settled in Little Elm, TX in 1997 and continues to reside with the dogs and two of the 4 "Texas Yale" children. She will also get to drive in the UK (ie. the other side of the road) with my dad and brother Danny all the way up to the reunion. I can't wait to hear the stories of that trek!

like i said, i'll give you all more information on the extravaganza in a bit! stay tuned...

o'mom

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 16:16:00 +0000

when i was at home a few weeks ago, my sistalicka emily and i were chatting about how mom sends us newspaper clippings having to do with things in either NY or Chicago. emily said she always felt bad throwing them away, but just couldn't keep them all. i always keep them and then happen upon them months later, note: they get most often get tossed after my second read.

why does this matter you ask? well because i think mom and her new iphone have figured out a way to bring us the clippings electronically! see below image:

type reads:

subject: your next blog topic?
body: Couldn't find a link for article in DMN so I did the next best! About 2 sisters who 'love baking and sweets!' How is Ally? Bet she loves the cooler weather. Skip said they had a record low Sun night. KKLL. Mom
code breaker: DMN = Dallas Morning News; Skip = Uncle; KKLL = kiss kiss love love (used to come up as KILL from her itouch)

so as usual mom found a gem for my next blog topic. o'cookies is a sister duo in NYC and Dallas that make healthy cookies. hey, as long as they're tasty i'm in! check them out and let me know what you think!

i promised pictures

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 03:01:00 +0000

so here they are. an eclectic bunch from the texas weekend extravaganzaaaaaaaaaaa.

the happy couple!

house party with the lovely bride

sarah and i

this looks more awkward then it really was... i swear!

sibs.

sister! sister!

wine - that costs $

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 19:36:00 +0000

today on a rare jaunt away from the office during lunchtime, i was enjoying my BOGO from Jamba Juice while strolling back through the intermittent clouds with Emily and Abigail, wondering how it can be cold in july. don't get me wrong, i'm not complaining about the weather, it is absolutely delightful, just curious is all. so it was during this thought session that Abigail enlightened me on this fab sounding place called City Winery.

basically it's a regular wine bar, no big deal right? well ya, but the big deal they do have is this: you can create your own barrel of wine. a barrel, people! that barrel makes about 250 bottles of your customized brew. to start the process you go in and meet with wine consultants (what a great job) and determine what flavor, body, style, color, and other characteristics you want your wine to have.

once your barrel is complete, you can go into the restaurant and drink it, have it bottled for dinner parties at your house (how awesome!?!), or do whatever you wish with it. the cost to create your own wine comes in at a cool $5,000, but you can split it by up to five people. any takers?

maybe if you hear what i've decided to do with the wine you'll want in? ok fine, i'll give you a small synopsis below.

my ideal wine would be a rose (since it's summer and roses seem appropriate) and i would have 100 bottles prepared with a very nice orange/peach/pink paisley (similar to the paisley in the guitar)

the label would have gold embossed type, and it would be called: Vacheron. i would have the cask shipped to my summer home somewhere in between NYC and Cape Cod (if it existed, it would look eerily similar to the cottage below which is actually a home/palace in Newport, RI built for Cornelius Vanderbilt).

for whatever reason, or maybe no reason at all i'd be throwing a party for all my nearest and dearest. the wine would be paired with the appetizers and then brought out again at the end of the evening and be given out as a party favor. one per couple please! oh! and it would be a themed party too: Great Gatsby/Kentucky Derby, think Daisy, and big hats, and...colored seersucker! how lovely right?

TEXAS

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 19:21:00 +0000

headed to the great lone star state tonight with seaver for the lattimore wedding. can't wait!

things that are already planned and super important:
- post airport trip to sonic tonight - emily is getting into DFW only 45 minutes before us (perfect timing!)
- playing on the lake, the new jet ski, the canoe (per seaver's request), and in the pool
- playing golf with dan dan
- watching faja raj grill and then eating it all
- getting a tan
- wedding attending with the crew

pictures to follow!

getaway gear!

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 16:25:00 +0000

as i'm gearing up for my summer travels to texas and europe x2, i've been daydreaming about luggage and other goodies i may need to have to complete the look. so it was quite convenient that this fab luggage provider just entered my radar.

they are called Streamline Luggage, and they have some of the most unnecessary luggage that i've ever wanted. honestly, what's a gal to do if she can't travel in style? (what, you mean we're in the middle of a recession and i should be lucky to be travelling at all?? puh-shaww)

please take a look and let me know your favorite pieces! mine is most definitely the Ambassador Series carry on in brown and white, or white and brown, or white and tan, or all of them?

free blowouts are awesome!

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Wed, 20 May 2009 21:35:00 +0000

i've been on a quest to continue my free wine series, but since those events haven't been as plentiful, i decided to branch out.

yesterday, i was lucky enough to be able to snag an appointment for the free Kerestase blowouts that were being offered at top sal-ons around the city. the email went out last friday morning from Splendora, and by the time i realized i could have someone blow dry my hair for free, all of the good spots had been taken. but, as i said, i was lucky, and i scored an appointment at the 5th avenue location of the Vidal Sasson Salon.

my experience began with a 10 minute wait in which the receptionists kept me occupied with their phone answering: "sasson salon downtown, can you hold please?" "sasson salon downtown, can you hold please?" "sasson salon downtown, can you hold please?" "sasson salon downtown, can you hold please?" etc. you can see how entertaining that was.

then a nice woman named Giselle brought me back to the chair - where i had her snap the "before" picture - and to get shampooed, that is where (i think) the treatment took place. regardless of what was happening the head massage was awesome, it even made me forget about the uncomfortable neck ledge type thing sal-ons always have.

then came the blowout by Leticia. she was some kind of european and did some kind of a great job. if you know me you know that i have a lot of hair and even with the recent shearing it just took, it's still thick, so i'm very impressed with anyone who can use a gun shaped tool that blows out hot air to make it straight.

you can see in the "after" photos that it turned out wonderfully, and if you're wondering what fantastic locale i went to for the photo shoot, you can stop. it's my cubicle.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

sweetest things - itsy bitsy edition

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Tue, 19 May 2009 15:03:00 +0000

so when i was trolling the internet yesterday afternoon gathering up my daily intake of info, i stumbled across this jewelery website called Manic Trout. i highly suggest that everyone check it out. not only is their jewelry super cute, but it's incredibly reasonably priced as well. with earrings starting at $10 + shipping, how can you go wrong? i've got two pairs (at least) in my shopping bag already and i'm sure the longer i look, the more i'll find.

Jal Sweetest Thing Earrings:Ferka Sweetest Thing Earrings:

I've been told I have followers...

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Mon, 18 May 2009 15:49:00 +0000

and that i'm not posting enough for them.

well, here's a weekend recap for you lucky lucky ones...

friday night:
- went for a short run (it's a new thing i'm trying)
- tried out cavatappo wine bar on 90th and 2nd (also known as downstairs from my apartment), with some gal pals. note: must start taking my camera out to capture these memories.
- date night with a gift certificate, total recessionista!

saturday:
- woke up to rainy morning, ran errands, prepared for the Lonestar Chili Cookoff
- arrived at said cookoff with roommates and proceeded to have a mini college reunion (so much fun when that happens in the middle of NYC!)
- afterparty at Rodeo bar, good times, good margaritas, good friends
- ventured to stoned crow (w. village - ish) for more good times and "slidders" (the past tense of sliders, the small cheeseburgers)

sunday:
- brunch at Pig & Whistle on 2nd
- nap
- work 2.0

all in all, a great weekend centered around food! what did you do this weekend?

culture shock

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Fri, 08 May 2009 17:34:00 +0000

so last friday i was laying around at seaver's apartment, we were recapping the day and catching up on the week. all of a sudden he turns to me and says, "can i tell you something?" nervously i replied, "sure..." the rest of the conversation went like this:

s: "i bought something today"

j: "what does that mean? what did you buy? should i be worried?"

s: "it is something i've been wanting to buy for a while"

j: "well can you just tell me what it is???"

s: "ok, i bought...bagpipes!"

j: laughed until i started crying.

he had been talking about bagpipes lately, with our upcoming trip to

scotland for my family reunion he was getting interested in the cultural things associated with my heritage. nice right?

there is another angle here though.

being an analyst on wall street, seaver likes to think about things, and read a

bout things and discuss things for hours on end. he is perfectly content sitting behind a computer, even on a beautiful day, scouring the internet for new information on whatever topic he's into that week. be it a company in distress, a vacation or bagpipes. the guy is into knowledge.

which brings me back to my his angle. with all this information in his head he is somehow able to figure out what he needs to do to make things work. see where this is going? he was certain that he knew how to play the bagpipes before he even ordered them. and, he almost does. i heard the pipes for the first time last night. they were not perfect but they were

supremely better then what i heard when i attempted to play...

the next think i'm going to try to figure out is how to turn this:

into this:

any suggestions?

annnnd we're back

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 18:31:00 +0000

due to the increase in work over the past few weeks the blog was put on the back burner on accident. but don't you worry your little head. i'm still out there scouring the scene. past events have been less mainstream but still a hit. they've included, a surprise party for my lovely bf, seaver, an easter celebration, a recession recipe swap and much much more! here are a few pics for you to take a gander at. enjoy!

Pass(the cupcakes)over Treats

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 14:15:00 +0000

so this time of year for the gentiles is usually dedicated to pastel frosting, chocolate bunnies, regular candies in fun colored wrappers (thank you Reese's minis). and for the Jews it is usually the time of year they follow a flour-less diet consisting mainly of matzoh, which is flour that is not allowed to rise. i somehow don't think it's fair that your choices are either candy or no bread, is there no in between? (and yes, i realize that's not the point at all...)

in order to remain relevant during the 8 days of Passover, Crumbs Bake Shop has developed flour-less cupcakes using potato starch and matzoh meal instead. and what's even better is that they have the best names:

• Holy Moses Cupcake - Chocolate cake with fudge filling, chocolate cream cheese frosting covered in chocolate fondant icing with chocolate sprinkles around the edge
• Raspberry Red Sea Cupcake - Nut cake filled with raspberry preserve, raspberry-vanilla cream cheese frosting, decorated with sliced almonds & raspberry drizzle
• Chocolate & Vanilla Commandments Cupcake - Chocolate cake, vanilla cream cheese filling & frosting, Van fondant icing with rainbow sprinkles around the edge
• Elijah’s Delight - Nut cake with fudge filling and chocolate butter cream frosting, chocolate shavings around the edge

the mini cakes retail for $4.50 at all of their 24 locations from April 8th to the 15th as well as at their online bake shop. these fantastically named delights are only a small part of Crumb's extensive Passover menu. Go to the store near you to check it out!

Crumbs is kosher year round under the OKS certification.

Pure Lines

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 21:00:00 +0000

when Rachel, a member of the gaggle, invited me to Wolfram Ruoff"s Pure Lines Collection at the Sous Les Etoiles gallery last thursday night, i jumped at the opportunity.

in my usual fashion i had no idea what the art opening would entail, so i was pleasantly surprised to walk into the small and simple gallery. it was the perfect size for a (max) 10 piece show. the first thing my eyes were drawn to ended up being my favorite. it was a black and white photograph of times square, something typical that you see on the street, being peddled, in times square. but there was something different about this photo. there was something jumping out at me, a lot of things, they were enhanced lines, lines that had seemingly been pulled out of the image and almost turned into tubes of neon that the XXX signs are made of in Vegas. it was Awesome! every time i looked at a different piece, there was something else there.

even with all these lines jumping out at me from every photograph, we were able to finish the gallery pretty quickly. good thing too because the artist himself was there just to talk to us! ok, maybe not us, but he did answer our questions. see below for a recap, and pictures:

J and R: So how exactly do you create these pieces?

WR: I do them on the computer.

J and R: Oh, cool. It's really interesting, we haven't ever seen anything like it...

WR: Yes, I think I'm the only one who does this kind of art. I've been doing it for 2 years now and not seen anyone else attempt it.

J and R: Well it's really fantastic and you did a wonderful job, we're glad that we came to check it out. Thanks!

it seems as if we only had one question, you say? well that's because there is a fine line in the question asking, when you're at a gallery, you don't want to ask too many questions because then you may come across as interested in purchasing the piece, when really that is not the case. and especially during these trying times you have to tread lightly.

which brings me to the 2nd best piece of the gallery, they had free wine. while i did not partake, getting over a cold, it still added to the experience.

if you're down on broadway between prince and spring any time before may 22, 2009 be sure to hop in for a looksie, and ask a lot of questions!

free wine for a good cause

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 01:19:00 +0000

if you read my previous post you'll know that i'm entertaining myself in a different way this spring season. free wine is my new mantra, and you'll never guess what happened today at work, my friend emily was trying to recruit someone to attend a fundraiser/informational meeting at a friend of her parents' apartment on the UES (upper east side, for my non-nyc readership). now, i would have attended even if my new mantra wasn't in effect, but this invitation also held two other things that have become near and dear to my heart since i moved to the big apple: the UES, my current and favorite neighborhood, and fundraisers.

fundraisers have a different connotation in nyc, not one of required donations to get in the door, or snobby snobs looking down their long noses. it's more of a "let's get together in a formal, slightly dressy way for a really good cause that you probably won't care about but that i want to talk to you about." you see, wildly different.

anyways, this specific gathering was of the typical fashion. held at the amazing apartment of Beth Daniels a devoted volunteer with the Women's Refugee Commission. she has poured her heart and soul into the organization since a spur of the moment refugee camp visit to Thailand in 2006. it was sometime around that visit that she met Ada Williams Prince, the senior advocacy officer at the commission, at the Women's Refugee Commission office.

ms. prince was the presenter at this evening's affair. she gave a very inspiring overview of the commission. did you know that the average refugee is in a camp for 17 years? that means that children are born into the camp and in some cases never attend school, that also means that the chance of their mother's being attended to properly before, during and after childbirth is slim to none. that used to be the case, at least, until the commission began taking action and rectifying these wrongs by raising awareness of women's reproductive health issues, education, and other needs and rights of women and children displaced by conflict or natural disaster.

it is a truly inspiring mission and one that these women have not taken lightly. there are only 25 employees in the new york office, and it is through the help of these employees and the many dedicated volunteers that all this work gets completed.

find out more on their website. they are always looking for volunteers.

who needs botox when you have bangs?

noreply@blogger.com (Julia) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 23:01:00 +0000

given the recent, yet not so sudden downturn of the economy, and in an effort to become a better saver, i've resolved to only attend events where they offer free wine. this doesn't make me a moocher, you see, if the event is advertising "complementary wine" then they want you to attend and to have your fill of it.

my first exploratory outing using this methodology was to the LeMetric event at Saks Fifth Avenue, hosted by BettyConfidential.com on Thursday evening. i gathered a gaggle and we went unknowingly to the back of the shoe floor (10022-SHOE, the floor's very own zip code).

the speakers at the event were none other than Betty's own style + beauty editor Lois Joy Johnson, Elline Surianello, founder and CEO of LeMetric hair center, INC., and Valerie White, Ph.D., Clinical Psychologist Executive Coach and author.

Elline spoke first, giving a background of the LeMetric system and how it came to be. she suffers from alopecia, a disease that causes her hair to fall out, and after living with this condition for her entire life, she finally realized she could do something about it. she began to design her own hair pieces, pieces that stayed put with practically nothing to hold onto, pieces that were different than anything she had ever know before. quickly she realized that she could help other women as well, and from this grew what LeMetric is today: a custom hair replacement strategy for women. she is very clear that she only does women, and "only hair on the head!" Ms. Elline also made it clear that the cause of hair loss is rarely physical, and more often than not it is caused or made worse by mental factors, i.e. tragedy, loss of a loved one, life change, etc.

enter Dr. Valerie White. Dr. White was very helpful in getting the audience understand that a woman is defined by her hair but that there are things she can do to remain confident even through difficult times. things such as shifting the balance of thinking in order to remain positive.

it segued nicely into Lois's topic: the 10 rules to follow to be healthy, hot and happy. don't worry, i wrote them all down for you to read:

1. get rid of belly fat, muffin tops and that belly: buy a SPANX full body suit for spring
2. get measured for a new bra, the new average size is a 36D (!)
3. buy more dresses than tops and bottoms (they don't cut you in half)
4. buy 1 pair of new jeans
5. substitute a self tanner for body lotion "makes you look yummier"
6. get botox (or if you're against, please see title of post), a good concealer and big sunglasses
7. use fashion as strategy
8. show arms, legs and decolletage
9. cut out the size label on your clothes
10. keep up appearances, specifically beauty wise

if you go back and re-read my intro to this piece you'll see that the last item on this list and free wine mission do not necessarily mix, but they do have something in common. it is that cutting back on entertainment is admirable, but cutting back on beauty necessities, eye brow waxing for example, is not. remember that girls.

i started the event with one purpose in mind (free wine) i left learning a few valuable lessons and hearing motivational women speak, plus i got to look at some very pretty shoes. i feel that it was a very successful inaugural free wine outing. if you know of any more, or would like me to cover yours feel free to let me know.