Ahh! Oxygen!

image from wikipedia

I went to the beautiful Conservatory this weekend.  It is a beautiful structure, built in the late 19th century that looks like something out of a fairy tale.  They always have something going on, cocktails on Thursdays, Blooms and Butterfiles, the permenant Chihuly sculptures, Savage Gardens and more including an up coming exhibit featuring the works of Aurora Robson (find out more about here work here)

image copyright NomadicNester

Right now they have an Orchid Exhibit showing through April, and I snapped over 300 pictures! Yikes.

Beautiful flowers everywhere.  After the room with the orchids you enter the Palm Room, which smelled so clean and simple and beautiful I just said "Ahhhhhhhh."  Then I realized that there are no flowers in the Palm Room and the beautiful "sent" I was breathing in was just massive quanities of pure oxygen.  Oxygen undiluted (or rather unpolluted) by exhast from cars and buildings and chemicals and such.  At this point I thought 'why would anyone live in a house with walls and small windows?  Why not just live in a conservatory?  You would have green trees and plants producing oxygen for you, citrus trees and herbs to eat, a couple beds of tomatoes, and a ceiling that showed the whole sky everyday (and to sleep under the stars at night).'  (Though, I suppose the bedrooms should be off to the side with a real roof, just so lighting storms and full moons didn't keep you up at night;)

Enjoy!

Slán go fóill

 



Cyber Monday

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Vintage Visions 5: Rita Hayworth singing

Rita Hayworth

So completely gorgeous!

This is what people mean when they say somthing is achingly beautiful.

Wanderlust Wardrobe

Loving this gorgeous red dress from Urban Outfitters

Enjoy



Friday Faves and Raves

I am a total So You Think You Can Dance fan.

This is one of my favorite dances

Danced by Jason and Jeanine, a Travis Wall contemporary dance

Enjoy

Well Thumbed Wednesday

My Grandma's copy of

Sewing Made Easy 1960-ish

This book sat on my shelf for the longest time never being looked at.  I had professional books on couture and construction and pattern making and fitting and tailoring and draping, and so on and so on.  I naively thought there was nothing in this book  but how to sew curtains and maybe a house dress.

When i finally got around to looking at it I found out that nearly every topic mentioned above was all within the covers of this one book.  And i had spent all that money buying "professional" books. Silly Kat.

Not only does it have chapters on pattern, construction, tailoring, a dictionary of stitches, fabrics, cutting, altering (patterns and pre-made clothes),

but it had fun stuff like building a wardrobe, which includes notes on what kinds of clothes you need and for what occasion; how a dress can be modified to go from day to night, the kind of shoes a woman should have in her closet, how to be your own stylist, and fun projects like the make your own turban pictured below.

It's really interesting to get an intimate view into the mind of a stylish woman from the 1960s, and maybe not that surprisingly, she is not so different from women today, nor is the advise that is given to her. 

One of my favorite bits is the introduction to the chapter on building a wardrobe

"The budget-minded woman plans her wardrobe for maximum flexibility: she buys accessories that can be worn with several outfits; she learns the secret of changing the appearance of a basic dress; she chooses her clothes with an eye to the type of life she leads.  But, if she must buy all her clothes, she must still limit her wardrobe to what she can afford.

"The woman who sews knows no such limitation.  Her wardrobe can be far more complete, for she makes her clothes for less.  With the money she saves by doing so she can buy the expensive accessories that other women must pass by."

Ain't that the truth ;) 



Vintage Visions: 4

Romy Schneider

in

Good Neighbor Sam

Gorgeous Romy Schneider, dressed in bright jewel tones, in monochromatic outfits in this movie.  Her character is very fiery and energetic.

I particularly love the red :)

cha-cha-cha

"I know why you want me back"

We're in the money

On another note, Jack Lemmon is my favorite actor, and I love the way he dances.

Enjoy!