It’s nice to be able to take a day for yourself and find a moment to rejuvenate your spirit. After a long weekend, I welcomed the fat raindrops that splattered against my windowpane and the allure of staying in during a rainy day. I felt relaxed, spiritually centered and safe. I swear if I had a fireplace to curl up in front of, I would. Honestly, I’ve pretty much done nothing more than drink lots of honey vanilla camomile tea, fiddle around on the guitar composing super simple melodies, listen to music and flip through magazines collecting visual inspiration. Here’s to more rainy days!
I’ve always considered myself an amateur photographer. Good enough that people comment favorably on my pics but with no formal training, everything I shoot is based on instinct. To be honest I have no clue how my Nikon camera works. I’ve learned to experiment with the settings until I’m satisfied with the desired effect. I’ve been in a darkroom exactly five times, having developed some film and watching friends develop others. To say that I’m curious about using my lens as an instrument is an understatement. This is an interest that I’ve had for a very long time.
I am very happy to say that stylealchemy is officially two years old!!! Yay!! Instead of ushering in the terrible twos, we’ve decided that it’s time for a few changes to take effect.
The vision of this blog part has changed dramatically from the very first post in May 2007. As a result, there will be a brief hiatus from stylelachemy but we will be re-launching on June 9, 2009.
I look forward to these new changes and I think you guys will be pretty pleased also. Thanks again for all the readers and everyone who has passed through this little space in the interwebs….
I don’t know about you but this winter kicked my ass!
Usually, I’m down for the cold, the layers, the inevitable hibernating and most importantly, the inspiration. There have been times when I get some of best ideas during the winter and I hatch them just in time for the spring.
These boots are my winter favorite. I have been wearing them pretty much non-stop for the past three months. With dresses, jeans, shorts, leggings, just about everything. I love fancy shoes and heels just as much as the next girl but lately I’ve been keeping it simple with these boots.
“Sit back and relax kiddies, this is a new series on stylealchemy where I share with you kind, kind folks, some life lessons I have learnt from…well, just about anywhere. This should get really good, really quickly.”
I am a movie person. Meaning, I enjoy watching movies, discussing them, rewatching them. You know, normal stuff. I am not a pretentious film buff who only watches independent types because they want to seem cultured. I love them all from low-low-brow to masterpieces.
At the same time, there are a lot of movies that come out every year that I never get to, even when it seems that everyone and their mother has seen it. Case in point: Garden State.
Now when this movie first hit, everyone I knew talked about it…mostly because of the soundtrack.
Yes, it is good!
Of course, people would comment on the meaning of the film and that feeling of coming back home, etc.
I put it on my list and then promptly forgot about it.
There was a guy who once told me that I was like Sam from Garden State except that I wasn’t a liar. I looked at him blankly and blurted something along the lines of “That’s not a compliment!” He quickly explained that I was quirky, adorable, interesting and a lot of fun to be around. I then asked if that was the Natalie Portman character. He said yes, I felt a little better.
After that convo, I really made an effort to watch the movie but other fantastic masterpieces came into play like X-Men 3 and Transformers, etc.
Priorities, people! It’s all about priorities.
Until finally, this past weekend. While, an arctic chill settled over New York City, I promptly planted myself inside where I could be warm and watched so many movies that I just about OD’d on actors and dialogue.
I’ve always loved Zach Braff because of SCRUBS! but didn’t know if I wanted to see him in such a different role.
Here’s what I learnt:
There’s a lot more craziness going on in Jersey than no sales tax on clothing and a plethora of malls. (Okay, I already knew this one, I mean Jersey is my neighbor after all) Mainly, because I consider it suburbia and when you don’t have much to do…well, people find ways to occupy themselves.
Yes, Natalie Portman’s character is adorable, definitely a lot odder than me but I see the attraction and similarities. It is true, sometimes I talk a lot and I have randomly tap-danced in the middle of conversations. So thank you, N! I totally get it now. I will take that compliment any day.
Sometimes there is an awkwardness when you get in contact with people that you used to know; back when everyone was a lot younger and had that optimistic world is mine outlook and then you meet up again and everyone feels a little inadequate.
I want a motorcycle with a sidecar. Pronto!
Method Man will always play some tough-talking guy with seedy connections M.E.T.H.O.D. Man
The soundtrack is still great!
Just about everyone feels lost in their twenties or at least some point in their life
“If you can’t laugh at yourself, life is going to seem a whole lot longer than you’d like” So very, very true.
Here’s the trailer for the ten other people who haven’t seen it yet:
Starting off the year right with a little video love, I put together for you guys. Be kind, it was my first take and apparently I say umm a lot. But whatevs.
As a result, I do not ride my vintage Schwinn around like I used to.
It takes a special type of person to ride their bike during the cold, bitter winter and I am NOT. that. person. at. all.
So, it sits propped up in my apartment as some type of metal ornament.
Mostly, the basket holds little odds and ends.
Really, what all this rambling about is that when I do ride my bike, I’m not always the most practical. I mean if I’m wearing non-tight jeans, I know to hitch and roll up my right leg because I don’t want the extra fabric to get caught in my chain and cause a nasty accident. Let’s not even get into the helmet situation, as in I don’t wear one. My bike is soo heavy that its more of a leisure type of activity and that means that I have ridden in heels. Not practical at all (good thing I didn’t have to go far), but it was definitely eye-catching. So, of course when I saw this picture it made me smile because I have been there, done that.
Love. it. lots.
Do you guys have any interesting, fashion-related bike stories?
Outside, the weather is chilly and the heat is blasting in my apartment which makes it sooo easy to indulge in several naps a day.
I don’t understand why we stopped having a required naptime after kindergarten.
This is one of my favorite things to do but sometimes I get really anxious about getting writing done and working on the website and then I find a pic like this and I’m happy in the moment.
This week has been ker-razy!! I’ve been running around and experiencing real life which means that I haven’t been holed up in front of the computer.
So, I definitely have to get back on track.
This past Tuesday, I got to see Girl Talk at Terminal 5 and it was awesome.
He was having so much fun on stage and it just reiterates everything I believe in, people do what you love and you will earn a living from it!!!
There were so many young-uns that I thought it might have been a little past their bedtime but the experience was amazing. The energy was incredible!! I did notice that there were a lot of people standing around with a beer in their hand and not really moving. Why would anyone go to a Girl Talk concert to stand around? This is not a night at the opera. In the words of M.I.A. “Dance, Dammit, Dance” and that’s exactly what me and my good friend did. We danced from beginning to end and I’m talking about serious crazy dancing.
Other than that I have been working on some things that I will reveal pretty soon. So I just wanted to check in and give mad love to you guys!!!
Smooches.
Also, this girl rocks my style world! Lots of love to the glamourai!
♥ the alchemist
