This is why I have a thing for these wooden rings from I Am Dorkas. Yes, wooden! Plus, they have a sculptural beauty to them that I really love.

Look at how gorgeous the Riptide ring is. Good thing it can be resized because I’m seriously thinking that I might need this in my jewelry life :

Or the aptly named, Lights Out, which really packs a punch.

The Time Stamp ring is a hand-hammered brass two-finger beauty:

Designer Mariana Dorkas Jamadi has made this business a family affair working with both her mother and her beau to create stunning jewelry and lovely textiles. I’m looking forward to seeing what else they churn out.

♥ the alchemist

So, we’ve been granted a reprieve and the warm weather has been wonderful. I can’t help but think about all the things that I want to do, all the spring clothes I want to wear. The lace dresses, shorts, sandals. I want to dig my bare feet into the grass and smell the lush aroma of cherry blossoms. It’s no surprise that I have been collecting a few photos. With the threat of rain looming for the next several days, I’m gonna use these images to keep me warm and inspired.

♥ the alchemist

Anyway, the interwebs are filled with inspirational images and somehow I stumbled onto this lovely lady’s (Kennedy Holmes) blog and this outfit.

At the very least, each individual piece is simple (except for those shoes!) but together it creates something really lovely.

♥ the alchemist

Let me say that during the whirlwind that is New York Fashion Week, it was nice to attend an event created by and for fashion bloggers. The Independent Fashion Bloggers Evolving Influence Conference was so well-organized  and extremely informative. Put together by IFB founder Jennine of The Coveted, she deserves major kudos for pulling off the event and the subsequent coverage that followed. Plus, it was nice to finally meet her after a few years of email coverage and she is just as kind and lovely as you would imagine.

Jennine, Founder of IFB & The Coveted

I have to admit that I was a little nervous about attending as I would know no one there and I get a little shy in these types of situation. Nevertheless, I knew that I couldn’t miss out on an opportunity to gather some more information about our growing field.

First thing, I had to decide on was what I wanted to wear. I couldn’t help but be influenced by the ridiculous amount of snow that had descended on the New York area and a dress that reflected the wintery outdoors seemed like the perfect fit. Add to that the perfect vintage jacket, an amazing combination of fur, leather and a bomber length all in one. A win-win in my fashion book.

{Side note: I am dreaming of spring days and wearing dresses without tights}

Please excuse the somber expressions in these photos. Taking your own photos is rather unnerving. I mean what would I smile at??? The insistent, blinking light counting down the seconds to the flash?

Anyway, I was able to attend the first two panels in person. The first, Fashion Blog Marketing Workshop was extremely informative and I particularly liked the GStarRaw perspective which included the idea of anti-branding and introduced some new words into my vocabulary like glocal: having a a combined global and local view on an idea.

Panel One: Fashion Blog Marketing Workshop

The second panel, The Business of Blogging, I was really looking forward to because I definitely wanted some guidance on how others had made a career out of blogging and also I would get to hear Gala Darling of iCiNG speak. As expected, I gained some insight into what others had experienced and got some great advice.

Gala Darling and Panel Two: The Business of Blogging

The last two panels: Navigating Blog Ethics and The Future of Fashion Blogging, I had to experience online but I still walked away with some tidbits that I plan to use. Jordana, Yuli, Wendy and Jennine were all amazing moderators and kept the pace and flow of the event moving. All in all, a roaring success t and I was so happy to be able to attend.

♥ the alchemist

It’s about that time of the year that I start to get a little antsy. Winter is taking its toll on me. I’ve avoided getting sick thus far and I am determined to not have a cold this season. That is until I woke up yesterday morning with what felt like the beginning of a scratchy throat. Oh hell no!  Theraflu, Vitamin C and rest has been my friend and I pretty sure that it will not progress any further.

In order to celebrate this success, I’ve decided that what we need around here is another GIF party.

In case, you’ve missed it. A GIF party is where a whole bunch of moving images get together in one space for both yours and mine entertainment.

Below is an re-enactment of yesterday’s events.

This was exactly the face  I made when I realized I had a itchy throat.

Noooo! Liz Lemon’s right: sorry germs, you’ve got to get out of my system. I’m Therafluing your ass.

Don’t let me have to send Lafayette from True Blood in there. Homeboy, just took his earrings off. It’s on!!

The sight of Lafayette coming to kick some germ ass would frighten anyone into submission.

Now, I’m just sitting back triumphant over this cold. Straight chilling. Right, President Obama? Let’s dust that dirt off our shoulders. We got this under control.

Have a great weekend!

♥ the alchemist

Life is fragile and each one is precious. It’s hard to explain to someone how a person you’ve never met or knew could impact you in such a huge way. Lee Alexander McQueen is one such person. An enormous inspiration in my fashion aesthetic, his genius could be felt and appreciated by many. Someone who used their creativity to the maximum, always pushing the boundaries, bringing something new to the table. This kind of innovative freedom is what I strive for and want to nurture and appreciate in others.

♥ the alchemist

I’ve been a big fan of stockings, tights whatever you want to call them for forever. I still remember my mom dressing me in white cable knit ones to match my outfits. Also, there’s a picture of me not even two years old in a blue dress with a white pinafore, a blue barrette in my hair, white lace-up shoes and blue tights. Because my mom is so gangsta at color-coordination.

This love of tights has stayed with me all through high school, where I rocked green opaque tights and brown oxford shoes when everyone else was wearing jeans and sneakers. My love for thigh-highs stems from my adoration of both Cher and Dionne from the movie Clueless. I’ve  found myself wandering through the hosiery aisle in drugstores comparing off-black to carbon black; the benefits of sheer and semi-sheer. My mom used to send me out to buy her pantyhose (as she likes to call it), so I’ve become proficient at matching them to your skin tone.

Overtime, I’ve found a few specialty stores that sell all kinds of colors, textures, etc. Back-seamed stockings with a cuban heel, glittery fishnets, patterns, patterns and more patterns. This obsession slinks into other types of legwear like socks. I’m a sucker for anything argyle, knee-high, patterned, with or without garters, you name it. My heart races when I see a patterned tight because most likely I will find some way to wear it. Some great places to find tights, stockings and socks:

• We Love Colors
• Look From London
• Wolford
• Sock Dreams
• Tabio
• Forever21

Plus, there are tons and tons of places to get interesting legwear these days in your own neighborhood.

♥ the alchemist

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.

Sooo… I’ve finally signed up for an actual photography class which starts pretty soon!  I’m prepared to be all over the city with various cameras in tow figuring out the mechanics of shutter speeds, etc. Knowing me, the whole thing might go in one ear and out the other and I’ll be using instinct once again.

Naturally, I’ve been inspired by pretty pictures of cameras and girls with cameras. These are some that are in constant rotation right now.

♥ the alchemist

I have a thing about the mail. I love it.

I love getting little postcards, greeting cards and the best are letters. Magazines and catalogs are also very much appreciated.

Bills and junk mail…not so much.

When I was in seventh grade, I had a pen pal exchange set-up through my school and I received my first letter all the way from Japan!

Unfortunately, that was the only letter I received as they unexpectedly ended the program.

My cousin and I exchanged letters for the longest time and I still have those to this day.

As I watch old movies or period pieces, when someone writes a letter or receives one, I get all tingly. It’s all been built up so romantically in my head. The art of writing.

I’ve decided that I want to revive the art of hand-writing. I want  a pen pal, someone that will actually write back and hopefully we won’t get bored of the whole thing.

Any suggestions?

♥ the alchemist

Happy New Year, lovelies!

New year, new decade. Whenever Jan1 rolls around, everyone scrambles to put some resolutions into effect because there’s this need to improve ourselves. I think it’s silly to believe that you can only achieve that within the first month of our calendar year.

So, I don’t go around making resolutions. I know I’m not going to go to the gym.

1) I hate the gym

2) I hate the gym when its packed

3) The gym will be inevitably packed in January

4) There’s no way I’m going to the gym

I’m more content with the idea that I’m constantly evolving, growing and learning.

What do you think?