This is authentic |

The real fashion show

Yesterday I live streamed the Michael Kors show. Which means, in English, that I sat at home, all comfortable at my own desk, and saw all that there was to see as far as that particular fashion show goes. More, probably, than I would have seen had I actually been there, as my certain standing room status would have most likely had me staring at the back of someone else’s well coiffed head.

And yet I got all caught up in it for a minute, craning to catch a glimpse of celebrities (how much Michael Kors does Michael Douglass really wear?) checking out the models, remembering somewhat wistfully a distant past when I walked the catwalks, wondering what it takes to be a DJ at one of these things (because I would of course have better transitions between songs, or so I tell myself) etc etc.

And then I start to hate myself for allowing the inevitable descent into the world of the fashion show scenesters and all it entails. Why do I care about any of this at all? It’s just a bunch of silly (albeit quite attractive) people prancing around (not even to the beat!) in costumes in front of a bunch of slightly older but equally well put together folks with digital cameras and notebooks.

Fashion is totally inconsequential, right?

And then I watch a video like the (short) documentary above, about a group of men who have taken the whole concept of dress-up, made it their own, made it political, made it into a uplifting expression of joy that flaunts all of the hardships they face in their everyday lives. And I see fashion for what it can be: a vehicle for the expression of our higher selves.

These men are living the most authentic fashion show there is. They are the captains of their own souls.

May we all take a bit of their spirit with us when we get dressed up, too.

Yesterday, at some point…

photography

Candlelit dinner at DOC. (This image is part of a new series in which I am posting single images that describe some moment I photographed during the previous day. Kind of like my own slightly more considered and not-quite-instant, Instagram.)

Last night we ate dinner at DOC, a favorite Italian winebar in the neighborhood. It reminded me how much I love candlelight… I think I am going to reinstate the ritual of lighting a candle every night at dinner. It elevates even the most mundane of meals.

The good ship makes it’s final voyage

people

Shirley Temple Black
1928 – 2014

May we all live as full a life…

Here come the hearts and roses

shopping

Or in our case, the heart shaped pancakes.

Sure Valentines Day isn’t till Friday, but last weekend we started to invoke the general positivity of the holiday by eating thematically, using nothing but things we already had on hand. I always love it when you can create something festive out of stuff that is already laying around. Oh and if you don’t already have heart shaped cookie cutters, may I suggest you get some ASAP. They are always coming in handy– a heart shaped cookie is sweet on any day of the year.

The big day, full of chocolate kisses and the obligatory card-for-every-kid-in-the-class, plus grandparents, and maybe a neighbor thrown in for good measure, is right around the corner. Here are a couple ideas to get your juices flowing if you are looking to go beyond the card/flowers mode. (Although don’t get me wrong, a hand made card can go a hell of a long way…)

For one, the good people at One Kings Lane have some great ideas of how you might celebrate.

We are making peppermint bark for all the kids this year. It’s basically a layer of white chocolate over a layer of dark chocolate with broken up bits of organic candy canes (oddly difficult to find) on top. Delicious!

If you’re having trouble getting into the mood, the folks at Flavorwire have a list of 50 books to titillate your fancy.

You can get this really nice spherical hanging basket and fill it with chocolate and other treats. That’s good for an entire family!

Who wouldn’t be excited about getting this open silver heart from Jill Platner?

This dustpan isn’t really romantic at all, but it is red, and beautiful. And there is a certain person (rare, but they do exist. I am married to one, in fact) who always yearns for beautifully designed cleaning implements. There’s lots of other red stuff at Kiosk as well, so go visit them now as the shop is closing on March 8. They have yet to find a new space, but hopefully one will materialize soon…

We don’t actually have any plans for Valentine’s day… To tell you the truth, my husband is going to be on the west coast at a meeting (thanks a lot!) returning home at some point after 1 am on the 15th. So the pressure is off, at least in this household, though I’m sure we’ll figure out something to do on Saturday that feels lovely and valentine-like.

Right Josh??

(Figured I’d give him a little nudge, if he actually ever gets around to reading this…)

Yesterday, at some point…

photography - style

The brilliant and cozy 3/4 length down jacket from Tess Giberson’s FW 2014 show this past week.

This image is part of a new series in which I am posting single photographs that describe some moment I had during the previous day. Kind of like a not-quite-instant Instagram. Needless to say (and yet I feel compelled to say it) all photos in this series were taken by me, and as such, are © Brooke Williams 2014.

Ok so I actually took this photo last Friday, but it was yesterday at some point when I remembered that I wanted to post it. So there you have it. Baby steps. I’ll eventually become the timely blog post-er this crazy internet world has come to expect.

In the meantime, enjoy this lovely and somewhat quiet feeling moment of contemporary fashion. And then check out the whole Tess Giberson show for more things you’re going to wish you could have right now to wear during this insanely cold winter…

Monday, Monday – or more links about misinformation, apocalypse and fashion

links

Is the end really upon us? Or does apocalypse really just mean that we are doomed to just keep on living in this insane world?

Imagine our surprise when we all woke up in NYC this morning to discover that 30 inches of snow had NOT fallen. Turns out the whole winter blizzard thing was a vicious hoax.

All this snow makes one feel like the end is coming. But it turns out, we’ve been feeling like that for just about as long as we’ve been keeping track of anything. Here’s a somewhat ridiculous but nonetheless amusing list of some of our predictions of the apocalypse.

Speaking of hoaxes, is it true that we don’t really need to drink 8 glasses of water a day?

More proof that the world is teetering on a ledge? People are now saying that orange juice might not be good for us at all.

Just in case you were wondering how the apocalypse might actually happen, here’s one version of the end of the world. In simple animation form.

But wait, there’s hope. There are people like Kim France directing our attention towards Gary Card’s drawings of Prince’s every last hairstyle (from 1978 on up)

And Tess Giberson served up such a badass down jacket in her Fall 2014 show this past Friday, that I may have to clear out some room for it in my closet next winter. If that’s not reason to go on living, I don’t know what is…

Happy

music

We have all had bad weeks, and this one has been a bit of a doozy, at least for me. But my daughter rocked a mean solo at her chorus concert, a good friend who thought she had breast cancer just had her tumor disappear into thin air, the sun is shining and we are evidently not going to have a blizzard this weekend.

And sometimes, just sometimes, a mass market kids movie (with the help of a great artist) produces a profound music video that will truly lift your hearts if you are willing to press play.

Have a great weekend, everybody.

Yesterday, at some point…

photography

The Winter Music Concert, 2014.

More food in East Williamsburg

food - places

Campbell Cheese & Grocery serving up deliciousness from the corner of Metropolitan and Lorimer in Williamsburg.

The other day I took the car to our beloved mechanic for a tune up. It’s about a 15 minute walk back to our apartment, so after I left The Black Widow at the doctor (our car has a name, doesn’t yours?) I headed up Metropolitan Ave towards my neck of the woods. And lo, what did I see across the street, in what I had previously considered a bit of a neighborhood dead zone, but a beautiful little grocery store just beckoning for me to enter.

Which I did, of course. And I was not disappointed.

It was pretty cold (not in the single digits, mind you, but still sub-freezing) so my cup of oatmeal, which they sweeten with sorghum butter* and mix with nuts and raisins, really hit the spot. And while I waited for them to prepare it, I got to walk around wishing that I needed all of the things I saw on the shelves.

*Sorghum butter is a traditional southern sweetener made with sorghum syrup.

Like these mystery beers, each one looking more obscure and delicious than the last one.

Or maybe some salami?

Does a person ever really feel complete without their own little picnic knife to carry with them everywhere? Except maybe on an airplane, but I digress…

I don’t even like pickles, but I thought about buying some of these for my husband and daughter, who are huge fans.

This is all good for my car, as I will now be much more motivated to take her in for a once over if I know I get to stop by Campbell’s on the way home. And if you find yourselves in the vicinity of the Metropolitan/Lorimer stop of the L or G trains do please surface and head straight over to this spot, and buy yourselves all sorts of deliciousness to take back to your native Manhattan, or wherever your final destination may be.

Campbell’s Cheese & Grocery
302 Lorimer St
Brooklyn, NY 11211
718-387-2267

Yesterday, at some point…

photography

Some of the images of lost signs I used for my 2013 Sketchbook Project.

I have finally decided to start posting single photographs that describe some moment I had during the previous day. And I’m starting tonight, right before I go to bed. I’m not great at the insta-posting of today’s social media maniacs but I figure even I can get something up within 24 hours. It’ll be a good exercise. Sometimes you’ll get lots of caption information, sometimes just a word or two. Hopefully the pictures will always be worth looking at.

So above please find an image of a pile of prints that I made last night, to put into my entry into the 2013 Sketchbook Project. I had the idea ages ago, but only just assembled the book the night before it was due. One of these days, I’m going to start and finish a project before the 11th hour strikes.

One of these days…