We walked into the Haloween party at Plan B in Brooklyn, and David,
who named himself Argyle Man was instantly dubbed Tiger in the Hood by
fellow partiers.
Tiger in the Hood
Should I be Super Katie James for Halloween?
I mean, I have a cape and all (pictured...the big purple thing taped to the ceiling), that I made years ago for a market table display. And I could wear some kick butt boots, and my bridesmaid skirt outfit, to be in total Katie James Couture. Otherwise, I'm a little tapped out in the brain, and don't want to spend the $60 at a costume store. What's a Recessionista to do?
Just call me a Crafty Recessionista : a Copperbrill Review
How to live a lavish lifestyle during a recession: polish what you have!
This bowl in the picture is dark dark dark. Note the right side with the tarnish. The left side is shiny copper.
This copper bowl was handed down from Godmother Mista (but could have come from any garage sale) that I just polished in 10 minutes with the AMAZING Copperbrill from Amazon or William Sonoma. This bowl had not been polished in years, and the tarnish was serious. But I knew it could come back to shiny because tomato acid (I keep the vegetables in it) would remove spots of tarnish. When I polish the other side, I will have a gorgeous copper bowl that retails for over a hundred dollars. Hurray!
How to polish using the Copperbrill:
Run the copper bowl or pan under hot soapy water.
With a damp sponge (use the one that comes with the Copperbrill), rub a scoop of the Copperbrill onto the copper.
Rub in circles and watch the copper turn a lighter shade of copper. If it's like this bowl, it will require more rubbing and possibly a few runs of this process.
Rinse the Copperbrill off under hot water, and with a clean spunge wipe off the Copperbrill. Dry an polish with a clean cloth.
Voila!
You can buy Copperbrill from Amazon.
Here are more copper bowls at Williams Sonoma.
My Glitter Paint Pumpkins
I got these pumpkins at the Union Square Market on Friday after meeting with Beth and Sabina for a Collective-E jam session meeting. The pumpkins were bare naked babes before I squirted glitter glue on them Friday night. So fun. Glittery Therapy.
Zen Home Cleaners: A review
I bit the bullet, three years later, and hired the Zen Home Cleaners to clean my home, justification being that I work from home, and needed a treat. I learned about them on Daily Candy and have planned it ever since. The fact that they burn oils during the cleaning part put me over the edge, and maybe the sprig of lavender that they put on their website. Even though that sprig doesn't come with the cleaning, and even though I can burn oils when I clean on my own, I was still sold.To sign up, I had to give my card over the phone and agree to a four hour minimum. No problem, as I've had someone clean once before, and this was the norm. For their "accounting purposes," I had to fill out a survey, that interestingly, is at SurveyMonkey. This covered things like "What should we NOT do?" "What do you want done?", legal things they are or aren't responsible for, and the chance that the cleaners could recommend that they stay longer. Being a website person, I love doing things online. So anything I can set up online, makes me happier. They pressed me to fill out the form, however, calling me, saying it needed to be done by 3pm the day before the cleaning. Well, I have a pretty long to-do list, hence the need for someone else to clean my home, so I forgot several times to fill out hte form. No matter, I did it with an hour to spare.
The first cleaning person arrived 10 minutes early, out of courtesy to me if I needed to leave, she didn't want me waiting. Her co-cleaner arrived shortly after, who I didn't realize was coming but was fine b/c it cut the real time spent cleaning in half.
We went over my priorities around the house, what I wanted cleaned. I stressed dust, and that anything should be dusted. And that we have pets, so attention paid to pet hair on furniture, etc. They lit the oil, asking my preference (we picked lemon grass or something), and they went to town while I went to the bedroom until they needed to clean that. They moved sofas, gross kitchen trash cans, etc etc to get the major dust bunnies. And they aren't actually dust bunnies, as they are more like dust bombs. I make a point to vacuum once a week, and do surfaces twice a month, so it's not like we live in a total slum, but there are Secret Dust Bunny Societies living happily behind sofas and desks, so it was best that they were sucked up.
Halfway through, the cleaners made a recommendation that they stay longer. Of our five rooms (kitchen, office, living room, bathroom, bedroom - not including front hall), they were in the kitchen and living room, and had taken everything apart to clean behind it. I agreed to the recommendation, and the office charged it to my card right away. A little while later, a cleaning consultant/inspector person came to see how the cleaners were doing. Everyone was very nice, and the inspector had some notes of where they could re-wipe the kitchen cabinets a little better.
Overall, I am very happy with Zen Home Cleaners. They were nice, professional, and cared about their work. My tub was amazing, and totally white and soak-worthy for a bath. They do not use bleach, so whatever they used, that was organic, worked. There are a few surfaces that I wish had been hit, like the wall behind my towel in the bathroom, or all window sills wiped of grime. But that's OK. This can be gotten next time, and I already started making a list of what we can do next. Because you can't spend all day on every detail! I am thankful that they hit every room in the house.
Pictured above is the organic chocolate and loose tea they leave on your bed. Yum.
Hotel Home Office : Justification to Hire a Cleaning Service
As you may know, I got a cleaning service in my home last year, because we got the bedroom repainted (on the landlord's dime) because of the chronically leaking ceiling form the penthouse patio above. And crummy workers who just don't fix it. So I hired the cleaning service that time because the paint, primer, scraping, flaking old ceiling, etc. had gotten all over the house and made me quite sick with fever, so I hired a service and was blown away with how well they did.That was a year ago. I constantly dream of having a cleaning service on a regular basis, but I do such a great job (ahem), why pay the money? But my great job takes an entire day. And as a Home Office Worker, if a client comes over, that is at least 2 hours of sucking up animal hair before they come, or it's on a Saturday for three hours, scrubbing the tub, the bathroom walls, the stove, and collapsing into a clean shower. And to be honest, I used to be able to take a bath in our apartment tub (because I could get it so clean), but lately, I'm not so sure. I doubt my own scrubbing.
So I had a cleaning service over today. Zen Home Cleaners (here is my review of their cleaning). I learned about them on Daily Candy three years ago. yes, that's how slow I am to make a commitment. And this isn't even a commitment. It was a "First time cleaning" to see if I maybe want them once a month. And you know what? I do. Here's why I'm not going to feel guilty about it:
I love working in good hotels. Why? Because it's clean! The bathroom is clean, the carpet is clean, the side tables are not cluttered and dusty. Everything is clean. And if it's not, I can call someone to freshen up. The air is clean. When I breath, I'm not breathing in must and dust.
It's no wonder we get distracted in our Home Offices, and sometimes you just can't maintain the dishes all of the time. But to stare at dust, or to reach down to plug in a computer cord that came unplugged, and to have to touch other dusty computer cords, which is then on your fingers when you start typing on your computer, is not inspiring. Or, to reach under the desk to turn on a little lamp I have under there that shines up through my glass topped desk, and it is covered with dust, and then I'm covered in dust, or at least I feel like I am, and then to work with clean fabric kept protected in my giant Ikea cabinet? I don't think so.
So like Cybil Shepherd in a Loreal commercial, I'm going to insist, and encourage all of us, to commit to the cleaners. Put the money away in a monthly budget, and treat it like a phone bill. Because we're worth it. And our ideas are worth it. And its our ideas that can possibly put food on the table and polish on our nails.
Cannot Wait for Collective-E Meeeting
Because it's at a spa. A spa! How enjoyable will this be? Collective-E members are having our first Collective Social, where we will hear what everybody does, learn more about what everybody needs, and tap into the collective energy that women entrepreneurs produce when they are in a room together. And what better a room that at AmorePacific Spa, who is graciously letting us use the space for the meeting! Not only that, but Melissa of AmorePacific is packaging little skin care gifts as giveaways at our holiday party on December 2nd (you are totally invited, see details here), and may also supply a door prize give-away. Um...I think I will rig the drawing pool? ;)I've been wanting to get a facial, a desire which has turned into a need, because David just announced, after staring at a new PMS zit on my forehead, that he's so glad I get zits, as it shows that I am still young. I think he can buy me a facial now, right? ;)
Throwing My Wedding Veil - Pre Bouquet
My cousin just loaded this picture into her Facebook and tagged me, so I saw it! A truly organized blogger would add these ongoing wedding pictures in some kind of method, but I can't think of one, so here it is, random, in the middle of other posts. Hope you don't mind! But I liked the photo.
I wore my veil all night. I made it (took 10 minutes), and it was light as a feather, so it stayed on my head all night. For some reason, it struck me to throw it from my head not once, but twice. That's Godmother Mista in the red dress, ready to catch it in order to add it back to my things at the end of the night. I think I had more fun throwing that then the bouquet. ;)
Our new Beautysleep mattress from David at Macy's
Everyone, this is David at Macy's. Not David the Groom, but David the Mattress Professional. I've been wanting a new mattress ever since David moved in, and I sold my Stearns and Foster Queen size mattress on Craig's list. I had a bed frame, but David had a full size sleigh bed, so la de da, we kept his mattress and lost mine! :(...
So now that we are married, I took us to Macy's for their holiday sale, and found all mattresses on sale. If you ask me, they are all prices that they should be, and no one should buy a mattress that is not on sale, but anyway.
David the Mattress Professional was so great. Encouraged us to listed to our bodies as we tested the mattresses. My David was actually quite involved, testing the firm side, then the plush side, and we were on the same page about what we liked! Yay.
Shown here is David the Mattress Professional demonstrating the wrapped coils inside of the Beautysleep mattress. This is the mattress from the bowling ball commercial, where the woman drops the bowling ball on the mattress, and the pins on the other side don't move.
PS: If you are going to go shopping for a mattress, and you go to Sleepy's or somewhere where they promise to beat other prices, don't even do the research. I did the research, and learned that the stores change the model of the mattress, so no one really offers the same thing. Just go with a store you trust.
I'm Outta Here
To the ten people who read this blog, I apologize for not updating much lately. I'm in the middle of a fashion funk and just can't muster much excitement for the industry, especially with the economy going south for the winter. Also, I'm mad that snot faced Kenley made it to Fashion Week on Project Runway instead of Jerelle.
The family and I will be out of town for two weeks so I won't be updating at all until the end of October. In the meantime, please check out some of my favorite blogs and sites from the right hand columns.
Also, feel free to drop me a line: makefetch@gmail.com
Halle is Esquire's Sexiest Woman Alive
Halle Berry has been chosen as Esquire's "Sexiest Woman Alive" this year and will appear on the November issue of the magazine. Halle's cover look will re-create a 2000 issue that featured former President and non-Obama supporter Bill Clinton.
Unlike former actresses chosen for this issue, Halle's cover wasn't preceded by a months long campaign revealing photos of various body parts with clues inviting readers to guess who the the sexiest woman is. It's not like magazines aren't familiar with whitewashing a model's color away with lighting and Photoshop so I don't see how Halle's brown skin would have been a give away.
Maybe TPTB at Esquire just don't think a black "sexiest" woman is worth the hype.
The Birth of Black Venus
I ripped this page out of an issue of Marie Claire magazines years ago.
Even though I've purged my magazine files many times over the years, I've always hung onto this page. There's just something about this lovely woman that sticks with me.
If you read the scan she just talks about how she's never been happy with the way she looks. She's had a boob job, surgery on her feet, and damaged her body with fad diets.
Nothing was ever enough. It's really easy for me to look at this pic and think "Damn, there is nothing wrong with the way she looks, why is she tripping?" But, if I'm being honest, at thirty-something years old, I still do the same thing to myself every now and then.
Crazy.
Hussein Chalayan Spring 2009
I don't usually go in for the more avant-garde shows but Hussein Chalayan's Spring "ready to wear" show sure did put a smile on my face. One can really see the innovation in his creations. They really do belong up on stage because seeing some marginally talented starlet show up in one of these designs would be a major downgrade.
The Amazing Copperbrill : and it's so easy!
Copperbrill copper polish goop is about the best thing I have come by in...maybe years. When building our wedding registry, I decided to go for the best. I mean, how many times do you get the chance to be given pots, and don't those pots last for years and years? I used my parent's wedding pots when I was growing up, so apparently these things last for life. So I went for the gold - copper.
Everyone pushed against this, all saying: "It gets so dirty!"
But I thought, if all of the cooking show people use copper, dog-gone-it, I'm going to use copper too. And it's really going to make me cook again. Living in New York puts one in a very bad habit, of sighing at the end of the day, hand to brow, saying: "I can't possibly take the time to cook anything tonight! Let's order chicken burritos!"
So I registered, and received copper pots and pans by the grace of wonderful wedding goddesses, and I could not be happier! There really is a difference in the way they cook! First of all, everything cooks faster!
But this post is about Copperbrill. I've tried polishing copper before, and it wasn't easy. My godmother gave me her old copper bowls that were so tarnished, and I tried polishing them, which was a smelly, labor intensive mess. Hardly any tarnish came off. Then I went to William and Sonoma and tried their Copperbrill copper polish that they raved about.Wow.
With just a scoop of the goop, I spread it on the copper, rub it in until it's dry (20 seconds), run under hot water, and rinse with a William and Sonoma special yellow sponge that starts as a piece of cardboard (another amazing product). The picture above shows how I polished one side of the copper lid, in 1 minute. One minute! And it's not smelly, and it's soooo satisfying
I next polished a little copper sauce pan that had already discolored to a yellow brassy color. I rubbed the Copperbrill on it, and the beautiful copper color returned before my eyes. No joke.
I polished my godmother's copper bowls. Boom. Done. Clean.
If you have copper, get this Copperbrill. It is amazing.
Hello Kitty Alarm Clock Radio for Hip Kid
How cute is this Hello Kitty Alarm Clock Radio? I needed a birthday present quick for the hippest 4 year old around (her name is Roxy...Foxy Roxy), so Gerdy and I stopped into Urban Outfitters, which is on the way to the park which is where the party was, and Urban Outfitters allows dogs in their store. There was also a Hello Kitty Toaster, and boy was it cute. It had all the settings - toast, defraud, other important things to do to toast - but I figured it was more fun for adults because what kid should be playing around with a toaster, really. When I arrived at the party, I was pretty sure that I had made the right decision. The spectical of the event was a pink Hello Kitty popup tent, that all the kids loved.
Here it is in Amazon, for cheaper! It's $30 at Urban, and $22 at Amazon. I'm seriously going to get it for myself. In this techno age, all I have is an ipod, and I want a radio to work and sometimes not be from my computer. For some reason, getting my hands on a radio has just not been happening.
Get the Hello Kitty Tea Cup Clock Radio today, if not for yourself, then for some small child.
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