Iconography: Martha Graham

(image taken from NKFU)

Today is the one hundred-seventeenth birthday of pioneering contemporary dancer and choreographer Martha Graham; apparently, particularly early in her influential, powerful, enduring career, she had an intense disdain for any documentation of her dances, whether film or still photography, believing that the moment should live and die on the stage. Thankfully, her beliefs evolved slowly, and some evidence and hints to the movement and costumes of her work can be discovered and enjoyed today. I wish I could see one of her performances live, in the flesh, but perhaps I can settle for, and be visually satisfied with, a re-interpretation with new contemporary dancers. It is strange, but my recent cultural exposure has been fueling a growing fury and fascination with the aesthetics movement of the early twentieth century, across a variety of media: Igor Stravinsky, Coco Chanel, Pablo Picasso, Man Ray, Edmund Dulac, Aubrey Beardsley, William Butler Yeats, F. Scott Fitzgerald. A vain, vicarious reach to a different, foreign, though ultimately continually pervasive, cultural, political, and socioeconomic milieu.

(image taken from Evergreen State University)

(image taken from HiLoBrow)

Outfit for a Tuesday: Truman Capote Party

With warm weather, and pollen, circulating through the air, and the frivolities of summer being carried in swiftly by the sun and the wind, I have been in the mood to entertain lately, to gather friends, old and new, around me, and celebrate, perhaps nothing concrete, but celebrate the beauty imbued in seasonal change, in evolution, in decay. Celebrate the floating faces of the flowers, the triumph over April's cruelty, celebrate the call of the sweet bird of youth. Truman Capote hosted infamous black and white themed parties, an entertainment aesthetic I would love to emulate. This black and white dress could be an ideal candidate for such an event, however, also serves as a great patterned piece for the work wardrobe.

The dress is made of silk, so although it is from a few seasons past, it has aged remarkably well. Obviously, the black and white combination does not fade from style, and though a busy, frenetic pattern, it is not overly bold or obnoxious due to the neutrals.

I wore this dress as a camisole underneath this black Italian tuxedo-style jacket, and paired with wide leg black dress slacks. Originally, I had intended leaving the dress, now camisole, untucked, however, once I actually tried the look on, decided to tuck the dress into the pants, as the jacket has a longer cut, and the layered hems of jacket and dress would have created awkward proportions. Once tucked in, the dress had a loose, blouse feel to it, and looked much more polished than had I left it out. As a whole, the outfit was comprehensive, even though each piece had been acquired from a different location and time.

My tuxedo jacket features slightly silken lapels and buttons, as well as bracelet, or muff, length sleeves.

Layered chunky bead necklaces in black and white, each with gold accents, to add some additional texture to the black and white fabrics.

Matching black, with gold barbed wire, and white bangles, to complement the heavy necklaces and contrast with the soft silk dress and jacket.

Finally, the weather permits an open-toed shoe; these heels are generally a bit too strappy for the office, but given the long length of the black dress pant, the shoe was a mere hint, only mildly exposed. I have to give particular thanks to my mother, who shares me shoe size and supreme narrow foot shape, who consistently orders heels, wears them once to various events, generally in misery since she loathes heels, then bequeaths them to me.

Friday French Film: Potiche

(image taken from Je Suis Belle)

Friday evening, the filmmaker and I ventured over a few towns to see the French film Potiche, starring Catherine Deneuve, Gerard Depardieu, and Fabrice Luchini. Though at the core of the narrative and the subsequent character development are the labor and gender politics at play in France during the 1970s, the film merely grazes these topics superficially and comically, a sort of caricature, bombastic touch of the issues pushing forward the plot, character dynamics and evolution. For Deneuve fans, this film will surely evoke her earlier work, Les parapluies de Cherbourg and Les demoiselles de Rochefort, in its candy lollipop colors, its bright music, its cheerful tone, even when confronted with the vile atrocities of humanity and society: infidelity, promiscuity, rioting. Though the film was not as substantial as I initially would have thought, having read the brief introduction and synopsis, it was entertaining and silly, which makes for a nice conclusion to a long work week. Deneuve, Depardieu, and Luchini are in fine form, as usual, and as is to be expected; Madame Deneuve in particular looks quite cheerful and svelte, having maintained a sort of youthful feminine buoyancy even in her older age.

For my casual evening out on the town with my man, I chose a simple dark navy American Apparel double scoop dress; I have featured this cut a number of times, and am sure to again in the future, as they are supremely versatile and come in a plethora of hues and shades across the chromatic spectrum. Navy is starting to slowly overrun my closet, indeed, it has a firm power hold on its own fiefdom at this point, but I am currently turning a blind eye. Especially in the summer, in the warm sun, or during balmy evenings, navy is a more subtle, more welcoming neutral alternative to black, though is, obviously, not a precise substitute.

These bronze ball and rod earrings originally had five dangling pieces; after a rigorous, sweat-inducing dance party while I was at university in Ithaca, where Madonna jams were pitted against Blondie's best tunes, one had lost some of the pieces. From time to time, I have been known to cut a rug, how to move, leave it in shreds, sometimes even burn it ruthlessly. Thankfully, my roommate and dear friend Katherine, jewelry maker and problem solver extraordinaire, was able to transfer still intact pieces from the other earring. They are both a unique color and structure, so I am eternally grateful she was able to help me out in a pinch.

While getting ready for the outing after work, before my filmmaker arrived, I listened and danced around to Sleater-Kinney's The Hot Rock; incredible album, which had grown a bit dusty on my shelf. This time, despite some energized syncopation on the drums and waves of strong guitar, there were no earring casualties.

I do not frequently carry this particular vintage clutch; it is rather long, and can be a bit awkward to carry, depending on the occasion. Since I adore the cream paired with the warm caramel brown, however, I feel I will be more likely to throw caution to the wind in the near future and parade about with my impractical handbag.

These Betsy Johnson leopard print tights originally had feet; alas, once again, the plague of wildly long legs haunted me, maddeningly and aggravatingly long, so much so that these tights were completely uncomfortable and almost unwearable. They sat, idle and forlorn, in my bureau drawer for awhile, receiving admiration yet little action or true attention, until I finally realized I had only to snip the bottoms a bit for them to work properly. As it turns out, the new style is more than perfect, since the pattern is rather ostentatious, the smaller surface area calms some of the feline ferocity.

Iconography: Roger Hargreaves

(image taken from Wikia)

Today is Roger Hargreaves seventy-sixth birthday; I am indebted to my Google search engine for apprising me of this monumental, momentous occasion. When I was a small child, being read to aloud was one of favorite past times; it soothed me, cajoled me for some brief moments from my otherwise loud and rambunctious career as a tom boy, made me feel closer to my parents and siblings, and simply put, made me immensely happy. Still, there are few things I enjoy more than the sound of a confident voice reading aloud one of my favorite stories, or a new poet. My father used to read the stories from the Mister Men and Little Miss series to my siblings and me. The plots and character development were linear, sweet, but poignant and, in combination with colorful and geometric illustrations, perfect entertainment for children, and adults alike. These books are an ideal gift idea for nieces, nephews, sons, daughters, children, young and old at heart. With reading and writing so integral to the woman I am, to my thirst for new knowledge and further expansion of my emotional spectrum, to my connectivity with my own thoughts and feelings and philosophies and dogmas, as well as those of all the people around me, I thank my parents, my older sister, Elizabeth, my grandparents, and all those other caregivers and babysitters for taking the time to read aloud to me as a little girl. You have all given me the most beautiful, precious gift I will ever know.

(image taken from Amazon)

(image taken from HubPages)

(image taken from Wikipedia)

(image taken from Wikia)

Casual Friday: Ochre Opulence and Sunny Saturnine

Last Friday was absolutely beautiful, crisp and pristine weather, but after a tiring week, I was feeling a tad melancholy, despite the beauty surrounding me. Choosing a bright, unique color such as this ochre skirt afforded, at least superficially, a posture to combat my saturnine disposition. My posture proved at least partially successful; while strutting into the office from the adjacent parking lot, a stranger, older woman in a noticeable rush, huffed past me, and exclaimed, a bit out of breath from her sprinting gait, "My, that outfit is gorgeous." Nothing quite instantaneously infuses your day with some energy and optimism like a compliment from a stranger.

This snakeskin mustard belt is one of my favorite accent pieces, for both is pop of color and addition of a rougher texture; although snakeskin prints and textures can occasionally be limiting, evoking a sort of frontier or jungle thematic, I find this particular belt to be very elegant and versatile, due to the almost neutral, yet bright, color and its width.

When I wore this blouse the first time, I specifically noted the symmetry of this pattern with the scattering of stars against the black night sky. The fabric is light and slightly sheer, thus needs a camisole underneath; I stick with black to allow the star pattern to be the spotlight. With the lighter weight, this blouse can be worn throughout the seasons, even as the sun beams grow more potent.

These earrings were purchased for 2$ at the antiques fair I attended with my mother while visiting my parents the other weekend. I own some earrings that are vaguely similar, found at a favorite antiquing and vintage market a bit up north from my parents' home over the Thanksgiving break, however, the classic pearl, black, and gold look is difficult to overdo.

In addition to being a retro-design classic, these earrings give the illusion of either flying saucers or a planet with wide, iced rings.

Clear lucite and goldenrod bakelite bangles to complete a comprehensive look.

Since the weather has warmed, I chose some black footless tights for the skirt and my favorite caramel brown leather Frye heels.

Friday morning commute soundtrack: "Monument" Depeche Mode; "Shellshock" New Order; "Star" David Bowie; "The Warning" Hot Chip; "Breakfast Time" Orange Juice; "SOS" the Breeders; "One Beat" Sleater-Kinney; "No Fun" Vitalic

An Uninspired Cinco de Mayo

Not sure if my outfit choice would have altered much had I been cognizant that it was Cinco de Mayo; perhaps I would have opted for some brighter color choices, as opposed to a diluted silver periwinkle and navy. I paired the above feathered accent camisole with a navy butterfly shrug and my new favorite navy chinos.

This layered necklace of copious small light turquoise and pearl white beads is not one that I frequently choose to showcase, but it is an interesting piece and I do enjoy wearing it from time to time.

The deep tone of these purple flats complements navy blue well, without being overtly matching and potentially catalog looking.

Serpentine Seduction with Ralph Lauren

Earlier this week, the sun played a rather cruel trick, deciding to once again disappear to somewhere foreign and unknown, and allow the gray clouds and thunderous rains to reign the sky once more. With the temperature dipping down so low, I deciding to bring out a few of my new favorite winter pieces for one more jaunt around the office block, before stowing them away until next season.

The bronze, golden brown metallic of this skirt is surprisingly versatile; the material is also surprisingly light, so I may be wearing this occasionally throughout the spring with footless tights, or hopefully soon enough, some bare legs.

Ralph Lauren is one of my favorite designers, for both men's and women's wear, especially for the formal or polished casual look, the effervescent, carefree, I could step out onto a mountain ranch or raise the sails on my own boat, and still look fabulous, type of design. Everyday glamor. I also have always enjoyed the myriad of cultural and historical and environmental influences pooled from for their collections and pieces. When I saw this sweater, with the coiling, slinking, embroidered Miltonian snake, with his sleek and shimmering profile, his flirtatious flicker of a long tongue, I was immediately seduced and lured with the detailing; when I saw the sweater was Ralph Lauren, I was further convinced of its position as a wardrobe necessity. Soft, and well-fitted, without being painted on tight, this sweater wears easily, with either a skirt or more tailored black office slacks.