So, this is just a teaser...I may have said that I had ordered a few more things from the seamstress Lucia at Etsy shop laramiloom...
They arrived today. And they're wonderful!
This is just a sample.
More to come...

So...back to white.
I have recently fallen back in love with the white T-shirt. Or rather, I guess, in love for the first time. I always had a thing for them on other people - particularly men (think James Dean. Enough said). But I guess I've never had the confidence for them myself. During the post-college years, I hid behind a black wardrobe...nothing original there. And in recent years I've had a lengthy flirtation with camisoles and little sweaters.
Only recently have I come to understand the simple pleasures of a white cotton shirt, and since I only have two weeks left of my "white" month, I figured I'd better celebrate it while I have the chance.

A little bit of white from L'Atelier de Marie et Rose-Alice, because I just love their style! You can find the blog and the boutique here.

I'm quite sure that wishes for a "prosperous New Year" are not the thing for this particular moment in time...certainly not the message I would choose for the start of 2009. But I found this in the found-photos pile, and as an illustrator, this style of card appeals to me. The little house also reminds me of our neighborhood, as we have a whole row of tiny Tudors nearby that look not unlike this in the snow, with old-growth trees towering in a stately row above their peaked roofs.
...then I turned the card over.
What do you suppose...a falling out among former friends? An estranged relative? Or just a woman or man of few words? I'm not sure I've ever seen such a chilly and concise holiday greeting.
I also love that there was a time, not so long ago, that you could just write a name and a town..no numbers, no codes, and be assured that your missive would find its intended. And of course, the "Postage NOW one cent" mark.
Has population really increased with such formidable speed? It seems difficult to fathom.
Since there is no stamp, was it never sent? Did the sender think better of conveying even these few words? Or did the recipient value the missive enough to carry it with them through the years and the moves, saving it in a box with other meaningful correspondence?
Just food for thought. I like to imagine other times and other lives, as we move into this future of ours.
Happy New Year, and may it be, if not prosperous, rather rich in those things of less material and more meaningful value.

I promised to post the beautiful clothes the Lucia at the Etsy shop Larimeloom made when they arrived. And here they are! This poncho is one of my favorite designs ever...so versatile. It can be worn as an off-the-shoulder top or as a skirt as well.
Here it is off-the-shoulder, though I did not take a picture of it as a skirt.

The weave of the fabric is wonderful...Lucia chooses textiles of exquisite quality, and her pieces are as tactile and well-structured as they are comfortable. This fabric is soft and just a little stretchy with a beautiful, rustic texture to it, and my favorite part is how she cut the neckline. Such a gorgeous drape.

These capris were originally designed in corduroy with a buttoned waist. I asked if she could make them in a jersey fabric so that I could use them for lounge pants and working in the studio (I often just stay in my PJs, to be honest...but sometimes it's nice to look a little less slovenly, even when you work at home!) Comfort is of essence when you're chasing a toddler around. Lucia made them from an ultra-soft woolly jersey in charcoal grey, and redesigned the waist so that it can be worn high, or folded down around the hips like yoga pants. I love the wide cuff around the calves.
These are more comfortable than sweatpants, and elegant enough to be worn out with a nice pair of boots.
I have had trouble making a link that works to the Larimeloom shop, but you can search it under Etsy sellers. Many of her designs are one-of-a-kind since she is constantly thinking up new pieces. Can you believe she doesn't even make patterns for most of these, just freestyles? I wish I had that kind of talent with a sewing machine.

Pure elegance from Charlotte, Clé and Jeanne during the holidays. It just keeps getting better. I love to watch how they evolve. Check them out at Le Vestiaire de Jeanne and Le Vestiaire de Clé.

...the very most fantabulous Holiday vitrines ever.
We discovered them while doing some zen wandering down in Cherry Creek with our family on the way to a sushi dinner. My husband is particularly good at discovering the most fantastic things while zen wandering...he's a sort of diviner that way.
These windows were designed for a holiday project staged by Denver's Museum of Outdoor arts. The exhibit is called Magical Holiday Machines: The Wondrous Keep of Emry Gweldig, and the designer is Denver artist Lonnie Hanzon, whose career has run the gamut from the performing arts and fashion design to major public works and intallations.
My hat is off to Hanzon...I have long been a fan of magical vitrines, but none has inspired me quite as much as this extensive work.
Here, you can see where I got the idea for my ephemeral apothecary. I'd like to make it a permanent installation in our house...if only I can find the space. We're a couple of magpies.


This dancer in her rotating glass cage kept catching on the hems of my imagination.

I love chalkboards, and I love fantastical and incongruous equations. Makes me think of Max Fisher and the most difficult math problem in the world.

Very Whoville-esque.

A cousin, captivated.
Dancing golden shoes.

Possibly my favorite...the "arrivals and departures" sign just sets my skin tingling!
The Q, rapt in front of the caged dancer, easily her favorite magical mystery machine.


It's difficult to make out, but this bejewelled gypsy train makes its way through steep, velvet mountains into a sky full of gilded clouds.


Bewitching.
The magical end to this tale is that, a few days later on a frigid, crystalline afternoon, I decided to bundle up the Q and go back during the daylight hours to take some more photos, thinking I could get better light on some of the displays. Now, Cherry Creek is an area we know quite well. I parked in the structure by Whole Foods, carrying a thoroughly swaddled Q, set off past Hapa Sushi (where we had eaten dinner that night) in the direction that I remembered finding the vitrines. We walked...and walked...and walked. Round and round a six-by-three-block radius, up and down the streets with their holiday windows. No magical mystery machines. I could find neither the windows, nor the building, nor the open square in which they had been located.
It was like Brigadoon...like they had been just a mirage, there for us to discover on a single special night, and vanished in the mist with the daylight.
Though I really had hoped for some more photos, I suppose it's really better this way.