Ralph, The September Issue, and the whole gang!

Ah. The September issue of Vogue has been in my possession for seven days. (I know, I'm late on this one)

& it is time to delve in to the favourites.

I have always liked Vogue for its smart writing, and yes,

Vogue does have articles in between the countless number of ads. (although I love the ads)

A few articles really caught my eye this issue and a few trends definitely do not make my list of things I will try to replicate or, well, re-create.

So if you have an issue of Vogue, grab it, and lets crack this thing open!

"Suitably Understated" was maybe my favourite article of the issue (pg. 486)

It's short and sweet, but the idea makes me swoon.

Ralph Lauren himself worked with this woman to create the perfect work ensamble. Something masculine, but when on the feminine figure would transform into nothing but sex and class. At the same time you ask? Leave it to Ralph- and his team of perfectly picked Italian men who flew in directly to make a suit for the author of the article. This is the classic look I was talking about, and when incorporated in the work place can create just the right mindset for success.

Casual Fridays bring out the best in me because I can ditch the god awful (worst thing I have ever seen) polo that I am forced to wear (you have no idea what this does to my creativity and mood). Anywhoooo..this article was a hit with me. I love the idea of meeting with one of the best designers of our time, talking about the mundane but also about his work over the course of his life. Not only to meet with him, but to coordinate a suit with your opinions and his to create perfection. Ah, lucky you, Sally Singer.

While we are on the subject of Ralph Lauren, I guess we can talk about the fall line, which I am in love with just as much as the latest Oscar de la Renta fall collection. I'll post a few pictures that will speak for themselves, but before they do, I guess I'll put a word in (that's so like me). I love the use of velvet in some of these outfits. Velvet brings me back to the days where I was 8 and getting custom figure skating dresses made for competitions. I love how rich it makes the outfit look, literally and figuratively. It's just gorgeous and especially for the autumn months and when incorporated in a layered kind of look. Bonus points if the velvet is super dark in colour, deep reds, dark greens, black, dark greys, etc. I love how he takes classic fall colours and that that all american, equestrienne-esque kind of look, but makes it high fashion, yet approachable? Perhaps that's not the right wording, but it's all I've got. On to the pictures. For more, go here.

There are so many great elements here. Whimsical high fashion is the best way to describe it now that I have it all laid out here.

Stop your drooling.

Something that made me do the exact opposite of swoon ::insert own imagery here:: was featured on page 508. "A little slouch goes a long way". I will disagree. It actually goes nowhere with me. While I don't mind most of what Hessnatur creates, I can't say that I love this hat that makes you look like a mouse that went roaming under the bed who came out with a sock on your head... see here. (and note, the picture in the magazine makes it look less appealing than this even)

For now, this is not a trend I'm on board with. However, it might be one of those things like animal prints, some people make them look fantastic, while others make you want to donate your jacket to save them further embarrassment. Who knows, I may bite my tongue later.

I loved the article "Breaking Ground" on page 554 about a Woman that lives and struggles with MS. My Grandmother has MS and it was good to gain some other perspective, learn more about it, and read about the advancements they have made in regards to treating it. Good questions were also brought up in reference to women and why they seem to struggle with more autoimmune diseases than men. Overall, a good read, plus it gave me a reason to e-mail my Grandmother.

Anthony Vaccarello also gave a great interview/story to Mark Holgate on page 520 in "PARIS when it SIZZLES". I really enjoyed what he had to say. Especially "Every season I try to grow but I like...a wardrobe of the essential pieces a woman needs right at that moment." Perfect. He also keeps his passion to himself and his work associates, saying he "...doesn't talk about fashion" when he is around friends. I admire that, sometimes I think the most important things should be the things least likely to share with just anyone because this way you have no external influence on your personal decisions. I need to remember that.

And one more quick note appears on page 324; Blake Lively looks amazing here. This is the best picture of her that I've seen. I can see that picture being one that follows her throughout her life. You know, like one of those books that will come out in 2045 that features fashion from our era.

Kind of like this one that I have that is simply amazing...that features the biggest designers, models, etc. of the past 65 years.

Good work, Mario Testino! Another great shot captured. See here;

Of course there are other many other great highlights in the September issue. I just pointed out a few quick favourites.

I'll leave you with a last photo of my outfit from today. I dig it. I am loving the mismatched prints. I feel most comfortable the more outlandish my clothes are. I am so glad that colder weather is on its way! I can layer layer layer! I really utilize my closet in the winter because I love having all sorts of things on top of each other. Hope you enjoy!

Have a wonderful week! Mix some prints!

The tales of Oscar & the perfect fall line.

Music with no words gives me more time to think, but allows my thoughts to montage themselves perfectly in that movie preview sort of way. After getting bored of almost all the playlists on my iPod, I ended up opening up my music library and leaving it up to chance. Luckily, something perfect always pops up. Today, it was Yann Tiersen and his song La Noyee. This was the perfect thing for me to contemplate life to for awhile. So I did. Over and over. I thought about thousands of things. The best things come to me while I'm driving along. His music always inspires me. The songs make me want to walk along the streets of France with a baguette in hand, or they make me want to get on the ice and try out straight-line footwork, or they make me want to wear fabulous outfits and do fabulous things. With such great thoughts, I never wanted to stop driving.

Then a thought popped into my head. There should be a fashion line based upon the music of one artist or a group of artists, or a genre. Music drives about 86% of my inspiration, I'm sure many designers have music on while designing. I don't think it has ever been labeled as a piece of clothing being inspired by a song or an album. It gets me thinking... maybe I shall get something in the works.

After poking around vogue.com for awhile, the verdict is in!...

Oscar has got it this season.

I am officially in love with I'd say about 84% of the fall collection.

Oscar de la Renta has always been one of my favourite designers.

I still remember a Vogue from 2004 with Natalie Portman on the cover that featured an Oscar de la Renta dress that I just loved. His clothes are a tad flirty, but always with the times and almost timeless. I LOVE his use of colour. He has always incorporated colours extremely well. His direction with the gem tones mixed with black and white and earth tones makes the line look like optimistic high fashion. Something for everyone. There aren't enough words for me to sum it up. It just makes me giddy. Don't worry, I'll post a few pictures, that would just be cruel if I went without...

The hat is perfect.

I love how elaborate the coat is.

The skirt is just at the right length to go with the rest of the outfit.

People say that models are supposed to just be the clothes hanger, but in this picture, she makes this outfit look damn good.

The coat is too good.

mmm. mmm. mmm.

the colour is perfect!

Looks peacocks instilled the inspiration for these colours!

This coat makes such a good statement. I love it.

I have a feeling it's a 6ft tall kind of coat and not a 5'3 kind of coat. Damn.

You know what, no, I think I could pull that off. heh

Love the colour. Love the cut. I love how the material looks so old and so perfect.

This is my favourite piece of the collection.

I want to wear it every day the week of Halloween.

WOW! (just thought of how awesome that would be!)

Ha, I opened up this blog to post about fur. My thoughts and my favourites. But before actually typing anything, Oscar got to me. That's okay, there are really no regrets.

Oh god. What a tease. Check it all out here.

Speaking of Halloween, I have only slight ideas of a look I could go for this year.

Hopefully that works out...

Halloween puts such tasty things in my mind like Chili Dogs, Apple Cider, miniature size candies, and those little orange and black holiday edition hostess cupcakes! (hopefully they still make those!) I am more excited than I thought! Well, as long as I get all of those things, I will be a happy clam. I dig passing out candy to the little boppers in fun little costumes, but I enjoy eating it more. Hurrah!

And yes, there will be pumpkin carving this year!

Enjoy that collection!

cold cut classics.

Sometimes I feel it's all about that signature look.

the signature is everything.

You know, that look that you've established and made your own and people associate you with it.

I had always wanted to make something my own, have my own association;

a long braid or fitted black pants with a white button up, or big earrings or hats. Or hell even a perfume would have sufficed. Then I read an article (not this particular one) about someone who actually has made this come to life. Alexandra Kotur, the style director of Vogue has created her very own signature look as part of her daily work outfit, which has become well known and well admired among her co-workers. She appears everyday in dark fitted pants, navy/brown/or black. The shirt is always a light color, either white or off-white and it's a button down. The shoes on her feet are either loafers or ballet flats. Classic. I love this idea. She wears no makeup and pulls her hair back into a bun Monday-Friday. For events, this is really the best part, she "transforms" with makeup, beautiful jewelery, and anything but her usual workday self acquired uniform. What a trickster! (& I love it.) Although my job allocates creativity and is much more laid back than anything you'll find in the corporate office world, sometimes I long to have an office job so I can create new looks each day. The word "uniform" makes me CRINGE. Especially if this consists of a pre-made company polo and if a visor is involved, forget it, I won't even apply. Wearing a set uniform retards my creativity flow a great deal. I briefly worked at Marshall Fields right before they turned into Macy's. Marshall Fields allowed you to wear what you wanted as long as that consisted of something nice. Macy's turned off the creativity and amped up the class (in uniform standards, anyways) and went with an all black dress code and now as a direct result (I wear a lot of black) I get mistaken for an employee often when I go into Macy's. The only perk of this transition was that Marshall Field employees received 50% off EVERYTHING black in the whole store in order to prepare for the new dress code standard. Unfortunately, that was my only job thus far that allowed you to pick your own clothes for work. How depressing...

The problem for me and a "trademark" look is that you can't really pin me to a specific style. I have always had this revolving door look going for me where some days I look like I came out of a goddamn Gap catalog and other days I look like I did some searching in my Grandma's closet or just got off stage at a concert. This has always worked for me, but it lacks the trademark. As for perfume goes, I have always had this fascination with what a perfume can do for you. They say scent is closest related to memory. It is about the impression you want to give and the scent you want to last. I think when you chose a perfume for the evening, you are subconsciously choosing a mood. Of course, your clothes reflect that and should encompass how you feel, but the scent is almost what can make that outfit come to life and can make those inner senses come out. People can also react differently to you based upon your scent. The thought is thrilling. Therefore, you can never just have one perfume in your collection, it needs to be an elaborate mix of sweet, spicy, strong, and sexy. With the right scent, you might just own the night. Remember that.

looks I LOVE.

too perfect for fall.

All I want this year is a Mink coat. A knee length mink.

A mink for winter and a Trench for fall.

I cannot wait to inherit my moms furs.

Everything Jackie wore was a hit.

I normally disdain white sunglasses. They remind me of an ex-boyfriends mom.

This is someone who should have NOT been wearing white sunglasses.

To me, they take a lot to pull off and they have to be the perfect frame shape.

I LOVE these sunglasses though.

along with....

On the days where I wear a black turtle neck and black skinny pants, I feel like that should be what I wear every day. I love it, it's easy, and I'm always reminded of classic Audrey.

However, I'm too colourful of a person for all black all the time.

& perfumes that need to be mine.

I started wearing Marc Jacobs perfume when I was a freshman in high school.

For such a long time his scents had this heavy gardenia base & all smelled similar.

However, this smells nothing like his signature fragrance and I still love it!

I love Chance but don't have the original. Unfortunately, I only smell this when I go into a mall and douse myself with it, and I try to avoid malls. However, I need to make this scent mine.

Perfect timing for me to swing back into my fashion phase. Right when I need to stop blowing money and start hiding it like crazy under my mattress (or a bank account?) It is vital. Absolutely vital that I stop blowing money. So I can just be thankful that Christmas is coming up and leave it at that. If I want any new clothes, they must be thrifted. I might choose Vogue over food too, I feel it feeds me better.

the "REALLY?!" post + Toby!

Just some thoughts.

So I drive on the high way almost everyday for a good 80 minutes total. I see a lot of cars and well, a lot of stupid shit. I disdain when I pass a BMW, "the ULTIMATE" driving machine. Even more so when I'm only doing something like 65. I hate it even worse when I see they are dealer plates and they are test driving a vehicle. I cannot help but think, this is a high way, you're in a dream machine, PRESS DOWN ON THE GAS. Those people should not be allowed to purchase a BMW. There is only one exception here, and that is for my father, who I like to call a true war hero (yeah, Vietnam). He owns a BMW 5 series. I believe it is an '05. My dad drives under the speed limit. He has set the car to make a pleasant ringing noise once he hits 40 MPH. Given, my dad has a 15 minute drive to work where all the roads are 35 MPH speed limits, but REALLY?! I don't think he has ever gotten a ticket. So if you see a 5 series scootin' around Naperville with vet plates, don't get mad, just pass him, flash a smile, and wave. He means no harm.

Something that I also find just plain stupid is men who spend $50,000 on an SUV and allow their wives to prance home from places like Target and Just Ducky with those god awful family stickers and put them on the back. You know what I'm talking about. Those little decals where it shows the Dad (he is ALWAYS the tallest one), the mom (who is doing something stupid like wearing yoga pants or curling her hair), a little girl (she will have ballet slippers on or maybe pom poms in hand), and a little boy (he will be wearing a lame polo and holding a golf club or tennis racket). OH don't even dare forget about the pets that have their own little stickers. What self respecting male allows this to happen? REALLY?! You're going to have your whole little family stuck on the back of your automobile. I always have to chuckle also because in the series 'Dexter' a serial killer uses those stickers to track down a victim. ha ha ha. Drive on, assholes.

See here. REALLY?!

But on a whole other note, things are going very well. I needed to get those thoughts out.

So to not make this post completely useless, I suppose I will mention our new cat that came into our lives yesterday! A woman I met in school posted a status that she needed to find a home for her cat, Toby. Luckily, we ended up getting him and he is the best cat ever! I think he really digs it here, he is great company :)

One rad cat.

Best in show + bleach.

Before we get to anything else...

Natalie Merchant must be mentioned.

I believe I saw one of my favourite shows on Thursday July 22, 2010.

no no, I KNOW I saw one of my favourite shows.

My mom and I outside the Chicago Theater

I wrote a review on Ticketmaster's website, so I'll link that.

REVIEW

**I've decided to copy it here:

WOW. This was amazing. My mom turned me on to Natalie Merchant when I was about 5 years old and in return I bought her a ticket and yes, we were the "Mother Daughter?" group that she asked about :) I fell in love with her work in 10,000 Maniacs and that music still reminds me of my youth, although this music has gathered more respect and adoration to me as time goes on. I loved her solo work, Tigerlily & Ophelia. I have to admit, I was not well versed in her new album. I had some idea that they were nursery rhyme related but didn't know the whole background. I actually kind of wanted to go to this show and not know what to expect. However, I looked at prior set lists the night before to see what Chicago was in for and loved what I saw. New & OLD. But not just old as in solo, but bringing back stuff from the 10,000 Maniacs days.

As she approached the stage, she seemed so strong. As you watched her perform, she confirmed that. She is exactly that, a strong woman with so much to sing about and tell about. She more so gave a presentation. Her new album is composed of poems from various poets, over many decades, from different areas of the world. As she went into each song, she used a powerpoint to deliver pictures while she shared information about each one. It was such a unique concert. What is even more unique is the fact that she was able to turn old poems into new songs that can deliver with such flair and technique. I loved that she talked to the crowd SO much. I love it when an artists connects with the people who come to see them. It makes it much more personal and enjoyable.

I was lucky enough to snag the one and only set list for the show...The first 15 songs were from her new album.

Part 1: Crying My Little One, Sleepy Giant, Man In The Wilderness, King of China, Sailor O Sailor, Spring & Fall, Maggie & Milly & Maggie & Mae, Peppery Man, Janitor's Boy, Bleezer's Ice Cream, Isabel, Calico Pie, If No One Ever Marries Me, The Dancing Bear, Equestrienne

So for "The Dancing Bear" I really wanted to dance in the aisle because I love that song and how funky the instruments are. I had seats in the back and people back there were like "rush the stage!" so I went up right by the staged and just danced my heart out. It was Natalie Merchant. I don't know if I'll get to see her live, so of course I'm going to enjoy myself. This is when I ended up snagging a spot right up front. At the end of this set when people started clearing out, I ran back to get my mom to come and sit up front with me. This is an important factor...

Okay that was all in order. For the second half, the crowd got a little goofy. People were calling out requests and it was so funny with shout outs like "Freebird!", "Smoke On The Water", "Dust In The wind!!" Her guitarists starts playing 'Dust In the Wind' and she went with it for awhile, but they didn't match on a key so they continued to joke with the crowd. She didn't really stick to the set list order and they just kind of went with it. She started with..

Part 2: Wonder, River, The Worst Thing, Break Your Heart, Carnival, The Letter, and I honestly forgot the order of the last songs, but she ended with Kind and Generous. WOW. HOW amazing. She spotted me numerous times (I was wearing her merchandise--which has a great design) and at the end for 'Kind & Generous" My mom and I were dancing and she looked down at us and asked "Mother Daughter?" ha ha. That was awesome.

Overall it was an AMAZING show. The best concert I've ever been to. A moment that really stood out to me and I don't know why is her taking her hair down about 6 songs into the act. As I said, she came out and appeared VERY strong and poised. I guess it was her loosening up. But it stood out to me.

The only downside of this entire experience would be the surplus of people getting up and down for liquor. That's the problem with shows today (as I'm only 22 I suppose I know nothing about shows in the 60's-70's-80's) is the fact that liquor is sold. Flasks were fine--there was enough to getcha by. Now people just go too overboard and can sometimes ruin the experience for others.

I really wish I held a ticket to other shows. Hopefully one day she will be back!

Favorite moment: "The Dancing Bear", "Kind & Generous", and her talking to the crowd and enjoying herself as well.

Okay. On to what is going on in the now...

this first sentence will surely contradict that, but I'll getcha back on track

A few months ago, I packed up the important tangibles and moved in with my boyfriend.

Over these past few months we have accomplished so many things in this house. It feels more home-y with every picture of us on vacation that we hang. So earlier in the week, my mom had phoned asking if she could stop by the place. A few factors had gotten in the way of that sooner (i.e. we had to get our house in order, we took a vacation, so did they, and they have a summerhouse they spend weekends at, etc) so now was the time.

This was no little simplistic "aw, my parents are coming." Well, it sort of was, but mostly it was like "This is your time to prove yourself. There will be no dust or dirt." This feeling was brought on by my parents telling me my whole life "We can't wait to come to your house and see how you life when you're all out on your own with no one to clean up after you."

I keep a clean quarters naturally. It's a completely different circumstance when you are living under a roof that is not your parents. Most people take initiative to clean up after themselves and maintain a reasonable amount of cleanliness. It just matters when it's your shit that we are talking about. It's a tad unfortunate, but it's just the name of the game.

I knew what I was in for. I knew that I would have to deep clean. Like I said, I have a clean house, but I needed to go all out, I need the bleach to soak in my pores and wear its scent with pride. I needed a pack of sponges, 3 rolls of economy size paper towels, and a lot of determination. Eric equipped me with a new vacuum and dust buster to really get things going. I windex-ed away smudges and wiped away the dust on the window sills. Overall, I put in 12+ hours of cleaning. I probably did way more than I should have, but now I feel like our house is so clean, there are no more dusties hanging out in corners anymore. What an accomplishment. When you have any size space to maintain, there is always a point of ease while trying to do so. There is always a time where it will be clean and then a time where less time will be spent tidying and eventually it's something you have to "put aside time" to do. So for now we are in the clean cycle and I WILL maintain it. Unfortunately, my parents only breathed the air in my house for less than twenty minutes. However, I think they thought it was pretty clean. I'm sure it was worth the 14 hours...

At least we got Chinese food at our favourite restaurant before they headed out. I cannot go a week without it!

For now, I want to enjoy my clean floors and carpet with vacuum lines in them!

G'night!

-Tessa

Operation: giving a shit about my body

The other day I stopped at home to grab some mail and basically just say "hey" to my parents. My dad was in the kitchen and we found ourselves chatting. I told him I had been feeling kind of janky lately. He said "You're looking too skinny...how much do you weigh...please eat something or drink some juice." Hm. This was odd. I had been skinny before. Much skinnier in fact. That would be the anorexia and bulimia episode that I went through a few years ago and got over. This time around it was me just not eating as much as I normally do. Since moving in with Eric, I have found myself eating significantly less. I am not really skating as much or trying to get outside to take 30 minute walks everyday. I also found myself not really eating proper dinners. I fore-go eating in order to just keep working through the shift. I am not intentionally trying to lose weight, I just did. I lost quite a bit in fact...

My dads comment kind of made me a little happy I guess. It was more so a back-handed compliment. To me anyways. I always prefer to be on the thin side, I just feel more comfortable. At the same time, I desire to have a figure. A body that's appealing to look at. It's a tough place for me to be in. Over these past three days, I have just sort of made this effort to eat whatever the hell I wanted. I don't normally go nuts over eating. I prefer to just eat small amounts. Not this weekend; it was sort of a three day pig-out. I have a bit of self-loathing going on with a feeling of absolute righteousness. It is so nice to just let yourself have a weekend to eat what you'd like. Now it's time for Operation: time to give a shit about my body.

I want to start eating damn healthy. I don't want my immune to falter and I want my body to be in good working order. It just feels good when you're eating right and eating good complete meals. Another factor that would contribute would be the ATV tumble that Eric and I took this weekend. Instead of a day of fun in Wisconsin, it ended up to be a day of grass stains, emergency rooms, and sore bodies. In Eric's case it resulted in a broken clavicle. The ATV hit my back in the flip, but it just hurts and my torso is in a lot of pain. So this weekend has consisted of a whole bunch of nothing which of course is glorious. It is actually kind of nice when one of us is sick and/or has an injury because we can just sit and hang out and take care of one another. I really enjoy just sitting back and relaxing/resting. We both need it. I enjoy taking care of my handsome lad :) I just want to feel good in all other aspects and I want to heal quickly. I can't believe I've been eating like such an asshole lately. I really need to start eating veggies and fruit again and good set meals, not just small things here and there.

Today I anticipated grocery shopping. I had a damn good plan. I made a super healthy/delicious shopping list based on these lists; List one and List 2 and I wanted to load up the house with stuff that was healthy yet good to eat. That is often the problem. I just jot random healthy shit on my grocery list without a plan and come home and a yellow pepper will sit on the counter without a purpose. So I sat down and thought of meals, snacks, breakfasts and all sorts of good stuff to plan out. Then I went to Target's website to see if any of the items I wanted or needed were on sale. Some were--bonus. Oh yeah. I planned my trip out so nicely. Hopefully I will continue to make absolutely fantastic shopping lists. I even marked the items by what section of the store they could be found in :)

Excuse me, I have a NATALIE MERCHANT concert to get very excited for! It's going down on Thursday.

-Tessa

2010 musical picks.

So let's talk.
More specifically, let's talk about this year so far and them music that has made it so great.

This is more so aimed for my taste and my own general opinion.
Also it contains music that was out before 2010, but just seeped into my eardrums after the turn of the new year or at least made a different impression on me in 2010. I think the sea of artists that have come through Chicago in the past 6 months has been amazing. There have been so many concerts that I've had to miss out on but I think that I held the tickets to the best shows that came around. Again, in my opinion. I feel so lucky to have seen some of these artists. Every show is a different experience and a new group of people. A show is something I can really lose myself in. I have so much fun and love live music.

I compiled eight different songs on...well, 8tracks.

HERE is the link. This way you can actually listen to them. These are really in no particular order.



1) Howl by Florence + The Machine: I saw Ms. Florence Welch herself along with her band back in April at the House of Blues in Chicago. If you look-up the shows reviews you might read that "she didn't perform her best". I don't know what her "best" is, but I thought she was fucking phenomenal. I was front row for that show (I blogged about it at length below a few posts so I won't go on about it here). Anywho, she opened with the song "Howl". I was actually able to see the setlist from where I was standing in the crowd. When I first saw it I wasn't thrilled. I liked the song a lot, but it wasn't one of my favourites. I wanted her to play 'Between Two Lungs' or 'Dog Days Are Over' as an intro (they just sound like opening songs, you know?). The way it was performed and how good it was made all the difference. It was so powerful that after the concert it became one of my favourites and I felt sheepish for glossing it over so quickly before the fact. It is one of my top 8 for those reasons, however it was released in the summer of 2009.

2)Got Nuffin By Spoon: I love this song AND it actually came out in 2010 AND I saw it live. All wins. Also it reminds me of something you might hear on "Gimme Fiction" which is a great album. I love seeing Spoon live. I'm happy, but more importantly, ERIC is happy. We have a great time at their shows and I hope we see them at least 5 more times in our lifetime. We have seen them at the Aragon Ballroom and at The Riverside Theater in Milwaukee. I love the lead singer, Britt Daniel, and his stage presence and voice. I love that he always sounds like he's got a cigarette in his hand but he has control over his voice and can carry tune. All in all, this song was a great one on their Album released in January of this year called "Transference".


3) & 4) Your Hands (Together) & Crash Years By The New Pornographers: Another bonus because these two songs both came out this year and make an appearance on their latest called "Together". These are two of my favourites on this album. It reminds me of our vacation we just took because we always had it in the car with us so we heard it on constant loop. I love having specific memories to an album. It makes it that much more significant. Another good artist that came out with an album this year. I really like The New Pornographers. Their last album 'Challengers' was something I really enjoyed but I feel that I didn't delve into it well enough. It deserves some playing. Perhaps I'll throwback and give their old album a listen today.

5)Feeling Good By My Brightest Diamond: I LOVE her voice and by her I mean Shara Wordon. It's jazzy and blues-y and I adore it. I really like it when new music sounds like older music. Older music was good. She has got a style to her music and a depth to her voice. Check this song out for sure. It appears on the album 'Dark Was The Night'. I haven't heard enough to rave about the album, just the song at this point.

6)Like Spinning Plates (LIVE) by Radiohead: Yes. This song came out in 2001. No I did NOT just here it a near decade later for the first time. But I did hear it come out of Thom Yorke's mouth earlier this year in April over at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago. I was so stoked that I got to hear 'Eraser' in its entirety live (and the fact that Flying Lotus opened for him) but of course when you see Thom Yorke you just want to hear some classic Radiohead. He delivered with 'Like Spinning Plates' & 'Airbag'. Quite fantastic. When he came back and broke out the intro on piano I couldn't believe it. I was thinking "Holy shit, Thom Yorke is fucking IN THIS ROOM playing piano and singing. The room was pretty much quiet except for the familiar chords and his voice adding lyric over melody. It gave the song new life and new importance. What a show.

7)Leaf House By Animal Collective: This song is so funky. That is the exact reason why I like this song and many other songs by this group. This is one of those that you might skip over the first few times, but once you hear it through you have to keep hearing it. This song also came out way before 2010...but on the album 'Sung Tongs' in 2004. This band has been around a long time, but just started gaining more recognition with their songs 'My Girls' & 'Summertime Clothes'. I can't say that I like every song that Animal Collective puts out, but the majority of them capture me because they are so unique. I find myself putting a lot of their stuff on people's mix CD.

8)Sleepyhead By Passion Pit: This has to be one of my favourite songs. Eric says that this song reminds him exclusively of me. It makes me feel so happy. I also secretly (well not so much anymore!) want to do the little voice at the beginning and throughout. I saw this song performed live April 22 at the Congress Theater in Chicago. This was the song I went there hoping to hear. The show was short. This was due to the lead singer, Michael Angelakos, having a sinus infection. For the problem being present, he performed and sounded SO good. So of course they close out the show. They come back out and start the crowd back up with 'Sleepyhead'. I was ecstatic. I tend to lose my shit at shows. Meaning I get into the music with every fiber of my being. I love to jump around, dance, and just have a good time. This show was a perfect example of just that. We weren't concerned with being front row for this one. I just loved being there and dancing to this bands music. It was so fun!


Wow. What good artists that have made their way through here. I feel most lucky to live by a big city when it comes to the choices of shows. I think I saw 5 shows in just over a month. It had to be that way unless there would have been some major disappointments. 3 of them were birthday presents, but that made it easy on him. He knows some of those shows were must see, so it was easy to slap a happy birthday on that (who wouldn't!). Natalie Fucking Merchant. I still cannot believe that I get to see her. I don't care if I go and she performs the Alphabet. I am so amped. Thom Yorke and Natalie Merchant in my golden year. ON TOP OF THAT amazing happening, we also have some new information from Pitchfork that Radiohead might be dropping their new album later this year. What a treat! That would be so so so so great. You know who else needs to come through here? DAVID BYRNE! A TALKING HEADS REUNION? sorry. It just seems like everything I've wished for musically has come true this year.

I would REALLY like to see a few other bands and hopefully I'll get the chance. I would love to see The Decemberists perform 'Hazards of Love'. I love that the two girls that Colin Meloy chose to play roles in the album were from two different bands with similar names, Shara Wordon My Brightest Diamond and Becky Stark from Lavender Diamond. The Temper Trap and The New Pornographers would be be nice to see as well. The XX just announced a fall tour all through the US and Europe, but since they will be at LOLLA most likely I will not be seeing them. Interpol just announced North American tour

It seems like every time I flip through Twitter, Pitchfork is announcing the release of a new album. Arcade Fire and Zero 7 have new albums and Arcade Fire is having 8 different album covers for their new one. Dirty Projectors & Bjork recently worked together and are releasing the collaboration efforts. Again, I am just so thrilled to hear that Radiohead is working together. They are so close to being done with their new album and their guitarist Ed O'Brien talks so enthusiastically about it happening this year. We shall see.


Check out: http://pitchfork.com/


Shows I've seen this year so far: Spoon (12/31), Spoon (4/1/10), Thom Yorke (4/10), Florence & The Machine (4/10), Passion Pit (4/10), Metric (5/10), Phish (5/10). And I hold tickets to Modest Mouse at the Pitchfork Festival and Natalie Merchant at the Chicago Theater.

Get your hands on some tickets AND NEW ALBUMS!

-tessa

The tales of butter & cream

what is the point?

I am confident while being insecure.

I'm happy while being devastated.

I'm calm when I'm anxious.

I am like a fucking living oxymoron.

How irritating.

On another note...well... kind of;

While I find myself in complete happiness, I'm wondering if I used to be happier. This summer doesn't really feel like summer. It could be my over-awareness of the rays hitting my skin and my prevention of that happening...but I feel like I am not happy about summer. I used to love walking around in tank tops and go on long walks or roller blading after a morning of skating. I loved meeting up with friends to take walks in the neighborhood. I liked the familiar aspect of it all. How summers were really easy. A 15 minute drive to work, friends five minutes away, early nights, late nights with friends. It's different now, but I am still extremely happy. Now I excitedly come home to my best friend who, luckily, is also my boyfriend-- and we eat dinners and go on walks. We watch and laugh over our favourite shows and play call of duty late into the night. It's quite the set up and I love it. But it is different than the life I used to lead. Which is okay, but it leaves me comparing. There is really no comparison.

I started a new endeavor. How like me. I started decorating at home. I went over to the Wilton tent sale where all of their supplies are 50% off. They make baking supplies as well as things like teapots, coffee mugs, etc. So I went and got bags, tips, cuplers, colours, cake tins, a rolling pin, the list goes on and on...

I actually ended up going two days in a row.

So I spent the weekend making cakes and cookies and buttercream frosting in an assortment of colours and decorating things for fathers day. I am so excited to get things rolling along at home. I really love decorating at work but sometimes the downfall is having to stick to designs without creative input. Although sometimes it's an advantage because you don't have to come up with it out your own, heh. At home I have the freedom to do whatever I want which is great. I want to get really efficient in making cookies and frosting and be able to roll them out for various occasions. YAY!

This week (and next) my schedule got switched and I will be working nights. This kind of a bummer. The in-predictability of the shift makes it more of a nuisance because you never know when you will be walking out the door. But sometimes we get out really early which is great, and some nights I don't care how late we are there. I just prefer opening shifts because I'm up and at 'em at 5:45 and I get a guaranteed 6.5 hours which is nice. I just prefer to enjoy as much as my day as I possibly can. When I close I often end up sleeping until 10 which leaves me moving with enough time to get to work by two. I also like the guarantee of getting off work at a set time. I'm just thankful that no matter what time I start, I look forward to going. It's so nice to see improvements and get new ideas for how to do something. I'm lucky.

I hope I don't miss summer once it is Winter. But I have a feeling with my adoration for gloom, it should fit in perfectly with my life :)

Lets hope for some gloomy weather and storms this week!

-Tessa

vacation wrap up.

Alas. Blogging again.

And it is a rainy day! bonus.

I've been putting this of for far too long simply because so much has occured. I think I've seen Metric, Gone on vacation to Hilton Head/Savannah for a week, saw Phish, and worked at another store location, and got a stellar new phone! We've also cleaned this house up so damn well and have added things that make it way personal. So where to begin?

Lets start with Vacation (and end with it not really in the mood to go on about the last four weeks). What an amazing time. Of course, when it includes Eric and I, nothing will be conventional. Our vacation started with us landing on the Savannah runway to only receive a voicemail stating that Eric's Grandmother had been hospitalized for a stroke. Unaware of the severity or the lack there of, had us renting the car (a convertible!) and getting to the Hilton Head hospital in a frenzy. We got there to find out that she had a minor stroke, but would need to remain inpatient for the next few days. Also, this vacation was not one that was planned to include just Eric and I. His cousin, her husband, and their new baby were also to meet us up there. Last minute, his aunt, uncle and two other cousins decided to come down. This only added to his grandparents and Aunt & Uncle already living down there. The first few days were revolved mostly around family mostly because of his grandmothers condition and Eric's birthday that was on June 1st.

Our first two nights were spent in Downtown Savannah. Our first night we ended up getting back in the room exceptionally late and settled in with some episodes of Arrested Development. The second night we went around downtown Savannah and knocked back a few at Eric's favourite pub, Kevin Barry's. We had a great time roaming the cobblestone streets as the drinks made us melt into the night-time heat. What an enjoyable night. It was kind of nice to stay in Savannah for our first two nights while everyone was back in Hilton Head. It allocated long drives at night in the convertible enjoying the Savannah nights. Hilton Head/Savannah are such beautiful places. I love the minimal sign-age that is found throughout the island--and how everything is hidden and classy. It was also nice to walk out your hotel and down to the nightlife of downtown.

Our next three nights would be spent at the Westin in Port Royal where our room would be equipped with a private balcony overlooking the ocean. These things occurred in three days/nights; many complaints would be made to the front desk resulting in candy and sodas, hours worth of conversation on our balcony at night, a fantastic birthday dinner followed by billiards, naming and making friends with a huge spider on our balcony, A couples massage/jacuzzi & tons of champagne and the amazing spa, hangin out in the ocean and on the beach, racking up a huge phone bill, and room service that consisted of Nova Lox! The setting of this hotel made it so easy to relax. It seemed like every hotel that we stayed at had a different feel and had a different advantage. We loved the privacy of the balcony at the Westin on the beach but loved the openness and height of the Westin we stayed in on our last two nights overlooking downtown Savannah.

This vacation really rejuvenated us. Especially Eric. He needed this vacation. Normally after 7 months of being here, I am in dire need of a change in scenery. Eric hadn't really had a proper vacation in 3 years so we both indulged in what vacation had to offer. We both made an ecstatic effort to get the new EVO 4G Sprint phones that came out a week or so ago during one of our last days there and now are both enjoying the perks of 4G on the now network.

I think in my head, I still think I am there sometimes. I love how free the week was. How happy Eric and I were (and how i'm glad that transcended so well to our life back home). I wish we could go back there. Although, I wouldn't want to stay again there next year, we decided every other year we will find ourselves in Savannah/Hilton Head. Eric's family has been going there for so many years, so he was so anxious so show me around and that was so great to understand why it meant so much to him :)

some pictures that were taken by Eric and his beloved tri-pod.

Us at Sea Pines

The Westin in Savannah. We stayed here our last two nights.

I loved this hotel.

on the balcony at the Savannah Westin

Erics Birthday :)

Lightning over the ocean.

Eric was messing around with his camera during one of the most insane thunderstorms I had ever been in. We were on our balcony and the thunder was so loud and the lightning just about blinded me. How amazing. This shot was taken at night. Around 11:45 pm. That's how bright this lightning was.

downtown Savannah at night

If you find yourself wondering if there were any downfalls on the trip--there were! No Chipotle FOR 150+ MILES. If you go to Hilton Head you better not find yourself craving your beloved chicken burrito bowl or tacos slathered with barbacoa and sour cream ;)

Life has been good. We have been living comfortably and at the end of the trip it did feel good to come home. After being in so many different clean houses of his relatives and staying in hotel rooms that got cleaned, it inspired me to make a drastic effort to keep the house super clean when we got home. I've been pressuring Eric like crazy to clean is office to make it double as a hang out room since it is so big. Since mentioning, the office has become quite clean and is now equipped with a new 52" flatscreen. Good stuff. Our house is finally ready to show off!

What has been keeping you busy??

becoming see through.

my goodness.

I remember the days where I would update this thing everyday.

It has now been reduced to 2 times a month. How sad.

Needless to say, things have been busy aka I've been sleeping in really late.

We like to stay in bed until 11am which is extremely problematic.

I like to be an early riser and get as much done in the morning as I can.

At the same time I'm doing a fine job of hitting the snooze button at least a dozen times a day.

Anywho--

things have been going very well with me.

Work has been really good.

Things are starting to die down since there are no more big holidays until October.

I love my job in the summer.

We have a few late nights in there, but for the most part we get out pretty early and when you're working nights that is a huge perk.

They are actually starting to put me on morning shifts.
It will suck to get up at 5:45 2-3 times a week, but it will be righteous to get home at 3.

I can be either a morning person or a night person.

YAY for adaptability!

I feel like I am finally adjusted to the new location of where I live.

I feel so comfortable here.

&

I've been noticing that it is the little things that are melting my heart.

I feel very at peace.

So lets talk about this magazine called "Real Simple"

The first time I picked it up I felt like I was 32 and had two kids.

It seemed like "that kind of magazine"...

The May issue is everything I could want and more.

Can you say FLORALS?!

I love anything floral/antique-y looking and they have a spread devoted to decorating with florals.

Too bad I cant chick this place out with shades of purple and flower shit everywhere.

I respect that I live with a dude.

That dude happens to be my boyfriend and I think we both are content with the Grey, Blue, and Green paint that cover the various walls of this home.

They also have this spread that makes me feel like I'm 60 because it's aimed at moms

& what to get for them for mothers day.

I like everything they suggest.

Plus they have some really good recipes this month

check it out.

On another note, I'm trying not to blow all my money on Etsy purchases.

My new frequently searched item are oxford boots.

I ordered a pair of black ones and am in love with them.

I need brown ones to match!

We are going on vacation soon and I have no idea what to pack.

We will be headin down to Savannah & Hilton Head at the end of the month--

so many things to look forward to!

I wish I didn't suck so much at packing.

Every trip I go on I end up hating nearly everything I brought along with me.

I hope to avoid this problem.

The logical me wants to start making a list of all the things I need & keep adding things day by day. The procrastinator in me will probably forget all about this.

I am so excited for a change of scenery.

I am also excited to head out to the city tomorrow for my friend, Yara's, birthday shindig!

I enjoy the city very much so in small doses.

my $50 target gift card came today courtesy of Chase & their debit rewards!

WOOHOO!

I wish it didn't take me three days to keep coming back to this post!

Q: What is your favourite song right now?

t e s s a x