Double Dog Dare You

Not to smile while watching any of these super duper videos. Apologies for the overloaded video post, but I guess I needed a robust injection of COLOR. Ma-ma-ma-makes me happy. Happy Friday, dingus'! 

Art History Poster

How great is this? Mrs. Leck, Mrs. Hadley, I miss you both.  

Poster: via Design Milk 

Marriage Super-Genius

With my dear friends Al and TT getting married this summer and having recently done the deed myself, I was thinking about what makes a successful marriage. A sense of humor. Respect. Honesty. The capacity to forgive and to laugh at yourself. Trust. Hard work. Sweet nothings. Sweet kisses. Then, I remembered some of the most ardent words about the subject from someone with many, many years of expertise...and it all just made sense. 

Lenny: Yeah, you must be some kind of marriage super-genius, how about a few tips?
Homer: Certainly, Lenford. Make every day a celebration of your love. Surprise her with a pasta-salad. Put a mini beret on your wang.
Lenny: Oh, this stuff is gold.
Carl: Happy marriage, here I come.

I wish nothing but long, happy, goofy and loving marriages and partnerships for all of my sweet, sweet pals.  

Side Note: To have "done the deed," does that mean marriage or sex or something else entirely? I really have no idea. Should probably refrain from using phrases which I am clueless about their meaning. C'est la vie...right???

Photo: "The Simpsons" Twentieth Century Fox Television/Gracie Films/Film Roman Productions

Holy Heaven!

Somethings with which I am endlessly in love. Breakfast in bed. A pretty frock. Paris. And of course, cha cha champagne. Ahhhh...sweet, sweet heaven. 

Photos: Breakfast in Bed ~ Faye Toogood, via BBF Dress by Juan Jooliva via This is Glamorous; Paris ~BellaRose by Liz, via Flickr; Champy display ~ LivingEtc.

Weekend Mission: Epiphyllum ackermannii

Or otherwise known as a cactus.  My goal this weekend is to find some plants.  Pretty ones, in fine fettle would be preferred.  Not really sure if I have the green thumb or not, as house plants have never been high on my priority list.  Since we now live on quite a bustling street, and I refuse to keep the windows shut, a few plants to cleanse the air is all I can think about.  These photos are keeping me inspired and hopeful that I won't kill my new friends.  Thumbs crossed.  

Photos: Design Sponge

Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens

When the dog pees

When my spanish sucks

When I'm feeling sad

I simply remember my favorite kitchen things 

And then I don't feel so bad

"If you ask any lady...

they want to be taller, they want to be slimmer, you know, and they want a waist. I'm not here to make people look like a sack of potatoes.” ~LAM

Alexander McQueen design from the autumn-winter 2003-04 ready-to-wear collections in Paris.

Photo: JEAN-PIERRE MULLER/AFP/Getty Images

Goodness from Garnet Hill

Just some things I am loving at the moment. There are many things which I inherited from my father and one of the more bizarre is an obsession with bed linens.  This was the catalogue I loved when the time came to order new dreamy sheets and cozy things to bundle in.  I had forgotten about it for a while and am thrilled GH stumbled back into my forefront.  I am still in koo koo 'nesting' mode. It's a daily obsession looking for ways to make our home in Bogota better and feel more like OUR home.  And a good jam or jelly for the skin is yet another fetish of mine... The Dr. Hauschka Rosemary Oil was most certainly sent from heaven. The bottle I have will be gone in mere seconds. Click here to get any or all of this goodness!

The coral version will be in our bedroom.  Anything to help eliminate the 'click clacking' of doggy claws is going to be an improvement.  Fortunately, this rug is lovely-looking and quite a steal.  

Yes, please.

Can't stop using this.  It smells so good and makes your skin look amazing.  I may need buy this in bulk.

Glorious to sleep in.  Nothing like clean organic sheets!

Photos: GarnetHill.com 

Brazzaville Here We Come...My New Best Friends

Oh golly! Just found this exquisite book, Gentlemen of Bacongo, by photographer, Daniele Tamgni. A gorgeous expression of artistry, by both Tamgni and his subjects, The Sapeurs. I can't believe we will be living there. I hope you can spare a moment do a bit of reading about these fascinating men of the congo. The Sapeurs today belong to Le SAPE; an acronym for the movement itself, Société des Ambianceurs et Persons Élégants. I'm sure it's no coincidence that the word sape also means “to dress with elegance and style” in French. Members not only remain resolutely faithful to the church of high fashion and it's designers, but have their own code of honor, codes of professional conduct and strict notions of morality. C'est tres cool! Can't get enough.

Photos: Daniele Tamgni ("Gentlemen of Bacongo" - Trolley Books)