Things that make you go "Hmmmm"

When I was in college, my marketing professor did a unit on campaigns aimed at "tweens" and popular tween culture. At the time, Miley Cyrus' star was just beginning to rise and another teeny bopper, JoJo was popular. My 50 year old professor showed us a news magazine special that featured JoJo, basking in her defiant tween glory and as we proceeded to discuss it, provided his viewpoint that JoJo exhibited the "ick factor." The professor went on to describe that feeling as being the anti-x-factor. Something that you couldn't quite describe but just repulsed you. I don't often observe cultural phenomenon that fall into that category, but I came across these images on CoCo Perez of a photo shoot from Vogue Paris Cadeaux and if they aren't "ick" I don't know what is. There's just something totally wrong about adults dressing children up like models and then asking them to mimic them.
{images via CoCo Perez}

Back to School Shopping

I'm dreaming of a new fall wardrobe. I made a few purchases this week of inexpensive, staple items, but my grad student status will prevent any shopping sprees for the foreseeable future. What to do when you can't really shop? POLYVORE! Besides, it allows me to add YSL to my wardrobe.

From the left:

• Blending softness and structure for work. This outfit would work great on an Indian Summer day when it's not cool enough to require a sweater.
• I love this cashmere sweater. I'd like to put on this outfit and head to Hood River to pick up some fresh apples. The aviators would be perfect for the weak Autumn sun.
• This outfit reminds me of the clothes I remember seeing fancy ladies wear in movies when I was growing up. It would be a fun getup for a cocktail party and the sleeves and tights would help me cope with the chilly weather.
• Be still my Parisian heart. I wish I could put this on and stroll down la rive gauche to the Musée d'Orsay. I would gaze upon the gorgeous impressionist paintings then linger a bit in front of Emmanuel Fremiat's sculpture of St Michel slaying the dragon.
  

Insomnia and la vie en rose

image via Amazon.com

Last night I found myself tossing and turning, unable to sleep. After a weekend trip to Seattle I was unable to shut my mind off after so much socializing, eating & drinking, and of course hours in the car. My go to for nights like this is generally a glass of water and a predictable, familiar movie. Last night's selection was Sabrina, the 1995 Sydney Pollack remake of the 1954 Audrey Hepburn classic.

The movie's montage of Paris always makes me a little bit heartsick for the summer I spent in France several years ago. As the camera pans cafes with outdoor seating, Notre Dame de Paris and Ile St. Louis, I can almost smell the boulangeries and rich espresso. I think of how nice it would be to just spend time inconspicuously writing with pen and paper while drinking cafe au lait as I did many an afternoon that summer.

In the movie, Sabrina quotes Gertrude Stein, saying "America is my country, Paris is my hometown." Anyone who has ever been fortunate enough to visit and fall in love with the French way of life understands this sentiment perfectly. I never understood before that fateful trip, how you could feel so at home, all by yourself in a foreign country. I'll leave you with a favorite line from Sabrina that I feel adequately sums up the French philosophy on stuff:

"More isn't always better, Linus, sometimes it's just more"

On one of the bridges crossing the Seine as the sun set


What helps you sleep well?