A new day

I must have caught up on some sleep.  I woke up when my alarm went off and didn't have to drag myself out of bed.  I allowed myself a nice big morning stretch and now I'm at my kitchen table, watching the cats eat, checking email, catching up on blogs, and feeling good.  Awake.  Happy.

I am excited about the weekend.  Yes, I do know it is only Thursday, but Friday looms large, in the best possible way.  A dear friend gets married on Friday.  Not only am I very happy for her and her husband-to-be and the fact that I will see another good friend from Boston who I haven't seen in a year, I am also shimmering with anticipation about the party itself.   My soon-to-be-married friend is a designer of flowers and spaces and weddings with impeccable taste and an eye for detail.  And she's planned a very San Francisco wedding.

Ceremony at San Francisco City Hall 

(where I got married earlier this year - yay!) 

Followed by cocktails and dancing at the Green Room of the San Francisco 

War Memorial Veterans Building.  

          

How grand, how cosmopolitan, how.....San Francisco.

And the celebration doesn't stop there.  We'll be back in the city on Saturday for dinner and drinks in North Beach, the city's Italian Section.  I lived in North Beach upon my arrival in California in the mid-90s; it was my introduction to the city and it always feels special to me for that reason. 

Drinks at Tosca Cafe

A San Francisco institution since 1917 with a classy, old-school atmosphere that promises to transport us back to the days of Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack 

        











I've lived here for 15 years and never been.  An Evening at Tosca Cafe has been at the top of my To Do Before I Move To Vienna List since we decided to move, so I am very excited.  And grateful to my friend.  What a wonderful way to celebrate her, her future, and enjoy this incredible city where we met and became friends.


By the way - if I had decided to plan a full-on wedding, reception, weekend, this is very likely EXACTLY what I would have wanted.  Now, I just have to find the perfect outfit.

Photo credit: Anemone Jones

One more week...

In 7 days I'll start my 3 week USA road trip with my boyfriend ♥! We'll hit up San Fransisco, Santa Cruz, Ventura, Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, Death Valley, Yosemite and SanFran again. Does anyone know nice neighbourhouds or streets, especially in SanFran and LA? And what stores can't I miss? Tell me in the comments or via thischicksgotstyle@hotmail.com!

This weekend I'll start figuring out what to take with me. I've decided not to go overboard and pack lightly, since a suitcase is always too small at the end of a trip :P If you could pack your bags and leave for the best holidays right now, which 3 items would you definately bring with you?

What's my point exactly?

Hello Dear Readers, are you still there?

I understand if you have gotten bored or moved on thanks to my anemic posting lately, but I do hope this is not so.  Please bear with me as I figure out my schedule (so I can actually sit down and write when I'm awake and alert and motivated) and my point.  Yes, my point.

You see, since the Vienna move isn't right around the corner any longer (it could be 6 months, it could be a year, could be anywhere in between or even longer), it feels odd to try to write about IT all the time and it's a challenge to come up with some tie to IT for every post because, well, IT isn't on my mind every day any longer, at least not in the same way or with the same sense of urgency.

I do write at times about things non-Vienna, things that are more...well, things that are just about me.  But I struggle with whether that is enough.  That wasn't my point when I started blogging, but I may be moving in that direction.  Blogs should have a point, a point of view, a purpose.  Or so I've read.  I want to have a point of view and I think I do, I can, I will.  I've just lost sight of it for the moment.

Will you forgive my ramblings and detours, and stick with me as I rediscover my point?  If you'll hang in there, I promise to get over myself and my inflated concern and actually write, not worry about whether I'm writing about the right thing.

Perhaps it'll be more interesting.....who knows?!?!?

Connect the dots

This lace skirt with scalloped hem from Queen's Wardrobe reminded me a bit of the lace items Stella McCartney did a while ago. So chic!

Skirt: Queens Wardrobe
Dotted blouse: H&M (in stores soon)
Booties: H&M
Glasses: Rayban

I Miss Florida

Huh?

It's true.  I miss Florida.  Not that I miss the chain restaurants, strip malls, too-short shorts, dark tans, and fake breasts that dominate the landscape, but I do very much miss the no alarm clock, no schedule, lounging, eating, beach, sun, pool, and time with friends that we enjoyed last week.  Perhaps instead of saying that I miss Florida, I should just say that I miss vacation.

It was only four short days.  You wouldn't think I'd have acclimated to a new schedule, or lack thereof, so quickly.  I didn't think that was even possible.  Me without a schedule is like.....well, pick something that seems impossible to you, and that's it.  But I've been home for four days now and, quite frankly, I have not been keen on picking up where I left off.  Getting up in the morning is hard, work is a chore, going to the gym after work has been incredibly difficult to force upon myself.  And writing, well, as you can see, there hasn't been much of that going on.

Alas, I made it to the weekend.  I made it through the three oh-so-difficult days of work (I jest. The work itself hasn't been that difficult, just having to be there was the hard part).  Today, I didn't have to wake up to an alarm clock, I don't have to go to work, I don't actually HAVE TO do anything.  And, yet, precisely because I don't feel obligated, today is the day I woke up early.  I have already gone to a yoga class, am doing laundry, cleaning, and will get to the gym in a few hours to do my cardio intervals.  On top of all that, here I am, writing.

It's not the work, the doing, the having things to do.  I'd be lost without a goal, a purpose, a list of tasks to complete.  But I am pretty tired of having a set schedule, as in a Monday-Friday, 8:00-5:00 schedule, and a job I am only so-so about.  I want to do what I want to do, when I want to do it.  Ideal?  Unrealistic?  Vacation stuck on the brain?  Not really.  My husband does it.  Many of the people I met in Florida do so - consulting, contracting, working from home or setting their own schedule with clients.  I have the security of a regular paycheck every two weeks and knowing  exactly how much money is going to be in that paycheck.  They have freedom.  I'm grateful for the paycheck, jealous of the freedom.

If I am to be completely honest, though, this is how I would like my life to be in Vienna.  I don't want to move there and find myself in a job, Monday through Friday, 8:00 - 5:00.  I want to have a flexible schedule, the freedom to move about as I wish, when I wish and really experience the city, the country, other countries.  And, no, I am not independently wealthy (darn).  So, how to make it a reality?

These are the things that are running through my post-Florida, post-vacation, pre-Vienna mind.

Fun & Sun, Jacksonville Beach, Florida, July 2010

Goodbye Grazia!

As some of you might know, I've been interning at Grazia magazine for the past four months. This Monday I'll start my last week at the office and saying goodbye to this amazing team will not be easy. I'm glad I was able to write so many articles and I couldn't even imagine how much I've grown from the experience. I'm even more sure now that working at a magazine might be a future path for me. Already looking forward to what the future might bring! Cheers to a good last week :)

CHA Summer show

I'm all in a frenzy getting ready to head to Chicago on Sunday for the Craft & Hobby Association's Summer show.

I have been whipping up a sample making storm to showcase my new stamp line that is debuting at the show. Here's a little lampshade I finished using the new Studio Creative layers stamps:

I'll be at the wholesale/trade part of the CHA show which runs July 26 - 29th if you'll be there stop by and say hi! Here's my schedule:

Monday July 26th
9am - 10am - Panel Speaker for
Social Networking for Designers: Making the Most of Your Online Presence All CHA designer members welcome to attend!
11:30am - 1:30pm Beyond the Layers - my workshop with Ranger!


Tuesday July 27th
2pm - 6pm demoing at the Ranger Industries booth, come check out my new stamp line!


Wednesday July 28th
1pm - 5pm demoing at the Ranger Industries booth


Thursday July 29th
12noon - 3pm demoing at the Ranger Industries booth

Because the show is so busy, it's sometimes hard to find a spare minute to blog. But I'll be Twittering, posting photos and if I can get my phone to work, posting video too! Follow me on Twitter to get the latest updates!

I'm selling my Zara clogs!

Hi sweeties! After long consideration I've decided to sell my gorgeous Zara clogs in size 39.

Update: clogs are sold

Eugene Domingo

Eugene Domingo

• 1st Filipina "Funniest Comedienne" in the first Yahoo! OMG! Philippines Awards (2011)
  

QUOTE
"I always admire those who had come before me or those who are more senior to me or more experienced."


ALIAS
"Uge"

DATE OF BIRTH
July 23, 1971

USEFUL LINKS

Shalani, Shamcey, Piolo, Jennylyn top OMG! Awards
Eugene Domingo, now a millionaire
Eugene Domingo is on a roll
Wikipedia Article on Eugene Domingo

Two more

I don't want to give you a runway overkill, so these are my last two runway reports from Amsterdam Fashion Week. It's been a blast!
Twin sisters Spijkers & Spijkers showed their new, more affordablie line SIS. The collections had nautical references and was influenced by old Dutch culture. It gave fresh faced, feminine looks. The second collection is by Daryl van Wouw, an icon in Dutch fashion for his street couture. His collection is still sporty but also has oriental influences.

image credits: Peter Stigter

Claudine Hellmuth Studio Creative Layers Stamps!

I am so excited to share with you my newest product release. Brought to you by Ranger & Stampers Anonymous The Studio Creative Layers Collection!

Creative Layers are coordinating sets of clear and foam stamps that I drew and doodled in my little sketch book. I was inspired by one color illustrations from the 40's and 50's where the color registration is a little off -- leaving color outside the lines. Nothing makes my heart flutter like off-register printing!

Here's an example of what I am talking about:

They can be used independently for stamping with inks or with Claudine Hellmuth Studio Paints, but to get the most out of them and achieve whimsical illustrative effects, you'll want to layer them!

Above example left to right: foam stamp alone, clear stamp alone, and both stamps layered!

There are six Creative Layers collections in all. Decor, Domestic, Doodles, Bloom, Nature, Dwelling

Above is the Bloom set + Nature set with both foam + clear stamps layered together. To create the yummy off register printed look!

... and a little canvas I created as one of my samples:


For additional information, check out the official Press Release on the Ranger web site. And be sure to look for them in an arts & crafts shop near you beginning this September!!

I'll share with you a few more sneak peeks this week as I get ready for to head to the CHA show in Chicago!

Little hearts

I thought the tiny hearts on this pleated skirt were adorable and they make me feel romantic in an instant. Excuse the familiar background, this was also taken during Fashion Week.

Skirt and bag: Zara
Tank and shoes: H&M
Hat: borrowed from Debbie

Dagmar

Dagmar showed one of my favorite collections during Amsterdam Fashion Week. The brand was founded by three Swedish sisters just 5 years ago and already seems to have a solid DNA. I was impressed by the variety of fabrics - from sheer, flowy skirts to leather tops and soft knits - that worked so well together. Dagmar’s feminine, wearable items with a masculine touch are exactly what I would hope to hang in my closet.

images: Peter Stigter

Panels

An outfit during Fashion Week. I'm having a great time visiting all the shows, getting new inspiration and catching up with people. The jacket I'm wearing here is one of my new favorites. It's paneled with two different black fabrics on the sleeves and side, and has a nude collar and back.


Paneled jacket: H&M trend (in stores soon)
Silk dress: H&M (in stores soon)
Shoes: Zara
Bag: Zara
Two finger connector ring: Forever 21
Necklace: River Island

illustration friday: breakfast

This is my submission for this weeks illustration friday theme of "breakfast"

I just finished up this custom artwork, while it's a tad of stretch for the theme but it fits a little! This cute little family loves to have BREAKFAST and hangout in their treehouse!

When they ordered the piece they let me know that they are moving and wanted to have a tribute to their treehouse that the whole family loves and will miss. I had so much fun working on this piece!

More Fashion Week

Marloesblaas and Individuals are two out of the four collections I saw yesterday during Fashion Week. As for Individuals, I particularly liked their dresses and suits. You already saw the right dress in this post and I'm even more smitten with the print, cut and knitted shoulders after seeing it flounce down the runway. I want to wear it! Same thing goes for the green Marloesblaas jumpsuit, Hello Maverick flash backs ;)

images by Peter Stigter

it's funny how things happen, and I do extend my sincere apologies

I see irony everywhere, and none more than the fact that I announce I am going on hiatus only to find that I have blogged more in the past month than I have in the last year. It seems like with that one post, and with all the free time I have from my current university holiday, I'm rediscovering my interest in all things creative, all over again. Guess when I said sooner rather than late,r I really did mean much much sooner. So maybe I want to live in both the house and the loft after all.

And then, on a more serious note0 to those who have previously contacted me:

I really would like to extend my sincere apologies for being extremely terrible at replying emails! I feel terrible! I don't mean to, but none the less, I am because I didn't check that address very often. (That is, however, not an excuse at all!) But I have since grouped all my email accounts together, so will be much much more diligent in it! For all those who emailed hoped for a prompt reply, I am sorry. I know some of you (advertisers, fellow bloggers et al.) contacted me ages ago, and as I can't tell who is still waiting for a reply from who has since moved on... if you would kindly email me again, I will reply back this time! Promptly too! Promise!

All my love and sorry again,

K

Maybe I was too quick in saying it....

Zara in Australia appears to be coming sooner rather than later! The article in The Australian seems to be quite convinced that Zara is coming in 2011! That's next year! And that H&M is looking into the Australian market. Oh yes, thank you. We're finally getting some of the goodies that our Northern Hemisphere have had for what seems like forever- I can't believe the difference in climate has been such a barrier to entry!

But we shall have to wait and see if something sudden delays them (I'm rather skeptical about time frames in general) and let's hope the prices will remain uniform, i.e. that Zara does not increase its prices to match the comparatively pricey Australian fashions. Along with the great styles that Zara can bring us, maybe the stronger competition can be a form of natural price regulation?

Cred: The Australian

Iris van Herpen

Iris van Herpen was the second show I visited yesterday, and it was very well received. She took crystalization of water as an inspiration and her leather cut outs and fossil-like shapes can be very intriguing. Also, you can't really tell but the shoes were insane. I'll be putting those on my impossible to buy wish list!

credits: peter stiger

Places I'm Going

Tonight, I board a jet plane and head to....Jacksonville, Florida.

That's right.  Jacksonville. Florida.  In mid-July.  I know you're jealous.  Friends are getting married on Saturday (trust me, nothing less than the wedding of good friends would get us to hot sticky schwül* Florida at this time of year), so off we go. 

*Schwül is the German word for humid, which we learned on our trip to Vienna, because, well, it was a little schwül while we were there.  We were cautioned, however, by several people to be very careful about our pronunciation.  That one little umlaut can change the whole meaning of one's sentence because schwül = humid, but schwul = gay/homosexual.

I've never been to Jacksonville, so I looked it up.

Jacksonville, Florida is home to the largest urban park system in the U.S., the 2nd largest annual Jazz Festival (I'm assuming New Orleans is the largest), the world's largest private collection of original manuscripts and documents (at the Karpeles Manuscript Library), the Jaguars (for football fans) and the New Jax City Rollers (if you're into roller derby).  I doubt I'll see any of these things, but I think it's nice to know.

I've got my tank tops, shorts, sundresses, bathing suit and flip flops packed and, of course, my workout clothes because "training doesn't take a vacation," according to my lovely coach/husband.  At least it'll be easier to negotiate a day pass at the gym here (in English) than it was in Vienna (in German).  Although, I must admit, I did pretty well at the gyms in Vienna and felt quite rewarded when I was understood!  Wie viel kostet ein Tagespass?

It's just a few days but it feels like a nice vacation and I have all the pre-vacation anticipation and lack of focus. Just have to make it through work today.

No computer until mid-next-week, so I wish you now a lovely few days.  Be Back Soon!

Kicking off Fashion Week

I kicked off Amsterdam International Fashion Week in a good way. After the opening party (dresscode: Black Tie). We visited two great runway shows by Spijkers & Spijkers and Iris van Herpen and had a great time catching up with everyone there. It went on until past midnight, but who cares, it's Fashion Week ;)! I'm wearing a dress with a buttery soft leather front + sleeves, a black cotton back and hidden pockets. A great pick when I had to get dressed, shower and do my hair in under 15 minutes!

Dress: H&M trend (in stores soon)
Clogs: Zara
Clutch: Zara

Strappy

These strappy sandals with leather back from online shop Kymare are a much welcome variation to the giant platforms I'll be rocking this entire Amsterdam Fashion Week. Tonight is it's official opening party, followed by two runway shows, and I can't wait to suck up all the new trends and looks!

At Ready to Fish

Yesterday I kicked of Amsterdam Fashion Week (which officially starts on wednsday) by visiting the Ready to Fish runway show. I really liked what I saw; very well constructed and wearable items. My favorites are the fresh pantalons with flowy button downs, a marble printed silk jacket and dress and the cream maxi gown. Lovely!

15 steps to freelance illustration

I recently read Thomas James new ebook 15 Steps to Freelance Illustration.

I am so excited about this book! Whether you are new to illustration or have been working in illustration for awhile, this book gives you action steps to get (or keep) your career on track.

Illustration is always a mystery to me, I seem to get jobs in spurts and never seem to have the steady flow of illustration work that I would like. It's so nice to have this book to refer to for guidance on the best way to go about cultivating a steady stream of good illustration jobs.

I love that it is broken down into manageable size "action steps" that you can follow along the way and gives clear advice and includes a workbook so that you can personalize the steps to your work.

Thomas also creates the Escape From Illustration Island podcast, I am a big fan and listen to it every week. I was on episode 29!

Places I've Been

2% - seems so sad!

One of the many reasons my husband and I want to move to Europe, and to Vienna, specifically, is that we see it as a launching pad of sorts. A home that provides close proximity and easy travel to so many other countries. A way for us to not only experience life in a new place, but life in many new places.

Vienna seems quite central, offering exploration opportunities East, West, North, and South by car, by train, by plane, at reasonable travel rates. All evidence I've seen in reading people's blogs and stories we've heard from people we've actually met indicate that people do actually take advantage of their location. I hear and read about travels to France and Spain, Kosovo and Sweden, Germany, Italy, Turkey!

This stirs in me such a sense of possibility and curiosity, which is, I admit, not an expected response from me. But it is there, nonetheless, surprising no one more than me. I am more of a homebody, not an adventurer. I like the familiar, the expected, the planned. So, is it wishful thinking that I'll experience the world from Vienna or does this curiosity indicate that I find the world as a whole, or even just Europe, more interesting than I find the United States?

Individual

Today I visited the store opening of Individuals, a graduation project of Amsterdam Fashion Institute students. My friend Jes has been working on the marketing section and I decided to drop by and see her in action. We've been girlfriends for 14 years, so about time I showed her on this blog ;)