Okay, the leather culottes are in the closet, gray cashmere pullover is on order, we’ve seen the brightest moon in six years, and all of a sudden we’re working full days. Even with all that and back to school schedules creeping in, let’s keep this summer time thing going just a bit longer…
Stopped at the market and picked up all that was fresh. Peaches, of course, and zucchini, eggplant, and plum tomatoes. Had the fish man fillet a full halibut, no photos, we started to have too much fun in the kitchen. Cooked up some pasta too, we had a three-year old and one year old, let’s keep this going.
While fall clothes and colors are all about us I’m still about white shorts, cotton voile shirts, and black cashmere sweaters borrowed from the husband after a full day in the office.
Every day dress, let’s keep this going, Summer 2014, not over yet.
Been a little slow with the post feed, sometimes you can feel a little all alone out here. 🙂 Travel schedule’s been crazy, and working a Trunk Show downtown to boot.
So, here goes: Saturday night stood in the closet and pulled on multiple outfits, nothing seemed right. Husband promised two teenaged daughters tickets to One Republic with a friend each and we were the escorts. Final pick? A crew neck sweater from last season and white skinnies. Honestly getting a bit tired of skinny jeans, but they really always seem to work and in a hurry.
Once you get dressed and out the door it all seems easier. The gorgeous beautiful teenagers even had outfit anxiety and they had really nothing to worry about. They chose short shorts of some kind and tank tops, how hard is that when you haven’t hit twenty?
Thinking the crew neck was okay. Every guy in the band, and there were six, had on a crew neck tee. Even THEY had outfit anxiety, or so it seems. Lead singer, Ryan Tedder, expressed at the end of the show before the Louis Armstrong encore that they had toured upstate for what has seemed like forever and next time they pass through they really want some new clothes. They’re pretty much in the big time now and were headed straight to Jersey. How funny, how true. We all like new clothes.
Next day, Sunday, did the country thing and let it all go. At the end of the day it’s really about family and coming together. Salad, sautéed zucchini, and grilled chicken with bottled BBQ sauce.
Every day dress, crew neck. Boys in the band? You all looked great, wishing you much continued success.
Seems the more you go, the less you need, especially off duty. For west coast on the go trip, essentials included:
Cashmere wrap and silk scarf, blue jeans and white jeans, denim skirt, black blazer and black workout jacket, black boatneck sweater, white shorts and black exercise pants, tanks and tees, mostly on the black side, one pair of sandals, two pairs of sneakers but really only needed one, one pair of black boots. One bright handbag, and most important, handsome husband and two teenaged daughters.
Started in LA and drove up the coast and flew out of San Francisco. Temperatures ranged from 102 to below 60. Really into this carry on thing and keeping it light. Such a drag to haul so much stuff all over.
For off duty travel, cashmere, denim,white, and black. Easy.
Now it’s all on duty for Fall 14 Trunk Show. Starts tomorrow, Wednesday, and goes through next week Wednesday, August 13th.
You can do it. With the right stuff off duty travel for seven or eight days with only a carry-on is so possible.
When the mood strikes and usually among the same blood line, we here at every day dress can throw down four letter words with the best of them. You won’t see them digitally, in print, and hopefully never hear them at the dinner table.
That said, there are some four letter words we just love and use regularly: food, real and good food; and wine, usually good wine and often enough fine wine. Butter counts too as we kind of weirdly believe that butter is love.
A couple four letter words it’s taken us about 49 years to get over: diet, lose. Those have occupied way too much head space and have never gotten us to any good place. Still get sucked in, loving fashion and great clothes always makes you want to be thinner, those two words just always lead down the wrong path. While clothes invariable look better on stick thin women, it’s so much more fun to embrace lifestyle too and know that undressed women perhaps look and feel better with a few well deserved curves.
As recently as 18 months ago 35-year-old male trainer that put me through really heavy weight training workouts knew my desperation with always wanting to drop 10 pounds or so. He recommended the banana diet. Yes, 30 freaking bananas a day. Being a believer in all things actually tried it for about an hour and a half on a cold winter day while out skiing with the family. Result? Disaster and four letter words, not the good ones like real food and good wine, but the rough ones hurled out at two teenaged daughters when getting on the chair lift on a crisp beautiful morning was more complicated than usual. Way to set a good example. Those four letter words were so not right and were set up by some unrealistic diet plan. That banana thing I think was the turning point. Never again. Took that chair lift up, skied down the mountain, and fueled the body with what it needed and one of the paradigms of every day dress: eat some protein at breakfast.
Fashion and fitness magazines always have ways for us lose, diet, or move ourselves down a couple of dress sizes and they always promise it will happen fast. Now even the really good ones like Town & Country and Harper’s Bazaar have entered the email feed with ways to lose. While obesity is a huge health problem in our country and heartbreaking to see in children, that’s an entirely different conversation than what you’ll find here. We’re talking about moving our bodies as much as we can, walking over driving, stairs over anything that requires power to get you up or down, and knowing that life is abundant and setting yourself up with wishful restrictions is not much fun.
Michael Pollan’s In Defense of Food is a slim book that’s kept on the nightstand to circle back to when the pull to believe in some magical diet plan or how to lose weight fast comes calling again as it does and will. His premise is sound: Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.
Every day dress on four letter words, yes, sometimes it’s just the best way to express yourself, and usually only among intimates. On our favorite four letter words, food and wine? Yes, and often, and probably for both like Mr. Pollan says, not too much. 🙂
Still in CA, heading back east tomorrow, Sunday, and jumping right back into helping women look and feel great with beautiful clothing. Trunk Show August 6th through August 13th.
Wishing everyone a great weekend with some good, real food. And, if you like, some good wine too.
Sometimes it’s that what we find challenging is that what makes us really grow. Life and work have picked up the travel calendar, six kids, almost can’t call them kids anymore, the four of them in big cities are really young adults, a husband that is restless, and growing a fashion business can kind make you be on the move.
Travel? Once you get there all is good. It’s the getting ready and getting out of dodge that’s the big work.
Woke up Tuesday morning out in the country and really didn’t want to go anywhere at all. Got the virtual office thing down but when you’re wanted at the home base for laundry and dinner detail and then the next morning in NYC for work stuff you’ve just got to move.
Put off the details by cooking sauce and meatballs the hottest day of all July. Then packed it in the car with the dogs and the gear to serve it up later. Somehow making dinner for the family makes everything else feel okay. You know that procrastination thing? Anything but the hard stuff and the hard stuff here was packing and going.
Did the dinner thing, went to bed, set the alarm, 3 am, got up and got out of dodge.
Here’s the fashion details: white denim all the way, corporate trip yes but it is July. White denim dress for travel out on Wednesday with a black jacket. White denim jeans with kind of sexy black silk blouse for dinner Wednesday night, no photo, don’t we all dress for dinner? And white denim skirt and silk blouse and cashmere wrap for office meetings the next day it’s always cold when they crank the air conditioning.
Handbag above not really relevant to this post but thinking it is really gorgeous. 🙂
Shoes were black. Black Aquazurra for travel, you can really walk anywhere in those and black low heeled boots for dinner out. Have resolved that any shoe that is worn or packed when traveling needs to be able to move in.
Eden, Buffalo, NYC. Next up, Saturday LAX.
Every day dress, travel. What we find challenging is really what makes us grow.
Shameless self-promotion post: selfie of accessories during Fall Trunk Show. Dress is seasons old, belt and fur tried on from the new collection.
When at home always LOVE a good apron. 🙂 This belt looks great while being useful. Stashed the iPhone in the right zip pocket, plugged in the head-set, and there you go, hands free talking forever.
Popped the fur on, and while fur isn’t for everyone, this one has stretch, can you imagine fur with stretch? Genius.
Maybe wouldn’t wear them both at the same time, but maybe might.
Worked off-site all day. Moms with older kids know this, moms with younger kids probably can’t yet imagine it: when you cook for others eventually they cook for you.
Second son made dinner tonight, soup to nuts, happy day.
At the eleventh hour husband asked for a spread for his political fundraiser held at his Buffalo office proper. He wanted to net for the candidate more than what was gifted so obviously we obliged.
Kept it super simple: savory and sweet. Cooked off four whole beef tenderloins, sliced them up 1/4 inch thick, bought about a dozen baguettes, whole grain and white, spread them with truffle butter, topped off with arugula and shaved parmesan, sandwich picked them in thirds, sliced on the diagonal, all good to go.
The sweet was miniature strawberry tartlets with fresh dolloped fresh whipped cream. Homegrown strawberries from the Eden valley. Pate Brisee from the kitchen counter top food processor. Whipped the cream and transferred it in a chilled bowl.
Home stocked the bar with boxed wine glasses, a case of Montrachet, a case of Rose, some Cabernet and Pinot Noir. Some bottled beer, leftover from a weekend or two ago, a bottle of vodka, some mixers, and all set.
Savory and sweet, two things, that was it. A sandwich and a tart, haha, is there anything else?
Every day dress, savory and sweet, now a caterer as well. 🙂
So it’s summer and while most of us might be working it’s fun to be spontaneous too. Last weekend decided rather quickly to ditch the country place for the day and to drive to ski town, Ellicottville NY, for their annual outdoor music, fireworks, rodeo et al festival weekend.
We had to eat, couldn’t break that solid routine, so stopped at the local grocery without the slightest idea of a menu in mind and bought what looked good. It was Saturday, so the live lobsters they brought in for the weekend were priced to sell. Scooped up all seven that were left. There were eight of us so rounded it out with a bag of clams, some t-bone steaks, haricots vert and sugar snap peas, and an arugula and spinach salad. Food heaven. Had the ramekin butter warmers stashed away but no crackers or picks so we simply used some pliers from the basement and a rubber mallet we found to pre-crack the claws. Add some good white wine and some nice dark beer, pop-up clam bake indeed.
Okay, so that was the lifestyle piece. Now for the fashion: had this fun fringed donut stashed away too. Bought this piece several years ago and wore it all the time until I wore myself out. As it was cold that night and fringe is all around us, popped that thing on too and it felt great.
Here’s to Summer 2014, good times, good food, good clothes, and fringe.
Every day dress, eat and wear the good stuff. 🙂
All photos iPhone, it’s been quite crazy good busy.
With the 4th coming feeling a little like we’re off the hook. Had the big bash last weekend, and yes, oversold.
It’s a great feeling when everything seems to come together and the stars are aligned. Dear friend and I make a great team, we got progressive, wine beer booze at her place and BBQ here, across the street.
All hands were on deck and it was homegrown. Husband did the wine, French and CA, she did the first bar and organized the grill, BW’s, chicken, ribs, mac & cheese, baked beans, caesar salad, roll and butter. Her man worked overtime and took care of the zillion pounds of ice, what’s a party without the ice?
We had Negroni cocktails, so fun, and even each rang the old-fashioned dinner bell to signal end of the cocktail hour(s).
I baked 15 dozen chocolate chippers, she called up the bakery and had 15 dozen country cut-outs made up beautifully.
Her tip was the band, every day dress here made the call and was honestly a little nervous until they showed in the flesh.
Total mixed guest list, thirteen to eighty-plus, love that kind of thing, bonfire near the end.
Late stayers danced down to Fleetwood Mac, Bob Dylan, and company.
BBQ was oversold, yippee, so much better than being overdone or overdrawn, haha. Now we’re overstocked, yay, with opened bottles of wine, glasses, candles, and ferns. No problem, have a party early and you’re all set up for the summer.
Even when you’re dog tired coming together at the end of the day is always a good thing. Make some dinner, light some candles, enjoy a glass of wine. Linen napkins help too.
New mustard shoes with rubber soles and short shorts make it easy to get stuff done.
Okay, the leather culottes are in the closet, gray cashmere pullover is on order, we’ve seen the brightest moon in six years, and all of a sudden we’re working full days. Even with all that and back to school schedules creeping in, let’s keep this summer time thing going just a bit longer…
