Soft, Shaky Hands

Ever received a gift you were gracious for but had no idea what to do with it? A few weeks ago during a visit with feeble, quickly aging grandparents, my precious grandmother gifted me with this blanket.

The look in her eyes indicated this was something that really meant a lot to her. I’m pretty picky about my home décor and while mi casa is sprinkled with a few ultra mod-60’s pieces collected from various family members, this particular one doesn’t fit nonetheless. Vivid, childhood memories of this oddball blanket being draped over my grandparents’ sofa reverberate through my head. I loathed it even then. It snagged everything, it was scratchy and the colors made me feel quite ill. As she handed me this dusty gift I thought to myself, “Dear God, how on earth am I going to fit this monstrosity into my suitcase for the flight back home?” It also killed me to think how my husband would react to the additional “piece of junk” that was going to have to be shoved into our already over packed linen closet.

After I snapped out of the “Oh, my God, what will I do with this thing…” thoughts going through my head, my grandmother said, “I made this before you were born, back when my hands still worked. When I’m not around anymore, I want you to have this so you can remember me and how I used to knit.”

Wow…

How does one react to such a touching moment?

Although my grandmother can’t read my mind, I suddenly felt awful and wanted to erase every ugly, selfish thought that went through my head about this darn thing. Within an instant I grew attached to the ugly ole chunk of yarn. The craftsmanship alone was quite impressive and it was, well a piece of her. Not perfect but quirky, durable, authentic and a piece of ME.

The next day my grandmother made us pork chops for lunch before we hopped on a flight back home to Dallas. I offered to help but she told me to sit down, relax and enjoy being a guest because rarely do she and my grandfather have family guests anymore and it was her pleasure to be a “Grandma” and cook for my husband and me in her home. As tempted as I was to stand up from the table and exert myself, I tried my best to sit down and be a humble guest. But I couldn’t help observing how many times she dropped a knife, spatula or the difficulty she had just opening the oven and pulling out a tray of rolls. She broke her shoulder falling off a sidewalk a couple of years ago and while it was replaced, her dominant, right hand now has limited use. I observed her picking up heavy iron-clad pots and pans, and couldn't help noticing how she struggled as her her hands violently shook.

Now back home with a little time on my hands, I can reflect on what a touching moment it was to receive such a gift. This blanket is piece of my life, a part of me and something to help me always cherish my loving grandmother’s soft, shaky hands.

Denim Dilemma

Lots of life changes are on the horizon. A fresh clean, start - clean closet, clean house and a cool new career. With the exciting new job is the arrival of a jam’n new dress code, jeans!

At first this was great news but after putting more thought into it, I’m struggling as to what this really means. My new office is located in the heart of Mockingbird Station, a classy, fashion forward part of the city sprinkled with newly decorated office suites, trendy boutiques and restaurants.

I’m excited at the opportunity to don denim to work but assume there must be some type of jean etiquette one must follow when wanting to embrace the company culture but also appear polished and professional. Following a business and/or business casual dress code at work for the past five plus years, there aren't enough "nice" jeans in my wardrobe to cycle through a full work week. I’ve always owned one nice pair of dressy jeans for casual Friday and Girls’ Night Out but most of my jeans are just plain ‘ole jeans. They are the comfy clothes I wear while downing pints of Harp at the dirty, sticky bar or during concerts and road trips.

So I’m embracing this new wardrobe adventure and have conducted a little research to gather some dressing tips before I start my new job. Here’s one combo I like quite a bit:

From what I’ve gathered I need to buy a few staples (on sale of course), which will hopefully allow me to look professional yet fit in with my new coworkers:

• Boyfriend Blazer: those I own are too business like for jeans
• Embellished Cardigan Sweater: to dress up denim
• Silk Blouse: for feminine flair
• Chic Button Down: a no-fail piece

Do you have any tips on denim at the workplace? What would you recommend adding to this list?

I covet thy jacket but not thy jeans!



To Bang, or Not to Bang

In no reference to getting laid or AK-47’s, I’m referring to what Zooey Deschanel brought back to fashion mags and hair salons. Once dated and dorky, bangs are now deemed by many as fashion forward and edgy.  Just more proof that all trends eventually cycle back through. But not all styles of bangs are flattering.

Sporting bangs all my life until my senior year of high school, to this day I still cringe at pictures of me with a big ‘ole clump of a curl across my forehead. Little girl bangs were cute and easy, thanks to mom for frequent trimmings and styling. But as I grew older, the bangs also grew increasingly high maintenance. They would stick to my forehead, especially during hot, humid Texas summers - - - a serious recipe for forehead acne. But the new bang ‘do is kind of fab. If you have the right face shape, and they run at your brow in a messy feathered row, you can look kind of cool and unpredictable like Chrissie Hynde from The Pretenders.  
I currently have the side bang swept across my forehead but I often contemplate taking the risk and going for the full-on straight across bang look you see here on Ms. Deschanel. Only a few issues lie in the way:

·         My face may be too round for them.

·         My hair is thin and only shoulder length. Thin will cause them to stick to my sweaty forehead and the shorter length may not be long enough to compliment the style. This could result in the terribly outdated, unflattering “Rachel” look.

·         My hubby despises them.

What are your thoughts on bangs? Have you taken the plunge?

If only I knew then what I know now

Knee deep in the trenches of Operation Closet Clean, it suddenly dawned on me how much I miss my mother’s collection of saved clothing from the 60’s and 70’s. From Halloween and dress-up to homecoming week and frat parties, they had their share of wear and tear. Now I wish I had taken better care of these symbols of my mother's youth and given them the respect they deserved. Had it not been for my ruining them with Marlboro ash burns and trashcan punch stains, I’d be wearing them for reals today. Ever been to Etsy.com?

Etsy is an online marketplace housing an expansive mix of unique treasures you won't find at any overpriced American Apparel or Anthropology-esque boutique. Plus, it feels great to shop Etsy and know I'm supporting private artisans and other collectors of memorabilia like myself.  But it certainly has its shortcomings, as you'll notice how much grandma-kitsch garb people are hawking here for $100 a pop.  This is for simple no-name brand stuff. Upgrade your search to designer vintage like Neiman Marcus, Gucci and Ralph Lauren, and you’ll have to forgo your first born. Foolish people actually pay outrageous prices for mothball fragranced discards - more than what they are worth brand new!

To this day I cry out for the beautiful, Bruno Magli, black Italian leather pumps my lovely, loony aunt gave me when I was in high school. Why wasn’t I wise enough to recognize their value at 17? Vintage was so not cool in the 90’s, let alone to teenagers. My mother forewarned me not to discard them in the Goodwill stash. Of course, I didn’t listen.

Once more my aunt shocked me with what surprisingly ended up being one of "our" favorite wedding gifts – a lewd, crude piece of pre-owned lingerie (of course she washed it, first). According to her, because my fiancé and I had been together over six years prior to our official union, we needed something to “spice things up in the bedroom.” When Auntie asked if I had stilettos to match, I shed a little tear for the Mr. Maglis I once abandoned to a Goodwill truck.

Now that I'm sophisticated enough to identify a good, quality item worth hanging onto, here’s another article of clothing a generous relative so kindly handed down to me*.  It’s strategically placed in a very special space in my closet but I have no idea how to wear it. Any suggestions?

How does one pull off this whole vintage style thing without going over the top, or even worse, resembling one of the Olson twins?

*A real Louis Vuitton satin monogram scarf.