My grandmother died a long time ago. A really long time ago. I was blessed with inheriting her beautiful china set. Its a full set and includes dessert dishes and teacups. It is in pink and yellow, and trimmed in gold. I love the idea of my aunts and uncles and all of our extended family having used these beautiful dishes over the years. It makes me feel connected to my grandparents and others who have passed. Family china. It means so much to me. And happens to be in exactly my taste, which is a nice bonus. 
When my grandmother died, I was too young to be hosting any dinners, and until fairly recently, I wasn't much of a cook. The china was packed and stored in my basement in various apartments until I bought my house. "OK. Now I get to use the china!" 
Except I didn't. We kept the good silverware, china, and special glasses put away for just the right occasion. For the fifteen years that I lived in that house, I never used it once. 
Peter came in to my life at the end of my divorce. I was sorting out my house, and I had a big job of downsizing from a four bedroom house to a two bedroom loft. He helped me go through everything and helped me with some difficult decisions about what to keep. So, one night, going through boxes, we came across the china. After ten minutes of me rambling on about how much I loved it and what it meant to me, Peter said, "lets use this tonight for dinner." 
It was like being set free! Out came the crystal glasses, the amazing silverware. A hand-painted water pitcher and glasses from Italy. Flowers and candles on the table. I don't remember what we ate that night, but I remember sitting there thinking, "all of these years. These exquisite things sat in boxes in the dark. " 
We pledged there and then that we would use all of the beautiful things, all of the time. Every day. We make a simple meal beautiful. We don't have to wait for a special Veuve Cliquot night to use the good champagne glasses. Korbel Brut Rose tastes just lovely out of the same glass. We don't wait for lobster or caviar to use the dishes. A nice veggie stir-fry looks and tastes fantastic with the dishes and silver. 
The day that my mother told us that all of these things could go in the dishwasher was like icing on the cake! And you know what, if something breaks, so what. At least it will have been used and loved. And not wrapped in a box in the dark.  
So wear that special dress, carry that special handbag. Even if its just to the movies. Or make an occasion, go to the Giacomo , and order a special glass of wine and look at the spectacular view of the falls. Or take those special plates and a lovely tablecloth and have a beautiful dessert picnic at the park by the water. 
We dont know how many years that we have on this earth,but I can assure you, we will spend them making each day as special as possible. We use the good china. 

I announce with great pleasure that I am now blogging for one of my favorite stores: Cats Like Us.  You can read my first post here: http://catslikeus.com/blog/articles/vintage-clip-earrings-a-love-affair. Its about my love affair with vintage earrings.  I hope you enjoy it!

Recently a column was written by Jennifer L. S. Weber, one of my closest friends, about some of the people who inspire her. I was honored to be among those listed. Read the entire column here: http://allthingsjennifer.wordpress.com/2013/01/17/people-who-inspire-me/ As you can see, I was in very good company!

I was even more honored when I read the specific paragraph written about me. Jenny wrote:

I paused and reflected about this paragraph written by somebody whose opinion I deeply respect, and who knows me well enough to know me very, very well. The fact that she sees me like this makes me think that I am doing something right.  This is exactly how I would hope to behave, and how I would aspire to have the world see me.

Shortly after Jennifer wrote this post, I got hit with some tough life blows.  Some were new, and some were just an accumulation of some “figurative garbage” finally erupting like a volcano. The kind of things that shake your confidence and make you question who you are.  I wanted to sit down and write about these things.  But then I realized that for me, writing about something, anything, gives it life.  For better or for worse, it extends the life of the experience and the memory.  

Some writers do a wonderful job of writing about painful experiences and
making the reader feel empathy or inspiration that these situations can be overcome, turned around, or left behind. I have discovered that I am not that kind of writer. I am not even that kind of human.

I am often asked what makes me so relentlessly positive, optimistic, and hopeful through all of life’s ups and downs. Most days I feel that way. Some days I just “act is if,” and before you know it I am feeling strongly and confidently again. 

The answer for me is not to pretend that hurtful things or misunderstandings sorrow and pain never happen.  Shaking them off sometimes takes every drop of determination that I can scrape up.  I live this mostly happy sunny life by making a conscious effort to keep myself happy and sunny.  That is my job alone.  Most days it’s a reflex.  Some days it just is not that easy. Some days it is torture to get myself there. For me, the results are worth the effort. It is
always worth it.

Music. Lots and Lots of It. 

 
I actively listen to music. If I am in a bad place, classical orchestral or piano music is the way to go.  You don’t get bogged down in somebody else’s words. If I just need a boost, I will queue up some old songs that have good memories associated with them.  A little gloomy?  Some Bob Marley is always good for an attitude boost. Regular old already-cheery day?  Could be anything.  I like everything from Rockabilly to Alternative to Metal to Country to Opera. I shop every genre on my music player. I do a lot of music lists like, “Makes Me Think of Summer,” “Makes Me Want to Dance,””Beautiful Harmonies,” ”Steamy and Sultry.” I start every workday by creating a playlist to set the tone for my
day.

I go out and hear live music.  All the time.  Lots and lots and lots of it.  I feel inspired by the musicians and the energy of the music.

I play musical instruments. Playing the piano takes full concentration.  The music evokes a mood.  The movement and thought process takes me away from any stress or worry that I might be fighting with in my mind.  I also like playing my bongo drums along with my favorite tunes.  There is something cathartic about banging a drum with my bare hands.

I sing along in my car.  Loudly.  And probably badly.  Who cares, its just me, with the sunroof down once it hits 45 degrees outside. 
 

Exercise.
 I am lucky to be a lover of many, many kinds of sports including biking, all kinds of skating, weight training, swimming.  I have enjoyed solitary sports and group sports for most of my life. Getting outdoors and getting some fresh air is also good for my soul.

Dance.  
I have recently rediscovered dance.  I had forgotten how much I love dancing in the many forms that I have tried over the years.  My most recent styles attempted have included country line dancing, tap, and jazz. 
 
I seem to like tap dance most of all.  I start smiling on the drive to class, and I don’t stop smiling through the class, the drive home, the bath,and climbing in to bad on tap night. Ive stumbled on to something very enjoyable and mood elevating for me. 

Laugh. 
I will seek out books, movies, or occasionally television shows that I know will make me laugh. I love intelligent, well-written humor like a David Sedaris book.  I also dig a good buffoonish Will Ferrell, Jim Carey, or even “Hangover” movie. I loved the stupidity of “Anchor Man.”

Friends.
I actively seek out people and situations that are fun and positive. My closest friends are a happy bunch.  I don’t mean that they never have any problems.  I mean that they like to have fun.  They like me.  They make me feel good about myself just be being with them.  They are supportive and encouraging.  They also all have killer senses of humor, mischief, and adventure. They don’t spend their lives dwelling on what is wrong with the world or wrong with me.

 


No.
I do my best to actively avoid people and situations that make me feel unhappy, sad, or badly about myself.  
 I dont watch or read  the news if I am in a particularly challenging time. I dont watch war or disease movies. I dont list to music that encourages oramplifies a bad mood or depressed feeling.  I am learning to actively avoid
situations that for whatever reason, suck the life out of me.  This item needs a lot more attention and work than all of the others combined. I am getting better at it.

 
 

Appreciate.
 I am very appreciative of all of the amazing gifts in my every day life. 
I start every day with a prayer of thanks focusing on all of the good.  I pray for something that I might be working towards.  I give thanks at the end of the day for all of the good parts of the day that has passed. My prayers are positive and hopeful. 

Shake it off. 

If something hurts me or offends me, I shake it off.  I try to visualize physically shaking that problem or person off, like brushing some dirt off my shoulder. If some project doesn’t work out the way I planned after lots of hard work, shake it off and I start something new and fresh.  Or I revisit the project in a new way without looking back. 

 Bad behavior by others, hurtful and insensitive behavior, selfishness encountered in the world, in the workplace, among friends, family, even at home. Disappointment, pain, and loss. We all deal with it from time to time. I force myself to shake it off like yesterday’s dust. I forgive the people and situations that caused me pain and move on with my life.   If I keep the person in my life, I dust off their perceived offense and try to forget about it.  In the rare case I need to leave the person behind, I do that as well. I wish no one any ill-will or bad karma. I do my best to leave hurt or disappointment of any kind behind me.   

Seize the day.

I take vacations., I don’t just talk about it.  I see my friends and family. I dress up and go for lovely meals.  I go to the parade and dance on the street with the bands. I wear the costumes.  I do crazy things with my hair.  I’m in for a backyard slip n slide or a game of football. I make every day in to a celebration.  I use the good glasses. I drink the good champagne. I Iight the candles. I buy fresh flowers. I smile at everybody. I keep my eyes out for ways that I can help others. Every day is exactly what I make of it, and my mood is my responsibility.

  

I see the best in other people and in the world.  I dwell in the positive
aspects of life. This is what works for me.  Thank you, Jennifer L.S. Weber for making me see this in myself.

The Pantone Color of the Year 2013 is Emerald. The Pantone Color of the Year is the color that is most dominant in fashion, apparel, accessories, and home style. 

I love this great outfit that my new friend Colleen Murphy was sporting at our friend Therese's Christmas party. I love that she did traditional Holiday dressing with her own special twist.

Her boots are what took the outfit from festive lovely Holiday to extra-fun style.  Here she is from the back, note the boots....which were similar to these I found at Amazon with a slightly higher profile:

This subject had been covered plenty by the media already. The Today show did a really nice piece just a few days ago.  Check it out here: Today Show Emerald. 

I thought you might want to buy one emerald dress now that you could wear a number of ways throughout the year. Just find a simple lacy emerald dress like this one:

This Valentino from Neiman Marcus is a little pricey, but you can create the same effect with a dress from ModCloth for about 1/100th of the price. Do a Google Search for "emerald green lace dress" and you will find a multitude of options.

Finish off the look with these festive shoes. Add some long lacy black gloves.  Wear lots of sparkly jewelry too. The Holidays are no time for subtlety.

Throw on some pearls, some nude hose, and these amazing shoes from Zappos, and you have a lovely feminine look worthy of any country club lunch or tea.

Take a nice warm sweater like this great one from Burberry. Do add the gloves too!! 

Throw on these great Ralph Lauren classic riding boots with some nice thick cable tights in brown.  You can get a less pricey version of these boots for under $100 on Amazon.com.

Just a quick reminder: we are pairing everything with this:

Or something similar like this.

Take this amazing Free People jacket and throw it over your dress:

*The jacket photo really got blurry when I posted it on here, so you have to click on it and follow the link for more detal. Add these amazing Poetic License shoes.  A nice neutral bag and you are ready to roam the world.

Embrace your inner Badass by throwing on this jacket.  Add these fab Steve Madden boots.

Wear this bracelet to remind them that you are a sparkly badass. Tie it all together with this lovely Voo Doo Vixen handbag from Cats Like Us.

Emerald +leather+lace=win. 

Take your Pantone cues from Colleen Murphy and give yourself an emerald twist!

I went to visit my brother Steve and his family in Chicago.  Steve is a very successful professional.  He is also a blast.  He is kind of like Ferris Bueller in his ability celebrate life, and to find and maximize the fun in any given situation.

Luckily for me, Steve was playing a rare gig with a local band.  It was also Steves birthday.  We went to a little pub down the street from his house and enjoyed listening to him and his friends play.

The place was jammed! We had a great time singing and dancing along with the band.

Here, he hams it up for the camera for his niece Alex who was also visiting.

We watched my adorable badass niece play hockey Sunday morning. She had gone from being rather wobbly to being a formidable little skater indeed.

We had lunch and played Bocce at Pinstripes. You can bowl, play Bocce, eat, drink, and be merry at Pinstripes.  We opted for all of the above. 
Here Steve is pictured with my other niece.  As you can see she is a good sport.  I posed them with the giant corkscrew in front of Pinstripes.  

We had a really great time at this place.  I highly recommend it.

After Bocce I went to watch Steve play hockey.  Steves team won!  I was surprised at the speed and agility of this amateur "fun" league. Then we stopped for margaritas and chitchat with his friend Swany at Santa Fe Restaurant. We had a lot of laughs.

Steve took Monday off.  Steve, his wife Heidi and I had a great lunch at Sweetwater. I had the Wicked Garden. I highly recommend it. Its a yummy mix of grilled veggies.   

Steve had this festive looking beer....

.....and a sandwich called "The Boss."  I tried to bully him in to ordering the "Big Baby" but he was happy with his choice. 

I had a nice dry Rose. 

Steve and Heidi.

We had a few laughs over this questionable table advertisement.

We planned to go ice skating at this wonderful outdoor rink.  The warm weather brought a beautiful day but an ice rink that looked more like a swimming pool.

So we had fun shopping around Michigan Avenue.....

....had fun flirting with this guy......

Picked up this great vintage-looking cuff for $2.99! What a find! I would build a whole outfit around this.

Did lots and lots of walking, seeing the sights and checking out the fashion.  We saw lots of cool fedora hats....

...and patterned lace tights were everywhere. I approve!

We stopped for a quick rest here.  They have beer taps right at your table.  I am not a beer drinker, so I asked the bartender to recommend one of their specialty cocktails.  I tried the strawberry basil martini.  It was delicious.

We popped in to Reckless Records.  Kind of a cool High Fidelity vibe in here.

Walked some more and took in more of the city sights......

...............and then checked out the ROOF at the Wit. Its on the 27th floor.  They have an open air patio section.This was open because of the wonderful warm weather we had  in spite of the fact that it was December in The Windy City! 

The view was really spectacular.

We skipped the Veuve Cliquot Rose and the Dom, but I did gaze longingly at both.  The server thought I wanted his picture. Notice I was focused squarely on the bubbly.

A quick pop in to novo to regroup before the train and we stumbled on to this wonderful professional bartender expertly crafting old-fashioned style cocktails.  I asked for something on the dry side. He suggested the Watermelon.

This was my final pink drink of the day, and let me tell you it was delish.  Watermelon and cucumber. 

Sadly, it was time to hop on the train to Midway Airport. 

But you have to admit, we did manage to jam an awful lot of fun in to a couple of days.  Ferris Bueller has nothing on my brother Steve; and Chicago is my kinda town.

 Kate and First Lady Michelle have made a point of wearing some of their favorite pieces of clothing several times.  Most of us do this for more practical reasons. I have always enjoyed styling an outfit in unique ways to make it feel like a fresh new look each time.

I bought this simple flowy floral dress early last spring.

I wore it to my friend Jennifers wedding like this.  I needed a big pop of red because she referred to us bridesmaids as "Ladies in Red," and simply requested that incorporate some red in to our dresses. I wore some red floral sandles to complete the look.

I wore it to an outdoor garden party with this lovely hat, purchased at Grace Black Vintage. I carried the little satin flower pot bag that I purchased several years ago when I was the maid of honor for another friends wedding. I threw this white lacy cardigan over my shoulders.

I wore this outfit for an outdoor summer concert.  These boots are incredibly comfy and perfect for an edgier look. The handbag is something my husband picked up for me on one of his powerlifting trips a number of years back.  The sheer hooded cardigan completed the look and made me feel a bit more covered but did not add unnecessary heat.

Feminine and unique shoes from Poetic License, vintage bracelet I picked up in Chicago several years ago, and vintage clip earrings given to my by one of our clients who just thought I would like them.  I do. Snuggly warm sweater tops the look with a flower I picked up at one of my favorite shops, Cats Like Us.

Too much pink is never enough.  My favorite pink sweatercoat, a bag I picked up at Lilith Fair, earrings from an estate sale, and a necklace I picked up at the vintage store next door to Cats Like Us.  I am guessing that the necklace is from the fifties but I dont really care all that much.  I just bought it because I loved it.

My favorite coat with vintage pin which was a birthday gift from my brother Jim and his family.  Purchased at Miss Josies Antiques.

I wore this snuggly ensemble for my wonderful dinner at the new Niagara Falls Culinary Center with my friend Paula.  She is the director there and we had a wonderful meal and a delightful evening. 

Add a simple black jacket and you have a canvas for several other looks!  These boots were purchased on a trip to Toronto a number of years ago with my mother.  They are as comfortable as bare feet and have many, many, miles on them.  They were very expensive at the time, but a worthy splurge since Ive worn them lots of times.  The necklace was something I picked up in the adorable town Hammondsport NY at an art fair.

This handbag was purchased for me at Cats Like Us by my husbands brother AD and sister in law Jennifer.  If you have known me for five minutes, you know this is exactly my cup of tea. I paired it with this snake wrap bracelet that I picked up at Tony Walker when I purchased the exact same bracelet for my sister in law Heidi last Christmas. 

With a wonderful vintage handbag I picked up on Allen Street while shopping with my friend Rebecca. Cheap pink plaid sunglasses I picked up on a trip to Vegas at the Stratosphere Hotel.

And finally, dressed up for the Holidays with boots, earrings and bracelet all given to me by my husbands wonderful dad and stepmom.  The bracelet means an awful lot because it is a family bracelet. 

So there you have it.  One dress, 10 unique looks.  I felt like I could have done at least ten more.  Why should Kate and the First Lady have all the fun?