my life is a work in progress

I expect to be AWOL this weekend. Besides having friends expected in town, I have some family unexpectedly in town. I'm advancing on the productivity side of things, however, and hope to have more to share soon! (really)

In the meantime, on with the links!

• beautifully preserving the sketches of childhood
• subverting expectations: join the paint-by-numbers revolt
• now I want to reread some Madeline L'Engle
• at last, a use for these beautiful antiques for those of us who don't smoke: a cigarette case needle holder
• the old-fashioned touch of the graceful lady Anna
• artwork that puts me in mind of Doris Lessing's "An Old Woman and her Cat"
• This last one isn't actually a link, but Princess Grace is once again gracing the cover of Life! Check your newsstands for a commemorative photo issue published for the 25th anniversary of her death.

vintage beauties

Hurrah for friends that take initiative. The Saturday before last, just before I headed off for my week-long of babysitting, I received a call from a girlfriend who's recently moved back into town. We'd been wanting to get together for some time, and she had the perfect venue: a vintage clothing expo being held that day in Elgin.

SO MUCH FUN. I've been wanting to explore the vintage clothing options in the Chicagoland area for some time, and this (featuring 90-odd vendors) was the perfect opportunity to do so. There really were a wide variety of sellers too; many super-expensive, never-in-a million-years-could-I-afford vendors, such as I expected, but many were much more reasonable than I expected. Besides, even if you can't afford it/don't fit in it, it's still fun to drool over all the lovely silohuettes and quality craftsmanship of years gone by.

My only regret is we had only 2 hours to spend there before they closed! Ah well, there's always next year. That did mean, however, that prices were much more "negotiable." I scored a 60s powder-blue wool coat for 1/3 off the original price, with only a twinge of buyer's remorse afterwards. I promise to get a decent picture once the weather cools down. In the meantime, enjoy more at my flickr.

for my fellow Narnia fans . . .

This is too cool for words. Click for hi-res; more at NarniaWeb.com.

things are looking up

Although I've been AWOL for some time, it isn't entirely my fault. For the past week, I've been playing mommy to a beautiful 14-month-old little girl. The family for which I babysit went to DisneyWorld and, understandably, left the baby behind.

Things I'm glad to be done with from the week:

• Receiving suspicious glances and intrusive questions every time we left the house
• Being asked by a woman in the grocery store to join her mommy-baby workout group
• Watching TiVo-ed episodes of "What Not to Wear" (a show with which I have quite the love-hate relationship) during naptime
• Being bitten by a small homo sapiens for the first time since I was 6

What I'll miss from the week:

• Getting that adorable, sleep-eyed smile everytime I went ot pick her up out of her crib, and the soft droning chorus of da-da-da-da-da (the only syllable she can pronounce with any coherence or fluency) following me wherever I went

*sigh* It was a good week.

. . . when autumn leaves start to fall

Okay, so they're nowhere near falling yet, but I love that song. Just popping in for some links . . . enjoy!

• The hilariously funny yet provokingly familiar photography of Sarah Hobbs. Recently on exhibit at the Art Institute in Chicago, more here and here.
• I want this cardigan sewn of fluid jersey knit, sculptural felt, and a knitted version of super chunky wool.
• Office supplies that distract from inspire productivity. I'm discovering that office supplies are a wonderful substitute for the school-supply-buying impulse.
• Sweet potatoes taste like fall, especially when seasoned with chili powder and thyme.
• Everyone's posting it, but the fall looks of Lyell are gorgeous. She seems to me to be hovering on the border between Professor Kirke's and Narnia.
• Gorgeous, gorgeous hats. In a random conversation the other day on what we'll be like when we're old, my friends and I determined that I'll be the eccentric hat lady that wears loads of cheap costume jewellry (wait, I do that now . . .). It's hats like these make me excited about getting old!