. . . with this bike! Kate Spade worked her magic on this gorgeously green Adeline Adeline bicycle. Wouldn’t it be so wonderful to tool around on this all summer? Notice that KS also designed a special essex scout satchel and bay street quinn you can clip to the handlebars and rear rack. Sadly, the limited edition, single speed, two-wheeler will be only be available at Kate Spade New York shops and at Adeline Adeline.
I’ve got the blues: Albert Collins
There has never been and may never be again a bluesman quite like Albert Collins. Born on October 1, 1932, in Leona, Texas, Collins was deeply influenced by T-Bone Walker, John Lee Hooker and Gatemouth Brown, Collins absorbed the sounds of Mississippi, Chicago, and especially Texas. He had many nicknames such as "The Ice Man", "The Master of the Telecaster" and "The Razor Blade.” Some of you might remember him for his cameo appearance in the film “Adventures in Babysitting” he insisted to Elisabeth Shue that "nobody leaves this place without singin’ the blues", forcing the children to improvise a song before escaping.
Collins was known not only for the quantity of quality blues music that he put out throughout his career that has inspired so many other blues musicians, (Robert Cray, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Johnny Lang, Kenny Wayne Sheperd, John Mayer, and Frank Zappa just to name a few) but also for his live performances, where he would frequently come down from the stage, attached to his amplifier with a very long cord, and mingle with the audience whilst still playing. He was known to leave clubs while still playing, and continue to play outside on the sidewalk, even boarding a city bus in Chicago while playing, outside of a club called Biddy Mulligan’s (the bus driver stayed at the bus stop until Collins got off).
*Click to full post for sound clip*
Shabd Baggu
I have been a longtime fan of all things Baggu and now I have another item to add to my list. The geniuses at Baggu have collaborated with Brooklyn based artist Shabd Alexander to create these tie-dyed totes and back packs. Now, I am not normally a tie-dye fan, but these have a beautiful look that is more watercolor painting than Grateful Dead. The color palette is full of blues, greys, and a hint of peach, perfect for Spring/Summer. The bags are made from heavy weight 100% recycled cotton 16 oz. duck canvas.
Penguin Threads
Not sure if anyone has seen this yet, but Oh Lord! Aren’t these beautiful? Jillian Tamaki is an amazing artist and she’s done a collaboration with Penguin Books as part of their Deluxe Classics project. Tamaki created illustrated book covers for The Secret Garden, Emma, and Black Beauty. I love how she contrasts a traditional crafting technique with modern colors and images.
Unfortunately, Penguin will not be producing the covers as individual embroidered objects (I’m not sure how that would be possible without making the books exorbitantly expensive.) They will instead be produced using a printed, sculptural-embossing technique that will emphasize the stitches. They should be available at most major and indie books stores.
Please check out the full post for additional images of these gorgeous covers.
Spring Outfit for Noble County Gold
I’ve been looking around online for some Spring clothing for myself and I must admit that I am not really impressed. For some reason it seems that women’s fashion this season is really flat. Not very inspiring.
I’m not sure about you, but it always seems like I can always find things to buy other people when I’m not finding anything for myself. More specifically, for Shawn. So here’s a Spring outfit fit for Noble County Gold.
Here’s what I picked out for Shawn today: The Gitman Bros. button down would be a welcome addition to his closet, the grey tee from John Varvatos looks soft and perfectly worn in (something I could steal) while the Steven Alan jacket would be a nice change from his beloved Barbour. I absolutely LOVE the new wash from Baldwin Denim. . . so over the dark denim all the time. (Sorry, honey.) Of course, I couldn’t forget his favorite accessories: aviator shades, clean white tennies, a J.W. Hulme messenger to haul his work stuff, and don’t forget the obligatory Rolex. Hope you like it, honey.
Uplifting House
I just came across these amazing images from National Geographic showing how they experimented with creating a floating house like the one in the movie Up. It will be on a new series “How Hard Can It Be?” They used over 300 colorful weather balloons to lift the house to an amazing height of 10,000 feet for over an hour! I find this so fun, amazing, and beautiful. I’ve included some additional photos on the full post to check out, they are breathtaking.
Outfitted: Rainy Season
April in Columbus is living up to is rainy reputation, so I’ve been assessing my current rain gear situation and have decided that I “need” to have three different styles. One would be for evening or dressier situations. You know, for those times that you do not want to look like a polished adult. I thought that this navy trench from Woolwich paired with the maroon Tretorn wellies would work perfectly in those situations. This shiny yellow slicker from TopShop and my red Hunter clogs channels my inner 5th grader, while still looking pulled together. Perfect for running errands and walking the dog. My beloved waxed-canvas field coat from Eddie Bauer would look great with some classic LL Bean Duck Boots. They would be just the right combination for weekends and Springtime trips to the farmers markets and estate sales.
Happy Birthday, Hubby!
Yes, ladies, this one is has been reserved. . .
Getting by
Just wanted to give an update as to how things are going are here. Shawn and I are getting by as well as we can. We’ve been kept busy with things, so I think that is helping us cope. Don’t get me wrong, we’re still reeling from everything and have our moments, but I know that we can get through this together.
Shawn had to go to Madison last week for a few days to be there to handle the movers/packers at the house. I know that it was hard for him to be the one to go there alone and say goodbye to our home that we worked so hard to build. We truly loved that place and will miss it a great deal. Luckily, my dad was able to go up there and help a bit. Knowing Dad, he was keeping Shawn entertained and making him laugh.
While Shawn was in Madison, my sister and nephew came out to visit. I can’t say how good it was to have them here. They were fantastic in helping me with things around the house and the dog. We also had fun taking Luke to ice skate (whoa, that kid can SKATE!) and going to the North Market , the park, and taking Walter to the dog park. Shawn was able to come back early, so he was able to enjoy them over the weekend before they left yesterday morning.
We also made the decision to make an offer on a house here. It is not in my beloved Grandview Heights, but it is in a neighboring town and is close to many of our friends. We are excited about getting a fresh start here and making the house our own. We are looking to redo a few things there: kitchen, master bath, painting, etc. so that will be something I can throw myself into.
There are no words . . . .
Dear Friends and Family,
With a heavy heart Shawn and I would like you to be aware of a tragic situation that has happened to our family.
On Monday, March 7th, I went into preterm labor and early Tuesday, March 8th, our twins Mary and Christopher Colley were born. Being only 23 weeks, they peacefully passed away shortly after they arrived. In that short time, we were able to hold them, have them baptized and love them unconditionally.
We are coping with this as best as we can at this time. The overwhelming support we have been receiving from our family and friends have definitely helped us more that we can express.
In lieu of flowers, we have chosen to have donations made to the March of Dimes. We also plan on participating in the upcoming March of Dimes March for Babies Walk, held on May 1st here in Columbus. We feel this will be a great way for our family and friends to celebrate the memory of Mary and Christopher as well as supporting the thousands of babies born too small and too soon. We have set up a team page where you can make a donation and support Team Colley.
Widdershins 