From Pucci to Pudding

conscious consumption

legendary british fashion designer vivienne westwood had some spunky words to say recently about fashion and how it relates to our culture's habits of consumption and lack of reflection and thought.

“People have never looked so ugly as they do today. We just consume far too much.. I’m talking about all this disposable crap. What I’m saying is buy less, choose well. Don’t just suck up stuff so everybody looks like clones. Don’t just eat McDonald’s, get something a bit better. Eat a salad. That’s what fashion is. It’s something that is a bit better.”

our consumption in all ways--food, media, energy, merchandise, fashion, trends, culture--deserves our conscious consideration. mindlessness looks sad and lifeless on people. mindless choices can end in a life in shackles--bound to the whims and tides of the collective or the trending and divorced from our individual and unique spirits and souls.

perhaps choosing to subscribe to group think without listening to our inner voice is really about being afraid to express ourselves. being hesitant to be an individual and authentic voice. there is, after all, perceived risk in being a soloist. but there is also incredible freedom. and beauty.

conscious consumption--where are we unconscious in our lives?

pink's power

pink has always had a place of abundance in my life. i started off from day 1 with a pink blanket that went almost everywhere with me. for maybe 6-7 years, pinky and i were largely inseparable. much loved and worn, pinky finally was retired to a box of childhood treasures that takes an honored spot in what i choose to save and store in my modestly-sized loft.

one of my favorite colors--its cousin purple vies for favoritism depending on the day--pink usually finds its way into most wardrobe ensembles. it's a festive color and it makes me happy. today being valentine's day, the day of pink, i wanted to explore a little more of pink's hue power in history.

• pink was first recorded in the 17th century to describe the pale reds of a flower called Pinks, of the genus Dianthus.
• in 1926, pink and parlor pink was the impetus for the term pinko to refer to those with leftist tendencies and communist sympathies.
• in the early 19th century pink was actually a masculine hue, as pastel red. blue, the color of the virgin mary, was more feminine.
• in the 1940s, the hues reversed and pink became a feminine color--possibly attributable to the pink triangle Nazi's forced homosexual prisoners to wear.
• in 1949, crayola made its first pink, carnation pink.
• in the early 1960s pink floyd and pink panther movies gained marquee fame and followers.

perhaps the most impressive quality about pink that i learned was this shocking discovery (from the improvised life blog) that pink is not a color on the light spectrum. pink is actually white light minus green. really? the pink in sunsets don't exist? the pink light on the downtown high-rises at magic hour doesn't exist? as they pointed out, i love pink even more because it's defiant, existing even when the light spectrum claims it doesn't. it's even more full of power and life for me with that nugget of physics.

as love prevails, so does pink! vive pink!

new year's, creatively, part 2

zesty new year's celebrations can come in any stripe, polka dot and color. set your intentions for the year to come and then have fun designing a fab fete, homegrown or on the town, to celebrate the best of 2011 and the new horizons in 2012! here's to health, love, happiness and abundance!

 

new year's, creatively

there are endless ways to celebrate our annual fresh start, none of which need to be pricey. the most delicious option is to design a celebration that inspires you--whether that's with family and friends, with your squeeze, with the kindness of strangers/new friends, with furry family members or with a fab book or movie... do what you love with those you love to be with. and cheers to new beginnings and a most happy healthy 2012!

streetscape jewelry

i love all the ornateness, detail, craftsmanship and artistry in the buildings in manhattan... the textures, colors, rhythms, lines keep me energized and inspired... a la pucci.

pucci in the everyday

i enjoyed a brief respite in manhattan last weekend and i'm back here for a quick business trip. in the miles of strolling, in the subways, even in the cab last evening lost in east astoria, i am struck by the COLOR. everywhere--colors and patterns and textures--visual life! even when the weather might be gray and dreary, the set dressing is always inspiring. i want to live in a city where there is pucci in the everyday landscape.

play as key to richness

pressured by a deadline and angst over meeting it? feeling plateaued on a project and uninspired? losing the oomph in general? time for a little pucci and play.

jay maisel, one of my favorite photographers, touts daydreaming as one of his most valuable tools to creativity. he never goes out on a shoot with preconceived ideas about what or how he will shoot. that stifles whatever inspiration he will encounter in the moment. play, he says, is the key to unlocking richness. it leads us in directions that are fertile with possibility that might otherwise have remained hidden or closed to us.

without consciously thinking about it, i have been testing the strategy of play. on saturday morning's run, i was revved up by the tunes on my ipod and ran fast right out of the gate, tiring myself out and potentially hampering my finishing the full mileage. i knew i'd be sucking wind, but the great tunes just kept coming and the 6 miles ended up being speedy and sweaty. tongue hanging out and all, it was a FUN run that put a spring in my step for the rest of the weekend. the next day, as i was winding up my long run (on an uphill, no less), i started running in a serpentine pattern and before i knew it, i was laughing out loud and the hill was behind me. and on an interpersonal note, one of my greatest joys is doing or saying something to make my squeeze laugh. life can be so serious that interludes of laughter and lightness can offer much-needed spoonfuls of buttercream frosting and make the medicine go down, as that wise nanny poppins intoned, in the most delightful way.

play and pucci. what lightens our spirits is a priceless balance to the rest. and allows us to get perspective, see the balance, appreciate one because of the other, and inspire and recharge us to do all that we want to do but might be overwhelmed by. studies have shown that optimists emerge from difficulty with less distress than pessimists. play can feed in to optimism.

play is a key to a life richly lived. to a rich life. it goes well with our daily cup of joe. it goes well with rainy day puddles. there is no meal it doesn't complement. it goes best in the moment. it's free and it's priceless. go on, i dare you!

first, find the fun!

when i'm stressed and tired and drained, i have discovered that the antidote to that black cloud is to first, find the fun. in any situation--a meeting, a negotiation, a project, a chore, a plan--whatever it is that i'm feeling unsure about or feeling i don't have my usual spunk about, if i approach it with fatigue or stress riding shotgun, then that becomes the tenor of the interaction or activity. we all often must operate when tired or stressed but if we first find the fun in whatever it is, we bring that energy to the fore and a smile to the process.

i've made no bones about my summer struggles in equatorial atlanta. i am not a tropics fan; i miss running and its happy buzz when i'm on months of summer hiatus here; and without water or mountains (and with loads of traffic and local crime), i am constantly seeking inspiration to keep creatively energized. which leaves me a bit drained this time of year. the majority of folks seem to love the summer and all the outdoor activities, but i prefer to hermetically seal up in the air-conditioning until the crispness returns to the morning air. when fall arrives, so does the spring in my step and the sparkle in my eye. but i do not want my summer doldrums to color my experiences and i certainly don't them to cloud any projects i undertake or professional interactions.

why do i do what i do for a living? because i love so many aspects of the creative process. because it's fun to collaborate with a creative team. because it's fun to create reality from an idea. because the work can make important contributions and be fun at the same time. when i say fun, i don't mean a party. it is work that requires intense focus, output, deadline pressure, accommodation of many needs and personalities, but there is always something gratifying even in the toughest moments. if i find the fun and keep that in focus, my energy and approach will align with the positives and the process and experience for all will reflect that. 

some of the most effective tactics are the simplest: tell the truth, find the fun.

taking a fashion cue from hitchcock

i'm in an espionage phase of reading and movies. (daniel silva's 2010 offering is soon to be released and i cannot wait!) spy thriller novels and films make me happy. they keep me engaged, testing my armchair sleuth skills in anticipating the plot twists, character allegiances, and in sussing out who is wearing the masks in the story. i love it. recently, we have discovered frederick forsyth movies (and books). when we exhausted his movies, i returned to my fave standby, alfred hitchcock. i thought i had seen most of his films, but he was a prolific master of suspense, directing 64-67 titles (depending on how you define a film, apparently). and fortunately, i had not mined his early works, so i've been happily absorbing the 39 steps, shadow of a doubt, and the lady vanishes. seeing his first films is like getting a peek inside his process, as it's clear he was playing with trademark story devices, camera angles and themes.

spy candy aside, i am struck by the consistently fabulous presentation of the onscreen people in hitchcock's films. yes, it was the era when men wore hats and suits, and women wore nylons, heels and stylish dresses. but it got me wondering whether taking a fashion cue from hitchcock could have a positive effect? particularly on the weekends when i am usually at home, engrossed in chores and writing, i often default to yoga attire. practical and definitely comfy. when i am out and about and working, i put more care into my presentation and wardrobe, but i usually don't get as dolled up as the hitchcock dames seem to do on an everyday basis. when i do, i definitely feel different--an extra dash of happy, confidence, possibility, daring, security and panache.

what if we all always dressed to the degree that hitchcock's world did? not expensively, but with more care and thought about presentation? would the extra spring in our step translate into positives in our relationships and professional lives? would we change our behaviors to be generally more civilized to each other? does casualness in our attire lower our aspirations and our level of effort? perhaps putting fashion effects to the test is in order...

cliche consciousness

i watched a documentary on fashion designer karl lagerfeld recently and despite my feeling creeped out by him through most of the film, he was indelibly provocative in his interview segments. he arrested me in his commentary on cliches and absolutely raised my cliche consciousness. for that, i appreciated him on a level completely independent of his fashion legacy.

cliches are not something i thought much about prior to this film. the term cliche refers to an idea, an expression, or an element of a work of art that has been overused or played out to the point of rendering it a stereotype, impotent. in modern culture, a cliche often is an action or expression that is expected or predictable.

mr, lagerfeld spoke quite stridently about the importance of not being a cliche, as an individual or in a relationship. cliches do not allow for forward movement, certainly no individual expression. because of their nature, cliches are an abdication of original expression or vitality or exploration or fluidity or all things that are the life-force of growth--they create conformity, boredom. cliches beget beigeness of being.

now, when i notice what strikes me as a cliche in a photograph or a person or myself, i am grateful for the consciousness raising. perhaps cliche consciousness is at the core of how to live fully. to choose to consciously live in the fringes, at the edges, but not for the sake of being different or even extreme, for that is a cliche in itself. fringes and edges do not need to be extremes... they can simply be the more intensely yummy crusty outer edges of the pot of oatmeal in which groups who are comfortable in subverting their individuality lump themselves into. choosing to be a cliche may seem a safe option but i see it as riskier in that the outcome can feel muted and muting. choosing to avoid being a cliche and instead living a life of exploring, questioning, discovering--much richer in vitality.

p.s. another takeaway i gleaned from mr. lagerfeld was his advice to not hold on to our possessions. we can carry them all with us in our mind and therefore always have them with us. it's a comforting idea. particularly when you consider how tenuous possessions can be. hurricanes, floods, accidents, bankruptcies, travel, relationships--they can all compromise our ability to maintain our possessions. and ultimately, possessions are not what constitute who we are. even if they are irreplaceable, they are not vital to our well-being like health and love are. i must, however, note that this nugget from mr. lagerfeld is quite ironic seeing as though he has storage facilities of previously favored fashion and households of books and valuables. but i include this wisdom from mr. lagerfeld here because, like cliche consciousness, it liberates us. and for me, tools that enhance our personal freedoms to live our truest and fullest lives, are invaluable.