a proper mail day

5-year diary by tamara shopsin
(via lena)

isabel marant jabar dress from Impulse

mociun striped tee from Impulse

dachsund by sian keegan
(thanks for the scallion!)

i ordered a bunch of things last week, and they all arrived today. my birthday isn't until saturday, but it's always nice to receive things in the mail (even if they're presents to yourself!).

i have one more thing arriving soon. renee has them, and jenny was equally smitten.

camera phone photos

taken by matthew

too many coats

dace rain jacket (spring 07)

paul and joe raincoat (spring 02)

burberry trench (fall 07)

built by wendy (fall 03)

marni twill hummingbirds coat (fall 02)

martin grant smock coat (spring 05)

anna molinari twill peacoat (fall 02)

edward an herringbone coat with detachable tulle skirt (fall 04)

opening ceremony short-sleeved flare coat (fall 06)

lyell peacoat (fall 06)

you can't have it all

"Doctoral students who want to have or adopt children will now receive financial support from the [Yale] University.

In a major change from existing policy, both male and female students can remain registered as students and continue to receive their financial aid packages during the semester during or following the birth or adoption,

....

Butler said the new procedure is one part of the University’s larger goal of supporting students who choose to have children, including the Graduate School’s decision last year to cover medical insurance for doctoral students’ children.

....

Butler said the new policy is similar to those that have been implemented at many other graduate schools — including Stanford, Princeton, Cornell, and the University of Pennsylvania — although whether or not the stipulations apply to both female and male students tends to vary from school to school.

Princeton University released a relief plan early this month offering 12 weeks of paid maternity leave to female graduate students having children and Stanford also has a similar system of paid time off. But Harvard still suspends all financial support to graduate students while they go on maternity leave."


jumping on the bandwagon: M.I.T., but down the road, it's a different story. guess which school i attend? they plead 'limited funds.' perhaps they missed this news?

the analog days

knitting

i've been knitting these pixie hats because my sister in law is due in a few weeks and i've yet to come up with a decent present. i've been using debbie bliss' baby cashmerino, but my friend margaret gave me a skein of chunky yarn from argentina, so i tried to make one for myself. i'm not completely satisfied with the results, but i'm off to a good start. i think the cashmerino is better suited to this type of hat. my ultimate goal will be to replicate my crocheted steven alan alpaca aviator cap, which they no longer sell.

a.p.c. sweater sale

so we went to nyc on saturday to see the seurat drawings and martin puryear retrospective. i wore my frye boots for the first time, which was a bad idea (blisters). but they look awesome, and i expect good things from them.

we went to the a.p.c. sale, where i toyed with the idea of buying lots of things, including skyhigh platform sandals. then i settled on this practical cashmere pullover, which had sold out on the website. whatever one may think about a.p.c.'s recent output, their cashmere wears incredibly well. this one is apparently called 'the birkin.'

a little bird (A) tells me that an a.p.c. surplus store is opening in williamsburg later this month. i am very excited. mostly because i missed out on past seasons.

new year's resolutions

a few years ago i wrote a paper about railroad photos and the role of chance/risk in world's fairs exhibits, corporate propaganda, and architectural photography. a part of me has forgotten why i love art/architectural history, but images like this help remind me why i signed up for a PhD program. this blog has kept me sane for the past year or so, but i seem to have lost sight of my actual 'job,' which is being a grad student. sooo...

resolution no.1: get this dissertation moving!

recently my new roommate moved out because of a severe cat allergy (i have two cats). so matthew and i are finally living in our own place, sans roommates, for the first time since before we were married. i've been using the little bedroom as an office for two weeks, and it's been heaven.

which got me thinking....why not do a house photo tour for the blog? i'd like to think that i'm a tidy person, but i've definitely let things slide as of late. generally we throw parties once a semester in order to 'force' ourselves to clean the apartment. but there are quite a few unfinished projects that have gathered dust over the past year, and i'm sorely embarrassed by my procrastination.

resolution no. 2: finish all those home improvement things on my to-do list and photograph the results in a month or so. i spend a lot of time on my wardrobe, but it would be nice to take pride in my home, too. i've always loved Design Sponge's home tours, and i've admired photos of other bloggers' lovely homes. maybe it's time for me to take all this inspirational energy and do something with it. i don't think we'll be able to paint the walls in a timely fashion, but we can frame new prints at the very least!

i won't bore you with my other resolutions. they're the usual "be nicer, exercise more, read books for fun, spend less money, etc." sort of thing.

our new list of places to visit sooner rather than later is:
1. india
2. japan
3. iceland
4. france
5. scandinavia
6. china

i'd also love to do a Great Lakes driving tour. as much as i enjoy traveling to other countries, i feel like i've yet to really experience the US. the midwest is mostly a blank slate for me, and i've been dying to see chaco canyon in new mexico.

i hope everyone has had a wonderful holiday season! i've been busy knitting, catching up on movies, and trying not to buy too much clothing. i am definitely looking forward to everyone's posts in the coming year. i've become much more mindful of design in everyday life and am so very impressed by all the talented and creative people out there.

a.p.c. winter sale

quick!

marni and margiela at 13

i don't know if i'll ever be as cool as this girl (Clemence, 13 yrs old).
her younger sister, Jeanne, is equally chic.

snow day

new boots

my mom bought me these Paige riding boots by Frye from here. they haven't arrived yet, but hopefully they'll fit. i tried on the 8.5, which seemed big, so i think the 8's will be better.

stocking up on supplies

i couldn't resist these.

there must be a baby boom going on, because everyone i know is expecting (i exaggerate...). now whenever i see something nice on sale, i tend to swoop. bibs and onesies always make nice gifts, or at least that's how i justify the purchases.

back from california

i went home for the pre-holidays. it was 65 degrees and sunny. i watched tv, went shopping, and jogged.

after much waiting, i finally snagged one of Le Bouton Studio's Tog shirts. it'll arrive in a few weeks. still hoping for a Tova shirt someday.

UNIFORM studio strand necklace

bought one of these today
it'll make a nice gift, i think

yellows and greys

new peter beaton sailor shirt
agnes b skirt
rebecca taylor cardigan

one week ago...

*port2port shop update*

collaboration with lena corwin--'frost'

'cheers' and 'twinke' gift tags



now available at port2port press