Parisian Pop

Jessica Pare's recent performance of  "Zou Bisou, Bisou" on Mad Men totally got me thinking about an awesome tape (that's right, -- a tape) that I used to listen to in the 90's. The tape  was called Musique D'Express and it was from the clothing store Express. The tape was the store's soundtrack and the French pop songs added a sort of European sophistication to the the shopping experience. I listened to it over and over and over again. I could not understand any of the songs, but I just loved them and thought they were sooo chic! 


To my pleasant surprise, I found the tapes available on amazon.com and some of the songs  on YouTube with videos.  Who knew there were awesome videos to go along with these amazing songs???!!!

SIDE ONE:  

                      1. Claudia Phillips "Picasso" 

                      2. Niagara "Soleil d'Hiver" 

                      3. Francois Feldman "Joue Pas"

                      4. Luna Parker "Fric Frac" 

                      5. Vanessa Paradis "Soldat" 

SIDE TWO: 

                      1. Vanessa Paradis "Joe le Taxi" 

                      2. Serge Gainsbourg "Mon Legionnaire" 

                      3. Lio "Tu Es Formidable" 

                      4. Pauline Ester "Oui, Je l'adore" 

                      5. Francois Feldman "J'ai Peur"

I still have find that I have passion for French pop music, here are a few of my current favorites by Yelle and Vanessa Paradis. 

Look at the Gold I Found Today!

I was a little bit of a fan of the movie Dazed and Confused when I was in high school. And by a little bit, I mean a huge, huge fan! To my surprise today, I came across this awesome music video -- the song is really fun too! Butch Walker & The Black Widows released a video for their song “Synthesizers”. In the video, Matthew McConaughey reprises his role as David Wooderson. 


Some of Wooderson's most memorable lines from the movie include the following: 

• All right, all right, all right. 
• The older you get, the more rules they are going to try and get you to follow. 
• You just gotta keep on livin', man. L-I-V-I-N.
• That's what I love about these high school girls, man. I get older, they stay the same age.

This video totally made my day! I hope it makes yours too!

Obsessed with the Benefits of Grapefruit!

One of my resolutions for the New Year is to continue to "Get in Shape, Girl"! And since it's no longer the 1980s, I need something a little more hardcore than bangle bracelets and rhythm ribbons to help me drop the pounds!

                                         

Thanks to smart people over at Good Housekeeping and Livestrong.com, I've decided to add grapefruits to my diet to help increase the effectiveness of my regular exercise routine.

Apparently, these wonderful fruits are great for speeding up metabolism and reducing the body's insulin levels which encourages the conversion of calories into energy rather than fat. They are also packed with nutrients and vitamin C, vitamin A, potassium, folate and thiamin which are also important for a healthy diet. 

Grapefruits are a little high maintenance to eat, so luckily the same benefits are also available from a glass of their juice! My goal is to eat one or drink a glass of their juice before my daily meals to help shed some pounds this winter. 

Grapefruit is also beneficial for the skin not to mention it smells awesome too! The Body Shop carries two  products that help to provide essential fatty acids to repair skin’s moisture barrier and to keep skin smooth! Check them out. 

Pink Grapefruit Body Scrub

Pink Grapefruit Body Butter

What are your resolutions this year? 

Do you have any diet secrets you can share?

Don't Mind Me....I'm Just Having A Moment

Here I am 12 years ago about to head off to college. My parents bought me this car because it was safe, dependable, and with the hope that it should last so I wouldn't have to worry about a car payment after graduation. Little did I know, we were in for a grand adventure! 

My parents planned well because until this week, it was able to take me all around Texas, drive across country, and even live in DC for a short while. Along the way, it toted many friends and family members who shared many incredible experiences and created amazing memories with me. So it's with a little sadness that I say good to my trusty pal.

Ever since we met, my husband and I have been planning for our adventure together. As we approached the purchase of a new car, we knew that it would have to be up to the task of safely toting a family around. And just like that, we're here and beginning a new phase of our adventure together!

                               "Time goes, you say?  Ah no!

                                Alas, Time stays, we go."

                              ~Henry Austin Dobson

                                  

Here's a peek at the new ride, we pick it up tomorrow! 

 

I Heart Paper Dolls!

I am a huge fan of Paper Dolls. I think it is because it is sort of a family tradition to collect and play with them. 

You could imagine my excitement when I came across these two different sets of William & Kate Royal Wedding Paper Dolls! I might have to purchase them! 

After all, I played with Princess Diana Paper Dolls when I was a little kid!  

And my mom has held on to her Kennedy Paper Dolls since childhood. She never played with them. They are stored away in their original box and in pristine condition.  I was always so tempted to play with them! Luckily,  I never did!

While I am at it, I might as well pick up a copy of the Obama and Bush Family Paper Dolls and maybe even  some Elizabeth Taylor ones too and keep this tradition going!

   

Do you like Paper Dolls too? 

Crafting the Day Away!

I am working on a few projects today that I hope to post this week. Of course I had to find some sort of musical inspiration to keep me going, so today I find myself listening to Suzanne Vega. I used to listen to her all the time in my high school art classes. I can't get over how dated these videos look! I used to think she was sooo cool!

Wild Horses

I heard "Wild Horses" by the Rolling Stones in the store yesterday. I love the song and I think a lot of musicians do too because it has been covered by many artists. My favorite cover versions are a live one by Dave Matthews and  a version by The Sundays which was featured in the 1996 thriller, Fear.

I can't believe I am posting about this movie because it is sooo old and really not that great, but the song always brings it to mind. Mark Wahlberg and Reese Witherspoon star in this movie about a teenage girl falling in love with a very bad guy. I remember seeing the movie in the theater in high school and being totally freaked out! Who knew just how fabulous Mark and Reese would become??!!

Take Me Back to Beverly Hills

Can't get enough of vintage 90210 episodes! I heart watching them while I cook or craft at night! The fashion blows my mind sometimes. I wonder if bodysuits or chokers will ever come back? 

Check this out -- 90s Flashback: Luke Perry and Jason Priestley | Lopez Tonight! They look pretty good, though their  hair is just not the same. I'll leave you with the theme song. What in the world is Donna wearing?

Mr. Kweller

Ben Kweller just love him, his music just gets to me, it definitely takes me back! It's crazy to see how far he's made it, I mean I feel like I hear his songs everywhere now...movies, tv shows, and in stores! I remember him "back in the day" in the local Dallas music scene playing at places like The Door and Trees. He was part of the band Radish and he was just on the verge of success. I remember I about died when they were on David Lettermen.

Here are just a few of my favorites by Kweller. If he comes to your town, you should be sure to check him out!

Bride Wars!

Two of my bridesmaids and I went to grab drinks at Lune de Noche, some La Duni cupcakes, and caught a showing of Bride Wars! We laughed, we cried, and we have some fantastic quotes! I highly suggest seeing it, especially with some of your bridal party!

The Ultimate Bathing Beauty!

So lately, I have been taking some inspiration from Esther Williams. I mean what else are you supposed to do when it's 100 bijillion degrees in Texas, but reenact synchronized swimming/water ballet routines you learned from watching Esther Williams' movies from the 1940s and 1950s. Who wouldn't want to be a glamorous bathing beauty with mermaid costumes and the like?


Check out miss Williams in all her glory!!!

Paper Obsession

I love paper and paper crafts, but even more than that -- I love paper dolls. My favorite paper dolls of all time are Dolly Dingle! You may look at Dolly Dingle and automatically think -- Campbell Soup Kid. But Dolly Dingle was the original creation of artist Grace Drayton that appeared in the early 1900's mag, Pictorial Review. Check out Dolly and her friends!

I'm currently collecting the Goebel figurines sold in the early 1980's that feature these dolls on great adventures.


 Bon voyage!

My So Called Life in the 90s

I just purchased the series, 'My So Called Life' on dvd and I can't help but feel nostalgic about two of my favorite things about the 90s! 

In 'My So Called Life', Angela Chase was an iconic teen facing the trials and tribulations that most of us experienced but were unable to articulate.

"Sometimes it seems like we're all living in some kind of prison. And the crime is how much we hate ourselves. It's good to get really dressed up once in a while. And admit the truth: that when you really look closely? People are so strange and so complicated that they're actually... beautiful. Possibly even me. " -- Angela Chase

Jordan Catalano the must crushworthy character on 90's network tv! Oh the hair, the eyes, the swagger, and the flannel shirt -- love me some Jared Leto!

"Jordan Catalano was having...a conversation with me, like, on purpose. Like, a really nice conversation." -- Angela Chase

"Sometimes someone says something really small and it just fits into this empty place in your heart. " -- Angela Chase

Reality Bites -- Generation X'ers at their best! Michael Graves, yuppie tv producer, Troy Dyer, philosopher, Lelaina Pierce, valedictorian and documentarian, Vickie Miner, Manager of the Gap and sexually confused, Sammy Gray. My favorite movie of all time -- with some of the most quotable lines! I think I still secretly wish I could be Lelaina Pierce -- well, guess that's not so secret anymore. Everything goes back to Reality Bites!

***Still hoping to change my answering machine to: "At the beep please leave your name, number and a brief justification for the ontological necessity of modern man's existential dilemma and we'll get back to you "***

Troy Dyer: The only thing you have to be by the age of 23 is yourself. Lelaina: Yeah, well, I'm not sure who that is anymore.

Troy Dyer: There's no point to any of this. It's all just a... a random lottery of meaningless tragedy and a series of near escapes. So I take pleasure in the details. You know... a quarter-pounder with cheese, those are good, the sky about ten minutes before it starts to rain, the moment where your laughter become a cackle... and I, I sit back and I smoke my Camel Straights and I ride my own melt.

Michael Grates: Have I stepped over some line in the sands of coolness with you? Because excuse me if somebody doesn't know the secret handshake with you. Troy Dyer: There's no secret handshake. There's an IQ prerequisite, but there's no secret handshake.

Take Me Back to The Plaza

"I am Eloise I am six I am a city child I live at the Plaza"

Eloise's portrait hung in the lobby of The Plaza. I used to visit The Plaza almost every year to visit her.

The Loneliest of Dolls

Oh, the lonely doll! Some of my favorite stories from my childhood.

Dare Wright had an amazing ability to meld toys and dolls with "real life" objects and scenery...like pearls, lipstick, the beach and Steiff Bears.

Chatham Is My Happy Place

One of my favorite places in the whole world is Chatham, Mass. It's my happy place. I like to go there in my mind on a bad day. I like to imagine I am on the beach, swimming in the ocean, or jumping off dunes (even though that is not quite PC). Also, nothing beats a walk to Main Street for some penny candy!

Hydrangea Walk

Chatham Light

Chatham Band