It's been a while since I've read a book worthy of isolating myself into pure literary bliss. For Christmas, my Mother gifted me with Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald. The book is a novelization primarily focused on Zelda Fitzgerald, the beautiful, zany southern dreamer who falls in love with an aspiring literary king, otherwise known as F. Scott Fitzgerald. As the book illustrates in such a brilliant fashion, the pair fall madly in love, dancing around the world on new quests to fulfill Scott's literary inspirations in the height of the jazz age. From their blossoming young romance to trials in addiction and aspiration, this book is truly the most excellent (beach) read. Purchase via Amazon, here.
Gardenia! Gardenia!
Thanks to a C Magazine read at SFO, I discovered a lovely company called High Camp Supply. The company, ships an elegantly sorted arrangement of gardenia, greens and Laurent Perrier Brut champagne (how lustful!) to your recipient in a beautiful box (white or black). The “Vine and Bloom” box for example (above), includes a nest of loose blooms surrounded by budding “vine” gardenias on 8-10 inch stems. After initial due diligence, it seems Oprah has included this gift on her annual "Favorite Things" list. Perfection, if I must say! See more here.
A Gray Malin Christmas
I love giving and receiving....art. Thus, I was pleased as punch to see my favorite aerial photographer Gray Malin release his holiday inspired gift wrap. If you're unfamiliar with Gray's work, get familiar. The idea of bringing his lustrous photography to life in the form of gift wrap is just brilliant - who wouldn't drool over the sight of a gift wrapped in a dreamy scene he captured from his handsome lens. Be sure to follow Gray on Instagram in addition to following his blog.
xx
From the very first moving-picture kiss in 1896 à la Thomas Edison, to the classic smooches we all adore in early Hollywood films, to Freud's theory of kissing as a "perverse act", this NY Times article highlights the history of kissing in film.
Above: A groundbreaking french kiss in film, actress Natalie Wood and actor Warren Beatty smooch in a parked convertible in the 1961 film "Splendor in the Grass".
Dreamy
Coco Rocha truly graces the pages of Hola Magazine from Mexico in gowns that are made for suspenseful old time romance. The backdrops are just as captivating. See more here.
Hat Trick
I love a good hat and this one does the trick (so does that jacket)! Photo via.
Santa, Baby
If my Grandfather JJH were alive, he'd remark how "jazzy" these are. Jazzy and clip-on, they are on my Christmas list! See here.
Homemade for the Holidays
I love nothing more than the authentic sentiment of a homemade gift. How delightful are these homemade fire starters via Jenni Kayne? The starters make for perfect hostess gifts - simply gather an assortment of cedar, fir, cinnamon sticks, pine, rosemary, or any other holiday foliage or herb, wrap with Kraft or newspaper and tie with twine. I cannot wait to join my family by the fire at home and something tells me I might put this project into action.
Out in the Elements
Rain, rain, & more rain here in San Francisco. Cooler temperatures and precipitation beg for outerwear, incessant Uber surge charges and a quick doge from point A to point B across the city. Above are some of the leading ladies in Paris doing what they do best in such climates. Photos via.
A Note on Cary Grant
That cliche dinner party question: If you could invite four people to dinner, passed or living, who would they be? Among my guests would be the late Cary Grant. When he was alive, he exuded nothing but that classic Hollywood allure. The rainy weekend in San Francisco lent to a great deal of enjoyment for me, as I spent an evening revisiting some old films such as To Catch A Thief (1955) and A Touch of Mink (1962) and was reminded of how taken I am by him. If I dined with Cary, I'm certain I'd spend the entire meal blushing and gushing. I'd ask him about his on-screen smooches with Grace Kelly and Sophia Loren, get all the scoop on his five subsequent real life marriages and inquire about the "charades" with Audrey Hepburn on the slopes in Switzerland. The stories he could tell!
Click here for a sampling of one of my favorites...