Summer Party Style: California Cool

19 Jun 2013

Frock Files | Be My Guest

We’re getting ready to go to a summer wedding in Maine, but I’ve got Southern California on the mind. Since it’s a beach wedding I wanted to find something breezy and simple — easier said than done. Everything I liked seemed to be white this season! So I was thrilled to stumble upon this blue silk dress, which will be a staple in my closet for many summers to come, I’m sure.

For jewelry, I’m turning to my friend Kerri of TenThings. Her beachy vibe makes me want to roll down the windows and drive along the coast (either one) while listening to my favorite music. I love the balance of elegant and earthy that she brings to all her pieces. After writing to let Kerri know that her jewelry would be making its way onto the blog today, she offered to give all of the Frock Files readers a 20% discount using code FROCKFILES. Thanks, Kerri!

Are you headed to any summer weddings?

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Dress: Planet Blue / Sandals: Piperlime / Clutch: Bag Noir / Earrings + Bracelet: TenThings

P.S. I’m making my debut as a beauty columnist over at My Thirty Spot today! We’re talking about something a little goofy: exercise for your face.

 

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Change of Perspective: A Question to Change Your Day

18 Jun 2013

Frock Files | What Do I Have To Do vs. What Do I Get To Do?

The other morning, I woke up and within a minute my mind started racing with all the things I needed to do that day. Assignments to be completed, gifts to be purchased, dry cleaning to pick up. I wanted to pull the covers back over my head rather than tackling my to do list. But after a few minutes I realized that every item on my list is actually something I enjoy doing — I like running errands. I love my work. But categorizing these things as obligations somehow made them things to get through rather than enjoy.

For the past couple of months, I’ve been contributing to the “Celebrate the Normal” series over at Pars Caeli. It’s a photo documentary project focused on appreciating the everyday right now instead of after the moment has passed. It’s all about being present. Won’t I long for the ease of throwing on a cotton dress and jumping in the car when winter returns? Didn’t I crave more creativity in previous jobs? I get these things right now in my normal, everyday life!

So I’m challenging myself. Each morning, rather than asking, “What do I have to do today?” I’ll ask instead, “What do I get to do today?”

I’ve been doing it for the last few days and it really does give me more energy, not just in the morning but all day long. So what do you get to do today?

P.S. I love this poem, which Joanna Goddard included in her post on Monday: “Normal day, let me be aware of the treasure you are. Let me learn from you, love you, bless you before you depart. Let me not pass you by in quest of some rare and perfect tomorrow. Let me hold you while I may, for it may not always be so. One day I shall dig my nails into the earth, or bury my face in the pillow, or stretch myself taut, or raise my hands to the sky and want, more than all the world, your return.” ― poem by Mary Jean Irion

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Bright Lights on Sana of SBSK

17 Jun 2013

Sana and I didn’t meet too long ago, but we hit it off instantly with a mutual appreciation for each other’s sense of style. I love the way Sana can combine cool, crisp style with a bohemian ambiance that’s all her own. It’s no wonder she’s such a great stylist! Her blog, SBSK (Styling by Sana Keefer), is all about living in balance — enjoying life while being conscious of balance.

Bright Lights on Sana of SBSK

What do you do for a living?:  I am an interior/prop stylist and creative director.

Places you’ve lived:  Los Angeles, Laguna Beach, Manhattan, Brooklyn.

Place you’d most like to visit: Thailand; Ko Samui in particular.

Your favorite indulgence: As of a few weeks ago, acupuncture. I’m super into spa treatments but I knew spad days alone weren’t enough to keep my stress levels in check. I wanted something more closely tied to mind and body so I tried a acupuncturist in Los Feliz. Amazing. I’d highly recommend it if you’re comfortable with holistic healing.

The best advice you’ve ever received: “Don’t ride the highs so high and the lows so low.” It pretty much applies to everything in life and reminds me to center myself when I’m freaking out about something ridiculous. When I think about it, it’s all ridiculous. I have my life, health, loved ones and resources. What more is there, really?What’s your favorite healthy recipe? It’s definitely green juice. My concoction of green apples, celery, lime and spinach makes me want to jump into a full on juice diet like Kelly Wearstler but I love the variety in food too much to go to those lengths.

Ingredients

(use organic where possible)

2       limes
1        granny smith apple
1½   cups of spinach
½     bushel of kale
5        celery sticks

Directions

1.       Wash produce thoroughly
2.      Peel lime and remove apple core
3.      Cut any brown portions from produce
4.      Add to juicer on high with tougher ingredients like apples first
5.      Add remaining ingredients

Bright Lights on Sana of SBSK

A book largely about being an adult in years but not knowing what the heck you’re supposed to do: The Paris Wife by Paula McLain. I read it in one sitting. Granted, I was on an 11 hour flight, but still — I could have opted for Sky Mall. I think it’s a my favorite fictional read to date. Ernest Hemingway was something of an enigma for sure. Most of the way through, I drew parallels between his characteristics as an obsessive writer/artist and those of my literary friends. Life is intense for a writer.

Another book I’m excited about is The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz. It’s a great read on facing yourself; removing the obstacles that prevent us from achieving the things we want. It helped me realize that the obstacle is often me! We have to be humble enough to admit that, but really, it’s a weight lifted when you realize the power shifts to you… if you want it to.

Proud Type A personalities read on. I’m super into containers in general. I’m a little type A and like everything to have a place and be visually pleasing, so I use Le Parfait jars often. The French company makes well-designed jars of all sizes that are a dream for homemade jams, pickling, extras, and even serving!

I’m starting to get antsy about this one, you guys! I’ve worked on every space but my own. It’s coming along though. Slowly but surely. Initially we bought a sofa from Organic Modernism when we moved to LA from Brooklyn. In hindsight I don’t know what possessed me to buy an oatmeal colored sofa but I did and now I’m totally bored with it despite the many colorful throw pillows piled on top of it. So, we’re having the cushions re-upholstered in this crazy banana palm fabric that they have. They’re a smaller Brooklyn based company that has a lot of refined lodge-y, cabin cool pieces that work well for the canyon apartment we live in now. This style really compliments the landscape of the hills.

Not to make it all about Brooklyn but one of my new fave stationery designers happens to do her thing there. Her name is Emily of Hartland Brooklyn. So fun, a bit quirky and thoughtfully illustrated.

Do you ladies know about the Mophie? Seriously it has saved me so many times when traveling. It’s pretty much a charger that snaps onto the iPhone like a case so it does double duty. Admittedly, it isn’t as easy on the eyes but that’s where designer iphone cases come in. AphroChic’s new line of cases (Juju being my absolute fave) are based on the designer Jeanine’s wallpaper collection — phone party for home decor fanatics like myself.

Thoughts on…

Craft supplies: I’m going to have to say that Zinsser Bulls Eye Shellack is the brightest star in my craft closet. It’s non-toxic coat when dry to seal in painting. I use it on props and DIY projects around the home. If you’re striping or dip painting anything around the home, it’s a go-to.

And accessories: I’m visual directing and consulting for this new line of fashion accessories stores launching in malls throughout Los Angeles end of summer so it’s pretty accurate to say that I am completely obsessed with accessories right about now. Walking the aisles of their fashion district warehouse is like heaven for a girl — love it! There are times when I’m coordinating wallpaper and vintage props for one of the stores with accessories like baubles (obsessed) or scarves and I’m thinking, wow, this looks so good together, I need the home and the fashion accessories!

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Thank you, Sana! Check out more of Sana’s thoughts, recipes, and photos at SBSK.
Frock Files | More Bright Lights
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Lessons From Dad: Take Your Time

14 Jun 2013

Frock Files | Father's Day 2013 | Lessons From Dad: Slow Down

“Take your time. Especially when you’re in a hurry.” – Gretchen Rubin

For as long as I can remember, my parents have been telling me to slow down. As a little kid my sister and I were enrolled in a program in which we had to run through a number of math problems while a stopwatch tracked our time. Watching those digital numbers flicker by, I felt like there was a tiny drill sergeant in my head saying, “Go! Go! What’s 10,896 divided by 16? Come on!” So I’d rush through the worksheets, just trying to make it to the finish line, and inevitably get most everything wrong. My parents kept reminding me that life isn’t timed by a stopwatch, and so it’s always a good thing to go back and review, to take time and care with things that mattered.

But my impulse to rush still haunts me today. While reading the book Happier at Home, I was relieved to find that Gretchen Rubin also suffers from the same issue. She writes that she often hurries around the house as though a gun is being held to her back. To combat that instinct, she made an effort to take her time and to enjoy the small rituals of the day.

I’m not often home at my parents’ house in Hawaii — I only make it back once a year. But when I am, one of my favorite things to do is watch my dad clean the kitchen after dinner. When I finish cooking in my own home, I throw our dishes in the dishwasher (or, more often, James does) and walk away until the weekend, when we go to town on the counters and floors. Not my dad. He methodically scrapes off the ceramic stove top with a razor, picks things up off the counters to wipe underneath them, whacks the droplets of water out of the corners of the Pyrex lids until they’re dry.

Usually, while he does this he tells us about some amazing feat of nature. He loved the story of the Flight of the Penguins. Last time we were home, he fascinated James with the story behind the phrase “Eddie Would Go” which is emblazoned on bumper stickers above the rainbow license plates on lots of cars in Hawaii. My sister and I joke, “Dad’s a little stoney,” not as in stoney-faced, but because sometimes he talks with the kind of wonder that most people can only achieve while they’re high.

So these days, as I race to put away the dishes before the coffee is done (exactly five minutes – go!), I stop and remind myself that there’s time. I think of my dad in the kitchen, patiently and precisely scooping the seeds out of a papaya in the morning, or winding the louvers of the kitchen door tightly shut at night. And then I sit down and sip my coffee slowly.

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This post is part of a promotion with FamilySearch.

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Inner Workout: Purposeful Journaling

13 Jun 2013

Frock Files | Journaling

A few years ago, I took a Zen class where I learned about how journaling can help you to discover strong answers to your own questions. I’ve had journals my whole life — my parents will tell you about the dozen diaries they’ve kept as a sampling of my childhood writing — but purposeful journal writing is different.

When I worry about something, that worry tends to fly around in my brain like a panicked bird that accidentally finds its way into a building. What I’ve discovered is that I can take some time to free write about whatever is on my mind and, depending on the issue, I’ll gain perspective, or find a solution, or realize that it’s not worth all the worry. I always feel immensely better afterward.

Want to try it? Here’s the process as I learned it:

1. Give yourself 30 minutes to an hour to sit down with a blank piece of paper.

2. Start it off as a letter, either to the universe or to yourself. Write without censoring yourself. Remember, this isn’t a blog post or a letter to a friend — it’s just for you. Be blatant about your feelings, explain your thoughts, write out what’s happened to you, and talk about why you think this problem is getting you stuck.

3. Write about what you want to happen — what you wish the situation could look like. Even if it seems impossible, write it down!

Most of the people in the class found that as they continued to write, something a little magical happened: they began to understand what they needed to do to deal with or move past the issue. It’s a little bit like sitting down with yourself and saying, “Okay, friend, I’m listening without judgment. Tell me everything.” By stepping outside yourself and onto paper, you gain the perspective you need to give yourself some sound advice.

Have you tried purposeful journaling? Do you journal every day? I don’t, but I can see how it could be a very useful form of meditation.

 

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