It was a good year for Elle UK

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Need this.

Yellow Owl Workshop

Bon Iver, Bon Iver

This post is past due. In June, I was introduced to what is probably my favorite album of 2011, Bon Iver's Bon Iver. I had heard "Skinny Love," off For Emma, Forever Ago, but otherwise I was pretty new to Justin Vernon. There are so many things I love about him: he has Shakespeare's "birthday," he's from Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and he writes and records his music secluded in a cabin.

Every time I listen to a song off of this album, I can't help but continue to listen to the entire album. When I first heard it, I think I listened to it six times in a row. My brother said he listened to it eight times in a row. It's incredibly hypnotic and beautiful. 

I assume Vernon's friendship and producing sessions with Kanye have really influenced this album. It's rather electronic, especially the last song, "Beth/Rest," which sounds reminiscent of a romantic scene in an 80's movie. His vocals are touching even when you don't know what he's saying.. but you kind of don't want to know, lest it ruin anything. It's so gorgeous, I'd rather not risk it.

Bon Iver - Towers

Bon Iver - Beth/Rest

The Terry Richardson of Food Photography

In Honor of Mob Week

I stayed home today sick from work and luckily for me, it happens to be Mob Week. Since I'm not into pretending I actually like Shark Week, I enjoyed the Godfather and the Untouchables. Did you know there were so many attractive men in these movies? Let's review:

Robert De Niro

I love Robert De Niro because he is total man candy and he would love me. Seriously, big ups to being married to the same black woman for a very long time! Holla at me if it doesn't work out, even at his age. Ignore Al Pacino,  please.

Andy Garcia

I never used to be that attracted to Andy Garcia, but seeing the younger version of him in the Untouchables was eye-opening, fosho. Not sure if he's hot enough to make me watch the Godfather III, though.

James Caan

Oh my God, I love him. Sonny Corleone is probably my favorite character in the Godfather. Seriously, he devastates me. 

Marlon Brando

Okay, okay, I know it's not the same looking Marlon Brando in the Godfather, but so what? He's gorgeous. I love Marlon Brando and his avant-garde and weird ass. 

Wedding Clutch

I'm writing this because I want everyone to know that I want to make this clutch sometime this summer. I figure if I write it then I have to do it, right? Anyway, I think this clutch is just darling and the instructions on The Purl Bee look quite simple, if done with patience! I'll let you know when I make one.

Do you love Michael Caine?

Just wanted to share these gems...

AND

Love him.

"If Patton were alive, he would slap your face!"

Private Benjamin is my GIRL. Seriously, if you haven't seen this movie, it's so necessary. I mean, we all knew Goldie Hawn was ~flawless~, but this really proves it.

Okay, so, the backstory: I remember watching this with my mother when I was pretty young.. like, 8-10 years old. At the time, my mother was in the Army and she had blonde, curly hair. To me, Private Benjamin was totally my mom (my mom hated this comparison, by the way).

Goldie Hawn plays preppy Judy Benjamin, a woman widowed after her husband has a heart attack during sex on their wedding night. She then calls into a radio show, crying about how she's never been single before (womp womp, Goldie!) and how she can't be alone. So this man calls in and tells her about this fabulous deal called the US Army where she can join and live in a condo and hang out. Swayed by the traumatizing death of her husband, she gives up her kind of amazing 80s wardrobe to become Private Benjamin. 

You can guess what happens next, but I'll tell you anyway. Boot camp is boot camp and Benjamin is confused, insisting, "I think they sent me to the wrong place... See, I did join the army, but I joined a different army. I joined the one with the condos and the private rooms."

This movie is amazing! There are so many classic scenes, like the one pictured above. Escaping over a fence, her commanding officer (Eileen Brennan) yells "You're not fit to wear that uniform!" to which Private Benjamin replies, "No shit."

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Kramerbooks for Brunch

My boyfriend and I have made Sunday brunch a tradition when we spend the weekend together. Luckily for us, DC is a huge brunch city.

I've been to Kramerbooks a few times and they were all delicious. It's definitely a District institution since it's opening in 1976. The front of the space is a great bookstore, with some of the best selections of new and old books on display in the window. Even if I'm just walking by, I pretty much drool at the books in the window.

Behind the store is the dining area, a small, bustling place on two levels with an outdoor space.

So, brunch:

For some reason, this place makes me want corned-beef hash every time. Naturally I got two eggs to go with it and I washed it all down with a Bloody Mary, as per usual. It was so delicious! I have never been so happy to eat beef for my first meal of the day.

This is what the boyfriend got. It's a proscuitto eggs benedict with asparagus. He gave me a bite, it was yummy. However, I hinted at getting a plate of bacon on the side, but he cited the proscuitto as being enough salty pig for him. Le sigh.

Brunch is the best! I feel like the weekend isn't a weekend without brunch, don't you agree?

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Books All Girls Should Read

So, this is a list consisting of books about girls that I think girls should read. Of course they should read all books, but it's nice to relate to strong, female characters every now and then, am I right?

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

This is the first book that came to my mind when compiling this list. The Bell Jar is the 1963 epitome of angsty teenage girl book-- a female Catcher in the Rye, if you will. Anyway, I've probably read this book about three times. If you don't know, it's a semi-autobiographical novel about Esther Greenwood, who is based on Plath. She struggles with post-collegiate life, serious depression and what seems to be an addiction to suicide attempts. The writing is beautiful, simple, and the reader genuinely roots for this unlikely protagonist. Maggie Gyllenhaal narrates the audiobook and if anyone can capture Esther Greenwood, it's she.


Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

I've just recently started reading this book, but I totally saw the Winona Ryder version in theaters when I was in second grade and cried my eyes out. Forever I've had this gorgeous hardcover illustrated copy that I used to peruse, but never commit to reading. Anyway, I'm reading it now and the story is written in such a way that it seems personal and kind. But really, who doesn't love Jo March? I, like, want to name my daughter Josephine kind of (idk). She's the independent and smart-- almost fearless-- girl you've always admired. Apparently a poll was done in the 1920s or so asking high school students what book was most influential to their lives and Little Women was ranked second, after the Bible. How crazy is that? But it makes sense, because it rules. Also, Jo March is based on Alcott... holla.


The Hours by Michael Cunningham

One thing that's pretty cool abou this book is that it's like reading Virginia Woolf but way easier. Cunningham tells a rather haunting story weaving the lives of three different women in different eras: Virginia bb, a real-life Mrs. Clarissa Dalloway in present time and a 1950s pregnant woman reading Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway. This book is fabulous. Obviously it would have to be, in order for ~Queen Meryl~ to be in the screen version... which is also fabulous.

White Teeth by Zadie Smith

I recommend this book to all my mixies out there. Zadie Smith's first novel is dripping in gorgeous language, telling the stories of two families from different cultures. This book spoke to me because, as a mixed black-white girl, I wanted to see how they talk about the hair issue. Smith totally does and I rarely read a book where I so completely identified with the thoughts and feelings of a main character (Irie) so much. I want to be friends with Zadie Smith in real life!

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Okay, so I haven't read this one yet, but I am going to! I have it and it's in the queue. HOWEVER, I've seen the movie, seen Bridget Jones' Diary, so I think I'm good, yeah? Every girl needs their Mr. Darcy :)

An idea for the next Fourth of July...

I decided to be a show-off this weekend and make some Jell-O shots for a Fourth of July BBQ or something. The funny thing is, I have never made Jell-O shots before so I really have no idea what brought it on. Without an event confirmed but plenty of hope, I began my Saturday afternoon by preparing to make a cross between these two recipes.

Not gonna lie, it was a tedious procedure. You basically make three different colors and kinds of Jell-O/gelatin/vodka/x-factor mixtures and keep them warm while adding a teaspoon layer at a time to a halved lemon rind-mold. Then, you refrigerate after each layer for ~10 minutes. Plain gelatin smells horrible, btw!

Overall, they were a huge success. Everyone loved them, they didn't taste like cough medicine. I'll probably make these again next year and make each layer thinner so more colors can make it into the rind. 

It was definitely a fun project that I think everyone should try! The smell of the cherry Jell-O made my mouth water with old memories. Seriously, when was the last time you had homemade cherry Jell-O?Enjoy, creepily, like I illustrate below:

Funny Girl: One of my favorite musicals of all time.

In case you were in need of a fabulous 1960s musical, starring the sassiest of the sassy with a gorgeous exotic man in it, FUNNY GIRL IS FO' YOU. I really cannot stress how much I love this movie. Barbra Streisand stars as Fanny Brice, a real-life comedienne during the 1920s. It begins with Barbra in the theater seats, looking moody as jaded divas are wont to do. Then it gets all Tarantino'd and goes back to her beginnings as a skinny-legged, funny (looking) Jewish girl who just wanted to be on stage. Then she gets famous, meets and marries the gorgeous Omar Sharif (Aries, mmm. Teeth now, questionable) who plays a gambler.

Anyway, I love this movie because of Barbra's gorgeous voice, makeup, hair and hands/nails. And Sharif's handsome face. Again, mmm. The last song, "My Man" (below) makes me sing along EVERY TIME. I can't stop myself!! It's pretty awesome though, because it's half live and half lip-synched and you can totally tell when it switches over (~1:30). Babs isn't the best lip-syncher as you can see.

She won an Oscar for this, which my mom hates because she says she was just acting like herself the whole time. Hater. So, please watch. Please love. That way we can all really be besties.

Man Candy: We Can Make Exceptions

As you all might have assumed from the Eleanor Kirk post, L and I are pretty into astrology. We are Leo and Sagittarius, respectively, and we are pretty interested in our men's signs. Yeah, we are. Generally, we like men with our signs as well as Aries and others aren't taken so seriously-- and rightfully so.

However, there are just some men whose looks go beyond zodiac affinities. These are a few examples:

Ryan Gosling: Scorpio. Generally L and I cannot STAND Scorpios. We are also partial to non-blond men. However, look at that sexy beast. I mean, really? Do I have to explain why he is an exception? Plus, it's a total bonus that he wishes he never made The Notebook. Nicholas Sparks' saccharine novels are totally ruining dating, IMHO.

Idris Elba: Virgo. I remember turning on BBC America one evening and seeing a nappy, scruffy Idris Elba on my television looking quite brooding. Needless to say, I've been hooked ever since.

Henry Cavill: Taurus. I dated a Taurus once. Actually, he was an Aries cusp, but such a stubborn ass that he insisted he was a Taurus. Hopefully you aren't surprised that they're the most insufferable men but my god, those beards. Cavill was a total sex symbol in The Tudors and I completely ignored that Jonathan Rhys Myers was even on the show. He is going to be the new Superman, so that means I'll be seeing a Superman movie this year.. or next. Whenever. Mmm.

A Recipe from the Pantry: Linguine with Fried Eggs

I came across this article not too long ago and there are several recipes I want to try. Finally, on this chilly President's Day, I woke up too late for breakfast and about on time for lunch. Naturally my first thought was eggs.

Washington Ballet

I love the ballet. I love the Washington Ballet. When I was younger, my mom used to take me to see the Nutcracker every year at the Warner Theater in DC.

Naturally, I was ecstatic when New Yorker's Photo Booth Blog presented these beautiful photos of Washington Ballet dancers.

“When I used to read fairy tales,” thought Alice, “I fancied that kind of thing never happened, and now here I am in the middle of one.” Substitute ballet for fairy tales, and she could have been describing “Wonderland,” a collaboration between the photographer Cade Martin, Design Army, and the Washington Ballet. This fanciful series, which was created to celebrate the Ballet’s tenth anniversary, shows ballerinas who have leaped off the stage and into the streets, parks, and hidden enclaves of Washington, D.C."