girl power

I have my Christmas outfit picked out.

Now, we need a Christmas party. I'm brainstorming. I'm thinking of a Sweedish theme, making Julbok's (straw goats) ornaments, and the food...mmm....well, the Swedish have a tradition of eating smorgasbord of lutefisk, dried fish, Christmas ham (of course, for me...that's a popular dish, we're Spanish), boiled potatoes, pork sausage, herring salad (*vegan, I had to add that in there), spiced breads, and many different kind of sweets including rice pudding where an almond is cooked inside and whoever finds the almond is said to get married in the coming year. So, does this mean only invite couples? No, just invite a date. (!)
Then we got the glögg, its heated, and sweetened spiced wine. Now, that sounds way interesting to pass up. I wish I had some real Swedish friends and then it'd be the real deal. I'm so intrigued by all the different traditions one country has to the other. Here in America, it seems so fast and just too materialized, I mean I walk to my mailbox and I hope to find a holiday card, but what's literally, stuffed inside my mail box instead? Ads. Ads, ads, paper, wasteful paper. All these completely useless Wal-Mart ads, Target, RC Willey, Best Buy, Macy's....dios mio, will you please lay this off....how exactly did they get my address? It's always a mystery.
Can I please have some more peace? In Sweden, Christmas is celebrated always with a sense of wonder and reverence with friends and family gathered. And not only that, it's a 6-week event!! They don't throw out their Christmas tree until Jan.13th... That's the holiday I like to share, I'm pretty grateful to have a family that does just that, but with our strong Spanish/Cuban tradition.


Porridge Girls by Hildur Söderberg

Another vintage Christmas card by Swedish illustrator, Hildur Söderberg


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Capes aren't just for kids.



...merci, barbara.


Chloe.


I'm currently listening to. Madjo.

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gee, I enjoyed scallops before I even knew the pattern had a name, scallop! I liked looking at them and visually, it was just pleasing, I guess because it's femininity. It would remind me of baby pink time, my mom dressing me up, going grocery shopping, watching her cook, and putting pigtails in my hair. I guess, you learn as you grow. I mean wow, I didn't even know why there was a name for pigtails until probably middle school, "Oh, because it's p-i-g....tail, a pig's tail mom."

Oink.
It's all just coming back.


Dress from La Casita de Wendy



A new home, a new life.

In San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, a project called "Casita Linda" created by some American architecture students helped design homes to help the poorest of the poor, mainly single mothers and a group of volunteers who helped build it for under $7,000 each.

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A "before" shot. A family of 8 females lived in this before they were waiting for their new home.

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Deborah Llyod on the right, creative director of Kate Spade in Bosnia. Kate Spade has teamed up with Women for Women International, a program dedicated in helping women survivors of war. So, how did Kate Spade play in? They began these job programs in Bosnia and Herzegovina for women to make mittens, hats, and scarves for the holiday season. Deborah Llyod is the main person behind the program, she went on a tour of Bosnia and it grew on her that from the stories she came upon, she needed and felt responsible for giving life again to these women survivors of war who had their family lost, sent to rape camp...etc. While on her trip, some Bosnia knitters would lead Deborah to the river to show her the old-fashioned way of beating, boiling, and hand-drying wool. It is kind of amazing to think about the things you wear, and how they're actually made and handcrafted.
At WfWI, you are able to become pen pals, which a lot of women cherish more than the financial.

On of the many colorful shops on a street in Bašcaršija, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.


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I know Halloween has passed and all, but I've been wanting to dress like Wonder Woman for some time now! And I can't get over it. If you're a girl and your comic hero isn't Wonder Woman, there is seriously something wrong there... every year I always end up not dressing like her because my ben and I usually dress up together as a couple. That's it. Next year, it's on. He can be some other comic book superhero, how about Superman? Batman?
...oh, that's "so over done." Well, blah.
I have an idea, what about a Superhero/Villain themed party?

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Even Victoire de Castellane's hero (designer for Dior Fine Jewerly) is Wonder Woman!

Speaking of Dior...

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The new Miss Dior Chérie smells so yum. The ad is pretty neat too. By the way, have you seen Up?
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