Mother's Day 2023

My mom was approved for a senior living apartment last month and I could have passed out from relief. The only furnishing she has in the living room is an antique chair shrouded in a sheet. Today we took out her collection of brooches acquired from thrift stores, antique stores, garage sales, etc, and decorated the chair before putting them all back in the jewelry box.

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Comfy Close

 

Babos shearling babouche sneakers (℅)

Rachel Comey net pants

Vintage cardigan 

Lafayette 148 Turtleneck

Mug by Helen Levi

Believe it or not, I don't really like sneakers unless they're either a simple plimsoll, or don't resemble a sneaker at all. This pair happens to combine both of those principles and I LOVE them.

Shoe designer Ce Ce Chin (formerly of a line I loved in college called 8020, I had this exact pair) reached out a few weeks ago and shared that she started a line of babouche sneakers that I ought to try a pair. Not only are these reminiscent of a Philo-era Céline with the shearling, but the sneaker portion of the shoe is invisible. J'adore! I like wearing them around the apartment, but I plan to take them to Idaho where the naturally waterproof shearling will be a welcome accessory for a quick walk in the snow.

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Poppy Pockets

 

Vintage Levi's

Acne linen tee

Sai's vase

 Spring's almost here :')

I bought some poppies from our local flower seller, which is attached to a 99¢ store.

Jevins' beloved cousin Sai made this vase and gave it to me for my birthday last year. It's my favorite thing to put a few small blooms in every once in a while. I love the way that poppies dance and turn with their carrot-y leaves.

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The Safety Blanket

Vintage Tee

Stella McCartney vest...thing

Vintage wool cardigan via Graceland

Theyskens' Theory bag

Margiela pants

Ann Demeulemeester boots

Vintage sunglasses

I was in a fugue state when I packed for Buffalo.  It's like, a 45 minute plane ride from NYC, but the weather is quite, quite different. Buffalo is, as you'd expect, quite cold, and DRY. If there is any trace of a breeze, it cuts through you like a knife.

The thing about this asymmetric top from Stella McCartney is that it can be thrown over my lap like a blanket if I'm a wee bit chilly, so on the surface this item that feels a little silly and non-functional ended up being quite useful for windy walks and leisurely lounging. Call it grandpa chic with this cardigan, or perhaps more fittingly: a portable safety blanket.

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The Story of Our Reunion

On October 18th, 2022 I got a phone call from an emergency psychiatric hospital in Buffalo. The social worker on the other end told me that my mom had been admitted to the hospital, and they were desperately trying to reach anyone who could help them understand where this woman who shared my last name was coming from. After 10 years of estrangement through circumstance, I finally heard my mom’s voice again. She had never kept a phone and was lost in the throes of debilitating psychosis for so long. I was unable to see her for years. This time though, her memory prevailed and she was able to remember my phone number to share with the case workers.

Maybe it’s oversharing, but the story of my reunion with my mom has been one of the most harrowing and important developments in my adult life. Between her hospital discharge and today, I managed to get my mom a cell phone and she has been able to slowly figure it out. It feels like a miracle. She’s amazed and delighted by the ability to send text messages and the chance to keep a tiny camera in her pocket.

I wasn't sure I’d see the day where she would be able to regain and maintain the lucidity I had been grieving was lost for so many years. Her bravery, dignity and joie de vivre is so moving it brings me to tears. She explains she’s an optimist because she “was born in the spring”. On May 10th, heavens willing, we will celebrate her 68th birthday, at last, together.

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Catching Up: Wears/Wares

Observe: 2 years-worth of catching up on the stuff I fill our apartment with and a couple amusing outfits.

Here are some wares\wears

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Rachel Comey made these flared fishnet pants. I'm pretty sure I have only ever worn them under dresses, especially in the summer when I wanna wear something that feels fall-adjacent but still has sweet, sweet airflow. Here I paired 'em with a Theyskens' Theory dress that I have own two colors. 

Know: I loooooooved Theyskens' Theory in college. Between 2010-2014 Olivier Theyskens took the lead designing these über cool, slick and perversely practical city girl-friendly collections under a sub-brand for Theory, and I have a nostalgic thing I can't let go of from clothes from that time. Everything felt sexy and dark.

 This dress is actually two pieces: an a-line shift with a wispy/smoky chiffon overlay, PLUS it has a hidden hoodie pocket under the overlay!! I mean!!!

Jevins surprised me with wall-mounted holders he made for my mezzaluna chopper collection this past year. These marbled enamel pie tin pans are from the late-1800s, sitting on our kitchen butcher block amongst other late-nineteenth century cooking ephemera that I have proudly found in my local thrift stores. The pie tins are good for cheese plate dinners at home.

A tulle headdress. Just tulle. It's splayed open here, but I usually wear stuff like this like a 50's housewife buying groceries in the rain.

A dreamy mother of pearl stamp holder that I jumped to buy from Everthine Antiques. I use it to preserve paper bits and collage cutouts,

A Grainne Morton necklace paired with my Bing Bang name plate. I wore these together shortly after my paternal grandmother, Carol, passed away this year. Geist is actually her maiden name, my dad changed it in her honor when he was in college.

Sai made this vase. I love her.

The living room. Always chaos. 

It doesn't look like this right now but this precarious stacking situation somehow didn't fall over for two years.

Grýla tucked underneath a rag quilt <3. 

We have been buying the flower print sheets from Spoonflower for a few years. They're nosebleed expensive but satisfy the look of the "flower bed" we wanted to create for ourselves.

I need more red hangers. When I go to thrift stores I often find and buy the antique hangers that folks overlook. Some of them are handmade or finished by hand! I put special stuff on this red lacquer number when I set things out to wear the night before an event.

Ephemera. An oversized Tom Ford shirt, my favorite denim duster and all kinds of bits 'n bobs jewelry.

God, I love our bathroom. It's my favorite room in our apartment for sure. Shoutout to Glasswing organics, who make the MOST delicious smelling jasmine oil. It's an incredible value for the quality and I stock up on it all the time. 

Obligatory obnoxious tabi photo. I get soles put on special shoes at Cesar's in Chelsea.

I had bleached hair for a hot second when I decided to grow my hair back after shaving it. 

It was a winter wherein I matched my outerwear to the hue of my hair.

My beloved jewel box vanity situation. I'm slowly collecting bottles from Kindred Black along with thrift store/antique porcelain that I have been truly accumulating for years.

Whadya think? 

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