Modern Design and Middle Age

I love architecture and design. I cannot settle for the outdated in this area of my life. I don't know if this is a good or bad thing but to me, because I don't live by what others think about me, is a great thing.

From the 70s to the 90s I had trouble accepting the furniture and home designs and flipped through magazines, being simply bored with what I saw. Nonetheless I conformed hoping someday, somehow, somewhere, someone would create design I can live by and with.

Then came Dwell Magazine and the erection of modern homes with energy efficient as well as recycled materials used to build the dwelling and I must say, I have never been happier about architecture and design.

I am a firm believer of streamline, clean design and the notion that less is more and so goes the appreciation of modern design.

In the past, we cluttered our homes with pieces we really did not need and colors that only worked with one season and not the other. For example a floral couch was appealing in the spring months more so then the dead of winter when family gathered in the living room to open gifts on Christmas morning. A corduroy pattern couch was too rough for the spring and summer months in cities where the temperature climbed well into the 100s. Bulky wooden furniture simply looked overbearing and overwhelming throughout a house and took away from the room size and sometimes even the view from the windows.

Dark and dreary curtains, inappropriate lighting and bulky television sets consumed a room and left nothing to appreciate about the environment.

Brown or dark Burgundy solid carpet colors throughout the house, sometimes even on bathroom floors made the room look harsh and unromantic. I can go on about all the wrongs in design but I think you get my point.

So now, I am not suggesting you get rid of your entire furniture or anything remotely close to that. I am however, saying that if you are at a point in life where you think you need a change, pick upDWELL and Metropolitan Homes Magazine and consider modern design. Streamlining and getting rid of the clutter. Rip out the carpet, expose the hardwood floors and consider complimentary colors for your walls. Get rid of the television set from the bedroom and replace old dingy wall picture frames with decors and trinkets or photographs with a natural theme. Pick material colors or patterns which are natural and uniform throughout the four seasons and install lighting which will enhance your environment. Hide the Wii and Play stations and don't display all the DVDs you proudly own.

Select bamboo plants and easily controlled and managable plants rather than those that crawl up one corner of your wall. Minimize the items on display in cases and cabinets and use spot lighting to accent the special pieces. As for the window covering, in my opinion, stay away from the 2-3 inch blinds or inside shutters. Those are disgusting and take away from the natural light and energy illuminating your home from the outside and if you have to worry about hot weather locations, consider energy efficient widows.

If you want ideas and suggestions, please feel free to drop me a line or a photo of your room you want to decorate and I will be happy to give you feedback.

You Say Chocolate and I say Chocolat

Chocolate, of course is one of those things that "most" everyone and anyone loves and is probably addicted to.

Well on that note, I want to introduce my readers to Coco Bella Chocolate from San Francisco. It is probably the best northern California purveyor of the best chocolatiers from around the world.

The store design is a great representation of what you will experience while shopping and purchasing their quality chocolate. With white marble granite counters and dark mahogany cabinetry displaying the chocolate selection from around the world, it makes for a happy purchase. You walk around the glass display case selecting the pieces displayed by continent order, and the knowledgeable sales person walks along with you while holding a silver tray in order to collect your selections as you point to them.

By this point you already feel super special. Then of course you finalize your selection and walk to the register, where they ask if you want a brown or white satin ribbon on your exquisite blue box of chocolate and after you choose your ribbon color, they place your box in a see through bag and then secure it with their seal.

My suggestion for consuming the Coco Bella chocolate is that, when you take it home, you open a bottle of your favorite champagne on a Friday night, bypass dessert and go straight to the box of chocolate and consume it with a glass of the bubbly until the wee hours of the night while watching Breakfast at Tiffany or any of your favorite classic movies.

A personal size box of 5 pieces is about $10.00 and if you want to go crazy you can buy a pound of this good stuff for $25.00 or so. I highly recommend the experience with or without a loved one by your side.

I could Have Played That Role

Someone once asked me what role do I see myself playing or could have played (for movies gone past) if I were given a chance. Of course this topic is my fave since my lifelong passion is to become a movie star (you laugh eh?)and so I can honestly see myself in the following roles should I be given or were given a chance to play:

Princess Ann (Roman Holiday)A bored and sheltered princess escapes her guardians and falls in love with an American newsman in Rome (AT 20)

Sarah Jordan (Beyond Borders) - A woman in a loveless marriage, bored out of her head volunteers to do goodwill work around the world and ends up meeting the man of her dreams. (AT 30)

Miranda Priestly (The Devil Wears Prada) - A ruthless, cynical,yet successful magazine editor with a killer wardrobe and a career to die for. (AT 45)

Why is this important you ask - well it's not - but it was fun to play...and I would love to hear from you about the role you could have played if given a chance.

Handbags and Shoes For Women Over 40

If there is anything I can say I am addicted to, even in midlife, is shoes and handbags. I can walk through department stores and browse through the selection of designer shoes and handbags, oh probably an entire day without feeling tired.

I know I am not alone in this, but choosing the right shoes and handbags for a woman over 40 could sometimes be very challenging. There is a certain protocol when you reach a certain time in your life and the shoes and handbags you select should compliment your maturity rather than hinder it.

A handbag should never be too big or too small and the handle should be designed so that when you carry it, it doesn't seem like you are struggling. Sticking to pale colors in the summer is ideal and keeping with the blacks is appreciated in the winter months. Women over 40 should stay away from bright yellow or fuchsias and greens. If color is your thing, then stick to lavenders and power blues instead for spring and summer. Multi color handbags may seem interesting on the shelf but over your shoulder when overweight or paired with the wrong attire could be nothing but disaster. And the final note to keep in mind, please don't hang your keys, cell phone or other gadgets from the strap of your designer purse.

Learning to carry it the right way is also key to success with designer bags and filling it to capacity and keeping the inside messy is simply unattractive and says more about you than you care to divulge. But if you must use the bag to haul around everything but the kitchen sink in, then organize the items in smaller travel bags or pouches.

As for shoes, know your limit, in heels that is. Having the appropriate heel inch is key to sexy legs without causing damage to knees and toes. Over 40 women need to make sure their shoes are comfortable enough in order to prance in them looking as sexy as ever, rather than struggle as if walking on hot coals.

Women with long toes should stay away from strappy shoes and consider peep toes instead or sling backs to get their strap fix. Buying a size too small is not very smart and most unappealing to the eye. Wearing the wrong shade, while matching a dress or a pair of pants, is a no no; and wearing the exact same purple as the dress or the pants is even more no no. Stay with neutrals if you are not sure and invest in several pairs of black shoes for sure.

So I guess, what I am trying to say is, be careful when you shop for shoes and handbags and think twice about your purchase. If the shoe fits, it doesn't necessarily mean it's the right buy, and if you are simply inlove with the color of the purse, then it probably is not the smart choice.

No Recipes From Me

I love "good" food like most individual with an artistic palette. I refer to palettes as artistic because if you think about it, those who lack creativity, lack a taste for good food (in my opinion).

Good food to me is something that has to compliment my taste buds, it has to enhance my sense of smell from the array of spices used to create the dish, and finally it has to fulfill my innermost sensuality. Believe me if you think about it, you will understand what I mean.

I am always in search of good food and when I find myself settling due to my financial state at the time I frequent the restaurant, or the party I am with doesn't have an artistic palette, I leave the restaurant feeling unhappy and a bit grumpy.

Keep in mind I am not implying that only expensive restaurants or those who claim to work with the best chefs in the world have the best meals. I am stating that even the simplest and most inexpensive places have quality meals which will also do the job.

I have a few places that I frequent in San Francisco which I want to share with you, where you can get a good meal without $$$$ too much:

Burgermeister - For the best burgers in town
NanandCurry - For good to great Indian Food
Squat and Gobble- A girls gotta have her crepes
Osha Thai - Inexpensive Thai food at its best

Tarboosh - Middle Eastern Restaurant
Specialty Cafe - Excellent Coffee, pasty and sandwiches
Mozzarella Di Bufala - Excellent Pizza

Feel free to suggest your favorite restaurant in your area.

Jennifer Aniston and LolaVie Fashion

Now here is a woman you hate to love, Jennifer Aniston. In my opinion Aniston is a true symbol and an icon of "physical" beauty. Although how she got there is questionable since being a celebrity require a nip tuck here and there, a botox or two, lipo and more nip tuck. But I guess it's ok if the end result looks like Jennifer Aniston.

She is a woman over 40 now and I think with time, she has blossomed into an "old school" classy individual. This is why I love her so much. She makes no effort to dress in fashion, nor do things with her hair that is too obnoxious. Her shoes are always safe and one dimentional and that works. I could care less what the fashion police may say about her "stuck in the 80s look" because for some reason or another it works just fine. She knows what works and she sticks to it. Sometimes it is not the extremities of fashion that put you on a list, it is what you do with it that counts the most.

Fashion Guidlines for Women Over 40

Pictured: Cotton jacket, American Eagle, $59.50, visit ae.com.Bodycon mid-length skirt, Topshop, $50, visit topshop.com

I have never followed fashion trends for more reasons than one.
Reason one: Fashions come and go faster than one can pay off the credit card charges.
Reason two: Some fashion is simply ridiculous and a waste of money
Reason three: Not all "in fashion" merchandise is for everyone.

So with that said, I often wear what I like the day I buy it and that is the end of it. Of course occasionally I see a woman dressed to kill walking down the street and I do look at her more than once to make sure I made a mental note of her attire just in case I had the guts to invest in something similar to it. But most of the time I stay within my comfort zone and wear solids and neutral colors so that no matter what I am always in fashion one way or another without really being in fashion.

The moral of this blog entry is that, since I have reached my midlife mark, I want to explore fashion and try to figure out a way to dress to kill without filing chapter 11. I don't promise anything but I would like to look for ways to find a new fashion for women over 40 and keep you posted of my recommendations. So stay tuned on my journey of creating my wish list of obtaining a new look for myself.

Cartier For My Soul

I had the wonderful opportunity to visit the Legion of Honor Museum's Cartier exhibit (San Francisco) a week ago and I must say, the experience was worth every penny.

As a woman, of course I am naturally mesmerized by diamonds and as a result love to frequent quality jewelers around Union Square to see the new pieces on display. With that said, Cartier is no doubt my all time favorite jeweler, not only because of the name and origin, but more so because the effort the designers make in creating each "masterpiece" as uniquely and exquisitely as possible.

The San Francisco exhibit of course is a collection of custom designed jewelry for heiresses and actresses, mostly from the U.S., who ordered the various pieces over the course of a few decades throughout the 20th century. I cannot begin to tell you how elegant and breathtaking the pieces are and how Divine the entire display.

As I walked throughout the exhibit, I stood in front of each piece and imagined the woman wearing it during a period in history they lived through. I was completely touched and overwhelmed by all the beauty and sparkle and when I finally walked out after spending four hours in the exhibit halls, I felt a sense of serenity which I cannot explain, but I am certain everyone who has visited the exhibit understands what I am talking about.

For a more detail description of some of the pieces please click Cartier In America Exhibit.

A Good Bottle of Champagne

A good bottle of champagne makes all the difference in the world when it comes to a social gathering or a simple romantic evening with your other half. Buying a bad or cheap bottle of champagne doesn't seem to work, no matter which way you turn.

In the past people were able to get away with buying cheap wine and the consumers would drink it and not really say a word because they didn't want to seem like they don't know anything about wine.

But a good versus a bad bottle of champagne is most noticeable for anyone and everyone when consuming it. So to help those individuals who are champagne challenged and like me do not live on a Dom Perignoin budget, I suggest the following bottles for that special occassion without overdrawing your checking account:

Ballatore $7.99
Moet Chandon $10.95
Gloria Ferrer $20.00

Domain Chandon $22.00 only if you can't find Gloria Ferrer

Veuve Cicquoet
$39.00 only if you want to impress me.

Have Fun!!!

If My Wife Is Happy I am Happy - Goes The Saying

I was watching HGTV this morning and a couple was in a dire need of a bedroom makeover. These shows make me laugh anyway but when I heard the husband say "I am all for it, cause if my wife is happy I am happy" I just sat there laughing even harder.

First I thought, what a stupid thing to say but after thinking about it during commercial, I realized that what men mean when they say "If my wife is happy, I am happy" is that if she is happy, I can at least get sex and then I realized that how true that statement was - well almost.

Let me explain: It is true that if a woman is happy as a result of material things, she will gladly give it up, but if she has the material things and not the personal attention she needs from her man, she will most definitely reconsider.

So, in order to be happy as a man, he must find a way to fullfill a woman's happiness in the most truest form, otherwise whatever he does to the bedroom will surely go unnoticed.

Chasing Dreams and Finding Dead Ends

At what point do you come to terms with the fact that chasing some dreams are simply a waste of time or just plain not good for you?

It's funny some dreams or wishes have come to me so quickly and almost the day I wish for them and yet others, I can wish and dream about all I want and it either takes forever or it never comes. So I ask myself at what point do I stop wishing for it and dreaming about it. When will I get the message that it is time to move on? I have been pretty fortunate because no matter what I have strived for or dreamt about in the past I was able to accomplish and hence never having a problem with catching a dream I was chasing. This doesn't necessarily mean the end result was for the best but at least I was able to say I did it as I dreamt about it.

Now, it's been going on two plus years of dreaming and hoping for one thing and another and yet nothing has panned out. I have searched high and low for answers, I have walked the beach, frequented churches and asked higher beings and wished on stars and yet nothing and this my friends has completely shocked and discombobulated my whole being. I am not used to not getting my wishes and dreams fulfilled. So back to the question, at what point do you tell yourself to stop chasing some dreams because all you will find is a dead end.

Insecurities

In life, the worst character flaw we all seem to have is being insecure. When I was young, I always believed I was the only one experiencing this particular flaw, but as I got older and have interacted with so many individuals, I have realized the driving force of everyone's life is their own insecurities.

It is sad to come to terms with, to say the least and annoying burden to say the most. This particular "flaw" tends to paralyze a person from doing most things in order to achieve the level of happiness they are worthy of. And because of this "flaw" most people tend to talk themselves out of what they are capable of.

The other fact of this "flaw" is that it is the main problem and cause of most unions between two people from ever materializing in the utmost positive fashion. This "flaw" is the problem behind staying put in unproductive relationships and this "flaw" is the cause of most break ups in relationships. It forces us to either remain in an unhappy life or run from a good one in hopes of finding something that will make us feel less insecure.

Sad part is we just can't seem to get away from this "flaw" no matter how hard we may try and we tend to rely on it as if it were a drug. I personally would love to wake up one morning and do EVERYTHING without worrying about my insecurities and maybe then I wonder would I ever achieve everything in life as it is meant to be?

Avoiding Misunderstandings

Now here is a subject matter that is probably the most frustrating to me. Being misunderstood, misunderstanding one another and the worst, misinterpreting an understanding.

In my opinion, I have come a long way but I also understand that I still have a long way to go in life. Lately I have spent alot of time reflecting upon various aspects of my life and trying to decipher what I need to change and what I must improve upon. But along this discovery I am finding more and more everyday that what I mean to say and what I want to hear people say are not necessarily what is understood. I try to be as clear as possible when I speak but for some strange reason, perhaps call it old age or maybe too much on my mind, I just don't get the point across as well as I would like to and as a result may not hear what I want to.

But at the same time I am also seeing that people around me are having the same trouble communicating as well. So I have to ask - what the hell is going on? I wonder is it too much of communicating via telephone, text, facebook, email that is causing this type of misunderstandings? Or is it a result of no one being able to see eye to eye anymore on anything? Maybe perhaps everyone has an opinion and feels the need to express them.

It is becoming more and more difficult to meet people on the same wave link as me in order to feel comfortable enough to say what I want without feeling as if I am offending anyone or simply being misunderstood.