Guilty Pleasures
I love leather handbags.
The simple fact that the bag is one of humanity’s most important inventions, may have something to do with it.
Durable, necessary (yes, I said necessary), practical, and useful everyday of your life…the handbag (leather, please) would make me swoon even if it was ugly. Thankfully enough, this is not the case.
Lesa Wallace, amongst a hoard of gifted leather design wizards, stands out in my personal opinion for the simplicity and quality of her pieces.
Her Prosperity Bag has received much favor in Hollywood 
and don’t get me wrong…sometimes I take mine to bed with me.
But in our deepest heart…the Ricky is where it’s at.
Just look at the shape of it! The wide straps, the subtle little details…ughhh…love.
I’m willing to acknowledge that satchels and totes are not necessarily, necessary for every occasion…not necessarily.
The Mark Clutch (I don’t know who this guy is, but I like him) for the lighter haul, is yummy.
Find these and other lovely lovlies at jezzabelle.com.
I have chunky knees
how did i ever live without 50 dresses in my closet?
there was a time in my life when i looked at my knees and said, “that’s it…enjoy today because this is the last time you’ll ever see the sun.”, and promptly threw all my dresses away.
jeans rank pretty high in the closet hierarchy and can be worn almost year round, on almost any occasion, and on almost any budget…but even the almighty blue jean can not fully fill the void contained in a dress-less closet.
with the resurgence of “girly” this and, “pant suits really suck” that…our benevolent gods of fashion have seen fit to bring back the DRESS …i guess we’re all a little tired of jeans.
are my knees still pudgy, pale, and un loveable??
sadly, yes.
can i afford to punish them at the expense of my dress pheening, tired of wearing jeans, in love with “one piece waist-less outfits”, self?
thankfully, no.
voom by joy han dresses are made for parties, trend watching divas, hollywood socialites, and any self respecting gal who wants to go, “KA-PLOW!”, when she walks through the door.
michelle jonas dresses are made for women who love simplicity, aren’t afraid to bare some skin, aren’t afraid to steal ALL the attention, and yeah, really like to be comfortable.
tea & honey dresses are flirty, eco conscious, mellow in color, but super comfortable and super chic in their fabric, construction, and fit.
prairie new york dresses, big sigh, are simply beyond words. beautifully made, easy to wear, and with an extra A+ for tailoring and detail…these dresses are both classic and edgy all at once.
fighting eel dresses are simple, simple, simple, but sexy…easy closet staples with attitude.
love & liberty dresses are hippie and rock and roll…1969 with a modern twist.
vava by joy han dresses are eye grabbing, very very very California, and an affordable little sister to Voom.
…the list goes on and on and on
thankfully, my knees and i have grown to love each other…my arms and i, however, are totally getting a divorce.
shop for dresses and other easy to wear, fabulous fashions at jezzabelle.com
Are you a morning troll?
Fugly in the morning? …me too
While there’s not much I can do for your dragon breath, puffy eyes, and fuzzy sleep-do…there is still hope.
Sophie Golightly, a line of cotton and silk linens from the California wonderland known as Malibu, is throwing all of us lesser mortals a bone.
Not only will sleeping under the light as air, fresh and floral, duvets, pillow covers, and curtains, elevate your drudgery (and wine soaked) mind, but it will lift your spirits and those frowny corners of your mouth, as well.
And those are just the sheets, fer godsakes!
The real cure for our morning uglies lies in the Sophie Golightly Kimono Robes and the Sophie Golightly Cami Dresses.
Observe the vibrant number below…and check out her kimono, while you’re at it!
A hint of cleavage, a gargle of Listerine, a lovely voile robe…
Abracadabra, you’re effing hot!
Who cares if you didn’t get enough sleep, haven’t had sex in months, need to lose 10 pounds, or do not experience synaptic activity before 2pm…
We all have to get up and face the day, one way or another.
Why not do it colorfully, beautifully, and fabulously?
Plenty of time to be fugly when you’re dead.
Shop for Sophie Golightly and other lovely lovlies at Jezzabelle.com
Attitude is Everything
Dude, I’m so damn tired.
Europe for three weeks, Phoenix for two nights, Austin for three nights, and another trip to Hawai’i in two days!
My plants hate me.
The only redeeming things about all this travel (in addition to the fact that I got to vacation for three weeks in Europe, of course) are:
1. the eating out
2. the people watching
3. the shopping
…museums, culture and outdoor enjoyment all rank somewhere else…wayyy down the list.
I won’t go into my “eating out” experiences as they’re worthy of their very own blog…good gawd, I love food.
Instead, what I wish to share are some of the things I saw “people watching” and shopping, or what I like to call “fashion watching”…one of my favorite pastimes.
You know that there are “pretty” cities in the world and there are “not so pretty” cities in the world…obviously there are cities that fall in between and some that are downright ugly (those who will remain unnamed)…
London is a pretty city.
How do these folks who eat such meaty, heavy fare remain so slender?
Is it the fact that they walk more than we do (driving in London seems about as fun as a kamikaze suicide mission), or is it the fact that the food is so effing expensive that they choose to live on warm beer and one meal a day?
Perhaps we’ll never know, but the fact remains that Londoners, while they dress in more somber color schemes than we do (their colonial cousins), still manage to look elegant and rock and roll, all at the same time.
It’s the scarfs….it has to be.
Something about very tall, very slender men walking around in gracefully slim jeans, shaggy hair, and square scarfs casually wound around their necks…how chic, how sophisticated, how fashion forward!
The women, of course, stand out as more exotic creatures, coming in various shapes, colors and sizes.
Chocolate skin and the palest porcelain complexions tied together with one very charming accent.
Large necklaces of mixed mediums (wood beads and metal chains, plastic links, etc), boots, boots, boots…and a stunning array of high heels considering the amount of walking, walking and well, walking that these ladies do.
I suppose the street fashion in London has various elements depending on the scene, age group and walk of life…but the overall sense of “cultivated yet easy” suave that these people exhibit underlies and defines the style of London.
From gothic teens to dapper, slim suited businessmen, Londoners just look cool and very comfortable in their skin.
Perhaps this is something that we can all appreciate. Scarfs are cool and so are bejeweled silks, maxi dresses, high waisted jeans, and pencil skirts…but no matter what you wear, attitude, warmth and confidence will always prevail.
Be kind, be happy, be fabulous…and if you have nothing to wear, check out jezzabelle.com for something to match that inner glow.
Long and Lovely
I love long dresses.
One of my earliest fashion coups consisted of an ankle length, bullet proof polyester, pepto pink dress; worn with white mary janes and a bowl cut.
I kicked Jimmy’s butt in the playground looking like a total diva.
In spite of that, my love of the Maxi Dress, or long dress, has endured.
I wore floor skimming dresses with combat boots and geriatric sweaters in college, floor length pencil skirts and bustiers to the bar, and that one wedding dress with all the cloth roses…and that guy….ahhhh the 90’s.
Now I’m older, minus the bowl cut, can’t wear the bustier, but am definitely still in love with the maxi dress.
Michelle Jonas is like my fashion soul sister and has designed floor length goddess dresses just like I would, if I only knew how.
The Michelle Jonas Keyhole Dress comes in both long and short lengths, but who in their right mind would pass up an opportunity to look like a grecian slice of hotness in that damn floor length dress?
Made especially for travel, Michelle Jonas designs are made of cotton or silk jersey, have built in bust support and drape dreamily over your body be it perfect…or not quite.
Tiffany Alana is also one of my favorite designers for long, lean, cotton sheathes.
Something about stretchy cotton encasing your curves with nothing but pretty toes peeping out the bottom…I dunno, it’s a richer, more elegant look that doesn’t have to be super dressy.
Delicate leather flip flops, the Tiffany Alana floor length halter dress, and something hunky on your arm…tres summer, tres chic, tres fun.
Shop for these dresses and other must haves at jezzabelle.com
My hoochie clothes are a little tight.
ciao, bella.
if you’re like me, you suffer from an occasional, how should i say…expanding belly, butt, back affliction?
too many post bar bean and cheese burritos?
hot pants don’t fit?
tank top squeezing your will to live?
join the club, girlfriend…of women who are fabulous, that is.
…and human.
we’re all sorry that $25 bucks at Contempo Casuals will no longer make us the bells of the ball…but honestly, why are we crying over low grade polyester, hot pink lace and leopard print plastic pumps?
grown women can not wear shoddy clothes, and guess what, we don’t have to.
voom by joy han is a smokin hot line of silk and cotton frocks that bare lotsa legs, show lotsa cleavage, and hide lotsa everything else.
whoever invented the babydoll dress gets our vote for the nobel prize of preserving real women’s self esteem…and even the immortals of hollywood agree…joy han is a genius.
voom dresses deliver the glam with amazing silks, twisted vintage designs, retro hardware and form flattering cuts.
how in the hell can you not be a goddess while shimmering down the street in glowing yellow silk and high heeled boots?
my favorites are the rose mandarin dress (in yellow, of course) and the peacock mini…one of the most flattering (and original) pieces i’ve seen this year.
lovely and delicious…real women (who love burritos) unite!
shop for voom by joy han at jezzabelle.com
Patent leather is not for everyone…
I’m sure there are many, many, manymanymany people who do not “get” patent leather.
“It looks like plaaaastiiiic…”, the nasally and totally annoying call of the clueless, the male, and the name brand, I want everyone to know that this cost a LOT OF MONEY, young woman.
For the rest of us, patent leather represents all sorts of delights, both naughty and nice….your favorite mary jane’s when you were 7 years old, your favorite bustier (the one that makes your boobs crazy big, but only if you’re kneeling on the floor), that sick ass trench coat you wish you could afford, the much smaller but equally fabulous bag, that you can.
Patent leather speaks a different language, as all leathers do.
Suede smells of incense, is sorta dirty and speaks of lazy, leisurely life.
Calfskin talks about money, straight forward sex and elegant dinners with friends.
Patent leather whispers of little girls with big futures, playing all sorts of parts, in all sorts of situations, doing all sorts of things.
Patent leather is yummy in it’s shiny, nothing like animal skin colors, and is decadent in it’s all too animal-ish supple, smooth feel. It’s skin, man.
Best worn over naked feet, naked flesh or with absolutely no adornment…patent leather’s statement is clear and to the point.
“Don’t mess with me…unless you’re ready to ride this one…all the way to the end.”
Oh, and sometimes you might also hear it say, “Goddamnit, I love to be different!”
A New Life
as my (almost) very first blog, i find myself sitting at the computer combing my brain for subject matter.
do i bitch about my job?
tempting
do i bitch about my business?
counter productive
do i bitch about my living situation (splitting time between cali, which i love, and hawaii, which i hate)?
in my experience, totally incomprehensible to anyone but me
and so where does this get me?
what, no bitching?
don’t be ridiculous.
perhaps i’ll save the bitching for later and use this opportunity to discuss my reasons for starting this blog along with my hopes for the future.
…sounding very positive…and not very much like me.
but that’s okay.
have you ever needed to change your life?
have you ever stared at the dead end that your career, love life, or entire existence had become?
have you ever admitted to yourself, finally, the need to create a new path?
your stomach has holes in it from stress, you absolutely hate what you do, you can’t sleep at night
you’d rather eat an entire chocolate cake than be touched by anyone, especially your lover
you climb out of bed and say to yourself, “urrrg, i need a change”
for me, this time has come.
honestly, most of my life has been spent diverting and inevitably experiencing one disaster after another…
i didn’t care what i did from day to day as long as it involved surviving the drama with enough money left over to party my pants off.
good times.
now, for whatever reason, my life is blessed with stability and mind numbing calm.
both clearing the air for self actualization and realization.
and so i’m realizing that i’m actually very very bored…and a little dismayed at the smallish nature of my accomplishments.
take a look at these pictures:
jonathan-clark.com/photos/burningman/
first of all, let me thank jonathan clark…the website and photos made me happy.
second of all, how freaky, fun, and more importantly, content, do these people look?
they don’t look like adolescents, but they still look young.
this is what i want for myself. this is the new path that i want to create.
do i want to run naked in the desert?
maybe…probably not.
do i want to age without growing old.
hell yes.
do i want to continue to develop and live life to the fullest without depending on drama to get me there?
of course, most definitely, yes.
this is what i’ve learned:
• hearing, “that skirt is too short for this office” is the same as hearing, “you will never fit in here” …and it’s the truth
• people who tip toe and avoid conflict are generally nicer people than i am, but not better people than i am
• love your friends and forgive them for all trespasses short of robbery and murder…human beings need each other
• aging is inevitable. find your grace and develop it.
• i’m not that strong a writer…
this is what i want to do:
• i want to switch careers from a field that i know to one that i do not…successfully
(i.e. my boutique JEZZABELLE)
• i want to live fabulously, glamorously and gracefully
• i want to learn to be dependent on and vulnerable to the man i love
• i want to brainwash myself into thinking that exercise is fun …yeah, this one i’m not holding my breath for
• i want to shelter, provide understanding and happiness to, the people i love
• i want to be myself with no apologies (unless i really was wrong, which is rarely the case, but can happen from time to time)
and so this blog is my effort to catalog and organize my successes and failures on this path.
random thoughts on life, gushing reveries on fashion, and shameless venting on my irritants du jour can be expected.
somewhat entertaining, not very well written, reading fodder.
who wants a new life?
