kim said

Steph's Meme: The Six Word Memoir

Childhood friend and fabulous mom Steph from Conversations with Grace tagged me with this meme:

1. Write your own six word memoir.
2. Post it on your blog and include a visual illustration if you want.
3. Link to the person that tagged you in your post so we can track it as it travels across the blogosphere.
4. Tag more blogs with links if you want.

So many books, so little time.

I tag My Favorite Color Is Shiny, I Like Tomatoes but Not Tom Hanks, & Ant from Naptown.

Spring Fling in Florence

Last weekend in the country with my sister and her husband's family was enchanting. We ate incredible food, played scrabble, and walked in the snow. This evening I'm off to Florence to meet up with the FIDM Study Tour for the Italian portion of the their trip. Hello springtime--the weather is supposed to be fantastic!

In the meantime,
* Read my Q&A with the San Francisco-based designers behind the new line OdileOdette.
* This is mighty heartwarming.
* Can't wait to check out this London bookshop.

Special Message for a Special Person

Dear Lily,

Today I had tea, a scone with jam and cream, and a piece of cake at an Orangery. (An orangery is kind of like a Mousery, only it's for oranges, not mice). The Orangery was behind a palace with a beautiful garden.

I wish you could've been there with me!

Love,
Kim

Speaking of Muses

Though I've been told I don't really have much of a sense of humor, I am still Gavin's Thalia, the muse of comedy. I can be goofy every once in a blue moon and I have that physical comedy thing going for me, unintentionally. Which sometimes means I'm flying through the air after tripping over a crack in the sidewalk. I'm also known as "Talia of the Shire" when I wear my hat. More importantly, I'm a pancake muse. Yesterday Gavin surprised me with a strawberry pancake and a chocolate cherry pancake. For dinner, no less. And speaking of chocolate, the other night I put Pink of Perfection's chocolate truffle recipe to the test with great success. You should try it.

In other news, I'm trying to find a cheap-n-charming b&b in Oxford for Wednesday night--so if anyone has a hot tip, please let me know! I have to skedaddle. Right now I'm caught in the middle of a really long break-up with Gilberte.

Image: Hyde Park, Saturday, March 8

On Muses; Overheard in Hampstead

Sitting in a Hampstead coffee shop today, I overheard this conversation between a bored teenage Claudia Schiffer look-alike and her mom.

Mom: Wouldn't you like to be someone's muse?
Daughter: What's a muse?
Mom: It's a person who inspires an artist.
Daughter: Oh! You mean like Victoria Beckham and the way she inspires Marc Jacobs?

Quick Dispatch from The Big Easy

And this is the only thing that is quick, darlin'. Everyone really does say "good mornin'" and "how ya'all doin," the rum butter bread pudding at the Napoleon House is like heaven melting in your mouth, and Italianate is my new favorite architectural style. N'awlins is everything I thought it would be and more.

An Update from Your Not-So-Tragic Heroine

What I've been up to lately:
* Seeing Aviv Geffen with special guest Steven Wilson at Bush Hall
* Having my first bacon roll (at Honest Sausage in Regent's Park)
* Walking around Fleet Street (see Twinings pic above)
* Exploring the Wallace Collection and having tea on monogrammed plates in their gorgeous courtyard
* Taking a Robert Burns day tour of the Kenwood House in Hampstead Heath and then having tea and a read at the Spanish Inn (pic of G. above)
* Seeing U2 cover band Achtung Baby
* Visiting Dulwich Picture Gallery for the "Age of Enchantment" exhibit featuring Aubrey Beardsley and contemporaries and as a bonus getting to see one of Joshua Reynolds two portraits of Sarah Siddons as The Tragic Muse (the other is at the Huntington in Pasadena)

A Week's Worth of Adventure

If someone asked me to dream up my vision of the perfect beauty salon, it would look exact like Taylor Taylor near Spitalfields Market in London. From the wrought iron birdcage with its sweetly chirping occupants to my very own mismatched china tea service, the vibe was Miss Havisham meets (insert your favorite Lawrence Alma-Tadema painting here). The ultra-luxe shampoo room is actually a candlelit gold mosaic cavern. Yes, please! (The pix of the salon weren't taken by me--to see more, head here.) Thanks to stylist Siobhan Benson for the fringe (pictured above).





Last night we had a nightcap with the ghosts of murdered highwaymen at the Spaniard's Inn (former haunt of Charles Dickens and Keats), while earlier that day we wandered around Hyde Park, snapping photos of the Italian Gardens  and snacking on lemon cake (G: "Hawaii called.  They want their sugar plantations back.") and hot chocolate (above) at the Lido.

Happy Birthday, Nicki!

Today is the birthday of my dear friend Nicki Richesin, the truest confidant and co-conspirator that a girl could ask for. Over the last decade her unflagging support and generosity have empowered me creatively and personally in countless ways. She's a wonderful mother, a talented editor and poet, and an inspiration to so many people who know her. I wish her all the best for the coming year: Great success with her latest book project and the business she and her husband are launching; many memorable moments with her incredible daughter; and all the novels, flowers, and chocolates she desires. Happy Birthday, Nicki!

Elizabethan Heartthrobs, Etc.

Yesterday, under gorgeous blue skies, we walked though St. James Park (where I imagined Gainsborough's lovely models sashaying along in furbelowed frocks) to Buckingham Palace and then crossed over Green Park to Piccadilly, where G. and I parted ways. I headed off for a secret assignation with Sir Philip Sidney among the Tudor Collection at the National Portrait Gallery, while he went shopping for music. Later, I ended up having not one, but two teas in Covent Garden. The first was at Candy Cakes, which was really crowded. So we moved over to another little tea shop a few blocks away. I can't remember the name of the place but the elderly proprietor is the sweetest man. He convinced me I had to have the almond cake pictured above (with the sugar cherry), but alas, I only had room left for a bite. The surprise mentioned in yesterday's post turned out to be tickets to the last night of Glengarry Glen Ross at The Apollo. The movie was much better than the play and though you'd think they would give it their all for the final performance, the actors seemed instead to be channeling Britney at the VMAs.