Heat Wave

It has been shockingly hot here in town for the last couple of days, as it is throughout much of the country. I have a problem with heat and humidity - major heat intolerance, and have to be careful, but I finally had to go out today to mail some sales and do some errands. Unfortunately, I didn't get out as early as I had planned, and like Mad Dogs and Englishmen, went out in the midday sun, even though I had in hand an iced smoothie that I'd made and a large sunhat. If I had just gone to the Post Office and home, I would have been alright, but no, I HAD to go to the library, which was not a wise decision. Walking uphill in bright sun, I began to feel unsteady and I ducked into the local supermarket, which is thankfully, freezing, but I was still very overheated and it took a long time to cool down. People were moving slowly there and it was all I could do to not knock everything and everyone over in my path in order to get to the freezers.

I grabbed a bag of frozen peas and ran it all over my face and neck, but it took awhile to feel better and free of panic. Nobody noticed my distress save for one young man who was filling the freezers with other food. He came over to see if I was OK, brought me an empty plastic milk carton to sit on, and a bag of frozen corn in case I needed a replacement for the peas. I am always touched by acts of kindness and try to perform them myself as often as possible.

Nice young man at the C-Town, I thank you for helping me get through a scary half an hour. Walking home with a bag of Gatorade, I made the two blocks to my apartment but had to buy a cup of ice from the deli on the way...they only had a few left, so at 75 cents a cup, they were doing OK.

I passed a neighbor of mine carrying golf clubs for a day on the links, so I guess there's always someone who thinks they're impervious to danger on days like these. He's an angry and noisy guy with whom I have been at loggerheads for years, but I hope he survived the day.

The thunder and lightning storm passing through helped to cool temps down from 93 to a balmy 71 degrees, but I am sitting in a room with both an air conditioner and a fan blowing on me - I am the only one I know who searches for drafts to sit in front of. My 10 year old air conditioner has been on for 2 days, and I sure hope that it survives a little while longer.

Another summer in the city...pray to the Gods of Consolidated Edison to keep their grids in good order so we can be blackout-free!

New Bead Listings - DESTASH!

I have finally begun going through my bead stash and am winnowing out some beads that I have no use for or have too much of. They're all beautiful and deserve a better fate than to lie unused in their boxes and bags. I have listed a lot today and will continue to over the next few weeks, along with other supplies.

It's a great feeling to clear out to make way for new, which is something I have been doing for a couple of years now. Isn't it interesting how our tastes can change? Components that I bought a few years ago when I was first starting out are things that I would never choose now, and truthfully, I can hardly bear to look at jewelry I made in my first couple of years!

Remembering Theoni V. Aldredge

There was a memorial service for legendary costume designer Theoni V. Aldredge today at the New York Public Theater in New York City, where she designed 80 productions for them alone. The Public was/is also known as The New York Shakespeare Festival, run in those days by the equally legendary Joe Papp; it's now headed by Oskar Eustis, who hosted the service in the Newman Theater.

She was born in 1922, in Athens, Greece, and died in Connecticut this past January 2011. Her husband of 57 years is the wonderful character actor Tom Aldredge.

MTA: Tom Aldredge died on July 26, 2011, at age 83. He had been ill with lymphoma.

According to the program for today's memorial, Theoni designed over 100 Broadway productions, from plays to musicals, as well as feature films and ballet. Her Broadway career began in 1959 with Tennessee Williams' play "Sweet Bird of Youth" and continued with A Chorus Line, Hair, The Threepenny Opera (one of my favorites, starring the late, great Raul Julia) La Cage Aux Folles, Dreamgirls, The Rink, Barnum, Gypsy with Tyne Daly, 42nd Street, and so many others, some of which transferred from initial runs at the Pubic Theater. I think that my favorite was a production of "Much Ado About Nothing" in 1973 starring Sam Waterston and Kathleen Widdoes, directed by A.J Antoon, which was a beautiful show in World War I era ice cream colors that Theoni did so well. I had such a crush on Sam Waterston after that, and he spoke movingly of her today. Her film work included The Great Gatsby, Annie, Addams Family Values, The First Wives Club, The Rose, Moonstruck, and Ghostbusters. Here's a list of Broadway credits. Her last Broadway assignment, appropriately enough, was the 2008 revival of "A Chorus Line".

She was nominated for many awards and won, if my math is correct, 3 Tony Awards, for La Cage Aux Folles, Dreamgirls, Barnum, Annie, and 6 Drama Desk Awards for Peer Gynt, Two Gentlemen of Verona, Much Ado About Nothing, Annie, 42nd Street, and La Cage, again.

I met Theoni when I was a young teenager; I was so enthralled by her work on "Much Ado" that I wrote to her and she kindly invited me to meet her in the costume shop at the Public Theater. Dad came with me, and we had a lovely hour in her office, where she told me about her recent experiences on The Great Gatsby, and told me that it was a tough career with absolutely NO GLAMOUR involved. She was a quiet woman in sunglasses, elegantly dressed, calm, and very imposing. I never worked with her, which I regret, but I saw almost everything that she designed i New York and on film, and learned so much from her. For a number of years it seemed as if she designed every show on Broadway, whether it was a play or musical. The Public Theater was a hotbed of theatrical brilliance, and it's hard to describe how exciting the seasons were, especially the shows at the Delacorte in the summer. I assisted on a play there right out of school while Joe was still there, and really miss those days and the people we worked with.

At today's service, the speakers were Merope Vachlioti, her niece, actor Sam Waterston, set designer Ming Cho Lee, who collaborated with her on over 60 productions, actress Cigdem Onat, Tyne Daly, choreographer Bob Avian, costume designer and former assistant Martin Pakledinaz, Olympia Dukakis, Joel Grey and her widower, Tom Aldredge. All told stories, sang and/or read poems in loving tribute, and other friends and colleagues spoke afterward sharing memories. In the lobby was a slideshow of Theoni's many shows, and it was a treat to be taken down memory lane and realize how large a role she played in New York theatrical history. The range and style of her work, her skill with line, color and pattern and her eye for detail and character inspire me anew. It has been a tough year for me with more than one loss, including a loss of enthusiasm for resuming my design career, but as I stood there and watched the slide show twice, I felt the return of the excitement I felt as a teenager at the idea of making this my career. I had the unexpected pleasure of watching the slideshow with Olympia Dukakis and her husband, Louis Zorich, and we marveled at all of the famous faces in legendary productions that Theoni designed. It was magical, revisiting long-lost memories and memorable shows. Who can forget Olympia's performance as Rose in Moonstruck, with her proper suits that spoke volumes about her traditional background, her pride in what she'd accomplished as a wife and mother, as well as her sadness and fear at the idea of losing her husband's love. Theoni was as wonderful a storyteller as the many playwrights she worked with...and even better than some, truth be told. It is worth searching out some of her work... and happily, this is available! I ordered it and have enjoyed revisiting this lovely production.

Many thanks to Martin and all who put this moving tribute together!

Back in Business & Happy Spring!

Well, the move is accomplished, and I am still unpacking, so I'm not sure how soon I can set up my workspace, which means that until I figure it out, I will only be renewing handmade jewelry. I have plenty of ideas for new pieces, and can't wait to get started, but organizing everything is taking some time. I WILL be listing more vintage in my other shop, as I am letting go of a lot that I have been storing over the years - please check in there weekly for new goodies.

Resolving an estate is a fraught enterprise, and I am taking care of myself at last and am not rushing through this next phase of regrouping. The place is shaping up, and every box unpacked and contents put safely away is a victory. I have family memorabilia from many sources, and one of my jobs is to sort and catalog for myself and future generations, should they be interested. Hopefully, I will be blogging more; I have been to see a bit of theatre and opera locally and wish that I had the time to sort my thoughts and get them down here with pictures and information. I can recommend "How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying", which I saw in early March. The Frank Loesser score is wonderful, there are some winning performances and I was totally charmed by Harry Potter himself, Daniel Radcliffe, and quite impressed by his dancing. Perfect family/summer entertainment, and you'll be humming those fantastic songs for days afterward.

Moving On

The shops are closed until April 5, when I hope to be somewhat organized and can find all of my stock. Stop by after we reopen! Have a lovely week, all.

Pretty in PINK!!!

Check out this great Treasury on Etsy full of hot pink beauties, curated by Wheat Harvest Vintage. My item is the furry pink hat!

Brand New - Art Deco Elegance

I found these flat oval glass cabochons recently and while I have not the skill to set them in a sterling silver bezel, I wrapped one in a filigree stamping and admire its quiet opulence.

The glass oval is coated with silver and the play of pattern and texture is quite compelling. Note the layers of ribs, flowers and studs along the border. It doesn't need much else other than a novelty chain and closure.

What do you think?

Bergdorf Goodman Windows Bring Spring to Frigid Town

I passed by Bergdorf's a couple of weeks ago, armed with only my Smartphone camera, and took a bunch of picures of their amazing windows, a colorful refuge in the midst of a very cold winter. I loved the balloon sculptures by Jason Hackenwerth. Check out a bunch of my pictures at Flicker here.

Family and Fire Safety

Last night I read about a fellow Etsyian in Charlotte, North Carolina who has suffered an unimaginable tragedy: she lost her home, pets, and worst of all, her younger son in a house fire. Every member of the family (husband and older son, and the mother) was injured, and they lost a staggering number of pets - they had 13 cats and 9 dogs (though I believe some of the cats survived). The fire is so far assumed to be accidental, and the news reports mentioned that there were no smoke alarms in the house. The way that this was reported in the local media not so subtly pointed the finger at this family for not installing these basic safety devices. I am greatly disturbed by this story; I don't know the seller personally though I know of her, and I don't even want to think about what they are going through. The younger child went back for his pets and was trapped in a bedroom; he survived initially but later died in a hospital.

There is now a shop on Big Cartel dedicated to helping this family with their expenses, if anyone reading feels like helping out. Many other Etsyians are donating pieces to the cause. Here's a link to the story.

You can also click on the Helping Hearts button in the top left corner.

**UPDATE** The Helping Hearts shop on Big Cartel closed on March 8.***

Please, please, everyone reading this, install smoke alarms in your home and talk with your family about escape plans in the event of fire. I don't know if an alarm could have helped this family; surely with that many dogs in the house, they would have started barking right away and perhaps they felt that this was enough. Smoke alarms are inexpensive, and even if you live in a large house and need half a dozen, in the kitchen, hallways, stairs and bedroom corridors, it's well worth the expense. You also must have carbon monoxide detectors, as this is a silent killer.

New in the Shops - Blue and Red Love!