Got a J-O-B

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Posted by Alicia on August 31, 2010 – 9:40 pm

I’m taking Dooce‘s sage advice and I won’t talk about work on my blog, but gosh, I don’t know how people with day jobs get time to blog at all. I’m exhausted and I don’t even start until tomorrow! I got the job I was hoping for, the one I planned my trip to London around, that I hope will jumpstart my career! And did I mention I start tomorrow? Tomorrow? I’m barely off the plane! How would you modify the saying “today is the first day of the rest of your life” to say that today was the last day of the old part of your life before the rest of it started? Tomorrow I get a grown up job, a 40-hour work week, planned vacations months in advance — I’ve got a one-way ticket on a train that’s not going to stop for another 40+ years! And I thought school would never end.

[Photo above taken on Portobello Road in Notting Hill, by me.]

From London with Love

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Posted by Alicia on August 28, 2010 – 6:58 pm

I suppose my ambition to post while I was away on holiday (notice how I am British after 8 days) was, well, ambitious because here I am the night before I’m headed back to Brooklyn, finally saying hello!

I’ve had such an adventure over here, and I’ll be writing about it all next week, and until I’ve exhausted all of my thoughts, stories and most importantly, photos! I’ve got all my British loot (Union flags not included) to show you, like the huge stack of UK shelter mags that I’m hauling home, and all of my Cath Kidston garb. I had to buy a large duffel bag because the smaller one I packed to bring home as a second piece of luggage was too small!

I’ll be back on American soil tomorrow, so I’ll start writing then or on Monday. Talk to you then!

I’m coming, Cath Kidston!

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Posted by Alicia on August 20, 2010 – 3:52 pm

It’s been crazy here since I last posted. I guess I didn’t get around to blogging photos of places I might be headed, but that just makes it all the more surprising for you when I post my own photos, right?

On Wednesday, I stayed up all night. Literally. This was the second all-nighter I’ve ever pulled in my life, and it’s been four years since the first. I guess the excitement of going away just made my brain go into overdrive and reject sleeping. So at 8:30am, I got dressed and went to J&R, where I got a new Panasonic Lumix ZR3. I’ve been wanting a Lumix for at least a year now, finally I had a reason to splurge. I decided it wasn’t worth it to lug my Canon EOS 30D around. In fact, I rarely find it worth it to have, and I’m looking into selling it! Anyway, after I got home, I crashed for a few hours, did more shopping, laundry, etc, went to bed at a reasonable hour, and here I am with about 2-1/2 hours until I leave for the airport, blogging! I haven’t even packed yet. But that’s not a big concern. seeing as I have almost everything out on the table.

So, here I go! I can’t wait! I am so excited to go to a Cath Kidston store. I’ve become a fan from reading Yvonne’s blog, Yvestown. She’s a Cath fanatic! Is it weird that when I found out I was going to London, the first thing and last thing I thought about was Cath Kidston?

An Orla Kiely bus in Hong Kong! photo from Apartment Therapy

Oh my, I almost forgot about Orla Kiely! In addition to her shop in on Monmouth Street, I’ll also have to head into a Heal’s on recommendation from Print & Pattern. Y’all, I’m starting to worry. I might have to buy another suitcase over there just to bring everything home that I’m going to buy! Maybe I should consider packing a duffel bag just in case?

Well, I’m off. Talk to you on the other side of the pond!

London!

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Posted by Alicia on August 18, 2010 – 11:41 pm

photo by Holly Becker on flickr for Decor8

I’m going to be there on Saturday! If someone had told me last Wednesday that I would be in London the weekend after next, I would have laughed and laughed. I have no plans to go abroad! I would have said. But oh, how fast things can change when your roommate is a lawyer-to-be and you’re unemployed, and you haven’t been on an airplane in four years… oh, boy.

So, my travel plans are that I am leaving New York late Friday evening, and arriving in Paris around lunchtime the next day. I have a tiny little 2-hour layover, which is about as perfect a layover can be, and not only have I been to Paris before, I’ve also flown out of Charles de Gaulle on two round-trips, so it’s not at all disappointing to be in France and not leave the airport. What would have been too tantalizing would have been flying IcelandAir, which has a stopover in Reykjavik (if you do not want to be teased by amazing images of Iceland, I do not recommend you Google Image it). But if I don’t get the job I’m hoping for that’s where I’m headed next! ha-HA! Anyway, then I’ll be in London before mid-afternoon on Saturday! This is so nuts! Someone please pinch me!


photo by susannah * photobird on flickr

I’ve decided not to do research for this. I ruined my trip to Prague in 2006 when rain messed with my itinerary. So gone are the times of mapping out the sights. Big Ben and Buckingham Palace are the only obvious requisites to hit, and I’m not one of these spends-a-whole-day-at-the-MoMA-and-still-doesn’t-see-everything kind of gals. I’m really the whips-through-any-museum-in-30-minutes-and-drags-her-feet-while-her-companions-act-like-old-people type. So in London terms, it’s like, hop on the tube, *snapsnapsnap* photos of Big Ben, wave to the Queen, ooh, shopping! Also, other than photography, I really hate looking, acting like, or otherwise being a tourist, so I try to avoid the traps whenever possible.

But one thing I do love to research is travel times to other cities. I learned from Seat 61 that it costs only £30.50 and about 8 hours each way to take a train and then a ferry from London to Dublin. Sometime next week I think I’ll head over there and stay in a hostel for the night, then go on to Belfast, then to Edinburgh, and then back down to London. Nothing is more fun to me than taking ferries (and trains) in Europe. But don’t be surprised if I don’t do this!

photo by iSew on flickr

Now, I know 95% of people who find themselves in London would spend the entire week just in London. But I’m not like that. In 2005, I went on a 23-day backpacking trip that took me through Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Oslo, Berlin, Vienna, Venice, Rimini and back to Paris. I would have liked more time in Scandinavia, especially outside of the big cities in Sweden (can spend a week touring Benita‘s house, please?), but we spent far too long on the beach in Rimini, which was only for 5 days (and while we were there we took day trips to Florence and San Marino, both extremely worth it). I prefer to fly by the seat of my pants. Besides, cities are all quite similar, it’s the culture of the different countries that I care most about. I could care less about museums and parks, what I want to do is walk the streets, talk to the people, shop, and eat the food. That’s all I could ask for.

Oh, and I forgot to mention that with any luck, I’ll be meeting up with my friend Rosie who lives in Cambridge. Hi, Rosie! We met in Florence in 2006 when we were studying at a language school there. We lived in the same apartment for a week (also with another girl from Mexico City, who I really ought to have kept in touch with).

Between now and Friday, I’ll be posting Flickr finds of the UK and decor-related places I might visit, and also a wish list of things I need to buy or do while I’m there! And I’ll be bringing my laptop with me, so I’ll be blogging as often as I can, and with any luck I’ll be posting pictures of this trip for the next year! he-he.

If you have any recommendations of where to do anywhere in the UK, please leave comments! I will absolutely look into everything that’s recommended.

New ‘do!

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Posted by Alicia on August 18, 2010 – 6:38 pm

I was in dire need of a haircut. I needed something new. Well, new on top of my new hair color, that is.

So I went to Slope Suds, which is about a half a mile from me in Park Slope. I’ve only been there once before while they were under renovations, but the super convenient-for-me location plus a need to abandon my old, Soho-based salon (which, in reality, I’d only been to twice, so is it really “mine”?) makes it my go-to place.


The amazing–no, really, amazing–Vivi cut my hair. I shouldn’t say cut. I should say, restyled my life. Vivi is brilliant, and also the sweetest, best person to talk to. Are you in need of a therapist? Go to Vivi for half the price of a ph.D AND get your hair done at the same time! Seriously, hair dressers should all be given honorary licenses to practice. Anyway, we had a great talk, she didn’t say I looked 16 like all the other hair dressers do, and that’s about all I need in a person. Not to mention the fact that my hair looks fab, and so do my eyebrows, or former caterpillars.


And voila! She also showed me how to use this volumizing mousse I bought from them. I blow-dry my hair flipped upside down and with my hands, and all the other hair dressers always try to get me to spritz stuff in my hair after it’s already dry or use this gross hair gel that makes my fingers and my hair all greasy and nasty, but this stuff I put in before I blow-dry, leaving my hair nice and dry and just fine to run my fingers through to fluff it up. It also works so much better than all that other goop.

So, if you live in NYC, I don’t care if you’re in Parkchester or Queens or who knows where in Staten Island (just kidding, Staten Island, I know where you are, I just don’t know why you are. Yuk, yuk. No, no, no, Heather from Get to Fixin’ lives there!), then go see my girl, Vivi! Hi, Vivi!


Jolly got jealous of all my picture taking and wanted one, too. I suppose you haven’t been formally introduced. This is Jolly, my 3-1/2 year old amazing little puppy. I adopted her when she was just 7 weeks old from the ASPCA. I did a dog DNA test on her a few years back and it said she is predominantly Miniature Pinscher and German Shepherd, but she’s also very long and has stubby legs, so she must have a hound like a Dachshund in her, too. Who knows! But she’s my 32 pound baby and it seems like I spend all my waking hours with her. Jolly says hi!

What I’ve Been Buying – Etsy

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Posted by Alicia on August 18, 2010 – 3:44 am

I’ve been buying new things for the apartment from all over, but mostly thrift stores, Craigslist, eBay, Ikea and of course, Etsy. Here’s some of the things I’ve picked up that will be making their debut in photos in the time to come.


This little guy (or gal?) hasn’t arrived yet, but when it does it will be promptly put to work waking me up in the morning. It’s from a shop called 8bits.


Granny blankets! I’m getting old. Not quite, but why is it that I suddenly cannot resist an afghan? I got the one one the left from Atelier Afra, handmade just for me in Istanbul, Turkey. I haven’t figured out what to do with it yet, but it is so pretty, I couldn’t resist. The one on the right was the best vintage find from A Little Vintage Shop, and it lives on the back of one of the sofas in the living room. I also bought a vintage accordion wood peg rack for the entryway.


One of my favorite sellers is Prost to the Host. Alysia is an expert with tissue paper! I’ve got a 12″ pom hanging over the kitchen table in small dots (like the one on the right, above), and a 5-pom garland above the TV in white, browns and raisin (not the zebra and hot pink one, but isn’t that snazzy?). Can I please fill my whole apartment with them?

On another note — I learned today that I have over a week longer until I hear back from the job I really want *fingers and toes crossed*, so in the meantime I’ll decide tomorrow whether or not to jet off to London while my roommate is being sent there for work! I haven’t been abroad since 2006, and never to the UK, but it’s still not set in stone whether or not I’ll be going. But you’ll be the first to know!

5AM Blog Posts

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Posted by Alicia on August 17, 2010 – 5:28 am

Yes, I exist!

Like everything else in my life, my desire to keep a blog ebbs and flows. For months in a row I’ll have a strong urge to share my life with the Internet, and then it’s like I fell off a cliff (not this time, no broken bones here!) and I’m MIA for just as long as I kept in touch. I love blogging, but it’s a lot of work, and lately I’ve gotten good at keeping up with others’ blogs (see my oh-so-amazing and quite extensive blogroll on the sidebar) and — get this — actually decorating and doing crafts, instead of just dreaming about it! So I didn’t want to ruin that by taking the time to stop and write. But I’m still going to try! Because I just can’t stay away. WordPress, you and I are meant to be.

So, I’ve put in a lovely flag banner header and some cute icons, updated my blogroll (yes, I do really read 70+ blogs a day, and I would never be able to do it without Google Reader), and downloaded the Hipstamatic app to my iPhone to make things a little more fun.

Hope I see you around this time!

Inspiration

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Posted by Alicia on May 26, 2010 – 2:25 am

I’m hard at work planning the decor for the apartment. Literally. I’ve spent day and night for the past week thinking and fantasizing. I’m working off of two photos I found.

Pablo and Rob’s Apartment Therapy house tour was enlightening. Instantly I was all, “I have to do this.” And because of that, I really have been up until 5am several days in a row, searching for the perfect couches (more on that in the next post). I love the two one-arm loveseats, arms facing in, because my first instinct would be to do it the other way around. And then the almost arm-height side tables. And the arco-style lamp. Perfection.

My other inspiration photo has been a Flickr favorite of mine for a long, long while and has been featured on every shelter blog at one time or another. Olya‘s dining table and chairs are so simple, with only two (three if you count the chrome) colors used, plus the genius use of the Japanese art, which isn’t too bright, but colorful. So amazing. I already have one black and one white pillow, which are the same size, now all I have to do is find the perfect small-scale table and the two bertoia chairs! Ha! Another thing which has kept me up until 5am. It’s the table I’ve been searching for. I know I’m never going to find bertoia chairs for $55 and $20 like Olya did (un-freakin’-believable), I’m going to buy them new (by Knoll, not knockoffs! First “big girl” investment pieces). The table looks similar to an Eames round table at Design Within Reach, but is smaller and slightly different. Still searching.

I have hardly given a thought to my bedroom, and certainly no attention to the bathroom (which is also lovely, though windowless). But it’s starting to come together, and once I buy a bed and can move in, it will be much easier to imagine things the way I’d like them to be.

New apartment – first photos

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Posted by Alicia on May 26, 2010 – 1:45 am

Fact: This is the fourth apartment I will have lived in since January 2007. Fact: I have always (unfortunately) paid a realtor fee for my apartments, but this time was the lowest. Fact: I always seem to be really quick about picking apartments.

It was early May. I knew I didn’t need to be looking at apartments yet, but there I was on craigslist e-mailing realtors about listings. I set it up to see a grueling 7 apartments in a few hour span. There was no pressing need to take any of them, and I nearly didn’t. But when I saw this apartment, my apartment, I was stunned, and I couldn’t get it off my mind. Never have I seen such a beautiful, newly renovated apartment in my time in New York City, mostly because I couldn’t afford anything so nice looking. But, get this, it’s the least expensive apartment I’ve ever rented! Yes! So it was a no brainer. By the end of the night I had already e-mailed the realtor several times ranging from “I’m definitely still thinking about it,” to, “I am pretty sure, but will let you know in the morning,” to, “I WANT IT! DON’T SHOW IT TO ANYONE ELSE!” around 11pm. The next day I signed the lease! I move in June 1.

Here are the photos I took on my iPhone during my inital tour. They are still putting the finishing touches on it, hence the ladder and the paper on the floors. I’ll take even more once I get the keys this weekend.

Top photo: 2/3rds of the living room/kitchen, which is a little under 300 square feet.

The kitchen (so pretty, right?)

The right bedroom (I’ve got 2! One for a roommate!), which probably won’t be mine. They are nearly identical, except (the one which might be) mine has its closet in the hallway instead of in the bedroom. I’ll show you soon.

Painstaken floorplan

More soon!