Pretty Pretty Bang Bang

It’s been a long week for some reason. I got a lot of work done, but the week feels like it has lasted forever. Fortunately, it’s Friday and it’s a three-day weekend. Yay! I know Steve really needs it after driving to and from Arkansas two days in a row. He was beat last night, mentally and physically. I hope this weekend resets his clock.

For a change we have no plans to go out of town. Ralph and Blair are in Chicago so a trip to Des Moines wasn’t even considered. Tomorrow night we’re going to dinner with Valerie and Kevin to celebrate Valerie’s birthday. Sunday night Duane and Prudy are coming over for dinner so we can celebrate Duane’s birthday. Should be a fun, relaxing weekend.

The weather today is perfect! It’s cooler and the humidity is lower. It makes me want to break out my jeans, but it will probably get too hot this afternoon for that. Regardless, I’ll take this over the massive heat wave we’ve had lately.

Everyone have a safe, relaxing weekend!

Happy birthday to my good friend Valerie who is…29 today. I won’t reveal her real age, but let’s just say she’s only a couple of months younger than I. Valerie and I met in 1984 when we both worked for Town and County Clothiers in the Battlefield Mall. It was not friendship at first sight. She thought I was a complete nerd and I thought she was a wild party animal. These first impressions were all due to our hairstyles. I styled mine with a vent brush and had the 80s wings, and she had a spiky, punkish ‘do that was frosted. In reality, I was spending my weekends drinking and partying at the frat houses while she lived at home under the watchful eye of her mother.

I have no idea what the turning point was in our relationship, but we became friends and have been that way ever since. I love her sense of humor, her style, her musical taste and her opinionated ways. Through thick and thin, we’ve remained friends and I can’t imagine my life without her. Happy Bert-day, Jot! Love, Tammy (the coolest).

As a writer for 417 Magazine I’m used to businesses and individuals being excited when I call to set up an interview. Most are thrilled to be profiled in the magazine and gladly take time to chat with me. Last week, I called a local boutique called Ashby’s to set up an interview for my Savvy Shopper section in the magazine. The owner, Roberta Wooldridge, was reluctant to talk to me. She wanted to know more about the article and admitted she wasn’t familiar with my section. No big deal, I thought, and explained how Savvy Shopper worked. After a few minutes she asked if she could think about it. Well, ok, but I was under a deadline and needed to hear from her in a few days. She agreed. I thought the whole conversation was a bit weird as I’ve never been turned down for an article, but I wasn’t too worried about it. Over the weekend, a friend told me a story about how rudely she had been treated while attempting to shop there, but I was still hopeful that all would work out.

Today I called her and had the most insulting conversation ever. She said she still wasn’t sure about it. That her boutique was special (yeah, aren’t they all) and most people compare it to others in the area. She asked again about my pieces and then said she never read the magazine. Ok, fine, I’ll explain it to you again. Then she asked what made me qualified to write about her place. Um, I’m a writer and a shopper. She asked where I shopped, so I named a couple of boutiques where I’ve bought things. She was quick to point out she was different. Yes Roberta, I know you’re SPECIAL. I told her I’d been in her store, then she made a snide comment about how her store isn’t geared toward people who shop at TJ Maxx. I politely told her that perhaps she wasn’t comfortable with us profiling her store and I should choose someone else for December. She agreed. I then called my editor and told him that it would be a cold day in hell before I wrote a single nice word about that store. I can tell you what makes them special: a snotty attitude and holier-than-thou fashion sense.

Truly great friends come along once in a blue moon and I’m very blessed to have a few in my life. One of my closest friends is Mary who I’ve known since childhood. We share the same artistic flair, family dysfunctions and geeky husbands (you know I love you Steve!). Although we lost touch for a number of years, reconnecting has been one of the best things to happen to me. It’s like time never passed and all we had to do was catch up on a day’s events. I adore her children (and word is they adore me), our husbands get along and we can always pick up where we left off regardless of how much time has passed since we last spoke.

So it was Mary I sought last night while in the middle of a small mid-life crisis. I’ve been feeling a little…weird lately. Guess I just don’t know where things are going with my jewelry and what I’m here to accomplish in this life. Turns out Mary had been feeling the same way too (no surprise there). We talked for a couple of hours, drank a beer and I returned home feeling almost normal. While Steve is my best friend and knows me inside and out, it’s people like Mary who can understand what I’m feeling without being judgmental.

So Hail Mary! Thanks for being my friend and loving me, flaws and all. Take some time out today to call or write your close friend and let them know how much they mean to you.

The last 36 hours were a whirlwind of activity. We left early Monday morning for KC and encountered a monster of a rainstorm right outside Springfield. We were crazy to drive through it, especially when we found out they had closed the road in Brighton shortly after we were on the other side, but we survived thankfully. After 45 intense minutes, we were out of the worst of the storm and joked that we weren’t sure if we needed a drink or a nap. We took neither, but stopped in Lowry City for a break and some water. We arrived in KC around noon and went straight to Oak Park Mall home to Nordstrom and other shopping faves. Steve was looking for cool boots, a jacket and new shirts while I was shopping for cosmetics and shoes. I want a leather motorcycle jacket, but am thinking vintage so Nordstrom wasn’t where I wanted to look for it. We puttered around, ate lunch, bought a couple of goodies (including these cute shoes) and waited for Ralph and Blair to arrive. They did around 3:30 and Ralph and I made a quick trip to the Plaza Banana Republic while the guys hit Streetside Records. Then it was time to get ready for our evening.

Thanks to the Embassy Suites, we had free shuttle service to dinner. The driver was very impressed we were eating at the original Peanut rather than something, say, classy. The Peanut is what my sister calls a “towny bar.” It has probably never been really cleaned, it’s smoky, the food isn’t remotely healthy, they have lots of beer, and if you’re wearing coordinated clothing you’re probably overdressed. They do, however, have the best food around. Knowing we were going to eat junk for dinner, I tried to cram in vegetables and nutrition earlier in the day so I didn’t feel too guilty about my meal. We started off the The Peanut’s famous wings. They are real chicken wings (not the drummies) drenched in mouth-watering sauce and served with home made blue cheese dressing. They were heavenly. On Ralph’s recommendation, we ordered the BLTs and cheese fries for dinner. Thankfully, we split an order of the fries which were deliciously crunchy and smothered in Rotel. The BLTs were the best I’ve ever had and people who say they don’t like bacon are lying (that’s a direct quote from my sister). After a couple of pitchers of beer, it was time to go so we grabbed a cab and we were off to the show.

The concert was spectacular! It was held at the Uptown Theater which was a really cool remodeled old theater. The fun part of the show was that you could take your drinks into the auditorium which is something you usually can’t do here. Here’s a picture of us taken before the concert started:

The band played for 2 straight hours and it was rockin’! They sounded really good and we danced off all our excess calories. Blair did double time as he was playing air guitar and drums during most of the concert. I did regret wearing the cool wedges I had chosen as we were standing most of the night, but the extra height made looking over everyone easier. Apologies to any short people behind me. We ended the evening with a very fun cab ride back to the hotel with the cab driver playing Journey on full blast and us singing along like idiots. It was hilarious. We had a quick nightcap in the hotel bar while Blair tried to locate the hotel where the band was staying (he was unsuccessful). This morning, we did just a bit of shopping before heading home. All in all, a fantastic extended weekend and a great concert. Thanks again to Ralph and Blair for the party planning!

It’s been a hectic weekend here at the Kirks household starting with our car dying in the parking lot of the local liquor store on Friday night. We tried to jump it, but no luck so we walked home, got the other car, and went over to Duane’s new pottery studio to work. Some pizza, salad and a couple of beers later and we felt better. On the way home, we attempted the jump again and this time it worked so Steve drove it around for 40 minutes to get the battery charged. Unfortunately, it didn’t take and we had to jump it again on Saturday before going to Sears for a replacement. All is well, thank goodness.

Today we teamed up with Duane and Prudy for a little road trip to Branson to see the Bodies exhibit. This is an exhibit of actual bodies that have been preserved in acrylic. You can see bone structures, veins, muscles and all the organs. It was fascinating! We get the audio tour which was nice as it gave us some additional information on the exhibit. I liked how the audio tour included information for children and adults. The woman at the counter told us that most adults like the children’s audio because it’s more entertaining and less medical so we listened to a few of them. I went back to the adult commentary when we saw entered the room with the cadaver slices. The slices were a cross-section view of the body, much like doctors see on an MRI. The most controversial part of the tour was the room with the fetuses at different stages. A docent was nearby to warn people of the content and direct them around it should they choose not to view it. We chose to go through it. I’m not sure how controversial it is unless you get into an argument on when life actually begins. I don’t want to necessarily debate that here, but I saw a 4 week-old fetus and it was amazing. I had to remind myself not to think too hard about them being real preserved babies because it meant that they were never born. It was fascinating and sad at the same time.

We did do a little shopping at the Branson outlet malls, but nothing overly exciting was purchased. Steve did get a cool jacket at Eddie Bauer (of all places) and I found some great denim pants at Banana Republic. We ended the day with great margaritas and fresh guacamole at Cantina Lauredo on the Landing. We just got home and now it’s time to pack to leave for KC in the morning to meet Ralph and Blair for the Crowded House concert. Whew!

Oh my. I think I’m in love. I have found the most glorious boots on the planet. They are patent, low wedge, pointed-toe delights from one of my faves, Stuart Weitzman. They are definitely on my must-have wish list for fall. I need to get a job to support my shopping habits!

Tomorrow marks the opening day of the new shoe department at Saks Fifth Avenue’s flagship store in New York City. The eighth floor shoe department is so large it even has it’s own zip code. Yep, over 10,000 square feet housing more than 100,000 pairs of shoes. Mmmmm, my version of heaven. So, with the new opening comes the latest in fall footwear fashions. Here’s a sample of what’s hot according to Saks:

• The Shoe Bootie: Rather than wear regular pumps with a skirt, try the shoe bootie this fall. SFA suggests going for something metallic like these from Giuseppe Zanotti.

• Pumps are back in a big way and, thankfully, the pointed toe is in. Rather than plain black patent (which is always chic) why not punch up your wardrobe with metallic gold python from Jimmy Choo. It’s a timeless look in an updated material.

• No wardrobe would be complete this season without some animal print, specifically leopard. I’m not a big fan of animal print, but I do like punches of it in accessories. These boots by shoe god Christian Louboutin are to die for. I’m drooling now.

• In a sea of black, color takes center stage this season. Why not add a punch of color at your feet? Check out these open-toed pumps from Prada. The shot of green makes them modern, while the silhouette keeps them timeless.

• Metallic accents are all over the runways this fall and the shinier the better. Many shoes are going for a mirrored look like these from Giuseppe Zanotti. If really shiny metallic isn’t your style, choose one that’s distressed or textured. You’ll still look chic.

• Finally, with the holiday season just around the corner, we can’t leave out evening shoes. These are jewelry for your feet so have some fun with them. Purple is the hot color replacing black this year so choose something with a shot of this royal hue. Check out these from Pedro Garcia. Yummy!

Now, I realize I’ve shown you designer shoes at outrageous prices, but you can find all sorts of styles at lower prices. So, get out there and get shopping!

I spent most of the day today without the Internet or email and I can tell you it’s both relaxing and irritating. For some reason, my brain kept thinking of all these fabulous websites for design research and I’d head down the hall to the computer only to be reminded that I had no Internet access. Every time I ventured near the computer I had the urge to jostle the mouse to see if I had email. Of course I didn’t!

This afternoon it was double trouble in the Red Bee studios as Rhiannon and Lori both came over to work. We would have accomplished so much had my supplier not run out of 12 gauge fine silver wire. Seriously, who in the hell runs out of 12 ga FS wire?! However, they both worked hard and did a lot in the 2.5 hours they worked. Plus, it was fun to have them around. I set up a granulation spot and worked on some new pieces. I also took some new photos so check out my website for the new pieces. Most won’t be available until the first weekend in October when I unveil them at the Waverly House show.

So, even though I was unplugged for most of the day, I still managed to get quite a bit done. Plus, it’s nice not to think about the World Wide Web for awhile.

With temperatures in the triple digits most people take refuge in air-conditioned comfort or pools. Not us. We prefer to assemble a gazebo on our patio in the hot sun. That was the plan yesterday. We woke around 8 (early, considering our Friday night festivities), drank some coffee and got dressed to work in the yard. At 10 am it was already in the 80s and temps were rising fast. We dragged all the furniture off the patio and opened the box. Steve got out the instructions and started going over the assembly while I took the pieces out and counted them. All there and we were ready to go. We’d been outside about 45 minutes and were drenched. The instructions said it should take 45 minutes to assemble so we figured we’d double the time in estimation. I unwrapped the first two pieces and discovered the main top frame had been crushed. The round piece was oval. No big deal, I thought, I’m a metalsmith and can round this out. I went inside to my studio to hammer out the piece and discovered one of the welds had been broken. I told Steve there was no way I was going to use this and I didn’t have a welder to fix it any way. So he called the company, left a message we needed a replacement piece, we reassembled the patio and were done. All in all, about 1 hour 15 minutes of sweating for nothing. Guess it’s a sign we had no business erecting a gazebo in 100 degree weather. Next weekend is supposed to be cooler so maybe it’s good we’re waiting.