R. Crumb's "A Short History of America" via @billykirkinc
A fairly accurate account of the built heritage history of North America, via Billykirk.
I am:
25. Awkward. Aloof.
I live in:
Toronto, ON
I work as a:
Heritage Planner
I adventure with:
Bismarck (Lab/Husky/Trouble)
Good Friends (Oldest, Dearest)
New Friends (Maybe you?)
I read a lot of:
Science Fiction
Travel Adventure
Food Science
Trail Guides
Email:
lauren.r.archer@gmail.com
Twitter:
@laurenarcher
I've been researching Canadian-made apparel, and stumbled upon this 100% Merino Wool scarf from Red Canoe in the Province of Ontario official tartan.
From the Red Canoe website:
"National Heritage Brands 100% Merino Wool Tartan Scarves are proudly woven and manufactured in Canada. Each province in Canada has its own unique tartan that is a classic statement of our proud heritage.
Ontario
Ontario got its name from the Iroquois word, "Kanadario" meaning, "sparkling water." One sixth of the province is covered by pure, freshwater lakes and rivers – 177 390 km2! This is the most populated province in Canada with over 10 million people. Ontario’s capital Toronto is the largest city in Canada and a major industrial center. The Nation’s Capital Ottawa is also in Ontario. The further North one travels, the cleaner the lakes, more abundant the wildlife and fewer the people. Just watch out for moose on the road!"
Other provinces are available too, I am especially fond of Newfoundland (sans Labrador):
I have a bad habit of watching movies from the perspective of the architecture. (For example: Up is actually about the integrity and durability of Victorian houses.)
I love the Georgian manors of The Stepford Wives (1975). Traditionally, the strict symmetry of Georgian buildings, be they simple log structures or ornate mansions, represented a modicum of order and control over what was perceived by early European settlers as a wild, harsh continent.
(In reality, the New World had been inhabited for over 12,000 years prior to European contact, and although not obvious to the newcomers, the natural landscape had embraced the habits and impacts of humanity long before. But I digress.)
That symbolism of taming the 'unknown' was definitely lost in the 2004 remake.
Indecently, the last image in the series is the home of a female psychoanalyst who sympathizes with the creative, intelligent heroine’s fear of losing herself, is also a fantastic example of National Park Service Rustic. This "Parkitecture" was designed to harmonize with the natural environment.
I also like the women's coveralls that pepper the film.
And the robots, the terrifying Misogyny-born robots.
My Filson Mackinaw wool vest came in the mail today. I fell in love with it as soon as I got it out of the box. Unfortunately it fit too large, so I'm going to have to swap it for a size smaller.
I'm usually a size medium, but I like my vests to fit a bit snug, so I went a size down. Now I'm looking at the XS, which I predict will be perfect. :)I am looking for, but have not yet found, a well-made pair of ladies coveralls. My main concern with coveralls is how to make them work with curves. Braces and breasts are not a very stable combination. I'm still trying to figure out how to wear suspenders without having them roll out to the sides of my body (or inward. Either is uncomfortable.) The lack of definition around the waist of coveralls always seems to look boxy, and disproportioned on me.
I stumbled upon this Archival Clothing entry, which makes the answer exceedingly clear: Wear a belt. Of course!
(And X pulls off coveralls with ease! I suspect this has a lot to do with confidence in personal style, something I'm still working on.)
Now I just need to find the right pair.
I'm considering just getting a pait of Dickies hickory striped overalls to try the look out, but am not entirely sold on the idea.
I'm also searching for a warm, uncomplicated Norwegian sweater in grey or oatmeal. What I'd like most is a Devold Nansen sweater, but unfortunately I doubt I'd be able to afford a new one by the end of the winter.
I'm thinking I should take my search into the world of the real, and go thrifting this weekend.
(I do know of a handful of small, locally run thrift shops outside of the Greater Toronto Area...)
Road Trip?
Heritage farm tour.
Homemade quinoa vegetable soup. (A beautiful day can still be chilly.)
Bismarck was ecstatic to be out in the rain. Translation: The dog behaved badly, dragged me through wet woods, had me chasing him, chasing geese, over hill and (terrifyingly) road. He slipped his collar. Cheeky.
(The main reason I have bought so many pairs of shoes is because DeForest ate one of each of my favourite shoes this spring. Thankfully, he has lost interest in eating footwear.)
By the end of the walk the only part of me that was dry or warm was my feet.
Wonderful :)
It's a long term goal of mine to casually work ties into my every-day office wear. Skinny ties: I want it to be a smooth but enevitable transition.
Lately I've been thinking the right approach is to start with a bow tie. Why? Because I'm writing my own rules, and because I feel like the monopoly guys have on long ties isn't as applicable to bow ties.
It's an experiement. Bear with.
I think that this reversible bow tie from Pierrepont Hicks is a good start.
"Handcrafted from a wool silk blend, with 100% blue silk twill, this reversible bow tie is self-tying and adjustable in length. 1 3/4" at widest point."
Now, how I'm going to pull it off, that's another question.
It probably doesn't matter to anyone outside of Canada, but last week Netflix launched their Canadian site.
I'm not sure if it is because I am super keen or what, but I'm lucky enough to have a month of free access to legally streaming video.
Steve McQueen was my first search request (Tom Baker being my second) and I was pleased to see The Thomas Crown Affair pop up.
Heists, basically, are my thing.
Even more: Collar bars (or collar pins, am not sure which is proper to use in Canada.) Basically, that bit of metal holds that two ends of a dress shirt collar together, passing underneath the knot of the tie.
I've seen them used frequently on (era-influenced, heist-driven) White Collar, but never in use in real life, wherein seeing a tie clip is a treat.
Why is that?
Anyway, enjoy this Faye Dunaway and Steve McQueen eye candy.
I recently cut off six inches of hair. This, coupled with the feeling that I am constantly under-produced at weddings, led me to buy a black flower-and-feather headpiece for the affair. It meant keeping my preparation time low, but still pleasing he bride.
Here's the thing: On the day-to-day I don't wear make-up. I don't spend more than five minutes a day on my hair. (It's a personal choice!)
But...I will do whatever I can to please a bride on her wedding day :)
I found this dress after a long, arduous search for a simple, strapless, a-line dress that I could wear repeatedly into the foreseeable future.
It is designed and manufactured locally by Toronto designer Pam Chorley, who also owns and operates Fashion Crimes on Queen West, one of the key fashion and design districts of the City.
The dress is slightly longer than the majority of what is available out there right now, making it quite comfortable without compromising the style.
The saleswomen at Fashion Crimes were also super-helpful to super-picky me.
To them I say: Thanks.
It's actually very warm in Toronto today, no need for these yet.
Maybe I should go jump in the lake...
The jury is still out on my Frye Erin Oxfords. I love the simple capped-toe style, but they seem a bit lengthy. I take a size 8.5-9 and the 9 is about a quarter of an inch too long to say they fit well.
As for the quality: Well, I'll let you know. I'm less than impressed with the soles, but they may hold out better than I predict. This is my first pair of oxfords, there is definetly a learning curve or two for me to travel.
For now: Leftovers.
As per The Plan, I picked up a cotton sack of On Canada Wild Rice to try at the Metro near my work. It is gathered and roasted locally, in Keewatin, Ontario.
It comes with a small recipe book, including with nutritional info and cooking instructions.
Wild rice is low in fat and high in protein, lysine (an amino acid) and dietary fiber. It is a good source of potassium, phosphorus, thiamine, riboflavin and niacin. And importantly for me it is also gluten free!
It takes longer than traditional rice to cook, about 1 hour in total, but it was well worth the wait.
Incidently, it is also delicious! I served the wild rice with yellow thai curry and fresh greens. Wild rice is roasted, like coffee, and has a rich, nutty flavor. It's texture is a lot like long grain traditional rice, even though wild rice is biologically not related to traditional rice. Even my extra-picky partner gave wild rice a thumbs up!
After dinner I took Bismarck out for a walk. We chased this gaggle of Canada Geese out of the road.
Oh Canada!
I'm going to a bachelorette party tonight. As an offering to the lady-goddesses, I'm making my famous vegetarian jello shooters.
Bring to boil:
1 cup Pomegranate Juice
1.5 tsp Agar Agar powder
1/4 cup sugar
Stir until dissolved.
Remove from heat, add:
1 cup vodka of choice
The vodka should be stored in the freezer for best results.
Pour into shooter cups, place in the fridge.
Let set, abou 1 hour.
Prepare thy stomach with gluten-free gnocchi.
Have a good night :)
The sun was just rising when I took Bismarck out this morning at 6:45am, it went down a little after 7pm. Soon I'll be leaving for work & coming home in darkness.
Oh, Canada.I picked up my Frye Erin Oxfords at the Post Office on my way home from work this evening.
I spent a lot of time looking for a well-made affordable ladies oxford.
I'm pretty happy with the look and feel of these, but I haven't had he chance to walk with them yet.
Take care.
Two monarch butterflys were furiously circling this flowering bush. I managed to catch one! (The humane way.)