Book Report: Neil Gaiman Love Edition

"People respond to the stories. They tell them themselves. The stories spread, and as people tell them, the stories change the tellers. Because now the folk who never had any thought in their head but how to run from lions and keep far enough away from rivers that the crocodiles don't get an easy meal, now they're starting to dream about a whole new place to live. The world may be the same, but the wallpaper's changed. Yes? People still have the same story, the one where they get born and they do stuff and they die, but now the story means something different to what it meant before."


The trickster god Anansi's explanation of stories and the way they instill dreams in people is the perfect distillation of Anansi Boys, a kind-of fantasy, a little bit ghost story, quite a bit funny, magical realist novel by Neil Gaiman. In it, Fat Charlie Nancy learns some unbelievable things after the death of his embarrassing, over-the-top father: Mr. Nancy was actually a god and he had two sons.

Soon after he learns this, Fat Charlie's life spins into chaos: his brother, Spider, shows up and impersonates Fat Charlie, causing trouble with his white-collar criminal boss and stealing Rosie, Fat Charlie's fiance. In trying to sort out his life, Fat Charlie begins an adventure that ends ultimately with a new realization of his family, himself and his abilities.

-----------------------
I'm pretty late to the game so far as Neil Gaiman love is concerned - a good college buddy of mine sent me a copy of Coraline for my birthday last year. I adored the book and it's dark, creepy world and couldn't wait to read more from the author who created that world.

And he doesn't disappoint. Mr. Gaiman's writings are imaginative and funny and, most importantly, numerous. He created and wrote the Sandman graphic novel series and has written quite a few young adult and children's books; Anansi Boys is a spin-off of sorts from his first adult novel, American Gods. And, he keeps a very charming blog - maybe my favorite famous-person blog, next to Stephen Fry.

I'm reading The Graveyard Book next and can't wait to dive into another of Neil Gaiman's fantastic worlds!

Trying something new . . .

Last week, I found this book at the library. Since then, I've been obsessed with it!

The Artful Ribbon is a how-to on making those gorgeous ribbon roses that fancy ladies used to wear on their hats. It's written very clearly and is extremely useful. . . but the best part is the pictures. Amazing vintage florals adorn the pages, making me wish I was an old-timey fancy lady even more than I already do! Seriously, look at these:


Gorgeous, right?

I'm having a grand old time learning how to make these flowers - trying something new is really exciting and just what I needed to get my creativity going again! Here's my first attempt:

Things That are Awesome, edition 1

When I was but a young girl, I grew to love reading, thanks in no small part to The Baby-Sitter's Club. Not only did it chronicle life as a teenager (something I couldn't wait to become), but it described in minute detail the outfits of one Stacy McGill (the chic, New York babysitter) and her BFF Claudia Kishi (the junk-food loving, artsy babysitter). Here's a sample of the descriptions that caught my imagination as a seven-year-old:

Of Stacy McGill (she of the heart-dotted i):

She had pulled her blonde permed hair back into a complicated braid threaded with green ribbon. The ribbon matched her shoes. She was wearing silver capri pants, an oversized shirt with a green belt, a green checked short skirt, and gold leaf-shaped earrings."

And not to forget the fabulous, creative, inspiring Claud:
[Claudia's] eye for color and style shows in the way she dresses. It's always distinctive and funky. Today she was wearing purple-and-white-striped tights, Doc Martins [sic] (except she'd taken them off to sit on the bed), a short black ruffly skirt that looked like it was part of a women's Olympics figure-skater's costume, a purple cropped sweater with silver button covers on the back buttons, and a scrunchy black velvet hat decorated with purple and red velvet flowers."


How can you not love that? (I'm not the only one who's in love with Claud's style - check out what claudia wore, a pretty rad blog inspired by Claudia Kishi)

Anyway, this wave of nostalgia came about when a book was turned in at the library today: Kristy's Great Idea, the graphic novel. Seriously? There is nothing more awesome.

TV Style: Privileged

There's a cute little show on the CW called Privileged. It's about a Yale-graduate who has been hired to tutor a set of obscenely wealthy twins and finds herself swept away in a world of privilege and money, blah blah blah. It probably won't be renewed, so I thought I'd memorialize its fun style.

The show's tone is really sweet and light and so is the fashion. The main character, Megan, wears cute cardigan-and-jeans outfits, while the twins get to wear some seriously stylish clothes. The season finale features a wedding, so the girls get to dress their best.

Here's my favorite outfit, worn by Lucy Hale, who plays Rose:


I love the girly floral print with the pleated structure - so adorable! The 2009 Resort collections had several dresses using this super-cute combination:

I am so in love with this trend - it's girly great!

RUBY RED SLIPPERS!

I finally found a pair of ruby red slippers!

I'd considered buying the children's version from Target, since I fit in a size 3, but then I found these on clearance! I'm so excited - I've wanted a pair of ruby red slippers for the longest time.

Birthday money from Grandma is the best.

On a roll?

Should I keep bragging? Probably not, but here's my treasury that made it to the front page today (my birthday!):Happy birthday, me! :)

Treasury Fun, part eight

So, I told myself I would stop posting about my treasuries, because it sounds too much like bragging. But, hello, my girly treasury made front page yesterday, I have to brag!

And let's be honest, making treasuries is total addicting fun - it's like I can pretend I'm a fashion editor for a little while. And I can go on a no-cost shopping spree while I'm at it.

Although this one might cost me a bit - I'm totally in love with BTunique's gorgeous ten-layer bow...it might not be around much longer . . . ;)

Give it away, give it away, give it away now!

So, super-sweet Beth of loveseptember.etsy.com is hosting a giveaway for me on her blog, Vermillion Rules!  Thanks to her for that and for the sweet things she said about my shop.  :)

I'm giving away my Little purple pansy headband and the white Neon orchid hairclip - visit vermillionrules.blogspot.com for details on entering.  The deadline for entry is Sunday, February 15th - Good luck!

Treasury Fun, part seven

I am so addicted to treasury day...

Here's my scrumptious salad treasury:

TV Style: You know you love me!

I've been catching up on Gossip Girl the last few days - last week's episode, "You've Got Yale," led up to an evening at the opera, providing the UESers an excuse for dressing up fancy. The style on this show is amazing- you know I love Blair's headbands - but it's especially amazing when they get all fancied up.

My favorite dress belonged to Queen B, Miss Blair Waldorf:

Some googling reveals that it's part of the Dior Resort '09 collection:

Further research on style.com:

I'm loving the orange color and the ruffly layers - so pretty!

EDIT: I'm loving the orange so much, I did a treasury for it! See it here!