This is not the book by Debby Schuh...

This one is!

Only 2 more weeks...
Before Donna's baby comes home. We went out to visit her this morning and snapped these pics.
















I just love the way her little black button nose is framed by her soft apricot fur (I'm talking about the puppy, not Donna!)
















Not too much later, Donna found this faux-crocodile puppy-purse at Target for under $10.00 on clearance. She got one for herself, and a matching tote for my Charlie!

Sunday is Funday. Let's have some fun!

Donna and I threw the kids in the car this morning and took all of the kids to the monthly Rose Bowl Flea Market in Pasadena. There were so many vendors there with timeless treasures (and we had but pocket change) so we just viewed the baubles and beads with an appreciative eye only.
I did, however, manage to get the contact information from the vendor at a very cool vintage hardware booth.


Couldn't you just imagine what could be done with these metal babies!

At 2:00 we headed to David & Renee's Easter-house warming fete. Great space.
After that, off to uncle Leon's, where Allie, Izze and Elliot decided to go skinny-dipping (it was 60 degrees outside and the pool was so cold!) It was not until they were totally naked that they realized the next door neighbors were having an Easter-egg hunt with a whole crowd of guests (there is some thin vegetation on the bordering fence.)

Loud squeals of feigned terror came from the kids as they jumped into the icy water to take cover! When they were done swimming, uncle Leon surprised us with a sumptuous dinner out at Kate Mantilini's.
I had the signature Meat Loaf, Donna, the whitefish, Leon: Fish & Chips, Paul: Steak, Elliot: a juicy cheeseburger, Ben: Rosemary chicken, Allie: angel hair pasta, and Izze, artichoke & soup.

When it came time for dessert, I thought Allie was going to go for the"wonder of all wonders" Cheesecake on a stick , but she surprised us all and ordered the bowl of fresh strawberries with a hot fudge dipping sauce. Elliot had a hot fudge sundae which he dove into too quickly for me to get a good photo of.

What treats!

The rest of us (sans Paul) indulged in divinely frothy cappuccinos.

For a girl on a ridiculously limited budget of late, I sure have been having some amazing food karma!

Virtual Postcards.

They're having a great time, wish I was there. Holly and Philip (plus son, Alec) sent me these photos from Waikiki this evening. Though it was cold and grey here today, I can clearly see how gorgeous it was a mere 5 hour flight west of Los Angeles.





This was the three foot tall chocolate Easter bunny at their fabulous brunch.

















For some reason, Holly told me to make sure to mention that Philip has a juicy bite of pork on that fork. I'm sure there is a good story behind that; I'll let you all know about it as soon as I get the update (I think it has something to do with the t-shirt!)

Hurry, Hurry...
We had to book it back to the train station so Helle and Michelle could make their 7pm ride back to San Diego. Not a problem.






A few fond hugs and the girls were off (see Michelle's hand on the right?!)

Debby, Allie and I went back to WeHo, then had a delicious dinner at Oishi on Robertson (thanks for the sushi!)

Then where? Back to LAX of course (Debby had to go back to her fam.) What a great day. I don't know when I've been so tired...but so relaxed! Thanks girls!

Tomorrow: Another adventure!

Epiphany
Turning on Larchmont Boulevard we got the bright idea to pop in on Norman at Chevalier Books. He is our favorite...totally surprised by his fan-club.

We stopped by another general: the Landis General Store, then Pinkberry, before heading across town to the Brentwood Country Market. There, we visited Cath Kidston and Pulp & Hide (Easter candy galore.) After that, we made an after-hours trip to Sweetpeas and Snapshots, where the girls loaded up on the new K & Company papers. Happiness.

Next Stop: French General
We couldn't resist a trip to French General in Hollywood. We were greeted warmly by Kaari's husband, who took the most excellent care of us (do I sound like Bill and Ted?)

Every corner brought us delightful treasures; buttons, beads, glass trinkets, french fabrics and vintage bits abounded. I especially love the special tidbits I found to add to my projects.

Allie loved the textiles in the armoire.

Casual elegance evoked a kindred spirit.

My favorite? The sink in one bathroom did not work, so they cleverly filled the basin with lavender.
Group hug.

Bloomin' Beautiful!
As we were right next door, we popped in the Bridal Bar to say hi to Harmony. She gifted the girls with these hot-for-spring flower rings (she always has such cutting-edge stuff!)

An early start...
This exciting day began with an early car-pool drop-off; I gave Harm a ride to her shop (she left her car there last night) then drove downtown to pick up Michelle & Helle from Union Station.

I was very happy to see them; I didn't post a photo, as I made myself a promise to only show you complimentary pics, and this greeting shot did not turn out so great!

We happily motored to the LAX Marriott to pick up Debby, then headed to La Conversation for a tasty breakfast.

Waffles for Helle, Debby, and me (shared with Allie)

Michelle had the excellent combo of scrambled eggs and pumpkin hotcakes.

We also had some eggs for protein.

Then Helle presented me with this magnificent canvas creation for a belated birthday gift. She apparently whipped it up late last night; what a talent! That girl knows her way around an art piece. That she even thought about me was so warming; the fact that it is gorgeous is just icing on the cake. It is going up on my wall first thing in the morning.

If you have a spare moment for a little art appreciation, check out family friend Harry Boardman's etsy world of art. I think you are going to get some good feelings from these pieces! Tell him Suzi Finer sent you!

Magic Time.
I love the light in the sky at 6:40pm this time of year. Tonight I was fortunate to have a lovely alfresco dinner with artist Debby Schuh and her cool 'fam (plus Harm & my kids) at C & O Trattoria in Marina del Rey.








The never-ending plate of fresh, hot garlic balls were so tempting. They are so delicious and easy to pop in your mouth, that you really don't even need to order dinner. By the time it was served everyone was stuffed!








It was Debby's hottie-hubby's birthday today. I feel honored that they chose to celebrate with us!











Son Brandon (left) is big on photography. He has a keen eye for light and speed, and was toying with mom's big Nikon, taking lots of pics. I hope he gets his six millimeter lens one day!









A fresh Tiramisu was hit just the right note, with a candle for the birthday boy. I wish the staff had sung their signature "That's Amore" while we were there, but you can't have everything!

Tomorrow on Suzi Finer: April Fool...

When Suzi hits Los Angeles' wholesale hot spots with Debby Schuh, hilarity ensues. Special guest stars Helle Greer and Michelle M. White.

Island Dreams.
After a catch-up dinner with Jeannine, I took the kids over the hill to M's for a repeat of last Saturday night's sleepover/scrabble-fest.
Sometime (more often than not, lately...) strange, yet true, things happen.
As we started our third game of the evening, I had only one consonant, having to put down "ice" to start. In what can only be called a magical move, M. put down "volcanic", using all 7 of her letters and getting the extra 50 bonus points. That's how the mysteriously themed game began, with almost every word formed following a markedly Hawaiian theme. How we managed to get "uke", "poi", "lanai", "ono", "ahi", "surf", "jaws", "lava", and the unfortunately-so-islandic "drugs" (among others) all in one game (more than often going for the word rather than the points) is beyond any of our explanations. Did I mention that she lives in Kauai, and left to go home just this morning? This was a freakishly karmic, completely satisfying game.

Another Passion..."American Indian-a"

This piece used to hang in one of the examination rooms at my cousin's office (pediatrician Dr. Morris Naiditch.) I don't know whatever happened to the "war drum" stools, but my cousin Candice let me have this baby. There was a wonderful pow-wow mural on the wall in that room. Other rooms each had their own themes, and there was a magnificent mirror with the "Hey Diddle Diddle" nursery rhyme hand painted on it. I don't know where that is either. Too bad.

A Glimpse Inside My Walls.
What did you expect...collage-a-go-go?
No, this girl has a big chunk of Mexico hanging on her walls. I was fortunate to travel to San Miguel de Allende with my friends Chachi and Patty a while back, where I found most of the Botero-inspired pieces. Both of my friends are fluent in Spanish (Chachi is from Venezuela, Patty from Mexico.) My Spanish is grammatically horrid, however, you can't shut me up once I get going.
Everything there made me feel at peace; the architecture, art, food and people were all warm and inviting.



The two side pieces are carved into a log, giving them a shrine-like quality.













This piece has added dimension with papier-mache segments built up under the painting. Very bas-relief.
I just love it.










This carved wooden jaguar face hangs against the metallic gold of my bedroom walls. The rug to the right of it was bought from a street vendor in front of a cafe in Guanajuato. I took home a few rugs that trip; when we moved, the biggest one left us to cover Chachi's office floor (no room here now!) Boy, were they difficult to transport; I insisted on carrying them on the plane. Chachi & Patty hired a transport company to truck back all of the furniture they acquired on that trip; I didn't want to wait for everything to arrive. I did, however, chose to ship all of the Talavera pottery from that trip. The best piece of that collection was the fountain I found, which feature three jugs pouring water, one into the next, then to the intricately detailed basin. Sold that with the house :(...at least I know where to get another!)

I hope one day to return to San Miguel.

Answers.

1. Late last night I received an email from an artist wanting to give her site more visual flair by creating a new banner. She was enthralled by the lush layering my offering provided, and asked me if I could give her any creative tips. Here are my words of advice:
2. Invest in Adobe Photoshop ("Elements" will totally do,) then grab a copy of Photoshop for Dummies.

Scan everything that appeals to you. If you can't scan the image, copy from Google images.

Copy and paste in layers (after you read the "Dummy" book)

If you don't want to invest your time learning a new program, just physically collage something that represents your interests. Pick colors and images that appeal to you (don't worry about the rest of the world!) then upload following your site's instructions. If you can't scan, your local copy shop should be able to upload anything you ask.

If all this is too hard, enlist a friend or professional to create your look. I often freelance myself out for design services at a nominal fee; there is an endless supply of creative-friendly virtual-artists out there...just ask!

The world is your oyster.

I love it when:

• I get an unexpected box of treasures from a friend.


• My kids come and surprise me at the shop.


• The 0X fits where the 3X used to be too small.


• I bestow a random act of kindness.


• I am a recipient of a random act of kindness!


• I smell the puppy breath.


• Maria comes over.


• The answer pops into my head; ready to create.


• The Ambien kicks in.


• I remember.

I am unhappy when:

• H & H are both out of phone accessibility on the same night.


• M. has to leave for 10 more weeks.


• Rand bugs.


• I see some idiot reading a novel while driving.


• The T.V. has nothing to offer (although I can live with Ace of Cakes for a bit.)


• I don't have time to finish what I started.


• I see a too close up photo of that woman with the horsey teeth and a faint moustache and just smirk. It makes me feel not nice.


• Gary's abscess isn't closing like it should. I want him to go back to work.


• I can't pick up my kids from school because of my situation.


• I remember.

Life's a Circus
I stitched together this Circus-themed (F.G. & Company paper) blank coptic journal (using 120lb Wassau paper for the pages) and waxed linen thread. Each signature was covered with a rich coral paper for a finished look. Donna took it to fill up with her miserable musings (we all need an outlet...) I'm sure when she's done with it, it will be quite beautifully filled with expressive images.

My continued evolution.

When others change their looks, I get inspired. Between Teresa, Michelle, and Charlotte's fresh looks, I was feeling totally lame. I woke up quite early this morning, determined to create a banner that better suited me. This was accomplished in the pre-operating hours of the shop, as it is virtually impossible to get any e-time in while being on the floor alone (spring break, you know.)

I'm pretty satisfied with it for now, but you never know when the bug of change will bite again!

Treasure.

Miniature pianist & instrument, cast in bronze (the lost wax process) by Ben Cooper (my grandfather.) He does sit up closer so his hands can play the detailed keys (each string is clearly defined...sorry, bad photo, but it shows just about life-size.)

Can you hear the Etude?

I love this piece.

Revenge is a dish best served cold...
Last night after dinner, my sister took me to see a fun movie for my birthday. We favor foreign films, so looking in the Calendar section of the Los Angeles Times, we read about The Page Turner(La Tourneuse De Pages) playing at the Laemmle on Sunset.
We should have read the review a little more carefully, because although we found the film beautifully produced, directed, and acted, it was filled with such psychological tension and suspense that we had to leave the theater!
Not funny (but totally well done.)