I'm not dead, just busy!

It's been a jam-packed week, starting with the big bbq/bar crawl blowout last Saturday (an enormous success, if I do say so myself – though I won't be posting pictures in order to protect the innocent, the employed and the very, very drunk). It's now Friday afternoon and I'm pretty much done for the week, so what better time to stretch out on the couch with a stack of new magazines and a folder full of bookmarked blogs? (I'm also doing my very best to resist the lure of Zara's semi-annual sale, which is apparently chock-full of cute, cheap stuff. Must… resist… must… Oh, who am I kidding? I'll probably be there within the hour.)

In the meantime, I'm totally loving these patterned paper lanterns, found via Mackenzie. Only $9! So cute. I've been slowly stockpiling some bold vintage bedding for awhile in hopes of redecorating the bedroom in retro prints, and I think a few of these will fit in nicely to the pretty hodgepodge of patterns and colors.

Birthday Madness

My actual birthday was pretty low-key – it included a thwarted attempt to visit the new Ben & Jerry's Boutique in Tanglin Village, which is closed on Monday nights (boo! don't they know that one needs cookie dough ice cream on one's 30th birthday?) – because my real party is tomorrow. We're kicking things off with a BBQ, and then 20 of our closest friends will embark on a Bar Crawl around Singapore's finest drinking establishments. (Should you see a group of inebriated folks dressed in matching royal blue t-shirts with a weeping Merlion on the front, come say hi!) The BBQ portion is pretty simple, food-wise – burgers, dogs, potato salad, and other American favorites – so I'm putting more energy into the décor. It's leaning towards a retro-picnic-y style: vintage tablecloths (above), little bouquets of bright flowers, old-school Pyrex, scattered votives. After all, if you're going to turn 30, then you might as well do it with a little class.

Because after all, nothing says "class" like a bar crawl. Erm.

Today is the first day of the rest of my life. Or something.

So today I turn thirty. Yay thirty! Really, old age isn't so bad (though so far, it's only consisted of eating waffles and cleaning out my closet and taking a nice, long afternoon nap, which I can now completely justify). I was just saying this weekend that I'd never wish to be 20 or 22 or 25 again. (Maybe 28, but then again, 28 wasn't so special.) I know so much more and I've done so much more than I ever thought possible at those ages. Plus, I have a much better closetful of clothes.

But if we're keeping score, since my 25th birthday, I have:
-Quit my job in New York to travel around Europe
-Lived in Beijing for two years
-Embarked on international writing career
-Moved to Singapore (1.5 years and counting)
-Increased the number of countries I have visited from 7 to 23 (but I aim to get to get that up to 30 sometime soon)
-Learned to sew, ski, surf, take photographs, speak Mandarin (slightly), play blackjack and sneak into the Worker's Stadium in Beijing
-Adopted two very adorable kitties, who are both curled up on my lap as I type this
-Started this blog! And so much more.

I've got some very high hopes for the next five years.

My Birthday Week got kicked off last night with an extremely full screening of the film Seamless at Pitch Black, after which those cute Pitch Black kids surprised me with a delicious chocolate cake. Thanks again to everyone who came out for the film (and looked so very stylish doing it!).

And that image above? That's from Cremaster 3, the middle chapter of Matthew Barney's epic art-installation film series. Mike and I sat through all five parts of the Cremaster Cycle last week and though we don't have much to show for it (other than some of highly entertaining examples of wacky imagery), it was still pretty interesting. I'm not sure I knew who Matthew Barney even was when I was 25. So that's one more point for old age.

Also, turning 30 is a great reason to justify some cute new dresses from Topshop. Says me.

Busy like a bee

Here's what I've been doing this week:
--Playing tennis
--Attending first official yoga class (very. very. hard!)
--Baking cookies
--Volunteering
--Rewatching all episodes of Veronica Mars, and keeping fingers crossed they bring it back
--Swimming
--Getting a haircut
--Seeing a fantastic graduation fashion show
--Buying lots and lots of denim in order to recreate something akin to the dress above (found on liebemarlene's ebay store) for my next big sewing project

Here's what I haven't been doing:
--Spending much time on the internet

I know the posting is light, and it's likely going to stay that way for a while. It's sunny, and I've got stuff to do! Be back soon.

P.S.) There's not much fashion to see, but the pictures from my Burma trip are now up, if that's the kind of thing that interests you.

Our June Screening!

Er, guess who's been spending some time downloading new funky free fonts? Don't let the groovy 70s typeface distract you from the details: We'll be having our next Fashion is Spinach film on Sunday, June 17. Come around 7pm to grab a good seat and have a drink and we'll start the film at 7:30 (a little earlier this month, so those of you who have to work the next day aren't out too late!).

This month's film is the fashion documentary Seamless, which follows a few of the finalists (including the adorable Doo-ri Chung and the super-adorable Proenza Schouler) of the first Vogue/CFDA Fashion Fund competition in 2004. (Plus: Cameos by Anna Wintour!) It's by the same filmmaker behind the Isaac Mizrahi extravaganza Unzipped (our April film selection, if you remember) – but with less Nanook references. I promise. Seamless gives a great glimpse of the studios and other behind-the-scenes spots of some of the industry's biggest rising talents – definitely a must-see for any fashion lover.

And! I'm taking recommendations for next month. (You may want to peruse the ideas in the comments here, here and here for possible suggestions.) Do you have a vote? Add it to the comments here, and we'll have a vote-off between the most-nominated finalists in a couple of weeks. We strive to be a fashion democracy, after all.

Hope to see you soon!

Meanwhile, around the blogosphere…

A few fun things to keep you occupied while I unpack:
+I kinda sorta of love these tile-print J. Crew shorts, via Leith. I especially love them with the stripey top and shiny flats.

+Tricia did an absolutely phenomenal dye job on some crocheted vintage pieces. Seriously, I'm in awe. It's also opened up a whole new world of vintage reconstruction for me, though I suspect I'd end up with more dye on me (and on the floor, and on things that didn't need to be dyed) than the item I'm dyeing. Still, tempting…

+Gala is stockpiling tips on how to score the best vintage finds. Also: fabulous purple hair!

+Mizutamago sewed together an *adorable* Built by Wendy dress, which has me desperately coveting a couple of the Built by Wendy Simplicity patterns. Perhaps if I start on the little jacket now, I might be finished by fall?

+I'm hoping the Beloved Homes Ikea decorating book might have made it to my friendly neighborhood Ikea by now. Anyone spotted it yet?

+These are, without a doubt, some of the coolest rock concert posters ever. Seriously great art. Is it wrong that I really want the Decemberists poster (fourth row down, trees and bike), when I don't really know any Decemberists songs?

+Finally, if you haven't gotten your hands on the new fashion-themed ReadyMag magazine yet, then I highly recommend (I tracked mine down at Kinokuniya). There are tons of really fantastic fashion and decor projects in there, including a fun pillow tutorial by Lisa Congdon that I am totally going to try. Eventually. (After that Built by Wendy jacket. So, likely, mid-fall.)

Enjoy!

My name in print! (Sort of!)

Hey, I'm back! My trip was fantastic, thanks for asking. And to tell the truth, vacationing in a place where you have no choice but to be completely cut off from e-mails, cell phones and the like is absolutely wonderful. (Also a little weird.) It's going to take me a few days to fully readjust to the land of the connected, but in the meantime, I wanted to toot my own horn and point out my little D.I.Y. feature in the new N.E.E.T. magazine! I was thrilled when Stephanie asked me to recreate my paper-covered bangle bracelets for the issue; aren't they cute? (Er, if I do say so myself?)

If you haven't checked out the new issue yet, be sure to give it a click – it's chock full of all kinds of great style info and gorgeous features. I'm off to sort through the thousand+ picture I took of Burma (yes, really!) – see you in a bit.