Word to the wise!

Unless you have a feeling for that secret knowledge that modest things can be more beautiful than anything expensive, you will never have style." R.I.P Andree Putman

 (23 December 1925 - 19 January 2013)

This is 35

I went out to see this is 40 with my friends this week end, and once again Judd Apatow hit out right on the nail. I mean he nailed it. This movie was so intimate and right on, with just enough air between jokes and characters who were so real so exact and shit your pants funny.  I hadn't laughed at the movies like that in a long time, maybe it was the bottle if red we snuck in and downed in coffee cups, maybe it was how much I saw myself in Leslie Manns character, in less blond, less fit, much less pretty, less neurotic and less married to Paul the yumster Rudd.

FIN DAC's ART

Street Art is the movement of the last 20 years that has known the most growth and has had an impact far beyond what was expected, when in the late 70s the graffitti movement was born.
As a youngster in Paris, I was hanging out with taggers and graffers, some who would later become celebrated artists.
This week I came across the work of FIN Dac.
Seeing it on my computer screen is way different then it must be seeing the thing live, in the streets of London.
I love how FIN describes his style " In a short career, I have defined and perfected a paint style that ignores the accepted visual language of street art... I call it Urban Aesthetics - a modern-day take on the 19th century art movement."
You can check out all his stuff on his instagram, and on his site.Here are some of my faves.

 I love her! She's like a native punkess fashion goddess!

 And this one? You had me at crow on my head.

 Yes! I think this is in Portugal.  Like a brazilian Givenchy parrot lady. J'adore.

Fin, My bratha, you make a gurl wanna PAINT.

The search.

I am the daughter of a painter and of a writer. The granddaughter of a painter, and of a writer.

I grew up in a house where words and images were common currency, where Edward Gorey, Egon Schiele, Bob Dylan and  Guillaume Appolinaire were so familiar, they felt like uncles. 

As a kid,for my birthday, Christmas and Hannukah, I was given books and pencils, and so naturally, drawing and writing is what I did. I went to art school, and I eventually became an illustrator and a fashion designer.

Like the son of the butcher, who inherits his parent's shop, I continued in my parents foot steps, and practiced the family trade. 

It could have been worse, I mean, they could have been butchers.

When  my mother passed away last year, my world crumbled like a sand castle. I lost my true north, my compass, and literally could not find my way. I had to question everything, and with that, I stopped drawing.

I was also 8 months pregnant at the time, and chose to start my maternity leave early. I live in Canada where we have the luxury of a full year mat leave, and so with this paid sabbatical began my journey to find myself.

Who was I if not my mother's daughter? Did I actually like drawing? What was my purpose? What was my voice?  How was I going to leave a mark down here?

I was taught that everyone has something to say, that everyone is, in essence creative. This I know is true.

I am creative.

But was the solitary, sometimes reclusive life of the illustrator really for me?Maybe? Not so much...

Was I contemplative and observant like the writer? Eh....

I embarked on a mission to find my medium.

Let me clarify one thing, though. This was not necessarily a professional questioning. I am lucky to have a set of skills that can bring me money, so I can free lance and fall back to design anytime.
Like a real explorer on a map-less adventure, I was ready for surprises, hardships and self discovery.In an effort to be open to the unfolding ahead, I decided to try my hand at as many things as possible, and give myself the time to do so.
Coincidentally, I met a life coach ( like that, poof, she appeared at the mall) who agreed to take me on as a client, pro bono. Surely, she is going to help me map and track my search, and help in the exploring.
Learning and beginning are to me the most exciting parts of any projects. Inception, ideas, brain storming are where it's at.
At this moment, I started doing the following: writing and illustrating children's stories, writing a script for a rom com, being a ghost writer on a blog, podcasting, painting, taking photos, writing lyrics for a composer friend of mine, a parenting blog, and a style blog.
I decided to be like the YES man, just embracing any and everything that comes my way.
And then this dawned on me: I dont have to confine myself to one discipline, I dont have to "just" be an illustrator. I don't have to chose! Who said I had to chose?! Why did I think I had to chose?!
Is it because the term "renaissance man" sound so glorious, magnanimous, conceited and obnoxious?!
"Hi, my name is Sarah, I am a Renaissance Woman" ( I would have to carry a barf bag along with me everywhere I went).( you mean like the fair? you joust? )
No. I don't need a title to define me.
Labels are so 1992.

Fast Forward 2 years

Since I last wrote here, my life has changes for the best, and for the worst and forever.
My mom died.
I gave birth to my third son.
I stopped working, and am not full time free lancing and dedicating myself to the full reinvention.
This blog can be a part of it, of my testimony to earth.
What it means to be Sarah. Lover of stuff , deep and shallow.
You cant escape growth.
I am growing, pains and all.
I'll document as I go along, the things that move me, the things that I think make it all worth it.
The sound, the sights, the thoughts, the tastes, the feel of it all. Because there is a lot of beauty out there, and in here, and I want to share it with yall.

I have been so consumed with work lately that i totally abandoned every side-project that was dear to my heart. writing? drawing? painting? taking  photos? cooking? NOTHING. I have done nothing AT ALL.
It seams like all I do is work and crash.
No -no -no , my friends, I am not burning out, not going to quit, shave my head and split to an ashram in Pune India,( or should I....).
I always wanted to be a designer, always wanted a creative job such as the one I miraculously landed, but d the amount of work and stress I am currently under leads me to questions my motivations and my desires... For realz. On the deep.
Add to this the fact that Lee Mc Q hung himself, which really really fucked me up last month.
People will tell you that fashion is an all-bimbo bitch-fest  fighting to get to the top. This is very untrue.
In my experience, people who work in fashion have one main thing in common: they are overworked, and exhausted.
Most of them had dreams of being creative and forward thinking... They end up working their skins off  tediously manufacturing garments.
Fashion school doesn't prepare them for the ultimate disillusion. Some teachers will mention it, but as my friend Audrey ( who is now studying to become a pattern making TEACHER , instead of a tech designer) "MARC JACOBS C'EST TOUT DANS TA TETE" (* Marc Jacobs is in your head).
The death of my fashion idol, as I told you, really triggered some deeply rooted fears and doubts about my profession.
He of unlimited inspiration,He of unequaled talent, He of true vision, He of integrity, He of international acclaim.

I thought all of these (add to that the money, and the clothes!) were enough to make someone truly happy. Unfortunately, I was wrong.
And it got me thinking....

MY Tunes of 09...

A selection of my favorite 09 tunes and beats and bands.
 Music is my boyfriend, it keeps me fresh, it keeps me warm, it gives me butterflies, it makes me cry, it motivates me, it allows me to dream, and be me.
2009 was generous in good music. lets hope 2010 will be as rich.
the notwist

fever ray

she and him

animal collective

grizzli bear

the XXs

dirty projectors

the pains of being pure at heart

the gossip

sorry , imaginary reader....

Many readers I dont have. But in case there is one of you, I want to say Im sorry....
I ambandoned my blog for more than a month!
Not very dedicated, am I?
Well, I have an awesome excuse.
I got a great job for a great company designing an up and coming womens contemporary line.
IT TAKES ALL MY TIME!!!!
Im enjoying my christmas break and swore to myself to go back to reporting what i dig to you, my imaginary reader.
Love, S

The greatest things happen when L.A and Paris meet.....

Appart from moi-même, another great by-product of the meeting of  L.A and Paris, is the Beck and Charlotte Gainsbourg collaboration. One of my favorite angeleno ever, the most ecclectic-weirdo-boogie-dancing-genius Beck went to Paris to produce Charlotte's album, IRM, which will be out in late december on Electra.

They made a song as a duo, Heaven Can Wait, and I dont know who directed the video, but its totally trippy and surprising in a way that I love.
I always liked Charlotte a lot,but as an actor more than a musician, because I found her tone a little whinny and whispery, and maybe also because of the adoration and love I have for her father Serge Gainsbourg's work ...im saying that with all the respect and admiration i have for her, she is absolutely the coolest French woman alive, and by far the most stylish as well. Love her, right... but her music until now, I have to say, was a little YAWN for my taste.
Until He, the masked avenger from California came along, gave her a little 70s funk flair, all the while keeping her melacholy, but with just enough spice and beat to keep my attention, and make me want more....
I never get tired of him; from his first to his last album, I think Beck is one of the most accomplished musicians of our generation...
I leave you with these videos to watch and love.

Green Porno is good for you.

Everything Green is better, you know that by now.
But Porno, you think? WHAT???
Well yeah.

Green Porno is the genius GENIUS project that Isabella Rossellini directs and acts in.
Remember her? she was about the most beautiful model of the 80s, the face for Lancome for years.
Now he has a brilliant show on sundance, called Green Porno, where she teaches us, the uneducated viewe about animal reproduction.

I LOVE IT!!!
Its so creative, pretty, original, funny, smart and unexpected, it got me going for a while, laughing my head off, and to tell you the truth, I learned so much! Watch the shows, laugh with me, and enjoy your guilt free porno.

The 7th letter, or How Graffitti still tingles my sprinkles.

Most of you who live in LA are familiar with Retna and El Mac's work. Some of you just don't know it. If you drive just slow enough, you might notice unbelievable works of Art -with a capital A- adorning the walls of our your busiest streets.
These guys are most definitely NOT vandals.
What they do, is make your and my life a little better, by putting some HI quality Art on the streets, available and free for all to see.
I am CRAZY about their stuff, CRAZY about Mac's portraits and Retna's calligraphic delirium, I love these cats.
I called them "cats" cause I do believe that's what cool people call each other, out there on the streets.

 for the love of Art, go check out their stuff.

RETNA / The Mac from RVCA on Vimeo.

VIMBY - Retna

VIMBY | MySpace Video

Art moment: Sylvia JI's master work...

You have seen Sylvia Ji's work on the cover of L.A weekly, and featured numerous times in Juxtapoz. I love her Calavera ladies, just creepy sexy beautiful.

Corey Helford Gallery is one of my go to places when Im in need of contemporary art in L.A... I miss Culver City and the galleries there, wine and cheese with the ladies.
They always have the best shows and great art. Go on their mailing list, and attend their openings!!!

Bitch music

Its wednesday, I feel just a little bitchy and edgy
This is my
dont rub me the wrong way
morning
music
getting ready to work with good crisp bitch music
sing too loud for my own lungs, shake this body, feel better.
the bitch is tamed.
you're welcome.

bat for lashes

santigold
fever ray-as remixed by bassnectar
noisettes

yeah yeah yeahs

the kills

peaches

cat power

Ann Demeulemesteer+Patti Smith= me happy

Ann Demeulemeulemeulemeule, ladies and gentlemen.
Another proof that all good things come from Antwerp.

I'll take one of each, please.

the coat? the pants? the shoes? I couldn't have dreamed better.

 

wear this jacket and run away.

 sweet lord up on the cross save me.

Ann understood everything. Everything about life, death and the universe.

Its like she has a wire tapped straight into my subconscious, and thinks the thoughts I don't even dare.

And of course, her muse is Patti Smith.

wild

  free

 deep

  LOUD

My feet are depressed.

 They need  something to put some spring in their step.

i need shoes by maniishma featuring Jeffrey Campbell shoes

Items in this set:
Felissimo.co.jp shoes, 3,900 JPY
Jeffrey Campbell boots, $168
Dr.martens boots, $135
adidas sneakers
Urbanoutfitters.com boots, $78

Goopy Elemental?

I made some little paintings for my neices who are turning 9 today.
Twins are so wonderful to be around and watch, all you do is notice the differences, like in those picture games from when we were kids.
It was fun for me painting them, I totally went in the zone after the boys went to sleep, and way into the night.
I really enjoy working with acrylic, its so goopy and elemental.
Here are the finished product. Im happy with it.

So fresh and so clean, clean.

photo chantal michel from fffound ...ON DIRAIT GERALDINE,HEIN

We have a ritual at my house which is called Cinderella Sunday . You guessed exactly what it means, and so you can figure how my week end was. I got my boys to clean the fridge, I made it sound like a team sport and got them 50c each for helping, and lo and behold, the fridge was clean in less time than it takes to say " lo and behold", just a dollar later.
I am notorious on all 5 continents for my messes, and so today I am linking to a keeping your house organized post, in hommage to Anna, and all that she ever wanted to teach me!
In other good news, I actually got some pretty bad ass work going this week end. Late night sketching, good stuff. I promise to post my sketches. One day.

SOIS MOCHE ET TAIS TOI!!! (shut up and be ugly)

My friend and  wunderkind designer Charles Anastase created the Proud Of Being Ugly Group ( club des moches) on facebook, and I have to admit that I was a bit ...hurt....when I first got the invitation, until I was explained, slowly and nicely, that the point of the group was to let go of our  beauty stigmas, especially in the silly industry we work in, and to underline the fact that we all look butt ugly at some point during our lives, and as far as I'm concerned, that happens every morning.
Yes, people. I too am proud of being ugly.
Isn't my non-beauty actually leaving just enough space for me to be charming, funny, deep?
I like to think so...
I'm not going to go all Kierkegaard on you or anything, but I have often pondered at my fascination with beautiful things, places, music, books,and my lack of interrest in beautiful people. I was always more mesmerized by the awkward, exotic, rare, hard faces, and I think I am proud to be sporting one myself...
If you are on facebook, and you too look like ass at some point  during your day, join the group.
That being said, I was reading this style blog last time, called Balibulle, in which the writer, Charlotte Moreau, shows off different wardrobes and discusses style or whatever, and there was this whole post about her beauty daily routine, and how now that she is in her 30s, she has to buy and apply stuff to her face so that it wont fall apart Yeah. Thats what happens to most of us. We all reach a point when a good nights sleep and a lot of water are not enough to have fresh taught tight skin, and when we find ourselves perusing the aisles of our pharmacies looking at all these different products that swear to us, they will keep us young.
Ladies and gentlemen, I have bad news. Youth is not a creme. It is a moment in ones life, that is exciting and

 worth while, but unfortunately, ephemeral.  And no matter how tight our skin is, no matter how high our pigtails, no matter how short the cheerleader skirt, when we hit 60, we will be 60.
The creams might promise that this day will never happen, but it will and  I really hope it does.
I am not saying to stop putting on the eye cream that you "patpatpat around the eyes, and never spread". I am not saying that wanting to keep your skin fresh in your 30s is a delusion, I  HIGHLY RECOMMEND MOISTURIZING, and I understand why women, such as myself invest their hard earned dosh on creme.

No.What I am saying, is I want to grow old, gracefully and naturally. And when Im a Granny, I dont want to look like a tweenie.

Your man, My man, THE man Jonathan Safran Foer is at it again.

J.S.F is such the sensation in contemporary American literature, and for some damn good reasons. His two novels, Everything is Illuminated and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close were some of the most captivating and marvelous books I read, ever. Truly ground breaking writter, if you did not read this books, get them. You'll thank me later.
My friends and I have this cult-like obsession with him, and we found a while ago this link to a documentary he made for goveg.com about Kosher slaughter houses.
Honestly I couldn't watch through the whole thing. It was gruesome and left me forever shaken. I was so comfortable under my kosher blankie I really thought the animals I was eating were "better" killed...... NNNNoooot.
I 'm not sure anymore if this was the drop that lead me to drop meat. Maybe?
Anywho, Safran Foer wrote a non fiction book.WHAAAT?!
Its called Eating Animals. WHAT??!!
Being that Jonathan is a regular on the New Yorker and the New York Times, they both have interesting articles about it, and I for one, will read the book, as a true fan does.
Although I am quite sure I will be traumatize once again.

Also while I'm at it, I will mention that  JSF is also married to an AMAZING writer, Nicole Krauss who wrote The History Of Love, which is such a beautiful read. Together they form, in my opinion the absolute hottest New York Vegetarian Jewish Intellectuals with Good looks couple. They are young, talented, proactive, and inspiring. They make me nauseous they're so perfect, but I won't hate them for it.

Chillin with Schiele

Honestly one of the perks of living in Montreal is that they have proper French bakeries, and cafes. Before I get to the store, I pick up some kind of croissant  and a coffee.
Sensory memories galore.
Comfort zone.
If you give a french girl a croissant. Or something.
Well this morning, as I was sipping my coffee and munching on my pain aux raisins, reading my email, I get this invite to go see the FROM KLIMT TO KLEE exhibit at the Neue Gallery in New York.
As most of my friends know, I am a total sucker for German and Austrian Art, specifically in love with the work of Egon Scheile.
I really would love to hop on a plane and go to see this retrospective, and spend sometime in NYC while Im at it, but unfortunately I CAN'T, so I am here, chilling with Scheile, on a thursday morning, drinking coffee that taste like COFFEE.
This is why I like Egon so much:

He knows how to use white.

He is mad sexy

and so wickedly contemporary.

I found this editorial online from the magasine I-D , which is always a great go to for inspiration by-the by, and I think they totally rocked the Schiele aesthetics.

 

I totally adored it. What do you think?

ART+ART=ART

I'm always awed when artists find a new way to flatter their art, and this french boy Reuno, an illustrator, associated himself to the indie folk band Uniform Motion Pictures, and together, they make animated music, or musical animation , as you wish. I'm so into this, the art, the music, all of it, this is dreamy.



Rain & Soil from Uniform Motion on Vimeo.

Today's fashion inspiration. Mc Queen

Fuck me.
This guy is not normal, he comes from another planet.
Check out these prints!!!!
Check out the shoes!!!!!
SWEET LORD UP ON THE CROSS
What are you doing to me?????
I cant put everything here, but CHECK-a-CHECK-a-CHECKITOUT!.

from style.com