I’m thinking this look is the country counterpoint to my last Jersey City post…which was 11 days ago! I have been the busiest over these last almost-2-weeks that I’ve been in a long, long while. A big shoot and edit for a L’Oreal haircare project and a new campaign pitch on another haircare brand. While I do love what I do, I’ve missed posting! We shot this look last weekend, and it’s only now late on the following Friday night that I could sit down and write this post, share these pics. Hope you enjoy!
Tag: adirondacks
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
Yesterday Life’s a Spritz officially turned 1 year old. When friends and strangers find out I’m (cough, for real) a Blogger, often the first question they ask is “How are you monetizing it?” The answer for now is…I’m not. I’m blogging because I want to. It’s creative. Fun. Time-consuming. Challenging. Gratifying. Good for my brain. And my soul. My 91-year-old Dad died last August. He spent his working years first in Advertising Sales, then as a Lawyer. But he also spent those years as a frustrated writer, who dreamed of penning the next great American novel. But never did. When I lost him, my inner voice asked me “What are you waiting for?” It was time to take that leap. And to quote Nike, just do it!
I’ve been an Advertising Copywriter for almost 30 years and a Creative Director for over 14 of those. I’ve worked on campaigns for some of the biggest and best beauty/fashion/luxury brands. I think the fact that I’m still doing it in a tough, male-dominated, ageist business attests to the fact that I can do it. And do it well. But that’s sleuthing out and shaping someone else’s voice. While I don’t have my Dad’s lofty expectations, I do believe that as a soon-to-be-60-year-old woman (and wife, mom, sister, friend, professional) I definitely have a few things to say. And share. On fashion, design, health, travel, and yes, life. And thankfully you all seem to agree! That is the icing on this creative cupcake for sure!!
Last Look at Winter
Guess how we got fooled on April 1st? A foot of snow. Truth be told, it was looking pretty magical and probably our last such wintery landscape. By Sunday, the sun was shining and temps had gone up into the mid 40s. No gloves! So as much as I’m looking forward to sporting some new Spring fashion, I pulled out some warm weather gear one last time.
Old is the new New
I grew up in a classic PreWar apartment on Washington Square Park. Its black and white tile bathrooms with massive tubs still looked Pottery Barn cool when my Father died this past August. Chris grew up in a Turn-of-the-Century Colonial in Scarsdale, NY, which his parents meticulously restored over the many years they lived there. So while sometimes a “Gut Reno” is called for, preservation has its place too.
Wild Things
With Daylight Savings this past weekend, I was wishing Spring felt closer. (You hear that, Groundhog!) Up at our cabin, temps dipped below zero. Made for drinking wine and playing Scrabble by the fire but not for debuting any new “warmer weather” fashion. So…I pulled together a Best Of Look that features some of my favorite “wild things” pieces. Apologies to my PETA followers. I’ve included fur-free options for you too.
Thankful
Amidst a world that seems pretty off-kilter, it is life-affirming and centering to spend time with those we love, in a place we love. We were lucky to be up at our Adirondack cabin for Thanksgiving 2016. Or at least most of us. Our middle son Spencer, who is working for Oracle in Los Angeles, opted to stay on the West Coast and spend the holiday with his boyfriend Joey’s family in Novato, CA. Then they were off to Sonoma for a weekend of wine tasting. Tough duty. Chris and I hosted Pierre, Pierre’s girlfriend April (celebrating their 3rd Anniversary!) and Chanler. It was a lovely weekend that looked and felt a bit more like Christmas due to 3 days of snow.
Fall 2016: A Little Bit Country
When we’re up at our cabin, we just love going to Sugar House Creamery in Upper Jay, NY.
Cabin Fever
As much as I love my “city” weekends, I can’t help missing our cozy cabin up in Keene, NY. As soon as we saw the view, Chris and I knew we had to make it ours. And so began a complete life change. Make this mountain house ours, sell the suburban home our sons grew up in, move to Jersey City…you get the picture. It was a BIG change, but also an exhilarating, scary, fun, what-have-we-done one.
I’m going to share our gut renovation of the cabin in upcoming posts, but first I want to introduce you (if you aren’t already acquainted) with the Adirondacks where our 101 Aker Wood (as in Winnie the Pooh) is located. The Adirondacks are a natural wilderness unlike any other. Created in 1892 by the Sate of New York, the Park is a constitutionally protected Forever Wild area and spans 6 million acres — roughly 1/5 of New York. The Adirondacks are home to over 3,000 lakes and ponds and more than 30,000 miles of streams feeding 6,000 miles of rivers.
The Adirondack High Peaks, the region in which you’ll find our cabin, boasts 46 mountains above an elevation of 4,000 feet. The tallest is Mount Marcy at 5,343, and yes, I’ve climbed it. Ask my Achilles tendons about that experience!
Friends and family sometimes wonder why we don’t mind driving 4+ hours 2 weekends a month to go there…and basically any other time we can. But everyone who visits becomes a believer. And I think you will too as you learn more about this magical, majestic area.
If you’d like to start your adventure now, check out this PBS series preview or this site.