I’ve recently discovered the most amazing products… geared towards men…which makes me want them all even more.
The Portland General Store (sold already?) makes the yummiest smelling toiletries ever. In the past when I’ve tried non-perfumy products I’m left with something to be desired. This time, JACKPOT! All nicely priced too.
Only catch is that they sell out quickly. You can find them on Etsy or at Hickoree’s Hard Goods.
My cute package (arrived wrapped in brown general store paper and twine, of course) included the following:

“Turkish Fig” Bar Soap with Rhassoul Clay
This is a hand-poured, rough-cut bar of soap. It has a subtly sweet but masculine scent.
The key functional ingredient, Rhassoul clay, is rich in magnesium, silica, potassium and calcium and claims many beneficial properties. It originates from the Atlas mountains of Morocco, and has been used by local people for over 12 centuries. Rhassoul clay helps to reduce dryness and flakiness, and improves skin clarity and elasticity.

“Tweed” Shea Butter Solid Lotion Stick
Lisa from Portland General Store says: “if a young Marlon Brando were to wear a Portland General Store scent, it would be TWEED. Elegance, strength, and charisma describe the fragrance of this lotion bar.”

“Wood” Old-Fashioned Body Creme
This is a very thick body/hand creme, especially well-suited for soothing overworked hands. Essential oils of cedar, hiba, patchouli, vetiver and vanilla give a distinctly masculine scent, but this creme can be worn by both men and women.
I love all the products so much that I just placed another order for the Eau de toilette Sampler and the Tabacco bath scrub.



It’s been a little since I can really remember coveting an entire collection from just one designer. I think of tom ford or chanel…of course at times it’s been marc jacobs…stella mccartney, chloe.
currently I’d sell off my first-born for everything from the miu miu spring/summer 2010 collection. well, not really, but I’d come pretty close before my conscience would sink in.
if you’d described to me that there were aspects of figure skating elements and cat prints involved, I would’ve thunk you crazy…but that’s just exactly what it is…and I HEART IT ALL.
all images from miu miu.














-video via viva vena cava
If there is a model for Boursier-Mougenot’s operations, it is perhaps to be found in natural systems. In one past work, From Here to Ear (1999), the artist memorably used a flock of finches corralled within a framework of amplified steel piano wires to build an acoustical structure whose form was determined by the behavioral patterns of the birds. His use of finches was not as fortuitous as it might seem; it was Galapagos finches that elegantly demonstrated Darwin’s theories of evolution. As with the biological processes of natural selection, the sonic patterns of Boursier-Mougenot’s systems branch and divide, randomly mutate, dissolve and reform in a potentially open-ended flow. The symmetries of greater complexity arising from pure simplicity are always possible – although never assured. Whereas Cage’s practice was imitative of chance operations found in nature, Boursier-Mougenot’s method lies primarily in the transliteration of natural structures, revealing to the ear certain realities that remain invisible to the eye. The artist acts as the ‘first cause’, putting certain laws and systems in motion which he then allows to exist and evolve autonomously, rather than merely using chaos and dissonance as compositional models. ~ from Frieze.com. Frieze Magazine.

Alison Lewis always has the best videos each collection. The last one consisted of running around in pretty under garments, pretty dresses, vintage luggage & chugging champagne out of the bottle.
the latest is set at the fair, summer at its peak, cute light dresses and lots of color…oh and vampire teeth! hooray!
check out the video here. click on video.












My cute friend from across the pond, Paul, shared this video with me. it’s so rad and retro.
I didn’t know about Italian singer Adriano Celentano or his hot wife (the blond in the video doin her thang) Claudia Mori.
The lyrics are pure gibberish, often described as sounding like American English as heard by a non–English-speaker.
Adriano and his wife perform together here. musical magic. choreographic magic. and those outfits TDF.

you know sometimes you think, I’m so tired of winter and the hum drum of life in February DC…and then all of the sudden things align…and you find yourself at happy hour…then a walk home with Chimay and a new beer, Three Philosophers…and then magically the Mast Brothers Chocolate you ordered just less than 24 hours before…
Then you do some drafting…and the universe is aligned because you know how that awesome studded leather sofa and fireplace fit…so OK…let’s get crazy and do some shopping…I don’t normally go to malls anymore and Bonadrag is one of my fave sites that I can afford and admire…
and then on top, some NIN. Pretty Hate Machine. Closer. F<3ck Y<3a. I hadn’t pulled out the Nine Inch Nails catalog in much much too long.

Tonight…my best purchase: burgundy lace pants!!!



I live in Chocolate City, Work for NPR, Love my roommate and two Kittehs. Day to day I find more and more beauty lurking in the oddest spots. Rouge My Knees is an accumulation of notes on what I find whets my curiosity for all things toxic and pretty.
I love sharing my view of the world through the photos and links posted here.









