Blame It On Your Selfie

On Saturday night we went to Kenny'n'Mike's for champers, bloody orange salad and lamb shanks and I was looking forward to wearing my grey cardy. I was aiming for that nubby knit with sparkly shoes look (that's a look right?) but after I took a selfie on my i-Phone I realised it was more Val Doonican on crack.

Val Doonican-aning of an evening

Stairway to Kenny'n'Mike's  house

The Fairisle cardy (part of my Barneys sale haul in New York) was Alpaca and turned out to be scratchy around the neck so I wore my white shirt collar up a la Carolina Herrera which is not really me. Still, I like the sweater but how to exorcise Val D? They should have an auto correct for this. Thoughts?

Cy, nine, and I "won" (paid for) a tour of Pixar (Brave, Cars, Monsters Inc. Toy Story, Incredibles) which is just down the road. Pete Doctor, the "head drawrer" as Cy would say, told us his current film (each one takes four years) is Inside Out, inspired by his wondering what goes on in the head of his teen daughter, Ellie.  All the characters are emotions, such as fear and shame.

We saw grown men on scooters zooming around with their drawrings under their arm and playing ping pong and fuseball to get inspiration. They let our kids have at it in the cereal room where shockingly they all chose to feast on cocoa pops.

Cy at Pixar

The weekend San Francisco Chronicle featured my article on a family who remodeled their Muir beach home for six years (!) while still living there (talk about Brave!)

House of angles, Muir Beach. Photo: Cesar Rubio

Also my article on Berkeley designer Erica Varize who is teeny weeny (106lbs and 4ft11) but is known for making clothing that is super flattering to all women, employing a cornucopia of tricks like rushing, draping and cutting on the bias. Erica had just got back from Uganda where she taught 20 young orphans to sew so they can get jobs later on. She told me: "I was amazed at their attitudes, not giving up, not playtime breaks and no whining." Wish my kids could learn from them... but as my friend says you can't replicate hardship for your own children...or can you?

My article on designer Erica Varize

Two of the children Erica taught to sew. Photo: Erica Varize

Loved Heidi's post today about her reno.... the wallpaper, people! We had considered two wallpapers when we reno-ed four years ago. Inspired me to get them out again. Too much? Too little? Too late?

Seating area in our kitchen. Whaddaya reckon about these two wallpapers?

The winds changed (talking of winds it's been dry and windy for months here, eerily so) and Kevin took out the slow cooker out of it's packaging (we bought it a year ago).  After eating our first slow cooked chicken meal, Cy said "You're a good cooker Dad" and (not being a smartarse, just enquiring) asked me: "Have you ever thought about doing one of those things called recipe, Mum?" I'm a confirmed chef de assemblage with only a limited portfolio of recipes (two here) but even I'm tired of myself. I sent out a plea for tried and true recipes that can be encapsulated in one line - the only kind I do.

Mike's Trio of Orange salad: blood, cara cara, and navel orange, green onion sliced thin, Marash pepper flake, orange vinaigrette and fleur du seil (whatever that is)

Have you got one for me?