The Christmas Party to end all Christmas Parties

After all of the presents have been unwrapped, and you've stuffed yourself on ham, or maybe even (god forbid!) turducken and you're looking for a part-ay, may I suggest this one:




Nylon It-Girl du jour, Heidi Cannon, will be hosting. Wear your x-mas party clothes and pay only $5 at the door. See you there, 24-hour party people!

Spy Fashion

What has your intrepid High Fashion Girl been doing in her extended absence? First, she was dealing with the power being off during the Great Ice Storm of 2007. No power = no heat = freezing cold apartment = sick Grace. Yes, I have been sick for over a week now because of the freezing temperatures I endured when my power was out. I was stuck because my phone died and I had no way to charge it, so for the first 2 days I couldn't call out and go stay with a friend. Eventually, I got the heck out of my freezing apartment and stayed with my BFF. So, I've been battling to recover from this horrible flu/cold thing I have. I have been puking, sneezing, coughing, and my head is filled with so much pressure that it feels like it will explode.



However, sickness hasn't prevented me from scheming. My mind is always turning over cool ideas and one idea that has been with my since childhood (due mostly to Nancy Drew and Harriet of the spy variety) is that I would perform espionage of some kind when I grew up. Recently, my BFF told me about these private investigator classes you could take and get certified. We decided to do it together and open our own little private eye firm (private investigation is the fastest growing career in America with a growth rate of 18% in the coming decade!). It would be a fun, dangerous, thrilling way to make a quick buck on the side. We haven't been licensed yet, but we indulged in a little bit of amateur detection today, as we were hired by a close friend to spy on their unfaithful significant other. My BFF and I got up at the crack of dawn and set out. I was decked out in a trench coat (Burberry of course!), sunglasses (huge!), and a black bobbed wig. I LOOKED like a spy. We stopped at a gas station to use the restroom and the patrons there darted frightened looks in my direction. It was a total rush. I think I kind of overdid the spy outfit, but it was fun!



The weirdest part of our bizarre and exhilarating adventure was that after the "discreet surveillance" part was said and done, we stumbled across this amazing antique store in the middle-of-nowhere (otherwise known as Crutcho, Oklahoma). It was named the Cornucopia of Clutter. It lived up to its name. It was cluttered and disorganized and absolutely amazing! Everything was so cool and so inexpensive. The owner, Woody, showed us this gigantic antique trunk that used to be owned by a missionary. The trunk had been all over the world with her! It was only $40. I'm not kidding. There was art, vintage clothes, lamps, records, lanterns, telephones, record players, toys, jewelry...the list goes on and on. Woody let me take pictures of some stuff. Unfortunately, I had a weird filter setting on my camera by accident and it washed the color out of some of the stuff, but you'll get a general idea of the awesomeness.


African painting (much richer in color, IRL):


My Christmas present from my BFF!!!! This Eames-style clock is from the 70's, and it's ginormous!


Need a deer head? Only $10!


Again, that weird filter washed the color out of the giraffe, but it's gorgeous IRL.


Shelf of owls (I made it a little emptier by buying 5 of the coolest ones):


My fireplace mantel at home. The turtle and creepy porcelain girl with the ballgown on are both from the Cornucopia of Clutter. Everything else was already there.


More pics to come!

I'll upload pictures of everything I bought later. I got some wicked cool stuff. Also, if you're ever in Crutcho, Oklahoma let me warn you about something: there are no public bathrooms. Apparently, there is a large population of crackheads in the town and they were using gas station bathrooms to do their business. Let me tell you, that's really bad news when you have to pee.

On the Scene in OKC

If you're looking for something fun to do this weekend may I suggest an 80's dress up & dance party? I think I may.




Come party with me and my sideswept bangs. They'll be so huge that they will have taken on a life of their own. My bangs will be named Bambi. Buy us a drink. ;-)

Wardrobe Basics

I was reading the latest issue of Glamour (or was it Marie Claire? Hard to distinguish anymore). There was an article about how women nowadays are stressaholics. The basic point was that we're so wired in with our PDA's, magazine addictions and constant email checking that we become overloaded with stimuli. They advocated paring things down to the essentials and said some other stuff about taking it easy. I can't remember most of the article because it sounded like every other article about stressed-out women I had read lately, but one part really stuck out to me. They interviewed one woman who said, "I subscribe to nine magazines and two newspapers...Naturally, I can't keep. But I worry that if I don't read them, I will not be on top of things. I need to know: Are chandelier earrings in or out..." (p. 296). Before I had even finished reading her quote I was having a "WTF" moment. Do people really worry about whether or not something is in or out? I mean, sure, people want to know what's in, but who worries about it? That's so strange to me. I wanted to take her aside and say, "Who cares if chandelier earrings are in or out? Wear what you want!"

There is no designer mandate that says you HAVE to wear what's in! I almost never do. I take current trends, vintage pieces and kitschy stuff to make up my outfits. I never look like anyone else, but also always look swell. Maybe it's because I adhere to a few simple style principles, or because I have cultivated a "look" that's my own, but I don't stress out about what's "In" or "Out." If Ugg boots are officially OUT, I will still wear them because they are functional and warm. If chandelier earrings are OUT I will still wear them because they play up my long neck. Screw trends! Wear whatever the hell makes you feel like a young Sophia Loren, a goddess, a bohemian earth mother or any other type of look you feel like channeling at the moment.

That being said, there are a few wardrobe basics, and some other fun pieces that I always find to be essential to my wardrobe. Here's my personalized HFG list. Add to it, subtract from, or ignore it completely. Just have fun with your own style. That's all I ask, really.

Basics:


1) A well-fitting bra and well-fitting underwear
2) A fitted black jacket
3) A basic white button down
4) A great pair of jeans
5) A tailored pair of slightly wide-leg black trousers
6) A cashmere cardigan
7) High quality black, navy, white and brown turtlenecks
8) A little black dress
9) A silk camisole in a pretty jewel tone
10) A black pencil skirt
11) A trench coat
12) Hanes plain white tees
13) Ballet flats
14) Classic pumps
15) Classic tall boots (brown and black)
16) A great handbag
17) A peacoat
18) Belt

Great extras:

1) A classic watch
2) Pearl necklace
3) Diamond studs
4) A gold chain
5) A vintage rock and roll t-shirt
6) A trapeze/swing jacket
7) Oversized Jackie O sunglasses
8) A classic tote bag
9) A gorgeous cocktail dress
10) A leopard print coat
11) Jeweled cuff
12) A beautiful clutch
13) A v-neck sweater
14) A black and white striped t-shirt
15) Wrap dress
16) Neutral pumps or slingbacks
17) A pashmina
18) A sequin tunic
19) Leggings
20) Skinny jeans


All of these things are loosely interpreted so that each individual item can be made your own. Your version of a great white button down might be a dramatic Diane Von Furstenberg version, or a simple version from Isaac Mizrahi for Target. Whatever items you choose are unique because YOU chose them. Let the runways and the It Girls influence you as much as you want, but please don't become a homogenized clone.

Misanthropic Shirt of the Day!

[chuckle]

Home Decor the HFG Way

As it stands, most of my apartment is decorated with great finds from thrift stores and antique stores. But, if I had it my way I'd be more class and less kitsch. There is always a place for kitsch, no matter what the style books tell you, but there are cool, modern, organic ways to achieve kitsch that aren't junky. If I had an unlimited supply of money, these are the things I would buy for my apartment:





The Gramophone Chair





Coat Rack $68





Collins Rocking Chair $1295





Red Frank Sofa $2825






Menos Chest $5188





Daniel Becker Hunting Lines Sofa





Owl Necklace Stand $32






Wall Decal Fly $38





Tree Coat Rack $28





Eggling - Series 2 $10






Stainless Steel Balls (tee-hee!) $14.95






Stacking Box Wall Sconce $49.95





Aluminum Mirrors $59.95





Audrey Wall Clock $49.95






Asker Container $5.99





Triton Lacquer Tray Set $220





1950's Nature Press Guides







Tea for One $20






Alice Side Plate $11






Alice Glasses Set of 4 $20







Carved Wooden Shark Bottle Opener $22





1940's Fully Reconditioned Telephone $350






Pigeon Vase $45





4 Apothecary Bottles $64





Presto Bingo - Gus Painting $35





Camellia Chinoise Blue Duvet Set $276





Chinoiserie Vellum Pillow $115






Mati Inspiration Board






Evelyn Wall Lamp







Udderly Beautiful






Octo Wall Decal $55






Resindeer





Sculpture Decanter €2000






Herend Moose $500






New York City in a Bag $14






Dozi Paperclip Holder $20






Candleholder Flashlight - David Weeks






Bookend Men






Modern Target Skull Candelholder






Skyscraper Pepper Grinder $198






Verdigris Mini Taper Holder $58

In Which I Steal Ideas From Other People

While voyeuristically browsing shopping guides, lust lists and favorite picks, I filched some of these gorgeous items from other people.















































Sometimes it can be quite rewarding when I let other people find cool stuff for me.

Forego real gift giving

Spread some holiday cheer by giving ridiculous gifts this Christmas! Forget the cashmere slippers, the fancy watch with multiple electronic features and the Iphone. Give a box of Hickory Farms Smoked Meat to a vegetarian. Give a dancing stuffed bear to a 25-year old hipster. Give a new toilet seat to your buddy with IBS. Or maybe give a potato masher or a mesh cube to wash hats in to a domestic goddess (Hat Tip: Makeupalley gals). Not all of the gifts need to be clever, but they do need to be really, really bad.

One Christmas, my dad gave me a lamp from Dollar General. He was really proud at how much money he saved. He's pretty much the worst gift giver ever. He once sent my baby brother a package containing flashlights and beef jerky for his birthday. There is something annoying and yet humorous at receiving a totally thoughtless gift.

My favorite "worst gift ever" this holiday season? A $40 bottle of water called Bling H20. It's expensive AND totally unnecessary. A win-win situation for all.