Shoes: Architect's delight

I'd really like to see what this looks like on a foot.

Architect Julian Hakes's "Mojito" shoe composed of one piece of carbon fiber.

Via Dezeen blog.

Ferré's delicious woven leathers

I've been liking a lot of the fashions for next fall with all the simple silhouettes and rich textures and super cute jackets (hello, Burberry!). But anyway, how awesome is this textured leather (middle two) from Gianfranco Ferré's talented design duo of Aquilano and Rimondi? It's like amazing leather brocade. I'm also quite a fan of the long sleeved sheath dress on the right now if only I had the gaunt body and face to pull something like that off.

Hey, it's Friday! And there are bucketfulls of snow outside! I think I'll be donning the ol' snowpants and sliding down some hills on top of trashcan lids tomorrow. Kids don't have a monopoly on fun, damn it!

Non-Sequitur: the times, they are a-changin'

At my last job, we had planned a ski trip day for the office. One of my colleagues had claimed to be some kind of superstar on the Wisconsin slopes (ha!) which led to another colleague asking, "Do you even own snowpants?"

"No, I don't," he said matter of factly.

"WHAT!" --the response from the two of us, in unison.

"I don't wear snowpants. I wear jeans."

From that day forth, he was forever known as "Snowjeans"--a mocking name.

So the times have changed. Oh, how I eat my words now that the epitome of chic in snowpants as far as the kids are concerned is the faux-jean snowpants. Exhibit: two members of the US men's snowboard team on the podium in their lumberjack garb (<3 Shaun White <3):

So these Olympics have been pretty exciting, eh? Did you hear that for the first time ever, a tv show beat American Idol in ratings! Yes, the Olympics actually beat American Idol in ratings! What I also found particularly amusing is that they've been showing curling after 5pm on CNBC pretty much religiously this last week as opposed to the usual array of FastMoney, MadMoney, or whatever have you. Being a Canuck, curling holds a special place in my heart.

Eat, Drink, Be Merry: The Standard Hotel

Over the weekend I received a call from a long-time acquaintance I had made quite randomly back in Chicago. He recently moved to New York and we've been trying to hang out but have had conflicting schedules. Finally, it worked. Received message as I was wandering around Union Square with nothing to do on Saturday afternoon: "Hey J, I have a friend is in town; we are walking down the High Line and are going to get a drink at the Standard. Want to join?"

Why, yes! Yes, I did want to join! I had heard a lot about the Standard Hotel and had admired this austere, concrete and glass structure. The place looks killer.

 

(photo from psfk.com)

So up I went and met up with the two of them on the 18th floor restaurant / cocktail lounge.

The decor upstairs was art deco with a modern twist (in the form of its hanging light fixtures). Wait staff was all appropriately dressed in matching white ensembles with the girls in reinterpreted cigarette girl ensembles.

Best part, however, were the bathrooms! Could literally sit on the john there for hours gazing out over Manhattan. They were all individual water closets with floor-to-ceiling windows. Amazing views!

While the three of us cringed at the $20 cocktails and $12 beers, those bathrooms were worth it--so was the cool elevator ride up featuring a digitized video collage of heaven and hell. Very weird. Very cool.

(Forgive my crappy photos! Low light, shaky hands, eek!)

Home Sweet Home: Featherbeds

I just put a featherbed on top of my mattress. This bed is pure, pure heaven.

In case you're wondering, you can get them pretty cheap on overstock.com. Mine was about $60 if I recall correctly.

So, it's middle of the day Monday (Prez day), the flattie and I just hosted some friends for a scrumptious brunch, and I'm back in bed. Now I can't think of a single reason to leave. Oh, laundry can wait. I'll just buy some new underwear ;p

Home Sweet Home: Alice.com

Finally! Alice.com is open for business! Just in time too as the toilet paper is running low here at chez TIWAW. (Well, kind of old news I guess, but I had heard about it awhile back and missed on its grand opening I guess. Oh well!)

Seriously, this service is a godsend for urban-dwellers without a car like me. What could be more tedious than having to pick up overpriced toilet paper every couple of days from the bodega because there is no place to go to buy the stuff in bulk (let alone carry it back on the subway)? Few things, let me tell you. Few things!

WIWT: Ski Edition!

The last time I skied, parabolic skis were still in their infancy. I was 11 and on a class field trip. I recall demonstrating my perfected abrupt stop complete with a wave of misty snow at a the base of a lift-line. My elegant form was witnessed by the boy, Jon, whose name populated my 8th grade diary with plenty of hearts.  He said, "Wow, you're really good." I think my heart melted.

Then there were what I refer to as the dry and subsequently flat years. Moved to Texas with step-family who did not ski. Moved to Chicago where the nearest "mountain" had 500ft of vertical which was effectively an icy graveyard (I broke my wrist on those icy molehills!).

But finally, sometime in my senior year of college, I returned to the mountains--to Whistler, actually. This time, I was armed with a snowboard of my very own. First run I decide, instead of taking a lesson, to ride the gondola to the mothereffin' summit. I used to ski, I thought. How hard could this snowboarding thing be?

Very hard, apparently--at least at first.

I cursed my life as I hesitantly edged my way down the mountain, falling here and there, over and over.  Oh, I swore. And how! So Whistler, if you are unaware, is huge. It is a monstrous mountain--biggest in North America--with the longest trail being about 7miles top to bottom.  It took me about the entire afternoon to barely make it half way as I was falling--a lot. Finally, the lifts had closed and ski patrol was doing its last run. They spotted me, clearly in distress, and gave me a ride down on one of the injured-skier toboggans. Embarrassing, yes, but a hell of a lot of fun!

Well, despite that tremulous start, I have somehow stuck with snowboarding over the years (broken wrist, mild concussions, injured shoulders, and all). I've also since returned to Whistler and without requiring the assistance of ski patrol. I'm curious to try skiing again. I wonder if I'll still remember how! Well, regardless of which version of the sport, the obsession returns annually. This time of year, I can be found frequently ogling trail maps at work.

All right, long introduction aside: what to wear to the ski hills, bunnies?

As demonstrated by Mrs. Beckham (google it), not this:

Really, Chanel? Really???

Yes this:

Arc'teryx "Sidewinder"

Holla, Canadian roots! I love Arc'teryx. As far as outdoor gear goes, Arc'teryx is really top notch for quality and design.*

A run down of why this is an awesome ski jacket:

• Material: 3 layer Gore-tex pro shell (translation: You will never be wet or feel the wind, and yes, it does get windy on those chairlifts)
• Taped seams (again, you'll never be wet)
• Powder skirt (keeps the snow from gettin' in your pants if you're prone to falling)
• Stowable helmet-compatible hood (good, again, for those wet conditions)
• RECCO avalanche reflector (you know, for all that off-piste, backcountry stuff I do--ha)
• Finally, BRIGHT, BOLD COLOUR! (easier for your mates to spot you in the masses of people crowding at the lift lines)

* Admittedly, the REI store's own brand of sporting apparel is probably 1/2 the price of Arc'teryx and just as good in terms of quality... but you know, we are label/design whores, and I'm a sucker for the better designs of the Arc'teryx gear. Plus, REI's stuff doesn't have RECCO reflectors hehe.

Yep. So basically this is on the wishlist right now. Have no real reason to purchase it because, well, I have two ski jackets (arguably three) already.

Now, what do I actually wear? Well, when it's pretty cold there's this:

The latecomers' BFE parking lot at Breck

Insulated ski/snowboard jacket (Roxy, hehe) / hyvent snowpants that I love (North Face) / fleece "turtleneck" / not shown: helmet & goggles, of course

And this for when it's warmer:

Posing in front of M's amazing "gingerbread" haus

Gore-tex shell (Arc'teryx) / those same North Face snowpants / Gore-tex mittens with snot guard and goggle wipers (Kombi--so warm!) / not shown: again, helmet (!!) & goggles

Uh, in conclusion: I love snowsports... and always wear a helmet! Oh, and I recommend goggles with yellow lenses.

Man, I shurrr do miss the Rockies.