Anonymity is a luxury craved by the famous. And when that elusive gem cannot be obtained then the next best thing is a dark, sexy little cafe like the basement cafe at the Elliott Bay Book Company in Pioneer Square where I am currently tucked under the stairs enjoying a cold bottle of Kombucha. A funny thing about Kombucha: apparently the imbiber is supposed to shake the bottle gently–not like a Polaroid, which I made the mistake of doing, and almost set off an explosion the likes of which would surely have rustled the Gentle Progressives and Hungover Hipsters quietly noshing and quaffing healthy things along with yours truly. Moving on.
Speaking of moving, I survived the move thanks to the good hands and good humor of the folks at Superfriends Moving. (Thanks Craigslist!) Now it’s all about surviving the horrors of unpacking and fake Feng Shui-ing my castle into some semblance of peace and harmony–all in good time. Meanwhile, at Elliott Bay I picked up a new, art jewelry book: New Directions in Jewellery II. It’s the type of book that overwhelms the senses with a large number of visually stunning images. I find in cases like these, it’s best to glance at the images briefly to get a sense of what I like, then to read the book again, more slowly and to incorporate the text in the second reading. But already I’m curious to learn more about Iris Bodemer, a fine art jeweler from Germany who studied at the Sandberg Institute in Amsterdam and the illustrious Rhode Island School of Design. Bodemer utilizes inherited family memories and drawing techniques to create a dynamic tension between common and precious materials while inviting the viewer to explore the connection between the layered meanings.
On the random fabulousness note, I am stunned by the effortless chic of a trio of Women of a Certain Age who have just sat at the table beside me. Though I am not particularly intrigued by their Northwest Nordic-wear, I am intrigued by their retro-chic ash blonde hairstyles: geometric, Dorothy Hamill wedge bobs into which they have planted impossibly expensive sunglasses. I can just see them in Aspen….
