Happy New Year 2015

A Girl and her

Paintings

from Long Ago

When I graduated from Elmira College in 1966, I moved to Philadelphia and Richard and I set up housekeeping in Germantown, in an apartment on the third floor of a house across the street from the Germantown Cricket Club. I had a small studio in the apartment, and I started to paint.

What came forth were some paintings of fanciful women in elaborate costumes -- exactly what I am doing almost 50 years later. I was exploring my nascent interest in fashion.

Soon we moved to center city Philadelphia, to a two-floor loft on 10th Street near Chinatown, and I continued this figurative work.

 "Elmira"

 "The Ladies Floral Cabinet"

A man named Dr. Roland Gibson collected Richard's work. He taught economics at The State University of New York Potsdam in Potsdam, New York. He met Richard when he was visiting a friend who taught at Elmira College, were Richard taught, and he started to buy Richard's work.

After we moved to Philadelphia, Roland came to our loft and bought another of Richard's paintings, and he also bought my "Ladies Floral Cabinet," shown above. I was quite thrilled to sell it. Roland left his art collection of mostly Japanese abstract art to Potsdam when he died. Recently I contacted the Collections Manager at Potsdam who sent me this note.

"Your beautiful piece, "The Ladies' Floral Cabinet" has been enjoyed for quite awhile in the Dean's office in The Crane School of Music. It is now hanging in the SGA forum hall. Both your work and that of Richard's are thought of as valuable assets to The Permanent Collection."

 "The Butterfly's Assumption Gown"

In this painting are all the hallmarks of what I love:

color, abstract pattern, flowers and ribbons.

The name is from a poem by Emily Dickinson.

"The butterfly's assumption-gown,
In chrysoprase apartments hung,
This afternoon put on.

How condescending to descend,
And be of buttercups the friend
In a New England town!"

Me in the painting studio at Elmira College.

Geez, I look young.

On New Year's Eve, we lunched at the Odeon, a wonderful restaurant in Tribeca, with Jean and her friend Lou. Jean, of course, is one of the Idiosyncratic Fashionistas, the other being Valerie. As we were leaving the restaurant, we saw a lovely couple who had just gotten married at City Hall. We chatted with them and discovered that they were from Scotland. So to leave you in 2014, I give you the Scottish couple who are beginning a life together in New York City on the eve of 2015.

Bliadhna Mhath Ùr

Happy New Year and may

2015 be a good one for the world.

À Bientôt!

Season's Greetings

Season's Greetings
One and All*
With happiness I must cheer,
we made it through another year.
With health issues only minor,
we can say that we feel finer.

To all our friends, both far and wide,
we refrain from comments snide.
Advanced Style ladies both classic and quirky,
May your holiday dinner be tofurky.

To Dianna and Michael in Oak Parky,
To Frank Lloyd Wright do not be snarky.

To Richard Conrad in Milwaukee, 
Call us on your walkie-talkie.

To Joe Cramer in that same city,
sing us some mid-western ditty.

To Irma Miller and all the folks,
Warm yourself in winter cloaks.

To Jeanne Markel avoid the rabble,
So you can play a game of Scrabble.

To Sarah Wedge at RisDee,
Be as busy as a bee.

To Jack Wedge in Katonah,
Hope your college is what you wannah.

To Chris Wedge in the film dustry,
Trim with trucks your Xmas tree.

To Susan Markel of rowing fame,
To the gold please make a claim.

To Rick Jahnke in the north,
Have a bagel and go forth.

To Sara Jahnke now with child,
May your winter be quite mild.

To David Markel on the East End,
To Jeanne your Scrabble move do send.

To Samantha Markel in NYC,
Come and see your sweet auntie.

To Tobi B. and Harriette T.
in Antigua we will be.

To all the gems who went to Tyler,
On the phone we'd like to dial ya.

To creative souls we know and love,
Sending you a turtle dove.

Photo by Andy Hornberger

Long Beach, NY 2005

Season's Greetings

&

Happy New Year

from

Richard and Carol

*with apologies to The New Yorker

Launch Party - Monica Byrne Atelier

Fun at an Elegant
Launch Party
Last year we were pleased to make the acquaintance of Monica Byrne, a fashion designer extraordinaire. Monica recently moved her atelier to West 27th Street, and we were happy to accept an invitation to her Launch Party.

 In the elevator on the way to Monica's atelier,

two of her friends in the same Monica coat.

 Monica on left and Victoria on right.

Victoria did the fabulous decor for Monica's atelier.

 Monica maintains an old-fashioned type of

enterprise. Her clothes are not sold in stores.

One must travel to West 27th Street in order to see 
her meticulously tailored, sophisticated, creative clothes. 

 Her studio reminds me of a PBS series called The House of Eliott,
about two sisters who were dressmakers in 1920s London.

When I tried on this beautiful vest, I knew

it would be mine.

For one thing, it went so well with my outfit.

Call it kismet, karma or serendipity,

somewhere along that spectrum.

The man with the credit card,

Ricardo.

A glimpse of the sweet, blue velvet sofa.

Left: Rosemary Wettenhall of  the vintage shop,

Madame Matovu

with Camille Davis.

Monica with friend, Veronica,

a textile designer.

Ambiance.

Left: Camille Caito with Astrid de St. Anthost.

Camille and her husband, Nicolas Caito, have a

pattern-making atelier in New York,

and Astrid has an atelier in Brooklyn where

she paints on fabric.

Photographer and stylist, Franco Lacosta.

Franco takes a selfie with moi!

À Bientôt!