Happy Mother's Day!

My mother would consider halting my college tuition payments for posting this online, but it's the only picture I could find of her as a child. She's on the bottom left, with the super-fly haircut and the shy smile. Right now, she and my father are in Italy, and it's awful to not hear her voice every day, with its slight Brooklyn accent and reassuring tone.

When I was young, I would climb into bed and cry while I listened to my mother downstairs, closing cabinets and folding clothes and making sandwiches for the next day's lunch. My dad would come in, bewildered and trying to figure out why I was sobbing, but it wasn't until my mother came upstairs and tucked me in that I stopped sniffling and fell asleep. I'd always been like that, colicky and screaming unless she (and no one else) held me. My mom would carry me for hours as a baby, dancing around the living room to Gloria Estefan's "Here We Are," and somehow managed to keep her dental office running smoothly.

I love you, Mom.

Weekender

My older brother just planned an impromptu visit for the weekend, so I'm thinking brunch at Walker Bros Pancake House and enormous beer towers at Bat 17. I'm actually looking forward to doing homework this weekend: reading A Midsummer's Night Dream, translating Ionesco's Rhinoceros, and writing about Lady Macbeth's badass cred. Barbecues in the quads, long afternoons on the beach, perhaps a stroll through the Lincoln Park zoo (of course, with some lemonade in hand): spring is always Chicago's finest hour. Here are some links for your weekend:

- I have a weak spot for my favorite comic strip's puns.
- I would give my left arm for this haircut but I know my own locks wouldn't cooperate. I wish, I wish, I wish.
- last minute mother's day ideas? A picnic brunch and this adorable vase. (via A Cup of Jo)
- Martha Stewart plus Chanel? Only in my dreams... and the early 1960s.
- an up-close, personal, and yummy look at Saint Cupcakes, the bakery my boyfriend found to send me a delicious anniversary present.

Hope you have a beautiful weekend!

[photo cred to Jose Picayo for Martha Stewart Living February 2005, via This Is Glamorous]

Polite Pinstripes

I haven't been around much. I'd like to blame it on the seventy degree weather that all but shoves me outdoors, but the slew of paper assignments that have rained down on me are actually to blame. Fortunately, I've had the time (of course I have) to come across this little babe, which just so happens to be the uber-belated Pick of the Week:
I'm still on my work-appropriate kick, so I've been keeping an eye out for skirts that fall longer than my fingertips reach. This skirt stands out thanks to the exquisite draping and the subtle pinstripes that are nearly invisible at first glance. The silhouette, along with the buckled strap, is modern and edgy, but the subdued stripes take it down a notch and usher it into "professional" territory (right? RIGHT?). I would tuck a slim, embellished camisole into this and top it with a black men's blazer - natch, with the sleeves rolled up. Nude heels would finish it off nicely, and it would translate seamlessly from day to night with a quick adjustment of accessories.

Weekender

What a beauuuutiful Friday in Chicago: seventy-five degrees, impossibly sunny, and all of my classes are underneath the trees by Lake Michigan. There was an Asian tour group taking pictures of us earlier. My weekend will be spent enjoying the spring sun on Saturday while somehow writing my second French dissertation and outlining two more papers (but in English). I apologize for the shameful lack of posts this week; I've just finished midterms and they have not been pretty. Here are some links for your first May weekend!

- I've had baklava only once before, so this recipe seems especially enticing.

- These video shorts are so inspiring and make me want to go globetrotting.

- PICNIC weather?! (via A Cup of Jo)

- the best To Do list I've ever seen, and the source of today's photo.

- I've been hankering after a one-strap bikini, such as this gem.

Hope your weekend is as pretty and sunshine-filled as mine!

Working Girl

I've been on a desperate hunt for clothes that can be categorized under the "professional" heading. I figure I can wear pencil skirts with embellished tanks and light jackets (for the love of God, no boxy blazers or bland cardigans). On the other hand, I know that it will be summer in New York City (sticky, concrete, and unpleasant), so I must keep an eye out for any light, flowing dresses. I have to admit, though, I'm more than excited to pick up blueberries from the streetside fruit vendors on my way to work, as I did every day last summer.
I considered buying armfuls of cheap dresses to fill the deficit of "appropriate" in my wardrobe; I then realized that a) I'll probably need "appropriate" clothing after graduation anyway and b) I don't like cheap clothes because there's a reason they're cheap (poor quality, usually). As a result, I've made it my duty to haunt all sample sales, which is how I found this gem:
I know. I KNOW. I wish the picture was clear enough for the detailing on the bodice to be more visible, because it really is exquisite. Unfortunately, Rue La La allows other shoppers to purchase pieces that are already in your shopping cart (Seriously? At least Gilt gives a ten minute period) and I missed it. Naturally, I entered a stage of severe self-loathing for slight procrastination before finding a very similar dress, though without the pleating on the bodice. Still, this particular dress is available here at full price. It is so unbelievably perfect for summer and marries fashionable with professional quite beautifully. For now, I will be roaming the sample sales to find some more pieces (while studying for my midterms, of course). If you have any suggestions as to how I can reassess my college wardrobe with an eye to professionalism, let me know! Hope your weeks are going splendidly!

Monday Morning

This morning is all bright skies and fresh winds, and I just couldn't resist throwing in a shot of the Chicago skyline that is so iconic of Northwestern's campus. My weekend was delightful but completely unproductive, which is especially unfortunate as this is midterm week. I went downtown with some friends to Cusp, one of my new favorite stores and an offshoot of Neiman Marcus, and Kamehachi, which offered delicious sushi. Yesterday, I ventured into Little Vietnam (which is actually Little Asia) and bought enough dim sum to feed five people - for $12. Whenever I find myself in a Chinese bakery surrounded by other Asians, I try far too hard to put on a good Cantonese accent and instead, mark myself as the half-Asian wannabe. Fine. Guilty as charged.

At Cusp, I picked up two very cute tops that I insisted to my mother were "work appropriate," a statement which may be up for debate. Yet I also spotted a beautiful dress that was out of my current spending limit but perfect for the editorial internship I snagged for the summer:
The neckline is what caught my eye, with the uber-flattering pleating coming in a close second. The cap sleeves are so sweet and the higher neckline is demure but alluring (bad personal pun - the internship is with Allure magazine). I can see it transitioning smoothly from day to night with a pair of strappy nude heels and a sweet clutch. A lot of Black Halo's Resort 2009 line is work appropriate with an edge, and you can find the Pick of the Week here, as well as countless other adorable dresses.

[photo cred to Gerald Oh]

Weekender

The weekend seems like it will be a good one despite all of the rain that Chicago has in store. Apart from mounds of homework, I'm going downtown to shop with some friends and have plans to stuff myself full of delicious dim sum. My picks out of the several million that are offered on carts? Definitely cha siu bow (steamed pork buns - though baked is good, too), dhan ta (egg custard tarts), and ha fun (shrimp wrapped in fun rolls). Mmm, I might be salivating just thinking about it. Here are some links to brighten your weekend:

- my obsession with Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution + Earth Day = a guide for eating well and keeping green all day, every day.

-speaking of green, too bad I don't have enough to spend on these sweet wedges.

- if you have spare time, spare chocolate, and spare marshmallows, I highly suggest that you donate it all to a batch of these.

- my favorite character in Alice in Wonderland is the Dormouse, so naturally, I adore these invitations that pay homage to him.

- a wonderful, supersize collection of photographs from one of my go-to blogs.

A note: my wonderful boyfriend sent me some cupcakes for our anniversary from Saint Cupcake. Have I eaten all of them? Maybe. They're all delicious, but the best are anything with the buttercream frosting.

Have a bright and beautiful weekend!

[photo cred to Robert Lio]