I've got GREAT jeans... Just sayin'. I am madly in love with the ones I'm wearing today and it's taken me ages to fall hard for a pair of jeans. Seems there is ALWAYS something not quite right, you know? Gapping in the back, too short, too long, bunchy knees, not enough stretch, poor pocket placement, yeah i could go on & on...

But these babies, that i got from
http://www.ruelala.com a little over a month ago are IT. They're by Taverniti, which if you do a web search, aren't terribly easy to come across. They're not even on nordstrom.com's radar. I don't care. The length is right, the wash is right (faded black) the distressing is right (not too much), the leg is right, love the twisted belt loops, random extra stitching and the pockets are insane.

There are a lot of "boyfriend" jeans (way oversized & baggy) out there right now, a lot of "destroyed" denim (tattered, holey, even slashed), high waist, ultra-low rise, boot-cut, straight leg, skinny leg, wide leg, colored denim, dark washes, light washes, it has GOT to be overwhelming for many.

Need help? Here's what I'd do...

I say start with the rise and the leg. Get your butt into a place like Nordstrom. WEAR heels. If you're a big fan of flip flops, stash them in your purse too. Then, let your eyes guide you to a few pairs that strike your fancy. Read their tags re: rises, note the length of the zipper, if it's quite short, they're LOW rise. Note the leg, does it sort of bell out? Look straight? Look tapered and skinny?

I'd suggest that you take a mid rise and a low rise, a boot-cut and a straight leg in the fitting room with you and put them on. I guarantee at least one pair will appaul you, possibly ALL FOUR. It's cool. That's normal. Keep trying. Do not run out screaming! All things considered of those first four, find the silver lining! Which rise do you think you look best in? Feel most comfortable in? Bend over, do you look like a plumber? Yeah? GET THOSE OFF.

Point is, once you figure out your rise and leg style (try on WITH shoes to perfect length), you're in great shape. OH, but how could I forget, A LOT of designer denim comes in sizes from like 25 to 35. Gotta narrow in on your number too. OK, so RISE, LEG, NUMBER. Figure that out and you're on your way. From there you can wade through ALL the other factors, (I personally find this so fun, & if you need help, seriously ASK, i've been known to personal shop for both male & female shop-aphobes.)

In the end, YOU MUST have at least ONE pair of jeans you ADORE. And I'll go out on a limb and say at least FIVE pairs you really like (yes five). In this day and age, that's just how it is. Right Scarletti? :-) HAPPY FRIDAY! & I PROMISE to blog this weekend. I hope you care! ;-)

Love, Sunlovey

p.s. by no means do i love the "butt" shot. but i wanted you to fully see the pocket detail as that's what sold me on these. they are low rise, and skinny leg by the way.

Egypt in Photos...
from bottom to top: cairo sunsets (photos 1 and 2), Khan al Khalili bazaar, piles of pitas in bazaar, delicious fare at upstairs restaurant in bazaar, me on the Abela sleeper train, our first view of the Nile in Luxor (that's a felucca)

Egypt Continued... (raw & uncut)
Had lunch @ a little upstairs place recommended by a shop owner that sold scent oils, it was called Al Ahd Al Jadid- they brought a huge tray out with everything they had & asked us to pick what we wanted- we were the only tourists and the food was so good. really. Egyptians are so curious about us, about us liking it here, if we're being treated well, feeling welcome. & MANY of them tell us they love Obama. "Obama is for peace, Bush was for blood" one man said to me.

So... got some sleep on the train once the beds were set up. I was on the top bunk, tim on bottom, maggie stayed up the entire night looking out the window. I stared out as well & all night long we saw people out and about & about. Also, mosques at night are lit up by bright neon lights. It seemed like no time and we were being told to wake up, get ready to get off the train!

what a b!tch carrying our luggage up the many stairs, esp. at 5:30AM with little sleep in HOT AS HADES Luxor. Lord have mercy! Got a cab for 20 Egyptian pounds to Iberotel. They were kind enough to let us check in right away and we went up to our rooms, checked out the view from our balcony (AMAZING, the Nile is so lovely here in Luxor, breath taking), showered and passed out for a few hours.

I ended up getting up and checking out the pool etc. with maggie. We had tea & coffee, then came to get tim, he walked down to check out the pool too (OH, i forgot, maggie shopped her BUTT off after coffee) then we were going to have lunch in the hotel restaurant... they said buffet or a la cart? we said we wanted to look at the buffet, maggie went first and totally fell, HARD, screwing up two of her fingers badly, one looked broken & i saw right then tons of dirty water on the floor!

She was eventually taken in a cab, with the manager and tim to the Luxor hospital, it was a disaster. The day slipped by and poor, poor maggie went thru a lot. when they finally came back the hotel gave us lunch- bread, cheese, eggs & french fries? and we ate with the managers as they apologized. WAS SO WEIRD. & I am still MAD about that water by the buffet, the mgr. said it was a bottle of water spilled by one of the guests, i told him right away, NO WAY.

We then went to the pool for the afternoon, then showered and walked along the Nile to the Winter Palace for dinner. What a gorgeously furnished hotel, so Marie Antoinette. I had yellow lentil soup & sea bass. We walked back and I sorted out a guide for tomorrow's West Bank sites. 250 Egyptian pounds. We will leave at 7:30 & see AMAZING things. We'd like to take a felucca ride on the Nile while here. Until later! Prayers for maggie to feel better. Thanks to tim for being so helpful...

(the down low: i sorted out said guide with a guy at a tourist trap shop, got to be "friends" with him. he got us a brilliantly educated English speaking guide, a driver and air conditioned van for approx. $30 for an entire day, it pays to be friendly & to get to know people you encounter out there)

Happy Thursday y'all! ;-) Thought I'd greet you with some maddening live deadmau5 from miami last week. video's a bit wild and whirly because i'm dancing my you know what off whilst filming. if you love rides that spin, enjoy.

Yesterday I was totally all about this back-to-school prepster meets ROCK & ROLL feel when I woke up. Inspired by all things fall fashion (being flung at me via emails, mags, tweets, status updates, HOLY AWESOME, HOLY everywhere inundation), the upcoming Gossip Girl season I'm dying for, etc. AND... low and behold, a black & white check mini sent to me via FED EX from a very dear friend out of the bloody blue!? truly, incredibly kind of her, as i LOVE getting things i can wear in the mail! THANK YOU CARRIE.

The BTS (back to school) aspect is somewhat my own, I'm obsessed with the concept. I think it's my way of rewinding the clock. I've mentioned my love for crests, headbands, plaids et al. And there's something about rocking the look out that totally excites me. Create your own spin. Take photos. I'll post! FASHION IS FUN.

OK... so, what i did, was toss on this cute puff-sleeve shirt/sweater vest-look top i got last year, very school girl, then the mini, which, being a mini does lend the look a bit of rebelliousness, but it was my studded strappy platform heels that put it over the edge. Added my trio of beaded skull stretch bracelets, my studded leather cuff and lastly, I strung the keys I bought over the weekend to a "dog tags" chain and voila... Seriously, fall is over-the-top rock & roll, as exemplified by ELLE's Metallica & Iron Maiden trend reports. Even Saks & Neiman Marcus are in on it, (peruse their online look books). Do it your way, as I have. By simply adding edgy accessories to revv up something you already own. Or... lose yourself in Topshop's killer fall collections like the irreverent HORROR GIRL... it's love. And for absolutely inexpensive, insanely cool accessories that totally master this look... I can't believe I'm sharing this with you... ;-) http://www.thefetty.com/ I've not been this excited about a fashion season in a lonnnnnng time.

p.s. DID NOT love this week's itunes FREE single of the week. It was deleted. But i DID use Vitaminwater Sync credits at amazon's mp3 store to buy Phoenix's album Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix and i'm adoring it. Have a listen. Give me feedback. Drink Sync & rack up your own music credits! (until aug. 30th!) Until tomorrow...

love,
sunlovey

REMINDER: Yesterday was Tuesday and thus, FREE Single of the Week day on itunes. Did you check it out? Did you look for the FREE Discovery Download? The FREE video? It's not too late... http://www.itunes.com
FREE Single of the Week: Wonderful by Gary Go (never heard of, will check out, they dare to compare to Coldplay) Genre: Pop
FREE Discovery Download: Apolkalypse Now by Polkastra (POLKA!?) Genre: World
FREE Video: Down by Jay Sean (feat. Lil Wayne, probably not my cup of tea, but perhaps yours?) Genre: Pop

Something else catching my eye in the "FREE on itunes" section!?!?!? a Where The Wild Things Are exclusive featurette. AWESOME. download.

Now, more from Egypt...

Alexandria looks quite beautiful in our photographs... sadly there's not much to it in terms of ancient sites.

they've been demolished or shipped off to the U.S. (like the Obelisk in Central Park, NYC, pictured, shipped from Alexandria in 1881) & England... we did visit an extremely old catacomb and a fort on the water. we had such a questionable lunch at a place called Fish Bono—dear LORD it's amazing our stomachs are OK. we laughed so much though. had "virgin mojitos" actually called garden view cocktails & virgin beer. it was so hot. the drive back was unique, our driver smelled incredibly. OMG we were dying. Maggie smoked sheesha with a random guy at a gas station.

Once back we sipped beers on the balcony of our hotel and watched another insane sunset. they are phenomenal on their own and then the call to prayer kicks in and it's just surreal!

we took the advice of some things i'd read online and had such a lovely dinner at Felfela. Quite good, great service, more laughs. the various dips and salads are incredible, the fresh pita & their falafel (also called tamiya, pictured) was TOP NOTCH, crusted in sesame seeds. We had two orders. Good beer. Great atmosphere, nice decor-

then we went to another place for tim and maggie to smoke sheesha. i just stared at the people, Egyptians, their eyes, eye color, eyelashes, gorgeous.

I SLEPT. didn't even hear the morning call to prayer. maggie woke us at 8:30, we had breakfast (hmm, not the best, the tea is ok but it's loose in the bottom of the glass, so you end up eating it). After breakfast we set out for the Egyptian museum, it is so striking from the outside, they take great pride in it. 60 egyptian pounds to get in. NO AC, dear GOD. except in certain rooms that house things that can't survive 1000 degrees. An extra 100 pounds to see the mummies & now i know i'm going to dream about them...

the rest of the day was spent wandering through and bargaining in the bazaar, Khan al Khalili. Was a blast with maggie, laughing! we spent a lot of time in a small tunic shop where maggie bought outfits for many children she knows. but we ended up seeing tunics that we liked ourselves and spent much time talking and laughing with the father and son shop owners about maggie's "pyramids". was hilarious. people would actually say to us through out the souks "how can i take your money today?" quite honest.

Alexandria, downtown                                           

Alexandria mosque

        

     

      Alexandria along the Mediterranean sea 

                                                                                                                                                                          

 

Dinner @ Cafe Riche

Downtown Cairo

Cairo view from our hotel Balcony

I woke up with a fashion purpose this morning. Whatever works. A few years ago two dresses were given to me. Vintage sheaths. Both had much promise. And were stowed away in a spare closet. They originally belonged to the mother-in-law of a neighbor. And I came to mind when said mother-in-law passed them down. So last night, awaiting sleep, I thought of them. Yes, some three years later. Got out of bed, went to the spare closet and found them. Was drawn to the one pictured in particular. A bright and summery change from the gray I've been drawn to so much lately. I hung it on my closet door, thought "GOLD SHOES" and fell asleep. This morning I quickly chose a necklace and a trio of bracelets & was on my merry way...


SEGUE:
Tweets from Monday night, August 10th...
Travel writers show on travel channel taking place in chile for this episode is SO good. I'm jealous and instantly addicted.about 20 hours ago from txt

And they're going to patagonia... If you know me you know i'm dying. about 20 hours ago from txt

ok, travel is officially saturating every crevice of my brain now-if you were my travel journal from egypt WHERE would you be?!?! can't find about 20 hours ago from web

journal FOUND. expect egypt blogs shortly. inspired by Confessions of a Travel Writer:
http://confessionsofatravelwriter.com/ about 19 hours ago from web


YEAH, a lot of inspiration was taking place last night, and not just in the fashion realm. Prior to my vintage dresses in spare closet revelation I got absolutely consumed by a new show on the travel channel. Confessions of a Travel Writer. WOW. Dry, funny, real, AND THE FIRST EPISODE TOOK PLACE IN CHILE!!!! Know me, know I want to go there next, BADLY. I was glued, riveted, swooning. Please oh please find and watch this show, tell others about it, keep it on TV. It's smart and if it goes away that will suck. Watching the show evoked a dire need within me to find the journal I kept while in Egypt. Mad dash searches transpired during commercial breaks. And HALLELUJAH it was found.

So... motivated by Confessions of a Travel Writer, I bring you a travel journal entry. You like? Tell me. You don't. TELL ME. Got it? Cool.

June 18th
We're here—still taxi-ing to the gate. The flight was fine. Already caught sight of the pyramids. Cairo looks HUGE & dry. ... Walked around a bit, city is bustling. Ate dinner at Cafe Riche, then had drinks at Pottery Cafe & watched the Egypt v. Italy game with tons of excited Egyptians 'til we were about to pass out, then we left. The streets were overflowing with

TV sets & crowds all watching hte game and I love the internationality of it all—the world watches!! Have been sending updates to twitter from my cell along the way, I'll print and paste them -HERE- once home. Dinner was pretty good, I ordered various dips with fresh pita and had a chick pea layered cassarole, the name escapes me. I AM FULL. Alarm goes off at 6:30AM, we're off to Alexandria. Good night. ... And we're off in our car service to Alexandria, just drove along and am currently crossing THE NILE RIVER, that's madness. A lot of ships along it. Breakfast was strong tea, strong unrecognizable juice, pita, jam, cheese (white and salty), yogurt. Sleep? NONE. Call to prayer at 4AM? HEARD IT. Beautiful...

Oh Pelican, Deadmau5, Pier 66, How I Love Thee...

I've just now started to recover from a whirlwind weekend of way too much fun. I

said earlier, I do understand how some people of a famous, insanely wealthy nature check themselves into hospitals for over-exhaustion. C'est moi. But man oh man was

it worth it...

Saturday found us hurling down 95 southbound towards the Ft. Lauderdale Hyatt Pier 66. Checked in, loving the lobby's cool, soothing decor, groovy background music, GIFT SHOP (bought awesome, metal keys with positive words upon them, you'll see them on a necklace shortly, I'm certain), we dropped off our things in our room (HUGE and spacious, well appointed, large balcony with great view of the waterways of Ft. Lauderdale), headed back to the lobby and over to its inviting

bar for a glass of red to wait for our friends' arrival.

They arrived, we headed back to our rooms, readied ourselves and set out for South Beach, Miami, to meet more friends at the Pelican on Ocean Drive. The Pelican's actually a hotel, retro in feel, funky in decor, but let me tell you, I'm madly in LOVE with its restaurant. Have been for 10 years. It's Italian. GOOD Italian. More than one type of prosecco on the

the extremely impressive wine list, amazingly creative appetizers, salads that remind me of salads i munched on in Italy and pastas, breads, desserts, OK EVERYTHING is awesome. yes, the Pelican is one of my three fave restaurants in Florida.

So it was straight to the bar, a glass of prosecco ordered, cheers! Your table's ready! The eight of us pouring over the menu, excitedly catching up, ordering and DEVOURING our meal. I actually shared an appetizer (brie and guacamole crostini) and an entree (fresh made gnocchi in a garlicky tomato sauce with fresh mozzarella) and dessert (insanely yummy chocolate cake with a runny, gooey dark chocolate inside and vanilla gelato) with my friend Krista and left feeling so happily satiated.

We spilled into the street and headed towards Washington Ave.,

destination: Mansion nightclub. Once inside adrenaline kicked in, we were there to see Deadmau5, whom I

mentioned late last week, a brilliant Canadian DJ with a distinctive pumping, textural sound. His energy on stage makes me giggle like a school girl. He loves what he's doing and so does the crowd.

Holy crap did we dance, and sweat,

and KILL our feet. Please, if given the opportunity, GO see Deadmau5.

Back at the hotel in Ft. Lauderdale, we crash, a little sad the night's over but excited about the pool party Pier 66 is hosting the next day.

So yeah, next day, bikinis and bathing suits on, sunscreen

applied we hit the stunning pool, hit the water within seconds (it was a SCORCHER), mosey

up to the bar shortly thereafter

and order incredible mimosas. I taste a splash of pineapple juice in this sparkling

bevie and delight in it.

A bit later I enjoy a light and healthy salad at the pool restaurant, I ask if they can add cheese to it (as I'm an addict) and they kindly bring me shaved parmesan. AWESOME.

A tent was set up beside the pool giving free 10 minute neck and shoulder massages and I kid you not that 10 minutes undid a couple months of knotty stress in my upper back. Michelle at Spa 66 you are a goddess. I'll be back to see you, I PROMISE.

The day was coming to an end but no one wanted to call it quits so we headed to my friend Jerry's for pizza. Time flies at incredible speeds when you're having a blast, before we knew it, it was 9pm on a Sunday night and we were still in Lauderdale, so we high tailed it home and passed out. Needless to say I needed today to sleep in, do things I'd neglected during the weekend AND get MUCH more done on my DIY hoodie! check it:

A somber Friday in honor of two greats that have left this world:
RIP Jubei & John Hughes
The first, a beloved doggy and brilliant swimmer belonging to very dear friends. He will be missed, he's been an awesome, tolerant friend to my bitchy little Lily & Maggie, a gracious host to them when we've gone on trips. I am forever grateful.



The second, obviously, the creator of some of the most relevant movies of our youth. I can't tell you how many times I've watched Ferris Bueller's Day Off, no joke. Of all the movies in the WORLD I've seen it the most. breakfast club, sixteen candles, pretty in pink!!!!!!!!

do you have that soundtrack!? if no, GET. it's brilliant, it epitomizes that era. I LOVE.



Check out the track listing:
1. If You Leave - Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
2. Left of Center - Suzanne Vega w/ Joe Jackson
3. Get to Know Ya - Jesse Johnson
4. Do Wot You Do - INXS
5. Pretty in Pink - The Psychedelic Furs
6. Shellshock - New Order
7. Round, Round - Belouis Some
8. Wouldn't It Be Good - Danny Hutton Hitters
9. Bring on the Dancing Horses - Echo & The Bunnymen
10. Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want This Time - The Smiths

So yeah, today I'm reflecting. But ALSO looking forward! Tomorrow night
we're off to South Beach, Miami to see Deadmau5 at Mansion. Not familiar? Like dance music? Check him out. He performed at Ultra Music Festival this past March and his grooves are truly penetrating and infectious. Have a listen here. He definitely grabs your attention live in his hilarious & cool oversized mouse heads. I highly recommend you listen to Ghosts 'n' Stuff & Sometimes Things Get, Whatever, (the latter isn't on his myspace page right now but if you want to hear it, search it, you'll find it. I LOVE IT.)

I'm happy to report I worked on my DIY hoodie a bit more last night... It will definitely be a slow go. I've been scouring ebay & etsy for excellent
additions to it. SO MUCH out there! It's going to be amazing, someday. But here's what I did last night... Ha ha, yeah, small progress from one photo to the next. Can you spot the difference? ;-)



I wish you an ab fab weekend... Love to you all. And would LOVE to hear from you!

sunlovey

I'm listening to... Phoenix, a French band slowly making its presence known to me. know what often happens? i hear a band a few times on XM, finally go to buy stuff of theirs, then find stuff of said band in my itunes already. oftentimes from mixes i've downloaded previously. anyway. they're cool. sounds like? Hot Chip, maybe?

I'm wearing... my brilliant blue Hale Bob dress which features a bright fanning floral print, sexy tie neckline and silk-banded hem. metallic blue shoes, a necklace dripping with faceted blue crystals, fun pyramid stud blue wrist band.

I ate... the other half of my crunchy eggplant & fresh mozzarella panini with pesto for lunch (from DD Flats? in the Polo Shoppes, Boca Raton) , and glancing at the clock, i MUST go make myself some tea RIGHT now. ok. done. it's a must. remember, an afternoon delight... (serves two purposes though, the second being the second wind needed to kick some @$$ a bit later in hell AKA the gym.)

I want to be in... Venezia, this is exact time of day, dipping into a little hole in the wall stand-up wine bar with little crostinis to snack on. the kind of place the gondolieri might frequent. it would have a damp, woodsy undertone, pungent awesome cheeses would overpower that scent though. And I want the person behind the bar to be handing me the iciest cold glass of prosecco he or she can manage...

MUSIC. FASHION. FOOD. TRAVEL. they really do shape me...
what shapes you?
moves you?
drives you?
defines you?


later loveys!

sunlovey

(photos: AMAZING blue Gucci shoes, NOT mine sadly & a rough sketch of my future tattoo inspired by Venezia's San Marco lion)

my thought of the moment:
Why NOT have wine every night? One glass...

Feels a lot like a delicious afternoon cup of tea, it's a treat. it's a happy taste bud maker.

whipping through publix yesterday, on a mad dash salad-essentials run, a bottle of chianti (i used to open a lot for patrons at the Italian restaurant i worked at in college) caught my eye. and somehow made it's tasty little way into my cart. i couldn't

resist, it brought back memories.

popped it open last night, got out one of our stemless riedel glasses , (which i love. perfect for casual sipping, while watching a movie. but still feel light and elegant. and are somewhat less fragile due to stemlessness) poured and...

yeah...

enjoyed...

enjoyed so much in fact, that i did the same again

tonight. whatever breaks up the day, or night, whatever gives you a little lift, a small sense of gratification. of celebration even. i mean who doesn't love clinking glass, any glass!, while joyfully chiming cheers!, prost!, salute!, cin cin! anyone!? this has A LOT to do with why i adore (adult) bevies that sparkle so very much. they TOTALLY ignite that celebratory feel. i love it. thrive on it!

but that's a digression. right now, i'm talking about a nightly, or perhaps just a frequent "school night" glass of red. doesn't have to be pricey or a wine spectator high scorer, just something YOU like, and makes you feel good when you inhale and taste it.

the husband's not a huge fan of my college restaurant job wine selection. but he's sipping too. why not. life's short. taste the pleasures.

i'm going to stick my neck out in future blogs and talk more about wine. i say stick my neck out because i'm no wine connoisseur bad @$ and wine connoisseur bad @$es tend to be somewhat, well, they tend to make non-wine connoisseur bad @$es feel a little like effin' idiots. and that sucks. because it's intimidating. and it makes a lot of non-wine drinkers stay non-wine drinkers. = stupid and unfortunate.

so here's to afternoon cups of tea (i suggest green tea chai with milk & sugar!

!!) and school night glasses of wine, as often as possible. if you're already doing either or both, you're awesome. if you're not. why not?

love,

sunlovey

and yeah, that's the husband.

short and bitter sweet

today has gotten away from me and that hasn't allowed for quality thought regarding today's blog and for that i am sorry.

i will not leave you high and dry though. i will instead guide you to a couple music sites i love.

FILTER MAGAZINE

it's a great resource for music. new music. bands touring. new albums. new VIDEOS. reviews. the occasional free download and just over all, sound opinions on sound. near the top right of the site is a field in which you can type your email address and get weekly newsletters. totally up to you. i get it. i like it.

the second site... is, wow, quite cool. in their own words:

"We’re going to give you something that you truly have never heard. We are not giving you songs from someone you love’s record album, thereby stealing from someone you love. We’re giving you exclusive, re-worked, alternate versions of old songs and unreleased tracks by some of your favorite bands and by a lot of your next favorite bands."

that's right kids, free music galore, recordings you can get no where else, of awesome bands that stop in their studios and record their old stuff in new ways and often times record new stuff not out on a album yet. radical right? :-) Meet daytrotter.com i think you're going to become great friends. check the "sessions archive" for their complete catalog.

OH OH OH one last thing, heard a song on XM by an artist called Julian Plenti on my drive in to work. sounded SO familar. here's why, love Interpol? their singer, in case you weren't aware, Paul Banks has got a side thing going on. and said side thing's new album came out TODAY. don't want to commit to the entire thing? sign up for the mailing list on Julian Plenti's website and get a download FREE. awesome, no? here you go: julian plenti is... skyscraper

questions? ask me. not so bitter after all, no? 'til tomorrow...

love,

sunlovey

OK- PLUG IN YOUR HEAD PHONES.

Music Videos—Lost art? Not so if you're online...

Those of us that grew up during the "I want my MTV" boom ( Dire Strait's Money for Nothing video ) will often be heard bitching and moaning about the days when MTV (and VH1 for that matter) "actually played music". The days when VJs (video jockeys) like Downtown Julie Brown, the other Julie Brown, Martha Quinn, Kurt Loder and John Norris guided our eyes and ears through this brand new world of music videos. Cliché as it is, as ancient as I sound, I miss the old days.

I had MTV on constantly. I loved it. From like second grade on. No joke. I was obsessed with Cyndi Lauper, I loved Peter Gabriel videos, I swayed and sang at the top of my lungs every single time We Are the World came on (AND began learning about poverty in Africa!). Eyes are watering and chills are plaguing me just linking you to that video!

A little further on into the '80s, I stumbled upon 120 Minutes, hosted by Dave Kendall and that just sealed the deal. MTV was just about everything to me. I learned to program the family VCR, I taped that Sunday night show religiously. On holiday weekends and summer Sundays I stayed up to watch 120 Minutes when it actually aired. Dave Kendall with his sexy British accent, hosting two full hours of New Wave, post punk, eclectic videos (many of which were done by Anton Corbijn. Don't know him? Look him up. The list of videos he's made will astound you) and interviewing bands like Echo & the Bunnymen, artists like Robert Smith of The Cure. Was insanely awesome.

Music TeleVision shaped me. In every way. And throughout the '90s and '00s, watching it veer further and further away from actually airing music videos was like watching a dear friend die a slow death. For a good while there I got the impression that bands were no longer making music videos (I've got basic cable, if there are music video playing channels out there, I'm oblivious), I mean, why should they? It's a lot of work and money and time to not get much air, right?

But they are. Anton's even still making a lot of them. And where there's a will... you'll find them. And they're good. Technology's gotten A LOT better since the early and mid '80s. Those of you that hold that oh so special status of a "facebook" or "myspace" friend of mine know, I'm posting links to videos on a semi-regular basis. I want you to see them. I want them to get play. I want to experience that extra facet of my favorite bands' creativity.

I'll climb down off my soap box now, quit with my long winded nostalgia and link you to

a couple videos I'm digging lately. Watch them at your leisure, but do watch them. Let yourself get lost in their artistry. That's what it was like back then, every time I was lucky enough to witness a "World Premiere Video" on MTV in the golden days. Before 16 and Pregnant.

PURE BLOODY BRILLIANCE: Skeleton Boy by Friend Fires. LOVE. LOVE. LOVE. WATCH THE WHOLE THING!!!

DO YOU SEE HOW MUSIC VIDEOS CAN SHAPE YOUR FASHION SENSE?! KILLER SONG, AMAZING GET-UP ON KAREN O.: Heads Will Roll by Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

THIS ONE'S DARLING & DELIGHTFUL. ALREADY HAD GREAT AFFECTION FOR THE SONG, THEN I SAW & FELL HEAD OVER HEELS FOR THE VIDEO: Strawberry Swing by Coldplay.

AND THIS ONE, ALMOST AS NEW TO ME AS IT WILL BE TO YOU, I TOTALLY APPRECIATE THE '80s FEEL I MUST CONFESS, WAR TAPES IS GETTING PLAY MORE AND MORE ON SIRIUS/XM AND FILTER FEATURED THIS VIDEO BACK IN JUNE:

Dreaming of You by War Tapes. It's not love, but I dig.

Thank GOD for http://www.youtube.com

So, love a song? Do a search, it's quite possible it has a music video. And don't forget tomorrow's Tuesday. The day of the week new albums usually come out AND when you can download the FREE Single of the Week, Discovery Download & MUSIC VIDEO on itunes.

What i'm drinking: a 2004 bottle of RED, from St. Francis, Sonoma County.

Love,

Sunlovey

DIY IS IN SESSION.

Amazing, truly, how a split second that took place while devouring my Art Vandalay burrito at Moe's last week lit the fire that is under my

@$$ like it did.

I'm enjoying my lunch with a side of queso; I'm facing the

door. Guy walks in, looks to long line in disgust, then walks out. Walks with quick strides to

a waiting SUV, rides away.

"Damn that guy's hoodie was cool. Gosh, did you see that?! Man, I only got to look at it for a couple seconds. Why did he walk out? Man. It was so cool. It had to be DIY?!" I rambled on. Krista nodded. Everyone else seemed to avoid rolling their eyes.

It stayed in my head. I brought it up a couple more times that day. I tweeted about it. I mentally, seriously committed to making my own. I didn't think it could be as bad @$$, I lamented not getting

a better look at that random dude not wanting to wait in line to eat at Moe's.

I woke up today to the sound of the husband and his friends stirring downstairs in preparation for a day of wake boarding and the wheels of thought in my brain began to crank. I'm doing it. Today. At least starting it. That would ensure it would actually happen. That and the fact that thoughts of creating and DIY projects were simultaneously on the brain of Krista, and she'd tweeted about hosting such a night at her place post our fashion swap. Accountability. A set time to get it done.

Ideas flitting about our heads, never coming to be, are a true travesty, don't you think?

So I got up, got ready, and set out right behind the guys on their way to the lake.

Destination: Starbucks, then Super Target, then, don't laugh, I know I'm a bit old, and it's well, questionable on some fundamental levels, but then, Hot Topic.

"Venti soy chai, no water, no foam, extra pumps if you please" in hand, I began my quest for the perfect hoodie. Solid, soft, good fit. Score. Dark heather gray, on clearance, price: $11. Then around and around Target I went. No goal. No purpose. Just kind of like being on a Merry-Go-Round as a wee child. Pointless, but euphoric.

In the end, i made out with some clever little DIY hoodie gems. After much thought, a little creativity, a lot of ingenuity. Paid. Left. Headed for Hot Topic. Gotta love kids, male kids, wearing red eyeliner. No seriously, you do. That is not attractive. But it IS unique. Well. in most circles it is. Cased out the store, found more killer hoodie additions, paid and was on my way.

Didn't see any pyramid stud piece at either place that my brain could wrap itself around using, and act ually attaching to my project. so that's still a goal. amongst scouring the web in general for additional inspiration.

fast forward several hours, scissors in hand, i'm cutting and

crafting. pining. visualizing. even began hand-sewing. DIY hoodie is on its way to hopeful greatness. blog readers, hold me accountable!!!!!!! ask me how it's coming along. ask for progress photos.

hope you had an awesome weekend.

love,

sunlovey

(photos: the hoodie! a child's sock. a skull-themed bandana, future hoodie odds & ends, winged skull being sewed on, heart & cross bones safety pinned in place)