Kimono

It felt like it was back to Winter all weekend long, didn't it? I actually wore this last Saturday, mixing a turtleneck sweater and a pair of jeans, adding a little bit of Spring with my silk kimono. The cold begged for boots, and it was the perfect excuse to dig out these beauties. All in all, a pretty cool outfit, huh?

Este fim de semana parecia que estavamos de volta ao Inverno, não? Usei isto no Sábado passado, misturando uma camisola de gola alta e uns jeans com um toque de Primavera no meu kimono de seda. O frio pedia mesmo umas botas, e foi a desculpa perfeita para ir buscar estas lindezas!!

Sunday Reflection: A few things about me

Taking a cue from other bloggers - wink wink Joana - here's a little list of random facts, as uninteresting as anything else. Hope you find it at least fun to read...

1. I hate sushi. Lord, I really hate sushi, which is a shame for my hubby, as he loves it. Our kid tried it for the first time last Friday and he really liked it, which I find so weird that a child at 4 years old asks for a straight month to be given sushi, let alone liking it. But I love ramen and tempura.
2. I consider myself to have very eccletic musical tastes, that range from classical music - as I practiced ballet from the age of 5 - to big band and swing, 80's bubblegum pop and new age, to metal of all types and goth music, with some punk thrown in. This said, I cannot stand the pop music of this day and age, I cannot stand the Beyoncés, the Ladies Gagas, the Katy Perrys, the Rita Oras of today. And my fave band will ALWAYS be Iron Maiden, there's just nothing I can do about that.
3. Mike Patton has been my idol for more years than I care to remember, and one of my sex symbols of the 90's along with Chris Cornell - no Kurt Cobain for me, strangely enough... but my longest crush is James Dean, since I was 10 and first saw him in East of Eden.
4. My fave author is indeed Stephen King. But I like to think of myself as more diverse in my readings than just THE KING. Thus said, I am a freak for Tolkien too.
5. My fave movie has been The Virgin Suicides for many, many years. Then I saw Never let me go... but my fave genre is horror, and the movie that has made the deepest impression on me besides the two afore mentioned was Tale of Two Sisters. It still brings tears to my eyes, and I have watched it countless times.
6. My fave poem is "She walks in beauty" by Lord Byron, and I know it by heart. Thus said, it is not a poem that in anyway I find descriptive of myself. There is one poem that I regard as "being soooo me", and it is "Cântico Negro" (Black Chant) by the portuguese poet José Régio. But the poet that I most identify myself with is the late Cazuza.
7. Since I was 15 I have wanted to tattoo on myself a certain line from above mentioned poem and a pentagram, way before tattooing quotes and words was ever cool. Never had the guts nor the money to do it. At this time, there are 3 tattoos more I would like to make. One in Hebrew, one in Runes, one the Möbius Strip. I said the Möbius Strip, which is different from the infinity symbol, ok?
8. The book I have read more times is Dracula by Bram Stoker, with The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas as a strong contender. None of those are my fave books though. If I have to name favourites I would go for "Wuthering Heights" (C. Brontë), "To kill a mocking bird" (H. Lee) and "The exorcist" (W.P. Blatty), on a non King books thematic. Moving onto to mr. King, my faves are Duma Key because it scared the shit out of me (much like the Exorcist book) and It, due to its perfect rendition of childhood. That's where King excells, on the way he portrays childhood, I think he really gets kids, and he knows their worlds inside out.
9. My fave gastronomy is Italian. But you can feed me Ramen and Tempura anytime... actually, you can feed me most anything anytime, I'm a foodie.
10. When I found out I was having a son my first choice of name was Eric. Did not make it with the hubby. We settled on a just as weird and unusual name, which was second on my list. If it had been the third on my list to make the cut, my boy would now be Isaac, with a father that teaches physics. How obvious would that have been...
11. My fave fashion designer has been Jean Paul Gaultier ever since I discovered fashion and I have done many crazy things for him. Well, not for him him... 
12. I don't like traveling abroad. Ever since 9/11 I hate it. It makes me narrow minded? Tough. So be it.
13. I'm a bitch at heart, and try to fight it everyday. I actually have to make a huge effort to be a better person each day, to not bitch about stuff, not lose my temper and my patience, to not be ironic and caustic, nor judgemental and to not make fun of other people conversationally - in a way most people do not even understand I am making fun of them. My first instinct is always to diss and thrash on other people, and I fight that urge constantly.
14. I'm always right, but I have plenty of doubts, contrary to a certain someone who has ruined this country - this will probably only be understood by portuguese people who are my age.
15. I was never a fan of SATC. Except for the clothes and the make up. I hated the script, actually. But fashion wise, it inspired me a lot. I also detest shows like Grey's Anatomy, Scandal, Private Practice, etc. My fave show is actually Masterchef Australia. I learn a lot just by watching, and it inspires me like mad!!
16. I hate sports and exercise. That said, I did classical ballet from the age of 5 to the age of 13, then jazz dance for 2 years, then gymn body building for 2 more years. Now I take walks and do static bike, which I love.
17. I hated college, and stayed away from the typical college life. I have not maintained one single friend from my college days. I still talk to some people back from those days, but none are close friends of mine, nowadays.
18. 90% of my boyfriends were younger than me, sometimes as much as 6 years younger. My husband is 2 years my junior. But I look younger than him, ahah.
19. Though I loooove drooling over good looking guys, what has always gotten to me was the brains. I married the cleverest guy I ever met. And trust me, the man is a genius, major turn on!!
20. Ever since a very young age I was always led to believe I would never be good enough, so I just stopped trying to live up to other people's expectations, seeing I was never gonna get there...

If there's more you'd like to know, feel free to ask, I might even answer...

Asking for it?

I might as well be. Wearing white pants and white sneakers on a rainy, muddy, windy day? Yeah, right. I have never shown this denim shirt nor the sweater on the blog, but truth be said, I have been wearing them a lot, especially the sweater. It's perfect for this weather, it has the right amount of warmth, it has such a nice, dreamy soft colour, and the delicacy of the embroidery makes it so easy to dress either up or down I am truly addicted to it. The denim shirt is also addictive, trust me, as it can be worn longsleeved or with rolled sleeves, and has details in a different colour wash that make it rather original and interesting visually. I had never paired the two of them together, though, and quite frankly, I like the result a lot better than I thought I would!!

Estou mesmo a pedi-las, não acham? Num dia chuvoso, ventoso e lamacento como o de hoje andar de calças e ténis brancos é estar mesmo a pedi-las! Acho que nunca tinha mostrado este sweater e esta camisa denim aqui no blog, mas a verdade é que os tenho usado imenso, principalmente o sweater, que é perfeito para este tempo. É quente o suficiente, tem uma cor tão suave, tão doce, e a delicadeza do bordado torna tão fácil criar um look mais casual ou um look mais sofisticado, dependendo dos acessórios que escolha, que faz com que ande um bocado viciada em usar esta peça. A camisa também é viciante, posso usar as mangas descidas ou subidas, até porque tem molas para manter a manga a 3/4, e tem detalhes num outro tom de lavagem que a tornam tão interessante visualmente, e original. Nunca tinha era usado ambas em conjunto, e gostei mais do resultado do que esperava!

The long and the short of it

Don't really know what's gotten into me but lately all I think about are long skirts. I walk into a shore and am immediately drawn towards the long skirts, or if they are not in sight, I go in search of them, I am obsessed with every colour, and all I seem to want is to buy one of each. Zara has been my torment in this aspect, being queen of long skirts retail wise, and I can spend long minutes sighing over these... even though someone as short and round as me does not necessarily look good on a long skirt. I used to wear them a lot, all through the 90's, and I loved seeing me in one, but hey, I was a skin and bones in the 90s and the 00s...

Não sei que tenho que só penso em saias compridas. Se entro numa loja sou imediatamente atraída para as saias compridas, e se estas não estão á vista, ponho-me á procura delas, estou obcecada com todas as cores, e tudo o que me apetece é comprar uma de cada. A Zara então, tem sido o meu carrasco, rainha que é da saia longa em termos de lojas de fast fashion, e sou capaz de passar longos minutos a olhar para elas e a suspirar... apesar de que uma pessoa rodas baixas e redonda como eu não deve ficar lá muito bem dentro de uma. Usei-as muito, muito, nos anos 90,e adorava ver-me com elas, mas nessa altura era um esqueleto ambulante...

(Not so) New In

I totally forgot sharing what I got for Mother's Day from my two boys, a pair of gorgeous earrings from Zara that I had been swooning over. They rock, really, I love the colours, so peacock-y, so me. I also brought home a simple marcel yesterday, from Zara. I have been looking for a sleevless top in black for the longest time, but seeing that I am very particular, I hadn't yet found something that ticked all the right spots. This one has a very fluid fabric, is very cool and fresh, loose as I wanted it, flattering, simple, and yet with two details that mark the difference and make it oh so special - the faux leather detailing around the neckline and sleeveline, and the zipper on the back. Just perfect!

Esqueci-me por completo de mostrar a prendinha que recebi no dia da Mãe, dos meus dois amores, um par de brincos da Zara pelos quais andei um dia inteiro a suspirar. São mesmo a minha cara, adoro estes tons tão pavão!! Ontem também comprei um top sem mangas bem baratucho na Zara. Andava em busca de um top de cavas preto bem simples, mas como sou uma esquisitinha de maior, nada me agradava. Pois que ontem me deparei com este top e era mesmo aquilo que eu andava á procuroa, é bem soltinho, com um tecido bem fluido, fresco, comprido q.b. o que me favorece bastante, bem simples, mas com dois detalhes que para mim fazem toda a diferença, o vivo em polipele no decote e nas cavas e o fecho atrás. Perfeito!

No rest for the wicked

So they say. Just realised that I will have to get a move on real fast, as I need to leave the house straight after lunch for some shopping - try having a kid that lives off tomato salad, you will not dare letting the tomatoes finish without replacing them immediately. I'm kind of ready to leave already, pairing up a very obvious outfit that I have worn plenty of times before. What can I say, except that I do love the pairing of a nude blouse and nude oxford shoes with the slighlty purplish blue of these pants... I'm still on a make up ban 'till the end of the week, so I decided to darken my hair. Though it went a little bit too dark, looks good, doesn't it?

Não há descanso para os ruins, não é? E como ruím que sou acabei de me capacitar que quer queira quer não queira vou ter de me arrastar para fazer umas comprinhas logo a seguir ao almoço - tentem lá viver com um puto que básicamente se alimenta de salada de tomate, e tentem deixar o tomate acabar sem irem comprar mais, parece que o mundo acabou!!! Se fossem gomas, ai de erteza que não me apanhavam a fazer-lhe a vontade, mas vegetais ele que os coma á vontade! Já estou meio pronta a sair, com uma roupa muito óbvia, e que já usei mais vezes do que quero admitir - acho que é quase farda oficial de fim de semana de Primavera aqui para os meus lados - mas que posso dizer em minha defesa, a não ser que adoro conjugar uma blusa nude e uns oxford do mesmo tom com este azulão meio arroxeado das calças... ainda estou proibida de usar maquilhagem e assim ficarei até ao final da semana, de modos que me vinguei escurecendo o cabelo. Apesar de ter ficado um tiquinho mais escuro do que aquilo que eu queria, ficou bom, não?

 Wearing my grandma's old vintage cateye sunglasses from 1960 something... Don't look good on me no more

A hint of colour

So today I am quite back to normal - but still not allowed any bloody make up, argh. I don't usually go for this kind of outfit, it's so rare seeing me wearing a scarf, or this type of combo, but I woke up late, and had to take the kid to school after 2 weeks of non attendance on his part, all I really wanted was something easy and quick and comfy. This was it. I think soon enough I'll be back to my more elaborate outfits.

Hoje já me sinto quase de volta ao normal - ainda não posso usar maquilhagem, argh. Normalmente este não é o género de look que eu uso com mais gosto - nada de mal com estes looks, são bem giros, mas nada a minha cara - acho que muito raramente ando de echarpe, apesar de ter bastantes (porque é que se chega a uma certa idade e toda a gente acha que a prenda ideal é uma echarpe?), e também não sou muito de skinny jeans e botas por cima a combinar com a camisola, mas enfim, acordei tarde, o puto precisava de chegar a horas á escola após 2 semanas sem lá pôr os pés, e eu queria era algo rápido e comfortável. Foi isto que saiu. Acho que em breve já estarei de volta aos meus looks mais elaborados. Acho.