Posts from — February 2012

So my son looks over at the Miles Davis print, construction paper and glue and says “That’s it? This is all we are using?” After working with paints and glitter the last few months, I decided to stick with something a bit more rich in overall experience and less on materials. For this project, we honored Black History Month by taking a closer look at Romare Bearden’s work. I read a few book entries and we watched several video clips of the artist. We talked about collages, and decided we were not going to draw but instead spend the next hour carefully ripping pieces of construction to the tune of Miles Davis. The “art” part of this project – for me – was the dialogue it created as we worked. We talked about shows, the cats, music and food. Everything and anything. About an hour and half later, we were done. He was surprised that all we used were two colors and that he didn’t have to draw anything to create an art piece. I mean, we could have. But for this project, I chose to focus on the process of ripping and gluing while following the design and listening to jazz.

(Black and white Miles Davis print by Tania Tornoff)

Excited to be part of this show, and (wow) I’m in great company. In fact I curated an event not too long along that featured Danelle Rivas. Very cool to have my work along with hers in a celebration of female empowerment. Between Blissdom and this art show, I’m pretty up there on the whole ‘feeling spectacular’ scale.

Well, the Chinese New Year celebrations are per-it-ty much done. But it is still the year of the dragon – all the way until February 9, 2013 – so I say let’s make a dragon. I used a combination of lesson plans as inspiration. First, I got the dragon template and the main idea from Martha Stewart. I liked starting off with something more structured. However, if you look at her dragon, it’s pretty perfect. I didn’t want our dragon to be perfect. I wanted my son to have fun, relax and enjoy the process of creating. I decided to combine her template with Princetonol and a bit of good old fashion discovery. Oh, and music is a must.

I used materials found in my art bins – Glitter pens (which was applied on different areas of the dragon with a paint brush), construction paper, sparkles, glue, chop sticks, poster board, construction and tissue paper. Parents, if you do this project with your kids, I must tell you that the cutting part is very time consuming, and I foresee you doing most of the scissor work. It was a two day process for us. Our dragon now hangs in our at-home classroom. This year is supposed to be the luckiest year in the Chinese Zodiac. Bring it on!

Sometimes it takes being 30,000 feet up in the air for me to remember that in my “La Jolla” folder rests jpg upon jpg of peaceful delight. I’m a nervous flyer. I recovered enough to actually get back on a plane, but I still get a lot of anxiety during take-off and turbulence. Somewhere between LA and Nashville, I sifted through these beautiful crashing waves and felt at ease. There was something really magical about revisiting this day while in flight. Next thing you know – I landed in Tennessee, safely.

(Thanks to Prius for the La Jolla adventure. I was selected for participation in the TWIN community through a program with Clever Girls Collective. I did not receive any compensation for writing this post, or payment in exchange for participating. The opinions expressed herein are mine, and do not reflect the views of the Toyota)

If this doesn’t make you want to grab a healthy snack, I don’t know what will. One trip to Suzie’s Farm and I was determined to add more green to my every day life. The wrap you see up there was beyond amazing and jammed packed with radishes. Never did I think I would enjoy radishes – of all things – so much. I had an amazing time hanging out at the farm, which is no surprise to this native New Yorker. I was raised on a high vegetable diet and spent several summers running around my aunt’s farm in Puerto Rico. I actually felt quite at home. A bit of nature and a bit of urban comforts all in one, as the farm is surrounded by San Diego city life. A few miles away, tucked into the city, we got to taste these veggies all dressed up in spices at The Linkery c/o of Prius, who spoiled us with good eats and equally delicious cars for coastal perusing.

Thank you Toyota, The Linkery and Suzies Farm.

(I was selected for participation in the TWIN community through a program with Clever Girls Collective. I did not receive any compensation for writing this post, or payment in exchange for participating. The opinions expressed herein are mine, and do not reflect the views of the Toyota)

I’m back with a skincare obsessed post. This time, I have a secret to tell. I’m 38. No, that’s not it. My age is not the secret. The issue is that I’m 38 and still get acne. What’s up with that? I suppose that’s nature’s trade-off for the no-wrinkle thing? Well, not yet anyway. My day will come, but as my mother always says “Si no es Juan, es Pedro.” So, for now zits (aka Juan) has been an on-going daily thing for me. Prior to working with Neutrogena through LBC, I used their products to keep break-outs under control and to help with “las manchas.” My never-ending goal has been to walk out of the house without foundation on my face, a bit of mascara, shiny hair and done. Is that too much to ask for? My skincare regimen consists of washing my face before bed followed by a Vitamin-A cream (this is a confession, by the way). I wash again first thing in the morning and use toner and SPF moisturizer. I don’t smoke. I’m not much of a drinker. I’m not the sun bathing type. Wow, this is starting to sound more like “top ten reasons why Rachel should not be invited to an island vacation.” Anyway, what can I say, it was never my thing. However, caffeine is my poison of choice and likely contributes to my acne but I’m not giving up my cafecito.

Neutrogena invited me to learn more about how they’re working with the Latino community, which always makes me happy to know that someone is on top of our particular skincare concerns, including cancer. It is so important to put that SPF on folks, and it’s equally important to continue re-applying as the day goes on. My son leaves this house slipping and sliding sometimes but the sun in LA can get brutal during the summer. I will be writing a post for LBC with all the skin-protection details shortly. In the meantime, tell me about your skincare routine, including what you do (or don’t do) to protect your skin from the sun.

Thank You Neutrogena for the The Difference in Beauty invitation at The London.

I love Valentine’s Day. Love. It. And anyone who knows me would tell you I’m so full of it. OK, I’ll admit I was never really into this day but … when you have kids it’s a whole other story. I see it as a day to do something out of the every day. For example, eat an insurmountable amount of pink and red sugar. I mean, really. When would that ever be acceptable? Valentine’s Day, of course. I’ve been adding cooking/baking time into my son’s schedule, and who better to have a baking session with than Nicole? We used this recipe. Sugar addition – totally our idea. We also switched it up with heart shapes and apricot jam. Très yum!

Have a sweet Valentine’s Day. It’s a great day to make some art, cook and eat candy (alone, with friends, family, your cat, whoever you love or like). My son requested we bake apple pie together to celebrate our love for apples. Sounds like a date!

Here and there, I’ve added personal style posts. My goal this year is to increase the number. Not because I think I’m some fashion-forward guru (ew, did I just say guru?) but because I love clothes. That’s all. I’m not a stylist. I’m not a fashion insider. I love style. And when I say style, I mean anything that you want it to be. What makes you feel good. What fits your lifestyle. What fits your body. I like to take ideas from magazines and add my practical “but I live in the real world” spin on it. As much as I yearn to wear Jeffery Campbell’s (the full on glitter ones), it’s not the kind of thing I can get into right now. I totally would but that darn “mom voice” always creeps in. I’m always seeking the art show-meets-mom balance. Day to night finds. The mix of highs and lows. A great sale. No fuss. But always, always chic. At the end of the day, whether it’s casual or evening attire, it must be chic and it must classic. That’s my thing. What’s yours?

(shirt, shoes/Zara, coat, bag, necklace/H&M, pants/urban outfitters, lipstick/chanel rouge)