I first looked up Tracey Emin after I laid eyes on the “Le Piliage“  bag from her  collaboration with Longchamp. Remember?

I was very surprised to see a line of accessories that I always perceived as classic and conservative to look, well, interesting, young, and crafty. We are also talking about a collaboration with the woman who sewed all of her sexual conquests inside a  tent and exhibited it. The woman who showed the world her unmade bed complete with used condoms and bloody panties. I think that bringing in a young Brit artist whose work is stark and honest, controversial and provocative was an excellent idea. I really wanted one of those bags.

Now, I really want her new book titled “A Thousand Drawings“. I always get really obsessed with something very specific and this is my current desire. The book is filled with simple line drawings and sketches. Any time that I visit a new city, I go to their museum. And as many paintings and final masterworks that I have seen, I enjoy the rough thumbnails and the sketches the best. I enjoy the visual brainstorming. I like being able to see the flow and progression of ideas on napkins and receipts- whatever is lying around to catch that fleeting and ephemeral thought. I am truly convinced that this book will make me happier. I am absolutely convinced that when I get this book, I will look over at my bookshelf, that is jammed packed with magazines and inspirations binders, and sleep better knowing that it is there and that I can flip through the pages anytime.

I stumbled upon a new blog by accident. I was looking for a higher contrast picture of Emin’s | Love Poem for CF. I can’t really read the copy. Anyways, I found LES CERISES: Laugh As Much As You Breathe And Love As Long As You Live. Sandra is the author, is 21 and lives in Estonia. The only other person who I can think of from there is model Carmen Kass. Oh yea, did I mention that I can’t read anything on the blog? Well, FYI I can’t. But her pictures are wonderful. I was scrolling for a long time, and now I am going to share some of her pictures with you.

I have been distracted by wedding stuff, online store research, spring cleaning, birthdays, art festivals, you name it. It is all happening now. To distract you from my long break from posting nothing, here are some pictures from The Last Magazine |Spring 2009 shot by Eniko Mihalik. Candid. Snapshot-y. Teller-ish. From the story spread, I am visually reading this:

I was supposed to be there by 10 and its twenty past twelve. My splurge blow-out from this afternoon has gone flat. I have no idea what to wear. I have too many goddamn dresses. I am overloaded with options. How did I get to this point? I’d rather curl up on the couch with an American Spirit and read this issue of Vanity Fair with Obama on it. Maybe watch that recorded episode of Running in Heels even though I saw part of it at the salon. I will leave my flat tonight only if a) I run out of cigarettes or b) the place catches fire. I’m gonna toast off the new day with a nice glass of vodka. I’ll just send her the gift first thing in the morning or whenever I wake up and thank Ellie for the pretty flowers.

That’s that. In closing, I only have one thing to say in regards to Shepard Fairey. It’s what I scream out my car window to meter maids: LEAVE EM’ ALONE!

I was watching the Fall 2009 podcasts this morning and got really excited over this one in particular. I seriously have one shoe on right now because I am getting ready for work but, I wanted to give you a quick glimpse of the Mark Fast | Mary Katrantzou show.

Before I start working on a new batch of clothing, I submerge myself in research for inspiration. It comes from everything and anything. Art, customers, people watching, movies, you name it. I like finding it in unexpected places. Now that I have the blog, it acts as my visual catalog instead of a folder on my hard-drive. I used to go to the Gagosian Gallery site regularly to see the upcoming shows and to read artist statements. I stopped by again after all this time and found a couple items from Cy Twombly. I will say that sometimes the research process goes longer than expected. I hoard images in the same way that I hoard clothes. I figure that I can share the images and in time, the clothes and stuff.

Velvet Magazine (March 2009) editorial featuring Suzanne Diaz and photographed by Marcus Ohlsson.