Category: Ladeez

Delicatessen With Love

Posted by Alison – May 9, 2013

This is a story of grandmas around the world and their best dish. Entitled “Delicatessen With Love”, the project took photographer Gabriele Galimberti to 58 countries, where he photographed grandmothers with both the ingredients and finished signature dishes. The results are breathtaking.

Julia Enaigua (71) La Paz, Bolivia Queso Humacha (vegetables and fresh cheese soup).

Isolina Perez De Vargas (83) Mendoza, Argentina Asado Criollo (mixed meats barbecue).

Maria Luz Fedric (53) Cayman Islands Honduran Iguana with rice and beans.

Serette Charles (63) Saint-Jean du Sud, Haiti Lambi in creole sauce.

Inara Runtule, (68) Kekava, Latvia Silke €(herring with potatoes and cottage cheese).

Normita Sambu Arap (65) Oltepessi (masaai mara) Kenya Mboga and orgali (white corn polenta with vegetables and goat).

Marisa Batini (80) Castiglion Fiorentino, Italy Swiss chard and ricotta Ravioli with meat sauce.

Appealing to their natural cooking care and their inevitable pride in their recipe, common factors to all grandmothers in the world, Gabriele persuaded them to do their best in the kitchen. This means moose stake in Alaska and caterpillars in Malawi, delicious, but ferociously hot, ten-spice-curry in India and shark soup in the Philippines. (I’m most intrigued by the iguana, myself.) If my grandmother had been included, I’m not sure what she would have made: potato salad? Custard pie? Those are some of my favorites, at least.

[Via]

Tina Wisdom

Posted by Alison – April 30, 2013

Tina Belcher is my spirit animal. God, I love Bob’s Burgers.

[Via]

The Life Report

Posted by Alison – January 8, 2012


Isabel Bishop, American painter and printmaker, 1902-1988.


Doris Caesar, American sculptor, 1892-1971, in her studio.

Betti Richard, American sculptor, born 1916, in her studio.


Helene Sardeau, American sculptor, 1899-1969, at work in her studio.


Florence Julia Bach, American painter and sculptor, 1891-1978.

Brenda Putnam, American sculptor, 1890-1975.

“All my life I knew I was loved and protected but it did not prepare me for life and what was ahead of me. The tragedies, the disappointments, the challenges and how to live with them were difficult.

“At 85, I think about life differently. I can look at my past life like watching an old silent film. I can’t change anything but I can remember and wonder and think about what if I was more prepared, stronger, wiser, more experienced. Then something inside of me says ‘forget it, try to enjoy the rest of your life.’

“That is what I am trying to do. I don’t want to waste precious days still ahead of me.”

— Regina Titus

New York Times columnist David Brooks recently reached out to readers over 70 to contribute to a new project: The Life Report. Encouraged to share life stories, failures, joy and wisdom, this collection of narratives really resonated with me; the excerpt above from 85-year-old Regina Titus left me feeling hollow, sad, hopeful, and most of all, that it needed to be shared.

I’ve really enjoyed reading every story collected. Read more remembrances at The New York Times.

And aren’t those photos amazing? More portraits of twentieth century female artists can be found via the Smithsonian Institution’s Flickr.

My Childhood Idol

Posted by Alison – November 3, 2011

I worshipped at the altar of Blossom; I think all girls my age did. Watching this intro — almost twenty years later! — I can’t help seeing myself as a squirrely ten year old in a tube top, shortalls (were those flattering on anyone?) and my grandpa’s fedora. Did I pull it off? Probably not. But I’m glad I tried.

Blossom, you inspired me to experiment with fashion and wear that hat, teasing be damned. You wore it well, lady!

 

Amy Poehler’s Alter Egos

Posted by Alison – October 3, 2011

I’m a huge Amy Poehler fan. Huge. (Parks and Recreation is the best thing on TV right now. Ron Swanson: so crushable!) This week’s New York includes a great piece on the Upright Citizens Brigade — which Amy and three fellow comedians founded in the early ’90s. Back in 1998, she and the other founders had a television sketch show that ran for three seasons on Comedy Central. (I wonder if it’s available somewhere…) The show allowed for lots of characters, and Amy was able to flesh out her alter egos, as evidenced in this series of Polaroids capturing her makeup tests. I can’t decide if these characters remind me more of Wigfield (Amy Sedaris’s crazy funny book about a dying town) or Cindy Sherman.

The main takeaway? There a goldmine of Halloween inspiration here. I think I’ll go as “herpes woman.”

Oh, Iris!

Posted by Alison – August 23, 2011

Did you know that Iris Apfel is the subject of a Maysles documentary (of Grey Gardens fame)? And more importantly, have you heard she’s getting a Home Shopping Network collection?! I will be snapping up those designs! (I already have some Iris glasses, as a matter of fact.) Read more at The New York Times.

Miranda July is Pretty Damn Sincere

Posted by Alison – July 17, 2011

Miranda July has become the unwilling exemplar of an aggravating boho archetype: the dreamy, young hipster whose days are filled with coffee, curios and disposable enchantments. “Yes, in some ways Miranda July is living my dream and life, and yes, maybe I’m a little jealous,” wrote one Brooklyn-based artist on her blog. “I loathe her. It feels personal.” To her detractors (“haters” doesn’t seem like too strong a word) July has come to personify everything infuriating about the Etsy-shopping, Wes Anderson-quoting, McSweeney’s-reading, coastal-living category of upscale urban bohemia that flourished in the aughts. Her very existence is enough to inspire, for example, an I Hate Miranda July blog, which purports to detest her “insufferable precious nonsense.” Or there is the online commenter who roots for July to be exiled to Darfur. Or the blogger who yearns to beat her with a shoe.

…But unlike certain directors who fixate on marginalia, creating art in which the engraving on a character’s belt buckle takes precedence over the story, July’s seemingly superficial gestures service something greater: a pulsing emotional center. It’s odd that she has come to represent, for some, a kind of soulless hipster cool, because in July’s work, nobody is cool. There’s no irony to it, no insider wink. Her characters are ordinary people whose lives don’t normally invite investigation. So her project is the opposite of hipster exclusion: her work is desperate to bring people together, forcing them into a kind of fellow feeling. She’s unrelentingly sincere, and maybe that sincerity makes her difficult to bear. It also might make her culturally essential.

How anyone could hate Miranda July, I have no idea. However, I am an Etsy-shopping, McSweeney’s-reading kind of lady, so I guess I fall into the demographic in question. (Heh.) And call me crazy, but I want to believe in talking cats, pink sunrises and powerful moments in ordinary lives. Because deep down, we’re all living ordinary lives and trying to make the best of it, and I want to believe that there’s more to it than paying bills and making ironic statements out of insecurity and putting up false fronts. If she can show me the magical in my own life (and she has, in her fiction and her films), then I subscribe to the cult. Sign me up!

Please read The New York Times Magazine profile on Miranda. You’ll enjoy it.

You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby

Posted by Alison – May 17, 2011

 

 

 


 

I’m pretty fascinated by Virginia Slims’ advertising campaign of the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s: “You’ve come a long way, baby.” I’ve seen enough episodes of Mad Men to realize that any feminist leanings of the ad agencies (or cigarette companies) was probably a farce, but I can get down with their message. Utilizing flappers, suffragettes and independent, Afro-wearing ladies as inspiration is just fine in my book, and if the cigarette in question is “tailored for the feminine hand” — well, yeah, that’s a little weird, but I’ll go with it.

Now the television commercials: that’s another level of amazing. The first is from Japan, the second a relic from 1967. It’s so strange to conceive of a time when cigarette ads were on tv!

Liz Does Her Eyes

Posted by Alison – April 7, 2011

I’m a bit of a make-up novice; I’m no longer incapable of holding my eye shut to dab on some eyeliner — I have what I like to call “twitchy eyelid syndrome” when anything pointy comes near my eyeballs — but I’m still not a master by a long shot. I didn’t even really start using make-up (like, foundation) until I was 24 or 25. Before that it was all ill-gotten, unflattering slashes of lipstick. It wasn’t a good look, I’ll say that much.

However, to my point: I have really been enjoying Jane Feltes’s cute, informative videos on doing make-up, entitled “How to Be a Girl,” over on The Hairpin (quickly eclipsing Jezebel as my favorite lady site to waste time on). She’s like the make-up savvy older sister that I never had! Now I’m finally experimenting with this whole cat eye thing and the shadow eye stuff. It’s kind of cool!

But back to Liz. Number one, she was a total diva; violet eyes and all that. However, she also was one of those ladies who, if I have my Hollywood rumors correct, kept her eyebrow pencils in the freezer and drew in each individual hair before leaving her trailer during a shoot (or in public, for that matter). That is dedication, my friends. Here she is doing some intense make-up before…probably going to kill someone? Disco dancing? The sunglasses stymie me. I haven’t seen The Driver’s Seat, but the clip caught my fancy. RIP, Liz. I hope you and Richard are drinking scotch neat in the sky.

Gitte Lee

Posted by Alison – March 29, 2011

 

 

 

 

Lady Birgit Lee, also known as Gitte, is an example of aging with grace and beauty while never losing your personal voice. A frequent subject on Advanced Style, Vogue Italia recently profiled her as an example of innate style that transcends age. Her turbans, furs and glasses are my idea of heaven.

Random fact: She’s been married to Christopher Lee for fifty years. Love that guy! (Remember The Wicker Man?)

Tura Satana, RIP

Posted by Alison – February 5, 2011

Farewell to a beautiful badass, cult actress Tura Satana.

Forward Into Light

Posted by Alison – October 18, 2010

The embroidered banners of the suffragist movement were many things: informative, aggressive, sometimes even philosophical or motivational. There’s something about the handiwork that went into these that make them much more powerful than a markered sign at a protest. I wonder if any are still around… (Can’t you see me already rushing to eBay to look?)

[Via Secret Holiday, who's making contemporary banners inspired by these!]

Monday Music: The Peanuts

Posted by Alison – September 20, 2010

Aren’t these ladies cute? The Japanese twin sisters Emi Itō and Yumi Itō make up the girl group The Peanuts. According to the almighty Wikipedia, “The Peanuts are remembered most for their versions of European songs and for a handful of Japanese pop songs, such as “Furimukanaide” (“Don’t Turn Around”). Their performing style played heavily on their being nearly identical twins with voices only slightly apart in pitch (making a duet sound like a solo artist using reverb).”

Via the lovely Claire.

The Secret of the Old Clock

Posted by Alison – September 14, 2010

I loved Nancy Drew. When I was ten I would read multiple books from the series simultaneously just to see if I could keep them all straight. I actually tried to reread the books earlier this year and gave up; I might have only casually noticed the sexism and antiquated attitudes as a kid, but as an adult it’s kind of ridiculous — endless commentary about Bess being fat, George looking like a dude, Nancy’s a liberated sleuth but also a daddy’s girl with access to a car, etc.

However! There is more to life than wayward nostalgia for Nancy Drew. Kate Beaton’s Hark, a Vagrant is pure gold. These tongue-in-cheek comics approach the celebrities and topics of yore — Nero, St. Francis, and and a quite funny one about Lord Byron — and use them for witticisms aplenty. The skull collection panel is my favorite. That Nancy, always getting into trouble!

Isabella

Posted by Alison – August 20, 2010

Got a girl crush! Isabella Rossellini is probably my favorite living celebrity. What an icon! I’ve watched Death Becomes Her and Blue Velvet about, oh, one hundred times, and I never tire of her characters (or her accent). Never mind the fact that she’s lovely — she also does Green Porno, the best thing to happen to internet shorts…ever. Watch if you haven’t!

Selda Bagcan

Posted by Alison – July 7, 2010

Selda Bagcan is a Turkish folk singer best known in the ’70s. She can wail. I’d love to learn more about her.

Easyriders

Posted by Alison – July 6, 2010

“No hangups, no put-ons, no phoniness—just a right-on chick biker.” — Easyriders Magazine Issue #2, August 1971

I salute all the female bikers out there. Semi-nude models in motorcycle mags aren’t usually my thing — and I feel like reading contemporary issues of Easyrider would just make me laugh — but this girl is the real deal. I love that she had a Triumph. Badass.

[Via Sex Savages on Wheels]

Girl Crush: Anjelica Huston

Posted by Alison – June 21, 2010

Is there an actress more debonair, more elegant, more handsome than Anjelica Huston? (That bone structure. Kill me.) The woman dated a young Jack Nicholson, for god’s sake. Her aristocratic film lineage aside, she’s just an incredible bad ass that doesn’t pander to fluffy pop culture roles and ages like a fine wine. I can only hope to emulate her style and vibe when I’m her age…and now.

Ruth St. Denis, Circa 1915

Posted by Alison – May 30, 2010

Wow. Ruth St. Denis is a vision. A pioneer of the modern dance movement, she was the mentor and teacher of Martha Graham and created a dance repertoire that melded her interests in exotic mysticism and spirituality. She was definitely one of the early adopters. She lived from 1879 to 1968.

Sibylle Baier

Posted by Alison – May 7, 2010

Listening to Sibylle Baier on repeat these days. She has the most amazingly clear, smooth voice that feels like it’s perched inside your ear just for you. The story of her first, almost lost album:

“‘Colour Green’ was recorded in Germany in the 1970-1973. In a particularly dark and moody period of her young life, Claudine, a friend of Sibylle’s, dragged her out from under the bed and took her on a road trip to Strasbourg, ending up across the Alps in Genoa.

“Upon the return from this trip Sibylle felt her sprits renewed and she set out to write the song “Remember the Day”, grateful for being alive. It was the first song she ever wrote. Recorded in the late 1970s in her home on a reel to reel recording device, the songs on ‘Colour Green’ are intimate portraits of life’s sad and fragile beauty.”

Some of my favorites. Listen here:

Sibylle Baier – I Lost Something In The Hills

Sibylle Baier – The End (on YouTube)

Lynn Yaeger is Adorbs

Posted by Alison – April 29, 2010

Lynn Yaeger is pretty much the cutest little lady ever. Watching her geek out over her doll collections and vintage sweater obsessions is like looking into a mirror that reflects the future! I can’t wait to perfect my lil old lady look.

I Love Betty White

Posted by Alison – April 19, 2010

I first started watching The Golden Girls on a regular basis when I was 12 or 13. I was at that awkward age where I couldn’t really get a job yet so I was spending my summer vacation at home with my younger sisters. Every morning (and I mean every morning) I’d turn on Lifetime, make a batch of muffins, a cake or a weird experimental jam made out of poisonous berries from the backyard (I baked to fill my free time) and watch endless reruns of Designing Women, Golden Girls and Mama’s Family. Hanging out with Dorothy, Blanche, Sophia and Rose on the lanai was one of my favorite pastimes, and it’s never really faded away. (I also based all of my preconceptions about Florida on their experience of Miami. All Caddies and sassy ladies in shoulder pads!) I still watch an episode or two every week, even though I’ve seen them all a billion times. It’s comforting.

Needless to say, all of the recent Betty White hype gets me totally pumped. I’m so glad to see her back in the limelight! This video recently surfaced and it makes me ever so happy. I knew that Betty had been in show business long before Golden Girls (I remember her on Mary Tyler Moore as well), but I had no idea she had her own short-lived television show in 1954! Here’s Betty singing “Nevertheless, I’m in Love With You.”

[Via Neatorama]

Swoon

Posted by Alison – April 13, 2010

I already knew I was obsessed with Rachel Comey’s designs (and the shoes: don’t even get me started), but after reading this interview? Well, it’s a full-blown girl crush.

Strawberry Switchblade

Posted by Alison – April 6, 2010

If I could hang with any music ladeez past or present, Strawberry Switchblade would be high on my list. It’s so obvious that they have fun and their gypsy-Egyptian-Frida-heavy eyeliner-polka dot fashion (and they made all of their outfits themselves!) makes me want to do a little dance around my bedroom. I’d love to go as Strawberry Switchblade for Halloween, if only to have an excuse to wear that much eyeliner. I love it, I do.

To prove my point on how adorable they are: they did a synth pop cover of Dolly Parton’s “Jolene.” Damn!

Their most famous song, “Since Yesterday,” is so twee and sweet!

Vampira

Posted by Alison – February 19, 2010

Vampira, mistress of the dark! The OG late night horror hostess set the standard for campy vamp in 50′s Hollywood (those eyebrows are not for the weak of heart). Maila Nurmi‘s wasp waist character originated at a Halloween party in 1953; Maila had actually come dressed as an interpretation of Charles Addams’ New Yorker cartoon character Morticia Addams (which had not yet become a pop culture staple).

The short-lived “Vampira” series only lasted one season, but she found a place in Ed Wood’s repertoire with an nonspeaking zombie/vampire role in Plan 9 From Outer Space (a crucial fixture in the camp scene!). Maila’s career descended into obscurity by the early 1960s and her place in sexy goth history was eclipsed by Elvira, who bit Vampira’s style and made a lot of money doing it. Know your icons! Vampira is the original.

Rumors abound to this day about Vampira’s unreal figure, including this gem: “The woman wrapped her notably 16″ waist in papaya powder at night. It ‘ate her flesh,’ as the actress herself put it, and helped her get her waist down to such impressive proportions.” (Um…)

The “Vampira look” lives on through all pale skinned ghouls in skintight dresses, Addams family obsessives and fan girls like me: I have got to dress like her for Halloween! The intro to “Vampira” is my inspiration, below. Love the smoke and music. (Though I cannot tell what she’s saying. Can you?)

Update: She’s saying “Screaming relaxes me so….” (Thanks, Lambert!)

[Inspiration via Discount and Vampira's Attic]

Nell Shipman

Posted by Alison – February 15, 2010

What a beauty! I was immediately struck by this lovely lady’s fur hood, headband (predating the trend) and knowing gaze. According to some rudimentary research, Nell Shipman was an actress, animal trainer and Canadian pioneer in early Hollywood (her first production was in 1910!). She was known for playing strong, adventurous characters and was one of the first women to do a nude scene on screen. Learn more here.

Check out carbonated’s Ladies and Their Fame Flickr pool for more portraits of starlets.

Folies Bergère, 1940

Posted by Alison – January 25, 2010

These saucy photos reveal the sumptuous backdrops and (sometime) costuming of revue and cabaret shows at Paris’s Folies Bergère in the 1940s. It’s kinda crazy to think that it’s still in business (and has been for almost 130 years). Photographer Robert Bothner is responsible for these eye-boggling images (the horse riding character at top slays me). If this was a production during wartime, I wonder what the opulence was like during Josephine Baker’s day. I’d love to see a photo of the audience.

[Via Marieaunet]

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