Bella Luna

A beautiful total lunar eclipse taking place at 2:40am EST on 12.21.2010

Thirty Years with Mr. P.R. Nelson

"The only time you really live fully is from thirty to sixty. The young are slaves to dreams; the old servants of regrets. Only the middle-aged have all their five senses in the keeping of their wits." -Harvey Allen

I am overwhelmingly fortunate to begin the next 30 years in such an energetic fashion.

With that said, spending an evening 11 rows from Prince. PRICELESS. Felt like I was celebrating each year of my life during this concert. Welcome to America was a full celebration of his earlier work, and as always, the best damn party in town. Unfortunately for me, no good quality camera shots, but thanks to the dozens that blasted these photo's all over the internet:



Sheila E!


Due to a cancellation, we still landed at the best show of the tour so far. With a sexy rendition of Little Red Corvette, a ballet performance to Beautiful Ones, SHEILA E., and three encore's ending with If I Was Your Girlfriend(damn skippy)/Insatiable (my word!)/Scandalous (ow!)/Adore (my favorite!!)

So after a week full of festivities including an evening with the NY Scooter Club and Lucky Cheng's fabulous ladies of the East Village, Thousands of Santas bar-frolicking around NYC, Surprise Guest Birthday Party, Nick DiPaolo calling me a lesbian... there is no better way to end a week of birthday celebrations than with a big ole party in the Meadowlands... (thanks lexi-pooh!)

Santacon 2010!!

15% off your purchase at Piruli Jewelry

UNTIL DECEMBER 24th, RECEIVE 15% OFF YOUR ENTIRE ORDER AT PIRULI.ETSY.COM!

USE COUPON CODE HOLIDAY10 AT CHECKOUT!

HAPPY SHOPPING!
LAINEY

Piruli Jewelry Cyber Monday Contest!

Time for another contest just in time for the holidays! I'm giving away the soon to be featured, new, Tiny Gotitas Crystal Drop Necklace starting Cyber Monday (November 29th, 2010). To enter, simply comment on this blog with a brief description of your favorite jewelry or clothing trend, or must-have item of the season! I would love to hear what everyone is obsessing over this holiday season.

Winner will be chosen by a random number generator by the position of post. Comment must be received by 11pm EST on December 3rd.




The winner will be contacted by email or Etsy Conversation, please enter your preference in your comment.

Good Luck!

Zweigelt!

Upon cracking open the cap of this spicy bottle of wine, a burst of Austrian air seems to fill me! I haven't felt this excited about a simple bottle of wine in a very long time. Amazingly priced, (usually $13.99) and almost perfectly tailored to my palate, this slightly briny, spicy, yet fruity wine by Weingut Hofer is pretty well received for its unique lightness in body with contrasting boldness in flavor.

Not the typical bottle, 750ml, beer style cap, it retains its tangy spiciness for days, and tastes best when slightly below room temperature (an accidental yet delicious discovery)

Zweigelt as defined in wikipedia is "a red wine grape variety developed in 1922, at the Federal Institute for Viticulture and Pomology at Klosterneuburg, Austria, by Fritz Zweigelt. It was a crossing of Blaufränkisch and St. Laurent. It is now the most widely-grown red grape variety in Austria, as well as having some presence in Canada's vineyards."

LBI 2010

My Aromatherapy 101

For as long as I can remember, the quickest recall of lost and forgotten memories is quickly channeled through my sense of smell. I noticed over the years I have grown immensely fond of certain types of smell, immediately noticing improvements in mood, extra pep in my day or just instant chill-out.

Some of my favorite recollections through smell are commonly from childhood. This sweetly toxic smell always reappears walking on piers and boardwalks, sometimes the subway and certain brands of crayon. It recalls fond and unusually early memories of Seaside Heights, New Jersey. Traces of wood and salt mixing with the sand create this unique scent. My family frequented Seaside for group trips in a hotel across the street from Seaside Height's original log flume, where I ran with my father and sister to jump on as many times as possible, even though I hated rides with steep inclines. The little house where we awaited our little log had quirky mechanisms and is where I mostly remember finding this scent. I love to revisit Seaside, where the token slot machines still exist, beginning my little fixation at the ripe old age of 5 with gambling. Somehow the skyride or the "ski" lift still exists, which takes you from beginning to end of the boardwalk. Although the original flume is gone, traces still exist, as does this intoxicating, yet strange-that-I-enjoy-it scent.

I hold coconut as a truly favorite scent. Recalling the various dishes my greatgrandmother made in the house always called for hours of shredding the nut. Despite the child labor, the various treats still exite me. Not to mention, Coco Lopez brought a similar excitement at Christmas time... Coquito!! It is also my favorite smell when sunbathing, as all of my beach gear ends up covered in Hawaiian Tropic, (which has slightly changed their scent, I have noticed) which always reminds me of my favorite car, the car seats constantly soaked with the combination scent of the oil and my favorite parfum, Blue by Ralph Lauren. Coconut blends so well with everything!

As for my latest fixation, thanks to Anthropologie, is the candle scent I found almost exactly matches the ethereal scent floating through the Palazzo/Venetian hotels in Vegas. I have yet to find another scent that is so mind altering and peace nurturing. Titled 'Desert Dunes' by Illume, the unique scent releases sensuous hints of jasmin, lavender, cocoa butter, with maybe even a tiny hint of musk oil. A flick of a bic away from absolute relaxation in a tin.

Lovely Drops of Emerald

Check out the latest additions to the Hermosa Collection! Also check out my latest treasury of beautiful emerald here!

Ladies and Gentlemen, PRINCE

Being the tremendous fan I am and guessing these are the artists he must be vibing to right now (you know he chose the lineup!), I enjoyed this tribute wholeheartedly. And for those who do not know Esperanza Spalding, now you do, HOTNESS... And Alicia Keys is just absolute badness.

BET Videos

A Celebrated Life: Frida Kahlo

Hot NYC Fun In the Summertime: Part 1, FREE!!!

Who says you have to empty your pockets to have a fun summer in the Big Manzana? Tons of FREE events in NY this 2010. Found a nice comprehensive list on About.com.

Tierra De Eden

On this day, New York city leads everyone on a parade of National pride for a soulful beautiful island, home to the birth of a culture that birthed rhythm into my own life.

The Finiteness of Life

"Death is always on the way, but the fact that you don't know when it will arrive seems to take away from the finiteness of life. It's that terrible precision that we hate so much. But because we don't know, we get to think of life as an inexhaustible well. Yet everything happens a certain number of times, and a very small number, really. How many more times will you remember a certain afternoon of your childhood, some afternoon that's so deeply a part of your being that you can't even conceive of your life without it? Perhaps four or five times more. Perhaps not even. How many more times will you watch the full moon rise? Perhaps twenty. And yet it all seems limitless."
—Paul Bowles, The Sheltering Sky

Celebrating Roy

Gota De Luz Giveaway Winner

A big thanks to fellow Etsy-er Linda Pruitt for entering the contest and sharing with us about her recommended charitable organization, Portland Strides. She wins a Gota De Luz bracelet, and proceeds from the sales of the Gota De Luz bracelet during the entire month of May will help raise funds to donate to her walk this year, a walk sponsored by The American Cancer Society to raise awareness of and to help fight breast cancer.

We also send a warm hug to Linda, a cancer survivor herself. To help sponsor Linda's walk, please check out her Portland Strides profile and help become a drop of light in someone's life.

And be sure to check out Linda's Etsy Shop!

Spanglish Team Treasury East

Check out the new Etsy Treasury East, lists that never expire. I have created my first, preparing for a Hot Spanglish Summer!

SPANGLISH TEAM ETSY TREASURY EAST

What's On Your Plate?

Saw this documentary on Discovery's Planet Earth Channel (my new favorite channel!) featuring two young girls looking for answers about the food they eat and where it comes from. Focused around their neighborhood of the Lower East Side, this doc features a lot of information for local New Yorkers, and raises questions anyone in the US should be asking about their food.

Contest Extended: Piruli Jewelry Spring Giveaway!

Spring is a time for renewal, new beginnings, and time to plant a new seed. In February I spoke of loving thy neighbor for Valentine's day by volunteering or helping a charitable organization. For this contest lets plant seeds through learning something new from each other, while being charitable in the process.

To participate in this spring giveaway, please:

1.post a comment in reply to this post and nominate your favorite non-profit, charitable organization.
2.Please provide a little tidbit about why you are nominating this organization, and what their mission is. The final date to submit your entry will be on April 30th, 2010.

The randomly selected winning nomination wins two things. The person nominating the organization will receive the new Gota De Luz bracelet (Gota De Luz means Drop of Light) featuring cotton cord, 14k goldfill wire with a stunning faceted rock crystal quartz focal bead, and a donation will be made to the organization nominated by the winner. The donation will consist of a total of all net proceeds from any purchases of a Gota De Luz bracelet made from Piruli Jewelry during the entire month of April. The winner will be announced on May 1st 2010 both on the facebook fanpage for Piruli Jewelry and here.

A few rules: Please note that the organization must be at least a year old, and an official non-profit organization. Any spam, objectionable or obscene content or comments will be deleted immediately and reported if necessary. Remember, lets keep this a positive and enlightening experience.

Love Thy Neighbor...

I always hear some sort of complaint about Valentine's day, "I show my love everyday, I don't need a holiday for it", "its a scam" or just a simple "I hate Valentine's Day". Since this holiday will not be disappearing from our calendars anytime soon, we have an opportunity to make this greeting card holiday into something much more meaningful. Forget the chocolates and flowers, greeting cards and balloons, show your capacity for love to the world around you...

Volunteer Match
American Red Cross
CARE
Habitat for Humanity
The Nourishing Kitchen of NYC
Disney's Give a Day