Sprinkles in January

Do I really have to say anything?

Food & Photo: Sprinkles Cupcakes.

Hello Sweetie Pie!

Cute monogrammed wallpaper, hot pink booths, yummy treats and big suckers. All at Sweetie Pie in NYC. We had so much fun here and I would go even without the little girls. Yummy.

A Picture Says a Thousand Words

Haiti's only film school was destroyed on January 12th during the devastating 7.0 magnitude earthquake. Since that time, the film students have been documenting, capturing and sharing with the world graphic and moving images from this still unfolding crisis. (Per the USGS, this is the strongest quake to hit what is now Haiti since 1770.) Through their art these filmmakers are able to help save/rebuild lives. I first learned of Ciné Institute from a Sundance Film Festival posting. Film can be enormously powerful.


Please be advised that there are images in this film that are graphic and may not be appropriate for young children.

Purple Reign

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The color purple. Red + Blue. Not to be confused with violet. Historically, it was the color of royalty because it was so expensive to obtain. Weight for weight the dye was as expensive as silver - kind of like how expensive pure saffron is today. The ancient Phoenicians created the Tyrian purple/ imperial purple color dye from mucous (never thought I'd be using that word here) secretions from the hypobranchial (or that one) glands of certain predatory sea snails gathered from the Mediterranean Sea. The Spiny Dye Murex. Why am I so focused on purple? Check out the invitation above created recently for a very special boy who requested purple during our very first meeting. He was quite sure of his choice and I think the collaboration was a royal success.




Twig & Fig letterpress invite. Bronze folder.
Ancient Phoenicians lived along the eastern shores of the Mediterranean; today's Syria and Lebanon.
Tyrian purple is probably closer to magenta than the purple shown here.

Spelling Doesn't Count

The Singing Bee returns with all new episodes TONIGHT at 9/8 Central, only on CMT.

Disclosure: This Blogger is married to one of the executive producers and co-creators, aka JUMA Entertainment, thus, the shameless plug. But, see for yourself. Melissa P., the host, is a lot of fun.

"Cup of Jo"... Anna

I caught a great documentary today at The Princeton Environmental Film Festival called "Strong Coffee: The Story of Cafe Femenino".
It is an inspiring, uplifting, well done and short - just 48 minutes - documentary about marginalized female coffee farmers in Peru who organized (in 2004) into the first all female produced coffee growers in the world.

It is the story of Cafe Femenino and the "Femenino beans". To be a true Femenino bean, the land where the coffee "cherries" are grown must be owned by a woman, all the work to produce the bean, from the picking of the bean to the cleaning to the selling, must be done by women. The coffee beans are sold as Fair Trade, and Organic (generating a premium which benefits the coffee Co-op) and then, because it is a Femenino bean, another 2 cents per pound is paid. This additional money goes directly to the women of Cafe Femenino. They decide how it is spent. Roasters buying these coffee beans must agree to keep the Femenino beans separate from other beans (so no blending) to preserve the integrity of this particular coffee. There is also a "Pay It Forward" element at play here. Roasters buying the Femenino beans agree to contribute a percentage of their profits from the sale of the Femenino coffee to a local women's charity of their choosing or they can send such profits on to The Cafe Femenino Foundation.

The film shows that lives have been improved in the rural hills of Peru. Women's attitudes about themselves and attitudes towards them have been altered. Families are experiencing less domestic violence, more daughters are receiving an education. As expressed in the film, a small gesture like purchasing a cup of coffee can improve lives around the world. One place where you can find Cafe Femenino coffee is Grounds for Change.

And, thanks to my good friend Joanne B. for joining me at this screening.

Sending Elvis A Birthday Card

My Elvis birthday card is made of blue suede (of course), has white fringe hanging from the fold and has an awesome looking stand up microphone on the front (in no way will this microphone inhibit movement on stage). The card vibrates upon opening and plays Viva Las Vegas. For something more subtle, basic black with a white velvet piano motif will work. I don't think these cards get returned. Happy would be 75th.

Next year in Graceland.

Turquoise Unveiled as Color of the Year

Pantone just announced the color of the year for 2010. It is turquoise, PANTONE 15-5519. And, after a tough 2009/08, what better color could there be to start off this new year? It is refreshing, invigorating and, as they say, so full of fantasy - it just takes you away. Hmmmm.... and just when we were all getting back to work.

So now I am dreaming of a layered beach invitation of turquoise,coral and crisp white and or maybe I'll go to cocktail party in turquoise and steel grey (sparkling accessories work here) or maybe I can pop a bit of turquoise into my ski attire (in my dreams is this one, in turquoise, from Bogner)

See what the experts at PANTONE have to say about it all.