Lucky So and So

I’ve Got A Sweet Rainbow Hangover

And there ain’t no cure. Please be patient with me as I figure out how to process all the joy that was my birthday, find the words to thank everyone who participated in both the Hole Sale and the Rainbow Birthday Parade, and figure out a way to share everything all those who could only be there in spirit.

You’d never know it from all the smiles, but the absurd windiness of the day was blowing freezing rain in our faces. All I can think is I am SUCH a lucky so and so.

Thanks for taking these photos, Jason Hawkins (top) and Jason Santa Maria (lower two).

Hole Sale and Rainbow Birthday Spectacular

Dear glorious vintage shoes, I shall miss you!

I hope you’ve heard by now: this Saturday on my thirty-second birthday, I’m getting rid of over 400 items from my wardrobe! As challenging as it might be, it’s got to happen if I want to get down to the 100-items-or-less closet. I felt I needed to find a way to let go while also celebrating my birthday, and true to my nature, the whole thing has turned into a crazy, hopefully wonderful production.

Through an outstanding collaboration with the DUMBO Improvement District that still seems too amazing to be true, my birthday has become the Hole Sale and Rainbow Birthday Spectacular, and it will be held on April 16 in the Archway Under the Manhattan Bridge (a.k.a. The Bridge Hole). There will be second-hand items to purchase, rainbows to wear and eat, music to parade to, and girls to send to rock camp. Does this all seem a bit confusing? I hear you. There is a lot going on! So here’s a handy dandy guide to help clarify…

Instructions for a Hole Sale and Rainbow Birthday Spectacular

1. Dress yourself head to toe in a single, bright color. Or at least give it your best shot!
2. Have your spring cleaning done and set aside any items* you no longer need.
3. Show up at the Archway Under the Manhattan Bridge, a.k.a. the Bridge Hole, to donate said items.
4. Buy some awesome second-hand stuff.
5. Maybe eat a rainbow cupcake.
6. Feel awesome because the stuff buying you just did benefits Willie Mae Rock Camp for Girls. And because you ate a rainbow cupcake.
7. Hear 12-year-old Tiger Bey performs her original song, Willow Tree, complete with rainbow lyrics. (1pm)
8. Have your rainbow photo taken by Erin Sparling.
9. Make an appearance in the rainbow video being made by Sunny Jang.
10. Situate yourself in chromatic order and be a part of the Rainbow Birthday Parade, that’s right PARADE, with Raya Brass Band. (2pm)
11. Buy more stuff. Feel even awesomer.
12. Head to Superfine for a post-event drink. It should probably be a rainbow drink of some sort. (5pm)

*If an one item is bigger than a Thanksgiving turkey, you probably shouldn’t bring it for the reason that it will be difficult to cart away if it doesn’t sell.

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100 Items or Less

On March 15, my friend and Studiomate Chris Shiflett put out a call for his readers to write the Ideas of March as a commitment to substantive blog posts. I asked him what I should write about. I don’t usually tackle what others in our webby community would consider stimulating, educational or controversal (although if you knew what actually went on in my head, you’d agree that everything I write is actually all three for me on a personal level). He said, “You have lots of ideas. Just write one of them down.” I decided to choose a subject I’ve been avoiding for a long time and see if I could come up with any fresh ideas worth sharing. True, I had a few drinks, but I must have been inspired because I ended up envisioning what amounts to a major overhaul of important yet neglected area of my life. So without further ado, here’s my contribution to the Ideas of March, and true to my nature, I’ve posted it without a day to spare. 1 hour to imagine; 5 hours to distill and write; an estimated 50 hours of action required.

I have over 500 items of clothing in my possession. And that’s a conservative estimate that doesn’t include my three costume bins. In contrast, I live in a 547-square-foot studio. With one closet. And another human being. Who also likes to wear the occasional piece of clothing. Currently, there’s a stack (or if I’m being painfully honest, two or three stacks) of clothing siting on the floor outside the closet waiting to be shoved back in somewhere that doesn’t really exist. If we’ve met, it’s not hard to imagine how things got this way. I have an eye for colorful, quirky and whimsical clothing, and my passion in life is finding it second-hand. If I come across an amazing piece and it’s under $20, it’s as if I’m on a Mission from God to bring it home, style it up and wear the hell out of it.

As much as I love being able to dress to suit any possible mood, and goodness knows I’ve got many, I don’t love the effect it has on my living space. Meanwhile, everything else in my life is sort of on a roll. I’m working hard to simplify, sort out, consolidate and shed. I’m traveling. I’m designing. I’m writing. I feel closer to becoming the best person I can be, my true self, with each passing day. But my closet remains a bloated mess, and for someone who loves expressing herself through what she wears, that seems like a huge contradiction.

In an attempt to find a solution, I decided to take a page from Sarah Kay and list THREE THINGS I know to be true…

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Week’s Worth of Undies

It seemed simple enough… I’ll go on a trip, and the only thing I’ll pack in a tiny suitcase is the underwear I’ll need. All other clothing will be procured at thrift stores once I arrive at my destination. I’ll wear it, photograph it and have a grand ole time with it, but then I’ve got to give it away, returning home with only my original undies.

But what ensued was awesomeness on a level I’m not even sure I’m capable of processing. Let’s just say, short of every person I love having landed next to me in a giant rainbow-colored hot air balloon, I don’t see how life could have gotten any better.

In Summary:
10 Thrift Stores + $275 + A Week in the California Desert + 600 Incredible Folks + 1 Three-Minute Talk = AWESOMENESS OVERLOAD!

I have to attribute much of the magic of the week to where I chose to carry out this project for the first time: TEDActive in Palm Springs. That’s a yearly gathering of more than 600 uniquely intense and beautiful people out in the California desert. We watch TED2011 as it’s simulcast from Long Beach, meet one another, go on field trips, swim, bike, eat, dance and have a generally amazing time. What made this TED truly special was that we (WORKSHOP) actually worked with TED to create the visual identity for this year’s conference, The Rediscovery of Wonder. So as we were walking about, we got to see our design on posters, guide books, signage, iPad apps and more.

The most exciting yet nerve-wracking part of the week was that I was selected to give a TEDYou Talk about the Undies Project. Yippie and yikes at the same time! It was a lot of work for me and Josh to get up at 6:30 every morning to take photos of the outfits before each day got started. Plus I agonized over the words, the slides, pretty much every aspect of the presentation; you name it, I second-guessed myself. But in the end, the Talk felt like a huge triumph! So many people showered me with love, and I started to realize for the first time that my outfit obsession and quest to be true to myself could actually inspire others, particularly those brave souls known as teenage girls. 

On stage at TEDActive! photo credit: Michael Brands / TED

Get ready, because I’m about to post the 7 outfits (plus the set of pajamas) I found to wear during this unforgettable week.

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Rainbow Rosie Sushi for Amy

My sister Amy lives in Starkville, Mississippi, so I don’t get to see her nearly as often as I’d like. But whenever I’m home, we always have the best time. She and her husband own Starkville’s best restaurant, and we like to close down its bar with a slightly intoxicated style all our own… She commandeers the sound system, we play our favorites for each other, then we end up dancing like idiots who don’t care who’s watching.

Here’s to my sister on her birthday. I love you and the person you’ve grown up to be. The best is yet to come!

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I Really Like This Message

Found on the ever-fabulous Grain Edit, this Brett Wilkinson poster speaks to my life’s goal: to be myself! And what color palette could better embody that sentiment than rainbow?

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Postcard Love

Carolyn Sewell sent a hand-drawn typographic postcard to her parents every day for a year. Reading them, I find myself trying to figure out the circumstances under which they were drawn… was Carolyn in a good mood that day? An angry, bad or silly one? Where did she find the inspiration for her phrase of the day? I also imagine her parents, walking to the mailbox to find their daily candid phrase. How happy it must have made them to have this special daily glimpse into their creative daughter’s life? “Pants Status: On” especially cracks me up, because I believe that comes from an illicit Tweet sent from my account.

HUZAHH! I arrived at my office this morning to learn Carolyn is now extending the postcard love “to her peeps.” Being one such peep, I can officially report first hand, getting a hand drawn piece of mail totally brightens your day! Especially when it reads “DOUBLE ROYGBIV” in every color of the rainbow.

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Stairway to Color Heaven

This house rocks my world for reasons that go way beyond color (storage, light, terrace, rotating bed!), but let’s be honest, the rainbow theme doesn’t hurt. Watch the video to see what I mean.

I’m pretty sure my body has some sort of physiological response to this staircase. My pulse actually quickened the first time I saw it. Growing up, there was a house in my neighborhood that stood apart from the rest because the back staircase was painted rainbow (each step was a different color, and they were arranged chromatically). I was obsessed with this house long before I was conscious of my love for color. If it looked like that on the outside, what must it be like inside!? Adults used to tell me the lady who lived there was really crazy. It turns out, now that I’m an adult and have actually met her, she is simply an artist. HA! Way to go, adults.

If I ever have my own set of stairs, the first thing I’ll do is paint them.

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Double Rainbow Meaning

This is my rainbow scarf. It’s my favorite scarf, not only because… well, it’s a rainbow, but because it reminds me of who I was with when I found it: one of my dearest and oldest friends, Laura Howell McQueen.

For me, the sight of this scarf always evokes the mental image of Laura and her daughter Anne Parks as we giggled through the Fondren, Mississippi thrift store that summer day trying on hats and purses. That’s where I came upon this scarf. And what more could I ask for on a dreary winter day? Wearing this is like wrapping myself in a hug from one of my favorite people. All my second-hand items have extra meaning to me. I always remember exactly where I was and who I was with when each one came into my life.

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How a Rainbow Princess Says Thank You

Who needs all those other silly colors when you’ve got pink and purple at hand? And adding smiley faces to the clouds? That’s nothing less than a touch of genius! This resplendent example of rainbowdom was created for me by the four-year-old Ella Joy as a thank you for helping her live her wish to be a Rainbow Princess for Halloween. As if seeing her excitement upon delivery of the costume wasn’t enough! Every time I look at this my heart becomes a puddle.

I also, totally unnecessarily, received a very generous Amazon thank you gift certificate, with which I almost immediately purchased this. Now I just need Kelli to come over and show me how to work it! Thank you, Ella (and Tina).