Check it Out! Someone wanted to listen!

 

I was interviewed for the Style & Substance section at MC Think Tank. I have to say it felt great to share some of me. Check out my interview and learn more about yours truly. Thanks to Ardith for including me in the process of publishing my interview.

Speed Decorating by Jill Vegas

I have to be one lucky modern girl because right before the holidays hit, I got Speed Decorating by Jill Vegas in the mail to review. Jill Vegas is a pro-stager that has created a beautiful and practical guide to creating a new home in a week or less. Although, Jill is a pro-stager, this book isn't just a guide to flipping a home for sell. I've been using it to totally revamp my house for the new year.  

The book is divided by rooms, so if you happen to need help in one area, like the living room, then you can concentrate. Another aspect of this book that I really love is that she writes in a manner that helps you to reconsider your living space. It can be so hard after living three years in the same home to recognize what works and what doesn't. Vegas provides critic information to help reader's view their living space with fresh eyes and thus discovering things like the furniture layout that isn't quite right or the slightly dirty pillows place on a chair near an entry-way. Vegas inspires you to stop overlooking dirty spots and bad decorating choices, and motivates you to make your home fabulous.

{image: House Beautiful}

Who can afford to buy all new furniture? Not me, at least, but then again I wouldn't want to buy all new furniture. So another reason why I highly recommend this guide for people living in apartments or homes, is that this book is a perfect guide to discovering how simple decorating changes are effective in creating a harmonious and beautiful home. 

Speed Decorating is filled with awesome images of interiors that aren't overly styled for a magazine shoot, but this is a book filled with photos of real living spaces inspired not by trends by owners. That's a big difference between most interior design books and Speed Decorating, she doesn't want to force you to give up what you love, she just wants to share with you the interior decoratoring secrets that help exemplify what you already own! I also love that you can pick up this book at Amazon for about $20! Now that's the kind of book every girl has to own!

Meet Jill Vegas

About Jill

When Jill and her husband sold their New York City apartment, she wasn’t thinking of starting a new career. But the property sold for way more than they thought possible— all because of how she had styled it. The broker told her she should think about making over homes as a career.

The broker wanted Jill’s help with another apartment. When it sold in a day for over asking price, the calls started coming in. That’s how the whole business started in 2004.

Jill infuses the real estate industry with a glittery sense of style. Her sense of humor, practical ideas, and outstanding service is exactly what stressed-out home owners crave to give their property the edge. Her work has been featured on NBC on a show called Open House NY, New York Times, Talk of the Town in the New Yorker, HGTV, Fine Living, National Public Radio, New York Daily News, New York Post, The Real Deal and Forbes.com. She writes a monthly staging column in the Residential Mann Report. The Mann Foundation honored Jill with the NYC 2008 Residential Real Estate Award in Staging. Jill has an MFA in creative writing from Sarah Lawrence College where she serves on the alumni board.

Prior to this Jill worked on award-winning advertising, marketing and brand campaigns for clients such as Target, Macy’s, and Estée Lauder. Jill is an Accredited Staging Professional Master and a member of the Real Estate Staging Association. Stay tuned for Jill’s upcoming book, Speed Decorating, to be published in 2009.

Why not revamp your home for the New Year! 

A New Home equals a New You that will be ready to tackle your entire New Year's resolution list!!

Meet the Artist: Photos by Chrissie White

I was zooming along my merry web browsing way and came across the work of Chrissie White at All the Mountains. It was like all that clicking and loading links had been to see these completely amazing photos.

The best part is that these emotional deep photos had been shot by a young female photographer, and I mean really young, she's only sixteen. I'm not one to be hung up on age, but she brings such a breath of freshness to the photographic image that at her very young age it's so exciting! Her work is more mature and better than certain MFA students I went to school with, and I think any other person who has gone to art school or not would agree! So I sent off an email telling her I loved her work and would love to interview her. I'm the lucky you and so are you because she's ready to talk about her work, passion, and even offer the rest us some advice on how to take better photos. Yeah!

 

Meet Chrissie White

{Chrissie White, age 15}

As I'm putting this post together, I'm also learning more about Chrissie. It seems that I'm not the only person that had noticed the quality of her work and the gift of her talent. The Seattle Pi ran an interview with her last year that was not only focused on her talent, but her enormous web following at Flickr.

 

The Interview

 

1. Was there a certain moment when you realized that you wanted to be a photographer? If not, what got you started on your path?

I can't remember a particular moment, however throughout the year that I was 13 I explored photography a lot and went through a phase of really admiring the art. I think from there I really decided I wanted to do this art form with some sort of determination. I used to take a lot of pictures and it was very enjoyable. Now photography makes me a bit sad, it's really a shame. I have found in myself, and in other photographers, that the more accomplished you become the harder it is to take a picture that you really like.

I think personal standards are set very high once people start to notice your art. It makes it harder to take photos and say to yourself " I like this photo a lot" because you really worry what other people will think. sometimes I wish to delete all my prior work and start out new, very quietly and privately. I would like to take at least a years worth of photos and keep them completely private to see if it makes any difference in how I feel.

2. What inspires your vision? Have you had any mentors to help you along your way? What photographers, designers, or artists would you love to meet?

I'm inspired by a lot of things, usually I just see an object, or a place and I visualize a scene which could take place incorporating that. However, I am into more spontaneous and candid photos lately. I always have a vision of what I want the picture to turn out like, so I compose accordingly.

It is such a shame when you miss a good photographic moment! that is the big problem with candid photos. I have not really had any "mentors", however my friends are great for brainstorming ideas with. I like meeting any photographers, it is always fun to be nerdy and talk photography with them.

3.  I should say that I really love that picture you did of a young girl floating over a bed.

How did you make that picture? How much post-processing work do you do on images? What programs do you use, like Photoshop, et cetra, and how did you learn these programs?

Well a friend and I did a small series while we were in Maine on peter pan (however none of the other photos were released) and we were inspired by the bedroom in which the picture was taken in. Many people think it was all photoshopped. However, there was no photoshop involved in the "levitation," we came up with a plan to just jump off the bed post and form that position with the body. There was a speedlight placed outside the window for the "glowy" effect. I used to do a lot of post-processing back when I did more conceptual images. However recently I am working on more of a "realism" approach to photography and usually only do tonal editing work.  I use photoshop cs3, I learned it by just playing around with it for a few weeks and reading tutorials online. I still don't know that much about it though!

 

4. What advice can you give to newbie photographers, young or old, on taking better pictures or working with models to family members?

Take pictures that you agree with, and always give yourself ways to improve. You should try to stay away from cliche's and really focus on your composition and lighting in the picture.

Both family members and models should be treated with the same respect, You can boss your family around a bit more however they will not want to take pictures with you if you do not make it enjoyable for them. It is also good if you listen to any ideas that they have to contribute because often they can inspire you.

 

5. What is your favorite photograph taken by someone other than yourself?

I have many! but two of my recent favorites are from flickr: Heyday and Tailakova

 

Both photos have a certain sadness and tiredness to them without being too obvious, it's very real.

{I think that this influence can be found in this next photo taken by Chrissie. Isn't it lovely?}

Bonus Question: What would be your dream photo shoot? What celebrity or person would you want in the shot and where would it be?

I don't have a dream photoshoot! I would really like to take people off the street one day and have them model in a fashion shoot with real fashion models. I think it would be interesting to see the comparison between the two groups.

Hail the young poetess, Chrissie! What a stellar start to a long photographic career! My only advice to Chrissie is to keep listening to the beat of her own drum, which I believe she won't have any trouble doing. Let's follow her beat through a few more photos! Still want more? I found another great interview at Art n Light. Thanks to Chrissie for stopping by!!!

 

Interview: The Lost Recipe for Happiness: A Novel by Barbara O'Neal

Last December, my wonderful friends at Fresh Fiction sent me an advance copy of The Lost Recipe for Happiness by Barbara O'Neal. If I didn't just fall in love with the cover of this book (love the Labrador & woman with whisk in hand), then I fell immediately in love with the writing. The first sentence of the novel reads:

"Along Elena's smooth white back is an ancient scar that cuts downward in grotesque beauty like a long, graceful snake."

Like a snake charmer, O'Neal conjures up a novel with beautifully crafted characters who are filled emotional depth and a plot that keeps the pages turning till the wee hours of the night.

Book Synopsis
In this sumptuous new novel, Barbara O’Neal offers readers a
celebration of food, family, and love as a woman searches for the
elusive ingredient we’re all hoping to find….

It’s the opportunity Elena Alvarez has been waiting for–the challenge of running
her own kitchen in a world-class restaurant. Haunted by an accident of
which she was the lone survivor, Elena knows better than anyone how to
survive the odds. With her faithful dog, Alvin, and her grandmother’s
recipes, Elena arrives in Colorado to find a restaurant in as desperate
need of a fresh start as she is–and a man whose passionate approach to
food and life rivals her own. Owner Julian Liswood is a name many
people know but a man few do. He’s come to Aspen with a troubled
teenage daughter and a dream of the kind of stability and love only a
family can provide. But for Elena, old ghosts don’t die quietly, yet a
chance to find happiness at last is worth the risk.


Author Biography

Barbara O’Neal fell in love with restaurants and the secret language of spoons when she was sixteen.She spent more than a decade in various restaurants, dives to cafes to high cuisine, before selling her first novel. O’Neal teaches workshops nationally and internationally, and lives
with her partner, an English endurance athlete, in Colorado Springs.

Modern Girl Style asked Barbara O'Neal about her lectures and workshops. She replied with this:

"I give a lot of workshops and lectures.  I've been around the world teaching writing--voice and layering a deep book are two subjects that are popular, but I also lecture on creating an artful life--because it seems difficult for women to figure out how to take care of themselves and everybody else!"


The Interview

After I found myself making Mayan Hot Chocolate (The Lost Recipe for Happiness, pg. 70) and inspired to whip up Pomegranate Baklava, I knew I had to interview O'Neal. Lucky for us, she agreed! So, sink your teeth into this: Barbara O'Neal on The Lost Recipe for Happiness!

1. What motivated you to write The Lost Recipe for Happiness? Was there a specific event that made you realize you had a story to tell?

Three things came together for Lost Recipe.  I'm always fascinated by people who have survived terrible things, and interested in what qualities or pursuits make it possible for one person to get through it and another get stuck in that awful moment and never really live at all any more.

I'm also deeply intrigued by descansos, those crosses that are erected at the site of an accident on the road. 



Driving to Chimayo once, I saw a very elaborate descanso to a couple and it stuck with me.  Who were they? What happened? Who put those fresh flowers on that fence post?


And then, there was a terrible car accident in the neighborhood I lived.  Five young people in the car, only one survived.  It was on my walking route and my son knew some of the people involved, and a huge descanso bloomed at the foot of the tree, and I couldn't get it out of my head.  I woke up in the middle of the night thinking about it, about the accident itself, the violence of which bothered me deeply, but even more I thought about the girl who walked away.  How do get through something like that?  How do you have a normal life afterwards?

So I started doing some research and became fascinated with the legacy people who survive such accidents carry with them. 

It also made me feel guilty to want to explore it, thus the thread with Julian arguing with himself about that very thing.  I worried that it was ghoulish of me to want to understand this--and yet, how lonely would it be to never be able to share your story, no matter what it is.  In the end Julian and I both decided that art and beauty can sometimes emerge from tragedy, even if it never entirely makes sense.

2. How long did it take you to write your novel and what was a typical writing day like? Since it is a fabulous foodie novel, did you have any addictions to certain foods or drinks while writing your book?

Lost Recipe took me about a year to write, but it was rolling around in my head for about a year before that.   And I've always cooked a lot when I'm writing--there is something so immediate about cooking, having a finished product at the end of a day, while writing a novel takes so long--but I cooked like a madwoman with Lost Recipe.  The best discovery was duck tamales.  My partner is English and he loves those game meats, but I'd never really worked with them before, and he became my slave for those tamales!  They take an entire day, so I save them for times when I'm very, very stuck. 




Oh, my writing day.  Because I am not by nature a very disciplined person, I find I have to make routines to get my work done or I can waste endless weeks doing nothing up uploading photos to Flickr and looking up new recipes in Saveur.  So I have a strict routine: after breakfast, I do 20 minutes of timed writing on essays or blogs or journals, then take my dogs for a walk (by the end of the 20 minutes, they are breathing heavily on my side, hhhhhhh hhhhhh  hhhhhh).  We walk for a half hour, and I come back, make a cup of tea and write my pages for the day BEFORE I am allowed to turn on the Internet computer.  Sometimes that happens by 11.  Sometimes, it's five pm.

3. I'll admit I was surprised and nervous when the main character,  Elena Alvarez, began to be visited by ghosts. However, I found that the presence of her past, as sometimes represented by memories, dreams, and ghosts, added just another amazing layer to the depth of the novel. So, at any point, where you nervous about introducing metaphysical elements into the story and, naturally, I have to ask, have you ever seen any ghosts or spirits? If not, do you believe in them?

When I began, I had no idea the ghosts were going to be so present.  At first, it was only Isabel, and I thought she was mainly a metaphor.  As the book progressed, I started to understand that they were both: metaphors for all the things we all carry around with us, the very real things in our pasts that shape us irrevocably, and actual ghosts. They stayed with her because she couldn't bear to be without them, and I don't think she would have survived without them. 

I was very nervous about it. There have often been touches of magic realism in my work, but the ghosts were way beyond that, and I had no idea how my agent would react.  In fact, I first left it up to the reader to decide if the ghosts were real or only her way of coping, but everyone loved them so much that I pulled out the stops--and I'm glad.   Isabel ended up being one of my favorite parts of the book. 



Have I ever seen a ghost? Not exactly.  Have I felt them? Yes.  I think we all have.

4. What are some of your favorite books and what writers have influenced you?

So many!  I'm a passionate and compulsive reader and I read just about everything. I have been heavily influenced by Ray Bradbury, who influenced me as a very young writer to think outside the box,  Alice Hoffman, who does such beautiful things with passion and yearning, Isabel Allende, who tackles the things that haunt us. Elizabeth Berg, Connie Willis, and Anya Seton, the historical novelist.   Some of my favorite novels are Doomsday Book, Willis (and her Lincoln's Dreams); Like Water For Chocolate, Esquivel;  Dandelion Wine, Bradbury; White Horses, Hoffman; Green Darkness, Seton, a thousand others.  I recently loved Geradine Brooks A Year of Sorrows.



Honestly, I read a lot about food, too.  Memoirs and stories of cooks earning their chops. All of Julia Child and the Julie/Julia book.




{MGS: Julie & Julia was recently turned into a movie with Amy Adams, as Julie Powell,and Meryl Streep, as Julia Child. Here are a few film stills to hold your appetite}







Anthony Bourdain




Saveur, Gourmet, and Food and Wine Magazines. Memoirs about the lives of chefs are absorbing.





5.  Can you drop readers any hint about what you're working on at the moment? We swear we won't tell!

It's another foodie book, tentatively titled 100 breakfasts.  Can't let too much out of the bag, but it is set in a town that has developed a reputation for food culture on many levels.  Really having a blast with it.  I hope you all will, too.



BONUS QUESTION:
I'm of the opinion that The Lost Recipe for Happiness is movie material! If you could cast Elena Alvarez, the main character of The Lost Recipe for Happiness, who would you cast and why?

Maria Bello.  She's unusual looking and both soft and tough.

 

{MGS: Maria Bello was in such movies as The Jane Austen Book Club & The Mummy}



One more thing...

As I researched a bit more about Barbara O'Neal, I found this wonderful Behind the Book article at Random House. It's too amazing to not share! I've included her first 5 favorite foods. Get the full list here.

Top Ten Favorite Foods
by Barbara O'Neal

1. Root beer
floats with my grandmother at the A&W Root Beer. The long spoons,
the milky suds, the sugary brown crystals on top of the ice cream, and
my grandmother across the table, telling a story.

2. Roast
rabbit, in a very small southern Italian village. I was not about to
eat something so cute and fluffy, something you could cuddle,
but the woman serving us insisted that I would mourn forever if I
didn’t try it. It arrived with chicory and mashed fava beans and red
wine. The chicory was too bitter for my tastes, but the rabbit tasted
like summer, like a sunny grassy field. Rich and deep, broad and salty,
a flavor that fills your whole mouth.

3. Goat cheese, fresh
tomatoes, and cucumbers stuffed into a baguette; lunch on a hiking tour
in the French alps. The air smelled of the wild thyme we had crushed
beneath our boots.

4. Pork and avocado burritos at Los Tres, a
family business tucked into a corner of the food court of the Pueblo,
Colorado mall, everything served on paper plates with plastic spoons by
the wife and the cousins and the sisters and brothers while a
television plays talk shows in the corner. Local green chiles and
slippery, mushy chunks of avocado mixed with slow roasted pork, and
long-simmered, very spicy chile. It also smells heavenly.

5.
Homemade sausage gravy served over his secret recipe buttermilk
biscuits, as made by my children’s father every Sunday through their
young years.

Thanks, Barbara! Modern Girl Style recommends that you add this book to your collection of foodie-inspired books to read!