Favorite Oscar Dresses

Jessica Chastain in a pink rose Armani Prive form - fitting strapless gown.  

Very "Classic Hollywood" look.

Jennifer Lawrence has landed a part-time job as the face of Dior.  So it is no surprise that she should show up at the Oscars wearing a pale pink Christian Dior gown.

Poor Jennifer is not having much luck with her gowns.  First there was that "rip" at the SAG awards and now her stumble up the stairs at the Oscars.  But I guess that doesn't matter when you are  winning all the awards!  Congratulations to her!

Charlize Theron also in a Dior gown.  She shaved off her hair for her role in Mad Max: Fury Road and encourages all women to shave off their hair.  Saying that it is so liberating.

Somehow, I don't think I would look as good as Charlize if I shaved off my hair.

Zoe Zaldana in a romantic Alexis Mabille gown.  Intricate floral details framed the top of the dress's lilac bodice.

Kerry Washington looked beautiful in a Miu Miu dress, Christian Louboutin shoes, a Prada bag, Chopard earrings and a Fred Leighton ring.

Helen Hunt shocked everyone by wearing an H&M gown to the Oscars.  I think it held up well next to all those couture gowns.  If she hadn't told us, would we have known?

Anne Hathaway described her pale pink Prada gown as "business in the front and a party in the back", but I think it is the front of the dress that is garnering all the attention.

I think it is just the way the darts are stitched in the front of the dress.  People just aren't used to seeing that kind of stitching anymore.  In the 50's a lot of dresses were sewn that way.

I do like the back of her dress, and the way her necklace follows the criss-cross of her straps.

Amor, Amour, Amore

Although Valentine's day is past, there is still one more week in  February.  And my birthday is next week. So I still have more celebrating to do.  It's always been fun to have my birthday in the month that celebrates love!
Although my birthday will be low-key this year, this little vignette of Jcrew cocktail dress, Kate Spade peep toe shoes, Stila blush and Christian Dior bag are definitely on my fantasy wish list.
Have a wonderful Sunday!

Untitled #28 by debralynn5 featuring christian dior

New Item! Daisy Gift Tags!

I just listed a set of 6 gift tags in my Etsy shop.

These are perfect for all occasions!

The image is taken from one of my original watercolor paintings, and is printed in my studio using archival inks and Radiance 120 lb. card stock.

These fashionable tags are tied up with 1/4 in width black satin ribbon.

Very chic!

Available here.

Fairies hiding in Strunk and White

The other day I was helping my daughter with her homework, and since it has been a million years since I was in school, I decided to look for a little help from my old trusty copy of The Elements of Style by Strunk and White.  I had forgotten how fun it was to read Strunk and White.

We got a little side tracked when we came across this segment of a poem by William Allingham in the section on nouns and verbs.  My daughter was so intrigued by it, that we just had to look up the whole poem.

Write with nouns and verbs.

Write with nouns and verbs, not with adjectives and adverbs.  The adjective hasn't been built that can pull a weak or inaccurate noun out of a tight place.  This is not to disparage adjectives and adverbs; they are indispensable parts of speech.  Occasionally they surprise us with their power, as in

Up the airy mountain,

Down the rushy glen,

We daren't go a-hunting

For fear of little men...

The nouns mountain and glen are accurate enough, but had the mountain not become airy, the glen rushy, William Allingham might never have got off the ground with his poem.  In general, however, it is nouns and verbs, not their assistants, that give to good writing its toughness and color.

                                                                                         - The Elements of Style by Strunk and White

Here is the poem in it's entirety. 

The Fairies

by William Allingham (1824-1889)

Up the airy mountain,
Down the rushy glen,
We daren’t go a-hunting
For fear of little men;
Wee folk, good folk,
Trooping all together;
Green jacket, red cap,
And white owl’s feather!

Down along the rocky shore
Some make their home,
They live on crispy pancakes
Of yellow tide-foam;
Some in the reeds
Of the black mountain lake,
With frogs for their watch-dogs,
All night awake.

High on the hill-top
The old King sits;
He is now so old and gray
He’s nigh lost his wits.
With a bridge of white mist
Columbkill he crosses,
On his stately journeys
From Slieveleague to Rosses;
Or going up with music
On cold starry nights,
To sup with the Queen
Of the gay Northern Lights.

They stole little Bridget
For seven years long;
When she came down again
Her friends were all gone.
They took her lightly back,
Between the night and morrow,
They thought that she was fast asleep,
But she was dead with sorrow.
They have kept her ever since
Deep within the lake,
On a bed of flag-leaves,
Watching till she wake.

By the craggy hill-side,
Through the mosses bare,
They have planted thorn-trees
For pleasure here and there.
Is any man so daring
As dig them up in spite,
He shall find their sharpest thorns
In his bed at night.

Up the airy mountain,
Down the rushy glen,
We daren’t go a-hunting
For fear of little men;
Wee folk, good folk,
Trooping all together;
Green jacket, red cap,
And white owl’s feather!

Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler

My new Shu Uemura eyelash curler finally arrived!  I've been waiting for the gold one to come back, and it finally has.  I've heard this curler is the holy grail of all eyelash curlers, so I've been wanting to try it out for years.

I just couldn't bring my self to buy a new eyelash curler when my Trish McEvoy one was doing a perfectly good job, until they stopped selling the replacement pads.  Then it just wouldn't work with other replacement pads.

I've been using Diorshow Waterproof Mascara and it's the best mascara I've found yet, except by the end of the day it gets smudgy and I look like I have raccoon eyes.

My eyelashes are dead straight so I have to curl them and most mascaras are too heavy.  When I apply them they just take the curl right out.  So I am always on the look out for new mascara.  I just bought Benefit's They're Real! Mascara.  I really like a lot of the products in Benefit's line.  So let's see how this mascara works.

Free downloadable Valentine's Card!

The very stylish and retro Bethany over at The Glamourous Housewife Blog has commissioned me to make a Valentine's card for all her readers.

I painted a lady in a retro red dress for her.  Here's a little sneak peak at a portion of that painting.

So if you would like a free downloadable Valentine's card with this Lady in The Red Dress,

check out The Glamourous Housewife.

Congratulations to Suzanne Carillo, the winner of a set of my Coco Chanel notecards and ad space on Chatterblossom!

http://bisous.typepad.com/bisous/

Kate Spade Accessories!

"Have You Ever Wondered...?
You have a perfectly good dress for evening, but admittedly it's a bit on the plain side.  How can you look more spruced up?

Accessorize, accessorize, accessorize.  Nothing elevates something simple like a necklace of brightly colored stones or shoes with a lot of lift and sparkle.  It's what you add that gives personality and style to your appearance."
- from Style by Kate Spade

(not that I think this Dolce & Gabbana dress is simple or plain!)

Style by Kate Spade available here.

*** Remember today is the last day of the Coco Chanel Flat notecard set giveaway!***

If  you haven't entered, you can enter here.

Good Luck!

Kate Spade Accessories! by debralynn5 featuring high heels

So Many Cute Valentine's Ideas!

I was on Pinterest looking for something else, when I came across all these cute Valentine's ideas.

Monster boxes for children's Valentine's.

If you want to make these you can find directions at Giggles Galore

Heart shaped cinnamon roles, Yum!

How to make them at Poppies at Play

Martha Stewart Kids Valentine's bags via Black Eiffel

Valentine's fortune cookies made from scrapbook paper.

Here's the "how to"celesterockwoodjones

Win This Giveaway - Set of Coco Chanel Notecards!

Hello everyone.  The lovely Jaime over at Chatterblossom.blogspot.com is hosting a giveaway of my Coco Chanel Flat-notecards.  The Coco Chanel perfume bottle is from one of my original watercolors.  It comes in a set of 10, paired with  10 "pink lemonade" envelopes, and tied up with a pretty pink organza ribbon.  Valentine's Day is a perfect time to send a little note to those you love!

As an added bonus, Jaime is offering one 200x200 featured ad space on her sidebar for the month!

The giveaway will only be open for one week, so get your entries in now!  The contest is open to international entries too!  A winner will be announced on Monday, Feb. 11th.

So head on over to Chatterblossom to get your entry in!   Good luck!

Favorite SAG Awards Dresses

Michelle Dochery in Vintage Chado Ralph Rucci and a new bob hair style.

Jennifer Lawrence in Dior Haute Couture before it ripped!

Claire Danes in an asymmetrical black dress by Givenchy.

Kerry Washington in Rodarte.

Nicole Kidman in Vivienne Westwood.