The Timeless Couturier-In Appreciation Oscar de la Renta

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"The qualities I most admire in women are confidence and kindness."

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“There is no sound more feminine than a woman in a taffeta dress.”

 

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“I am not interested in shock tactics. I just want to make beautiful clothes.”

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“My job as a designer is to make a woman feel her very best.”

“You have to walk like you have three men walking behind you.”

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"Fashion is a trend, style is within a person."

Not a "Common Man"-In Apprecation Peter O'Toole

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"I'm not an actor, I'm a movie star"  Peter O'Toole in My Favorite Year.

Peter O'Toole was both and so much more...an actor with a capital A on both screen and stage.   His was a face and a talent that you could not take your eyes from.  He commanded and owned the stage or the screen he played upon, and considering the company he kept from Olivier to Burton to both Hepburns that was impressive in and of itself.

Lawrence of Arabia via

In a journal entry when he was 18 O'Toole wrote:

“I will not be a common man. I will stir the smooth sands of monotony. I do not crave security. I wish to hazard my soul to opportunity.” 

  It was in David Lean's Lawrence of Arabia in 1962 that O'Toole came to stardom portraying T.E. Lawrence, he beat out Marlon Brando and Albert Finney for the role that he would be identified with his entire life and the one that brought him his first Oscar nomination. He was nominated 8 times for an Oscar and first refused an honorary turn hoping another Oscar-worthy role would come his way telling them to wait til he was 80-‘‘I am still in the game and might win the bugger outright.’’He did accept his honorary award in 2003.  

 

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He looked like a beautiful, emaciated secretary bird … his voice had a crack like a whip … most important of all you couldn’t take your eyes off him … acting is usually regarded as a craft and I claim it to be nothing more except in the hands of the odd few men and women who, once or twice in a lifetime, elevate it into something odd and mystical and deeply disturbing. I believe Peter O’Toole to have this strange quality. - Richard Burton

He was a smoker, a drinker, a hellraiser...flamboyant, outspoken and charming with glorious blue eyes that captivated co-stars and audiences alike.  I'm not sure when my crush on Peter O'Toole began-perhaps it was watching Lawrence of Arabia, The Lion in Winter, Goodbye Mr. Chips, or My Favorite Year but probably it was  How to Steal a Million opposite Audrey Hepburn-charming, suave, funny, utterly adorable.

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In July of 2012 Peter O'Toole publicly retired from acting stating: "...it's my belief that one should decide for oneself when it is time to end one's stay." and bidding "the profession a dry-eyed and profoundly grateful farewell."  It is safe to say that they don't make 'em like that anymore. Adieu Peter O'Toole.

My Favorite Year via The Guardian

 ‘‘If you can’t do something willingly and joyfully, then don’t do it,’’

A Colorful Life-In Appreciation-Lilly Pulitzer Rousseau

 “Anything is possible with sunshine and a little pink.”

 Lilly Pulitzer Rousseau (1931-2013)

Lilly Pulitzer was a freespirit.  The Palm Beach socialite loved a party and believed style should be comfortable, easy and above all fun.  She walked barefoot down Worth Avenue and truly embodied what became her namesake style-The Lilly. 

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 Can a simple dress change your day-if it is a Lilly it can. 

 "Style isn't just about what you wear, it's about how you live" 

Lilly in her first shop on Via Mizner by Howell Conant via

What's a Lilly?  Well, it couldn't be easier-three holes for arms and to put your head through, two darts, two slits on each side, sewn of simple cotton in the most fun and colorful prints... and you're dressed.  Sure it's a simple shift but in Lilly's hands -it became an icon.  Come Visit The Shopping Bag Chronicles

Jackie in a Lilly, 1962 via LIFE

"Being happy never goes out of style" 

Lilly Pulitzer Rousseau

Thank You Nora! In Appreciation Nora Ephron

"Whatever you choose, however many roads you travel, I hope that you choose not to be a lady, I hope you will find some way to break the rules and make a little trouble out there. And I also hope that you will choose to make some of that trouble on behalf of women." Nora Ephron to the graduating class of Wellesley College 1996.

She was a writer,essayist,screenwriter,director,producer,Oscar nominated filmmaker,blogger... but most essentially Nora Ephron was funny-at her core she saw in the darkest corners and in the most human occasions the Funny especially in the lives of women.  She was so wise and in her later years philosophized through her humor hitting the "oh my god yes" nerve for every woman and made us smile,cry and believe in ourselves as women.

Nora Ephron also gave us permission to be romantic and believe that you can fall in love with your best friend ("When Harry Met Sally"), hold out for that right one guy ("Sleepless in Seattle") and realize that even icons are real people too("Julie and Julia")--but Nora Ephron was also a woman who believed that prescribed roles were to be kicked to the curb and that there is humor in everyone's world no matter the age or stage.  Her voice and her words and her wisdom are there for all of us to get through even her loss with---Thank you Nora no one can fill your heels.

"Be the Heroine of Your Life not the victim"-Nora Ephron