Equestrian Dreams

When I chose this horse motif background for Abode's current background, from The Cutest Blogs on the Block blog, I guess you could say I was subconsciously inspired by Betty Draper and her equestrian-inspired afternoons on "Mad Men." Betty Draper, Don, and really the set designers, costumers, and Matt Weiner, the creator of "Mad Men," have certainly brought to the forefront the absolute loveliness of the early 1960’s style, dress, and interiors. Pair this with Weiner’s deliciously sumptuous execution of it and his camera shots, and what you have is a visual masterpiece. And it's such things as this that inspire me to update Abode, my style blog.

Many of you may be familiar with Jolene's World, or as it was aptly nicknamed in 2007, J's World, while that is still going strong with silly anecdotes for my two fans to enjoy, Abode has been something I have had in the works now for a few years. It started as a personal portfolio specifically geared toward a job I really wanted. While I was told it did impress, and I got an interview as well as the momentary dream of relocating to San Francisco, I didn’t get the job. What I did get though was a clearer vision of my interior design tastes, and a vehicle for sharing my visions on the world wide web.

Over time Abode has since morphed into a bit more of an overall style blog, likely due to my own morphing from city to city, life-path to life-path. Abode is a celebration of interiors indeed, but also fashion, my personal style, the art of thrifting, what inspires me visually, and silly things like my love for plastic animals and Tokidoki.

When I began this blog, I was living in Chicago in this adorable brownstone I dubbed the EP Suites located smack in the middle of Boystown. The apartment was charming with exposed brick, my watermelon-colored living room wall, black and white checked kitchen flooring, and crown molding. Later I moved to my favorite Chicago flat in Lincoln Square, a fabulously huge three room studio with a deck for gardening (a hobby that I wasn't as good as say choosing Strawberry Shortcake curtains for my kitchen) and two doors to rooms other than the bathroom! Here I got all my colors just right, Peacock Plume for the living room walls, and a deliciously beautiful brown-vintage pink for the accent walls.

In each apartment I had everything strategically placed and my interior design evolved each day, until I could get it perfect, which, in Lincoln Square, may have been at its best when Time Out Chicago did an article on the place for a May 2008 issue. Shortly thereafter , out of the blue really, I decided to move and get rid of everything I own. I guess I always just wanted to be one of those quirky girls featured in a magazine, showing off her thrift store apartment full of tacky things like Hello Kitty Pez dispensers and old hats. Once this happened I was done being owned by my things and decided to move forward as a vagabond.

For a girl who LOVES her things, her home, her space, deciding to lead the vagabond lifestyle was a weird thing for me to do. In fact, as I write this now I have nowhere to live. I am in New York City, happy I am finally here, but a little lost. I literally only have in my possession a handful of clothes, okay a closet full of clothes, my computer Miss Stella, some jewelry, my jewelry making kit, books, a ceramic deer, four tokidokies, mini Rebecca for photo shoots, and a little rubber guy with a red heart that I found on the street in Soho (he was washed thoroughly.) Adding to the mix, and again inspired by Ms. Draper, are my new cool equestrian style boots. (Shown here.)

While I should probably be focusing more on where I will live than what I will be wearing, I figure, if anything, at least these boots will keep me warm should the park become my new temporary home.

And, alas, whatever part of the park I may end up, or hopefully maybe a place with four walls, I will still be blogging here on Abode and hope you will follow me and be inspired too by my tastes and stylrific influences!

Anna Sui for Target—Disappointing!

I didn't buy one piece, all of it seemed cheap, poorly made, and WAY over priced for Target! Dresses were marked from $60 to $80. Silly! For that price I'll go to a better boutique and get something more original and much more well made. I'm just sayin'.

I did pick up a couple cute tops at one of my fav cheapy shops Forever Twenty One or, as I lovingly call it, Forever Slutty One. Going to wear this number to a very Foxy Birthday dance party on Saturday! Oh I'll wear some sleek black pants as well, I'm not in my twenties afterall..