Here we go again...

Oops, I did it again. Yes, yet another copy of Pride and Prejudice has been added to my collection. But really, how could I be expected to resist this cover? I was just milling about in a book stall, at O'hare Airport of all places, when this caught my eye. Ruben Toledo has done the artwork, and it perfectly captures Elizabeth Bennet's rejection of Mr. Darcy. Toledo has done drawings for Harper's Bazaar and Vogue among others, and I just LOVE what he's done here. If you don't have our dear Jane on your bookshelf, you're in for one of the best stories ever told. Get this book!!!

Happy Orange Day!

Trick or Treat!

Perhaps it's the season we are now in, but it seems that orange is popping up everywhere I turn, and I'm talking about more than just pumpkins. I've always rather liked orange in its more subdued tones. Melon, Terracotta, and Sunset variations of orange do have a certain richness to them. It's amazing how the color orange, used properly, and in the right shade can be quite sophisticated. Hermes has know this since 1837, when they chose a burnt orange as their signature color for their iconic boxes. Great mixed with the dark brown, right?

Or, to see how just a single, well placed piece of orange, perhaps mixed with pink, can keep a room or an outfit from becoming too sugary and bubblegum sweet. It adds just the right punch.

How pretty is this room? The orange trunk really does the trick here, doesn't it? Keeps the pink at bay and grounds everything around it. Love it! So, while Halloween may soon be over, I don't think the orange needs to depart just yet...there's a lot we can do with this interesting hue. For now, a happy and safe Halloween to you all.

Tick-Tock

Time is Running OUT!!!

Chic-Lit must be ordered NOW!!!

Clever Girls always want to offer the perfect gift, and deliver it on time. However, some things do require a bit of planning. This is one of those things.
...If Santa is to tuck one of these little gems under the tree, a bit of preparation is in order. The absolute last day to order deadline is Saturday, November 28th. No exceptions. So you must decide now: Bracelet, necklace, cuff, charm. You make the call--just make it soon. Tick tock, tick tock. I know that seems like a long way off, but it's not, that's only a month from right now!


Sure, you've got a little bit of time, but why wait?
As they say, beat the rush, order now. Operators are standing by...

Pumpkin Time

Yes, it's time. Off to the pumpkin patch in search of a worthy orange orb to hollow, carve and decorate. Ever since Martha Stewart demonstrated all a girl can do to a pumpkin with a drill it's been pure bliss when October 31st draws near. The two pictured above were part of last years collection. They sat on the porch rail in Maine quite happily, and were "lit" (with candles, not booze) every evening awaiting All Hallows' Eve.

I spend the tail end of fall in Maine, and often bring home several pumpkins to carve. Out East, pumpkins are taken rather seriously as evidenced by our local pumpkin boat races. The annual Damariscotta Pumpkin Regatta is the fastest pumpkin-boat racing in Maine, maybe even The United States. Fourteen pumpkins, weighing between four and seven-hundred pounds are converted into "boats" and raced on the Damariscotta River. This was started years ago when several local men began musing about what to do with a 700-pound pumpkin they had grown to show at the county fair. They decided to hollow it out, attach a motor and cruise around the cove near downtown Damariscotta. Thus began the Pumpkin Regatta races...quite a sight to behold, let me tell you.




The pumpkin crop is rumored to be a bit scarce this year due to all the rain, so I'm prepared to devote a fair amount of time in the quest of the perfect specimens. Mine won't be motoring down any rivers, but they will reach their true calling in style and have their time to shine. Happy Halloween!

House to Go

I freely admit to being a bit of a collector--as different things grab my attention, off I go seeking more of them out. For a long time now I've been gathering bits of truly ancient history in the form of fossils and coral. Setting them out, or using one as a paperweight is a great way to enjoy them and marvel at how old they really are. My current favorite, an Ammonite fossil was a gift from my mother. (It's the spiral shaped one to the left.)

Millions of years ago, this was the actual home of a sea-dwelling creature living somewhere near present day England. Only the last and largest chamber, the body chamber, was occupied by the living animal at any given moment. As it grew, it added newer and larger chambers to the open end of the coil. As the little creature needed more room, he simply grew it--round and round in a beautiful spiral pattern. No building permit required! Really rather a clever system, don't you agree? But, can you imagine toting your whole house with you everywhere? I think not...but it is amazing to think this heavy, rough fossil that was bobbing around in the English sea millions of years ago now has my roof over its head. Clever indeed!

October's Party

October gave a party; The leaves by hundreds came -

The Chestnuts, Oaks, and Maples, And leaves of every name.

The Sunshine spread a carpet, And everything was grand,

Miss Weather led the dancing, Professor Wind the band.

George Cooper

October's Party.

Here's to the beginning of the best time of the year...Happy October!

Costume Time

Well...it's almost that time of year again. I need to get the Hound her costume. Hmmm.

Or...

Cutesy pea pod, or glow-in-the-dark x-ray. I suspect she'll be mad either way...Stay tuned, and I'll let you know.

New! The Caldrea Company

Clever Girl is proud to announce the addition of The CALDREA Company to our great line up of offerings.

I must confess that I have an incurable attraction towards new, exciting products and gadgets that promise to transform your life into one of ease and perfection. Infomercials on late night TV mesmerise me with tantalizing promises and pitches: Made in Germany. Money back guarantee. Snuggie anyone? And, my personal favorite, "patent pending." But, every now and then, a company comes along that deliverers on its promise of doing what it says. The Caldrea Company is a prime example...Caldrea offers a premier cleaning experience with products that are highly effective, consistently earth friendly, and an absolute pleasure to use. Already customers are raving about this line! It seems everyone has a favorite scent or cleaning product that they love to use--and, they are dying to share "cleaning miracles" with us. For example: "Cladrea Dish Soap Liquid is the only thing I have found that really cleans my plastic food storage containers." And, "Even my husband noticed how fresh the laundry smelled after I used the Basil Blue Sage Laundry Detergent." {Really, what price can you put on THAT?}

So stop in soon to discover your favorite scents and products, and be sure and enter to win a complete Caldrea cleaning kit that we'll be giving away on October 5th.

I must say, the whole kitchen smells quite spiffy after I've wiped up with the Sea Salt Neroli Countertop Clenser... Clean and fresh, and less than $9.99!

Merci, Julia

With the arrival of suddenly cooler weather here, I recently went in search of some fall-like recipes with soup on my mind. In rummaging about, I happened upon the old family copy of From Julia Child's Kitchen, by Julia Child. Unless you've been living up at the North Pole, you know that Julia is all the rage again, and her books are topping the Amazon best sellers list like crazy. (I guess a major movie helps...) As I flipped through our copy I re-discovered the inscription at the front. Julia herself had signed the book, as well as her husband, Paul! Why it was ever dedicated to my dad, I'll never quite know...he was a master at scrambled eggs, but his interest in the culinary arts never went much beyond that, so why a world-famous chef would ever be asked to sign a copy for him is a bit of a mystery. Now my Grandmother, that would make sense...

Grandma was not what you would call a "TV" person. PBS was the only station she ever tuned in to. All Creatures Great and Small, Upstairs Downstairs and The French Chef pretty made up her entire viewing schedule. Let's just say the Nelson Ratings people were not beating down her door...However, when Julia came on, she sat in rapt attention, 3 x 5 note cards and pencil at the ready. In her perfect, clear handwriting, she took notes and made comments on everything Julia Child ever whipped up on her show. (There was no Food Network then, after all) My mom and I have all her old recipe boxes filled with authentic, complex, detailed recipes for everything from Bavarian Cream to Roast Chicken. There isn't a single dish that calls for a can of Cream-of -Mushroom or a packet of onion soup mix--such a thing would be unheard of. Grandma was a wonderful cook, and, I think, quite ahead of her time. She was of old school, like Julia. No shortcuts. No quick and easy.

Julia and her cookbooks really were the best thing to ever happen to the home chef--nothing else like it had been done before. She began the revolution. As I look at the dozens of beautiful cookbooks we stock here at Clever Girl, they are filled with great recipes, ideas and beautiful photographs. We really do owe it all to the love, passion and the determination of Julia Child to provide us her textbooks about real food and real cooking. She launched the foodie nation we've become way back in the 60's, and we benefit from it to this day...so thank you to Julia, and Bon Appetit!