happy thanksgiving

A very warm wish to all my wonderful US readers for Thanksgiving Day! There's quite a few of you over in the States and I always look forward to your visits on The Style Inside. Thank you for you support, it means the world to me.

A special mention and huge Thanksgiving hug goes out to 3 very faithful readers: one in Old Lyme, Connecticut, the other in Evanston, Illinois and then of course you over there in sunny Santa Cruz, California.

I would love to hear from all of you!

falling in love again

Whether it's a classic car or a classic bag, both make me go weak at the knees. And while my classic car collection leaves something to be desired, I'm well on my way with the bags. My Gucci Jackie O Logo Bit bag (unofficial name made up by me on the spot right here right now) is my absolute armcandy du jour. It's been tucked away in my wardrobe for at least a year without so much of a glance, albeit luxuriously wrapped in its brown silk dustbag, and has only resurfaced this week after my brain was kicked into "Gucci-mode" following some mention of the brand on Twitter. Wonder whether anyone quite appreciates this particular intrinsic value of social networking sites, bet Gucci doesn't.

The beauty of a true classic is that it's not a trend and you can therefore rest assured in the knowledge of a safe investment which is just going to keep giving and giving and giving in terms of satisfaction. Stylewise a classic will also usually keep up with the rest of them (let's face it, that's what we pay good money for), not 100% of the time but most of the time and when used cleverly, a classic item is never boring. I love it when I can use my Gucci unconventionally, with something unexpectedly un-classic. Juxtaposition of styles is a passion of mine and works best for me when a classic's involved. I could never wear head-to-toe classics though, I'd pass out from sheer boredom.

I also like to think of these special pieces as insurance cover when I need it most - like now. My absolute favourite jeans are fraying and ripping but I can't bring myself to "put them away". My hair is in dire need of highlighting and cutting yet my hairdresser won't confirm an appointment that's soon enough for me. So what do I do? I slip on my GJOLB-bag and it's a look!

Has anyone else tried it? Do let me know.

business & pleasure

I was reminded what it's like to be a career girl this week when I had to travel to Lucerne on a 2 day work trip. Not bad for a change, good to get out and play at the business game. Whilst business was good and very interesting indeed, I think the best bit for me was the impromptu off duty evening I was able to spend with my husband who also just happened to be in the area. He knows I'm a bit high maintenance when it comes to hotels - I can't be bothered with average, it really has to be something thrilling. So while my client had booked me into a very grand but bland hotel, I was whisked off by my husband to an altogether different setting. Walking into the Astoria in Lucerne I felt all excited and tingly, THIS was more like it!  A cool, smooth affair, whiter than white with a divine reception desk all covered in minute, sparkly mosaic tiles  begging to be touched and behind it a suave but friendly male receptionist eager to please. Swiss architects Herzog and de Meuron (Tate Modern London, Allianz Arena Munich, Birds Nest Stadium Peking and Prada Tokyo to name but a few) extended this hotel in 2005 and created something very special indeed. If ever you have the opportunity to stop over in Lucerne, try this, I reckon you might be impressed.  You don't even have to walk anywhere at all to get to the coolest bars, lounges and restaurants, as they're all in the hotel itself. Incredibly convenient. We tried the Penthouse bar for aperitivi and then headed for the excellent Asian bistro Mekong located on the ground floor. Unfortunately I cannot report on the rooms - from the website though it would appear that Superior and Deluxe are the way to go. Steer clear of Standard - that's the rule.

oh melissa!

A shoe is never just a shoe. Don't let anyone ever tell you any different. Proof in the pudding came just now via Twitter where my fabulously stylish friend D's been celebrating the arrival of her incredibly special order. This is not JUST a shoe. It's a shoe that deserves so rightly to be celebrated and written about, actually it deserves poetry and tears. Yet another "Volltreffer" for my stylish friend who can never put a foot wrong!
For those of you also afflicted by shoelove check this out....

skaterboys

                                         

My boys are not only having a major MJ moment, they're also discovering skateboarding and the whole skater-look bigtime! In fact while the eldest seems to be more concerned with getting "the look" just right, the little guy is actually more passionate about his board and how high he can jump with it. They've been playing Tony Hawk's Pro Skater playstation game for years but now is obviously the time to get their little bottoms in gear and get out on the street to put all that theory into practice. A face injury does not seem to have put them off, in fact scars are obviously all part of the look. Today I found out that skater God Tony Hawk's got a gig (if that's what you can call it) in Paris - looks fantastic and I wish we could've taken both boys along to watch some serious grinds, kickflips, ollies and a few aerials. If you're interested and more local to Paris than us, here's the link for the show.

One of my favourite quotes and one that keeps me going, keeps me running, keeps me doing what I love doing and generally drives me to the next block. Thought I'd share it with you.

make it simple

I've started thinking about it (how can you NOT, with shops strutting their Christmas decs since early October) and realised just now that the only thing I really want this Christmas is simplicity. No fuss, no stress, no shopping madness, no garish decorations, not even a tree and as for presents, well let's just say that 'bare' and 'minimum' sums it up quite nicely. My children won't be impressed I'm sure but they'll be so distracted by the fact that we are spending it in England, that they'll hardly notice any lack of tinsel. Could I finally have come out of my childhood at the tender age of almost-42 and had the epiphany that it's really not about buying, eating, giving/receiving and generally over-indulging? I do hope so. Probably it's more to do with being fulfilled and happy and not really, at the end of the day, wanting for material things. Oh don't get me wrong, I'm the girl running hysterically 'round London's newly opened Anthropologie but given half a chance I'd do that at any time of year and preferably NOT during the Christmas period (however if you are browsing 'round this store, and if Christmas decorations are your thing, then look out for the charming fish pictured above).

Quite consciously and blatantly slipping into granny-mode, my view this year is that Christmas is about being together; about family and remembering what we have and appreciating how lucky we are. Just the thought of spending the holidays with our family makes me fell warm and fuzzy - give me an armchair or preferably a sofa, some knitting or a book and I'll gladly just sit there watching the kids as well as the adults merrily chatting. My only regret is that we can't all be together. We'd need a house the size of Pemberley (oops, I mean Chatsworth) to all fit in comfortably. Maybe next year.