Baubles for the Birds: Beaks and Geeks

 Toucan Samantha Necklace

Chevron top: XOXO, Macy's

Striped tee: Merona, Target

Skirt: Bubblegum, Macy's

Bag: Betsey Johnson, Macy's

Shoes: Worthington, JCPenney

Belt: Belt is Cool, Amazon

 Fiery Feather Barrettes

 Bright Bird Necklaces

Top: a new day, Target
Skirt: LC Lauren Conrad, Kohl's
Shoes: a.n.a., JCPenney
Bag: Betsey Johnson, Macy's
Belt: Marshalls
Sunglasses: JCPenney

Back in the day, a geek was someone who bit the heads off of chickens.  Now it's just someone who is an outcast for less horrendous yet still socially unacceptable reasons, such as speaking Klingon or wearing high-water jeans or being on a reality show spawned by Ashton Kutcher.  In other words, a geek is still someone who hovers beyond the periphery of what's considered normal.

But more often than not, normal is for the birds.  And birds of a feather frock together -- which is why Mr. Owl, Mr. Swallow, Ms. Toucan, and the feathers that let them all fly have come to roost at The Tote Trove.  No doubt about it -- avians are amazing, paradoxically delicate and strong despite their feather-light bones.  It's one of the reasons I love them (well, that and their traffic-stopping plumage).  So here are some birds from my nest -- flamingos, to be exact, which are unlike any of the winged ones pictured here.  But then that's Pinky, the perennial plucky gatecrasher.

I got this wall art from Hobby Lobby, the home of endlessly whimsical home decor and craft supplies.  It's where I found Ms. Toucan, too.  But not, sadly, her two clearanced sisters, who were snapped up faster than a cheeseburger at a tofu buffet.  I guess it's like they say: the early bird gets the worm.  Also, the geeks will get their revenge.  No, wait, that's the nerds -- the non-chicken abusers among the uncool.

You're welcome, ASPCA.

Split Personality Style

Rainy Day Rainbow Necklace

Cardigan: So, Kohl's

Camisole: So, Kohl's

Skirt: So, Kohl's

Shoes: Charles Albert, Alloy

Bag: Princess Vera, Kohl's

Belt: Wet Seal

 Rainbow Owl Necklace

Dress: Mossimo, Target

Sweater: Jeanne Pierre, Marshalls

Shoes: Betseyville, JCPenney

Bag: Delia's

Coat: Gap

Scarf: Nicole Miller, Marshalls

Sassy Stripes Necklace

Blouse: Candie's, Kohl's

Tee: Wet Seal

Skirt: H&M

Shoes: Journeys

Bag: Nine West, gifted

Outfit number two gives off a preppy hippie vibe, an ill-advised cross between Eddie Bauer and Urban Outfitters (never mind that a not a stitch on dear Tammy hails from either retailer).  But, as is the explanation for so much of what goes on on this blog, I liked it.  For symmetry's sake, I feel bound to mention that the other two outfits are pure pop princess meets prep.  You know.  If pop princesses shopped at Kohl's and dressed like twelve-year-old sitcom stars.

Speaking of things that are mismatched, I was recently thinking about movies of 2013 when I remembered Jobs and how I'd expected more of a splash from a story in which an Apple icon is played by Ashton Kutcher.  If I ever met Ashton Kutcher, I fear I'd be compelled to say this.  He'd raise an eyebrow and ask, "Did you see it?" and then I'd be forced to look down at my shoes and mutter, "No, I did not."  

Movie Moment: New Year's Eve

Like Valentine's Day, Garry Marshall's other holiday-themed, star-studded extravaganza, New Year's Eve features eight intersecting vignettes about people searching for hope, and yes, in most cases, love. 

Here's the rundown.  (I'm not going to bother using character names; when a movie has as many celebrities as this one, they become sort of superfluous.)  Josh Duhamel is hoping to meet the "extraordinary" woman he met last New Year's Eve by chance at a pizza place.  Michelle Pfeiffer is a bored office worker who hires bike messenger Zac Efron to make her New Year's resolutions come true.  Jessica Biel and Seth Meyers are competing with Sarah Paulson and Til Schweiger for the $25,000 awarded to the first baby born in the new year.  Hilary Swank is orchestrating the Times Square ball drop and encounters technical difficulties that can be solved by only eccentric electrician Hector Elizondo.  Sarah Jessica Parker is a single mom trying to prevent her teenage daughter, Abigail Breslin, from spending midnight in Times Square with a boy.  Wise guy Ashton Kutcher and perky Lea Michele get stuck in an elevator.  High-profile caterer Katherine Heigl, whose sous chef is Sophia Vergara, has her heart broken by rock star Jon Bon Jovi (who, oddly, does not quite play himself).  Robert De Niro is dying in a hospital, and Halle Berry is his nurse.  All of this drama is sprinkled by wise words from Ludacris, who plays a cop and, ostensibly, Hilary Swank's work husband.

Although the plot (or, rather, plots) moved a little slowly at first, New Year's Eve is ultimately fun and frothy, spiked with the kind of gentle twists that you (okay, I) loved in Valentine's Day.  High points included commentary on Sarah Jessica Parker's shoes, Seth Myers's comic timing, Sofia Vergara's silliness, and an appearance by recent "Project Accessory" contestant Shea Curry.  Oh, and the Christmas decorations backlit by the glitz of Times Square.  As always, the flashier the better.       

Movie Moment: Friends With Benefits

Like many moviegoers, when I heard about the romantic comedy Friends with Benefits, I thought, hey, didn't Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher already make that movie?

Well, sort of.

Like No Strings Attached, Friends with Benefits stars a tough cookie heroine (Mila Kunis) with a guarded gooey center. Yet Kunis's Jamie is edgier and more vulnerable than Portman's Emma, making for a more compelling and likable character. Likewise, Justin Timberlake's Dylan trumps Kutcher's Adam. Whereas Adam is eager to be Emma's prince charming from the get-go, Dylan doesn't really know what he wants, which makes him more believable. Although he's a little steamrolled by the more dominant Jamie, he's a worthy opponent, chipping away at her crusty shell until they both end up on equal footing. But what truly makes Friends with Benefits the better movie is that it's really about two friends instead of two near-strangers who just happened to have sex. Kunis and Timberlake have an easy chemistry that cuts through the dating game motions they so cynically mock. Indeed, they first hook up after rolling their eyes at a sappy romance starring Jason Segal and Rashida Jones (which, by the way, was funny to watch given Segal's and Jones's animosity toward each other in I Love You Man). It gives you that whole what-if-two-friends-watching-movies-on-the-couch-just-went-for-it? element that was missing in No Strings Attached.

Stuff to watch for: 1) a cameo by Shaun White as himself and 2) Richard Jenkins as Timberlake's father with Alzheimer's. I know, I know, what's something so serious doing in a romantic comedy? But it works.

Friends with Benefits is fun and, dare I say, poignant without being cheesy. At the end, I left the theater happy.

Movie Moment: No Strings Attached

I've long thought that it's easy to think a movie's good when you see it in the theater. By sheer default, the state of "being out" has you in its thrall. Renting a movie, on the other hand, is a much different kettle of fish. Whatever you're watching needs to be compelling enough to prevent you from getting a snack, going to the bathroom, reading a magazine, crafting, painting your nails, balancing your checkbook, or - horror of horrors --falling asleep (an offense of which I've been repeatedly guilty). All of these interruptions chip away at the movie-watching experience, breaking the theater spell we take for granted and reducing many flicks to mere plot points (ie, romantic comedy: boy meets girl, boy gets girl, boy loses girl, boy wins girl back; action flick: the bad guys are out to get the good guys and lots of stuff blows up).

I had a chance to put this theory into practice recently when I rented No Strings Attached. You know the premise. Natalie Portman (Emma) and Ashton Kutcher (Adam) play friends with benefits only to find out that getting physical outside the confines of a relationship is harder than it seems. It was cute, enjoyable, and a little crude in places - in short, all the things you'd expect. Even so, one major element was missing: the two were never really friends in the first place, more like acquaintances who've met a handful of times. So, their decision to sleep together just for the heck of it is more like a well-thought-out one-night stand that segues into an "arrangement" than a groundbreaking turning point in a close platonic relationship. Although the movie was entertaining, I think it would've been more interesting had the two been watching TV together on the sofa every night for years only to have an "incident" break the pattern.

Given my opening ramblings, the added bonuses of movie theater popcorn and surround sound might have done the trick too. Then again, I also rented Cedar Rapids last week, a movie so bad no quantity of concession stand treats could sweeten its stench. So maybe I'm just full of nonsense.

A Whole Trio of Somethings New and Sparkly Made by a Girl in Her Pajamas

Fabulous Felt Strawberries Necklace

Fabulous Felt Cupcakes Necklace

Fabulous Felt Pineapple Paradise Necklace

I'm the girl in her pajamas. Or at least I was up until now. For the past four days I've been happily confined to my home courtesy of the recent blizzard. Brigantine received a record twenty-two inches, as I learned from local news reports accompanied by shots of some lost soul lounging on the snow-covered beach (there's always one). Today I'll be the one venturing out, bringing my pajama streak to an end (not that I'll be driving on those still possibly-treacherous roads. That happy honor goes to the bf.). I have to say, although I missed coming up with daily outfits, I really got into the whole hibernation thing. So much so that it made me revisit my dream of someday becoming a recluse. (Kidding. Sort of.)

Being housebound, I got down to business making new fabulous felt creations and became so productive that I ran out of my beloved permanent adhesive glue. The stuff has a tendency to erupt in skin-burning bubbles when I squeeze the bottle too hard, and I think that's how I lost so much of it (I have the raw hands to prove it). Yesterday I had the wild notion that I could persevere using a half-baked hybrid of Gorilla Glue and Elmer's, but my hopes were dashed when the jungle-themed necklace I was working on began to unravel. The bf and I are making an A.C. Moore run in a bit so I can restock before we meet my parents for dinner.

As always when I craft, I needed to find something semi-entertaining to watch. This is only a minor challenge on the weekends, but as I quickly learned, becomes a nearly insurmountable task during the week when soap operas, infomercials, and court TV reign supreme. So, I reverted to On Demand, zeroing in on the bargain movies section. The two best candidates were Adam Sandler's animated Eight Crazy Nights and Dude, Where's My Car? Oddly, I'd never seen either, and I sat there in a sea of felt shavings debating. Dude had Ashton Kutcher. But Nights was more seasonally appropriate. Dude was probably really offensive, but then Nights could be too juvenile. Dude, Nights, Dude, Nights, circled the argument in my head. Finally, I picked Eight Crazy Nights, mostly because I knew I wouldn't want to watch it in say, April, or whenever this pressing dilemma reared its head again.

For the record, Eight Crazy Nights turned out to be pretty offensive in its own right. But I'm not ashamed to admit that I didn't mind.

Make and Tell Challenge, Days 161 & 162: Snowbound

My favorite of the bunch so far. The final version will feature black zebra stripes on the yellow.

The dark totes always present a challenge, because the paint barely shows up. But then I realized that mixing some of the colors with white makes them thicker and more visible.

I really like this one. But then I always love my dessert-related creations!

This one's kind of run-of-the-mill, but still cute.

A classic!

I can't seem to stop painting fruit.

A tiara and magic wand. Because hey, everyone likes to play princess, right?

The bf's Mr. Snowman (for the record, not his choice of name).

My office closed today due to this seemingly ongoing blizzard, so I delved into painting more tiny totes (well, once I got up at about 10:00). I realize that I should've finished the ones I started, but there's something fun about lining up as many designs as possible, A) because I have this compulsion to get my ideas onto canvas as quickly as possible, as if they'll fade away if not anchored down, and B) because if I start a ton of projects, than I'll be honor-bound to finish them. Whereas, if I finished each one in order, then I may not be quite as motivated to make more. We all have our ways of tricking ourselves into finishing creative projects. Like, when I was in college and needed to start writing a paper, I'd say to myself, now this is no big deal. You're only writing the first draft, getting your ideas down. Later you can polish it up -- that's the hard part. Then, once I'd moved on to the polishing stage, I'd think, okay, this is the easy part. All the raw material is already there; all you have to do is clean it up. It's odd that all this cajolery was necessary, considering that I was an English major who loved to write. But there you have it.

For today's session, I temporarily migrated back to the living room (apparently I need TV like a plant needs light). I happily watched several reruns as well as Just Married with Ashton Kutcher and the late Brittany Murphy. The movie was silly but did the trick, and at the end I'm embarrassed to admit that I was a tad bit emotional. Must be this cabin fever.

In other news, the bf completed his own Challenge today by building a snowman. Better him than me. I hate snow and cold so much that I couldn't barely stand opening the front door to check it out.