One-year celebration

To celebrate our first year in Austin, LOML and I went to Sam's Boat for dinner - because it was the first place in Austin in which I got lost! Sort of. Really, I got lost while wandering about the freeways and was very relieved to come across Civilisation in the form of a bar. I called LOML, and he came to rescue me (I get lost a lot).

Tess pop-up shop and party!

Click to enlarge.

Austin Fashion Week starts tomorrow and runs till 27 August - I am very excited! This time last year we had only just arrived, and so I didn't attend any of the events. I'm planning to make up for it this year - so brace yourself for a lot of local fashion-related posts.



For the duration of Austin Fashion Week Tess is running a Pop-up Shop that will be located at the Touch of Sass boutique on 5th and Lamar. Theresa will be in-store at various times throughout the week to style and fit customers in her dresses - follow her on Twitter (@tessdress) to stay updated.

Click to enlarge.



Tess is also paired with the Touch of Sass boutique (on 5th and Lamar), and is throwing a party there on 24 August from 6 – 9pm … an authentic 1950s-styled party, to be exact!



From the Tess website:



"Everyone is welcome. Dust off your dancing shoes, twirl that skirt and spin those 45s! Enter under the balloon arch and pose for a photo in our fresh-from-the-drive-in hot rod. Snack on burgers and fries from Terra Burger. Sneak a slice of Americana from Tootie Pies. We’ll have a 1950s gas pump beside the ‘Fill-Up Station’ for the bar and cocktails (Paula’s Texas Spirits will be pouring our signature Doo-Wop cocktail, and Dulce Vida Tequilas will be mixing their famous 100% organic agave nectar margaritas!), a vintage Coke bottle-dispensing machine and a vintage candy machine. All of this will be lit by the glitz and glamour of authentic neon signage by the renowned Roadhouse Relics! In fact, every single one of our sponsors is a local Austin business.



As if that weren’t enough, our beautiful Tess models will be there to showcase our colorful vintage-inspired designs, with hair dressed by Frenchy’s Beauty Parlor. And be sure to make it on time, as the first 100 guests will get swag bags stuffed with goodies from over 15 local hotspots."



I'll be one of those aforesaid Tess models - and I'm really looking forward to it. If you live locally, come along - it's going to be great fun!

18 August - one year ago today!

One year ago today, LOML and I started our new lives in Texas! Wow. In some ways it feels so recent, but when I look over the year's events I can see how much we have packed into these past twelve months. We have so enjoyed living here, and can't wait to see what the next year brings.

Mink in a shirt

Yes, that is Mink, hiding his shame. He has a little bald spot where he had a tiny insect bite and licked at it - he started washing it compulsively (washing releases endorphins for cats) to the point where he pulled out the hair. The vet gave us two options: the Cone of Shame or a kitty t-shirt. The second option seemed the less insulting of the two for Mink and the more humorous for us, and so he is in a shirt for a week. He is not impressed. But we think he looks cute.

Tess showcase and blogger get-together!

Last Thursday night, a group of local Austin bloggers attended a Happy Hour and Designer Showcase thrown by Theresa of Tess Designs. For the full story, click here!









The Scarbrough Building, completed in 1910 - once a department store and now Tess headquarters!









Inside the Tess offices.



Tess's Limited Edition USO dress.



Me wearing Tess's plaid Marlene dress for the occasion! (All accessories thrifted).















Theresa's presentation.



From left to right: me; Theresa; Cathy of Austin Slave to Fashion; Joyce of My Closet, My Life; D'Andra of Sable & Sage. Photograph taken by Sharon of If Grandma Wore J. Crew.



Left: Theresa and Joyce. Right: me and Grechen of Grechen's Closet. Photographs taken by Sharon.



Cathy and I enjoy the delicious snacks!



Left: me modelling the Ava blouse in Pink Stripe and the Eloise skirt in Honeysuckle. Sharon modelling the Margaret dress in Daisies (I own this one and it's one of my favourite dresses!). Photograph taken by Grechen. Right: D'andra modelling Margot in Peacock.

The un-book

"To gain the book, one must give up all hope for the book. It is the only way the book can get written. While one writes one cannot simultaneously be gazing up at a glorious, abstract painting of what the book should be ... and at the same time expect to be advancing into the body of this particular earthly book. It won't work. You may gaze and gaze, but you may be sure that when you begin to write, that glorious ineffable volume will not coalesce on the page. Something else will appear. And then you have a choice. You can accept it, and get on with your writing, or you can throw it away, and pine for the painting. It is so beautiful! When you're not actually writing, you have the feeling it would be so simple to get it down on paper. Yet when the time comes, your sentences tangle you. They knot and seethe, grasping like desperate children, hampering you and making you fall so that the beautiful book, the infinite book, is forever out of reach.



The only way is to set the un-book - the gilt-framed painting of the book - right there on the altar and sacrifice it, truly sacrifice it. Only then may the book, the real live flawed finite book, slowly, sentence by carnal sentence, appear."

From Writing Past Dark by Bonnie Friedman.

We have a winner!

I wish I could send a signed copy to everyone who entered the giveaway - thank you so much for all your comments! I used a random number generator to pick the winner, and she is ...



... Elly!



Hooray! Congratulations, Elly! I'm emailing you now - and be sure to let me know what inscription you would like in your signed copy.







I know it's nowhere near as much fun as winning one, but you can purchase The Cry of the Go-Away Bird on Amazon.com. And thank you so much to everyone who has bought a copy already - I so appreciate it.

Birthday karaoke!

They are ridiculously late in coming - sorry! - but I am finally posting some pictures from my birthday celebration at The Highball bar, bowling alley and karaoke hotspot on South Lamar back in June. Aaron, Cathy and Sandhya were there, among others, and it was such fun. Thank you so much for a wonderful birthday night, everyone!



(I wore an '80s dress for the occasion, as you will probably be able to tell).













Photos courtesy of Sandhya.



If you haven't entered my giveaway yet, leave a comment here to enter. I'll draw a winner on the weekend!

The Dutch edition is here!

So exciting! My first foreign edition - hopefully the first of many - and the book itself is so beautiful.



A couple of wee reminders - the Tess designer showcase and Happy Hour is tonight, for Austin bloggers, and I hope to see you there!



Secondly, if you haven't entered my giveaway yet, leave a comment here to enter. I'll draw a winner on the weekend.



Thank you so much!

Giveaway!

Hooray, we have reached the magic number! Thank you so much, everyone.





Wine not included (unless you live locally, I guess).



To celebrate, I am giving away a signed and personalised copy of The Cry of the Go-Away Bird, as well as a small vintage surprise. If you would like to enter, just leave a comment on this post!



Edited to add: Poet asked a really good question, and the answer is YES - this is absolutely open to international readers, wherever in the world they might be!

The 700 Club

Because I am so clueless when it comes to all things digital, I have only just realised that I am approaching 700 followers. Wow! Thank you, everyone, for reading - and, because I know you really only come here for pictures of Mink, here he is, hinting subtly that he would like dinner.



When I reach 700, I'll do a giveaway - a signed copy of my book and a little vintage surprise! So if you haven't already, please click that magic following button. As far as my knowledge of coding goes, it actually is magical. Don't disillusion me.

Escape

I have just finished my first round of edits on The White Shadow after a month's hard work, and it feels wonderful! I'm sending them off to my editor on Monday morning, and LOML and I are going out to dinner tonight to celebrate. I am so looking forward to having a few days' holiday, and to getting back to work on the first draft of the new book.

On Thursday, my friend Sandhya rescued me from my self-imposed hermithood for a thrifting trip. I visited Recycled Reads on Burnet Road for the first time - it is absolutely fantastic. Retired library books are sold there for $1 or $2, and there is a great selection. It is also very well-organised, which is sometimes not the case in second-hand bookstores. If you feel like working there, seating areas and free Wi-fi make it very easy. And naturally I came away with a huge pile of books. We really need to get another bookshelf - there are at least four free-floating stacks of books in the house already, three or four feet high (and I have been watching too many episodes of Hoarders).


We also visited some consignment and thrift stores, and came away with some great loot. Sandhya bought me a gorgeous gold cat brooch to add to my collection - Mink will be jealous.