Ms. Moon, Mr. Lamp and Other Stories

It is cool and drizzly out as I'm writing this now, but just recently we had a stretch of glorious sunny days which felt like Summer. To celebrate it, Justin and I went out a few times and even ate at a restaurant, on a patio to enjoy sunshine and be safe. With gorgeous weather and opened restaurants, it felt as if there was no pandemic, even though we all still wear masks. It's hard to explain, but driving down a busy highway, coming home after a day of adventure, I caught myself thinking that for brief moments life seemed just as it was before, as if there was no long weird year of isolation and anxiety... Have you had such a feeling lately or is it just me?

Darkest Before the Dawn

Dressing up to me, perhaps unlike many of my lovely blogging friends, is 100% a social thing. I simply don't feel the need or craving to dress up when I am at home - I find many other things that bring me joy and occupy my time. I am a bit surprised when someone tries to change my mind about it. Is there really one right way to live our lives, and everything else is wrong? I don't sign up for that philosophy. Everyone is different, so whatever works. During the pandemic (and we're in the second year by today, as it started earlier in the Washington State compared to the rest of the country, as well as many other countries), so during the pandemic there was practically no reason for me to dress up. As a large part introvert, I initially didn't suffer from the lack of social life at all. Even though I lost some of my work contracts due to closures of our libraries, I still had my students and enjoyed figuring out the new ways of teaching. But by the arrival of Winter, I started missing our family outings and cultural events which used to inspire my creating of outfits and having photo shoots with Justin. 

Family in Fall, Sauerkraut Recipe and New Home

In my last post, I wrote about traditional Fall celebrations in the US which my family and I love, but this time of year is even more precious and beautiful to me for many personal reasons. You might notice it too, life usually brings us things in clusters. One such "cluster" is birthdays in my family. Of course, whenever a few people gather, some of them most probably were born reasonably close to each other, and it's especially true when we talk about a large family. I mean, there are only 12 months in the year, aren't there? But some such coincidences seem more like serendipity or kismet, if you will.

Autumn in America

I wouldn't be at all surprised if an all-American survey showed that majority of the population considers Fall their favorite season. Autumn in America is nothing short of amazing. September still feels like Summer, and in many states most of October too. Besides sunny warm days, it bursts into all shades of yellow, orange, red and purple. November brings one of the most beloved holidays, Thanksgiving, and preparation for the winter celebration extravaganza. And of course, we can't overlook Halloween which children and adults alike simply adore for its unique spooky spirit: costumes, candies, party fun and home décor. Speaking of which, I gave all the rights to decorate our home for Halloween to my daughter and husband since they absolutely love it. But one of the things that makes Autumn and October in particular really fun for everyone is visiting a pumpkin patch. Many farms open their imaginary doors to the public during the whole month, offering hey rides, corn mazes, petting zoos and of course pumpkins of all sorts, shapes and sizes. I would say that other than football and Halloween party games, America's favorite Fall game is playing farmers!

Solstice, New Hat and Love

Hello again, dear friends and followers!

HAPPY SOLSTICE!

I know, it's been a while since my last post, and I can't tell you how many times I tried to reconnect with you all, but something just didn't click. Thank you to those of you who reached out via email, Instagram and Facebook, I really appreciate your thoughtfulness. I also would like to say thank you to people who buy my books. I don't know how you find them, whether you read my blog or not, but I want to say that it touches my heart every time when it happens, it just doesn't get old! I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Life has been a whirlpool of changes, events and emotions in the past several months for all of us, and even those who fortunately didn't have personal losses still experience loss and grief. Psychologists say it is normal at times like these.

Under the Roses

Greetings from Tacoma, Washington,

from the most beautiful old historic park in the city, Point Defiance! 

I've reported from this park before, telling you little bits of its history and showing the gorgeous seasonal blooms, such as camellia, sakura and many rhododendron species (MARCH 2018 and MAY 2018). But for the first time this year, Justin and I visited the Rose Garden which is definitely the most spectacular rose garden we've ever been to. So with the help of a time machine (a.k.a. Internet), I invite you to take a stroll among the roses of all forms, shapes and colors which blossom in Tacoma in early June. I hope this virtual stroll will lift up your spirit - we all need a moment to stop and smell the roses... if only I could transfer the amazing, delicate rose scent through the screen... 

I have some wonderful news to share, but first I have to let it stir for a while, so I can write more when I'm ready. And for now, truly, I have nothing else to add to Justin's inspired photography, other than just a couple of words about my outfit at the end of the post. 

ENJOY! 

Modish Matrons #38: MM do Africa

When it comes to Modish Matrons themes, I try not to get ahead of myself - I only look at the list of themes (which my friends and I prepared a year in advance) about a week before it's time to post. That way, there is a good chance that I forget what theme is coming next and look at it with fresh eyes, to engage my playful side. Still, often I remember vaguely what themes are coming. But not this time! This month, I actually really did completely forget that Tina offered to take us on a style journey to Africa!

Modish Matrons #37: On the Beach & By the Pool

I wasn't born by the sea - I was born and raised in the very center of the largest country in the world, rather as far from any seas as could be. But even living in the middle of Eurasia, the largest continent, I was always dreaming of the sea. My first years in America were also rather closer to the middle of the continent than to any of the coasts, but no matter where I lived, I enjoyed spending time on a lake shore, riverbank or at the pool, at any season really, but especially in Summer.

Modish Matrons #36: Garden Party at Beate's

Oh how time flies. I've just barely come back from my TRIP TO PARIS, and I am now leaving again! This time, I meet my beautiful friends TINA und BEATE at the garden party of the year which Beate hosts in her cozy and luscious garden. 

Modish Matrons #33: Old Thing - New Way

Long time no see! 

How have you been, dear friends and readers? February proved to be a super busy month despite being the shortest one, and March is going to be even busier. A few times I tried to finish a post which I started back in January, but alas, it still stays unfinished in my drafts. It's challenging to find extra energy or time for new photo sessions these days. But I couldn't miss my favorite style party with my dearest friends, TINA und BEATE! So on one of the last windy February days, Anya and I stopped by a beautiful park featuring some of the oldest buildings in the area. The park was recently revamped which fitted our March theme to a T! You see, Beate suggested to wear our oldest clothing item in a chic new style. Which our park definitely has done brilliantly - the 1930s art-deco lighthouse (the only lighthouse in Pierce county, by the way) and even earlier lighthouse keeper's cottage now got a fresh treatment in the form of a concrete path leading to the lighthouse from a newly built parking lot. So now we can visit our good old friends, the lighthouse and the cottage, in any weather, even on a rainy day.

Modish Matrons #32: Knits

As always, my friends Tina, Beate and I welcome a new month with a new style theme, and February we dedicated to KNITS as it was Tina's turn and her inspiration. We've done knits last year as well, and back then I chose my favorite knitted items: long cardigans and a knit skirt (click HERE to see). This time, I knew I wanted to do something different, and at first, I turned to my favorite knit dresses, or sweater dresses as they are often called. But at the end decided to do something else instead...

That's the Thing to Do

Hello my sweet friends,
It's been a while since I posted last time, even though I had a couple of photo shoots and pictures ready to go. January got busier than I expected with continuous celebrations (Russian holidays and our daughter's birthday), personal stuff,  getting ready for work and getting out of my comfort zone in that sense, then finally some computer problems and trying to figure out how to work on Justin's laptop and still get access to all my programs, pictures, videos, etc. (still a work in progress). I guess it all boils down to balancing life which isn't easy to do at times, but we do our best.

Red with Teal or Blue

Ta-daaa! To those of you who put bets on the color of my second beret and guessed red:

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

I bought three berets this Fall: gray, blue and red. I thought that either I would share them all with my daughter, or that she would choose the one(s) she likes and make it (them) her own. And since she has just discovered her love of the color red, I was almost sure that she'd choose the red one, but to my surprise she chose the blue one instead, perhaps to match her new wool coat. The blue one was also the smallest of the three and just wouldn't fit all that extra fluff I have in my big head, so it seemed like a perfect choice anyway.

The Cutest Couple on the Town

 

As you can tell, my new wool berets quickly became my favorite headwear (I soon will show you the other color that I got... can you guess what it is?). Another strong favorite of this Fall is this rust plaid dress by eShakti, made of cozy brushed cotton and fully lined (the style and fabric is similar to the skirts you've seen before, last time in my posts about Portland back in April 2018 HERE and HERE). I wore this dress sleeveless when the weather was warmer earlier this season, but now it is wet, blustery and penetrating - just perfect for layering with turtlenecks! (I guess it is time to refresh my stock with other pretty colors too.)

Modish Matrons #30: Iceland

If you ask me why Iceland even came to my mind when I put together the list of themes for the 2018 Modish Matrons back in December 2017, I couldn't explain - it just did. I have never been to Iceland and I didn't know the first thing about it. Obviously, I had to visit and learn. Or at very least commission sending a photographer to this intriguing far away place. The things we do for blogging, right? 

Sequins Are a Girl's Best Friend

I didn't know this line when putting on this outfit for the opening performance of the new professional regional theater program in Tacoma, and yet I wore sequins as if I knew.

Our First Festival: Flavor of Federal Way

Hello my dear friends and readers,

First I want to THANK YOU for all the love and support you gave me here on the blog as well as on my social media, and via personal messages! I deeply appreciate your kind words and wishes - I read them all! I am eager to tell you everything about my experience of Flavor of Federal Way, the Multicultural Festival that we were honored and excited to be a part of.

Summer Patchwork and Back to Who We Are

Just as quilt makers collect various scraps and fabric pieces which may or may not end up being a part of a quilt, as a style blogger I am also left with a variety of "scraps" - pictures of my outfits which were sometimes created purposefully and thoughtfully, with an intention to become a "quilt" - a post about a particular ensemble; while other times happened almost unintentionally, randomly, on the way to an event (or sometimes at the event), with very limited time and/or lighting for a decent photo shoot. I collect such picture "scraps", Justin's photographs of my outfits (my form of art) and from time to time combine them to create a post-quilt with all those lovely scraps... And so I've done with this post, showcasing 5 outfits which will tell you a few more stories of my Summer. Many pictures and words!

Modish Matrons #26: Blue & Green

Hello dear friends and welcome to Modish Matrons!

In August, we follow Beate's steps into the beautiful sisterhood of two summery colors - BLUE & GREEN! We wear them together, just as we see them together in nature, and especially in abundance during Summer peak. 

Falling in Love with Life Again

Summer, I'm in love! This Summer, I'm in love - in love with this Summer!

I have a reputation as a positive, warm and light person, someone who is full of sunshine and completely in love with life - and while all of it is true, another part of the truth is that the last few years were hard, in various ways. My family and I were thrown challenges so difficult to deal with, that at some point, it seemed like I fell out of love with life - something I never knew could happen to me. A very few people and things were helping me to hold myself together, and I am so grateful for all of them. Blogging about style and meeting you, my far away blogging friends, have been a huge part of it. Without even realizing it, you've been helping me to go through the process of dealing with life's unexpected twists, grieving, doubting and reinventing myself. It was a courageous, genuine, honest journey, and as a result of it I know myself so much better now and I've became so much stronger. Particularly this Summer, it feels like I'm finally approaching the end of this long journey. I was struggling to find my way back to JOY and LOVE of LIFE for what feels like such a long time, and now it finally feels like I'm back, as if this Summer's warm and caring hands nursed me back to life... It's been sunny, warm, at times hot, with some cool days (a welcomed relief!). And we've been busy - but a good kind of busy, you know? Of course you do!