January 4, 2012 by pbenjay
What’s your favorite color? I asked this of a friend of mine (you all know her) and she answered, “plaid”!!
Wow, plaid!! And look what’s hot this winter – PLAID, big time! No longer relegated to flannel pajamas or a man’s shirt or a school uniform, plaid is showing up in everything from bags, to shoes to jackets to bow ties.
J. Crew Capri Pants
Drakes of London-Available at Barney's New York
Available at Bergdorf Goodman's New York
Rodarte for Opening Ceremony (store)
Posted in Only in New York | Tagged Bow tie, Clothing, J.Crew, New York, Pencil skirt, School uniform, Shopping, tartan | 1 Comment »
January 2, 2012 by pbenjay
Central Park is New York City’s largest and best playground! Adults have as much fun here as kids do and certainly tourists. On any given day (but especially on weekends) you can watch jugglers, mimes, break dancers, listen to music, play tennis, roller blade, bird watch, dog walk, jog, bike, eat, read in a quiet glade, explore a castle, visit an old dairy, meander through Strawberry Fields, sail a toy boat, ice skate in the winter – need I say more?
A mild and sunny Sunday in January brought out hundreds of visitors to the park. Some came to watch and some came to…….
Spin A Frisbee in the Park
Skateboard (sort of) in the Park
Make Music in the Park
Roller Blade in the Park
Do Frisbee Tricks in the Park
Paint in the Park
Inspecting One's Kingdom in the Park
Blow Bubbles in the Park
Show Off in the Park
All photos courtesy of Murray Head
Posted in Fab Fotos, New York Speaks | Tagged Central Park, Metro Areas, Murray Head, New York, New York City, New York City Metro, Park, Strawberry Fields, United States | 2 Comments »
January 1, 2012 by pbenjay
BFF - Happy New Year!
Posted in Amuse-bouche du jour, Finley Ray, Friends | 2 Comments »
December 31, 2011 by pbenjay
Perhaps they were getting their last minute gathering done before the BIG NIGHT, or maybe they were gathering in the park to attend the fireworks display at midnight.
Whatever their reasons were, there were colorful denizens in Central Park, Madison Square Park and Dag Hammarskjold Park today.
The Blue Jay and the Acorn
Just a little itch
A Tail of Two Cities
House Finch
Baltimore Oriole (female)
A Chic Chow Chow
Cute Masked Cardinal
Wet and Wild Wood Duck
Sweet Lady Wood Duck
Unreported Alien-Hard Landing
All photos courtesy of Murray Head
Posted in Fab Fotos, Only in New York | Tagged Baltimore Oriole, Blue Jay, Cardinal (Catholicism), Central Park, Crime statistics, Dag Hammarskjold park, Firework, Fireworks, House Finch, Madison Square, Madison Square Park, New Year's Eve, New York City, Square foot, Wood Duck | Leave a Comment »
December 31, 2011 by pbenjay
So much to talk about…wasn’t there? We heard the news, read the newspapers, gathered round the water cooler, telephoned our friends, banged out texts, updated our status on FaceBook.
These are some of the “things” New Yorkers talked about in 2011. Excerpted from article The 75 Things New Yorkers Talked About in 2011.
There was lots and lots of buzz around town this year; Baseball, America’s pastime brought fans to their TV’s and knees September 28th as the Yankees lost their chance to be in the World Series.
“Till death do us part” was the new montra of the Gay community when New York legalized Gay marriages. And then of course there was KK who apparently did not take it too seriously.
For weeks, an obscure park in downtown Manhattan became a tourist mecca and home to the 99%’ers. Not to mention the Arab Spring when dictators toppled like so many weeble wobbles.
It was as always a memorable year, some awe-inspiring, some laughable.
- The GOP debates, best reality show not on Bravo
- Serena Williams had a meltdown at the US Open
- Kate Middleton‘s wedding gown
- Meryl Streep, nailing the accent perfectly (once again) in Iron Lady
- A hearty farewell to Bin Laden, Quadaffi and Kim Jong-il
- Anthony Weiner resigns after Tweeted naked photos of him surface
- The 10th anniversary of 9/11
- Andy Rooney signs off for the last time
- The up-to-12 hour waits to see a naked Marina Abramovic at MOMA
- Planking
- The Netflix debacle
- Keith Oberman leaves MSNBC, joins Current TV and is never heard from again
- Chas Bono on DWTS – a transgender star is born
- Oprah takes a year and three finale shows to say goodbye
- The 2 day waits to buy iPad2
- Elizabeth Taylor passes. Her gowns and jewelry bring $156M much going to AIDS research
- The heat wave in July, the hurricane in August, blizzard in October-Mother Nature is angry
- Splits: Arnold and Maria, Ashton and Demi, Scarlett and Ryan
- The best moment of the debates – “Oops”
- Al Sharpton gets a TV show on MSNBC
- Steve Jobs dies and people learn about his death on their iPhones.
New Reality TV Show
- Regis Philbin calls it quits after 28 years
- The Alexander McQueen show at the Met, almost as popular at King Tut
- Cathie Black’s shocking short stint as New York schools chancellor
Posted in BY THE WAY, New York Speaks | Tagged AIDS, Al Sharpton, Andy Rooney, Anthony Weiner, Current TV, Facebook, GOP debates, iPad 2, iPhone, Kate Middleton, Meryl Streep, New York City, New York Yankees, Reality television, Regis Philbin | Leave a Comment »
December 30, 2011 by pbenjay
THURSDAY’S TOP TEN
Perhaps not the most scintillating topic in my blog posts but somehow this morning, the day before the big night (some say biggest night of the year), this seemed appropriate. After all, even me, with my short and uneven nails will be wearing nail polish. In fact as soon as I bang out this post, I’m off to treat myself to a New Year‘s mani-pedi. Wish my little granddaughter Finley was in town, I’d take her with me. She loves getting a mani-pedi and she’s only 3. However, let me get on record here, I may be an indulgent over-giving grandmother, but it was not I who introduced her to the world of nail salons. She actually has her favorite – I tried to take her once to one across the street from me and she wailed on about “her” salon down the street; OMG
Well anyway, if you have been reading up on the latest nail color trends then you know that dark is still quite in! Ever since Channel introduced their black nail polish, the industry has developed some pretty wild colors and the names to go with them.
See if you can picture these colors from their names and descriptions. Hint- they’re all dark to varying degrees.
- Pretty Edgy – Palmetto green
- Power Clutch – Deep gray green
- Bobbing for Baubles-Deep rich sapphire
- Cocktail Bling-Pale pearly gray
- School of Hard Rocks-Midnight malachite
- Chin Chilly-Granite gray
- Smokin’ Hot-Stone cold fox gray
- Velvet Voyage-Chocolate Amethyst
- Little Brown Dress-Black coffee
- Dive Bar- Mysterious blackest blue with a shimmer
These colors are all from the Essie collection
Posted in Amuse-bouche du jour, Thursday's Top Ten | Tagged Beauty, Cosmetics, Health, Nail Care, Nail polish, Nail salon, New Year, Shopping | 4 Comments »
December 27, 2011 by pbenjay
Oh yes it’s that time of year again! Thankfully the Jewish celebration of Hanukkah and the Christmas festivities which stretch to Little Christmas at least coincided for some of the time!
Ugly sweaters were out and about EVERYWHERE! These are some of the best out there!
Truly Accessorized
Dreidels In Space
It's All Here
Hanukkah Hanging Dice
Full Blow Santa
Not So Ugly After All
"...and up the chimney he sprang"
Hanukkah Harry
Yes, She Did Win This Year's Contest
Why the Snowmen?
All of these photos are from Bridgette Raes, a style expert and her BRSG blog.You will enjoy her matter of fact, tell it like it is style comments and advice at http://networkedblogs.com/s4GnE
Posted in Amuse-bouche du jour, BY THE WAY | Tagged Christmas, Dreidel, Hanukkah, holiday, Jews, Little Christmas, Menorrah, Opinions, Religious, ugly sweater | Leave a Comment »
December 27, 2011 by pbenjay
Nutcrack Sweet
WTF?
Photos by Murray Head
Posted in Amuse-bouche du jour, Fab Fotos | Leave a Comment »
December 23, 2011 by pbenjay
Cloth napkins are a must at your Christmas dinner table. Besides being “green”, they afford a great way to accent your table, and they last throughout the meal all the way to dessert. And if you use a napkin ring you can place it in the middle of the plate which actually adds several inches to your table if you are squeezing in “just one more”.
Here’s few ideas:
3 Rings Ring
3-Ring
Made of three interlocking silver rings, the metal will sparkle among candles and soft lighting in your space.
To buy: $4, crateandbarrel.com
Split Birch Napkin Rings
Split Birch
Invite the wintertime forest to your table. These inexpensive birch rings provide a simple festive touch for large crowds.
To buy: $12 for set of 10, bhldn.com
Chalk It Up
Chalk Talk
A fun addition to the kid’s table or something to liven up your whole dinner space. Use as place cards with guests’ names or write a holiday greeting on each.
To buy: $10 for set of four, worldmarket.com.
Posted in Amuse-bouche du jour, BY THE WAY | Leave a Comment »
December 23, 2011 by pbenjay
This is such a simple idea and in fact the idea came from the magazine, Real Simple. Start with a theme or color palette and incorporate it into all aspects of the table setting; table cloth, napkins and place cards.
Adding a personalized touch like individually wrapped presents for your guests at each place setting takes your holiday dinner table to festive heights and sure to please your company, kids and adults alike.
Perfectly Matched Set(ting)
Posted in Amuse-bouche du jour, BY THE WAY | Leave a Comment »
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