Shop & Give in Style: Snobswap's Got Mary Amons & Lynda Erkiletian's Closets TODAY!

We're all very proud of our DC Housewives. Personally, they're the most relatable (though perhaps that's part of why they only did one season) of all the cities. I also covet their style the most. At last Friday's The Front Row fashion show, I drooled over every. single. dress they wore. From Cat's filmy, 20s-inspired cream number to Stacey's bright pink-orange dress to Mary's ecru, dramatic sleeves and Lynda's flirty blue and white shirtdress, I would wear all of them.

Picture via Revamp.com

So when Elise & Emiliy of SNOBSWAP announced that they've talked Lynda and Mary into opening up their closets in the name of charity? Hel-LO! It's ONE DAY ONLY (yes, this is all-caps worthy).

Given that H, the first time he saw Mary at a BrandLinkDC event (District Sample Sale, perhaps? Or maybe the Suited for Change reception 6 years ago? Who knows.), fell head over heels with her 60s retro white shift and white gogo boots (he's a sucker for a tall, strong woman), I'm currently pouring through the pieces in their charity collection. Maybe, just maybe, those boots are there. If not, I'll take this to-die-for architectural piece from Lela Rose, and hope that my sessions with TrainerJen get me to a size 6 one day soon. Realistic? Probably not for body or wallet, but a girl can dream.

Picture via SNOBSWAP.com

From Elise & Emily: Proceeds will benefit local Labels for Love charity, which is raising money for Cancer Schmancer and Girl Power 2 Cure. All of their clothes and accessories are up for cash offers so don't be shy and make an offer!

Cancer Schmancer's mission is to save lives from cancer by early education, prevention, and detection, which is led by Fran Drescher, The Nanny. Girl Power 2 Cure is dedicated to raising awareness and funds for treatments and a cure for Rett Syndrome, a devastating neurological disorder that almost exclusively affects girls.

Week in Style: A Nobel Laureate, The Front Row, and, oh, The DayJob

I had plans of posting over the weekend, but between H, The Beans, and still being under the weather, I didn’t even turn on my computer. Really. Yes, that kind of a day exists. I did, however, manage to sleep off most of whatever was keeping me down (thank you, H, for the “space” to sleep!), so hopefully I’ll be able to tackle this week with professional and personal aplomb.

Right.

I won’t bore you with the details of the DayJob, but just know that I have multiple deadlines, a huge, critical, culture-changing presentation to prepare (go-time next Monday), and I’ll be out of the office staffing a conference booth for 2 days this week. Nice change of venue, sure, and I’ll meet more clients, which is also good, but timing? crapola.

So what else is going on this week? Want to break out of the traditional style realm into, shall we say, academic and kiddie style? Well...

First, The Goethe Institute has two particularly enticing nights. H’s parents literally escaped Romania in 1969, and my undergrad degree is in German, so you’ll see these are right up our alley.

Monday, 14 May, 6:30pm - H is taking his mom to see “The Last Hour of Elena and Nicolae Ceausescu” (Die letzten Tage der Ceausescus), a German film (fiction) that captures the last moments of probably the most horrendous of the Eastern bloc dictators. Introduced not-terribly-coincidentally by a family friend, Vladimir Tismaneanu, this film will hopefully spread understanding about the world my in-laws - and so many others - escaped, leaving loved ones behind and risking their lives.

Tuesday, 15 May, 6:30-9pm - Herta Müller, the Romanian-born, German-language author who won the Nobel prize for literature, is reading from Atemschaukel (The Hunger Angel) at the Library of Congress. This, my dear friends, is one of the 101 reasons why DC Rocks. Because we get to go - for free - to hear some of the most critical voices of our times. Once-in-a-lifetime-type events, people. Join me?

Thursday, 17 May, 7:30pm - as long as the DayJob doesn’t keep me at my desk (a definite possibility), I’ll be at Bethesda Row for the showing of God Save My Shoes, the opening event for The Front Row. In the past few years, The Front Row has become a do-not-miss for me, especially because of the amazing films they’ve screened. Bill Cunningham’s New York, anyone?

Friday, 18 May, 5pm and 7:30pm - Andy Cohen book signing and The Front Row Fashion Show? Yup, yes, please! The weather’s supposed to clear up by the end of the week, so I have no doubt that Mr. Cohen’s charming self and the designs showcased by Bethesda Row boutiques will be a perfect way to spend a Friday night.

Saturday, 19 May, 11am-2pm - The Bean and I have yet to make the Chic Child on the Row events, so I’m really excited to be able to take her this year. Arts & crafts, cooking classes, and, um, Legos on the Lane? So very, very excited!

Don't forget to check out The Front Row site for all of the other trunk show, specials, and events.

Saturday 19 May, 7:30pm - Bed.

10:30am UPDATE: silly me, didn't check my calendar. I can't sleep on Saturday. We've been invited to a Cool Couple's place for her birthday. She's German, he grew up in Puerto Rico, and they're wonderfully hip. Their 2 Beans, who met our 2 Beans in music classes, are sweetly tri-lingual, and they have all sorts of Cool International Friends. Do I sense my own Style Dilemma post coming? Hmmm....

Style in Film: Bill Cunningham New York

I'm doing this for the Infinitesimal Readership not in DC. Because they've already torn this from our grasp. Its run ended here on 12 May. Pooey.

Last night, I was privileged - and I mean that sincerely - to peek into the life and mind of an icon: Bill Cunningham.

I won't wax poetic about the film, nor about the man. Plenty of folks (including this great piece at Slate) have already done so. I will say just a few things.

If it's anywhere near you and you haven't already seen it, Go. Now. If it's not, get thee to Netflix or YouTube or whatever other means you can to see it.

When you do see it, you will laugh, and you will cry. And you will be inspired.

It's not often you get the opportunity to try and understand a contemporary monk. This film grants you that opportunity.

It's not often you get the opportunity to view a much-viewed place like New York City through a different lens. This film grants you that opportunity.

At 80+, it's possible we won't have him with us much longer. And I'll be on the first plane, train, or in the automobile, The Bean in tow, to pay homage to him in whatever way they let the public do so.

On a little bit of an aside, I was thrilled to have H as my arm candy last night (and meet up with two online gems, Ally from Wardrobe Oxygen and Elizabeth from So Much to Smile About). He can't rave enough about the film (rather than movie, btw, because it's that elevated). He's been quoting since we left:

His runner-up favorite, in which Bill explains why he tore up many a check for his work, especially the one when the original Details, of which he was an integral part, sold out, "If you take money, then they can tell you what to do."

His favorite, which occurs as Bill is showing his press pass to a Paris runway show flunky guarding the door at some prestigious show - and who doesn't recognize the man who has been documenting clothing since the 1960s. Another flunky - complete with greying ponytail - notices, and pulls Bill past the ignorant flunky, saying, "Don't you know this is the most important person on earth?"

Sent just now in an email to me about attending the next The Front Row event tonight: "have a great time tonight – and always remember that, 'fashion is the armor to survive everyday life.'"

Which is, my friends, the sum of it.