The Whole World and Me

You know that feeling when a music starts playing and your whole body shivers? Your soul is transported to another dimension, the background slowly melts and it's just you and a damn good song?

This is how I felt when I heard this concert, like everything fell into place. 

I was introduced to Death Cab for Cutie by a wonderful American girl I met in Paris a lifetime ago. Their songs just go to a whole new level with this orchestra. I'm just so happy right now....!

If you can't listen to the whole concert, do youself a favor and just listen to the first 5 minutes, it's pure magic!!!

This was a fun and relaxed weekend, with markets, brunch, dinner with friends, shopping, flowers, blogging and Thai dances. Almost every moment captured by my faithful iPhone.
How about you? How was your weekend? Hope you had a great time and enjoyed the sun!

Ok, so this is not your normal book and most definitely not your normal story. I should also add that the author also wrote Fight Club.

Here's the plot:

There's this woman, Penny, she's not very bright, or at least not in the first 100 or so pages of the book. Penny struggles to find her place in the world; a world where women already broke every frontier and so there's really nothing new and ground breaking for Penny, who is ambitious even if not the brightest, to do. And then she meets Maxwell who is a multi-billionaire. They start dating and Penny finds herself in every tabloid's cover, best restaurants and VIP parties in the world. On their first date, Maxwell sits across from Penny in a restaurant and takes notes on his little notebook during the whole meal. This notebook continuous to be a third wheel on their relationship, but Penny doesn't find it weird, she almost finds it endearing (which is baffling to me!). Moving on... On their first trip to Paris Penny and Maxwell make love for the first (and only) time. The love making is accompanied by different sex toys, lubs and concoctions and soon Penny has a the biggest orgasm ever (almost entering into a sex induced coma). I know...! So, starting from here, the story is filled with very scientific descriptions of their sexual encounters, which actually become their whole relationship. Maxwell experiments different toys and things designed to enhance Penny's pleasure while taking notes, recording and explaining, in the least sexy way possible, everything that is happening step by step. Moving forward and Penny learns what every reader already understood 50 pages before, that Maxwell is testing on her a new line of sex toys which he will be releasing soon. With her help, Maxwell perfects every product and launches Beautiful You worldwide with a smashing success. But soon something goes terribly wrong... women start to disappear. They leave their jobs, their families and husbands and choose the Beautiful You products over real life. 

I'm not telling you anything else about the story, except there are nano bots, 200 year old sex gurus, a woman President and a death live at the Oscars. What is really important to know is this:

This story, albeit weird, is a portrait of today's consumerism society. In an exaggerated way, the author portrays how women, who are the main consumers in our world, are driven by trends and celebrities to buy everything and anything, from shoes to vampire novels. The women in the book are as mind controlled as we are. The first ones by sex toys and orgasms and us by advertising, instagram, magazines and everything in between that makes us want, wish, ney NEED, every product we buy. On the other hand, and as we approach the end of the book, we also see how this story depicts the low self-esteem that characterizes most women. We find flaws in everything we do, our bodies are never perfect, we could always be better mothers, professionals and so forth. As Penny evolves and matures in the book, we see her transformation from clueless girl to a confident woman, we reach the end of the story, when Penny finds her place in the world. The ending is just endearing and sweet and, ultimately, a love dedication to women all around the world.

So, if you're in the mood for a kinda strange story, full of comic situations, which will also make you think, then this is the book for you. A light and fun read for these spring days that lay ahead of us!

Florence + The Machine have a new album coming out which means two things:

1)  I'm counting the days, hours, minutes and seconds until its release.

2) The band is releasing a few singles and videos to make our music mouths water.

The new album, How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful, is shaping up to be a pure odissey and in clear Florence's fashion the videos are scenic, beautiful and melancholic.

So today's soundtrack is dedicated to the one and only and the amazing journey that this album seems to be.

First the teaser and then the first two chapters which are actually a continuous story.

Hope you like it!

xx

Oh the bucket bag! The bag that has been filling my instagram feed and pinterest since last winter making me salivate for one of my own. Even though I was pretty much sold on this bag the first time I laid my eyes on it, I have been a careful shopper in recent times. As I grew older I began to value quality over cool and durability and transeasonality over trends. And so I find myself with a new set of rules, most of them I picked up in several of the millions of articles available on the world wide web about smart shopping, to guide me through the fog that fashion and consumerism can be.

These are the questions I ask myself nowadays before a purchase:

A little set of questions which have helped me contain my impulse buying, well at least most of the times! I still buy things because they are damn pretty cool or just pretty , but for the majority of my latest purchases I have been able to abide by these little rules.

Legendary guitarist, songwriter, producer and style icon, Keith Richards doesn't need any introduction. His flamboyant style has been a source of inspiration for many around the world, so it was only fitting that he would be my first male Style Crush.

Here are some of my favourite images and quotes of Keith Richards, hope you find them as inspiring as I do!

"Music is a language that doesn't speak in particular words, it speaks in emotions, and if it's in the bones, it's in the bones."

 

The best advertising is the one that is simple and to the point. For me, this is what makes it effective and brilliant.
Terre Des Femmes, a Swiss human rights organization focusing on gender equality and feminism, launched this amazing ad campaign that reminds us just how much judgement a woman suffers on a daily basis solely based on her clothes. Even though we are all, men and women, subject to judgement every time we leave our houses - society works by putting everyone in boxes and we are faced with each other and the need to categorize where the other belongs - women are simply and wrongly judged many times only by the way they dressed. And this judgement is coming from men and women alike. I do not see this ad campaign targeted to men, but to society in general.

So here's some food for thought... Next time you see a woman cross your way in the street or subway, try not to give in to the temptation to qualify her according to her outfit, there's always much more that we don't see.

 The ad was design by Theresa Wlokka and students at the Miami Ad School in Hamburg, Germany.

It's been 7 (S-E-V-E-N) months since my last post.... This is becoming a very annoying habit. "This" meaning leaving my blog forgotten in the vast world of the web. All alone, unattended, unfed... I'm such a bad blogger... Oh well, there's always a second, third and fiftieth chance, so let's see what happens this time, shall we?

So, quick update. What's been going on for the last seven months.

I had the chance to participate in one of the most awesome projects ever in my career so far; I've received great reviews from everyone envolved and came back home exhausted but super happy; I got a promotion at work (yeah me!); went on a well deserved vacation that took me on the most amazing food-filled road trip with the boyfriend; came back and worked some more; got approached by a brand; christmas came and went; happy new year all around (I spent it at home with a huge banquet I spent the whole day cooking #happyasever); received a proposal from the above brand; decided to change my job....

So, busy seven months, don't you think? New job, new life, still in PR but now in the fine watchmaking and jewelry business, not too shaby! Still busy, but with a much calmer pace in life, which is a very nice change. My skin looks so much better! I really didn't  know how much stress damages your skin, seriously!!! 

All and all, I'm a very happy girl right now. Life is good and relaxed. Great projects are coming, amazing new team (although I really miss my old team, I really love those girls!!), and a little more time to dedicate myself to this little baby.

I though about giving up you know, but even after seven months of silence visits continued. You guys seem to like my inspiration posts and quotes and everything else, so I decided to try again. 

Let's see!

See you soon!

xx