You and Me

Ok, I know I’ve posted about Blue Valentine before but I came across this video a couple of weeks ago and I thought I’d share it. The song is called ‘You and Me’ by a group called Penny and the Quarters and it’s set against the backdrop of some poignant scenes from the film.

Apparently Ryan Gosling came across the track by chance and convinced Derek Cianfrance the director, to feature it in the movie as the song that makes the couple fall in love.

Very little is known about the group other than that they were 4 teenagers from Columbus, Ohio. They recorded the track in the early seventies and shortly after that completely feel off the map. Now, forty years later, no one knows what became of them and efforts are being made to track down any surviving relatives. It’s sad that they aren’t around to see the fruits of their labour but it’s also nice to be reminded that great music endures.

It’s not cheesy, just innocent and hopeful. I’ve been listening to it on repeat.

You and Me

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's day to those of you in the Middle East.

I'm lucky to come from a very close knit family. Although I'm a self confessed daddy's girl, I have a special bond with my mother. She put everything aside to raise my sister and I and thanks to her, I think we turned out ok.

Thanks mum, for giving me confidence and advice (especially when i didn't think i needed it), for introducing me to amazing food and letting me steal your clothes.

I miss you. This is for you.

i carry your heart with me (i carry it in
my heart) i am never without it (anywhere
i go you go,my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)
i fear no fate (for you are my fate,my sweet) i want
no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart (i carry it in my heart)

e. e. cummings

Happy Mother's Day!

Double Denim

It’s one of those trends that divides opinions but from the Catwalks to Street Style, it’s evident that double denim has taken the sartorial world by storm. I live in denim. When I’m not wearing my denim jacket over a little sun dress, I’m usually in my skinny jeans but I’ve never been tempted to double up on my denim. I feel the time has come to give it a whirl.

The first time you wear denim head to toe, chances are you'll feel like you're doing something wrong. the key is to wear different washes with the darker wash on the bottom. We all remember the Britney and Justin denim disaster of 2001. Let’s not repeat that. Also, try to break up all the blue with some feminine accessories like a long delicate necklace, a great cocktail ring or an unstructured shoulder bag. Most importantly, have fun with it and make it your own. Its versatility is one of the reasons why we all love denim so much. Alexa Chung was recently pictured in Vogue working the look to perfection as usual.

Photo: Danny Martindale/WireImage

To celebrate the trend, Bambah vintage Boutique is hosting an in store Denim on Denim event on Tuesday the 22nd March. The boutique will be transformed into a vintage denim haven for the day. Get stuck into racks upon racks of unique skirts, jackets, waistcoats and jeans (of course). If you’re new to vintage, Denim is a great way to start. You’ll get the thrill of owning a one off piece coupled with the benefit that it’ll easily slot into your wardrobe.

See you there!

Double Denim

Vanity Fail

I like Vanity Fair. The writing is good and I could look at Annie Leibovitz’s photographs for hours on end. That being said, I was disappointed when I read an article entitled “Dubai on Empty” featured in April’s issue. I have to put this into context by saying that it was written by A. A. Gill who has been known to ruffle a few feathers. He was famously thrown out of one of Gordon Ramsay’s restaurants for making disparaging remarks about his personal life in one of his restaurant reviews. The gist of the article is that Dubai has no culture, that its oil wealth has made it morally corrupt. Yawn. I’ve read articles like this before but this one just seems so badly researched and bitter.

In the article, he discussed the excesses of the Dubai life style at length paying particular attention to the Meydan Racetrack, the ski slope at Mall of the Emirates and of course, Burj Khalifa. Yes, these structures are extravagant but they serve as drivers to tourism which, along with service industries, make up the backbone of Dubai’s economy. Oil makes up for less than 6% of Dubai’s GDP. Admittedly we spend a lot of time in malls, have access to amazing hotels and a lot of money is thrown around but there are lots of sides to this city. Gill failed to mention Deira and Bur Dubai, the more traditional and culturally rich areas which are home to Bastikiya, the Gold and Spice Souk and Heritage Village.

Not all Emiratis are ‘cursed with money’ as Gill puts it. There was no mention of Emiratisation or the fact that there are a growing number of hard working Emirati men and women making valuable contributions to society in all fields. Art Dubai which launched this week (pictured below) and Dubai Film Festival are very good at showcasing Emirati artists that starting to make waves on the international scene. This is a great time for Emirati culture and the movement doesn’t show signs of abating.

Yes, Dubai is home to a host of young professionals who are just passing through, some very tacky people who behave terribly and a few people who have more money than sense. That isn’t going to change. Actually, I hope it doesn’t. What on earth would we have to talk about?

I get that this is his style but using rumours to illustrate points and hurling insults at people he’s never met just doesn’t seem like good journalism to me. Also, trashing Dubai is so 2009. Time to move on...

Vanity Fail

Can You Separate Art from the Artist?

Earlier this week a very concerned reader wrote in to Hadley Freeman from the style section of the Guardian asking if it was ok to buy Dior. She was obviously worried about being branded a Galliano sympathiser in light of his Antisemitic tirade and subsequent firing. For Freeman the answer was a simple ‘no’, going on to say that ‘the fancy term in fashion land for wearing a designer's clothes is "showing support", eg: "Tom Ford's such a dear friend so I always try to show support for him." Ergo, perhaps now is not the time to "show support" for Galliano’.

Image via designscene.net

I personally can’t relate to this particular dilemma as there isn’t much Dior in my wardrobe. However, it did get me thinking…

-Roman Polanski sexually assaulted a 13 year old girl in the 70s but he went on to direct great films like ‘The Pianist’

-Christian Bale just won an Oscar despite the fact that he launched an expletive filled tirade against a crew member on set a couple of years ago

-Chris Brown still has a music career despite the highly publicised physical abuse that he inflicted on Rihanna.

Yes, they all initially suffered some backlash but their scandals didn’t spell the end of their careers. I suppose a distinction is made when comments or actions are racially charged. Just look at Mel Gibson. Once one of Hollywood’s biggest players, his numerous racist rants have all but ended his career. His latest film release 'The Beaver' has been pushed back six weeks in order to distance the project from his latest scandal. If the film doesn't do well it's unlikely that his career will ever recover.

Although John Galliano has disgraced himself, he does (with the exception of Nicole Kidman’s Oscars dress) make beautiful and supremely well-tailored clothes. We were reminded of his artistry at last week’s Dior show at Paris fashion week. Is this the last we’ll see of him? I doubt it. Fellow designers, high ranking fashion insiders and celebrity clients have continued to stand by him and excuse his behaviour. Who knows? After rehab, repentance and some time, it might once again become acceptable to ‘show support’ for Galliano.

Can You Separate Art from the Artist?

Jamie’s Italian

Last week some girl friends and I went along to Jamie’s Italian in Festival City. I was excited to go and try it out. I’ve been a Jamie Oliver fan since his Naked Chef days so this was a big deal for me. As we walked in, we were greeted by the usual suspects- exposed brick, wood burning oven and fresh produce on display. I had a good feeling about the dinig experience that awaited us. We sit down and the first thing we notice is that there’s no bread basket (gasp). The manager did his best to explain that there’s an issue the bread recipe and they can’t get the right flour and they have to import it. I zoned out due to low blood sugar. I hadn’t eaten yet. We decide to put the incident behind us and order. Our waitress seemed nice enough but she walked off mid order to attend another table and then wandered back to us as if nothing had happened. The starters were great but the service and the food got progressively worse. The food wasn’t awful but if you’re paying Dhs 90 for a burger, it should be spectacular and it wasn’t. Also, there was no tiramisu as there are yet to obtain the required license.

In spite of all this I haven’t given up on Jamie’s Italian just yet. Next time we go, we’ll probably just order a bunch of starters and share them. They’re much better than the main courses. Also, it might be better to wait until after they’ve actually launched. Hopefully they will have ironed out their kinks by then.

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Jamie’s Italian