Yearly Archives: 2024

……………….These photos, all from Neiman Marcus catalogues from years ago, were given to me by a friend…….They bring back so many memories that my head is full of stories……Of course the first thing I remember is the many many trips I made to Praiano, Italy on the Amalfi coast…..I always stayed in Andrea Pfister and Jean Pierre Dupre’s villa at the very edge of a cliff….over looking the Mediterranean Sea……with Positano in the near distance!…..I would always get to the villa a few days earlier than the Schwartz and Benjamin team [the AK licensee]. Andrea, Jean Pierre and I would relax by the pool, taking the sun, drinking ice cold white wine and eating incredible food…..laughing all the time……Sometimes Jac would join me……When the team arrived, consisting of Phyllis Footer, who helped us detail the shoes, taking all of the notes, and developed all of the shoes in the factories, and Arthur Swartz, who owned the company, also came….play time was OVER!…..Andrea, Phyllis and I sat in Andrea’s huge white studio on the second floor of the villa, and got to work. Andrea always prepared shoes for us to select from, but most of the time we could only use details as the shoes were too complicated as they were…..So I started sketching and Andrea would sketch my ideas on “lasts”, which are wooden or plastic shoe forms covered in masking tape so the tape could easily be removed and used as a pattern.. Once we were satisfied that we had all of the styles we needed which usually consisted of 50 to 75 individuals styles….we started to “detail” them…..deciding on materials and color combinations for each shoe…..It was a ton of work….and there was no air conditioning in Andrea’s studio!….so we sat there in our bathing suits!!….We would break for lunch for about 2 hours, take a dip in the pool to refresh ourselves and wake up from all of the white wine we consumed…..dry off, and head back up to the studio to continue working until dinner was ready……which usually Jean Pierre prepared. He was a brilliant chef, and he always used special herbs, so his food tasted like nothing I had ever had before. It was incredible. In the summer we always ate on the large terrace overlooking Capri and Positano…..breathtaking!!!…The work trip usually lasted a week to a week and a half, and then we all left Andrea to his separate peace in PARADISE!…..If you would like to see his  villa where we stayed….you can GOOGLE………..WWW.VILLA LILLY PRAIANO ITALY ……[the new name given to it] It used to be named after the ancient tower on the property. Why it was changed I don’t know…….Since Andrea’s and Jean Pierre’s death it has been sold to a group who rents luxury villas….and absolute luxury it is….It is almost exactly as it was with a few additions. They divided Andrea’s studio in half to make another bedroom, and a play room with a pool table in it, but the pool and terraces are exactly as they were…..even the lounge chairs by the pool, and the outside dining table and chairs are the same….Once in a while I will look at the videos showing the villa just to reminisce….I like to remember all the great times I had there with Jac, Andrea, Jan Pierre and Phyllis over the 18 years I spent there…twice a year!….Today it is considered one of the finest villas to rent on the entire Amalfi coast, and I can tell you it is truly PARADISE!…..The photos above show a model, I think her name was Emma, wearing one of my convertible sweaters….The cowl neck and the drop shoulder sleeves had exposed ZIPPERS that zipped these sections off leaving a cap sleeve, open neck tunic. With it she is wearing my matching leggings and my SUEDE OVER THE KNEE BOOTS!…….Below that are two more shoes with ZIPPER DEATAILS…..An Ankle Bootie with a side zip in suede, and next to that a Mid heel pump with zipper details across the toe and in the center of the heel…..At the top right is a signature pump of the season with a patent leather platform and heel…..Below the pump is a RESORT triple banded SLIDE. It had a square toe and a gold square low heel……Even though these were all done 30 plus years ago….they could all be worn today!

………………..The last two pages of all the “Look Books” comprised of the final fashion photo. On these last two pages was Yasmeen in a black faille trench coat, and a list of credits for some of the people responsible for creating the “BOOK”….There were many other people on the set who helped enormously….Reading it now is like a visit with old friends!

………………….The Jet Black blazer, and the white cotton shirt are all essential classic pieces every woman should own…..but…..even these classics can sometime be paired with a bit of whimsy!……..The Steel Grey, Box Pleated, full skirt with the Black BOLD border stripe……..definitely has hints of the “Saloon Skirt”…..This version, however, is the sleek modern version of the tulle and lace “Saloon Skirts”.

…………………..This past Saturday Cathy came to my house for a FACEBOOK LIVE SHOW…………The morning started ominously with pouring rain, and thunder….but by the time Cathy arrived at 11:45, from her 3 hour drive from PA, the sun had come out and we had clear blue skies. Unfortunately, the rain didn’t bring cooler air with it!….I had already set up a place in my kitchen, for a change of scenery, where the show would take place. It’s definitely a “country kitchen” with a farm table, and gingham check seat cushions on the country farm chairs…..My garden is bursting with Hydrangeas and Zinnias, so I filled a large glass vase with the Hydrangeas for the table, and filled smaller yellow vases and Dutch bulb vases with the Zinnias and yellow flowers [whos name I can’t remember]. They sit on top of a French country cabinet fill with receipt books, and binders filled with Jac and her mom’s collection of receipts, and now mine!….There are also some antique kitchen gadgets in there that belonged to Jac’s mom and Jac’s grandmother!….We had about two hours to kill after we set up all the trays of jewelry for the show….so we went to lunch!….We went to a place called “THE FIDDLER’S GREEN”, but more about that later…..After that, back home we went, and it was SHOW TIME!…..If you missed the show you can still watch the entire show video on my FACEBOOK page…….Cathy’s husband Jim, MADE me a pound cake for my birthday with butter cream frosting…….Of course we had to try it out so I cut generous slices for us to eat after the show, and  sliced and wrapped the rest to be frozen so I can have them later…..It was DELICIOUS!!!….Thank you Jim!….Along with the cake we needed a drink! So we made two LILLETS with soda on the rocks, and a strawberry garnish, [top photo, second in from the left]….YUM!…..For my birthday, Cathy got me a PIZZELLES maker from Cuisinart! She always makes them for me for Christmas, and I love them….now I have my own!…..Of course we had to try it out, and Cathy showed me step by step how to make the batter [we added MACE which I LOVE], and how to cook the Pizzelles in the cooker…..We put them on a rack to cool, and then sprinkled them with powdered sugar….They came out perfectly! Now I can add PIZZELLES to my repertoire……DELICIOUS!!!……The day was not over, we still had dinner ahead of us, and we planned to try a new restaurant that we hadn’t been to…….I hope you all enjoyed the show, and treated yourselves to a new bauble!…..BTW, the two photos of Cathy second in from the right, were taken Sunday morning at the famous Elm Street diner. We went there for breakfast before Cathy left for her journey back to PA.

………………….Before the FACEBOOK LIVE show on Saturday, Cathy and I had time to get lunch……I have driven past this place called “FIDDLERS GREEN” a million times but never went in, so we though….what the heck, let’s give it a try!…….OMG!!…it’s like a set from a movie……Firstly it’s perpetually……”SAINT PATRICK’S DAY”!!!…..There are St. Patrick’s Day decorations all over the place!…and GREEN LIGHTS to boot!…..You walk in and the first thing you see is this LOOOONG bar that already had patrons….I would think regulars!….Next, before you get to the tables to sit and eat, you have to pass two pool tables, where six rednecks were playing pool, and this was at noon! They gave Cathy and me a quick glance as if we were alien invaders! I ordered a hamburger and fries….I can’t remember what Cathy ordered. She’s more adventurous than me, but we both agreed the food was pretty good, and the obviously Irish waitress was very sweet and jovial…..However, I don’t think I will be going back anytime soon!……….For dinner Cathy and I went to a relatively new restaurant in Darien Ct called……ANTONIO’S…….It isn’t a year old yet, but it already has a great reputation and a 4.8 rating. At this point we were starving and got there at 5:30….an hour before our reservation, but they took us…..The restaurant was empty, but I could see “reserved” signs on many of the tables. It’s a pretty room with lots of natural light, and a dining garden out back, but it’s too hot to eat outside! The table settings were very nice, and the prospect of the room was done well…..but……I would have taken down ALL of the wall decorations which were boring and not that pretty, and replaced them with Bistro mirrors all over to give the room more width. If you tilt the mirrors slightly forward people could see themselves, and everyone else in the room…..which makes for great people watching without being obvious!……..Our waiter was extremely friendly, which could sometimes be annoying!…but he wasn’t. He told us all of the specials which seemed wonderful the way he explained them with his Italian accent….so we gave them a try…….First we had Salmon Crudo with capers and some fine greens which Cathy told me what they were, but I don’t remember. We squeezed a generous dose of fresh lemon and partook…..It was fabulous. They also had GREAT bread with a marvelous garlic spread……Good bread in restaurants is sometimes hard to find…….For the next course we split the pasta special……Since Cathy and I are both ITALIAN, and have both been to ITALY many many times, We thought we knew our PASTA…..but this was a new one for us…..I would describe it as a cross between a dumpling and a ball stuffed with four cheeses, served with a creamy cheese sauce and grated cheese on top!…..It was OUT OF THIS WORLD! We both could have had a complete portion ourselves……PIGGY me….I even wiped the serving bowl with the bread and ate it! Oh my Lord….it was so good!…..For our final course we both had the special SOFT SHELL CRABS……It’s the season, and they should only be eaten when they are in season!. They were served with a light butter garlic sauce, and the most delicious green beans….I know, how delicious can green beans be????, but Cathy and I agreed…..these were special!….Again, a superb choice!…We had Gavi de Gavi coooold white wine with the meal, and finished dinner with a double espresso! We didn’t have desert, though the desert menu looked incredible…..but we had my LEMON CHEESE CAKE waiting at home!…..We had the cheese cake sitting on my red rocking chairs….looking at the sun setting over the Long Island sound, watching the boats heading for their harbor………A perfect way to end the evening!…..BTW, I’ve already made reservations to go back to Antonio’s for Lou’s birthday on July 16th…..I’m taking him and his wife Maria…..I know they will love it!