Cut Along Dotted Line

Hill Fold, Valley Fold

One of my sons just started a job that involves wearing a suit. He is not exactly happy about it, but I, on the other hand, can see that the possibilities of a pinstripe are endless.

Feeling the Pinch

Another picture from my files. This one accompanied an article about weight loss for the summer. The wariness with which both weighing scales and crabs are generally approached makes up, I think, for the tenuous visual link between the two.
I'm currently feeling the pinch in more ways than one, so preparations for the summer and possible holidays aren't high on my 'to-do' list at the moment. 

Infringement of Dress Code

Such a lot of fringes around at the moment. I counted more than eight fringed items in this month's Vogue US- bags, boots, sandals, dresses, vests, jackets, sunglasses. I am almost tempted, but I have not a flower petal of boho in my character. Fringes, especially the really long ones, are exactly the sort of habit my mother used to warn me against- just the kind of thing that might get caught in the closing doors of a subway train, and thus lead to the loss an arm or a leg, or worse. Quite a lot of these designs do look like the result of an accident with a paper shredder in the studio.

From my Files

Failing all else, here is an old picture from a period when I drew much less self-consciously, and artwork was always submitted as a piece of paper, scratched, pasted together, hand-coloured, imperfect. These days I rarely manage anything close to such spontaneity- pictures are often pinned down (to death) at the rough stage, and even after you've submitted the artwork, the implied ease & speed enabled by technology (photoshop, illustrator et al) means that alterations can be requested, almost ad infinitum, by the art editor, the editor, the designer, the journalist, the tea lady, the cleaner and any old passer-by.

Dental Break

Surprised and delighted yesterday to see an advert on my screen that read:
'Dental Holidays Bulgaria. New teeth in one week, save 70%. Request free information here: ask.dentaprime.com'
Such a great idea for a relaxing break! I'm booking immediately. Photos of new Bulgarian teeth to be posted later in the year.

Bulletproof Bra

I was cheered over the weekend by the widely-reported story from Brazil, about a woman who was caught in robbery crossfire, and who afterwards found a bullet lodged in the undercarriage of her bra. 'Lingerie Saves Life' claimed at least one headline, although the woman herself (a shopkeeper named Ivete Medeiros) preferred to credit divine intervention. 

I felt duty-bound to show my own triple-strength underwired brassiere a bit of respect this morning, before strapping it on and pacing the mean streets of London.