#ThisIsBaltimore2018: When Will Spring Ever Arrive??

I was out running errands yesterday and it started snowing AGAIN. It’s the end of March! It’s supposed to be getting warm, and the flowers are supposed to be blooming. Instead, the temperatures are never going to get above the 60’s and there are still snow-showers forcast this week!

I am still out and about taking pictures during my Lunchtime Safaris, and exploring the city. I thought I’d share some recent pictures with you.

The Louisa May Alcott School, which someone referred to as accidental Wes Anderson.

I love the details on this old, and seemingly abandoned, stone house.

Another sad abandoned house, but the millwork is stunning.

This Stanford White-designed building is just around the corner from my office. Love it!

I love alleys and little side streets, one of which yielded this unexpected surprise.

The Octagon Building. Perched high on a hill overlooking the Jones Falls Valley. Circa 1855.

One of my new tea towel designs. I know SO many people who need this!

It’s so sad that buildings like this are no longer designed and built. The level of detail is amazing.

Buildings like this collegiate Gothic/Tudor revival gem would never be built now.

I love seeing the shadows of old advertisements on buildings. This is for Bull Durham tobacco.

I am headed into an intense next few months with lectures I am giving and attending, conferences I am hosting, classes I am teaching, trips I am taking and much more! I hope to try and keep posting about once a week, but do check my Instagram account for more updated pictures and to see what’s happening. As always, thank you so much for reading!

Tweeds, Tattersalls, Feathers & Furs

Yes, I know… there are a lot of people out there who disagree with using fur in fashion, so if you’re one of them, just click away now.

I love this time of year because it’s the start of the racing season, beginning with the big one in England – the Cheltenham Racing Festival, culminating with the Gold Cup and the English Grand National. Then, here in Maryland, we swing into the steeplechase racing season with the Maryland Hunt Cup, and then towards the Triple Crown, and it ends back in England with Ascot in early summer.

The Wednesday of the Festival is Ladies Day, and I love to scour the English newspapers to see what people are wearing to the races. Although the spectrum is broad, I tend to skew towards tweeds, tattersalls, feathers and furs. I’ve written about these styles before, here and here, so you can get a good idea of what I like.

Here are some of the top picks from this year’s Cheltenham Racing Festival.

This gal got a LOT of press! The hat was pretty amazing, and I love the obviously bespoke outfit.

Orange was a big colour this year.

More orange

Feathers and furs

I love this tartan tweed cape lined with a silk scarf. I have a lot of tweed I could make into this!

Very simple. Very elegant

Princess Anne in a 40-year old coat!

It was very chilly and quite windy, but they’re dressed for it.

The Duchess of Cornwall, aka Camilla

Completely classic

All vintage, but as elegant as ever.

I have a hat like this that I wore to the Hunt Cup a few years ago.

This might be a bit much for me.

I might need to work a little harder on my hat this year!

To see more, check out my Pinterest page, What to Wear to the Races… Or Not and let us know which was your favourite outfit.

Ephemera

A few weeks ago, the local Junior League hosted their annual Trinkets & Treasures sale. I try and go most years because they really do have some treasures – here and here! This year’s treasure for me was a huge box of ephemera.

If you don’t already know, here’s what ephemera is: 1: something of no lasting significance —usually used in plural. 2 ephemera plural : paper items (such as posters, broadsides, and tickets) that were originally meant to be discarded after use but have since become collectibles.

As you can see, there are a lot of botanical prints, which I adore. I scanned a lot of them into the computer and cleaned them up. I “inverted” some of the prints which made them look like old blueprints. Now I will have to think of some uses for them. Maybe teatowels, or stationery?

I “inverted” some of the prints which made them look like old blueprints. This is a fritillaria.

Here are some of my favourite pieces from the collection.

Thistle flowers

More thistles

Mountain Laurel

Jack in the Pulpit

Poison Ivy

Loose-strife

Little mice

I am still going through the box, which has several hundred pieces in it. I can’t wait to see what other treasures are there, and then decide what to do with them!