Holiday Panorama Adelita Style

click on this panoramic collage for a closer look!

Here's to a lovely holiday! Lil Star and I embellished our tree in our own home-made Alice in Wonderland ornaments. See if you can find me scattered around the house decorating with Jelly. Of course I like to decorate in comfort and style, so I am wearing an Adea tank top from Italy, a Hollister cross-back gathered cami, some bootcut LTB jeans and my Kelsi Dagger wedges from Queen Anne Dispatch. I used this technique of panorama after Troy showed me his beautiful hotel photos from Hawaii. 

Christmas List: Item No. 2

Wildfox Couture "I Love Metal" Sweatshirt

My Little Rainbow approached me this Thanksgiving with an idea. T-shirts! We love Wildfox Couture. My D loves rock bands. Put the two together and you get what's on my list. This comfy cropped jock sweatshirt is the perfect compliment to what may prove to be another dumping of snow. But more importantly wearing this may also provide inspiration for my next project. I can't wait to see what Rainbow comes up with, can you?

What's on My Christmas List

Dear Santa,

No, you are not looking at couture for your tiny little elves, you are looking at a cat-astic line-up for a photoshoot from United Bamboo's 2011 Calendar. I'll be looking for this under my tree. It's the purrrrfect Christmas gift, don't you think? Oh and while you're at it, you can always include the one-shoulder top for big kittens like me!

P.S. Speaking of stylish kittens, a certain someone special is turning 50 today. Happy Birthday Hello Kitty, you look marvelous!!

Happy Hanukkah!

Pottery Barn's fancy schmancy menorah

Today I am thoroughly stressed out searching for my beautiful silver menorah from Pottery Barn. And I think it is ironically wrapped in Christmas tissue paper nestled among my ornaments in some bin. Or is it? Is it ironic?

In the 1900's, millions of eastern European Jews came to the United States and most especially to New York's Lower East Side. As the Jews assimilation into America's Christmas holiday became more of a pressure, they realized how Hanukkah might just be the marketable holiday for their children. So, they cast aside their secular Christmas trees and lit their menorahs, the Zionist recruited Einstein as a keynote speaker in Madison Square Garden for a Hanukkah fund raising event and after WW II when American Jews moved to the suburbs Hanukkah finally took it's place as their No. 1 holiday.

This may sound like a culture being robbed of their religion via commercialism but I look at this way, America's melting pot is just that, American. Different cultures strive to live together as they fight to maintain their separate identities. In the end Jewishness comes forth. 3 in 4 light the menorah and one little Korean girl is happy to celebrate with them. Happy Hanukkah to my lovely Jerri. Here is the Prayer for Lighting she recited for me:

Barukh ata Adonai Eloheinu melekh ha‑olam, asher kid'shanu b'mitzvotav v'tzivanu l'hadlik ner (shel) hanuka.

Blessed are You, LORD, our God, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to kindle the Hanukkah light[s]."