I’m not afraid to use the f-word: femininity

Awhile back I came across an article in the newspaper entitled “Summer of Dapper.” Apparently there is an elegant mod movement occurring this summer all over the country, harkening back to the days of slacks, button-up vests, and bowler hats. Guys decide to dress in their swankiest garb, complete with accessories, instead of distressed jeans and t-shirts. Bring in the ritz and the posh. The sass and the smart.

Summer of Dapper is a response to its feminine counterpart: the Summer of Dresses. From what I can gather, a young woman decided that she wanted to break her jeans and t-shirt habit and declared 2010 the “Summer of Dresses.” The challenge is to wear dresses twice a week. She even started a website in which other gals can post pictures of themselves in their newest, sunniest, quirkiest dress.

When I first heard about Summer of Dresses, I suppose I found the notion a bit surprising. Wearing dresses is not anything out of the ordinary for me. In fact, I love skirts and dresses. Depending on the cut, style and color, a dress can serve a variety of functions and moods. Chic. Playful. Powerful. Fun. Classic. Professional. Bohemian. Glamorous. Sexy. Bold.

You can pair a dress with vintage pumps, ballet flats, sandals, and boots. And they are, well, fun to try on. I usually cannot afford half the dresses I observe through a shop window. But I like to imagine. There is something unique about dresses (as well as tops/skirts) that jeans and shirts fail to capture. Perhaps it is the way I feel in a well-cut dress. My confidence soars beyond the stratosphere. I. Am.Woman.

Let me pause and declare that the same kind of confidence can be attained through a pair of skinny jeans and sweater. Or jeans and a snazzy blazer. My favorite article of clothing is actually my black skinnies, and there are long stretches of time (particularly in the Pacific Northwest winters) where I forego dresses and skirts of any kind. It’s too darn cold for that twill skirt and 1940’s blouse.

What I appreciate about this Summer of Dresses is that it promotes a culture of femininity. Now I do not mean cutesy clothes and demure ladylike expressions. I strongly advocate for the empowerment of women, yet I also encourage my fellow girls to engage those qualities and aspects of themselves that make them feel distinctly female. Because, well, you are female for one thing. And two, in this culture of post-feminism there seems to be a sort of backlash, in which women are looked down upon if she adores chocolate, concerns herself with fashion and style, desires motherhood, or any of the other stereotypical “female” attributes. Guess what? You can wear a smart pencil skirt and ruffled-neck blouse to the office and still be taken seriously. This is not an either/or choice. No more need for bra burnings. You can purchase the wildest, sexiest bra out there, wear it under a sheath dress at a work presentation, and blow everyone out of the water with your prowess, achievements, and intellect. Again, it comes back to confidence. Embracing your femininity is one way to feel better about yourself. Looking and feeling confident is attractive, magnetic. It’s about being comfortable in your body.

I say: stop looking to Hollywood and Vogue on how to dress and appear. Take your body back. Reclaim your beauty as your own, whether that be natural, glamorous, or homespun.

Now there is a difference between strutting your stuff with confidence and plain ‘ol tackiness. Ask your closest friends or a shop consultant on what styles work best for your body shape. From Queen Latifa to Carey Mulligan, a well-fit dress accentuates your uniquely ‘You’ features and makes you look good.

Men: how do you weigh in on this? Do you enjoy dressing in dapper clothing? What article of clothing gives you confidence? Are there aspects of masculinity that are fun to embrace? Aspects that you feel to be constricting or unfair? (Guys seem to be receiving the short end of the stick in popular media these days. Commercials profile the lazy, disconnected father or the ignorant jock. An increasing amount of pressure is being placed on guys to be waiflike and skinny, as evidenced in the rise of matchstick jeans. These generalized profiles are just as wrong as the dumb blonde, nagging mother, and obedient, robotic housewife.)

AND LASTLY, the moment you have been waiting for, I give you my Summer of Dresses Vote. I am looking to purchase a new dress for an upcoming special occasion. I cannot give too many details about the event. It will be indoors and during twilight/evening hours. Something versatile that could be worn at both the ballet and a cocktail party. Cast your vote and help me decide!

1. In Dove With You (ModCloth) - Sure, the title has a lot to be desired, but I simply love the color.

2. Sci-Fi Heroine - Sci fi + heroine = love it. The gathered sleeves and oversized collar are bonus points for me. And it's a tad funky. I'm all about that.

3. Velvet Underground. It's classy and understated. Imagine with black pumps and matching clutch.

4. English Seaside Dress - I love this dress. Before you say this is not fancy enough for an evening outing, first add a stylish black belt with matching pumps. Add a long string of black pearls or an antique locket.

5. One Shoulder Ruched Dress. I have been searching for a one-shoulder dress all year. Is this one a keeper?

6. Grecian Dress - Let's advance beyond the blacks, greys, and navys. I love this deep shade of green.

 

spice up a summer classic | grilled corn with garlic-herb butter & pepper

Mmm, corn on the cob. I remember munching on corn slathered in butter, gripping Mickey and Minnie Mouse corn holders, throughout my childhood. Back then corn was just another vegetable I had to eat. This summer I am having a love affair with corn. Last year it was blueberries; this year the simple, sweet taste of corn provides the perfect complement to my dinner. My favorite method to prepare corn on the cob is to boil the corn and then spread butter over the hot kernels. Unembellished and delicious.

Sometimes, however, it’s nice to try something new. Spice up the usual. This recipe is one I adjusted for a peppery alternative to grilled corn on the cob. The spicy level is up to you—the secret is in the cayenne pepper.

Grilled corn on the cob is obviously different from boiled corn. It requires more attention during the cooking process, so you don’t burn the kernels. First, remove the silk and husks from the ear. Apply the seasoned butter mixture to the corn and then wrap the ear in a wet paper towel. Double-wrap each ear of corn in foil before setting them on the grill (it should be set at 275). The double-foil protects the corn from burning, and the wet paper towel allows for the corn to steam within the foil, melting the butter and softening the kernels. Keep the corn away from the flame and more towards the edges of the grill. Cook the corn for 30 minutes and then carefully unwrap the ears.

Garlic-herb butter with pepper

(serves four ears of corn)

1 stick butter, softened
½ tsp cayenne pepper (more if desired)
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp basil
1 Tsp all-purpose seasoning (I use World Market brand, which has onion, lemon peel, orange peel, paprika, mustard, and thyme)
2 Tbsp minced fresh garlic
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Mix all the ingredients together until you form a thick paste. Adjust to acquire your preferred flavor. Smear over the corn before grilling.

For a smokier taste, increase the Worcestershire and add a drop of liquid smoke.

What is your favorite way to cook corn-on-the-cob?

Photo from www.businessweek.com

 

for the love of tart: watermelon lemonade

Praise the heavens, it is finally finally summer. Warm sunshine infuses the air, and my skin is lovin’ the long-overdue vitamin D treatment. For me, sunshine equates with lightness. The world becomes more buoyant, weightless. And that sensation wanders into the realm of food as well. Light, refreshing ingredients are in order during summertime.

With the temperature arching its back into the 80′s, I decided upon making that classic summer imbiber: lemonade. But I could not make plain lemonade; it needed a twist. I recently found a recipe for watermelon lemonade. I adjusted the ingredients and added a couple of my own. The result was satisfying and…unique. Tart. But then, I love tart flavors.

watermelon lemonade

5 lemons, halved

2 cups chopped watermelon

1/3 cup sugar

handful of berries (strawberries or raspberries)

4 cups water

~   ~   ~

1. Squeeze the lemons with a manual, orange juice squeezer. You want 1 cup of lemon juice.

2. Transfer the lemon juice to a pitcher and add the sugar. Stir until the sugar is completely dissolved.

3. Puree the watermelon and berries. Add to the lemon juice.

4. Add water. Strain the lemonade for any excess fruit. If you like pulp, you can keep the fruit fibers.

5. Adjust for personal taste. If you want it more tart, add more freshly-squeezed lemon juice. For a sweeter drink, add more sugar. Drop in a few ice cubes and enjoy.

My friend, Darci, sippin' a tart glass of lemonade at dinner.

 

heather’s summer reading list: fiction

The days are getting longer – and warmer. While I am a book addict year-round, there is something exhilarating about summer reading. Below are fourteen of my all-time favorite summer reads. They span the decades and the genres…take whichever one suits your fancy.

1. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, by Stieg Larsson
The “girl-with” literary phenomenon exists for a reason. Stieg Larsson created wonderfully complex and flawed characters in his mystery-thriller The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (and the following two novels). Set within the harsh, brittle landscape of Sweden, Larsson delivers an absorbing and suspenseful story that primarily follows a disgraced journalist, Mikael Blomkvist, who disappears to a small village after being convicted of libel. There he becomes involved with a forty-year old murder mystery that turns darker and more disturbing with each discovery. The best part of Larsson’s work, however, is the introverted hacker, Lisbeth Salander, who ultimately joins Blomkvist in his investigations. Even when Larsson’s feminist commentary weighs down the plot, my connection to Lisbeth keeps me turning the pages until the last one.
You might also enjoy: The Girl who Played with Fire and The Girl who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest.

 

2. The Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follett
Epic. This book is breathtakingly epic. And I do not use that word often. The Pillars of the Earth has been around for awhile now; it was published in 1989. I stumbled across it three years ago, and I have searched for another book like it ever since. Spanning five decades, The Pillars of the Earth circulates around the town of Kingsbridge, as it witnesses the construction of a cathedral in 12th century England. There is Philip, prior of Kingsbridge, driven to “build the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has known.” There is Tom, a mason and architect, who returns from tragedy only to live a conflicted life. And there is Aliena, a lady whose secrets and power force her to nimbly navigate the ruthless world of ambition and greed. The Pillars of the Earth has history, suspense, love, revenge, ambition, sacrifice, tragedy and triumph. What more can you ask for in a book?

 

3. Atonement, by Ian McEwan
I cannot think of a novel that better captures the sweltering, lethargic days of summer that Ian McEwan’s Atonement. The first third of the novel introduces the three main characters—Robbie, Cecelia, and Briony—and stands witness to the fragmented events that unfurl over a single summer day…and of the devastating consequences of misinterpreting one assignation. Atonement moves over the years—through World War II and beyond—and delivers a tragically beautiful commentary on the nature of jealousy, regret, memory, and the nature of Story.

 

4. The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins
Forget the Twilight-saga and the other breeds of paranormal YA fiction. If you’re tired of vampires and angels—yet you still love that hint of the extraordinary—check out Suzanne Collins’s The Hunger Games. The novel takes place in an alternative version of America (called Panem), where states no longer exist and the land is divided into 12 districts. Every year, the Capitol hosts a televised event called The Hunger Games, as a means to keep the twelve districts under control. Each district sends one boy and one girl to the Games, and while the rules and terrain might change from year to year, the contestants know that they must kill or be killed. The Hunger Games provides a fast-paced, gripping novel that is impossible to put down. Collins has created a dazzling and fresh world with her Panem, and she blends futuristic fiction with suspense and romance. Moreover, The Hunger Games throws into question the ethics of war and media, notions of sacrifice, and the affect of violence upon children. One of the best books I have read all year.
You might also enjoy: The Uglies, by Scott Westerfeld and Lord of the Flies, by William Golding

 

5. Something Borrowed, by Emily Giffin
I usually do not read chick lit, yet Emily Giffin is an exception. She crafts delightful and heart-warming stories that still prove satisfying. Her fifth novel was just released (The Heart of the Matter), but if you haven’t read her work, pick up a copy of Something Borrowed. What if—on your thirtieth birthday—you had too much to drink and slept with your best friend’s fiancé? Worse, what if you have been secretly in love with him and there is a possibility that he loves you in return? Not only is Something Borrowed a delicious romance, but it also highlights the often up-and-down relationship between best friends. This is a story whose heroine decides to take the front seat—for the first time in her life—and of the freedom and heartache that accompanies it.

 

6. Mister Pip, by Lloyd Jones
You cannot pretend to read a book. Your eyes will give you away. So will your breathing. A person entranced by a book simply forgets to breathe. The house can catch alight and a reader deep in a book will not look up until the wallpaper is in flames.
For those who enjoy philosophy and literature, the exquisite Mister Pip is a must-read. Lloyd Jones’s novel was short-listed for the Booker Prize in 2007 and trails the life of Mr. Watts, the only white man who chooses to stay behind on a tropical island, shattered by war. In a ruined schoolhouse, Mr. Watts begins to share the story of Great Expectations with the children and teaches the students the strength of imagination. The masterful use of Dickens within Mister Pip is an almost exhaustive experience, so poignantly has Jones written his tale. This book is a testament to the power of narrative. At 256 pages, Mister Pip is the perfect novel to slip into your beach bag (or purse) and read at your leisure.

 

7. Oryx and Crake, by Margaret Atwood
Chill down with this creepy, alternative reality by Margaret Atwood. When I was in New York last week, I perused my friend’s personal library and came across Oryx and Crake. From the first page, you are introduced to a strange, post-apocalyptic world that has seen the terrifying extremes of technology. I brought the book to the beach, which felt weird. It is hardly a typical summer read, but if you’re looking for a chilling, futuristic tale, Oryx and Crake will fully deliver.

 

8. Death on the Nile, by Agatha Christie
My summer cannot exist without Agatha Christie. Ever since I was eleven-years old, I sought for used copies of Christie’s novels and consumed them with a zeal that probably frightened my mother. Then I discovered the Agatha Christie section at Powells Bookstore, and my world forever changed. Agatha Christie is my guilty pleasure. One of the best aspects of her novels is the length; you can read one in an afternoon. When I fancy an old-fashioned murder mystery, I tuck an Agatha Christie book into my back pocket and head to the park. (Or the nearest armchair.) Death on the Nile is merely one amongst dozens that I would recommend. Written in 1938, Egypt and the Nile still had that thrilling sense of the exotic. It seems to aptly suit the warm, lazy days of summer. Other Agatha Christie novels I recommend: The Secret Adversary, Hickory Dickory Death, Cards on the Table, They Came to Baghdad, And Then There Were None, The ABC Murders.

 

9. Swann’s Way, by Marcel Proust
I return to Swann’s Way each summer. I have yet to finish the novel because it is easy to drown in Proust’s loquacious language. I would never recommend reading Proust all at once. I like to consume Proust, much as one does a decadent dessert. Lazy summer days provide the perfect environment to nibble on Proust a little bit at a time. And with sentences such as this, it is no wonder: “What delighted me was the asparagus, steeped in ultramarine and pink, whose tips, delicately painted with little strokes of mauve and azure, shade off imperceptibly down to their feet—still soiled though they are from the dirt of their garden bed—with an iridescence that is not of this earth.” Needlessly wordy? Perhaps. But for me, Proust provides a beautiful interplay of language. Lovers of words will enjoy Swann’s Way, if only for Proust’s slow, delicate treatment of the written word.

 

10. The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien
Return to your childhood with J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit. Dragons, trolls, golems and, of course, hobbits. Bilbo Baggins must journey to the Smokey Mountain and slay the ferocious dragon that threatens Middle Earth. The Hobbit offers an escape to a magical world while still providing meaty themes of courage, resourcefulness, and the pursuit of discovering oneself.

 

11. Alice I Have Been, by Melanie Benjamin
The world experienced Carroll-craze this past spring with Tim Burton’s film rendition of Alice in Wonderland. Melanie Benjamin’s novel, Alice I Have Been, looks to the girl who inspired Lewis Carroll’s trippy tale of mad hatters, tea parties, and cheshire cats. Alice I Have Been is historical fiction, yet provides an interesting faux-biography if Alice Liddell had decided to chronicle her life and the ways in which one book—one character—shadowed her for the rest of her days.

 

12. Gone with the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell
I first read Gone with the Wind in high school, and I fell in love with Scarlet O’Hara and Rhett Butler. I loved to hate them, for they are truly despicable characters. Yet they are human and placed in one of the most turbulent time periods for the United States—the Civil War. Nothing encapsulates the heat of summer more than the passionate love affair of Scarlet and Rhett. And who doesn’t want a bit of the South during summertime? Do not let the 1,037 pages deter you. If you haven’t read Gone with the Wind yet, do it. Seriously.

 

13. Special Topics in Calamity Physics, by Marisha Pessl
I still cannot decide if I admire or hate this book. I will leave the final decision to you. Meet Blue van Meer. Miss van Meer is overwhelmingly intelligent but friendless. So when she enters an elite high school, she awkwardly finds her way into an eccentric clique, headed by the vibrant and equally eccentric teacher, Hannah. What then follows is a disastrous senior-year, murder, and betrayal. The book can appear self-important, showy and intellectual for the sake of being smart. Yet the mysterious aspects woven throughout Calamity Physics hold your attention, as does the quirky—and sometimes infuriating—cast of characters. Fair warning: if you do not like abrupt or seemingly unfulfilled endings, save yourself the time and not read this book. But if you’re looking for something a shade different—a twinge of the weird—then give Calamity Physics a try.

 

14. One Day, by David Nicholls
Admittedly, I have not read this novel yet. But after the first chapter I was hooked. I need to get my hands on a copy of David Nicholls’s One Day and vanish to the beach for a solid weekend. The novel starts in 1988, the year in which Dexter Mayhew and Emma Morley met for the first time. They only spend one day together, but over the next 20 years, they cannot stop thinking about one another. The book traces their relationship – as they live their individual lives – on the same day, each day, for 20 years. The Library Journal described One Day as “A coming-of-age story for all of us who might still be wondering what we want to be when we grow up.”
You might also enjoy: Juliet, Naked, by Nick Hornby.

 

superberry power

In the midst of hot summer weather, I find myself craving ice cream. Normally I’m not an ice cream person, but there is something about sticky, 90-degree heat that produces an irrational desire within me to purchase a pint of Ben & Jerry’s Chocolate Fudge Brownie and dig in with a spoon. Only problem is that the satisfaction is extremely temporary. Later, after the effects of mega-sugar have passed through my brain and veins, I wish I had opted for something healthier. Something for which my body could thank me most heartily and still appeases my tastebuds.

So I turn to berries. Summertime is the greatest season for fresh fruit, and this summer I’m having a love affair with blueberries. Most all of us know that blueberries are our health-conscious friends. Chock-full of antioxidants, the violet-blue berries deliver more than scrumptious taste. The antioxidants help protect your body from free radicals, not to mention the superberries are low-calorie and high in fiber. Providing vitamins E and C, magnesium, and potassium, blueberries have been shown to detoxify your body and boost your immune system. Blueberries are even kind to the brain, assisting memory and other such neuro-functions. (Check it out: ‘Researching a Blueberry/Brain Power Connection.’ Tufts University Health and Nutrition Letter, March 2001.)

A few nights ago I picked through the four blueberry shrubs in my backyard, their branches weighing down with dozens of plump, little berries. It was more of a chore than a treat (any who have manually picked berries know this feeling), and I decided to do something sweet with them afterward. After experimenting with recipes, I came up with this berry-peach smoothie. Complete with blueberries, yogurt and wheat germ, your body releases a satisfied sigh of ‘thank you’ after drinking. It’s like a spa treatment for your insides

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
peach-berry super smoothie

1.5 cups blueberries
.5 cup blackberries
1 whole peach, sliced
.5 cup lowfat plain (or vanilla) yogurt
splash of orange juice
1 tbsp wheat germ
ice

Using a blender, crush the ice with a splash of orange juice. Add berries, peach slices, yogurt and wheat germ, blend until smooth. For a smoother smoothie, add more juice. Now drink up—your body will thank you.