"Tim Gunn's Fashion Bible"- A Coffee Table Book for Fashionistas

 

PIC OF DAY

 

 



Let us begin by discussing the co-author of this book, someone named Ada Calhoun. I only mention this name because I suspect that this is the person who really wrote this book.

The book jacket tells us Ms. Calhoun collaborated with Mr. Gunn on other books and was a noted journalist in the fashion field.

She, with the help of Tim Gunn, compiled, designed and published a great coffee table book.

First, about Tim Gunn.

This book spends quite a bit of word power praising Mr. Gunn for his many successes and prowess in the fashion field.

And, indeed, I know Gunn from many years as a mentor on Project Runway on the Lifetime channel.

I also know Gunn, ahem, from his very failed stint on some awful afternoon show called "Revolution". Revolution was a show about women who make over their lives, mostly by losing massive amounts of weight meant to impress us all to hell into doing the same.

Funny how that debacle was never mentioned in this book.

The problem with this show-"Revolution"- is that it was a show full of itself, boring to the max as it lectured women across the fruited plains on what to eat, what to wear, how to walk, how to talk.

It was just such an excruciating show to watch that I was fascinated that anyone would think an afternoon show filled with finger-pointing and boring lectures would succeed.

I will never forget, one day, Tim's declaration that he hadn't had sex in some 20 years or another ridiculous number.

The audience went "boo hoo" but I sat out in TV land and first, this was a bit too much information and second, why so long? And third, I must throw it out there, was it with a male or a female?

Still and so, Gunn is very knowledgeable on all things fashion and this book was a darn good browse.

The books goes through the history of fashion, with intriguing pictures and with very good narrative . Tim inserts his own fashion advice as concerns skit lengths and wearing bow ties and these tidbits are worth the read.

This book is a coffee table book however, at least for the vast majority of folks like me with only a passing interest in fashion.

Wanna be fashion designers will love it. Note to all future Project Runway contestants, READ THIS BOOK!

There will be a quiz on it later.

TO ORDER Gunn's Book




 


Drivel: Measurements

Work has begun on our garage remodel. Well, actually I guess it began a few weeks ago when our two old icky garage doors (two single doors on a double-car garage) got replaced by one, state-of-the-art, oddly brown, with sunburst pattern windows, rollup garage door.

That opens and closes on command.

I - can you believe it? - actually had my car IN THE GARAGE for the first time in twenty years.

Briefly.

After the doors got replaced, the window in the side wall was replaced and we have ordered vertical blinds for it. Now the rest of the work is happening, and will likely take several weeks or more. Today's work is ripping out the old cabinets and plywood, in preparation for insulating, adding electrical, changing some fixtures, and painting it white. After that, we're hoping to get the floor done (as well as fix the exterior concrete) and after *that* new cabinetry goes in.

All of this requires measurements. Measure the old garage doors. Measure the old window. Measure the entire garage for cabinetry. Even the exterior concrete got measured.

In the spirit of it all, I find that I, too, need to be aware of measurements. My doctor says I need to measure my blood sugar levels, twice a day. Since about a month ago I have been considered diabetic, a casualty in the American lifestyle war.

I wasn't shocked. My mom is diabetic, and if you remember my eyesight tanked. I had intensely blurred vision which is a common symptom of high blood sugar levels. For several weeks I was having trouble focusing on my computer screen or anything I was writing by hand. For awhile, I took my eye doctor's suggestion and wore a pair of reader glasses over my regular ones so I could function at work. My new glasses arrived and I found I cannot see clearly through them for distance. Apparently eyesight can change - a lot - when you're diabetic, especially at first when you're still learning to regulate those measurements. Which I am. No insulin shots, luckily; just pills, and my levels are responding quite well to them.

I am thinking of seeing an endocrinologist to better understand what my options are and how best to handle this new development. I would like to control it through diet, exercise, and pills as well as I can.

The hardest thing for me so far has been the requirement to eat all three meals every day. I had been controlling the measurement of my weight (down a little over 30 pounds since the beginning of 2011) by having a light snack in place of either breakfast or lunch, but now I have to eat them both.

I must admit, though, that I took great pleasure in telling someone at work that I had to miss their lunchtime meeting because I'm under doctor's orders not to miss lunch.

Michelle
The Desk Drawer writer's exercise list

Ending With a Smile