Ummm… maybe high impact glamouris what I really meant to say.
Photo taken from Tracy’s new Website (see link at bottom of page).
Tracy is someone I met in Palm Springs last year and I’m happy that she’s become a friend. Needless to say, Tracy stands out from any crowd and has a multitude of talents to her credit. There’s almost nothing that she cannot accomplish. She’s also a gracious hostess. I find her inspiring.
And earlier this week she launched a new website that lists all of her creative ventures and adventures. To name a few.…if you’re looking for a cool place to stay in Palm Springs you might consider the ART Hotel, Tiki Hotel or Tiki House that she personally designed.
For now, I thought it would be perfect to share a tidbit of information taken from her actual website. At the bottom of this page you can go directly to the website where you’ll find everything you need to know.
Taken from Tracy’s website:
The creative mind behind brands such as SalonTea, Tracy Stern Shoes, Tea & Co. and a whole lot more, Tracy Turco – formerly Tracy Strern – is an artist, designer, author, hotelier, entrepreneur and style icon residing in the midcentury mecca of Palm Springs. As an interior designer she has brought her touch to numerous stylish residences and businesses, as well as vacation homes and colorful boutique hotels such as the Tiki House, Art Hotel and Tiki Hotel in Palm Springs, not to mention her own home decor collection.
Tracy also attended numerous Paris fashion house shows as well, regularly seen front row dressed by luminaries such as Emanuel Ungaro and Guy Laroche to name but a few. She was voted ‘Best Dressed New Yorker’ five years in a row by the respected Avenue magazine, and has also featured on style-driven TV shows such as Bravo’s ‘Mad Fashion’.
Tracy’s shoe line came into being when she created a patented design for interchangeable uppers on a shoe giving multiple shoes with just one pair.
From there the Tracy Stern Shoes line took off internationally, selling to destinations such as Japan, Russia, Paris and Italy. It was equally popular with celebrities around the world including the likes of Paris Hilton, Jessica Simpson and Lindsay Lohan.
Didn’t I tell you she was inspiring? For more go to:
Canadian Thanksgiving is this coming Monday, October 12th. With whomever you decide to celebrate with, be it friends or family in your small group – here is an easy and delicious little recipe to add to your dinner. Or; just have them for breakfast or afternoon tea.
photo: d. king This plate belonged to my grandmother.
I used Wensleydale cheese only because I was looking for a good way to use up this cheese which is one of my least favourites, and I love cheese. This type of cheese is not easy to spread on crackers as it crumbles and it has a slightly sweet taste. However it’s awesome in this recipe. You can also use aged cheddar or a combo of cheddar/parmesan. I bet Gruyère would be good too. This recipe was supposed to be scones but I think they turn out more like biscuits. The lavender pepper is a nice added touch and something I’ll continue to use.
Cheese Biscuits with Lavender Pepper
Ingredients
1¾ cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
5 Tablespoons cold butter, cubed
¾ to 1 cup buttermilk
1 cup shredded *Wensleydale (the one without cranberries) or other cheese
1 ½ teaspoons dried, culinary lavender flowers (or use 1 teaspoon fresh lavender flowers)
1 tsp. **Lavender Pepper
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
In a shallow mixing bowl sift together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and lavender pepper.
Add the cubed butter and cut into the flour using a pastry cutter or a fork until butter is about the size of small peas.
Stir in the buttermilk, a quarter of a cup at a time, until it forms a wet dough. Stir in the cheese until completely combined.
Scoop onto a baking sheet by large spoonfuls and bake 12 to 15 minutes until tops are golden brown.
photo: d. king. Adding red chili pepper spread is yummy.
*Fun Facts: According to the official website of the Wensleydale Creamery in Hawes, a.k.a. the company that produces Wensleydale Cheese, the first people to make this particular dairy delight were French Cistercian monks back in the 12th century. After arriving in Wensleydale and the nearby surrounds, they set about making their cheese, albeit with ewe’s milk rather than the cow’s milk typical today. I say Ewwww!
Wallace (of Wallace and Gromit fame) is an advocate of a good hunk of Wensleydale, but did you know that the Aardman Animations shorts helped revive the company back in the 1990s? It’s true! The brand was floundering, but animator Nick Park’s (coincidental) decision to namedrop Wensleydale Cheese helped boost sales. You can now even get Wensleydale Cheese wrapped in Wallace and Gromit branded packaging.
Another fun fact: I never watched Wallace and Gromit – but I think this marketing ploy was genius.
**To make lavender pepper combine black peppercorns with lavender flowers (half and half) and grind together using a clean coffee grinder or herb grinder.
The lavender works surprisingly well with pepper, offering a flowery note that stands up to the peppery bite without the bitterness. Also good to use on pork, chicken or beef.
Today marks the last day of the Vancouver International Film Festival with a short review on the last film I watched.
It’s also the day of the first vice-presidential debate of 2020 and the day I start baking again.
Right now I have a banana walnut loaf in the oven and I’ve finished baking the most delicious lavender pepper cheese scones. I’ll share that recipe with you soon because I know you’ll love it, and when you find out how easy they are to make it’s sure to become a staple. But right now…
From the Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF): Contemporary World Cinema
Hammamet – Italian (French thrown in on occasion) with English subtitles.
The question is “what the hell was going on in Italy during a time many in government were perceived as being indistinguishable from the Mafia?”
Italy revisited – last night I watched a movie about an Italian historical leader that I did not know anything about and at first was reluctant to watch. Bettino Craxi was the leader of the Italian Socialist Party (1976-1993) and Prime Minister of Italy from 1983 till 1987.
I now understand why this semi-biographical drama was a box office hit at home in Italy. The drama directed by festival favourite Gianni Amelio’s (La Tenerezza, Open Doors, Stolen Children) traces Craxi’s final months with his family at his oasis villa in Hammamet, Tunisia, where he fled to avoid prison for crimes of bribery and corruption.
Hmmm….bribery and corruption. While not as prominent a thing in Canadian, influence peddling via campaign contributions from corporate sources definitely remains a thing in US politics.
But let’s get back to the Mediterranean, shall we? The scenery is lovely as you can imagine (Tunisia, Italy), however, I give this one three *** out of five stars…if only because I unfortunately did not find it exciting or as interesting as I had hoped. Others (especially those of Italian heritage) may appreciate it more.
You still have a little more time to order tickets at:
MY REMBRANDT and MARCEL DUCHAMP: the Art of the Possible – part of Vancouver International Film Festival’s (VIFF) Music/Art/Design series.
MY REMBRANDT
This documentary lets us in on how the materially privileged, despite possible pretenses to the contrary, lust over rare “objets d’art.” Does their material desire to possess rare works of art amount to little more than the fleeting privilege of being able to flaunt their worldly status and/or smarts to others, or is it for national glorification? Perhaps both.
It successfully parts the privacy curtain and offers us a peek behind it into the lives of Europeans with old wealth, an American with new wealth and big state-sponsored art gallery curators in Holland and France and elsewhere.
The idea is simply that the documentary isn’t just an art film about Rembrandt paintings aimed at the art crowd. It’s a documentary that not only offers insight into the ruthlessness that can play out in the high stakes international art world when it comes to finding and buying masterpieces; it also offers insight into Europe’s first selfies, in that only the wealthy could afford to commission artists to render their portraits for posterity.
From the VIFF Catalogue:
One of the “old masters,” Rembrandt van Rijn is considered one of the greatest painters of all time, and in the elite world of art collectors, his work is – almost – priceless. Oeke Hoogendijk’s captivating and elegant doc is both an enchanting glimpse behind the curtain of this privileged universe, and also a deep dive into an art mystery that rocked Rembrandt fans across the globe.
From a Scottish duke’s personal affection for a coveted portrait, to an American couple who have tried to get their hands on as many of the artist’s paintings as possible, Hoogendijk reveals what “my” Rembrandt means to each – nostalgia, heritage, beauty, obsession and, for many, the satisfaction of exclusive ownership. My Rembrandt also details the heated legal battles that proprietorship can entail. The film follows the youngest Jan Six (whose forefather Rembrandt painted), an art dealer convinced that he has found two previously undiscovered Rembrandts – a bold claim that, like everything in the art world, doesn’t come without a price.
Marcel Duchamp: The Art of the Possible
What makes a work of art “art”? Good question. Should it not be in the eye of the beholder?
Marcel Duchamp, who was regarded as “the godfather of modern conceptual art”, challenges this question. You might say he pushed the limitations of the definition of art by focusing on the observer of the art.
Born in the late 1800s in a small town in Normandy, Duchamp would go on to almost single-handedly revolutionize the art world with his fascination with the “fourth dimension” and developments in science, technology and mathematics. His unusual works were initially shunned and misunderstood by the mainstream, but later incorporated into pioneering movements like Cubism and abstract expressionism.
From the VIFF Catalogue:
The Art of the Possible is a mesmerising account of Duchamp’s life and work, showing how his radical rejection of 19th century ideals paved the way for innovation in dance, literature, music and the visual arts. An impressive array of experts and researchers bring Duchamp’s legacy to the fore, as archival footage reveals a charismatic – at times cheeky – visionary who was light years ahead of his time.
Marina Abramovic and Jeff Koons are among the artists and experts celebrating his life and work.
Presented by The Audain Foundation
Of these two documentaries, I much preferred “My Rembrandt”
Until October 7th you can order tickets to stream online with VIFF Connect:
Be like a Tree. Stay grounded, keep growing and know when to let go – unknown
So it’s October already. Happens quickly doesn’t it? The time of year when the trees begin to shed their leaves and it’s such a beautiful sight to behold. As Vincent Van Gogh once said “If you truly love nature you will find beauty everywhere.”Speaking of which…
There’s much more to trees than meets the eye
Last night I watched an educational documentary (German with English subtitles) about The Secret Lives of Trees – what they feel and how them communicate. Part of Vancouver International Film Festival’s (VIFF) Impact series for 2020.
In 2015, Peter Wohlleben, a German forester, published a popular book titled “The Hidden Life ofTrees” that became a best‐seller.
Life, Death and Regeneration…
In this intriguing documentary, Peter Wohlleben shares his deep love of woods and forests and explains his observations and presents the science behind the secret and previously unknown life of trees and their communication abilities.
We find out…
Much like human families, tree parents live together with their children, communicate with them, and support them as they grow, sharing nutrients with those who are sick or struggling and creating an ecosystem that mitigates the impact of extremes of heat and cold for the whole group. As a result of such interactions, trees in a family or community are protected and can live to be very old. In contrast, solitary trees, like street kids, have a tough time of it and in most cases die much earlier than those in a group.
In closing…
As Wohlleben says, a happy forest is a healthy forest, and he believes that eco-friendly practices not only are economically sustainable but also benefit the health of our planet and the mental and physical health of all who live on Earth.
From the VIFF Catalogue:
A forest is a super-organism, like an ant colony. Trees are interconnected, they communicate with each other, and even share community health care. Best-selling author Peter Wohlleben is our environmental tour guide for this eye-opening introduction to a new philosophy of forestry. We meet the oldest known tree in the world, a 10,000 year old Swedish spruce; burned out pine farms; succulent deciduous woods; there’s even a cameo from David Suzuki. You will never look at a tree the same way again.
I give this one three stars *** (interesting knowledge but slow moving).
because Fall Fashion makes everything better
And earlier this week she launched a new website that lists all of her creative ventures and adventures. To name a few.…if you’re looking for a cool place to stay in Palm Springs you might consider the ART Hotel, Tiki Hotel or Tiki House that she personally designed.
So it’s October already. Happens quickly doesn’t it? The time of year when the trees begin to shed their leaves and it’s such a beautiful sight to behold. As Vincent Van Gogh once said “If you truly love nature you will find beauty everywhere.” Speaking of which…
Girl Who Would be KING on Life, Style and INSPIRATION. 
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