(Sorry about the scan…)
The last thing that I need is another magazine… especially after subscribing to “Q: Quintessential Style.”

If you haven’t run across one of the scarce few copies that are in Barnes and Noble, the digital edition is available on-line. Or you can subscribe, as I did. The magazine is invaluable as a reference source. Essentially, it is about recapturing the glamour of a bygone era by using those long-ago A-list names as templates for choosing new pieces to suit your look. And yes, men’s clothing does make an appearance, although not on the same scale as the women’s. But this is a great way to cultivate your taste in “fashion” without sacrificing style.

Claire Watson, puts it this way in an article on 1st Dibs: “As contemporary fashion becomes more homogenous, historical fashion is only going to become more important.”

(image of the Porter Music Box from: Music House Museum)

I assume that you all have heard of Pandora. Not she of the too curious bent, but rather the website.

In this fable, it turns out that Pandora has a music box.

This is a brilliant piece of work by a team who obviously believes in the power of the internet to bring joy. Here’s the premise: sign up for free, create a “station” by adding artists or genres of music and Pandora reaches out to grab other artists that fit the profile. Then you listen to the wonderfulness and marvel that someone has managed to create the best music station in the world. (That would be you.) Want to program the perfect dinner party? Hook the laptop to the stereo and key in Bill Evans. You’ll find that Cannonball Adderly, Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Bud Powell come along for the evening. And then you’ll get some other folks (Bill Charlap, George Shering and a bunch of others who are new to me) who stop by to jam.

Of course, you can pay to be an ad free listener and support the project, too. That’s going to run you the princely sum of USD$36 a year. About $90 cheaper than my previous recommendation of Live365’s VIP membership.

Let’s here it for the Music Genome Project®. Perfect for your dinner party this weekend. Log on and be amazed before it all gets caught up in the “how do we tax it?” loop. A more elegant or easier solution to sound designing your environment has yet to be invented.

(”Maybe a ficus?” image: www.istockphoto.com)
There is a wonderful post entitled Less is More at The House of Beauty and Culture. It sprang from a response to a hypothetical question posed by Decorno in her post “Decorating for Beginners.” Both the original post and especially HOBAC’s response are worth a read. HOBAC amortizes the cost of some seriously stylish furnishings that would set any new graduate head and shoulders above the crowd. And as she gently reminds me “… this is a loose recipe - make substitution where appropriate according to resources and needs.”

Mrs. E.’s grandmother made a point of skimping on a few luxuries while she and her husband were attached to the Embassy in London following the war. She bought a Regency silver teaset, for example, by placing it on lay-away for a year.

The ever-frugal Mrs. E and I have done the same thing with a few antiques that are scattered around the joint like so many heirlooms (well, I suppose they were somebody’s heirlooms…) Sometimes it’s best to do without until you can find exactly what you’re looking for. During Mrs. E.’s grad school days at Georgetowne, our guests sat on a futon (or the floor) and ate at the coffee table. No one seemed to mind.

I once waited for five years to find the exact style of club chair that I coveted. And it has been much commented on (and loved) ever since. I think that it’s easier to buy something that’s right for you the first time than to have to get rid of things later.

A final note. “Making do” always sparks creativity. Don’t underestimate the power of a good paint job, great music collection, low lighting and plenty of champagne for ambiance. A few second hand oriental carpets scattered around wouldn’t hurt either.