How much is too much?

Recently I was hired to be the stylist commenting on Hue hosiery's Facebook page. I'm looking forward to talking about legwear fashion and keeping fans informed on what is happening with Hue. We plan to have give-aways, product announcements, designer updates and easy, chatty conversation about style, fashion, and in particular, legwear.

In doing the research about what is being said "out there" in web land about Hue, I feel like I'm maneuvering through a jungle of information. How much is too much? With the gazillion web sites and blogs commenting on fashion, how do you know if you're getting to the quality writing and reporting? I ran across the site, Alltop, that simply catalogs what they decided are "the best of," but that is very objective, isn't it? Honestly, I tend to fall back on the established reporting generated through trusted newspapers and periodicals. Perhaps I'm old fashioned (I'm sure no stylist should ever admit that!) but with few exceptions, there is a lot of what I call "clutter blogs" out there, messy, busy, confusing. Ironic, since fashion is suppose to be about good taste! I would say this is less so with travel blogs, but to be fair I haven't spent quite as much time researching. Don't get me wrong though, I'm still checking in with some favorite travel and style blogs. I think it is a matter of archiving and driving to what works for you, it takes time, but the internet has something for everyone!

Stratton Mountain Just Got Cooler

It’s always fun to see a celebrity when you’re out and about. Suddenly your grocery store gets way cooler, the restaurant you’re at becomes “the place to be” or that boutique you popped into is now tres fab. This past weekend we were skiing at Stratton Mountain and we saw Nina Garcia. She’s the savvy judge on Project Runway, formerly on Bravo, now it’s on Lifetime. Credit for spotting her in the base lodge amongst the throngs, goes to Jan Liverance, a Project Runway devotee, my friend, and Creative Director of At Peace Media. Jan and I managed to rubber neck in Nina’s direction in an effort to fully check her out unobtrusively, well sort of… My daughter kept staring trying to figure out whom I was whispering/mouthing about almost ruining our cover.

Nina was sporting (and I know you care) a mat silver Bogner jacket with black stretch pants that, we think, tucked into her boots. It’s silly but of course Stratton Mountain and skiing Vermont became that much cooler after seeing Nina! Jan has been skiiing at Stratton since the early 80s when the Stratton Mountain Boys, aka, the Austrian ski instructors, provided live musical entertainment on weekends in the bar of the base lounge! Jan and her partner were great guides to this rather large size (by east coast standards) mountain. Having a guide to “introduce” you to the mountain alleviates the stress you feel in trying to navigate your way through what could potentially be very scary terrain, terrifying yourself and your family!

I’m told that Martin Luther King weekend is the busiest ski weekend of the winter. Stratton was packed but its high speed, multi seat lifts did the job of moving the crowd up the mountain fairly quickly. While there were a few bottlenecks as runs converged, several times during the weekend we found ourselves alone on a run. If they remake the song, “These are a few of my favorite things,” to “These are a few of my favorite things–skiing,” being alone (with your group) on a run should be in the chorus. The rest of the song should about the romance of winter recreating at its best; the great outdoors, plenty of snow, comfortable temperature, beautiful views, sounds of swishing and laughter and sipping hot cocoa.

Momma’s Got a Brand New Vest!

Actually it’s not really new. I bought it in Verona, Italy this past October and I’ve been wearing it to death, but its not dying, in fact this little faux fur friend is staying in shape and in style.

Most of my travel colleagues where taking the prerequisite visit to Juliet’s balcony which can be found in Verona. I had already seen it, twice! So I opted to drop into Upim the Italian equivalent of Target, without so many house wares, and more fashionable fashion. That is where I grabbed my favorite fall addition that goes with everything!

We’ve had a cold snap here and the vest works well under most of my coats. Ranging from shades of cream to dark brown, it goes with brown, grey, black, tan, light pink and today I wore it with bright red cords and a charcoal turtleneck. It reminds me of Italian street chic and makes smile.

Upim (Unico Prezzo Italiano Milano) is an Italian institution with well over 300 stores. Founded in 1928 it is partly franchise owned and only exists in Italy. I had about fifteen minutes to shop and managed to get the vest, a grey knit poncho/shrug for a friend, and some batteries. The store in Verona, just around the corner from Juliet’s balcony, is cleanly designed. One a quick look on the ground floor and I instantly knew where “my stuff” could be found and I moved in for the kill. And the kill wasn’t too costly, so it didn’t “kill” me!

To me going to Italy without going to Upim, is like going to Italy without eating gelato!

Skiing With The Fam.

We spent the last several days in the Poconos skiing Shawnee Mountain. I’m sure most seasoned skier are not too impressed, thinking something like, “big woop, Cath,” but let me tell you it was a very doable mountain for beginning skiers, which my husband, daughter and son are. I’ve been wanting to write a story about skiing at a big, challenging, mega ski resort out west and how it caters to beginning skiers as well as intermediate/advanced, but that hasn’t materialized, so I did what most do when introducing their family to skiing–start small, low and slow–small mountain, low elevation (not steep), and go slow.

Shawnee is small, contained and easy to navigate. All ten lifts have beginner runs down. We didn’t try their ski school but it looked well organized, especially the Ski Wee program that is ranked nationally. The lessons I saw in progress while on the mountain looked skill building and uncrowned even though it was vacation week. The lodge is nothing fancy, central fireplace, Formica picnic bench tables, and typical fast food. We liked our onion

rings enough to fight over them, however. Always “watching” the ski funds, we brought our lunch the second and third day and I would recommend families do the same, perhaps augmenting their “basket” with some fried fair from the snack bar.

One very important tip: Get there early. The lifts open at 8am and at that time there are no lines to purchase tickets, rent equipment or get on lifts. You can get yourself situated with a locker (Although many people just left stuff on tables and shelves.) and there is plenty of room to put on those gosh darn Frankenstein boots! After 11am the lines looked insufferable.

My "List" Just Got a Little Shorter!

For me blogging this month has been like sending out Christmas cards–I really want to do it, but I haven't yet. So to take one more thing off my list, I'm signing off through the New Year. I'm looking forward to lots of holiday cheer, celebrating His coming, and diving into those domestic hobbies I love. Of course The Stylist in me has embraced the spirit–I've bought some sparkly stuff, sequined black pants, to be specific.

In 2-10 I'll be flexing my travel-writing, fashion-styling muscle as I develop this blog, dress clients old and new, network with fellow writers and editors, and followup on a few great "possibilities." I look forward to reporting on new destinations and "style-to-go."

Thanks to all of you that have dropped by MyStylist to read. My hope is that it remains a fun and valuable diversion in your busy lives.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year,

Cathie

Day Tripping from Cap Maison in St. Lucia

Now this sounds like a great vacation side trip, especially for a girlfriend’s getaway:

Wake up in a villa at Cap Maison in St. Lucia. Next, saunter down to the restaurant perched above the sea at the northern most tip of the island. Here, the Caribbean and Atlantic meet. Waves and dark coffee say, “Good morning.” Take Cap Maison’s motor yacht to Martinique. Arrive there about 9:30am for breakfast. Discover Fort de France as you shop Parisian style at the duty free boutiques (Chanel, Hermes) or “go native” and explore the local markets. Return to Cap Maison in time for an afternoon cocktail, poolside or on the beach, made with seasonal fresh fruit. Or, keep with the theme of the day and partake in the chef’s selection of French wine and cheeses. Take a nap, or perhaps read, back at the villa, again poolside. Yes. The villa comes with a pool…

Cap Maison reminds me of a combination of architecture you might find while cruising the Mediterranean­–a little bit of Morocco meets Greece. Throw in some Southern Spain, add a little Malta. However the overall flavor of the resort puts you in Mexico. This may sound hodge-podge, but it works. The buildings are stucco, stark white, and their edges curve and slope caressing the sky. They say lack of sun can make you depressed. I wonder if boxy shaped architecture puts you in a bad mood too. Cap Maison would be the antidote for both.

The resort opened last year in time to celebrate British Airway’s direct service to St. Lucia. Jet Blue now has non-stop service from JFK too. It was the dream child of the Goblat family who lives on premises and wanted to parlay their adjacent landholdings into, “…the best of all the resorts we (they) ever stayed at.” The resort is comprised of 22, one, two and three bedroom villas. There are 49 keys; so guests have the option of staying in a private, adjacent bedroom to one of the villas. It’s deluxe and pretty much everything you could want from a swank resort.

My sunshiny moments…

• Wading in the roof deck pool of “My Villa” with views of the resort in the foreground and the sea in the background.

• Taking a sunset cruise on the resort’s motor yacht. (They offer a “Stay and Sail” package­–cruise the Islands for three to four days and then stay at the resort.)

• Eating the homemade shortbread cookies delivered to my room upon arrival. They killed me.

• Bobbing in an ocean warmer than most pools. You could see your toes through the clear water and the beach cove setting reminded me of the make-out scene from, Here to Eternity.

• Sipping a passion fruit margarita that truly was the best I’ve ever had in my life. E-v-e-r.

• Dining…waves below, the soft, smooth taste of a lovely Chardonnay matching the smooth feeling of my skin post massage (Yes, they do have a spa.) And the food; we began with lobster consommé, then were presented with a Tapas plate of duck roulade and foie gras, but I can’t tell you about the last tasty morsel because I put my pen down to savor the food and the experience!

More East Winds...

Dinner at East Winds is elegantly served with proper and traditional cutlery. I appreciated my fish knife and fork. I warned you about fussy service...

The only Steinway grand piano on the island is at East Winds and it is a fitting addition to the low-key, high taste, experience. Like the single camellia decorating the table, the Steinway accompaniment gives the atmosphere an element of simplicity and ease. You can literally hear the lapping sea beneath the music, coupled with the wine, linens and a candlelight dining, you feel like floating away! The palm frond roof overhanging this large round “beach hut” dining room, known as the Flamboyant Room is, to say the least, ideal–the food, fresh, flavorful and uncomplicated.

A rondoval room is a hexagonal shaped room. According to GM Leach, they’re found in East Africa and a few other West Indian Islands. East Wind’s rondovals are situated in the middle, low-point of the property, hugged by the botanical landscape. We were told that they often are blessed with a soft breeze. Nice, because these rooms do not have air conditioning. Nevertheless, they were my favorite of the three room categories East

Winds has to offer. And they were the least expensive! Until Christmas week these rooms are $470 per night based on double occupancy. Considering, this is an all-inclusive resort, with a boutique hotel feel, this is a very good value. The 30 rooms throughout the resort share a similar décor–tasteful, simple, with a touch of “stylish beach cottage” thrown in.

The Bamboo Lounge was the hippest room at East Winds. Guest can enjoy this lounge for evening cocktails or Champaign or a morning coffee. Again, it is a round room with built in “coves” for seating. The aqua and coral color combination of the upholstery fabric as well as the ratan furnishing work together to create an ideal contemporary “West Indian” design experience. Sit here, and you relax. Walk out to the beach and you escape...