& The feeling that i'm falling further in love makes me shiver but in a good way.

Stephen Speaks - Out of my League.

Il fait beauuuuuuu. Genre, vraiment super beau !

Quasiment toute ma première semaine de vacances a été maussade & grise, mais le week-end a été superbemement ensoleillé, & ça me rend toute joyeuse.

Ce post ne sera pas long en blabla, il faut que je passe moins de temps sur le net pour réviser mon Bac Blanc à la rentrée, je n'ai rien commencé. ( Oui, je stresse ).

The weather is sooooo good. Like, very very good !

Almost my entire first week of holiday was gloomy but the last week-end was awesome, with a lot of sun. Makes me so happy.

I let you with some photos : my mum bought me that top during the sales, my new pair of shoes come from sales too, & also the skirt ! The bag is vintage, & the socks kind of wintage too ( they were mine when I was about 8 years old, lol ).

Pour la tenue du jour : ma Maman m'a acheté ce top en dentelle pendant les soldes chez Camaïeu, il est super beau mais il faut que je le retouche un peu, il est un poil trop grand ( pourtant c'est du 36 ...... ). Dessous, je porte un débardeur tout simple, noir, qui vient de Jennyfer ( HYPER pratique, je le met sous quasiement toutes mes fringues en Hiver, & quand j'ai des tee-shirts transparents ou en dentelle, c'est parfait ). Pour la jupe, achetée aux soldes chez H&M ; je l'adore. Les chaussures, une nouvelle paire que je ne vous avez pas encore montré qui vient également des soldes, je l'ai shoppée chez André lors de la dernière démarque. Le sac, vous l'aviez déjà vu, c'est du vintage déniché en friperie. Quand aux chaussettes, plus ou moins vintage puis que ce sont les miennes ... Quand j'avais à peu près 8 ans ! En fait, ce sont celles de ma communion :). & Je suis trop contente de les avoir retrouver, elles sont juste a-do-rables ♥. ( Non ? n__n" ).

Allez, je vous laisse avec les photos !

Skirt, ring, bracelet : H&M, top : Camaïeu, shoes : André, red bow ( in my hair ) : Claire's, belt : Mango, bag & socks : vintage, earings : Bijoux Brigitte.

[ 1 ] I made some chocolate muffins on Sunday :D. 

[ 2 ] The editorial of Monki magazine, this magazine is gorgeous ! 

[ 3 ] Some pages of the Monki magazine, & also a pic of my new bow ring, I love it !

[ 4 ] The french Glamour of Avril, featuring Jennifer Aniston. Awesome issue.

[ 5 ] The french Glamour give a little pad on its Avril issue, really cute.
   Music bonus : 

The Skankaroos - Ska Music.    LOVE YA ! ♥.  

Crystal à Milan

Jeudi, fin de matinée j'ai décollé pour Milan.

Arrivée sous la pluie, mais wow la surprise en arrivant à l'hôtel !

Le Nhow, magnifique.

J'ai été invitée avec d'autres bloggers : (Styleslicker, Wonderland Magazine, Allet Ohne Schminke, Fanfarella) pour le lancement de la nouvelle collection Crystal de la marque de lunettes Silhouette.

(La collection à voir ici : http://www.silhouette.com/crystals/).

Représentée par deux grands models : Nadja Auermann et Helena Christensen.

Après avoir chillé dans la chambre en dégustant un panini, je devais rejoindre les autres bloggeurs dans le hall à 19 heures pour une mise au point concernant la journée du lendemain.

Une fois nous être tous présentés autour d'un verre, nous avons dîné au resto de l'hôtel.

Que de bonnes surprises, les plats étaient exquis !

Pour commencer une assiette de pâtes à la crème, assaisonnée d'un filet de vinaigre balsamique (à tester le coup du vinaigre hein !).

Le fameux vin dont je vous ai parlé : Nero d'Avola. Magique.

Du veau, sauce champignons, accompagné d'un écrasé de pommes de terre et artichauts.

Et la grosse que je suis s'est jetée sur le buffet dessert, tiramisu et gâteau au chocolat pour clôturer le festin !

Une courte nuit de sommeil plus tard, nous nous sommes rendus au Visionnaire, une galerie d'art qui accueillait la marque Silhouette pour sa conférence de presse.

Accueillis par des petits gâteaux, jus de fruits et café.

Et des lunettes, forcément !

Nous nous sommes installés pour écouter Monsieur Aschauer-Martinelli, directeur de la marque, nous présenter la collection "Crystal" de Silhouette. "Une collection dédiée à tous les visages, toutes les occasions et toutes les poches".

Pour ceux qui ne connaissent pas la marque autrichienne, le créneau de Silhouette est la personnalisation des lunettes.
Toutes les couleurs pour les montures (qui sont des montures percées), même des motifs pour les plus extravagants. Pareil pour les verres, il y en a des différents en fonction des diverses formes de visages.

C'est ensuite au tour de Madame Li Edelkoort, experte en tendances, de nous faire tout un exposé sur ce qu'a voulu cibler la nouvelle collection.

Les couleurs des montures, la campagne publicitaire, ainsi que les vidéos doivent nous rappeler les éléments qui constituent Terre comme le sable, ou les rapports entre les hommes : la complémentarité, le conflit etc.

C'est ensuite les très attendues, Nadja Auermann et Helena Christensen qui sont montées sur scène ! Tonnerre d'applaudissements.

Fin de la conférence de presse, les journalistes se sont jetées sur elles !

Pendant ce temps-là, j'ai décidé d'essayer le fameux Virtual Mirror, application sur l'Iphone, qui permet d'essayer les différents modèles à partir d'une photo prise.

Plutôt convaincant, j'avoue !

Et enfin, à nous de pouvoir interviewer Nadja et Helena, nous avions cinq minutes, et nous étions six, faites le calcul !

Du coup, je n'ai pas pu poser toutes les questions que je voulais mais mon dictaphone posé par terre m'a permis d'enregistrer celles des autres également.

Petit temps d'attente dans le couloir.

Interview de Nadja Auermann

Pensez-vous qu'il est important pour une marque de lunettes de mettre en avant des émotions ? (évoqués dans l'exposé de Li Edelkoort)

Je pense que la vie tourne autour des émotions, on les sent, on les crée, on les provoque. Par exemple, en portant ces lunettes, il faut aussi avoir un sens de l'humour car il y a des modèles assez drôles bien qu'elles aient beaucoup de style. Tout, même une paire lunettes, provoque des émotions !

Un souvenir de la campagne publicitaire avec Helena ?

C'était bien de partager ce moment avec Helena. On a fait les vieilles classes ensemble, c'était l'occasion de discuter... Un joli moment... Rien d'incroyable, juste deux amies. Mais Helena pourra vous en dire plus !

On a fait beaucoup de choses ensemble, des défilés, des shootings, nous faisions partie de la même bande de filles.

Un avis sur les blogs et ceux qui les tiennent ?

Aujourd'hui le monde est très dynamique, d'autant plus avec internet. Les bloggers sont des journalistes, reporters, piliers de la communication.

Interview de Helena Christensen

Que pensez-vous de la collection Crystal de Silhouette ?

C'est un honneur d'avoir été choisie pour représenter une marque à la pointe de la technologie.

Je ne porte pas de lunettes par exemple mais je trouve beaucoup mieux de porter les lunettes de façon naturelle, sans les sentir peser sur votre visage. Puis qu'elles ne cachent pas votre regard.

Quels sont vos accessoires favoris ?

Je ne suis pas portée sur les accessoires, je porte le même sac depuis un an, et par exemple, bien que j'adore les bijoux, je n'en porte pas !

Comme les couleurs, j'en mets tout le temps.

Mais aujourd'hui, non, j'ai préféré le noir, pour mettre en valeur les lunettes.

Un mot sur la campagne publicitaire ?

La campagne avec Nadia était un bon moment. On a shooté avec son bébé de neuf mois. Et nous avions déjà bossé ensemble ! Ce qui est drôle également, c'est que j'avais également déjà travaillé avec le photographe.

Et pour finir, quelques questions à Monsieur Aschauer-Martinelli en vidéo :

Le temps d'une soirée et d'une demi-journée m'aura été nécessaire pour découvrir une marque, des compères (entendez bloggers) et trois personnalités ! Silhouette a fait les choses en grand et pour une première à Milan, j'en garderai un bon souvenir !

Heavenly gatekeeper in Portugal / MON 3-7-11 / 1982 question from Clash / Old advertising question from Clairol / Soliloquy question from Hamlet

Constructor: Mike Torch

Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium

THEME: Paper or plastic? — Theme answers are famous "___ OR ___" questions


Word of the Day: Oksana BAIUL (59A: Oskana ___, 1994 gold-medal skater) —

Oksana Serhiyivna Baiul (Ukrainian: Оксана Сергіївна Баюл) (born November 16, 1977) is a Ukrainian professional figure skater. She is the 1994 Olympic Champion in Ladies' Singles and 1993 World Champion. (wikipedia)

• • •

How weird—this should've been a superfast solve for me. I mean, I knew two of the theme answers cold, no crosses needed ("TO BE OR NOT TO BE," "SHOULD I STAY / OR SHOULD I GO"). But somehow I ended up fumbling stupidly around the grid, tripping over the keyboard, and particularly botching SAO PEDRO (went for PAULO based on the city and the fact that St. Paul is also biblical). Also thought "DOES SHE OR DOESN'T SHE?" was "IS SHE OR ISN'T SHE?," which, of course, didn't fit, but that didn't stop me from trying to make it. Also, this one had a lot of multi-word answers that just didn't come to me straight off: SOISEE, OWINGTO, FREEOF, OPTFOR. So, it was all pretty easy, but my grid navigation was clumsy, bordering on inept. Ended up with a typical Tuesday time. Still, I think this one was probably on the Easy side of a normal Monday, if only just. Clever idea. Solid Monday puzzle.



Theme answers:

• 17A: With 61-Across, 1982 question from the Clash ("SHOULD I STAY / OR SHOULD I GO?")
  
• 23A: With 54-Across, old advertising question from Clairol ("DOES SHE OR / DOESN'T SHE?")
  
• 37A: Soliloquy question from Hamlet ("TO BE OR NOT TO BE")
  
• 12D: With 46-Down, question from a 2000s game show ("DEAL OR NO DEAL?")
  

LIRAS (32A: Turkish money)—I didn't realize the plural had an "S." Is that different from the plural of the (former) Italian currency of the same name? Seems that in both the Italian and Turkish versions, an -S plural is acceptable as well as an -E. OK.

That's all. See you tomorrow.

Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld

P.S. The Youngstown Crossword Puzzle Tournament to benefit the Poland Public Library of Youngstown, OH will take place at the library this Saturday, Mar. 12, 2011, from 10:00am - 1:00pm. Fresh puzzles for the tournament provided by Will Shortz ahead of their NYT publication schedule. Get more info here.

[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter]

Then I think about Summer, all the beautiful times.

Les filles ( & les garçons ? ), j'ai besoin de vous.

Suuuuper besoin de vous.

Laissez-moi vous expliquer le truc rapidos.

J'ai une amie, Camie, qui va voir Taylor Swift en concert le 17 de ce mois, à Paris. Elle est super fan depuis super longtemps, & elle fait le décompte de ce concert depuis un moment déjà ; Taylor Swift est sa chanteuse préférée.

Il y a un concours qui a été organisé, & qui permettrait au gagnant de rencontrer Taylor le jour de son concert. Pour participer, il fallait faire une vidéo où on reprenait une des chansons de Taylor & la poster sur You Tube, celle qui aura le plus de vues sera la gagnante.

Camie a posté sa vidéo ( oui, j'ai oublié de préciser qu'elle chante hyper bien ) & depuis quelques jours on est pleins à la soutenir. Le problème c'est qu'on est pas assez nombreux, & qu'il faudrait d'autres personnes pour regarder la vidéo pleiiiins de fois. Personnellement ce que je fais c'est que je met la vidéo sur un onglet, je met le son sur muet pour pouvoir écouter autre chose, & j'actualise la page à chaque fois que la vidéo se termine ! Ça ne coûte rien, & ça permettrait peut-être à Camie de réaliser son rêve. Le concours se termine aujourd'hui, donc vraiment, je vous lance un SOS. Elle mérite de gagner ce concours, & je souhaite du plus profond de mon coeur que tout le monde rencontre un jour sa star préférée parce que ça doit être absolument féérique. Donc voilà, maintenant je compte sur vous, il faudrait que Camie dépasse les 7000 vues au moins, elle est pour l'instant 3ème dans le classement. Si vous pouviez poster la vidéo sur vos blogs éventuellement, ou juste sur Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr ou je ne sais quoi d'autre, ce serait fantastique, vraiment.

Je vous remercie infiniment, & si jamais vous avez besoin de moi pour voter pour vous sur un concours, n'hésitez pas !

Vous êtes les meilleurs, je vous adore ♥♥.

Girls ( & boys ? ), I really need you right now.

Like, really, reaaaaaally, need you.

Let me explain you what the thing is about.

One of my friend, Camie, is going to see Taylor Swift on stage, the 17th of March in Paris. She loves Taylor for ages & she's sooo excited about the show ! On that day, a contest gives a chance to meet Taylor for real. She participates on that contest & so she had to post a video of herself singing a song of Taylor Swift, on You Tube. The video with the hightest number of views will win. She's actually the third, & it's the last day of the contest so I need you to help her realizing her dream. Can you please watch her video as much as you can ? You just need to open the video on You Tube & then watch it & watch it & watch it all over again ! Put the video on mute if you want to listen to something else n_n. If you can share the vidéo with your friends, feel free to do it, we need a lot of people because if she wants to win, she had to have at least about 7000 views.

Meeting your favorite singer would be amazing & magic for everybody, so help her please.

Thank you for all guys, do not forget that you're the bests, love ya ! ♥♥.

EDIT.

MERCI A TOUS. A tous, tous, tous. Tous ceux qui ont voté pour Camie, tous ceux qui ont eu la gentillesse de la soutenir & de l'aider. Vous êtes GENIAUX. 

Malheureusement je suis très déçue, Camie n'a pas gagné. 

Mais ce n'est que partie remise, je suis sûre qu'elle aura une autre occasion de rencontre son idole. 

Je vous remercie énormément, & je suis très fière de vous avoir pour lecteurs parce que vous êtes ... QKLJKSJDKLJSQDJQSKLJ. Voilà quoi, je vous adore. 

MERCI ♥.

 ( & Rendez-vous dans la journée pour du look ! ).

P.S. : an awesome giveaway at Amy's place, FlyingAKite ;'D.

1937 Cole Porter tune / SUN 3-6-11 / Constant Gardener heroine / Portrayer in 2003's Elf / Hungarian city known for its thermal baths

Constructor: David Levinson Wilk

Relative difficulty: Medium

THEME: "For Your Edification" — theme answers are phrases beginning with a past participle ending in "-ED"; those phrases are reimagined (in the clues) as verb phrases involving guys named "ED"


Word of the Day: EGER (65A: Hungarian city known for its thermal baths) —

Eger (Hungarian pronunciation: [ˈɛɡɛr]; German: Erlau; Turkish: Eğri ) is a city in northern Hungary, the county seat of Heves, east of the Mátra Mountains. Eger is best known for its castle, thermal baths, historic buildings (including the northernmost Turkish minaret), and red and white wines.

• • •

Theme is interesting, but didn't thrill me, mainly because the reimagined phrases are essentially the same as the original phrases (in terms of the context, and the meaning of all the words)—it's just now a guy named ED is involved. This makes TOUCH ED IN THE HEAD the odd man out, as the meaning of "TOUCH" changes in the new phrase. Otherwise, this one felt right over the plate for a Sunday, the one exception being the vast swaths of whiteness at the top and bottom of the grid. Those really stand out visually, and were much harder to solve. The N and NW in particular were thorny for me—like a completely separate little puzzle containing just the one theme answer. Clues on all the longer Acrosses were nowhere close to obvious for me, and the short Downs, which should have helped me cut right through things, somehow weren't as helpful as I'd expected. COAGULATE had a vague clue (1A: Thicken). PNC PARK ... who even knows what ballparks are named any more? (more important question: who outside of Pittsburgh, can tell anyone anything about the Pirates except that they lose an awful lot?) (10A: Pirates' home) I know OBSESSION as a scent, not a biography title (20A: 1994 biography of Calvin Klein). And "ROSALIE" was a no-hoper for me. Sounds vaguely familiar, but I couldn't hum it for you (21A: 1937 Cole Porter tune). Never heard of Lee COWAN (1D: Lee of NBC News). Did not know OBAMA's mom's name was Stanley (2D: U.S. president whose mother's first name was Stanley). Never would have occurred to me that TOE could be an acceptable "part of Italy" in a crossword (8D: Part of Italy where Cape Spartivento is). Forgot who NORMA Shearer was (11D: "The Divorcee" actress Shearer). RIV!? I ended up doing this section last, and knowing the theme was a Huge help in getting WANT ED DEAD OR ALIVE, which then made the rest of that stretch of land much more tractable.


I finished up top because my first pass at that section was a total failure. In fact, I solved this in a highly unorthodox fashion (for me). Ran into 3D: 109-Down portrayer in 2003's "Elf" and knew (five letters) immediately that the answer was ASNER and that 109-Down must be SANTA. This sent me down to the opposite corner of the grid ... and I just decided to stay there, building off SANTA and working my way up (instead of my usual down). The fill down there, and a few other places, gets a bit xwordy. I'm not sure words like ETAPE and ENNA should be anywhere near each other, let alone crossing. But mostly the fill is decent and the clues are often entertaining and contemporary. Many will scoff at THA, for instance, but I loved it. I once wondered aloud to someone (probably Brendan E. Quigley), if THACARTERIII would make an acceptable themeless entry. Pretty sure the answer was something like "On my site, yes, in the NYT, no." But that might not be true. Lil Wayne (I can't believe his name's not even in the clue!) is a superstar, and that album sold in the gajillions (around 3.5 million, actually). It also won the Grammy for Best Rap Album in 2009.

[Warning: Profanity!]
Also loved the clues on TAN (35D: Noted John Boehner feature) and RED (94D: Buttons on the big screen).

Theme answers:

• 23A: Be willing to apprehend Mr. Bradley at any cost? (WANT ED DEAD OR ALIVE)
  
• 31A: Punish Mr. Harris in a medieval way? (BURN ED AT THE STAKE) — speaking of Mr. Harris in a medieval way ...

• 43A: Get Mr. Koch addicted to a modern reading method? (HOOK ED ON PHONICS)
  
• 66A: Preside over Mr. O'Neill's baptism? (BLESS ED EVENT)
  
• 75A: Do Mr. Sullivan's stand-up material? (CRACK ED JOKES)
  
• 93A: Prohibit Mr. McMahon from ever socializing again? (GROUND ED FOR LIFE)
  
• 103A: Perform brain surgery on Mr. Begley? (TOUCH ED IN THE HEAD)
  
• 116A: Put Mr. Meese in an Armani suit? (DRESS ED TO THE NINES) — first theme answer I got, which seems fitting, as Mr. Meese is the crosswordiest ED of all.
  

Bullets:

• 42A: Epitome of thinness (REED) — wanted RAIL, another such epitome
  
• 74A: Letters on Ozzie Smith's cap (STL) — Hall-of-Famer, and probably the most famous shortstop of my youth ('80s!)
  
• 129A: Brand name that used to be spelled out in commercials (NESTLE'S) — this ad is unintentionally hilarious for Several reasons, not least of which is the guy spells out NESTLE'S while repeatedly showing that the brand's actual name is the S-less NESTLE.

• 14D: Noted Cosell interviewee (ALI) — A gimme. A great sports relationship.

• 31D: Apiphobiac's fear (BEE) — APES = Latin for "BEES"
  
• 33D: Auto last made in 1936 (REO) — You could ride around in your REO listening to "ROSALIE," I guess, though cars back then probably didn't have stereos...
  
• 34A: "99 Luftballons" singer, 1984 (NENA) — You could hear German and English versions of this song on the radio in the mid-80s. A huge hit.
  
• 49D: "Mogambo" threat (TSETSE) — That movie's about malaria? (I'm told I mean "sleeping sickness")
  
• 56A: Retailer with a cat and dog in its logo (PETCO) — this is our pet store. I have a little PETCO card on my keychain. Recently earned my first free bag of dog food. Exciting, I know.
  
• 92D: Household pets that need ultraviolet light in their cages (IGUANAS) — speaking of pets ... I'm not sure if PETCO carries these. As far as I'm concerned, there are two legitimate pets: cats and dogs. Everything else should be wild or eaten.
  
• 110D: 1994 action flick with the tagline "Get ready for rush hour" ("SPEED") — This was a very good action movie. Also, I think it introduced the world to Sandra Bullock.
  
• 111D: "The Constant Gardener" heroine (TESSA) — didn't read it, but loved the movie. Had no recollection of the character name, however.
  

Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld

[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter]

Specialty oven / SAT 3-5-11 / Channel between mainland England Isle Wight / Transient madness Horace / Rue Morgue murderer / Two bridges India

Constructor: Randolph Ross

Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium

THEME: none


Word of the Day: The SOLENT (15A: Channel between mainland England and the Isle of Wight, with "the") —

The Solent is a strait separating the Isle of Wight from the mainland of England. // The Solent is a major shipping route for passengers, freight and military vessels. It is an important recreational area for water sports, particularly yachting, hosting the Cowes Week sailing event annually. It is sheltered by the Isle of Wight and has a very complex tidal pattern, which has greatly benefited Southampton's success as a port. Portsmouth lies on its shores. Spithead, an area off Gilkicker Point near Gosport, is known as the place where the Royal Navy is traditionally reviewed by the monarch of the day. (wikipedia)

• • •

Did this in about half the time of yesterday's puzzle. It had a few tough parts, but behaved more like a Friday than a Saturday for me. Noteworthy parts of this puzzle include CLEAR AS MUD (best answer) (4D: Poorly explained), EAT FRESH (itself fresh) (52A: Subway line), and the fully-named APIA, SAMOA (APIA is an important crossword word in its own right — I learned it from crosswords, in fact — but I don't think I've seen it long-form like this) (44A: Capital served by Faleolo International Airport). Toughest part of the grid for me, by far, was the NE. Tried and failed to get into it early on (approaching from the west). Ended up finishing the puzzle by hemming in that section (approaching from the south) and forcing the tough answers to give up their secrets. Thorniest answer was MOILS (9D: Churns), which I had as the much more sensible ROILS. But I could Not get a Yankee to fit into RA---; ran the alphabet on that third letter and came up empty. Only after I accepted the non-solidity of the "R" did I (finally) see Roger MARIS (9A: Yankee star who batted left and threw right). Had never heard of the SOLENT, so that didn't help matters. Wanted "The SOLLES," but later realized that was due to my awareness of the existence of the Oregon city named "The DALLES." Weird, I know, but that's how my brain fired. Love the MINCing FOP, BORNE by the MORN to a state of, let's say, WRATH (46A: "A transient madness," per Horace).



Did not love (and did not understand, and do not understand) the clue on LEHR (5D: Specialty oven), which is apparently an oven for annealing glass. Also, never heard anyone say KNEEHOLE before (16A: Place to stretch one's legs). Oh, crud, it's not a clothing term: it's the space under a desk ... for your knees. I don't think of that as a place to "stretch," but OK. ONYM is horrid, but it's about the only thing in the grid that is (34D: Word: Suffix). Beyond that, not much else to say. A fine Saturday effort.

Bullets:

• 18A: It has two bridges in India (SITAR) — first thing in the grid, after I'd placed the terminal "S" on what ended up being ARKS (1D: They're open on Saturdays).
  
• 33A: Figure in the high 60s (D PLUS) — want to like this clue, but the phrasing is just a tad off, to my ear. A D PLUS *represents* a score "in the high 60s," but is not itself "in the high 60s."
  
• 7D: Real-life opera composer who's a title character in a Rimsky-Korsakov opera (SALIERI) — had the "SA-" so this wasn't tough, though I was slightly tentative when writing it in with nothing else to confirm it.

• 10D: "Valentine's Day" co-star, 2010 (ALBA) — as in Jessica, whom I know *only* from "Sin City"
  
• 36D: Senator supporter (OTTAWAN) — great clue. I had ATTACHE at first (?!). The Senators are, of course, Ottawa's pro hockey team.
• 26D: Area where Dali, Monet, Picasso and van Gogh all painted (MONTMARTRE) — got this off the "-TR-" at the tail end. Figured it had to be something French.
  
• 38D: Rue Morgue murderer (ORANG) — that's a revelation that's pretty hard to forget.
  

Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld

[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter]