The Queen of Gossip and my confession...

In addition to being a complete news junkie, I am also a confessed gossip junkie. I live for my daily dose of Page Six, Perez Hilton, TMZ and several of the very juicy daily UK tabloids. In the UK, however, these lovelies are called newspapers! I love it! However, the UK and their version of what is news worthy is not what this post is about.

It is about the fabulous Liz Smith who, after 30 years of writing her gossip column for many of the New York City papers, most recently 14 years at the New York Post, has written her last column today. At 86 years old, she has been fired by the new regime who took over the Post last year and decided her gossip wasn't trashy enough, although they tried to tell her was for economic reasons. She always delivers the goods in an elegant and sophisticated way. One might think that that is why many of the people she writes about actually invite her to their events so that she can write about them. Even when she has something less than complimentary to say about someone, she does it in a way that leaves the person with their dignity intact.

I'LL MISS YOU, NYC

"HAIL AND FAREWELL! This column marks my last for the New York Post, where I've been writing for 14 years. I am sorry to go. But I've lived long enough to know the closing of one door means the opening of another.
I will still be writing a five-days-a-week column for my syndicated TMS newspapers, also twice a week for Daily Variety and especially for the WowOwow Web site, where next month we expect 1 million unique hits (visitors), and it's growing. My daily column also appears in The Drudge Report. I am now a contributing writer for Parade magazine, and you can see my cover story on Liza Minnelli there on Sunday. And I'll still be a showbiz commentator for Fox News weekly on "Lips & Ears."
Tomorrow marks the first time in 33 years that the Liz Smith column will not appear in a New York City newspaper. But it's exhilarating to be fired at age 86. So, thanks for all your support and enthusiasm over the years and much love to each of you ."

Liz, you are a rock star! How many people can say they got fired at 86? Wow....wowOwow.com!

More troubles for Conde Nast

It seems it's not the cover cost of their magazines that is the problem at Conde Nast. They just don't know how to run their business. If this continues, I expect we will lose a few more of our favorite magazines. Unless you read Golf World....


In today's New York Post:

"They are overstaffed and overpaid. They should have cut back 20 percent when they cut back five," this person said.

That kind of thinking is stirring fears inside that a new round of cuts could be coming. And for the first time in more than a decade, the privately run company led by Chairman S.I. Newhouse Jr. and CEO Charles Townsend could be awash in red ink.

"We continue to manage our business through a difficult economic climate," said a Condé spokeswoman.

Much of the problem rests with Condé's policy of never discounting off the rate card.
"Advertisers are finding that they can buy around them," said the former executive.

Only one magazine in its stable is showing a rise over a year ago: Golf World, a small circulation weekly, that is up 16.5 percent through the Feb. 23 issue.

You can read the article in its entirety here:

http://www.nypost.com/seven/02252009/business/getting_nasty_at_cond__233__156766.htm

I wonder how long it will be before we hear rumblings about Vanity Fair and Vogue? What a waste.

It's a beautiful day!

My Mother used to wake me up for school by annoucing in a cheery morning voice, "It's a beautiful day in Chicago!" I would quietly groan and wonder what Chicago had to do with New Jersey and then Colorado. I would either roll my eyes or think "Tell me what kind of day it is here!" Who is that happy in the morning, anyway? Today while I was out inspecting all that grows in my little backyard, I thought of what she used to say. I Googled it and it turns out to be a phrase of some fame.

I found an article on Time.com, dated August 4, 1941. and it seems radio announcer Everett Mitchell of the Farm and Home Hour radio show used to begin every broadcast with those very words. Who knew? Even more importantly, who knew my mother listened to that? Well, now I know and so do you.

And now I have to say it: "It's a beautiful day in Chicago!" and in SoCal.

This is one of my favorite spots in the yard and what I can see out my back door from my living room.
Roses are beautiful in the garden but even better when cut and taken inside.

The succulants are beginning to bloom.
This poor little plant had a tough winter but surprised me with the first gardenia of the season!

All the rain we've had lately has made the lavender, green onions and geraniums very happy.

The bold colors and double blooms make ranunculus some of my favorite flowers to plant.

Delphiniums in bloom tell me that Spring is coming soon!

Thank goodness for that.

Iris is my ever present helper in the garden and

an instant poser when she sees the camera.

She is definitely a groovy feline!

We make better music when we all come together

Life, our county, the world feels so out of balance right now but when we remember we are all connected, that we are greater than the sum of individual selves, we can make beautiful music together. It is never distance that separates us...

We are all beautiful.

We are all lovely.

We are all broken in our own way.

Be kind to each other.

It's all we have.

Domino, Simon and Schuster and me!

All our efforts in getting the attention of someone connected to Domino magazine has worked! I am humbled and amazed by this comment left on my blog by Nina Schwartz of Simon and Schuster. My friends, we will be having a Domino: The Book of Decorating give away right here on my little blog! Stay tuned for all the details.

Nina, thank you so much for this honor, and it is truly an honor for me to host a give away on your behalf. Thank you also for noticing us and responding.

Dear Petunia,

Here at Simon & Schuster, we're all mourning the loss of Domino magazine, and it’s clear you feel the same pain. Not long ago (October '08), we published Domino: The Book of Decorating, by the editors of the magazine, and we're happy at least that their innovative and gorgeous ideas can live on in this book. We'd love to offer you two copies to give away on your blog to your readers who are no doubt as heavy-hearted as we.

Please let me know if you'd like to participate, and I’ll send you the books! (And I apologize for offering this in a comment -- I couldn't find your contact info on the site!)

Nina Schwartz

Associate Marketing Manager Simon & Schuster

nina.schwartz@simonandschuster.com

Any day with The New Yorker is a good day!

Pictures of life in NYC...

The endless stream of honking cabs....

News stands that carry everything a girl needs to read!

Walk-up flats...or down depending on if you're moving in or out!

The ferry boats....

All the different neighborhoods full of their own personality and food!

I remember the first time I got off the subway and walked up the stairs to the street level in Chinatown. I was blown away that after five minutes traveling underground I could end up in a different world! In that moment, I realized and felt the wonder and power of this city.

Happy, happy love day!

May your heart and hands create music for someone special today.

Wild Fires

Those of us who live in California are no stranger to the devastation of fire. We used to have "fire season" but now that season is all year long. It is an unconscionable event when the devastation of fire is intentionally set into motion. Out of the wreckage of every fire story, however, come the stories of great humanity, of the small and sometimes big things people do for each other in the face of great tragedy. As much as I fear for the people in the path of the fire, I fear for the wild life as well. I can only imagine the confusion they must be experiencing, their fight or flight response triggering them to flee out of sheer instinct. But to where? I always wonder, to where. I'm sure by now you know that Victoria, Australia is on fire and that most of the fires were set. 200 are feared dead, two have been arrested in connection with starting those fires. Watch the video below to see one of the most touching acts of kindness I have ever seen. This is amazing because Koalas are not known for their sweet dispositions, in fact, quite the opposite. Her paws were badly burned and because of the firemen who found her, she'll be listed as a survivor of this great catastrophe.

Bless her heart. In order to live, she had to take a chance and trust the hands that offered her help.

She has been named "Sam" by her rescuers and is being cared for at the Mountain Ash Wildlife Shelter. She has made a new friend there named "Bob", another Koala, who is keeping a close, protective watch over his new little friend. We all need more happy endings.

Beauty Tips

Can you imagine a world where Audrey Hepburn is not the definition of all that is lovely...

inside and out?

Time Tested Beauty Tips

A poem by by Sam Levenson

(A favourite peom of Audrey Hepburn.)

For attractive lips,speak words of kindness.

For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.

For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry.

For beautiful hair, let a child run his fingers through it once a day.

For poise, walk with the knowledge you'll never walk alone...

People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed and redeemed and redeemed ...

Never throw out anybody.

Remember, if you ever need a helping hand,

you'll find one at the end of your arm.

As you grow older you will discover that you have two hands.

One for helping yourself, the other for helping others".

She said about herself in a 1959 interview, "you can even say that I hated myself at certain periods. I was too fat, or maybe too tall, or maybe just plain too ugly... you can say my definiteness stems from underlying feelings of insecurity and inferiority. I couldn't conquer these feelings by acting indecisive. I found the only way to get the better of them was by adopting a forceful, concentrated drive."

Domino's Gardens, Oscar de la Renta's style

Domino magazine has given us exquisite photos of a vast range of interiors. I love them all! Domino also dedicated a portion of every magazine to the outside of our homes, as well. Being a lover of gardens and gardening, I always started with that part of the magazine first every month. Below is one of my favorite gardening articles. Again, Domino showed us we can do it on a grand scale or on a smaller scale. They told us every month, "Yes you can!"

Oscar del la Renta's potager garden is magnificent.

Domino September 2008, photos by Richard Felber

This is kitchen gardening at it's finest. This layout requires some space but kick it down a few notches and it can be tucked into a very small space. Take it down a few more notches and plant different elements of the design in pots. Yes, vegetables can do very well in a potted garden. Below is the article as seen in Domino. The illustrations are done by James Noel Smith. Enjoy!

THE POTAGER GARDEN

Inspired by fashion legend Oscar de la Renta's garden, this design can turn even a suburban backyard into a potager (loosely translated as "a garden to make a pot of soup"). Gravel paths divide four rectangular beds, anchored by a central terra-cotta oil jar. Each bed is about 6' wide and 8' long, so you can reach in for weeding or harvesting without having to step much into the tilled soil (vegetables don't like compacted earth).

The Berry Patch

harvest smart Think about how and when you will be picking each crop before you plant. Strawberries ripen daily (and grow low to the ground), so it's important they be reachable from the path.
guilt-free snipping Cutting flowers, like these assorted dahlias, are traditionally grown in rows like vegetables. That way, you don't feel like you are spoiling a garden composition every time you gather some.
decorative herbs A row of flowering herbs like lavender provides fragrant ornamentation and can be harvested late in the season to dry for the house.

Highs And Lows

add some height Towering plants like these 'Russian Giant' sunflowers create a living fence. The rows of flowers will make an attractive see-through screen.
keep things tidy Even small plants like onions should be cultivated in strict, evenly spaced rows. They'll always look better. Use a 6' wooden stick marked every 6" to 12" as a supersize ruler to help space your seedlings.

Herb is the Word

useful herbs Mix up this area with mass plantings of several kinds of herbs. Some annual types such as basil and cilantro will go to seed quickly in hot weather, so include perennials like rosemary, sage and thyme.
themes and variations Formally designed beds can be symmetrical without being mirror images. Contrast the yellow 'Russian Giant' sunflowers at upper left with a row of dark-brown 'Velvet Queen' sunflowers here.

Morning Glories Meet Garlic

all-season structure Nonbotanical elements like obelisks have an appealing formality and give composition to the beds early in the season, when seedlings are small.
not just mixed greens Introduce extra color by planting varieties with unusual-hued leaves like dark 'Red Sails' or frilly 'Lolla Rossa' lettuce.

Click on "I Love Domino Style" on the right to see more links to other bloggers who love Domino magazine.

Thank you, Domino magazine for all you have already given us. Now, please figure out how to keep it coming.

Fridays with The New Yorker

With the all talk about SAVING DOMINO! I didn't get my weekly Fridays with The New Yorker posted on Friday so I bring to you a few more of my favority covers just a bit late. Enjoy!

Domino, kitchens I'd love to cook in and Polaroid!

Yes, all of those thoughts can go together. See?

I love to cook and will pretty much cook for anyone willing to sit still long enough for me to feed them. I have a tiny little kitchen but I love it. It's packed full of all my favorite cooking gadgets, great herbs that create lovely flavors, favorite dishes and my Wolfgang Puck pots and pans. What I love most is when something is cooking in there and filling the rest of my place with the delicious smell of love. That is really what the smell of wonderful food translate to me. Someone cared enough to take the time to cook. It's such a wonderful simple show of kindness. So...here are some kitchens I sure would love to cook in or live in or read Domino with a cup of coffee in!

This green kitchen looks so calm and serene. I bet nothing burns in there. It's all so zen!
I never think great food can come out of a pink kitchen but I think this little one might prove that theory wrong. I love open kitchen shelves.
I just love a pan rack and this one is fab in red!
What a great and simple way to personalize your kitchen and it can be created so inexpensively! If you're into Polaroid pictures and don't have film for your camera any more, I have some great news! A very rich European has decided to start making the film again! Oh yeah! In the meantime while we are waiting for it to reappear (yes, great things can be brought back), here is some software you can download to make Polaroids out of the pictures you already have. It's all very easy and very fun! Go here and get your Poladroid!
This kitchen reminds me of the 1950's and the magazine ads from that era.
Black and white...it works in every room!
I used to live in a house with an old stove like that. Oh, I do miss it and would have another in a heartbeat.
And what's not to say about a farm sink? Love it!
This kitchen is just...real. Open up a few cabinets for a whole new look.

There should be a rule that every kitchen will have a chandelier!

Where do I start with this one? It's all done exquisitely right. This could be my one room house

The turquoise and the chandelier put this one on the la la lovely list of daydream kitchens!

Most of these images are from Domino magazine. A few I have collected from all over so, if one of these images is yours, I apologize for not acknowledging you. Just leave me a comment and let me know and I will make a change.

Remember to visit savedomino.blogspot.com to sign the Save Domino petition and to register your thoughts and comments about the closing of Domino website. Click on the button on the right to go directly there.