Community Forklift - YEAH!

Community Forklift is a non-profit that salvages and sells building materials. We can't believe it has been around since 2005 and only now is it a part of lives. Why are you people keeping this a secret?! Is this the sort of place that cool carpenters keep to themselves? We must come together and support this place. You can buy, scavenge, and donate!

This place offers so many elements architectural salvage. We found some very cool antique doors and industrial table legs on the CHEAP. Walking around it was very inspirational, seeing how all these parts that were once a part of something could be reused and remade into something totally unique, stylish, and functional. And you can find used practical stuff you really need like screws, exit signs, ceiling lights, toilets, and sinks. It's basically the home improvement version of a thrift store and it has given our shop's renovation the boost it needed.

love the yellow stained glass and the antique frames!

how beautiful is this wood ? instant fab coffee table anyone ?

can't get enough of marble and CF makes it affordable.

Record Fair with Chuck Brown

People! Vinyl fair this Saturday 10-4 at Warehouse Next Door, hosted by our future neighbor, SOM Records, with Chuck Brown! Sounds like a fun way to spend a Saturday.

Shitty Monday News

Readers, it is with a heavy heart that I bring you some terrible news. On Saturday afternoon, after enjoying the colorful and innovate vegetarian buffet at Woodlands in Takoma Park, I received this disturbing text message from Adventures in Unemployment:

Sent: 4/4/2009 3:50 PM
Serratore, Angela
Dude, I am at Beauty Island and they are going out of business!

My heart - no joke - stopped. Could it be? Was my favorite last-minute party accessory and one-dollar nail-polish standby with the oft-butchered name really shutting its doors? I replied immediately.

Sent: 4/4/2008 3:52 PM
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! Really???????

I pocketed my phone, hoping that my comrade in blogging (and IRL) was merely experiencing the customary Blues Control-induced hallucination, having been to Comet to see them the night before. But alas:

Sent: 4/4/2009 3:53 PM
Serratore, Angela
April 20! Everything is on major sale - I just got seven pairs of tights for 3 bucks

Sigh. While the prospect of paying 43 cents for a pair of tights is one that gets me considerably stoked, I am a legitimate puddle of sadness knowing that I will no longer have a neighborhood place to buy spray-gold bamboo hoops. The rug is getting pulled out from under us just in time for hippie beach season, a spring-and-summer specific outfit vibe that is like, contingent on gilded earwear. What's a girl to do?! R. I. P., Beauty Island! I am really fucking sad you're closing!

<3

Dude. Bored of Trade was so. FUN!!!



There were snacks and hats (see above), pretty mens and ladies, sweet hostesses, and piles upon piles of vintage and handmade goods for our shopping pleasure.



There were even shoes in a refrigerator. How fucking Punk House is that?! I have to admit, I shed a little bit of a tear when I laid eyes on this display. (Lindsay Hart of Flowerhead Vintage - whose beautifully lit and lovingly cleaned-out basement provided a venue for the day's festivities - told me that she actually kicked the refrigerator door off. You cannot get much more badass than ambushing the door off of your busted appliance to display the most delicate of feminine finery - am I right?)

Jules and Juniper took it upon themselves to display their wares in a card catalog, and Manatea Party comandeered buttons to make the cutest of baubles.


Opening to drawers to find out what was inside upped the fun ante considerably. It was like an Advent calendar for jewelry.


Cuteness from Jules and Juniper.


Minimalism, a rich color palette and the subversion of functionality reigned at Manatea Party.

The Listopad ladies made out like bandits, natch.


Our haul - a little color wheel of our respective tastes. Can you guess who bought what?


Our hostess' signage. Thanks Lindsay!

Givhan Me More

Guys! Someone's going to have to change Robin Givhan's Wikipedia entry (are you really surprised that this exists?) - a little bird tells us that her Almighty Smartness is moving back to DC to cover the Obamas as only a Givhan can.


(Photo by Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images.)

Robin! No one does nerdy cool quite like you.

Bored of Trade

Are you bemoaning a weekend of nice weather and no fun shopping in sight? Bemoan no more, my pretties! We are here to remind you about Bored of Trade! Do not sleep on this orgy of local craftspeople, vintage purveyors, and artists. We really excited for all of this - and the snacks, of course.

Food Friday: Tune-up

I will never, ever, ever get tired of tonno con fagioli - the endlessly riffed-upon dish that typically combines white beans and tuna flavored with lemon, garlic, salt and pepper. As you can imagine, a dish this simple is a mere jumping-off point for many an enterprising chef, including DC Coast's Jeff Tunks. His Tuna with White Beans and Sun-Dried Tomato Sauce is a must-try! It gets high marks for simplicity and nutritional value - and deliciousness. (Duh.)

I knew I loved you for a reason

Do you guys remember the old Convention Center logo? You can still spot it the surrounding neighborhood on the signs they've forgotten to tear down. (There's one around M St. and New York Ave that I always pass when I'm on the bus.) It was conceived by Lance Wyman, a legendary designer who's been creating neat, eloquent, graphic confections that form a beautifully cohesive body of work while quietly informing our everyday lives with priceless beauty.


(via Ester Knows.)

I can't help but postulate that our favorite mysterious conglomerate took a page from Wyman's book in designing their own logos - most likely owing to the clever, simple, and vaguely retro quality of his work. This is really well exemplified in his agency's logo (which Wyman designed, duh).


(via XOYAZ.)

There's this badassery as well:


(via creativebits.)

Oy! Such swimmingly kinetic use of parallel lines! Good on ya, Lance.

Here's another Wyman creation that you may have seen before:



I know! Jaw on floor, right?!?!

Get To It

Tuesday, there is a big par-tee for the release of the Adventure/Dan Deacon 12" at Zodiac.

Reading Lolita in Tehran author Azar Nafisi will be at Politics and Prose discussing her new book, Things I've Been Silent About, on Wednesday. Plus: Portland's Au plays the Velvet Lounge.

In high school, I would sneak out of my house and drive around the deserted streets of DC listening to Nightmares on Wax - their sampled orchestrations lent a meaningful pallor to Rock Creek Park at 3 AM. I am excited that they'll be at the Black Cat on Thursday. Or, you could venture north to the Talking Head for the Golden Filter and friends.

Saturday, Lykke Li brings her top-knotted goodness, artistically-spelled name, and generally sunny disposition to Sixth and I.

Michelle is so magical.



Not because she wore a white Jason Wu dress to the balls last night, using the bridal connotations of the color to signify her commitment to her husband and to the nation.





Not because she did the signature Michelle - Malia - Sasha hat trick, using paler shades of the red - yellow - blue triumvirate to cohere their outfits.







Not because her choice of fashion designers for the crucial events of Obama's campaign and presidency have been consistently innovative, beautiful, and, most importantly, designed by American immigrants: Thailand-born Thakoon Panichgul, Taiwanese Jason Wu, and Cuban expat Isabel Toledo. See a pattern? A dress pattern, if you will? Michelle seems to be emphasizing that most ancient point of American pride: immigrants are literally the fabric of our nation! Barack's dad was an immigrant! My great-grandfather was an immigrant! William Penn! The pilgrims! Neil Young! (He's Canadian!) Michelle is giving a shout-out to this fact through her outfits, guys. We should all strive to be so meta.

But no: I really think she is magical because was sporting this rock:



And because her husband is really cool.

Top Serious Warmth

Guys. How the hell am I supposed to look cute at tonight's Inaugural Freak-fest when it is twelve degrees outside?

Perhaps this chunky, ADD-colored 80s Missoni sweater-jacket?



A tawny cable knit dress that will go with anything, from ankle-cut cowboy boots to piles of gold jewelry to a jaunty bowler?



This cheeky, cleverly cut wool jacquard suit from Cacharel?



Ok, I just wanted to look at clothes. But seriously, come to the party tonight! It will be inaugu-tastic.

Get To It

If you guys are like me, you're just starting your Christmas shopping now. Tuesday is the last day of the Downtown Holiday Market, a crafts-and-music throwdown at 7th and F streets NW.

Wednesday! The scramble for last-minute gifts. Never fear, lovelies! Meeps is open until 6 pm, and is fully stocked with gifty treats from local designers like niceLena, Clever Crab, and Sharpshirter.

Thursday would be a good day to make four kinds of cookies from a single dough recipe. Whoa!!

This Anna Sui tunic is gently evocative of the holidays - a fashion-forward alternative the Christmas sweater, an item so reviled that it inspires parties celebrating its ugliness. Go with this non-denominational, tasteful alternative for whatever family gathering you'll be attending on Friday.

Saturday, come to Dahlak for the Future Times Consciousness Event, a DJ-fest featuring live sets from Maxmillion Dunbar and Rhythm Based Lovers. Plus! The turntable stylings of everyone you love: Andrew Morgan! Ari G! LesbiJAN! Kid Mike! C Rob!

Sunday is the final day of TxtStyles: Fashioning Identity at the National Museum of African Art.

Get To It

No Age. (From WaterCoolerGossip.)

Wednesday, expect levels of frenzy rivaling the scene on U Street this past Tuesday when Diplo spins and No Age rails at the Black Cat. (Bonus: Diplo will be playing records at Commonwealth before the show! Ooo-wee!

Thursday, wipe that smirk off your face before you arrive at the party for Stop Smiling's DC Issue at Civilian Art Projects. DJs Name Names and Nitekrawler will be deckbound.

You should probably just bring a sleeping bag on Thursday because Quintron and Miss Pussycat will be wrecking the house at Civilian on Friday.

FotoWeek DC begins on Saturday. Check out their kick-off event: a group show of six Ukrainian-American photographers hosted by the Ukrainian Embassy. Note: almost all of the FotoWeek events are free! Two thumbs up! (Also free: Breakin' Glass at Wonderland Ballroom.)

What More Can I Say?

It's Narciso Rodriguez.



Well played!

I'd just like to take a moment to congratulate Michelle on her consistently dope familial ensembles.





I know our city gets a bad fashion rap, but that's only because it's much more challenging to dress well in DC than in "anything goes" cities like New York or L. A. (Don't even get me started on Baltimore. Shine on, you crazy diamonds!) With such a stringent and relatively conservative template for dressing, we gypsies have to be much more innovative and even subversive with our little sartorial weirdnesses - a feat which Michelle consistently accomplishes. She favors clean, simple silhouettes but really goes for the gold when it comes to pattern and color, never shying away from bold hues or kooky prints.

The way she dresses is really similar to the way her husband has campaigned for (and won!) the presidency. His promises of overhaul and change are always posed against the backdrop of our country's time-tested founding principles. There's even a parallel in the way Michelle dresses her daughters: their outfits are never matchy-matchy, simply coordinated - in agreement, even. Kind of the like the way her husband professes to foster individuality united by a sense of American identity.

Guiding Light

"You forgot Marvin."

Woo! The second edition of eat.shop washington dc is here! I picked up a copy today, and I have to give props to author and researcher Anna H. Blessing for presenting a nicely varied assortment of good ones, from timeless standbys (Tabard Inn, Mixtec) to relative newbies (Hook, Casa Oaxaca) to certified Listopad obsessions (Dolcezza, Mandu). Shopping highlights include excellent spots like Hu's Shoes, the Brass Knob, and Tabletop. While we missed shout-outs to style pioneer Commonwealth, Silver Spring's transcendently delicious Lotus Cafe, and - hello! - Mercedes Bien, we'd definitely recommend it as a gift to DC newcomers (of which there are plenty!) - or even to jaded DC oldcomers like us.

Get To It

Get graphic today: a cheeky Alice Temperley dress on Net-a-Porter - or, if you're a member, on Gilt Groupe; these Betsey Johnson peep-toes on Zappos; Abaete's colorblocked-and-pleated symphony of neutrals from Saks. (Bonus: they're all on sale!)

The only TV shows that Listopad officially endorses are Mad Men and America's Next Top Model, but we should remind you that the season premiere of Stylista will grace your idiot box on Wednesday. Prior to the show, cast member Johanna was a suit-by-day-DC-fashion-blogger-by-night; we must root for one of our own!

Thursday, head north to the Ottobar to catch Ponytail (and others) play a benefit concert for Jawbox and Channels frontman J. Robbins' son Callum, who has spinal muscular atrophy and one of the cutest little mugs this side of the Mason-Dixon.

The Baltimore Women's Film Festival runs Thursday through Sunday.

Saturday, Comet Ping Pong hosts a Halloween Party! Transcendent, locally-sourced foodstuffs and drunk people in costumes? Yes please.