Fresh Finds

We have many cool weather treasures rolling in during the weekends to come at Mercedes Bien!

Lovely grey wool lined dress w/pockets, Women's, S/M, Listopad, SOLD Perfect felt pillbox hat, Women's, Mercedes BienEmpire-waist lined camel coat, Women's, S/M, Listopad
Leather + Linen Etienne Aigner oxfords, Women's, 6.5, Listopad
Carroll Travel perfect travel companion/tote, Listopad
St Croix grandpa shawl cardigan with sueded detail, Men's, M/L, Mercedes Bien, SOLD

Style Warranty

LL Bean? Maybe you haven't perused their catalog since your mom ordered your last initialed backpack in the 8th grade, but you've been missing out. The men have it pretty good with awesome jacket after jacket after jacket, but there's some hunting-chic in there for the women too.

From grandpa's cardis...to aristocratic jackets, they're guaranteed for as long as you live, so you can keep updating your wardrobe ad infinitum.

Woolrich for Life

It's getting cold and we want to help you brace the elements full on. How about some American classics to keep your toes warm? If you can find vintage Woolrich items (which Listopad has been known to offer), they have been made in the USA since the 1800s. Even the hip kids are picking up on the influence and collaborating with the company. I'm not so sure about the current output's nation of origin, but here are some greatest hits from the web catalog:

The woman's berber robe with American Indian motifs is kickass and the sweater stone is a must, but the men really have it good at Woolrich. This shirt, in washable wool, is a winter staple-



Yes, this shirt has elbow pads and you need that--



And a top layer worthy of any army navy store--



Of course, these pieces would also be perfect for your very own androgynous lumberjack look if you are girl--but you knew I was going to say that.

We Interrupt This Broadcast

A little deviation from this week's intended theme that we just had to share with you: Influence hit stores today. (And I do mean hit. From all accounts, the scene at Barnes and Noble was mayhem.) For those of you who manage to stay away from the fashion blogs (it's so hard!) - Influence is a book. By Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. Need we say more?



Occasional partners-in-crime Fashionista and Nylon have very kindly granted the blogosphere some sneak peeks - MK's fully-chicken-scratched Proust Questionnaire and 8 delicious scans, respectively. Salivate away, lovelies.

Music for Lovers: Little Britain

Sure, Kate Bush is a little kooks, but that's why we love her. In "Cloudbusting" she manages to hit all my style points for this season: vintage denim, collared shirts buttoned up all the way, English knits and boots (this is what I am talking about). The sweet pointy shoulderpads are just the icing on this cake. It's the right kind of androgyny and pauper throwback that we need in these trying times.

Get To It (Halloween Edition!)

Two awesome (and free!) events tomorrow night: the famed High Heel Race in Dupont Circle and a talk at the Hirshhorn by artist Joseph Kosuth.

Wednesday, Breakfast at Tiffany's screens at the American Art Museum. Just in time to get inspiration for your Halloween costume!

Thursday, catch Rainer Simon's Till Eulenspiegel at the Goethe-Institut.

Friday and Saturday, head out to Bentonville, VA, for the Haunted Forest at Shenandoah State Park. Take a break from boozing and costumery to go hiking in the dark. Legit scary!

Food Friday

Last week, as we approached the Whole Foods on River Road, a friend and I were overwhelmed by an intoxicating smell. It was warm, sweet, and spicy - so unabashedly welcoming and autumnal that I grabbed my friend and yelled "What is that?" After sniffing around carefully stacked displays of pumpkins and apple cider and finding nothing (and probably scaring the store's many well-heeled patrons), we discovered the culprit: a cluster of cinnamon-soaked brooms sandwiched between some bales of hay. I gazed at them, transfixed. "Cinnamon brooms," I murmured, as if in the presence of something holy. O, mighty cinnamon! I am powerless in the face of your bosom-y bouquet. I immediately resolved to make better use of cinnamon in my cooking this fall. Simmering it in a pot of water makes the kitchen smell nice, but there's got to be a better way to put this all-star to work.

I am now faced with a first-world conundrum: how to best honor this potent spice? Pork noodle soup with cinnamon and anise? Gnocchi with cinnamon butter? Cinnamon-sugar popcorn? I made the gnocchi for some hungry boys on Monday night and it was a hit - surprisingly light, and vegan thanks to the substitution of Earth Balance. Any suggestions, cinnamon lovers?

Fresh Finds

Every Thursday, we will highlight new items and our picks from the Listopad collection and Mercedes Bien's always amazing selection, available Saturdays and Sundays at the Mercedes Bien store in Adams Morgan. We hope to make it easier to find lasting items to update your everyday look and spruce up your Fall & Winter wardrobes. Notice to all you men out there, Mercedes has a substantial men's collection that you should definitely check out! And remember, these are one-of-a-kind hand-picked items so we can't guarantee that they will be around for long!

Red flannel shearling vest, Men's, S/M, Listopad

Dip-dyed Ombre Wool Zip-up Cardigan, Men's, Medium, Mercedes Bien

One fine Military-style Jacket w/great pockets!, Men's, 44/M, Listopad

Lovely 50's Jack Feit NY jacket w/matching light grey top, Women's, S/M, Mercedes Bien"Just clunky enough" military/granny boots, Women's, 8.5, Listopad, SOLD

Cute and practical 70s crinkle patent burnt orange hobo bag, Women's, Mercedes Bien

Failing Economy, meet your fashion match

Great news pieces as of late...Robin Givhan puts the Republican party in its place and the NYT remembers that well-made, beautifully designed classics are forever.

On a similar note, did you know that Fashionista alum Faran has been penning the fashion posts on Mad Men's blog? What is old is new and all signs point to buying vintage. ;)

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.

Music for Lovers: One for the Boys

Bill Withers totally walks the line between Bill Cosby and Mr. Rogers. Turtlenecks, sweaters and cardigans are his signatures...and boy do we love them all.

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.

Fall Flava

scenes from the farmer's market

mindblowingly charming handmade sheep from Everona Dairy

dahlias

Etsy Lust

(yokoo's shop on etsy.com)

Continuing with our fave handmade Etsy finds... Yokoo's Shop....
I love the simiplicity and the chunkiness of Yokoo's designs. And, if you are like me, you believe the beauty of knitting to be synonymous with cocooning. Yokoo's items items are perfect for fall and winter's protective requirements. Unusual fact: she operates out of Hotlanta.

Braise Awareness

Happy is the day that the new Martha Stewart Living arrives at my workplace. There is bound to be some delightful tidbit of timeless, cutesy amazingery within its pages - be it a meticulously arranged gradient of squash varieties, a Shaker-inspired decorating spread, or an issue devoted entirely to breadmaking.

MSL is also my go-to resource for lazy-person recipes. Now, I know you might be thinking that "lazy" and "Martha Stewart" don't belong in the same sentence, but, um ... they do! Maz has introduced me to a number of instantaneously prepared and delicious foodstuffs: baked sweet-potato chips, stewed green beans and poblanos, and, courtesy of the November issue, braised fish with fennel and tomato - the recipe which inspired this post. Thanks to a vegetarian domestic partner and a personal fear of venturing outside the pasta-and-vegetables paradigm, I have managed to avoid any recipe that involves flesh. This one, however, looks too easy not to try - plus, words cannot describe my ardor for fennel. Apparently I throw everything in a skillet, turn on the heat, and go watch America's Next Top Model? Um, where do I sign?

Stock Market Cloche

Our economy is sad right now - a lot of people are saying that we're experiencing a downturn on par with the crash of 1929. Bummer! However, I would encourage everyone to see this glass as half full - the aesthetic vibe of the 1920s is, in a word, unbeatable!

Exhibit A: our friend Rachel hipped us to this gorgeous cloche from Etsy seller liza rietz.







How elegant and snug this little number is! How delightfully ruched! (On an unrelated note, where can I find a scarf that so perfectly matches my eyes, a la the model?)

Which of the four colorways do we like best - black, navy, camel, or herringbone? Liza's recession-friendly price ($42 for a custom-fit hat: be still my heart!) makes getting more than one a definitive possibility ...

Get To Art

Mary Ellen Mark, Tiny in Her Halloween Costume

Museum week! Some shows are closing, many are opening, and they all look good enough to eat.

Monday, catch Local Color: Washington Painting at Midcentury before it closes at the American Art Museum.

The National Museum of Women in the Arts gives me heart palpitations yet again with Role Models: Feminine Identity in Contemporary American Photography, which opens on Friday. Mary Ellen Mark! Cindy Sherman! Nan Goldin! Oh my.

Regime Change Starts at Home, a group show featuring Shepard Fairey, Al Farrow, and Paul D. Miller opens on Saturday at Irvine Contemporary.

Sunday brings yet another opening! Can you stand it? Yes. Beadazzled: 5,000 Years of Jewelry arrives at the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore.

Music for Sisters

Andrew and I took the train to Richmond today. It's a long ride - about three hours. Around Quantico, we were accosted by two sisters, ages nine and four, who wanted to guess our names, ages, and favorite animals. The older one guessed (incorrectly) that Andrew's name was Swamp and (correctly) that his favorite animal was a sloth. The four-year-old was sporting a delicate gold chain and a great haircut. "I'm bored," she told me, giggling. "Me too," I responded. "Knock-knock," she said. "Who's there?" I asked. "Poop-poop!" she cried.

At some point, we started talking about the Pointer Sisters.



Andrew started singing. "One two three four five, six seven eight nine ten ... do you know that song?" I chimed in. "Eleven twelve?" The older sister shook her head. "Have you seen the video on Sesame Street? It's so cool - they're inside a pinball machine," I said. "Look it up on YouTube," Andrew advised. "Do you know about YouTube?" She shook her head again.

Warmth by Way of Alpaca

(Alexander Wang, Hefjina)

(Rachel Comey, Bird)

(Rachel Comey, Creatures of Comfort)

Instinctively, I lean toward natural knits for warmth in colder months. I have always been into wool and once I discovered alpaca (domesticated camel siblings) to be warmer than sheep's wool, hypoallergenic (allergies freakishly seem to multiply for me these days) and is often used in the sustainable and fair trade markets (see DC's upcoming Green Festival). This season's creations by Wang and Comey show even more promise for a fashionable, and, I am gonna say it, more humane alternative to fur. And, if you are thinking it, Uggs would clash with this look. Don't do it.

Brutalist Dilemma

(reCyclorama.)

Yesterday morning, NPR featured a story about the Richard Neutra-designed Cyclorama, a commemorative visitor's center in Gettysburg located smack-dab in the middle of the battlefield. When the building was erected in 1961, everyone was like, "Yes. Let's pay tribute to this old shit with new shit." Present-day purists, however, are puking at the presence of the poured concrete palace.


(s/a)

This building is tight. My dad is a Civil War freak, and I spent many a 4th of July weekend during my childhood running around these hallways and wondering why the lettering on the Cyclorama's signage was so small, silver, and sans-serif-y. Could it be credited with inspiring my obsession with vintage, and in turn, my posting on the blog? Neutra: the father of Listopad.


(s/a)

JK, obviously: Cath and Kata started this blog. But if I may hop on my soapbox for a moment - I know that this building is totally offensive to people who see the battlefield as a hallowed historical ground, and who feel it should be kept as pristine as possible in an effort to honor the serious business that went down way back when. Maybe the Neutra building was a mistake. But the fact remains that it's there, and it's just as honest a testament to the past as the battlefield itself. Like it or not, the last three decades has infused the structure with valid historical significance. I'm a big hippie, I guess, because I don't see the point in ignoring that. Or maybe I'm selfishly upset that my nieces and nephews might not be able to see the hugeness that was the Civil War through the weird, fascinating mid-century lens that is the Cyclorama.

Gettin' Clean 'n Detoxified

If you haven't been to Spa World yet - Go! Now! It is an amazing oasis of relaxing sauna rooms and baths and some really delicious bubble teas, smack dab in a nondescript strip mall in Northern VA. Listopad took a visit on Sunday night and it definitely lived up to the hype. Go without pretense and go to pore it out (you will feel digested and toxin free), relax, and get squeaky clean! Unfortunately, we have no pictures (we got reprimanded at by the cute little old Korean ladies for taking pics of each other in the standard issue uniforms). But go to the Post Gallery link and check it out.

Get To It

North African Jewelry and Photography from the Xaiver Guerrand-Hermes Collection opens on Wednesday at the African Art Museum.

Check out Combat, Commemoration, and Conversation, a screening of student films, at Catholic University's Caldwell Auditorium on Thursday.

Friday through Sunday, some reasons to road trip into Virginia (aside from the increasingly stunning weather we're enjoying): the Shenandoah Antiques Expo and the Richmond Folk Festival.

Saturday, some epics come to town: Christo and Jeanne-Claude: Over the River opens at the Phillips Collection; Wire plays the 9:30 Club.

Goth

I'm kind of tired of everyone going on and on about Gothic Glamour and everything that goes with it...Helena's been doing this for her whole career! It's not new! Somebody owes her royalties...

Word Association: Ann Demeulemeester

howl


tidal


bitch


slang


glory


switch

Goodness

Hot Clientle


Hot Shop

We had a blast at the For the Greater Good soft opening last weekend, even if it took this long for us to post about it. We love the store's "man about town/getting things done/looking good" aesthetic and were very impressed with the goods. Check them out on Florida Ave!

Pandahead: Issue 2 !

(pandaheadmag.com)

The multi-talented face behind Pandahead Morgan Hungerford explained to us: "Every Fall - it's excitement and ideas and (good) anxiety about buckling down and getting things accomplished." And Girlfriend is sure living that mantra. With the help of site designer Erik Loften, Pandahead has taken it to the next level with its on-line mag. In this issue, we find ambitious offerings of multimedia art and music from local artists, alongside lovely layouts of fashion and DC culture. "Chapter Four" and its drapey, relaxed aesthetic is highly coveted by Listopad. We are already excited about Issue 3...