Archive for February, 2010
Faith & Fortune Visits the Hope Lodge
Monday, February 22nd, 2010
For those of you who have been following us on our Facebook fan page or on our Twitter page, you know we had been recruiting volunteers for a visit to the Hope Lodge in Boston last week. Our plan was to host a simple ice cream night, just to give their residents a break. Well, they were incredibly thankful for the gesture, and so much so, we were left wondering why we hadn’t done it sooner!
For those of you not familiar with the Hope Lodge, it is a 40 suite, outpatient residence for those who live at least 40 miles away from the hospitals in which they are receiving cancer treatments. It provides an opportunity for some sense of normalcy and comfort while undergoing some very challenging times. They have done an amazing job of building a warm, comfortable, accommodating place.
They even have a theatre!
Faith & Fortune’s hope with volunteer opportunities like this, is to force ourselves and our community to step out of our comfortable daily routine. I’ll admit that it’s easier, and certainly more predictable to go about my daily schedule thinking only of myself. Having said that, those times that I do force myself into opportunities like this I end up realizing how much personal growth I gain. Additionally, it just become easier and easier.
Faith & Fortune in the Hope Lodge kitchen
Going forward, we’d love to have you involved in some way. Keep an eye our for different events that we will either be hosting or taking part in and don’t hesitate to drop us a message. Also, if you have a charity that you are regularly working with or would like to see Faith & Fortune get behind, let us know! If we can work it into our plans, we’ll do our best!
Tags: apparel, boston, faith and fortune, hope lodge, volunteer
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Awesome art in unexpected places
Monday, February 15th, 2010
Art in unexpected places
Tags: apparel, art, Graffiti, graphic art, t shirt
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Lady Gaga, Skinny Jeans and Horse Lamps. Fashion Trumps Function.
Monday, February 8th, 2010
By now anyone who has followed the illustrious, albeit short career of Lady Gaga is aware that that she considers herself a bit of a style maven. Well, if she doesn’t consider herself that, she should. At this years Grammy Awards Lady Gaga chose to be dressed by none other than Armani. Typically this is a safe bet, but there was nothing safe about this dress. In fact it makes me wonder if any thought was put into the simple question of “how will she sit in this dress all night”?
Lady Gaga in Armani
Speaking of sitting, I recently read that Russell Brand intentionally avoids opportunities to sit when wearing his trademark skinny jeans (a.k.a. rocker jeans). Although he has the pixie thin legs to pull off the look, he readily admits that he wears his jeans at such a tourniquet tight level that sitting is sometimes darn near impossible. Your author (Jim) once tried to make a go of this style of jeans. I will spare you the details and the photos but suffice it to say I had to make a quick call to my emergency contact to meet me at the dressing room of Target for assistance getting them off! Brand not only has the thigh circumference necessary to achieve the look, he also has the self esteem to wear them with impunity.
Russell Brand gives us the skinny on his jeans
So what’s the big deal right? Fashion has always trumped function. Statement pieces are just that…a statement. Not a statement about comfort but a statement about individuality, personal preference, and a cool comfort in pushing the limit. Why not wear a dress that all but eliminates you from being able to sit near someone without poking them in the ear with one of your finger sabers? And why not rock out in jeans that force you to walk rather than take a cab because of a righteous fear of not being able to sit comfortably without a seam all but exploding. Even interior designers have gotten in on the act. Case in point, the NY Times recently ran a piece on this unique horse lamp by Moooi. I love modern furniture so I was immediately drawn to it…until I read the dimensions. This lamp stands 6 feet 10 inches tall and 7 feet 6 inches long. Makes you laugh when you consider the size of the typical New York City apartment that this lamp is being touted for. Certainly a statement piece when entertaining. And your friends can sit on this full size horse lamp since it now takes the place where your couch previously sat!
Moooi Horse Lamp
I’m not advocating refraining from making fashion choices in the future that clearly deny your personal comfort. Go ahead and buy heels that hurt you just to look at them. Play hoops in vintage sneakers that actually serve no athletic purpose but set your feet apart from the rest of the pack at the health club. But do yourself a favor and make sure your collection also includes a piece that not only makes you feel in style, confident and edgy but also is so comfortable that you have to be told to take it off after wearing it multiple days in a row. May I suggest the womens’ Faith & Fortune hoodie made from tri-blend material that sits just right on the silhouette and instantly becomes the most comfortable piece of clothing you own from the very first time you put it on. The Gold foil print is eye catching and looks amazing on a sunny day. This hoodie encourages fashion and function to become best friends!
Faith & Fortune Hoodie
Faith and Fortune Hoodie back
Tags: Function, Horse Lamp, Lady Gaga, Moooi, Skinny Jeans
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Enough winter. Go away already.
Wednesday, February 3rd, 2010
I love New England. I love the change in seasons, I love the spring (mud season), summer, fall, and even winter. OK, scratch that; I like parts of winter. That period leading up to Christmas and a few weeks on into the New Year where the novelty of snow has yet to wear off and you’re still thinking “Yeah, I’m a tough New Englander. Not like those pansies in the south who run away from this. Bring on the snow”. I’m thinking I might be a fraud. What I really like is the change in wardrobe that I’m allotted. Bust out the sweaters, the various layering affects, shoes that aren’t Chuck Taylors or flip flops (flip flops are an entirely other rant, btw.), and hats. I love winter hats. Especially as a guy since we have ZERO accessories (I’m not complaining…I’m not one of those who pulled for the man-bag to catch on. Simplicity is the way to go).
Me, on most winter mornings
All of this aside, for the love of everything cotton, I would love to be able to just throw on the jeans and t-shirt again. Is that so much to ask?!? I made a mildly defiant attempt at this earlier today (32 degrees here in the northeast for those of you in warmer climates) when I took my dog out for a quick little jaunt around the block. Wow. Bad move. What ensued was nothing short of a race for my life. I felt like Jack London’s character in “to build a fire”. It’s not the Yukon, exactly, but at the moment I was sure it could have been. To a passersby, I surely looked like a kid on the beach trying to launch a kite, running full speed with my dog dragging behind, at times becoming airborne hoping for a swift wind to bring him skyward. Unlike Jack London’s character, who met his demise, we made it back home safely no worse for the wear. It doesn’t mean my dog wasn’t traumatized, but we made it.
So I make my simple plea; enough already. No more cold. No more snow. No more sweaters. Can someone dial that up for me? I’m really pretty simple after all. Give me Jeans. Give me T-shirt. Give me Dog. What more does a man need?
~Jason
Tags: jack london, t shirt, winter, winter dress
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