To Catch Some Thieves

*NOTE:  These are NOT pictures of the ACTUAL thieves!

We have compiled images of celebrities who most closely resemble the gang of 4 thieves who shop-lifted from our store on Thursday, February 16 at approximately 12:30 pm.
Brief descriptions are beneath each photo.  They were last seen on that day, walking south towards Grandin Station on 110 Street in Edmonton.
If anyone knows who these 20-something year olds are, as a group or individually, please contact the Edmonton Police and refer to the incident.  These are professional thieves and they must be stopped!!!

If there is a next time, there will be an actual photo of the criminals, which will be forwarded to as many social media outlets and newspapers, t.v. news shows as possible until they are caught and put behind bars...or at the very least, fined and made known to their friends and family.  How proud their parents would be to know what their offspring are up to!

*These are not the actual thieves...only lookalike celebrities.

Johnny & Felix

One of the cutest pictures I ever snapped......my little brother and the family cat, Felix...the big black cat.   This was taken years ago with my Brownie camera given to me by my sister.  It was the start of my interest in photography.  Felix belonged to my older brother but I wanted him to be my cat so badly!

Speaking Out About Unnecessary Plastic Surgery

This blog is mostly about my store...what new clothing and jewellery has arrived in the store, ideas about how to wear Tattered Rose clothing, upcoming events and such; however, I DO show the more personal side of me...like my love for cats and boots and old trucks....because it is a package...me, my store....we are one.

Today, I am expressing my dismay at the sight of Bristol Palin after she has had plastic surgery...supposedly to correct her misaligned jaw.

Look at her "before" picture....a beautiful, young woman with a full face, gorgeous eyes and a sweet smile.  She looks so natural and lovely....simply stunning.

Then look at the "after" picture, after the "corrective jaw surgery".  She is almost unrecognizable, and is no longer the natural beauty...her face looks "done" and her outward appearance depicts someone else...someone whose face is a bit "off"...and I have to say I do not like it.  

I know it is HER face but it is MY opinion that she has taken something beautiful and turned it into something not so beautiful because it is no longer her.  Yes, she is still pretty but where is she gone...the young woman who WAS Bristol Palin?


All of this may seemingly have nothing to do with my store and this blog; however, since I feel that Tattered Rose is about embracing a romantic lifestyle and being beautiful women who are comfortable in their own skin, this really DOES have something to do with it.

I am saddened by society's obsession with youth and the pursuit of perfection, for one thing.  But even more, I am greatly disturbed by the desire of an already attractive person/celebrity to have plastic surgery to theoretically look better, younger, more desirable, more acceptable.  I think it often makes them look worse, not better. At the very least, it changes the way they look and alters our perception of who they are.

When you see a celebrity who has had OBVIOUS work done on their face, such as unnatural plumping of the upper lip, or having their eyes tweaked or their chin narrowed, it is immediately obvious to me.  Their face is not quite natural looking anymore.  I'd much rather see a person look like themselves and/or age gracefully than have them get plumped and injected and cut up to resemble some other person.  I want to see that person as they are...and aging as they should....not become a distorted version of their former selves.

I'm all for doing whatever you can to maintain as youthful appearance as possible sans drastic surgery or injections.  For people who really DO need corrective surgery to feel better about a disfigurement or an overly large nose (for example), it can be a good decision...if all goes well.  What I object to is celebrities (and regular people) who have nothing wrong with their faces choosing to go under the knife and end up looking like someone else.  When they change the proportions of their faces....the ratio of all the parts to each other that make them who they are, they are messing with nature...and usually not for the better.

Below are examples of how surgery changes the proportion and character of the face:
Rupert Everett, Joan Van Ark and Bruce Jenner

The specifics of what they have done is not important.  What matters is that they have forever lost themselves...the way they were, the faces they had that made us love them and feel comfort in seeing an old friend....and for me, it is a sad thing.


*I promise my next blog entry will be about the new arrivals at the store.

Beautiful Images

It's Official....Tattered Rose is Moving!

We got the final word yesterday and it is now official.....some time this summer, our new store space is going to be in this condominium building, located on 110 Street, south of Jasper Avenue (on a one way street) It is a charming older neighbourhood across the street from the oldest Catholic church in Edmonton, close to Pariliament buildings, lawyers offices in converted older houses......not too far from Jasper Avenue and only 3 or 4 minutes from our present location.

Above is a "BEFORE" picture of the what will be Tattered Rose's new home some time this summer.  The "AFTER" pictures of the outside of the building will not be very dramatic...I don't think they will want me painting the brick like my current store (shown below)  Of course, the owner of the building where Tattered Rose currently resides knew that at some point he would be demolishing the building so he didn't really care. Can you imagine me asking the condo board if could paint the brick around my store?  

The real difference is how the new store will look INSIDE once renovations are complete...here we go again!  Considering that the new store at 1600 square feet is almost twice the size of the current one and to keep myself from being too stressed about this move, I have to look at it as a new chapter in the life of Tattered Rose...an opportunity to incorporate many of the ideas I have had in the space we are in now, such as:

* a devoted & expanded wedding/special occasion area complete with carpeting!
*a seating area for husbands, boyfriends, guests
*more home decor with emphasis on the eclectic and one-of-a-kind items that are currently only display props that so many of my customers want to purchase
*more display mannequins to properly show off our beautiful clothing and jewellery

We will be notifying all of our customers on the email list once we have moved.  Stay tuned for the latest developments!!

Random Sunday Lineup

Spring Jewels by Zuka

Mother of the Bride & Other Pretty Clothing

For Mothers who want to wear something beautiful & pretty for their son or daughter's wedding....we have some very pretty, non-matronly clothing, dresses and outfits.  Don't expect traditional mother of the bride stuff that you find in mall stores...that's not what we are about.

Who ever decided that Mothers or any woman over 40 had to look frumpy, anyway?  We don't do frumpy.

Frivolous Fashion or Life Must Go On?

I am in the business of selling fashion...clothing, jewellery, accessories....and yet it all seems so unimportant at this moment with the tragedy going on in Haiti.

I cannot bring myself to watch the news clips on television because I fear I would start crying and never stop.  It is heartbreaking, to say the least and I wish that I could afford to travel there and help...BUT I cannot.  I must remain here in Edmonton, hoping that these unfortunate people will get all of the help they need & deserve, while I tend to my shop.  It is how I make my living so as unimportant as it seems right now, I must carry on selling beautiful clothing to my customers.  I must keep on designing the most romantic one-of-a-kind things for people to wear so that I can earn a living.  It is one of those unfortunate dichotomies of life...tragedy & sadness makes you want to stop...but life must go on.  You have to keep going or everything dies.

So, inspite of the sadness my heart feels for the people in Haiti (and other parts of the world where people are suffering) I have to keep up with Tattered Rose and all of the new things arriving for Spring.  It is not easy to be happy about stuff like that when you know that people are struggling with the loss of their loved ones or even just to survive. My prayers are with them.

A double-edged sword for sure!

Hummers & Pantaloons

Where have I been, some may wonder?

Theoretically, I have designing up a storm...but that is not entirely true.  I have been trying to get through the winter and have also been recovering from being rear-ended by a Hummer several weeks ago, the driver of which I suspect had been drinking.  I cannot prove it, especially now that weeks have passed and I didn't call the police on the spot; however, I do know that he was driving impaired, and that is why he ran into my Jeep and caused me a lot of physical pain and suffering, not to mention damage to my vehicle...and this was well under 40 km/hr. 

It could have been a LOT worse and in hindsight, I wish I HAD called the police on the spot so that they could test him for alcohol consumption.  I just hope that he doesn't hurt anyone else, or worse cause a fatality....that would be terrible. 

This did not start out as a lecture about drunk driving or driving under the influence but I just want to remind everyone...it is NOT worth risking lives to drive your vehicle if you have had too much to drink. So please, have someone who has not been drinking drive you to your destination, or get sober before you get into your vehicle.  I will be suffering with a sore back, headaches and all-over soreness for months, but I am one of the lucky ones!!

Well, that is what I have been doing.  I will be gearing up for more designing in the next few weeks...so come in and see what new things I have created.  Spring arrivals from other designers will also be coming in this week and for the next few months after that....lots of great, urban-romantic clothing and jewellery....and the PIRATE wench tops...they are finally on their way to Tattered Rose!

By the way, last Spring I made myself a pair of grey ruffled pantaloons...and they got so much attention, I made a pair to sell in the shop, even though they take a surprisingly long time to make.  Well, some lucky young woman bought them on the spot because she loved the historical romance of them worn in a modern way.  This week, I created another pair,  in a beautiful vintage grey washed silk...with self fabric bows and ruffled bottoms!  Too cute! 

Happy New Year!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!

May you have lots of love and happiness in the new year and always.

This will be my last post of 2009.  Thanks to everyone for reading my blog.

Me and My Shadow

It's Christmas Day

Well, here it is...Christmas morning and all through the house, not a creature is stirring, except for me and the cats...hubby is still sleeping soundly.

This is a good time to reflect on and share with you what Christmas means to me. Since I am not affiliated with any particular religion and do not have children, I can be very clear about this holiday that has been, for centuries I think, designated as the celebration of Jesus Christ.

I have long forgotten about Santa Claus and because I do not have children in my life to keep that myth alive, it is just fine with me. After all, isn't the point of Christmas to celebrate the birth of Christ?...whatever day he was born, this is the day that was chosen to rejoice his birth.

It used to be that it was a special time of year, when people were extra kind to their fellow human beings, when church and God and Jesus was the biggest part of the holiday theme...gift giving was done with care and lots of thought, often lovingly made by hand. Then, somewhere along the way, Santa Claus and the giving of expensive and numerous store-bought gifts became the focal point, and in my opinion, which as you know by now is neither humble nor clouded in mystery, that is when Christmas lost it's true meaning. THAT is when we lost the "spirit of Christmas".

It seems to me that at this time of year most people stress over buying gifts for everyone on their list and how they are going to pay for it all, where to put their visiting guests, what the Christmas meal will include, who will sit where, whose home the dinner will be at, and just a lot of anxiety and disappointment. We search for the spirit of Christmas, the magical way we felt when we were children and we want that again...but it rarely comes to us, at least, not the way we remember it. Is it any wonder that so many of us become a little bit depressed during this time?

And in the rushing around to make sure the kids have the latest video games, toys, and cool clothing and the adults in our lives are given even better gifts than we gave last year....we mostly forget what this is all about, or what it used to be all about. I suppose that being a retailer I should embrace the idea of people spending money and I DO appreciate the fact that each year, my loyal customers come back to buy something special for their loved ones. WHY? Because the ones who purchase their gifts from my shop realize that the woman they are buying something for will treasure that item because it comes from Tattered Rose....and it IS real and given with thoughtfulness and love, and that makes it OK.

I don't promote Christmas like just about every other retailer on the planet....and that is probably what makes me an awful business person. I'm an artistic soul, not a typical retailer but it could be the reason that my wonderful customers keep coming back each year....they know there will be no pressure to buy, buy, buy! They will not be bombarded by Christmas music, there will be no tree, no elaborate decorations and definitely no Santa! But I will try my best to help them find that special gift that will mean the world to their beloved. Maybe other retailers know how to do good Christmas business, I know I sure don't, but I like to think that I make up for the lack of that knowledge in other ways.

I have had some special moments and lots of hugs, cards and even gifts from my customers and THAT more than makes up for the fact that I am not some huge electronics store raking in the BIG money! (although a little of that windfall in my bank account would be nice)

I'm not even sure if all this rambling makes any sense, but I thought I would share my thoughts this morning with all of you out there who grace my blog with your presence. I appreciate the time each one of you takes to read or at least glance through what I have written...and I hope that you enjoy not only the pictures, but also what I have to say....it all comes from my heart.

I truly hope that we can all find a way to incorporate more love, more meaning and more honesty into our Christmases. Gift giving is fine but it doesn't have to be the sole purpose of the celebration. Let's try to get back a little of what we once had before it goes away completely. We should pass these traditions on to our children so that future generations will understand what Christmas is really all about....the birth of Christ, family, friends, kindness, goodness, truth, hope, peace and above all....LOVE!

Merry Christmas to all (who celebrate it) and to all a good morning. Time for me to go and see what the felines are doing....and check on my husband......well, he's still sleeping. Merry Christmas to me.

Chandeliers

I borrowed this picture from someone's blog...not sure where or who? Chandeliers add instant charm to any decor, but especially French style.

I am in love with the casual sophistication of French decor...the history of each piece exposed in the faded grandeur that once was and still is. The muted and matte shades of browns, cream and taupe, mixed with elements of crystal, such as chandeliers...that is the ultimate in design as far as I am concerned.

"Shabby Chic" has it's place...best suited to a beach/lake house or a home in the southwest USA...and I love that style too. However, French style...even the connotation that has...like "Paris" or "the south of France" evoke an image of a way of life that has been around for centuries. The time-worn, rusted, at one time very expensive items like wrought iron beds...don't they instantly have more charm if they are from France? I think they do.

Perhaps I will be fortunate enough to go to Paris and the south of France one day...until then, I must love it vicariously through books, blogs, magazines and films.

Adorable Furry Felines

Anyone who knows me knows that I love cats.  They are part of my life and I adore them!  I thought I would share a few cute pictures that were sent to me via email.  Are they not precious?

The Goddess Coat

As promised from my previous post "The Goddess and Her Jersey Coat"...I am posting a picture of the black Goddess coat.  I have it displayed on a size 4 mannequin (because that's all I have) to show the hood being worn.  But I stand by what I said earlier...this coat and the other style that has no hood, both look fantastic on curvier women too!  I'd take a picture of me wearing my grey one, but I don't want to scare people away!

The Challenges of Trying to be a Writer

Hello people. I have tweaked my original post titled "Intellectual Property & Copycats". If you read the original version, I must apologize for my whining and ranting...I think I was in a bad mood that day. My thoughts on the subject have not changed, only the way I have written about them. I have learned from this...a writer (or wanna-be writer like me) should never publish something until they have proof-read, waited a few days, re-read and proof-read again...until what they have written is exactly how they want it to be read.


I do believe that I will take a nap now....