I was framed!

My sight has been going for years. It seems to have accelerated the last 5 or so but it's been going none the less. I have resisted surgery of any kind, mostly because it's still pioneer days with the Lasiks, but I also love wearing glasses. LOVE IT! Frames are the greatest accessory there is for a guy if you don't count guitar pedals. I'm a big fan of taking inexpensive sunglasses and swapping out the frames like the pair I have on above which are from a company called Mosley Tribes. When I say inexpensive I mean that I got them on sale at Gilt. Sometimes I actually wear my dark sunglasses indoors or after dark and that is because I suffer from macular degeneration which is a slow form of creeping blindness. Essentially all light becomes too bright and it makes my eyes water and itch and I blink too much. The dark glasses make my globes feel like they've been submerged in cool water. Yes I look like an asshole to some and a jazz musician to others but at this point in my life I could give a fuck. I love my sunnys (australian term) and I'd wear them to bed. My go to pair of darks are The Deacon by Oliver Peoples. Like the hat, finding the right pair of sunglasses took awhile to find but when I did I stopped looking and bought 3 pair. The Deacons are my jam. But with the clear indoor glasses I'm still  playing around with cheap frames till I find the ones that work. Glasses like all clothes are an opportunity to say something about yourself so get after it you optically challenged fashion beast. If you have questions ask em here. ODE!!

UPDATE: Just after I posted this and then reposted to all of the usual places I was alerted by several people that there is a amazing Glasses and Frames site that will not only take your perscription but also let you try on and return their frames. They are called Warby Parker and they look awesome. I recall a friend telling me about this before. Not only are the glasses cool and retro but they also have a buy a pair donate a pair program. I will be purchasing a pair today. Here's to the internet community!

Morse Code Makes Me and Julia Roberts Happy

So even Julia Roberts now knows my secret.  Seen here in the Vanity Fair April issue wearing my very favorite LSG Morse Code bracelets.  Her three bracelets say her children's names or is it Pretty Woman, Notting Hill and Erin Brokovich?  I can't remember which. This is what these subtle but gorgeous bracelets look like up close and personal.  Colored silk cord with gold dots and dashes. You can order them through her website lsgjewelrydesigns.com.

 I wear two everyday that LSG (Lauren Schaefer Green) herself made me for my birthday and NEVER take them off.  One says my children's names and the other reads "Thug For Life" which pretty much sums up how I roll here in the valley with the hubby and kids.  

Mine!

Lauren makes much of the jewelry I wear because she lets me come over and go through her goodies. We'll sit around pulling out little gems and charms to put together for the long necklaces I love.  

Three of LSG & Outdress The Enemy's latest collaborations.

There Will Be Band Pants!

Yesterday I started the process of designing and sourcing material for pants, shirts and possibly sweaters to outfit Mike and I for some up coming gigs with the Reigning Monarchs. Angelo Warner the band's in house graphic mastermind and I took a trip to downtown Los Angeles and got in it. (Angelo writes about it HERE)  I have always been a big fan of bands that are as exacting with their presentation as their sound, Bands like The Clash, The Specials, Bow Wow Wow,The Stray Cats, Social D, The White Stripes, No Doubt, The Strokes... I could go on but we'd all fall asleep, seriously . The fun of it isn't just imagining what I'd like to see but also what I've never seen. Also we currently have a look (below) that I feel needs updating. Then add in the fact that Mile and I are both 40 plus, the band plays instrumental surf and ska (that seems now to be heading towards a more reggae and 60's soul vibe) and that I'm not made of money. Making your own clothes can prove very spendy if you don't do the actual sewing. Why go to all the trouble? Why not just tell everyone to wear black? We've done it. It's just not that satisfying someone always wears brown, or the blacks don't match. Look, The Clash looked like a gang, Jack White dresses his road crew, it's cool and it looks tough that's why. Stay tuned we found some awesome stuff. (Don't worry the day of the dead stuff is just for pocket lining I haven't lost my mind)

My Inspiration and my wife!

The best dressed person I know lives at my house. My fashion hero, my style consultant also happens to be the love of my life. I don't really understand how she does it. She is the most effortlessly stylish person I know. I live with her so I see what it takes to be her and what it takes to get out the door and unless we are going to an big event she moves through our *shared **closet effortlessly. She is instinctually ahead of trends and yet not obnoxiously trendy. She's sexy as hell but not an attention seeking tramp at least most days:) She dresses her age and yet appears eternally youthful. She manages to be stylish at every tun without being off putting and that's no easy feat. Women love her and that's an ever harder feat. Seriously everywhere we go stylish women ask about what she's got going on. Does she work at it? I wouldn't say that but like me she is a fan of the art of dressing and an obsessive about great design. Clothes are a opportunity for her. An opportunity to be taken seriously as a mom, a writer, and as a woman. So what is her secret? She respects herself, she takes great care of herself, and she tries things. Also she married well. That last one might be an exaggeration but I can say for sure I wouldn't be half the man I am without her. She truly is my inspiration. Today I celebrate her, tomorrow I go back to talking about me;)

*Much to her dismay
**Yes the the very same closet the the world famous tragedy Walking The Room is recorded.