Horror Picture Show Party

You're invited!
{well virtually speaking...}
to one of my favorite sorts of parties... bad eats, laughs and a steady stream of films

Susan Strasberg in Hammer film Scream of Fear (1961) which turned out to be so much more satisfying than I had expected. Dashing creep and all. So Good.



I guess Sunset Blvd with Gloria Swanson is more film noir but we all know it's pretty horrific on so many levels. Lesson learned, no one leaves a star and switch out your perfume every 5 or so years.

House on Haunted Hill (1959) remains an all time favorite Vincent Price horror movie.


Betty Davis saves Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte from being totally corny... even so this movie keeps getting more and more loony and disturbing as it stutters along. Creeps abound.
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Wax sealed invitations
Bloody good kettle corn (recipe here)
Memento Mori Skull Candle with candy gummy worms
Brandy snuffers and antique apothecary bottles

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For another fun party filled with French films see my Valentine's Day Movie Mixer Party post.

Images: MAM for Gave That & Film Stills from Google, dvdbeaver.com , Amctv.com

Whooga, Whooga!

Wearing my new Whooga boots which are so very soft and cozy. New England cold is quite often brutal and boots like these are an absolute life (toe) saver. They've also been, oddly enough, some of my most well received gifts! Michael was so very sweet to send me a pair to show you and wants me to let you all know that Whooga is running a series of contests to win a free pair of boots! Simply sign up for Whooga's mailing list at their website &/or follow on twitter. Thank you Michael!

Boots: Whooga Black Tall Boots
Bag: FEED 2 Bag

Image: MAM & Magda for Gave That

Crazylibellule and the Poppies

When the temperature starts to dip and it gets crisp it seems almost immediate that my mind snaps back to a favorite topic... perfume. A changing of the guards. Back go the simple, light, fresh florals and soapy cleanness and out come things of a more ominous nature. This year as I was picking though everything it dawned on me that nothing was new. These were all fall/winter standbys. It also made me wonder if the ultimate pick me up would be something lighter and summery even?



I went a little out of control searching with one new scent making me smell like an old forgotten book and another leaving me wanting to eat my arm. Typical weirdoness I was supposed to be moving away from so we'll just gloss over that and go straight to something sweeter. Crazylibellule and the Poppies has made available (in the US) some scents that are outside their typical solid stick form and while they are all very summery, I attempted to pick out one with some cold weather possibilities. The one, L'Olfactive 129 is dreamy. It smells like candied strawberry leaves, ylang ylang and honey and then transforms into pure warm honey and amber. It's fleeting, simply composed and young but oh so good and who can resist the little book dangling off? I'm thinking if giving it to a very sweet girl in my life come spring.

I'll be back with more soon as the quest continues. Do you have any favorites? Please share!

Image: MAM for Gave That

Hard Perfumes

Aromatic favorites at the moment: Little stick of Crabtree & Evelyn Lost (and Found hides in my bag) perfumes with illustrations by Laura Tarrant-Brown on the caps. Oldies but still cherished goodies. A vintage pineapple solid perfume case filled with my own concoction. Modern Alchemy timeless scents in delicious white truffle tinged tuberose. The ultimate cult addictions, Crazylibellule and the Poppies Hommage A Gabrielle and Shanghaijava Mystic housed in roaring 20's -esk paper tubes.


These little perfumes housed, in most cases, in delicate cases make them such a treat to use (from ones purse) and give too. Modern Alchemy's timeless pocket watches win out for most luxe cases and scent wise, the prize has to go to Crazylibellule. Mystic smells exactly like pontifical incense blends of sweet myrrh, lemony frankincense and gooey benzoin. Masculine and thoroughly addicting. Hommage a Gabrielle (a tribute to Coco Chanel) is said to be part of the more masculine line Les garconnes yet it's utterly feminine. The same resin base as Mystic but fresher with light peony flowers. Open Letter to Perfume Houses - please consider making solid versions of your scents! Your devote, Marie.



See more about Crazylibellule L'Olfactive perfumes in my post here and see this post on making your own solid scents.



Image: MAM for Gave That

Also see:
- Modern Alchemy

Skulls

Digging them all out...
18th century grave stone
Chan Luu skull wrap friendship bracelet (with Alex & Ani)
Memento Mori skull candle
Silver etched card case

Image: Magda & MAM for Gave That

Also see:
- Modern Alchemy

Water

"Unsafe water and lack of basic sanitation cause 80% of diseases and kill more people every year than all forms of violence, including war." -Blog Action Day 2010

"Today, 40% of America’s rivers and 46% of America’s lakes are too polluted for fishing, swimming, or aquatic life." -Blog Action Day 2010

Today is Blog Auction Day 2010, a day when bloggers and blogs all over the world join together to post about one important topic each year in unison. This year's focus is on clean water... something that hits very close to home. Water.

The numbers presented are staggering and sobering. 38,000 children dying every week because of poor sanitation and a lack of clean drinking water and while the focus zooms their, one has to wonder about all of the children that do not die but instead spend their lives with adverse health conditions and the need for daily medication. 46% of American lakes are too polluted. Have you seen evidence of people pouring toxic chemicals and used oil into protected waterways? I sadly have. Even worse you can feel powerless when the response you get from local government is, "who cares" or, "that's been going on for years".

This is something happening in Africa, right here in the US... it is global and there is so much all of us can do, little by little. Check out Charity : water. See the recent collaborating they did with TOMS shoes. Park systems will often have volunteer clean up days, call your local one and find out. Use reusable water bottles. Read about 9 ways you can conserve water. For more, be sure to see all of the blog posts here.

Image: MAM for Gave That

They're Multiplying

Friendship bracelets by Alex & Ani

Image: Magda & MAM for Gave That

OmniPeace

Love how OmniPeace asks, "Can Fashion Save Lives?"

Wearing our OmniPeace jute bag.

Images: Magda & MAM for Gave That

Japanese Furoshiki with Roses

This was very quick and easy! All that was needed was a simple silk hankerchif and a few bits of greenery and plump roses. For a tutorial on how to do this furoshiki gift style look, click here.

How to fold the above look:


Image: MAM for Gave That

Harvest Part I

Picking tomatoes before the frost comes...

Picking basil too. Everything will be cooked down to form thick tomato ketchup and sauces. This takes a while but somehow being in a warm kitchen all day beats the cold, drizzly weather outside. In part II I'll show you how these are packaged up for gifts! Stay tuned...

Image: MAM for Gave That