That's So Austen.

Things right now that have stood out to me as very Austen lately, as fall has finally descended on the Northeast:

Anthropologie

If you know me, you know I'm OBSESSED with Anthropologie. Most of my wardrobe is either from this store or looks like it's from this store (and is actually from Target, Forever21 or Kohls...gotta love some bargains). I swear that if Austen heroines were living today, they would be dressed head to toe in clothing from this ladylike, smart, classic-with-a-twist store. Last night I was sitting in an Anthropologie on a leather couch and it just came to me...the English undertones...the cheeky wit...the weathered, countryside-ish wood...it's just SO Austen. AND...!!

OMG the books!! They are now carrying these beautiful, antique-looking hardcover versions of some my absolute favorite books: Pride and Prejudice, Emma, The Odyssey and many more. I cannot deal. I want them all. But of course, at 20 bucks a pop, I can't just buy them all. SO where do I start?? I'm tempted to get Pride and Prejudice (just finished my re-read of it last night! Damn it is SO good. Elizabeth to Darcy: "To be sure, you knew no actual good of me--but nobody thinks of that when they fall in love."), as my copy is literally falling apart. But I want Emma! Can I even choose between Pride and Prejudice, which I love so much, and Emma, which I also love to the point that it is my future daughter's namesake? And then I also want Sense and Sensibility, so I can read it next! But I also need the Odyssey, aka my favorite love story ever! Oh Anthropologie, the endless dilemmas you create in my mind...

English Countryside Beauty

This picture is from an entry in the Beauty Department blog at luckymag.com. I just think this girl is beautiful, and she reminds me of a combination of Elizabeth and Jane in the most recent Pride and Prejudice movie. The big eyes, defined brows, delicate flush of the lips and cheeks...ever notice how in Austen novels (and other works from the time) they're always mentioning people's "colouring" in conjunction with their emotions? I.e. "But Jane, you are so pale" and "Elizabeth had a healthy colour in her cheeks after her exercise in the country"? And eyes are also important...there's a whole part of Pride and Prejudice where Darcy is made fun of for stating that Elizabeth has "fine eyes." So I'm loving this soft and gentle makeup...some shades to try to get this particular shade of flush would be Nars the Multiple in Maui, Nars lipstick in Dolce Vita, or Stila Convertible Color in Lillium...try it out girls! Perfect for fall.

The Lace-Up Bootie

Now I don't pretend to know what kind of shoes Austen ladies would have actually worn, but I imagine that they would have worn something at least in this genre and that they would have approved that they're now one of the biggest shoe trends out there. I got myself a pair of grey leather ones that are a little low-cut in the front and have a medium-height heel, and I can't wait to wear them now that it's finally cold enough to stop wearing sandals! They're so cute and versatile and I feel like there's a lace-up bootie for everyone out there right now, you just have to search a little bit! Stay tuned for a post on how I actually dress around these babies...a challenge that I am ready for.

That is all, happy Tuesday! Embrace your inner English Country Rose...you know you want to.

Being an Emma in a Snooki World.

First thought: why is it so hard to find the good books out there? After reading The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger a couple of summers ago, I have been so frustrated by the search for a good book. Everything at the bookstore seems too silly or too sad or too written-for-a-middle-aged-empty-nester-looking-for-a-new-start-on-life. Or the book looks great, but it's a collection of short stories, and I want a novel dammit! After searching high and low, I bought the book In the Kitchen by Monica Ali, only to realize that the main character's affair with a Russian ex-prostitute hiding from her pimp (named, of course, Boris) was making me depressed and paranoid (what if my lovely boyfriend is actually hiding a wretched Russian in his apartment and making love to her every night even though he swears he isn't attracted to her?? yech). Once again, I abandoned a book while I was halfway through it, with no desire or energy to finish it. Once that was over, I bought Eat Pray Love and received The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo from a friend, both of which I am planning on reading over my two-week family vacation that's coming up. In the meantime, I've returned to an old favorite: my old copy of Pride and Prejudice (a 30 page hunk has completely detached from the spine, which is kind of a problem) that I was reading the first summer I was dating my boyfriend four years ago. I filled all of the empty space inside the novel with early declarations of love from him, which makes this book even more special. As romantic as our relationship still is, there's nothing like those first few times that you are told that you are the love of someone's life. All mushiness aside...nothing will ever compare to Austen for me. She is just the best, and her women are the kind of woman I want to be. Fallible, prideful, and prejudiced, yes, but smart and witty, full of class, and capable of great love. Austen's writing is so entertaining yet at the same time such a wonderful exploration of what it's like to be a woman. And with our latest cultural phenomenon involving women making out with each other on TV one minute and pulling each other's hair extensions out the next (I'm talking to you, Jersey Shore. GTL my ass), I am just so pleased that Jane Austen novels exist. That is all.