HIBERNATION IS OVER! AT LEAST FOR NOW...

Dear readers,

Wait, what readers? I don’t have any readers anymore now, do I?

I have not posted since July.

July, I tell you!  

To justify this lapse in blogging, I will employ the pitiful platitude of “life happened.”

Below is a series of events that recently transpired in my otherwise dull existence. Each event served as a distraction from posting on the blog. Either that or I was just being l-a-z-y. Three cheers for honesty! But, if you would like to know more about the former excuse, then read on:

A SERIES OF RECENT EVENTS (IN MY OTHERWISE DULL EXISTENCE) THAT DISTRACTED ME FROM POSTING ON THE BLOG:

Reason 1: In June, I was bit by the spontaneity bug (and also by the “I-need-to-escape-Brooklyn-now-or-else-I-will-die-a-metaphorical-death” bug), packed my suitcase, and rented an apartment in Washington Heights (a.k.a Jewish Singlesville). The transition wasn’t hard; I simply moved from one littered, humid, urban community to another littered, humid, urban community.

            Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately), I did not experience the much hyped social dynamic of WH’s Jewish Clique, as many of its members left New York for the summer. Instead, I was simply left to my own devices. I explored the energized Dominican area (in its full blaring glory of Latin music), took pacifying walks in Fort Tryon Park (one of New York’s hidden gems) and spend long summer Sundays in WH’s sole, cramped Starbucks (with its array of hipsters and increased foreboding of neighborhood gentrification).

Reason 2: During this past summer, I had also worked at a non-profit in Downtown Manhattan. I was hired to assist with the organization’s Annual Golf and Tennis Championship. I was assigned the humdrum, but still stressful, administrative tasks. My employer flipped between being charmingly sweet and absolutely terrifying; I never, ever knew what to expect. Of course, in the true spirit of one’s #firstjoboutofcollege, I spent a few days heaving back tears in the ladies room and drying my mascara stained cheeks. After that, I rolled back my shoulders and stepped out of the ladies room with renewed poise. I forced myself to tackle whatever other sharp reprimands Ms. Bossy-Boss stocked up for me, occasionally failing and making a second trip to the ladies room for the purpose of catching all those black-mascara-tears.

After these never-ending days of work, I walked into my apartment and greeted my devoted lovers: the previous night’s leftover pasta and Netflix. And just so you know, after-work pasta and Netflix will always trump blogging for Wear Your Invisible Crown. Always. 

Toward the end of July, the Golf and Tennis Championship finally rolled around. Our organization and its slew of multimillionaires guests were very fortunate; the weather was pristine and perfect for golf. I met a few of the organization’s wealthy donors and scanned the golf course to see whether they had any grandsons. It turns out they didn’t—or at least not any that showed up. Boo!

Reason 3: In mid-July, I applied to a graduate program in English Literature education. While journalism and writing are my first loves, I was tired of interning for low-profile companies that didn't pay me a blessed penny. When applying for actual jobs, I was tired of being blithely ignored by HR representatives. Above all, I was tired of dispassionate unemployment.

I craved stability, and thus opted to teach as a profession. Currently, I am being trained to teach grades 7-12 in NYC Public Schools. I am wary of parts of this job as well; the Department of Education is forever punishing teachers and holding them accountable for stagnant test scores. And because of this (and many other reasons), 50% of public school teachers quit within the first two years. Ah well. All I can do is pray that I’m able to discipline hormone-raging 16 year olds and deepen their appreciation for Shakespeare, Bronte, and Fitzgerald.  Hahahahahahaha. Reality Check: I’ll actually be chased out of the class with frayed copies of The Great Gatsby and an impressive collection of paper airplanes. Now, that sounds more like it.

Anyways, being that this was my first semester of graduate school, I had little time for much else. Not to show off or anything (but really to show off) I’ll say that I wrote exactly 134 pages of academic writing these past few months. Hence, another reason for not posting on the blog.

Final Reason: I recently started to loathe the blogging format (Google’s Blogger). I noticed that all the photos I posted in previous entries have disappeared and that the layout somehow mysteriously gets out of sync. I cannot deal with Blogger’s shenanigans. Some nights I lay in bed dreaming of developing a print magazine that’s geared just for 20-something Jewish singles—a heimeshe and kosher hybrid of Marie Claire and GQ. Until then, I resort to posting on this annoying blogging format—or not. Maybe I will desert you all again. And if I do, then shame on me. You have written charming and witty posts on your blogs, in spite of busy professional and personal lives. I need to learn a lesson from you now, don’t I?

Sincerely,

The Beckster

Are Blogs Narcissism Amplifiers?

       After a long break involving a move from one NY neighborhood to another and a frenetic season at work, I have returned to the blogosphere in the height of a skin-sticking, sweat-dripping July.

        Absence on this blog has left me with a fidgety, nagging feeling. Over the past few months, I took self-expression by the hand and stuffed it callously into a box labeled “daily grind monotony.”

       At a certain point, I began to look forward to returning to the blogosphere and sinking my teeth into colorful fashion photos, summer makeup woes, posts about the rare existence of available, good men…You know, typical fare for the 23 year old Jewish single female.

        Then, one evening, I came across a website that had an article titled “The 10 Most Compelling Subplots on Your Facebook Newsfeed.” The author (who has a penchant for scribbling bitingly sarcastic articles) listed different types of individuals who grate his nerves on Facebook.

       There were plenty. And according to this author (let’s call him Sir Derisive), “the blogger” is one of ‘em.

        Why? Because the blogger will annoyingly beg, borrow, and steal “likes” on social media. He or she will desperately fawn for approval and coerce others to check out the blog.

       Sir Derisive’s complaint against a blogger’s over-promoting on Facebook didn’t bother me. In fact, I readily plead guilty for scooping a “thumbs up” from Facebook friends like some tyrannical octopus with ravenous suctioning cups. I can over-promote to the point of “Goodness, can we just take this blogger and throw her into a pit full of snakes and scorpions already?” annoyance.

       So, yes, I understand the author’s frustration with bloggers on that account. Social media is the way to promote these days, and some of us (me!) take merciless advantage of it. Thus, I accept this criticism with a humbled heart.

      Yet, what did irk me about Sir Derisive’s commentary was his description of the blog as a “personal narcissism amplifier.”

“I Think When You’re Young You Should be a Lot with Yourself and Your Sufferings….”

       I never outgrew my girlish adolescent habit of sticking overtly sentimental quotes on bedroom walls. My collection is still there, hanging loud and proud, cramped between photos of Lucille Ball and Bette Davis. One of the quotes that I printed out says:

“I think when you’re young you should be a lot with yourself and your sufferings. Then one day you get out where the sun shines and the rain rains and the snow snows and it all comes together.”

–Diana Vreeland (1903-1989) Editor at fashion magazines, Harper's Bazaar and Vogue. My personal heroine.

       This quote instantly resonated. It was a relief to discover a viewpoint that contradicts the societal assumption that youth is merely an exhaustive string of booze fests, promiscuous nights, and general blitheness. I craved to know that even if my existence failed to measure up to secular depictions of a 20-something woman—with a doting lover on one side and a white-hot career on the other—then I would still be alright. I ached to realize that even if I didn’t meet my community’s standards for the 20-something woman—baking quiches for her in-laws’ arrival and wiping the last traces of ice cream from her toddler’s lips—then I would still be alright.

Expectation of 20-something female # 1              Expectation of 20-something female #2

      I was, as they say, “a mess of a gorgeous chaos” at the time when I came across Diana Vreeland’s words. I desperately needed reassurance that my young years weren’t fleeing me, and if they were, then I still needn’t panic. Sunshine would eventually pour across my shoulders and penetrate into my tired heart… 

 

Calling All Makeup Geeks

      While Wear Your Invisible Crown may be an online Mecca for modest fashion posts—or so we humbly hope—it has not dipped its toes in the pool of skincare and makeup. This is quite ironic, as I used to be a makeup hoarder. If a community like M.A.A (Makeup Addicts Anonymous) existed, then I would've be a supporting member. I would have proudly burst into M.A.As with my M.A.Cs.  Yet, after a couple of years, this fixation with eyeliners, lipsticks, and powders dissipated and paved the way for an interest in sartorial style.

      As the editor of this blog, however, I still wanted to have makeup articles for all XX chromosome readers (or XY chromosome readers who find the female universe—brimming with frills, lace, and nail polish—laughably ridiculous and bewildering).

      This explains why when I met Talia Silver, from Silver Linings Makeup Artistry, I grew excited. Talia is a talented makeup artist whose work on clients appears to be both natural and luscious. Neither over-the-top nor too minimal, Talia’s artistry strikes the proverbial “just right” balance. (Check out photos of her work on her Facebook page!)

Talia Silver applying makeup on a client

      We are delighted to have Talia Silver on board as the official Skincare and Makeup contributor. Take a look at her first post below offering excellent advice on "How to Protect and Nourish your Skin; Part 1."

 BOOK REVIEW

       “Wear Your Invisible Crown” would hereby like to reinstate the Book Review section. (Tada! Did that sound pompous enough?)  Although we’ve covered Motion Picture and Indie films in the past couple of months (Mona Lisa Smile and The Giant Mechanical Man), we haven’t cracked open a book on our blog since October (when we discussed Libba Bray’s Beauty Pageants. Please click on the label below to read that column). The book that we are featuring this month is the #1 New York Times Bestseller Little Bee.

       The back cover of Little Bee proudly asserts “Once you have read this book, you’ll want to tell your friends about it. When you do, please don’t tell them what happens. The magic is in how the story unfolds.”  When I initially read this, I scoffed the cynic’s scoff. Will Little Bee really be the kind of book that elicits Twi-hard mania in me? Will it be the type of novel that is so emotionally acute that I’m suddenly inspired to start my own version of Oprah’s Book Club? Will I blog about it?

       Yes, yes, and yes. If Chris Cleave, the author of this novel, hires me as part of his Publicity Staff, then he’ll see an astronomical rise in sales.

The Never-Disappointing O.P. and Her Spring Style

        In the Jewish Girl World, socialite Olivia Palermo is heralded as the fashion equivalent of Harry Houdini. She’s got more style tricks up her sleeve than the rest of us. Olivia is admired for her refined yet contemporary aesthetic, and for her feminine dresses laced with edgy urbanity. Above all, she makes modesty look like the crème de la crème of all styles; highly creative but unpretentious. Do you remember when we featured Ms. Palermo in October’s Style Icon column? (If not, then please click on the Olivia Palermo label below this post!) Although we already covered this socialite’s fashion sense, we would like to reintroduce it in light of the glorious spring season!

Take a look below and see how this style icon brings casual elegance to the warmer months.

What’s the Best Part of Writing? Writing. What’s the Worst Part of Writing? Writing.

Photo via www.thedailyfemme.com

 

       I recently received a letter of critique from an acclaimed Jewish female novelist. I do not know her personally. My brother shares a mutual friend with this author and when meeting her said “My sister is an aspiring writer, perhaps you can take a peek at her writing samples and guide her a bit?” Thank you, dear brother.

      I was willing to send this writer (let’s call her Madame W) a few college thesis papers to evaluate. Well-researched and analyzing Bronte, Faulkner, and Grimm’s Fairy Tales, my college essays are certainly more refined and *ahem* grammatically correct than my fashion-centric blog posts.  Or so I hope.

      Yet unknown to me, Madame W had already glanced at Wear Your Invisible Crown with the austere, Judge Judy-ish eyes of a creative writing professor. Oy vey.