Two of my kick-ass surf camp instructors from Las Olas, Julie Cox and Kristy Murphy, are hosting a board demo and BBQ — “Ride My Board Day” — on October 3 in Oceanside Harbor. Julie designs the Jule Collection and Kristy is behind the Siren line of stand-up paddle boards. Email julecollection@gmail.com for more info.–Stef McDonald
Photo taken in Venice, CA.
The Surfrider Foundation is celebrating its 25th anniversary with an event in Los Angeles on Friday, October 9 that features an auction of ocean- and surf-inspired art. Get details on the Anniversary Gala on their website.
Photo taken at a street fair in Venice, CA. –Stef McDonald
Photo taken in Venice Beach, CA.
This bit of entertainment news: Tia Carrere is reportedly going to produce and star in a movie on a trail-blazing surfer girl from Hawaii, the late Rell Sunn (aka the Queen of Makaha); find out more about Sunn on her official website. We’ll be there with popcorn in hand when it makes it to the big screen. Sunn lost her life to breast cancer several years ago, but her legacy lives on, just as the fight against the disease continues. Next week marks the beginning of Breast Cancer Awareness month and we’re sending a shout-out to the Keep A Breast Foundation for doing its part to spread the good word–with art and with the help of surfer girls everywhere. Right on.
My love of makeup dates back to my childhood, when I found out that the mother of my best friend from the neighborhood was an Avon lady and kept her stash of cosmetics in their guest room. All those lipsticks and eye shadows and nail polishes! Such pretty colors! Sadly, I won’t use those beauty products today — or ones from so many other commercial brands — because they contain chemicals known or believed to cause harm. Happily, so many other companies are making makeup and other beauty products without toxic ingredients. I’ve learned a lot from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, a group dedicated to informing consumers of dangers in their medicine cabinets and makeup bags and advocating for change in the beauty industry. Their latest effort comes in video form:
Photo taken in Los Angeles, near a freeway exit.
Saturday was Heal the Bay‘s Coastal Cleanup Day. Records were set for participation (more than 14,000 registered volunteers) and production (more than 300,000 pounds of trash), with organized trash collection efforts taking place in 60 countries, 60 of them in Los Angeles. The photo above was taken near my home, where I was heartened to see lots parents with their kids at work. Of course, if people would only pick up after themselves, the trash take would be lower and there would be no real need for such volunteer efforts. If only… a girl can dream, right?
Below, some classic public service commercials on the subject.
I’ve been looking for some wood chairs for the yard and stumbled upon this cool skate deck chair from Treehouse Designs on the Craftzine blog. Looks like an Adirondack chair and seems to be a great way to repurpose old skateboards.
We have no idea if Sarah Thomas surfs or skates or snowboards, but we think she’s a girl who deserves a high five–for making waves of her own as a college football referee. Read about it in today’s NY Times story on Thomas. –Stef McDonald
I didn’t pay much attention to tennis until becoming mesmerized while watching Roger Federer win a match a few years ago–just when he was taking root as the best in the game–and now I am a full-blown fan of the sport. Federer was defeated yesterday in a stunning loss to a new guy on the scene, Juan Martin del Potro from Argentina. Following the match, I heard an NPR commentator note Del Potro’s fierce forehand and make mention of his black muscle shirt. I was amused by the comment about the shirt but, among sports, tennis is arguably the most stylish.
The game’s male ambassador for fashion is Federer, who always looks dashing and had a part in designing a line of clothing for Nike. I went to the Nike site and found that the sleeveless shirt Del Potro wore was actually from the Federer collection (ha). Also spotted while on the site: some good Federer tees. Maybe I needed something tennis-y in my closet? Because I like to sometimes wear my heart on my sleeve, the “Love Roger” tee for women could work, but I’m more inclined to favor the mens’ “Advantage Federer” one. I had to also look into the shoes worn by rising teen star Melanie Oudin, whose pink and yellow Adidas sneakers were customized with the word “Believe,” but I cannot settle on what my own shoe should say (and I’m not so sure of the colors). Finally, I went to Etsy, where I found a cute vintage visor to help me proudly proclaim my love of the game.
Photo taken in Laguna Beach, California. How great would it be to see a pelican or other sea creature on STOP signs in your neighborhood?
The LA Times has a hopeful story today about how the surf industry is doing during the economy: “After a Dry Spell, the Surf Industry is Getting Its Stoke Back.”
Look close and see a heart is dotting the “i” in “Venice.”
The saga of the dolphins captured in the documentary “The Cove” has a happy ending. News reports suggest that those in the Japanese town of Taiji will stop killing the dolphin and set them free. Fingers crossed….
We sat on blankets on the beach for the 100th anniversary celebration of the Santa Monica Pier last night and heard surf rock legend Dick Dale perform. Live music coming from one side, waves lapping on the other–and then a spectacular fireworks show. Pretty perfect.
Tonight is the 100th anniversary celebration at the Santa Monica Pier, with music, fireworks, and other festivities. Above are some of my amateur pics of the pier, taken recently on one of those nights with a marvelously colorful sky. For truly remarkable photos of the pier, see my lovely and amazing friend Kristine Ambrose’s photos on her site. Her photos are at the Jeanie Madsen Gallery in Santa Monica, right across the street from the Pier (see her box of small prints below).
Photo of mermaids in Venice Beach singing for a good cause: collecting donations for an ailing friend in need.
There are a lot of toxins around us and we try to take steps to be clean and green. Going green for us means being kind to Planet Earth and also protecting ourselves and embracing all that is natural (really natural). Most know that plastic bottles are wasteful and the popularity of re-usable metal bottles, like the ones from Sigg, have become popular. I have used their bottles and also given them as gifts to friends, so I was particularly disturbed to read the news that suggests the company misled consumers about the safety of the bottles. It’s bad that the bottles tested positive for nasty chemicals but worse that the company appears to have hid that info from consumers. There’s no other word for it: it’s shameful. Ad Age has even more on the story.–Stef McDonald
Stef McDonald 