Sunday, January 17, 2021

Women We Love: Betty White

 
 
Happy Birthday to Betty White, 99 years old today! That's a birthday deserving of a shout-out to anyone, but Betty White holds a special place in our hearts. Is there anyone who doesn't love her? And who doesn't think she's beautiful? I am thinking of one accessory she always wears, the one each of us have with us, if we remember to put it on. 

You guessed it—that accessory is her smile, and she wears it all the time. Even when Betty White isn't smiling, it's there, while looking at you intently or ready to pop out at the end of a sentence.

Betty White and I go back to my childhood in Cleveland. She briefly had an afternoon talk show, which ran one season on NBC in 1954, but that was the year my mother went back to work. I was alone after school. Betty and I enjoyed each other's company immensely.

Told she was "not photgenic enough" for the movies (really?) she made her career in radio and early television (where I guess producers had 20/20 vision). She has never really not worked, but her career had wins and wanes, from her own sit-coms (three) to game shows to parade emcee.

About now it could be said Betty White was part of the fabric of American entertainment, but she became America's Sweetheart with her signature roles and personal appearances.

In 1973-77 she appeared as the deliciously icky Sue Ellen Nevins on the "Mary Tyler Moore" show followed by seven seasons as Rose on "The Golden Girls". At age 88 she became the oldest person to host "Saturday Night Live" after a 500,000-member group petitioned NBC. In 2010 she took a role on "Hot in Cleveland" only for the premiere episode and stayed on for six seasons. So there we were, back in Cleveland again.

Married three times, her third husband, Alan Ludden, was the keeper. After he died in 1981 she didn't remarry. When asked why, she said, "Once you've had the best, who needs the rest?" The two were advocates for animal health and welfare, a quest she has continued with great dedication.


She always looks great and dresses to enhance her sunny, delightfully kooky (just a little) self. She's not a fashion icon as such, but all of us can benefit by the way she dresses to flatter her personality as well as looking stylish and appropriate. Totally ladylike, you don't expect some of the wicked things that come out of her mouth, always with a wink and a smile. She could probably get away with anything, but you just know she has a heart of gold. 

Happy Birthday, Betty, and many more!

And while we're at it, Happy Birthday to two other stylish young ladies. Michelle Obama is 57 today, and Zoey Deschanel is 41. Have a beautiful day!

Saturday, January 9, 2021

First Fashion Hack of the New Year

 
You know all the rolls of paper towels you've been using after you scrub-scrub-scrub the virus germs away? I've figured a way to reuse those cardboard tubes and solve an annoyoing closet problem (annoying to me at least).

With a little sleight of hand I figured a way to prevent the horizontal crease that happens when you hang your sweater. I don't like to fold them as this produces multiple creases to deal with.

I hang lightweight (ie cashmere and merino) sweaters draped over the cross piece of those skinny felt hangers popularized by Joy Mangano. While this drape method prevents the pokey shoulders that would result from hanging like a blouse, there can still be an annoying crease across the bust line to steam out.

Materials needed:
1 1/2 paper towel tubes
scissors
tape
wrapping paper, wallpaper scraps, your kids' drawings, etc.

> Slit the tubes open with a scissors like gutting a fish.

> Tape tubes together to form a 16-inch piece

 
> Insert on bottom rung of hanger and seal closed along the long side. Best to use a heavier tape here, like masking tape or packing tape. 

> Cut a piece of decorative paper 6 inches wide by 16 inches long.

Secure to your cardboard tube with clear Scotch tape. It will rest on the bottom and not be seen. I suppose you could glue it or hot-glue-gun it, but that seems like a lot of work.

Voila! Problem solved and pat-on-back for recycling.

 
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Let's call this a pandemic-time-to-spare hack only. In my real life I would never go to all this trouble. That's what steamers are for, after all.