majestic montana: film & reading & travel inspiration

happy happy friday, mes chéries!  lately my mind has been wandering far from my new england coastal town, to the rugged american west.  this is quite unusual for me, generally drawn to glamour & luxury & très-civilized, heel-friendly terrain & i attribute my recent wanderlust to the two epic films set in the state of montana starring the most handsome, young brad pitt, legend of the fall & a river runs through it.  both films in which bold action & tragedy demonstrate strong, un-communicated emotion, the gorgeous mountainous scenery & apparently unspoiled paradise reflects the complex characters: simultaneously strong & fragile, majestic & devastating.

i think i am drawn to a river runs through it also because of the poetic & powerful, evocative prose of its author, norman maclean, in the film & the novella on which its based, telling the story of himself & his family in montana in the 1920s.  his words are as rhythmic as the elegant fly-fisherman's casts he describes & the tale begs to be read aloud.   paired with two short stories, that romance of a river runs through it, oh and that poetry, wipe away all the unpleasant details of frontier life, allowing only its profound tale & perfect majesty to shine through, even for the most girly girl.  i would recommend both the book & film versions for this hurricane weekend {p.s. are you prepared?}.  no matter how feminine & squeamish you are, you may find yourself inspired to google outdoors-y montana vacations, too. bon week-end.  xx hillary.

images via pinterest

p.s. follow me on twitter to receive enchanted updates throughout the day!

links & little things

farm photos via {eat boutique} : banana ice cream via pinterest :
paris wife via {here} : cupcake via {this is glamorous} : kate spade via {here}

happy wednesday mes chéries!  today a few things to share:

• photos of my farm dinner unaccessible for now due to camera malfunction (trés triste), but another blogger who did a similar dinner justice.
• have you read the paris wife?: the story of ernest hemingway's first wife, a glorious second course to a moveable feast {what a classic.  read immédiatement!}
• kate spade fall: 50s inspired glamour à la mad men {my favorite show, by the way, yours too?}
• my next party will definitely.include.these: gilded cupcake toppers.  i feel as if the early nineteenth century aristocrats consuming my life at the moment {via dissertation} would approve. so chic.
• you.must.try easiest non-fat bliss: freeze peeled bananas, then whiz away in blender with some skim milk.  same texture as ice cream.  trés trés délicieux!  

do enjoy!  what a beautiful day.  now to take my reading outside.  have the most lovely afternoon.  xx hillary 

words to live by

image via {here}

mes chéries!  a quick post about a most recent re-discovery.  i do recall hearing a few months ago about kate spade's idea to curate a set of seven short stories from accomplished woman authors, but had forgotten all about this marvelous project until a small card, accompanying a pair of new earrings, of course, arrived at my door via a little brown box.  the card was a version of the image above, sans the mention of a collection of short stories, and i was immediately struck by the choice of adjectives, all of which, i suddenly realized, i aspire to.  the phrase is perfectly concise and confident, and reminds me of a quirky yet romantic, independent & clever yet spontaneous & light hearted.  i think that curiosity and playfulness are trés, trés important in building a fulfilling life of adventure and accomplishment.  

and now i must get my hand on the collection of short stories {one of which, i have learned, was written by the author of the chic-lit classic overnight socialite.  you haven't read it?  you really must!}.  was anyone lucky enough to receive this collection as a gift, or to read the stories at all?  

a new week & a new month ...  my beloved monday was not so productive, but at least i have found my new mantra ... quick and curious and playful and strong ...  and two posts tomorrow, je te promets! 
xx hillary    

vintage safari: true at first light

images via pinterest

the destination/literature combination for this week is ever so slightly less luxurious than last week's cannes, but in no way less glamorous: 1920s safari.  full of colonial adventure, romance, khaki, big-game hunting, flowing mosquito nets floating over four-poster beds in white tents under vast expanses of star-studded ski, kilimanjaro looming in the background.  teddy roosevelt, english aristocracy, and ernest hemingway.  and i believed all was lost after the second world war..

..luckily, i was mistaken.  a friend, equally enthralled as i by all things of pre-war grandeur, most recently introduced me to cottar's safari service.  founded in 1920 by a family inspired by teddy roosevelt's adventures in east africa, cottar's has continued the classic tradition of the glamorous safari ever since {minus the big-game hunting these days}.  

images via {here}

white tents and brown colonial furniture, persian rugs, flowing mosquito nets and glowing fires, and all of the romance of those old black and whites.  kiera knightly even did a feature for vogue here in 2007, and the 'press page' of the website is absolutement filled with high-profile, endless praise.   

cottar's and its notion of 1920s safari camps brings such novels as out of africa to mind, naturally, but a slightly lesser known tale is that of ernest hemingway in true at first light.  published by one of his sons posthumously, it contains anecdotes of heminway's reign as a safari guide and his time spent there with his fourth wife, hunting and fraternizing with the local tribe, a symbolic struggle with a dangerous lion, laden, of course, with colorful, tragic figures, and his beautifully evoked scenes and subtle romance.  one of his lesser known works, i would recommend it as a most serious hemingway fan, but also as a glimpse into the glamour of an age both past and preserved.  and it may be the next best thing to a proper cottar's safari.

images via pinterest

will true at first light make your summer reading list?  i've just finished age of innocence and am now onto the help to balance out this literary tour de force with something more lighthearted.  what are you reading?

i hope that your weekend is off to the most beautiful start.  although it's still too cool to sunbathe, the sun has finally shone through the london grey.  xx hillary 

p.s. want to channel hemingway/1920s safari style? a charming look for late summer/early autumn:

image via pinterest