Do you like the smell of blood? Maybe you do and you just don’t know it. Blood Concept is a new line of fragrance based on blood type. Given that it is nearly Halloween (and everyone has vampire fever anyway), we thought it a fitting time to introduce the line here at Siren. Hailing out of Italy, Blood Concept plays on the primal draw to blood, and the idea that your blood type may dictate more than just a suitable transfusion. Of course you don’t have to choose the one that matches your blood type – you may be a quirky exception to your blood type rule, after all. Here is what the company says about their line:

Filled with legends and meanings, blood is soaked with mystery‚ fascination and respect. It’s the most tested and studied part of human body and it guards a multitude of secrets that reveals our inner and unique way of being. BLOOD CONCEPT is a private celebration of the vivid and fascinating liquid that flows in our veins. Because blood is actually the river of life. A, B, AB and O, retrace the evolution of humankind through time and its record of information, history and mutation, so well kept in the vital flushing of blood. BLOOD CONCEPT is a mystic ritual with no flowers to be found: deep as primeval Africa in O‚ aromatic as the scent of familiar land in A, bold as unpredictable itineraries in B, bold and sharp as a metropolitan skyline in AB. Ending each time with the same subtle and mysterious note: a metallic vague suspicion.

It is true, there is nothing floral about these fragrances. It is also true that there is a just detectable metallic hit at the end. Intriguing - even for us warmbloods. The fragrances are most certainly unisex, though we’ve learned that “unisex” is a category that only Americans really care about. Everyone else seems able to just appreciate a fragrance on its merits. Blood Concept’s packaging is medical clean, and the fragrances are available in sprays or droppers, which we love – so in keeping with the whole theme!

Twilight fans, I was forbidden to make reference here to a certain vampire who shall remain nameless. The Queen of the Sirens favors the classic dark and twisted vampire over the new sparkly kind. But I feel you. And here are some pictures for your viewing pleasure, because try as you might to resist a trend, the vampire has been a sex symbol for centuries.

I love Giles (see above, with tea). Not a vampire, but what a good character! Feel free to tell me if I’ve missed your favorite vampire here. (Except for that sparkly one. Not happening.) In the meantime, we’ve all discussed it and we’ve come to the decision that Johnny Depp needs to do Vampire. Can you imagine? Why has no one thought of this? Why has this not already happened? It seems so obvious! Seriously, just think about it for a moment. A…MAZE…ING. I could die. Do you think he has something against vampires? I mean, it would have to be a great one. Complicated. Brilliant. Dark and twisted. Someone please get the man a script!

Blood Concept is available now at Siren. Come in and have a “taste”!

Jars and potions, magical fragrance – these things have always intrigued us. And so we have decided to build an apothecary section into our collection of beautiful things here at Siren. We are only choosing things we love, of course. The most magical elixir of the moment is Rodin Olio Lusso. If you’ve opened a women’s magazine lately (or even a men’s magazine – they were in GQ), there is a good chance you’ve seen this stuff. An amber oil in a simple glass jar with a dropper, and a write-up extolling it’s miraculous virtues, along with the story of its creator, Linda Rodin – a supermodel from before the phrase was coined turned New York stylist. In her quest for the perfect skin regimin, she ended up concocting this mix herself, after two years of experimenting. Her fashionable friends all began to demand some for themselves, and thus, the line was born. The Luxury Face Oil was first – it’s the original. But the line also now includes Luxury Body Oil, a super-emollient Lip Balm, and a Luxury Hair Oil. (”Olio Lusso” means luxury oil, fyi. In Italian, I believe.)

The Vogue write-up

We were so intrigued by all this that we decided to carry the whole line – Olio Lusso for the face, for the body, for the hair, and even the lip balm. Maria is swearing by the face oil already, crediting it for the new, bright perkiness to her complexion! Come in and try a few drops!

The Oprah write-up

There are many other fabulous items already in our apothecary of beauty, and more still to come. Stay tuned, sirens!

It has come to my attention that some people need a lesson in boutique etiquette. I’m not sure why this is, but maybe some people forget that small businesses work extremely hard to survive or thrive, and that there are no gigantic corporate backers keeping us afloat. It’s just us and our little business. It’s not a hobby. It’s our living. And some issues are just a matter of common courtesy.

So here are three gentle reminders, and I make them with love.

Number 1: When a small boutique has a policy that all jewelry is final sale, please don’t buy jewelry, wear it to an event, and then come back trying to return it. Boutiques cannot afford to rent you jewelry. Maybe it works at the big department stores. I don’t know. If you insist on being cheap, try it with them. They can weather those kinds of things better. And if a boutique owner does happen to make an exception, out of the goodness of her heart, and take an item back, just be grateful that she’s bending the rules for you. Do not huff and puff when you get store credit rather than a cash refund. I mean really. This is why exceptions to the rules have become so extremely rare.

As a side note, if you lose something, or you (or your child) breaks something, no store owes you a free replacement. Yes, we’ve had people expect this.

Number 2: Please don’t come in yakking on your cell phone and proceed to look at clothes for an hour, yakking the whole time. It’s rude and it makes everyone around you want to, well, yak.

Number 3: We love your kids. Let it be known, we love kids. We know kids. We have kids. Kids are kids. Kids are curious. Kids like to touch things. Especially sparkly things. Please don’t expect people who are working in a boutique to watch your kids while you shop. To be frank, 99% of the time I’d rather talk to kids than to grown-ups. And 99% of the time, the kids we have the pleasure of seeing are exactly that – a pleasure. But there IS that 1%. And deep down – deep, deep down – you know if your little lovebug is in that 1%. Don’t ignore it. Come out of your denial. It’s ok. Let’s just call your child “spunky” – she’ll grow up to kick some serious ass because she knows what she wants and she knows how to control a room already! But please, please watch her. Engage her. Keep her with you. Honestly, we’ll probably just ply her full of candy anyway, and you’ll be stuck with your raving, sugared-up spunkster for the rest of the afternoon.

And so, with love, I also want to remind you that what goes on in a boutique is not brain surgery, and by that I mean no one is dying as a result of buying this pair of earrings or that. Let’s keep things in perspective and be grateful for all the wonderful things we have in our lives. In all that we do, let’s be kind to others, and we will get kindness in return. If someone acts ugly toward us, let’s remember that that person is undoubtedly struggling with something and is probably doing her best in that moment. We can’t control other people, but we can choose how WE behave. Let’s put our best faces forward, shall we? xoxo!

Maria and I spent part of the day at the gift show today. We saw some of our usual favorites and are pondering some new things, but I’m happy to report that the show overall seemed quite busy, and I always feel like that’s a good sign for business generally. So I guess it’s time to be thinking about Valentine’s Day! Not one of my favorites, but I do like the color red, and I don’t mind the little chubby cherub with the bow and arrow. This is the time of year where I have to  keep reminding myself that the days are in fact getting longer, though it’s barely perceptible, and the prospect of boxes of chocolate arriving is a cheery one. And of course we’re creating our own sunshine here at Siren in the form of  fun and creativity! Maria and Antonio are working on some cool pieces for a Valentine’s window, and I’m gnawing on Rosemary Potato bread from The Kneaded Bread – it’s all good. I must never complain.

So, I don’t watch the show, but all of a sudden we were getting mad orders on the website for the Yoana Baraschi Marakesh Caftan. I’m thinking it’s past season – what’s the sudden big interest? Well, it was worn on the Housewives of Beverly Hills, that’s what! And we sold every one we had left in a matter of days (all to women in Cali, by the way). Luckily for our customers we had even marked it on sale! Everybody wins! Thanks, Housewives!

The Marakesh Caftan gets famous!

Three fashion shows later, and we are ready to move on! Getting the store ready for holiday is fun for me, as I haven’t been working in retail long enough to dread the holiday season, unlike some short blond store owners we know who forbid the playing of holiday music except maybe on Chrsitmas Eve. This is sad for me personally, but I play enough of it in the car and at home that I can deal. I just came back from CVS and they’ve got it going full force. I know, for some of you it’s too early and you think we should wait until after Thanksgiving, but really, those few weeks between Thinksgiving and Christmas are just not enough for me. I tried to do Halloween whole-heartedly even though I don’t care for the holiday, so I expect my scroogey, Halloween-loving friends to make the same effort for me! Anyway, here are some pictures of our last fashion show – if any of you have good pics, send them in. A lot of ours came out blurry.

Leather Cape Jacket, Owl Skirt, Strutt Boots

The cape is off! Black netting sleeveless turtleneck underneath.

Karen and Isabelle - check out the mask! So cute!

Floor-length cashmere anyone?

Pascal in her favorite gown - sparkle!

Fancy Nancy in the Beverly Hills Dress!

The most to die for gown I've ever had on my body.

Goth Bride with Moon Mask

Maria and Ferdie taking bows.

The event hosts - great work, ladies!

The venue was Molly Spillane’s, as enhanced with candelabras courtesy of Frank at House of Flowers. We ended up raising a nice chunk of change for Susan G. Komen for the Cure that night, and everyone had a good time. The wine was flowing, I must say, though not as much as at the country club events… those ladies tie it on!

I’ll keep you posted throughout the holiday season as to whether I can get the Boss Lady in the spirit. Any suggestions? Ply her with cookies, maybe…

So in case you haven’t noticed, our side hobby is playing with ghosts. We like exploring dark and creepy places, cemeteries and spooky old houses. In fact, we like all kinds of things relating to the unknown. We’re not so much interested in aliens, but that’s neither here nor there. Given our darker interests, what do we do with a long weekend in September? We go to an old abandoned prison in Ohio! Duh! The Ohio State Penitentiary, to be precise. This is where they filmed The Shawshank Redemption. Construction of the prison was completed in 1896, and while it was closed as a prison in 1990, the building remains open for tours, both of the historical and the spooky kind. There are all kinds of stories of people seeing unexplainable things, and hearing noises with no logical source. There are also stories of people being touched, scratched and having their hair pulled. Believe what you like. What we know for sure is that the place is overwhelmingly enormous – it’s difficult to comprehend how the tour guides even know their way around this sprawling structure. But enough chit chat – what you really want is to see the pictures!

Cell Block

Cell Block

From higher up

This cell block is six stories high and consists of 600 cells, 2 men per cell. It looks like a huge wall of small cages. I can’t imagine what it looked like when occupied by 1200 men.

Officer's Quarters

Stairs in Officers Quarters

Fireplace for Officers

A Room with a View

The Author behind Glass

Of course the other fun thing about these events is the friends we get to meet and the people we get to see.

James meets the guys from Ghost Adventures (Travel Channel)

Yes, that’s my son with Aaron, Zak, and Nick from Ghost Adventures. I have to give them props – they were super nice to him the whole weekend!

Stop Following Me!

Maria and Aaron

 He’s silly. We like him.

Here we are with ever-charming radio personality Dave Schraeder, host of the event. Check out darknessradio.com to see (hear) him in action, and also if you are interested in these kind of events – they have some cool ones coming up in the next few months. That’s it for now… but Halloween is fast approaching, so who knows what lies ahead? Happy Fall!

I trust you have all had lovely summers and are starting to feel the thrill of fall? Leaves changing colors, a chill on the breeze, and the return of pumpkin lattes at Starbucks? And of course, actual pumpkins – pumpkins make us very happy around here. Are we getting ahead of ourselves? OK, the real reason for this post is to share some pictures of a fun evening we had a few weeks back – it was a Breast Cancer awareness night/fundraiser hosted by Mamaroneck Shares. The town closed down the main strip on Mamaroneck Avenue and had a big block party. Bands played, restaurants put tables out in the street and children ran amok. It was a perfect evening. Here at Siren, this night held a special place in our hearts, as we have a dear friend (we’ll call her “Karen” – because that’s actually her name) who was diagnosed with breast cancer in the past year. She underwent surgery and treatment and is now cancer-free, thank God. In celebration, we stayed open late and featured Karen’s own catering specialties – nipple cupcakes, sangria, pink ribbon cookies, and fruit salad – not just any fruit salad, but a fruit salad so delightful that we have been prodded repeatedly for the recipe. I will post it, people.

Pink Ribbon Couture

Sun setting, moon rising

It's a good night when an Irish band is playing outside your door.

The Quilt - made by Kristin (right) for Karen (left) signed by many, including Maria (middle).

Nipple cupcake, anyone?

Let the Ribbon speak.

Well, we’re back from an interesting weekend in Philadelphia! We set up a vendor’s table at a Ghost Adventures (Travel Channel) event hosted by Darkness Radio (www.darknessradio.com). The event featured several cool speakers (discussing topics like demonology, communicating with ghosts, the paranormal in pop culture and other fun stuff) and two late night tours of Eastern State Penitentiary, a very old and historic (and, yes, haunted) prison. Not the best market for selling jewelry you might say… yes, we thought so too, but something told us to go, and as usual, our gut never fails us!

Our table, day one.

So after sitting in traffic at the GWB (that’s George Washington Bridge for you out-of-towners) for way too long we had an otherwise uneventful drive, arrived in Philly and immedeiately unloaded and set up our table. See above. People were still checking in for the event, and it was unclear as yet what the heck we were doing here. We were tired from the drive and when we get tired, we get silly. We found an empty conference room right next to us, and, well, immaturity ensued.

Ooooh... empty room...

It may choke Arty, but it ain't gonna choke Stymie...

I see dead people.

I am I am I am Superman! (Name the band)

What we really needed was a trampoline.

Maria napping under the table.

Ooh la la!

So Maria was trying to make it look like she was naked, but the jeans ruined it. Oh well. Thanks for trying, Maria. Next time just get naked! Because that would guarantee someone walking in, and I would laugh so hard you’d have to take me to the hospital. (Maria has a history of people walking in on her – you know, in the potty and stuff). Anyway, as you can see, we did have a period of boredom where we needed to entertain ourselves. But you’ll be happy to know that it turned out we had found a group of people as silly as we are! In fact, we may have been outdone. But more on that later… stay tuned for the rest of the tale in Jewelry and Jail Cells, Part Two!