My Daily Style Choices

Dear readers,

I've decided to document what I wear on a daily basis by using the DailyBooth website. The whole point is to upload at least one picture per day. I thought it would be cool to see the progression of what I wear, as well as keeping track of trends and ways I can vary my look more. I also find that it would be better than blogging about everything daily, as you all would tire of reading it. (I may do an end of the week style post, based on the best pictures I've uploaded, though) Additionally, the latest image I post automatically becomes my profile picture here on blogger!

Feel free to visit my page on DailyBooth and offer comments and whatnot. Click here to head on over!

Spin Dryer / Essoreuse / Laundry Centrifuge

 Dear readers, I recently ordered a spin dryer, alternatively known in France as an Essoreuse, or in English as a Laundry Centrifuge. What is a spin dryer? Simply put it is a centrifuge that spins at around 3,000 rpm (3.000 trs/mn) and which due to the forces created, naturally causes water to be expelled from the clothing, without the use of heat. What does it not do? It does not completely dry the clothing, it only gets most clothing partially dry. 

 If the spin  dryer doesn't actually fully dry the laundry, why bother? There are a couple reasons. First it is incredibly energy-efficient. By using the spin dryer for a couple minutes with a load of cottons, I cut my tumble drying time in half (after spin drying, it took under 35 minutes in the tumble dryer, as opposed to 50-65). Clearly, you can see there are green environmental reasons for the use of this dryer in addition to electric bill savings. By using less resources, we conserve energy and money. Additionally, less heat means that the clothing may last longer; also, when the water is expressed it takes some remaining detergent with it. This means the clothes are healthier, as the residue isn't baked into the clothing, but rather removed.

 Once the spin dryer has run for 2-4 minutes, it is then possible to load the laundry into a tumble dyer or hang it up to air dry. Either way, it makes the process faster. The catch is that loading the spin dryer does take a few minutes, because it is essential to balance it properly. Make sure heavy/large items are at the bottom, and you will want to wrap the items around the sides. I did it wrong the first time and it really didn't go terribly fast. I'm looking to use the spin dryer to allow me to do more line drying and cut on my tumble dryer costs by doing more than one load within a timed dry at my apartment.

 One last note: for those of you who think this is a new invention, it's not. My French grandmother has had one for at least 20 years, if I'm not mistaken. It's just harder to find them in North America than anywhere else. In Europe there are numerous competing brands. You can even get them from La Redoute, lol! I got mine from The Laundry Alternative, you can find the product page, here! There are a couple of competitors here in North America, but they charge 2-4x as much.

Here are my unboxing and initial testing pictures, enjoy! 

For size reference, the unit reaches slightly above my knee when unboxed and standing on the floor.

Opening the box at home

It tomes with a sheet describing the unboxing procedure

Took the machine out of the box, it's shrinkwrapped

Once I got it unwrapped, I had to remove the Styrofoam and instructions/cardboard in the drum

Inside of drum without debris, you can see Styrofoam I broke off the base on the floor. I also had to clean the inside, because there was some manufacturing ickyness left, including some sort of grease potentially.

To protect the motor, they attached it to a piece of wood, here I am unscrewing it

And it's ready!

Here is what the machine looks like, filled with laundry and the clothes protector sheet placed on top

To start the machine, close the lid, and pull the sliding lock switch over it

And we're off! :)

You will want to place a bowl under the spout, as the water literally just runs out

This is a bit of an exaggeration, as I placed laundry I wet in the sink and barely wrung out for a first test. It does do this for laundry coming out of a top loader, but only briefly... it's mostly a long trickle

Spin in progress!

My Black-Tie Birthday Party! :)

Dear readers, I'm still playing catch up! My birthday was at the end of November! I thought it would be great fun to do the sort of party I've never had before.

"[I invited a couple of my friends to] an elegant party where we can all get together and enjoy some good conversation and desserts."

As you might have guessed, it was black-tie optional. I like to bring back classic style as many of my readers know; having events like this is a way to add a glamorous side to life. My friends, colleagues, and family really made the time a success! Special thanks goes to my friend Barbara who helped make many of the treats and reminded me what I needed to shop for! I was especially pleased that as my first ever party, everything turned out rather well too! If I didn't invite you and we're friends, it was probably just because I was too busy to remember everyone; I plan to have other parties and to invite people I may have forgotten unintentionally this time around!

From the original email I sent out about the party:

"I'm tempted to have a black-tie (optional) dessert party... to celebrate my birthday. Think of this as kind of an old-fashioned elegant style event in the era of Mad Men, James Bond, or even Downton Abbey (great excuse to break out your tux, or even LBD glamour)."

Cheese and breads... special appearance by my steamer!

Desserts, with drinks in the background! A great place to relax as the party unfolds...

The scene was quite busy with much interesting conversation! All ages were represented!

And rather interesting stories!

...some of which took on a life of their own...

... as you can see, we were having some sort of intense discussion! (I'm not actually angry!)

Candid blooper/prep pics:

It's true, I know how to operate an iron

I'm not sure what I was doing here... but at least my face is sparkly, lol!

I also lit up my bookcase with LED lighting to add to the mood, unfortunately the rest of my mood lighting wasn't ready for installation prior to the party! I must have another event to make use of it... :)

Photos for this post were sent to me by family, colleagues, or taken by myself at my party.

Happy New Year!!!! 2012!!!

Happy New Year, everyone!

Let's hope that 2012 is better than 2011! I just got home from a lovely gala, met some new people and was very pleased to see a lovely friend again. I hope everyone else had fun ringing in the new year! Black-tie events with real dancing are a part of our culture that we need to keep alive!

(Also, I did basically slip and fall while swing dancing on a slippery floor covered in balloons! lol)

Politics!

I know that my blog is focused on style and design... however, the life/liberty parts dictate a small amount of irrelevant happenings be featured as well. Additionally, this will explain what has taken most of my time in the last two months:

First, I was present to celebrate both the re-election victory and swearing in of my friends to Gaithersburg's City Council.

The unofficial results of the election are being read

Taking a closer look at results

Coucilman Jud Ashman and myself  right after the results were announced

~

Secondly, I'm currently running to be on the board of a local political organization. My goal is to become Director/VP of Communications. Unfortunately, the deadline to register as a member if you wanted to help has passed by a few days! However, needless to say, the campaign has definitely put a strain on my available time. Despite this, it's been a rewarding experience so far, and I'm hoping both myself and the friends who have joined our slate will win in January. For those on both the left and the right who have questions about what is going on with my political projects, please message me directly, so I can explain anything you have questions about! :)

Also, we would love if you joined our facebook page... www.facebook.com/ydreboot

This is me at one of our meetings, photo by mariostylianou.com 

Happy Christmas!

Happy Christmas to all my friends, family, and blogger universe!

I will have substantive posts coming up soon. I've been really busy with life, work, politics, etc. and rather tired from trying to do too many things at once! I apologize for disappearing for over a month here; I'm going to try and see if I can get back on my schedule of at least one post every week or two. Due to the delay, there are a number of catch-up posts which have been sitting in the back of my head for some time. 

--Justin

Europe 2011: Part 5, Panoramic Louvre

This post is fairly self-explanatory: these are mostly all panoramic photo experiences that you can drag around and look at to feel as though you were with me on my travels. This first installation is obviously the museum of the Louvre. I have additional ones from both France and England to come soon.

Additionally, I have plenty of other posts that will be coming up as I have been quite behind on my blog writing! Please enjoy these in the meantime as I collect everything and get back in gear!

Stairway by the Winged Victory of Samothrace

Staircase near various galleries and cafe

View of the outside from second story in museum

The following ones are from the Carousel of the Louvre (the shopping area underground):

Ground level

Atop the staircase in the pyramid

This is the view from the staircase

Lastly, I have standard photo panorama shots... you may wish to click on these to open them larger. Hopefully they run off the side of the page a bit so you can see them larger, as they do contain a good deal of surface area.

Ceiling in carousel by ticket offices

Carousel after hours as seen from escalators

Carousel after hours as seen from floor level

Additional area in the Carousel near a set of function rooms that can be rented out