My Killer Shoes — Brought Down to Size by Those Four-and-a-Half-Inch Heels

Silver satin  1/2 inch high shoes with clear stone pave straps at Nordstrom $129.95. Photo by BF Newhall.

The Killer Shoes: Silver satin with with 4 1/2-inch heels and a funky zipper up the back. By Glint, at Nordstrom, $129.95. Photo by BF Newhall

By Barbara Falconer Newhall

Jon picked out his wedding attire in a half hour. I’ve devoted several all-day shopping trips to my wedding outfit and I’m still not done.

Jon feels sorry for me. All that shopping. So many trips to the mall. So many trips [Read more...]

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How to Be a Glamorous Gal at Age 98

Main Street, Scottville, Michigan, from the south

My Aunt Glamorous came from this small country town in the Midwest.

By Barbara Falconer Newhall

The last of my aunts and uncles died two weeks ago at the age of 98, but not before passing on some last minute womanly advice to me.

My aunt – I think of her as my Aunt Glamorous – was tall, red-headed, blue-eyed, self-sufficient and cosmopolitan at a time and place when most women in her hometown wanted nothing more than to get married, have babies and put up green beans and blackberry jam. [Read more...]

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My Mother’s Last Words to Me Before She Died

Tinka Falconer enjoys Nordstrom Cafe chicken and berry salad. Photo by BF Newhall.

A few months before she died, my mother celebrated my birthday with a chicken, berry and candied walnut salad at the Nordstrom Cafe. Photos by BF Newhall

By Barbara Falconer Newhall

My mother’s last words to me were nothing much. No parting words of love. No heartfelt messages to the grandchildren.

Two days before she died, as I was about to leave her hospital [Read more...]

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Sue Johnson’s Lamps and Shades — Works of Art From a Little Shop in Berkeley

Hand-blown lamp by Lindsay Art Glass at Sue Johnson store. Photo by BF Newhall

Hand-blown lamp by Lindsay Art Glass; shade by Sue Johnson. Photos by BF Newhall

By Barbara Falconer Newhall

On Solano Avenue in the far north reaches of Berkeley, California, a modest storefront softly glows, luring me in every time I try to pass it by. It’s Sue Johnson’s custom lamp and shade store. [Read more...]

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