American City Girls

The Mink Lady appears to us, comfortably abundant. Comfortable at her bandwidth of intellectual, social, financial and philanthropic abundance. And abundant as well with energy, wisdom, femininity, knowledge and the qualities that allow her to live a peaceful life.

She has an internal — and developed — grace, and she understands the power it provides her. Her grace is a practiced attribute, an earned one. It is part and parcel of her life, and contributes greatly to her confidence, as well.

For men:

Listen carefully.

Look deep.

Take in as much as you can from her, respectfully.

Observations:

She is adorned beautifully.

Her fur is clearly, though not ostentatiously, long.

She’s entirely covered, save her bare arms, providing her both great reach and capacity to give.

Have it all

This is a Lady you give to the woman who wants everything or has everything. Take a step toward having it all with your purchase of an elegantly packaged notecard collection. The Mink Lady is found in the Charm and Grace Collections.

This lady almost has a “Look at me!” attitude.

She’s young and impressionable. Not yet refined in her features, she has good basics and a good look, but little experience or wisdom yet to add dimension to her foundation. She is attention-grabbing, though.

Some observations:

Buildings grace the fabric of her top. (Her face also graces our blog design.)The upper piece is built almost like a net, and the pose she’s adopted supports this image, as though she wants to catch everything, particularly attention.Her hips are very tiny, not at all a woman’s hips. And her outfit adds some extra “puffiness” to her hips, to make her appear fuller than she is.

She is protecting her heart with clothing layers and structured buildings.

Look at her!

She’s building something. And she’s using her charm to do it. She’s saying “Look at me!” and we want to. We’re curious. We’re intrigued. We want to support her and add strength to her foundation.You can spread her message and her meaning. Declare for yourself a foundation of building something new that magnetizes others and their support toward your vision.

The Building Lady is found in the Charm and Innocence Collections.

The Lady with the Gray Gloves is Cosmopolitan, with a capital “C.”

Who knows where she’s just coming from or going to? Perhaps she just came from a board meeting, or just landed in Paris. Is she heading to a high society event? Or meeting her girlfriend downtown for lunch? Wherever she goes, whenever she goes there, this woman is sharp, stylish, brilliant, charming and utterly confident.

Observations:

This Lady has an alluring blend of sharp and soft. The lines and sharpness of her suit are balanced by the soft curves of her hat, gloves and shirt collar. Even the skirt hem flows softly.

For men:

Don’t leave home without her, because she can certainly leave home without you.

The Lady with the Gray Gloves is found in the Confidence collection.

“Welcome.”

This is what she just might say as you approach her.

The Martini Lady is a socialite, a networker, a hostess. For all her obvious charm and poise, The Martini Lady is also tremendously organized, prepared and attentive to detail. As the hub of the party, she has to be.

The Martini Lady holds a near and dear spot in the American City Girls’ hearts, as it was her image we first used on a party invitation in June 2006. Zell, the artist, was able to see the printed invitations about a week before she died, and was quite delighted and excited to see her fashion designs being brought back to life.

The Martini Lady invitation caused such a stir of invigorated response from our friends and colleagues, that we knew we had to bring them a “modern-day runway.”

The Ladies have a capacity, it seems, to awaken something in people. Each Lady, in her own style. The Martini Lady opened the door for the rest of The Ladies …

Open the door

This Lady brought forth a result in our lives. Maybe she’ll do the same for you. The Martini Lady can also be purchased in the Charm and Confidence collections.

This Lady is at choice. She sets her boundaries. She is self-responsible, and at no one’s behest.

Actually, “I’ll get back to you on that one …” might be more in line with the type of comment you’d hear from this Lady.

She is not in a rush to fully engage; she’s open, watchful and she sees you.

Some observations about her:

Her hips are pushed forward, in a seemingly casual manner. But there’s nothing casual about her.

The timelessly classic black gown explodes with full life with the large, reversed daisy and the green accents in her shoes and jacket lining.

For as welcoming her posture appears, her knee is protectively positioned in slight defense, lest anyone get too close too quickly. She is also protecting herself with smoke from her cigarette, aimed directly at anyone to whom she’d be speaking.

And, lady-like as she is, let’s call a spade a spade here: her breasts are pointed and almost armor-like.

For men:

Yes, you can approach her. And, yes, stay sharp (witted). She is watching you. Respect her wit and beauty; approach wisely.

This is a Lady to send a friend when she needs a reminder and support in how to engage in the world: take your time, observe and choose. The Lady and the Daisy is found in the Confidence and Sass collections.

The Leopard Lady has a cool and sophisticated exterior. But she’s hot and simmering underneath.

“Put that here!” she just might say to her male companion. With an undertone of, “And be careful … I might just bite.”

This Lady is clear in communicating what she wants, where she’s going and what she’s doing. And she knows The World will jump to its feet to serve her when she clearly expresses her desire.

For men:

Give her what she wants, and you’ll get her passion. And if you don’t, you may experience an entirely new level of *cold.* You have to be daring, courageous, confident and skillful to handle her.

And, dear gentlemen, really, if you can’t stand the heat, don’t get in the fire.

Some observations about her:

She is playing to her audience and is very aware that she is being observed by all eyes: men, women and children, alike.

Physically, she is covered with her hat, long hair, gloves, long sleeves and high collar.

That’s real fur — real leopard fur — she’s wearing. And, yes, she might just bite.

Ladies, is this not the woman we all want to be … at least now and then? Purchase The Leopard Lady as part of the Confidence or Sass collections, and a little “grrrrrer …” to life.

The Lady in the Red Dress is open, excited, and happy with who she is. She’s elegant, inviting others to come closer, to go deeper and to get to know her. And she’s most definitely ready to dance.

“Why, yes, I’d be delighted!” are the words that seem to be coming from her in this moment. Read the rest of this entry »

The Lady in the Pink Dress is introspective, self-reflective and directed by her inner wisdom.

Some observations:

The outside of her dress is pink, vibrant and flowing at the waist and thighs. Very sexy and elegant. Yet a second look reveals a tight inner black skirt that hugs her legs and keeps her movements more restricted. This skirt has an angle to it that allows just a flash of a view of what else is underneath her exterior.

She is hardly hiding from the outside world with her pink-colored dress and flowing fabric, and she is clearly stating — perhaps even unconsciously — that access to her inner world may require moving through more than one layer, physically and metaphorically.

Open, but not asking

Her sexiness and presence is alluring, innocently and natually. When she shows up, you know she wants something, and you want to find out what it is. And to give it to her. Buy The Lady in the Pink Dress today and wait. You’ll know to whom and when to send this card. The Lady in the Pink Dress is found in the Innocence collection.

It — the American City Girls phenomenon, that is — all started as a party: A Come Out of Hibernation party on April 1, 2006. When we discussed logistics, we determined that sending out invitations by hand (with hand-written addresses) was something we placed value on. So that’s what we did.

In early June, we held our second party — Cocktails & Conversation — and felt it was time to give ourselves more of an identity. Our name is relevant to our hometown, Columbia, Md., as one of the then-new city’s first buildings was called The American City Building. At that party, and as Jessie’s aunt, Zell (the artist and fashion designer) was in her last couple of weeks of life, we chose one of her paintings as the art for our next invitation.

The response to the cards was astounding. And, since then, we’ve temporarily set aside our parties to focus on developing the art products … and to tend to our other business endeavors, clients, loved ones, lives and Selves. Of course.

If you’re in the area, and we know you, either as a friend, client or customer, stay tuned, as we’re sure to have more parties soon.

It was with this party, and the invitation we created, featuring The Martini Lady, that sparked the idea to turn Zell’s 1940s fashion-design paintings into note card products. This party also launched us both as bloggers, a social technology tool which we’ve come to use efficiently, strategically and with great results.

Cocktails & Conversation party pictures.