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The older I get, the more I see that
COMMON SENSE IS NOT VERY COMMON.
CREATIVITY IS A great emotional release; it keeps you happy and healthy.
You don’t have to be an artist to be a creator, because creativity comes in a lot of forms, like cooking or keeping a house or dressing well. What you need is imagination, to make things up for yourself.
My family and I listened to the radio when I was young. I had to imagine the setting of the story and what the characters looked like during a radio show. That took creativity.
Unfortunately, creativity is suffering today because people now have an attention span of about twenty seconds. Art, fashion, and literature have all fallen victim to appropriation, with plenty of copycats riffing on the real McCoy and producing me-too designs.
I love what I do, which is to create. Besides, I have to work. People tell me I don’t have to, but if I didn’t work I’d never be able to get my creative urges out and it would make me sick.
I like to do different projects, like my jewelry line, Rara Avis by Iris Apfel for Home Shopping Network, which is sometimes based on my own vintage collection. When I’m peddling my creations on HSN, people call in and tell me I’ve made them think differently about dressing. It makes me happy to create attractive, unique accessories that are accessible to people of all income levels. Just because you can’t afford or don’t want to spend a lot of money on fashion doesn’t mean you have to be deprived. I really feel that’s my mission. A lot of women I’ve met in person say the same thing. If I have influenced them, I’d like to think it’s in a positive way—following your instincts, taking risks.
The greatest luxury is
PEACE OF MIND.
I GET AN ENORMOUS HIGH FROM . . .
A great GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICH
Listening to SINATRA’S SALOON SONGS in the wee hours
Any great rendition of “LUSH LIFE”
Listening to PEGGY LEE sing “Is That All There Is”
Cruising a FLEA MARKET
Reciting “THE LOVE SONG OF J. ALFRED PRUFROCK” by T.S. Eliot. I know it almost word for word.
CAVIAR, my drug of choice
Slipping into A FRESHLY MADE BED with crisp, clean sheets
A CHILLED TITO’S HANDMADE VODKA with a few drops of Angostura Aromatic Bitters
Eating STUFFED CABBAGE
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Iris Apfel
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Iris Apfel