Masculine in the best sense of the word

A few days ago, le mari had a group of guy friends over (who happened to be from five different nations) to watch the Mexico v. France World Cup showdown as I sat quietly in my studio working on these new pics I took the day before of the exciting new collaboration with Steven Alan.
Unlike the other iPad cases, these will be available only at Steven Alan, because it is he who requested this particular leather. While our regular cases are made with exquisite eco-tanned Italian leather which makes me crazy it's so gorgeous, these new ones are made from a leather handmade outside of Chicago with old world techniques and environmentally friendly dyes and is stunning in another way. They are extremely masculine - in the best sense of the word.
I loved sitting in here working with the roar of the crowds, the shrill of the vuvuzelas, and all the foreign guys speaking French in the other room. There was a lot of laughing, shouting and mocking the French coach who everyone loves to hate. It was another kind of masculine, in the other best sense of the word. ;)

J stamped these, not me, and she's got the scars to prove it. (Household hint, always keep aloe vera on hand, owie!) I'm happy that le mari is not a big sports watcher. But every four years, he loves to watch the La Coupe du Monde. This is our third one since we've been living together and we've been together for 3 years longer than that. Figure that out. I don't understand a single rule of the game but I do love the idea of the World Cup as well. I mean, natives of 5 different countries were here watching a single match - all of them speaking French! There's an overall sense of the world community coming together unlike any other time.

Probably because it's rare, I like hearing tv sports in the background, it reminds me of growing up with four brothers. But I cannot ever remember American people coming together on a weekday to watch a game which makes the world cup matches feel a bit illicit and exciting like you're playing hooky or something. When the game was over it was all of 1 p.m. and France had lost so the group exit was kinda quick and quiet. The guys said their goodbyes and headed to the door to return to their adopted American workaday lives and my studio returned to silence.

(viva Mexico! shhh...)