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If I had to choose one store in which to blow a ton of money I don't have, I would--without hesitation--throw it all away at LN-CC, aka Late Night Chameleon Cafe. Pretty much ground zero for the heppest of hep-cats in East London (and many a celebrity who book private appointments), LN-CC is a Kubrick-esque concept store, web shop, library, basement club, music hub, and mini style museum. I'm going to go ahead and declare it the coolest store in the world right now, because you know what? IT IS.

Launched in September 2010, LN-CC is the brainchild of seasoned buyers John Skelton and Dan Mitchell (formerly of Harrods and Oki-Ni). Boasting innovative and hard to find labels like Damir Doma, P.A.M, Saskia Diez, Folk, Tze Goh, and footwear brands like Silent and Yuketen, LN-CC takes their retail concept further by stocking art books, zines, and music. They also host DJ nights and art openings such as this month's Richie Culver exhibit and have recently introduced a sort of "thank you to our International customers" contest that will give away a free trip to London plus a £15,000 shopping spree at the store.

A place for inspiration as much as retail-ization, the LN-CC store itself is a dramatically minimal wonder. From a caged hallway tunnel to a series of individual rooms linked via untreated wood, soft lit concrete, and gravel pathways, it's a lifestyle store unlike any other. Here's a peek inside...

The Earth Room

The Light Room

The Library

The Warmth Room

Items from my wish list...

I was up at 5am this morning for the Nike Liberty 2011 Collection launch hoping to get my quick-typing fingers on a pair before they sold out. Success! Liberty will release some styles today and others (like my faves, the vintage plane pair above left) in the coming weeks, so follow them on Twitter for more info.

"Work to me isn't hard; it's who I am. I think what's hard is going against a current, trying to be something else."

Artist and Etsy seller YOKOO is known for both her hand-knitted products and the uniquely stylish way she photographs herself wearing them. I peruse her shop regularly just to see what outfits she's concocted around her gigantic knitted scarves or pom-pom hats. Yokoo spends over 15 hours a day knitting her wares describing herself as a perfectionist who truly enjoys the process of creating and completing her work. She does all of this while watching old movies on her iMac, too, which might seem like a dream job until you realize how fast her hands must be working.

All of the hard work appears to be paying off as evidenced by a NY Times article that listed Yokoo's earnings as more than that of most law associates. She has singlehandedly proven that Etsy can turn a hardworking artist or craftsperson into a bonafide industry. Recently, The Storque (Etsy's handmade blog) did a fantastic film portrait of Yokoo capturing her thoughts, work process, and picturesque environment in Atlanta, Georgia. It's an inspiring and moving piece on the importance of staying true to yourself by doing what you love. Also, that hard work pays off in more ways than just your wallet.

Artist Maria Forde was hungry for life advice, so she turned to a group of people rife with years of wisdom: the residents of her grandmother's retirement home. Compiled within the pages of a zine entitled Longview and also as the gallery show, "Life Portraits," Forde's whimsically detailed drawings and accompanying words and stories bring the midwest residents of the Longview retirement community to life reminding us about what's important (or not important) in our time here on Earth. For just $6, couldn't you use a bit of wisdom?

(Note: Maria also created the Marlon Brando comic book from my New York Art Book Fair post below. All of her work is FANTASTIC. Take a look here.)

These architectural rings by Phillipe Tournaire are SPECTACULAR. I'm not typically a jewel-y type of gal, but whoa. Also, hello, Dream Christmas Wish List!

Queens was overtaken by zine hungry zombies this weekend as Printed Matter's annual New York Art Book Fair descended upon MOMA's PS1 in Long Island City. Hordes of messy coiffed, brogue-wearing, bespectacled book lovers came from as far away as New Zealand, Japan, and the esoteric shores of Essex, UK, to both shop and sell vast selections of art, zine, graphic, and comic tomes from established and emerging creators the world over.

One of my favorite sellers was San Francisco's Needles & Pens, which introduced me to this fun Marlon Brando comic:

In between dodging a symphony of (intended?) B.O. and a never ending barrage of tote bags, I wrote a haiku about the experience.

Ripe amber sweat lodge!
Neon poncho wonderland!
Hipster jungle gym.

Here is but a smidgen of what caught my wandering eye...

An oversized Bradbury that, sadly, wasn't for sale.

These are made of paper.

Pez! Coal!

I want every single one of Olympia Le Tan's book clutches.

Pigtails!

Everybody's favorite, the ghost of Switzerland's Nieves Books.

Mr. Ghost says, "READ MORE BOOKS!"

I met Carlen Altman a few years ago during an improv class at Upright Citizens Brigade. We made each other laugh and may or may not have caused our teacher to quit halfway through our term (our teacher's hatred for both our constant snickering and a rather infamous--and well loved--Catholic School Girls sketch was no secret). Carlen always liked to call me a "beauty doll", which I thought was special until I realized she called everyone a beauty doll. Sometimes she would say it sweetly with a smile and other times like she was about to slice my throat open with a pencil. Either way, I found it endearing.

After several years in the big, bad city, Carlen has gone on to helm a variety of fantastic projects, one of which is her line of Jewish Rosaries. She was also featured in a bunch of cute outfits for a Lucky magazine spread awhile back. When I ran into her last night, she was wearing some of her newly designed pieces, and folks, they BLEW MY MIND. What you see above is a large, silver ring with a bearded man holding a tablet. What you don't see is that the beard can move up and down... like the man is ranting, chomping, or laughing at you from that middle finger. It's GENIUS.

Carlen also designed a zig-zag necklace (seen in the photo above) that transforms into a star, which you can see below.

She also has a chuckling pharaoh ring and a pyramid ring that opens up to reveal a mummy inside. Fantastic!!

All of these new pieces as well as a few more from her "Jew-elry" collection should be available soon. You should check out her blog for updates (and for a good laugh). This beauty doll is a serious riot.

I was going to post this a few weeks ago, but work dug its clutches into me! My cousin in France sent this to me saying it was all the rage in her country but she didn't understand why. I took one look and felt transported back to my 90's youth when The Prodigy was king and battles on the dancefloor were something you came prepared for. Now, because of this, I can't WAIT to start dancing again.

Hello, Awesome.

"Gimme Shelter": see it again or see it for the first time. This is historical magic from the incomparable Maysles.

Charlotte Gainsbourg: Listen to her album or make it a Netflix night and watch her traipse around Paris in "My Wife is an Actress".

Built By Wendy shirt: Miss Evonne wore this "flame t-shirt" to a party last weekend and it looked fantastico!

Rainer Maria Rilke: an alternative to "The Secret". Guaranteed to be mumbo jumbo marketing-free.

Penny loafers: "Yes, I'm bringing 'em back and ain't no one gonna stop me!" says Andi.

Monocle: the long awaited magazine from Wallpaper* wunderkind, Tyler Brule.

The Black Angels: our new favorite band. Get their new album Passover or catch 'em playing in their home court this week during SXSW!