fashion week favorite

Fashion Week 2010 has come and gone. My favorite runway collection? Mackage. Disclaimer: I’m a sucker for neutrals and monochromatic looks. Mackage designs clothing for successful and strong women (and men). Walk into a room with a Mackage trench on and you’re sure to be noticed. With brilliant cuts and attention to fit and detail, this line is TO-DIE-FOR. The collection is a mix of mens-inspired looks and feminine accents. The pictures speak for themselves. LOVE.

{photos courtesy of ENVY}

lust

I just saw these H&M home items on decor8...and I WANT them! Artist Julie Verhoeven lends her talents to this beautiful (and colorful!) collection. Only problem? It is on H&M's German site....and I do not speak German, nor do I live in Germany (or anywhere near it, for that matter). How do I get my hands on this stuff?!

{photos courtesy of H&M Europe}

a piece of me

My very first blog post was about one of my favorite artists, Andrew Spear. I mentioned my mom commissioned him to do a piece for me. I got it in the mail about a month ago. It is ridiculous! So awesome. Anyway, I finally got around to taking high-res photos of it. Below I've posted a full shot of it and a detail shot (so you can see just how amazing it is). There is also a picture of Andrew in his studio. Look closely...he just so happens to be working on my piece in it :) Enjoy!

the gray stripes

Just finished the first coat of paint in our great room. Inspiration? The hallway below, recently featured on Design*Sponge. I already have stripes in my dining room – black and white verticals. I really loved the look of these horizontal gray-on-gray ones and decided one room of stripes just isn’t enough! The plan right now is three of the walls will get the gray stripes. The fourth wall? A PUNCH of color! I’ll be sure to post photos when the paint job is complete!

{photos courtesy of Design*Sponge}

1944

Back from a wonderful vacation in Cabo, but overwhelmed by everything I missed in the blog world!  Anywoo, look what came in the mail today (insert fist pump here)! I found this about a week ago on Etsy, and I knew immediately that I wanted it! I can’t wait to get it framed and hang it. I ordered it from Electric Company, a specialty print shop based in Brooklyn. Check out their Etsy shop here, or their website here.

adios

I won't be posting this week because I'm off to sunny Cabo! See you when I get back :)

vintage valentine

In honor of Valentine's Day, here is one of my favorite family pictures. It is of my Grandmother and Granddaddy on their honeymoon. So classic. I love it!

art vendor

Today I bring you the Art-O-Mat, or “retired cigarette vending machines that have been converted to vend art.” I’ll admit it; I get sheer pleasure from inserting one of the shiny gold tokens, pulling the knob, and retrieving my prize. I feel like a kid again. For only five bucks, you get an original piece of art. Fantastic! I also love that every machine is unique. I had the pleasure of meeting Art-O-Mat creator, Clark Whittington, when he did an Art-O-Mat installation at Sam Flax a few years ago.  Great guy.

The Art-O-Mat is fabulous, but that’s not the point of my post. The point is my mother is a merchandise genius. She has THE best eye, and that’s probably why she gets paid to fill a store with tons of tchotch and knick-knacks. I recently saw the Art-O-Mat on Kate Spade’s Behind the Curtain “Things We Love." Well Kate, my mother brought this into the store YEARS ago. She finds the most absurd things that I think will never sell, and those absurd things end up FLYING off the shelves. She had a Twitter account before anyone even knew what Twitter was. Anyway, enough said. I’ve got a cool mom.

you snooze, you lose

This morning I was eyeing this brilliant top, a new addition on Nasty Gal. I love the pleating on the sleeves and collar. And the color, well, it’s fabulous. I decided I’d wait until I got home from work to make the purchase. Big mistake, huge. By the time I got home this afternoon, my size was sold out. Tears for fears! I can only hope that they decide to restock it. Lesson learned.

tempting

Craigslist, why do you tempt me? This was recently posted in my Craigslist area...and I want it! What a beauty. It's a 1930's curio display cabinet. Mahogany, with a lock and key (!). It even has Queen Anne legs and claw feet. Alas, I cannot afford it seeing as I JUST bought a piece of furniture. A girl can dream.

in theory

I love Theory. Simple cuts and classic designs that can be easily mixed and matched. It’s overpriced, in my opinion, but you can always find it on sale. And, if you’re lucky, there might be a Theory outlet in your neighborhood (I wish!!). Anyway, InStyle currently has an exclusive preview of Theory’s new e-commerce site. LUST. Here are some of my favorite looks.

little black dress

Look what I got! I found this awesome Kimchi Blue dress over the weekend. Not that I needed it, because I literally have 20 little black dresses. It was originally priced at $98, but I got it on sale for $29!! Bargain! This picture does not do it justice. It looks fabulous on, and it makes your waist look miniature! Now I just need somewhere to wear it...

for the birds

I really want to incorporate a vintage birdcage into my home décor. It doesn’t matter if it's a hanging one or a tall standing cage. I’m going to fill it with different sized candles for a fabulous lamp substitute. I’ve been searching local antique shops for an authentic vintage cage but haven’t had any luck finding one I really love. However, I did find this cool birdcage photo and letter holder on Plasticland’s website…only to find out that it is SOLD OUT. Booski. The search continues…

my newest piece

Just got back from IKEA. I've been eyeing the Trollsta Sideboard for a while; so today I decided to take the plunge and use my Christmas money to buy it. Always an indecisive shopper, I mulled over which color I wanted. I love the yellow. Absolutely, positively LOVE it. I'm redoing the great room in my house, and it would have added the perfect punch of color. But, alas, I went with the black. Yes the black is "safe," but it is much more versatile - especially if I ever decide to redo the room.


The IKEA boys laughed at me when they saw the size of the assembly manual. Then they suggested I get my boyfriend to put it together for me. Shame on them. This should be an adventure...

add this to my wish list

I WANT this Jonathan Adler Houndstooth Rug. I fell in love with the black and white version, but that was before I realized you can CUSTOMIZE the rug with whatever color combination you want! You can actually customize a few of his designs, not just his rugs. You choose the product, the pattern, the base color, the pattern color, the fabric, the size. It's absolutely fabulous!

an exercise in fashion

So tonight I went to an open interview for a part-time sales job at Anthropologie. About 10 other girls showed up. After introducing ourselves, we were instructed to create two outfits as part of the interview. One casual, one dressy. Below is the casual outfit I created. The blouse I chose was a lot less orange than it looks here…definitely more coral-colored. I threw a tailored boyfriend blazer over it (unbuttoned), and then paired it with dark skinny jeans. The flower clip is obviously a lot smaller in proportion, and I clipped it to the breast of the blazer. I also grabbed a few necklace strands. I recommended flats or riding boots…neither of which were available, hence the shoe choice. 

I doubt I’ll get the job, but the exercise was VERY fun! Thanks Anthropologie :) 

Bright Side Blouse ($98)
Cloud Night Necklace ($32) x3
Flipside Blazer in Black ($88)

J Brand Ink Skinny Crop ($158)

Midnight Sky T-Straps ($395)

Full Boutique Clip in Coral ($18)

Photos courtesy of {Anthropologie}

love my mamacita :)

My mother is so wonderfully talented! I’d be lucky to have half of her creativity. I wish we lived in the same city so we could be creative together :) I just checked out her latest flickr photos, and I love the Valentine’s series. My other sisters haven’t accepted her Blythe-obsession YET, but I finally came around! Here are my favorites of her recently posted pics. I’m thinking about blowing up the first photo and framing it for my wall.

you make me wish i was a blythe

Danielle Thompson. You are sheer inspiration! I’d be lying if I said I discovered your brilliance on my own. It was, in fact, my mom that introduced me to your blog. I absolutely love all your creations, designs, photography, etc. Most recently, I’ve been obsessing over your Blythe headband designs. I only wish they were for normal-sized people, because I’d wear each and every one of them. LOVE!

    

photographs via {danielle's flickr}

loving these looks

Kate Spade posted their favorite looks for spring. I adore all of them! Picking a favorite is nearly impossible; but if I had to choose, I'd pick these two outfits. UTTERLY obsessed with the polka dot dress. I love polka dots in every way, shape and form!

baby, i'm a put-on-a-show kind of girl

Anthropologie recently posted their February catalogue online. The theme is vintage circus, and I LOVE it. Everything is beautiful, but these are my two favorite outfits.

P. S. I wish they sold the star prop, because I'd totally hang it in my house!

treasure hunt

Yesterday my roommate and I went antique shopping, or “treasure hunting” as I like to call it. Lucky for us, there is an awesome antique shop literally two minutes from our house. Sleepy Poet is 55,000 sq. ft. of wall-to-wall antiques, treasures and trinkets. You never know what you may find! We spent HOURS there and didn’t even make a dent. I’m convinced it’d take a day or two to thoroughly rummage through all the booths.

Anyway, I walked away with two great pieces of art for my walls, as well as some fun vintage postcards. Most people like vintage postcards in mint, unused condition. I, on the other hand, like the used ones because they tell a mini story. I found one postcard of my graduate program building at Alabama. The original sender had recently been accepted into the University’s civil engineering program. The other card I purchased is a picture of the church where I was baptized and grew up in. Great find! The sender comments about the service she attended – very funny! The cards are circa 1943 and 1949.