Deckin' the Halls for 2011

Deckin' the Halls for 2011

I hate when people rephrase things to make them sound better.

We all know that a "Winter Wonderland" is really a "Frozen tundra" and that
"Jack Frost nipping at your nose" is code for "Frost bite rotting your nose off"

So in the spirit of honestly I will tell you. The things I'm sharing are not just for the New Year.
At least not for me. I have an obsession a healthy appreciation for all things glittery, sparkly, shiny, gold, silver and gaudy.

For those more reasonable, this is my little guide to looking good & livin' good this New Year's Eve.

Pairing a LBD with some gold pumps (or--be still my heart--gold oxfords!) would be gorgeous.

Or maybe feathers are your thing and you could pair a LBD with a great feather cape or necklace.

I am loving the Little Gold Dresses, and a mesh neckline & sleeves. Wouldn't that be so cute with a simple topknot hairstyle?

Give me a Voluspa "Crisp Champagne" candle to go with my flutes of rose and I will be a happy camper.

For me it's all about containing the crazy. Which means these guides were created with the idea of using small glittery accents to celebrate the New Year. That way they are easily interchangeable and your house doesn't look like a craft project exploded all over it! If that makes any sense. . .

New Year at Home

Little accents to make your home feel festive.

Candles at Unica Home
Accent Bowls by Jayson Home & Garden

LBD & LGD

Little Black Dress & Little Gold Dress for NYE

Cocktail Dresses by Rare
Teen Girls' Dresses by MinkPink

Accessorize the New Year

Flats by Urban Outfitters
Scarves & Wraps by Asos

Friday I'm in Love

Friday I'm in Love

It's Friday again and the bliss of Saturday afternoon is so close I can literally taste it.
I say literally because I'm hoping my Saturday afternoon will be filled with delicious fresh picked apples.
Have I mentioned I'm becoming obsessed with picking my own produce?
It's scary.
Soon you might find me peddling my goods at roadside stands. But that's another story.

Anyway today I'm concentrating my obsession on a long-time dream of mine.
A furry vest.
Can I commit to it? Can I pull it off? I don't know. But Olivia Palermo sure can.

I think the key is to keep it simple, & use one color scheme to where the fur stands out, but also blends in, so you don't look like some tacky Peta nightmare. . .

Thanks Brunch at Saks !

Have I mentioned I love her glasses? Ugh. Swooon.

Black & Cream & Lace All Over.

Black & Cream & Lace All Over.

Valentino Spring 2011, Thanks Simply Luxurious

Other sweet images from Dustjacket Attic

Can I Get a Burrito & an A+O Ruffle Sleeve Blouse Please?

Can I Get a Burrito & an A+O Ruffle Sleeve Blouse Please?

Duchess Fare

L.A. Times

So are you all as obsessed with the current food truck fad as I am?
Secret confession-- I watch the Great Foodtruck Race on Foodnetwork. Only occasionally. I swear.
Who can deny crepes that come to your doorstep? Not I.

Anyways I was introduced to something that gets me even more excited than food in trucks.
Fashion in trucks.
Yes, you heard right.
Apparently fashion has taken a cue from our current affinity towards harboring items in large moving vehicles and has come up with some traveling stores.

This is the. coolest. thing. ever.
My fave Alice + Olivia apparently trekked about in a super sweet Airstream this summer. And they looked so good doing it!
If you'd like to read more about it check out the article on the L.A. Times website.
Now if only I could order a good carne asada burrito while purchasing a great pair of jeans.  . .

T.G.I.F. ADAM Pre-Fall Collection 2010

T.G.I.F. ADAM Pre-Fall Collection 2010

Style.com

Style.com

www.shopadam.com

www.shopadam.com

www.shopadam.com

Now any of you who know me

Like, the flesh & blood me

because believe me many readers probably know more strangely intimate details of my life

than some people who have met me in person.

Anyways you skin & bones acquaintances

can say a few things about me

that can really only be grasped

from first hand encounters. lol

1.  I am no high fashion diva.(More  a combination of discount, vintage, grandma's closet & current trends I would say)

2. I am a bit of a pear shape. Just slightly, I swear.

3. I am short, or to put it more nicely, petite, 5'1

I am rambling on about this to describe why I so love the 

 ADAM Pre-Fall 2010 Collection. 

While these would normally be outside of my radar because of their price.

I <3 the tailored, menswear inspired pieces.

I'm the gal whose hoping the blazer trend sticks around forever

because the structured shoulders balance my bovine-ly built hips

A la Kim K.

Tailored pieces work really well on us smaller proportioned people.

Did I mention the materials are lightweight, meant for this transitional period between summer & fall?

Well they are, which is perfect for Santa Barbara

where the summer-fall transition sticks around 

all year long.

Because I am a Book Nerd: Out of Print Book Tees for a Good Cause

Because I am a Book Nerd: Out of Print Book Tees for a Good Cause

I know I have been slow-moving with the darn summer reading list.

Summer is almost over! 

But I haven't forgotten, and John Irving's A Prayer for Owen Meany

is sitting at my house just waiting to be ravished.

Anyway despite my procrastination

I am a self-proclaimed book nerd.

and when I saw these sweet shirts from Out of Print

which feature, you guessed it,

out of print book covers on tees

my little black heart skipped a few beats.

Add to that the fact that for every shirt you buy

a book gets donated to an African charity

and woo-wee I need to get me one of these babies.

P.s. for the fashion focused, these tees in  my opinion are always flattering

and feed into the whole "I'm really not trying which is exactly why I am so cool and look so good" style. lol

Did I mention they have a blog?

Yeah, like I said, they are bad-ass.

The Clock Strikes Twelve

The Clock Strikes Twelve

And these ladies will still look great.

I on the other hand am over here nibbling on a salad trying to decrease my pumpkin-esque shape.

These images are from the Costume Institute Gala 2010. I love seeing the looks each year.

I had some unexpected favorites this time around that I thought I might share.

J.Lo. Normally I think she looks like she is trying way too hard, like as a little boy she dreamed of being a beautiful lady, like she has stuffed herself into something god-awful (um remember the camel-toe unitard from her New Years Eve performance this year?)

Basically we don't see eye to eye on style.

but this, I LOVE. The details, the color, so elegant, so intricate, so feminine. I want!

Apparently this is model Coco Rocha. (As much as I have an opinion on fashion, I'm not the most knowledgeable. so shoot me! lol) Anyway this is a little more avant garde, & I probably wouldn't wear it, but i love how it looks like she's a mermaid who just stepped out of the water & it's still trailing her. Yes thats what I think it looks like :)

I think Ivanka Trump is very attractive. Which is hilarious because I think both of her parents are the exact opposite. With her skin tone and that dress color I think she looks like a golden Greek goddess!

Oh em gee. It's my new fave Rosie Huntington-Whitely. Such a sexy dress. Love that it's nude with black accents. This one I would wear.

Finally, Sienna Miller. So different from the others but I love the navy & black. Love the ankle strap shoes also. I cant pull those off, I'm short & it makes my legs look far too stumpy. Normally when I see Sienna I say to her "ok, you are not a  hippie, please brush your hair & gain at least ten pounds. oh & stop going back to the bald jerk who boned the nanny."
but today I'm saying. "oh giiirrrl you look good in that dress, where can I get one" :)

I know I said I was too busy to blog this week, but somehow I always manage to squeeze in time for procrastination. . .

Images from Boston.com

Wednesday Morning Inspiration; Lola Montez

Wednesday Morning Inspiration; Lola Montez

So many projects that I want to share on here aren't ready yet. I know, I disappoint you, I disappoint myself. But the good news is I'm bringing you some awesome mid-week inspiration to compensate for my short-comings. 

In my morning reading I discovered that the inspiration for Marchesa's gorgeous Fall 2010 looks is a woman named Lola Montez, a "19th century circus performer & seductress". Boy did my little ears perk up when I heard that. Nothing calls to me like good old fashioned circus seduction. lol

A little research shows that this woman was amazing. Or amazingly crazy, I don't know. 

Born Eliza Rossana Gilbert in 1821 Lola was actually Irish (yes! shout out to my kinsman!)

Her fathers military travels had her grow up in India (I'm imagining "A Little Princess" here) until he died of cholera.

Her mother remarried and she was sent off to school in Britain to tame her wild "exotic" ways.

At sixteen she eloped with a Lieutenant and after five years they separated in Calcutta and she reemerged as a "Spanish Dancer" under the stage name Lola Montez.

  Her various affairs brought her in contact with European nobility. This clever girl became mistress to Ludwig I of Bavaria who later named her Countess of Landsfield (so that's how you  become a countess) He later abdicated and she was forced to flee.

  She was mostly known for her scandalous affairs and suggestive "Spider Dance" (apparently a very sexual dance of some sort).  It seems that time doesn't change things too much as we all still love a good scandal and sexy dancing i.e.Jersey Shore & fist pumping! I didn't want to bore you by dragging out every detail of her life here, but geez the woman was married and divorced like five times, apparently had a crazy temper she refused to suppress, and made a life and a name for herself in a time when women didn't do that. She was the 1800's version of a hot mess and I love it.