A little bit of sparkle!

As the holiday season is approaching fast here are some ideas for party outfits...

I love this sequin top from INC, I shall be wearing it to a jazz concert in New Orleans next week.

We're spending Christmas in Florida this year and this is the dress I want my daughter to wear. Its from Lilly Pulitzer.

This is such an elegant dress from my favorite brand St John, and its on sale!

Now is the time to shop for your holiday outfits, if you wait much longer all of the cute stuff will be gone!

Spanish Long Boots

Catherine Middleton looks so amazing in this photo that I decided to track down her fantastic boots so that I could get a pair for myself.

They are Spanish Long Boots and can be purchased here

I think I like the brown suede pair best.

Wicked

Have you seen Wicked yet?

We saw it in New York on Saturday and LOVED it!

Click here if you are interested in the tour information, and if it is coming to a city near you then do try and go, it is AMAZING!

Missoni at Target

I love the featured designer events at Target, and Missoni was one of the best to date.

I was blown away at how fast the merchandise sold out at our store, I was there mid-morning and it looked like that about half of the clothing had already been sold. I went back in the evening with my daughter and by that time just about everything was gone!

Luckily I was able to buy a sweater dress/coat ensemble that I am thrilled with. The dress is a little short, but will look amazing with black opaque tights and boots.

I hope you had better luck, and maybe they'll do another run considering how most items sold out the first day.

New York

I don't think any of us will ever forget the events of 9/11.

I am leaving for New York this afternoon with my daughter and some friends. We are going to have a wonderful weekend, and enjoy New York to the fullest.

We will never forget what happened but refuse to live our lives in terror.

That being said, I'm sure I will cry on Sunday.

Back to School Ideas for Teenagers

It is time to think about the children going back to school.

I can hardly believe that the summer is over! I hope you had a wonderful time with your children, and here are are few ideas for back to school shopping.

BOYS

My son has been in school uniform up until now, and still has a pretty strict dress code, but we were able to find some things to allow his personality to show.

I found this jacket at JCrew, I especially love it because it has a little Union Jack ;-)

We found the perfect book bag at Urban Outfitters, he selected a green messenger bag similar to this one

GIRLS

My daughter loves these bags from Lilly Pulitzer, most of the girls at her school have Vera Bradley bags, so its an easy way for her to be a little different.

For clothes we hit Zara, Urban Outfitters and JCrew and she was able to add several new things to her closet.

No luck finding her a new jacket yet, but it will be a while before she'll need it, its still in the 90's here.

Teenage Boy Bedroom

My son is going to be in 6th grade next year, and I wanted to redo his bedroom now that he is growing up.

I don't want to admit how much time I have spent over the past few months looking for ideas. I have looked at magazines, been to fabric stores, looked in just about every store, website and catalog imaginable. I visited Ralph Lauren about 6 times because I fell in love with their navy suede pillows, but just could not find anything to inspire me.

I was sure that I wanted something custom made. There was no way I was going to buy a bed in a bag.

Cut to last week when J and I ran into Target to stock up on sunscreen. As we wondered around he spotted a soft gray blanket that he knew Milly would love and asked if we could get it.

Further down the aisle we found a charcoal pleated comforter set.

We didn't like any of the decorative shams so went to look at the cushions and found some gorgeous gray/beige cushions.

Now his bed looks like this -

And he was right, Milly does love the blanket!

Now I just have to find the perfect pale gray paint for his walls and new fabric for his curtains and his room will be done.

A Sweet Treat for your Camper

Do you have a child going to camp this summer?

My daughter is away for 3 weeks at a Duke TIP camp and I have arranged for several care packages to be delivered.

I think her favorite might be these macarons from Dean and Deluca...

I love Dean and Deluca so much that I also arranged for a delivery of snacks on the run

And for her third week I purchased some old fashioned sweets in an adorable wooden crate from gourmet gift baskets.com

Care packages are the perfect way to let your camper know that you are thinking of them.

Royal Wedding

Don't forget to set your DVR tonight girls!

My Home Theater - Georgia

This is my home theater. The pictures are terrible because I took them with my laptop, but you can get the idea.

We weren't using the children's playroom much anymore so a few years ago we converted it into a theater.

We knocked out the closet, replaced the single door with double doors, added hardwood floors, changed the lighting.... and this is what we ended up with.

Sources:

Leather sofas, chaise and ottoman - Restoration Hardware (they don't have these exact pieces anymore but they are by Mitchell Gold so try there if you're looking for chesterfields. Mitchell Gold make a lot of furniture for both Restoration Hardware and Pottery Barn, so it is a good place to look if you see something you like but maybe want it in a different fabric.)

Moss Ball in pot - Scotts Antique market

Leather tray on ottoman - Ethan Allen

Paint - Ralph Lauren Leather

The theater part only takes up half of the room, we also have a bathroom, table for games, fooze ball table etc.

Sources:

Metal table and Leather Chairs - Crate and Barrel

Sideboard - Ethan Allen

My favorite part about the home theater is that the remote even controls our lighting. I just love to dim the lights as the movie starts, it makes me feel like a big-shot!

My Bedroom at the Lake...

Sources:

Barley Twist Lamps and Linen Shades - Target

Bedding - Williams Sonoma Home

Curtain Rods - Select

Curtain Fabric - Lewis and Sheron

IPod dock/Clock Radio - Sony

Chest, Bed, Night-tables - Restoration Hardware

Linen Bench, Mirror, Candlesticks - Restoration Hardware

Bowls - Liberty for Target

Chandelier - World Imports

Bronze Birds on night-table - Biltmore gift shop

Lilly Pulitzer on Rue La La

Lilly is coming to Rue La La on April 6th.

Mark your calendars!

Scully and Scully

One of my goals this Spring is to give my study a bit of facelift. I am pretty happy with the room, but one of the things that I would like to replace is my reading chair.

I live in a very traditional home and am thinking about getting a chair and ottoman from Scully and Scully.

I like both the Richmond...

And the Taft...

Not sure which is my favorite! My decision might have to wait until our next trip to New York so that I can try them out in person.

Ethan Allen - Rent Table

I have always loved rent tables.

They look fabulous in a foyer, but wouldn't work in mine so I didn't think this was something I would own as long as I live in my present abode.

I have been trying to look around my home with fresh eyes as part of my Spring goal to refresh things and I realized that the table I have between my chair and sofa looks a little small.

I purchased a leather top Newport rent table from Ethan Allen and it works perfectly. The scale is much more suitable for the room that what was there before.

Makeup Brushes

I spied these adorable make-up brushes at Target.

Don't you just love the wicker case?

Rue La La

Be still my beating heart...

CHANEL

will be on Rue La La on April 2nd.

I have no idea what will be on there, but I think we need to check it out. Don't we girls?

Snowball Vibernum

This is one of my favorite Spring plants.

Chauncey Dress by Lilly Pulitzer

I am in love with this dress. The open shoulder detail is tres divine!

Weimans Wipes

If you've been reading my blog for a while then you know that I am a little bit of a clean freak!

I have granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances, and although I love the look, it definitely takes more work to keep them clean.

I have tried a lot of different products but my absolute favorite are these wipes by Weiman.

They are available in Target and most grocery stores.

Glee - Original Song

I have to say that last weeks episode of Glee on Fox was one of the most romantic things that I have seen on TV for a while.

I think that they handled the issue of gay teens in a very innocent, classy way and I loved how slowly this relationship established itself.

Kurt and Blaine, played by talented actors Chris Colfer and Darren Criss can change the world.

Travel Jewelry Box

When you are traveling it is really important to think about how you pack your jewelry.

Items such as rings and earrings are very small and easily lost.

A lot of jewelry is delicate and easily broken so one needs to think about how to pack these small treasures.

I never put my jewelry in bags that will be checked. Its just not worth the risk, and it really doesn't take up much room.

I find that the best way to pack my jewelry is in a small travel sized box designed for that purpose.

There are a lot of beautiful options in the stores and these are some of my favorites...

This beautiful blue box comes from Pickett in London. They are one of my favorite stores and do ship outside of the UK.

I also like this Jewelry roll from Tiffany, but it doesn't have enough room for me.

I love this pink personalized case. It is available here.

This case from Coach is young and fun.

I have used a red lizard case for many years, but I wanted something to match my luggage and this caught my eye.

It is the Monte Carlo Jewelry Box from Louis Vuitton, and yesterday I made it mine!

Some things that I love...

Ferragamo Ballet flats

St John

Some budget friendly fab finds

These are some recent purchases made by my fashionista daughter...

J Crew inspired cardigan $29.99 at Target. The ribbon ruffle down the front makes this looks like a much more expensive item than it is.

Skirt - $38 from Urban Outfitters. She has several of these.

This white lace back tee from Anthropologie was a budget killing $88, but she looked so amazing in it that she didn't care that is was half of her budget for the month. She is wearing it with 3 silver bangles that we got in Mexico over Christmas break and my shoes.

This T-shirt was a Walmart find, only $8

A faux leather jacket from Target. I think that she paid about $25 for it.

As you can see you don't have to wear designer duds to look a million dollars.

Some of her favorite budget friendly stores are:

Zara

Forever xx1

Urban Outfitters

Charlotte Russe

Target

H&M

:-)