heat stroke? or stroke of genius?

i honestly think the heat and sun this past week may possibly have fried my brain like an over done egg. don't get me wrong - i adore summer above all seasons. perhaps it is just a case of writer's block. and a symptom of 5 days at the ocean with kids. but i'm a bit nervous that i may be turning into a dim-wit. as my grandmother would say "ah well. tis ever thus".

anyhoo. in lieu of writing this morning, i played in my jewelry boxes. and noticed as i headed out the door later that due to the increase in arm exposure, i have begun piling more and more bracelets upon them. and i love it. if i had another arm i would add even more. without forethought, today was a bead-y kind of day. even as i sat nervously at the eye doctor it made me ridiculously happy. and suddenly the fried egg brain didn't seem so bad after all.

wallet, i apologize in advance

i have just discovered that a Paige denim boutique has opened at 245 Columbus Avenue at 72nd St.  to my wallet and the bank and credit cards therein represented, i would like to apologize in advance for the damage i may inflict upon you.


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clickity clickity clack!

i love a good shopping jaunt.  i cannot lie.  but with life the way it is these days, who doesn't appreciate a good internet shopsies?  nothing quite compares to having the goods in hand, but there is something equally satisfying (slightly terrifying from the financial standpoint) about the possibility of instant gratification with a click click click "GOT IT!"...

there are some shops that are actually MORE satisfying online. they have "online only" merch that is usually pretty fab, and they always have some sort of sale selection. one such is JCrew.  i'm a bit obsessed with their website - i admit it.  and now, FINALLY, their "little sister" shop Madewell is up and running on the old interwebs.  hence, i hurl my joy right into the winds and say HAZZAH!!  i would like to offer up the case that i may have finally found my perfect shirtdress - the one that has been eluding me for months.  as further evidence in my case (i'm feeling very detective-y) i would like to present this super fantastic sheer vest that is beyond perfection for summer evenings, and this ridiculously adorbs ruffled linen top that will probably be heartbroken if i do not give it a home.  i am a giver.  and finally i offer up to you these happy little espadrilles.  how "i just came back from the south of france" would you feel bopping around in them?!  LOVE. 

so dolls, get your fingers warmed up and start perusing!! 

what's better than shoes? more shoes!

i fell in love with Matt Bernson shoes a few years ago, when i found the absolute most perfect gladiator sandal EVER  the  love grew deeper as a few more pairs found their way into my heart and closet...  cut to today.  the "oldies" but goodies (the gladiator, and the superfantastic "love" sandals) are still available - and there are some really adorable new additions...  this little studded "barracuda" flat is super cute; i'm totally diggin on the espadrille thing, as you all know - and these are pretty much perfect.  last but certainly not least... it is inevitable that fall must come, and thus one must prepare... and what better way to do that than these clogs?  LOVE LOVE LOVE them. as a little icing on this cupcake (via People Style Watch)- enter the code "mbpsw10" at checkout on the website, and you'll get 20% off.  how's that for a happy tuesday?

let the sunshine in!

factoid:  i was a little hippie in high school.  (let me just tell you that the indian print maxi skirts and tunics that are everywhere right now are giving me MAJOR time travel flashes!!)  i distinctly remember one of the "tennis lady" moms being SHOCKED by the fact that my friend beth and i dared to show up at the country club with bare feet, above mentioned indian print maxi skirts, little tank tops and Tab in hand. truth be told - she was probably jealous - because we looked ADORABLE. 

anyhoo - back to now... i am equally time-travelly happy about all the tie-dye that's out there in the world right now.  it just makes me feel sunshine-in on the inside.  keeping with the me-that-i-am-now, the pieces i'm particularly loving are more refined in their cut and structure - but still have the hippie edge with their gamut of different tie-dye effects.  if i were to go on a binge right this very moment - i would most likely end up with at least one (HELLO nanette lepore dress, i believe i have fallen for you madly)...or two...or three... of these little lovelies i found scouring shopbop...  there are also loads more pieces out there and i can't think of a better look for summer.  perfect weather for something a little bit looser to let the air kiss your skin, and looking like a ray of sunshine.

happy wrappy

speaking of Bergdorf's... as i am known to do... on a recent "what's new" wander through the super-fantastic 5th floor (5F if you don't mind), my wandering eyes did fall upon these ADORBS little wrap bracelets by Gorjana. i have a few bangles and rings of theirs and now these little babies are calling my name! they are priced reasonably at $55.

there are some basic colors (one of my faves is bronze) and now there is an array of great summer colors just waiting to happy up your wrist. wear one, pair it with bracelets you have, or stack a lot of them - any way you wear them it will look fab. LOVE.

sweet relief

there's a slight chance i might be a raving lunatic. i'm pretty well aware of this and have come to terms with it. last night i began having an almost fever pitched melt down that my shoes were so disorganized in my closet. i am very compulsive about all my closets and drawers being organized. part of this is due to the fact that i adore my bf-constructed walk-in closet heaven. part of it is that said bf has nudged me in the direction of his intense organizational skills. and part of it is simply that i am, by nature, such a disorganized dingbat that if i can't see it - i may forget for months that i have it, OR have a meltdown trying to find it in a heaping pile.

anyhoo. the closet and drawers (with the one exception of the jeans drawer - that one needs some love) remain organized to perfection. easy to find, easy to put away, lovely. the weak link? SHOES. there is a semblance of a system. heels up top, flats down below. i'm not sure where the problem comes in (possibly it might be that i buy too many?) but i seem to end up with a recurring clustershag in the shoe area. don't get me wrong - it's not like the mountainous "no" piles at the Barney's or Bergdorf's shoe sales. but it's not too far off... so i faced my fears head on and dove in last night. weeded out several pairs to donate to the neices, and cleaned it all up nicely. flats organized to perfection by make and style, heels done up by style and height. peace and calm reign supreme again in the land of closet. i highly recommend doing this - you will end up wearing each and every pair of shoes more once you can locate them!!

(ps - sorry about the "happy heel land" pic quality - i couldn't get a good angle for the life of me...)

to sleep, perchance to dream

of shoes. obvi. Elizabeth and James to be precise.

usually my "fear" dreams are based on air travel - i'm CONSTANTLY dreaming of being either in or on my way to an airport and realizing i do not have my passport or green card. (it did happen once. absurdity ensued). they are vivid dreams and they are frantic. last night was no exception, but it did have one new detail: these adorable Elizabeth and James shoes. in the dream i was explaining to the gate agent that not only did i not have my passport, but that i was also in dire need of these exact shoes (which were eluding me much like the passport) because i knew the plane would be freezing and "my ankles will be cold without them".

i'm sure that any psychiatrist could drum up more than a couple of explanations for this. the air travel stuff? i'm unclear on that bit. but CLEARLY my psyhe needs me to get these shoes. anyone could see that.

i'm sorry... WHAT?!

for the life of me i cannot figure this one out. literally not a single explanation can make sense to me. in an attmept to match a color of a mani i had, i was trolling the nail polish aisle at the local drugstore. i found a perfect match. perfection. not the salon brand - but the match was flawless. so i grabbed it. it was not until i was home applying to the chipped region that i saw the label on the bottle saying it was "scented". WHAT?! i am truly bewildered by the thought process going into this. the only foreseeable result is a large number of ladies walking around sniffing their fingers which is just outright weird. i'm sure i will use the polish repeatedly - i do love the color. but i have to put this on my top ten list of things that i will never (nor want to) understand.

cuteness interlude

i am involved in a steamy love affair with my leopard print sandals at the moment - so perhaps i am drawn to all things of this nature...  you can wear the print with almost anything (jeans,army green, red and gold being my current roster).  and it's a documented fact i think Nicole Richie is adorable.  as Forrest Gump would say "and that's about all i have to say about that"

CFDA awards fandango

last night was the CFDA awards - which for all intents and purposes is the Oscars of the fashion design world. the winners were not particularly surprising - they are all superstars that we know and love - they ARE all well deserved. one thing that did stand out was a tribute to Alexander McQueen, introduced by Sarah Jessica Parker (looking gorge in McQueen). his last collection looked kind of heartbreakingly beautiful presented on stage. equally beautiful are the designs of the winners - so cheers to you all and keep your amazing work coming - we loves it!

below is a full list of winners:

Board of Directors Special Tribute
Alexander McQueen

Womenswear Designer of the Year
Marc Jacobs

Menswear Designer of the Year
Rag & Bone

Accessory Designer of the Year
Alexis Bittar

Swarovski Award for Womenswear
Jason Wu

Swarovski Award for Menswear
Richard Chai

Swarovski Award for Accessory Design
Alexander Wang

International Award
Christopher Bailey for Burberry

Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award
Michael Kors

Eugenia Sheppard Award
Paper Magazine’s Kim Hastreiter

Eleanor Lambert Award
Vogue’s Tonne Goodman

L’Oréal Popular Vote Award
Ralph Lauren

one good thing about cooler weather to come...but no rush!

during his resort presentation yesterday, Alexander Wang had a couple of exciting cards to play...  one is that he will be doing a line of "essentials" (for yours truly, the T line is my "essential" - but that's just me) which will include some more tailored pieces, namely 2 jackets, 3 styles of pants and one shirt.  streamlined, of course, in the way he does.  the other - and for myself, infinitely most exciting (and dangerous) is that he will be opening up a shop in NYC later on this year.  no exact date or location was revealed, but my brain has begun it's little spinning routine...  perhaps it will open right about the time of year that i may need to add one of these jackets to my collection??? 

summer ahoy!!

hot summer's day walkabout - perfect for stripes and patches (courtesy of a certain lovely bf...)


shouldn't every weekend be a 3 day weekend?!

shop and awe

summer is here, at last.  and because of the crazed timelines of the fashion industry, sales on summer merchandise are already beginning.  no complaints on that!  in the past i've wandered sales simply for the fun of it - and lord knows i've come away with some doozers.  some of my absolute fave closet dwellers were scored that way.  i won't stop the aimless wander - i just enjoy it - BUT i've decided that perhaps it's time to also incorporate some military precision strike tactics as well.   i can't claim all the credit on this idea.  wandering around aimlessly this weekend, enjoying the glorious heat and sun, bf and i did the drill, stop for an iced coffee here, pop into a newly opened chocolate shop there, and of course me being me, a few boutiques and shops.  (where, over the course of the weekend, i was treated to SEVERAL goodies to add to the summer wardrobe by the man.  love when that happens!)   anyhoo -- in one of said stops, Filene's Basement to be exact, i saw a rack of Missoni merch with a big ol' sign saying "additional 50% off!!"   you won't blame me for getting heart palpitations - right?!!?  i picked up a dress, held it up to me - and bf said "it's marked down extra - but it's still a couple hundred dollars for something you don't really need".   i kind of need to admit that he was spot on.  (if it were a pair of Louboutins, it might be a diff story - that's a collectors item thank you very much)  thus was born my 2010 sale shop concept.

Bergdorf's sale is starting this week. will i go?  YES.  will i buy?  only if it is on my list.  there are a few things i've been pining for - and if they are marked down, they may end up mine.  Barney's sale will be starting soon too - same rules apply.   when the further markdowns are made later in the summer - all bets may be off - but let's just wait and see, shall we?  let's live in the moment.  make a wish list.  keep it on hand - and shop the sales that way.  better to get a discount on something you've been lusting after (jury please see photo exhibit A)  than to end up with a closet full of things you never knew you needed, and therefor will never wear.  i believe in you stylies.  shop like no one's watching - do it like you mean it - but do it right and you'll have a closet full of gems to take you through the rest of your life!