Friday, April 17, 2009

Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head

It's grey and storming, which seems a fitting end to what has been a very long week! Between taxes and my car being towed, I am certainly saying TGIF and looking forward to the weekend.

We are hitting the road tonight and our drive will surely look much like these photos by Anna Ura, minus the lovely foothills in the distance.

Whatever your plans are this weekend, I hope that you have a wonderful one! See you next week my dears. xo

Thursday, April 16, 2009

At Your Leisure

My list of dream vacations is long and continually expanding. Some places are closer to the top of the list than others and some have long-held their spots, but all are vacations I'd love to experience one day.

One item on the list is to cruise the canals of Europe on-board a hotel barge, like the Golden Odyssey, a private barge-yacht available for charter out of Flanders, Belgium.


This setting looks like perfection. I might not be much of a morning person, but I would love to watch dawn break from the deck chairs.


I'll happily meander through quaint villages as we weave our way through the countryside.


I'm content to dock in small towns


Or larger cities.


A glass of wine as we cruise through Paris? Why, I'd love one. And you?


The deck is a perfect place to relax


And take in the sights... oh,look! It's Notre Dame ahead on the left.


When the night air gets chilly, we can retreat below deck with our glasses of wine and sit by the roaring fire.


With three cabins, including one with twin beds, there is plenty of room for friends.


We'd even have our own bathrooms, as each cabin has one en-suite.


Now, don't mind us if we turn in early. There's champagne waiting, and I hate to keep it waiting long.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

To Each Her Own

Last March, when I was searching for thank-you gifts for my bridesmaids, our mothers, and my other close friends who worked diligently to ensure our wedding came together, I knew I wanted to give each woman a present that was fitting to her personality and style. If possible, however, I also wanted to give them all something in the same vein.


Enter Dogeared. I was instantly smitten when I began searching through their jewelry, specifically their necklaces. I knew I had found the perfect solution to my gift quandary.


Dogeared offered positive and charming messages on their packaging, and they had a wide variety of jewelry, in both sterling silver and gold, which allowed me to consider each woman's unique sense of style.


I was amazed to find pieces that felt truly representative of all the women in some way or another, and I loved the process of picking out each gift, reflecting on how the selection reminded me of each woman and what she meant to me.


In the past year, Dogeared's selection has continued to grow, and I love perusing their site to look for new additions. I constantly find items I would love to gift to friends as life circumstances change and new situations arise.


I couldn't have been happier with my decision to use Dogeared for my thank-you gifts, but, in the time since, I have found myself wishing there was one person I had thought to include on our wedding day.... me!

Monday, April 13, 2009

Sparkle + Neon Glow

I love wearing dresses and skirts during all the seasons; in fall and winter, they are perfect paired with boots and tights, and there is nothing like an effortless dress with bare legs and sandals in spring and summer.

As we march further into spring, I've found myself drawn toward bright, cheerful dresses, like these from Matthew Williamson's Spring '09 collection.







Love the necklace paired with this dress on the runway.
Runway Photos via Style.com

I love the attention to detail in the embellishments and beading of these pieces and was a bit surprised to realize I was drawn to the neon in the prints. I didn't think neon was a trend I was completely onboard with, but perhaps once a child of the '80s, always a child of the '80s...

While all of these pieces are sadly out of my price-range, perhaps something in Matthew Williamson's collection for H&M will strike my fancy. Now, if only there were an H&M close by!