Catching up

Well, I've been a little busy these past few days and have neglected my little blog. My baby brother came to visit from LA and we hung out, catching up. Then I had to put loads of stuff on Ebay that have been sitting in a closet since we moved in - I still have more to put up this week. Yeah, it's that much. And I have been working off a "new" computer. I'm 80% up to speed, but I'm afraid my posts this week will be few and far between. Oh well. I'll be back up to speed after Labor Day. Until then, have a great week and long weekend!!!

Pantone Fall 2009 Fashion Color Report

For those interested, here is the link for Pantone's Fall 2009 report. Enjoy!

Image via Pantone

Color Story - Yellow

Well, I worked on another one, this time in a nice yellow that leans toward gold. A preview to all the yellow leaves we will see in the coming months as Autumn arrives. Do enjoy!

Images via (clockwise from the top middle) unknown, Harper's Bazaar, unknown, unknown, Domino (a scan), Lucky (2)

Love this!

I just love this recent Hermes ad (heck, I just love Hermes)!

Image scan via Hermes

NYY Steak at the new Yankee Stadium

I love hospitality design, I love being part of a space designed for many people to use and enjoy (I used to design fabrics for hospitality). So when I ran across this Contract Magazine article about the hospitality spaces at the new Yankee Stadium, the photos absolutely stopped me in my tracks. I am not a Yankees fan (you are talking to a Chicago White Sox girl) but even those that hate the Yankees cannot deny how beautiful these spaces are. I am particularly fond of the NYY Steak restaurant which overlooks the stadium's Great Hall. It features American black oak floors, blue leather upholstered club chairs, antique brown granite bar and, my favorite feature, a series of walls paneled in back lit, acid-etched bronze mirrors with autographs from those who impacted the history of the Yankees. I love that it's warm and sophisticated. These spaces were designed by II BY IV . Check out the entire article with more photos here.

Images via Contract Magazine

Shared via AddThis

Amazing Boutique Alert!

Check out the Moliera 2 boutique in Warsaw, Poland. Designed by Robert Majkut it references the area's historic and modern elements. The dominate designer represented in the boutique is Valentino, so Majkut made sure there were many pops of that signature Valentino red. It's really beautifully done. Read the article and see more pictures here - Contract Magazine.

Image via Contract Magazine by Aleksander Rutkowski
Shared via AddThis

Vote for a new setting for The Hope Diamond

Yep, click the link below and you can choose from 3 settings designed by Harry Winston. This is all in honor of the 50th anniversary of Harry Winston's donation of the diamond to the Smithsonian. The new setting will be revealed in the Spring of next year. But here's the interesting part, the diamond will only be displayed in the new setting for a limited time, then returned to it's original setting.

Smithsonian Channel: Original Programming in HD and On Demand: The Hope Diamond

Shared via AddThis

Image via Smithsonian

How adorable!

My Stepmother got these adorable Pediped shoes for my daughter and I totally wish that I could have a pair too. I would want them in a ballet flat not a mary jane, doggone it that cupcake print is too cute! I know, I need help...

Photos by Me!

Color Story - Purple

In my previous life I created many color stories and I'm kind of missing that. I always loved pouring through magazines, books, etc.; pulling images, sifting through them and pulling together trend and/or color groups. It never failed that something would emerge. So please indulge me as I share my first color story with you. I hope you enjoy:

This purple story started with the Bottega Veneta ad and quickly snowballed from there. It's not a conventional purple, it's more of a greyish purple and then a brownish purple - bordering on burgundy (though a straight up purple is represented by the clutch - by Nancy Gonzalez via a Neiman Marcus ad - in the middle of the collage as well as in the room's lighting). In my experience people have very strong reactions to purple - they either love it or hate it, rarely is a person indifferent.

Images (starting clockwise from top left) via InStyle, Mauboussin, Bottega Veneta (2), Neiman Marcus, Vogue (I think - correct me if I'm wrong), Interior Design

Lovely!

I was doing some random surfing and ran across these stunning evening gowns from Victoria Beckham's (I know, right?) Fall 2009 RTW collection. They really are beautiful in their simplicity and sophistication.


I have a love/hate thing with our dear Posh, I'm completely fascinated by her style (and handbag collection) but at the same time I chuckle at what she wears to certain things. I mean who would be hauling their little ones around in 6 inch platforms and always done up to the nines? I wouldn't carry a $9,000 Birkin to my kid's soccer practice, let's put it that way. Oh well, she's nothing if not entertaining.


Images via Style.com

I want this!

I just love this clutch by Little Ellie - love the fabric, love the colors! You can find it here on Etsy (not bad for $32)!

Image via Little Ellie

Fashion Designers + Sesame Street = Great Editorial!

Oh I am so in love with this editorial spread in September's Harper's Bazaar! To pay tribute to 40 years of good ol' Sesame Street, Bazaar paired some of it's famous residents with top fashion designers. Come on, who doesn't love Oscar the Grouch paired with Oscar de la Renta?!?! Love!

Big Bird and Diane Von Furstenberg

Vera Wang and Abby Cadabby

Derek Lam and Thakoon Panichgul with Bert and Ernie

Francisco Costa and Grover

Carolina Herrera and Elmo

Kate and Laura Mulleavy (Rodarte) with Cookie Monster

Oscar the Grouch and Oscar de la Renta

Great job Bazaar! I have a great back story book about Sesame Street that I got 10 years ago called Sesame Street Unpaved it's completely fascinating!

My friend Junius and Pippi Take the Cake did a blog post about her five favorite recent Sesame Street clips and they are great! Check it out here.

This post was brought to you by the letter A and the number 7.

Images scanned from September 2009 Harper's Bazaar, last image of book cover via Amazon

Lovely!

I just love the Fall 2009 Moschino ads:

Lovely, indeed!

Image scans Moschino Fall 2009

In "What the heck?" News...

Notice any similarities between the design on the t-shirt in this recent Billabong ad and the labels on Diptyque candles?

Uh, yeah. Why? Here is a better view of the shirt. Whatever.

Images via Billabong and Neiman Marcus respectively

Have a Great Weekend!

This is what I wish I was going to be doing this weekend - sleeping/napping. Instead, I will be trying to catch up on some of my "to do's". I've been procrastinating A LOT lately. Must be productive! Hope your weekend is fab!

The picture is of our cat Wiggy a few years ago, he is "helping" my husband do some work at home.

If you haven't already...

go to Ralph Lauren's Rugby. It's such a cool website and has great collegiate type clothing mixed with a downtown vibe. The best part about the site is that you can customize certain pieces with patches and embroidery! It's fun and totally personalized. Love it!!!

I want this!

Oh how I do love this handbag from DKNY. It's the "Cyprus" leather shopper, I just love that it's roomy and I adore the color (sorry about the scan, but I saw it in August's People Stylewatch and I couldn't find it on DKNY's website yet, so I made do).

So to sum up: green nail polish = bad, green handbag = good!

Image scan of People Stylewatch August 2009

Lovely Home!

I just received the September issue of Architectural Digest. As I was breezing through it, the last article about architect Campion Platt's Palm Beach, FL house caught my attention. What a bright and cheery home!

Living room:


Master bedroom:


Pool:

Ah, the good life, his pool looks how I wish my pool looked (like someone else takes care of it - ha)! For more info visit: Designers’ Own Homes: Campion Platt: architecturaldigest.com

Images via Architectural Digest - photography by Ken Hayden
Shared via AddThis

I want this!

I want this, not for me, but for my little girl. How adorable are these dolls from sophie and lili? I love that they are able to be customized with the child's name on the back.

There are many other styles of the dolls too (from different skin tone and hair colors, etc.). What a great gift idea! One of these will certainly be in my daughter's future! Check out their store here.

Images via sophie and lili

Amazing Hotel Alert!

Let me introduce you to The Inn at St.Botolph in Boston's historic Back Bay. It's an affordable luxury, extended stay, boutique hotel. The rooms are so lovely and cozy with tons of amenities. I haven't been to Boston since I was 12 (a looong time ago) so maybe a return visit to stay in this gem might be worth it! See for yourself:

Studio Suite:

1 Bedroom Suite:

1 Bedroom Deluxe Suite:

Deluxe Suite:

Suites Sitting Area:

2 Bedroom Alcove Suite Sitting Area:

Living Room:

How much do you love the mix of bold stripes, buffalo plaid, zig zags and houndstooth of the fabrics? As well as the trompe d'oeil bedside table? Love all of it! For more information and images visit the hotel's website here.

Images via The Inn at St.Botolph

A mini trend in the making?

One of my favorite blogs is A Townhouselady's Life. Townhouselady finds the most amazing things, her blog is chock full of great stuff (and she's a super cool person to boot)! Recently she did a post about jewelry designer Wendy Yue and her AMAZING creations. Well one of the rings (above) made me think about one of Vera Bradley's upcoming Winter 2009 patterns, "Imperial Toile" (below).

Not only the in the theme but the colors too. I would love to have that ring, but will have to settle for a bag or two from Vera. Be sure to check out more of Wendy Yue's creations in this post from A Townhouselady's Life!

Images via A Townhouselady's Life and Vera Bradley respectively

I want this!

Love these shoes from Report Signature! Available here.

Black:

Coral:

Nude:

Images via Amazon

Ummm, I'm not so sure

I got an email from Vivre today introducing Isaac Mizrahi's new handbag collection and they are interesting to say the least. I'm not sure if they are interesting in a good way or interesting in a "what the heck was he thinking?" way (with the prices, I'm leaning towards the latter). Here are just a few of the offerings, I'll let you be the judge:

Large Brooklyn Tote - $2,250

Orange Leather Tote - $1,650 (note: that's not a dust cover, it's part of the bag)

Pink Leather Duffel - $1,250 (again with that dust cover thing)

Green Satchel - $995

I like Isaac, he's kooky and I like his design point of view. But I'm just not digging these, I like the Brooklyn Tote, but not for that price. I love that orange tote (the shade of orange is perfect) but why put that dust thing on it, and why charge $1650? Oh well. You can check out more here.

Images via Vivre