My Five - Christian Dior Fall 2012

I'm not going to lie, I've been hard on the house of Dior since the departure of Galliano (after his boneheaded meltdown - jerk).  I was a huge fan of Galliano's way of fusing the past with the future while always keeping the essence of what the Dior brand is.  After he was shown the door things went way downhill.  But the tides have turned with this collection, at least in my mind.  Bill Gaytten and his team seem to have found their footing.  The ballet inspired collection was very "Dior" and that made my heart sing.  The color palette was so lux. You know how some colors come off as garish and cheap, but with a tweak suddenly turn into something that seems so posh that you want to run out and get everything you can in those colors?  Well this collection did that for me.  I love the dove greys, the soft peaches (not 1980's peach!), that muted purple that is so elegant.  I want to wear nothing but these colors this fall.  Here are my many picks, enjoy!

This picture really embodies the color mix in this collection that rocked my world.

This fabric is fab-u-lous, it appears to be some sort of mohair damask deal.  I wish I could see it up close.  The fuzzy, matte with the shine is fabulous.  And I'm not even going to address that necklace that I want NOW!

I need this dress.  Just to wear.

 The ballet slipper inspired shoes.  LOVE!

Another great example of color mix.

Subtle large-scale houndstooth created with textures.  Amazing!

Images via Vogue.com

This or That - Skull Bracelets

Alexander McQueen Twin Skull Bracelet

or

Jules Smith Skull Cuff

Alexander McQueen Enamel Skull Bangle

or

Metal Skull Stretch Bracelet (top)

Tarina Tarantino Horus Bracelet (middle)

Tarina Tarantino Momento Mori Skull Bead Bracelet (bottom)

My Five - Oscar de la Renta Resort 2013

Beautiful collection (as usual) from Mr. de la Renta.  The beauty and wearability of his collections are so consistent it's kind of scary.  How does he do it?  Well, I hope he never stops because even though I can't afford a stitch of it, his collections are fantastic for inspiration.  Take note of the colors (bright blue, kelly green, yellow-green, purple, orange-red, white gold, etc) and the use of gingham in a large scale (on the bias - which is how I prefer it) as well as manipulating it to look folded, undone and skewed.  We all might want to invest in a sparkly baseball tee pairing it with a skirt :o)  Fun stuff!  Here are my (slightly more than 5) picks, enjoy!

Images via Style.com

Happy Weekend!

I hope everyone has a happy Memorial Day weekend!

Be sure to take some time to remember and honor the men and women in our armed forces who have served and who are serving our country all over the world.

Enjoy the three day weekend and I'll see you on Tuesday!

*Picture taken by me at the USS Arizona Memorial in Honolulu.  This weekend marks the 50th anniversary of the memorial.  It's one of the most moving places I've ever been.  The USS Arizona still leaks fuel to this day, so those little oil patches you see on the surface are haunting.  Pearl Harbor survivors call those oil droplets "Black Tears". 

Dear Victoria Beckham,

I'm a huge fan of your clothing and accessories!  I love how you have morphed from pop star, to queen of football WAGs, to style icon, to well respected designer all while raising four kiddos with your very handsome hubby.  Kudos to you! 

But the real reason I'm writing you is to let you know that you are free to send me any of the below items from your line to "test" out.  Seriously, I'll give you my honest opinion about how much I love them! 

I would run out and buy them myself but they are just a wee bit out of my price range *cough* (extremely expensive) *cough*.  I'll be waiting on the UPS guy! 

xoxo 
Jenny

Silk and wool blend gown - $3,845

Shopper leather tote - $2,700

Silk-gazar coat - $3,895

Pleated cotton-blend crepe mini dress - $2,950

Stretch-wool coat - $3,050

Zip-detailed stretch-wool coat - $3,295

Shopper leather and linen-canvas tote - $1,850

Images via Net-a-porter

Weekend Recap!

I'm tired.  Super tired after this past weekend of cleaning.  And to top it off my girl got bitten by some sort of creepy crawly on the top of the foot Monday and it swelled up big time.  I kept her home from preschool yesterday so needless to say I got nothing accomplished.  We ran to the doctor just to make sure it wasn't something worse than it was and she asked the doctor for a cast.  That's how she rolls - dramatic to say the least. ;o)

Since I headed out early Friday I didn't have a chance to mention that I shared my favorite Children's clothing tip over on 11 Gray last Friday!  11 Gray is Jessica's (formerly of Lavender and Lilies) great new blog covering all things design, baby, cooking, etc.  Make sure you stop by and say hello!

Back to this past weekend at my Mom's.  We cleaned and sorted and donated and still there's so much more to do. But we got a great start and I found some pretty cool things that I thought I would share (if you're following me on Instagram @Spryonthewall then you've seen a couple of these already).  Check out the treasures:

Vintage Playboy Club ashtray in orange.

A handmade quilt from the '70s that my Great-Aunt made me.  You can't totally tell from the picture but that green is neon and so pretty.  The darn thing looks brand new!  Score!  My daughter has already claimed it as her own.

Vintage Liberty of London silk scarf - I've hung it up to help the wrinkles fall out and to air it out (garage storage = funky smell)

Pretty cool, right?  Have a great Wednesday!

My Five - Bottega Veneta Resort 2013

A very nice, sleek collection with an almost muted color palette.  What I mean by "muted" is that the colors are strong, but they aren't in-your-face.  Lots of yellow, mint green, peach and a hit of purple along with the usual black.  What I find very interesting (from a design point of view) is that Tomas Maier begins his design process with color.  Interesting, because while I usually start with pattern and/or texture, a color palette really does set a "mood".  It creates a feeling and thus ideas about how things should look.  I love learning about other designers and their creative processes.  Anyway, here are my picks:

 Point to ponder - how do you feel about a tracksuit?  Are we ready for tracksuits again?

Images via Style.com

Happy (Early) Weekend!

I'm checking out early this week, I am off to help my Mom do some MAJOR decluttering.  This will involve lots of sorting, heavy lifting and trips down memory lane.  My main job will be to keep her on task and to tell her it's okay to get rid of stuff that was in my bedroom when I was like 10 - lol!  Hope you all have a great weekend!

(here's hoping her garage looks like this when we are finished - ha!)

Source: bhg.com via Jenny on Pinterest

Love This! - May's Sample Society Box

Here's what this month's box contained:

Stila Forever Your Curl mascara //  Alterna UV+ Color Protection Fade-Proof Fluide //  Bond No. 9 New York Chinatown //  Strivectin-SD Intensive concentrate for Stretch Marks & Wrinkles //  Colorescience pro Loose Mineral travel puff

The Bond perfume smells amazing - yum!  Love the colorescience travel puff - that's a $10 product and is really nice!  I haven't dug into the other stuff yet, but I will be busting out the UV hair spray when we head to the beach later this Summer.

If you want more information about BeautyBar.com and Allure's Sample Society go here.

Check out what was in last month's box go here.

This or That - Summertime Clutch

Since I first spotted this super cool Jimmy Choo clutch, I've been in love.  I'm attracted to accessories with some personality.  Of course with a $795 price tag it's a bit out of my reach.  This Kate Spade clutch is still pricey, but is just as fun and totally gives off that Summertime vibe.  What do you think?

Jimmy Choo Candy Clutch - $795

Kate Spade Pool Party Clutch - $278 

Hey, don't forget that the next season of Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles premiers Wednesday June 6th at 9pm/8pm central on Bravo!   Why do I care, you ask?  'Cause my little bro works on the show (in fact in the preview below you can spot him in the background out of focus in a plaid shirt about midway through).  Check out what's on deck this season!

My Five - L'Wren Scott Fall 2012

Lovely and ladylike vibe (as usual) from this collection, chock full of rich colors and textured fabrics.  I always love how she cuts things so that they fit a woman's curves, but still the clothes allow the woman to move. Tailored and fluid all at the same time.  I was also pretty jazzed about the bright colors and color combinations.  Here are my picks:

Images via Vogue.com

The Met Ball Best Dressed

Okay first of all with the Costume Institute highlighting both Miuccia Prada and Elsa Schiaparelli with this exhibit, I expected a bit more quirk.  I mean both designers are known for their whimsy, artistry and fun.  I really was hoping for someone to bring the pink and I mean the Schiaparelli pink (that blue tinged hot pink that is the stuff of dreams.  That one-more-drop-of-blue-and-it's-almost-purple-pink).  How sad was I, that the only lady who got anywhere close was Julianne Hough(?) - props to her stylist for hopefully, deliberately paying homage to Ms. Schiaparelli.  I was also secretly hoping for some vintage Prada numbers from years past - like maybe an evening gown made from that lipstick print that I covet so from years gone by.  Oh well.  Miuccia should really call me, I have a scary encyclopedic knowledge of Prada stuff from like 1995 until now.  That's 60% of my brain to be honest.  Prada and SpongeBob - it's sad really.  Anyhoo, here's what I liked from last evening:

Karolina Kurkova looking amazing in Rachel Zoe Collection

Ashley Greene in Donna Karan which was a little safe but still stunning

Kristen Wigg in Stella McCartney, I love the color and the length

Angela Lindvall in Prada (psst this is what I was looking for, a bit of that Prada quirk that I adore)

Julianne Hough (with Seacrest) in Carolina Herrera, great dress, perfect color.

Paula Patton in Vera Wang, the color is fab on her

Cate Blanchett in Alexander McQueen

Leslie Bibb in Zac Posen, sure the print is a little "upholstery", but she's so gorgeous it totally looks amazing (I'm loving the coral/orange lips and nails)

Ginnifer Goodwin in Monique Lhuillier the color and cut is perfect on her (that neckline!).  Is her hair looking a little weird lately, I love a pixie cut but this one almost looks like a painted on Ken doll's hair.  Needs some texture maybe?

And I only include Gisele and Tom so I can say (in Brazilian accent) "My husband can't throw the ball and catch the ball." (post Super Bowl rant)

Images via Vogue.com