party dress.



strapless tulle dress by a.b.s.
bluefly.com, $267

and more...

the madness never stops.

leanne skirt by dvf
bluefly.com, $135

more dvf greatness.

the woman won't stop! she is, indeed, a god.

kira jacket by dvf
bluefly.com, $235 (on sale)

the red's not over yet.

this print is great. i also am really digging the croppedness of it. holy smokes, it's a dress.

'luce' jacket by diane von furstenberg
bluefly.com, $255 (on sale)

chair.

i love this chair's design. probably made to be a porch/patio chair (maybe?) but i'd definitely use it my house.

tubular woven chair
west elm, $119.99 (on sale)

a pretty tray for the bedroom or something. like the colors and the print.

william morris damask tray
met museum, $14.95 (on sale)

please forgive me.

i've been a bad blogger girl lately. going through my regular bout of uninspiredness (uninspiration?) these past few days. hoping it will go away soon, though. i'll try to get my game back by tomorrow night.

a HOLE lot of fun.

i don't know why no fabulous magazine wants to hire me with killer puns like that...

this is definitely one of those things i think i require but would end up weighting down the piles of empty little notebooks i've already got. still, it's very gift worthy, and i LOVE the holes punched out to signify the month.

one year of white pages
rare device, $35

more...

the strap in back is what does it for me.

donald j pliner viana
zappos.com, $203.95

shoes are fun!

especially blue suede platforms.

michael by michael kors raceway platform sling
zappos.com, $132.95

interesting.

i don't quite know how this might work, but the concept is interesting. they look fun, nonetheless.

luminous eggs
source perrier, $38

why, hello there!

fabulous little stationer you send me creates these dainty little 'hello' notes i do love.

hello there birds
greer chicago, $16 (box of 10)

thanks! no, really.

my mom has always told me it's nicer to send plain 'thank-you' notes rather than ones that say THANK YOU in huge letters in bold flashy type. her reasoning is this: it's nicer and more sincere to say thank you in your own words (and writing).

it seems for me, though, whenever i am needing a good thank-you card, i am in a huge rush and usually just default to blah, boring, blasé notes straight out of the card aisle at target. then i end up seeming (or at least feeling like i seem) insincere.

these by shorthand press, though, are a fine way to squeak by on my mom's rule. plus, the postcard style really cuts down on the stuffiness of a traditional thank-you card.

grateful postcards
shorthand press, $6 (for pack of six; or $1.10 apiece)

not there.

wish i could be. although, i'd probably pick the innaugural 1939 cannes rather than 2006. more glamour, less paris hilton, i would imagine.

also, like the colors in this.

film festival poster
allposters.com, $119.99 (32x44 inches)

color... print...

love it all.

oh, and did i mention sale?

sculpted jacquard rugs
anthropologie, $119-199

fun for all ages.

this is supposed to be for kids, but i say it's cool for me.

swallows mobile
sparkability, $18.50

phun.

i didn't think it could get better than a retro desk phone...but then i found the ultra retro desk phone. score.

ultra retro desk phone
stacks and stacks housewares, $59.99-69.99

this, too.



black magick dress by lover
elizabeth charles, $639

adore.

the color. the print. the dress!

bib front dress by lover
elizabeth charles, $495

ahoy.

absolutely LOVE this top though it's definitely made for the less chesty girls. i don't know what it is about stripes lately, but they're really doing it for me.

lila cami by kate sylvester
elizabeth charles, $95

green + clutch.

equals caroline's favorite.

coco clutch by laurie kaufmann
trunkt, $195

more red.

the never-ending ikea wishlist continues.

wall newspaper rack
ikea, $12.99

taking a stand on tv stands.

ninety-nine percent of the time, i hate tv stands. i like things to be hidden. a big black box is never pretty to look at and is only fun when the tv is on.

this stand, on the other hand, might be acceptable. frosted glass is good.

tv unit
ikea, $139

ass pinch!

so, i really wouldn't buy this unless i had a summer home in the hamptons and i could afford to buy funny lobster seat pads i didn't really need or want. i just wanted to get 'ass pinch' in.

chair pad
ikea, $3.99

ace of vase, baby.

now, vases and colored glass, on the other hand... i absolutely love. i'm much more emotionally equipped to handle the death of a stem rather than an entire plant. so i choose this vase over the pot.

vase
ikea, $4.99

plenty o' pot!

flower pots don't usually excite me, but i'm just really into colored glass.

plant pot
ikea, $4.99

the mean reds.

i've been so into red lately, in a crazy, crazy way. bright, bright reds. not the muted, brownish reds that i'm used to. i found these shoes a few weeks back at target. now, imagine them in bright red patent leather, and there you go. god they're so beautiful. and despite being a bitch to wear, i absolutely love them.

so, that said, this chair would make be a great addition to a big bright, white room.

vitra tom vac chair
design public, $320-695

nice rack!

i really need to go martha stewart on my magazines and store them in those nice box things for bookshelves. but something about seeing these luckys propped up inside this magazine table from the container store makes me really envision it in my life. it's like we're meant to be.

acrylic magazine table
the container store, $59

well said.

and, gosh, i haven't had bookplates since i was a kid.

snarky bookplates
16 sparrows, $10 (for set of 20)

a key-per.

much more sophisticated than the janky old plastic bottle opener i used to carry around on my keys. actually, now that i think of it, that one must have fallen off somewhere along the way because i don't even know when i stopped having it. i try to keep my keychain as minimal as possible, but this would make a pretty 'centerpiece,' if you will.

bottle opener key
urban outfitters, $8

sad and stationary without stationery.

if i could do anything in the whole wide world this weekend, it would be to head to new york for the 60th annual national stationery show. i seriously do not get as much delight out of anything else as i do with paper and type. so, yes, i'm ultra lame, and i won't deny that.

i just had to get that out.

lovely fortunes...

pretty in your pocket. also a fun new site to look at.

daily fortune love matchbook
rosebud design studio, (haven't found price yet, just wanted to share)

love the kitschiness of oilcloth.

this is very cute. but i have to stop! i'm constantly buying tiny little coin purses and new wallets, and it's becoming a sick little problem. soon, i won't even have the cash to keep inside them.

oilclotch coin purses by cath kidston
shop parcel, $32

i'm somehow drawn to this...

...as it reminds me of gatsby-era sunbathing in west egg, in a casual sweatshirt kind of way. yes, with a freshly cut bob, i could definitely pull this one off.

splendid ribbed waistband dress
shop intuition, $100

loving the latico.

is it possible i could have just replaced my love for hobo international clutches with a brand new bag?

various latico clutches
luna boston, $60-85

the 'f' word.

of course, that 'f' stands for favorite. as in, my new favorite things to look for online: sign letters. these cast aluminum letters come in a variety of fonts and sizes. colors, too.

i'd pick something big (say, 30-ish inches) and something classic (say, a futura or helvetica or even a lower-cased garamond). probably stick with a natural satin finish (or white, to pop on a dark - say, brown - wall). lean it up against the wall.

pick out a few letters...make a short word. pick a few funny letters... put them in a funny order (tish, for example), and feign innocence. oh, isn't spelling marvelous?

cast aluminum letters
buysignletters.com, (anywhere from $11 to $163 for helvetica in cast aluminum)

if you like to plant tomato plants...

AND you like cute packaging...the plant-me plant is the plant for all your planting needs.

it says: i'm the tomato. god. it doesn't get any cuter than that.

plant-me plants
branch, $20

tunic fun.

i'd take this in a few colors.

belted linen tunic
le redoute, $24.99

check 's' for sold.

this is kind of a fun alternative to my regular bible study invites.

they're multiple choice! get it?!

letterpressed invitation flats
rare device, $15

skull-tastic.

see entry below on 'badass but sweet.'

this one's from the los angeles museum of contemporary art.

skull bracelet
moca store, $27

the bloggiest of all blog entries. i really do apologize.

as part of my so-called self-betterment program (or, to steal a phrase from holly at holly's plate, my attempt at a well-designed life), i've decided i can no longer cure boredom by wandering store after store after store, spending dollar after dollar after dollar.

instead, i've decided i need to start reading a lot more, listening to a lot more music, and, overall, doing things to really better myself. i really stopped reading after college when i got busy with work, and i stopped exploring new things... music, books, art, etc. i felt much more grounded then (college), something i haven't quite gotten a grasp on lately. so, this is my new thing: do simple things to better myself. this also includes sending out notes to people. i love stationery, and i love mail. but for some reason, i never send it any more. so anyway to wrap this long-ass post up, i am working on a better designed and more organized life. AND this stationery is fun.

(again, sorry to have gotten so emo on you... i really try to stay away from that shit.)

telegram stationery set
elsewares, $12

necklace.

i am such a fan of iconography that screams 'i am a badass' in the form of something that whispers 'but sweet, too!'

this gets the job done. cast in sterling; made in brooklyn.

luger necklace
elsewares, $50

nice fruit bowl!



mediterraneo bowl
momastore, $64

black is back, baby.

so i am pretty sure my family thinks i am of the devil because i've always said when (if) i have kids (a kid), it will never wear pastels and instead will be dressed in blacks, greys, etc. sorry, but a closet full of pastels makes me want to throw up. that said, this will be a book i read to that (hypothetical) child.

what the site says: "This fun board book follows an urban tot who loves nights at the opera, modern architecture, and fine cuisine."

see, it will be all about my kid...the one who wears npr onesies and loves (quietly) strolling around art museums. also, this kid doesn't ever cry and is always nice to animals.

urban babies wear black
momastore, $6.95

no but really?

the frog croaks when your plant needs to be watered? i definitely need this. ...as evidenced by me killing jenkin's venus fly trap. ...among other things. ...namely, all the plants i've ever had in my care.

frog king
plumo, £14.95

your very own yellow pages.

yeah, yeah, i don't really know the last time i used the actual yellow pages, seeing as when i need a number, i either google it via phone or computer.

...but i like the idea of this. completely personalized for you (you fill in the blanks, of course), and full of everything you might need.

my yellow pages
room service home, $19.50

shake it like a polaroid picture.


first of all, this site is a neverending wealth of beautiful things to look at.

love the colors in this, as well as the beautiful hibiscus.

pink print by cell (limited edition of 47)
polanoir.com, 147eur

irresistibly cute.

just had to share. i didn't think anything could be cuter than a snowglobe with a giraffe inside, but 'sophie la girafe' definitely makes it that much cuter.

giraffe snowglobe
basic french, $20

[insert french word for square]

no, i don't speak french. so, no, i have no idea what it says. but, i don't need to know. i like lime a ton, but would settle for white since lime is backordered. also, i'd take two. one for stepping out of the shower/sitting on the toilet, and another for in front of the sink.

square bathmat
basic french, $42