What I wore:: dinner with friends

Good news, people! I finally found a good spot to take outfit of the day pictures in my house. It took a little furniture rearranging, but I'm liking it. And bonus for me- the room we rearranged (my office/studio/exercise room) is actually more functional now. For example, all I have to do to use my scanner is plug in the USB cable (instead of pulling it out of storage, setting it up and plugging in the USB cable). See? Much more functional.

Okay, okay. We actually rearranged the furniture to make the room more functional, and the good spot for what I wore/outfit of the day just happened to be the bonus (not the other way around). Sometimes I forget that the world doesn't revolve around my blogging habits.

Ahem.

So anyway. Friday night, I went out for dinner with some friends. We were supposed to catch a movie afterward but dinner ran late, so we ended up a nice little outdoor bar instead. Good times, I tell you. Good times. And after the week I've had taking care of our dog, who is recovering from knee surgery, I certainly needed a relaxing night out with the girls.

Happy Sunday, everyone!



Cardigan, H&M
Sequin top, J.Crew (similar here)
Cargo capris, Abercrombie & Fitch
Ballet flats, ??
Necklace, J. Crew
Bracelet, my own design

Accessories:: Tiffany Blue- now available in a handbag

Tiffany Blue isn't just for boxes anymore. Now you can have the lovely aqua shade in handbag form with the launch of Tiffany's new line of leather accessories. The collection includes a structured tote or a reversible one, a clutch, and a ladylike bag among a few others...there's even one for the boys (but don't worry, it's a nice, manly shade of brown). It's hard to pick a favorite! View the entire collection here.

Which do you like best?


Avenue Tote | Tiffany Reversible Tote | Lyn Clutch

Fashion:: Design Star, Emily Henderson

Does anyone else watch HGTV Design Star? What did you think of last night's finale? I was happy Emily Henderson won because I really like her overall aesthetic and she just seems like a nice person, too. And isn't it nice when a nice person wins? But I'm not really here to talk about the finale. I'm here to talk about the outfit Emily wore in the second to last episode.

Specifically, this outfit:

Image sources: Left | Right

I'm obsessed. I just love the blue ruffled dress with the tan, heeled menswear-style shoes. So, I went hunting for some similar styles. And here's what I found:


I'm on Sapphire dress from Modcloth | Tissue v-neck T from J. Crew | Hammered NuGold Cuff by Cyndie Smith Designs | Double-lock leather belt from Madewell | Sueded opaque control top tights from Hue | Canyon messenger bag from Madewell | Langford platform high-heel oxfords from J. Crew

The dress isn't identical (*cry!*), but I added a long-sleeve gray t-shirt to give it some interest (and seasonal mileage, since summer is fading fast!). I think I like it! What do you think?

PS- Emily has a pretty cool design blog call The Brass Petal. Check it out!

He proposed! Wanna see my ring?

So life's been busy lately and I haven't had much time for blogging. Although, I have had time to jot down ideas and sketches for enough blog posts from now until 2050, so whenever I actually find time to write them, there will be lots of fun content- until then, well...yeah.

One of the things that kept me marginally busy was my birthday the first week of August. D bought me a bike, which I've been wanting for a while. Our only problem now is that D needs a bike so we can ride together.

Guess who has a birthday on Friday? Guess who's getting a bike? Yeah.

I think my birthday present was a giant hint as to what he wants as a present, but I'm okay with that since we'll have lots of fun riding around town.


My new bike! Excuse the mess behind it. He had to rearrange a few things to fit it in our dining room. Yes. Our dining room. We live in a loft in the city. There isn't a yard or garage to speak of.

But the bike is only half of the story.

Last Tuesday, I got home from work late because I had an appointment. D was already home and I found him lurking in the dining room when I got there. Usually he's parked on the couch or in the office, so that was a little strange, but I didn't think too much of it. Then he told me he got me something to wear with my bike and to check the basket. Of course, I assumed it was a helmet since I still need one of those, but as I got closer to the basket, I caught a glimpse of a little red bag that was clearly too small to contain a helmet. Then I figured out it was an engagement ring (we picked out the stone a few months ago).

And then. He proposed, in our kitchen, with our dogs as witnesses. I'm pretty sure the dogs were super stoked. But then, that could have also been because we were in the kitchen and that means wayward food could fall and land within dive-bombing distance.

So, here's my ring. I love it (and I love how he proposed)! It's a blue diamond surrounded by white diamonds. The color reminds me of the ocean in San Diego, which, for me, is just perfect!


Photos by me.

Objects of desire :: "I'm an artist, not a ..." custom-made rings

Sometimes we all need a little reminder of where we're going and who we want to be. And that the current situation is. not. permanent.

I recently stumbled across these custom-made rings by Kathryn Riechert, and I found them nothing short of inspiring. And I love the story behind them, too- how Kathryn first thought to make them when she spent her days waitressing instead of creating. I'm sure most of us can relate to this on some level. Maybe you're not a full-time waitress with the soul of an artist, but you've got to be working toward something, right? Most of are, whether it's career-related or not. We all have goals and dreams. Why not keep a reminder of them right at your finger tips?


My mind is already in idea overload with possibilities for my own set of rings from Kathryn. ("I'm a creative spirit...not a corporate drone" is sort of amusing to me.)

So, what about you? What would your rings say?

Oh, and Kathryn? She's now a full-time artist who spends her days creating cool jewelry like this.