i want: christian louboutin double noeud

4 inch heel.  leather.  beautiful light brown color.  bows.  my ideal shoes!

meet the christian louboutin double noeud sandals...

goooooorgeoussssss!

*buy them [for only $995!] here

friday faves: 6.24.11

first full week back in the u.s. of a.  back to the office and commuting and sleeping normal hours.  back to chatting on the phone  with my girls and wearing heels and straightening my hair.  oh, and back to my pretty things blog!  and back to the many pretty things out there in the blogosphere ~

design/decor

~ perfect entry way space ~

black & white beauty.  i especially love how the books match the color scheme!

from the always-incredible tobi fairley, in the may issue of traditional home magazine

{via the glam lamb}

~ watercolor walls ~

head over heels in love.

 by the crazy-talented black crow studios {via effortless style}

 fashion/shoes

~ craving WHBM ~

as all who know me are aware, white house | black market is pretty much my favoritest store.  and somehow it's been about 3 weeks (maybe even 4...woah) since i've shopped there!  chicka-whaaa?! so here are some of the many cute new items from WHBM that i would love right about now ::

black & white & accent love forever~

that's it for now -- off to iowa for my first weekend off of 2011!  whoo hoo!

wedding wednesday: purple tulle

a bride after my own heart - pretty purple tulle under the traditional pretty white dress.  and a purple sash.  AND killer sparkly purple shoes.

heck yeah!

photography by she-n-he {via style me pretty}

i want: perfectly preppy summer outfit

as seen on annalynne mccord ~

structured-feminine, my fave!  lovely floral, modest neckline, bright coral waist-cinching belt, nude pumps... want, want, want!

dress = alice + olivia puffy prom dress & shoes by none other than christian louboutin
images and info found on the vogue diaries

friday faves: 5.27.11

friday faves... on sunday.   sorry!

it's ben a crazy week and i still have a  crazy week ahead of me - my store officially closes for the season today, then it's off to h'are for a speedy 2.5 day vacay, then back home to do a ton of prep work for the big trip to china.  this past week has been a lot of tying up loose ends and shockingly not very stressful.  i think i'm finally learning to leave my work at work and relax when off the clock.  well, at least a little.  i really hope that i can carry over this less-stressful mind state to the next two weeks, as i am very worried i will get overwhelmed with the pressure.  so for now, i'll just focus on the beautiful and inspiring and calming.  here are just a few ~

design/decor

~ a bright & relaxing bedroom ~

i'm really just drawn to this space -  i love the big window, the built-in shelving, the colors and print-mixing, and mostly the huge huge bed piled up with pillows.  my own bed may have a massive pillow mound, but it is currently broken so i am sleeping on an angle.  but this bed?  this bed is glorious.
moral of the story: i want to live here.

from house beautiful, march 2008 [via housebeautiful.com]

fashion/shoes

~ bright coral shoes ~

i own these.  and they are magical.  i put them on and somehow feel happier, prettier, sassier.  

[from white house black market, of course]

etc.

~ california dreaming ~

huntington beach, CA ~ summer of 2008

ohhh california, how i love thee... whenever i get stressed i find myself looking through old pictures of mine from california summers and i instantly calm.  i think it's about time i return...

[photo taken by me while suntanning]

~ this song ~

listen & love.

{i was made for sunny days}

wedding wednesday: adorable vintage dress

"adorable" is truly an understatement.  and the bow?  perfection.

the bride got her dress from a local san francisco vintage shop, ver unica.  i'm madly in love with it, and the addition of bright yellow j. crew pumps!  love, love, love.

discovered on martha stewart weddings -- check it out to see more of the adorable wedding details!

friday faves: 4.1.11

as promised - a longer friday faves than last week's brief list! 

design/decor/DIY

~ ruler picture frame ~

 i don't have the actual directions for how to make this adorable clip-frame, but i think i just may be able to figure it out.  let's hope so because it's seriously fantastic!  from the fab blog, the lettered cottage

~ french canvas decor ~

that i super duper want.

these beautiful works of art are created with old french dictionary pages.  my fave is the "je rigole, tu rigoles..." one.  my years of french taught me just enough to know that this is the conjugation for the verb "rigoler" which means to laugh.

fyi - the first print is the conjugation of vivre which means to live [merci, michelle!] and the third print conjugates dormir which is to sleep.  adorable!

[from lily and lime, found on the blog dear designer]

~ framing chic shopping bags ~

but only when they are exceptionally chic and worth showing off - e.g. hermes.  (remember i wrote about my love of this idea here)

 image from the coveteur, via the decorista

~ scrabble pillows ~

i also adore the choice of "cozy" rather than "love" which seems to be ubiquitous.
found here but original source (unfortunately) unknown

~ this little breakfast nook ~

i heart nooks of all kinds, definitely including adorable little kitchen nooks such as this one.  i mean, can't you just imagine yourself sitting on the corner booth, drinking your morning tea and looking out through that lovely window?? i sure can :)

image found here 

fashion/shoes/accessories/etc.

~ turquoise fabulosity ~

at first when i saw this posted on the blog simply designed and etsy finds, i wanted the perfectly practical (yet still beautiful) satchel with all my heart.  then 5 minutes later all i could think of was those comfy-cute moccasins.  so i've decided - both are needed in my life.  simple as that.

available at Boden

~ more of mila kunis @ the oscars ~

yes i know i already declared this elie saab creation to be mila's best dress this awards season, but i just couldn't help but share another pic it.  i mean, she is just perfection.  the dress is too actually.  [image found on the vogue diaries]

~ jamie chung, beautiful in bright yellow ~
gown by giambattista valli.  drop.dead.gorgeous.  'nuff said.
it's no surprise she was voted best dressed of the week by both readers of red carpet fashion awards & the fashion critic blogger herself ~

best dressed of the week, indeed. 
~ michelle trachtenberg = marchesa goddess ~

it's times like these that i wish i were michelle t.  now only is she beautiful & talented, but she is wearing marchesa at a ball about ballet.  life crush times a million.  [from rcfa]
oh wait, she was also voted BDOTW @ red carpet fashion awards, the week before jamie chung!  guess we're all on the same page these days :)

fashion photography

~ a model & an elephant ~

 i mean, come on! - how could you not love this image?!  i just find it captivating.  honestly.  can't stop looking at it...

model samantha gradoville and unnamed elephant model.  photographed by sean & seng for pop magazine.  via.

 ~ b&w portraits ~

stunning.  
the gorgeous model eniko mihalik, shot by lachlan bailey in vogue china march 2009  [via]

giveaways

~ hip, hip, hooray! ~

hey remember back in the day (erm, just a couple weeks ago) when i posted about a fab giveaway from sandy a la mode??

well... i won!

this was honestly the greatest part of a not-so-great week :)

* now onto some great giveaways you should enter *

~ the double whammy giveaway ~

 both $100 for gas money and $100 for clothes??  count me in!

enter for yourself over at shasta ann

~ simply lovely necklace ~

by lisbeth jewelry.  silver & rose gold, the perfect mixture & perfect level of simplicity.  can't help but desperately want it!  this beautiful necklace is being given away over at caroline & the city.

~ say it sweet giveaway ~

in honor of reaching 150 followers, the sweet lori over at penelope blue is hosting her first giveaway.  the winner gets their choice of an 8 x 10 print from the great etsy shop, say it sweet.  my fave is the picture shown above because i just love the english words: "i love thee with the depth and breadth and height my soul can reach."  love, love, love.

anyways, enter the giveaway for yourself here!

now a personal note...

 God is throwing quite a bit at me these days and this upcoming weekend of work will be the greatest test of my patience and endurance.  i am a strong believer that we are not given any more than we can handle, but that doesn't mean the "handling" part will be easy.  i know i will get through the weekend, but i also know that it will take nearly every inch of my energy.

so please, dear followers & visitors, send me some happy thoughts.  that's all - just some happy thoughts please :)

celeb style: jennifer aniston in valentino couture

yes, this was from over a week ago, but i've been incredibly busy and am just now getting to my massive archive of blog posts just waiting for me.  anyways, i'm madly in love with this look j.aniston rocked, so i had to share!

i love everything about this look.  ev-er-ry-thing.  not even going to list what i love because it's ALL.  and i don't think many others could pull it off so well, but jen's tan and blonde hair and killer body make it so perfect.

[via]

she was even voted best dressed of the week last week, by both red carpet fashion award readers & the fashion critic herself!

and her shoes... oh boy, her shoes!

perfect match her outfit & i want them desperately in my personal closet!

[image via]

i want: giuseppe zanotti colorful pumps

guess i'm in a giuseppe zanotti kick right now because i can't help but love these brightly gemmed shoes as much as the sparkly-tip ones i just posted about!

holy man do i want these!  possibly even more than the other ones... i mean, they are just so FUN!

unfortunately they are even more expensive - $860 at bluefly. ugh.

maybe one day . . .

i want: giuseppe zanotti tip of bling pumps

taupe pumps with just a touch of bling on the tip of the toe ~ perfect.

now just time to scrounge up $500 to get my own pair...

[can be bought here]

p.s. i am madly in love with the rich color of selena gomez's dress.

image via

reblog: faves from the coveteur

some of highlights from the coveteur, a blog that gives us "regular folk" an inside look to the closets of big-wigs in the fashion industry.  kind of a who's-who in fashion, through the eyes of shoes and purses and fabulous organization.  check it out ~

~ organization inspiration ~

organized shoes by tracy taylor, US editor for NET-A-PORTER [a job i would want even more than this beautiful collection of organized heels]

shoe cubbies! want, want, want! from the closet of jane keltner de valle, fashion news director at teen vogue.

~ fab shoes ~ 

bedazzled miu miu shoes owned by sylvana ward durret, director of special events at vogue [another job i covet!]. hmm.... those first pair look super similar to a more colorful pair i had wanted back in july.  guess my style is pretty established!

~ accessories/jewelry ~

sparkle-icious clutch by anya hindmarch.  on display in the closet of celine kaplan, executive director of public relations at eres.

great way to showcase jewelry!  the mirror helps the bling shine even more~ from the closet of janna hillman, senior fashion market editor at harper's bazaar.

~ lovely clothes ~

bubblegum pink dress by carolina herrera.  what a lucky girl to not just own this beauty, but to attend events where she can wear it!  by karla martinez, fashion market and accessories director at W magazine.

*all images courtesy of the coveteur*