I’m in love with these wedding cakes from Susie Cakes Bakery and Sweet and Saucy Shop. I particularly love the simplicity of the bottom cake and the lotus pods add a touch of whimsy. Also digging those natural wood stumps…note to self: FIND THEM!
Whoa. I didn’t blog at all yesterday – nuts! I was so slammed with work and projects, I stayed up until 1am working away and hopped out of bed this morning at 6:30am to get back on my computer. Not complaining, though. I LOVE being busy!
So I’ve been totally slacking on my floral arrangements. I went through a phase where I bought fresh flowers everyday and was running out of vases to store them in. Needless to say, the house has been pretty lacking in the bright flower department…until now. I’ve discovered a store close to my house called Maison Bertet and it’s a super swanky, upscale, modern outdoor furniture and accessories boutique (trust me, I can’t afford much here!) But a couple days ago, I wandered in during an errand day and found these bright and colorful paper flowers that were smiling at me and saying, “Take me home! You don’t have to water me or change out my vase…I stay good forever!” I normally don’t like anything except fresh flowers but these were so kitschy cute and modern, I bought three and they now proudly sit around the home. The colors add just enough pop to our near-white house to give it a fun and playful edge.
Not sure if this sale is going on at all J.Crew stores, but the one by my house had these leather sandals marked down to $29.99 with an extra 30% off! What a great deal. The total with tax came out to $23 and we’re talking about some nicely made in Italy sandals with a really cute hot pink strap. If you’re a sandal/thong/flip flop aficionado like me, I urge you to check out your local J.Crew store and see if they have this sale going on. I just checked their website and all they have on sale are these Leather Capri sandals (no pink) and going for $39.50 (select colors only).
If you live in the Manhattan Beach or El Segundo area and have not tried Tin Roof, go! It’s got a tasty lunch and dinner selection and a little bocce ball strip out front (the restaurant is styled like a rustic vineyard). I went there for lunch today and had their delicious Ahi Tuna Salad doused in a mustard-y ginger dressing. Bon appetit is right!
Yes!! I am officially going to be a contributing designer to High Gloss Magazine – yippee!! If you haven’t heard of it, it’s a beautiful online publication put together by the equally beautiful Paloma Contreras (click here to read more about her). The online magazine covers fashion, beauty, lifestyle and decor and consists of pages and pages of eye candy. Needless to say I am thrilled and already working on my first feature for the next issue. Go check out the current issue, on e-stands now!
I’m still obsessing over Jennifer McGarigle’s backyard design and this picture just inspired me to re-think having a backyard wedding/intimate dinner reception. I love the terraced backyard so that one table sits a bit higher than the other one…definitely adds depth and interest to the ambience. Also loving the candlelight, lanterns hanging from trees and, of course, the beautiful floral arrangements from Floral Art LA’s owner. It’s simple and cozy and romantic…and all in the privacy of your own backyard.
Sorry, way too excited I had to post this. Mr. UPS just dropped off my much anticipated package after I finished yoga at home and I ripped through the box, hugged my brand new Wacom Intuos4 tablet and am having lots of tablet playtime right now. I can’t wait to master the pen so I can write straight across 
Happy early bday to me!
‘Twas a good day today. I am so fortunate in that I’ve been commissioned to sketch some girl figures for a work project (it’s kinda top secret what we’re doing but I promise to share after the big reveal) and today, I got to spend a good amount of time with my sketchpad and charcoal pencils. My good day continued when I popped over to Susie Cakes Bakery and picked up a miniature blackberry pie for tonight plus a cup of their DIVINE coffee from Equator (apparently the same kind of coffee served at the French Laundry). I admit I am a coffee snob and I was thoroughly impressed by this brand, so I had to go back to get my fill again. Now it’s off to do some yoga with Bryan Kest (by DVD of course in the comforts of my own home) and I’ll be back online soon to continue all my fun work projects. Hope everyone is having a good day as well!
So my fiance – whoa! so fun saying that – LOVES mexican food. Our first meal consisted of leftover tacos on Monday Night Football I usually make him a few breakfast sandwiches during the week before work as my standard go-to breakfast item, but I thought I’d do something a little different this morning and incorporate his favorite white corn tortillas. Here is how you do it:
Thank you Giada de Laurentiis for coming up with this brilliant recipe! I made this for breakfast and it was so delicious I made it again for dinner (spaghetti update: we now only have 1/2 a container left…it’s the final stretch!) I added more parmesan because I wanted it to be extra gooey and tasty.
In a large bowl, beat eggs, milk and Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper. Add leftover spaghetti and combine well.
In a large 10-inch non-stick skillet, heat extra-virgin olive oil over medium heat. Add spaghetti and egg mixture, spreading evenly and pressing down in pan. Cook until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Carefully invert onto plate, add a little more oil to the pan, and slide mixure back into skillet and cook the other side for 6 minutes. Turn out onto serving platter and cut into wedges and serve warm.
I feel like Jo Gartin of Love Luck and Angels always puts together events that are so refined, fun and elegant. I pulled these images off her website because they’re serving as inspiration for me. I am in LOVE with the rustic quality of the nuptials below.
Blush pink, that is. I’m thinking how rad would it be to wear a blush pink/nude colored dress instead of white? Such a romantic color, not too sterile and a bit different from the rest.
Thanks to our puppy, the corners of our coffee table are completely chewed up. I’ve been looking for another coffee table for some time now and I think this rustic cart style will look so sweet in our living room. I’m really in love with the one from Olde Good Things, Cost Plus World Market and Restoration Hardware. Just not sure it’s the right time to purchase a new coffee table since the puppy has not really grown out of her chewing phase. Oh well, a girl can dream can’t she?
I’m really in love with these hair accessories from Twigs & Honey, Jenny Packham and Ban.do. I’d love to wear one of these with my hair swept into a tousled chignon…the perfect amount of bling for that special day.
Alright, I’m officially shutting down for the night. No more blog posts from me – phew, what was that? Like five today?? I either don’t post for a long time or when I do post, I have to post a kajillion things. Never consistent.
Anyway, I’m ending the night with something sweet – gelato from Talenti, which I think is the best for a supermarket find. I always try to eat product that has natural ingredients, nothing that your granny couldn’t pronounce. For your info, that usually involves anything that ends in “-ide” or “-ate”. The Talenti gelato I have tried doesn’t have any of the weird ingredients and is so yummy! I usually have a small bowl every night.
My fave flavor right now is toasted almond. Here I go! G’nite!
I swung by the farmer’s market today and to my delight, tubs and tubs of cherries were overflowing so many tables. Yay! I love cherries – they are my favorite! I like to eat them by themselves but maybe one of these days, I’ll whip up some cherry pie or a cherry smoothie for breakfast. If anyone has some good recipes using cherries, do let me know.
We have a TON of spaghetti left over from the other night so I’m trying to come up with different recipes to make use of it. Last night, we had the leftover spaghetti with Tuscan beans, which are super easy to make and very tasty. We have an herb garden outside, so I like to snip some oregano, thyme, parsley and sage into the beans while they’re cooking. Most recipes for Tuscan beans call for dried beans that you have to soak overnight but I’m too impatient to wait so I just used canned cannellini beans. Still tastes yummy!
If you know me, you’ll know that I live in Havaianas. Ideally, I’d wear them to our wedding (I wore flip flops to prom once, then went barefoot on the dance floor). I’m a true beach girl when it comes to dressing for the sunshine and water Needless to say I am loving the espadrilles from Havaianas – how did I not know about these?
Really digging these sandals from the bridal section on the website
Hmmm…not quite sure about these sandals for men, though. They oddly resemble a camel toe, don’t you think?
Well, it’s official. GILT Groupe is taking over the world! Check out their latest project, GILT Taste.
Who likes Free People? I do! I can wear their breezy bohemian pieces all day and all night. If you have a TJ Maxx in your area, I encourage you to check it out (if you don’t shop there regularly) because both the TJ Maxx stores near me got HUGE shipments of Free People clothing in…I scored this cute boho chic dress for only $39. Regular price? $130.
Cindy Crawford circa 1998 when she wed Rande Gerber on May 29th (hello, my birthday!) I fell in love with her off-the-rack John Galiano slip dress with delicate lace overlay the minute I saw it. So relaxed and casual yet pretty at the same time. Total effortless chic.
As Facebook has exponentially grown, my interest in it has decreased immensely. If it wasn’t for the fact that I can easily message someone in my job industry or send out a mass question like “What’s a good asthma doctor to see in LA?” I would delete my account all together. So you can imagine my delight when I discovered there is a way to hide all posts on the news feed. Pure genius. Now when I log in, I don’t have to be bombarded by a parade of narcissistic people posting pictures of themselves. Boo-yah!
The evening of the proposal, we went out for a chinese dinner and this is the fortune my then-boyfriend got from his fortune cookie (pictured below next to my “holding ring”). Crazy, right?
Holy freaking guacamole! On my quest for an engagement ring, I came across this amazing to-die-for website (1st Dibs), which lists all these beautiful estate and vintage rings. Ga-ga-ga-ga-drool-ga-ga-drool. I freaking love estate pieces and I went (sorry for the Rachel Zoe reference here) BANANAS over these rings. Of course, they cost a good down payment of a house but man, now I’m on a mission to find an estate-inspired ring. Super unique and so not cookie cutter. Me likey!
I would SO rock any of these rings from Irene Neuwirth as my engagement ring. I had never heard of Chrysoprase until now. Isn’t the color gorgeous? For more Chrysoprase items, click here. Images from ylang23.com – check out their site, they have some exquisite pieces there.
Yeah! Just ordered the Wacom Intuos4 tablet. It’s my birthday gift to myself and damnit, I deserve it It was pricey but will be worth every penny, especially since it’s work related and I can write it off. Hello, independent contractor status!
Farmer’s market fresh. That’s the only way to go when you’re dealing with eggs and fruit.
In such a romantic mood and went ga-ga over Erin Fetherston’s apartment, featured here.
I love the fresh cut bright pink roses plunked into a large glass vase above. Even more so, I love how it sits atop a stack of books. Hmmmm a possible detail for the wedding? Flowers atop stacked books, very casual and elegant.
Oh my, if we have a backyard wedding I’d love to have a gobo light and disco ball like this. The barn interior makes it more modern and funky…just the way I like it. From Bash, Please.
