Hat Trick

Only two more days to go until the Royal Wedding....Everyone that's invited is losing their heads (pun intended) thinking about what they will don their lids with come the Big Day. Think the stylish and outlandish (depending) head pieces that Mr. Phillip Treacy, irish milliner extraordinaire, has created will stun the Queen? I think most people will chose an appropriate hat or fascinator to adorn their face shape and hair style. However... if you really want to ruffle the Queen's feathers and upstage the bride ~ show up in one of these...!

Remember this number that Carrie, I mean SJP wore to the premier of SATC?

Swept away in feathers (poor image, sawwrrryyy)

What am I looking at? Where's my espresso?

I doubt anyone will be wearing black to the afternoon wedding but....

 IF I were to be in black, I'd be strutting like this...

 If I were to wear butterflies, they'd be in a red nest like this:

 Or a rainbow butterfly afro like this...

Definitely no hiding here!

 This is the "I don't care you can't see past me" hat, or the Self-Centered hat

The "I can't see this hat is so heavy hat"

Small, delightful fascinator. Safe choice.

Orange you glad I added a bright, bold hat to the mix?

 Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn if it rests on my ear and not on my head.

 Do I wear this to the wedding or the derby? Decisions, decisions...

Simple, quiet, structured headband. Sweet.

 Break out the kilo bricks, we're going for a ride. Bad joke. If you get it. 

Isabella Blow (double entendre -see above) in her Treacy finery.

 If I had a Golden, I'd so outfit him in a ship fascinator. And he'd be the Best Dog in the wedding, too. 

  And if I had a horse...you guessed it.. 

And if you can't decide what the heck hat to wear...just wear 'em all!

Images from google and trunkarchive.com

Hopped up!

Off to Marco Island for the weekend! Enjoy your Easter and cheers to chocolate bunnies, peeps, jelly beans, and other delightfuls you might find in your swag basket! Wouldn't it be so great if you really did find Louboutins in your haul? That's one fabulous bunny! xo

(photo by Sofia Sandrez and Mauro Mongiello at trunkarchive.com)

Calypso hit the bullseye!

Calypso St. Barth's, the luxe resortwear/lifestyle brand launches their line for Target May 1st! Summery bright colored dresses, boho crochet bikinis, infant and toddler apparel (excuse me?!)jewelry, and eclectic moroccan inspired  housewares and home accessories will have us running, not walking through the storefront doors. Calypso will be at Target through June...of course while supplies last. Get on it!

 Darling navy blue ruffled cotton dress for daily outings.

Cute casual cotton dress which would be AMAZING with bold yellow beads and yellow wedges! (Turquoise is so predictable...yawn).

This crochet bikini and the vest are an homage to all the 70s trends that have made a return (again). Cute w/denim too!

Turquoise is flattering on everyone. This necklace dresses up white, navy, brown, khaki, gray, pink, orange...Should I just say it's a staple?

Now if this doesn't smack me in the face as a Tory Burch knock off, I don't know what does! It's a great Tory lookalike, though. I love this clutch alot!

Don't we all want to wrap ourselves in easy breezy cotton scarves in the dead of summer? To look chic, yes we do!

Anthropologie - eat your heart out. 

No junk in this trunk. Teapot comes in coral too! 

Stunning platter, perfect for bridal showers/picnics/birthdays/hanging on your wall in a series as art. 

We all want a tiered tray for that one time a year we host a party or a friend borrows for a cupcake presentation. This isn't a price commitment either, so don't think, just buy. 

Aaaahhhh..the pouf. Ubiquitous in many a design magazine and now for the masses. If you missed your chance at buying one at ABC Carpet and Home (among other places), now is the time to get on a trend that has seen it's day...but for the price, why not?

Love for Elephants

Feeling inspired by the movie version of the book, Water For Elephants, which is in theaters this week has me going (pea)nuts over Reese Witherspoon's circus shoot with Peter Lindbergh for Vogue. Elephants are my favorite animal and their beauty is captured in some of the most famous, magnificent images below. Enjoy. I can't wait to see this movie!!

Photos above by Peter Lindbergh for Vogue 

Norman Jean Roy

 Arthur Elgort

 Richard Avedon

Bruce Weber

Norman Jean Roy

Lee Jenkins

  

 Raymond Meier

Sheila Metzner

My latest addition to my stationery stash! Love these handpainted notecards by John Robshaw.

All other photos w/photo credits are from trunkarchive.com

The Cookie That Never Was....

If I shake my Magic 8 Ball right now.... my odds of serving these cookies at a bridal shower are slim to none. Outcome: Not So Good. Let me give you the run down... Recipe: Martha Stewart Baking Handbook/Cheesecake Thumbprint Cookies - sidebar: my addition of Silver French Dragees for flair. Flavor output: Sensational. Balanced. Adult sophisticate. Subtle buttery, crumby, flakey cookie and sweet but not too sweet cheesecake-ish center. The cookie on it's own - not desirable in my opinion. The gooey center - tasty like cream cheese frosting. One bite on the whole, all flavors and textures coming together? Kismet. So I succeeded there. Where did I fail? 

My cookies look nothing like the book's photograph, all pure white center, fluffy like new fallen snow. My cookies look like a dog pee'd in that new fallen snow as the cheesecake center has a yellow tinge (granted idarkroom doctored artsy photo above isn't helping my case). These cookies are FRA-GEE-LAY! As in fragile on the highest level. I've had several casualties (breaking, crushing, digesting in my belly) therefore my yield is flirting with the number of about fifteen or sixteen when there should be about thirty. My party tomorrow shouldn't have more than about 18 people. But I shouldn't be concerned. I won't be serving up these time-sucking cookies, now, will I? 

They are in refrigeration mode until morn. I will test the cookies again, thus reducing my yield and bringing the number down even less. That's ok. My glorious silver banana leaf platter is narrow and can't hold many cookies to begin with. They will look like pieces of art. All six cookies. And that's if they make it in the car ride over to the soiree. Thank goodness I'm not in charge of desserts! This was a blitzkrieg cookie number. So no pressure. Except for the pressure I put on myself to be like Martha! Rats. Another cookie bites the dust!

CHEESECAKE THUMBPRINT COOKIES

Yield: About 3 dozen
Ingredients:
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
½ cup granulated sugar
1/8 plus ¼ teaspoon salt
2 large egg yolks
1 ½ teapsoon sour cream
¼ teaspoon vanilla
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 cups all-purpose flour
Directions:
1. In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until light and fluffy for about three minutes. Beat in ¼ cup sugar and 1/8 tsp. salt until smooth. Mix in one egg yolk, sour cream and vanilla. Cover and put in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
3. In a large mixing bowl, beat together butter, ½ cup sugar and ¼ tsp. salt until creamy and combined. Mix in the last egg yolk until well-incorporated. Gradually add flour and mix until combined.
4. Scoop out level tablespoons worth of the dough and roll into balls. Place balls onto parchment-lined or greased baking sheets. Using the handle end of a thick wooden spoon, or your finger, make an indentation in the center of each ball.
5. Place into the oven and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and carefully use your thumb (or the end of the same wooden spoon) to press the middle of the cookies, remaking the indentations. Place cookies back into the oven, rotating them from their original position, and continue to bake until slightly golden around the edges, about 7 minutes.
6. Remove cookies from the oven and fill the indentations with the cheesecake filling. Place back into the oven and bake for about 8 more minutes, until the filling is set. Remove from the oven and transfer cookies to a wire rack to cook completely. When cool, place cookies into the refrigerator to chill before serving.

What's On Your Bookshelf?

Shown: rows of novels never to be read; stacks of learning literature rarely referenced; piles of kitchy, trendy, pink book jacketed "self-help/how to dress/he's just not that into you/skinny bitch do this/where to wear this and that/how to behave at a cocktail party/decorate like this/jetset like that" style of book that was relevant at one time and now it's passe. Among the dull cliche law books are also the trite yet beloved photos of: US. Family. Our dog. Our baby. We're short on horizontal space so we've littered up the bookshelves....with framed images of memories that are far more important than remembering why I bought The Park Avenue Diet book in the first place.

Everything but the dining table!

I was just perusing my Topshop catalog and I came across this interesting take on a pattern! I have to say...wearing your interior on your exterior is so clever and cheeky. David Hicks - eat your heart out. Kelly Wearstler...is that your chandelier's missing piece (see gold chandelier necklace on model, top left)? I know Kelly's one to fashion a necklace out of chandelier chain (as I've tried to do in the past, shown below) along with other found objects...so I am sure the brass chandie arm dangling from gossamer thin ribbon is right up her wacky, bold alley! I am especially liking the glam yellow window panels applied to the t-shirt below. Dressing this way sure takes the guesswork out of whether the drapes match the carpet (ahem!)?!

Brass Chandelier necklace; David Hicks-ish interior on dress right

Bold yellow drapery, mirror, rug, a perforated skirt. One stop shop here!

My vintage beads nestled against a cold, metal, pathetic chandelier chain!

Have fun with fashion...These broads above are clearly demonstrating someone did, that's for sure! Perfection is a boring goal and taking yourself too seriously is a drag. Have fun with found objects and mix them with something pretty or unexpected. The outcome could be quite surprising. Own it... even if it's ugly or questionable. If it makes you happy, that's all that matters! xo

Sucre!

Since I'll be going to London and Paris in a couple months, I have been pulling out my clippings of pastry shops to visit...re-reading articles that sound like "Pastry Tours of Paris"from various mags like Town & Country or Elle Decor, making sure Pierre Herme is on my "Must Do" list in London and of course, Laduree and Pierre Herme in Paris! As you can see, the theme of this is my beloved, worshipped, sick amorous affair with the macaron. I just stumbled upon this heavenly new book, Laduree: The Sweet Recipes that has the recipes to the Laduree macarons. Upon receipt, I will try out a recipe or two and tell you how successful I was in creating something that looks like this:

Or this...

I'm checking out the selection at Laduree in Tokyo! They love pastries there!

 Decisions decisions....

Yummmmmmmmm....

 I might try this beauty....

Not going here...but it's a vision, no?