Birthday Girl

It seems like this past month was filled with birthdays, but it's a great excuse to pull out an amazing dress from my closet. I was sent this gorgeous dress from Sugarlips and I thought my friend Caroline's birthday was the perfect place to wear it. What I love about Sugarlips is that their clothes are fun and stylish but they aren't going to break your bank.

I love how soft and light the dress is. With this crazy hot Houston summer (which I'm still not used to) it was the perfect choice. I pretty much love everything about this dress...the pop of color at the top the layers of fabric, and how it moved as I walked. I decided to style it with my Jeffrey Campbell Lita's because I knew I'd be doing a lot of standing at the party and they're just so darn comfortable. I even had someone asking me if my crazy shoes hurt my feet, heck no! They may look a little crazy to some, but they are honestly one of the most comfortable pairs of shoes I own.

The party was awesome, filled with some amazing jello shots and good music. A special birthday rap song our friend made the birthday girl was the hit of the night. Lindsey, I'm still waiting for my CD!

Birthday girl

Outfit

Dress: c/o  Sugarlips

Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell Lita

Jewelry: Marc Jacobs watch, Cuffs leather cuff, Betsey Johnson heart earrings (similar here), BCBG ring, batman ring, vintage layered gold necklace, Madewell necklace, Duo circle necklace

Purse: Louis Vuitton

Happy 40th MBP

My uncle MBP recently celebrated his 40th birthday (although you'd never be able to tell). He is such an amazing loving hilarious human being. I feel so lucky to not only be apart of his modern family but also to be so close to him. We are able to share everything, which I love! We spent the day shopping as a family, because would you expect us to do anything else? We hit up a few vintage shops and a few modern shops. My favorite was our new discovery, Native Citizen. This store sells mid century modern furniture and art pieces that are used to decorate the owner's retail stores Langford Market and Duo. We happened to get our new dining room chairs from the same owner at a modern market art show a while back and this time we acquired a new computer desk. 

After a bit of shopping and a mid day Starbucks pick me up we drove around neighborhoods looking at homes, which is one of my favorite things to do around Houston. I love discovering new neighborhoods and looking at all the different homes. I'm glad my uncles love to do that as much as I do. We made our way back home where his husband surprised us both with a catered dinner in the comfort of our own home. Bravo Matt, bravo...This dinner was delicious! And what was even better was to have it in the comfort of our own home surrounded by family. Overall Michael had an amazing birthday and I'm so glad to be able to spend another year with him. Cheers Michael!

Matt and I

 Outfit

Dress: Off Fifth

Shoes (not shown): Bakers (old)

Jewelry: Christine Bowden necklace, Betsey Johnson ring (old), Marc Jacobs watch

Glasses: Penguin The Gondorff

New glasses

These babies just came in the mail! I needed a new pair of everyday glasses since I'm super lazy and haven't gone to get my contact eye exam. I hope you like them as much as I do!

Outfit

Dress: Jcrew

Vest: Forever 21

Hair bow: Rob & Sioux

Jewelry: Target earrings, Evil eye necklace from Greece, gifted heart necklace

Glasses: Penguin The Gandorff Eyeglasses

A Little Zebra

I wore this outfit over the weekend for my friend Sam's birthday. During the week I don't get to dress up too often. When I nanny I mostly wear whatever I can chase Baby E around in, which is usually shorts and a tee. This is why I take every chance I get to clean up and put on a fancy dress, even if it means I may be a tad bit overdressed for the occasion.

First off I need to talk about these shoes...they're just one of the many pairs of Jeffrey Campbell shoes I own and, like all of his shoes, I always get compliments on them. These shoes have been ooo'd and ahhh'd over every time I wear them out and the story of how I got them makes it even better. When people ask me where  I got them I respond with Vegas! Because really that's where I found them and they totally look like a shoe you would find in Vegas. I had about one too many drinks from Fat Tuesdays when my friends and I wandered past some store filled with shoes. I don't remember what the name of it was, I just remember there being so many amazing shoes. In a haze from my drinks I remember trying on a bunch of Jeffrey Campbell shoes but falling madly in love with these. They had a killer platform (some have even said it can be used as a weapon to fend off an attacker) and print...who can resist a little Zebra? Best drunk purchase to date.

 

Outfit

Dress: Wish boutique

Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell

Jewelry: Juicy Couture clover friendship necklace, "Greek Princess" necklace from Greece, Starfish BCBG ring, Tiffany heart ring, Stella & Dot bracelet

 

New in

I just got these babies over the weekend! I've been on the look out for some super comfortable sneakers/flats that are still stylish to bring with me on my upcoming trips. Most of my closet is full of heels and I'm slowly building up my collection of flats...watching a baby all day will really make you question your shoe choice. 

I own another pair of Sam Edelman's that are the most comfortable flats I've ever owned, seriously. So I set out to find another pair that would be just as comfortable. Not only did I find another pair of Sam Edelman's I also spotted these amazing Vince Camuto sneakers . I really shouldn't be allowed to wander the shoe department while waiting for the sales girl to come back with my size. I couldn't decide between the two and since they were both super comfortable I decided just to get both! Can you spot the hint as to where I'll be traveling soon?

Vince Camuto Willow Sneaker

Sam Edelman Felicia Flat

Beach Baby

I can't believe I forgot to post these pictures! A few weekends back the family took an impromptu road trip to Corpus Christi. We had always talked about taking road trips or having weekend getaways but never really went on one. Finally everything aligned for us to follow Michael on a business trip. The only beach out here I've seen is Galveston and there's no comparison to the beaches in Orange County, but I was assured that this beach was going to be a lot better than "water licking up to dirt". I was skeptical to say the least. After about a 3 hour car ride and almost 2 movies later, we arrived in Corpus around 11pm. We woke up the next morning Starbucks in hand and set out to explore the town. When we got to the beach we were able to drive right up onto the sand and take Baby E for her first adventure in the ocean! She loved it just as much as the pool but she tried to eat the sand and sea shells. I must say that it didn't compare to the beaches in California, but it was much better than Galveston. I could definitely see us getting a beach vacation home here, hint hint!

Since the weather was hot in Corpus, but not as humid in Houston I opted for this cute cotton dress I bought at Target a while back. The secret to finding cute simple dresses like this is to shop outside the box...I found this gem in the little girls section! I hope you enjoy our photos from our beach adventure

Thank you Matt for taking these photos

Outfit

Dress: Target (old)

Jewelry: Tiffany bead earrings, Necklace and bracelet from Museum of Modern Art Houston, Marc Jacobs ring

Sunglasses: Chanel 

Birthday gift

I received this beautiful custom wood jewelry box a bit ago for my birthday. Some of you might know that it was my birthday about a week ago. The funny thing is this wasn't my birthday present this year, it was last years present. It all started when my mom asked me what I wanted for my birthday last year and I couldn't think of anything I really wanted, so we decided to put it on our "list". I guess I should tell you what this infamous list is. Well it started when my mom had planned a trip to New York for my 13th birthday but after moving to California it was canceled. She said she would make it up to me sometime and made a mental note of it. Then, it came to college graduation and the trip to Greece we wanted to go on had to be put on the list because of the job I was offered. In between there have been other miscellaneous gifts put on the list and taken off, but the "list" now resides on our fridge reminding my mom of the trips we need to take. Okay now back to the jewelry box...I've always been envious of my mom's wood jewelry box that had all these compartments and could hold a lot of jewelry, although she still had too much to fit in it. One day I looked at the sad plastic baggie filled with all of my bangles, the gift boxes jewelry came in, old Tiffany's bags that I had stuffed necklaces into and it hit me...I wanted a jewelry box for my birthday!

Now how did I go about finding this amazing jewelry box I wanted...Well I happened to be home in Orange County for 2 weeks before I moved to Houston and it was also during the time of the Sawdust festival, which is an art festival with local Laguna Beach artists. I found nothing. So I searched Etsy and came across a user ScribeSF. He didn't have a jewelry box on his Etsy shop, but I thought I would message him and see if he did any custom work. Sure enough he did! We had many many emails back and forth with details I wanted and sketches he would send. If any of you are in need of anything made out of wood I highly recommend this guy. He was really friendly to work with and priced fairly. Finally a bit ago a huge package arrived and this beauty was inside. It fits my entire jewelry collection with room to spare, which I take as a sign that I need more jewelry! I didn't think pictures could do this justice so here's a little video I made.

Joy

Recently, I had the pleasure to meet Joy Sewing, the Fashion and Beauty editor for the Houston Chronicle. She is one amazing woman and we spent the better part of two hours just discussing our views on fashion, style, and life. We discovered our mutual love of figure skating and my closet of shoes. We swapped fashion blogs that we follow and even discussed our own. Joy has a blog called Dress Like You Are in Love and I really love the message that she sends with it. As she states in her blog, "People dress better when they're in love". She asked me what this message meant to me and I had to think for a second...I don't necessarily think that I have to be in a relationship to be in love and to dress better, but I looked at it as being in love with yourself. Having the confidence to wear what you want and wearing that one piece of clothing, or that pair of shoes that makes you stand a little straighter and walk with a supermodel strut. How does this message resonate with you?

I had an amazing time getting to know Joy and learning about her journey from the midwest, to New York, then finally back to Houston to work at the Chronicle. I hope to have many more talks about our views on the fashion scene in Houston. Enjoy the pictures from our day!

Thanks MBP for the great pictures!

Outfit

Top: Tucker for Target

Skirt: Forever 21

Shoes: Aldo (old)

Jewelry: Target earrings, DIY chain bracelet, Carey Hill ring, Charlotte Russe gold ring