Forward Thinking; Looking Back

One thing that I know about myself is that I have a tendency to dress pretty streamlined and conservative. While I like a wide variety of colors and unique details, underneath my clothes and shoes are pretty classic, maybe even boring by some standards. And I just no good at layering creatively.

This is why I love seeing what other ladies are wearing because they help me broaden my fashion horizions and get ideas for how I can bring great pieces, that I may not even have considered, into my wardrobe.

I'm very inspired by the modern chunkiness of Miss Nubby's selections, like these Marni sandals. She always has the best graphic combinations of clothes and shoes in colors that I love too, like red, black, green and grey.



Jane at Sea of Shoes (along with her mom) also has some amazing architectural pieces and a great way of wearing them - from casual to excessive.



I'm starting to branch into more unusual pieces and I directly contribute the inspiration to these women. They helped me to open my mind.

Left to my own devices I tend to chose retro, uber-girly, spindly pumps like these Kors Michael Kors "Lush" pumps in muted gold. These have a 1960s cocktail hour shape to them, and while I love them they are well within my comfort zone.



In the next year, I hope to add more pieces that move away from the obvious girly-ness that I default to. I like pieces in this aesthetic, I just need to move towards them more.

Covering the 3 C's of New York

On Wednesday of last week I found an amazing rate to New York and I quickly convinced Miss_C to join me on an impulsive trip northward.

We got up very very early on Saturday and in just over an hour we touched down at the airport.



One of the main reasons for going to help celebrate the Gala and Nubby Virgo Birthday Extravaganza at the Strawberry Fields area in Central Park.

I just have to say that it was a very very warm day and had rained the day before. After walking around all morning (Lacroix store, Barney for shopping and lunch at Fred's) I was very happy to get to the Park and sit down and celebrate with a cupcake!

There was a HUGE group of people who showed up for the fun so you will find tons of coverage and photos of the event. Check out the following:

- Gala's post

- Nubby's Post

- Gala's Photo Set

- Nubby's Photo Set

I also got to meet several of my favorite bloggers in person, including Gilda and Marie, as well as meeting a few new gorgeous ladies like Doe Deere (who was totally adorable - you have to look at her pictures of her outfit!)

There are a ton of shots out there, including mine, Gilda's and Marie's, as everyone was taking pictures, including some great portraits done by Bianca (see Gala's post for a sample).

I can never show up at a party empty-handed, so I had to bring the girls a birthday gift... what better than a pair of "wedding rings". Gala's is a pinkish orange and Nubby's is clear.

Of course there had to be a ceremony!

And cupcakes ("C" #1) from Sugar Sweet Sunshine. They were delicious and I don't say that lightly!

Okay - not my greatest picture ever, and I had to change out my cute Corso Comos for flip flops at this point, but here I am with Marie. I was a big, literally, hot mess! I wore my JCrew stripe skirt, a white v-neck, my Paraphernalia chicken foot necklace and the aforementioned Corso Comos (which Nubby was also wearing!). And crazy giant vintage pink sunglasses.

Miss C was hanging out on the blankets we swiped from the airplane.



We even had cute pups there with us too.





Later that night we ate at Rare, which was the restaurant in our hotel. After eating veggie burgers, cole slaw and fried Oreos (not me!) we went up to the room and passed out for the night.

The next day we trekked down to the LES and had blueberry pancakes at 7A. We were going to go shopping around that area but it was even hotter and more humid so we scrapped that idea and went to the Museum of Natural History. Ahhh, several lovely hours of air conditioned museum.

After that we went to the Boathouse in the Park for Champagne and cheese (the other 2 important "Cs") and once we had our fill there we moved on to Flute for more appetizers, Champagne and cheese.



The next day was very leisurely until we went to the airport to head home.

I didn't do a whole lot of shopping - we spent most of our money on food and drinks - but I did get two things... macarons and Louboutins!

I got these delectable Barbie-pink Simple Pumps. I can't wait until they arrive so I can wear them. Compared to the Manolo store, I felt the Louboutin store was a bit simpler but the associates were very nice and helpful.



And more macarons from Maison du Chocolat. Gah! They're soooo good. Luckily the hubby doesn't like them so I get to keep them all for myself.



That's it. A quick trip but a good one. But next time, I'm going when it is not so dang hot!

Big Trouble in the Big City

Sorry I've been a bit slow on the posting. The Nie Nie Auction deserved some extra time, so I'm glad to leave it up. Don't forget to bid or donate!

But I've also been busy making some last minute super-secret plans...

Like jumping on a flight on Saturday morning to go back here!

Photo of Flatiron Building by Joep R. via Flickr

I found this amazingly cheap flight to NYC and convinced Miss_C to jump on a plane with me to get back up there and to participate in the most cupcake-tastic event - the Gala & Nubby Virgo Birthday Extravaganza.

Oh yes. I'm packing up my 14 pots of pink glitter, grabbing a tiara, fluffing up the tulle skirts and winging my way north.

If you're going to be at the party, I can't wait to meet you. And if you're around New York between Saturday morning and Monday afternoon, let me know!

I may not bring my computer but we will be Twittering and Twitpic-ing away!

Blogger Inspiration: Nubby Twiglet

More and more I feel my horizons being expanded and my wardrobe being inspired by the great bloggers that I regularly follow on their sites, Twitter and Flickr uploads. While I'm not trying to copy their style, sometimes I see a color combination, an outfit or an accessory that looks so great I feel I should give it a try myself.

The first blogger I'd like to give a big thank you to is Miss Nubby Twiglet. She has an amazing sense of style with a very strong color aesthetic which, tied with her graphic design work directly contributes to the amazing art she creates.

Working in a similar field, I appreciate her design skills (so much so that I recently purchased one of her Kiss & Tell posters) and I'm also loving her wardrobe. Funny enough, I have this same cardigan.



But recently Nubby showcased these Corso Como Dodie wedges. Now these shoes are very outside of my typical "comfort zone" but I could see the possibilities. For Fall I thought they would be great with all sorts of tights, especially my solid colored ones and possibly some of my Hansel for Basel knee-patch over-the-knee socks.



I had a gift certificate from Zappos to use (although I think they are a wee bit cheaper on the Nordstrom's site) so I figured I'd give them a try and if I didn't like them I could send them back. I'd never purchased this brand before, so I wasn't sure how they would be.



Well let me tell you, these are some seriously well made shoes. They're a Brazilian brand and are quite sumptuous. The interior cushioning is amazing.



And I love the satin ribbon ankle ties, which can be tied in the front or the back.





Great shape from the back too.



I already have a whole slew of outfits planned for these and am definitely keeping them!

They also come in white with black accents (totally cute) and a forest green and black version, although I only saw this last one at Nordstroms. I just got them tonight so I haven't worn them out but so far they seem great.