Bohemian Girl {1st Outfit Post}

We had a few close friends over last night for a whiskey (the boys) and vodka (the girls - we don't do whiskey!) tasting. Being we were at home and low key, I wanted to be comfortable but still stylish. I am in LOVE with this Winter Kate Jasmine Cardy my husband gave me for Christmas. The print is beautiful and I feel so chic when I wear it. This is my first attempt at an outfit post, let me know what you think. I took them myself with a tripod and self timer. I've wanted to post some earlier, but I'm not a good "poser". HA! They end up looking forced. I think I just need to relax and take candids... hopefully I'll get better. What are your tips for taking good photos?

Winter Kate Jasmine Cardy, Target Tshirt, Mango Jeans, BCBG Shoes, Vintage Necklace, Target earrings

Have a safe and Happy New Year!!

Happy New Year!

How can it already be time to ring in 2011? I apologize, I haven't been consistent on the blog lately. December hit me like a ton of bricks - between battling an awful cold/flu (which won by the way), trying to maneuver through 18+ inches of snow (enough to collapse our Metrodome Stadium!) and just trying to get all my holiday baking done, I seemed to miss the holidays. I've been making up for it this week though. Today's my birthday and we're having friends over for drinks. Last night we went out for sushi with friends and had a great time as well. NYE will be a low key dinner at a friend's house.  All in all, a great way to end the year. A few days later, we head to India for 3 weeks - and I CAN-NOT-WAIT! (I'll post pictures while I'm there, so check back often).


With all that said, I wanted to leave you with some inspiration for 2011! It's raining(!?!?) here today and everything is gloomy and grey. I could use some color therapy. Here's a few things keeping me going until it warms up.  Hope you all have a healthy and happy New Year! Cheers to 2011!

Photos from emersonmade.com

I want everything from Emerson's collection. I can't wait to see her spring line!

Tom Ford's Spring 2011
Photo courtesy of Vogue.com

Tom Ford's Spring line channels the 70's - my favorite style.  Love the suits!

Photo courtesy of Vogue.com

Derek Lam Spring 2011
Photo Courtesy Vogue.Com

This just screams spring to me, and I LOVE the high waisted. I'm done with skinny and tight!

Photo courtesy Singer22.com

My wonderful husband gave me this silk cardy for Christmas - it will carry me right on into spring!

Papertrey December Blog Hop Challenge

I decided last minute to participate in Papertry Ink's monthly blog hop. I've never participated in a blog hop before, but as you know, I love to make cards. When I saw the challenge today was to make a card using leftovers from christmas, I knew exactly what I wanted to use. My girlfriend sent me the most beautiful card this year, and I fell in love with the design (it's the blue and white glitter print). I made a birthday card for a girlfriend of mine using the card as the backdrop, I hope she likes it! Happy hopping and I hope you like the card.

Materials:
Paper: New Leaf, Enchanted Evening, Stamper's select (all Papertrey Ink), White Card from Michaels
Stamps: Fillable Frames #8, Signature Greetings (Papertrey Ink)
Ribbon: Michaels
Dies: Mat Stack #4, Fillable Frames #8 (Papertrey Ink), Bigz Top Note (stampin' up)
Ink: Night Sky (Versa Magic)

Merry Christmas!

Last night, we had a wonderful dinner and white elephant gift exchange with friends. Today, I had the day off from work and slept in until 9am! It's been so long since I've just enjoyed a day off with no agenda or to do list. With all the hustle and bustle of the holidays, it's nice to just relax before heading over to see my family for Christmas. My relaxation this morning consisted of a GIANT mug of coffee and playing around on Looklet.com. I could spend hours on that site creating outfits I would love to wear. Here's a sneak peek at a few of my creations. 

Merry Christmas and have a fabulous weekend!

Retro chic

At Christmas, I'm always drawn to the cooler tones. No red and green for this girl. I love the combination of turquoise and lime.  I think it's the retro look they create when paired together. While looking for inspiration for some last minute cards, I found these:

 Which inspired these creations:

Inside the card is a giftcard holder

Inside states what the gift is... a wardrobe makeover

Merry Card Materials:
Cardstock: Paper bag (Paper Source), White (Paper Source), New leaf (Papertrey Ink)
Stamps: Framed (Papertrey Ink), Holiday Spirit Sentiments (Papertrey Ink), Friendship Jar Holiday Fillers (Papertrey Ink), Snow Swirled (Stampin' Up)
Ink: Turquoise Gem (Versa Magic), Moss Green (Color Box), Frost White (Color Box)
Embossing Glitter: Turquoise (Martha Stewart)
Dies: Library Pocket
Embellishments: Jewels (Michaels)


Bliss Dress Form Materials:
Cardstock: Paper Bag (Paper Source), New Leaf (Papertrey Ink), White (Paper Source)
Stamps: Signature Series Dress Form (Papertrey Ink), Fillable Frames #10 (Papertrey Ink), Holiday Spirit Sentiments (Papertrey Ink)
Ink: Moss Green (Color Box), Versa Mark, Frost White (Color Box)
Embossing Glitter: Turquoise (Martha Stewart)
Dies: Signature Series Dress Form (Papertry Ink), Mat Stack 4 (Papertrey Ink), Bigz Top Note (Stampin' Up)
Embossing Folder: Vintage Wallpaper (Stampin' Up)
Ribbon: Turquoise (Joann Fabrics)

Carpe Giftum Part 2

The party was a success! Everyone had a blast and we all walked away with fun gifts. I wanted to be more creative this year with my gift, so I decided to make a box of birthday and thank you cards.  I made four birthday cards and four thank you cards, packaged them in this cute box and tied it up with a big bow.  It was a HUGE hit! Who wouldn't want one of a kind cards to send out for those special occasions?


Have a great weekend!

Carpe Giftum

Every year, my girl Halina throws her annual "Carpe Giftum" party. It's a simple concept: everyone brings a one gift to exchange, we open them, and then get one chance to swap with someone else. Sounds easy enough, but there are a few rules:

1. No bath or body stuff
2. No Chocolate
3. No Holiday items
4. Must be something you would want
5. Must be $10 or under

This is the 4th year for her party, and each year the gifts seem to get better. All the girls do their due diligence to find the perfect gift to exchange (creativity helps!) Last year there were a few items that we actually fought over! I've got my gift (I'll share it with you on Friday - don't want to blow the surprise) but in the mean time, I'm making the treat bags.  Here's what I've made - it's the perfect size for a small snack.  What would you give for $10 or less?

Treat bag

Materials:

Paper:  Michaels

Stamp: Friendship Jar Holiday Fillers (Papertrey Ink)
Dies: Bigz XL Fancy Favor (Stamp'in up), Mat Stack 4 (Papertrey Ink)

Ink: Jet Black (StazOn)

Markers: Copic and Prisma color

Ribbon: Target

Toffee Lesson

For as long as I can remember, my dad has been making toffee during the holidays. His toffee is out of this world fantastic. No joke. It's the best candy around. He even sells boxes of it to friends and family - they like to give as gifts and serve at their holiday parties. Today was the day I was going to attempt to make said toffee. Good thing my dad is a patient guy. It's a tedious process and you really need to be patient (note to self: work on building up my stirring muscles!). My dad doesn't use a candy thermometer and doesn't always measure (he uses a dash of this or a cap of that), so we'll see how I manage using my own intuitive skills! Overall, it was a successful day. The little bit I tried was pretty darn good.

Look at all that butter! What's not to love about that?

Look at how it changes color - YUM!

Melting the chocolate to coat the pieces

It's time consuming to do it this way, but so worth it!

The finished product... it will look much neater once it's cooled and boxed up nice.

Gingerbread houses

We braved the snownami (we got 18" of snow!) and stuck with our plans to go to our friend's gingerbread house building party. We had such a great evening!  Everyone's houses turned out fantastic and so unique. Do you have an annual parties you attend? What's your favorite holiday tradition?

Bake off

Sorry for the lack of posts this week. It seems the holidays are getting the better of me! We had a bake off at work on Friday, and I won for the second year in a row! I originally had planned to make mini red velvet whoopie pies, but the recipe I followed didn't taste right, so I 'll be going back to the drawing board on that one. Instead, I decided to make a trifle. I love trifles. They are the easiest dessert  to make and can be made in so many ways. The one I made was with brownies, chocolate mousse, strawberry mousse, whipped cream and toffee bits. Every bit as scrumptious as it sounds.

Start with a layer of brownies

I caved!

I've come to realize that trying to not buy myself anything during the holidays was a bit like trying to give up sugar during the holidays (who are those crazy people!). My personal challenge came to a crashing halt today when I strolled into my favorite vintage store. I should have known better. Why tempt myself like that? I thought I could be strong, I only had 25 minutes to kill before I was meeting my girlfriend for an afternoon movie (Love and Drugs...pretty good). As much as I've been rationalizing the purchases, I still made them, and they were worth it! What do you think?

I love how the belt goes inside in the back.

The buttons are really fantastic.

Wonderfully soft and cozy

Isn't the stripe lining great?

I'll wear it with a belt when it's really cold

I found this merino sweater dress today too

The last purchase was this fab necklace

Holiday Inspiration - Shine

If you're anything like me, when the holidays roll around, all you can think about is adding some sparkle to your wardrobe. I know it's top of mind when I'm picking out my looks (remember this post?). I always seem to find a way to add some shine or sparkle to my wear. I love the picks below because I can make them work for any occasion, dressy or casual. I know I'll be looking to these pieces for inspiration in my own closet (remember - I committed to only buying gifts for others this year...this is going to be harder than I thought). What is your inspiration for holiday dressing? Sparkle and Shine? Bold Color? Fur? Feathers?

• 1.Milly Metallic lace shift dress $400 - net-a-porter.com
• • 2.French Connection $128 - frenchconnection.com
  • • 3.Rosamosario La Fata Babydoll silk-crepe and lace chemise $725 - net-a-porter.com
    • • 4.Embellished Beaded Crop Sleeveless Top $135 - topshop.com
      • 5.Gunmetal Sequin Shorts $90 - topshop.com
      • • 6.ALICE by Temperley Lace playsuit $325 - net-a-porter.com
        • • 7.Grey Premium Burn Out Print Wide Leg Trousers $110 - topshop.com
          • • 8.Silky sacha jumpsuit $288 - usa.frenchconnection.com
            • • 9.Diamante Bead Kimono $160 - topshop.com
              • • 10.L'Agence Crystal-beaded silk-chiffon pants $800 - net-a-porter.com
                • • 11.J.Crew Joey sequin-embellished skirt $275 - net-a-porter.com
                  • • 12.Adam Folded-sequin silk-organza dress $1,495 - net-a-porter.com