Records

Been terribly busy packing, attending play dates, and doing my last few fun things in Pittsburgh before leaving. If you ever find yourself in the City of Champions with a few hours to spare, do yourself a favor and head to Jerry's Records in Squirrel Hill. It's absolutely wild. There are an unbelievable number of records and everything is very reasonably priced. An excellent way to spend a lazy Sunday; plus, I walked away with Bing Crosby on vinyl for a mere $4

Above you'll notice Frida Giannini, the (fairly) new Gucci creative director with her stash of records. She's been collecting them for years and with nearly 7,000 they fill an entire living room wall in her Florentine villa. Oh, and there she is in her closet below - with her German Shepherd Gunner

{Images via Harper's Bazaar}

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obsessed.

Found: my new beauty obsession for the rest of summer. Since I'm absolutely clueless as to anything makeup-related, I typically focus on lips and this season is no exception.

Matte red lipstick, worn with dark or light clothing alike. Ladylike but still a (teeny tiny bit) edgy, this is exactly how I'd like to look while romping around the city

{Images via Marie Claire, August 2009}

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Turtlenecks!

This is totally totally old news, but I'd like to draw attention to the fact that the styling geniuses at Shipley & Halmos sent all of their models down the runway this past February (I said it was old news) wearing black turtlenecks under their dresses, paired with black tights. Anyway that knows me knows that I wear this ensemble every.single.day.

Though I'm finally learning to enjoy hot weather, this makes me pine for crispy leaves and flurries to break out my favorites again

{Images via Glamour.com}

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The Countdown Begins

Only a little over a week until I relocate to The Big City. Clearly terrifying and nearly as exciting, I just bought a one way train ticket and am trolling sites for cheap holiday flights. There are also eight million plus things to do before I go, and many, many play-dates with friends and loved ones.

But look at this photographs; how could I not be thrilled?

These came from one of the absolute cutest blogs in the world. She went to Juilliard, he Columbia, and they married a week before her 21st birthday. Now they've moved on to Washington D.C. and are cataloging their adventures along the way

{Images via Rockstar Diaries}

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"I luuurve you, you know, I loave you, I luff you"

So true. TP, you are to be thanked for ensuring I'm a complete mess when I'm on my own

{Image via Le Love}

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Real Life Romanticism

I'm a romantic through and through. Feminine dresses and masculine accessories are key, and if I had to choose one dress to wear for the rest of my days, it might probably look like this Chloé number.

That's all

{Image via Le Portillon}

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sarahseven

Portland-based designer sarahseven has the romantic thing down. Soft petals, even softer colors and unexpected flourishes make me wish it was called for to wear cocktail dresses seven days a week. I can't imagine anything more beautiful or feminine to wear to the many events and goings-on this summer

{Images via Etsy}

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Seamaster

Maybe it was my recent trip to the lake (where I was inspired to learn to sail!), or maybe it's my love of all things masculine/nautical enough to look fresh on a young girl such as myself; generally, though, I think it's that the Omega Seamaster watch is just incredible. It's durable beyond belief - as in un-scratchable - and it's way more interesting than a vintage Rolex or Cartier. They also come in tons of different variations, including stainless steel and leather, that would look great with just about everything I own

The photograph above is just one of several style worn by Daniel Craig as James Bond. Oh yeah, and Omega also makes the first and only watch to go to the moon (called the Speedmaster, and recently released in a 40th Anniversary Edition). No I'm not kidding, and yes, John F. Kennedy endorsed them

More contemporaneously, Judy Aldridge, the eternally stylish mother of blogger Jane Aldridge, paring her Seamaster with a Martin Margiela clutch

{Images via Omega /// Sea of Shoes}

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Jenna Lyons Is My Hero

The creative director of J.Crew is absolutely amazing. She has the best style (as seen above - Burberry blazer, Giambattista Valli skirt, and J.Crew cardigan, tights and shoes) and chooses the most whimsical/appropriate looks for every line the company has, yet still manages to sound intelligent in the magazines and newspapers she's been popping up in much more frequently since a one Mrs. Obama has been giving them the best advertising they could ever hope for.

Can't get enough of this woman, so I was thrilled to see this article from the Los Angeles Times pop up, focusing on her role at one of the most popular retailers in the country

{Image via the Huffington Post}

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DCL

Off to the lake for the evening. . . hope you have as much fun as I plan to!

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True Grace

Just finished watching To Catch a Thief again, and was re-enchanted by Grace Kelly. Totally cliché at this point, but the epitome of class and elegance, and the costumes (of course designed by Edith Head) are unreal

Here's too hoping I look just like this the next time I'm lounging on the French Riviera

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Playboy Perfection

Um, can we all please just take a moment to admire these stunning photographs, and remember how they're from French Playboy? Absolutely amazing the differences between our cultures

More beautiful, and decidedly less clothed, shots here

{Images via Greg Lotus}

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Whistler at the Frick

Had the pleasure of attending one of my favorite museums in New York, the Frick museum, to see the Whistler etchings on exhibit. The mansion - on 5th Avenue, across from Central Park, still filled with wonderful antique furniture - is of course gorgeous, and there's not a single unpleasant work in the entire place [they say Frick didn't want to live with volatile art, and as such is filled to the brim with French, Dutch, and English paintings. Oh, and an entire Fragonard room (!)].

Aren't they all great? So modern and antiquated. And I have to love the fact that most of the works started out in the Pittsburgh mansion

{The Frick Museum}

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That's No Betty Draper

Obviously I'm beyond obsessed with Mad Men. The clothing and three cocktail lunches are enough to lure me in, but the plot lines are amazing to boot. January Jones is on the August 2009 cover of Interview looking nothing like her character - in the best sort of way.

Season 3 begins August 16!

{Oh No They Didn't}

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Genius

Walking past the filming of Gossip Girl in Soho the other day I was pondering when exactly Sart would be coming after me for a photo; after following my trajectory on this handy flow chart, doesn't look like any time soon

One of these days. . .

{Via Refinery 29}

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Weddings and Celebrations, NYTimes Style

I really hate to admit this, but I read the wedding announcements in the Sunday New York Times religiously. I also hate that I've been doing this little ritual for nearly ten years (!). I'm not a big fan of huge weddings, love the city hall thing, and even dancing (let alone kissing) my husband-to-be in front of 400 hundred of my closest friends and a photographer make me blush, but I just can't seem to get enough of these things. For whatever reason, they're deeply, terribly interesting to me

Well imagine my surprise when I ran across this article in the Times about the the intense fact-checking and writing process of these announcements. The bride and groom are not the only sources interviewed; religious officiates are called and university records are confirmed. Interestingly, they also found the top three fields for men to be finance, media and law and for women media, education and current student. And most importantly, the couple involved needs to have something unique or interesting about them - not necessarily blue blood, but something note-worthy

PS - Were I to have said blow-out wedding, this would have to be the dress for it

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Hermès Hazard Kit

I'm convinced that as an employee of Hermès there are certain perks, like unlimited access to those beautiful signature boxes and a (possible) small jump ahead on the Birkin waiting list. Well, those lucky, lucky boys and girls apparently also get pretty unique items - like this swine flu kit the company issued to those international buyers heading to Paris for their autumn/winter 2010 merchandise. 

If you must do biohazard, this is the way to go about it

{Via Vogue UK Blog}

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Divine

Jean Paul Gaultier

Fall 2009 Haute Couture

Look 36

I spotted the most interesting woman milling about at the bottom of the escalator of the Columbus Circle Whole Foods (at 10 p.m. on a Friday night no less). About 75-ish, she had a silver french twist teased into the most enormous pouf I've seen outside a glossy editorial

I figure when I'm 75 and tease my grays into a beehive every morning, this would be the most appropriate caftan to slip on afterward. With gin martini in hand, I would most likely be able to take over the world

{Image via Style.com}

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Pale Glamour

More shots from the aforementioned Ohlsson shoot, but done with soft lighting. Makes a world of difference, doesn't it? Also, the link below has tons more nude photos that are particularly beautiful

{Images via Fashion Gone Rogue}

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B&W Glamour

Delayed in the city (so of course spending tons of time surfing the web), I stumbled upon these amazing Marcus Ohlsson photos of Swedish model Caroline Winberg

{Images via Fashion Gone Rogue}

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Off To the Big Apple

Off to the city for a few days for interviews, wish me luck!

Staying in Astoria, hoping to make the requisite trips to Central Park and the Strand, and visit friends all along the way

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These Are A Few Of My Favorite Things

Stripes and blazers have always been among my favorite items in my closet, and apparently the look is popular on the 12th Floor of 4 Times Square as well. Three staff members might make this a certifiable trend, for better or worse, but four means it has to be good

I'm sure this is one look that'll be around for a while, and that's definitely for the better

{Image via Vogue Daily}

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So True

We all know I love love, and as such I often find myself returning to The Love Shop, an Etsy site that offers prints that are consistently cute and often touching

The shop is closed until July 14th but definitely check back in then for more adorable (and affordable) wares

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The Row Does It Again

I loathe ankle-length anything, but I'm undeniably drawn to this particularly sharp rendition of a classic wrap dress. Comfy but still sophisticated enough to pile on the accessories and make it something really special, this is a piece that could literally be worn from the beach, with sandals, to a cocktail party, gussied up - though with a price tag of, I would guess, upwards of $600, you'd probably want to be extremely careful

{The Row is sold at Barneys and Bergdorf Goodman}

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Do Yourself A Favor

. . . and get your hands on a copy of this book ASAP. Really colorful stories about the history of (new) journalism make for almost as good of a read as the original works. Excellent stuff, and vaguely reminiscent of another great book, The New New Journalism, though I much prefer the older works myself

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Sunny Sundays

On the Agenda: Tennis, much reading, and a nap in the afternoon shade. If time permits, packing for New York and picking armfuls of flowers.

Sunny Sundays are the best, aren't they?

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Star Spangled Inspiration

Happy Independence Day!

Hope it's filled with cookouts, fireworks, good company and the like. . .

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{Images via Marie Claire, January 2009}