Daily Style – 1 Week

September 3, 2012

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Top – from local boutique; Jeans – Gap Maternity; Sandals – J. Crew; Bag – Marc by Marc Jacobs; Sunglasses – Reed Krakoff

I left the house today for the first time since Hayden was born, and it felt great to get out just for a little bit.  To celebrate the occasion, I did get dressed up a bit, but tried to keep it as simple and low maintenance as possible being that I’m only 1 week postpartum and I can’t waste too much time or energy striving for perfectly styled.  The key points to getting dressed during this transition time include:

Low Fuss Hair – a light spritz of product (I love Bumble & Bumble Thickening Spray & a bit of Moroccan Oil) and a quick blow dry, not even bothering to brush it, giving it an air dried look.

Easy Makeup – an application of concealer to help hide dark circles, cheek stain, mascara and a bright lip are just about all I can fuss with.  I don’t even bother with foundation or tinted moisturizer.

Loose Fitting Tops & Maternity Jeans – I still look about 4-5 months pregnant and will continue to do so for at least a few weeks until the swelling goes down.  So in the mean time I don’t even bother with trying to squeeze into regular jeans and stick with maternity jeans for comfort, and wear loose fitting, flowy tops to help hide the belly.  I try to keep colors simple and tonal, and prints and patterns to a minimum.  This look is crisp and clean, and the cognac purse and sandals help to give it a simple pop to keep it from being dull.

Accessories To a Minimum – earrings, necklaces and bracelets need to be worn at a minimum to avoid scratching and bonking new babies in the head and face.  Hayden already has a scratch on his head from the day I delivered him and I was wearing my simple diamond pendant.  Linking up with Kristin for Monday Mingle


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Introducing

August 30, 2012

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Introducing: Hayden Arthur Howe

Born: Monday August 27th, 2012 9:20 am

Stats: 8 pounds, 20 inches

Sweet, happy and healthy.

We are in love.

We’ve survived our first night at home, always a scary thing for me, and we are spending a lot of time together, trying to get to know each other.  I’m holding him a lot, even when we sleep, something sadly, I’ve never really done before with either of my other two.    I am still trying to find the right balance here on this space, of keeping it a style blog dedicated to my love of all things style related, but also keeping it real and honest. Eventually I’d like to find a way to meld the two, so I don’t feel like I’m splitting personalities, but until then I wrote an honest account of the last few days since delivery on my family blog Four Flights of Fancy, and I touch on a bit of the PPD that I have dealt with in the past, and how I hope to deal with it this time around.  Follow the link to read about it over there.

I’ll be back slowly over the next few days and weeks.  Thank you for your thoughts and well wishes, here and on Instagram.  I truly appreciate it.


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Ready And Waiting

August 27, 2012

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It’s been over 5 years since I played this waiting game, but it still feels all too familiar, like it was just yesterday.  This whole pregnancy I’ve had this notion in my head that this being my 3rd time around, it would be easier.  The labour and delivery part.  I had myself convinced that it would be shorter, quicker, and most importantly, less painful.  But Saturday night, I got a taste of a big contraction, just for about 20 seconds, and it terrified me.  And I realized that I’ve been a bit naive about this whole situation.

Every pregnancy is different, therefore every labour and delivery is different and I’ve now become quite certain that I don’t know what to expect, and the anxiety has set in.  When will this happen, and how?  The fear of the unknown I guess is the biggest hurdle to conquer.  I know once it starts I will take it on and bear forward and onward and birth our third little baby into the world, and meet his or her sweet pudgy face.  But until then, I’m scared.

Because I’ve been in this holding pattern for the past couple of days, feeling different and that labour could set in at any moment, I’ve been completely distracted and posts I had intentions of writing for this week have fallen to the wayside, in order to rest a lot, spend time with the family, read and watch movies.  I can’t seem to have the patience or the energy to wrap up the “maternity style” series I’ve had planned in my head, or the “what’s in my hospital bag” series.  But I know the internet and this blog will still be here when I get back, so until then, excuse me why I sit and wait for this baby to come.  As soon as I’m feeling up to it, I’ll update you all on baby #3.  Until then, please say a prayer!


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The Craft Cabinet – Summer 2012

August 21, 2012

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Sometimes the best things are those that are done at the last minute, thrown together spontaneously.  That certainly proved to be the case with the first installment of The Craft Cabinet.  Jules and I are typical textbook over-thinkers, but when you have less than 4 weeks to throw together an event, lest one of the co-hosts goes into labor, you don’t have time to over-think, you just do, and that’s exactly what we did.  To say it came together exactly as I had imagined it would be a bit of an understatement, it came out exactly as I had imagined it, maybe even better.  Witnessing women laughing, getting to know each other, creating, eating and drinking is one of the most enjoyable things I can imagine.

The venue was Salvage Life, a vintage boutique/studio owned by Beth Giles.  When I reached out to Beth about hosting the event there, she responded within a matter of minutes, saying yes, but could we just time it around the birth of her daughter, which was set to occur at any day.  I responded, “Sure, no problem, but could we just schedule it right before the birth of my child too?”  It sounds a bit crazy when I replay the conversation back in my head, but when you love what you do (Beth), and you’re passionate about making something happen (me), you don’t let something like child birth get in your way ha!  Beth, thank you from the bottom of our hearts, because we seriously couldn’t have done this without you.

Beth’s shop is chock full of pretty, and is bright and charming, so we knew it didn’t take much in terms of decor to really set the space off.  We were also excited knowing that the ladies coming to the event would appreciate such a venue, and it made us happy to see some ladies stay after the event to make purchases.  Because of our limited budget, we went with simple, vintage inspired decor that tied in with our color scheme.  The morning of the event I called up Jules and said “I’m getting balloons, lots of balloons.”  Call me old-fashioned, but nothing spells party to me like balloons.  

All the other details just sort of came together, from the food to even the color coordinated bottles of Izze and sparking water, which was an inadvertent mistake, but a happy one nonetheless.  The catering manager at the local Corner Bakery in Long Beach partnered with me on our order, literally the day before the event.  They were amazingly nice and accommodating.

Jacqui of Baby Boy Bakery provided the mini cupcakes, and hand delivered them to my door the morning of the event.  For that I can’t thank her enough!  She did not disappoint, as usual, and all 60 cupcakes were gone by the end of the night.

Since the purpose of the night was to craft, we made sure to carve out plenty of time to do that, and although some projects weren’t finished, no one seemed to mind. The people and companies that pulled through to contribute to the swag bags were incredible, and deserve a post all their own which will come later this week, but how cute did they end up?  I stuffed and stamped (with our own stamp!) and Jules decorated.  We divided and conquered really well together. 

Thanks Jules for being a terrific partner, thank you Tristan for designing a gorgeous logo and invitation, thank you to my sister Tina and my husband Art for helping to set up and clean up, thank you Danni and Gena for arriving early and helping to decorate, and thank you to my good friend Mary of Yung Bean Photography, who agreed to photograph the event with just a few days notice.  She did a wonderful job didn’t she?  And thanks to all the truly wonderful ladies who took a chance on us and came out to the event!  If you’d like to visit their blogs, here you go!  Jules and I are already busy planning the next Craft Cabinet, for sometime in November, just in time for the holidays.  We hope you can join us again! And if you wrote blog post recap of the event, please link below!

Danni | Oh, Hello Friend

Andrea | He Calls Me Wifey

Laura | Hollywood Housewife

Rachel | Crimson to Wool

JJ | The Blah Blah Blahger

Brenda | Secret Agent Josephine

Lisa | Trapped in North Jersey

Kelly | The Reading Nest

Vanessa | Little Grey Pixel

Sarah | Little Penelope Lane (and Penelope Lane Boutiques)

April | The Gingerbread Blog

MJ | Teaching in Heels

Melissa | Melissa Dell

Monick | Lilly Bug Lane

Gena | Bake All The Things

Crystal | The Lil’ Cupcake

Kara Murano




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Daily Style – My New Best Friend

August 20, 2012

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Dress – c/o Isabella Oliver; Sandals – Sam Edelman; Bag – Marc by Marc Jacobs; Necklace – Vera Wang for Kohls

Friends, meet my new best friend, this striped dress.  Striped dress, meet my friends.  This dress is utter perfection, and I’m already thinking of ways I can wear it after the baby comes.  I think it would be an easy-to-transform dress.  Since it is maternity, I think it might end up fitting a little loose in the middle, but that can be fixed by adding some layers; perhaps a belted jacket, a sleeveless sweater or layered over a long sleeved shirt, all perfect options for fall and winter.  Either way, this dress has longevity, making it a prized piece to add to the wardrobe, be it maternity or not. And see how the stripes match up at the sleeve and the dress? That is a sign of quality my friends, pattern matching is time consuming and costs more money, so when I see companies not take short cuts and take the time to pattern match, especially on stripes, I always appreciate it.

I wore this dress to the Neiman Marcus Fall Press Breakfast on Wednesday, and ended up wearing it to church today and it proved to be so comfortable, I kept it on all day, even to nap.  Oh, and good news!  I discovered that I could squeeze my swollen feet into these shoes last week!  I figured there’s no way Lisa was going to let me through the doors of Neimans in a pair of flip flops so I had to experiment, and turns out that these 3 year old gladiators were the perfect solution.  The leather is so soft that it just sort of gives and stretches, and the design helps to cover up most of my swollen foot, hiding how sad they look.  Thank goodness for small fashion miracles!

Well, as my official due date is now 10 days away, I really could have this baby ANY DAY NOW!  I’m taking bets and asking for prayers over on my Facebook page.  Would love you to join in on the conversation if you haven’t already.  Have a great Monday!

linking up with Glamamom for Monday Mingle and Lindsey for WIWW


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For the Love Of – Fall Style Preview

August 17, 2012

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It’s Friday and we made it! Just a few more hours to go in the work day and then we can sit back and relax! Well I won’t be doing much sitting back because tonight is The Craft Cabinet, and my mind is slightly blown at what Jules and I have pulled off in the last 3 weeks.  Secured a venue, catering, rentals, tons of amazing swag from amazing and generous vendors, and fabulous ladies in attendance!  We both can’t wait for tonight to start so we can see it all come together.  And then rest tomorrow!  I can’t wait to share pictures with you all next week at some point, but until then, I thought I’d share a bit from a Press Fall Preview event I went to on Wednesday at Neiman Marcus Topanga.

The morning was all about Fall 2012 and the upcoming emerging trends for the season.  Some of the key trends that I loved the most include: mixed prints; “borrowed from the boys” inspired dressing, abbreviated pants, smoking flats (my favorite!),  brooches and red lips, mixed shades of green, and the jacket as your statement piece.

(first two photos taken by the lovely Sarah James)

I love this dress above so much.  I am so eager to get out of maternity clothes and into my regular wardrobe.  This dress is classic me; great pattern, love the colors and the silhouette is classic yet still a little daring with its shorter hem. The necklace above is from Marni.  As a DIY’er I instantly think how I can replicate jewelry I think is drool worthy.  Granted the materials alone to replicate this would cost a fortune, but it would still be fun to try. The picture of this bag was a little blurry, but you get the idea.  Platinum metallic glitter with a metal chain edge.  Mixed media play at its finest. And I have to say, Rachel Zoe may not be everyone’s favorite stylist, but the woman has talent.  Her new jewelry line is outrageously gorgeous.  And finally, a season where I don’t have to feel unglamorous for not wearing heels.  These Miu Miu flats with the crystal studded heel are perfection. The majority of my professional career was spent going in and out of Neimans, Saks and Nordstrom stores, working with product that quite frankly I couldn’t necessarily afford, or at least didn’t want to go into debt for.  But there is still something worthwhile about keeping up with the luxury brands, because for the most part they set the tone for the rest of the season.  I still love and appreciate visiting a Neiman Marcus store for their interpretation of trends and how meticulously they curate their racks.  They provide inspiration to me every time I visit their stores, so while I may not be able to afford the Prada jacket or Chloe skirt I saw on Wednesday, I can still appreciate the workmanship and beauty of the product, and figure out a way I can reinterpret it into something I can afford.  To me that’s what fashion is all about.  If we were all wearing the same brands and could afford the same things, it would be very, very boring don’t you think?

Thanks Lisa for a fun event!  I had a great time as always and now can’t wait for Fall.  I may have to splurge just a little on those Miu Miu smoking flats too.


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For the Love Of – BESOTTED BRAND LLC + giveaway

August 16, 2012

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Greetings on a Thursday morning! This week has been a tough one and I don’t know about you, but I could use something to brighten my day and get me through the end of the week. What better way than to share with you one of my favorite people, and her shop, than with a giveaway?!? I met Tristan last year at a book signing, but have admired her work and her taste for a while now. In an age where people sometimes tend to just wing it and settle, Tristan has vision, and she firmly sticks to it. So when it came time to open her shop, Besotted Brand LLC, you knew that everything in it would be of the absolute finest quality and craftsmanship, and oh boy, would everything be ridiculously pretty.  She did not disappoint.

Besotted Brand is a shop dedicated to super luxe cardstock, high end, unique stamps and other gorgeous paper and mailing goods.  I have never felt or seen cardstock like hers, ultra heavy weight and smooth, it feels luxurious to write on.

Her new gilded notecards are perfection, sophisticated beyond belief.

And to prove she doesn’t take herself too seriously, there’s a bit of whimsy in her shop as well, with fun stamps, twine (in black!), and parcel tags.

Today Besotted Brand is offering For the Love Of readers a chance to win one of her custom stamp sets with 25 parcel tags.  Tristan asked me to choose between the customized gold Seal of Approval stamp or the custom Banner Stamp to offer my readers, but I couldn’t choose!  I love them both, so we’ll let you make the decision.  Each stamp is handmade and includes either black or gold ink, and will ship with the set of parcel tags so you can adorn gifts, place settings, or whatever else you can think of!  See below to enter to win, and good luck!  I promise you won’t be disappointed with your winnings.


a Rafflecopter giveaway


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Nursery Sneak Peek and Artwork DIY

August 14, 2012

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I have a new contributors post up at Making It Lovely, showing you how to recreate these fun and modern pieces of graphic artwork for any room in your house.

Now I know what you’re thinking, “does this girl ever stop with the neon?”  Well eventually I’m sure I will, but we’ve decided to use bits of it in the nursery, so you’ll be seeing glimpses of neon in our lives for a wee bit longer.  The neon will be going back to all white with bits of linen beige as well to help ground it and add a bit of warmth to all the brightness.  So far it’s coming out just as I had imagined it and this baby is going to have the most cohesive, consistently decorated room in the house!

I tried another DIY art project to hang above the bed and I’m still not sure what I think about it.  It’s an ombre effect on pieces of linen.  What do you think?  If you like, I can post the DIY for it because it was super easy, just not sure right now how much I’m loving how the came out. Other bits of the room I’ve posted to Instagram (I’m @fourflights if you want to follow me!).  We still have a ways to go and just found out yesterday that we had to order a new crib because ours had been recalled because of the drop down side rails, so we’ll be set back at least another week or two in completing.  But it’s kinda fun to take our time and see it all come together how I had envisioned it. 

Remember these potted plants?  Looks perfect in the room!  You can get the DIY here.

I hope you all are enjoying your week and having a good one.  I’ll be back tomorrow with an awesome giveaway you’re going to love.  And have you noticed no new style posts?  Well the heat has taken a toll on this momma’s style and I’m not sure if I’ll be getting it back in the next couple of weeks before I deliver.  Fingers crossed I didn’t leave it somewhere in the aisles of Babies R Us.


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For the Love Of – Collaborations (Neiman Marcus + Target)

August 11, 2012

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I read some interesting news today on the Neiman Marcus blog, news that is pretty damn exciting in fact. Neiman Marcus and Target have collaborated with 24 designers to produce a holiday collection of amazing, exclusive gift items.


The items range in price from $7.99-$499.00, with most in the $60 price range. The gift collection will debut on December 1st in both Neiman Marcus and Target stores, and online. I am personally impressed that Neiman Marcus finally realized the importance of reaching a larger demographic. I can’t wait to see what they come up with.

Here’s the list of the designers they enlisted for the collaboration:
Alice + Olivia
Altuzarra
Band of Outsiders
Brian Atwood
Carolina Herrera
Derek Lam
Diane von Furstenberg
Eddie Borgo
Jason Wu
Judith Leiber
Lela Rose
Marchesa
Marc Jacobs
Oscar de la Renta
Philip Crangi
Prabal Gurung
Proenza Schouler
Rag & Bone
Robert Rodriguez
Rodarte
Skaist-Taylor
Thom Browne
Tory Burch
Tracy Reese

I have a feeling this is going to be a lot better than the Missoni and Target collaboration ha!


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DIY No Sew Leather Pouch

August 10, 2012

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I get a lot of questions on my leather pouch tutorials I’ve done here and here. Mainly it involves sewing leather and how easy or difficult it is to accomplish. I will admit that if you don’t have at least a somewhat decent machine, sewing leather can be a challenge and very intimidating.  So I thought I’d give my hand at a no-sew version for those of you interested in making a pouch, but too overwhelmed at the thought of breaking out a sewing machine for the project.

To start, you’ll need to gather your supplies:

– A piece of leather (I made mine somewhat small since it was my first time using this technique and it measured 9″x15″)
– Leather/Fabric punch (I purchased mine on Amazon for $15), embroidery needle, scissors, ruler & marker
– Magnetic snap closures
– Embroidery floss
– Some type of button or decorative stud to cover up the magnetic closure (I epoxied some studs over mine)

Cut out your piece of leather to your desired dimensions, leaving a pointed flap shape to fold over and close. Before you begin stitching your bag together, you must attach your magnetic closures.  Punch a hole in the spot where you want your closure and simply insert and fold over the prongs.  These closures are really easy to work with, you just will need to cover the top flap with another button or something because you will see the prongs.  Now you can begin stitching.  Mark off where you want to punch your holes with a marker and ruler.  I spaced mine 1 cm apart.  Once you have your punches all complete, you can start stitching.  I originally was going to just do a simple whip stitch, but thought it looked a little too elementary, so I went back and added another stitch, making it look like a cross stitch I suppose.  Stitch on both sides and across the flap and tie off each ends, securing with a knot. Once you’ve completed your stitching, add your decorative element to cover up your magnetic closure, and you’re done


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