steal.

i wanted these awesome satin shoes made by simple last year. They were sold exclusively at nordstrom's (from what i could tell) and cost about $70. i "simply" (hardeeharhar) can't justify spending that on sneakers...

i found them at ross dress for less yesterday for $16.99. yoink!! i SO took these bitches home.

deaR ...gap???

some people are forecasting gap's rebranding efforts as a kiss of death... this move is focused on the spring 2011 line, so i wonder which aspect the winter 2010 line was focused on: the classic heritage, or the new "interesting essentials?"

my hope right now is that this collection is indicative of gap's new direction - i am loving this styling!

see the rest of their winter lookbook here.

Right up my alley: james peRse

i like this guy's style. his contemporary knitwear designs, and their pallette, speak to my very soul.

sweater 

top

dress

not that these are even close to my price-range. so it goes...

yes, please

this top makes me want to revamp my wardrobe. i can see myself now: causal-chic in straight-leg pants (we're talking serious change here, people) and ballet flats. i'll take one in every color, please.

thanks.

p.s. and guess what? it's not j. crew! yay, me.

p.p.s. oh, except it's not any more reasonably priced. way to be consistent.

covet.

i see lots of bloggers that spend some serious dough on clothes from anthropologie... i typically don't even like the stuff they've got; forget dishing out big cash for it. that was until this:

that's the hotness.

also: did you know that on their website, customers can post pictures with their review of items? genius.

fill in the blaNk fRiday: RaNdom

1. my favorite thing about this week has been having hours of self-reflection while driving back from my impromptu trip to nj for the weekend. i am in awe of what the next decade can bring, once i stepped back and took a look at everything that has happened in the last ten years. shit, the last ten DAYS have been pretty interesting!

2. the weather this week has been the same as everywhere in the northeast. i actually don't even want to talk about it. BUT, we just had a fantastic storm! the kind that really make me wish that i had a real, covered porch so that i could sit there and watch/listen to/feel summer thunderstorms.

3. the last (interesting) item i received in the mail was a birthday card from my friend's parents; totally unexpected and incredibly sweet.

4. the last movie i saw was uh... we watched so many movies last weekend!! i'm going to have to say that brick was the last one we watched? this was my second time watching it and i must say, it's  a pretty amazing movie (as far as my standards go).

5. if i could be doing anything i felt like today i would definitely be en route to a beach, no question.

6. as a teenager i was a freaking angsty nightmare. but also really headstrong and independent... to put it mildly.

7. i wish i could trade lives for the day with someone waist-deep in the fashion industry. i'd love to work at a magazine one day, or be backstage at a fashion show, or help a designer pick out fabric, or watch a great fashion photographer. i don't think i have it in me to fight to get into that world, but i'd love to just observe for a day!

(check out the original and many more over at the little things we do)

oN the feNce

i'm not sure how i feel about this. forever 21 has launched a maternity line...

now. i am all for stylish, affordable clothing for pregnant women. even without needing to explore the options of cutesy preggo duds for myself, it is clear that there is a hole in that market - though i have found myself, more than once, excitedly grabbing up clothes in target, only to find that i've wandered into the maternity section again and should leave those cute dresses and tops to the ladies who really need them (side note: should i be concerned that i would rather admit that maternity clothes are better designed for my figure than to simply exercise?).

however. this concept nags at my little brain because of forever 21's target market. certainly, 21 year-olds have every right and typically no moral questioning in being pregnant (though i could never have imagined it for myself), but i'm concerned with the tweens shopping in the same stores as twenty-somethings... which, if my eyes and ears have any validity (at my ripe old age of 30) while browsing stores, is happening more and more. will this line make teenagers go out and get knocked up so that they can purchase from it? no, of course not. but could it potentially send the wrong, semi-glamorous message to my little 12-year-old cousin about the reality of needing maternity clothes? well - probably not, again. but.

i'm still on the fence.

UPDATE: see stylist's interesting take on this... more fuel for my fire. 

i would make fuN of you

if you showed up to a party, or anywhere, wearing this:

sweet dReams

try as i might to stay away, i come back again and again to the stylings of j. crew. couldn't tell you the last time i could justify spending money there though, and i feel like their unaffordability has grown in direct, if not greater, proportion to the increase of my income over the last ten years. regardless, i can't help but look... i've been very good and haven't peeked (too much!) at their fall line, which i know i am going to lovelovelove, in some ridiculous attempt to stay semi-current with my obsessions.

and right now, i can't get enough silk:

shorts

jacket

dress

coNgRats

MinxShop was just featured on the front page of etsy.com today! props to my fellow 'burgher - i'm not super into vintage clothes but i love the inspiration she takes, like a little lace or buttons to accent a well-shaped piece. i'm also a fan of her mostly grey color palette. shocking, i know (great jersey fabrics don't hurt, either!).

the designer, anna-marie, also recently posted this shoulder chain on facebook, and i fell in love. looks like a perfect incentive to get my arms back in shape!

soRRy, modcloth...

but i've got to disagree with you. there is absolutely nothing stylish about acid-wash, tapered, pleated mom jeans paired with admitted orthopedic shoes. nothing.

New love: eve gRavel

i have one word for the awesome designs of eve gravel: WOW. this is so up my alley. if i could sew. or if i actually wore the dresses that i fawn over. but, whatever.

first off, i am drawn to anyone who uses alternative models, be they "real" sized or covered in tattoos and piercings. and then there's those sexy dresses...

but wait - there's more!

tights and skirts and jackets!!???!? um. i'm so in love.

i heaRt stRaps aNd buckles

...on shoes. typically, i would not like these anymore one i tried them on my feet but since i'm not in a store, i can freely obsess:

all from www.gojane.com (and all really affordable!)

deaR j. cRew:

$95.00 for a tee shirt??? give me a break.

soNg foR today

some songs really make me wish my relationship was more tumultuous... don't play me hollow by caitlin crosby is one of them. weird, i know. damien rice makes me wish i was going through a breakup everytime i listen to him.

also, i freaking love her coat.

could i be so tReNdy?

though i would be forced into buying skinny jeans to make 'em right, these would make me feel a lot better about my basic wardrobe. dare i?

lipstick?

i am loving this makeup. wonder if i can pull it off...?

(not to mention, i really am loving ann taylor's revamped image. maybe someday i will be able to afford it!!)

oh if i weRe a desigNeR

why is it so hard to find awesome simple pieces like this? i am carrying on my ridiculous obsession over dresses far longer than i anticipated... maybe i need to start sewing!