adulterated cotton

i have a fondness for sweaters, cardigans particularly. but it's been pretty difficult to find a fun one that also fits well. so i decided to check out places that i don't typically look at. like talbots.

so the other day i went to the local mall and tried on a sweater. and it was amazing! i don't know if i even own a cardigan that fits as well as the one i tried on. and then i checked the label. cotton/rayon blend. ugh. what's wrong with just plain cotton (or wool or silk)? why does rayon need to be thrown into the mix?

i was really looking for something 100% cotton or 100% wool. or i'd consider a little bit of lycra or spandex. so i stood in the dressing room for another minute or two, deciding whether i should ignore the rayon since the sweater had such a great fit. i couldn't do it though. instead i proceeded to check every single style of sweater in the shop. and they're all cotton blended with rayon or nylon. why? does it really make a difference with the feel and/or color? i don't know the answer.

so i ended up buying a 100% cotton sweater from jcrew. not as colorful or fun, but totally me.

gray and ruffles

i really like the feel of this room. i don't know if it's necessarily the pink and gray combo, although it is nice. and it's meant to be a kid's room, but i'm seriously considering getting those gray ruffle shams.

that miu miu dress

so fun to see at least a couple editorials with my favie dress from miu miu fall 2010.

pictures from: elle uk, c magazine, style

resort 2011: stella mccartney

if i could pull it off (i.e., if i were at least 6 inches longer in the neck/torso area), i'd totally wear this

picture from: style

resort 2011: erin fetherston

i'd like to add this to my regular rotation of party dresses

picture from: style

my treehouse: the chandelier

i mulled over buying this nuevo bulle chandelier for at least a week since it was a little more than i wanted to spend. but i ended up getting it since i figured i would be able to bring it with me even to my next place.

so here it is installed. just the shell. took only 40 minutes to uninstall the ugly standard issue ceiling flush-mount fixture and install the pretty new chandelier.

then i had 187 of those little acrylic balls to attach to the frame.

another hour and a half or so later, all done! i considered getting a ceiling medallion to hide the paint circle, but realized it didn't bother me too much.

looking at it makes me smile =)

my treehouse: the slipcovers

in my head, making the slipcovers was only supposed to have taken a few days. instead, i think it took me 2 or 3 weeks to finish it all. way more involved than i had expected, particularly since the pieces of fabric were so huge. but i'm really happy with how they came out. and i got to spend some quality time with the sewing machine, and practice some stitches.

those little slits at the bottom corners are where the side rails of the bed hook into the headboard.

the awesome cream tweed from britex. and the clean corners i was so proud of.

and the blind stitch at the bottom hem, a stitch that i tried for the very first time.

so happy with it!

my treehouse: bedroom

didn't realize how different my bedroom looks until i looked back at the original pictures. so this is what it looked like when i first moved in. just a little too much of the dark details for such a small room.

so i made a slipcover for my headboard and footboard with cream tweed from britex fabrics. and installed my nuevo bulle chandelier.

and to soften the plantation shutters, installed some sheers i made with 100% silk with silver metallic polka dots from satin moon. and added another linen wing chair.

i love lying back on my bed and staring up at my chandelier, especially after a long day of working or running around the city.

my treehouse: the living room

i think i'm finally more or less happy with how my living room looks. for now. even though i still don't have dining chairs, which i don't even want to get into (60+ back-and-forth emails, calls and texts and still nothing!).

so i started out with just my sofa and desk the first week i moved in.

since then, i added an ikea expedit bookcase along the same wall as the desk. to fit all my random books and boxes. all that stuff got put into the empty bookcase on the right.

then added a 42" round pedestal dining table against the wall opposite the backyard double doors. and had the living room like that for 2.5 months. until my restoration hardware french wing chairs arrived! at which i point, i had to pretty much swap everything in the living room except the desk.

very happy with the layout now.

fun birthday purchases

made a couple fun purchases over my birthday weekend last week.

made my very first ever etsy purchase from decoylab: the kirie 01 clock. and it arrived exactly on time last monday!

and last saturday, went across the bridge to heath ceramic's open studio and sale, and picked up this cute little bud vase in a sample color, which i like to call starry night. and funny, i just noticed that my vase shows up on the right side of the heath blog post's picture. fun!

hello, summer!

it's that time of year again! stern grove festival posters about to pop up all over our streets and busses.

the stern grove festival continues its tradition of getting super-talented artists to make their posters, etc.: this year's illustration was by yulia brodskaya, who takes quilling to a contemporary level. first noticed her when she did some book illustrations for neiman marcus.

large-size graphics from for print only

more cardigan shopping

just came across this one too. cute, but i think i'll just wait for their 75% off sale =T

brunello cucinelli

seen at saks

cardigan shopping

went shopping yesterday. and was on the lookout for a fun cardigan, as usual. found a couple but the sleeves are super long. maybe that's the look?

burberry brit ... see, even on the model the elbow patch falls below the elbow. oddly, the version i tried on had regular buttons, not hidden snaps.

tsesay ... imagine it without the ruffly pink dress, as seen here ... and again, the sleeves are bunched up around the elbows. much cuter than either picture shows. the gold stripes are actually a looser mesh knit.

pictures from burberry and tse sites

resort 2011: christian dior

*gasp* ... looks who's back on the runway! i guess du juan only does shows in shanghai now

picture from: style

resort 2011: chanel

hello ... i would so wear this sweater right now. every day.

picture from: style

a pretty book: ladurée sucré ... part 2

wasn't really planning on such a long lag between these two posts, but kinda got distracted ...

so ... my favie pages ...

i like pistachios, but i REALLY like this plate

and this plate even more

and the brioche au sucre that i can't seem to find anywhere around here (boo!)

and some strawberry marshmallows. awesome photo styling.

a pretty book: ladurée sucré

before seeing this book, i'd never heard of ladurée. that's probably because i'm not a fan of macarons (which is what i gather they are well known for). never have been. i'll still try them from time to time, but i'll almost always go for some other dessert if i have the option. anyway ...

this book! ladurée sucré is supposed to be a gift for a friend, and i was going to hold off on posting this until we gave it to her. but plans changed and i'm not sure when we'll see her next. so i've decided i've held off long enough.

and so ... here it is, one of prettiest books i've ever seen and it comes so nicely packaged on top of that. it comes in a box in laduree's signature mint green. inside, the book is wrapped with a layer of lavender tissue paper.

underneath, you find the book, in the same mint green, but this time in a pillowy velvety version, stamped with the gold logo.

then you lift the book out and see the gold edging all around the pages. this is all before you even open the book!

and finally ... you open it and see the pages fan out to reveal a rainbow of pastel images. i was so eager to flip through and study every single page.

i'll follow this with some of my favorite pages.

fun weekend find

heeeeee!! look what i found last weekend. in my size! i wanted to wear them right away, but i had to hold off so i could get some rubber soles put on them first. you know, to prolong their useful life.

so guess what shoes i'll be rocking all this weekend =)

movie: eatrip

excited for the weekend. finally get to catch up on some shows and netflix. but first! wanted to mention a movie i watched last wednesday: eatrip.

it's japanese. it has some farm life in there. some kids. some fun animations. and lots of good fresh food. great movie all around. we'll be all over it when the dvd comes out.

playing at new people in sf if you're around. and the trailer if you want to check it out first.

picture from: here

spotted on: amanda on ugly betty

haven't really been following ugly betty this season, but just recently caught up. just watched the london episode last night and spotted a really cute coat on amanda (three-quarter sleeve grey striped peacoat with gold buttons). anyone know who makes it?

screencap from: abc