museum

This weekend, we got on an extra early flight from Paris to Madrid and spent two wonderful days taking in the sights, sounds and tastes. Sunday morning, we visited the Reina Sofia musuem and took a quick spin in the garden before it closed for the afternoon. The sun was shinging the entire trip which made the winter feel less cold, and the days a little more magical.

sweater: zara; pants: Forever XXI; booties: Asos; sunglasses: YSL

en hauteur

It's been a while since I've done a balcony shoot - mainly because since we moved last summer, it's been difficult to get shots in our new angular balconies. Yes, plural.

Today, I'm back with the casual but rather done-up look that I wore to work. I love the way a little piece of organza(ish) ribbon and a sparkly collar can spice up a classic gray tee...

collar: Asos; tee: American Eagle; skirt: Mango; mary-janes: Nine West

wallflower

This week, I did something I should have and wanted to do in high school and never did. I read the 'perks of being a wallflower,' and I'm really glad that: a) I finally picked it up at the bookstore in Miami this winter and b) I waited till now to read it. I really enjoyed the story and the feelings and memories it brought back of when I was in high school. So all week I've been listening to a "wallflower" mix I made for myself and daydreaming of being in my backyard or in college again and I've been in a generally very good mood.

dress: Asos; booties: Zara; bow cuff: H&M; headband: Forever XXI

Sunday afternoon

grey - busy - then quiet - exploring - traditional stroll - press shop - whimsical window dreams - reading time at a low key hang out - drinks and snacks - return trip under the moon - dinner and a movie

jacket: Tommy Hilfiger; tee: Old Navy; jeans: Forver XXI: booties: Asos; bag: Nine West; earrings: Baccarat

where's charlie?

When I got home tonight, my boyfriend said my sweater reminded him of "Where's Charlie?" (Waldo) All day however, it made me think of how much I love stripe tops and how many I have (wayy into double digits, this one being my most recent). It also got me thinking of stripes and lines in general and as much as I love them on shirts, I really dislike them more and more on paper.

When I was growing up, and well into my short adult life, "normal paper" had blue horizontal stripes and two pink margins - one dark on the left and one very faint line on the right. Since I've been living in France, paper like this is almost impossible to come by - it's usually always square paper, which I associate with math and so instantly dislike, or hyper-squared, where even the squares have squares in them. How can any creativity flow without getting out of the lines a little?!

It's why I've decided to make notebooks of my own - a series of twelve mini installations - one for each month, where I'll be jotting down muses, song names, book names, recipes, ideas, and general day dreamish things on a daily basis. Every now and then, I'll cut and paste something on one of the blank pages, and who knows, maybe it will show up here!

Bon Week-end à tous !

headband: Forever XXI; sweater: Old Navy; skirt: Banana Republic; booties: Asos; bag: Coach

picture day

Today was picture day at the office and I decided to keep it as simple and fun as possible. The fur stole was only for the pictures taken at home, but now I kind of regret not having it the whole day because it really gives a nice little addition to an otherwise quite plain and dandy outfit.

top: Old Navy; skirt: Zara; shoes: Forever XXI; faux fur: H&M

incredibun

One of the perks of being on vacation, is trying things you don't usually have time for - like playing with my hair. I'm not ashamed to say that before one or two months ago, I didn't even know how to french braid! I'd been trying to concoct a great glam bun for a while, but with three strands of hair and no time to play, it was useless. Over the winter break I tried all sorts of tricks (and mastered the art of doing some of them quickly for morning rush) and am super excited to start the new year with fun up and down do's !

top and blazer: Forever XXI; skirt: Banana Republic; shoes: Nine West; bag: Coach; coat: Zara (a/w 2008)