last minute

You may not be able to tell from these photos (I know I need to find myself a new backdrop) but this blazer is the probably the pinkest thing I own. Since it's the end of February, I thought it should make a timely appearance. The last time I wore it, it was almost time to celebrate spring, so here's to hoping it's the case again! adieu, février!

blazer: Forever XXI; dress: H&M; boots: Asos; bracelets: made by me, italian street market, watch: Michael Kors

primary

Is it just me or is this winter never-ending? This week I've decided to add a little bit of color under my biggest black coat and mix up pieces that rarely see their way out of my closet. 

sweater, blouse, skirt: Forever XXI; boots: Asos

Weekend in Dublin

This weekend was my fourth time visiting Dublin, and like every other time, I enjoyed every minute of a weekend full of colorful walks, good music and good food (hooray for trying 'bangers and mash' for the first time) and drinks. We did things a little differently this time, which led us to spending Saturday afternoon in the National Gallery - a first for both of us, which I found surprising but also kind of special that we were able to share it together (monsieur lived in Dublin for one year during college). After our stroll through the Museum, which is a definite must-do on my list and features an incredibly varied collection, a short trip to the discount book store got us a new walking guide for the city for just under 3 €! 

That walking guide was put to good use Sunday and led us to other surprising finds like the oldest fish and chipper in Dublin, now on our to-do's for the next go around 

It also finally brought us inside St. Patrick's Cathedral, which is absolutely stunning. The details in the architecture and the decoration in the cathedral is incredible and well worth the entrance. One of my favorite details, and this is the first time I see this in any church, were these little embroidered cushions for kneeling. Not two were alike, and all were original and beautiful in their own ways. 

I love this bridge/connection between the Christ's Church and the Dublin Castle

I've never been a whiskey girl, but I loved this original lighting at the Jameson distillery 

and because no trip to Dublin is complete without a walk through Temple Bar, we took two - one of Saturday night for drinks and dinner, and one on Sunday to really take in the colors of the neighborhood. These are some of my favorite buildings in the neighborhood. Don't these colorful façades just make you want to walk into one of these pubs? 

whitman's sampler

Grey … the color of our brains and the limbo between black and white. That’s where I am, stuck on the verge of doing something great, feeling like I have so much potential bubbling inside me, and I’m just waiting for it to boil over and summer on the outside. Did I picture my life at 25 how it is now? No. Probably because I idealized my life at age 12 and thought 25 was so far away, but it’s hard telling my 12-year-old self she was wrong.

Forrest Gump may have been right when he said “life is like a box of chocolates,” but I wish that box was a Whitman’s Sampler – equipped with an instruction manual! 

jacket and booties: Asos, skirt: Old Navy; tee: H&M; booties; necklace: Forever XXI

weekend style - black and tan

We took these on the way back from a Saturday walk through my boyfriend's hometown, which included a casual stroll through the park at dusk. There must have been some sort of bird party/convention/gathering because the sky was absolutely full of them and some trees were packed black with little birds perched up against each other on every single branch. It was definitely a funny sight to see despite the obvious fear of catching something in flight. 

skirt: Forever XXI, scarf: H&M; flats: Zara; coat: Old Navy; bag: Lancel

dinner with my valentine

I think the only Valentine I can remember in the five years since I’ve been dating my boyfriend is the first, and that’s because it was basically our third date as boyfriend/girlfriend. Gone are the days of pink and red sweetheart candies, those delicious red Mickey Mouse heart pops (not even sure they make these anymore) and baskets full of quirky little cartoon Valentine’s day cards, and this basically because of work and pesky everyday interruptions that come with being working adults.

February is a difficult work month for my boyfriend, so I decided to take Valentine’s Day into my own hands and create a festive party right in the comfort of our own living room.

I decorated the table with some fun accents I downloaded from elleadore.com. I found these by chance the day before Valentine’s Day in an online ad. The kit was quite elaborate, but for this setting, I only used the printed menus, place cards and napkin rings.

As coasters, I used extra cut out hearts from a garland I put up behind our sofa. I also scattered some of these left over hearts on our coffee table where we had our appetizer and a drink.

I chose this ultimate cordon bleu recipe by Tyler Florence and substituted Brussels sprouts with cheesy mashed potatoes.

My baking experiences are usually hit or miss. This pink mascarpone frosting was definitely a hit - not too sweet and perfectly firm!

I don’t think Valentine’s Day should be about the cliché heart chocolates or cheesy teddy bears, I never have. To me, it should be about doing something with the person you love, in our case, taking time out of our busy schedules and having a proper dinner together – at home, no interruptions.

groove

After the weekend, I find one of the easiest ways of getting back into the groove of things is not to make a big deal about it. So today, I mixed and matched some of my favorites and most comfortable pieces for a funky approach to Monday. I love the mix of the polished tweed jacket and a laid back graphic tee. I also really like that my glasses are big enough on my face that they kind of hide the look of just being off a plane several hours before the sun comes up. 

tee: freebie at a festival, skirt and jacket: forever XXI; booties: Asos; glasses: Chloe

weekend in Lisbon

This weekend, we left Paris under a blanket of fresh white snow and arrived in sunny Lisbon, the destination of my Christmas gift to monsieur, for two magical days. The sun was shining down (or should I say up) every little creaky, winding street, and sitting on a terrace overlooking the Tagus for lunch, we felt like we were more than just two hours away from Paris. The busyness of this city has a different rhythm than Paris - it's a slower busyness, a laid back kind of hustle and bustle of people going places,  but not forgetting to live while they are on their way.

The city is positively bursting with color. This embroidery print was quite popular in some shops, I think it was for Valentine's Day and I absolutely love it. Something tells me it won't be long before these teacups are mine. 

I read about the conserveria nacional in our guidebook (that I cleverly used to wrap the plane tickets up for Christmas). I can't wait to crack one open and savor its contents with a warm baguette and a nice glass of wine for an apéro. We stocked up on quite a few as their colorful prints and fun flavors make for unique and inexpensive souvenirs.

A kind of sweet sugary, cinnamon smell hovers over parts of the city when bakeries bring out batches of their sinful little custard pies. When you ask for them to go, the server kind of looks at you like "are you sure you won't stay a while to savor this properly?"

When I go places I've never been before, I like to send a couple of postcards and keep one for our collection at home - I usually use this as an excuse to peruse as many trinket and knick knack boutiques as I can before Monsieur tells me it's time to move on.

The weekend was perfect and just what we needed as winter carries on and spring seems so impossibly far away. Oh how I wish we were still there!!

dress: Forever XXI; headband: Asos; mocassins: Gap

pants: H&M; sweater (though barely visible) Forever XXI; bag: Longchamp (a lifesaver when you can only take a single carry-on item on certain airlines)

oops, i did it again

Maybe it's the subconscious part of my brain that remembers pulling uniforms together in high school that comes rushing out on Monday mornings when I don't know what to wear, but this is definitely not the first Monday in recent times that I end up looking like I'm dressed for school. This week, I'll blame it on my little leopard booties that stared at me from my shoe rack saying 'wear us, wear us!' 

tee: old navy + DIY monogram; skirt: Forever XXI; jacket: Tommy Hilfiger; booties: Nine West