Nobody's Perfect

This winter J. Crew came out with a series of linen tees designed by Hugo Guinness. I was initially drawn to the one that had "blah blah blah" written all over because it reminded me of what I think my students hear after I talk for more than two minutes, what I hear when my husband starts talking about cars or the price of gold, and what the Peanuts Gang hears whenever an adult speaks.

Well the "blah blah blah" tee sold out as soon as it hit the sale rack and I couldn't track it down in my size. I think, however, the one that I'm sporting here, which states "Nobody's Perfect," is even better.  First, it was reduced to about $17, although I had to fork over the $5 for shipping.  Second, the message is one I can definitely embrace.

There are a lot of things about me that aren't perfect. I could come up with more than a few things, but here is a sampling: I am disorganized, I am a horrible speller, I am often too shy, I have no sense of direction, and I eat too much junk food. While no one is perfect, I think perhaps if we can look at these imperfections and laugh, as opposed to dwelling on them, then maybe it's all okay.

In terms of physical imperfections, I will have to say I currently hate my hair. In college I didn't like that it was slightly wavy and now that it is longer I hate the fact that it's too thin.

You might also notice that there is a physical imperfection on my arm in the pictures below, although this is only temporary. My dog, William, jumped up on me, causing a scratch that turned into something that looked like a burn and now that it is healing it looks like a rash. Even William is not perfect, especially when it comes to obedience training. Although William, my husband, and I all went through obedience training together and William was awarded an AKC STAR Puppy Award for dogs that master obedience training as puppies, he's not always that obedient. Go figure! I guess some of us are better at feigning perfection than others.

Shirt: J. Crew Hugo Guinnes "Nobody's Perfect" tee

Skirt: Madewell Pleated Skirt in Brown/Black stripe (here)

Denim Jacket: H&M

Shoes: Shutz

Belt: Kate Spade Glitter Bow Belt

Magic and Polka Dots

It feels good to finally check something off of my "to do list" which I refer to from time to time on my blog. Yesterday my visit to the Magic Castle made for one less thing that I am yearning to do here in Los Angeles. No, this isn't the Magic Castle of Disneyland; it is way cooler and way more exclusive. The Magic Castle is a members only magic club located near downtown Hollywood.

The building that is now the Magic Castle was originally built in 1909 as a private residence of a banker and real estate developer. This was at a time when Hollywood consisted mostly of citrus groves.  Decades later in 1962 the house was turned into its current incarnation, a magic club, nightclub, hotel, and the home of the Academy of Magic Arts. Even though it's mainly for professional magicians, many mainstream celebrities such as Cary Grant, Jimmy Carson, Neil Patrick Harris (the club's current president), and my personal favorite, Steve Martin have preformed there. I was hoping I might run into Mr. Martin today, but I had no such luck!

Nothing has me under it spell quite as much as the pattern of polka dots. Therefore I thought this Eva Franco polka dot dress was just the thing to wear. Plus, this was a brunch and afternoon show at the club, which I thought worked well with this particular "dotty" outfit.

I usually don't feature the fashion of my husband, but he did look particularly dapper yesterday, sporting a Brooks Brothers French blue shirt and a Ralph Lauren blazer and paisley pocket square. Unknown to us, the pin that identified us as guests of the Magic Castle matched his ensemble perfectly! I felt like he really should have whipped his pocket square out and turned it into a bunny or dove, just like the magicians did during the shows we enjoyed!

Here are some other random pictures of the outside of the Magic Castle. The dated stucco-clad facade doesn't do justice to the interior and mystery inside. Admittedly, the best part is actually the interior, but no pictures are allowed inside. I guess they really are very secretive!

I did, however, manage to find some pictures online that show parts of the inside of the Magic Castle. The interior is really cool with numerous wood-panelled rooms with stained glass windows where various magicians perform assorted prestidigitations, lots of owl clad bars (the owl is the club's mascot), and dark stairways leading to different sections of the castle. There is also a really neat seance room that is dedicated exclusively to Houdini with many artifacts from his career on display. Apparently they regularly perform seances in this room, which is rather creepy.

Shoes On My Skirt

I love skirts and I love shoes, so why not combine the two? This is just what designer Eva Franco did on the skirt I am wearing today. It features a seemingly endless array of ballet flats stacked on top of one another, which makes for one of the most adorable prints I think I have seen in a long time.

Originally, I spotted this print on the Anthropologie website, but it was featured as a dress. The "Well-Heeled" dress from Anthropologie by Eva Franco retails for $350 and while I appreciate that Franco makes all of her garments here in the USA, the price tag for a cotton dress seemed a little steep. On a random Google search for the dress I found the skirt (which I didn't know existed) reduced to about $90 on Amazon. I knew it was shoe/skirt fate and promptly ordered it ASAP. I am glad I did because this is certainly one of my favorite pieces in my wardrobe now and one that I think I'll be wearing for years to come.

 As I have stated before, blogging has allowed me to discover the world anew in search of the perfect backdrop. While out to lunch, I discovered this back alley with some very cool old buildings. I am not sure what this building is, but I love all of the brick.

My bow bag is from Furla, a company that still makes all its products in Italy for prices I find to be quite reasonable. When I went to Rome a while back, it was fun shopping at all of the Furla stores, which offer cute wallets and handbags, mostly in leather. I thought this satin bag was cute and it's a bow, so I couldn't resist. Shoes, bows, skirts...those are definitely some of my weaknesses!

Skirt: Eva Franco (Dress version here)

Sweater: J. Crew

Top: Forever 21

Bag: Furla Mint Satin "Venere" Bow Clutch here

Shoes: Pink Studio

Watch: Kate Spade Carlyle Bow Watch

Bracelet: J. Crew Factory

My Hearts Will Go On...

I wasn't kidding when I said I had a lot of heart stuff to wear, and this outfit which I wore on Valentine's Day is proof. I remember I bought this shirt last year at Forever 21 and it was way high up on a rack. I got a hanger and jumped up and hit at it until it fell down (actually I think my husband was with me and I made him do it!). Luckily it was my size. The lengths one will go to for the perfect heart shirt!

I paired the heart shirt with this beaded rose J. Crew inspired necklace that I bought last summer from Groopdealz. I thought that flowers and hearts would go well with one another for the holiday. I am not big on flowers, but it's nice to have ones that don't die. I think the necklace cost way less than a dozen roses, so you can't beat that!

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Our Valentine's Day turned out okay. My husband made fondue which was good and I made a chocolate mouse in a cookie cup which ended up being a sort of taco shell due to the batter refusing to take a cup shape. I was going to do a blog entry about this dessert but the end result, although delicious, sort of looked like what I would refer to as a "poop taco".

The night was not over, however, as later William ventured out into the backyard and got into a mud hole that was under one of our orange trees. Apparently he decided to splash around in it and have some fun. He came into our bedroom as a big muddy wet mess, shook and much of our house is covered in mud splotches! So, needless to say, my husband and I have been spending the morning cleaning up muddy paw prints, the floor, furniture, and doing laundry. I hope your Valentine's Day wasn't quite so messy!

Shirt: Forever 21

Jacket: J. Crew Schoolboy Blazer in Navy 

Jeans: Gap

Boots: Zara

Necklace: Groopdealz

Getting a Jump Start

While it isn't Valentine's Day just yet, it is just a day away. I thought I would get a jump start on the holiday with this asymmetrical heart print sweater purchased last year at Target. Many people took a look at my sweater today and said something along the lines of, "What a cute outfit" followed by "You should have waited until tomorrow to wear it." Well, little do they know I have plenty of heart themed things stashed in my closet, so I will have something else to wear tomorrow which will also have some variation of hearts on it.

You would think given all the hearts hanging in my closet that Valentine's Day would be a big deal to me. In reality I don't make that much fuss over the day and neither does my husband. My husband and I have been together quite a few years now and we have never gone out. It's our tradition to stay in and cook together. In fact my husband is at the store right now buying the groceries. Tomorrow he will make the entree and I will make dessert. It's a perfect combination and an equitable distribution if you ask me!

What are your plans for Valentine's Day? Do you stay in? Go out? Wear hearts and dress up? Hang around in sweatpants cooking? Or is it just another day to you?

Heart Sweater: Target

Shirt: J. Crew "Tilda"

Skirt: J. Crew Factory Floral Pencil Skirt

Bag: J. Crew Edie in Casablanca Blue

Shoes: Nine West

Another Random Day in L.A.

There's so much to do in L.A. There's touristy stuff, artsy stuff and then there's off the beaten path stuff. I really enjoy it all, but all too often I find myself resigned to spend weekends close to home, piddling around the house, watching movies or reading a book. This weekend I got out a little in the L.A. sun, to do a few random things including a visit to the Bob Baker Puppet theater and Phillipe's.

So before I delve into my excursion, I wanted to explain a few things about my outfit. I am trying to pick at random one piece of clothing, preferably one I haven't worn in a long time or one that I have but always in the same way, and reinvent it. Today I picked this sweater purchased about 4 or 5 years ago from Anthropologie. I don't even know what it's called, but it features a bouquet of flowers around the collar. The sweater combined with my Anthro "Blotted Cord" skirt received a lot of compliments, so I guess my dressing at random strategy is working.

So the purpose of our visit to L.A. today was to see a puppet show at the Bob Baker Marionette theater. If you're a kid it is a fun place to have a party, if you're an adult it's sort of a surreal experience. Bob Baker has been making puppets for basically his whole life. He turned ninety today, so this show was in honor of his birthday, hence the decorations that festoon the outside of the theater.

My husband actually took me here two years ago for my 30th birthday and the puppets sang happy birthday and gave me a crown. It's just the kind of random thing that is right up my alley.

 

The puppet show, as I said previously, is a bit of a surreal experience. I am not sure what my five year old self would think of all of it. Would I be amazed or would I start crying? To be honest some of the songs and situations are definitely geared more towards adults. There's a 10 minute segment of the show that's essentially about a Parisian Bordello. The cat puppet in the one picture sings a song about how she'll purr for others, but really she just loves her "daddy". I think you get the point. Well, here are some of the puppets. They move around pretty fast so it's hard to get a good shot.

Before the pageantry of the puppet show, we had to grab a bite to eat. We decided we were in the mood for a beef dip, or in the case of my husband, a lamb dip sandwich. If you are in the area there's no better place to get one then Phillipe's. Opened in 1908, Phillipe's is a real part of L.A. history and claims to have invented the beef dip sandwich. Actually, there is a big fight over whether or not they invented the beef dip sandwich or if it was Cole's down the street, but I don't really care, just as long as mine comes with plenty of Aus Jus. Truth be told, I am a pretty big fan of beef dip sandwiches and I have a list of all of the ones I've had from different restaurants with a ranking system. I guess that's just another random fact about me! If you're wondering, Phillipe's ranks near the top.

Parisian Picks

This spring, the fashion world is enamored with and inspired by the city of lights and love: Paris. Well, it is the fashion capital of the world after all, so why not use it as a muse? Speaking of which, my sweater is supposed to depict a Parisian woman or at least I assumed as much given that the sweater was named, "La Parisienne" by J. Crew. The subject of this woman's nationality ignited a debate at work as many felt that her style was more Russian than Parisian. I think the big furry hat might be where the Russian idea stems from.

Since we are on the subject of Paris, here are a few of my Parisian inspired picks for this spring. As I said, everyone from J. Crew to Kate Spade appear to be cashing in on the concept of Paris in the spring time. These are my favorites from all the French flavored offerings on the market of late:

J. Crew French Print Popover $88

This popover shirt from J. Crew features all the good things that Paris has to offer on a playful print. Croissants, poodles, cheese and Champagne? Oui Please! 

 Madewell Bien Fait Sweatshirt ($75) here

I really, really want a sweatshirt or sweater that contains something cheeky in French. I seem to see them everywhere and I feel a little left out not owning one. This one from Madewell is one of my favorites. "Well done" you say? That pretty much describes my nightmare when it comes to ordering steak. Regardless, I would pair this with a fluffy midi skirt or my tulle ballet skirt.

Paris and the Single Girl Kate Spade Clutch ($328) here

I have long wanted one of these book clutches from Kate Spade. I particularly like the cover of this one. The disembodied lips have a surrealist feel that I rather like!