Gas Crunch

If you are from the Metro Atlanta area, I'm sure you're aware of the current gasoline situation. For everyone else, let me explain. Atlanta is a very car-centric city. Nothing is too spread out that one couldn't walk, bike, or bus there, but the majority of people drive. Public transit is available, but is rarely on time and doesn't go everywhere. Everyone I personally know that lives outside of Atlanta proper (and doesn't own their own business) commutes to the city each day for work.

Apparently most of the Southeast gets their gas supply from the Gulf, which is currently recovering from the onslaught of hurricane season. The arrival of supply tanks is unpredictable and most gas stations in town are sold out. The ones that still have any are slammed with long waits and elevated prices.

Last week, I scoffed and rolled my eyes at everyone that was panicking. It was not unlike the hysteria of last hurricane season, where some speculated that our supply would be cut off and prices spiked to $6 a gallon. I thought, oh well, there is gas, just everyone's going at the same time. Everyone's topping off their SUV tanks all at once, no wonder there isn't any gas. But this week I've gone out everyday to 4 or 5 gas stations in a fruitless effort to fill up. Luckily, a few of my close friends live literally across the street from major gas stations, and my parents (who are part of that heavy daily commuting group) are keeping me updated. My mom called me at six AM the other morning to tell me one station by our house got in a shipment that morning.

For now, I'm using this as a good reason to save money by staying in or taking public transit. In the meantime, for those of you who don't have the luxury of "calling in empty" to work, there is this huge Twitter keyword that has exploded: #atlgas. A lot of big blogs and the media have picked up on it - it's in the top five keywords on Twitter. I've been following it since late last night, and at the current moment, it seems QT stations have the most reliable and replenished supply and many places only have regular unleaded fuel.

Best of luck to all my ATL readers!

High Tea

My birthday's coming up and I feel obligated to throw myself something amazing. Last year I went to the Shins and danced a lot. The year before I threw a murder mystery dinner - everyone came in costume and played their parts. I got confused because there was too much champange and gin fizz punch. This year I want to host an afternoon tea, complete with tiny sandwiches and delicious scones. And by host, I mean, go to a fancy tea room where I don't actually have to prepare said tiny sandwiches or scones. Somewhere they have fancy bone china and I can wear gloves and a hat.

So I found the perfect dress.

Not only is it tea party ready, it just kind of feels like me. I might just wear it every week.

Dress, Moulinette Soeurs at Anthropologie, $188

I told you guys I'm cool...

Since I last blogged about them, all those scarves (dozens of them) have sold out at my store. Then I saw Stephanie Pratt wearing one on TV. Told you they are awesome.

And I have been so backlogged with everything - job applications, redecorating, my Netflix queue, and especially the shows I missed on the DVR. I have been doing nothing but working and slogging through my tons of DVDs and TV shows to watch.

What are you watching this season? I'm taking full advantage of the DVR business and plan to follow Heroes, Prison Break, Grey's Anatomy, The Office, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and Privileged in addition to my regular junk television obsessions. It's ambitious. I am lame and have marathon catchup sessions with my cat.

Lipstick theory

Have you heard of the "lipstick theory" of economics? I read that Leonard Lauder (of Estee Lauder) claimed that sales of lipstick would rise when the economy was falling. The idea is that women would begin buying makeup instead of clothing as an inexpensive way to stay in style. The NYTimes even hinted that lipstick could be an economic indicator.

I mean, of course, why didn't I realize that Dior lipstick costs infinitely less than a new Rebecca Minkoff? How silly of me. I guess part of it is that lipstick isn't my makeup weapon of choice.

I prefer nail lacquer. OPI is my fave. I don't know, it lasts longer than an application of lipstick and you can wear crazy and dark colors without coming off as goth.

Okay so the point of this post is, Ulta is having a buy-two-get-one-free deal on OPI through Saturday. I stocked up on the new Collection de France and am stoked. There are those cheap beauty sites (8ty8beauty, enailsupply, transdesign, etc.), but with shipping it comes out to be the same as the discount. It's instore only, so go if you need some relatively cheap retail therapy.

I recommend Parlez-Vous OPI? and Louvre me Louvre me not from the fall collection.

One orange coloured day...

First off, I'm going to apologize for the weird photos. I rearranged my room and my bookshelf I was using as a tripod is now facing an unattractive pile of hot tranny mess. I'm working on it.

As it was the first day of fall, I decided to pull out the last of my summery things to wear as a last effort. It is already too chilly for me outside. It is leather jacket weather for me because I am so cold-natured.

Tank, Target; cardigan, J. Crew; skirt, Hel Hei for Anthropologie; shoes, Target.

On Exercise

Here's the thing, I used to be semi-athletic back in the day. I can still hit a baseball, do a volleyball jump serve, and stroke a 8-person shell. I told myself not too long ago that I would get back into exercising again. You know, I could start training to run half-marathons and take jogs through the park. I could even have a dog-running service! I used to be able to run 7-minute miles for 2 hours at a time.

I tried to get back on that train by starting a Couch to 5K plan. I was kind of jealous of my best friend who was doing boot camp (it sounded so fancy and, well, healthy) and wanted to be kind of bad-ass too. So I got back on the treadmill and sang "Eye of the Tiger" in my head. Almost immediately I felt kind of like this:

and realized that well, I was a phony. That I'm just not up to it anymore, and neither was my level of cardiovascular health.

I was on a walk with my bff one day through a park.

Me: Look how nice the trails in the park are. See, I could move here and go running every morning.
BFF: (gives me a Look) You're really going to go running?
Me: ... Yeah you're right.

So I have decided to resign as a sports watcher instead of participant. This will allow me to have more picnics and sangria fests. I might go to dance class once a week and yoga a few times a week, but I realized my health (atleast the immune system part) is back up and my current lifestyle (work work work, walk a lot, cook, plan a large number of social activities, do a bunch of wardrobe changes per day) is enough for me to more or less remain the same size. I know that weight loss is so popular or whatever, but I'm vain in a backwards way, and if my clothes don't fit (too small or too big), I'll be pissed. What kind of dieting people can afford new wardrobes all the time?

My, have I been in a mood. Let me know if anyone is up for a bit of a bitch-fest while stuffing our faces with expensive cupcakes.

Art prints pls

I like the idea of having obnoxious huge clusters of framed art prints on large walls. My Audrey Hepburn and Marie Antoinette posters got lost/ruined in my last move, so I think I have to find some new things. I'm not opposed to hanging things up to the ceiling or low enough for my cat to bat off. Unfortunately I think I'm going a little too trendy - currently on my list:

For Like Ever poster by Village. Featured in many many home design magazines and blogs. Found in Jessie Randall's (of Loeffler Randall) apartment. I don't read home decor glossies (okay, can't afford to buy glossies currently at all), and want this anyway. I got my first comment from a coworker about how I talk this week (like I was raised in California), and well, it fits.

Same story with this print. The Keep Calm and Carry On WWII era poster. Now available in a ton of places, including bookstores (cheap) to Etsy (less cheap) in a rainbow array of colors. I even saw one at the Shabby Chic fancy furniture/home goods store at the mall (Oh my, for $295). I'm thinking teal or seafoam blue.

I love maps. I love how they look, I love looking at them, I love cartography, the whole bit. Ironically, my sense of geography is poor. So poor I didn't realize that certain parts of Africa still existed present day.

There is a shop in Decatur I pass by occasionally that has vintage classroom maps hanging in the window. One of those would be ideal, especially if it was for a part of the world that no longer exists the way the map shows it. Or maybe I can just find a vintage print of France. Whatever. A quick look through Vintage Maps brings up a lot incredibly affordable options.

I need to make it over to the art store and see if there are any neat cards worth framing. Or go through my old birthday cards and things. I'm excited! I'm going to force some harmony of taste with Fifi Lapin and my Kozyndan prints and see what I come up with.

Oh Topshop

I think the British are toying with me. Not only did they push back the NYC store opening date once, to November, now it's being pushed even further back into March. As in 2009. Yikes. Good thing I didn't go ahead and buy my plane tickets for that weekend in October. I think I must now use my airline points to go to Paris instead. The cold will be bracing, but worth it. I have minimal financial concerns and might be able to save enough by the end of the year to march into the flagship Chanel store and purchase something lovely. Or maybe just a Goyard. (Haha, just.) Here's hoping.

(originally snapped by the Sart, I believe)

And a fun little Paris anecdote - My last week in Paris last year, I was wandering mostly by myself, as I was unable to call anyone and didn't really have regular internet access (not that there were a bunch of people to call). I had scheduled a meetup with my of my classmates one night to have dinner and maybe see a movie. We met at the UGC on the Champs-Elysees, and he strolls up with a small Chanel bag (they are different from the ones in America). He explained that the only thing his mother wanted from his Europe travels was a pair of Chanel sunglasses purchased at the Rue Cambon store. I thought that was incredibly sweet, and really, not so difficult a gift (some people brought home complete shot glass sets from 12 countries or crystal sculptures that may or may not break in your backpack). I felt silly as I realized the most appreciated gift I was bringing back was an assortment of Kinder chocolates that I had to stash in a padded box to survive four train rides and three flights.

It feels like September

I'm squeezing out what little more wear I can from my Spring and Summer clothes before cold weather reigns. I mean, I think I will still be able to go to the pool until almost November so maybe I shouldn't worry quite yet. I think these are the wrong shoes for this outfit. Blah. Atleast the sun came out today.

Oh and I realized whose wedding a lot of my clients went to last weekend (I sold a bunch of dressy dresses), and gosh, is it just me or is it weird when your high school friends get married?

Tank, Target; sweater jacket, J. Crew; skirt, Anthropologie; shoes, H&M; bag, Gryson for Target.

Maybe it is fall?

The weather feels very Parisian lately - gloomy, chilly, grey, and constantly threatening rain. It is just likely spillover from hurricane season, but it's a good enough excuse for me to pull out my warm sweaters, socks, and jackets. Thank goodness I bought that scarf, I actually need it when standing on the train platform. Brr.

I apologize for the grainy, poorly edited and poorly lit photos lately. Like I said, the weather's been crummy and it's affecting the quality of available light.

I wore this to work today with a cardigan to ward off the cold. I haven't gotten to wear thigh high socks in forever! I love these. They're so snuggly. Here is this dress again. I love the elephant tribal print.

Dress, Anthropologie; thigh high oatmeal socks, American Apparel; pirate boots, Chadwick's.

Sweet little sweater

I was approached by one of my higher ups at work about my hemlines. In an attempt to disguise the fact that, well, all my dresses and skirts are that short, I threw on something to cover more skin.

I can't really complain though, I love this sweater shrug thing. It's so sweet looking - it's cream with little rows of knit rosettes that pop out for a little bit of texture. The buttons are a heavy rose colored stone and are just so lovely! The color green on the trim is a bit difficult, but we'll make it work.

Dress, H&M; sweater, Anthropologie; shoes, Steve Madden.

xoxo

I think I may just work too much. Or maybe keep up too closely with fashion the Manhattan elite might buy. But I spotted two dresses we carry this season at Anthropologie on this night's episode of Gossip Girl (The Dark Night).

On Penelope (right): dress by Yoana Baraschi. This is a gorgeous sleeveless sheath dress. The flower on the waist is removable. It has a sister dress by the same designer in the same cut in grey with flowers around the neckline that flies off the racks.

Bleecker sheath, $168 at Anthropologie.

The second is by Moulinette Soeurs. On Rufus' date. I love every dress we carry under this brand. They are all gorgeous silk and chiffon creations in lovely colors and prints. These are dresses that any women could covet. This is perfect for that transition from Summer to Fall.

Gossamer garden dress, $168 at Anthropologie.

On one last TV note, is it just me or was LC wearing the same dress as Jenny? Lauren in the scene talking to Stephanie in the classroom, Jenny in the last half of the episode where the power went out.

OH YEAH

Epiphany: My discount transfers to Urban Outfitters as well as Free People.

Resdiscovered: How much I like things sold at UO. I haven't shopped there in years! It's always so hectic and crowded in the store, and for the longest time, I was refraining from buying things I didn't deem appropriate in Corporate America. Current developments imply that this is not my life path. This means I can/will wear whatever the hell I like. YES, acid washed jeans.

Currently: Watching the Lizzie McGuire movie on Disney Channel. Man, H. Duff, ilu. This makes me want to relive my Europe travels and do themed trips - Lizzie McGuire in Rome, l'Auberge Espagnole in Barcelona... Oh wait, I think I did.

Spotted...

Spotted today: A Valentino Fango rose handbag hanging from the arm of a client. I really really wanted to touch it, and it was hard to resist considering I work somewhere that you're allowed to touch literally everything. Some days I smile and think it's not unlike a really great modern museum. But I guess it's not that modern, there are no graphic pieces or evidence of the endearingly bizarre. We have a giant clock too, I guess. And a gigantic beautiful cabinet from a hat shop in France. Chapeaux galore and only $18,200.

My new favorite thing

I did a bad thing at work yesterday. I caved and bought something. These scarves aren't up on the site, and aren't necessarily amazingly pretty, but they're just perfect. Every one in the store is unique and they come in about a billion colors. It's very Missoni-ish and somehow transforms a plain boring outfit into Stylish. How can you pass up something that gives extra oomph to anything and magically goes with any color? Clearly I could not. This is my new go-to accessory for all the time. Note my extremely smug face.

I don't know what they're called, but they're definitely by Anthro/Urban and we have atleast thirty different ones to choose from at my store. Come buy one from me! (Wow, am I giving out lots of free promos for them or what?)

First World Problems

My feet are so swollen from a 35 hour workweek on my feet that none of my shoes fit. I forgot about this being a possibility. I probably won't care unless my ass and legs swell in a similar manner. This happened last year and I destroyed one pair of work pants and all my Cheap Mondays by testing the integrity of the fabric.

I think I am going to start some sort of social networking club or something in Atlanta. I understand that Facebook and Myspace exist and serve this exact purpose. I'm planning on doing it with a twist, more like Match.com for making friends. I started a (currently blank) blog for it and will continue to post updates as they come along. I hope I can get other people on board considering I have only two days off a week and it's not guaranteed I'll have time to spend working on it on weekends.

I'm doing a sort of a test run meeting tonight! No outfit because I'm wearing hiking sandals as none of my shoes currently fit (Regina George: Sweatpants are all that fit me right now.), oh my life is so ridiculous.

Sassy

I had a stellar day at work. I was hilariously racially profiled (but made the sale), sold the perfect dress to a member of the East Cobb intelligentsia, chatted with a fab customer about her Rebecca Minkoff MAM for a good bit, and got gold stars. A couple ladies I chatted up throughout the day were convinced that it was so awesome, the store, that they should work there too. I wholeheartedly agree and am pumped for the holidays. I love ridiculously busy days.

I was wearing these boots:

Frye Engineer Slouch boots circa 2006. Similar to the currently available Veronica Slouch boots. The main difference is the sole - leather on these, rubber on the others.

I have never received so many questions/compliments in a single day about anything I was wearing before! One customer even came back with friends to show them and ask where they came from. It was ridiculous. The boots are amazing. I can't wait till fall, I have a whole Frye rotation to go through.

Sidebar: These were actually in the Free People catalog two years ago and were available on Zappos for approximately $450. I found them at TJMaxx for infinitely less than that. It was just a huge stroke of luck they were my size and that I had been obsessing over them for over a year. This is how I dub things meant-to-be. This actually goes for all my other boot purchases in the past three years. (If anyone in the ATL is looking for the Sunnie multi strap boot in fog in a size 10, there is ONE pair at the Howell Mill store. I almost picked them up to eBay but couldn't be bothered. I have these too, and they are incredible.)

Tunic as dress, Jovovich-Hawk for Target; cardigan, AA; boots, Frye.

rePrague

Someone captured and uploaded the J. Crew Prague video to YouTube. Let's all favorite it and watch it on loop. The song is "Sunny Sunday" by Leona Naess.

Confessions of a Shopaholic

Funny how after I made that little post I saw this trailer.

It looks pretty spot on to Becky's character. At first I was thrown by the casting of Isla Fisher (Wedding Crashers, Definitely, Maybe), but after watching the trailer again, I think she's perfect. The character is insecure and scatterbrained but hilarious in a slapstick way. Oh man, that clip where she's breaking into that chunk of ice to retrieve her Visa card reminds me of so many of my own impulse shopping days!

Cons:
It looks like it is set in New York and the characters are American. I want to see a London based British comedy! We all loved Bridget Jones! Colin Firth could have played Luke Brandon, duh.
It also looks like the movie will condense about three books into a 90-120 minute time slot. I don't know about this. I think there could be room for sequels as with the books. I could be mistaken, but it looked like there was a wedding scene. It seems too soon!

I think I will take up rereading this soon. There are yet a few more sunny days to laze by the pool.

Beauty, Body, and Bath

My top five favorite beauty, body, and bath products of the moment:

1. Lip balm. I am OBSESSED with lip balm and must always have some kind of chapstick on me or I will freak out. I have a special little bowl that is full of different flavors and brands. My three favorites are Labello, Burt's Bees replenishing pomegranate, and Perfumeria Gal.

Labello is made by Nivea and is widely available in Western Europe. They look a lot like those candy lipsticks you can buy at sweet shops. They smell and taste like them too - the flavors are really yummy and fruity without being sickly sweet. The cherry smells like cherry, the strawberry smells like strawberry, and passionfruit smells like passionfruit. Not only are the smells perfect, the balms are tinted so you only need one. I stockpiled these when I came home from Europe and still have a bunch. Amazon.com has some 2-for offers for not too expensive. If you order a bunch, or buy expensive chap lip stuff anyway, it's a pretty solid deal. My favorite is strawberry.

Everyone knows what Burt's Bees is. I used to swear by the original beeswax lipbalm with the peppermint tingly business. But then I realized it would leave this weird white film on my lips, which was kind of gross. And maybe I was just obsessed with the cute little tins the balm came in. I decided to give their lip stuff another try with the pomegranate flavor and loved it. The flavor isn't that accurate (though I have never eaten a pomegranate), but the waxy white film is no longer an issue and I feel like it moisturizes impressively. I find mine at Target. They are also sold almost everywhere Burt's Bees products are sold.

Perfumeria Gal is based in Madrid and come in these wonderful art nouveau tins. I like how they look almost more than I like the product. It is a vaseline-like consistency with even juicier flavors than the Labellos. It doesn't really add color and is sort of goopy. The texture is between Chapstick and Rosebud Salve, if you can imagine that. I love the peach and red currant flavors. These are also sold on Amazon, and I've seen them in Atlanta at Urban Outfitters and bluemercury.

2. Mistral Soaps. We sell a huge collection of these at Anthro and I spend downtime smelling all of them. My boss told me about how wonderful they were my first day and I was intrigued enough to try some. Technically, I thought, one bar with discount is cheaper than one bottle of my favorite body wash. I am not a bar soap kind of girl, but after trying this, I might convert forever!

They are made in Provencal France using fancy milling processes and loads of shea butter. The soap is low lather and moisturizes beautifully. The scents are all pleasing, no matter what your taste, but don't really linger. My favorites so far are the Vanille Abricot (Vanilla Apricot) and Lychee Rose. I bought special little soap dishes just to display them! I'm not promoting them to make soap sales (seriously, whatever), but they smell good, are less expensive than L'Occitane, and my skin is seriously SO SOFT now. I don't know what to do with my leftover Dove bodywash. Available at Anthropologie stores and Mistral Soap.

3. Lush Coalface soap.

Maybe I have seen Annie Hall too many times, but I really love this for my skincare routine. It lathers black and little (non abrasive) bits of coal rinse out with each wash. I don't think it's a miracle for my complexion, but it's natural and I've had a hard time tracking down a face wash that doesn't aggravate my skin while keeping it in check. Plus it smells so ungirly to balance all the Hello Kitty and ~lychee~ flavored soaps in my bathroom. Available at Lush stores and online at lush.com.

4. Oil of Olay moisturizer - beauty fluid for sensitive skin. I talked about my adverse reaction to most perfumes once before. Most scented things make me want to vom, especially if it is on my face. The original formula of this (it's pink, in the same shaped bottle) smelled like much older ladies and made me gag the smell was too heavy. Same goes for the other drugstore kinds I've tried- Neutrogena and Aveeno both were way too smelly for me.

It's a simple thing - a light, unscented moisturizer that quickly sinks into skin. Doesn't make me break out, doesn't have a weird heavy texture, doesn't smell like too many ladies in an elevator. I choose the regular one over the one with SPF, because I'm convinced that changes the texture of any moisturizer. Sunscreen in moisturizer for me = breakouts and weird chunky lotion. Ew, pass. You can purchase this at your local drugstore and at drugstore.com.


I haven't been able to find a new shampoo/conditioner/hair care routine that works for my wonky hair right now. I used Pantene for literally 10 years of my life and switched about 6 years ago to Garnier. The Fructis stuff is fighting with my hair, though. I just bought the new L'Oreal stuff that's supposed to make your hair *shiny* and healthy and will report on that as I see the results. Eh, maybe my hair wouldn't be wonky if I spent more than three dollars on shampoo.

All Dressed Up

This is what I wore to a doctor's appointment and work. This might be my favorite dress of all time. The only things that prevent me from wearing it every week: it requires ironing/steaming, and it needs a snap or safety pin to stay closed up top. I should really just sew in some snaps and move on.

Oh, and in case you didn't notice, I painted my room! Well, I guess you guys couldn't have noticed because I haven't posted a bedroom photo before. I think this is also the cat's first internet appearance.

Dress, Jovovich-Hawk for Target; boots, Minnetonka.

Shopping Confessional

I caved and bought some shoes online. I couldn't help it. I felt like the blog-o-sphere was buzzing about how cheap the trend shoes at GoJane were and I was compelled to look. And then I found these.

Do they look familiar? Or am I the only one that is obsessed with Frye and Miss Sixty boots each season? These are pretty spot on "inspired" boots. I literally spent hours fawning over Miss Sixty's Vaila boot last year, stalking them on Urban Outfitter's site, going into the store to chat up the manager while casually obsessing over the boots. Then they went on sale (still too much). Then they disappeared.

Okay, I suppose they aren't exact, but considering I didn't have (still don't have) $300 to spend on a non classic ankle boot last year, I am ecstatic. And they're vegan.

Boots, GoJane.com, $29.99.

Blue Monday

Today was action packed. I went to a career fair early in the morning at school, where I swore I would never return upon graduating. It wasn't so bad, and some of the recruiters I talked to seemed very encouraging. I felt like I hit some home runs today after job hunting like a fool (seriously, fail) for months. That I wore my suit to, this I wore after.

This is what I wore to ride public transit, dance to Spoon and Jens Lekman at work, and pretend not to speak English (this is a first, lol). I never really go outside here - Atlanta is extremely car-centric, and if I go anywhere, it's building to car to building, and I don't get hot. As I stood waiting for the bus this afternoon, I remembered what the heat is like. God, I don't know if I can handle commuting like that anymore.

Though, it was kind of nice and reminiscent of my trips in Europe and to New York. Where you don't have the luxury of car-(air conditioned) building-car-building, and have to walk in the sticky heat to the bus which takes you to the subway which takes you to another bus. Gosh, when I lived in France, going places was epic. The walk to the bus stop was about a mile, usually with a heavy bag. The bus would take you to the train station, where you could go almost anywhere, but it would take atleast 3 hours to get there. It was weird coming home and being able to drive to Target and it only take 3 minutes.

Overall it was a pretty successful day. So far, I'm not sure if I'm inclined to use my Marta pass for the rest of the month despite it costing less than one single tank of gas. We'll see.

Top, Hero & Oleander (Anthropologie); skirt, Hel Hei (Anthropologie); tie belt, from safari romper; birdcage necklace, Urban Outfitters; sandals, Target.

Home Decorating, even more

On my 903284th installment of home decorating and design obsession, I've decided to make curtains. Yes, I'm really actually going to do it this time, unlike the ribbon belt project from a couple months ago.

I even went and picked out some fabric swatches. Observe:

Now there's just the matter of measuring and cutting and sewing straight lines. Seems easy enough... So far the best resources I've come up with are Alternative Windows, Denver Fabrics, and Mormon Chic. I think I'm going very simple with a tunnel loop construction, painted wooden dowels for the rods, and decorative hooks (maybe even stick-on hooks) to hold the rod. Anthro has this setup rigged in the fitting room and it looks so easy. Even easier would be a tension rod, like the kind you buy for shower curtains.

So far, I can't even decide on fabric. I don't really love any of the ones I picked out yesterday. Amy Butler's patterns look wonderful, but buying fabric online seems so strange to me. Maybe I'll just have to take the plunge - a lot of designer prints are cheaper and shipping is almost negligible. That leaves only one decision now: Amy Butler or Marimekko?

I will document this as it comes along.

Recap!

I've been making pithy excuses, but I finally tracked down my camera last week, and then this week unearthed the cord for it. Here's a few outfits from the past week, mostly to wear to work.

This is what I wore to work my first week. I wanted to squeeze out that last bit of summer clothing before it felt like sweater weather. I'm freakishly cold natured and everywhere indoors already feels like sweater weather. Nighttime also feels like this. I'm about to bust out my leather jacket even though it's almost 90 during the day.

This might also be the last time I straighten my hair for a while. What a horrible pain.

Dress, Jovovich-Hawk for Target; moccasins, Minnetonka.

I had almost forgotten about this dress (funny how that is about most of my closet...). I wore this to work after painting this bathroom. I guess this is where I had left my camera! The walls are shiny and after seeing the photo, I'm not sure if it was a great choice. Maybe it's just in contrast to the dress color?

Dress, Viola for Anthropologie.

I know someone who lives in a skyscraper. This was haphazardly taken from the gigantic balcony on the 20th floor. I wore this to work before visiting. I think I will visit often to have mimosa brunches and pool parties until it turns into (fake) fall.

Dress, H&M; shoes, Zara.

Mini reflection

I feel a bit like Becky Bloomwood at my job. There are days where a little alarm goes off in my head as the zebra jeans incident almost occurs. You know, the Shopaholic series?

Who knows, I might get a boring job at a financial publication and leverage it into buying at Barney's. That would be rather ideal.

Things to love: Leifsdottir

In general, Anthropologie aims towards eliciting a "ooh I want everything" reaction from most women. But their new sister brand Leifsdottir that launched this year? I literally want everything that we carry from the line.

Proof:

1. Look at the bracelet-length sleeves! Look at the tie at the neck! Look at the belted waist! Look at the red stitching! Look at the oversized buttons! Look at the rickrack ruffle along the seams! Somebody buy me this, please.

2. This. Dress! Flutter sleeves, hand painted look, perfectly draped silk.

3. It has birds on it. It has migrating birds on it. It has migrating birds on it, front pleats, and green lace trim! In a fitted silhouette with an exposed zipper in the back. Love.

4. Asymmetrical neckline with ribbon, pleats, lace, and a bowtie. Seafoam green (!) with orange accents (!!). The back has a cute little ribbon tie at the neck. You need this. I need this. Let's get this.

Nordstrom and Bloomingdale's now carry the line at the same price points. If you have a chance to look at some of these things in person, seriously please do. All of the colors and fabrics are so luxe and the details are impeccable. I feel like this new line perfectly captures the Anthro aesthetic. If you are going to buy anything full price, babies, these pieces are worth every penny.

1. Water Posy Trench, $298, Available at Anthropologie, Nordstrom.
2. Printing Press Sheath, $268, Available at Anthropologie.
3. Sunset Migration Skirt, $168, Available at Anthropologie, Nordstrom.
4. Buckminster's Reverie Tieback, $168, Available at Anthropologie, Bloomingdale's.

September Catalog and upholstery sale

The September catalog is officially out! I love all of the Fall/Winter things Anthro usually carries. Nowhere else can you find as large a collection of whimsical knits and patterned heavy skirts. But when I saw this, I wasn't really as interested in the clothes as I was in the location.

It looks like the first half of the catalog was shot at the Guggenheim in Bilbao, Spain! I went once a few years ago on a whim with my savings from my first summer job. It was a breathtaking city that was modern with fantastic architecture, but didn't feel touched by globalization or really, tourism. Okay, maybe that is a lie, because I had lunch at a Burger King there out of homesickness. But what a perfect place for a catalog shoot! The outside of the building is quite romantic despite the fact that it is covered in metal. I happened upon two different couples having wedding photos taken around the building.

On another Anthropologie related note, we are running our Fall upholstery sale starting today through the end of the month. This means all sofas, ottomans, chaises, and chairs are 25% off! If you are at the price point to acquire something, this can be a great deal! Orders can be placed online and in stores. At my store we have a couple different sofas and I spend lots of time stroking them longingly. Someone come buy one from me so I can live vicariously!

Perils of working at the mall, part 1

1. Gaining weight from the mall fare. I went up two sizes and ten pounds from eating mall food almost every day last year. I lost it immediately after leaving that job. Which is great, but not until after I had ripped three pairs of pants. And eating normal food again for all meals made me averse to most food court fare - most of it is really way too salty or fatty, even the "healthy" sandwich places.

2. Being subjected to heinous rush hour traffic. All the malls I know of are very close to major highways and/or lots of businesses and office buildings. Everyone gets out between 4 and 7 and it is mindblowing the gridlock. However, this is just a fact of life if you live in certain parts of Atlanta.

3. The centre commercial is the perfect (or worst, however you see it) place to fuel your shopping addiction. Sometimes my paychecks wouldn't make it out of the store, much less the mall. I've gotten better, but I've seen coworkers at both my workplaces that purchased things every single day. Some people justify their purchases as retail therapy from the anxiety work causes them.