2. December 2011 by Parker.

I hate being cold! In the winter, I live in flannel pjs, snuggly blankets, and have been known to wear mittens inside as my hands become ice. The only plus to cold weather is crackling fires, smores, and gorgeous coats!

My closet is full. Overflowing really. But that does not stop me from virtually shopping for a new coat every year. I’m obsessed. I want a coat in every color with coordinating accessories! So this year my eye has wandered to yellows, greens, and winter whites. But which to choose?

Obviously I am wanting a new A line coat since I wear a lot of dresses with tights in the winter. Which would you pick?

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4. September 2011 by Parker.

My best friend, Jules, is getting married in November so I wanted to help throw her an amazing bridal shower. A shower that emphasized all the things that she loves. Her wedding theme is Paris meets India so I decided to concentrate more on the Paris side of things for this shower. Think Eiffel Towers, Pink, Shopping, and more!

But to take it a step further, I added Marie Antionette into the mix.  Since she was the Queen of France and know for her amazing wardrobe, wigs, and accessories; it only seemed fitting for her to be the true inspiration for the shower.

It was these two pictures that served as my inspiration photos for the shower. I had no idea what the space I would be setting up in would look like nor was there a large budget to play with. So here’s what it looked like:

My goal for her party was for all of her friends to bring her accessories as gifts. They were instructed not to wrap them and would be given  pretty hand made tags to sign and attach to the jewelry upon arrival. The gifts were to be used as the decor.

I took 2 mannequins with me to dress in sets of pink lingerie and added a boa for some flair. Then I recovered an old room divider in pink paisley fabric to fill an empty corner.

The food table was lined with silver serving trays with Baroque frames and hot pink paper listing the food items. Parisian boxes were used to add height as well as Eiffel towers and tea sets.

The dessert table was vibrant in icing colors. elegant shoes, cake stands, and metallic candy dishes. If you needed a chocolate fix, this was the table to see.

I purchased some affordable wine, soaked off the labels, and adhered new ones that I made for the bride. Showcased on a high heel wine holder made to look like a Christian Louboutin and sat next to a vintage tea kettle with pearls.

And in the other corner of the room, I set up an Eiffel Tower wine holder with Fleur de Lis rain boots and a black wire mannequin to even out the room.

And here is a picture of the happy bride to be wearing as much of her jewelry as we could possibly put on her. I’m fairly certain she was happy with the final product!

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3. July 2011 by Parker.

Anyone that knows me, knows that I am an organizational machine. I love my label maker. I love pretty storage boxes. I love unique ways and places and to hide things because let’s face it, I have a lot of things. But most of all, I love it when there is a pretty but practical way to showcase something and jewelry storage allows this to happen. After all, you wear your jewelry as an accent to your outfit, right? Why shouldn’t it also be an art piece for your room?

So these five options show you how you can use mismatched hooks, spools, shower rings, et cetera to hang your jewelry. Though I like these options, they all still feel a bit messy to me. I can just see myself trying to grab a necklace as I am running out the door and not having the patience to untangle it from the rest or worse, break it as I pull to hard.

Here’s another option, using drawer pulls on boards to hand earrings and necklaces. While I can appreciate the whimsy of these boards, they seem fairly unpractical to me.

Now I think these options work the best for 1)organizing your jewelry, 2)making everything very accessible and 3) becoming a statement piece for a room. The top two are antique printer drawers which can run about $50 at an antique store. However the last two are kitchen and office drawer organizers for as little as $10 each. The benefit, however, of the printer drawer if the unique small spaces that allow you to add cup hooks for earrings.

So here are 3 final idea outside wall storage. Ceramic hands are a great way to store bracelets and rings. Glass bottles can also work for bracelets but make sure you like the shabby chic route before you do this one. Finally, a sewing mannequin makes a great place to add a collection of brooches, as long as you don’t need the mannequin too often.

Lots of options. Lots of styles. And there’s plenty more where these came from. Let me know if any of them work for you or if you have a creative approach I haven’t mentioned.

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30. June 2011 by Parker.

I do research a lot. So much so that I can be called a Digital Hoarder. I have files upon files of pics for events I have planned, homes I have decorated, sets I have designed, and miscellaneous items that I simply found helpful or entertaining or dream closet worthy. And since my husband and I attend several black tie events every year, these seven gowns aren’t that far out of my reach!

As you can tell, I adore flowing, layered gowns. They make me feel like a princess!

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19. May 2011 by Parker.

I love the fact that fashion goes in circles. In the 20s, women wore beautiful head pieces, the 50s was all about gorgeous hats, the late 70s and early 80s were all about head bands, and now, we have gorgeous fascinators. Here’s a look at some of the ones I have my eye on:

A cool blend of black and chartreuse….

Simple pleated ribbons in 2 shades of green. If only the center pin was Irish themed.

This one would be easy to make myself with all black and peacock feathers.

Ahhh….the bigger the better! An amazing blend of flowers, feathers, and gold embellishments.

Part of me would be worried about taking someone’s eye out with such a tall pointy feather!

I want this one. ‘Nough said.

By blending soft jewel tones, this fascinator seems quite appropriate for early Spring!

Big. Floral. Sparkly.

I think the pink hair sells this one for me. I really like it but worry it wouldn’t look as cool on say, a blond head of hair!

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10. May 2011 by Parker.

When the Ghost Whisperer was on the air, I must admit I watched it more for the wardrobe than the storyline. I was absolutely in love with Jennifer Love Hewitt’s entire closet from hats to shoes. If her wardrobe consultant could just come on over and go shopping with me, I would be the happiest girl in the world. Better yet, just send me the wardrobe trailer from the set since it is no longer on the air. Anyone think they can make that happen for me? I’d be forever grateful.

Either way, here is a selection of my favorites….

I’ll be keeping an eye on the mail for a package….Wink.

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11. February 2011 by Parker.

Oh, Alexander McQueen….It’s been one year since your amazing talent left us so I wanted to pay homage to your many visions. I pray that you are resting in peace and like to think of you designing gowns for Greek goddesses in the heavens somewhere. We miss you!

…which leads us to men’s fashion. A hint of Victorian Gothic with a dash of modern.

Can’t you just imagine Edward Cullen running around in these clothes?

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10. February 2011 by Parker.

I had this great idea years ago to make aprons that look like cute dresses from the front. I drew sketches, picked out funky prints and yet, never made a single sample. So you can imagine my frustration (and excitement) when I pull up Anthropologie’s website only to find these amazing aprons on their site. Oh well, at least I know my idea was a good one. Now which apron to purchase?

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3. January 2011 by Parker.

For those who are unfamiliar with it, Steampunk is a fairly new term that is used for the Neo-Victorian era when everything ran on steam. It’s a mash up of punk meets Victorian, two of my all time favorite styles. So here’s a look at some of my top looks:

I know corsets caused tons of physical pain back then so I’m completely grateful to new manufacturing which allows us to wear them today. Plus, who can resist a comfy pair of knee high granny boots?

Eye patches, monocles, pilot goggles, and periscope all take precedent in this realm.

I love her Steampunk Circus Ringmaster look!

One of the appeals to this look is the harsh fabrics against soft tones and embellishments. There is just something very feminine about it all underneath!

Speaking of feminine….

I’m a sucker for a an aviation hat or vintage keys any day!

And who can resist the petticoats and bustles…

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6. November 2010 by Parker.

I’m a sucker for all things vintage. Show me a way to recycle old items with a new purpose and it only gets better. That’s why I absolutely love these brooch bouquets. You can combine family heirlooms, something borrowed or blue, and add a hint of something special between you two to create a sparkling bouquet that will never spoil. Check out these examples:

I adore the classic black and white combination with the hint of red from the dragonfly.

Usually I tend to stay far away from gold and silver combinations, however the red and black ties it together nicely.

And for those of you that just cannot settle on a color scheme, multi colored bouquets allow you to pull from all resources: grandma, sister-in-law, goodwill, trunk shows, et cetera.

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