Sneak Peek: Rodarte for Target

From the sister's who brought us this great dress below:



They're bringing their funky-romantic style to Target (Tar-jay if you're feelin fancy). The line was hugely inspired by Style Rookie's Tavi Gevinson. The savvy mini (in size only) fashion blogger . She's 13, and adorable!

See the complete look book here. See anything you like? I want the bow belt and lace tights!!!
Hopefully the quality wouldn't be compromised too much. I was not enthused with the quality of Anna Sui's collection for Target a few months back.
The line hits Target stores December 20th!

Christmas Shopping Primer

I love shopping! It's also very fun for me to find the perfect gift for loved ones on my list. I find the following tips to work year after year:

• Make a list; check it twice. I keep an excel spreadsheet that list: recipients, birthdays, Christmas lists, and costs. This keeps everything organized and I know how much I'm spending throughout the year.
• Keep notes on what you think the recipient will like. Sizes, favorite colors, likes, dislikes, should be noted.
• If the recipient is one that has everything they need; think little luxuries like accessories (read: neat stuff no one needs but is pretty cool to have).
• Power in numbers: If you found a pretty cool gift and think that it would be perfect for multiple recipients... do it!
• Gift cards are okay! Think about where the person likes to shop and consider a dollar amount that would be useful toward a purchase at that store
• Shop throughout the year: If I find a great deal I'll buy it and store it. I have a cardboard box in my closet where I store cards and gifts.
• It's the thought that counts!

Little luxuries I've purchased for the good girls on my Christmas List:

Scarves: There are various colors, patterns, and textures, just think about the recipient's style
MbMJ Key Pouch: I bought a few of these from Neiman Marcus during a special sale they had for $34!! These are perfect for keys, cash, and credit cards for those nights out. The jewel tones are spot on for the season.
Lumiere Candles: I grabbed a few in Citrus Rind (smells just like grapefruit) for $10 at Anthropologie! Gift cards: I like getting gift cards to places that are useful to the recipient, like Costco or Target.
Statement Necklace: Necklaces like these will perk up any outfit and the recipient too! I love this necklace so much I wanted one for myself.

Lemon bars!!

Tangy and sweet all at once. These are easy to make, there are only 5 ingredients! I used a recipe from Martha's Favorite Cookie Recipes a booklet I received for free from a Martha Stewart Living subscription:

Ingredients:

for cookie base
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sifted all purpose flour
1/3 sugar

for topping
4 large eggs
5 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine butter, flour, sugar. Press mixture into unbuttered 9x13 inch baking pan. Bake until just brown, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven.

For topping, lightly whisk eggs. Sift together flour, sugar, add to eggs. Add lemon juice, stir and pour over partially baked base. Bake for 20 minutes more or until topping is firm. Chill before cutting.

Holidaze!

The holidays are here in full swing. I hope you all had a festive Thanksgiving with your loved ones!


Here's an iphone pic of our spread:

Rocky: our guest of honor

Ready, Set, Go!

This past weekend I got to play a part in a photoshoot! I was very fun and interesting. Kept me on my toes the whole time!

Here are a few pictures I took behind the scenes:

Makeup artist: Courtney at work

Models: Mike and Alison on the trampoline getting direction from photographer Jerry

More details to come!

Mad Men Fashion

Rob and I have been quite obsessed with the tv series Mad Men for the past couple of weeks. The drama, the hair, the vocabulary, the clothes!

One of the best dressed characters is Joan, a sultry redhead, she always wears solids and one statement jewelry piece. She works her curves like no one's business!



Here's my Joan inspired (yet modern) Christmas Party outfit (if I had unlimited funds).

Items in this set:
Thread Social dress, $495
Christian Louboutin shoes, $895
By Malene Birger necklace, $315
TopShop tights
Shop.hm.com glove

*Thanks Anton for urging me to netflix the series. I will not be watching SYTYCD though, thanks (but no thanks).

Therapy

I had three great forms of therapy this past weekend.

Baking: I baked Pioneer Woman's "Best" Chocolate Cake recipe. The cake is very moist and the chocolate is really pronounced. The frosting was too sweet. I would make this cake again with a semi-sweet ganache for frosting, maybe add some coffee to cut the sweetness, (I really should just cut out some of the sugar, but c'mon!). Plus: This cake is super easy to make!



Shopping: Hooray for Gap's Give and Get Program. I scored this dress from BR for $27:
How I'm going to wear it
Work: Long sleeve black tee underneath, gray cardigan, black tights, and flats or boots
Out: Black velvet blazer, black tights, gold jewelry, and heels


Anthro sale finds:



59.99-This sweater is very "grandma chic". It looks a bit frumpy but oh so comfy! It has pockets and a hood! I'll really have to play this one up with bright tees underneath, brooches, or long necklaces.








49.99-Mad for plaid! This dress is super cute and it stands on its own. Yes I'll wear it with tights too.

Sleep! I think we clocked in a good 8.5 hours on Saturday night!

Overall a great weekend!

The elusive Chocodile

It's been a few weeks since we've moved in and we haven't completely unpacked yet. We have actually been living around the mess (so bad!).

However I'm very excited because I found out we live near a Wonder Hostess Bakery Outlet!!

Ho-hos, sno-balls, home run pies, chocodiles.. OH MY! My mother used to frequent these Outlet shops, and it would be the only time we ever got to eat Wonder bread (I used to think it was the best bread ever).

I went for a visit and bought 2 boxes (10 in each box) of chocodiles and one snack pack of sno-balls, which came to a grand total of $4.80!

Chocodiles: In short they are chocolate covered twinkies. Its the same chocolate used to coat ho -ho's and ding dongs. It's not the best, but if you're eating a chocodile you're not shooting for gourmet quality. I'm not sure why, but I never see them being sold outside of an outlet store...

I need to wash these puppies down with some tea!