Nordstrom Shopping Party Fun

Most girls don’t need an excuse to shop, but Nordstrom does up the experience by decorating their stores and opening the doors for an extravaganza. The night began with a visit from a quite dapper Santa who donned his Renaissance suit. And then there were the platters of delicious bites constantly passing by. These truffles with edible flowers were too …

The Christmas Passion Plant

We all know that it’s considered bad luck to avoid kissing a charmer under the mistletoe. But have you also heard that this winter-blooming plant is actually a not-so-romantic parasite? I don’t want you to let a little detail like that get in the way of holiday fun, so today I’m sharing how mistletoe became a passion plant:) According to …

Pursuing the Perfect Gown

I’ve been invited to a black tie charity gala. And since it’s not every weekend that a girl gets to wear a floor-length gown for a good cause, I tried on a variety of dress styles. At the time, there just happened to be a very friendly bunch in the store and they all started weighing in on favorites. This …

Outdoor Holiday Décor

Wells Medina, a nursery based in the Seattle Area, is always plant paradise, but around the holidays it’s also a haunt for beautiful outdoor décor. Whether you live in Seattle, or you’re just visiting, in my opinion, Wells should make the no-miss list. Their winter decorations are designed for the outdoors. Many of them are made from nature’s bounty. They …

Gorgeous DIY Holiday Decorations

As I was shopping last weekend, I noticed how mega-expensive holiday décor could be. That’s what I call, the Rolls-Royce of decorating. If such extravagance would make you take out a loan, don’t despair. There’s no need to leave your home void of sparkle. Today, I’m divulging a DIY project guaranteed to deck the halls in style without obliterating your …

Be a Burberry Babe…

…with Lip Glow Gloss. During the holiday season, everything is glowing from twinkle lights on storefronts, to shiny ribbons on boxes and flickering candles on tables. So who says we girls can’t glow too?! This gloss actually belongs to my mom. As I was visiting my family over Thanksgiving, I confess to borrowing this cosmetics keeper. I think I’m going …

Time to Tune In…

…to the real world. In today’s tech-loving, connected existence, leaving the house without a phone in hand is almost as crazy as forgetting to put your pants on. People feel naked without their cells. I love mine just as much as everyone else, but I’ve always made a concerted effort to put it in off mode when interacting with people. …

Little Red Dress

In my mind, that’s a staple for any holiday event. Today, my red and green clothes got shuffled to the front of my closet. They’re staying there until January! One of my little cousins has a love for dressing up. I wonder where that came from? 😉 She has a party to attend this weekend and has already tried on three …

A Warm Thanks to All of You

Happy Thanksgiving, darlings! Some people double-fist their drinks. Well, I double-hand my pumpkin pie:) And I wore this tribal print dress to do it in because I always find a way to honor Native Americans on Thanksgiving. After all, we would not have had that first holiday without them. Before continuing the celebration, I’m stopping to thank every one of …

Holiday Nails

I’m ready to welcome all the holiday parties, and now my nails are party-appropriate too, thanks to the help of my #1 manicurist. I’m calling this look The Julie Nail. The combination of colors in this creation can carry you through the entire holiday season. To build it, we used OPI and FingerPaints. First, Julie applied two base coats of …

Channeling Chantecaille

What’s about the only place that you can find a throng of fashionable ladies early on a Saturday morning looking bright-eyed sans lattes-in-hand? That would be a cosmetic trend show. And when Alex Chantecaille took the stage, the entire audience had their eyes glued on her. I bet you can see why. She’s intelligent, beautiful and full of information about …

True Love’s Secret

Today, I’m sharing some advice for all of you navigating the road to lasting romance. And…let’s be real…true love isn’t always easy to find and maintain. These tips come from a couple who were happily married for about sixty years. They recently passed away, but for most of my life they were like grandparents to me. When the wife departed, her …

Designer in her 70s Who Can Do the Splits

And precede it with a high kick and a cartwheel! That’s Betsey Johnson. She was on Dancing with the Stars this season and showed that someone with decades of designing success can be humorous, lovable and willing to laugh off even a wardrobe malfunction in front of America. In anticipation of Thanksgiving, I’m wearing one of her harvest-colored creations. I …

From an Orphanage to a Stage

This Travel Thursday post is about an American couple who traveled to Panama and back for love, and their Central American daughter who used her love of dance to overcome obstacles. Yiselina (Yise, pronounced “GC”) is living proof that happiness isn’t an outcome, it’s an outlook, and setbacks can be stepping stones to success. She and her parents have agreed …

Winter Blooms

Just because we’ve had a cold snap in many places doesn’t mean we have to say farewell to flowers outside until spring. I made a trip to my favorite nursery to pick out plants for my deck pots that will last all season. If you do up winter pots too, I suggest keeping some plant cloth on hand to protect …