A Baby Skunk

Is there any reason I shouldn't buy this for the tiny human?

Baby Skunk outfit from The Gap

Reasons to buy it come more easily:
1. It's a skunk outfit. For a baby.
2. It's on sale.
3. Looks cozy for winter.
4. Babies probably smell bad sometimes. So do skunks.
5. It would be a baby dressed like an animal.
6. What else?

Update: Here's a good reason--it's out of stock in the bigger sizes. :(

Spring Shoes

It's nearly spring and I'm longing for at least one of these to join my closet this year.

 Seychelles

Born

 Leifsdottir

 Diane von Furstenberg

They would make me feel better about the horrid lack of cute maternity clothes that I have. 

Holiday Shopping

Um, so, some slightly shameful self-promotion here today. I'm participating in Etsy's Cyber Monday promotion by offering 10 percent off everything in my store until midnight. To get the discount, just use the code CYBERMONDAY when you check out.

Also, because so many of the items in my shop are made-to-order in your size or special color requests they take awhile to make. In order to make sure your gifts arrive by Christmas, I need to have your order by  Sunday, Dec. 12.

Sadly, and happily, I suppose, my favorite earrings already sold today even though I just put them up for sale yesterday. I was kind of hoping no one would want them so I could keep them. But that's ok. I won't tell you what my other favorites are so you won't feel bad about buying them!

And, you can follow me on Twitter or Facebook if you want more updates about new items or holiday specials.

Bra Shopping

I would guess just about every women shuddered reading the title of this post. On a shopping scale, looking for a bra is less fun that swimming suit shopping and slightly more fun than trying to find the perfect jeans.

The last time I went bra shopping I picked about a dozen bras in my size and took them into the fitting room where none (NONE!) fit. The perky little blond working there offered to do a bra fitting/sizing thing on me so I took her up on it. After wrangling that little measuring tape around my body in a multitude of directions she announced that I was definitely wearing the wrong size and needed to go up at least a cup size.

SO determined to take home something that actually fit I bought two bras that day in the giant-boob size she said I was. One fit really well, actually, and I liked it a lot. The other one I tried on again at home for Husband. His response: "That looks like a giant old lady with saggy boobs bra." Obviously, that one went back.

This weekend I picked up a few of my favorite panties and decided to grab a bra while I was there. My new regular size was nowhere to be found, of course, as it's rather obscure. Another perky, curly blond came over to help me look and when she heard what size I was looking for she immediately pulled me into the changing area and held a cup up to my boob.

"See, that's what I thought! You're not nearly that big. You're definitely wearing too large of a bra. You need this one instead," she chirps.

Okaaaaay.

At this point I'm trying to cover my frustration so I try on the size she recommended--my old regular size. The instant I had the thing on it was painfully obvious that it was not the correct size. Perky Girl came in then to look and stood there for a second with pursed lips before announcing that, "You really are full-chested aren't you?"

Apparently I'm destined to wear old lady bras forever. 

Gilt Shopping

It's really no secret that I like to shop. I love clothes and shoes and bags (and hair products, but that's a different story). Living in my little rural town there is not a lot of clothes shopping to be done locally so I end up shopping online or waiting until I visit a big city where I then feel like I have to get a whole season's worth of clothing all at once.

 Kelsie Dagger sandals that are almost-but-not-quite perfect for an upcoming wedding

Awhile ago I was introduced to Gilt. It's one of those invitation-only sale sites that's mostly out of my price range. But since the husband and I are trying to stick to our budget and keep a tight hold on unexpected expenses, I've started stalking the site for good deals. I might go months without getting anything, but then I find the perfect pair of shoes or my favorite jeans (yay for jeans that actually fit!) or my favorite face products and then I stock up.

 Twinkle by Wenlan dress I want today. 

If you want to sign up, you can use my code: http://www.gilt.com/invite/kristispurgeon
 

Friday Flutter: Work Clothes

We are headed to Seattle this weekend to see our respective sisters and to go shopping. Judging from the trouble I have finding clothes for work each morning I have come to the conclusion that I have almost no work appropriate summer-ish clothes. So, using the very small budget I have for clothes I'm trying to find cute work clothes at standard mall stores since they're probably all having Memorial Day sales.

From my internet pre-shopping scouting, here are a few things I'm looking at:

 Ann Taylor Loft

 J. Crew

 The Limited (this one is hard to see here but it's really cute in person)

 Ann Taylor

Hopefully it's a success and I find things that fit, are good for work, and don't cost much!

Black Dress, part II

I have tried to take pictures of myself in my new dress but believe me, you do not want to see them. It would probably help if I was using something other than my iphone camera... but still. So here is the picture of the dress online instead:

And other than the fact that I fill out the top, um, quite a bit more, it fits the rest of me quite like this. Classic? Classy? Timeless? I think so. Sexy? Not so sure. What do you think?

Dress Success, part I

I found a black dress! When I was visiting my parents in California earlier this week my mom and I stopped by Nordstrom where I tried on every black dress in my size. I ended up purchasing the very first one I tried on. It's nothing like what I was looking for... and yet it's oh-so-lovely.*

Pictures to follow after I try it on and have Husband take some.


*Shawna, please don't hate it! I don't want to have to start over. :)

Black Dresses

I need a black dress.

That shouldn’t be hard, right? I mean, The Little Black Dress is iconic. It’s everywhere. But not the dress I want. My lovely friend is getting married in July and has asked all seven (I know right? Seven?! Poor thing) bridesmaids to wear knee-ish length black dresses. For which I completely love her. Or would, if I could find one.

I ordered* a beautiful one on sale, and when it arrived the material wasn’t nearly as nice as it looked online. And then, the zipper didn’t work well. So I returned it. Then I bought another** which I thought would be fantastic, except that it just doesn’t work with my body. It’s non-refundable though, but I can’t wear it. Believe me, it’s not appropriate. If you’re taller than I am (5’3”) and a little more straight in shape, email me, because I need to get this dress to someone who can wear it.

What I really want is a 50’s style party dress, a la Audrey Hepburn. Which, obviously, doesn’t exist.

So here’s what I’m looking at right now:

 Maggy London Stretch Satin Sheath at Nordstrom

 J. Crew Silk Tricotine Cecelia

Imagine this one without the feathers and knee-length. Perfect. via Ikahn Vintage on Etsy.

 Like this but a little fancier? via Audrey and Grace on Etsy.

 The J.Crew one is my favorite so far because it seems so... basic. Multi-functional. Help?!?! Where should I expand my search to? What hidden shopping secrets do you have? 

*Yes, ordered. I live in the sticks where I have to drive 45 minutes to the next town to a Target or Costco. Or anything, really. It's a cute town, really it is. And I love it. Unless I need something mainstream in which case I have to drive four hours to Seattle. 

**Both were J. Crew but they're not on the site anymore and I remember the names of them to show you.

Coffee Table Love

I went to this new consignment shop in my town the other day. Back behind the counter I spotted a strange and oddly intriguing mid-century coffee table that I couldn't quite figure out. It appeared to be a nesting coffee table, but that didn't see quite right. Then I saw that it had six legs, which also seemed strange. Finally, the sales girl showed me that it was a swiveling coffee table. The top and bottom were attached near one end and could rotate independently of each other.

Did you see that? I said SWIVEL.

Not sure I'd ever been so excited about something before.

They wanted $200 for the table which was more than I wanted to spend. It needed a little work so I thought about trying to talk them down, but instead sadly went home. But you know how sometimes you can't get an object, or movie, or idea out of your head? And you just know it's good and that you really, really need it? 

So I called Husband on my way home from work and told him I was stopping by to pick it up. Except, when I arrived the sales girl said they had sold it THAT DAY. Nooooo!

When I got home I saw this:

Yes, Husband was the secret purchaser. And he talked down the price. And it had been mismarked. So he brought home my new love for only $100.*

*and the price of the lovely daffodils he picked up and had sitting there. He's a good husband, yes?

Found: Etsy Bike Clock

Isn't this clock fantastic?

I just found it on the Etsy shop 1.by.liz. Liz makes all these clocks by hand from reclaimed bicycle parts. I am definitely getting one for my dad for Father's Day (hooray for planning ahead!).

My dad loves cycling. We used to go on long rides when my sister and I were kids. Then, he'd leave us at the house and continue on for a "real" ride. We grew up knowing more about cycling and the Tour de France than any other sport.

In fact, when I studied in London one summer I snuck away to Paris for about 30 hours, just to see the final stage of the the Tour and watch Lance Armstrong win again. I brought my dad back a shirt and a Tour pendant that I found.

He's going to love it--I hope!

Photo: via 1.by.liz's etsy shop.

Retro-style Peace of Mind

I love having things put away. I love having a place for everything--especially when that "place" is a box, bin, basket or cupboard. I don't like clutter and I'd always rather go through the extra step of opening something to get what I need than just reaching for it on an already crowded countertop.

And yes, my husband is the exact opposite. Fun times.

We went to Target this weekend and as we walked passed this amazing contraption I stopped with my mouth hanging open. And apparently with wide, pleading eyes because he picked it up and put in in the basket.

Ta da! This totally retro bread box is now sitting on our counter with sourdough, banana bread and bagels inside.

I've been wanting a bread box (yeah, I know, people think I'm weird) but not only is this a bread box... it's old looking and it's turquoise. We have turquoise retro kitchen chairs*, I kid you not, so this is awesome.

I feel like I could die happy right now.

*which really is kind of weird, because although I have an eclectic decorating style it still leans more toward the Crate & Barrel aesthetic than anything else. But we love them. And they came from Ikea--on sale!

Paris Love Letters

In complete violation of our spending freeze I just bought* this beautiful print from littlebrownhen's Etsy shop. We've been patching and painting and fixing up our guest bedroom all week and this will look perfect right above the bed.

*Don't tell my husband!

My Etsy Store: Mischief by Loki

I've started up an Etsy store and I'm feeling both excited and regretful*. A couple years ago I started playing around with making jewelry. Then I took a class on metal work and ended up learning from an amazing artist who lived in town and worked at a local jewelry store.**

I've been making pieces for myself and my friends (who are all tired of receiving jewelry for their birthdays and Christmas, I think). I enjoy searching for beautiful stones in interesting shapes and colors. I like spending hours working on the perfect design, although, I've learned that I mostly like simple, delicate pieces where the beauty of the stone or metal is the showcase.*** So most of my jewelry is simple and, dare I say, plain. Though, of course, I think it's quite lovely!

My husband was actually the one to encourage me to open the shop as I was running out of room for storing more pieces and couldn't possibly wear them all. Plus, I think he'd like me to recoup the costs of my materials! I think he's also been quite excited about all the free time he has right now since my urge to renovate our entire house has diminished somewhat as I'm currently spending EVERY evening working on getting the shop up and running.

So... please go take a look. { http://www.etsy.com/mischiefbyloki }Since I'm new and you're all so smart, I'm looking for advice and suggestions. What designs do you like most (alas, my favorite isn't up yet, incidentally. I'm wearing it today as I've been tweaking it for several days now)? How are the pictures? What else would you like to see? What should I do differently? What should I keep the same?

Thank you!!

*Exited because, well, how awesome would it be if people liked my stuff? But regretful because it takes up a lot more time than I thought it would!
**He was also going to make the wedding ring Husband and I custom designed but just after he started on it he moved to Texas to get married. Bleh!
***Most of the pieces up right now are stone, pearl or bead work. There's not a lot of metalwork though that's coming. In fact, I'm wearing my favorite piece right now as I've been tweaking it for several days now and am testing it out today.

All Waffles Should Taste Like This...

My mother-in-law likes to send us periodic packages filled with little treats or gifts. She recently sent us a box with some fall-colored pot holders, a couple bags of these great organic walnuts she gets somewhere near their home, a decorative thing for baking pies, and this:

the Williams-Sonoma Spiced Pecan Pumpkin Pancake and Waffle Mix

It's delightful. Truly. This makes some of the best waffles I've ever had... and definitely the best pre-mixed ones. Ours has just run out so I looked online but I guess they only sell it for a really short time in the fall. Makes me wish we didn't live in the sticks and could get to a Williams-Sonoma with less than a 4+ hour drive.

I hope she sends more next fall. I'm hoping for a dozen tins.

Crate & Barrel Holiday Fun

Husband's house is much bigger than my house so I'm trying to figure out how to spread my holiday decor throughout the whole place (yes, I love decorating for Christmas so much I try to fit it into every room). I think it's a lost cause. Not being a very handy DIY kind of girl I think I trip to C&B may be in order...

I think my puppies would appreciate chewing up this  ridiculously expensive, yet nifty feeling pillow:

And I think this set of red sheets would add some fun color to the guest room:

And these pancake molds... just because I LOVE pancakes so much.

 Images from C&B of course

Friday Flutter

Never thought I would say this but I've been lusting over cardigans like crazy this year. And J Crew has some of the prettiest I've seen. This new one is lovely (attention family Christmas shoppers: this is a hint) and perfect for work.