Monday, October 31, 2011

Etsy Finds of the Day: Accessories Au Naturel

Today I'm featuring Etsy picks that are natural and uncut and unpolished.

$155 Rough diamond and gold studs
I looove unpolished diamonds. Then you can walk around all day saying "I'm a diamond in the rough!"

$28 Pyrite crystal necklace
Pyrite, or fool's gold,  has some amazing crystal forms, including these pyritohedrons. New word!!
Pyrite's natural crystal form is a cube, but it also comes in these soccer ball-ish shapes and radiant form which looks like a sun and botryoidal form which looks like lots of globs and bubbles.

$144 Sterling silver ring with natural apatite, garnet, tourmaline, and rodonite crystals
Interesting irregular four leaf clover-like design. The colors aren't ones I would normally choose to go together but I think they work well.

$27 Coyote fang brass earrings
Bitchin

$52 Sterling silver succulent plant cufflinks
GUYS! These are INCREDIBLE!
They are real, live plants growing in silver cufflinks and yes you can wear them.
I wonder how long they live for and if you can keep them alive for a while after you buy them.
Wouldn't they make awesome groomsmen gifts?

Happy Halloween! Orange Accessories

Happy Halloween for those of you who like that sort of thing.
I do not number among you, unless you count my undying love for mini-Snickers.

However, I can totally get down with some festive orange accessories. They are perfect for today or for any Fall day.

Orange scarves
Wear these with an emerald or aubergine cardigan and brown pants

$27 Pumpkin pie silk handpainted scarf

$57 Society For Scarves wool mixed stripe scarf

$16 Upcycled sweater infinity scarf

Orange Shoes
Orange can be used as a bright neutral, like red. You can wear it with black for a crisp modern look or brown for a country Fall look. I prefer brown so no one asks me if it's Halloween whenever I wear it.

$88 Sofft Ramona peeptoe heel

$328 Jil Sander Andromeda black and orange platform heel

$79 Lauren Ralph Lauren Corita tangerine leather loafer

Stuart Weitzman boots
$60 Stuart Weitzman studded trim jelly rain boots

Orange Earrings
These can go with anything, no matching necessary!

$24 Gold and carnelian cluster drops

$9 Tangerine and brass filigree earrings

$32 Blood orange enamel cup earrings

It's Trenchcoat Time

Trenches are just the thing for these variable weather days.
You can unbutton them and not be too hot, or button them up and wrap a fluffy scarf around your neck and be cozy and warm.
I love my black cotton trenchcoat that I got at Uniqlo a few years ago, but it is wearing a little thin and has a hole in the armpit, so it might be time to start looking for a new one.

Luckily, HauteLook (one of those flash sale sites) is having a London Fog trenchcoat sale RIGHT NOW!
There is a classic black belted one for $79 which is the most like my current one, but there are also some warmer wool coats and other styles.

(They are all at the same link, so just follow that one above)

$79 London Fog Belted Trench
Keeps you warm when you need it to, and doesn't make you all sweaty in the rain.

$99 London Fog Double Breasted Military Trench
Classic with just a little sheen.


$99 London Fog Wool Coat with Wide Collar
I like the bold buttons and the extra large collar.

$99 London Fog Down Jacket
This is a good puffer without the bulk. Flattering length, too.

Friday, October 28, 2011

Need a fancy dress? Getting married? Priscilla of Boston Sale

Priscilla of Boston, the bridal store with salons in a bunch of cities, is going out of business.
Sucks for brides who will now have fewer selections, but it is awesome for bargain hunters who want a cheap gown.


The stores close Dec 31 and from now until then, all of the samples are 70% off. Not bad! Bridal gowns, bridesmaids dresses, flower girl dresses, and accessories are all included.

I'm going to stop by the 40th st boutique in NY and see if anything is worth grabbing. (No, still not getting married, thanks for checking.)

Find a salon near you here.



I like a bunch of the gowns online but I am not sure what my local store will have.









Your Search Led You Here: Pt 2

See the first edition here.

This is a post in which I try to help out the errant internet surfers who've typed in search terms and have been brought to my blog only to be disappointed (probably). In order to compensate these folks, I've found what they are looking in case they search again and are brought back here.

To the person who searched "pirate mushroom" I give you:
$16 Plush felt mushroom pirate
I don't understand why you need this. But whatever floats your boat...


To the person who searched "50s tight tops" I give you:
$38 Vintage 1950s chevron blouse
Pretty cute, right? Not a bad search, Searcher. Unless you were looking for women or men in their 50s who are wearing tight tops. Which you probably were.

To the person who searched "3 tier bleachers" I give you:
$1,216 
Did you know that there is a website called aluminumbleachers.com? Now you do!


To the person who searched "Deer Makeup" I give you:



YOU'RE WELCOME

Etsy Finds of the Day: Vintage Purses

$29 Vintage M Monogram purse
I like the classic shape of this one. Any of my M-name friends want it?

$25 Patent leather hard shell bag
This brown bag is another structured vintage find. Shiny and in good shape, with a cool hinged opening.

$30 Black 1960s pillbox purse
I love this little one. It looks like a doctor bag but is teeny and just right for going out.

$48 Brass clamshell purse
This should be your new party bag. It is great for holding just a tiny amount of stuff, and has a shoulder strap so your hands can be free for drinking/dancing/whatever.

Melting Clock

$14.99 Melting clock
You plop this clock on a shelf or dresser and it stays by itself and looks like it is dripping down.
I like it! Not just another wall clock.
I wish it was metal instead of plated plastic, but at least it is cheap.

Thursday, October 27, 2011

What to Buy from Pottery Barn's Sale Section

I never even think about Pottery Barn because to me it is a store for boring suburbanites, but either I turned into one or they have better stuff than I thought, because I like a bunch of their sale section items.

$11 for little, $20 for big News Print Pillar candle
These are paraffin, which I think means they don't have a smell. But how cool would it be if they smelled like newspapers? Or even vanilla....

$64.99 Double drink dispenser
I like these glass drink thingies, and wish I had one. E and I bought something similar in a junk shop but it turns out.... it was junk! It doesn't hold liquids. So now I am on the market again and this double one looks good because you can put lemonade in one and iced tea in the other, or vodka in one and whiskey in the other.

$32.99 Silver plated double jewelry box
This looks like the world's fanciest contacts case, but is actually bigger and meant to hold jewelry. Engraving is classy. Fact.
Give it to your cousin for her Bat Mitzvah or birthday.

$44.99 Audio Unlimited floating speaker ball
WHAAAT!?! Awesome.
Bring your tunes literally in the water with you.
Can't you see Tom and Jean-Ralphio from Parks and Rec buying millions of these?

Make any blouse into a tie-neck blouse

Again, I am renaming this type of blouse.

Anyway, this velvet bow would look great on any and all shirts or dresses. If they are collared, just tuck this into the collar like a tie. If they aren't, tie it so that it lines up with the neck of the shirt and looks like it's natural top collar. You can even pin it down if you want to really create the illusion.

$20 Velvet bow collar

Etsy Finds of the Day: Home Improvements

$60 European embroidered pill box
Your prescription bottles are ugly and garish. This is more elegant and you can keep it out on the counter.

$49 Raw Steel giant allium sculptures
You can't grow anything cool in your garden, so just stick these in the ground and call it a day. They will rust and get their own patina with age, and look even better.

$40 Lacey porcelain light bulb shade
It's time to get rid of those tacky Ikea lanterns and get something more adult. You know it is true. This is not expensive and will transform the look of the whole room. A few of them hanging together would be even better.

$275 Art deco vanity and stool
Get your makeup off of the sink and get some pretty plates and bowls and arrange it all nicely on this vanity, like the lady you always wanted to be.

Great Online Store: Poketo

You might recognize the name Poketo from when they did a collaboration with Target. I didn't get anything of theirs then, but I am happy to report that their regular items are not too highly priced.

Their online store carries items from over 200 independent designers and generally features colorful home goods, apparel, and accessories. Most items are under $50, which is very affordable and makes this a dangerous store to browse.

Here are my picks:

$250 Upcycled Men's suit tote bag
A manly man purse

$48 Striped Canvas backpack
These are perfect- not too big, has a divider inside, and one pocket outside. Plus, under $50

$32 Micro Gem headphones
I am liking this earbud-as-jewelry trend! See previous post.

$35 Solar sphere lights
Funny little space age tripods make these cooler than the regular solar lanterns that you drive over with your car anyway even though you bought them just to light the driveway.

$22.80 Fly asymmetric top
This is wild! If I were a skinny stick figure, I would totally wear this. Otherwise, it can be hard to surrender your waistline like this and hope that people can still tell that you aren't preggers under there.
Oh! This would be great for pregnant people!

$28.80 Different Stripe Dress
The pleats make the stripes look so cool. If I didn't already have a million summer dresses, I'd be all over this.
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