ready for the weekend

I've got a long list of weekend projects to tackle over the next few days and I'm ready to get going.  My backyard needs a little sprucing up to get ready for warm-weather BBQs.  I've also got to get my dining room in shape now that I have a new table and plans to paint the walls a bright blue.  Finally, I've been inspired by my Wednesday post to inject a little turquoise into my office by painting the base of my lamp and re-covering my inspiration board.  I'll be sure to take pictures for my upcoming post on office spaces.  Hope you have a fun weekend planned!

P.S.  I've been meaning to post a link to this, but in case you missed the opportunity to gawk at the amazing gowns worn at the annual Costume Institute Gala held at the Met this week, Vogue has complete coverage on their website.  Red carpet photos can be found here.  A behind-the-scenes video of the event can be found here.  The video about what goes into planning the Met gala can be found here (it also includes a sneak peak at the Met's new exhibit, American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity).  Guy Trebay's New York Times article covering the event can be found here.  

image j.crew via MA Belle 

tastemaker: lela rose

Lela Rose has been on my radar for a few years now.  The Texas-born, Manhattan-based designer is best known for her wedding gowns, but I've got my eye on her ready to wear collections.  I seem to love designers who would I could see fitting in to my group of friends, and Lela comes across as the girl-next-door who made it big as a designer.  She's also an alumna of my sorority, so how can I not love her?

How adorable is she on her bike!?  She uses it to commute to work in NYC.

I'm loving her Spring collection of ladylike dresses.  They would be perfect for work!

{Lela Rose RTW Spring 2010}

I love this shade of yellow for a fun spring or summer cocktail party.

This is my favorite ensemble from her 2010 resort collection, and a great work inspiration outfit.  

{Lela Rose RTW Resort 2010}

I can't wait to see her 2010 fall collection in department stores!

{Lela Rose RTW Fall 2010}

images via lela rose | time out new york | new york magazine

a touch of turquoise

Pops of turquoise and aqua always catch my eye when I'm browsing blogs or flipping through magazines.  I'm thinking of adding a little turquoise in my office so I can enjoy it during the daytime.

P.S.  I loved the color used on the August 2004 issue of Real Simple so much, I had paint mixed to match it and painted my entire room with the color.  I've since re-painted, but the color lives on in my house...my roommate used the same color in her recent room re-do.  

Finally, a tad more turquoise....

images via domino | rubie green | the hive at 1511 | domino | martha stewart (blueprint) | house of turquoise | real simple | coco+kelly | ruby press | lonny | vogue | ivanka trump's dining room via house and garden | house of turquoise

loveable lucite

I've been loving acrylic/lucite furniture lately.  It all started when I saw this lovely dining room in the January/February 2008 issue of Blueprint magazine...

Then Philippe Starck's Louis Ghost Armchair came on my radar as a potential desk chair....

So I broke down and bought this set of lucite nesting tables from CB2...  (They look amazing in my living room and are really functional.)  

And now I want to furnish my entire house in lucite!

images via martha stewart (blueprint) | teen vogue | cb2 | apartment therapy | decor pad | jonathan adler | house beautiful | patricia gray | eddie ross for martha stewart living | lonny

pretty peonies

Yeah for the month of May!  The entire month is peak blooming season for peonies, so go out and treat yourself.  I did!  Whole Foods has five stem bunches for $9.99 - a steal if you ask me!

Peonies are my favorite flowers, so I'll be treating myself to weekly bouquets all month long.  Some day, I hope to have as lovely of a peony garden as you know who....  

images via martha stewart | this is glamorous | flickr | domino

off to the races!

Tomorrow I'll be attending the Virginia Gold Cup Races at Great Meadow in The Plains, VA.  I'm looking forward to wearing my new coral sundress from Anthropologie and slipping on my current footwear obsession, Cynthia Vincent for Target Gladiator Wedges.  The day is sure to be packed with good friends, sunshine (fingers crossed), bourbon-laced cocktails, and of course, horse racing!

On Sunday, I'll be heading to the Georgetown Flea Market for the first time this spring.  If I find any great deals, I'll be sure to share them here- so stay tuned.  Hope you all have a fantastic weekend.  

kelly wearstler in t magazine

The New York Times's T-Magazine has a new Kelly Wearstler interactive web feature up on their website.  The feature includes images of Wearstler, her sons, her office and samples of her work.  Wearstler fans will recognize most of the images, and those of you who aren't yet familiar with her work are in for a huge visual treat.  Enjoy!

all images via New York Times website

the $76 million woman

You may have already picked up on the fact that I have a growing obsession with the luxury retailer, Net-a-Porter.com (pronounced net-a-portier).  The seed of my obsession was planted a few years ago when I stumbled on a profile of Net-a-Porter founder and CEO Natalie Massenet in Vogue magazine.   I've been hooked ever since.  Massenet, a former fashion journalist and stylist, made headlines a few weeks ago for selling her Net-a-Porter shares for a cool $76 million to the Richemont Group (owners of  luxury brands like Chloe and Cartier).  Massenet will stay on as the CEO.

The news of the deal sparked a fair amount of online media attention from news sources all over the world.  My favorite feature is Fast Company's Crib Sheet interview in which Massenet shares a few of the secrets to her success.  Her tips include: disregard your doubters, believe in your product, believe in yourself, innovate, service, service, service, know your market, hire talent, and finally, see the future.  Fast Company also included a YouTube video of a panel discussion she participated in at Zeitgeist Europe 2007.  If you have an extra fifteen minutes to kill today, I highly recommend it.

Vogue Daily's Sarah Mower asked possibly the most important question any woman can only dream of asking herself, "What do I wear the day I make $76 million?"  For Massenet, the answer was her favorite uniform: a white shirt from the Brooks Brothers boys department, a Marc Jacobs black skirt, black Wofford 100-denier tights, Chloe biker boots, Alexander Wang's Rocco bag and a black, belted Carven coat by Guillaume Henry. It just goes to show, you can never go wrong with the classic black and white combination.

What would you wear the day you made $76 million?  Feel free to share in the comments section!  

photos via Fast Company | Vogue.com