The search is on: The White Purse

Nordstrom says this is an essential. Forever 21 has a variety on display. Angelina has a super hot Gucci version. The conclusion I draw from these points is simple: I WANT ONE.

I've been conducting random searches at Target, The Rack, Love Culture... to no avail. I'm generally not a picky purse hound, but this particular purse I have been dreaming about and I know what I want. Oversized, wide opening, some fun detail, nice, big straps... so, I've taken to the less-gratifying, non-instaneous world wide web. Here's what I found:

1. Ivory White BCBGeneration Oversized Weekender Tote Handbag this. i love. - $148:

2. Cheaper Version- $42 (this. is what i love almost as much. ):

Stay tuned as my search continues...

the summer unpack. by orange

Have you ever been told to go shopping in your own closet as a way to save money while satisfying the urge to shop? I say bull shit. Sure you can save some money, but I don't have a wardrobe big enough where I find re-discoveries and/or surprises of shirts and pants that I didn't know I had. Rather as I go through my closet I say, "wow I have nothing to wear...what a surprise as I thought this 15 min ago when I tried 'shopping in my closet.'" ...and I still want brand new, shiny shoes and a crisp new shirt.

The closest I have gotten to a successful end result while "shopping in my own closet" comes when unpacking summer or winter clothes. You may ask, unpacking?! With not having the closet of Alicia Silverstone in Clueless, come winter most of my summer tanks, shorts and sandals go into hibernation in the comfy tupperware bins in our guest bedroom.

With pieces of clothes sleeping the winter away, those articles tend to fade in my memory over the long cold season. Thus creating a smile on my face when pulling out the red patent leather flip flops or the dark denim true religion crop shorts. Not exactly the same as buying a new piece, however, almost there. I usually think - so happy I bought those!

Sunshine in Seattle has arrived. This summer's favorite un-pack item has to be my gold Lukas sandals by Steve Madden. What's your favorite summer sandal?

an inspiration: here's to happiness. by violet.

10 things that make me terribly happy.

1. swimming in the lake.

2. uncontrollable giggling.

3. early morning drives, a good soundtrack and a big cup of coffee.

4. trying my dad’s gourmet meals.

5. 30 rock.

6. that uninterrupted smile when you feel smitten.

7. a campfire, a cooler full of beer, a sunburn and a hoodie.

8. morning coffee with mom, watching breakfast at tiffany's.

9. clean sheets.

10. sitting on a deck during a warm summer night.

for more amazing lists and the story behind this inspiration, read this.

*** photo compliments of abless on flickr. ***

ring nail matchup. by orange

As mentioned in previous posts both orange and violet enjoy a good manicure; especially with a red, orange, coral or pink polish. Well not only can polish compliment an outfit; rings can be an excellent compliment to a fun polish. Check out my nail ring combo:















***Stephen Dweck ring - Nordstrom

Known as "The Romancer of the Stones," Stephen Dweck is strongly influenced by his love of art and nature. This passion inspired him to collect stones and minerals from around the world for his one-of-a-kind designs. Each is adorned with Adam, his signature beetle, symbolizing his affinity for nature.

***Crushed nail color by Sally Hansen Hard as Nails Xtreme Wear.

BTW - one of the best do-it-yourself nail polishes. It has incredible wear and goes on smooth instead of sticky.

sunshine in the row. by orange

Recently, some new peeps were moved to the cube row home of orange and violet. One of the new members of the row commented that wearing bright colors seemed to be a requirement of the row. Well when you live in Seattle, some bright pop of color is definitely needed; it can add some sunshine to the usual murky grey haze of northwest weather.

Now bright colors are not limited to just tops and bottoms; I think brightness can be found in a simple barrette, a headband, a sandal or a bangle. Here are some of favorite brights:

from the top:

kate spade idiom bangle

kate spade westbury drawstring purse in piscine (yes I do love me some kate)

alexis bittar lucite star necklace

tory burch rava jelly logo flat in purple

marc by marc jacobs cosmos star headband

marc by marc jacobs zip around wallet in electric green

when i grow up, i wanna be a rockstar. by violet.

thanks to the ever adorable Emily of cupcakesandcashmere, my penchant for a sugary-sweet love story became that much more ridiculous. before you laugh, i dare you to check out this blog.

apparently, josh and naomi are put on this earth to inspire us all with their style, their romance, their creativity and their stories on rockstar diaries. they take road trips, they use a Polaroid camera, they’re total foodies, they use DC and NYC as their playground, she has unbelievable style, he is awesomely talented and together, they make THE cutest couple in the blog world.

rockstar diaries hosts a brilliant feature called “here’s to happiness” (to which i want to contribute!). they collect lists from their friends of the 10 things that make them terribly happy. it is so simple, sweet and a breath of fresh air. i am obsessed with their lists! please visit them and soon enough, you will be just as smitten as i am. promise.

sidenote: orange violet will be submitting our own “here’s to happiness lists” and would love for you to share yours!

** all pictures courtesy of naomi and josh & their brilliant friends. see more here.

fun name things. by orange

Ever like something just because of its name? Those genius people in Marketing really know how to get to the consumer sometimes. Now although marketers (I don't think!) came up with the name "schnoodle," to be honest the name was part of the reason why we ended up looking into the breed and thus, now have Payton - our little Schood. I mean, how can you resist a name like that - schnoodle! So fun to say...I digress.

Well some other things that have fun names are: glassybaby & Yummie Tummie.

Yummie Tummie was started by Heather Thomson while fighting the battle of the bulge after two children. The entrepreneurial mother began sewing the nifty torso tighteners in her NYC apartment. Before she knew it, she had a hit.

As the website states, "Unlike most shapewear that compress your bust and roll up, the Yummie Tummies’ cotton bust and hip panels appear to the outsider as a normal tank top; meanwhile the secret midsection panel is smoothing and shaping your middle, eliminating approximately five pounds off your appearance."

Sounds good to me! Who doesn't want a magical way to make a muffin top disappear?! Even better - Yummie Tummie comes in tanks, slips, halters, tee shirts and long sleeve shirts - in a wide variety of colors!

Next fun name item: GlassyBaby. If you like candles and/or bright colors - watch out because you are going to want to get a GlassyBaby in every color.

GlassyBaby was started in Seattle around 1996 when the founder was fighting a rare form of lung cancer, while raising three small children. For Christmas that year she gave her husband a glass blowing lesson. His first craft of the trade was a small, brightly colored tiny cup. As he made more, the founder, Lee, would put candles in them around the house. They provided a calm to her chaotic life. There GlassyBaby was born. Now the company has over 70 different colors of GlassyBabies.

On the GlassyBaby website it mentions the following:

The GlassyBaby adds "warmth to a cold day, a calm token of peace in the busy world."

"Their real use is lifting bad moods and loneliness. Their warm and colored light flickers like we do in everyday life. They serve as a metaphor to symbolize hope and are humble in spirit but not beauty."

Icing on the cake is the lovely names of each GlassyBaby (see below).

Yep, I want one, actually I want ten! Good thing they have a handy wishlist feature on their website too...

saturday morning

wet dog

tomcat

art of the party. by violet.

baby showers. birthday parties. weddings. anniversaries. promotions. bridal showers. engagement celebrations. renewal of vows. family reunions.

each of these events are widely-known as milestones in all our lives. usually family and friends pour in by the dozens to raise a glass and celebrate each other. aside from the standard photo ops and facebook albums, wouldn’t it be so perfect to have a creative way to capture these moments in time?


well, guess what. the ever lovely Mrs. Haley Pendergraft has beat you to it! she has designed, created and successfully implemented the fabulous PARTY ART. the concept began when Haley was a teacher, eager to captivate her little ones with a hands-on, fun-for-everyone classroom activity. soon enough, this project blossomed into a fabulous product and a full-time business for Haley.

Party Art comes as a kit with a 20-piece wooden jigsaw puzzle, special brushes, a collection of paint and a frame. Each guest is handed a piece of the puzzle and gets started! Once all of the pieces are painted, modge-podged, written on… they are assembled and framed and voila! A one-of-a-kind piece of art to represent your special event.


i love this concept!! i cannot wait to use it for a baby shower at work this summer. i'm picturing pinks and oranges, images of baby-things, cute quotes on motherhood... it'll be adorable. we'll post pictures of our finished product!


please check out PARTY ART! everyone needs a little time to get paint all over themselves and pour out some creativity... this is the perfect opportunity!

orange violet going out! by orange

A long awaited girls nights was this past weekend. With just coming off the trip to NYC I needed something that was trendy, fun, flirty and definitely reasonably priced. I thought - well lets first look at Target, then head to Forever21. Well Target was a success! What I found: orange violet dressed up! All for under $50!

Crinkle Ruffle Dress - Grape: $34.99
Buckle Belt - Orange: $12.99

H&M Leggings and Gold Amalfi Heels (from Nordstrom)

and voila!

sunkissed. by violet.

i love being tan. i can't help it. i think i look WAY better with color in my cheeks and i just cannot get enough of the glowing, sunkissed effect. my aunt jo says it best: "a good tan covers a multitude of sins".

yesterday brought Seattle sunshine AND heat which is almost like spotting a unicorn running down 5th avenue. we were fortunate enough to soak up the vitamin D from the deck of a boat and it made my summer planning kick into high gear. i am seriously looking forward to endless days of sun dresses, sun glasses, sunburns and sunshine. this is the quintessential sun kit of mine for 2009:

1. Top Shop cover-up

2. Jessica Simpson aviators

3. tinted moisturizer

4. havianas

5. floppy beach hat

6. hobo beach bag

now i'm just going to sit and wait for the next nice day in the city where i can USE my sun kit...

where have you been all my life. by orange

I feel downright sheepish that I did not know of this lovely brand of shoes. Jeffrey Campbell. He makes Fabulous shoes! His shoes reign from Spain and they are known for creativity in small quantities. Some of the shoes are produced in quantities less than 100 pairs! The shoe that made me fall in love with this brand might just be one of these limited quanity pairs - as I can only find them in a size 8 (deep sigh...)

my shoe muse...The Michelle (thank you http://www.clutch22.com/)

Check out these that I found and just try not to drool...

From Top Left: Lattice, Tinier, Boudoir, Cause, Fringe, Drops. What fun names as well!

I found these all at the likes of: solestruck.com, free people, urban outfitters, madison la, lori's shoes.

Oh how my heart aches for size 6.5 or 7 Michelles...

the trip. by orange

About a week ago I was in a lovely seat on American Airlines on my way to the big apple with the husband. The trip was a 2008 christmas gift as I'd never been to the city before. The NYC trip made me think back to how a trip with the significant other can really be the make it or break it of the relationship.

When the husband and I first started dating, about 9 months in, we went on our first trip together to Akumal, Mexico. Besides it being our first trip together, there was one other major stressor that added to this trip. We had just moved in to a place we bought together a week prior to the trip. Yeah...we have really good timing.

Here are some of my favorite memories and lessons learned of that trip....

1) First off, the husband and I are both pretty freaking pale. I think the sun reflected off of us so much we were like white lights on the beach :).

2) When we arrived the place was nice...but not spectacular. As I had never been on a tropical/beach vacation before I was thinking luxurious hotel room, crisp linens, etc. This was more like a beach shack. An average "nice" room.

- this did spawn the first argument of the trip. I blame it mostly on a full day of travel, heat, and too high expectations.

***lesson learned: check out www.tripadvisor.com for recent photos and reviews of the hotel/resort from fellow travelers.

3) The doll-making 70 year old couple that we met at the daily happy hour who have been traveling to Akumal for the past 16 years every March. It made me hope that the husband and I would someday be like them. Just thinking about them brings a smile to my face.

4) Even though I am a nice pale white shade, I still enjoy pretending I can tan and laying out. The husband - not so much. So when day 3 hit and we were still on the beach, the husband got a bit ancy to get up and do some stuff.

***lesson learned: discuss a loose plan for the trip; making sure you are both on the same page so no unnecessary quarrels start. figure out a good compromise. or (this is my favorite solution) go on a vacation with another couple and that way the group can split up to head out to different day trips.

hangin' around. by violet.

i am so excited for summer. not just because of the beach, BBQs, warm weather or baseball games. but mostly because i LOVE wearing flowy summer dresses. my closet is packed full of jersey, cotton and gauzy numbers just begging to come out and play. these outfits are perfect because you can dress them up or wear flip flops with them- super versatile, but always feminine and sexy.

the only thing i need to spend some time and money on is ACCESSORIZING. you can take one dress and fancy it up in 10 different ways with the right collection of jewelry. so, this summer i will focus on finding necklaces to make my dresses pop. here are 4 pieces i am officially coveting:

layers and layers of charm would sass up a long, strapless dress.

this makes me swoon. throw on a black sundress and heels… voila! cute little going-out look with little effort.

these pearls would be so perfect over a cream-colored party dress.

mojito-colored magic. it would go with anything.

do you any ultimate accessory finds to share with us?? please do!

staying awake. by orange

While training for the 1/2 marathons my running buddies and I have been trying various "race nutrition" items.  Basically they provide you a boost - a bit more than your average sip of gatorade.  A couple that have been popular with us are CLIF shot blocks, Luna Moons and Sport Beans.  Sound tasty don't they?

Well nearing the 1/2 marathon we made sure to find the one that worked best with us during the run.  I was most excited about the Sport Beans - as they are sweet jelly beans (made by jelly belly), however with an added kick - including caffeine.  Sadly, my stomach did not agree with them while running.  However, I thought - would these little jelly beans provide the boost that I might need on a night out on the town?

Ask the husband, I can fall asleep just about anywhere at anytime.  I've even gone to the doctor regarding this amazing amount of sleep I crave, but apparently nothing is wrong.  The husband swears it is due to a lack of hydration throughout the day - which I do agree with him, just haven't quite started the hydration plan.  Anyway, you can imagine, while out - even with red bull vodkas galore I'm still getting sleepy when the clock strikes midnight.  So something that can wake me up and and doesn't involve snorting sounds like a dream come true.

Where else to try out the sport beans than in the city that never sleeps - New York City.  With the bars being open until 4am I knew I would need some help.  So...

it worked!  Here I am at the end of the night - still awake and going!  :)

nyc love. by orange

i'm back from a whirlwind week!

for the last week i was all over the map - running 13.1 miles in Eugene OR, back in Seattle for some marathon packing, then off to nyc to sightsee, shop, walk the city, see a broadway show, hang out in brooklyn, shop some more and have some B list celebrity sightings...

here are my top ten moments of the city:

1) drooling in the chanel store...oh how i am in lust with that brand

2) taking a rickshaw/bike tour of central park

3) finding the perfect nyc dress at Zara and a bright yellow coat at Kenneth Cole (see picture of jacket in black)

4) street food! (mainly the ballpark-like pretzels)

5) going out on the lower east side: lots and lots and lots of bars open til 4am...all close by to yummy pizza joints (beats drunk mcdonalds food any night!)

6) seeing the skyline at night from the top of the rock...accompanied by 500+ 12 year olds

7) seeing kate bosworth while shopping at top shop

8) witnessing a 70 year old man walking the streets in all neon, all spandex. glorious sight to see

9) watching the billy elliot cast (mostly under the age of 13) dancing like maniacs!

10) being offered a nutella and banana snack to toast to a very expensive 5 year olds birthday party at the Juicy Couture store off 5th (Kelly's daughter from Real Housewives of NYC)

and a few surprises:

1) top shop is more expensive in the US then in London - what the hell?!

2) i heard the cabs are crazy in nyc and i have a pretty strong stomach - but even sober, they made me car sick! all the punching the gas, punching the breaks - oh vey!

3) a new favorite word to use: fresh. ie: "you are so fresh!" - meaning you are acting sassy.

4) how nice everyone was in the city. i was expecting rudeness all the time, but it was not so!