coral party shoes

{similar Coral Party shoes found here with a bow, Jimmy Choo peep toes here and patent leather Louboutins here}

how great are these coral Louboutins? I thought about doing orange shoes for my wedding, and even thought about these in coral, yet ending up walking down the aisle in some neutral strappies. What color are your favorite statement shoes? 

{if you're looking for a wedding shoe, how great are these?}

{and if you need flats, for your wedding or closet, I am obsessed with these!}

blue accents

I am loving the French Blue accents in this room. As you can tell from the photo of my guest room, I love the way fresh roses on the bedside table can complete a room.

Here is more blue decorating photos I am loving!

photos courtesy of pinterest, decorista and a delightful design

guest room

I love the look of stacked books. They represent individual style and can be put in unpredictable groups depending on book end color. In the guest room I have stacked the wedding magazine that my wedding dress was featured in, a New House Book that my parents gave me, a nursing text book, Wuthering Heights, a Marie Antoinette Biography and Catcher in the Rye. I love the blue and green book ends with our accent wall in the guest room. What are you favorite books?

Here is some more of the same easy decorating in our home.

top shelf: a picture of my parents' wedding day, second shelf: a fashion coffee table book, Vogue, a fake book that is actually a box, Water for Elephants, Ishmael, another copy of Wuthering Heights and a Hermes box, third shelf: wedding coffee table books that a friends passed onto me when I got engaged. I can't wait to pass these on to my next girlfriend who gets engaged! bottom shelf: more coffee table books, some Fall 2011 magazines (September issues are always the best!)and another pop of orange via a Hermes box.  

a stack for the hubby

photo blogger's own

orange stripes

I am loving these striped chairs. They combine two of my favorite things: orange and stripes. happy Friday!

more orange stripes for your weekend.

photo courtesy of crush cul de sac, elle decor, prepfection, urban outfitters, mixr, and tatertots and jello

friendship ring

one of my bridesmaids and a besties, just sent me information about this ring. We decided that it should/would be a great friendship ring.

this one is a bit cheaper but a similiar idea. Thoughts?

eggplant parmesan

as you know, I am trying this whole cooking thing. So far so good, as evidence by 1. it is now fun, 2. it is edible, 3. I haven't burned the house down and 4. the hubby says I am good at it. I stumbled upon this book during the registry process and there are endless yummy options in Eva's cook book.

cook book photo courtesy of here

book available for purchase here

As a vegetarian, I love eggplant, so I was beyond tempted to dry to cook the eggplant Parmesan. To be extra ambitious, I wanted to make tomato Alfredo sauce from scratch. My mom got me and hubby a Vitamix for Christmas making the sauce super easy to make.

if you don't have a vitamix, mix

5 tomatoes, halved

1 cup nonfat milk

1 cup low fat cottage cheese

2 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons flour

salt and pepper to taste

then place on the stove on low heat, stirring constantly until thick.

what cook books are your favorites?

ps- I forgot to register for cooking pans, so I bought one at the market and used a cake pan for the second batch. housewives have to get creative sometimes!

photos blogger's own

can I please...

have this amazing Celine bag? Thanks.

it also comes in orange and I would like both, please! Thanks.

photos courtesy of sarah klassen and fashion lover blog

bright Monday

Loving the pop of this gown. Don't you look like this when you go to the beach? happy Monday!

xoxo navy & orange



photo courtesy of prepfection

party packed weekend!



Happy Friday! This weekend is packed with more celebrations! The hubby's college friends are in town so we will have our second house guests. On Saturday we have a political event with a Presidential hopeful, a 1st birthday party, a day at the races and on Sunday we are ending the weekend by the pool!

How great would all these options be for my busy Saturday? What are your favorites?

ps- can you tell I love navy stripes?

photos courtesy of sarah klassen, prepfection, and atlantic-pacific

dinner

I'm thinking artichokes for dinner...

They are one of favorite things about summer. I cut off the stem and place them in boiling water for about an hour. Depending on your stove, you might need to check the water and add more. Just ask my dad, nothing smells worse than burnt artichoke in the kitchen, not to mention the haze they put on your pots. To double check if they are cooked, I gently take a leaf between a knife and fork. It it comes off easily you are ready to enjoy. I like mine dipped in a little butter. How do you like your artichokes?

photos courtesy of sarah klassen and patterson maker

outfit envy

right now I am loving polka dots. and this combination. Happy Wednesday!

here is some more polka dots for your inspiration.

 photos courtesy of crush cul de sac, prepfection and decorista

flats

Flats are my go to fashion item. I love the preppy look of them with skinnies, a navy blazer and a bright lipstick. I wish I had this many to choose from, but I still have many great choices. Marc by Marc Jacobs used to be my go to, but in recent years, the styles have gotten a little weird...My current go to's are from J. Crew and my favorites are the suede navy ballet flats. They are currently not in stock but normally are in the fall. Every time they go on sale, I (no joke) buy two pairs in my size, as I wear them so much I have worn holes in numerous pairs. Here are some of my other favs.

found here

found here



special delivery

I was recently sent the most beautiful bouquet of orange roses. I hope someone brightens your day as well!

photo courtesy of patterson maker

chevron

I love chevron. I have tried to incorporate it more into our home, but I think it is a little modern for our house and decorating. So I have used it in the little details! The blanket would be a great addition hung casually over the couch, the tissue box is from haymarket designs and I got a tray with my new initials on it in orange from my new sister-in-law last Christmas! Where would you put your chevron stripes?

photos courtesy of classy in the city, blogger's own and haymarket designs

glitter for your Friday...

here is the hem of Kate Moss' wedding dress from earlier this summer. Hope your Friday is off to an amazing start!

photo courtesy of cool & chic style fashion

mirrors

I love everything about this photo. The navy dresser is a great way to incorporate more color into a room and the mirror, I am loving!

I am also obsessed over this one from Restoration Hardware.

I was originally going to ask Santa for this one to place over our bar, but we got some amazing art on our honeymoon for that wall space. This hasn't stopped me from trying to find a spot for it...
photos courtesy of sarah klassen and restoration hardware

cookies

it is a well known fact that I am a cookie monster. When I was 10, I would sell cookies and lemonade during lunch hour at the post office and have since recorded that recipe to memory. I have never written it down and in the 17 years since, surely it has changed with time. Nevertheless, with a new oven and baking for the first time in years, the cookies are turning out to be not very pretty (super yummy, just not pretty). Therefore, I have been on the hunt for the perfect cookie recipe and found this one recommended per Cupcakes and Cashmere. Thanks Emily!

note: I add half dark chocolate chips and half peanut butter chips and added sea salt at the end to create the perfect combination for your very own cookie monster.

ps- how cute is the cake stand given to me by my mother-in-law? Love!

photos blogger's own