Bangles and Bracelets Galore!

For a really long time now I have wanted to invest in a wrist-full of bangles and bracelets. When I was younger I used to wear homemade friendship bracelets, other peoples hospital bands, arcade bracelets, and bracelets made out of guitar strings. Every once in a while my mom would convince me that they were gross and dirty ironically at the same time as a high school dance. To this day I still love the idea. I am just looking for a way to make it a tad bit more sophisticated. I'm having a really hard time deciding which ones to get and how much money I feel like investing in this whole thing. I'm going to share a bunch with you to help me organize my thoughts!

I'll start by showing you a few of the different collections of bangles that I have particularly enjoyed.

Clearly, it would be easiest to buy a set kind of like this one from Free People, but I think that I would rather buy a few different ones and try to make my own unique collection.

I have already purchased this Lucky Brand one with a leather strap as kind of a starter or possibly just a fill in until I find ones I really would like. It has both gold and silver in it so I can go either way or mix and match.

These are the some of the ones that I was looking at:

I love this horseshoe House of Harlow 1960 one (not only is it Nicole Richie, but when I was younger I had so much horseshoe jewelry!) It comes in both gold and silver and is about $45:

This bracelet is made from Indonesian Horn and sold at the Pinguim's Etsy shop for $140:

I love this distressed green leather strap with stud details from the Tamisloan Etsy shop for $39:

To display my love for elephants I discovered this Etsy bracelet from the StellaSavesTheDay Shop for $36:

Free People has this great leather cuff for $28 that would fill up my wrist quickly and help me save a lot of money:

I think that this simple set of Lucky Brand gold and silver bangles is such a great addition to a wrist for only $25:

These bracelets are $26 from Fossil and intended for charms, but I think they're great plain:

I'm not usually a huge Juicy Couture fan, but these $58 bracelets are bomb!

Eco-Friendly Feather Bracelet by Alex and Ani for $50:

On Zappos.com I found this unique Fossil $42 bracelet with awesome colors and designs:

Disney Couture Cinderella cuff that says 'Have faith in your dreams' for $45:

Its only natural that I would love this $68 mustard Marc Jacobs signature bangle:

This braided leather Bottega Veneta is a little pricey at $160, but the color is fabulous:

It would be totally awesome if I could afford a Hermes H Bracelet like one of these... Maybe one day!

Really, I think the biggest problem with bracelet purchases is that I don't know where I want to go with it. Once I pick a direction I can definitely get there, but I can't decide if I want hard or soft, bright colors or neutrals. For it to look okay I am going to have to make one big decision and stick with it or it's all just going to end up crazy. My only other option would be to just keep investing in awesome bracelets and then just throw on whichever ones I think look best for that day. I kind of like that idea the most so far. Of course, its the most expensive idea! Except, I might miss the consistency of wearing the same ones everyday. Thats what I like about sets of bracelets like that, they pretty much go with everything. 

If I ever take the plunge to make the purchases and start wearing sets of bracelets everyday I will surely take a photo and share with all of you what I got. As well as, keep track of how much money I end up spending on all of them.

Mustard -- The Color, Not the Condiment!

Ever since I was a little girl I have had an incredibly strange love for the color yellow. Right now my bedroom at home is a shade of yellow and I think that this is the 3rd time I have painted it a color in the yellow family. My laptop cover and my peacoat are also a shade of yellow. I always think that the yellow thing is starting to get out of hand and then I find something else awesome that is yellow. Today, I figured I would share with you some of the awesome 'mustard' color things that I have stumbled across recently. Enjoy!

Great Shoes from Spirocreations Etsy shop:

Winter Kate by Nicole Richie:

Etsy Ring from ForevermoreCreationsShop:

Hobo International Wallet:

Matix When She's Gone Cardigan (That I got for Christmas!):

Of course, my dream car!

Topshop.com:

Madewell Cardigan:

Awesome vintage thermos!

Dress from stephanieteague Etsy Shop:

Burton Jet Set Jacket:

"I need to laugh, and when the sun is out 

I've got something I can laugh about"

-- The Beatles

Crate & Barrel Bungalow Dining

I should probably start by stating that I realize its been a while since my last post. I am aware that this is a lame excuse, but I haven't really been home (and I'm still home not right now!). I was in Boston for one weekend, which is the focus of this post. Then, I went to Burlington for a week and now I am back in New York City. I am staying with a family until I can get back into my dorm room. Anyway, I'm finally going to share with you one of the awesome finds that I saw while I was on my little trip to Boston.

I should also probably warn you that I am starting to get concerned that I am in the wrong major, again. Something about decorating and designing and cool projects for the home has been catching my eye lately. I've always been into watching a ridiculous amount of home shows, but this really has been getting a little bit out of hand.

Okay, back on subject, while in Boston I went into Crate & Barrel and absolutely fell in love with their 'Bungalow Dining' set that I took my camera out right in the store to take pictures to share with all of you. It caught my eye the second that I walked up the stairs and saw the beautiful place setting. Something about the bright, but not too bright colors mixed with the wood. I'll stop blabbering and show you the pictures now!

See what I mean, perfectly beachy/summery, but keeping all of the sophistication. Don't worry, I have a detail shot for you as well.

Of course, I included the price list, so you know what you're in for.

A few tables away they used the same napkins and holders up against the same set of dishes just in white this time and it still works great! This way you can just switch up the napkins and create an entirely new setting to go with your plates every time you have company!

As my sister and I swoon over all of the cool stuff at Crate & Barrel the boys were taking a quick snooze on their comfy couches!

Banana Republic Deals

As many people know about me, I have the extremely odd obsession with the Gap. I think it happened when I started to tone down my wardrobe a little bit and stocked up on basics. I own a ridiculous amount of their sweaters and t's. I find them super comfy for chilly days. Anyway, The Gap Inc. (which my friend and I wrote a ridiculously long paper on last year) just so happens to own Banana Republic, which my sister recently developed an obsession over. That means that I have also had to go to the store with her and has opened me to a whole new world. If you shop properly at Banana you can practically steal their stuff!

While I was shopping for Christmas with my mom we were looking for some stuff for my sister and we found this great sweater that is part of Banana Republic's Heritage line. It retails $120 and we purchased it for $80! Its super chunky and perfect for a cozy day. I love the ruffle, it adds that perfect little pop. I feel like this picture doesn't do it justice. It looks and feels way nicer in person. My sister threw it on with black leggings, cute earrings, and some knee-high brown leather boots for Christmas dinner and it looked really nice.

Another Christmas present that we got for my cousin there was these fantastic cashmere gloves. They look like a navy shirt with a thumbhole overtop of a beige glove. You can also unfold the glove so that it extends super far up your arm. I thought the gloves were so versatile and very different from Banana Republic's usual play-it-safe style. On a regular day they retail about $40, but when I went to go buy them for myself after the holidays they were only $20.

The same day that I went to get my gloves I got a fantastic steal on flat suede slouchy boots in a nice spice color. They will replace my Steve Madden's that I got a few years ago and have completely ruined since. My new boots were originally $225 and I see that today they are selling on their website for $149.99, but they day I bought them in the store I only paid $40! Totally an amazing steal, if you ask me and they looked great when I wore them out the other night.

The first time I posted this I totally forgot about the awesome pea coat that my sister had purchased at Banana Republic on her last trip through the Lee, Massachusetts outlets. The pea coat is grey with toggle buttons and it reaches just between her hips and her knees, so like the mid-thigh area. Nicole reports back that it is a heavy jacket keeping her super warm during those cold days in Boston. I'd say the best part about the coat is that it is warm and she doesn't look like a huge puffer fish! Plus, the deal that she got on it was absolutely amazing. It was originally marked at $160, but with the markdowns at the outlet store Nicole only had to pay $40. Now, if only I could find such a nice jacket for that cheap of a price! Oh and by the way, the jacket pictured looks awfully similar and it is from Banana, but I don't believe it is the exact match to the one my sister got this fabulous deal on!

This last article of clothing is a little bit random because it happens to be from Old Navy, but it does fit into the post because Old Navy is also owned by The Gap Inc. The same day that I bought my boots while I was in Banana Republic I saw a girl wearing a fantastic poncho and since I had just returned one that I recieved for Christmas I was looking for a replacement. I, after staring her down for a while, went up and asked her where she got it and she responded, "Old Navy, I know I was surprised too." So after I was done at Banana I headed over to Old Navy to find ONE of these lonely ponchos shoved at the end of the sale rack! The original price was $34.50, which I never would have paid for an Old Navy poncho, but I ended up paying only $15. It was always a great find from Old Navy, but the price makes it that much better.

Nicole Richie & Joel Madden

For a while now, I have had a slight obsession with Nicole Richie. I just think she has the best style and a lot of the stuff that she wears is from her Winter Kate clothing line or the House of Harlow 1960 jewelry and shoes collection. Maybe one day I will share with you some more information about her lines, but for today I want to focus on her wedding! Nicole and Joel got married in mid december at her father, Lionel Richie's, house. So far the pictures have been released to People magazine and another German magazine. Rumor has it that the money that the couple received from the magazines for their pictures will be going directly to charity! There were so many extravagant aspects of the wedding, but I would have to say that her custom made Marchesa gowns were the best part. Each one is as stunning as the next.

The first being this white ball gown with layers and layers of tulle. Nicole and Joel's names were embroidered in the lace sleeve of this gown!

The second (the same as the first, but without the tulle skirt) has a million gorgeous buttons down the back! I just can't get enough of the buttons and cut-outs on the back.

The third being a black party dress covered with crystals and gems in a spider web design.

Oh and you can't forget about the ELEPHANT! How exciting, I've had such a thing for elephants lately.

Nicole Richie was inspired by actor Grace Kelly's wedding dress:

A few weeks before the wedding when Nicole was on the Ellen Show she jokes about wearing Ellen's gifts to the wedding. I'd say the dresses were a better choice.