let's have a party!

Fwoosh...this is the sound I made when I saw this dress. This dress makes me want to go to some big fancy party and dance. I recently discovered Rita Saardi and her eclectic designs, which are quite amazing! Each of her collections are different and unique, yet, all carry the common thread of femininity and amazing garment structure. This dress below is my favorite from her Waiting To Be Kissed collection.

image from ritasaardi.com

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas! I pray that your homes are filled with love & joy, and your hearts with thankfulness & hope! I love the energy that new beginnings bring, so I am quite excited about beginning this New Year...yeah for 2010!

me in front of the tree at the Plaza, NYC

prairie underground holiday 09

I'm not sure where I discovered Prairie Underground, but the first piece I saw was a jacket similar to this one, below, with the amazing pouffy collar. I love this jacket because it looks so feminine and fun and comfy.

Below, is a cute little cowl neck dress that looks super cute with tights; but what really stood out to me were the pairing of these two colors--so pretty.

Finally, below is a dress style I've been noticing a lot lately--the "too-much-material-you-can-get-lost-in-here dress", i.e. Mary Kate Olsen-esque. With so much material it allows for some different looks, which could be fun to play with, but might get tricky or lumpy...personally I might get claustrophobic.

All in all, I love their stuff. Prairie Underground has very pretty and comfortable(looking) pieces--I'd love to own a jacket by them someday.

New York

New York...the first thing I noticed when I ventured out of our B&B to roam the streets of the city was a strong scent of cologne that wafted with each new crisp breeze; it was inviting and seductive, not over-powering like the perfume counters in a department store.

As I soon caught up with the pace of the city, my stride became like steps in a dance, deliberate and in time with the rest of the inhabitants.

My favorite neighborhood would have to be Greenwich Village--I could roam around here all day and window shop and pop into a cafe for a coffee refuge to rest my feet and perk my energy. It's hard to describe the feeling you get when you combine such old buildings, quaint streets, unique boutiques, a diverse population, the welcoming feeling of home, with the smells of coffee, cigarettes, and a je nous se qua sweetness.

Here are some of my photos from the trip, enjoy!

Central Park.

Time Square.

Bree & I in Greenwich Village.

The street I want to live on in Greenwich Village.

Cool building in Greenwich Village.

photo credits: moi, laurenlhanson

rockin' new year's eve

The perfect outfit for New Year's Eve! Funky & Flirty for a time to rock in the new year! Look like a million bucks, for just over a hundred. Check out forever21.com--I love getting all the latest trends but not paying designer prices.

New Year's Ensemble! by hansi777 featuring Forever21

Items in this set:
Forever21.com - Tops - Dressy - 2054820753, $18
Leatherette Biker Jacket, $33
Urban Faux Fur Vest, $25
Zip Peep Toe Bootie, $30
Genevieve Faux Leather Tote, $35

prepping for NYC

This week I'm prepping for my NY trip, so I'll be taking a little break, but there's sure to be some great posts after this weekend.

Urban Cowgirl Chic

Find me on PolyvoreI love taking traditional looks and making them a little bit different, giving them an edge, or mixing it up a bit. To follow that comment, I am in no way taking credit for this look, but I am definitely loving it and partaking, so you should too!
I love combining a delicate blouse with the toughness of jeans and the structure of boots and a jacket. The blouse adds enough softness for this cowgirl to go to work or cruise around town verses wrangling a calf.

i'm a ballerina!

I totally fell in love with this messy bun-ish look on the cover of the anthropologie catalog for October 2009; which totally inspired my Halloween costume...a ballerina! The ballerina idea is so me it's funny!

Below are some pics of my attempt at the curly bun. I even made my own head band out of some extra ribbon and elastic. I also made my own tutu out of 8 yards of light pink & hot pink tulle--so fun!

photos credits: anthropologie.com & via Courtney Claire Photography.

J. Mendel

These are some of my favs from J. Mendel's Spring/Summer 2010 Collection. Love the soft spring colors, the soft materials, the draping, and of course the flourettes! You may recognize the exquisite floor-length light blue dress that Kate Walsh wore to the Emmys this year--so beautiful!

pics via J.Mendel.com

i'm in love with a bag

I fell in love with this bag I discovered on NotCot's blog by Hard Graft, called the 3Fold. I wish I had a boyfriend, just to get this rad bag for him...his loss ;) But I love this Italian all leather bag that can transform into 3 different variations. I see this bag on any metro or at least fashionably-conscious male bookin' it to work in LA or NYC. I love items that are fashion-forward, chic, & functional!

Photos directly from NotCot.com

quote of the day

leadership to live by

I've always been obsessed with business and how companies evolve and succeed. It's clear that good leadership is vital to a company's success--I'll include employee moral and empowerment along with financial success in this term. I came across this article highlighting Bob McDonald's top 10 principles of value based leadership. Bob McDonald is the President and CEO of P&G, enough said.

1. Lead a life guided by purpose.
Only work for a company that you believe in, said McDonald. When looking for a job, examine a company’s purpose, values and people to see if they align with your own beliefs and ethics.

2. Everyone wants to succeed and success is contagious.
Treat your employees like they want to succeed, not like they want to fail. “Most of us manage by exception: We wait until someone does something wrong to interact with him or her,” McDonald said. “Spend enough time in your leadership role finding people succeeding.”

3. Put people in the right jobs.
McDonald emphasized the importance of identifying your employees’ strengths, and then placing them in roles that feed into those strengths. “At P&G, we have 130,000 employees around the world,” he said. “Imagine what would happen if we put them in jobs that they weren’t good at.”

4. Character is the most important trait of a leader.
It’s important for leaders to have integrity and take responsibility for their mistakes. “Choose the harder right, rather than the easier wrong,” McDonald said, citing a prayer that he learned as a cadet at the United States Military Academy at West Point.

5. Diverse groups of people are more innovative than homogenous groups.
Diversity sparks ideas and innovation, so companies must employ a diverse group of people. “We try to plan innovation, but there’s a little serendipity involved,” McDonald said. “Diversity is what helps these nodes to connect.”

6. Ineffective strategies, systems and culture are bigger barriers to achievement than the talents of people.
It’s important to blend a high-performance culture with robust systems and sound strategies, McDonald said. Those ingredients, coupled with technical competencies and a strong company mission, will create a high-performance organization.

7. There will be some people in the organization who will not make it on the journey.
Some employees won’t turn out to be a good fit for your company. As head of a company, it’s your responsibility to find the right place for them. “Your job as a leader is to be committed to them as people, not employees,” said McDonald.

8. Organizations must renew themselves.
Leaders should always think about what changes are needed to stay relevant in the marketplace and fulfill the company purpose. “Organizations are like biological organisms — they constantly need to change,” said McDonald.

9. Recruiting is a top priority.
“Somewhere here is someone who will be giving a presentation here years from now,” said McDonald, pointing to the audience of Kellogg students. “And that excites me.”

10. The true test of a leader is the organization’s performance after the leader departs.
If you want to determine whether a leader has been successful, “look at their fingerprints and footprints,” concluded McDonald.

For the direct link to the article I read: McDonald's Top 10

defiant to the hands-free ear-piece

Okay, I'm a total genius! Just kidding, but necessity births ingenuity. Let me explain...due to the recent (July '09) law prohibiting talking on a cell phone while driving via the passe hand to ear method, in addition to my protest of having to pay upwards of $80 for a quality ear-piece, on top of the fact that I should be exempt from the law based on my superior multitasking skills and ability to drive safely while carrying on a conversation. I would also like to argue that any quality hands-free ear-piece is far too expensive for me to purchase in the current economic climate, food is somehow taking priority. Also, I'm finding it difficult to not make phone calls or not receive them, while driving...so, drum roll please....the "scarf satchel"! Bam! This is what I developed while running errands and driving to work this morning. While trying to get creative with the law and placing my phone on my arm while driving and talking via speaker phone I realized I was wearing a scarf and sat it in the cowl of my scarf and it was perfect! I didn't have to yell, didn't have an annoying ear-piece, and was obeying the law--best of all worlds!

Sorry for all of the exclamation points, but it was very exciting to finally resolve this recurring dilemma. So if you relate with my defiance of the law or ear-pieces, please try-out the "scarf satchel", it's free accompanied by your favorite scarf.

quote of the day

the modern cinderella

Find me on PolyvoreI am super excited about the romantic princess sleeves that have been popping up on jackets and gowns all over the place recently. This polyvore collection is an ode to the Balmain jacket that I am completely obsessed with! I love how romantic and feminine a sleek black blazer can look while maintaining its edgy-ness.
Ever since I was a young girl, I've loved this Cinderella/Sleeping Beauty-esque sleeve from the very first time I watched the Disney movies, so I thought it fitting to call it the Modern Cinderella, appealing to that desire within every girl to be exalted out of their life and into a dream world of becoming a princess. I guess this is how I would describe/express my interpretation of the modern princess--the princess inside of all of us (without getting too cheesy on you, but...) who works hard, is active, social, and always fashionable--this is her perfect blazer.

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favorite new shelter mag!

I'm sure everyone was as devastated as I was when Domino magazine dissappeared along with other shelter publications. Luckily, Michelle Adams and her crew have come to our rescue with Lonny, a shelter publication exclusively on the web. Lonny has easy to zoom pages with links to products and resources they feature, with one-click one can go directly to sites to purchase items.

The premier issue is such a treat, featuring some of the best design experts in the biz. I could definitely live in Kate Simpson's, former Sr. Market Editor of the late domino mag., beach house, or Eddie Ross, Top Design reality show, and Jaithab Kochar country cottage, or the amazing home of Deborah Needleman, the former domino's Editor In Chief. Please check out Lonny magazine; I promise you will love it as much as I do! I'm so excited for future issues!

Here are some of my favorite pics from the 1st issue:

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2009 emmys red carpet favorites

I loved all of the beautiful gowns at the 2009 Emmys, some more than others, but I like to focus on the positive, so I'll share some of my favorites. I was surprised that three of the elegant gowns I adored were all by the same designer, Marchesa--I might have a new love!

1. Olivia Wilde in my favorite gown of the evening by Marchesa, via The India Times. 2. January Jones in a daring art deco Atelier Versace gown, via buzzworthy.mtv.com. 3. Blake Lively in a plunging red Versace gown, via The India Times. 4. Sandra Oh in an elegant golden Marchesa gown, via Jason Merritt/Getty Images. 5. Heidi Klum showing off her belly in a tight-fitting black Marchesa gown, via The India Times.

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erin fetherston, dress me please

Ever since I was a child I've been afraid of clowns--not uncommon for young children, but now that I am an adult I shy away from showing my fear, until now... Erin Fetherston's Fall 2009 collection is whimsical and playful with it's salute to, you guessed it, clowns! I absolutely love how she translates the quintessential aspects of a clown costume, such as polka dots, puffy sleeves, bows, stripes, and her take on the modern-day clown hat, into fun wearable clothing. Fetherston's clothes look like so much fun to wear! Below are a few of my favorite looks:

I love Erin Fetherston and can't wait to see what she has coming out for spring! If you still need more inspiration to get over your fear of clowns or have fallen in love with Erin as well check out her site!

quote of the day

fall fashion - runway

fall fashion runway 2009

These are some of my favorite looks for fall from a few designers I follow. The top row is from the Ralph Lauren Fall 2009 collection--I love the softness of everything; the fabrics, the way they fall and move, and the colors. The next row is from the Hermes Fall 2009 collection. I have completely fallen in love with the aviator/bomber/any leather jacket for fall. I also love the texture on these jackets & coats. The last two rows are from the Louis Vuitton Fall 2009 collection which feel a bit younger and more fun with the ruffly and pouffy (technical term) skirts and sleeves. I love how all of these silhouettes are so feminine and pretty! (p.s. I love the tall bow boots shown with the magenta skirt!)

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fall color inspiration

So I was going to post some pictures of pieces I liked for the Fall season, but there were just too many to get the overall feel of what I'm digging right now, thus I will list some designers that I like and you can explore their stuff if you like. The general feel of what I'm liking right now is super feminine, soft, delicate, flowy pieces paired with hard, structured pieces (i.e. a flowy blouse in pale lavender with ruffles around the neck and down the front, paired with a form fitting high-waisted, just-above-the-knee length skirt, a black leather jacket, and a pair of high-heeled bootie-shoes (I'm going to call them that because I don't want to give into the trend too much to call them by their proper name...which is probably not bootie-shoes--but I do actually like this trend).

Here are some of my favorite collections:

Cloak and Dagger : everything

Prairie Underground : jackets

Peter Som : everything, especially dresses

Geren Ford : EVERYTHING

Christopher Deane : dresses

Sarah Seven : dresses

check 'em out.

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ode to the motorcycle jacket

I'm super into leather motorcycle jackets right now, so this collage kind of reflects that. You'll

notice some other themes here if you know me at all... Hope you enjoy!

Ode to the Motorcycle Jacket by hansi777 featuring Furla bags

passage of the day

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