Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Hair-spiration

I got my hair highlighted yesterday at my favorite salon, Azur West, and my colorist Jen's hairstyle had me swooning.  I will admit I'm not one to cut my hair often, and definitely not in a specific style.  I usually just ask for some long layers (since I have more hair than any human being rightfully should) and to trim off the split ends and call it good.  However, my hair has grown out pretty long and the upkeep and weight of it has been bothering me.  So, I scheduled a cut for next Tuesday with Katie, my go-to girl, and have begun researching hairstyles for inspiration.  I have always loved Lauren Conrad's hair and the way it has transformed through the years.  It seems no matter what style she goes with, she pulls it off effortlessly.  Well, if you follow LC's instagram, you might have seen she got a BIG haircut last week- and the result is, you guessed it- effortless:


And here she is out and about sporting her new layers:


So carefree and cute!  I know people generally cut their hair before the summer, but I'm in need of a fresh mane, and I think this is the look I want to go for!  Now, not to insight any old Hills drama and assume LC is a copycat, but Whitney Port was featured on One Kings Lane yesterday and seems to have a very similar cut:


Either way, I consider both girls to be fashion icons of mine, and I think the fact that they're both rocking shorter hair is fab.  Here are a few similar hairstyles I've put in my inspiration file for next Tuesday's chop:






I love the light, piecey-ness and the effortless vibe of all these looks.  Wish me luck next week!  I'll be sure to post a post-haircut photo on Instagram.

Happy Wednesday!

XOXO,  

Sam


Tuesday, October 28, 2014

27th Birthday Wishlist

I cannot believe October is almost over.  This year has sped by, and I keep thinking it's still summer (the beautiful weather in Houston lately isn't helping, either).  While I'm not a big fan of winter, I can't help but love the holidays, especially because my birthday falls near Thanksgiving (November 30th).  Even more exciting is that my baby niece Lily turns 1 on November 26th!  I will be back in Oklahoma for the birthday festivities and can't wait to see this cute face:

{my mom and I with Lily at the pumpkin patch}

Anyway, I will say I am getting excited to celebrate my birthday this year.  Which is strange- because the last few I've felt a bit blah about.  You know how it goes as you get older, it seems to be less and less fun to admit you took another full trip around the sun.  I'm just excited to spend time with friends and MAYBE indulge in a few things on my wish list:



Shop My Wishlist:


1.) Decker Cuff by Kelly Wearstler $295/2.) Avedon Coffee Table Book $100/3.) Python Business Card Holder $75/4.) Kate Moss for Topshop Scalloped Camisole $68/5.) Altuzarra for Target Wrap Dress $40/6.) Young Hollywood Coffee Table Book $75/7.) DV by Dolce Vita Black Bootie $140/8.) Morton Table Lamp in Burnished Silver $475/


Have you guys seen the Altuzarra collection for Target yet?  There are so many fab items, and the prices can't be beat. And, of course, there are always a few coffee table books I have my eye on.  Lastly, as I finish up decorating my house, I have been on the hunt for a living room table lamp- and I think this burnished silver option is perfect.

Anything I missed? Let me know! :)




Monday, October 27, 2014

Jamie Herzlinger's Latest Project

There are a few interior designers I make a point of following religiously, either because I love their style or because I find their work process inspiring.  One such designer is Jamie Herzlinger of Jamie Herzlinger Interiors.  With offices in New York City and Scottsdale, Arizona, Jamie truly has a knack for creating beautiful spaces no matter the client or particular style.  However, her work always has a healthy dose of glamour and luxury, which I appreciate.   Jamie recently designed a Fifth Avenue duplex for a couple who appreciated tailored minimalism, and the results are stunning.


This Carlo de Carli 1963 lacquered dining table gives stability and weight to the room white the klismos-style lucite chairs seem to float around it.  I also love the Italian black lacquer side chairs that flank the window- they remind me of Charles Rennie Mackintosh's designs.  In the living room, Jamie took a note from Dorthy Draper and placed an electric red reverse-painted coffee table between two sofas to act as a conversation piece.  Draper used to place one controversial item in each room she designed because she said it "makes people talk."

 

 The apartment overlooks the Beaux Arts mansion of Henry Clay Frick, originally designed in 1913 by Carerre and Hastings and later added on to by none other than John Russell Pope.  It was serendipitous that Jamie was asked to design this apartment, because as a little girl she often dreamed of living in the Frick Mansion (or Bergdorfs, of course).

 
In the master bedroom, a luxe, monochromatic palette creates a calming vibe.  The clients asked for a minimalist palette without a lot of adornment, except for great art, important sconces, and beautiful wall treatments.



The patio overlooks the Frick Mansion and the beautiful New York skyline.  Talk about a dream home!


View the original article on this home here.

Check out Jamie Herzlinger's portfolio and learn more about her design process here.

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Chic Shop Alert: John Salibello

How is it already Thursday?!  My week is flying by and I'm already focused on the pretty weekend ahead (as predicted for Houston).  I hope your week is going well!  I often get asked by friends and clients about my favorite furniture and accessory sources.  While my "favorites" spreadsheet is rather lengthy, the lines I find most noteworthy/special I have been sharing through my "Chic Shop Alert" series.  Yesterday, I was "shopping out" a particular piece, and came across one of my tried and true vintage stores- John Salibello in New York City.  John Salibello primarily carries fine mid-century modern furniture, lighting, and accessories.




It pains me to share this brass longhorn sculpture because I am an OU fan through and through.  However, I still love you Texans/UT fans, and I hope one of you splurges on this:














Too much fabulousness for one store.

“I choose to focus on fine design that is unusual and extraordinary, whether it has a designer name or not. I buy with my emotions and I hope I can pass that passion along to my clients.”

-John Salibello

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

New York Chelsea Townhome by Carlyle Designs

Are you guys familiar with the interior sight Domaine Home?  It's a fresh source of inspiration that features both home tours and design tips and I love to peruse it when I have a moment.   A few weeks ago, the site featured a 3,000 square foot New York City townhouse in the Chelsea area that really stuck with me.  Designed by Jordan Carlyle of Carlyle Designs for an artistic couple with a growing family, the house is incredibly unique and full of bold color:






I LOVE these coral bucket chairs paired with this sculptural coffee table!  Adding in tufted blue pieces adds life to the ethereal, sun-filled living room.



How fabulous is this vintage looking family portrait?









As I've mentioned before, I am loving brass hardware and fixtures.  Paired with an Art Deco wallpaper and a lucite towel bar, this bath is TDF.  

Read the original article and see how to get similar pieces for your home by going here.

Happy Tuesday!!

Monday, October 20, 2014

4 Books Worth Reading

Happy Monday!  Did you have a good weekend?  I spent mine getting things done around the house and devouring Lena Dunham's new book, Not That Kind of Girl.  I'm an avid fan of her HBO series Girls (in my dream world I would be Jessa) and the honest, raw way it depicts life for 20-something girls as they struggle to find their footing post college.  I certainly can relate to some of the complexities and disappointments the characters must navigate through in their work lives and love lives.  What I love about Girls is that it doesn't glamourize the character's lives; instead, it depicts each of them coming to terms in their own unique way with the realization that the idyllic world we picture post college isn't necessarily handed to us.  You have to really take an active part in creating the life you envision for yourself while at the same time maintaining a sense of humor, because the struggles are going to come.  Lena's book has a similar self-deprecating tone as her show, but she also mixes in lots of hilarious stories and embarrassing moments that make her both relatable and lovable. 

1.) Not that Kind of Girl by Lena Dunham

{Instagram snap- I know I did that horrible thing us bloggers are so guilty of- "creating" a vignette for a picture rather than just posting it as is.  But aesthetics matter to me!  So please forgive.}

Favorite quotes (I'm that nerdy girl that underlines things that stick out to her as she reads):

"Don't put yourself in situations you'd like to run away from. But when you run, run back to yourself."
"There's a certain grace to having your heart broken."
“I have the nagging sense that my true friends are waiting for me beyond college, unusual women whose ambitions are as big as their past transgressions, whose hair is piled high, dramatic like topiaries at Versailles, and who never, ever say ‘too much information’ when you mention a sex dream you had about your father.”

“Over time, my belief in many things has wavered: marriage, the afterlife, Woody Allen.”
Since I wanted to share my love for Lena's book with you, I also thought I'd share a few other great reads I've come across lately.

2. Wild by Cheryl Strayed


With the movie coming out this winter and Oprah popularizing this biography via her book club, I am sure most of you are familiar with the story.  Author Cheryl Strayed tragically lost her mother when she was only 22.  The grief of losing her mother nearly destroyed her as she was soon divorced from her husband and turning to heroin, promiscuity, and anything else to numb the pain.  After wandering aimlessly through her life for four years after her mother's death, she makes the impulsive decision to hike the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mojave Desert to Canada, covering nearly 1,000 miles by foot alone.  Cheryl shares her struggles- both physically and emotionally- so candidly as she makes her trek that I found myself often in tears as I read along. She powerfully captures the terrors and pleasures of her journey that maddened, strengthened, and ultimately healed her.  The trailer for the film came out about a month ago, and Reece Witherspoon will play Cheryl.  I cannot wait to see it!

Favorite quotes:

"I'd walk and think about my entire life.  I'd find my strength again, far from everything that had made my life ridiculous." -Cheryl Strayed

"I had to change.  Not in to a different person, but back to the person I used to be."

“I knew that if I allowed fear to overtake me, my journey was doomed. Fear, to a great extent, is born of a story we tell ourselves, and so I chose to tell myself a different story from the one women are told.  I decided I was safe. I was strong. I  was brave.  Nothing could vanquish me.”  

“Nobody will protect you from your suffering. You can't cry it away or eat it away or starve it away or walk it away or punch it away or even therapy it away. It's just there, and you have to survive it. You have to endure it. You have to live through it and love it and move on and be better for it and run as far as you can in the direction of your best and happiest dreams across the bridge that was built by your own desire to heal.”

“What if I forgave myself? I thought. What if I forgave myself even though I'd done something I shouldn't have? What if I was a liar and a cheat and there was no excuse for what I'd done other than because it was what I wanted and needed to do? What if I was sorry, but if I could go back in time I wouldn't do anything differently than I had done? What if I'd actually wanted to fuck every one of those men? What if heroin taught me something? What if yes was the right answer instead of no? What if what made me do all those things everyone thought I shouldn't have done was what also had got me here? What if I was never redeemed? What if I already was?”  

3. Women Who Run With the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estes


Not to be hyperbolic, but this book changed my life.  I read it for the first time about 5 years ago, and recently found the audio book and gave it another listen.  According to author Clarissa Estes, wolves and women share a psychic bond in their fierceness, grace and devotion. This comparison defines the archetype of the Wild Woman, a female in touch with her primitive side and able to rely on gut feelings to make choices. The tales here, from various cultures, are not necessarily about wolves; instead, they illuminate fresh perspectives on relationships, self-image, even addiction.  I think it's a must read for any woman.

Favorite Quotes:

“It is worse to stay where one does not belong at all than to wander about lost for a while, looking for the psychic and soulful kinship one requires.”  

“Tears are a river that takes you somewhere…Tears lift your boat off the rocks, off dry ground, carrying it downriver to someplace better.”  

“Though fairy tales end after ten pages, our lives do not. We are multi-volume sets. In our lives, even though one episode amounts to a crash and burn, there is always another episode awaiting us and then another. There are always more opportunities to get it right, to fashion our lives in the ways we deserve to have them. Don't waste your time hating a failure. Failure is a greater teacher than success.”  

“How does one know if she has forgiven? You tend to feel sorrow over the circumstance instead of rage, you tend to feel sorry for the person rather than angry with him. You tend to have nothing left to say about it all.”  

"Mindful choosing of friends and lovers, not to mention teachers, is critical to remaining conscious, remaining intuitive, remaining in charge of the fiery light that sees and knows.”  

4.) Elements of Style by Erin Gates


 I had the pleasure of meeting Erin Gates, author and interior designer behind the popular blog Elements of Style, this past Wednesday in Houston.  She was in town promoting her new coffee table book, Elements of Style- Designing a Home & a Life.  The book not only includes gorgeous pictures of her design work, but also hilarious and honest stories of her personal life as well as her career.

{Erin and me at the signing.  She's fab! And tall.}


Sorry for the wordy post!  I have been wanting to share a few book recommendations for a while now, so maybe I'll create a series of it and do a new reading list post each month.

Any good books you've read lately?

Thursday, October 16, 2014

Fall Essentials

A change in season always inspires me to reorganize and reevaluate my closet- donating outfits and shoes I never wear anymore.  The process of having done this over several season changes has taught me to stick with the timeless, classic pieces that work well with my figure.   While timeless pieces are often require more of an investment,  over time your ROI is much larger than bargain shopping for clothes that will fall apart after one season.  I tend to wear a lot of black in the fall and winter months, and I love how a silk blouse looks when paired with leather-


And how gorgeous are those black leather booties?  I have these Tory Burch booties on my birthday wish list.  I also love the idea of pairing leather with a cotton wrap skirt:


Another essential piece is a chic navy blazer.  I love this option from J Crew.  It's perfect to wear over a dress for work, or pair it with cutoffs and a striped tee for a more relaxed, casual look:


A camel top or sweater is great for layering and can also be dressed up or down.  I love this J Crew merino wool option.


A black leather jacket is one of my most coveted fall essentials.  It goes with essentially everything.


I love this all-black look - especially the crop top!




Just as versatile as black, navy goes with almost every other color (and CAN be paired with black!)


And a few more fall looks I love...





I've gathered a collection of pieces I love and feel are great for fall, but are essentially timeless.   What specifically is on your fall/winter closet wish list this year?







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