Miguelina

Clever and pretty is a dangerous combination

Two incredibly adorable things I've come across this week:

The Shoe Wheel

It's like a hamster wheel, but for shoes...er, it sounds stupid, so just look at it:

It looks gargantuan, but in the end I think it might be practical. I'm just not sure if I need one.

Spinning the shoes might be fun though.

Latico Loose Change Clutch

Now this one might actually solve a problem. Have you noticed how when cashiers hand you your change they place the bills on the palm of your hand and then they pile the change on top? Why is that? Do they think that it makes it more likely that you will dump it in the Tip Jar if it's inconvenient?

Personally, all it does is slow me down and piss off the customer behind me. What good does that do? But I digress.

This little clutch is cute and it has a little slot on the side so you can drop in your change just like if it was a piggy bank. Or a slot machine. So clever!

 

Spring dressing

This morning we went outside (without coats!) and saw that the tulips we planted last October are starting to push their thick green leaves from the ground. It's officially Spring (HALLE-FRACKING-LUJAH), and my thoughts have finally turned to my closet.

Why is Fall the big fashion season? I don't know about you, but I go into sartorial hibernation once the ground freezes. Yes, I know that there are beautiful scarves and boots to be worn - but in reality I end up wearing the same boots and coat everyday. With our messy winters, they end up being the practical waterproof ones. I eventually lose interest in what's underneath because knits are too hot in heated rooms and other materials are too light to wear outside.

(I know I sound like Goldilocks. Shut up.)

Also, the wearing of socks makes me grumpy. I can't feel stylish in socks.

But now that things are warming up, I'm excited to start shopping again - and the first thing my mind turns to are dresses. Easy, breezy, pretty dresses! I don't know why so many women refuse to wear dresses - I think that it is much easier to put one on in the morning and slip on some flats or sandals. Two simple steps and you're dressed for the day.

So yes, I wear dresses when its warm because I'm too lazy to bother matching pants to a shirt. And shorts? I avoid them like the plague. They're the warm-weather equivalent of socks.

I have two requirements for everyday dresses:

1. They must be machine- or hand- washable. No matter how cheap the dress, I drop it like a hot potato when I see "Dry Clean Only" on the label. (I have small children.) "Hand Washable" is acceptable only because I trust my washing machine with my delicates and it's never been a problem.

2. They must be easy to wear. If the dress requires specialized undergarments it's relegated to the "special occasion" pile.

The first place I go to for comfortable casuals is J. Crew and, as usual, they have plenty of options:

(J. Crew - where the pretty never stops.)

I'm definitely getting this beauty from Anthropologie and I'll probably wear it with flip flops to keep it from looking matronly:

It's as easy to put on as a t shirt or cowl neck sweater, but SO much better, don't you think?

But other than J. Crew and Anthropologie, it's been difficult to find machine-washable dresses for everyday wear. This is the best I've been able to find so far:

They're OK I guess, but I need something a little more exciting. Retro prints, bright colors, SOMETHING. Can you guys help? Have you found any awesome, machine-washable dresses you can wear to the grocery store?

How to enjoy women

Whenever I meet a woman that claims to not get along with other women I run the other way. Not out of fear, mind you - the truth is I feel sorry for women like that. There is nothing more pathetic than to say that you hate women when you are guilty of being one yourself.

Women that say this usually declare this proudly, as if it were a badge of honor. Sadly, it's not even a unique thing to say. Look, we've all had to deal with mean girls (don't I know it!) but you're not being fair to yourself when you tell anyone that will listen that all women are vicious creatures out to hurt one another in the name of competition.* Because, really, is that all you think of yourself? And your mother?

Men are great; they really are quite the extraordinary creatures. But they are best enjoyed one at a time - and if you're married you've made a promise to do exactly that. On the other hand, as a woman you're afforded the luxury of enjoying the company of as many strong, gorgeous, powerful, stylish, brilliant women as you can find. There's no way you can "cheat" on a girl-friend - in fact, I find that it's best not to become too dependent on one woman for all you friendship needs.

The more the merrier, I say.

But how do you find these women? What if you're a recovering girl-hater?

Linky Love: March 21

I think I have a crush on this blogger. Stalk her, she speaks wisely: Easy and Elegant Life

So sweet! Instant Happy! Mamalogues

Where does all the time go?  Kerflop has the answer. Thanks for the kick in the pants!

Wait? So my kids will be teenagers someday? Yikes. Check these ladies out to get a glimpse into the future:

The one where I break up with Pottery Barn

I'm overwhelmed by the task of decorating our house: I want it to be a comfortable place to entertain, a happy home for our children to grow up in, a beautiful place to live our lives. Of course, those high expectations have done nothing but paralyze me. That's my excuse for why my living room has looked like this for the better part of a year:

It doesn't help that I have a love-hate relationship with shopping and the general buying of stuff. I hate the actual "going" part of shopping (wandering aimlessly in a mall - OMG KILL ME NOW!), but when I do need to buy something I absolutely DESPISE spending my hard-earned money on junk.  I  like to surround myself with pretty things and will pay for quality - mostly so that I won't have to go shopping to replace things anytime soon.

What to do?

Well, one way I get around that is to look at catalogs. They're convenient, portable and are filled with pretty pictures. Add to that the fact that we moved into a house that's approximately three times as big as our old apartment, and that equals the very real possibility that I would eventually end up buying something from Pottery Barn. And if you live anywhere in the United States, you already get 3 copies of the same Pottery Barn catalog at least twice a month, so why not flip through them before recycling them?

(That's how they get us! We're powerless against Pottery Barn and their relentless catalogs!)

We moved into this house last May, and at the time I was still filled with enthusiasm for the whole decorating process. My first task was to buy a kitchen table and four chairs. Easy enough, right? I needed a place where the four of us could eat breakfast, that would fold out of the way when we needed the space, and that was easy to wipe down when the kids spilled their milk. (Which happens EVERY DAMN time we sit at the table.)

I was thrilled when I saw this table in the Pottery Barn catalog:

(Photo from potterybarn.com)

A simple,cute-enough table that folds:

I See Famous People ... Just kidding! Sort of.

Sometime last week I informed my husband that he would be on lone daddy duty on Sunday because I'd made plans to have coffee with a friend that was visiting from LA.

"Sure!" He said - no questions asked. It wasn't until Saturday afternoon that he finally asked me who my friend was.

"It's Sarah."

"Sarah? Did you go to school together? I don't remember you ever mentioning a Sarah from LA."

"That's because we didn't go to school together."

"Then how do you know each other?"

"We've been reading each other since...huh, I don't really remember! It's been at least since she before she got pregnant ..."

"Hoooold on...OK. So - let me get this straight...you're going to meet up with a woman you call a 'friend' because you read her on the INTERNET?"

"I guess so. Yes."

*Sigh*

He was silent for a minute. I guess I had rendered him speechless with my nerditude. (And you know what? I don't blame him - it does sound crazy - I know it!)

"Tell me one thing - how do you know she's not insane? Or a stalker? Or a man pretending to be a mom?"

"Oh, she's not an insane-stalker-man!"

"How do you know?"

"I just know! It's Whoorl!"

The only thing I could think to do to make my case for "just knowing" that I wasn't meeting up with a random internet psycho was to show him her site. He clicked around until he found a picture. This one, to be exact. And then he had one thing to say:

"Can I come too?"

(Answer: HELL NO! I missed out on shopping for beauty products with Metalia because he was out of town on Tuesday so the kids were ALL HIS on Sunday. Fair is fair, bud!).

ANYWAYS, off I went to meet up with a total stranger who wasn't a stranger at all. And despite the fact that I knew she would be lovely (and she was!) I was still amazed that a Boston-girl-by-way-of-Miami could meet a California-girl-by-way-of-Oklahoma for the very first time and instantly have the type of girl talk that good friends catching up on old times have. If that's not awesome, I don't know what is.

(What do bloggers meeting for the first time talk about? Boys, handbags, hair (hello!), work, kids...the same things girlfriends all over the world talk about over coffee.)

Now I have a GREAT excuse to go to the west coast - and for that, I have the internet to thank.

(Thanks, Al Gore! I owe you one!)

Oh Mad Men! I think I love you!

I know that the show is already a HUGE hit, and that what I'm watching is an encore of the first season - basically microwaved leftovers - but I'm so glad I finally found this show! I love everything about it: The story lines, the flawed characters, the suspense, the cheating and melodrama.

It will come as no surprise that I also just like the way the show looks (talk about some serious glamour!):

 

I also thank my lucky stars that I'm a married woman living in 2008 and not in 1960. The End.

$15,000 beauty

This month's Vogue has a little blurb on a salon in NYC that offers a "Beauty Addict" program where for a yearly fee of $15,000 - yes! $15K! - you get unlimited blowouts and manicures/pedicures. As a special treat, you get one at-home visit a month.

I worked in prestige beauty marketing long enough to know that this is most likely a publicity stunt, but still... Who spends $15,000 a year to have somebody else blow dry their hair?

Knowing this level of beauty maintenance even exists makes me feel exceedingly frumpy and in need of a manicure. At $12 a pop I'd need to go to the salon 1,250 times to make it worthwhile. Every manicure takes about one hour (including drying time) so that means that I would spend about 52 days in a nail salon, inhaling toluene fumes while flipping through last year's copy of Allure. I don't have that kind of time!

Friends

...are good for you.

(I'm tired of being told what's bad for me, so I'm starting a list of things that are good for you.)