Reading revisited

Now that I have some time, I have decided to start reading again. My bestie recommended this book to me a year ago. I purchased it for $1 at the Friends of the Library book sale last February and it sat on my bookshelf for almost a year. I have been so engrossed in all the million other things that we have had going on and forgot about the thing that I love doing most....reading a quality book. Alice Sebold's writing is fantastic. She can make a dark subject light hearted and I hate to say this but almost comical in a way. I wanted to finish it before the movie comes out. Watched the trailer today. It is always so weird to me the way characters look when a book is turned into a movie. I have them pictured in my mind totally different. Anyway, just thought I would share. I am a quarter of the way through and I would highly recommend this read.

Handmade is always better

A very dear friend gave me this ornament yesterday. I absolutely love it. She admitted to "stalking" my blog so she got a pretty heavy dose of the things that I really like. I will hang it on my tree every year and think of her.

My dad made this for Zach. Fitting and perfectly made.

I really do have the best group of family and friends. Thank you and Merry Christmas!

Mustard Tory Burch's

These shoes should most definitely be mine.....

NYC Christmas on your coffee table

I would really like to have this book. I have always wanted to go to New York for Christmas and see the tree lit, walk through Central Park in the snow or actually watch people ice skate in Rockefeller Plaza in December and not April. There is just something so wonderful and infectious about NYC. Plus, "Miranda" wrote the foreword. Nice touch!

Holiday Cheer

My dearest Anthropologie, you never cease to amaze me..........

Earflap hat candle

Sweater sleeve candle

These are just plain creative.
I want to make some with old mason jars.
They are essentially a cooler version of a snow globe.

These boots melt my heart

I need another pair of boots like I need a hole in the head.
But who can resist the perfect construction
of these beautiful Frye boots.
I laid awake last night thinking about all the outfits I could wear pair these with.

Friday finds

I love these snow globes from West Elm. The silver tree is my favorite.
Would be a classy addition to any holiday decorating.

I can't resist owls. How adorable. This would look so good in my living room :)

Project Runway - Finale

Only three remain! Who will win???? I can't wait for tonight......

At home eye chart

This pillow really caught my eye. I am not sure why I like it. It's unusual and something I have never seen before. That combined with the clean white palette....makes a great combo. However, I don't 95 bucks like it. I will continue to admire it on the world wide web.

White on white

This tee is awesome.
Taking a plain white tee and dressing it up with hand sewn embellishments.
Genius.

Spiced Chestnut

Williams-Sonoma brought back this hand soap much to my husband's delight. It really does smell good. Imagine manly meets festive. I have our lovely friend Marina to thank for getting him started on this soap obsession. For me it's more about acquiring something that he really likes and better yet getting it on sale. Pretty much ever since we have been together, I have gone after Christmas and stocked up. Not last year. They didn't even carry this fragrance last year. The word "discontinued" was even uttered. And they changed the shape of the bottles so you had to buy a new metal holder. In our family things being discontinued is like the world ending. First it was Zach's GAP pants. That was a rough day. *He claims he still has not found the prefect fitting replacement pair. Then it was the only hair product that ever really worked well on my hair. Basically, we just gave up on WS. Until I got my holiday catalog in the mail. There is was. Bottle was even back to it's original size and shape. That was a good day. Heck, I even purchased Zach a full price bottle to ring in the holidays.

Edward & Bella

I cannot stop laughing. Don't get me wrong.......I love Twilight just like every other woman these days. However, this is slightly disturbing. Seems if Barbie decided to cash in on the Twilight phenomenon. Did I mention that I saw a woman my mother's age wearing a skin tight Twilight t-shirt in the airport. It was all I could do not to Tweet it for proof.

Warning: This post will likely bore you to pieces.....

I think all my problems are about to be solved. My lips are painfully dry pretty much all year around. The problem is worse in the colder months when the air is drier. I have never found anything that works great....just temporarily fixes the issue. I am obsessive about keeping something on my lips at all times. I can't sleep until I have applied chapstick. I always have lipstick or gloss on. In fact, I know a certain someone who used to poke fun at how perfectly it was always applied and wondered if I slept in my lipstick in college. I am not naming names....but she knows who she is!

I will be purchasing this product ASAP. I am hoping to leave the days of dry lips far behind me.

It really is the most wonderful time of the year....

The holidays are just around the corner. I love the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I go overboard and decorate every inch of my house. Zach gets annoyed at what a production getting all the decorations down turns into. It's an all day affair complete with hot chocolate, Christmas tunes and Love Actually on in the background. I remind him how his father has it so much worse. My mother-in-law loves Christmas more than I do. Ie: double the amount of stuff to put up and even worse take down.

I was driving down Western the other day and Chesapeake was already stringing lights on the trees. I imagine they do have to start in October to be done by Christmas. I have never in my life seen that amount of LED lights in one area. I forget how spectacular it is and every year the first time I drive through is almost breath taking.

Anyway, I decided to write this blog because Christmas ornaments are a huge deal to me. I like to buy/receive ornaments that are symbolic. A trip we have gone on, a memory that is important to us, an inside joke. When we lived Downtown we had a mouse in our house for about a week. It was a rather traumatic experience for both of us. I got a mouse ornament for Christmas that year. Every year I unwrap it I makes me remember how horrified I was to find out we had a little rodent living in our house and that they could climb onto things like the bed and the kitchen counters.

Urban Outfitters has some pretty cute ornaments this year. Here are a couple of my favorites.

GG Fashion

This necklace was worn on Gossip Girl last night. Don't laugh.....I know it's not award winning television but the fashion is wonderful. I am totally in love with the color of this necklace. I have always been drawn to anything turquoise. It's perfect with the dress she has on and the chunky ring & bracelet. Lily wore the matching earrings in a different episode. The vivid blueish color looked amazing with the fuchsia dress she wore.

Project Runway Week 8 & 9

I am painfully behind on my PR blogging. I'm finally all caught up. I was going to write this grand combination blog of the last two weeks. It did not happen. Sorry loyal readers. Here are a few tidbits for discussion.

1. I cannot stand Irina. She just annoys me. That hateful face she makes. News flash: You aren't that talented and are far to cocky to be that mean.

2. I love, love the grey nail polish Heidi is wearing in week 9 (I think). I will be locating some very soon.

3. I want Carol Hannah and Logan to date. They are too cute!

4. Tim comforting Shirin. I felt truly bad for her. I thought Christopher was a goner. I was pretty shocked.

My very own LV

Wednesday was an exciting day for Mixed Handbag. For my third wedding anniversary my dear husband put his personal feeling about this particular thing aside and bought me an amazing gift.

He gave me the traditional 3rd anniversary gift (leather) in the form of a beautiful Louis Vuitton. It sort of reminded me of when I got engaged. The first week or two all you can do it stare at your hand all day long. Well, I find myself looking at this purse at least 10 times a day. Thanks for a memorable anniversary, Z.

The Year of Three's

I would like to veer from my typical blog posting to wish my husband a Happy 30th Birthday! Also, Happy 3 Year Anniversary, lover. We got married on his birthday. Birthdays are a huge deal to me. I didn't want him to have to share "his" special day with "our" special day. He has been very cool about it all. Things like that don't bother Zach. One of many things that I find endearing about him. Which brings me to a short list of things that I love. I will do my best to leave out all the mushy crap.

1. He wears Birkenstocks or Vans with dress pants and a sport coat.
2. He is the most inappropriate person I know. But also one of the funniest.
3. He is giving. Incredibly giving.
4. He is everyone's best friend. It is rare to hear someone speaking negatively about him....unless it is in regards to his political views.
5. He knows all the words to all the Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan songs. And sings them really loud when he thinks I am not listening.
6. He likes to shop. Would never admit it. I love that he cares about his appearance. The man has more clothes than I do.
7. Until last May, he didn't own a swimsuit. He said......"why do I need one, I don't swim."
8. He gets really nervous if there isn't something vegan on the menu when we got out to dinner with Layni. He truly cares about his friends.
9. He likes to leave the house for work by 7:00 a.m. or earlier. He doesn't want to be late.
10. He is wildly talented. I am sure he is mortified right now. But there, I said it. I am allowed to brag on him today!
11. He doesn't know who any celebrities are. Or the names to any songs or who sings them. It's totally cute.
12. He is a total social engineer. Some would call him just plain nosey. I call it a man who knows how to do his research.
13. He is in a scooter club that he made up.
14. He cannot eat anything without some sort of dipping sauce.
15. He does not like to be the center of attention.

Green light.....

....as in the hubby said I could paint one wall in the kitchen with chalkboard paint. He always shoots down my ideas for making our adorable love nest more cozy. What he does not realize is, I will never stop striving for the perfect little home. I think special touches like this are easy and can bring out the character of a home. Wish me luck. I always think painting is a grand idea until I actually start doing it. Then I remember why I said "never again" last time.

Antlers

How awesome are these?
I would love to mix them in with some of the new "sophisticated" Halloween decorations.
I think I can locate some that are a little less pricey.

Random finds

These note cards made me laugh so hard. I would love to get them. People at work give me a hard time about Twitter all the time. They just don't know what they are missing out on.


How cute is this scarf? Adorable! Collected Thread has them. I love that place. I have gotten some really great, unique gifts in there. This I think I would need to go ahead and keep for myself.

Project Runway Week 7

The challenge this week was to design something to be sold commercially at Macy's and fit into the INC. holiday line. I love INC. One of my favorite Macy's lines. Blue was the chosen color palette. They worked with partners and it was a one day challenge.

All the judges were ooohing and ahhing over that dress that Irina made. I don't get it. It was so ugly. I cannot believe she won. Both of those looks were so ugly. I don't care for Irina.

Carol Hannah and Shirin's designs were my favorite. Followed by the look Logan did. I didn't care for the suit that Althea made. That skirt was WAY too short. I loved the detail on the shirt that Logan did. I would have worn both of those outfits.


After thoughts:
1. Tim Gunn revealing his distaste for leggings. I think my heart broke a little.
2. Michael Kors comparing Louise's dress to a shower loofa.
3. The birds noises Louise was making while sewing....WTF?
4. Layni asking me Saturday night if Heidi says Oopsy Daisy to people when they get eliminated. I could not stop laughing. I guess it sort of sounds like Auf Wiedersehen.

Messy hair

I love this look. I have this kind of hair. Or at least I did when it was longer. This made me want to grow it back out. I really like the messy bun with that cute headband. I took this picture off Anthropologie's website. I know that is shocking to most of you :) I love every single thing about that store. I cannot wait to go browse with Amanda in 28 days!

The Perfect Pair

My friend, Jena painted this for me. It is exactly what I requested. Anyone who knows me already knows my fond affinity for things in pairs. I also love pears. Not to eat. Just to look at. They are so cute. I decorate with them frequently. Oddly enough, so does Alanda. We discovered our mutual love of the fruit during the parade of homes. Anyway, I just wanted to show off my fancy new artwork. Thanks, Jena. This looks quite nice in our kitchen.

Parade of Homes

Alanda and I have had our plates full for the past two weeks. We decorated a home in Edmond for the 2009 Parade of Homes. We had so much fun working our little butts off and laughed a lot. Imagine little me moving the armoire in the left hand corner of the above picture by myself. Well, I did! Alanda is extremely talented and has an amazing eye for design. We have completely different styles but see eye-to-eye on many decorating ideas. More than anything this was fun because I enjoy making things look pretty and it was a great opportunity for us to spend some quality time together. Here is a sneak peek of the rest of the house. Enjoy!

Edmond Parade Home
Pass code: paradehome

Project Runway Week 6

The challenge this week was to design a look inspired by a movie genre. 1 day challenge with a budget of $150. I was sort of bored with this challenge.

Christopher's dress and storyline were my favorite. He totally had me when he said vampire! The back of this dress was awesome. I felt like it was the most dramatic and costume like.

I liked Althea's design but I don't think it was special enough to win this particular challenge. It looked like something she would have made any other week.

Nicolas. Where to start. His dress was awful. He just annoys me. I knew he would be the winner as soon as he started talking about how he had always been in the bottom three 10 minutes into the episode. Hello foreshadowing! I cannot believe he won!

Then the bombshell. Ra'mon is out! Really? I was completely shocked. Louise hasn't even designed anything memorable. Until next week....

After thoughts:
1. Tim Gunn saying "big hot mess". I nearly peed my pants.
2. How spectacular were Heidi's black sequins leggings?

A girl's best friend and I don't mean diamonds

Every girl dreams of owning a pair of Manolo Blahnik's. Now, thanks to a great friend with a serious shopping habit, I am one of those girls. Excitement is an understatement. ***Pause to feel jealous for just a moment***

Here is my best assessment of what happened. Friend got wide-eyed in Neiman's and made an impulse purchase. No judgement, we have all done it. Friend told herself they are a classic black pump....I will wear them everyday. Friend reasons with herself that she needs these shoes and that they are an investment. Continues to purchase. Friend gets home and realizes they really don't quite fit right. Friend (+ every woman I know) would rather die then admit this so she forces herself to wear them just to say she did not completely waste her money. Friend then wears them three maybe four times. Back in their pretty white box where they would live for the next year. How do I know this to be true? Because I am this woman. Maybe not with a $500 pair of black heels, but we have all made poor shoe buying choices and then regretted it. In this instance I love someone else's "poor choice" because yours truly is reaping all the benefits. Thank you, friend.

Ushering in Fall

Love the new fall looks from Anthropologie. I think I would wear shorts this short in the cooler months if I could pair them with some cute tights.

Navy blue tights with those yellow shoes. Me likey!

Project Runway Week 5

This is probably my favorite Project Runway Challenge ever. Constructing a garment completely out of newspaper. I was so excited to see them do something like this. I sell newspaper advertising and have worked in the newspaper industry pretty much ever since I graduated from college.

Christopher's design was my favorite. I loved that way it moved down the runway. He really thought about all the details right down to the hair adornment. I also really thought Irina's trench coat was worth mentioning. What a creative idea. It was so different from what all the other designers made.


Follow up:
1. I must say that I was sort of surprised that no one made a garment out of newspaper crossword puzzles.
2. How about Tim Gunn getting mad after Johnny's bold face lie on the runway.
3. This challenge reminded me of the Dior dress from Sex in the City Season 3 (which is being recycled and worn again in the SATC 2 movie).

New York State of Mind

NYC salt & pepper shakers. Lovely.
Totally going on my Christmas list.

Hot glue burns hurt!

I made my friend a very belated birthday present. She needed a holder to display all her earrings. I have made several in the past with the assistance of my father. Think of me as the "idea" person and him as the one with the know how to execute that idea. I wanted to try something a little different this time. I knew I wanted a turquoise frame. Good luck finding that in Oklahoma City. So I painted a natural wood frame the exact color I was thinking about. Then I found this really cute fabric. I sat on the idea for a few days. How was I going to make all this work? I looked online and finally ended up adapting something I found and liked. The finished product is below. I must say I was pleased with the way it turned out. Happy birthday, Tami. Hope you like it.

Owls

Found both of these pieces on Etsy (very fond of the owl earrings). I could spend hours on that site. I love the hair accessories and jewelry.

My grandmother has collected owls for as long as I can remember. It wasn't until a couple of years ago that I really started liking them. I have dish towels, magnets, a necklace,
pillow for my bed. I really wish I had paid closer attention to the display case full
of them at her house in Massachusetts.

Project Runway Week 4

This week definitely brought a much more difficult challenge. I must say the level of work has improved dramatically. I was impressed with a lot of the designs.

The remaining 13 had to design something for their models to wear to an industry event. So, their models were their clients. This was a one day challenge. Time was definitely a huge factor.

Here's my line up of hits and misses:

Gordana - The detail work down the front of that gold dress was impeccable. The dress looked fantactic on her model. Wasn't crazy about the color.

Christopher - Loved his dress. The green just popped out and said look at me.

Epperson - I did not agree with the judges. That dress looked like something a stripper would wear.

Carol Hannah - Loved her dress. Thoughtful use of texture. Wasn't crazy about the purple but that is just me hating purple.

**Althea - That look was by far the best. I think I need that suit. I think I could sell some ads in that suit. She deserved to win.

Moments:
1. Heidi saying "Ya'll".
2. Logan - Umm, total cutie.
3. Was that long, curly haired judge a bit of a B?

Mad Men

We recently started watching Mad Men. Finished off Season 1 (thanks to Netflix) and are about to finish Season 2. DVR is recording the new season. I am not patient enough to wait for one new episode every week. Watching 3 or 4 at a time is much easier.

This really is a great show. Set in 1960's Manhattan. It depicts the "Golden Age" of advertising. All the wives are homemakers and dress more stylish than I have ever seen any stay-at-home mother dress. The fashion is amazing. January Jones is stunning. And who wouldn't want to smoke cigarettes with the dashing Don Draper. He actually makes it look appealing.