Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Bridal Shower (part 1)

Part 1 of many, I'm assuming. I've never had the honor of throwing a bridal shower. This spring my friend Meghan is getting married. I will be throwing her a shower & am super excited. I love a good party, afterall.
{Me & Megz, Derby Day, pardon the goofiness, the party was in Nebraska}
I have some great ideas about decor & food, but am at a total loss about the rest. Am I supposed to be making this about sharing recipes or gifting kitchen items or buying lingerie? I simply don't know. And activities? Total loss. The issue is that Meghan isn't your traditional, cutesy, bride-y bride. We are going to Vegas for the nuptials & our bridesmaid shoes are hot pink patent pumps.

Help! What are some fun activities that you've participated in or liked from your showers?

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

A Fully Stocked Bar

I'd always figured you'd really grown up once you were able to keep a fully stocked bar in your house. This is something that tends to be quite difficult for people like me - once there's a new bottle of something in the house it tends to disappear quite quickly. Ask Conor. Oh wait, he's busy in the kitchen drinking all our scotch. Ha ha.
{A close-up of my sad excuse for a bar}
But seriously, I've lately been thinking about this idea of a "bar." I'm getting better! As of right now it's a very scotch-heavy bar due to Conor's late obsession, plus I myself am not a huge consumer of liquor (I veer towards champagne, wine, & beer).
{Look, more black & white decor! Go figure, huh?}
I did a little research & have determined that a simple, home bar should have the following liquors: blended whiskey, bourbon, brandy, gin, liqueurs (Kahlua, Grand Marnier, etc), rum, scotch, tequila, sherry, dry & sweet vermouth, & vodka. This is pretty basic. I'm not even close to basic. I'm like, sub-basic or something.

Oh well. You have to start somewhere! What do you all have in your home "bar?"
Is it super fabulous or are you on the same level as moi?
Do tell!

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Black + White

I think I could stand to have an entire home decked out in black & white. For example, this front entry - talk about a first impression. GORGEOUS.

(via Belle Maison)
This bedroom is also pretty much awesome.
Of course, the fabulous loft apartment doesn't hurt!
My bedroom = not so lovely.

(via Apartment Therapy)
I'm always on the lookout for black & white decor. Fun, little things to dress up my place. Since I'm still renting I cannot go all out, but sometimes the accessories are the best part! Today I found the cutest acrylic tray - & it was super cheap, too! It's perfectly simple: clear & white. I had to have it. Trays are an especially attractive item to me.

Hi tray!
I can't quite decide where it is going to live yet, but I have a feeling it will be pretty versatile.

Looks good with colour, too.
Vintage Cocktails: fave book o' the moment - a Christmas giftie from my bro & his wife. She's an interior designer - duh, it's obviously what we're good at!

I never did a "tour" of my new place. I honestly think it's kinda dumpy. "It is only temporary," I keep telling myself. Well, stay tuned & I'll be posting some more of my favorite black + white items around my place. Maybe that will finally get me excited about making my apartment a little bit more of a home.

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Ugly Shoe Season

It's the first week of yet another new semester - aka "ice breaker" time for students. Don't you just love when professors think it's a genius idea to make you stand up & say something "interesting" about yourself to the entire class? There's got to be a better way to introduce ourselves, right? How many times can I honestly tell people I was named after champagne, or that I really like dogs, or that someday I'd like to own a brewery? (I made that up, ps)

Yesterday I told my teacher that I don't like winter because it's, for the most part, "ugly shoe season, which can be evidenced by looking around the room." No one laughed. Then I realized that I insulted each & every person in there. Lovely, Pipes. I'm hoping for an A+ in that class, & maybe a few new pals.
{Scary view! Both the crappy window & the snow.}
I came home & started researching attractive options for dealing with 20+ inches of snow on the ground. I just cannot get into it. Here's my short list:
I've decided that it's just better to be dropped off at the door than to have to don giant waterproof beast-wear & risk leg breakage while stumbling ungracefully through giant snow drifts. I can't wait until May when it's all gone & I can feel like a lady again. Ha ha.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Happy New Year!

Last week, of course. I'm way behind on a million blog-related things & am still having stoooopid technical issues (stemming from the Macbook Accident of '09) that will probably only be fixed by buying a new laptop...something I'd love to do, but cannot right now - textbooks first!

Without further ado, I'd like to announce the winner of my Kate Spade giveaway -
Miss Suburban Sweetheart!
Congrats! Please email me your shipping address & I will ship it out ASAP so you can plan out your new year. It's a bit crazy snowy here, so I will be as quick as possible! (-20 Friday? NO WAY)
{NYE with a bow in my quite-icky hair, wearing my heavy coat + my friend Caitlin & her impressive red bow.}
I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season & a FUN NYE - ours was quite cold & snowy, which I'm sure you're well aware if you follow me on Twitter!

Looking forward to catching up,