The Gig is Up.

I'm just curious as to why J.Crew has been greedily hiding their sister store, Madewell, from us Northern Californians for so long. Shame on you, Jenna, for keeping me apart from this incredible skirt for so long:

Mariposa Skirt, $88

And from the ethereal goodness of this tank:

Paisley Hazy Days Cami, $98

And from the effortless perfection of this dress:

Briolette Cami Dress, $175

And from this freaking necklace. Why don't I own this necklace??!

Color Drop Jewel and Chain Necklace, $58

And from these very cool pants that may make me look long-crotched and butch, but I am willing to risk it anyways:

Surplus Pants, $72

Cat's out of the bag Madewell. Now, where's my credit card?

In the closet.

It's true, my husband was living in the closet for awhile there. OK- I admit, it was not "the" closet, but rather, "a" closet- in a one bedroom apartment he shared with 3 other adult males in the infamous Isla Vista (and yes, the apartment did look as filthy and smell as rank as you may be imagining right now). Ever since those years spent passing out in the closet with him after a night of Silver Bullet consumption, the thought of closet living has always left a somewhat sour taste in my mouth.

So I figured while we were on the topic of down-sizing, I'd share with you yet another inspiring little space I stumbled across in the blogosphere of late that has changed my outlook on closet residences and is further convincing me to simplify my crowded life. One of my favorite bloggers, Jordan Ferney, a very talented San Franciscan party planner and writer of Oh Happy Day! lives cozily and creatively with her hubby and two sons in a very stylish one bedroom apartment. Her two-year old son, Moses, lives in the converted walk-in closet pictured above and I think it's super cute. Check out more pics of this cool little space here.

HAUTE MAMA of the MONTH II- finally.

Sometimes I fantasize about selling my cute little1950's rancher and moving into a monster tract home with 6 bedrooms and no personality, but oodles of storage space and a giant toy room that I could just let the boys completely trash and simply close the door when company came over.

In my mind, the house would be immaculate (with the exception of the aforementioned toy room) because everything would have a place- a tidy spot in a closet somewhere reserved especially for whatever that particular item might be. But in reality, I know that the more space I'd have, the more stuff I would accumulate and I would ultimately find myself in the same predicament that I'm in now- too much stuff (and by stuff, I mean shit).

Lately, I've been thinking just the opposite- that maybe all we need to do is simplify- move into a cozy little condo and get rid of all the "stuff" (with the exception of my shoes). And just when I start to tell myself it's crazy talk, I am reminded of my adorable friend and this month's long-overdue HMOM , Mrs. Gina Shoemaker. The incredible, charismatic, creative and enviably skinny Miss G is the mother of 3 little munchkins, ages 4 years to 1 month and she manages to contain her growing brood on the top floor of an old Brooklyn brownstone apartment with no elevator (possible contributing factor to skinniness).

As far as apartments go, it's incredible, with unrestricted views of the NYC skyline, but it's still half of the space that we're working with her at Casa Madigan and Gina manages to make it work and make it adorable while she's at it.

An excellent example of her resourcefulness would be the little hallway art center she recently crafted for her toddlers with some moulding, chalkboard paint, shelving brackets from Anthro and some mason jars. The Shoemakers do not waste space.

Voila!

I love the little tape measure with paper clips!

Here is the lovely G before the recent arrival of Johnny Charles.

And here are her adorable design assistants. I miss you G!

The Summer of Crazy Shoes

I hate casual Friday. I'm typically dressed either one of two ways- presentably or not- and my "not" outfit usually has holes and grease stains, so pulling off the whole polished casual thing just isn't my bag.

This past Friday, after a particularly frustrating morning in the closet, the hubs surveyed my slightly unusual outfit, which I felt the need to finish off with some big, clunky sandals, and proclaimed this, "the summer of crazy shoes."

He nailed it. Something's in the air this year and it's got me snatching up impractical shoes like a woman with no children, but I just can't help myself. Which is why, when I caught a glimpse of the complete Pour La Victoire Spring 2010 collection, I started contemplating picking up a night job.

These are just a few of the styles that are giving me grabbies.

the Erika

the Edie

the christa

the Carol

the Caitlin

check out more of this fabulous collection here!

I'm Back!

Ooooh mamas. Where to begin?

Because I live in an imaginary world where my blogging serves some sort of purpose other than justifying hours spent staring at things I don't need online, I like to think that you all have been missing me- lamenting my absence, obsessively checking HMD (which you've bookmarked, of course) and praying for some glimmer of hope that I haven't abandoned the cause altogether.

Fear not, lovelies, for I am back, with a blogging vengeance.

I'd like to say that I was simply too busy lounging poolside, soaking up the dry Arizona sun, drinking cocktails and enjoying my well-deserved vacation in Scottsdale with the family. Perhaps this is what I would have been doing had I not been holed up in my hotel room waiting for the battle that had been taking place in my stomach for 5 long days to cease. I jinxed it mamas. I made one too many comments of the, "I guess I have mommy immunity" variety at work after mopping up assorted piles of vomit from my floor, furniture, walls, etc. the week prior. My turn had come.

I would be lying if I said I didn't squeeze in some family fun time. Thankfully, everyone's gastrointestinal tracts were back in order for some serious cupcake eating at a Toy Story birthday party at Grandma Cathy's this weekend. My little Hud turned 2 today. I just can't believe it.

I do believe I'll have another cupcake.

Could he be any cuter??

Wedding Looks for Gina!

Although I like to fancy myself a pretty stylish person, I do realize that taste is all relative and that the ruflley turquoise and hot pink floral blouse I'm wearing to work today probably looks a little bit ridiculous to half of the people here (yes, I am posting at work, btw- don't tell) and there is a lot of "who does she think she is" going on at the water cooler.

That said, it's nice to have some reinforcement from time-to-time, which is why I am always totally flattered when you lovely ladies come to me for advice- which is exactly what Miss Gina did last week when faced with a dress that needed some accessorizing for multiple wedding that she's headed to this summer. Gina was looking for colorful (but not "rainbow" colorful -good thing you clarified Gina- because I was gonna set you up with something this)and affordable.

First off, here's the dress:

So- here we go.

Look #1- The dress has a great, sort-of abstract hibiscus print on it that I felt would lend itself well to a slightly beachy look, so I paired it up with some mother-of-pearl accents and a hint of wood. I Love the ruching in the strapless neckline, so thought it best to go with earrings and let the decolletage do the talking. This is what I came up with (forgive me for the small pics today ladies, am having some issues with the Dell and had to literally put these together in Word with 5 Clicks- pretty resourceful if you ask me.)..


Love the Coral hue of the shoes and the two-tone, chunky heel, Boutique Nine Uziri Sandals, $99

Mother of Pearl Shell Disc Earrings, TopShop, $20 (!)

Wooden Bangle with studs, Modcloth, $15 (!!)

Look #2- As an alternative to the above, I thought we would go the other end of the spectrum and make this look a little more evening. Now, I didn't go colorful on this look, but I just couldn't resist suggesting these shoes and earrings because they were a spot-on match for the dress. You could easily infuse some color with a bright pashmina (I would go with a plum or purple shade) or even a colored clutch. The earrings still just have a hint of mother-of pearl, in keeping with a very subtley beachy vibe.

Rae Back Zip Sandals, TopShop, $135

Crystal Crustacean Earrings, J.Crew, $68

Gina- let me know if I came even remotely close to hitting the mark on these, or hit me up if you want more looks. Good Luck!!!

Now that's more like it..

I really want to help impoverished children in every way that I can, but I just haven't been able to get on board with the whole Tom's thing. In fact, when my sister came home with hers, and excitedly unveiled them, I proclaimed that I just couldn't- just wouldn't- do it. My huge feet would most certainly look like two giant, canvas, vegan burritos.

Obviously, our friend Tom must have gotten word of my hesitance, because looky-loo what's coming soon from our humanitarian friend:

source

Now that is an act of kindness that I can get on board with. Coming soon to Toms.