Lc's Lust List (Team USA edition)

It's official, the torch has been carried, the athletes have paraded in and I am in full blown Olympic obsession!

Since Friday, I have spent every extra second I have watching as much of the games as I can (who knew I was such a men's water polo fan?).  This has inspired my lust list for the week.  While it might not be the most conventional list, I assure you, I want to get my hands on everything on it.

$165

I am really digging this Ralph Lauren Team USA Olympic full zip fleece.  It completely captures the fresh feel of the chilly London games without looking too stuffy.  I adore the tri-colored cuff and the length would hit the right place on just about any girl.  It's super cute and really, who doesn't love a good RL polo horse silhouette with a popped collar?

$29

Due to my lack of height, drive and basketball skills will never go to the Olympics for b-ballin', but this Deuce USA Basketball Silicone Watch would at least have me convinced I'd be one of the best towel girls the team could have.  The flag colored silicone band  is feather weight, which is perfect for all those times you'll be waving your arms in the air like a crazy person cheering on the red, white and blue.

$450

The only thing that could come close to wearing an actual gold medal, might be this awesome Nike USA London 2012 21st Century Windrunner jacket.  The athletic gear mavericks have done it again with an ultra light weight, breathable jacket...and this time it's doused in America.  As if the cordport for your mp3 player in the front wasn't enough, the reflective material and vented sides makes it the perfect jacket to wear while pretending you are LoLo Jones.  A bit on the pricey side, the licensed jacket is an amazing find, especially with the rubberized ol' glory stitched to the sleeve.

Last, but certainly not least on my lust list is Ryan Lochte.  Despite coming up short in the 400 Men's freestyle relay, I would still like to get some face time with this swoon worthy swimmer.  He is turning out to be the heart throb of the games, which is fitting because this is the "XXX" games.  If you are interested in more Lochte eye candy, just click.  It seems that the only issues I might have with the 28 year old New Yorker is that he can't get behind the Cubs...next year is the year for Chicago, I'd bet a romantic dinner on it Mr. Lochte!

Words of Wisdom from my favorite Ladies

If you're like me, sometimes you feel like the world won't let up on you.  From personal to professional, it's easy to think  your life is a mess.  A bad day can start your thought process on a downward pity spiral, which has you thinking that you're going to be homeless on the street with bad shoes and frizzy hair for the rest of your life. 

Sometimes the best advice isn't from a famous person, or someone who
has tamed history.  Instead it's from someone you trusts.

I don't know if this will help, but I thought I would share a few words of wisdom I've collected from some savvy women.  Please note that these are actual women I know.  It's easy for people to copy and paste influential quotes from historic figures and slap it one their facebook status, but I think it's something really special to know the women you're inspired by.

Names won't be used, but I sure hope their advise will be.

"I want to put something beautiful in the world."
--Dear friend who has been a constant inspiration

Before I left my job earlier this year, I had a long talk with a very dear friend over lunch.  We sat and enjoyed tiny, over-priced, delicious sandwiches at a swank DC spot while it rained cats and dogs.  I told her I wasn't sure I was doing the right thing, but I knew I couldn't do what I had been doing.  Due to recent circumstances, I had changed and thus needed a  change.  I was no longer the person I was and I needed my job to reflect that.  I talked about drama and stress and how I wasn't fulfilled with my current situation and how I felt the job I was considering was just going to lead me down that same path.  She was not only a trusted voice, but she had been in my shoes before.  She told me that when she left her high power job to peruse her passion she kept telling herself one thing.
"Put something beautiful in the world." 
She is.

"Heels should be used every day, they are special and so are you."
--Former anchor at NBC Chicago

I got my first television internship in Chicago my junior year of college, it was for the morning show.  I had to be into work super early, especially when you consider that my roommates were coming in from bars as I was leaving for the station.  The first couple weeks I was coming in full suits, dresses and heels;  I wanted to impress.  One day a crew member commented on how I shouldn't be wearing heels, I was doing "grunt work" and I should dress for that.  Over the next few days I came in wearing flats and a more casual pant and shirt.  I didn't feel like myself, but, I had gained ground with the crew.  A few days after my wardrobe transformation, an anchor, who I had grown close to,  asked me why the sudden change in dress.  I told her about my conversation and she told me,
"Heels should be worn every day, they are special and so are you."
I now try to wear heels as often as possible. 

"Magazines have taught me a lot of important things, like how to do a smoky eye, how to properly hold downward facing dog and that I am prettier and luckier than any model...ever."
--Friend's sassy aunt

I was talking poolside with one of my friend's "crazy" aunts one day and she told me how she learned all her basic "lady info" from glossies.  Contrary to popular belief, she always felt better about herself after looking at all those skinny models.  Mind you this woman wasn't small.  I couldn't resist and I asked why, posing the same questions of self-esteem issues every person does when looking at a model.  She pulled out her phone and then proceeded to show me a never ending slide show of pictures of her and her family and friends, each one looking more joyous than the last.  At the end I assumed she was going to say something about "they won't have the people I do", or "I live life better than them."  Instead she asked me how SHE looked in each picture.  I told her she looked good and happy; what else are you supposed to say?  She told me I was wrong.  She looked great and that each one of the pictures I just saw wasn't photo shopped a bit.  She didn't need it and they did.  She went on to tell me how pictures are meant to bring back good memories and every picture she knew of with her in it, was just that, an amazing memory.   That's when she said, "Magazines have taught me a lot of important things, like how to do a smoky eye, how to do downward facing dog properly and that I am prettier and luckier than any model...ever."
And she really is, and so are we.

If you have any inspirational stories, from men or women, send them my way.  I'd love to read them and maybe post about those words of wisdom.

Keep it Simple...Syrup style

Starwberrey basil simple syrup

Something about summer begs to have a fruity drink with a tiny umbrella in it.  Many of these drinks have one thing in common.  No, it's not a excessive fruit garnish, it's simple syrup. 
I've spoken with a lot of bartenders and it seems all the good ones are making their own simple syrup, so i assumed it was sarcastically simple, like how how you call a big guy tiny.  Then I had dinner with my sister and one of her friends and i realized, it's actually really simple.

Ingredients:

• 1 parts sugar
• 1 part water

Preparation:

1. Bring the water to a boil.
2. Dissolve the sugar into the boiling water, stirring constantly.
3. Once the sugar is dissolved completely, remove the pan from the heat. (Note: Do not allow the syrup to boil for too long or the syrup will be too thick.)
4. Allow to cool completely and thicken, then bottle.

Fun extras-
You can flavor the simple syrup by adding fresh herbs to the syrups while it's cooling before you bottle it. I added strawberries and basil to mine to make strawberry basil lemonade.

 To prolong the shelf life of your simple syrup, add a little vodka (you'll probably do that anyway) - usually between a tablespoon and an ounce, depending on how large the batch of syrup is.

Personalize your Paper

I love sending personal notes to people.  I think it's one of the small things a person can do to make some one's day. 

For a while my habit of note writing was taking a toll on my wallet.  All those cards were getting expensive.  Then I learned how to make my own personalized stationary, for pennies of what those cards cost.

Here's how!

Supplies
Plain paper (I prefer to use a card stock or resume paper)
Food coloring
Shaving cream (not the gel)
Toothpick
Disposable plate
Straight edge

Directions
Put a thick layer of shaving cream on the disposable plate.  Drop a few dots of food coloring (drop at least 6, more depending on how big the area is).  Swirl the food coloring in the shaving cream lightly, just enough for the colors to streak.  Place the paper on top of the shaving cream and lightly press it into the cream so it becomes saturated.  Carefully remove the paper from the shaving cream, try to lift it off without smearing.  In fluid motions, scrap off the excess shaving cream.  Allow the paper to dry.

This is the swirled shaving cream.  Dip the
paper in this.

I love doing those because it adds such a careful and colorful touch to any note I send, and it's really easy.

Lc's Lust List (beach bag edition)

In honor of calendar summer finally catching up with temperature summer,  I thought we'd take a look at some of my most desired beach/pool bags .

$256

The Wrightsville Tote bag is a delicious dark chocolaty brown.  This gives a richness to the bag, also making it compatible with just about any swimsuit or cover up.  While the leather accents might not scream "take me near a ton of water," the the crochet raffia sides lend themselves to sand and sun, and come on, who doesn't love a tassel.

$225

I adore Tory Burch.  This Tory Burch Tory Jesse tote would be great for a day at the pool,  The PVC exterior will make it easy to see where everything is in your bag and the open top makes it ideal to pack in the towels.  Coming in a variety of colors you can get one for every suit.  As a side note, I am also pretty obsessed with her Rattan Turnlock clutch, not at all appropriate for a beach day, but I still wanted to mention it.

$49 for a very short time!!! Retail price, $96

SUPER CRAZY DEAL ALERT!  This butter yellow Hat Attack's On the Road Canvas tote is on super sale on Gilt.  This canvas classic will be in season for decades of summers to come, and the dual bow details will keep the bag from fading into the background.  It also comes in black and white if you want a more classic look.

Few things get a summer party going like a great song. You can be the one rocking the tunes in more than one way with this Kate Spade "Rock the Casbah" tote. The canvas bag with cowhide trim and 14 karat gold plated hardware says you have come to play... and you're packing a lot of supplies underneath your zip closure bag.

$248

Below is the Original Still Life Bag available at Anthropologie.  It's AMAZING!  It's a one of a kind piece made in Belgium.  It's made by affixing a vintage oil painting atop a re-purposed canvas bag.  This specific one is perfect for summer for obvious tropical reasons.  Unfortunately, you don't get a one of a kind piece without a price tag, but I think it's well worth it to carry around a little piece of art history, even if it is just for a day at the beach.

$498

From Retro to Revamped

This old dresser with top compartment was my latest adventure in furniture reincarnation. It was in one of my great aunt's homes for years until it made it's way to our home.

You won't believe what it looked like before...

Topping it off (for about $15)

Since the move I've been trying to make the place feel a little more like me, starting with my room.  After painting the walls and bringing life back to the nightstands I felt like I was in the home stretch.  I am obviously using most of my own furniture, but I still needed a headboard.  I wanted something that would take up a large section of the wall, all the while allowing the vibrant blue to peek out. The size of the piece was also key.  It's a big wall and I didn't want to fuss with lots of extra art.   Keeping with the natural pallet was important to keep the room flowing well.  After looking for a few weeks I couldn't find the headboard of my dreams, so i made one... 

I really like the way the lace pops against the bright blue!

This is what I came up with, and here's how I did it for about $15!

Know Your Place (Settings)

I love dinner parties.  There are few things better than gathering friends and family around a table to enjoying great food.  I recently went to a friend's home and she did an amazing job; I would almost say it was over the top.  It was way more than just salad, dinner and dessert.  She was absolutely showing her appreciation for us through food and ambiance.  The only issue was that many of us weren't expecting this and hadn't brushed up on our table manners, including how to dissect a formal table setting.

Don't let this be your Everest

Most of us just played "Follow the Leader" when it came time to choose a utensil, but it got me thinking that a quick recap on place settings could be in order...

Clothing by the Classics

I love old movies.  I love the storyline.  I love the music.  I love the dialogue.  Most of all, I love the fashion.

Vogue, cover circa 1940

Watching films like West Side Story, High Society & Gilda, I can't help but to be inspired to alter my wardrobe.  While I don't have a costume crew or J. Crew's Jenna Lyons on call, it's still pretty easy to get that old Hollywood feel without a time machine.

Take a look at some of my favorite looks, updated...