Lovely Leopard

I've never been the biggest fan of animal prints. For some reason my mind goes immediately to the Jersey Shore when they're mentioned. I've been seeing them pop up more and more places recently, and may have even purchased a super soft casual sweater with a dark leopard print (justified by the minimal contrast in the tan background and black spots).

Princess Catherine's leopard Coat from earlier this week was so sophisticated and breath taking, maybe leopard isn't so horrible when done correctly.

  

Recent {Style} Obsession: Allison Williams

It might be because we share a first name and 2 similar initials, but I'm obsessed with Allison William's sexy, but sophisticated style! I won't lie that when I took the "Which Girls Character are You?" Buzzfeed quiz I got Marnie. Her elegant and slightly conservative looks were more relatable to me than the other girls and I definitely understood her slightly annoying OCD quirks!

I first noticed Allison's personal style at the 2012 Met Gala. Her seemingly effortless, satin tube, floor length Fuchsia Ralph Lauren gown was absolutely stunning! It made me want to stop eating immediately and start growing my eyebrows out!

Her looks only continued to stand out from there. She just has an absolutely amazing way of mixing modern with traditional and it totally works with her classic beauty.  Formal or casual...can I just be her? Some more of my favorites:

Oh and can we talk about how perfectly timeless her engagement ring is?

I Heart New York!

I spent my 2007 summer interning in New York City and absolutely fell in love. The energy, the architecture, the people, the culture...I don't know where you can get much better. I've been back a few times since and when my friend, A, asked me to join her for her Birthday trip I was happy to oblige!

We stayed at, the historic, Union League Club in Midtown and had this gorgeous view of the Empire State Building from our room!

Since we both have friends that live in the City we spent Friday night on our own. I was able to meet E and our other former roomie L for some Tapas in the West Village. After E and I spent time in Spain we continued our Tapas crawl in SF so extending to NYC was only necessary.  Tertulia was delicious, so quaint and the staff (although they were skeptical about our ability to finish our Paella) was very nice.  It is unfortunate the SF dinner culture just isn't the same.

Maintaining our west coast time schedule, Saturday we got a bit of a late start. We adventured briefly to the Union Square Farmer's market, on to the East Village for Brunch and then Soho for some shopping!  

Saturday night all of our friends joined us at Sfoglia on the UES for A's Birthday Dinner! Again, such a delicious, quaint, but non-pretentious place. Honestly, the BEST sourdough bread I've had in my life...even after living in SF for almost 6 years!

Sunday we ate the most expensive salad's of our life at Bergdorf's and then continued our Shopping adventures. I had unfortunately come down with cold, so was lacking a bit of energy. We found our way to Ralph Lauren on Madison and after a glass of champagne everything was magically better!

We took it easy that afternoon. After a quick nap we ventured to a Jewish deli near by our hotel for some much needed Matzo Ball soup and, of course, pastrami on rye. We strolled the streets of midtown for bit and enjoyed a cup of tea at the acclaimed Starbucks :) It was the perfect evening to end our fantastic weekend.

We had a few hours to burn on Monday and we decided to head back to the UES to hit the stores we missed Sunday evening (Lilly Pulitzer!) and I was able to stock up on some Black and White Cookies before heading off to the airport!

Fall Wish List!

To most people Fall means cozy sweaters, chic riding boots, light jackets and maybe a Pumpkin Spice Latte. To San Franciscan's fall means summer. The midwest girl in me can still dream right?

Ralph Lauren Black Label Slim-Fit Cable Cashmere Sweater in Evergreen

Can I please just get one in EVERY color? Would it be weird to sleep in it too? It's just soooo soft.

Tory Burch 'Elina' Riding Boot in Coconut
I have a pair of RL boots, but they're heeled and I'm starting to feel a little hookerish every time I wear them.

 J. Crew Perfect Shirt in

 Buffalo Check 

I've been purposely avoiding the lumber jack shirts, but I may have to suck it up for this one...

The North Face 'Nuptse' Quilted Down Vest

Was debating between this and the Patagonia, but I decided I liked the wider quilting.

LL Bean French Sailor Shirt 
My mom has one in every color (still)  from the 80s!

The J.Crew Lady Jacket in Double Serge Wool

Absolutely love the pink and the navy, but the gray and the black would definitely make a great investment. Choices. Choinces. 

Angora Crewneck Sweater from The Gap 

The cashmere crewneck t-shirt has always been a wardrobe staple, but I'm seeing the style pop up everywhere this fall! It's perfect for the chilly(er) weather of California winters!

Uggghhh I can't wait for it to be winter and therefore be cold enough to wear these fabulous finds!!

Olympic Love

I arrived home from my European/Moroccan adventure last weekend and dove right into Olympic Fever. I've suddenly found myself not only fascinated by everything from gymnastics to road biking.
I've never been anywhere near 'sporty' in my life. I played soccer when I was 4 and remember coming home sobbing because I was covered in mud from the spring grass. I gave it another try freshman year of high school, but after realizing you need actual skill to play in high school, quit.

I do, however, have an appreciation for the dedication and perseverance of these athletes! The citibank (?) commercial comes to mind with the athlete voice overs of "I haven't watched tv in 2 years" and "I haven't had a dessert since I was 10." I guess with great sacrifices (of things I don't think I could go a week without) come great accomplishments and it's quite inspiring to watch! So much so I'm considering starting to train for another half marathon....but I'll have to keep you updated on how long that lasts :)

Mr. Colwill sporting his Ralph Lauren Pull Over

Another that comes with the territory of watching human beings in peak physical condition everyday on TV is a crush. In Beijing my Olympic crush was Chris Colwill of the diving team (I may have even facebook friended him). He is back this year, but considering I've given it 4 years and it hadn't turned into anything I thought I should move on.



There is no doubt that Mr. Lochte tops almost all American single woman's list with those piercing blue eyes that pair so nicely with an, oh so preppy, Ralph Lauren polo. Now don't get me wrong here, I'm #teamlochte all the way; I just think the way he's handled his wins hasn't been exactly gentleman-like and he definitely lost some points with me.

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Luckily, I was able to catch some men's indoor volleyball on Saturday morning and Matt Anderson caught my eye. And coming in at 6' 9' makes him the epitome of tall, dark and handsome.
I'm fully committed to Mr. Anderson being my 2012 Olympic crush. Go Team USA!

 

Bows for your Toes!

 I've been needing a new pair of black flats to replace my 3 year old and dearly loved, but discontinued Ralph Lauren Eliora flats (see left).

They were the perfect shoe quite honestly. They were sturdy and only required 1 re-sole in the 3 years I had them. They're black quilted sides added a fun, but classic texture and their patent toe allowed for them to be dressed up or down.

While I loved the bow, I really didn't think it necessarily 'made the shoe', but as I've begun my reluctant search for replacements I'm kind of thinking it did, because I'm obsessed with flats that have bows!!




 As far as a replacement, everyday shoe, I've narrowed it down to Ivanka Trump's Magnoli flat or Nine West's Cacey flat. I'm a sucker for black patent leather, but there is just something so simple and elegant about Ms. Trump's

Magnoli by Ivanka Trump

Cacey by Nine West

While at Nine West I tried these darling things on and fell. in. love.

Take Note (Exclusive) by Nine West

And, of course, there will always be the classic Ferragamo's and Valentinos! Ugh, a girl can dream right?