Steppin out on the town

Date Night 

Enjoy your Weekend!!!

Have a Wonderful Labor Day Weekend!

Fashions for Labor Day 

Isabel Marant red peplum top / River Island tall jacket / Vetements high rise jeans, $1,140 / Tom Ford heeled booties, $1,190 / Valentino handbag / Larsson Jennings black bracelet, $330 / Burberry rectangular sunglasses / NARS Cosmetics lips makeup / NARS Cosmetics bath body $67

My Happy Birthday look - 2 ways

Happy Birthday 65!

Oh and about this dress

I imagine it might look a tad familiar.

It's another Yea dress from Molly b

This sleeveless version is a little more dressy (when you want it to be)

The material feels a little more like a light taffeta

I LOVE it!

Paired with a sleeveless white linen jacket from Bryn Walker

I'm off today but there is always something to do. 

As a matter of fact I need to finish this post.

 My 2 girls (Lily & Lola) love the scent of my birthday flowers

It's been a very relaxing day.

Lots of well wishing, cake and even a few gifts!

but

now it's time to hit the "publish" button and upload today's post.

Retail "Therapy"

On Saturday I was doing a bit of last minute shopping for our trip.  I was on College Ave, in the Elmwood district of Berkeley (I was searching for a shoe store which I thought carriesdan assortment of Tom's shoes).

I happened upon a little boutique called Therapy. A lot of cute and stylist clothes there (most of which I think would have been perfect for me (15 -20 yrs ago - in my younger size 4 body) anyway, I spotted a cute purse (by GraceAnn) I thought it would make the perfect purse/travel bag.  It was also in one of my favorite shades of green. The topper was the $68 price tag. I quicky purchased it and was on my way.  (BTW- I never found the shoe store)

After I got home and had a chance to really look at the bag, I noticed that inside the larger bag was a smaller purse (with detachable strap) AND....the bag is also reversible! Wow! I hit the motherlode. This will be perfect addition to my travel luggage and great to carry on the plane.

Here are some photos

info on the designer

Grace Ann Agostino
Unique / One-of-a-Kind / Limited Edition / Exotic Leather Goods
The bags and belts are made almost exclusively of leather and/or exotic skins.  The only fabric sometimes used is kilim, which is always mixed with leather.  Each piece is lined in Napa leather. They are one-of-a-kind or limited edition. We are constantly changing our materials and designs.  All items are accented with an antique element--either a handbag frame or ornament.  Everything is handmade in Pennsylvania, USA. 

We work with leather, but treat it as fabric. Most come from Italy, which produces the softest, finest skins in the richest colors. 

The Bootie calls!

Another weekend is upon us. Where does the time go? We are winding down our Indian Summer here in the Bay Area and fall will be here in a few weeks.  I'm not really that fond of the shorter days and the time change but once we get through the season it will time for me to head over to Costa Rica. So that is something I am looking forward to.

In preparation of the changing season I needed to have a pair of ankle boots! Well, that's the excuse I used anyway.

I have never been a big fan of the ankle boot or (bootie) for me, until recently. The ankle boot has been around for a while now and I've loved the look, on other women, but thought I could never wear the style due to my thin ankles (yep there are my ankles standing in the way of a fashion trend once again) However, fashion has a way of adapting these days (still not enough where age is concerned but certainly fashion adapts to body type). 

So after seeing photos of some other women with thin ankles sporting the ankle boot I decided to do an extensive boot search and finally I decided to buy my 1st pair.  I do have to add that most ankle boots are still way to wide in the ankle for my taste but I was happy to find a few acceptable choices.

There are also many different ways to wear the ankle boot. If you are over 50 and beyond, like me, you may find that some of the bootie looks are bit too young looking while others are quite age appropriate. The key to staying stylish and hip is to take current looks and make adjustments until it feels right for you.

My musical selection this week isn't an oldie. 

Songwriter Jetta has been dubbed NBT (the next big thing)

here's more

Take it Easy

Jetta

ankle boots paired with black tights

ankle boots by Anne Klein ilex (very comfy)
worn with black fish net tights

gray and white stripe sleeveless dress from Old Navy

One easy choice for me is to pair booties with a dress

A good look for work

Of course there are many more ways to wear ankle boots.

 I will feature some of my other looks in another post. Coming soon

"Whatever you have planned (or don't)...Hope you enjoy your weekend."

It's gonna be a bright sun shining day

Saturday pics

Off to brunch and a day with the girls (the Yorkie girls)

(and some re adjusting to be done re the camera settings - check!)

A little scarf action while the hair dries

Not bad

Less is more

i bought a beautiful, red, handcrafted leather tote bag on Friday
 however, the bag is really more than just a red tote
for me,
it's another step in my ongoing challenge
to simplify my life
one of my biggest hurdles - managing my clothes
and putting my closet in order

read on.....

I learned about this new store while i was catching up on some of my online reading. It's called Cuyana which means, "to love" in the language of Quechua (the name of a people of the central Andes of South America) you can order their elegant items online, but their company just happens to be based in San Francisco at Union Square right next to Macy's and Swarovski Crystals.  

So I paid them a visit on my lunch hour. When I saw all the bags, it was love at first sight! Instead of choosing my old stand by - black, I bought myself a beautiful red one! I am having it monogrammed, so it will take about 10 days before I get to bring it home. I'm hoping to have it back by my birthday on May 8th.  (fingers crossed)  I'll be sure to post pics when it arrives. 

While I was there I took some photos.

The Cuyana Philosophy

"There is beauty in the aesthetic of less"

The objective is to help us simplify our closets and our lives through intentional buying – to create a closet filled with only pieces we love.  Creating a lifestyle of and belief in 

"fewer, better things"

The company also encourages us to take the things we no longer wear and gift them to others who can use them. They will actually help you get your closet organized.

I think this is a wonderful philosophy for a company!

Want an easy way to give? No worries, Cuyana to the rescue with their cool program called 'lean shipping' They supply the re useable bag and you just send it back with your cast offs. Their non profit partners will make sure your gifts end up in the hands of people whose lives will be made better by your generosity.

The office and showroom

these beautiful bags come n a multitude of yummy colors!

the tote comes in 2 heights - regular and tall

Oh and they have the cutest little bags to go inside your tote! I plan to get these next.

They are an excellent travel size for make up and toiletries.

Be sure to check out the alpaca capes and cashmere sweaters

Who among us women does not need at least a little help in simplifying our closets? Speak now!

BTW- if you are interested in getting one of these bags you should hurry over to site. When I arrived at the store on Friday some of the colors were already sold out and the website was crashing due to all the online traffic.

Watch the Cuyana story below