A Beautiful Date with Dooney and Bourke

{Written while getting ready to watch a Masterpiece Theater series that was somehow accidentally recorded by my brilliant DVR (maybe because it knows I love Downton Abbey? ) called Indian Summers and I am so excited! It looks like a goody.  Stay tuned for my review!}  A few weeks ago, I had the absolute pleasure of receiving an invite to a dinner and a preview of Dooney and Bourke's new line of handbags.  Like most of us, my memories of Dooney and Bourke involve my dad, dragging my brother and I to Nordstrom at Christmas time for yet another purse (and matching wallet, and key chain and checkbook cover and make-up bag-- ohhh, the coordinating accessories they had) for my mom-- do you remember those bags that had the duck on them and came trimmed in brown leather? Well, my friends, those are not the Dooney bags of today.   I was awed by the beautiful designs that I saw-- gorgeous leather, contemporary, luxe designs, and that craftsmanship we've come to expect from this iconic brand.  The bag I am carrying is the Barlow bag from the City collection and its perfect. It is thoughtfully constructed and has just the right amount of pockets and places for your keys and your cell phone and it comes with the cross-body strap, which I adore. Who doesn't love the ability to roll hands-free? I love this. I look for this kind of versatility and quality and this bag has it.    Pop on over to the website http://www.dooney.com/home and take a peek. I really really love the Alto collection-- go look! They are gorgeous.  I paired it with a simple sheath dress and heels from Banana Republic, because is easy and fuss-free ever a bad thing for the office? Not in my book!  Hope your (3 day?) weekend was lovely, dearest reader! Thanks for stopping by! Sweetly- Michelle

Bag: Here || Dress: Here || Shoes: Here ||

A Floral Fit for Fall (or a Wall)

Hello beauties!!  How about this floral print for (in CA, pre) fall?  And while we are on the subject of florals, for some reason looking at this dress fuels my wallpaper obsession like nobody's business! I am absolutely dying to wallpaper a few rooms in my house (the hubs? Not so much) but we are currently in that weird phase where we want to make the bump up to a bigger house, but we don't want to leave our amazing neighborhood.   My neighborhood Is.The.Best.  I am so lucky!  My street has a book club, a bible study, children my daughter's age GALORE and at least once a month (and sometimes in the summer, once a week), we have potlucks and BBQs and get togethers. I don't know if this little magic comes along all of the time and I am paranoid that we will move into a new house on some sleepy street, with maybe people we don't have anything in common with, and that wont be great.  So until we decide, no wallpaper for me.

ANYWAY.....I  love the details on this dress. It has a strip of black lace that trims the sleeves and the bottom that is so feminine and pretty. It is still so warm here that I paired this dress with my fringe sandals. I think I wore them once this summer (story of my life). It's a great combination, especially with my fringed handbag.  And then there's this cuff. It is an original design by @vwearcollection by @whatwouldvwear.  Pictures do not do it justice.  It is heavy and shiny and gorgeous. I wear it with everything-- with an armful of bangle bracelets or just alone.  Either way, it's fantastic!  Please go and look at her jewelry line-- you will not regret it!

How about the cute train tracks? I love walking around in San Juan Capistrano. There are so many cute picture nooks and crannies (not to mention the charm of the little shops and restaurants in the Los Rios District). For some reason, I am a little bit of a spazz with train track pictures. Did you know that you are not allowed to take pictures while stopped directly on the tracks? I didn't know that (but I betcha some lawyer was involved in this restriction!!)  Because I am a total rule follower, I made sure all of my photos were in motion!    And that is that, lovely ones.  I hope today has been so lovely for you! Thank you so much for stopping by! Sweetly- Michelle

Dress: Here || Shoes: Here || Purse: Here|| Cuff: Here

Video Block

Double-click here to add a video by URL or embed code. Learn more

Black Beauty

Its October! Hello my lovelies! Can I just tell you something really random right now? I am writing this post and a commercial came on for Pan- have you seen these previews? Oh my gosh I can't wait to see it. I absolutely went crazy for Cinderella. I was anticipating that movie for months and I've seen it about six times, no kidding. And some of those times without my daughter 🙈🙊 These remakes of Disney cartoons are right up my alley. I love them.  All right, back to this outfit. You all know how much I love wearing black. I think because I am so light and fair skinned (this is  a nicer way of saying I am basically translucent😀), I feel tanner when I am in contrasting colors. I think I figured out that the key for me to keeping monochromatic outfits from being too blah is to mix the textures. It doesn't work for every outfit, but for this one it sure does. Oh my gosh the shirt you guys! I am so in love with it. Its from Banana (by the way- -Banana Republic is killing it right now. And their 2016 line? I saw a ton of #NYFW snaps and it.is.incredible. I cant wait!) It's long, sheer at the bottom and pleated! And how about these leather leggings and black booties? I think they contrast with  the femininity of the shirt so well. The different textures just work, yes?  The booties are from Ann Taylor and they are so comfy! And they are open toe but not too weekend looking for the office, you know?  I think the light pink color of this hat really softens up this look.  It kind of gives it a smidge of boho.  I love hats, don't you? I think this hat would also look so cute with the 70s revival outfits that are everywhere. Anyway, dearest readers, we are almost to the weekend! I hope your day is fabulous and as always, thank you so much for stopping by! Xxoo Michelle

Shirt (its not on the website (rats!) but I linked one that is similar): Here|| Pants: Here|| Booties: Here || Hat: Here|| Bag: Here

Welcome, Fall!🍁🍂🍃

📷 http://wendykathleenphotography.com

Well happy Wednesday my lovelies. Even though the stores are full of fall fashion (and so is my closet), I am just not ready for it weather wise. I am totally ready for it in every other way besides this scorching weather we are having in Southern California. I suppose because we had a rather mild summer, this should be expected, but there is simply no way we can wear boots or sweaters or anything besides the lightest of clothing. Enter this gorgeous pleione, paperthin blouse from Nordstrom and pencil skirt from Banana Republic. This wine/ burgundy/ox blood/ maroon (Seriously. What are we calling this color anyway?) colored skirt is THE color for fall, and I already have several pieces in my wardrobe in this delightful shade. I paired it with this light blouse and it's perfect. In fact, since I spend most of my day in a freezing cold office, I might even be so lucky as to need to wear a light sweater over this!! As soon as the temperatures drop, I am going to pair the skirt with some dark brown leather stacked heel boots, but for now, I will stick to my nude pumps (which literally match with anything and everything. They might be the very best investment you can make in your wardrobe). Is anyone else into this color? How are you going to wear it? I hope wherever you are, you are having a wonderfully Fall like day. Thank you so much for stopping by my loves XX Michelle

Skirt Here || Blouse (the long sleeve version isn't on line but I linked the short sleeve version) Here || Shoes Here ||