{fashion inspiration: lauren moffat}

. . . socks with heels and soft leather satchels, paired with a boyfriend blazer or cinched at the waist, soon, there will be autumn mornings of hot coffee and impossibly chic tartan . . .

{images: lauren moffat}

{décor inspiration: gracefully gilded}

. . . always a fondness for gold & gilded things, bookcases and nested tables and delicate dishes, especially if they are a perfect mix of porcelain and gold and made in paris and can already imagine them with floral vintage china or at an early autumn picnic . . .

{horne via creature comforts}

A Thank You, A Winner....and Some Shopping Offers....

....thank you so so much for such a brilliant response to my post about Butch ....I am beyond thrilled and so proud of and thankful to all of you....

I know that Summer has told Butch that I wrote a post about him and that everyone here has been so kind....he is amazed and just so happy - and that's before any mail has even arrived!!

The speed and ease with which so many of you simply said "yes, of course...." was just fantastic.....thank you for making a difference.

....if you haven't yet read about Butch and Summer, please read my post here ....

  

....the winner of my Summer of Reading 5 Paperbacks giveaway is....

....the wonderful James at Man Of The 50s ....

....well done James :)

Some of you have asked me about the 5K race that I ran in on Sunday. I can tell you that I ran it in a seasons best and finished - it was a fantastic day, 15,000 runners in London's Hyde Park all running for different charities, the atmosphere was wonderful!

 I persuaded 11 of my best girlfriends to run with me and so far we have raised £1200 (around $1850) for Breast Cancer Campaign. Thank you very much to all those who were kind enough to sponsor me :)

And finally....a little shopping!!!

To celebrate their Vogue Night in, French Connection are offering 20% off their entire Autumn Winter 2010 Collection on Wednesday 8 September ONLY - quote code FCVOGUE.

plus

Origins are offering FREE full-size lip gloss in the shade of your choice with ANY Origins.com order!

plus

10% off the gorgeousness that is The White Company :)

Happy Shopping and Happy Wednesday!

The Black (Preppy) Hole

On Monday night I ventured up to North Dallas to go to Buy Buy Baby. I had to purchase a gift for an upcoming baby shower and wanted to see the options in person so I took a mini-trip outside my bubble. Well, Buy Buy Baby just so happened to be next to The Christmas Tree Shop. I have been wanting to go to CTS since they opened last year, but I honestly rarely head above 635 as everything I need is closer to me and I have no need to. Well, it is a GOOD thing I had not ventured up to the CTS because it is a like a black hole! Everything is SO inexpensive and there is stuff EVERYWHERE. This is NOT somewhere you want to go if you are trying to clean out and downsize...however, do not fear, I only came home with one item and it was something I needed.

These toile vases were fun and only $1.99 (everything at CTS is SO inexpensive...hence how one can get into LOTS of trouble!). I thought these would make a cute hostess gift filled with some fresh flowers.

If I did not already have drawers filled with cards I would have scooped some of these up. I thought they would make a cute edition to a bridemaid's gift (along with the below soaps) or just a fun happy to mail to a friend.



These initial soaps were perfectly preppy and at $2.99 another great little gift!

This lattice, chinoiserie paper was my favorite find of the night!

Of course there were lots of preppy school supplies to be found. I would have loved these argyle and paisley items back in my day. Though not photographed, there were also toile notebooks and clipboards. School supplies are going chic!

The above votives were only$.59! Wouldn't the British flags have been perfect for our Royal Wedding parties? Of course the American flags could be used for Memorial Day, Labor Day and the 4th!

The melamine fish collection was so reminiscent of our beloved Lilly. These were small, salad plates, but there were also large trays that were identical. There were corresponding cups, dinner plates, bowls and much more in this whimsical collection too. SO cute for the beach or pool or a festive, summer party.

This umbrella stand (the green) was on MEGA markdown. I think it was maybe $2 or $3. It looks just like the Jaye's items I have purchased!

These koozie's were just so preppy and happy. They would make great favors at a party!

Finally, the one item I left with was a little bookshelf. I was in need of a small shelf to use temporarily, but have had the hardest time finding something in my exact dimensions. Thankfully, CTS helped me out for under $50! The shelf fits in the space perfectly, but still needs some organizational tweaking before it looks right.

I had such fun going up and down the aisles at CTS and will most definitely return when I need favors for a soiree or some inexpensive, but cute decor. As you can it, it is a FAB store, but also a preppy, black hole!

A Little Retail Therapy (never did anyone any harm)....

Giuseppe Zanotti sandals (currently in the sale!) here....

 Marc by Marc Jacobs

via here

Isabella Oliver Boxy Jumper via here

Christian Dior Capture Total via here

As recommended by the lovely Christina....and all the salesgirls at the Christian Dior counter who said if they could choose one product this would be it!

....LOVING my Ted Baker orange patent Nicole holdall via here

(it is also available in black patent)

.....and I just love this Bretany bag

Amsterdam Clogs from Free People (love this website!) via Carrie at This Free Bird

Love these Solvang clogs at the top and I have been wearing the Slingback Wood Platforms at the bottom this last week and loving them! (Both from Free People).

I featured my lovely friend Melissa over at Reverie Daydream a few weeks ago here ....this bag was one of the items that I really loved and lovely Mel was kind enough to send one to me....it's even lovelier than it looks in the photos. Go and check out her beautiful website....

I went shopping for a swimsuit today....and came back with shoes, vests and skincare products....hmmmm, I may have to try again tomorrow....

I did however have a lot of fun in town with my daughter, had a great lunch, popped into Harrods to buy some of the new Jennifer Aniston perfume for my lovely friend M (it hasn't yet been released in the US)....and spent the day dodging the raindrops and enjoying all the end of season sales!

PS I loved the perfume....very light, fresh and pretty....

I also popped to the fabulous sale at Charles Tyrwhitt and bought some of their beautiful shirts for my husband....

Last but not least, while I like and regularly support Amazon ....The Book Depository was recently recommended to me and having used it to send books to Australia last week, I would highly it ....

Free shipping on all their books to any address in the whole wide world - a very quick service.