on my afternoon work slump browse through nordstrom.com, i stumbled across this little beauty. for the money (under $200), i just love this bag. sapphire blue is quickly becoming a really popular color for accessories, and for good reason: as we enter the season of grey, black and white, if you don’t accessorize with color, you’re going to look just as blah as the weather will be making you feel.

as many of you know, i sometimes use this blog as my version of a “wish list” for those who might want to buy me lovely gifts. might i suggest you do the same? it’s worked out quite nicely for me (hello, purple shoes!) so, since it’s been such a roaring success in my life, i thought maybe the rest of you could use some help with your gift list…either giving or receiving.

so, let’s start with slippers: talk about a traditional gift. but there are quite a few options out there this year that are really fabulous, and certainly deserve to be on your list. i know they’re on mine!

first up are these darling little numbers from one of my personal favorites, marc jacobs. not cheap, at $235, but honestly, i think they almost don’t qualify as slippers, i mean, really…i know i’d wear these everwhere in the winter. i’m afflicted with permanently freezing feet, so the thought of getting to run around town in shearling is highly attractive to me.

next up are these adorable cashmere slippers from banana republic. yes, i said cashmere. and lined in cashmere, too….talk about yum! they come in all sorts of colors, but i really like the grey pinstripe. hmm, or the red…..and the black is great too….. and only $68 at your friendly neighborhood banana republic store.

now let me be clear before i even begin this next suggestion. i don’t like uggs. for those of you that do, sorry…but they’re called “ugg” for a reason. that said….i will admit to some sideways glances and slight covetousness coming over me when i’m completely freezing, and i see someone whose feet are obviously toasty warm inside her large, clunky, unattractive, ugg boots. fortunately for my fashion sense and my cold toes, i’ve found a solution! these ugg slippers (only cute in the ‘coffee’ color shown here, thank you) carry all of the yummy warmness, and none of the “ugg” for which i so despise the rest of the line. $85 at the official ugg site, or i’m sure they’ll pop up at a retailer near you just in time for the holidays.

so, there’s a start for my, er, your holiday wishlist….stay tuned, as i’m sure the list will get longer

okay, okay, i know – i’ve been a very negligent blogger this week. but i’ve actually had to work! i know, the nerve. anyway, as penance, i’m finally finishing this blog entry that i started weeks ago, but never got around to completing.

six random facts:

once tagged by this entry, the assignment is to write a blog entry of some kind with six random facts about yourself. then, pick six of your friends and tag them; no tag backs. this explanation should be included. (and for those of you without blogs, myspace counts)

1. i graduated from high school at 16, college at 19 and law school at 23. wow, that still sounds exhausting!

2. as much as i adore shoes of all shapes and sizes (well, unless they don’t come in my size), i’m pretty sure i hate wearing heels. love the way i look in them, though…talk about a catch 22

3. i think peanut butter is an absolute necessity when eating french toast or pancakes. but not on waffles….that’s gross.

4. i will pay whatever something costs…but i refuse to pay shipping. seriously, it’s like an illness. i’ll spend hours on the web, searching for a free shipping code, because i’m that opposed to paying for it. i mean, if i want to buy something from you, you should be more than happy to send it to me for free, right?

5. i am the least decisive person i know (okay, besides my friend kim, but she doesn’t read this blog). i can almost always narrow a decision down to 2 options, but can almost never decide between those two. chicken or fish can be a 4-hour debate in my house. someday, i hope to be rich enough that i don’t have to choose

6. before i went to law school, i was actually going to be a writer. then, i realized exactly how much a writer makes when they’re getting started (at that time, under $20,000/year), and figured that was never going to finance my expensive taste but now, i have a blog, so i still get to feed the writing bug a little.

okay, who’s next? feel free to post a link to your response in the ‘comments’ section.

it’s true…target has added a handbag maker to their list of “design on a dime” big-name designers.

for those who aren’t familiar, rafe (pronounced RAH-fee, if you were wondering) is a designer that has only been around for a few years, but has managed to make quite a splash. his “regular” bags retail in the $400-600 range, and he’s known for using a lot of hardware and a lot of fabulous color, while still keeping the bags useful. and, at least this year, he’s been pretty much all about patent leather. unfortunately, i’m rarely (if ever) willing to pay a boatload for a patent leather bag, because most of them are coated with plastic to get the ‘patent’ finish anyway, so i always have a hard time justifying the cost.

but $49.99?? sign me up!!

as with most of their designer collections, the rafe for target collection is a little ‘hit and miss’. the hobo style, for example, is quite large, and really fat on the ends, which annoyed me. and the little clutch, while darling, is highly impractical – it closes with 2 snaps, which are not magnetic, which translates to needing 2 empty hands every time you want to close your clutch. not my fave.

however, i loved the cream satchel and the black doctor bag….very impressive! and they’re perfect bad-weather bags, since they’re PVC. moreover, i have to say, i’m more impressed with the quality of this line than i have been with any other ‘designer’ line at target. little details really make this bag a bargain – a great lining, exterior pockets and zippers that are functional (not just decorative), well-stitched, padded handles (so they don’t look cheap), metal feet to protect the base of the bag….as martha would say, it’s a good thing.

according to target.com, the bags won’t ship for 2-6 weeks. but they’re available now at stores…though i had to hit 2 to find the black bag. so, i’d recommend rushing out straight away and nabbing one (or two) while you still can!

happy hunting!

not sure how i feel about these. part of me wants to applaude kate for returning to her funky, creative roots, as i’ve been missing the days of her crazy patterns and cheery styles. but another part of me is wondering how the combination of upscale/classic details with such a funky, downtown print (and did you notice, the bags are haircalf??) is going to fly with her devotees.

so, what do you think…yay or nay??

wow, gap inc is really going crazy with launching new stores…first forth and towne, and now this?

piperlime is shoes only, and they’re taking after the zappos model with a “free shipping & free returns” policy (which i adore). prices are actually pretty reasonable, though they do run the gamut. they’re not selling private label (ie, banana republic or gap brand) shoes – a quick review of the site scored me a few irregular choice selections, a delman, and even an isaac mizrahi.

why i’m excited: i can use my banana republic card, and since we all know about my shoe fetish, this is about to mean rewards galore for moi. plus, another shoe store is always good news, right? and this store is definitely long on options…i searched for my shoe size (a very hard-to-find size 11), and found more than 300 pairs in the ‘boots’ section alone. impressive.

in all, it’s actually a pretty eclectic, hip collection…not at all what i would have expected from stores that generally stick pretty close to the status quo. should make for some interesting browsing, at least oh, and if you do decide to do more than browse, you can take 10% off with code “TREAT” through the end of this year. have fun!

i received an email from one of my favorite jewelry designers yesterday, and it reminded me that i hadn’t yet shared her with you all. her name is tiffini dooris, and the thing i really love about her is that she does such a great job of straddling the line between elegant and trendy. and, it doesn’t hurt that her pieces are actually affordable, generally in the $50-150 range.

some of my favorite pieces right now are the black agate ring and gold circle earrings (which are much smaller than the pic makes them look, at about a 1/2″ diameter) – they’re just fun, classic pieces that i think would work for anyone. but i’m particularly loving this necklace of rough-cut sapphires…while it’s a little outside her normal price range, it’s still a steal at $350. also available with emeralds or rubies.

if you fall in love with her as much as i have, you can take 20% off anything on her site through 11/1 with code TDJ1006. happy shopping!

my page turning stopped dead when i spotted these in the october nordstrom catalog. i normally don’t go in for the glittery shoes, but i absolutely love the color of these…it’s just subtle enough to let the glitter do the talking (unlike, say, red glitter shoes, where you really just don’t know where to start). this picture just doesn’t do justice – they’re a much smokier grey, almost black, in real life. i’m thinking for a holiday party, with some of those black ‘audrey’ pants from the gap, or maybe even velvet, they’d be pretty darn fabulous.

and i was even more shocked to discover that these are by michael by michael kors, a line i nearly always associate with neutral colors and classic (read: occasionally bland) styles. hurray for michael…he’s finally stepping out of his box a little. let’s give him a helping hand by picking up a pair of these while they’re still here (and only $108 at nordstrom, who is also offering free shipping on all shoes right now). trust me when i tell you the picture doesn’t do them justice….they’re positively darling in person. they also come in a great chocolate/bronze color….but i just love this gunmetal grey.

happy shopping!

well, apparently, ’tis the season for some really fabulous gift sets from our favorite dealers in all things beautifying.

at nordstrom, with any $95 beauty purchase, you get a darling croc train case AND all of the goodies shown above (click here for a list of what’s included) for free! definitely one of the most substantial gift-with-purchase offers i’ve seen in quite a while.

and, at sephora , they’re offering a pretty fabulous set of deluxe-size samples with any $50+ purchase.
i’ve been looking for a few new products, now that the dry skin season is on its way, so you can be sure i’ll be taking this opportunity to stock up!

it’s true. i love being girly. shopping, martinis, dresses, heels….pink things! hence, i love october, because it’s the one time of year i can not only buy all manner of pink things, but i can also support a good cause (breast cancer research) while i’m at it.

some of my favorites this year:

the rowenta pink iron – now, i despise menial labor, but i think i could even be coerced into ironing my own shirts if i had this cute little pink number

since we know i’m not much with the domestic goddess-ness, what better than a little pink robot to do all of the work for me?? snap up this pink roomba, and you can sit on the couch reading your latest issue of vogue, while it does all the dirty work. now that’s what i call a good cause!

and of course, what’s more girly than sitting on the couch, eating pink chocolates and sipping a lovely rosé from your pink riedel wine glasses?? not much, if you ask me. happy october, everyone!