the lovely and insightful clothes-pin has turned me on to a new designer who has me completely excited. amalialad (dalia lama spelled backward) is designed by janis stemmermann, and her pieces are just genius. so original, great color combos and silhouettes, and the price points are high, but not impossible, like so many new lines.

pieces are still a bit tough to find online, but here are a few of my favorites:

i’m obsessed with this darling school top. love the belt, love the sassy orange color, and love the versatility – this would be amazing with jeans, a skirt or even as a shell under a suit – i’m thinking grey pinstripe would be amazing.

if you like the shape of the school top, check out the school dress. great opportunity to try out the brand without breaking the bank, and i can see this dress being endlessly versatile. it’s tailored enough it would work as a tunic or as a dress, and it would be darling under a sweater jacket while it’s cold this fall. best of all, i managed to track this one down on sale for $123!

this pop quiz cardigan is a bargain at $150 – i love the idea of mixing it with a bright t-shirt and jeans for a casual saturday. and the fiddler cardigan would be another great basic – pair it with a dress trouser for work, or layer it over a long tank with jeans for a great weekend look. (you can find it in a gorgeous burgundy color here.)

and i love this ruffle kimono sweater – it would be such a great “throw on over anything” option to have in your closet.

as i said, i had a little bit of a struggle tracking pieces down, but you can find several at basic boutique, anthropologie, and goldyn. but my pick is basic boutique, as using code People20 will get you 20% off merchandise on their site, including sale items! plus, the folks over there are really quite fabulous to deal with – i love it when an online shop really manages to make the shopping experience a great one, and basic boutique does it very well!

for the die-hard makeup diva on my holiday list, this limited edition piece from lipstick queen is a no-brainer. each hand-screened silk pouch comes packed with lipstick queen’s signature shade of red, in both ‘saint’ (sheer) and ‘sinner’ (matte), so she’ll be ready for any and all occasions.

and when the lipstick’s gone, this gorgeous purse was designed to be the perfect size to hold credit cards, keys, and other minor necessities of life.

only 100 were made, so snap up this perfect gift at barney’s while you still can!

this is another of those ongoing quests i have: the perfect gold earring. i want something tasteful enough that i can use it as an ‘everyday’ earring, and it has to be work-appropriate of course, but i want something more unique than your basic gold hoop or stud. it’s a tricky business.

these beauties from diana kane fit the bill perfectly, i think – the size is perfect for getting just the right amount of notice, without going overboard. and i love the asymmetrical, organic circle – it gives these just the right amount of polish and style. and i love that you can order them in rose gold as well – i think they’d be stunning!

pick them up for $272 over at diana’s website. sure, i was hoping to find the perfec gold earring for under $50, but honestly, was that going to happen? i think this is one of those occasions on which we have to break out the ‘cost per wear’ argument of which i’m so fond…

we’ll be talking more about holiday gifts soon, i promise. but today, i’m still obsessing about a clutch – how i’ve managed to get this far and not have one is seriously beyond me. and now, with the holidays upon us, i not only want a clutch, but i want a pretty, sparkly one. you know, something really useful, that i can take anywhere…i mean, nothing says versatile like sequins and metal studs.

some of the many pretties i’m coveting this week:

this super sparkly option is by seven for all mankind…i didn’t even know they made bags. but i completely love the metallic leather and the chain mail look – this is definitely a piece that’s going to turn heads. plus, the style would work with everything from jeans to a cocktail dress, which is a tough line to walk with a clutch.

i don’t know where i’ve been, but i just discovered the bags over at emporio armani’s online shop. really amazing prices on exotics, i have to say. i love this grey lizard version – the shape is so classic, but the skin and the studs give it a great edge. plus, it’s on sale for $450, which is high, but crazy reasonable for an exotic. or, for $350, i also really like this piece in eelskin – i’m loving the delicate chain and the unique closure, which makes this one really perfect for the holidays.

when i found this weyman clutch by kale, it was love at first sight. you can pick it up in a metallic, but i sort of love this oxblood color. the patent is stunning, and perfect for the holidays. and the studs add the perfect edge to an otherwise very girly piece. best of all, it’s on sale right now for $267, which is a crazy steal for a clutch you’ll wear for years to come.

i absolutely adore this orange leather version that i found on etsy (also available in lavender). $140 feels like such a steal for something this gorgeous. clearly, not an evening clutch, and doesn’t really fit with the theme of this post at all, but i think it’s fabulous nonetheless.

sigh…it is so hard to be selfless this time of year…

remember those foldable shoes from newport news? ordered them. got them. they’re gross. totally cheap, and make your feet look ridiculous. do not, under any circumstances, purchase them.

guess cheap thrills aren’t all they’re cracked up to be

i’m one of those people that’s obsessed with pretty paper. i love it. i drool over letterpress, spend hours in paper source, and agonize over which card to get someone for their birthday. i spent more time picking out my wedding invitations than i did picking the dress.

and i’m not alone. so, at least one of the paper freaks on my holiday list is getting this letterpress gift set from linda and harriett. it comes with a notepad, set of 8 cards, and a completely gorgeous calendar – all letterpressed – for $50. but they’re offering 25% off for daily candy readers, making it a cool $38, well within the limit for most friend gifts. to get the code, just head over to daily candy’s site, and sign up for their weekly “deals” emails (which are fabulous, and totally worth signing up for anyway).

my favorite thing about this set is that you get to choose which notecards and notepad you gift. i love the orange piggies and the alligator, but the sunny bloom is a perfect choice if your friend is a little less animal-friendly.

shop fast – that discount is a daily candy deal, which means the site’s sure to be mobbed!

red heels are one of those things i always want, but can never bring myself to splurge on. so when, on one one of my recent wanders through target, i came across these yummy red patent peep toes, i had to share. $25, a gorgeous shade of cherry red, and a very walk-to-work-friendly 2.5″ heel. that’s really about all a girl can ask, don’t you think? i pranced around the store in these babies for several minutes, and they’re actually surprisingly comfy.

styling options are pretty endless, i think. go classic with a black skirt and black opaque tights, or go completely crazy and pair them with something unexpected, like this darling yellow minidress (i love the styling on both models, and would happily steal the look!).

the lovely ladies over at the daily obsession have culled a pretty amazing list of the holiday sales, discounts, and other fabulousness currently going on. definitely worth checking out!

yep, time for those holiday guides you’re seeing everywhere. rather than just narrowing down by group, we’ll be doing things a bit more random-like over here. we’ll be doing some of the standard guides/idea lists, but other days, we’ll tell you about just one fabulous gift, or maybe a whole website with so many fabulous gifting ideas that i just had to show them all.

like today, for instance. this site is so chock full of fabulous gifts that they get their very own post. truly, i think i can find something for just about everyone on my list at orange button, and all at prices low enough that i can justify picking up a little bonus gift for myself!

if you have kids on your list, please, please, buy them this darling peanut blue bluebird. if you have two to buy for, i think agatha the elephant is the logical next choice, but there are lots of darling options to choose from (including this completely fabulous mobile, if you happen to have $180 to spend).

i’m also loving these gorgeous solid wood bangles – these are cool enough that they’ll work with so many different personal styles. they’re all stunning, but the koa, quilted sapele and zebrawood are my favorites. i would give one to my best friend, and one to my assistant, and i know they’d both love them.

for the perfect hostess, pick up a few of these darling coasters, and give them along with a gorgeous bottle of pink champagne. i love the ones with the drinking girls, but the “it’s that kind of party. you want to be there. trust me” coasters are meant to be mailed as invitations. in the right hands, these are a party waiting to happen.

with all of the “no plastic bags, ever” hype this year, cute tote bags are a dime a dozen. but the truth is, if you find the right design, they’re the perfect holiday gift for just about anyone. i mean, i own more tote bags than i could even begin to mention, but i’m always excited when i find a new one i can’t live without. loads of fabulous options, but my favorites are the nest tote (great for me, your mom, or a friend with more tailored, subdued taste) and the big hen, made from vintage 1970s fabric (for that friend whose personal style is so funky and fabulous that you spend most of your time being jealous that she can pull off purple tights). of course, don’t overlook the other options: i love the forest vintage and the flower branch too. they’re a bargain at $25, but if you have a little extra to spend, never give an empty tote. fill it with a book or a couple of magazines the recipient will love, or just hit the drugstore and fill it with some holiday candy. you can never go wrong with chocolate!

and, if you have a paper fiend on your list, the options are endless. i’d either hand pick a stack of five or six of the fabulous greeting cards on the site, and put them together in a pretty wooden box tied with twine, or i might just pick up this beautiful silkscreened print, and put it into a fabulous frame.

since i’m getting about 3,000 emails with various fabulous deals, i thought the least i could do is share. so i’ll update this list as we go today, if anything really wonderful crosses my path. my favorites so far:

* tobi.com: 25% off sitewide with code GIVEGET (through 11/26).
* activeendeavors.com: 20% off sitewide with code CARDIO, just for my darling readers. and best of all, no expiration on that one!
* anthropologie.com: the rare and coveted “free shipping with $150 purchase”: automatic at checkout through 11/26
* maneaterthreads.com: 10% off automatically, plus another 20% off sitewide with code CYBERMONDAY (through 11/27)
* dejarnettenola.com: 15% off all of the fabulous jewelry on this site with code BLACKFRIDAY (today only)
* urbanoutfitters.com: free shipping with $50 purchase with code FREEBIRD07 (through 11/26)
* sleepyheads.com: 20% off sitewide and free shipping from my very favorite source for PJs. use code THANKYOU through 11/26.
* thelaundress.com: 20% sitewide with code HOLIDAY through 12/5. great chance to stock up on all of their wonderful products – i love the wool & cashmere shampoo and the crease release in particular.

that’s it for now, but stay tuned – if anything else wonderful shows up, i promise to share