Return Policy

Hi!

It's been a year and a half since I last posted. I'm so sorry. 2013 was a rough one. I can sum up my absence in a few words: Work. Liver. Brussels sprouts. Surgery. Tears. Vogue. Newport. Lipstick. Umami. MRI. Needles. Santa Monica. Craft beer. Onion rings.

I made just one very belated New Year's Resolution for 2014, and that was to be less boring. I currently struggle to stay awake beyond 11 PM. I vacuum my apartment three times a week. I own upholstery cleaner. I'm living the life of a 62-year old divorcée whose kids have flown the nest.

Maybe, at some point, you'll find me choking down more vegetables and swearing off glucose; in the meantime, I want to pop open each of the twelve bottles of extra-fancy champagne that I've been collecting for the past three years, having stashed them away for a "special occasion." Maybe the special occasion is that I'm not dead or hooked up to an IV. Maybe the special occasion is Tuesday. Maybe the special occasion is that I did my laundry. I don't care. CHEERS.

Please join me.

A New Year

I've been thinking a lot about the new year lately. Usually, it stands as a fresh start, the opportunity for growth. Everyone makes resolutions in order to spark some sort of change in their life, whether that be flossing more often (for me, yes) or drinking less gin and tonics (for me, never).

But for 2012, I don't even know what I should resolve to do. There's been so much change in 2011 that I'd appreciate some sort of stasis in the next year. My life was turned upside-down: I left Evanston for a NYC (read: miniscule) apartment surrounded by pigeons and litter, somehow landed a wonderful job for which people pay me to write (I know, right? And you're getting this for free!), and my best friends either moved to Africa or stayed in Chicago. Do you know what it's like when your best friend is in the Tanzanian jungle? It feels horrible. I don't wish it on anyone but my very worst enemies.

So I'm just going to do what I should have been doing anyway. I'm going to floss because my dad's a gum surgeon who went on a long lecture about gingivitis the last time I let him look at my teeth. I'm going to keep my network of scattered friendships as close as possible, given the circumstances. And most of all, since I already have that New York City shoebox, I'm going to explore the city. Really, really explore it. This means walk outside the radius between my apartment and my office.

Hope you have the happiest New Year ever!


[photo cred here, here, and there]

New Year's Chic

I'm a cat, and Alice & Olivia is just dangling a goldfish in front of my face with their nightlife-themed lookbook. Isn't this the perfect inspiration for fresh New Year's Eve ensembles? I'm a sucker for the black and white palette with the only occasional glimpses of gold and silver — the simple shades keep voluminous ruffles, gleaming sequins, and soft velvet from looking too gaudy or ostentatious. The vibe isn't in-your-face so much as it is "Oh, is it 2011 already? Perfect, hand me another glass of Prosecco so I can toast a year of looking fantastic."

Because you know 2011 will be the year of looking, feeling, and being fantastic.

Confections

It's just as though Kate Spade knows how to design happiness: a dash of confetti, a sprinkle of gold. I don't even need a thermos, but do I care? It's almost as though the other pieces would be so incredibly lonely without it that it would be a true travesty to not get every single one of them. If I wasn't twenty-one and expected to have an smashingly inebriated New Year's Eve, I would throw a classy party and serve mini quiches and sip hot toddies all night — using this set, of course. Instead, I'm probably going to drink beer and wonder about whether or not I'm going to find a job come June, because that is what college seniors do. On the bright side, though, Kate Spade gives me a world of glitter to look forward to.