Style Lush

Welcome Back Peplum

By Janet

Peplum, at least according to the Fashion Week runways, is back.

I've always associated peplum with bad floral prom dresses and those bridesmaid dresses you'll never wear again, but if Kate Middleton is wearing peplum, perhaps I ought reconsider. I've done some research and found some peplum options that are less shiny and, um, less architectural than those on the runway models.

Sonia Peplum Blouse, Anthropologie

Gathered Mesh Peplum Tee, Anthropologie

Vince Camuto Printed Sleeveless Peplum Dress

ALICE + OLIVIA Stephanie Ruffle Peplum Cocktail Dress

Will you embrace peplum this fall?

If I Had a Million Dollars: Tiffany Handbags

by Christina

I was just made aware that coveted little blue box has grown, to a box large enough to hold even more of our dreams! I don't spend a lot on my clothes but I do on shoes, bags and accessories so when I found out about this line my browser could not keep up with my smokin fingers.

I was not dissapointed. I'd like these two.

There are pages and pages of bags to covet. Sadly, they are all one zillion dollars. But it sure is fun to look.

(Photos via tiffany dot com)

Are these cute? Target Curtains

By Elisabeth

It seems every time my husband goes out of town I get a wild hair and want to do something to the house. In this current case, I wanted to take down the old blinds, plus all the hardware that goes with them, and hang up a new curtain rod, plus curtains all within a matter of one hour right before bedtime for my kids.

Sounds simple yes? Add in a toddler trying to climb your two-step ladder while throwing a fit because you DON'T want the entire blinds unit falling down on his head and you've got yourself an opportunity for success.

(Please excuse my horrible ability to hang a curtain rod. It will have to be taken down and extend and lowered since my curtains look like they are waiting for a flood.)

Anyway, I came across a set of curtains at Target along with a curtain rod and thought, what the hell.

I think it goes well with the rest of my bedding/color scheme with the room, but I really have no basis for my taste. It's just that. My taste.

So, lovely readers. Do you think my new curtains fit within my scheme or should I keep looking before my husband adds his opinion to the mix? And if not, what type of curtain would work here?

 

(photo credit: me)

Scenes from an August Birchbox

By Beth

So, I recently jumped on the Birchbox bandwagon.  This was an unusual move for me, since most days the fanciest beauty product I employ is toothpaste, but it sounded like a fun, cheap thing to try for a couple of months so here we are.  (Also, for anyone put off by the waitlist thing, the time from requesting a subscription to getting one was a grand total of 20 days.  I suspect Birchbox may be stalling to build a sense of exclusivity.)

My very first Birchbox contained a beauty tips book that I gave to my four year old to color because see above, an absolutely disgusting protein bar, an inscrutable (to me) pale "brow base" pencil, and two things I actually like a lot.

First up, Juicy Couture Viva La Fleur perfume.  It is light and subtle and smells a bit flowery and a bit like really nice soap.  I've been wearing it every day and really like it.

Second, theBalm Stainiac Tinted Gel Blush in Beauty Queen.  This is described on the bottle as "a hint of tint for cheeks and lips," which, ok, maybe not.  I don't see using this as blush and know I should try it out in the interest of full reportage, but I just can't get into the idea.  I love it as a lip stain though.  The color is very subtle but you can apply a couple of coats for more impact.  It wears really well and wears off evenly, which is a problem I've had with other lip stains.  Also it tastes yummy, which is a bonus.

So month one of Birchbox, enough of a success for me to stick around for month two.

(Photos from fragrancenet.com, amazon.com)

Timeless Album: Hot Fuss by the Killers

by Hillary

Hot Fuss by the Killers was released in 2004 but it's still on heavy rotation on my iPod. I'm not a huge Killers fan. They're good, some of their stuff is great, but they haven't wowed me with anything they've released since Hot Fuss and I've never bothered to see them live. I don't still listen to Hot Fuss because the Killers are my favourite band is what I'm saying. 

Part of why I love Hot Fuss is nostalgia; I was living in England when I bought the album and certain songs take me back to cruising down motorways in my ancient Astra, or sitting in the garden of a 300-year old pub for Pimm's o'clock, like nothing else can. 

The other reason I still love Hot Fuss is that it's just a great album. It's got it all: catchy beats, synthesizers, campy lyrics.

What are your timeless albums? Trust circle time, you guys. I promise not to judge your choices (unless your timeless album is by Celine Dion.) 

{Photo credit: amazon.com}

Kid Art Displays

by Megan

Now that my oldest child is in kindergarten, and my daughter has discovered the joys of coloring all day every day, I'm looking for some ways to display all of their masterpieces.

They have a ton of wall space in their rooms and I would like to take advantage of some of that space. My number one choice are these Art Clip Racks from Pottery Barn Kids.

The only thing I don't like is the $39 price tage for something that I could, if I were so inclined, probably make on my own.

I also love the idea of mixing some of the pieces from the Stanton Wall System, also from Pottery Barn Kids.

I really like the galvanized magnetic boards the most, and I think those pieces could really grow with each of the kids, and they could use them for whatever they want once they're past the age of displaying handprints in their rooms.

I've also seen an assortment of art cables, like these from Land of Nod.

Unfortunately, our own Christina tells me that these are terrible quality, which is unfortunate, because at $10.95, these were the budget winner of the group.

What do you do with all of the kid art that comes into your home, other than send it straight to the recycle bin?

{Photo credits: potterybarnkids.com, landofnod.com}

Math Keyboard

by Blythe

I love that my five-year-old son has recently gotten really into simple math.  He could spend an hour talking about numbers.  On the other hand, as much as I enjoy watching him absorb these new concepts, there are times when I am just tired of helping him add 7+2.  It's sort of how I felt about talking about Pachycephalaurus during the dinosaur phase.  Awesome!  But, also, Enough Already.

Enter this awesome and very low-tech toy:

Math Keyboard - The Pluses and Minuses from Small World Toys

Each button on this little beauty is printed with a simple addition problem.  When the button is pressed, the solution becomes visible through the translucent plastic.  This is accomplished by simple mechanics.  There are no batteries, no lights, and (mercifully) no beeps or music or any sounds at all.

My kid and I both love it, for the fun he's having with it and for the utter simplicity of it.  Yay for math!

{Photo credit: smallworldtoys.com}

HH Knits Giveaway Winner

By Jennie

Thanks for the comments on last week's Etsy Spotlight giveaway! Our winner is...

Congrats Katie! I'll be in touch today.

You can get your on HH Knits card here. Happy shopping!

Teenage Boy Approved: Skincare Products

By Jessica

My son has been dealing with acne prone skin ever since he moved into his teen years. I feel pretty safe talking about this here since he doesn't read this blog (the horror!) and if any of his friends do, I'm sure I'll hear about it...but better to ask forgiveness than permission, right? Ha! Anyway, we've tried many things to combat this problem, which you should all read as I've spent money on many things and then he's been too lazy to use them, all while complaining about how bad his skin looks, until now. 

Apparently the trick to getting my son to do something is to make it even easier than soap and water. What is easier than that? 

Neutogena Oil-Free Cleansing Wipes-Pink Grapefruit these wipes have salicylic acid built right in, so not only do they cleanse the skin but they treat it at the same time. 

Done and done. His skin is already clearing up and it's only been a couple of days of consistent use.

Of course, there are times when he might be required to step up and actually do a second step with a spot treatment and for that I purchased a generic benzoil peroxide product from Target (which I would link to but of course they don't even have it on their own website, maddening!) just look for the spot treatment from Neutrogena and you'll find the Up and Up equivilant right next to it.

(Photo from: Neutrogena)

Pineapple Face Scrub

By A'Dell

My beauty habits have simplified a great deal since having two kids. I've slowly transitioned from a cabinet full of department store products to a handful of things I can pick up at Walmart. It's been a long time since I dedicated entire evenings to three-stage, at-home skin treatments is what I'm saying.

With that in mind, I picked up this $10 Alba Botanical Hawaiian Facial Scrub at Walmart yesterday, because I was feeling like my skin was looking rather dull and blah. 

I put a little bit of this on my face, rinsed with warm water and WHOA. It was like I had a whole new face and I am not even making that up a little bit. A WHOLE NEW FACE! Seriously, I felt like it looked more glowy and bright right afterward and my makeup looked fantastic this morning on my pineapple-scrubbed skin.

It's kind of foamy and has some small beads in it, but they aren't very big and they're definitely not rough or scratchy. They're kind of pleasant actually, the way they scrub off the indignities of motherhood and leave me smelling of tropical fruit.

So! Highly recommend this drugstore product. It's not super fancy but if you are an occasional user of this kind of thing and don't want to pony up big bucks for a Serious Skin Treatment Product, this is rather pleasant and a pretty cheap thrill. (Also if you dislike it for your face for whatever reason, I bet your feet would totally love it which makes it a no-lose $10 purchase.)

(Photo from: me)