Monday, October 31, 2011

trick or treat.....

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!


I think we're ready for the trick-or-treaters.....and like every year, I'm hoping they like what we bought for them.....




are you passing candy/treats out?  what are you handing out?  and....more importantly, do you secretly wish that you'll only get enough trick-or-treaters to give out half of  it, so you can polish the rest off? ;)




talk soon


cp

Sunday, October 30, 2011

weekend snapshots

Somehow Saturday slipped away, and without me posting any snapshots.


So, I decided to post shots from the whole weekend.....


cinderella pumpkins on the back porch
famous mermaid drink






















fun halloween display








































It's cold and dreary today.  I think Mother Nature has finally delivered fall weather.  Hope you had a great weekend.

talk soon

cp

Saturday, October 29, 2011

booooo!

halloween weekend.....
image via babble






















what are your plans?!!  dressing up?


I'll be back later today with saturday snapshots....

Friday, October 28, 2011

fashionable friend friday


Welcome to the 1st installment of 'fashionable friend' Friday!
My first guest is my good friend Lynn.  She's quite the little fashionista, and loves to shop, so she was an easy pick!

A few weeks back I met her at her place, and she let me take pictures of some of her favorite things..which was really fun.  We then headed over to Cantina Laredo for dinner....and it was delicioso!  The space is very cool, and we hands down had the most attentive waiter ever.....I'm talking a ridiculous amount of trips to see how we were doing.  ;)

While we dined on our fabulous food, I did a little interview with Lynn. 



handed down to Lynn from her Aunt Florence (picture doesn't do the necklace
and earring justice..they are gorgeous!)

mixing high and low.....old navy blouse with missoni printed pant


brian atwood heels

brian atwood - rear view

snapshot of some fun rings

fantastic pearl necklace - one of lynn's favorites

Ah, Tiffany...

sparkles from JCrew

the famous red-soled heels.....

old canon displayed in lynn's living room

great wall with crosses lynn has collected over the years (2 from me..picked up in AZ)


cantina laredo....chips/salsa & drinks!


lynn!!!

fantastic stone wall in cantina laredo


Thank you to Lynn for being my very 1st friend to interview!

I had a great time, and hope you did too!

talk soon

cp


Wednesday, October 26, 2011

kitchen crushes

It has officially been 4 years since we finished our kitchen expansion/redesign....let's just say the 12+ weeks sans a working kitchen was well worth it.  True to the cliche, it's the one place that EVERYONE gathers in when we have people over...and I love it.

Even though I love our kitchen, I still find myself crushing on others all of the time.  Here are some of my favorites.

If you can't tell, I'm a big, big fan of white subway tile. :)





























what's your favorite room in your place??

talk soon

cp

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

pennies & purses

I have always been a fan of penny loafers (yes, I even wore them in high school), and often sport a pair of Bass Weejuns with anything from jeans to skirts and dresses.  I would love a new pair...and have been eyeing the ones below.

And then the purses........say hello to the Edie and the Rigby by JCrew. 







































Pennies:
JCrew - Biella Patent Loafer
Bass - Traditional Penny Loafer
JCrew - Darby Calf Hair Penny Loafer
Tory Burch - Penny Loafer

Purses:
JCrew - Edie
JCrew - Rigby Saddle Bag
JCrew - Edie Calf Hair


What's your take on the penny loafer.....thumbs up? down?  I'd love to hear from you!  Comment away!!

talk soon

cp

Monday, October 24, 2011

this is your life.....






































I loved this, and wanted to share.

If you sit back and look at your life, are you happy with everything in it?  Are you doing something that brings you joy?...even if it's not your day job....

I must say that starting this blog has brought me a happiness I didn't even know was missing, so I'm grateful for that.

Happy Monday!

talk soon

cp

Saturday, October 22, 2011

saturday snapshots

Happy Saturday!  It's gorgeous and 63 degrees today.  Gotta love fall.


Ran into our little downtown today, and took some random pictures at one of my favorite little stationary/home stores called Clix.  



















Halloween is in the air..and only a week away!




















random, but fun metal basket....so many possibilities!




















the paper nerd inside me made me take this shot...


















fun orange bangles purchased!




















orange pottery + rooster + gourds + halloween skull = fall!






























talk soon


cp

Friday, October 21, 2011

I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack.......

and with a picture of a handsome man!

Meet fashion editor / stylist...and always dapper George Cortina.


























Sorry for my lack of posting over the past couple of weeks...I was sick, then I was out of town at a conference. 

Regular posts are back!

Happy Friday. :)

talk soon
cp

Friday, October 14, 2011

Thursday, October 13, 2011

playlist

















Music is huge.  For me, it plays a big part of everyday.  Whether it be listening to music in my car (hello, the commute on the Kennedy lately sucks!), in my office while I'm working, or when I'm making dinner at home (that's only on weekends)...

I often wonder what the soundtrack to my life would be....I clearly have all sorts of favorite songs, but here are some that are getting some major playtime....some old...some new...

Go to sleep - Dan Darrah
You are the best thing - Ray LaMontagne
We're all in this together -  Ben Lee
Stereo Hearts - Gym Class Heros (featuring Adam Levine)
P.Y.T. - Michael Jackson
Never die young - James Taylor
Pumped up kicks - Foster the People
She ain't you - Chris Brown
Baila me - The Gipsy Kings
40 dogs (like Romeo & Juliet) - Bob Schneider
Half of my heart - John Mayer
This must be the place - The Talking Heads
Teenage dream - Katy Perry
Blackbird - Originally sung by The Beatles, but I love the Glee version
Best thing I never had - Beyonce
Lovely day - Bill Withers (an oldie, but a goodie)


what's on your playlist these days?  would any of those songs make your life soundtrack list?

talk soon

cp

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

initial it

Who doesn't love a good monogrammed item?!

Here are some fun ones.  The holidays are right around the corner (yes, I just said that)...start thinking gift ideas!!








































1, 2 & 3: iomoi.com
4: baublebar.com
5: monogramstudio.com
6. lillianvernon.com
7. monogramstudio.com


Happy Wednesday!

Do you have any favorite monogrammed pieces?  what are they?

talk soon

cp

Saturday, October 8, 2011

saturday snapshots






















1). a variation of what our counter looks like every Friday after a pile of my jewelry has stacked up throughout the week.


2). verification of my magazine wh()re like tendencies. ;)


3). cool lion pumpkin that Ryan made with her grandma (my mom) yesterday


4). einstein's on a saturday morning...can't beat it.




happy Saturday!!! Enjoy this amazing weather.


talk soon

cp

Friday, October 7, 2011

run your @ss off

This weekend, Sunday to be exact some 45,000 people will descend upon the streets of Chicago and run 26.2 miles.  26.2....wow.

 



















One of my closest friends (my bestie) Matt is one of those 45,000, and I couldn't be prouder.  He's trained all summer...and was even lucky enough to do one of his longest runs through London a few weeks back.  I asked him yesterday if he was nervous, and his response was a simple "I just want to run"......and I thought to myself, what a great answer.

All of my good energy will be sent his way early Sunday morning, and in case he needs a boost...a little song to help him out:



Good luck also to Brent, Megan, Traci, Hutton and Sally.........run your @sses off everyone!


Happy Friday to everyone!
talk soon.
cp

Thursday, October 6, 2011

the blog that started it all

Meet Scott Schuman, creator of The Sartorialist.....the blog that started it all for me.  I stumbled across it one day back in 2009 and that was it.  I was hooked.  Scott began The Sartorialist with the idea of creating a two-way dialogue about the world of fashion and its relationship to daily life.  He is a blogger / journalist / photographer. 



I have often shared random pictures from his blog with friends. 

Intel did a short video on Scott and he describes his process for selecting shots.  I've seen the video several times, but there is one particular sentence that moves me every single time (so much so that the first time I heard it I wrote it down..I'm a nerd that way)....

"it seems odd, but you know, it's almost like going out there and letting yourself fall in love a little bit every day.....letting yourself be seduced a little bit every day..."

Check the video out here:



Link to The Sartorialist here:
http://www.thesartorialist.com/


Is there something in your life that incites that type of statement?  Something you're passionate about?  What is it??

talk soon!
cp


Wednesday, October 5, 2011

good morning Siri

This post is dedicated to Matt.  The biggest Apple supporter I know.  I hope that you and Siri will be truly happy together. ;)

























Remember the Jetson's?  I think we finally might be entering their territory...

Who's getting the new iPhone 4S??

talk soon!
cp

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Style Crushes

Today I share with you two of my style crushes...women who make it look easy when it comes to dressing...

Former editor for Harper's Bazaar (Russia), Miroslava Duma






































and Creative Director for JCrew...Jenna Lyons
                            
Swoon.
Who are your style crushes?

talk soon!

cp

Monday, October 3, 2011

Random tidbits about me...

  • I'm 40! (in case the title wasn't obvious enough)
  • I live in this great little suburb of Chicago, but I work in Chicago (River North to be exact)
  • I have this funny little girl - 9 years old - who keeps me on my toes and makes me giggle every day
  • I'm married to a great guy....14 years now (wow, that's crazy, right?!)
  • I love to make lists
  • I'm a total paper nerd (PaperSource, if you're listening...I love you)
  • I love music - 1st concert was James Taylor, front row...8 years old
  • I'm a self-professed magazine wh()re.  It's ridiculous.  I can't help myself.
  • I love to read and believe it's the greatest gift you can give yourself (The Book Thief...if you haven't read it, do it.  It's amazing)
  • I have a fear of drowning
  • I heart Gossip Girl (I know, I'm likely that shows only 40 year old viewer, but I can't help myself...it showcases two things I love....fashion and NYC)
  • I love to text, and am wicked fast at it ;)
  • I hate having my picture taken (I've said before, and I'll say it again....I'm way cuter in my head than in reality)
  • I love Sharpies (ultra fine point please)
  • I believe the 'quality over quantity' statement can be applied to your entire life...friends, work, things...
  • I love to laugh
  • I have this ability to get embarrassed for other people
  • I'm a good listener
  • I love blogs
Happy Monday!
talk soon

cp

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Hi, I'm Cheryl...and I'm a 1st time blogger..

1st off, if you're reading this I have an actual reader!

So, this little idea of me starting a blog has been cooking for awhile (even if I didn't know it at the time).  I am a huge fan of blogs and have a laundry list that I visit each day..some may find that odd, I find them to be inspirational.  Last weekend while perusing one of these aforementioned blogs a light bulb went off in my head...why not start one?!

And here we are.

What will this little blog entail?  Well, I'm hoping to share tidbits of my life, fashion, fun places to go, DIY projects, friends (I have some crazy stylish ones who I hope to bribe into being shown on here), etc.  I hope you'll stop by and enjoy.   :)

Talk soon!
cp