Spring Organizing: Your Purse

Raise your hand if you have ever had trouble finding something in your purse.

Um, the little lady can see you and you didn't raise your hand.

Liar.

Every single time I approach my stoop to go home, I spend far too long finding my keys. It's like this mean little hide-and-seek game my purse likes to play that always ends up with me angrily shaking it until it coughs up whatever I'm looking for.

I've heard that to a man, a woman's purse is a mystery. And just so all you men know - to a woman, a woman's purse is a mystery. If you've never read the chapter "I Hate My Purse" from Nora Ephron's I Feel Bad About My Neck, you need to. In fact, buy the book for your mom for Mother's Day if she hasn't already read it. The little lady promises you that she will love it.

Back to your purse. The holder of your entire life. Your keys, wallet, change purse, checkbook, cell phone, iPod, headphones, lipstick, chapstick, gum, Tic Tacs, tissues, hand sanitizer, compact mirror, floss, sewing kit, umbrella, sunglasses, camera, snack, water bottle, agenda, books, magazines, business cards, mail, hair ties, manicure kit, super glue, sugar packets, bug spray, sunscreen, hand lotion, feminine products, Advil, notepads, drawing pads, bobby pins, bandaids, pens, pencils, erasers, markers, white out, deodorant, minature flashlight, perfume, nail polish remover pads, tape, safety pins, tiny photo album, minature screw driver, etc.

You just never know!

Bottom line: a purse never has enough places to put things.

Do not fear - the little lady is here!

(Can I put that on a t-shirt?)

Check out the Etsy store, Samorga.

Nifty little purse organizers!

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To shop, click here.

until next time,

g

Live Puppy Cam

Do you want something to check on periodically throughout your work day?

How about a live Shiba Inu puppy camera?

Click here!

Can you think of anything better than baby animals?

No seriously, can you?

That's what I thought.

Enjoy!

until next time,

g

Feather Earring

I adore any sort of bold & unique accessory.

My new favorite look? The one-feathered earring.

I went to the Young Designer's Market in Soho this weekend and fell in love with Sara Keiser's innovative creations.

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She incorporates so much color, texture, and thought into her one-of-a-kind accessories. They're so airy and lightweight that you forget you have it on. She showed me how to wear it in my hair and on a necklace, too, expanding its versatility.

To learn more about Sara Keiser and her company, Box 185, click here.

As her website says, Box 185 has that new brand of attitude:

fun, fresh, and a little frisky. 

Oh, and here's the little lady trying on hers...

I can't wait to rock it!

until next time,

g

April Showers...

....require a sturdy umbrella.

When it rains here, you're not just walking a short distance to your car with the ability of doing errands via drive-thru.

You carry your groceries in it, you walk to work in it, you end up lost in it. 

In NYC, there is rain...

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and then there is RAIN.

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This past Saturday was unfortunately the latter; the rain was coming down so hard and the wind was blowing so strong that my umbrella snapped inside out and blew away. Yes, it just up and left me, high and (not) dry. Does that even happen to normal people? Have I just racked up that much bad karma with inanimate objects?

Anyway.

Where did it go? I'm fairly certain it's dead in some umbrella graveyard.

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When living in NYC, you quickly learn that you will go through about 17 umbrellas per season, the majority of which you buy from a table on the street when you've realized you forgot to bring one with you. Ya know, since the last storm killed yours and you've been consumed with so much denial that it's happened yet again that you haven't bought a new one.

Most times, your umbrella doesn't just blow away...usually a "limb" is broken and you continue to use the lopsided ghetto device until it no longer opens at all. 

And you're stuck underneath a store awning. 

And you're running late. 

And you're wearing suede shoes. 

Cream-colored suede shoes. 

Then, of course, you pay more than you want to the umbrella-stand-man for a lousy boring black and poorly constructed umbrella out of pure desperation.

I hopefully ended this awful cycle on Sunday after buying a new umbrella from Lulu Guinness. I know, I know, it seems ridiculous to spend 40-something dollars on an umbrella! But I suppose it also seems ridiculous to have gone through 4 umbrellas since Christmas. Yes. If you go into the store on Bleeker Street in NYC (the only store in the US) and buy an umbrella, they take down your name and if at any point during the year of purchase (yes, an entire year) anything breaks on the umbrella for whatever reason, you can bring it in and they will give you a new one for free. I stood there dumbfounded and must have repeated "so let me get this straight..." five times while the enthusiastic salesperson assured me that I wasn't going deaf. Apparently it's made out of some indestructible material? Hello, magic wand. I'm not sure if this deal works for online purchases, but it couldn't hurt to check. To purchase online, click here. 

I got the pink & red lips one featured on the UK website. It looks like this:

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You can stand under my umbrella.

ella.

ella.

ay. ay. ay. 

Now I just have to make sure I don't leave it in a cab. Heh.

Are you in need of other cute rain gear?

Melissa Shoes teamed up with Vivienne Westwood for these cute little short wellies. You can find them at Nida Boutique located at 573 Hudson Street in the West Village.

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To see more styles of shoes at the boutique, click here.

Also, please check out the adorable All Things Fabulous blog and her recent post about Zoubaby's monogrammed rainboots. How cute are those?

until next time,

g

New Website!

With the amazing help of Smitten Blog Designs, I am proud to present my new professional website!

You may access it via http://www.virginialucashart.blogspot.com/ or http://www.virginialucashart.com/

or by clicking my button on the sidebar:

  Little Lady, Big Apple will stay the same and the new site will act primarily as my "flagship" and a place for me to share my artwork. It's still very much a work in progress, but I have been so tickled with this project that I couldn't wait any longer to share it with you.

Please stay tuned for more updates!

until next time,

g

Giggle Time

My friend sent me this.

Try not to laugh.

I dare you.

In fact, I triple dog dare you.

- Basset Hounds Running -

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Happy Friday!

until next time,

g

Has Spring Finally Sprung?

I stumbled upon this on my street last night...

...and took it as a sign. I immediately ran home, grabbed my winter coats out of my closet and marched straight to the cleaners and sent them off to storage in NJ until next fall. Perhaps I'm toying with Mother Nature's cruel sense of humor, but I don't care. I'd rather freeze to death than wear down or wool anymore this season. As we all know, it's been quite the winter...

Things I'm looking forward to in the warm months of the year: open apartment windows, neighborhood strolls without a coat or jacket, Pinkberry dates, the High Line, running along the Hudson, Central Park picnics, dining outside, rooftops, painting on my fire escape, walking and exploring for hours and hours at a time, The Frying Pan, sandals, sunbathing on the piers, eating watermelon at weekend street fairs, sitting on my stoop and visiting with all of the neighborhood puppies, and the warm sun on my face.

until next time,

g

Five Favorites

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens

Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens

Brown paper packages tied up with strings

These are a few of my favorite things!

1. YSL Touche Eclat Radiant Touch Pen

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    The best undereye/blemish concealer. It's a splurge for your makeup bag at $40, but it lasts a long time 

    and it's totally worth it.

To purchase, click here.

2. Ciao Bella Blood Orange Mini Sorbet

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If you see this in your local grocery store, buy it.
Go home, hide the cell phone and remote and other people, curl up on the couch, and enjoy.

Just do it, kay?

3. EOS Lip Balm

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Odd-looking? Yes. But such a nifty little critter. I am someone that has 27 lip balms stuck in every drawer, pocket, and coin purse because I am so freakishly afraid of being stuck somewhere with that awful feeling of dried lips and no lip balm.
Oh, and I personally think these would make adorable Easter gifts since they look like little eggs.  :)
Sold at Duane Reade in NYC. Not sure about other places. 

To order online, click here.

4. "Topless & Barefoot" Essie Nail Color

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My new go-to nude color.
Click here to find out where you can buy it near you.

5. ZARA Work Dresses & Shoes

(I realize that this is more than 5 things, but the little lady makes her own rules.)

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To find a store near you, click here.

until next time,

g