September 2011 Desktop Wallpaper

Can you believe tomorrow is September?

Update those desktop wallpapers!

The little lady welcomes fall with open arms

and visions of breezy picnics... 

...with a bottle of Skinnygirl Margarita,

a box of crackers, & a football.

- and 9/11/11 gets a little extra love -

until next time,

g

My Doctor's Note

This is my doctor's note.

It reads: "Little lady has been swamped."

Figuratively and literally.

Apologies for my recent absence! There was an earthquake, and then a hurricane, and then rumors of a tornado (?), and also the same lovely allergic reaction I had here in my fourth ER visit. You know, like when my foot blows up to twice its normal size and it's burning and it's hot and I'm feverish and pathetically impaired?

image via

Let's just say that shuffling around Manhattan to prep for a natural disaster is easier with two operable feet.

After pleas from my family, I left town last-minute and hunkered down upstate while Irene did her thang. Since Irene's visit so rudely prevented any hopes of returning home on Sunday, I set out for my journey back to NYC yesterday morning. After a cancelled train, a missed bus, and fourteen hours in the car {yes. a huge "thank you!" to the fella who drove me ;)}, I finally made it home. For a distance that typically takes between 4 and 5 hours by car, it was one for the books. So many roads were shut down upstate due to flooding and damage and our travel misfortune became almost humorous when road after road after road was covered in water or fallen trees or just backed up for miles. At one point, though, we drove by Mohawk River and saw roofs peaking out of the water. It was, simply stated, awful. We also drove by a couple wrecks that required countless firetrucks and ambulances; we sat in a quiet car, quickly reminded how lucky we are. As much as this past week has tested my patience and stress levels, I remain so very thankful that all is okay. It could always, always be worse. While I'm happy that NYC dodged a bullet with the hurricane, I know that other areas weren't so fortunate...and my heart goes out to those people and their loved ones as they get back on their feet.

Stay tuned for more posts this week.

until next time,

g

8 Ways to Spring into Fall

8 Ways to Spring into Fall by ihartvirginia featuring a striped shirt

p.s. I got the leopard-print flats!

(have been searching for the perfect pair for a while now...)

And look! They have little rhinestones on the bow tips.

until next time,

g

A Time to Clean Out Your Closet

If you live in a seasonal climate, you're well aware of the effects it has on your wardrobe.

In the summer, you're basically dressing with two goals in mind:

1. Don't die of heat stroke.

2. Don't sweat through your clothes, you filthy animal.

It doesn't really matter if it's cute, you just want something easy and lightweight, but not see-through. (trickier than you'd think, fellas) Winter is the opposite, obviously. The only clothes that really matter in winter? Outerwear. Invest in a good heavy coat and boots (and a pair of mittens, scarf, & a hat) and you're set for months. And since spring lasts for approximately 72 hours these days (and you're so tickled for 48 degrees, by that point, that you venture out without your coat and get a cold and spend those 72 hours indoors watching Ellen all hopped up on decongestants), that "season" is essentially obsolete.

So what does that leave us with?

fall!

The magical time of year of pumpkins, fire-colored leaves, crisp mornings, breezy nights, lightweight scarves, fleece blankets, football, denim, cider, corpulent catalogs & fashion magazines stuffed into your mailbox, and the welcoming reminder that although the transition occurs late in the calendar year, it truly evokes the feeling of the beginning of the cycle.

A time to start fresh.

A time to begin anew.

A time to clean out your closet.

First on the to-do list? Watch an episode of Hoarders. If that doesn't put you in the mood to clean and organize, I don't know what will.

Now it's time to go through and get rid of stuff. I blogged here about de-cluttering your closet and other areas in your home if you'd like to check it out.

Here are three separate tips about organizing your clothes.

1. Hangers matter. I'm going to risk sounding like Joan Crawford in Mommie Dearest, but wire hangers are just bad. Some heavy duty clothes will be completely fine on wire hangers, but a silk blouse? A thin sweater? A basic white tee? No, no, and no. Your clothes will have half the shelf life! And if you're like me and dealing with limited storage, wooden hangers just won't do.

My favorite hangers are these...

image via

...and they're sold here and here at BB&B

2. Organize by what makes sense in your life. When you're getting dressed, your first thought is not "am in a yellow mood?", it's "where am I going and what am I doing?" Think of how your wardrobe is divided naturally - with kids/with adults, at job/at home, office/weekend, school/work, day/night, normal/special occasion, etc.  Once you've divided it into how it makes sense for your schedule, separate by category: pants, skirts, blouses, etc. Then separate once more into specifics: jeans, dress pants, sleeveless, short-sleeve, long sleeve, etc. You get the point. It'll make your life much easier every morning when outfits are in their designated area. "I don't have anything to wear!" Oh, but ya do.

3. Don't forget about the other stuff - the gym clothes, the socks, the undergarments, the off-season clothes, the shoes, the accessories. Suggestions? Use drawer dividers like these. Use shelf organizers like these. Figure out the best way to store your shoes.

Now that you've purged your closet and organized what's left, it's time to get ready for a new season!

Since you're really in the in-between temperatures in fall, you have a lot of freedom to wear whatever you want. The key? Adding layers, adding texture, adding weight. Need inspiration? Blair Eadie has definitely mastered the layered-look. Here are summer trends that transition into fall, according to Refinery29. And here is my fabulous friend, Mimi, sporting some other summer-shifting-to-fall looks. (Isn't she cute?)

So there you have it - clean out the old to make room for the new.

I can smell a fresh season in the air...can you?

until next time,

g

Chambray & Denim

Little Lady Loves

Chambray & Denim by ihartvirginia featuring one piece rompers

Just a Few Little Things

Just a few little things I wanted to share --

I really want to try this DIY NYC skyline lamp shade!

I love this zebra-print jar.

I blogged about TOMS last year and am still in love. My glitters are my weekend staple. Want to see something exciting? Check out their fall, holiday, & spring collections. The fun doesn't stop there. Look at the TOMS ballet flats!

A great quote about growing older.

When life hands you lemons, make a lemonade cake.

In case you haven't seen it on Matchbook or other blogs, here's a nifty little closet checklist for wardrobe classics.

How to clean makeup brushes.

Need a gift for a baby? From what I've heard, this is the most popular toy right now.

I'm very excited about the upcoming movie, I Don't Know How She Does It, starring Sarah Jessica Parker. (and my city and my neighborhood!) Watch the trailer here.

happy weekend!

image via

until next time,

g

Back to Life You Go

One of my very first posts was about planners. I'm someone that needs help keeping everything straight! Whether you're headed back to school, back to a busier life post-summer, back to juggling children with various schedules -- or even if you just need a good ol' kick in the pants about getting organized for the fall -- I want to show you something I think you'll like.

Erin Condren offers stylish & personalized Life Planners.

You can choose from covers like these:

+ more! In addition, there are other color options (some styles are even customizable) and you can add your own photo to the front. (And if you order now, you will receive the remaining months in 2011 inside the planner for free!)

a peek inside them:

other calendar options:

all images via

Need an address book? Check these out.

Getting married? Look at the adorable wedding planners!

Are you a teacher? Does having an organized yet stylish lesson planner sound nice? Click here.

The website also offers growth charts, iPad stickers, photo labels/cards, coaching pads, journals, stationery, invitations, note pads, calling cards, and so many more customizable goodies.

Click here to browse for yourself or someone you know.

until next time,

g

High & Low

In life, there are high moments and then there are low moments.

I'm not here to discuss all the deep and important issues in the world, but rather some silly little things that have fallen into the life of the little lady this week.

Fallen, ha, you'll get a kick out of that in a bit...

So yes, a silly high moment happened on Friday night while I was out to dinner with my friend. "Oh! I have something for you...", she said as she and handed me a pair of shoes. I could see that they had been worn and she explained that her boyfriend brought them home from a Kohl's commercial shoot. They were too small on her and she, being the sweet friend that she is, knew I'd love them. I instantly kicked off my heels and put them on; it was a total Cinderella moment. I was so excited! Not every night do you get a cute new pair of shoes. I sat back to admire them and jokingly asked, "you think anyone famous wore them?"

If you're not aware, I am a celeb fanatic. I tend to either hyperventilate and freeze up or become uncharacteristically brave when I encounter them. Like the time I shared an elevator with Brad Pitt at the Waldorf? I froze/stared/experienced something that felt similar to a minor stroke. But the time John Mayer approached my bar stool and asked how my night was going? I suddenly conjured up a gut full of confidence, gave him a giant hug(?), and became little miss Chatty Cathy -- until he asked me, "how do you bring home the dough?", while swishing his thumb against his pointer finger. And with that I was instantly zapped back into reality where John Mayer is just a pretentious scumbag. But deep down I still cherish our little conversational rendezvous because he is, of course, a celeb. Because I really do have a thing for them, I suppose.

Back to my story...

My friend texted her boyfriend asking him whose shoes they were and we continued our giggly conversation about life. She later checked her phone and gasped, holding it for me to see.

Whose shoes was I wearing?

................

Jennifer Lopez 

image via

And that is when my friend and I shook our clenched fists in the air, participating in some sort of shared moment of silent cheer similar to the excitement expressed by a small child who has just seen a bunny.

Call me crazy, but that's the analogy that came to mind.

Here are the shoes on my feet:

(it's a shame you can't see the rest of me as my 

hair was blowing in the wind just like J.Lo's...)

I proceeded to walk/skip all the way home, appropriately humming "I'm still Ginny from the block".

My silly low moment?

Just when I thought nothing else could rattle my gag reflex after last week's encounter, I was quickly proven wrong. I was minding my own business and walking up 5th Avenue near Union Square last night, chatting with my mom about The Help (go see it), and all of a sudden a blob of brown/white goo plopped on my face and splattered onto my arm that was holding my phone.

(cue gagging followed by annoying whiny voice)

"Aaaauuuuuuhhhhhh! Ohmygaw, ohmygaw, ohmygaw, MOM, a bird just SHAT on my FACE!"

Really? 

Really?

Really?

Does that happen to normal people? WHAT is going on lately? How did I rack up so much bad karma?

Seriously, though, what are the chances?! Last time I checked, I am not in the forest.

I hung up the phone and cleaned myself up with tissues and antibacterial gel and hurried home to hot water and soap.

It's one thing for a bird to poop on your shoulder or your bag or your foot or idunno on a tree(!), but your cheek? I know people have worse problems, but getting shat on wasn't necessarily at the top of my to-do list this week.

Harumph!

As my mother texted me,

"sometimes you are the pigeon and sometimes you are the statue."

so very true...

until next time,

g

Dreaming of Autumn

Dreaming of Autumn by ihartvirginia featuring long jewelry

until next time,

g

Rainy-Nowhere-to-Go-Day

today was like this:

{taken this morning at Starbucks}

It poured. 

all

day

long

 I'm not going to lie, though, I was in need of a rainy-nowhere-to-go-day. 

What did I spend most of my day doing? Let's just say that my apartment is so clean it's ridiculous. I'm not joking, you could eat off my floor. 

I think it's helpful to hear how others tackle certain chores so I wanted to share my favorite cleaning essentials:

1) Windex with vinegar is a great multi-surface cleaner

2) Pledge dust wipes

3) Murphy's Oil for hardwood floors

4) Mr. Clean Magic Eraser

5) Swiffer - sweeper / dust & shine furniture spray

6) iClean for computer, cell phone, iPod, & TV

In need of a cleaning checklist? Here are free printables!

What fruit can help clean many different things? A lemon.

And what about all those cleaning jobs everybody hates? Like emptying the vacuum bag, cleaning out dead bugs in light fixtures, de-crumbing the toaster, cleaning ceiling-fan blades, disinfecting the kitchen trash can, dusting vents & radiators, cleaning behind the refrigerator, and scrubbing shower tiles? Real Simple has tips here.

Happy cleaning!

until next time,

g

A Few Friday Suggestions

Just a few Friday suggestions:

Have you ever wondered what food is in season where you live? Go to this map; you can select your state and the month to find out what is fresh in your area.

This is a great DIY home project to create your own chevron rug!

My new favorite nail trend.

Egg in a basket topped with avocado? I know what I'm having for Sunday's breakfast.

In the mood for something sweeter? This crepe recipe looks de-lish.

I've seen this DIY color block pouch project all over the web after my friend mentioned it. We're hoping to give it a try. :)

Christmas is 135 days away. Want to get a head start on gifts this year? Here are 101 simple handmade gift ideas/tutorials!

A must-try before the end of summer in NYC? Imperial Woodpecker Sno-balls. Think fluffy-snowcone-in-a-chinese-delivery-box. The little pop-up store in the village offers a ton of flavors to choose from.

Here's what I tried this week:

birthday cake & dreamsicle flavors

When I was a little girl, one of my favorite things to do was color. I still remember how special I felt when my parents bought me the Crayola box of 96 colors with the built-in sharpener in the back. I memorized all of the crayon names - "robin's egg blue", "macaroni and cheese", and "purple mountain's majesty" being my favorites. (Here is a fun little fact-page on the their names over the years.) And yes, I was totally the brat that pulled out the tin of old/broken/fat crayons when hyper friends visited, keeping the special box of 96 sacred and sharp. If I went out to dinner with grown-ups and brought a coloring book, I'd sit and color page by page, remaining completely transfixed and occupied for hours. I even daydream about making personalized coloring sheets and books if I have kids one day...

What's the point of this rant, you ask?

People need to color more!

....kids, adults, tweens, YOU.

So that's your homework. Stop to smell the roses and stop to color a pretty picture. Don't have a coloring book handy? Don't think you have the skill to draw yourself a picture to color even though you totally do?

You can never go wrong with Winnie the Pooh. Click here to choose from coloring pages you can print.

And, just for fun, here are some William & Kate coloring sheets you can print, too! :)

Hope your Friday is simply stupendous.

 

until next time,

g