Look of the Day: Winter Neutrals

 The pace of life has really picked up. I have a horrible head cold, so am having trouble keeping up with everything. For instance, I should be packing right now, because I leave for England tomorrow! Instead, I'm blogging and listening to NPR and hoping this grogginess will go away.

Last week I had the chance to do some modeling for a local company. I'm usually a total wreck when someone else is taking my picture, but I like the ladies of Rivet & Sway so much that it just felt like hanging out with friends. I was pretty surprised with how at ease I felt. (There may or may not have been prosecco involved.) One of the photos is up on the Rivet & Sway website now. I'm the face of their holiday sale!

I have a question for you guys. Does anybody know what style of Coach this is? I bought it last week from Crossroads Trading Company in the U District thinking it was the Court Bag. It is not. It has a center pocket and is much wider at the base. I'm curious to find out what style it is!

Before I go, I wanted to give one more shout out to the generous souls at Vivilli. They gifted me this gorgeous white jacket. I love how structured it is, and all the zipper detailing is right up my alley. It come in 2 other colors as well and is a total steal (only $36!).

And the winner is...

I'd like to introduce you to the winner of my Rivet & Sway Pin-To-Win: Tori Radday!

It was a hard decision; there were so many great Fall Focus pinboards! In the end, it was Tori's unique taste that won me over. 

Thank you so much to all who entered. I hope you had fun!

Holiday Gift Guides: Everyone + Gifts under $5

I tried my best to make a gift guide for everyone, but it turned into more of a guide to hostess gifts. Once again, everything is under $20 and most of the items are from small, American businesses, so shop away! The "Stuff Under $5" list is much more suitable for all ages and genders, but isn't as small business oriented, with the exception of the Theo chocolate.

Gift Guide: Etc. by fleur-d-elise on Polyvore

1. Cardamon-Clove Royal Rose Syrup $15
This is the perfect gift for a foodie or someone who loves entertaining. Or maybe just someone who loves drinking. Either way, it's really fancy and really delicious, without costing you a fortune. Also comes in Raspberry or Lavender-Lemon.

2. Spicy Apple Tea Lights from Terrain $12
These candles are 100% beeswax, made in the USA, and smell delicious. They're a steal at $12!

3. Decorative Matches ~$3.50
You know what always goes great with candles? Fire. Bundle a decorative box of matches with those tea lights, and you've got the perfect hostess gift. I usually buy them at gift stores, but they're also available on Amazon in packs of 3 for $9.99.

4. Cupcake Royale Bacon Crack $9.50
This bacon brittle is handmade right here in Seattle and makes an extravagant ice cream topping. You can also sprinkle it on cupcakes or just eat it straight outta the fancy Weck jar.

5. Paperwhite Bulb Garden $16
Bring some sunshine to someone's post-Holiday slump. These fragrant white flowers are perfect for forcing indoors and bloom in about 3 weeks. You can buy them already potted or put together a kit at your local garden nursery.

Gift Guide: Under $5 by fleur-d-elise featuring lip treatments

1. Motif Moist Wipes in Citrus Zest & Ginger $1.99

These fun and functional moist wipes are available at Target, as well as directly from the Motif website. They also make matching hand soap in pretty scents and equally pretty packaging.

2. Theo 70% Dark Chocolate with Orange $4

This decadent bar of chocolate is sooo much better than those chocolate oranges. It costs way less and is made from organic, Fair Trade chocolate. Plus, chocolate is good for you, so buy lots. Available through the Theo website and at Whole Foods.

3. Burt's Bees Lip Balm $3 

This is my favorite lip balm. It's all-natural, has a subtle flavor, and doesn't contain any of the drying ingredients, like phenol and menthol, that can lead to "lip balm addiction".

4. LePen pens $2 each 

These are great little pens. They come in 12 smudge-proof colors and perfect for crafting or just general writing purposes. 

5. Satsumas, tangerines, mandarins and clementines 

Don't forget to put a couple of these glorious little citrus fruits in each stocking! They also make great, last-minute hostess gifts as they're usually pretty cheap this time of year. Just head over to your local grocer and pick up a pound, or maybe a whole crate!  

Hope all my American readers have a wonderful Thanksgiving! And to my foreign readership, be thankful that you don't have to deal with Black Friday.

UPDATE: I can't believe I forgot to include these! May I recommend Bergamotes de Nancy? They're very hard to find as they're only made in one place: a quiet city in the Lorraine region of France. When I was seven, my mom visited family in Nancy and brought these back for me and my sisters. I've been dreaming of them ever since. They're similar in flavor to Earl Gray tea, but happily lack the bitterness of black tea. The tin is a little pricey, so I would recommend the sachet, which is available on Amazon for $14.95

Holiday Gift Guides: Girls & Guys

It's that time of year again! Like me, you're probably already flustered and overwhelmed with holiday plans (or the process of making those plans). Well, I've got a few posts that will hopefully make your holidays a little easier and maybe even a little cheaper. For instance, all the gifts in my Chicks Gift Guide are under $30! The gifts for dudes are even cheaper!

Gift Guide: Chicks by fleur-d-elise featuring tote handbags

1. Bobby Pins by Kate Spade $18
I'm a sucker for cute packaging, and these bobby pins come all decked out like matches. They even have red tips!

2. TokyoMilk French Milled Soap in Waltz No. 14 $11
Now, this doesn't happen very often, but all of TokyoMilk's soaps smell gorgeous! They last forever and aren't as drying as most bar soaps. This bar smells delicate and clean and features notes of Linden, Honeyed Rose, Wisteria Petals & White Musk.

3. baggu® duck bag tote from Madewell $24
It's covered in polka dots. What other reasons do you need?

4. Face Stockholm® for J.Crew lipstick in French Martini $20
This bright, daring shade was custom-made for J.Crew. It's a great gift for the fashion-forward ladies in your life.

5. Striped Merino Hat from J.Crew $29.50
Warm, soft and on sale! It also comes in two other color combos.

Gift Guide: Dudes by fleur-d-elise featuring beanie hats

1. J.Crew Collars & Cuffs Stain Bar $7

Maybe this will encourage a certain dude in your life to do his own laundry. Other reasons to buy it: nontoxic, biodegradable, dye and allergen free. It's also not tested on animals!

2. "Fuck Yeah Menswear" by Kevin Burrows & Lawrence Schlossman $12

This book, by the creators of the blog Fuck Yeah Menswear, is fashion satire at its most hilarious. If you know a man who has any sort of interest in fashion or dressing somewhat presentable, get him this book. It's on sale for $11.62 at Amazon right now and will bring some instant crispiness to your holidays. (My husband is the archetype on page 23.)

3. Men's Camp Socks from J.Crew $17

What guy doesn't like new socks?

4. American Apparel Cuffed Acrylic Lined Beanie $20

Practical and warm and made in the US! And it comes in 24 other colors!

Friday Fashion Facts:

You may already know this, but bobby pins were named for the bobbed hairstyle that was popular in the 1920's

Have a great weekend!

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DIY: Pumpkin Spice Syrup

I love pumpkin pie spiced anything, but with one exception: I hate pumpkin pie. I think it's the texture. Anyway, I found a nice, cheap jar of pumpkin pie spice at Trader Joe's and have been putting it in everything. I used it to flavor apple jelly, sprinkled it on cereal, and put it in my coffee. This morning, I had the thought to make pumpkin pie spiced syrup. It turned out delicious. I used it to sweeten 2 cups of coffee today and have my mind set on pumpkin pancakes tomorrow morning! I will let you know how they turn out.  For now, here's a recipe for the syrup.

Ingredients:

2-3 medium-sized pillars of piloncillo sugar

-OR-

2 cups brown sugar

1 Cup water

2 teaspoons Pumpkin Pie Spice

A clean bottle

Directions:

1. Sanitize the bottle in the dishwasher. If you don't have a dishwasher, wash the bottle with hot, soapy water and sanitize in a pot of boiling water.

2. Place the water and sugar in a small sauce pan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Stir frequently.

3. Once the sugar is completely dissolved, check the syrup's consistency. It should be thickening by now. 

4. Mix in the pumpkin pie spice and remove from heat.

5. Use a funnel to carefully fill your bottle. Enjoy!

This makes a great gift! It's easy and cheap!

What I Wore: Election Night

My first thought as I'm writing this post is "I hope I don't lose any readers over this." Party affiliation is the most divisive thing in America! It's just unreal. No matter who you were rooting for, remember that I am just like you. I'm a blogger, a daughter, a sister, a dreamer, an American (or at least a resident of Earth). We want what's best for our families; we want to better ourselves, and feel valued in our communities. We need to stop focusing on what makes us different and we need to work together.

For those who aren't in total agreement with me when it comes to "red or blue", the rest of the post is pretty liberal, so don't feel you have to read it all. I want to stay friends, haha

I'm very proud to say that I live in Washington state. If you haven't already heard, we're pretty damn liberal and we're changing the course of history. We legalized pot, which I never thought I would see in my lifetime! I don't partake of the stuff myself, but I do believe that legalizing it will actually give the government more control over it. If you think about it, when you make something illegal, you actually lose control. Take prohibition for example. Alcohol didn't go away. It just became harder to see and harder to control.

Speaking of Prohibition, my husband and I went to Capitol Hill in Seattle to celebrate and, my goodness, was it packed! It looked like the night before the 18th Amendment took effect. Everyone was trying to get into the bars with TVs so they could watch the election results, so the lines were incredibly long. Just at the right moment, we found a table at Big Mario's Pizza and camped out there with 5 or 6 happy strangers. For those of you who don't live in Seattle, Capitol Hill is, for the most part, Gay Pride Central, so you can imagine how jubilant the crowd was. The crowd dancing in the streets numbered over 2000 people! Personally, I can't decide what I'm happier about: Gay marriage passing or Obama being reelected. Victory is my word of the day!

H&M blazer - American Apparel t-shirt printed by MoveOn.org - Forever21 pants - MIA flats - Coach bag

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Look of the Day: on repeat

The velvet skirt appears, yet again! Autumn is usually the only time I get to wear it, so I've been wearing it a lot. It's just so much tawny velvet, doesn't seem appropriate in any other season.

 Not to jump subjects too drastically, but... ELECTION DAY IS TOMORROW. Thank the Heavens, we've made it through!! Please, please, please don't let it be "too close to call". At least, even if it is, the ads will stop. Hopefully. Here in Washington, our gubernatorial race is neck-in-neck, so even if the presidential race ends with a clear winner, we might still have to suffer through months of recounts and hearings. It happened in 2008 and it definitely could happen again.

How is your election season? Coming to a sweet, sweet end, I hope.

 A gentle reminder: I'm running a great giveaway, especially if you're need of some stylish new glasses. It's a pin-to-win, so it's a lot of fun, too! GO ENTER!

GAP denim jacket - H&M striped shirt - United Colors of Benetton scarf - Coach bag - vintage skirt - Forever21 sunglasses

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My biggest giveaway yet!

Ready for it? Rivet & Sway is giving away a set of frames worth $199!

This time, there won't be any boring Rafflecopters involved. Instead, it's going to be a Pin-to-Win and the reader with the most creative and detailed board will win her choice of stylish glasses, complete with prescription lenses! If you don't have a Rx, that's OK, too. Rivet & Sway glasses can also be made with high-quality, non-prescription lenses, and include a 100% UV filter coating.

Here are some images of their gorgeous frames if, for some reason, you need more reasons to enter.

From top to bottom, The Rizzo in Honey Drip, The Faster Pussycat in Jet Black, and The Spitfire in Galapagos Green

Or maybe these will convince you...

The Poetic Justice in Royal Tortoise

 OK, are you ready to enter?

Let's get down to the details:

1. Follow Rivet & Sway on Pinterest

2. Create a pinboard called "Fall Focus". Be creative!

3. Pin your favorite pair of frames from Rivet & Sway

4. Include the hashtag #pintowin on all of your pins
5. Leave a comment here with a link to your board (this is crucial!!)

If you need some ideas for your board, Both Rivet & Sway and I have created a Fall Focus pinboard. Here's mine and here's the one created by Rivet & Sway.

The winner will be chosen by me and Rivet & Sway!

Contest ends NOVEMBER 16th, 2012
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