Friday Casual

Today was a hot, humid, and tired day. I just wanted to be comfortable in my Gap t-shirt, Ann Taylor pants, Zigi sandals, with Michael Kors bag and Charlotte Russe necklace. 

Summer's Office Casual

In the summer the office dress code is a bit more relaxed. Despite having a business lunch, a seminar, and a co-worker's goodbye party to go to today, I chose to go really casual. In the winter time I would have automatically reached for a suit, or a dress and jacket combo. But today I'm wearing a Marimekko top, Larry Levine ankle pants, Stella McCartney bag, Franco Sarto pumps, Charlotte Russe earrings, Thomas Sabo bracelet and a no brand bangle.

Haunted

Sometimes you make a shopping mistake that keeps haunting you. This one is mine. I can't get this Gucci "Marrakech" python tote out of my head. But of course it's not available anywhere anymore. Aaargh. Why, oh why, did I leave it at Woodbury Commons? Regrets, regrets...

Not quite Lively

I love my Derek Lam top for Kohl's. Blake Lively likes it too! I may not win the who wore it better quiz, but who cares...I wear mine my way, with my NYDJ jeans, and the Stella McCartney bag. 

Chaperone

I've been so busy I haven't had a chance to post recent outfits, but here's one from a week and a half ago. I was dressed up to chaperone my daughter's graduation pool party with a black maxi dress (bought a couple of years ago in a discount shop where they cut the original labels off), the pink statement necklace from Charlotte Russe, Walmart flip flops, and Stella McCartney bag. 

A Day at the Lake House, and the tote that never was

A friend of mine hosts a wonderful Midsummer party at her lake house in upstate New York. We have gone almost every year since the party tradition began, and it is one of the highlights of our summer. For that one day it's like we are back in Finland, only better, since it's usually much warmer.. It's really laid back, with good company, good food, swimming, sauna, boating, bonfire, and all the things that are part and parcel for celebrating "Juhannus".  Let the pictures speak for themselves....

Oh, and of course there was not one picture of mama bear because she was behind the lens... but that's ok... mama bear was very relaxed, and not thinking about fashion or outfits, just keeping her pack happy. In fact, so relaxed, that mama bear made a very big - A VERY BIG - mistake at Woodbury Commons, which was a small part of this weekend's trip.  This is one of those regrets that will nag mama bear until the end of time. And beyond. The mistake was leaving a gorgeous logofree python tote bag at Gucci's. Mama bear is not a huge Gucci fan and didn't expect to find anything there. So when the beautiful python was calling mama bear's name from the 50% off shelf, and beckoning mama bear to give in to temptation, mama bear just shushed it, and said to herself that she has enough tote bags, and doesn't need this one. And left the outlets and decided to forget all about the python tote. But for some reason, she just could not, and the tote was even haunting her in her dreams. Mama bear begged her husband to drive back to the outlets the next day, but he flat out refused (how dare he?). Some arguments ensued, but mama bear had to give in because the bear family wanted to go home. And so mama bear has to learn to live with out the Gucci python tote and with the nagging knowledge that someone else will take it home and be happy with it... so sad... such regret... but life goes on... however, with some certainty there is some kind of python tote bag in mama bear's future, since now mama bear is obsessed, and will search heaven and earth to find a replacement! Cheers friends.

First Day of Summer

The summer officially started today, the schools ended, and Finnish folks celebrate "Juhannus" or Midsummer. This really felt like the first day of summer to me as a I was off after a very busy work week and a slew of 12-13 hour days.. Spent some quality time with my lovely girls and took them, and a couple of friends (mine and theirs) for a picnic on the beautiful LI north shore coastline. The weather was amazing, and life felt so perfect in the moment... Happy Midsummer to my fellow Finns, and a wonderful summer start for everyone else! Enjoy it while it lasts! 

Sales II

Aaargh. This sale season is just killing me. K i l l i n g me! My sister-in-law showed me yesterday the Bottega Veneta shoes she bought at the Americana Mall BV store for 40% off. So of course I had to pretty much first chance I got dash to the internet and check what's on sale at BV. As it turns out, there are very nice things on sale. But I am staying strong... I've done my sale shopping, and am saving myself for next weekend's short Mid Summer foray to Woodbury Commons.

at $2799 this gorgeous dress might not be exactly a bargain, but, hey, it's down from $4650!

Love the skirt, but a bit too steep still at $1189. (Wonder if I would find a copy at Zara or H&M...)

If I was rich, I would not think twice to purchase this sleeveless cashmere vest/coat. However, at a price point of over $3000 it's a bit too rich my budget :-(

Here's something I could seriously think about if they had my size..better not go to the store to check! 

My sister-in-law bought these beauties in this beige color as well as in black and white. She is tiny and can pull off this heel. I could never pull this off, unless I wanted to be as tall as Magic Johnson, thus, I can be genuinely happy for her purchase. 

Proud Mama

Last week I went to an Award Ceremony where my oldest daughter received an award for an environmental essay she wrote. Her school had participated in the writing competition, and she was one of the winners. I was moved to tears when she received the award from the county politicians! I am so proud of her. She cares deeply about the environment, and we often discuss ways to help save energy and reduce waste. She advocates for little every day things anybody can do, like taking your own bag to a store, washing only full loads of laundry or dishes, hanging clothes to dry, using green cleaning products, etc. With kids like her we parents are more motivated too to do everything we can in our daily lives to save the environment. ❤

Sales

I hardly ever buy anything full price... Unless it's really cheap to begin with ;-) (ok, admittedly cheap can be a relative term, so maybe I should've said "good value".)

I have a bad habit to only browse the sales racks. Luckily as I've got older I have learned to buy much more judiciously, even on sales. And I always try everything on. 

Living in NY you can get spoiled with sales. There's always a sample sale or an outlet somewhere...

Last weekend I scored at Saks outlet, Off Saks (as so many times before - it really is a long time favorite, along with the original, Saks Fifth Avenue). I got 3(!) pairs of Not Your Daughter's Jeans, one pair of Akris pants for the office, a Boss dress, and a couple more things of which I can't even remember the brands.. Quite the loot! I also got Coach espadrille sandals at Bloomingdale's, and a Moncler vest. 

With the weather being really poor in NY, I will probably get a lot of use out of the denim. Also NYDJ promises to make you look at least one size smaller. Can't wait!

Even though there are lots of sales online as well, I've never had good luck with online purchases. It is so easy to make a product look good in the pictures. Most of the time I'm disappointed at the actual product, which is why I don't buy much from the Internet. 

My sales budget is pretty much depleted as it is..although I do have one teeny weeny trip planned to the Woodbury Commons Outlet in a week and a half...

Heartbreak

My kids learned an important life lesson yesterday on how to deal with heartbreak and disappointment. We had to return the dog we adopted only a week ago, because he was biting my two little girls. I wish I had the skills and time to train him out of it as he was very sweet with adults and my 10-year old, but I had to face the reality and admit that I cannot. It was truly heartbreaking to take him back to the shelter. I hope he finds a loving family with no small kids. We learned something from this experience, though. First, like I said, it was a life lesson for the kids, and second, we now know that we really enjoy having a pet, and the kids are also ready for the responsibility that goes along with it. We will look for a suitable poodle or maltese puppy, who will grow up in the family, and we'll take him in at a time when we have time for training,i.e., during a vacation. Let's hope it happens this summer!

Two Trends

They say not to combine more than two trends in an outfit..not a problem, since I'm not that trendy anyway. Today's outfit combines the ripped boyfriend jeans, a trend that's been around for a while (I'm wearing this pair of jeans for the third summer in a row), and statement necklace, another trend that's been around..I bought this pink necklace from Charlotte Russe (a store that my 10-year old loves) for $13 yesterday (and it wasn't even on sale!). Talk about bargains. A bargain of another kind was beckoning me at Bloomingdale's, a large Fendi Mama bag. I've had the smaller versions, and love how comfortable it is to carry. These were on sale for a very decent price, but I ended not getting either because I did not fall in love with either color. One was a very dull gray, and the other was baby poop brownish mustardy color. Wish they'd had it in a nicer brown... Then it definitely would have come home with me!

Today's Affirmation

"Whatever you hold in your mind on a consistent basis is exactly what you will experience in your life." 

                                 By Anthony Robbins

New Shoes

I have probably mentioned many times how much I love Tory Burch. Here are my newest acquisitions, mostly meant to be worn at the office this summer. 

More from the Gardens

The Old Westbury Gardens is so gorgeous that you could literally take hundreds of photos there... So I have to share some more beauty from there. Hope you have a chance to visit and experience the splendor and imagine that you are there in the "Gatsby" era. At that time, in the early 1900s, the Long Island North Shore where I live, was full of these amazing mansions (some were really more like castles), and their great gardens. The upkeep of some of the biggest houses required a vast number of people. One of the biggest estates was in Roslyn Harbor, called Harbor Hill, and I read somewhere that Harbor Hill employed about a hundred people just to work on the grounds. No wonder the Gold Coast vanished in the mid 1900s, it just got too expensive to keep these spectacular places.

Long Island is full of these geese! This little geese family is adorable.
But they're not so cute when you step in their droppings ;-)

This girl loves the Old Westbury Garden too. She is always eager to go there!