bridal shower recap

Good morning, friends! I hope you're all loving this cool weather as much as I am! Even with the rain this weekend, I've been bundled up happily every day (also how gorgeous was yesterday??). Through the rain on Saturday, a few friends and family and I made our way to Palma in the West Village for my bridal shower. It was an awesome afternoon, despite the rain.

My friend Emily had her 30th birthday here, so when my sister and I were narrowing down spots for the brunch, this was on our short list. Out of all the restaurants my sister reached out to, she said Palma was the most responsive, so in the end we went with them!

How magical is their private room? It's in a sort of carriage house in the back of the restaurant; we felt transported to someone's country house in England or something. So pretty!

For whatever reason, I had been obsessed with the idea of royal icing cookies as escort cards, and scoured NYC for the perfect match. I ended up ordering these from Tribeca Treats, and had a great experience with them (super responsive, really great customer service). To be honest, I wasn't worried too much about taste, but the cookies are great!

For favors, I got each of the ladies a tube of Smith's Rosebud salve. Aside from the pretty packaging, I borrowed my friend's tube at a wedding recently and it completely saved my lips!

The food ay Palma is absolutely delicious; everything is served family style, which is perfect because none of us wanted to miss a single bite.

You may remember from this post that I love the idea of pastels for a bridal shower. Something about it feels so "ladies who lunch," so I was pumped to find  this dress half off over the summer.  Super comfy with plenty of room for eatin', and long sleeves which are my absolute favorite.

Pretty ladies :)

It was a great day, friends. Thanks for reading!

xoxo,

the definitive fall shoe post

Seeing as how I just wore my Birkenstocks yesterday, I haven't really been thinking too much about Fall footwear. But! I promised you all that I would write about it, and it's October 1 and in the 50's, so let's do it...

What's in: Loafers

Splurge: Gucci Horsebit

Save: Steve Madden, ASOS , Cole Haan

How to wear them: Boyfriend denim, or cropped jeans, with or without socks

What's in: Chukka boots (aka lace up desert boots)

Splurge: Alaia

Save: Sophia Webster, Clarks, Doc Martens 

How to wear them: Basic bitches need apply. What I mean by this is - you can go ahead and wear these with your leggings and your plaid flannel to go apple picking, and no one will judge you because you will look fly as hell.

What's in: Colorful stacked heel boots

Splurge: Isabel Marant

Save: ASOS 1, ASOS 2, Aldo

How to wear them: Skirts, high waisted denim.

What's in: Fancy sneaks

Splurge: Nike Air Max

Save: Nike Internationalist, Nike Pegasus

How to wear them: With anything but Lululemons. You can now go ahead and consider sneakers part of your quest for high fashion.

Gone are the days we wear nothing but brown leather boots during the Autumn months. Do tell me what you're coveting, won't you!?

xoxo,

honeymoon style

People hate packing, right? It's mandatory, it's neither here nor there, and it requires you to live fully in the future of which you have little (read: no) knowledge. My therapist in high school told me that people with anxiety have trouble with transitions; they like to be at point A or point B, it's the traveling that gets them down. I'm going to go ahead and call it and say that this rule of thumb applies to everyone.

Travel is exciting, but the minutiae that come along with it can bog us down. That's why a conversation with my good friend Julia a month ago left me reeling with excitement. It's with great pleasure that I announce the addition of vacation styling to my services!

Let me explain. Always talking wedding shop, Julia and I were reviewing plans for our respective honeymoons. Side note: we're both using the expertise of Azurine for our trips and I believe I speak for both of us when I say I cannot recommend their services enough! Honeymoon itinerary aside, Julia joked that she hated packing and wished she could have me do it for her. I've done packing lists for clients in the past, but combining list making with personal shopping is a veritable dream come true. Five minutes later we were planning how we could work together for her trip, and today I'm so proud to bring you the final result!

Here's how it works:

1. You send me your pertinent info. Where you're traveling to, when, for how long, even the timing of the flights matters.
2. You tell me what you're doing on this vacation. Poolside for 4 days? Hiking? Touristy things? Great. Then...
3. We talk through your fantasy list of pieces. Nothing is ridiculous or out of the realm of possibility.
4. We come up with a list of existing pieces that you have in your arsenal that we can use for the trip. Want to start from scratch? Great (me too!).
5. We discuss budget. Based on the above lists, we work through specifics of what you'll be wearing each day, what can be doubled up, special dinners or outings.
6. I do my thing; I begin sourcing and purchasing pieces for you. You can have as much or as little input as you like.
7. We have a fitting where we try on all the looks purchased and you give me your honest feedback. Then I revisit our initial list, source additional pieces based on your feedback, and we come up with a final packing list. Easy, right? And pretty, too...

I put all of the purchases on a rack for Julia. We immediately noticed the cohesive color palette - sweet.

Look 1: A white romper that we hoped could double up as a getting ready or post-wedding brunch outfit for Julia. In the end, it was just too big, so we decided to scrap it (I'm not including pictures of what we ended up choosing ;)).

Look 2: We adored the look (and price tag!) of this dress from ASOS. In the end, it didn't feel quite right, so we moved on...

Look 3: We were so bummed that this crop top sold out, but were thrilled to find this David Lerner replacement, which can be worn multiple ways. How beautiful does she look??

Look 4: Julia made no bones about telling me that she was coveting a pair of Levi's cut offs for this trip (and for every summer for the next 20 years, perhaps?). We both fell hard for this pair.

Floppy hat? Check. Julia, I'd say you're ready for your honeymoon!

Like what you see? Check out my services here, then drop me a line at allie AT littleredswell DOT com, and we'll see what we can do!

xoxo,

all photos by the generous and pulchritudinous Julia Elizabeth. Thank you so much, Julia!

fashion week favorites (so far)

Normally, fashion week is so intimidating to me that I can only bring myself to glance over a few collections before I get overwhelmed. This season, for whatever reason, I've been glued to my computer each morning in anticipation of reviews and recaps of the shows. I love high fashion but I like to call myself a "real person's stylist," committed to affordable or revamped already-owned fashion. I have so enjoyed, however, making the connection between what comes down the runway and what we put on our backs from say, Gap or H&M.

Here are a few looks from fashion week I think you'd dig:

Altuzarra

So much sexy leg and tie-dye. It's a bougie 90's remix!

Zimmermann

Makes me wish I was getting married in a field amidst some lambs.

Marissa Webb

It's really difficult to choose one look from this collection (there's an entire large scale plaid look).

And that's what's taking up some of my brain space today!

xoxo,

10 high fashion-inspired buys for Fall

Friends! I'm so sorry to leave you high and dry this week with nary a post. I cannot believe we are in the 2nd week of September - I have been checking items off my wedding to-do like crazy, and sadly that has eclipsed the blog. I will never feel as excited for Summer clothes as I do for Fall. I have been trolling my favorite blogs and retailers like crazy this week in anticipation of Fashion week and to peep new arrivals from my favorites. Because I love you so, I've filtered all that into a one-stop-shop blog post for you. Look no further than this list for your Fall purchases:

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A jacket that is just a jacket: something that I marvel at is how celebrities are constantly bundled up, regardless of the weather. They live in sunny LA, and are riding around  town in sweaters and jackets, not unlike the homeless population of NYC in the summer. Perhaps it is to stave off the chill of their air conditioned Escalades. Whatever the reason, why are we, the plebeians of the world, carelessly showing excess skin? Let us take a proverbial page from celebs and throw caution to the wind this Fall with a just because jacket.

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A 70's inspired blouse: A tried and true lover of blouses, I am thrilled to see that pussy bow blouses are everywhere this Fall (check the Miu Miu version - off the hook). These intricate shirts need no jewelry, if you so choose, and can be paired with skirts, jeans or slacks for work.

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Loafers: The internet is freaking out over the above Gucci loafers that will apparently be everywhere this Fall. They're a little weird even for me, which is saying a lot, but I love their silhouette, and I think a sensible pair of loafers is always a great idea.

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Suede skirt: You all know how I feel about this for Fall - my favorite version of this skirt has buttons all the way down. Pair it with your 70's blouse and a school boy blazer. Uniform schmooniform.

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Non-skinny jeans: Even though I'm hell bent on wearing my skinny jeans into the ground, far beyond what is considered fashionably acceptable, I will say that I'm finally coming around to the idea of some different denim styles this season. This whole high water flared look is completely growing on me.

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Fall specs: Biding my time until I can afford a new pair of sunglasses, but I have my eye on dorky, oversized, heavy frames for Fall.

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Huge jewels: At long last, good statement jewelry! Huge, scarf-like necklaces, big ol' cuffs, hell, even Apple watch is coming around to it.

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Statement sweatshirt: If you've sensed a bit of a 70's vibe from nearly everything this season, you're right on the money. I love love love the old school inspired sweatshirts I've been seeing from my favorite retailers. Such a cute way to be comfy, and can totally be paired with your suede skirt.

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Flatforms: Another trend that I've tried to avoid and has now grown on me. Flatform brogues, loafers, and my favorite, boots will all look glorious with your high water denim!

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Boxy bag: Though the Mark Cross version is not in the cards for me (or 99% of us), you best believe I'll find a way to grab a boxy bag this year. How cute would that be for the rehearsal dinner?

xoxo,