Coveting this vintage dress for the last few weeks of summer (it's my size and everything-ahhh)...

and this sexy little Mad Men-esque number for the first days of fall...

I was sitting on the porch of my parent's house one day and flipping through some catalogs my mom got and picked up the Talbot's catalog and was half horrified/ half surprised to find a couple things I really liked. My mom got a big kick out of it announcing "Your getting older!" Thank you. I was not painfully aware of that. However, it is true that you can find some great pieces at the shops you think of as for "your mom"...

I tried both these natural cashmere sweaters on at Eileen Fisher with my mom (of course) and LOVED them (but not the $300+ price tag)

I have always enjoyed looking through J.Jill's catalog (and I really like the heavy drapery at the entrance to their stores), but never actually bought something for myself there- I might this season!





Soft Surroundings is one of those bizarre catalogs that has clothes, face creams to fight wrinkles and cashmere covered hot water bottles- definetely marketed towards the older set- but I found soem serious gems on this site!

** call me crazy but I love both these bathrobes below- maybe just because I'm in the market for one and because I love the very bohemian look of them.



Talbots is the fall back "mom" store. My mom alone keeps them in business and profitable, I swear. Just look at the gorgeous jewelry and handbags- I was amazed!

(before and after)
When I think about my "dream home" I think of Cape Cod style, Craftsman bungalows, Colonials, Georgians and Greek Revivals- I do not think about ranch houses. I am attracted to the old details, classic styling and charm found in lots of older New England homes. BUT, and this is a big BUT, as I've found out they tend to be less bang for your buck because they are so desirable in this area- old systems, low ceilings, aging facades (in my price range at least!). There was an article a while back about how you could get a ranch style home for so much less in a great neighborhood in the Boston Globe. And now I'm thinking it's not a bad idea, especially since I have an architectural designer as a father! This before and after from Cottage Living shows you just what you can do to make a ranch style home look amazing. The plus' to this style architecture are higher ceilings, open floor plans and big windows- not bad things at all! Just a little imagination and some elbow grease...



images via Cottage Living, photography by Megan Thompson

Since lots of you loved seeing my mom's insanely gorgeous garden I thought I'd show you the new edition. Sprinkle some seeds and VOILA-- sunflowers that are almost 8 feet tall. The woman could grow rollerskates if she tried hard enough, I swear.

How do we feel about the new Thomas Paul pillows? I spot two trends I've blogged about in the past month or two- flourish calligraphy and whippets. Darn I'm good. :)

I was an art major in college with a focus on mixed media/ collage. I spent most of my senior year deep in piled of discarded magazines looking for the perfect letter "S" and picking up scraps of fabric from the floor of the studio. My advisor was "assemblage" artist Maureen McCabe and she knew that moving a clipping of a bird over one inch could make or break the piece. Mixed media takes a lot of patience and an eye for great layouts, and Dolan Geiman is a master of this craft. When I first saw his work I loved it, and still do. You can buy some work on Etsy and see where he is showing his works on his website.