West Elm's Bombastic Sales

West Elm is having bombastic sales throughout its site, including dinnerware sale, and I really couldn't resist but snatch up these beauties below.  How can you resist the 20% off and FREE shipping offer!!  In fact, I even called my friend Nancy to spread the excitement and won't you know it, she's been eyeing some of these beauties herself! Yup, a total girlfriends shopping enabling moment happened on a random Wednesday night. 

Out of these, I'm most excited about the twig salad server set (in silver - the twig like color set is a bit too twiggy, no?). 
I am so embarrassed whenever guests come over and I use two regular small forks to serve them salad.  No more of those moments!!  Check out the rest of West Elm's tableware and linen sale here and treat yourself to something cute (like $6 ikat bowls)!!

Happy Thursday, we are almost there!! 

And the Winner Is...

Or ARE the following ladies (in my very humble opinion):

I have to say, there weren't too many Oscar dresses that wow'd me but the above were very pretty, I thought.  All of these images are from Vogue.  I saw some online photos of amazing and sexy outfits worn at the after parties.  For those, check out People Stylewatch, here.  These people really know how to have fun on a Sunday night!!

Monday E-Design: A Lady's Room

If I could, I would have a room of my own, and in it, would be a perfectly tufted white sofa, and a little bit of pink and gold peppered throughout.  Something like this...

Artwork by Lola Donoghue// Kendall Ivory Sofa// Floor Lamp// CB2 Peekaboo Clear Coffee Table// Tray  

And I would have to be extremely be careful not to spill anything on the sofa! I'll have clear plastic on it, haha (just kidding!).  

Hope you have a great Monday and rest of the week!!

p.s. Did you watch the Oscars?  Let's talk about the dresses later this week~

TGIF - Whatcha Up To?

TGIF!! Thank goodness,seriously!!  I had a 24 hour stomach bug that left me completely immobilized on Wednesday.  I still feel kinda weak from it but seeing that I was able to eat dinner last night, I'm definitely on my way to feeling better. 

While we are still braving through the days that peak at 20-30 degrees in high temps, I am itching for warmer and sunnier days.  I know it's got to be coming soon, right?  When it does, I really want to have a plant on my balcony, which right now looks pretty dusty and consists of nothing but 2 old ikea chairs. BLAH. I think a little arrangement like below will be perfect!  

find this parisian home via here

I recently got into Instagram and have been following Mai from 'A Cup of Mai', who has like the cutest and most fabulous closet in the world (check it out here). (As for me, I have no such fabulous closet to show you, but for what it's worth, you can find me here, or search for "beautiful_elysium".) A couple of days ago, Mai posted a self-made sandwich with fig jam.  FIG JAM? OMG, right?  So I went looking for a recipe and here's what I found from 'The Kitchn':

fig jam recipe via here

Did you check out the link?  The recipe is like 1-2-3-Bam!  I can't wait to make this jam~  

Lately, I've been craving margaritas.  Now mind you, I RARELY ever drink margaritas.  I think it's because I've been obsessively thinking about warmer and sunnier days. When that time comes, I will be ready, sorta.  I need to get some margarita glasses.  Whenever I am in need of any basic glassware (or kitchenware in general), I look to Crate & Barrel and usually find something in the right price range and style, like the ones below.  

margarita glasses via here

So, I'm going to get through the rest of the winter by checking out whatever is left of winter sales, hoping for something fabulously stylish but ridiculously low priced (always!), and keeping a list "what I want to do when the weather gets warmer"! 

Have a great, fun and relaxing weekend, friends!

~jp~ (yes, my initials)

Wishful Thinking...

That's right. I can hear it very clearly.  Alexander Wang's Rocco Duffle Bag is calling my name, telling me this is my bag when spring finally shows up.  Ah... wishful thinking :) 

Happy Wednesday.  We are half way there... 

Tough & Flirty

(Whoops!  I had 'ii' as 'iii' earlier today!  Clearly, it was too early in the morning~~)

i. La Mer Multi Leaf Charm Watch; ii. Helmut Lang Sea Wash Legging Jeans; iii. Madewell Silk Peasant Blouse; iv. Marc Jacobs Rio Satchel; and v. Vic Matie High Heel Lug Sole Bootie

I love the look of contrasting styles in one outfit that result in an overall appeasing and cohesive look, like the above tough yet flirty look.  The leather-ish leggings, bag and shoes are a bit tough but the silk blouse and pretty watch bring lightness and flirty feminine touch. Hopefully, these will go on sale in the near future and I'll be rocking me some tough and flirty look!  

Monday E-Design: Wake-Up Call

Phone for iPhone  // Bedding  // Table Lamp // Monkey Ceramic Plate // Pink Orange Mug

Happy Monday~~  How was your weekend?!  It's no 3 day weekend for me, unfortunately.  But I did notice that there are some President's Day sales going on, so I guess I'll try to find some comfort in that!  

I haven't done an E-design on a bedroom in awhile.  Remember I used to do one almost every Monday?  Like here, here, here, here, and here.  I kinda missed it, so I brought it back :)  I would never decorate a bedroom with THIS much orange and nothing else but spread out here and there, mix with some muted gold, light beige, it could definitely work. I'm not sure I'll get any sleep in the room though, it's so bright!!

Hope you have a great Monday~~

TGIF - Whatcha Up To?

in clockwise order:  here; here; here; here

TGIF, friends~ I love Fridays.  I always have so much ambition as to what I should accomplish over the weekend.  Last weekend was a pretty productive one and hopefully, I'll be just as good this weekend.  

So, who's ready for spring?  I think the dark mornings and nights are getting to me and I need some sun in my life. I went on Pinterest to look for images that will remind me of what Spring (and maybe summer too :))looks and feels like.  Don't you just love the pastels and bright colors of spring?  Counting down 'til those days :) 

Have a great weekend~~

Happy Valentine's Day~~

Happy Valentine's Day~~  And give your guy, girl, mom, dad, your special ones an extra hug and a big "i love you"!

p.s. The above heart is from Terrain shop, when I was there for my wedding anniversary.  I saved this picture for today :)

Current Wish List

I think about arranging and re-arranging things around the house all the time.  This process also gets me to think about adding things around the house.  Because I hate clutter, I then think about getting rid of things around the house.  Yes, it's a crazy cyclical kind of a process.  So, I'm in that phase where I want to add a couple of things around the house. You know, some pieces that pop without being too obnoxious. Here are the things on my current wish list~

a. Milk Crown Jewelry Tray; b. Lucite Tray; c.Diptyque Paris Candle; d.Colossal Wishbone;and e. Fortune Cookie

I can just see these things on my night table, or on a ledge in my bathroom, or our coffee table.  Small pretty things like these do make a difference around your house and for me, make me SO happy :) 

What I've Been Wearing Lately...

What I've been favoring out of my closet lately...

From top: doggie tee and leaf necklace (no longer available online)from Anthropologie;  Stripey jacket from Target, dotty shirt from Ann Taylor (old/no longer available), necklaces from J.Crew (old/no longer available); Fair Isle sweater from J.Crew (extra 30% sale right now), bottom zip-up cords from J.Crew (similar), and Frye Lindsay Plate boots from Piperlime.

I'm no "fashion blogger" per se but I do LOVE fashion!! AND I love comfort.  So everything above is 100% comfortable and practical :) I know I'm going to wear the heck out of these pieces for a long time, which is an added bonus, right?! 

Happy Tuesday, friends~~  

Monday E-Design: Ikea & Target Deliver

Good Monday~  Hope you guys had a great relaxing weekend.  I had a super efficient and productive weekend - yes, I'm bragging.  Here's the list: 

- I cleaned up the paper mess up in the loft (threw away a lot of old bills because I realized, everything's online!); 

- finally organized my husband's cubbies (i.e. Ikea Expedit that needed baskets); 

- cleaned out my closet, which resulted in 5 bags of goods I no longer wear or carry; 

- installed a shelf inside my closet for shoes (tx, honey for using your long arms to do this!); 

- went to bikram yoga like a good yogi; 

- made some yummy and healthy nosh; 

- and this isn't work, but I finally splurged on my favorite table wear from Anthro, which I'll share with you later this week. 

AND, I worked on today's entry~ While online shopping this weekend, I noticed how stylish Ikea and Target have gotten in the past couple of years. And you can't beat the price, seriously!  

Here are my current faves from Ikea and Target: 

a. Ikea Varlig Lantern; b. Target Patterned Yellow Pillow; 
c. Target Iron and Wood Table; d. Ikea Strandmon Wing Chair; and e. Ikea Alvine Ruta Rug.

When it comes to decorating, I think it's all about mixing the lo & hi in prices.  You splurge on some really good pieces, but you save on pieces like above, that will leave some extra change in your pocket for your next splurge. (And I guess it's all relative too - for me, buying a $28 bowl from Anthro is a splurge. For some, it may be a small purchase.)

Hope you have a wonderful Monday and a great week ahead~~  

TGIF - Whatcha Up To?

TGIF~ Hope you guys are ready for the weekend and the snowstorm, for those facing storm Nemo.  I don't think it's going to hit Philly too much but we are expecting some snow and rain starting this morning.  Well, that gives me all the more reason to honker down and get some things done around the house this weekend!  And as always, the baker-wannabe in me wants to bake something this weekend. Something like this (especially with the upcoming Valentine's Day in mind).

The recipe comes from here, "Kathie Cooks" and appears to be somewhat simple enough for me.  You see, my other half loves chocolate + raspberry combo and over the years, I've grown to love it too.  So, with much ambition and hope, this shall be my weekend project :)  And I want to sneak in some time to play the piano and finish reading The Round House (so embarrassed that I started reading this post Christmas and haven't finished it!).  

Have a great weekend,friends :) 

Girlfriends to be...

Let me introduce you to my best girlfriends to be...

Aren't they gorgeous?! And they have the prettiest names, right?
Yeah, I just met them here, Dannijo.  You should meet their girlfriends who are just as gorgeous!  

Seriously, I can't believe how amazing these pieces are.  They are definitely going on my list of self-gifts to be :) 

Braids Braids Braids

Two hair cuts ago, I went to a new stylist who chopped my hair off in a very over layered kinda way.  I am still growing out the crazy layers and the length as well.  I tend to grow out my hair for like 6 months and then cut off about 3-4 inches to a medium length.  Isn't it always the case when you have short hair, you want to go back to long?  I know that I probably look better with shorter length but the girly girl in me at times really miss that long hair, especially when I keep seeing these tutorials on braiding everywhere!

 a.; b.; c; d.; e.  

So cute and lovely, right?!  Ok, I may have to start taking some serious horse pills to get my hair to grow now!!

Tribal Wear

Long long time ago, when I was in high school, and yes, that was long time ago, tribal wear was really in. I remember sporting a long winter coat with this crazy tribal pattern.  I also remember throwing it away at some point, thinking it looked so horrible.  Well, I think tribal fashion has stayed around a bit and is actually making a quiet come back.  But in a more subdued way, like these items I found below. 

a. Denim Clutch with Grey and Blue; b. Pendleton Moonlight Mesa Blanket; c. Navy Draped Collar Open Cardigan; d. Tribal Print Iphone 4 Case;  e. Tuttle VPL Cutout Booties.


Ok, so the booties are not so tribal.  But the colors and cut outs match well with any busy tribal pattern.  Man, now I wish I had kept that tribal coat.  It would have been very cool to give it a second round of wear, like in a vintage way too! 

Monday E-Design: Modern Love

Good Monday, friends~  I hope you had a great weekend!

I did a good amount of catching up on housework and bikram yoga (both Saturday and Sunday!!).

I also watched the Super Bowl with my husband, like millions of other Americans.  Nothing in the game perked me up more than Beyonce's half time performance, though.  Wow - did she give a show or what?!  And I loved the Destiny Child reunion, as brief as it was. 

So, I was thinking about all the little (and big) things I want for my house. And I realized that I favor modern design.  I love clean simple lines, with a pop of color or interesting patterns. I would love to see these in my house for a more modern and updated look.  

a.Display Ledge; b. Ironwork Flocked Window Panel; c.Wegner Wishbone Chair; d.Gold Pig Bookends; e.Faux Sheep Rug; and f.Expandable Pedestal Table 

This is such a bright and cheery look, isn't it?  

Hope you have a bright and cheery Monday :)  

TGIF - Whatcha Up To?

TGIF, friends! So glad the weekend is here. I am in a desperate need of catching up on some sleep as I've been fighting a serious case of insomnia lately.  So, what did I do at 2:35 a.m. this morning?  I found this crazy awesome blog:  Herriott Grace. A father & daughter blog, sharing among other things, their love of hand carved wood items (made by the father/Herriott and styled by the daughter/Grace), nature, good food, etc.  Coincidentally enough, here's a photo on Herriott Grace that reflect my current state of sleepiness:

Aren't they the cutest or what?!! Me, I'm not so cute when I'm sleepy. 

And these folks are serious foodies. Here's one of the very few pies they've tasted: 

Is it even plum season?  I don't know but I really badly want a taste of this!  Another recipe to add to my long list of "must make". 

How about you?  What are you guys up to this weekend?  Whatever you do or not do, hope you enjoy the weekend~