Before you all leave for the last weekend in July (uh, where did this summer go?!), I wanted to make sure we all wished my co-partner, sister, and best bud a very happy 23rd birthday! My sister is one helluva lovely lady, and I could not be more proud of her this year: college graduation, website, job (!), relationship, and best sister ever! No matter how old she gets, when I look at her, all I see is that little face in the yellow turtleneck with the blue overalls and matching bow. Adorable. Due to the busiest summer ever, we haven't spent much time together, so tonight we're heading into Northport to see Miller's Crossing and eat a picnic dinner...and tomorrow, she's getting a massage! Lucky girl. Once again, happy birthday to the woman I hope to grow old with.

Happy Friday, loves! Sorry I've been gone all week...it's been a long week full of grandma in the hospital, but lovelies, she's all better and back on her feet (in fact, she's back to cleaning and gardening...we have to hold her down!). Thank you to my amazing co-partner for holding down the fort here! After this week of craziness, I am loving the idea of a mini-vaycay, and I'm thinking: Hamptons. Quogue, East Hampton, West Hampton, Amagansett, I don't care whichever it is, I'm ready and rearing to go! I would love to get a little trip to the beach, shopping at quaint stores, eating homemade ice cream, dining at sweet restaurants outside, and spending some time with my musician (I haven't seen him all week--he's playing in 3 different bands now!). When I think Hamptons, I think of beautiful and classic dresses, straw hats, white sandals, and lots of loose beach hair. Yum. I may not be able to really go to the Hamptons soon, but a girl can close her eyes and dream, right?!

I finally bought myself the Russian Navy Shirt from J Peterman. It is on sale from $44 down to $18 and I've been lusting for so long (actually, I think I may have bought it before and returned it. Now I can't remember, uh oh.) Anyway-it's coming to me, and I wanted to share with you the product description. Honestly, if this whole Lovely At Your Side thing doesn't work out (or you know, my 9-3 job at which I get paid) I'm applying to write for J Peterman. Heck, I'd write for them even if Lovely goes global (any takers?).

Wait a minute. Does Russia really have a navy?
They do. Of course they do.
Watch the news on TV tonight. If they're wearing striped shirts like this, it's the Russian Navy.
Unless you see a dark-eyed girl paddling a green boat and her boyfriend laughs and smokes and laughs and his cigarette is slightly less than one inch long and permanently attached and he is wearing a not bad-looking striped navy shirt, then it's France.
Unless it's New York.
But if the girl and her boyfriend are both blonde, and pale smoky-eyed, and he, you notice, is deeply tanned and wearing a striped navy shirt, then it's Finland.
Or the island of Sylt.
Or Krk.
Or Sukhumi.
Under a suit jacket, it's L.A. Or maybe Munich.
But when they're both wearing striped navy shirts, it's Zihuatanejo.
Or Sochi.
If there are two girls and one boyfriend and all three are wearing striped navy shirts, then it's definitely Russia.
Unless it's Central Park.

Happy Friday, lovelies! What are you all doing this weekend? I'll be proudly attending two shows where Eric will be playing guitar. I love going to his shows because I always meet interesting people, get to relax outside, and take a ton of photos. Jenny's going to be celebrating her birthday in Brooklyn with Luis and friends...that's right, it's almost her birthday, and I have nothing to give her (more on this next week!). Yikes. Good going, big sis. Speaking of things that Jenny likes, when I came across this beyond adorable "Door to Another World," I sent the link to the birthday girl who wrote back in all caps, "OMG I NEED IT." You see, when we were little, Jenny and I would pretend that the refrigerator was a portal to another world. I think the world was supposed to resemble a Mr. Rodger's Neighborhood/Sesame Street scene; we would knock on the fridge and ask the imaginary "Mr. Owl" if we could come in. Sadly, he never let us in...probably because we would knock over the lettuce, apples, and cheeses, all things which normally do actually belong in a fridge. Anyway, quite obviously one of us never got over the dream of escaping into the fridge...Happy weekend, everyone!

Here's what I'm doing today: quilting! I'm working on a quilt for someone special, and I'm here, at my grandmother's house making a really big mess of her family room. I've been quilting for years, it's my therapy, my art, my craft. There's something magical to me about taking a pile of different fabrics and creating one piece with them. I don't have much time to quilt during the school year, so when summer comes around, I ferociously jump into my sewing machine and let my quilter's mind run wild. Full disclosure: my name on Match.com was Rockstarquilter...it was one of the things Eric thought was so different about me! Quilting can be easy and fun, but it can also be frustrating, as with any art. Here's some tips I've learned over the years to make sure even the newest quilters can enjoy the art of quilting:

• A good iron: I can't emphasis this enough! If your patches or fabric aren't flat, it's going to be nearly impossible to cut or sew them straight. I didn't use an iron for years, and when I got a good one, it was like my quilting jumped to a new level!
• Sturdy scissors: If you can't cut without moving the fabric or if you need to cut the same line twice, you need new scissors. Fabric scissors can be expensive, but I've gotten great ones for under $5 at Michael's. And most importantly, don't let anyone use your fabric scissors for paper!
• Strong lighting: Having good lighting in your sewing room of choice makes all the difference!
  
• A good chair to sit on: If you don't have a chair that can support your back correctly while on the sewing machine, you're going to not enjoy the process of quilting. I've spent nights up sewing and couldn't move for days after (it's romantically called, "Quilter's Back").
• And something I always forgot growing up, oil your machine! Oil makes your machine run smoother and last longer. It's so cheap, so indulge in some good oil and save your machine!
  

Quilting should be fun, colorful, and exciting. And speaking of, I should get back to it...have you ever made a quilt?

Sometimes I stumble across an Etsy store which is so lovely it makes my heart pitter patter a little faster than normal and I often make a sound such as "eeeeee!" For example, check out these gorgeous handmade vintage-inspired dresses from Vintage Opulence. These dresses are outrageously lovely and feminine. Which one would you wear? (click each dress for more info)

I know cupcakes are the new trend for weddings, but while playing around online last night I came across these lovely, gorgeous, and truly delightful cakes. A wedding cake is classic, and I love that these cakes are personalized to the theme of the wedding, all the while remaining traditional and beautiful. Check out all the little details on the cakes! Amazing.

Happy Wednesday, lovelies! Boy, it's around 11:00am and I've already been to school, Old Navy, Marshalls, and Kmart! Is it time for a nap yet? While I go watch The View and do some sewing, check out these Lovely from Lovely vintage finds!

For me, Summertime is all about crafts, quilts, picnics, and Eric's music shows. This summer he's playing banjo and guitar with three bands all around Long Island. What does this mean for me? It means I get to find cute dresses to wear to all the shows where I sit and take pictures, eat, and applaud my musician. When I came across the Too Much Fun Dress, I knew it was a perfect find for a Sunday Bluegrass show at one of the island's vineyards. It's cool for summer, would make me feel cute and sexy, and is amazingly classic and feminine. I have a thing for polka dots, so this vintage-inspired dress definitely makes my heart sing. To finish off the look, I'd stick with a simple pair of red earrings; I'm loving the Wild Bloomers Bright Red Roses from Hilary Caroline Jewelry, or the Cherry Drop Earrings from Crow Star Designs. Both pairs would add a touch of fancy to the dress, all the while keeping the look classy and classic. Where would you wear this dress?

Just stoppin' in to say hello and wonderin' what you're all up to on this very hot day (at least, it's hot here for us!). Check out this "light green chiffon dress [which] features an asymmetrical neckline of ruffles and horizontal pintucking around the empire waist" from ModCloth. This is like my dream dress! The color! The ruffles! Maybe I should go return some bottles to recycling and start saving up for this baby...Where would you wear this gorgeous dress?

Happy Friday, loves! What are ya'll doing this weekend? Eric, Jenny, the family, and I are having a barbecue at our mother's house with some old family friends. We're super excited to see everyone and eat some delicious grilled goodies. Meanwhile, I'm doing laundry. Not so fun, right? Today I'm taking advantage of the amazing weather and using the clothes line to hang the clothes to dry. I'm using classic wooden clothespins to hang the clothes, but check out the Sparrow Clips from Crate and Barrel...wouldn't these make laundry time so much more exciting? I love the idea of having these little sparrows "sitting" on your line! Happy weekend, beauts!

Hi lovelies! It's a lethargic day over here, so I've been quilting and eating (and eating). I know we all don't love it when it's hot, hot, hot out, but I could use some sunshine-motivation on a day like today when all I want to do is lie on the couch and watch TV. While I motivate myself to get up and go back to sewing, check out this Good Day Sunshine Quilt from Tanneicasey; I love the window pane look (it is actually what I'm currently working on!); it always makes the fabrics stand out and look so beautiful and bold. I hope you're all more productive than I am today!

Happy Wednesday, loves! I'm putting together a present for Eric (it's almost our anniversary!) and decided to pepper the gift with famous quotations about life, love, and family. I've always loved finding and memorizing quotes (Olivia=dork), so it's no surprise I spend (way) too much time browsing Etsy for beautiful quote-art prints. Check out these inspirational art pieces sure to complete the homey feeling of any room.

Can you believe it's the middle of summer already? I really don't know where time has gone! The middle of summer reminds me of a few things: buying Jenny birthday presents, my anniversary with Eric coming up, and nighttime walks on the boardwalk. We're lucky enough to have a lovely boardwalk (which overlooks Connecticut) close by, and there's nothing like walking hand-in-hand, or arm-and-arm (as we do with our grandmother!) under a setting sun, while watching the waves crash on the sand. Of course, one needs the perfect boardwalk-walking dress to don for the event; these four dresses remind me of that post-dinner, pre-ice cream, warm and sweet feeling which comes with those summer strolls. Which of these would you wear to walk the beach at dusk?

There's so many reasons I love Etsy: the independent artists, the original work, the amazing scope of beautiful and unique items. However, Etsy is a fun website not just for those who create and sell, but for those who have an eye for styling life. Let's say you want to group together all the items on Etsy you want with a theme of...yellow flowers. You search for yellow flowers and find dresses, pins, pitchers, and aprons. You want to show everyone your findings, so what do you do? You start a Treasury! You title your Treasury ("Yellow Flowers in the Spring") and place all the items you find together. People can search through your Treasury, click on items, and comment. It's a blast to find all the theme-items and search through all the Treasuries. This weekend I put together (in honor of the July 25th season premier!), "The Life of Betty Draper." Betty, the wife (er, ex-wife?) of Don Draper on Mad Men, is a classy, sassy, and very stylish woman from the late 1950s-early '60s. She has elegant style, is an ex-model, and loves to ride horses while keeping in fashion. I put together some handmade clothing, vintage bags, vintage dresses, riding boots, and accessories. I had so much fun scouring Etsy for these finds! What would you make a Treasury of?