simple summer beauty............in gift wrapping

I so enjoyed your comments from my last post on style re-invention. It seems we all think alike, it is never too late to change your personal style thank heavens. Of course, keeping things simpler is never easier than in the relaxed summer month and this certainly applies to gift wrapping. In fact, overly-embellished gift wrapping can look too contrived this time of year when bringing along a gift for a poolside afternoon, a cottage weekend, or an impromptu dinner. With that in mind I gathered a few gift wrapping ideas of a more relaxed beauty. 

If I had to pick a classic summer ribbon, this duo in black and white stitched grosgrain would do the trick nicely. It is a classic pick and looks so instantly chic on kraft paper, a humble type of gift wrap that  shows it's simple charm so well during the summer months. 

Don't forget the natural beauty of twill as a summer ribbon of choice. Use it to gather a handful of fresh garden flowers as a gift embellishment, wildflowers will suit this type of gift presentation beautifully.

How sweet and easy. A bag of summer fun (bubbles, chalk, sparklers, movie tickets, ice cream vouchers) would make for a welcome hostess gift. The lace bag edge is made with scrapbook scissors. 

It seems we all love Pom Poms and they take on a crisp summer look when crafted from wax paper! Go here to see how blogger Slim Paley got tulle-inspired by my Pom Pom post.

Enjoy the weekend in a most relaxing way. 
Which includes your gift wrapping efforts. 






A warm welcome to new readers and followers. 
So lovely that you joined me this summer.

Photo 1 from trendtablet/Photo 2 and 5 from Pinterest/Photo 3 from here/Photo 4 from thepartystudio

Summer White and Linen..............and a style intervention

I don't have to see the whole outfit to know I would buy this outfit in 5 seconds flat. I can tell by the  distinctive sheen that this is white cotton at its most luxurious. It reminds me of my bed sheets, so perfect and white that every night when I get into bed I say to my husband "I love my bed, do you love our bed?" I will spare you his response which quickly veers from the subject of sheet quality to a more adolescent male response and we have the chuckle that qualifies a very long marriage. For me, there is a sense as I slide between our cotton sheets yes, we iron them that the day is ending blissfully, I am cocooned between crisp layers of white cotton and soft layers of goose feathers. Not a bad way to end the day. In other words, I want to wear what will make me feel the way I do each night when I tuck myself into my wonderful bed. Not a bad way to dress. 

All this white and ivory got me to thinking how I love white, ivory and shades of taupe or greige, especially during the hot summer months. But you wouldn't know this by looking in my purged closet which I am finding dreadfully boring at the moment perhaps I over-purged. I look at my clothes and think to myself "these clothes are not me at all". It can be interesting how long it takes to see your personal style emerge. It is only recently that I have gained a sense of what I am most comfortable wearing. And that is the distinction right there..........what suits me. My body, my life, my taste. As it is now. 

My style is much simpler than I would have guessed even a few short years ago. Over the years as I shopped and filled my closet,  I don't think it was with any particular style or thought in mind. Always rushed, always impressed by the latest find on the rack, I was more focused on the item, the fashionable whim of the moment than how it would fit into my undefined personal style. So what has changed? Why at 57 years. old am I thinking about personal style for heavens sake? 

Because I have changed. Because I recognize that my eye rests on simplicity and fabric structure in fashion more often than it does on bling and boastful fashion. Because I wear the same items in my closet over and over again ruled by comfort. Not necessarily the comfort that comes with loose fit and easy maintenance but the comfort that comes with giving way towards what feels right, looks right, without giving up style that effortless look. Realizing that I am far simpler in my style taste than I thought. More willing to edit my purchases. Spend time to think it through. Looking to be smarter about how I spend my fashion dollars. Funny how that happens.

So, my question is this. Is it too late to change a personal style and re-invent yourself later in life? 

Do you know your personal style?

Photos via Pinterest

.......... Red White (and Blue)

Happy Holiday weekend to my fellow Canadians and American neighbors!

Hope you are wearing the most stylish of summer colours.

It is the weekend for red, white (and blue).

Don't forget the hats and sunblock. And the groovy outfits.

The most gorgeous bit of nature.............a blue wren. Isn't she beautiful? It just looks like a girl to me, something in the way her brilliant feathers are fluffed! I thought she just perched perfectly in this patriotic post.

We are going to hit 113 degrees tomorrow (with humidex) so we are going to need some yummy hydration. Dog walking, golfing, and cycling will have to take place very early in the day. We have had the most incredibly perfect weather the past week but our geographical humidity is bound to get sticky and stay that way. Speaking of good drinks............have your tried Jose Cuervo Golden Margarita (ready to serve no less)? Going down a bit too easy I might add.

Too hot for satin, but this would be my choice of a patriotic ensemble if I got the opportunity

to wear red and white. I adore this outfit. Make that covet this outfit.

Enjoy the weekend! 

Will be back to my regular blogging schedule very soon (I promise) with a exciting new feature I think you will enjoy. 

images via Pinterest

tulle, tissue, and itune movies

A quick explanation for my blogging absence. A major spring-cleaning and house purge that went longer than you can imagine, a unexpected dart-in-the-neck type of allergy response triggered by a late but pollen-laden spring that practically put me into a coma I swear, a bit of outdoor nesting as you will read about below. Sometimes that happens and once started I was determined to get overdue tasks out of the way before Daisy and I head up to Haliburton in Northern Ontario for July to spend time with my best friend at her most relaxing cottage. Plenty of girl time, hiking, rowing, swimming, campfires, and s'mores and absolutely no schedule, quite possibly no makeup either. I hope to blog but that will be based on their internet provider in this secluded setting. In the meantime, I still have several weeks to pass along some gift wrapping ideas of a more summery look. As I have claimed many times, I am not a crafty gal but even I can make these tulle and tissue pom poms. I think the combination of the soft and stiff materials gives the pom pom a bit more layered personality. I will try a few, some really big ones and show you how to use them for a soft and summery gift presentation. You can get started with this easy tutorial here.

Last winter I was watching the movie Sisters, kind of a depressing movie (based on the Anton Chekhov play) about a dysfunctional trio of sisters. When the movie opens, they are preparing a birthday party and as they are trading verbal barbs, one of them is hanging a most colourful garland of glowing birthday lights across a balcony staircase. I know it was the satin ribbon and brightly coloured bags that caught my eye and and I made a mental note to find the festive party enhancer, truthfully it was the only thing that made that movie rental worthwhile. To make a long story shorter, I finally ran across it this morning and the Martha Stewart tutorial can be seen here. Imagine the colour possibilities! I love them used outdoors (if the evening stays dry) but loved them equally as used in the movie, indoors to brighten up a wintry birthday celebration. 

Our screened veranda is finally finished and it has become one of those "why didn't we do this sooner" type of home projects, we do feel like we suddenly have a small cottage outside our living room. I believe in spending every minute of our relatively short summer season outdoors and to enjoy meals without swatting flies away has become an indulgent pleasure each and every evening. I have always loved screened porches and mostly because they strike me as quite cosy in the evening so the first thing I did was go buy lamps. To turn on an outdoor lamp in our area without attracting mosquitoes is quite the summer luxury, of course they still come but they can't get to us now. I have quickly progressed from nighttime reading to watching itune movies on my laptop which as led to the final decision in finishing our new living quarters which I knew would answer itself pretty quickly. I am so going to need a daybed..............function always follows form. 

Speaking of itunes movies...............and speaking of steamy! Leaving is a tortured and passionate love story, the kind that Kristin Scott Thomas does so well. There are sub-titles, a beautiful locale, no happy ending, plenty of steamy behavior, and a big question............how far would you go for love? Note: I do watch all kinds of movies, fun ones too. 
















Image 1 via Greedy For Colour/Image 2 via Martha Stewart/Image 3 and 4 via Google/ Links above.

A dress................as a gift wrap embelishment.

There is something about this gift wrap concept I like. Actually there is a few things I like. Novel. Fun. Easy. And it is perfect for wrapping up a fashionista gift for friends who love your gift wrap efforts and presentation. In fact, they expect it from you, don't they?

It was this fashion photo that got me thinking about using a paper dress as a gift wrap embellishment. I loved the volume of this skirt so my only challenge was finding a way to build layers and volume in the skirt, that was the part that I thought would be fun to capture in a gift wrapped manner. Or at least as much as possible when using paper instead of couture fabric. 

Once I found the gift wrap mesh that was hiding away in my supplies, the rest of the dress was easy to build. I simply cut leftover pink damask gift wrap paper to make the bottom skirt lining and the bodice is a wide black flocked ribbon, then took 3 tiered layers of the gold mesh and secured them with a pewter push clip. You begin carefully threading ribbon (the smoother the better) through the mesh holes at the bottom of each mesh layer (not too close to edge as it the mesh will pull apart) and let the ribbon pouf a bit as you move it along. You are moving the ribbon in the top and then under the mesh. In this case there is 3 mesh tiers, each each shorter and 3 layers of ribbons which gives the skirt volume. There is no precise measurement, you can play with any ribbon any way you like, as much or as little as you want. I used a 1/2" chartreuse satin, when I tried a wider version it pulled the mesh holes too far apart. I think I may have a solution to that problem but I will demonstrate on my next "dress embelishment" post. If it works. 

I really like that the paper dress and gift wrapping has dimension and fullness as this top view shows. Simply makes the presentation more visual and fun when presenting to your fashionista friend.

You can go crazy with pattern (using up leftover gift wrap pieces) as I have in capturing the look of my inspiration photo or twist it to a more subdued palette. Depending on the size of your "dress", you can even use patterned scrapbook paper for your patterned skirt liner. It does peek through the mesh overskirt so make it pretty. I will share some other "dress embellishments" over the next few weeks, perhaps a bridal dress for the wedding season ahead?

This pliable mesh is available in most party stores in a variety of colours. I had the gold metallic mesh on hand and it happened to fit the colour direction I was aiming for but any colours would work equally as well or better. Perhaps pick a mesh colour that will enhance the gift paper colours you have on hand. I also use this mesh for wrapping wine bottles in an dramatic but elegant fashion. 

I chose a Paris giftwrap as my background (see inspiration photo above) but when your "dress" has this much texture and pattern, it would look fashionably stylish on any solid paper as well. The bow is a simple 1/4" satin ribbon tied around the gift to fashion a bodice bow. It isn't totally necessary at this point, but I did think it finished off the presentation quite nicely. Try it, you will see it really is...... novel. fun. easy. Back to work, I have a wedding "dress" to design. 

Photos by Sande Chase ~ A Gift Wrapped Life/ Photo 2 via Tumblr

Your Summer Read...........early

Along with a holiday weekend with magnificent weather came the most wonderful read, a bit of a surprise to me. I had seen this book in a couple reviews but wasn't paying proper attention, somehow the title threw me off and I can't imagine why. The title is perfect (as it turns out) and so is the exquisite writing of new author Sarah Winman. When God Was a Rabbit is one of those books where you fight with yourself. Do I keep turning the page or put it aside so I can prolong the ending? Can I possibly slow down this reading pleasure? In the end you just can't stop turning the pages and you just want to cry because this wonderful story is over and you know you just finished one of the year's best reads by a most magnificent new writer.










Chapters-Indigo Blog Review link
Amazon UK link
Amazon Canada link
Amazon US link

Fifi.................strikes my fancy

~ Holly Golightly Breakfast II ~

~ Reading Fashionable Friday In Paris ~ 

~ Paris Hotel Chair ~ 

~ Holly Golightly Breakfast I ~

You can't have a blog and not know Fifi Flowers. It just isn't possible, her whimsical drawings are as colourful as they are frequent and that is the part that strikes my fancy. What Fifi sees is what Fifi draws, whether it be a Paris balcony, a stylish fashion photo or my blog header (click here to see 2010 post) and I got to thinking that it must be so much fun to have a direct line and immediate line between seeing and creating. She often does a drawing a day, maybe more, and you can't help but think that if you are an artist what a wonderful dose of inspiration to introduce to each and every day. You can see Fifi's drawings at her Etsy shop here and though I am personally drawn to her stylish drawings that use black (my favorites being the Holly Golightly I and II), Fifi is best known for her Parisian subject matter, a love of fashion and her use of exuberant colour. Most of her drawings are 5" x 7", perfect for framing with extended matt sizes and her reasonable prices mean you could consider building a collection of Fifi drawings to group in a fabulously fun arrangement. Fifi recently introduced a series of handpainted bookmarks to go along with some of her favorite reads, a thoughtful and colourful addition to any book gift. She truly sees inspiration everywhere, and I mean everywhere..........really, how much fun is that?

All Copyright Images via Fifi Flowers

Bad weather..............and genetics

Isn't there some sort of deal we have with Mother Nature? It doesn't seem fair after the long, bitter winter we had this year that sunshine and warmth would take so long. I don't know how much longer I can hold this umbrella. But I am waiting impatiently, the ground is so wet, the air so cool, it has delayed our tender plantings, our welcome burst of annual colour. Normally, I am a bit behind schedule anyways but our outdoor veranda is being screened this year and we are eagerly looking forward to bugless dining and evening reading, perhaps even an outdoor sleep so I was hoping to be ahead of the game this year. 

The weather has been so dismal, I am way behind on my cycling schedule as well. No cycling, no bathing suit attire.....I suppose it is too easy to blame Mother Nature for that one though, isn't it? Probably best to point the finger at the matriarch of them all..........genetics.

Hope you are planting in your part of the world. 

Top photo by Fabio Bartelt/Bottom photo via Pinterest 

Fashionable Flowers........everywhere

These images have been tumbling into my arms this week, masses of fabric flowers everywhere fashionable. Fashion is such glorious fun these days, to observe, to inspire, to wear? Wear something striking this week. 

Image 1 via Pinterest/Image 2 via Sarah Klassen/Photo 3 by photographer Fabio Bartelt

Speaking of mothers.............a must read

How well do you really know your own mother? Do you really see her? Really know her? As adults, are we all guilty of seeing our mother in a one-dimensional form, one that begins in need when we are children?  Are we destined to always see our mothers through our own hopes and dreams? When a devoted mother leaves her remote, rural village to visit her adult children and goes missing in a crowded subway station in Seoul, a large Korean family wrestles with loss, guilt, blame, and love as they each question their emotional role in their mother's disappearance. How could this happen? And why can't she make her way back to them? Please Look After Mom by Korean author Shin Kyung-Sook is a most heartbreaking look at family dynamics, cultural expectations, and grief as each family member struggles to understand the mother they thought they knew, and the one they never took time to know.


"You stop arguing with Hyong-chol, because you realize that you're pushing him to take care of everything, as you always do. Leaving Father at Hyong-chol's house, you all head home. If you don't leave then, you will continue to argue. You've been doing that for the past week. You'd meet to discuss how to find Mom, and one of you would unexpectedly dig up the different ways someone else had wronged her in the past. The things that had been suppressed, that had been carefully avoided moment by moment, became bloated, and finally you all yelled and smoked and banged out the door in rage.

When you first heard Mom had gone missing, you angrily asked why nobody from your large family went to pick her and Father up at Seoul Station.

"And where were you?"

Me? You clammed up. You didn't find out about Mom's disappearance until she'd been gone four days. You all blamed each other for Mom's going missing, and you all felt wounded."




It was pure coincidence that I was reading Please Look After Mom
over Mother's Day weekend. When I finished, I found myself thinking how little I knew about my own mother's hopes and dreams and how I never asked her these questions while she was alive. This thought had been something I had been thinking about as I have gotten older and though I could ask the people in her life, how much better to ask your own mother if you can. I think it would be a lovely conversation. For both of you.  






Link to NY Times review

Happy Bows............on Mother's Day

Paper flowers tied with ribbon, a novel rose and radish bouquet, a small gift tied with twine and love, a sweet card................any of it is wonderful, but mostly mothers are blissfully happy when their children are, that is the best Mother's Day gift of all. I am happy today. I hope you are too.

Photo 1 from BHLDN/Photo 2 via Pinterest/Photo 3 via tumblr

Black Ribbon Bows..............used simply

A length of black ribbon.........used stylishly.

Images via Pinterest

A Jaunty Bow..........for the Kentucky Derby

The millinery world offers some of the most stylish bows. Wouldn't this be perfectly glamorous for the Kentucky Derby this weekend? Hats off to a style winner in the race for the best bow.

Image via Pinterest

Couture Bow..........fit for royalty

The execution of the design, the materials, the technique have come together exquisitely (to say nothing of the outfit itself). My most spectacular choice this week in a parade of bows, so beautifully fashioned it takes my breath away. I couldn't help daydreaming last week while watching the Royal Wedding ...........how would I wrap a royal gift? I think this Valentino Couture bow would do perfectly, do you agree? 

Image via enjoyfashion.tumblr.com

A triple bow of feminine persuasion

Pink velvet ribbon..................a triple bow on shimmery satin. 

Would be just as lovely on a beautiful gift.

Image via allthingselegant.tumblr

A week of beautiful bows..........

After a weekend of satin and lace...............a most 

stunning bridal bow. Isn't the shade of ivory divine?

Image via allthingselegant.tumblr

The Chanel Bow

Don't you just love a big, fabulous bow?

Image via thedesignermarks.tumblr

Oh Wow..............says Kate

Oh Wow..................in the words of Her Royal Highness, the Duchess of Cambridge.

To all of it, the Dress, Catherine's poise, Pippa's dress, the trees in Westminister Abbey, the crowds, the 

double kiss. So very lovely.