Fuchsia lipstick. More specifically, Funny Face by Nars, which the catalog actually pointed out. I may have to add another lipstick to my favorites.

Next, I ran across the perfect shade of pink (with a lot of lilac in it). When I was a kid, my two favorite Crayola colors were thistle and orchid, and I think that color preference has stuck with me. I’m also liking the font here.

And then there was this five-year-old boy’s haircut from the crewcuts section. I think it would look pretty great on a lady. A lady like me, perhaps?

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as Non-Clothing Inspiration from the New J.Crew Catalog | 34 comments

So… Have you been watching this season of Design Star? This year’s format has been odd but I’m glad that Emily, my favorite designer, is in the final two. Did you see her room from last week? It was the best one of the season.

I hope she wins the whole thing. Emily has a blog too; I just found out recently.

I’ll see you back here on Monday and I’ll have a pretty neat giveaway for you. If you’re at all crafty (or even if you just aspire to be), you’re definitely going to want to win.

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as Oh, Friday | 23 comments

It was beautiful, but SO impractical. There was a lot of client/architect drama between Edith Farnsworth and Mies van der Rohe. Ms. Farnsworth claimed that the house was unlivable (it had almost no storage), and the price skyrocketed as work progressed. Mies took the stance that it was a getaway house and you should have little more with you than a change of clothes, therefore it doesn’t need to be practical.

Still, The Farnsworth House was amazing. It’s constantly under threat of flooding, so go see it sooner than later if you’re able.

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as The Farnsworth House | 18 comments

Also, I think our matching mother/daughter dresses are funny. ;)

This pregnancy has been less worrisome than the first, but I have been exhausted (and nauseous). I’m looking forward to getting a little energy back and feeling better as I head into the second trimester.

I’m due February 12 and Eleanor won’t turn two until April 29, so we’ll have two under two for a while. Sounds… challenging! But it also sounds fun.

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as Another Baby | 411 comments

I’m feeling a bit… overwhelmed, trying to get back into the rhythm of things. Do you ever feel this way? Already today I have overnighted a package to a magazine for a fun project in the works, invoiced an overseas customer for a bulk order from the shop, processed five other Pink Loves Brown orders, and I am now working on a crafty tutorial to go along with that package I shipped to the magazine. I also let Eleanor nap on me this morning which didn’t do much for my productivity, but it is one of my favorite things to do. Anyway, it’s wonderful to be so busy (so much better than not having any work coming in), but it is sometimes difficult to find enough hours in a day.

And oh my, Brandon bought The Twilight Saga for me. No, I hadn’t read any of them, and I hadn’t seen any of the movies, and I hadn’t intended to. We were discussing the series the other day though and I mentioned that I hadn’t heard of anyone being disappointed in reading the books. I said that while they are certainly not serious literature, they must be fun to read. So he surprised me with the full set. Hardcover. Complete with a decorative slipcase and limited edition print. I’m already almost finished with the first book (they go quickly), and I can’t wait to keep reading.

I’ve also been greatly enjoying reading your questions for John Gidding. If you haven’t added yours yet (for the chance to win some pretty amazing prizes), feel free to do so here. We’ll be answering as many as we can on Thursday night at 8:30 EST during our Twitter Chat (follow along with #AmexHome), but you’ve also given me some ideas for future topics here on Making it Lovely.

Let me leave you with this photo today. I think it’s hilarious, but it also makes me think I should just stop for a few minutes, close my eyes, and relax. Om…

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as Om | 62 comments

I wore a white silk dress by Watters & Watters. I also wore red lipstick, my hair in a bun with my mom’s veil, simple stud earrings, and a big sparkly brooch on my dress. Brandon wore his suit with a pink tie and a lily of the valley boutonniere. My bouquet was made of pink peonies, lilies, old-fashioned roses, and lily of the valley.

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as My Wedding Dress | 54 comments

Emily, one of my facebook friends, sent me a message shortly after I posted my list. Her husband James Julius is a photographer, and he was working on building his portfolio. Would we be interested in being photographed by him? He may have been working on his portfolio but I was impressed.

You know the super adorable engagement photos that people have taken? The kind that always make me a little sad/jealous for not having photos like that taken before Brandon and I got married? Yeah, James Julius takes those. Now I have my own, but they’re even better because Eleanor is in them and we’ve got six years of marriage behind us. In fact, these photos were taken on our anniversary.

James photographed us in Austin Gardens, here in Oak Park. Isn’t it a gorgeous setting? He and Emily chose the location, and they chose very well.

Thank you, Emily, for arranging our photo shoot. And thank you, James Julius for giving us such fantastic photos of our family. We’re thrilled with them!

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as Family Photos | 102 comments

I went with just Eleanor at first, but then Brandon came out a little later and we were able to get the three of us. Those baby sunglasses crack me up.

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as Photo Booth Photos | 60 comments

The weather even cooperated for us.

Oh look, an elephant! Too cute, right?

That vase is actually a teapot, but it’s adorable when filled with flowers.

Eleanor was a gracious host, thoughtfully opting to skip her nap so as not to miss a moment of her party.

She was in a good mood the whole time though, despite being tired toward the end.

I ordered a cake for the party, but I asked for it to be left completely plain with just pale pink frosting. I wanted it to be a blank canvas, but the bakery apparently thought that I meant “smash a bunch of crumbs all around the edge, and pipe some frosting shapes as a border around the whole cake”. Oh well. I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to do with it anyway; I just knew I wanted to decorate it myself.

I made Eleanor’s silhouette out of chocolate for the cake. I melted chocolate chips in a sandwich bag, snipped the end, then laid parchment paper over a template that I had printed out to size. I did the best I could, piping the outline first and then filling it in, and I placed it in the fridge afterward to harden. I also wrote “Happy Birthday Eleanor” in white, lightly scratching the letters in the frosting with a toothpick first as a guide. The cake was not perfect, but it was fine. The guest of honor seemed to like it quite a bit.

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as Eleanor’s First Birthday Party | 121 comments

Number 28 on my 30 Before Thirty list: done. And we had a lovely day!

© 2010, published by Making it Lovely as Shedd Aquarium | 34 comments