Friday, September 28, 2012

Repeat Offender: Vest Part Deux

Now that my closets are fairly stripped down, I'm exercising repeat clothing pieces a little more frequently.
My end of the week choice happens to be this fuzzy vest again. So comfy, so cozy, and so easy to throw on over just about anything.
Earrings by Tres Jolie, lariat by JewelMint, (I'm becoming obsessed with these monthly orders)!
Blouse: Ella Moss, Jeans: Citizens, Bangles: Vintage, Vest: F21. Wedges: Mia

To help get clothed for fall, I'll be bringing you news on sample sales, and lots of way to re-stock on the cheap!  Until then...

With Love,

Noa B

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Fuzzy Vest: Comfort Clothes?

It's time to get motoring back to Home #2, (or in this case I should say Home #1, since it's the home we actually own). Every time I arrive in Santa Barbara I think of all the things that need improving in the LA digs, and when I return to LA, I want to be back north, painting, furnishing, and of course, stuffing my new closets with new acquisitions!
But for now I'll just pull out more of my "staples" to get my through the week. Like this favorite, "muppet-style" vest.
 Cozy, cozy, cozy...
SB is occasionally colder at night, so I'm beginning to shuffle some beloved boots up there too. Ah, my trusty Frye's.
Slip: Vintage, Vest: F21, Necklace: JewelMint: Boots: Frye

Odd to say, "stay warm" but that's just what I'm doing in the central coast at night.

With Love,

Noa B

Monday, September 24, 2012

Saturday Morning Meal

I was awakened this past Saturday around 7:30AM to see if the Hubs and I would be available for an early morning, family breakfast at around 8:30AM across town.
Though barely awake, I decided to make a minor attempt at a modicum of fashion, (even if it was just to get together over eggs with a 2 year old)...
No time to style, brush my hair, so I swept it back, (my go-to disguise). Here's my quick attempt at early morning fashion, (with 5 minutes for makeup and hair, whew)!
I'm beginning to pride myself on being able to "pull it together" in less than 20 minutes, but with the bulk of my depleted wardrobe two townships away, it's a bit more of a challenge. Still, after doing a very quick search to see what was left in my LA closet, I unearthed some basics I hadn't worn in a while.
 
Jeans: Rag and Bone, Bag: Vintage, Heels: Seychelles, Tube: H&M, Flutter Sleeve Top: Nordstrom BP

And I guess that's the key. Make your basics work for you. (Again and again).

With Love,

Noa B

Friday, September 21, 2012

Reformation Closet Style: Part 1

I've been going through some really, really big changes over the past several months. One of these changes has involved moving into a second home, not for the first, or even second, but third time in two years with my darling husband.
Our moves have now precipitated living both in our apartment in Los Angeles, as well as a new house in Santa Barbara, CA. Along those lines, life has become so very complicated that I had the urge to make things as simple as possible. Hence, my latest project, the closet reformation. (Otherwise known as "The Great Clean-Out of Fall, 2012").
There were several things I was anxious to accomplish with this latest clothing cleanse. First, I wanted to simplify my life, especially with all that's been taking place recently. Second, I wanted to maintain some frugality while furnishing my new home. And third, I wanted to share the possibilities of re-sale at its most intimate with my readers. Enter Tiana, and one of my favorite, re-sale stores, The Closet.
 the closet

With locations in Santa Monica, Westlake, and Santa Barbara, the closet is one of the best places in So/Central Cal to go for designer duds at fractional prices! You can also follow the store on FB and see their daily, best new acquisitions and pics right here!
Here's the thing Ladies. Did you know that a good re-saler or consigner will make house calls? Yup! If you have a lot of items to sell and can't bring it all into a store, you can sometimes reach out to a buyer to come and have a look through your closet in person! And that's just what I did!
So Tiana got to work, and in about 30 minutes she had piled my clothing sky-high, leaving only a few, scant items in my new closet.
And the stacks just kept on building...
From fall jackets and blazers, to sequin minis, pencil skirts, vests, dresses and more, I cleaned house. My rule of thumb? If I hadn't worn it once in 6 months, it was out!
 Soon 1 pile became 2, and then 3...
 And then we hit purses, shoes, and accessories.
 And when it was all done, my personal shopper/consigner bagged up all my goodies, tabulated my earnings, and left with three, 30 gallon bags full of clothes to re-sell, while I awaited a fat check!
Because as my good friend Tanya likes to remind me, "One woman's trash is another woman's treasure". And while I certainly wasn't parting with trash but rather, great, high ticket items, they weren't going to make me happy languishing in my closet for another 6 months either.
When it was all loaded into Tiana's car,  I looked at my freshly cleaned closet with new eyes, and a new appreciation for what I have.  Most of all, I looked at my newly mortgaged home with it's array of beautifully empty and un-appointed closets and thought, what a joy it will be to slowly refill these all over again!
Skirt: Re-sale, Tank: Zara, Belt: Calvin Klein 70's Vintage

But until then, I'll stay fierce, frugal, and enjoy what I have! Thank you Tiana, and thank you to The Closet, for creating a space where women can shop without guilt!

With Love,

Noa B


Thursday, September 20, 2012

Home Prep

I've been in the midst of a big life change, involving a lot of designing, planning, and commuting. And within my hectic confines I've been trying to find the time for work, play, design, and creativity. To help me clarify and streamline some ideas, (and in preparation for tomorrow's post) I thought I'd share a bit of what I've done to help organize my space!
VÄGGIS Noticeboard IKEA Can be hung horizontally or vertically to fit into the space available.
I started with a cork board. I've found them to be very expensive at Staples and Office Depot, but Ikea sells them for 6$ here. I explored design sites like Houzz and Pinterest, Dwell Living and AllModern.com to get some ideas about fusing together what my husband and I already like. In our case, we happen to love Midcentury Modern and contemporary design mixed with Art Deco.
I grabbed ideas online as well as from magazine tears and cut them out. To this, I added items I had already purchased to see how they would "marry" together. You can obviously do this online if you have layout expertise, but I like to move things around a board and see what works. Everything shown above was inspired and bought or copied. Things we found and purchased were added to the board to flesh out what our home would eventually look like!
I pinned and overlapped all my images to help determine color and style. I also added paint swatches since my house was going to be in desperate need of paint, wood stripping and lot of electrical work...
And although it's only about 50% finished, we were able to take our new living room from a purple, mustard, chocolate, pink and yellow monstrosity, to this soft, pale grey and white with stripped beans and new lamps and wiring, new fireplace tones and all new accents. All with the planning help of a cork board!
The original,  fire-engine brickwork in our living-room is now the perfect shade of dove grey! And the hideous lamp that hung before has been replaced with a ball of crystalline light. (No easy wiring feat either)!!
And we've begun to augment the kitchen from a disastrous melange of eggplant, purple and beige, to a funky, 60's style nook. I can't wait to share more images when our home is complete and renovations and furniture are all in place!
But keep reading for tomorrow's blog on how we tackled my latest, closet challenge. Until then, if you're feeling a little drab, grab a board and get cracking!

With love,

Noa B

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Dinner with Friends: Vintage Silk

I headed out to dinner last night still feeling the effects of the intense heat. Fortunately this silk dress was breathable and wonderfully lightweight. The perfect item for a muggy evening out.
I'm very fond of this dress, as it's a vintage piece I found and altered back sometime last year. You can see how on my other, co-authored blog here.
In the past I've belted it, but I kind of like the sash element for an evening look.
Along with some dangle-y earrings and a small clutch, it's an easy piece for nighttime.
Dress: Neiman Marcus Vintage, Shoes: B Makovsky, Bag: Gifted: Sunnies: Nicole Miller

There's nothing like a little recycling to get that perfect print.

With Love,

Noa B