Marimekko

This post is part of the Finnish Design series by guest contributor Eva Jorgensen of Sycamore Street Press.

A week centered on Finnish design wouldn’t be complete without everyone’s favorite Finnish import, Marimekko. I wouldn’t mind dressing my daughter in their clothes every single day.

Kaisa Riivari

This post is part of the Finnish Design series by guest contributor Eva Jorgensen of Sycamore Street Press.

These bold looks are from Finnish fashion designer Kaisa Riivari, who says she was inspired by “ancient mystics and punkrock attitude”.

I love how she combines effortless chic with a little quirk to keep things interesting.

Kate for Mango

Kate Moss for Mango. I saw these images from their new catalog a week or two ago and I am still thinking about them. The camera obviously loves her and she is often able to make classic look amazing and memorable. Are you going to be sporting some blazers come Fall?

Bonjour Spring!

Yesterday was the first day of Spring! Here are a few things currently inspiring me. Yahoo, for my favorite season of the year.

1 The Art of Instruction
2 Katie Ermilio via From Me to You
3 Pierre Terrarium 
4 Market Bag
5 Roasted Asparagus and Egg

*Bonus points : if you know where the quote is from... I will reveal it in the comments tomorrow.

Stylish Simplicity

As much as I like seeing lots of color and pattern on the runways (see posts here and here) and am inspired by pattern for projects, I feel most comfortable wearing blacks and neutrals. Black is pretty much my daily staple. Do you have a color in your closet that you just wear the heck out of? I sometimes want to sport hot pink or a fun floral number but it usually doesn't come off quite right on me. Club Monaco's look book spoke to me, all these looks that have me swooning.

Also according to this site they are going e-commerce on March 26. Cool.

(All photos from Fashion Gone Rogue)

Katherine Sandoz : New Floral Paintings

I am really loving the new floral work that Katherine Sandoz has been working on. Just gorgeous! There is a collaborative artists exhibit called Flower Power going on in Savannah at the Kim Iocovozzi Gallery that would be such a beautiful thing to see if you are in the area. Ever since I came across Katherine's work in Savannah a few years ago in a lovely shop called the Paris Market it has been a joyful experience to see her work evolve and flourish.

Fashion Week Color Showdown

Whew, I had a blast compiling the latest runway fashion by color coming on the scene for Fall 2012 from New York Fashion Week. Color is alive and well, I can't believe how much there is for fall, lots of different and fun things going on. Do you have any favorite runway standouts?

All photos from Style.com -- (photographers noted on individual photo links)

1. Karen Walker  2. Mary Katrantzou 3. Tracy Reece 4. Peter Pilotto 5. Rachel Roy

6. Mary Katrantzou 7. Peter Jensen 8. Tracy Reece 9. Tory Burch 10. Costello Tagliapietra

11. Betsey Johnson 12. Carlos Miele 13. Tory Burch 14. Proenza Schouler 15. Zero + Maria Cornejo

Fashion Week Favorites by Color

With the great fashion coming out of Fashion Week for Fall 2012 I thought it would be fun to organize my favorites (so far) by color. Today I'm focusing on red and orange highlights. Stay tuned for more colors the rest of this week.

Credits: All photos from Style.com - respective photographers noted below:
1+ 2 : Sophie Theallet  - photo by Marcus Tondo
3 Marc Jacobs photo by Marcus Tondo
4 Zac Posen - photo by Yannis Vlamos // 5 Douglas Hannant photo by Filippo Fior
6 + 7 Michael Kors photos by Yannis Vlamos
8 + 9 Karen Walker photos by Filippo Fior
10 Carlos Miele photo by Yannis Vlamos
10 + 11 Rodarte photos by Monica Feudi
12 Vera Wang photo by Yannis Vlamos

Fashion Week - Steven Alan Fall 2012

The wearable fall looks from Steven Alan's 2012 collection are nice and fit the bill of something I would actually put on my back.

(photos by Amanda De Simone - Style.com)

Wardrobe Essentials : #1 The Trench

One of my goals this year is to build a closet full of wardrobe essentials. My desire is to seek out lasting stylish staple pieces that I adore. Funny thing is, I am not the biggest shopper so this will be a bit of a challenge for me. My bleak closet is seriously ready for a mindful fashion transformation. I hope to highlight a variety of key pieces throughout the year at various affordable and sometimes dreamy price points.

First up is 'the trench'. I will start off by saying that I have never owned a khaki trench and it is about time. The stylish girls above look fantastic and I love how you can pair it with everything from sparkles to heals or converse and it looks amazing. Now the guessing game comes in... looking below can you tell which ones are luxe and which ones are budget savvy? The prices range from under $80 to over $1800 isn't that wild! What is your favorite or do you already have one in your closet you love?

Trench Coats : A B C D E F G H I
Photo sources : 1 Jcrew / 2 & 3 Fash n Chips / 4 Sterling Style  / 5 Blushing Ambition

Feeling a little glitzy...

1: Sportmax S/S 2012 Runway Details from Monsieur J
2: Free People sequin button down (via my friend Holly)

Heidi Merrick

I can't get enough of Heidi Merrick'sSpring 2012 collection, seriously swoon worthy stuff. One day I hope to add one of her gorgeous pieces to my closet, she has to be one of my favorite designers of the moment.

(via Eat Drink Chic)

Lemlem Resort

Remember those really cool Lemlem scarves I posted about about a month ago?! Well, Lemlem just launched their resort collection photographed in Montauk, New York this week and it is full of fresh vibrant colors and absolutely lovely. Keeping an eye on fun resort wear as the weather starts to gets a little more gray and chilly makes me dream about a warm sunny tropical vacation. I also really love these quirky handmade cool Jute animals that would be a nice and creative talking piece addition to a space.

Quiet Morning in Polarn O. Pyret

The girls are playing nice and quietly this morning as they are rockin' their matching stripes from Polarn O. Pyret*. I am a huge fan of this Swedish brand, the quality is really top notch and I love their simple graphic styles. It is impressive to me that they have been around for 35 years (celebrating with a birthday sale) and are now expanding their wings in the U.S. with two new shops in New York City opening this week.

(*Polarn O Pyret sent these as a gift, but I only share things that I am passionate about, would normally purchase myself, and what I think you readers would like.)

Have a wonderful weekend!

It was a gray day today so I felt like signing off for the weekend all kinds of bright! I hope you will have a nice time relaxing over the next few days.

Love You Print // DIY Cool Party Hats // Neon Rope & Clothes Rack // Zebra // Bracelet

Danielle Kroll

Danielle Kroll is a super talented designer/illustrator and I am really drawn to her "What I Wore Today" painting series that she catalogs on her blog. The cool thing, Danielle's other work in her portfolio is equally as impeccable, really top notch stuff. Some of my favorite pieces she has designed are this, this and this! Wow.

(spotted on That's Happy // all artwork by Danielle Kroll shared with permission) 

Handmade Charlotte

Rachel Faucett amazes me. She has five kids, lives on a farm, shares some outrageously cool and unique design inspiration on her blog Handmade Charlotte as well as other websites, and she makes stunningly detailed children's clothing. She was also a guest blogger on Black Eiffel a while back too. When does she sleep?

I was delighted to find out that she along with her very small team hand-stiched these gorgeous heirloom pieces that are now available over at Anthropologie. It makes me happy to see her beautiful work in the spotlight.

1 2 3 4

Lemlem scarves

A Lemlem scarf is being added to my wish list. They are made in Ethopia and are just gorgeous. I remember seeing them circulate the web a while back, but recently came across them again and the beautiful colors and textures have me smiling.

Fall Clutch Love

My days are usually spend carrying around a diaper bag so every once in a while I dream of a closet full of cute little clutches, they aren't the most practical for me at the moment, but they sure are dang beautiful to look at. Here are some pretty fall favorites... Are you a clutch kind of gal?

1 2 3 4 5 6

(Come to find out #1 is a wallet, here is the clutch version in lime.)

Art Translated

Serendipitously I came across the artwork of Jeff Depner and being an enthusiast of stripes, polka-dots and cool spins on geometry it really made me happy. After perusing his site for a bit, I discovered that Pringle of Scotland used his work as inspiration for their Spring/Summer Collection of 2012. How awesome is that! Can you think of any other rad artwork that has directly translated onto the runway?

(All art by Jeff Depner from his website + Pringle of Scotland)