I've been getting a lot of interest and questions lately about a feature I do called Styled by Stella. It's thrilling that this has become a popular post series, because it's one of my all-time favorites to do! Read some FAQ below. And thanks for the support!

What is Styled by Stella?

Styled by Stella is a weekly post I do on November Grey, where I let my three year old daughter choose my outfit for the day. She styles everything, head-to-toe. And I promise to wear it, shoot it, and share it with you here (no matter what!)

How did the idea of Styled by Stella come about? 

(*As noted on the first SBS post) 

As we were rushing around the house one morning, I was trying to find creative ways to encourage Stella to get her little bum in gear, stop fussing, and get herself dressed for preschool. Truth be told, it's so much easier to pick out her clothes for her, constantly tell her what to do, what to wear... But I really am trying to raise a free-thinking, independent, little lady here and when left to her own devices, she actually puts together seriously great outfits for herself! So it donned on me, why not have her put an outfit together for me? I told her if she hurried up and got dressed, I'd also let her rummage through my closet and pick and choose my outfit for the day. (Brave, I know.) Thus, Styled by Stella was born!

What is your favorite part about these posts?

It really has turned out to be a special bonding experience between me and my little girl. For us, it's a fun moment of sharing and laughing and just being girls together. The fact that so many of you are responding to it and enjoying it, is just a bonus.

Do you ever alter, add or remove anything before you shoot it? 

Never. It's all her. If I change into flats for the day, or wear it differently out in public, I always note that in the post. I try to wear it just as she styles it. But sometimes you have to change into flats for the afternoon!

Do you ever force her to do these posts, even if she doesn't want to? 

Of course not. I want this to be fun for her. There have been times I've asked her if she wants to style me and she'll simply say "No, thank you." If we ever skip a week in our Styled by Stella posts, this is likely the reason!

Do you think Stella has a future in the fashion business?

Who knows. Right now she's more interested in being a doctor than a princess and has been wearing pajamas to school for the past few days... whatever she turns out to do, I will support her!

Bargain bridesmaid dress or evening gown ~ $27 at Target! Run!

Planning a wedding or have an upcoming black tie event? Still deciding on the dress? Hurry over to your local Target. I mean hurry. This Kate Young dress for Target is currently on clearance for $26.98! I've been to two different Targets in my area and they had tons of them. Guys... it is SO beautiful. A classic, glamorous cut with the most dramatic bow in the back. I just had to grab one for myself. Trust me, it's that good. And at this price, you can't afford to wait. Run.

The Kate Young Evening Dress with Back Bow is also available online at regular price for $89.99 - (still not bad). FYI, It runs a little small. I'm usually a size 2, but a 4 fit perfectly. Like I said, run.

Styled by Stella ~ Mad Men look

I know I say this every time, but I truly am blown away whenever my tiny stylist puts together an outfit for me. On this particular day, she was really feeling red. She pulled out a bright, red sweater and a pair of red, acid washed American Apparel jeans. I cringed at the different shades and vowed to photograph it anyway. But as her tiny hands scrolled over more and more items in my closet (only allowed in moments like these) she changed her mind. She worked her way up - getting her red fix by grabbing these Zara heeled sandals first and deciding I needed a skirt to go with them. The blouse she grabbed right away and I didn't realize it would work until I tucked it in. She pulled out a JewelMint necklace and earrings, and a set of black, metal bangles from Crash and Burn that she had a hard time giving up from her own wrist. What do you think? Very Mad Men, no?

Blouse - Vintage Silk

Banded Pencil Skirt - Via Cross Roads Trading Co

Heels - Zara

To see more Styled by Stella, go here. 

Blue waters, beach days and ending up where you belong...

Old Navy Chambray - Robert Graham Hat - Thrifted Dress (similar styles)

I remember back when I was dating the wrong guy, he used to talk about how he wanted to buy a house in Venice Beach someday. At the time, the thought of living oceanside was so foreign to me and spending an afternoon there was enough. Not because it wasn't a beautiful idea, but because it wasn't my dream, it was his. Besides, I was perfectly happy dwelling with the hipster and actor crowd in Hollywood and Silverlake. 

I've never considered myself much of a beach girl, preferring winter and fall dressing and considering the perfect vacation spent bundled up for the snow. But life is funny. Here I am... with the right guy, at the right time... Surrounded by laughing babies and love and that kind of sunshiny warmth that only comes from family... and the things that truly matter. Somehow, I ended up right where I belong.

My Ikea picks!

I have a confession to make, spending an afternoon at Ikea is pretty much one of my favorite things to do lately. With most of the major pieces for our home in place, (bed from here, couch and chairs from here) now is the time to put on the finishing touches. In addition to scouring online sites such as One Kings Lane and popping by any and every yard sale or thrift store I come across, the regular trip to Ikea is a must! In the home design world, I liken Ikea to the Forever21's  and H&M's of fashion. Not your high-end, keep forever type of pieces, but they get the job done. And when on a budget and wanting to throw in a trendy piece or two, this place rocks. Here are some of my picks below. A little mod, a little earthy and a touch of boho. Oh, did I mention the frozen yogurt?

1. I've been looking for the perfect ghost chair to use at my desk and couldn't believe it when I found this Tobias version at Ikea! Super affordable and actually quite comfortable.
2. I'm obsessed with this Eivor striped blanket. I snatched it up on our last trip, not knowing where to put it, but knowing it would work somewhere. It's all I needed in my little guy's room to add that perfect pop of visual interest.
3. How pretty is this aluminum Dimmig vase? I'm considering this as a larger statement piece in our living room, to hold all of my spring/summer peonies.
4. This is a motif created by Dominic Joyce called Kayla London. I think it would look great framed by an inspiration board or hung in a bathroom for a splash of color and a playful take on the current mod trend.
5. This coconut palm leaf basket by Kottebo is so much more interesting than the typical weave. I love the handles and how it's earthy, yet structured. We already have a few of these in several shelves in our home and could always use more.
6. These Lenda Curtains in light beige look so much like linen, but without the linen price tag. I layered these with white sheers in Stella's room and I'm loving the effect. They're great in white too.
7. C'mon, how fabulous is this black and white Lappljung Ruta pillow print? It's graphic and boho and can be tossed just about anywhere.

Anything you're loving at Ikea at the moment?

Memorial Day Treat ~ Banana Pineapple Cake

Here's a sweet, little cake recipe for your long weekend! I know a lot of my desserts include banana, but I can't help it. Maybe it's coming from a family of seven (yes, seven) but I simply cannot waste food. And since we always have a bunch of bananas in the house, we always have extra, overripe ones too. I also happened to have extra crushed pineapple left over from a kiddo treat I shared at Stella's school, so I wanted to use that up to! Presenting the super moist, super delicious...

Ingredients:

• 3 cups sifted all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
• 1 can (8 ounces) crushed pineapple, undrained
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 3 eggs
• 2 to 3 overripe bananas

Preparation:

In your mixer, sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, sugar, and salt. Stir in the oil, pineapple, vanilla, eggs, and banana. Mix until well blended. Pour batter into a greased and floured pan. Bake at 350° for about 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

*This is a super simple recipe I found on a Southern Food website. If you google banana/pineapple cake, you'll find a ton of versions with this base. You can toss in nuts or coconut, omit the cinnamon and replace with nutmeg, endless options! I drizzled it with a quick and easy vanilla frosting recipe here. Happy Memorial Day! Enjoy! xx

Girls Night Out

Happy Friday, friends! Boy, it's been crazy up in this piece lately! So much, so fast and time is just whizzing by. I'm trying to hang on tight for this ride called motherhood and pause to enjoy moments like these; a Girls Night Out that rivals any I've had before. These three little girls are the best of friends. They met at a pre-preschool/daycare and insist on regular playdates with each other. In the process, I'm getting to know two super fabulous ladies that I would have otherwise never met. A serendipitous friendship that I'm grateful for... Cuz no one understands you like your mama friends.

1. I'm wearing: Husband's T, Forever 21 skirt, Thrifted Calvin Klein jacket, Bamboo sandals & JewelMint necklace. Stella's wearing: Gap Jacket, Cherokee striped tee from Target and Toms glitter shoes.

2. Fumika is wearing: Top Shop pants (I'm obsessed with them, find similar here) and Ace Commune jewelry. (She's the designer!) Kaina is wearing a tee by Mini and Maxiums and Hunter boots.

3. Rosie's mom, May informed us that while driving to meet us for dinner that night, Rosie wanted to let her little friends know that she got her princess dress at Costco, should they want to know where to get one too. Heart melting.... 

Skinny Trick ~ Plain Greek yogurt & honey { +agave rocks!}

Did you know that yogurt is one of those deceptively healthy snacks? So many of us check the fat content, but neglect to consider the sugar in most yogurts. Especially the flavored ones. This was brought to my attention by my father in law recently when he was out visiting. He reminded me to take a look at how many grams of sugar was in that deliciously "healthy", organic, mango yogurt I was devouring. And even worse, the strawberry yogurt I was putting into my daughter's lunch box every day. Holy cow. I've been so caught up with making sure everything is organic, low-fat... that I neglected the obvious. Sugar! The solution? A drizzle of honey in plain, non-fat yogurt and it's just as delicious. Agave syrup works just as well. I've also been using agave in my coffee every morning. No weird taste, just yummy coffee! Do you have any "skinny" or healthy tricks? I'd love to try!

Red shorts/short hair

Apparently, I'm all about the vintage red bottoms. Two of my favorite pieces that I wear non-stop (and have for the past few years) are these red shorts and these silk, red trousers. It helps to have some interesting pieces to toss on when you would otherwise just be reaching for denim. These days, making serious effort in an outfit, is a serious challenge, so I'm trying to tailor my go-to wardrobe down to easy and interesting pieces I can just toss on. (More on that later.)

On another note, I was just reading an article on Katie Holmes yesterday and whether she thinks short or long hair is easier. Like her, I've had both. I have to concur that long hair is much much easier. You would think it's the opposite, right? It's true, with my long hair I found myself doing nothing more than tossing it into a top knot bun every day, but who has time to deal with a "hair style?"... not this mama. I've had super long hair for most of my life and this is the second time that I've done a serious chop. It was bold and refreshing and fun... but I must admit, now that it's growing out a bit, I'm finding it easier. Much more versatile too! What do you think? Are you a short or long hair fan?

Hip'tique + Kelcey Fisher/Fashion + Art = My favorite combo

Last week, Hip'tique in Santa Monica hosted a special fashion and art night with artist, Kelcey Fisher. Not only was I dying to spend some time with a girlfriend I hadn't seen in forever, I was eager to get out and see some local art, check out Hip'tique's warm weather fashion and meet the artist responsible for this multicolored, fashion/pop/street art hybrid A-MAZING-ness. Totally crushing on the painting above and seriously considering the piece for one of our (many) empty walls. I serendipitously wore the perfect, bright pink dress (last seen here) that vibed quite well with the aesthetic that night. 

Noa Bolozky of Sunset and 5th

 Christine Berardi - Hip'tique, Kelcey Fisher - artist, Tanya Dempsey - November Grey.

And just like my last fashion choice dilemma at Hip'tique (remember it here?) I am now positively in love with two Clover Canyon pieces I must decide between. Stay tuned!  For more on Kelcey, visit here. More on Hip'tique, go here.

{Clover Canyon blazer pic via Hiptique/Dress pic via Revolve Clothing}

{Happy Weekend} Vintage by the beach

I read this funny quote on Pinterest or somewhere: "Yay, it's the weekend! Oh, wait... I'm a mom." I laugh and laugh at this because it's true. As a mom, your job never stops. And with this little guy crawling all around now, I can't take my eyes off him for a second. It's such a fun age. He claps and gives kisses and loves to dance to music, but man, oh, man... he gets into everything. Poor dogs, their food is always on the counter now. I should stop typing and get to it, but wanted to wish you all a happy weekend. (Whether your work stops or not.)

Chambray top - Old Navy

Red silk pants - Vintage

Necklace - Vintage

Sneak Peek ~ My little girls room

Amongst the 10,000 other things I'm trying to wrangle on a daily basis, I'm also attempting a carefully thought out and decorated home. This takes time. And planning. And budgeting. And patience. Which I don't always have. But I need to remind myself that I'd rather have every corner of every room in my home be beautiful and mean something, than throwing it together in urgency. So here we are... little bits at a time. 

Stella's room is nearly complete, as I tackled it first, wanted her space to feel like home right away. She got involved in the planning from day one, even picking out the paint color. (Ballerina Pink by BEHR!)

The wooden letters were painted white and hung on a string in the backyard of our old house for her second birthday. Remember it here? We cut new pink ribbon and daddy tacked them above her bed with tiny nails. The dresses were sent to us c/o Biscotti and Kate Mack and they are just too pretty to keep hidden in the closet.

The chandelier is from Pottery Barn Kids and the hubs nearly electrocuted himself to death installing it (thanks, honey) but isn't it pretty? It replaced a very unattractive ceiling fan.

The framed floral art is antique and was scored at one of my favorite local thrift stores. The lamp base was also thrift for about five bucks. I was looking for a simple design that had a pull switch for tiny fingers and believe it or not, that was very tough to find! I ended up finding this simple shade at Big Lots and it was perfect! (Inexpensive, but doesn't look it, right?!) The frame is from Home Goods and holds one of my favorite photos of her.

A pregnancy photo and a memory box (also from Home Goods) displays a vintage slip dress she wore as a tiny tot. I want to cry when I think about her chubby legs teetering around in that thing... The vintage postcards need to be framed and hung, but dwell above until I find the perfect spot.

This little bunny jar is one of the most meaningful items in the room... Stella likes it because she can hide trinkets and treasures away, while I reminisce about my sweet friend (who also made my wedding dress) and the day she gifted it to me while Stella was still in my belly.

Stella in stripes and Chanel-esq jacket! {My little model}

Call me ridiculous, but wearing coordinating outfits with my daughter to dinner is just about as fun as it gets. Here's her look that matches my previous post for dinner at Post and Beam. She insisted on wearing the jeans, even though they are a bit too big. I guess she was going after the boyfriend look. Dying over this jacket and currently looking for a similar in my size. Hope you're having a great day!

Ode to Chanel Jacket- c/o Biscotti and Kate Mack

Striped blouse - Zara

Jeans - Mossimo Supply Co (similar)