Current (And Probably Long Lasting) Obsession: Vintage Goblets

My obsession for beautiful colored vintage goblets began quite some time ago, after inheriting some of my grandfather’s dishes. I imagine if I would have had room in any of my New York City apartments, they would have been filled with all the above and more. Since moving to Salt Lake City i’ve inherited purchased a pair of ruby red goblets from the dreamiest store, Capital City Antique Mall, and stalk Retro Art Glass on a regular basis.

If you aren’t lucky enough to have a stellar vintage store nearby i’ve listed a few vintage-inspired options available online now:

Le Cadeaux PolyCard Wine Glassware, $12 each

Villeroy & Boch Boston Green Goblets, $30 each

Fishs Eddy Eye Winkler Opal Goblet, $19.95 each

If you ever come across anything fabulous in the goblet world, please do share. And for more gorgeous home decor and vintage finds, check out my fabulous friend Elaine Purcell’s blog, Birdy Birdy Num Num.

Diptyque, You’ve Made My Week: Introducing The Perfumed Tablet

If you’ve never had a change to indulge in Diptyque’s heavenly, to-die for scents, I suggest you do so. Most recently added to their collection of things that smell divine are oval perfumed tablets ($45 each), which are made of white porcelain medallions surrounding a bar of scented wax.

Hang them in your bathroom for a delightful scent (Rose is my favorite).

Place around your closet to keep clothing and accessories fresh

These tablets have endless uses, and their scent will last around 3 months. They’re definitely elegant enough to keep out in the open, and currently available in four beautiful scents in case you’re not a fan of rose:

Rose: an armful of sweet, light roses sinks into your silks and cottons

Feuilles de lavande (Lavender Leaf): soothing and refreshing, it slips into the linen closet or a child’s dresser like a promise of tenderness

Baies (Berries and Bulgarian Roses): with this delicate blend of rose and blackcurrant leaves, your dressing room or closet will bloom like a dewy English garden

Ambre: this heady, richly sweet fragrance is the perfect sensual touch for the soft wools and velvets of your warmest winter scarves

Get yours today…before someone else snatches them all up!

Hey New Yorkers, Grab A Cocktail And Take Charge Of Your Life!

Perhaps taking charge of your life isn’t as easy as sipping a glass of Pinot Noir, which is why you should take a few minutes next Thursday to hear Amanda Russell speak on how to grasp hold of what you want in life. Not only is she gorgeous and in uber great shape, but is also Olympic-trained, a celebrity fitness expert, a model,  a motivational writer, a spokeswoman and founder of the AR Program. Pretty impressive right? Well she didn’t get there by wishing and waiting.

Four years ago, Amanda fractured her femur just as she was on the right track headed for the Olympics. I’ll let her tell you the whole story, but running was her passion and she was determined to get back on track to a healthy lifestyle despite what everyone around her was saying – and she did!

Did I mention she also landed a partnership with Zico Premiun Coconut Water as their new face of the brand? You may have seen her face on billboards around Manhattan.

Convinced yet? For $10 you can come have a cocktail, listen to Amanda’s wise tips, and be entered to win something pretty amazing.You can RSVP here.

When: February 24th, 2011 at 6pm

Where: Jackson Square Lounge (122 Greenwhich Avenue)

For complete event details, click here.

xoxo

Leaving On A JetBlue Plane to Salt Lake City!

I wanted to take a second to apologize for the lack of posting, but I am making a move from NYC to Salt Lake City so things have been kind of hectic. As soon as I get settled in next week to my new home, there will be lots of fun things coming your way – SO GET READY!

If you have any friends in the Salt Lake City area, please pass along my site!

xoxo,
JR.

Get Your Spook On With These Halloween Party Favors

Halloween is my all-time favorite Holiday especially if there’s a party involved! Instead of going to an over crowded bar this year I am going throw a Halloween party. I’ve found some amazing party decorations and thought I’d share with you for some spooky inspiration.

Lolita is always a favorite for party ideas and great favors. They have a variety of Halloween cups and mugs, but this Pumpkin Potion Wine Glass ($24 each) won me over. What makes it even better is that each glass comes with a festive drink recipe (pictured above), and is packaged in Lolita’s signature gift box. Grab a few of these for your party and put them back in their box at the end of the night for guests to take home as a gift.

DL & Company has some of the coolest products and they’ve launched a special Halloween collection this year. These Spider Tea Lights (regularly $14) are the perfect addition for my party. Place them all over your house, light them up and dim the lights. DEAL ALERT: The Halloween Collection is 40% off up through Friday, October 22nd.

No time for baking? Leave it to Eleni’s to make you the most fabulous host ever. Trust me – if you’ve ever tried one of their delicious cookies then you know it’s worth the money spent. There are several other Halloween cookies but the Friendly Ghosts ($24.50 for eight) are super fun. You’ll be getting tons of compliments from these!

Etsy is always a great source to turn to for party decor. This Day of the Dead Wreath ($29.99) is a genius idea and the perfect addition to any door. And if you live in an apartment building you can always hang a few of these on your inside walls.

I would love to hear of your fab Halloween decor finds!

xoxo,
JR.

A Bit Of Grace Added to the Marc Jacobs Spring 2011 Collection

I’ve been drooling over Marc Jacobs‘ whimsical collections since the glorious college days, and even remember my first MJ purchase. It was a Marc by Marc Jacobs three-quarter length knitted sweater with pale orange, blue, yellow and pink butterflies embroidered on the front, and the huge buttons with the MJ logo engraved. I still wear it – it’s definitely going to be vintage one day.

Anyhow, the Marc Jacobs Spring 2011 Collection was a bit of 70’s meets 30’s style, with lots of red, burgundy, pink and fuchsia in the mix:

And then there’s my favorite part of this collection – Guido Palau of Redken‘s hair inspiration, which was based on Grace Coddington (most of you know her from The September Issue) of Vogue’s frizzy locks! She’s a huge icon in the Fashion world so it’s great to see her incorporated into the runway, as she was once a model herself!

Grace Coddington of Vogue                                       Marc Jacobs Model

Grace Coddington modeling – 1960’s

While I agree this hairstyle is only a look suited for the lovely Grace, it works very well with some of Marc Jacobs’ collection pieces. Or perhaps we could use some of Guido’s tips on how to get the “Grace Frizz” for Halloween – now that would be fun!

xoxo,

JR.

One Designer To Watch: William Tempest

William Tempest impressed everyone this year, as he debuted “The Siren’s Song” for Spring 2011 at Lincoln Center. After 3 seasons of showing in London, he’s finally bringing his elegant and sculptural designs to us New Yorkers. His inspiration for the collection was goddess like creatures that were half beauty, half sea creatures.

“The Siren’s Song” in the making:

“The Siren’s Song” presentation at Lincoln Center:

I even got a second to chat with Jessica Vartoughian, founder of Jessica Cosmetics, who created a whole collection of custom colors for the William Tempest presentation. You can’t purchase the Jessica William Tempest Collection until spring 2011, but here’s an exciting preview:

The grey and pink colors to the left are shimmery and absolutely amazing. Put a ticker on your calendar for these!
xoxo,
JR.

My Love Of The Week: Linea Pelle

I swung by Robert Verdi’s Luxe Lab on Wednesday of this week, only to find a handbag that had my name written all over it (well, not literally). The Linea Pelle Alex Suede Vintage Fringe Mini ($295) is my favorite thing this week, with it’s super long suede tassels. My hair dresser thinks I’m turning into a hippie since I’m moving out west, but this might be the perfect fall accessory! See for yourself:

I did manage to walk away with this lovely Linea Pelle Leather Bracelet in Gold ($65), which I am absolutely obsessed with. It goes with everything and can even dress up a simple black dress. It comes in a variety of colors, but I fell in love with the gold.

I was lucky enough to preview some of the handbags that are coming out in late fall, and they are to die for so keep checking back at Linea Pelle.

xoxo,
JR.

Most Anticipated Show Of The Year: Betsey Johnson

Something I look forward to every Fashion Week is the Betsey Johnson show. It’s a hot ticket to have, and I even noticed people scalping tickets on craigslist. You never know what to expect from her, but you know it will always be a good time. This season her inspiration was biker girl and and the runway was built to mimic an actual road.

Click here to go behind the scenes with New York Magazine to hear from the very talented Sarah Lucer (Stila‘s Pro Artist for beauty.com) on the looks she created for Betsey. My favorite show in general so far, and for hair/makeup as well.

And for all of you Betsey fans, here’s a sneak peak at the Spring 2011 collection – start saving now!

Kelly Osbourne looked super cute in her Betsey Johnson attire – what do you think? Loving her as a blonde!

Kelly Osbourne and Betsey Johnson backstage

And yes, the infamous Betsey cartwheel was involved!

xoxo,
JR.

Survival of the Fittest – My Fashion Week Saviors

It’s Fashion Week Day 5…or 6 – I lost count a couple days ago. We’re all exhausted and it’s starting to show. Us once fresh faced beauties have turned into tired, concealer smudge-aholics. I have a few things I wanted to share, that have been my go-to savior products this season:

First of all, the six inch heels for hours a day might be the most painful thing in the world. Thank goodness for Lindsay Phillips’ genius Liz Ballet Flats (in black below, $64) which are perfect for the back and forth from Lincoln Center to Milk Studio. The best part is that you can roll them up and they don’t take up any room in your bag. And if you’re heel happens to snap at any point (it’s happened to me), these flats are stylish enough to compliment your Fashion Week wardrobe.

And when I do have to put on my fabulous but not so comfortable heels, Foot Petals is my go to source for instant comfort. I decided it was time to invest in the Stiletto Stylist Kit this year, which includes:

1 Tip Toes
1 Killer Kushionz
2 Strappy Strips
1 Heavenly Heelz
1 Haute Heelz
2 Sole Stopperz

You can purchase them individually and in different colors too, but I was in need of them all! Starting Monday, we’ll be doing a 4-week giveaway contest with Foot Petals – one new fabulous product each week. Details to come over the weekend.

I know this product is for men, but MAN does it work wonders. Kiehl’s Eye Alert is my go to product for early mornings. It instantly cools and fights fatigue. I went through a whole tube over the past week due to lack of sleep.

Germs on the subway, germs all over Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, germs in the taxi cabs – they’re everywhere and unavoidable. I can’t stand the lemon/soap smelling gel sanitizers, so luckily Bath & Body Works has an amazing anti-bacterial hand foam. Japanese Cherry Blossom is to die for and goes everywhere with me. And who can resist the 2 for $5 deal?!

This is my favorite lipstick on earth, and I probably have one (maybe 2) in every bag that I own. Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick is the perfect red, and I use it as my blush too. Dab it on your cheeks and it’s an instant pick me up if you’re on the go.

Throughout the day to keep my cool, Bath & Body Works Aromatherapy Eucalyptus Spearmint Travel Size Body Lotion is my go to source! Eucalyptus Essential Oil clears the mind to improve concentration as Spearmint Essential Oil is uplifting and helps the mind to focus during long days at the tents. Trust me, it helps keep you sane!

And last but not least, Nature’s Path Pumpkin-n-Spice Granola Bars are delicious, and conveniently fit in my bag. I throw a few in each morning since sometimes during a chaotic Fashion Week day (or if you lose your wallet) there’s no time to stop and grab a bite. They have lots of good, healthy and natural ingredients too. Lots of different flavors to choose from if you’re not a pumpkin fan.

Fashion Week is almost over, so there will be lots to come on coverage as I will have more time to write (AND SLEEP). Hopefully you’re able to enjoy some of these products too!

xoxo,

JR.