Vegas, Baby

The view from our table at Hyde at the Bellagio

K and I went to Vegas for a quick work trip in mid-October. I hadn't been to Vegas in about seven years ago so I was excited to check it out. We stayed at the Mandarin Oriental, which was perfect. It's a nice oasis in the middle of the strip, I am glad that I did not have to walk through a casino every time I wanted to go out. I spent the morning seeing the new Vegas, shopping at Crystals and Bellagio and stopping for a lovely solo al fresco lunch at Mon Ami Gabi at Paris. Had a wonderful afternoon massage and spa experience at the Mandarin Oriental, then it was off to Rose.Rabbit.Lie at the Cosmopolitan for a work dinner. We met up with an old family friend who lives and works in Vegas at Hyde at Bellagio, which I really enjoyed. We had a wonderful open-air table right in front of the fountains, and I actually liked the live music. It was busy, as it was a Thursday night, but felt relatively classy for Vegas. I could have stayed there all night. Instead we met up with some work people at Hakkasan in MGM which is the club of the moment. It's been ages since I've been in a club, I think I am too old for it! We had a great table and bottles right in the heart of the action, but it was definitely a little too much for me. Spent the next day detoxing by the mellow pool at the Mandarin Oriental, followed by a fancy dinner at Twist inside the Mandarin Oriental then a flight home.

Return to Hermes: Evelyne III Bleu Electrique

Hermes Evelyne III GM in Bleu Electrique

So while the blog has been quiet as of late, I wish I could say the same about shopping, but unfortunately it's been quite the opposite. I've been on a bit of an Hermes binge; there's something incredibly addicting, albeit incredibly bad for the wallet, about Hermes. I've been searching for the perfect Evelyne for almost a year now. I wanted an everyday Hermes bag that I could use with little k, big enough for all her toddler stuff and hands free when I need to chase after her. All my Hermes bags have been sitting on the shelf since little k was born since they just aren't baby friendly. I knew I wanted to diverge from Hermes classic colors, as I already have Hermes bags in black, Etoupe (taupe) and Blue Jean. I originally had my eye on Anemone, which is a pinkish purple, but the bag never came into my local Hermes boutique. About a month ago, I spotted a Raisin Evelyne PM on the shelf and immediately brought it home; Raisin has always been one of my favorite Hermes colors as I love purples, but it is also dark enough to be a neutral. Unfortunately, when I put my stuff into it when I got home, I realized that it was way too small for all my stuff. I knew I needed a GM and just had to keep my fingers crossed that a GM Evelyne came in before my return period was up. Just as the 30 day return period was expiring, my sales associate called with an Evelyne GM in Bleu Electrique. I absolutely adore this Blue Electrique, it is just a gorgeous shade of blue, bright and saturated enough for that happy pop of color, but dark enough to go with a lot of clothes and various seasons. I think I love it even more than the Raisin. Size is perfect too, fits everything I need. It was truly meant to be. There's just something to be said about Hermes bags, the quality of the impeccable craftsmanship, the supple pebbled clemence leather, the beautiful rainbow of colors. My other Hermes bags still look brand new after over 6 years; I can't say the same about any other brand, including Chanel, Balenciaga, Proenza Schouler. Hermes is incredibly pricy but worth it to me, due to the quality, durability and longevity of the designs. I never tire of carrying Hermes bags.

I picked up this adorable little Hermes Rodeo Grigri Horse while on a quick Vegas trip with K. I don't have any interest in gambling so instead of losing my money at the tables, I put it towards this little horse, a win-win if you ask me!

Hermes Rodeo Horse PM in Anemone / Bleu Izmir

These two items were only the beginning of our October Hermes binge. K was awesome enough to queue up and go to the amazing Hermes sample sale while in NYC for a business trip. I begged him to go as I heard they had watches at the sale, and I've been looking at Hermes watches for awhile. He came home with an orange MM H Heure watch, a barenia double tour Cape Cod GM watch, as well as a bunch of enamel bangles, scarves and ties (for himself). Quite the haul. I have one more very special (non-Hermes piece) coming in the next month, but other than that, I am so banned from shopping until at least the New Year....

It's that time of year again...

My favorite time of year: the launch of the H&M Designer Collaboration. I didn't queue up before dawn as I did last year for Isabel Marant, but I managed to pick up a couple of items online from the comfort of my home as well as one piece in store after dropping little k off at preschool. I didn't go as crazy for this line as with previous collaborations, notably Isabel Marant and Lanvin, two of my favorite all time designers. I still wear pieces from those collaborations all the time. I definitely was not into any of the loud logo-d pieces of this collaboration, and my style isn't particularly sporty (unless I am actually working out). Nevertheless, I picked up a couple of pieces which are distinctively "Alexander Wang" albeit without the logos. Pics to come...

Alexander Wang x H&M

Roland Mouret for Banana Republic Review

Roland Mouret for Banana Republic colorblock One Shoulder dress, Isabel Marant Poppy pumps and Prada sunglasses

I have been a fan of Roland Mouret since he first shot to fame and one of my favorite dresses of all time that I own is from his Galaxy dress days. In fact, I remember trying on the infamous Galaxy dress at Bergdorf Goodman; gorgeous dress, but I could neither breathe nor sit down in it. I noticed his dresses again this last season at Neiman Marcus, and was intrigued when I heard he was doing a collaboration with Banana Republic. I hadn't set foot in a Banana Republic in several years, but stopped by the Third Street Promenade store the day the collaboration launched last week. This one shoulder dress was my favorite, the cut is relatively flattering and with an identifiable "Roland Mouret" silhouette and details, and I like the fun but tasteful colorblocking. It's not a perfect fit, a little too big in the rear and bunchy in the chest, but I can't really expect it to fit seamlessly. This is a size 2, probably my regular designer size these days. Size zero fit, but was a little hard to breathe in. I liked the bright pink strappy sheath dress online (the only style dress which struck me as identifiably Roland Mouret), but the bunchiness with the darts in the chest area is exacerbated with the lighter colors like the pink. The sheath dress runs a little larger, I am definitely a size 0 in that dress. Not really a fan of any of the other styles in the collaboration; they seemed more Banana Republic and less Roland Mouret. I wish the dress had been released earlier before the series of weddings that we attended this summer; I had been shopping endlessly for a wedding appropriate dress before settling on a lovely but plain blue Chloe dress, but this dress would have fit the bill quite nicely (at a far more reasonable price).

Father's Day Outfit: Chiffon and Studs

Etoile Isabel Marant Zaggy dress, pink Valentino Rockstud kitten heels and Prada sunglasses

We had a lovely Father's Day dinner in West LA at Tokyo Kalbi, which is one of our favorite Japanese / Korean style bbq places; I like it even more than the traditional Korean bbq we usually have in Koreatown. We had a pretty ideal day today, starting with breakfast on the patio by the pool (blueberry pancakes from scratch, chicken apple sausages, cheesy scrambled eggs, smoothies), a bike ride to the ocean and back, lunch at the Brentwood Country Mart, the requisite walk around the neighborhood with the dog and finally dinner at Tokyo Kalbi. Yes, we eat a lot. I really love these Valentino rockstuds; I think they will go with a lot of my wardrobe, including this new-ish Etoile Isabel Marant Zaggy dress that I bought at the latest Barney's sale. I like this dress a lot too and have been following it all season; it's an easy daytime casual dress that I've already worn a few times.

Rockstuds: Go Kings Go

Pink Valentino Rockstud Pumps, Isabel Marant x H&M ruffled skirt, Prada sunglasses

Congrats to the 2014 Stanley Cup champs, the Los Angeles Kings! They have a special place in my heart as I will always associate their last championship win a few years ago with the arrival of little k. Perfect time to break out my new Valentino Rockstuds. Love these shoes: the strappiness, the shiny studs, the deep pink color; definitely very different from anything else I own. I'm usually in some sort of Isabel Marant boots or sneakers, but needed something just a little dressier for going out, especially in the summer. The mid height kitten heel is quite comfortable; I just can't wear high heels anymore. Wore some Christian Louboutin Prive heels to dinner last night and my feet were killing me by the end of the night, even though I spent most of it sitting down. Love the pink color of the Rockstuds, a good pop of color for a neutral outfit like this one but also matches a lot of my more colorful clothes. I really lucked out with these shoes; got an amazing deal on them from Saks, plus free overnight shipping, score!

Ruffles, Stripes and Studs

Etoile Isabel Marant Sonia blouse in black, Cooper jeans in fuchsia and Edris sandals

This is one of my favorite sale pickups of the season: the Etoile Isabel Marant Sonia top in black. I've wanted this top all season long and have been patiently waiting for it to go on sale, and luckily tracked it down at a local LA boutique; most places sold out of it long ago. I also got the ecru version on sale from Barneys, but debating whether or not to keep it as the black is a lot more versatile. It's such a great blouse though, I might just end up keeping both (especially since they were both on sale). As usual, I've done way too much damage this sale season already: in addition to the Sonia top in black and ecru, also bought the Zaggy dress in blue, the Gustave shorts, Bela top and Charlotte Olympia Kitty flats shown here, a Ferragamo wallet, and possibly Valentino Rockstud sandals. Yikes! Bought and returned a couple of Alexander Wang pieces that just didn't fit.