The City Sage

Giveaway: Aircraft Scentsticks

I've been blogging this week over at the Aircraft Scentsticks Facebook page. It's been fun thinking about how fragrance, mood, color, and decor all combine to create different effects--and how we can choose varying scents depending on the occasion to control our environment. Now the kind folks at ScentSticks are giving one reader a big box of ScentSticks to try at home!

Funny story: when I first started working with AirCraft, they sent me some goodies to test out for myself, but accidentally mailed them to Crystal's address. The mistake was easily remedied, a second package was mailed to me, but darned if Crystal hadn't set up that first vase of fragrance in her entryway when last I visted her. A testament to the power of these scenty-lovelies!

How to enter? Just like the ScentSticks Facebook page, leave a comment here, and you'll be placed in the running!

Spring Fashion and Beauty Inspiration: Sweet Tomboy

One day you're on a plane to Atlanta with no wifi and access only to the images you have on your hardrive. And you start thinking about springtime in Georgia, when the magnolias are in bloom and the girls dress like Sloane Peterson with their faded jeans rolled to just below their knees. And magically, you have just the photos you need to create that very look. Meant to be! 

Image credits: 1. Lucky Magazine, March 2010. 2. (P.S. Who got the pop culture reference there? Anyone? Anyone?)  

Get Dressed: How to Wear Leather Shorts

Last week I introduced the first of my style posts with the girls from TwentyThirtyForty.net. They visted from Chicago and helped me demystify some of those 'how do I wear this' pieces in my wardrobe. I've been bedeviled by pair of 3.1 Phillip Lim leather shorts that I picked up at Feature Boutique a while back. Buttery soft but tough to style, they've barely seen the light of day!

Well. Arlene and Brandon wasted no time getting me into these babies. We gave them the Annie Hall treatment to tone down the inherent 'yow!' factor (they are, admittedly, a pair of black leather shorts). A crew-neck sweater---this one is by Line Knitwear and I'm obsessed--and a pair of mannish yet elegant tuxedo flats walk the line between refined, playful, and badass.  

Then remained the question of 'What to do while wearing a pair of leather shorts?' I decided to let my hat lead the way in this case. A little bit Scott Joplin plus a smidge gold rush saloon, this topper suggested that a ragtime serenade was required. Sure my skills were a bit rusty, but attitude makes up for many a technical deficiency, and hat + leather shorts = attitude in spades!

Photos: Nathan Michael. Hair and Makeup: The Makeup Dolls. Styling: TwentyThirtyForty.net

Guest Blogging: Aircraft ScentSticks

Happy Tuesday! A fun announcement: I'm blogging all week at Aircraft ScentSticks, joining such past guest bloggers as Erin from Design for Mankind. I'll be exploring the link between scent, color, and the home. For more details, you can 'like' the page here, check out the Aircraft Scentsticks website, and try not to crave Vanilla French Toast while looking at the image above! 

Images: 1. unknown, 2, 3.

Just Launched: ClubMonaco.com Online Shopping!

Club Monaco. It's like they're in my head. Since high school they've been my go-to for high quality pieces that feel both on-trend yet timeless. Soft, sexy cashmere sweaters. The perfect pant. Dresses that I can wear out at night and then pair with tights for a work meeting the next day. And at last. The moment has arrived. Clubmonaco.com now has online shopping!

You can get a sneak peek of the newly shoppable site by becoming a fan of Club Monaco on Facebook--if you're not already. (I totally was. Stalker alert.) One great feature of the new site? I love the styling ideas--outfit pairings that give me inspiration for how to wear items in the collection with similar pieces already in my own wardrobe. I've spent way to much time on the website this morning already!

Bay Area Artist Retreat and Editorial Workshop with Feather Love

I make no secret of my adoration for Feather Love Photography and for Noa Azoulay-Sclater, the genius behind the brand (yup, used the 'G' word). So when Noa asked me to participate in her April 18-19 Bay Area retreat--the latest in her series of wildly successful Artist Workshops--I didn't skip a beat. Two days at a beach house in Pacifica? Fully catered? With Noa and special guests? Heck yes. 

This 2-Day retreat is a phenomenal opportunity for photographers at any stage in their career; Noa shares so much transformative wisdom both on the business and the creative aspects of the industry. But we didn't want only photographers to be able to benefit from this event. So we've created a 1-Day pass for all to partake of--and the fabulous Erin from Apartment 34 is joining in too. (PINCH. ME.)

It's going to be an incredible day. For $350 join us in Pacifica on April 19. I'll be speaking in the morning. We'll feast on brunch (My fave! Don't judge the speed with which I devour scones.) Then we'll hit the set of an actual Rue shoot for which Erin is styling, Noa is snapping, and I'm counting my blessings. If you're in the area, we'd love to see you there--so click that handy button to join us now! 

 

Giveaway: Floral Design School with Flour LA

Last winter I had SO much fun working with Carly at the Southern California floral studio Flour LA to come up with this beautiful DIY arrangment for Rue. We wanted something that felt festive but non-denominational--and I'm thrilled to see that it still feels relevant today, four months later! Swap a few of the blossoms for more seasonal ones and you're golden (Or peach! Or periwinkle! Ha!)

Now, Carly and Flour LA are launching a Floral Design School. And they're offering one lucky reader a spot in one of the classes! The class will be taking place in Culver City, and there are a few different levels available, so anyone in the SoCal area is welcome to enter. Just leave a comment below! And I'm going to tap Carly for future content here on floral design so we can ALL benefit--stay tuned! xo

Photos: Teri Lyn Fisher. Styling: Anne Sage. Floral Design: Carly Cylinder, Flour LA. Also check out the how-to on the cocktail that was inspired by this image collage!

Exclusive Rue Sneak Peak: Privet House at Target Collection

Raise your hand if: you and your bestie (or mom, sister, auntie, cousin) have daydreamed about opening a shop together. One that you stock with finds from all over the world, exactly to your liking. One to which you welcome friends and fill with joy and love each season. Well, that's exactly what Richard Lambertson and Suzanne Cassano did with Privet House in Warren, Connecticut. DREAM JOB!!

Now here's the really exciting part. Richard and Suzanne have partnered with Target to bring their curated aesthetic and 'found' sensibility to all of us. The Privet House at Target collection hits stores next month--think tableware, garden goodies and more--and we've got a preview video up on the Rue Facebook site. Keep your eyes peeled for further peeks in coming weeks!  

Also: Help! I'll be interviewing Suzanne and Richard for Rue and I need your assistance thinking up questions. What do you want to know from these two style gurus? Leave your question for them in the comments and you might see it asked on air! Could be anything, from 'what are your favorite one-of-a-kind shopping sources' to 'crunchy or creamy peanut butter'?

Get Dressed: Denim and Lace with TwentyThirtyForty

One day last January I welcomed three out-of-town friends to my home: style experts Arlene and Brandon of Chicago fashion outpost TwentyThirtyForty.net, and photographer extraordinaire Nathan Michael. The former rooted through my wardrobe and made outfits from the clothing that had been boggling me. The latter documented the process. Not only did I learn a lot, I had way too much fun! 

First up? A denim vest I'd made by cutting the arms from an old jacket. Such a good idea at the time, yet I couldn't move past my old associations of denim vests and a particular episode of Seinfeld. Also a closet conundrum that the TwentyThirtyForty girls helped me solve was this Tibi skirt that I'd purchased last fall under the certainty I'd wear it into the ground, but I hadn't even taken the tags off it!

We paired the troublesome items together; the laid-back air of the vest offset the skirt's potential for fussiness, while the ladylike lines of the skirt brought the vest back from Hippiesville. It was just the meeting in the middle that I needed, since it was the opposing extremes of the two individual pieces that had been throwing me off. A few accessories to tie it together and I was good to go! Genius, no?   

Also: A HUGE thanks to The Make-Up Dolls for my hair and make-up in these photos. La-la-loved working with them. I have two more looks from this day of styling and shooting to come. Stay tuned later this month! 

Neutral Pattern Perfection: DwellStudio Spring 2012

This post falls into the category of 'They Can Do No Wrong'. The 'they' in question is DwellStudio, and the case in point is their Spring 2012 collection of furniture, decor, fabric, and other assorted offerings for the home. The catalog arrived in my mailbox last Saturday and I've been reverently turning its pages ever since, admiring not only the individual pieces but the styling, the vibe, the whole shebang!

Not sure what I like best, so I'll toss it all on the table. Graphic patterns that don't make me want to vomit with motion sickness. Midcentury-inspired styling that doesn't feel like we've stepped onto the set of a Cold War biopic. Soft, sophisticated palettes I can get behind. Need I say more? ('Cause I could, but I'd exceed my own 'maximum four lines of text per image' rule!) How bout you just see for yourself?

Images: Patterns and Interiors, DwellStudio. Fashion 1, 2.