The Round-Up

We made it.  Friday.  Yes.  Done.  AND the winner of the bomb giveaway is listed at the bottom of this post…!

Some “tings” I’ve been obsessing over lately, in no meaningful order…

I finally abandoned Proactiv face wash (see ya, teenage years — probably appropriate as I am in my late-20s…) for Soap + Glory’s face wash.  Ob.sessed.  I told you awhile ago that I thought I’d be all “adult” and switch to Laura Mercier’s beautifully packaged cleansing series, but it just wasn’t right for me (read: my first breakout since I was 13 — LITERALLY.  Cue panic.) and I instantly ran back to my loyal Proactiv.  Then I discovered Soap + Glory’s face wash through a sample I received.  Done deal.  First, I LOVE the soapy, old-school scent.  I know some people are sensitive to fragrance, but the smell makes me feel so fresh and so clean, clean (*Outkast reference).  Second, it’s inexpensive!  (Well, compared to cosmetic line analogs.)  $16 for a big tube that lasts forevs.  And finally, it’s kept my skin clean and blemish-free for weeks now.  So: ignore the teeny-bopper packaging (it reminds me of Clearasil or something) and do it.

After taking Alaina K.’s home tour in The Everygirl, I sorta kinda wished I had a space that I could decorate in the girliest of girly ways.  Sorry, Mr. Magpie.  (Do you love her apartment?!  I’m dying over how she redesigned the bathroom.  Black, white, gold.  Bam.)  One decorating influence that’s new-to-me and that I saw in some of her styling (and that of other well-appointed homes) is the Moroccan-inspired touch.  I’d love, for example, some of these block-printed pillows (ABC Home, $140), or this punchy woven rug (Dash + Albert, $94+ depending on size):

I want.  And I want in all pink and purple colors.

Straightforward, but this tee is on sale for $35, plus 30% off.  Love the colors.  And, you know, I love me some stripes.  Pair with the perfect beachy necklace (Suzanna Dai, $425) and glossy gold sandals ($69):

Aaaand a little straw clutch (I own this in green and looooove — $88):

I don’t know if it’s because I just booked a trip to my parents’ winter home in FL, but I’m having a minor love affair with all things palm right now…

{Gold earrings: $2,500, Scully + Scully; coral top: $105, Scotch + Soda; “Pina Colada” sandal: $995, Aquazzura; palm clutch: $460, Lizzie Fortunato}

Random, but I’m smitten with these pencils ($12/set), adorned with cute phrases/sayings on the sides.  Total indulgence, but I kind of want to snap them all up and display them on my desktop in two clusters in two separate pen cups.

Oh, Paris.  Tu me manques.  I have been dreaming of a trip to my favorite city in the universe for the past few months in particular, so I’ve been on a hunt for some artwork that would fill the void.  I feel like a lot of “Paris” artwork is super-cheesy — great, another Eiffel tower sketch.  It’s almost like a touristy sub-genre in the art field.  Then I found the Paris Print Shop, which I loved because the photography sets out to capture the nooks and crannies of the city rather than the big tourist attractions, and the shop suggests that you group your artwork by color, which makes the entire operation seem a bit more sophisticated.  I very seriously contemplated buying a group of four or eight for the wall of our guest room, and was leaning towards the mint/aqua collection given the colors in our bedding.  (I ended up deciding to go with a set of vintage Audubon bird prints that I had framed; I knew Mr. Magpie would prefer them and they lent the room a much-needed “vintage” flair.)  Still, I’m hemming and hawing over where I could squeeze these into our apartment and what color I might go with.  (I’ve been thinking about reupholstering our kitchen stools with this Rubie Green fabric, so maybe the yellow would look lovely on the wall behind them?)

Oh, swoon.

So, I mentioned my fixation with palm prints at the moment, and this leaf-print blazer (Joie, $298) is no exception.  Die.  I’d wear it over a little white dress or maybe with white skinnies, some linen-and-leather wedges ($139), and this BANANAS OUT OF CONTROL AMAZING necklace ($2,485…dream on):

Aaand finish with this adorable wicker/cane box clutch (Charlotte Olympia, $1,120):

I believe I may have already waxed poetic about this, but I snapped up Nars’ Roman Holiday lipstick ($26) and it is the PERFECT everyday spring shade.  Natural but pretty.

And that about does it, my love bugs.  Except for…DRUMROLL, PLEASE!  The winner of my giveaway!  Let me just say that I l.o.v.e.d. reading all of your responses / what you’d wear things with.  You are such a chic bunch of chicas.  The winner is: SHANA!  (She plans to wear it with the exact dress that Kate Middleton owns from ASOS.)  Shana, please email me at [email protected] so we can arrange shipping.

A biggggg thanks to Dawn B. for arranging this generous giveaway!