Tag: love

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Mani Monday – Amour Edition

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“What do you hope to accomplish in the next year?” asks the tall Dutch man I met earlier in the trip.

“Buy a house.  Get Married.” I respond with confidence even though I don’t even have a boyfriend.

“Why will you marry?” he asks.

“For love.” I respond without even thinking.

He smiles.  “How American.”

“What do you mean?  Why did you marry?” I ask.

“For tax reasons.  I am Dutch and my wife gets a lot out of it.  I love her and our son, but it is not a reason for marriage.”

I take a sip of my beer and turn to the Englishman in the group.

“Don’t ask me,  I am divorced.” he says with a laugh.

It was June 2001.  I was in Portugal traveling alone for a few days before meeting friends for a wedding in England.  I kept running into these two and we ended up getting a drink for my birthday and there was some dancing.

Less than seven years later I did marry for love.

The manicure and nail art are by MiniLuxe.

Items in the photos include:

Striped Kicks

Amour tee

New York Sweatshirt (the pink LOVE version is also cute)

Cork Sandals (so comfy!)

Green Jungle Cat Print Blouse

Blue and White Floral Blouse

Happy Monday!

XO,

JAE

essie-nailart-rainbow-santamonica

Mani Monday – Love is Love Edition

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Love is Love.  It’s pride month and I love seeing rainbows everywhere.  Rainbows are the most colorful, cheerful expression of stripes and the fact that that all the colors are represented makes me feel balanced looking at them.  There are so many cute sweaters, sweatshirts, bags, and shoes that I have on my list right now (below).  Rainbows just lift my mood and make me smile.  I also smile when I think about my son growing up in a more inclusive and open world.  LOVE is LOVE.

The manicure and nail art are by Olive & June.  The color is “Perfectly Poised” by Essie Gel Couture.

A few of my favorite rainbow items:

Rainbow Cuff

Striped Rainbow Tote

Navy Rainbow Clutch

Rainbow Sweater

Rainbow Slides

Rainbow Cardigan

Rainbow Sneakers

Rainbow Slides

Items featured in the photos include:

Dotted Chambray Pants

Rainbow Top

Orange Driving Shoes

Striped Tank

Woven Tote Bag

Hat

Tibi Floral Top (on sale!)

Happy Monday!

XO,

JAE

Love and a Jean Jacket

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“You were wearing a jean jacket when I met you. It was your signature look.  Your hair was much longer.” said my husband as we bump into each other in our kitchen.

“That’s right I had them in a few colors.  Was I wearing denim or colored denim?” I replied.

“The first date was denim and then you continued to wear different colors.”  I do remember him commenting that I had a lot of little jackets and a lot of shoes.  I think his MBA brain was calculating what I must have spent on clothes (more than I do now actually) and wondering if this would be a good investment.

Here we are almost twelve years later, and I have been wrestling with how to end my shopping detox.  This denim jacket was technically a gift from by husband for Valentine’s Day.  He returned one of the jeans I picked up for him (that I mentioned here) which were subject to a store credit and insisted I get the jacket.  I have been searching for the perfect jean jacket for a while.  I have had a couple from J. Crew that I love like this and this, but I am 5’9 and they are just a tad short with certain looks. I also like this one from Madewell.

So now I have to ponder, if I have broken the detox with his gift?  I feel a certain pressure to make this first purchase count.  As I have mentioned, I am coveting this bag and a few others have joined the short list like this one and this one.  In the meantime I am pulling out a few bags from my closet again.  From a financial perspective not buying a bunch of little stuff to then make an investment in a bag may or may not pencil out, but in terms of being more conscious of my purchases it does.

I have created a new uniform with my new jean jacket.  Add stripes, shoes and a scarf and voila.  The uniform has taken me to all kinds of events this past week.

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Jean Jacket

Saint James Striped Shirt

Hermes Scarf (similar here, here and here)

Camo Clutch (also in this fun stripe)

Orange Driving Shoes

AG Navy Jeans (also here)

Sunglasses (similar here and here)

A couple of other options that I wore last week.

Pink Sunglasses (similar here,  here and here)

Pink Striped Shirt (similar here )

Hermes Twilly (similar here)

Pink Loafers (similar here and here)

Leopard Flats (similar here and here)

Orange Hermes Twilly (similar here and here)

Happy Styling!

XO,

JAE

jcrew-postcard-stripes-fllowerchild

Love and Stripes

Published on by thenavyleopard2 Comments

Love, stripes and a birthday weekend lunch with my mom at Flower Child.   I was happy to have my favorite kale salad with salmon before all the celebrating and cake eating commenced.  It was perfect June weather and just right for a cotton sweater and skirt.  I love this striped sweater with patches.

 

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J. Crew Striped Sweater

J. Crew Postcard Pouch

J. Crew Skirt (similar here)

J. Crew Sunglasses

J. Crew Shoes (older style these and these would look great)

Lipstick Queen Chinatown Glossy Pencil in Pink Bluff

Happy Shopping!

XO,

JAE

jcrew-gaia

Peace, Love and a Bag that Does Good

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A bag that is stylish and does good?  One of each, please.  GAIA (which refers to the Goddess of the Earth in Greek Mythology) was founded in 2009.  They create handcrafted accessories by female refugee artisans.  This gingham pom-pom bag was inspired by Moroccan pouches.  Each pom-pom is handmade.  It comes with a hand signed hang tag and is available in three colors.   I also picked up the pom-pom hair tie.  Check out the tassel earrings as well.  You can read about how Jenna Lyons first learned about GAIA and how the bags, hair ties and tassel earrings ended up in the in J. Crew stores here.  Check out all the GAIA for J. Crew offerings here.

I styled the bag with a dress that is the same cut as my favorite from last year with a lace -up neckline  instead of a collar.  Take a look at how I styled last year’s dresses in: Chambray, Sunset and Sequins, Coral and stripes, and One-Step Gingham.

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J. Crew Lace Up Shirt Dress

GAIA for J. Crew Bag

J. Crew Sandals (similar here)

Happy Shopping!

XO,

JAE

Mani Monday – Heart Edition

Published on by thenavyleopard2 Comments

Heart on your sleeve? How about heart on your ring finger? My ninth wedding anniversary is this month. Mercury is in retrograde. Spring break and spring fever have brought a new energy (sass) to my seven year old. Some things make you feel the love while some things call on you to show more of the heart’s elixir , Regardless, more love and compassion are always a good thing.

The manicure and nail art are by Olive & June.  The color is “Organdi” by Chanel.

Items in the photos:

Fitbit Flex 2 in navyFitbit Flex 2 in navy

J. Crew Embroidered Tie-Neck top in Indian Voile

Theory Tweed Jacket

New Balance x J. Crew Star-print Jacket (on sale!)

New Balance x J. Crew Striped In-Transit Pullover

Happy Monday!

XO.

JAE

Heels, Fire and Love

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This statement tee is not joking around.  I love the pop of red. It works perfectly with the Love Wall in Venice, CA.   I styled it with a neon pink featherweight cashmere sweater, watermelon pouch, Lookout high rise jeans, New Balance kicks and Ryan Sunglasses – all from J.Crew.

jcrew-watermelons-heelsonfire-newbalancejcrew newalance heels on fire lovewalljcrew newalance heels on fire lovewall1jcrew newalance heels on fire lovewall 3jcrew newalance heels on fire flatlay

J. Crew Heels on Fire T-Shirt

J. Crew Ryan Sunglasses

J. Crew Italian Featherweight Cashmere Sweater

J. Crew Watermelon Pouch

J. Crew Lookout High-Rise Jeans

New Balance for J. Crew Kicks

Chanel Rouge Double Intensite Ultra Wear Lip Color in Sensual Rose

Happy Shopping!

XO,

JAE

jcrew-denim-drakes-maisondetalons

Peace, Love and Denim

Published on by thenavyleopard1 Comment

My love of denim and chambray is no secret.  I have lost count of the number of times I have worn my J. Crew Western Chambray shirt that I bought two years ago (and it still looks great).  J. Crew just came out with a new Western Chambray Shirt with snaps in a vintage indigo wash and I knew immediately it was a must have.  I also picked up another pair of Lookout high rise jeans.  I doubled down on denim for lunch with my mom at Flower Child in Del Mar.  I love the bright decor and the menu options make it easy for me to stick to my new regime.

I styled my new denim pieces with fringe boots by Maison de Talons, J. Crew Jane sunglasses, a J. Crew monogrammed pouch and a J. Crew bandana in a Drake’s print.

Here are three more looks with my other Western Chambray Shirt (which is on sale!) : Denim on Denim, Falling into Neutral, and Beam Me Up.

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J. Crew Western Chambray Shirt

J. Crew Lookout High Rise Jean in Fairoaks Wash

J. Crew Drake’s Print Bandana

J. Crew Medium Pouch in Bright Flamingo with Monogram

Maison de Talons Fringe Boots (on sale plus 60%!) similar here with wedge heel (also on sale)

J. Crew Jane Sunglasses (on sale!)

Chanel Rouge Double Intensite Ultra Wear Lip Color in Darling Pink

Happy Shopping!

XO,

JAE