Mad props to Francesca for pointing out the epic Zaftique sale.  It won’t surprise any of you that I typically think Zaftique is (checks to see if Zaftique is an advertiser…wait, no I’m not, too lazy. Plus I don’t care. ANYWAY)  I typically think Zaftique is just one big velvet bell-sleeved Festival of No. However there are some super cute pieces that could work well for your transitional wardrobe this fall, so why not take advantage of the sale to try them out?

For example, how cute would this button-detail pencil skirt be with any of the cashmere sweaters you picked up for next-to-nothing last season? If you are one of our tow-headed sisters you owe it to yourself and to the world to pair this skirt with a camel cashmere sweater, pearls and a substantial heel and give us the full metal Hitchcock Blonde.  Just promise me no clompy mary janes; “Naughty Librarian” is trite trite trite.

For our darker-tressed girls –my fine self included– and those who are particularly pear, I’m digging this (90% off?!) skirt with a black cashmere sweater.  Just remember, if you’re wearing a statement skirt, you need to be careful about what else you have going on.

You don’t want to look like a clown car, but you do want to draw attention to your face so it’s not all skirt all the time. Think simple top with big drippy earrings or a say-something brooch. You want to build length so if you insist on wearing a necklace with this, go all out Chanel with long ropes of pearls.

And finally, I hate to be your mean mom who pokes you in the back and tells you to stand up straight, but fall-weight skirts demand heels or boots. Sorry, they do. It’s about balance and proportion. Now get that hair out of your face, put on some lipstick and give me some grandchildren!

Hey everybody, guess what? It’s September! Yes! Which means it’s fall! Okay, not technically since the first day of autumn isn’t for another 20 days, and not temperately since the mercury here in Texas is going to be hovering around 100 for the rest of the week at least AND WHY YES IT IS HOT ENOUGH FOR ME THANKS FOR ASKING OVER AND OVER AND OVER UNTIL I WANT TO DIE BECAUSE APPARENTLY I’M THE ONLY ONE WHO KNEW IT GETS HOT IN TEXAS IN THE SUMMER, but in my mind?

Oh yeah, it’s fall.

In celebration I’ve got some lovely green transitional pieces that are perfect now and will carry you through fall, starting with this cute croc clutch from Lodis Catalon.

Love. This. Bag. It reminds me of my vintage emerald green tegu lizard bag I know and love (and which unfortunately deposits color as I discovered the day I wore it with a floor-length white linen dress. If that lizard hadn’t been dead since the New Deal, I would have killed it right there) and it’s on super sale, check it out.

Now, I’m not a jeans girl, but these would be prosh with dark denim for just a little splash of color. They’ve got such a back-to-school feel. Love. Also? Marked 45% off at Endless. It costs more to dry clean my scarf.

I went back and forth on these ankle straps from FLY London (actually made in Portugal) that are on big fat sale. I love the heel, but are they too musical theater? I say no. Wear them now as is, and pair them with tights come the the cooler weather. Yeah, I know you’re not all with me on that one, especially not with colored tights but if you’ve got the gams and make sure your skirt isn’t too short…well, why not?

What’s that sound? Oh right, that’s me pushing your envelope.

I don’t support cropped pants because if God wanted us to wear pants that didn’t cover our ankles he wouldn’t have invented fire ants. BUT if you insist on doing cropped pants, take a page from Style-Spy and her bubble Fendis and wear them with a statement shoe. I like these from ABS by Allen Schwartz on sale for well under 100 smackeroos.

As a personal note, if you scroll down that page a little, the next post you see features Stella, my beloved Cadillac convertible. Awww.

If you’ve been reading my weekend articles here, or if you know anything of my life outside of blogging, then you know I’m a bit of a foodie. You know I’m a baker. You know that I think baked foods are utterly superfantastic. You know I love to read and write and think about baking. Why then was I left to stumble in darkness until I ran across Cakespy on my lonesome?

Nobody told me about this fabulous blog and its good works in making cake safe and fun again. Nobody even hinted that there was someone out there doing the good work of promoting deliciousness as an end unto itself.

I can only assume I didn’t know because none of you knew about it, either.

Now that I know, I will selflessly share.

This article was my introduction, and I will hold it in my heart forever. As someone who invariably starts the day after Thanksgiving with a big slice of pumpkin pie, this article spoke volumes to me. It takes the old philosphy of ‘life is uncertain, eat dessert first’ to eleven. It’s ‘life is uncertain, eat dessert first thing in the morning once in a while’ and that makes me smile.

It was quickly followed by this enlightening article. I don’t think I’ve enjoyed reading about a scientific experiment so much since I discovered this site.

Seriously, if you love cake, you should definitely know about Cakespy. Drop on by and read a few articles. You’ll be glad you did.

Can I just tell you how cute this dress is on? This dress is SO cute on, I can barely stand it. Okay also technically I can barely stand because I was foolish enough to wear the same Delman Mary Jane heels two days in a row and spent much of last night (and a not-insignificant part of the early morning) sampling my friend Aaron’s artisanal infused vodkas and letting a dear photog friend take pictures of my feet.

What, that’s not weird is it?

Anyway, not only is this little charmeuse number just perfect for brunchy-lunchy fun, its balloon sleeves and very subtle empire waist (they have it pinned on the model, I promise you) makes it flattering on pears AND our oft-neglected apples.

It’s available in three colors but I’m wearing the “Deep Ocean” which is a deep London blue, a bit darker and more intense than the photo.

The best part? Get this little lovely for as low as FIFTEEN DOLLARS (sizes 26 – 32 are a bit more) when you use coupon code RD12917 and get 50% off your most expensive item!

So I’m getting ready to batten down my hatches in preparation for Hurricane Dolly, so this week’s Big Question is going to be short and sweet. Since I was running late today (Just in case you were wondering “I’m sorry I’m late, the firemen were washing their truck” does NOT count as an excused tardy) today I want to know:

What is your best/most original/absolute worst excuse for being late?

Extra super bonus points if it’s actually true!

My little brother, who is nearly perfect in every way (except for that time he showed up to our Grandparent’s 60th Wedding Anniversary wearing a bifurcated goatee and –brace yourselves– rented vinyl  mock-spats)  has the most hatefully beautiful eyelashes in the history of the whole damn world and it makes me want to kick him until my toes cave in.

Anyway, since apparently it’s ” illegal” and “creepy” to harvest other people’s eyelashes I’ve searched high and low for a natural-looking mascara that won’t clump or make me look over done.

Enter Ardell LashMagic Blending Mascara available for $4.99 at Walgreens.com. Originally designed to make false lashes make more natural (and it does, but I use it sans falsies) it’s the first mascara I’ve ever used that absolutely refuses to clump or turn all spidery on my face. It’s brilliant, cheap and incredibly good at its job.

Frankly it’s like looking in a mirror.

I don’t remember much about my first 24 hours in England, it was a precious few hours of consciousness between disembarking at the Canterbury East station and passing out stone drunk in a nunnery bunk bed at 11 in the morning (it’s a long story involving an embarrassingly small quantity of farmhouse cider, a homeless Welshman named Tom and the Dean of Canterbury Cathedral, who is a lovely man and has the softest hands of anyone I’ve ever met.)

What I DO remember was standing on a bridge and having my neck brushed by these feathery white star-shaped flowers and breathing in the heavily scented air in absolute and only slightly medicated delight.

Today’s cheap thrill is Belvoir Fruit Farms Elderflower Pressé. It is gorgeous, gorgeous stuff. Available at most World Markets for $4 for 750mL, it’s something along the lines of an Italian soda’s more delicate sister, with gently sparkling bubbles and a fragile floral sweetness that transports me straight to that Green and Pleasant Land. It’s completely natural, no high fructose nastiness or that sort of thing and the best part is there’s no passport –or Welshman– required.