Don't Be So Cold Girl

I have been buying jackets for the Sway stores for years now.  When it comes time to bring some warmth to our ladies at an affordable price I head straight to talk to the people at BB Dakota.

BB Dakota knows not just how to make a cozy jacket, but also how to make it irresistible and affordable.

Here is a round-up of Swaychic.com's finest jackets of the season, courtesy of BB Dakota:

This Stripe Bottom Jacket is super cozy and warm.  Love the length too.

Pair this Contrast Collar jacket with almost anything for a chic look

We love the classic style of this Tie Waist Jacket

Looking for some warmth this Fall?  Head over to swaychic.com to check out these, and tons of other Fall Styles.

Vacation (All I Ever Wanted)

Every now and again it is a dang nice thing to treat yourself to a small get away.  Something to take your mind of of your day to day life and to add a little excitement to your year.  (On a fashion note, Vacations are also excellent excuses to buy new clothes and dress up.)

A few weeks back I needed a break so I got my lady friends together and we headed north to San Louis Obiso (SLO, as the locals say.)
Why SLO? Well I happened  upon a place, no, a miracle rather, a few months ago.  This miracle is called the Madonna Inn.  If you haven't heard of it yet, you will thank me by the end of this post.

Madona Inn's hotel bar.  The bartender was wearing a piano key neck tie and made us a German Chocolate Cake Martini

The Madonna Inn is quite possibly the greatest place on earth.  It is a kitschy feast of imagination and design.   Keeping in the wonder of the place my friends and I all dressed up (our walls were glitter wallpaper, so what choice did we have really?).  We also played a new game I invented called "Nailed It"- this requires getting Dollar Store stick-on 1" nails and seeing who can keep all them on the longest.

Yes, we had a 70's style oversize stone fireplace

Needless to say I think we scared half the town of SLO.  Running around all dolled up with crazy long nails, half on half off our finger tips.

In our surf around town we spotted this awesome cafe also called Kreuzberg, CA.  It was huge.  I think they must have knocked down one of the walls because the cafe I went into could have been a middle school gymnasium- which is not what you would expect for a cozy hip cafe.  Aside from a great variety of vegan treats, they had my heart at upside down antique lamps as light fixtures.

Why are you so far away, awesome cafe?

Venture up north one hour and you will find yourself at Hearst Castle.  For a little more than 20 bucks they will take you on a tour of the place. Bonus: The bus ride up to the castle includes an audio tour done by my favorite former mustachioed man- Alex Trebek (Fun Fact : his real name is George)

The indoor pool alone made me want to put my morals aside and marry an old rich man- sadly Mr. George "Alex"Trebek is off the market

So if you are looking for cool vacation spots to check out or find yourself in central CA- don't overlook the amazingness that exists.  Looking for some hot items to wear on your trip?  Look at this website.  Heading to the Madonna Inn?  You will need these Can't get any time off?  Give yourself 2 hours and look at this website.  You're welcome!

Get Your Sweater On....

Now everyone has their favorite sweater.  Their go to piece that they can throw on when there is a little tiny cold weather fairy pinching your skin (that is how it works, right?)

My favorite sweater has been in my closet since I was 16.  Not saying hold old I am, but if this sweater and I were married for as long as I have had it around, we would be expecting a wonderful Tin gift from our friends in honor of our anniversary this year.

My lovely was bought at a thrift store.  It has ribbons woven into the front and is the most perfect shade of Lagoon Blue.

Pardon the crude Ipad photo- I left the camera at home.

I wore it today and it got me thinking about girls' love affair with autumn and clothes.

Autumn? More like Aut-some.
There is something about the world's exact distance and tilt from the sun that occurs for roughly 91 days each year that makes people happy.

If Fall was a guy I'd bet his name would be Luke or Blake. And I'd marry him.

Here is Luke-Blake, picking me up on September 23rd. Right on time for our 3 month date!

One of multiple, multiple, multiple reasons I love Fall is because I also love clothes.  And Fashion and Fall got together like ramma lamma lamma ka dinga da dinga dong (remembered forever as shoo-bop sha whada whadda yippidy boom da boom...respectively.)

My favorite Fall Fashion items are sweaters.  They keep you warm and looking fresh.  You can never have enough of them because they are a true necessity, and variety is the spice of life.

So if you yourself have a favorite sweater- give it the props it deserves. It may stay hidden in your closet most of the year, but when the temperature drops it makes its way to the front of your closet and back into your heart.

Don't have a favorite sweater, or looking for a new one to add to your collection? 

Click below to see our selection of this season's must have knits.

A Saturday at The March Aux Puces

Sway (the actually physical stores) are now bringing their flavor down my way and opening their doors to Southern California, which brings me great joy.

I have opened a few Sway stores in my time and love to furnish and decorate them more than words can express.

I like the idea that being in a Sway store should be more than just a "pop into a boutique with some cute clothes" and more of a "Controlled Sensory Explosion" (Scared?......you should be.)

We want to inspire and make you feel happy.  What is the point of having  some square feet if you can't beautify it (or "Swayify" it, as I like to say) as much as humanly possible?

I have hated the term "flea market" since I first heard of it.  It makes my skin itch.
So after looking for other terms, aside from the obvious Swap Meet, I decided the direct French translation, The March Aux Puces, sounds a little bit more appropriate.  The French can make anything sound beautiful and awesome, and that is exactly what flea markets are, beautiful and awesome.


So The March Aux Puces is a must for getting our Sway Store looking amazing. Full of so much character and wonderful things to look at, I could spend the whole day perusing the outdoor market (plus the vintage clothes- my OH my)


I brought my camera to share with you my wonderful views.

I have a slight obsession with needlepoint art

 I <3 florescent green glass. PS been seeing a lot of this color in clothes for spring- I'm excited.

My boss would kill me if I put this in a store.  But this horse is so chill!

I don't know what is happening here, but I think that's why I love it so much.

Um, treats!

Every store needs just the right amount of disco and a gallon of kitsch

 

Want this on my desk to keep me motivated

Unfortunately we can't have it all.  But we did find this awesome stadium seating bench that will work well for some sitting space:

Want to paint this something amazing.  Yellow and Pink?

Speaking of interior decorating, I saw a semi-celebrity at The March Aux Puces.  These little old ladies were all "I love your show" to this cute tall blond.  Having no idea what was going on I did some internet stalking and found out this lady apparently knows whats up with The March Aux Puces as well. I happened to take a photo of the goodies she was buying because they were awesome and all I could look at while waiting for my ride to swing by and grab my bench and I.

Look for them on her show!

It was hard to say au revioir to the March Aux Puces, which was so je ne sais quoi, but I needed to grab a café au lait and go write up the reportage you just read.

A Beginner's Guide to Mixing it Up

I am a sucker for an awesome print.  Whether it be on a top, dress, skirt or shoes- I cannot say no to a killer design.  Thus my closet has become one giant fun-fest of prints.

The Punky Brewster in me wants to wear whatever I want, whenever I want, which is true most of the time.  So I have no problem throwing my zig-zag print shorts on with a vintage tank blouse covered in a gold medallion and pretty paisleys print. 

In the back of my mind however I have a nagging voice-(maybe that of my mother?)- saying "Are you really going out of the house looking like that??  They will straight-up throw you in a state hospital, I am not kidding!"

So with some hesitanceI leave the house, half thinking I look like a million bucks, half thinking I look like I have a million different voices in my head.

But for the last few seasons designers have given us the "A-Ok" to mix up our prints, and not shy away from wearing just one at a time.  And if they say it's okay, that little nagging voice gets quieter and quieter... (Thanks Moschino! Thanks Comme de Garcons!)

Feeling a little iffy about it still?  Well here are some hints to help get you started:



1. Look in your closet.  Find your favorite printed piece, whether it is a top or bottom, or even a dress.

2.Next gather all your other printed lovelies that you could possible pair with it (for example- if you chose a top, look for all your printed bottoms, if it is a dress look for printed tights)

3.Finally put the prints up to each other and see what duo make a "do."

I find that it is usually easier to pair prints in the same color family together.  For example a black and white daisy crop top with  a black and white stripe mini skirt. 

Now to finish off the outfit I opt for simple solid items to balance out the print madness.  Like in the example above I would wear some black tights and black booties.

No matter what you go with have fun with it.

This trend definitely gets the Soleil Moon Frye Seal Of Approval

What are You Wearing This Weekend?

I am going with this guy. Not taking it off till Monday morning.

I'll throw it on tonight after work with a mini skirt and some stacked platforms- hit the scene, dance a little, mingle a bit, drink a lot.
THEN I'll pass out in my perfectly sheeny purple top, wake up the next day- throw on some shorts and sandals- and hit the cafe- dance a little, mingle a bit, drink a lot.
THEN as night falls again I'll unbutton it all the way - wear a bustier and a fitted highwaisted maxi skirt, polish off my stacked platforms- hit a diferent scene, dance a little, mingle a bit, drink a lot.
THEN I'll pass out, wake up the next day throw on some skinny jeans (heard it might be cold on Sunday!) and some oxfords- then I'll realize I'm exhausted so I'll crawl back into bed and - hit the snooze button, sleep a little, toss and turn a bit, drool a lot.

This is why its good to have a daily planner.

Have a good weekend guys- I might

Do you like videos? Do you like cool dress? Then you're gonna love.......

Things I like about Videos:

I don't have to type.
You don't have to read.

Everybody Wins!

Looking for an awesome transitional dress to get you through this Indian Summer?
This one right here is your winner:



I like dresses with awesome backs, I think most everyone does.  Why is this one is better?  I can't tell if I like the back or the front better- they are both equally compelling.

I feel when I wear interesting back items I have to make an effort to turn around a lot.  Like "Oh whoops I think I left my sunglasses back there, let me TURN AROUND and grab them" or "Hey I just came up with a really awesome new spinning dance, where I stand in one spot and just spin... you wanna see it?"

I'm sick of my sorry excuses.  But with this cute dress, I look good both coming AND going.