Between white supremacists marching in Charlottesville where Heather Heyer tragically lost her life, Trump’s complete and utter incompetency, and an horrific terrorist attack in Barcelona, this has been a pretty shitty week. Sometimes I feel superficial by glossing over current events on the blog. There are a lot of beautiful things in the world that I’d much rather talk about. However, that’s getting more and more difficult. Here’s to a weekend of love, acceptance, and healing.

Weekend Reading:

• The solar eclipse is this Monday! Here are tips on photographing it with your phone.
• Jenny shared great tips for first-time home buyers.
• Exploring the differences in work demands for people without children. I work in very flexible workplace and am allowed to leave early for personal reasons if need be. However, it’s a lot easier for someone with children to fall back on kids as an excuse without it being questioned by anyone.
• We’re going to Milwaukee today to pick up our new nightstands. (We saved around $60 on shipping to have them sent to the store for pick up and I was able to use an in-store discount when we ordered them.) I love the mid-century design, but I’d like to give them more personality by switching out the drawer pulls. I’m going to go with either this or this.
• Cathy shares her tips on growing your Instagram following. (I actually started using Planoly for Curated Couple and I love it!)
• This pleated ombre skirt is so fun! Wear it with a camel-colored sweater and neutral heels to let the skirt really stand out.
• Cookie Monster is coming out with a cookbook and it sounds pretty adorable!
• I’ve been following interior design Instagram accounts for inspiration in our house. Here are 25 to follow. Then, check out these five for actually purchasing home finds.
• Prada and Miu Miu’s fuzzy hats are all kinds of amazing and fashion editors agree.
• Why catalogs still survive in the digital age.

Five Under $50:

• I ordered a few things from Target to try on this week. It’s all going back except for this unexpected win: a glen plaid bomber jacket.
• An oversize pair of Lucite earrings make a major statement.
• A dark floral cami with flirty ruffles.
• A classic bag in faux leather.
• The mixed prints on this romper are gorgeous! It’s 60% off for a limited time with code SUMMER60.

Earlier This Week:

• The Kate Spade dress I’ll be wearing every week this fall.
• I’m crazy about the blue heels in this week’s “The Coveted.” They also come in navy velvet, which are just as gorgeous.
• I went down memory road with my sartorial purchases to figure out what pieces eventually landed in the donation pile. Hopefully this approach helps me save money in the future.
• My new sandals! They took zero time to break in! (Snag ’em here. I want the black ones next.)

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image via

We booked an April trip to London last week! I looked up flight prices on a lark and found round-trip tickets from Chicago for just $581 per person — which isn’t much more than a domestic flight! Plus, I had $500 in travel credits on my Capital One Venture card, bringing our combined ticket price to $662.  It felt indulgent to add a European trip to our calendar so soon after purchasing a house (even at such a great price), but it’s really fun to have something to look forward to and there’s plenty of time to save up money for spending abroad. Let me know what we need to add to our must-do list! We’re such planners that we already have a Google Map started for the adventure! We’ll be there for ten days, so we can add a day trip, too. (Paris is tempting for a daylong jaunt, but since neither one us has been before, I’m afraid we’ll feel like it wasn’t nearly enough time.)

Weekend Reading:

• Grace put together a list of blogging tips.
• White ankle boots are perfectly mod.
• Diptyque just released a New York candle.
• Costume designers share tips to organize your closet.
• Cj Hendry’s work looks like photographs of blobs of paint, but they’re actually colored pencil drawings.
• Food styling tips to make your salad photographs look more appetizing.
• Make fish tacos this weekend.
• I’m obsessed with the sleeves on this sweater.
• The interesting history of Kotex pads.
• 80 of the best online furniture shops.

Five Under $50:

• Use code DRESSITUP to save $50 on these sandals, bringing the price down to $48. I bought the acorn color, which should be perfect for summer-to-fall transitional outfits.
• The prettiest gold fringe earrings.
• Pink ankle-length pants are the work staple you didn’t know you needed.
• A flattering wrap dress that’s perfect for the weekend.
• A floral blouse with an interesting twist detail at the neckline.

Earlier This Week:

• I want the coat, the velvet platforms, and the faux pearl-encrusted bag. (At least the price point of the latter is reasonable.)
• Style steals under $50 and under $100!
• Five things we learned buying a house in an aggressive sellers’ market, and what we went through to snag our house.

photo via

I just got word that our floors are done! However, we don’t have a key to the only entrance to our house that doesn’t have hardwood floors in front of it, so we need to wait until tomorrow to go in through the front and see how everything turned out. I can’t wait! Part of me is nervous that I picked the wrong stain and I won’t be crazy about the floors in person — which, itself, is crazy; I’m sure they’re gorgeous. On a less exciting note, we got word from our insurance company that we have some work to do on the house in the next month. My walk-in closet has a door that leads to the roof of the kitchen addition. (You can see it in this post.) We were planning to have a contractor look at it — eventually — to make sure the roof is structurally sound enough to build a balcony overlooking our backyard. It looks like we need to expedite our plans! Our insurance company is requiring that we put in a railing now because it’s a safety hazard. I completely get it, but it’s such an annoying surprise to have to deal with right now. Part of me wants to go with a cheap fix to satisfy the insurance company, but I’d rather just spend money once and put it toward building a balcony that we’ll actually use and enjoy.

Weekend Reading:

• This budget-conscious dress reminds me of the striped pieces DVF did this season.
• Beyoncé shared the first photo of her twins in the most Beyoncé way ever.
• H&M recently announced its latest designer collaboration. I love the teaser clip!
• I probably should have mentioned this before Prime Day, but did you know that you can head to smile.amazon.com and choose a charity to support with every purchase? You can learn more about it here. (I support the Great Lakes Bengal Rescue. We’re hoping to get another Bengal after we move into our house so that Bacon has a buddy to play with, although we’ll probably shell out the money for a kitten. Cat-induced asthma be damned.)
• Do you have fashion regrets?
• Mustard is quickly becoming the new hot color. (I’ve actually been daydreaming about these in the marigold color rather than the fuchsia hue that captured bloggers’ hearts.)
• Gucci is launching a home decor line.
• Christina shared her struggle with adult acne and some of the products she found successful in treating it.
• Still on the lookout for the perfect bar cart? This one looks like a luxe estate find.
• I thought milkshakes were off the table now that I’m lactose intolerant. Not anymore! Check out this non-dairy version!

Five Under $50:

• This polka dot blouse would be so cute tucked into an a-line skirt.
• I love the striped pattern on this swingy tank top.
• Kenneth Jay Lane’s version of the ball drop earrings that everyone is loving this season finally went on sale.
• Metallic straps lend a chic touch to espadrille sandals.
• This floral dress is a romantic option for a summer wedding.

ICYMI:

• Sharing some photos of our painting progress around the house!
• How to shop the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale without a brand credit or debit card.
• Five home items worth the hype at the aforementioned sale. (Plus, links to two of the most awful things available.)
• Rounding up the perfect fall wish list. (I need to own that bag!)
• Spotted this gorgeous artwork tucked away in a Milwaukee alley last weekend.