Lovely Valentine's Day Gift Ideas!

Have you ever started compiling your list of Valentine's day recipients and realized you have quite a number of people you'd like to give special gifties to? And then you go to the pharmacy looking for affordable but special items to gift and realize there are none, because the chocolate is over priced and the bears are too cutesey and also, overpriced?

If you said yes, and I know you did, I've compiled a gift bag full of treats for you to give to your loved ones--for $2.72 each, gift bag included. For under $40, buy the whole of the treats to make a dozen gift bags. If $37, not including tax and shipping, is a bit more than you'd like to spend there's a lot of surprises in the bag and you can remove items to better fit your budget.

Valentine's Day Googly Eyed Bear Bags, $1.99 for a dozen, ¢.17 a piece.

Candy:
Valentine's Day Tootsie Pops, $3.99 for 80, ¢.05 for one, and ¢.30 for 6 (the number I'd include in the gift bag)
Nestle's Crunch Hearts, $4.99 for 40 pieces, ¢.12 for one piece, and ¢.36 for 3 (the number I'd include in the gift bag)
Chocolate Lips, $3.99 for 33 pieces, ¢.12 for one piece, and ¢.24 for 2 (the number I'd include in the gift bag)
Valentine's Day Dipped Fortune Cookies, $7.99 for 25 cookies, ¢.32 each, and ¢.64 for 2 (the number I'd include in the gift bag)

Toys/Gifties
Mini Smiley Face Heart Erasers, $2.99 for 144, ¢.02 each, and ¢.10 for 5 (the number I'd include in the gift bag-- yes, you will have a lot left over, but save them for next year!)
Heart Shaped Candy Bracelet Kit, $3.99 for a dozen, ¢.33 each (either make them for your friends, or leave them to make themselves, they're all individually packaged.)
Valentine's Day Disc Game (Connect Four, minus the trademark), $4.99 for a dozen, ¢.42 each.
Valentine Color Your Own Sticker Set, $1.97 for a dozen, ¢.16 each.

Now, Lovelies, that's a lot of presents for your dear ones, like I said, you can cut it down to fit your budget. If you just buy the Valentine's Day Googly Eyed Bear Bags, Valentine's Day Dipped Fortune Cookies, the Valentine Color Your Own Sticker Set, and the Chocolate Lips, you'd have a great gift set $15.94 for all the preparations and $1.21 for each bag. Enjoy mixing and matching your own set, and to put your own touch to the bags go explore the Valentine's Day sale section on Oriental Trading Company, they have some great deals!

I hope this inspires some of you, have a great weekend lovelies!

Lovely Patterned Dresses for All!

Happy Friday, Lovelies! As January ends and we begin to start to begin to think about Spring coming, I thought I'd give you a heads up on some adorable patterned dresses which would be perfect for Springtime! I know these don't seem like traditionally Springy dresses, but that time in-between Winter and Spring is a difficult time to dress; I feel like it's semi-awkward to wear florals, bright colors, and Spring dresses when there's still snow on the ground in late March or April. Therefore, these dresses are perfect with boots, a cardigan, and a scarf in Winter months; and when the flowers start to bloom in the beginning of Spring, pair these nicely-priced dresses with colorful jackets, flats, and a bow in your hair. Stripes and polka dots are classic, as long as they are worn with bold solid colors (or, even sometimes, a bold contrasting pattern--think: Vera Bradley) and can easily transition from season to season. Wear these with sandals and a floppy vintage hat in summer, and don't forget your tights and cropped jacket to wear these with in the Fall. Classic patterns are classic for a reason; they look great on everyone, last all four-seasons, and can be easily paired with what you already own to make you look put together and stylish.

From left to right: Tight Rope Sweater Dress; Polka Dot Sleeveless Dress; Essential Striped Dress.

A Sad Day for Bananafish

I just checked the New York Times and was informed, as a piece of breaking news, that J.D. Salinger has died at 91. Salinger was born and raised in Manhattan, he did stints at NYU (Go bobcats!) and Columbia, with a trip to Vienna to learn the meat importing trade in between. He went on to write The Catcher in the Rye, Nine Stories, Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction, and Franny and Zooey. The last three are three of my personal favorites. Maybe I'll go read one of his short stories now, to honor his life.

"How terrible it is when you say I love you and the person on the other end shouts back 'What?'"-J.D. Salinger, Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters

Lovely Dress of the Day

Oh my, oh my. I woke up this morning to snow. Did you all know it snowed? I did not. I was sort of enjoying this global climate change January feeling like March. I was going to post the Perfect Picnic Dress from Forever21 and remind you all that Spring is coming, sure it's months away, but one day it will be here, and in preparation for that day to buy this dress. I stand by this concept. I not only suggest you invest the $13.80 in this dress, but suggest you wear it with skinny jeans (I rarely suggest this, but I think the dress is short enough!), a long sleeved cardigan and a scarf for the remainder of the winter season. After you've assembled the ensemble, go buy gourmet sandwiches and fancy coffee. Spread a picnic blanket out on the floor near a window and ask your sister, brother, friend, significant other, parent, whoever to join you for an indoor winter picnic.

In the spring wear the dress with flats, a cardigan or a jean jacket and plan a real picnic. Or even a picnic party! It really is the perfect picnic dress, loose enough to eat a ton of delicious salads, sandwiches and lemonade, comfortable enough to sit on the ground in, and inexpensive enough that if it gets ruined it's no great tragedy [financially, wardrobe wise it's a crisis].

For more information, pictures and to buy the Perfect Picnic Dress, click here!

Lovely Way To Get Through Wednesday!

Is it me or is this week just dragging along at the slowest pace ever? In an effort to boost spirits on this very long day, I'm sharing a picture of my grandmother's amazing sugar-free, all-natural apple pie! This pie was made in honor of Eric's father coming to visit next week and let me tell you, this picture doesn't do it justice. Hope your day is going a little faster than mine is! Anyone else have any lovely pictures to share?!

Lovely Recipe Exchange!

You know how much I all love cooking, so when a few weeks ago, Taylor sent me an email for a recipe exchange, I jumped on it! I love exchanging things: clothing, fabric, recipes. What's old or tired or boring to you may seem like the most exciting thing for someone else, hence the beauty of sharing and exchanging. Well, the way it works is that you send the email to a bunch of people and (in theory) they send it out and you should receive around 30 new recipes. Well, I didn't get 30 back (yet!), but I did receive two and they both sounded so delicious I wanted to share them here!

Have you ever done a recipe exchange? Want to share some recipes with us? Do you have a current recipe you are dying to try (I can't wait to make Laura's Crispy Oven Fries!)? Do tell!

Recipe 1: Susan's Thai Goodness

Prep time: 20 min.Cook time: 10 min.
INGREDIENTS
1 cup fresh snow peas

1/2 (16 oz) package uncooked fettuccine

1/2 cup lite coconut milk

3/4 cup vegetable broth

1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter

3 tablespoons lite soy sauce

2 tablespoons lime juice1 garlic clove, minced

2 teaspoons sugar

3/4 teaspoon ground coriander

1 cup firmly packed basil leaves, shredded and divide

Toppings: chopped dry-roasted peanuts, bean sprouts, dried crushed red pepper

HOW TO
1. Trim snow peas, and cut in half diagonally

2. Bring water to a boil in large saucepan, add snow peas, and cook for 45 seconds. Drain. Plunge into ice water to stop the cooking process; drain and set aside.

3. Cook pasta according package directions, drain.

4. Whisk together coconut milk and next 7 ingredients in a large saucepan. Cook over medium- low heat, whisking occasionally, 5 minutes or until mixture is thoroughly heated. Add snow peas, hot cooked pasta, and 3/4 cup basil; toss and place on a serving platter.

5. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup basil. Serve with desired toppings.

Recipe 2: Chicken Piccatta Recipe

Ingredients:

2 split (1 whole) boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 extra-large egg

1/2 tablespoon water

3/4 cup seasoned dry bread crumbs

Good olive oil

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature, divided

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons), lemon halves reserved

1/2 cup dry white wine

Sliced lemon, for serving

Chopped fresh parsley leaves, for serving

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.Place each chicken breast between 2 sheets of parchment paper or plastic wrap and pound out to 1/4-inch thick. Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper.Mix the flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper in a shallow plate. In a second plate, beat the egg and 1/2 tablespoon of water together. Place the bread crumbs on a third plate. Dip each chicken breast first in the flour, shake off the excess, and then dip in the egg and bread crumb mixtures. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large saute pan over medium to medium-low heat. Add the chicken breasts and cook for 2 minutes on each side, until browned. Place them on the sheet pan and allow them to bake for 5 to 10 minutes while you make the sauce.For the sauce, wipe out the saute pan with a dry paper towel. Over medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter and then add the lemon juice, wine, the reserved lemon halves, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Boil over high heat until reduced in half, about 2 minutes. Off the heat, add the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and swirl to combine. Discard the lemon halves and serve 1 chicken breast on each plate. Spoon on the sauce and serve with a slice of lemon and a sprinkling of fresh parsley.

Lovely Dress of the Day

The Pass the Bubbly Dress reminds me of the New Years I spent at the Cristal Room at Baccarat Crystal in Paris. We had a seven course champagne dinner, seven courses and unlimited champagne. And not any champagne, delicious Tattinger champagne. The room was filled with beautiful women in beautiful dresses, speaking French or Russian, sometimes both. This dress would have been a hit that night, with out a doubt. The dress is glamorous, and luxurious. Sexy, but demure, that little bit of pink in the decolletage is just the perfect detail.
Maybe the dress reminds me of the Cristal Room so much because they match color schemes? I just love the pink-black marble-crystal tone to the room. The over sized cameos were really cool, well done and creative without being too out there. Incidentally, the banquet in the center of this shot is where we sat New Years.


Here I am! In a slightly less well lit shot... Check out that beautiful crystal champagne glass! I actually dreamed about those glasses last night! That's how beautiful and memorable the whole experience was.

For more information, pictures and to but the Pass the Bubbly Dress, click here!

Rare Photos of Some Lovely Celebs.

Last night during my pre-bed internet surfing I stumbled across this collection of rare celebrity photos. Some of them are really lovely, Marilyn Monroe in a moment of genuine happiness, in JFK's arms, at the beach and meeting the Queen. Marlon Brando with a sweet cat. Charlie Chaplin and Marlene Deitrich enjoying a day at the beach, looking just like my great grandparents. Sofia Loren in Disneyland with her amazing legs looking amazing. The Fabulous Liz Taylor swinging a lasso with great aplomb. And finally, Picasso being Picasso-- what more could you ask for?

Preview

Lovely Party Supplies!

Have you guys seen the truly beautiful things they're doing in paper plates? My god, Plates and Napkins is my new obsession. For about $5 you get a set of 8 gorgeous paper plates. The sets come with matching napkins and cups, but the plates are really what get me. While I swing into plate-buying-party-planning mode*, I hope you all enjoy your weekend.


Antoinette Black 10 inch Paper Plate; Festive Toile Blue 10 inch Plates; Rambling Rose Cream 10 inch Paper Plates.

* I'll also be spending Saturday helping Olivia and Eric move out of Connecticut. Yes, you're right, I am a great sister/friend/business partner.

Lovely Dress of the Day

I'm still Cabin Fever Sale fevered, and check out the Plaid Habit Dress. It reminds me of something I would have worn to grammar school. But it's not so childish that I don't want to add it to my closet now. Because I do. And for $28.50 from $94.99, it's very worth it. It's a great number for summer, nice and airy, but can be dressed for winter-fall too, just match it with a leotard and tights. And boots! Never forget the power of boots!



For more information, pictures and to buy the Plaid Habit Dress, click here!

February 20th is Make A Blanket Day!

All these quilts were donated to Project Linus!

I'm not sure how many of you know this, but I'm a quilter. I've been quilting for years; it's my therapy, it's my passion, and my art. I love it. During the school year I don't quilt much, but when I do get the chance, I make small-ish quilts which I then donate to Project Linus. To make a long story short, Project Linus is a non-profit organization which donates handmade blankets to children in hospitals. I love working with PL; in high school I organized "patch drives" in which people would make and draw on blank patches which I would turn into quilts and donate. As a teacher, I try to encourage my students to help with quilts because it's an easy and fun way to help the community at large and children my own students' age. Why do I bring this all up now? February 20th is the annual Make A Blanket Day! If you'd like to make a blanket to donate, or help with a blanket to donate, or donate fabric to make a blanket, please let me know! I would love to help any of you Lovelies in any way possible. Quilting bees (or, the modern day equivalent, "the Stitch and Bitch") are a great way to get together with friends and spend time creating items for children who really do need a blankie in a time of need. If you'd like to help out in any which way possible, contact me (olivia.lovelyatyourside at gmail) and let's get this started!

Help!

I can't decide which ribbon to use for a bow for this navy hat I just finished. What do you think, lovelies? Vote below!

Lovely Pizza Date!

Here at Lovely we're all for having the best time possible for as little money as possible. I mean, what's lovelier than having a great night out and realizing it only cost you pennies? With Valentine's Day right around the corner, I've been sharing some of my favorite low-cost date night ideas. There was the night making artwork with your love, and the grand balloon gesture; but if you're anything like Eric and me, you love a good meal out, so what's a great way to spend the night eating, having fun, and not breaking the bank? A pizza tour of your town! If you live in a semi-small town like we do, than you probably have at least four or five pizza places. Bundle up in your warmest attire and go for a walking-tasting-tour of all the pizza places in your town. Every time you hit a pizza place, share a slice and rate it together: how's the cheese/sauce/atmosphere of the place? A slice can't possibly be more than $2.50, so if you share a slice at each place, you'll be saving a bundle! After the night is over, you can look over your ratings and decide which is the best joint in town.

Wear these adorable shirts while eating/making pizza!

What if you don't live in a town with tons of pizza places (or it's too cold out?)? Make your own pizza! You can even make your own sauce and cheese! And, because it's Valentine's Day, shape your pizza like a heart and you could be just as cheesy as the mozzarella you throw on top. What's for dessert? Why, dessert pizza of course!

The Italian Flag shirt is from Alloy; The Ciao shirt is from Forever21.

Lovely Rental of the Day?

I've received a $25 credit for Rent the Runway. This is majorly exciting. It means I can rent a $500+ for $25 dollars. That's amazing. Here's the problem: the credit expires on March 1st. Between today and March 1st, I have no dressy events to attend. Not a one. I think I'm going to a concert on March 6th or so, and Olivia's birthday is the 15th, even so neither of those events requires a $500 dress. I'm not planning anything fancy for Valentine's Day. I need help, Lovelies! Suggestions! Invitations? Ideas of why to rent a designer frock for an event I have no plans on attending yet! Assistance, please!

Not So Lovely, and A Little Strange

Have you guys heard about the Charles and YaVaughnie billboards? I've been following the story on Gawker. It's unfolding to be a strange story, or at least all the mystery surrounding it is making it seem momentarily fascinating.

Here's the basics of the story-- someone noticed a new billboard on 49th St. and 7th Avenue of a canoodling couple with a web address, the mouthful "CharlesPhillipsandYaVaughnieWilkins.com." Gawker then quickly got on the project of figuring out what this was. The website, now "unavailable" was a collection of pictures (of them with a young boy, on vacation, sometimes without clothes), love notes (a lot of apology notes too), and YaVaughnie's writing, spanning eight years-- set to the dulcet tones of a karoake version of "Ain't No Mountain" sung by who else but Charles and YaVaughnie.

The first theories were a couple searching for their fifteen minutes, trying to get on a reality show, or an over-sized apology. Then another billboard popped up. And then another. And there are two apparent, though undocumented, billboards in San Francisco and Atlanta.

And then someone identified Charles Phillips as the president of Oracle, if the website was his creation, wouldn't the website look a lot nicer? And why did it boast a "subtle plug for Windows Mail, made by Oracle arch-rival Microsoft"? Strange, sure. Illicit? Not yet.

Illicit came when someone reported that Charles Phillips was very married, and not to YaVaughnie Wilkins. There seem to be a lot of positions on this, some say married, some say separated, some say separated by together for work and society events and some say divorced. The young boy in the photos was revealed to be Phillips' young son and photos were found on New York Social Diary of Charles and his wife Karen from the past year.

New speculations suggest that the billboards, boasting the phrase "You are my soulmate forever," are the work of a scorned YaVaughnie. Maybe she is either trying to force Charles to make a move from his wife, or is tired of the charade and wants to go public. So very, very public.

There's something about the use of money, technology and public space that fascinates me in this story. Who ever did this did it very intentionally, placed private life in a very public space by no mistake. I'll be staying updated, and keep you appraised of anything interesting or revealing!

Lovely Dress of the Day

ModCloth is having an outrageous Cabin Fever Sale and believe it or not, this beautiful dress, the Muske-tiers Dress, is on sale! Do you ever get the sensation when shopping a sale that the company is selling you the dregs of their collection? I do. A lot. I was so pleased to see that the ModCloth sale has amazing dresses, stuff I'd lust over if the prices weren't knocked down from $75 to $15. But they are, they are. For $21.90 (from $72.99) this dress is a really exciting deal! I love the tailoring of this dress, the detail on the neckline and the fact that it sort of looks office appropriate (sort of! It's the steely color!). I love the tiers, it's dramatic, but not too much. This is a great party dress, match it with some great earrings and your most sparkling attitude for a no fail outfit!

For more information, pictures and to buy the Muske-tiers Dress, click here!

Lovely Sale!

Red letter day, Lovelies! Our much loved Modcloth is having a "Cabin Fever Sale"! What does this mean for you? Their normally $40-$50 priced dresses (and other items) are now down to $15-$20 dollars! What a great way to start building your Summer '10 wardrobe. These four dresses are my top choices; let us know what you find/buy in this awesome sale!

1. Zig-a-zig Ah Dress; 2. Czech Yourself Dress; 3. The Conference Shirtdress; 4. Caravan Dress

A Question

I've been having some trouble responding to comments sometimes here, which is very frustrating considering it's my own website. I seem to have found that I only have this problem on Mozilla Firefox and have to open up Safari to respond to your lovely comments. This worries me, I don't want to frustrate my readers! If you all are kind enough to comment, I hope there is no issue with it. Please let me know if this is a problem you've encountered before on Lovely At Your Side -if the comments don't work while you're trying to comment on how the comments don't work, please e-mail me! I love getting emails from you all!

You can always reach Lovely At Your Side at LovelyAtYourSide@gmail.com, you can reach me (Jenny) at Jenny.LovelyAtYourSide@gmail.com, and Olivia at Olivia.LovelyAtYourSide@gmail.com.

P.S. Speaking of e-mail-- Ashley Spessard, if you're out there-- did you ever get the invitation for Rent the Runway? If it never came through click this link to sign up through my referral! This goes for all of you lovelies, if you wish to join Rent the Runway.

Lovely Dress of the Day

I watched Gigantic last night. It was a well done movie, I enjoyed watching it and would highly recommend (it's on Netflix instant streaming, such a good deal!). The beautiful Happy (Zooey Deschanel) lives with her larger-than-life-rides-in-a-car-laying-down-big-mouthed father (John Goodman) in a ridiculously beautiful white washed loft in Manhattan. Brian (Paul Dano) lives a rather duldrum life in Brooklyn, but makes a yearly birthday trip with hilariously stuck in the past father (Ed Asner) and older brothers in Vermont, where they hunt mushrooms on mushrooms and share a very French meal with a very French chef (Mel Brooks!). The two meet and begin a tentative romance, complicated by Brian's adopting a child.



Anyway, this A Little Bit Indie Rock Dress reminds me of Zooey Deschanel entirely. I actually wonder if it was designed with her in mind.
I can just see Zooey rocking this dress on stage at a She&Him concert. I could just see wearing this dress to a She&Him concert, followed by dinner at a fabulous spot in the city and drinks on a rooftop somewhere in Brooklyn! Wear it with heels, flats, sandals or boots for an all the time look. Match it with a slim cut denim jacket, and a sweet vintage looking purse. When you wear it channel that indie rock attitude, tilt your face to the sun, space out a bit and sing along to the mixed tape of She&Him, Rilo Kiley and Of Montreal you have playing in your head. Sounds like a lovely afternoon!

Lovely Etsy Find: Rubber Stamps and Your Artwork

Sometimes the best gifts don't come from any store, but from your own two hands. This Valentine's Day, if you find your wallet empty and need a gift to give (or, even if your wallet isn't empty, this is a fun and sweet idea) why not make a night of it and create some homemade artwork? It's super simple and, if done right, can be extremely cheap. All you need is some blank stretched canvases (check this website for incredibly low priced canvases!), paint, and someone to paint with. Do you and your partner love to go to concerts? Hiking? Cooking? Pick a topic which has something to do with your time together and each paint a canvas depicting the same scene or idea. More fun? Paint portraits of each other or a picture of you two together. You can paint them with their hand stretched out, and when they do the same, and you put the pictures side by side, the paintings will be holding hands. If you two have wall space, display your new Valentine's Day creations for everyone to see. You could even sign your artwork with this utterly adorable jumping couple handmade rubber stamp personalized with your names on it!

PS. Want to make some new painting tools? Try making potato stamps with eachother!

Not So Lovely Date Idea!

While searching for ideas for upcoming Valentine's Day posts, I came across a website which listed a ton of cheap date ideas. Some of them were decent (cooking, ice-skating), some were boring (go to the library?), and some were just plain weird: check out Cheap Date Idea #6!

"Here's a romantic date idea for when you don't know one-another well. Go to a cemetery where your relatives are buried, plant flowers and share with your sweetheart some stories about your family history."

Would YOU ever do this? How about with someone you "don't know very well"? Not my idea of a lovely date!

Lovely Valentine's Day Idea

The thing about all holidays is that if you plan ahead you can save a lot of money. Olivia reminded us all that you don't need a lover on Valentine's day, you just need love. And that love should be shared with all those you love. Last year I packaged up china soup spoons for 70 cents each, with chocolate and tea bags I bought at the pharmacy. I wrapped them up in tissue paper I decorated with hearts and hand drew cards for my lovely girlfriends.

This year I'm considering getting these pencils printed up with a sweet message-- Oriental Trading Co. has their pencils with "Would you be my Valentine?" on them. So cute. Personalization is all upper case, and allows for 30 characters. Some ideas--

• [Your name here] loves you!
• I love you!
• Thank you for being a friend!
• To my Valentine!
• You're the best!
• Write on!
• Be mine, Valentine!
• Surround yourself with love!

The ideas are endless! For $5.99 for 24 pencils, you'll be set for all the special people in your life, or go a bit crazy and get two sets printed up! Splurge and give all your lovelies two pencils! And a hand written note! I know that gift would make me smile!

Enjoy the weekend, dear readers!

Lovely Dress of the Day

Remember a long time ago (yesterday) when I went a little crazy over the idea of being part of a social club? The Garden Brunch Woven Dress from Forever21 is part of the problem, not the solution. I mean, the title says it all-- I want to sit in a garden eating brunch in this dress. I want to perch in a court yard having tea time in this dress. I want to mingle on a veranda sipping cocktails in this dress. Do you get where I'm going with this? I love the rose print of the dress, it is a beautiful pattern and doesn't overwhelm the eye thanks to the slim cut of the dress. The simple white belt breaks up the roses and gives the eye a chance to focus on your adorable waist. And the boat neck is ever appropriate. Wear this dress to your mother's country club. To your father's business picnic. To meet your boyfriend's parents. Or just to flit around town Jackie O style, sunglasses, flats and a jean jacket. You can't go wrong!

For more information, pictures and to buy The Garden Brunch Woven Dress, click here!

Lovely Etsy Find: Valentine's Day for Cheap!

I'm going to admit something to you all: I am a total sucker for anything Valentine's Day. I know it's a hyped up, silly, Hallmark holiday, but I love it. There's something about spreading that little extra amount of love on February 14th which makes my heart swoon. I've always sent Valentine's to family and friends, and I love giving friends ideas about what to get their loved ones for that "silly holiday" which everyone seems to hate. Because I have zero monies this year to celebrate Valentine's Day, and I know a lot of my favorite Lovelies are on a serious budget, over the next few weeks I am going to share some great and cheap (and some not so cheap, too!) lovey-dovey ideas. Even if you hate Valentine's Day, or don't have a "Valentine," remember how many people you care about and send them a little token of appreciation this year (as the quote says, "You don't need a lover on Valentine's day, you just need love!").

Today's cheap and heartfelt idea is adapted from a list of "Cheap Valentine's Day Ideas" which I found on Google. Don't have much money this year but want to pull off an over the top romantic present? Get yourself some balloons (this website has 100 balloons for under $8!); before you blow up each balloon, write a little note to your partner and stick it in the balloon (or, some flowers, or little presents). Blow up the balloons and make a giant bouquet of them; wouldn't filling an apartment with 100 red or pink balloons filled with notes be a grand gesture?. When they come into the house after a long day, give them a heart push pin to pop each balloon and reveal each note or gift! Cheap, lovely, and a completely one-of-a-kind way to show how much you love your Babe!

A Lovely Tumblr

In the process of trying to pinpoint a certain font through Google, I ran across this fantastic compilation tumblr, Clients From Hell. After spending the last six hours working on various web design aspects for Lovely At Your Side, I feel like my own client from hell at the moment. For example, I worked for an hour and a half on a new button which I ultimately decided was not necessary and not working. I wanted to quit myself. But this website is getting me through my frustration, maybe because I'm commiserating with both sides (the clueless client and annoyed web designer).


The website is "[a] collection of anonymously contributed client horror stories from designers." And I'm currently obsessed! Enjoy, Lovelies!

Lovely Dress of the Day

I really don't know what there is to say about the Preservation Society Dress (in Peony) that the dress does not say on its own. Maybe I can say that once I went to a party for the Daughters of the Colonial America or something and was sort of sad that I am not in one of those Junior League, Daughters of the American Revolution, sorority, secret society, situations. Sort of sad because those buildings, sorority type houses, tombs whatever are usually really beautiful and I want in. And if I ever got in, I would so wear this dress. Even if I got in to the Audubon Society, or the Knights of Columbus (I'm not Italian, sadly), I'd wear this dress. I'd wear this dress with a pearl necklace, and pearl studs, and pearl pumps. Okay, maybe not pearl pumps, but some lovely light colored pumps.


In summary, I would like this dress and I would like access to a beautiful building which I do not have to clean. I think one of those wants is considerably more realistic, and it involves hemlines and not bloodlines. Oh, well...Preservation Society Dress, here I come.

For more information, pictures and to buy the Preservation Society Dress in Peony, click here!

A Post on Haiti

I'm sure you've all heard about the awful earthquake in Haiti, but I couldn't let it go unnoticed on this site. I can't even imagine a crisis like this, I have a lot of trouble wrapping my mind around what happened. This doesn't matter though, does it? What matters is mobilizing, getting aid and relief to Haiti. So let's go. Money is really the best way to assist bigger organizations ready to do the work, so here are a few organizations to donate to.

• UNICEF
• Doctor's Without Borders
• Americares
• Haiti Emergency Relief Fund

Donate as much as you can give, anything helps. Let's empty our pockets together, lovelies.

Lovely Little Etsy Sale!

While browsing Etsy today for the find of the day, I checked one of my all-time favorite shops, Catherine Marissa, only to find they are having a giant sale (as in, sterling silver handmade stud earrings for $10 a pair!) ! With ahem, ahem, certain heart-themed holidays around the corner, her jewelry would make perfect little gifts for all your girls, moms, sisters, or, if any Lovely Gentleman read this (Hi, E! I like the apple ones...shocker. Ha.) her sterling studs make a perfect little accompaniment to a dinner out or beautiful card. Actually, this sale is so superb, it's a great way to stock up on presents to use year round, or get yourself that long awaited reward you deserve! You can check out all her gorgeous on sale studs here, and don't forget the perfectly priced, gorgeous, and unique sterling rings!

Pictured are the Itty Bitty Love Studs, Itty Bitty Shell Earrings, Itty Bitty Apple Studs, and the Itty Bitty Bird Studs.

Some Lovely Invites

Have any of you lovelies heard of Rent the Runway? Olivia introduced me to it and I am so excited to share it with all of you! It's the same premise of Bag, Borrow or Steal, and (for dresses also) Ilus of New York City, but with a great, easy and accessible interface. For 10% (which ends up being between $50 and $200) of the list price rent designer dresses (which go as high as $1,500) for 4 nights. Schedule a delivery date, if you're in New York City you can get the dress on same day or next day delivery. If you're unsure of your size they'll send two, no extra fee. After you've danced the night away, wowed the crowds and are back into your Sunday leggings and tunics, slip the dress into the pre-paid packaging provided and send it off. They take care of the buying, the storing and the dry cleaning.

As a recent college graduate, free lancing and working for myself I accepted a long time ago that designer dresses are not part of my lifestyle. Forever21 is part of my lifestyle. Modcloth on a good savings month. Not designer. Until Rent the Runway. I couldn't justify an expensive dresses for my cousin's upcoming nuptials due to price and honestly, how often do you re-wear a really fantastic dress you get for a wedding? If you want to get something interesting and eye catching and not at all, even a little bit classic than you just let the dress sit in your closet until you accept that you'll never wear it again and say goodbye to the $200+ spent on it. I can afford to splurge $50 or $100, for one night, for a dress that's truly worth it, for a once in a life time event in a once in a life time dress. I can, and I will, and I plan to for my cousins wedding. Now I'm even more excited for the date to roll around so I can have an excuse to use Rent the Runway.

The point of this very long winded post is that I'd love to share this amazing find with you lovelies. I have a number of invitations to the website and will share them with you, my wonderful readers! Pipe up if you'd like to participate in the fabulous-ness which is Rent the Runway. They'll be renting out truly beautiful accessories come this Spring, so even if dresses aren't your thing poke around and you might just fall in love (for a tenth of the price and four days. A true fling.) Shoot me an email and I'll send you an invite!