Can you tell my office is cold? I’m drawn to all things warm and cozy today.  And these adorable lamp sweaters do the tricks.  Designed by Lise Lefebvre for Aparment Therapy’s Design Showcase.

Hello all you wonderful readers, the awesome designers over at Mikarose are wanting to giveaway a $60 gift certificate to a lucky Elegance Reader.  This value will cover the price of one of their dresses along with shipping! It’s the perfect time to treat yourself to a new fall dress, and get ready for all those holiday parties coming up.

All you have to do is go over to Mikarose, and leave a comment telling me which one you’d get if you won!  My favorite, being the Ariana.  I’ve also seen the Eva on a friend and it looks fabulous as well…she matched it with pearls and looked so classy.  But wait, it gets better: your entry is tippled if you blog about it on your own blog…we like to share the love here. Just let me know when you leave a comment.  The giveaway will end Friday, and Saturday I’ll post a winner.  So get shopping!!

I’ve always loved Dior’s add campaigns. So flirty and magical.

Awe…so precious. I don’t know what it is for canopies and little girls, but I’m such a sucker for them.  This is from the awesome Serena and Lily company.

We did a lot of sight-seeing and museums while on our trip to Europe, so we made sure to designate a couple days where we didn’t have anything scheduled and could just enjoy each other.  Surprisingly enough our day trip out to Versailles was just that: taking it easy and enjoying the afternoon together.

We traveled to France with my sister and her husband.  One day we split up: they spent the day out in the countryside, we spent more time in the city,  {when you’re a big-shot orthodontist you can spend nights in French chateaus…} and planned on meeting back up in Versailles.  Unfortunately with the lack of cell phones and traffic delaying our meeting time, we were unable to meet up with them.  I was pretty sad we couldn’t enjoy the palace with them, but my spirits quickly brightened when we reached the gardens.

Yes, those are orange trees in France.  King Louis would store them in a greenhouse and then roll them out for entertainment.  He wanted to show the world he could grow orange trees in a colder climate.  Although King Louis XVI was a pretty pompous fella, I can’t help but chuckle and sigh when I hear about all the crazy things he did.  In all respects, he was a revolutionist for the interior design world.

The last time I was in France I was a little nine year old child, but I still have great memories from that trip.  The fountains were one of those; so I was a little sad to see that they weren’t turned on.

The Sun King would have them scheduled to turn on as he walked by…I can’t believe they didn’t do that for us.  How rude.  We walked down to the canal and had a little picnic along the bank.  Fresh baguettes with ham and cheese and a diet coke.  It hit the spot.  We fed the swans and ducks with our left-over bread…this picture doesn’t show it, but those birds would get really close. I was afraid I’d lose my finger.

Then Mick wanted to take more pictures, so I reverted back to my senior year in high school and posed.

After a very awkward photo session we rented bikes and rode through the acres and acres of beautiful gardens.  Every so often we’d park our bikes, tour a little cottage our house (my favorite being Marie-Antoinett’s Estate), get back on and ride some more.  It was perfect.  Still seeing new things, but still getting to be outside and active.

After an awesome afternoon we rented some segways and zipped off to catch our train back to Paris.  Yes, very dorky; but so much fun.  Best five Euros spent.  I felt like Gob for Arrested Development.

I love starting the week out on a good note.  Two good things: we’re FINALLY starting construction on a high-end kitchen remodel today!!!  Kitchens are the center of the home, so I never want a client to be out from their kitchen longer than necessary.  We’ve spent months getting bids, picking out granite, flooring…everything. Now construction will be one smooth process.  I’m also excited to start a new project for a new client.  I love going over to people’s houses, meeting their families, and work with them on making their house a home.  My mind is always going a hundred miles a minute on the drive home.

I love the weinheimer breed.  I think they are so majestic and beautiful.  If we didn’t live in a little condo, and had a big yard; a weinheimer would be my choice.  Although I love Pixi and her breed (she’s perfect for us in our stage of life), I think I’m a big-dog girl at heart.  Anyway, I saw this picture on desire to inspire, and thought I’d share. Look how cute he is…

I always try and tell Mick there’s nothing wrong with a neutral pallet. Ceilings are also a part of the room that goes unplanned. However, when they are planned, they don’t go unnoticed.

Beautiful work by such a young artist.

I personally am not big on headbands, but I’m all for other people sporting them.  For some reason I feel like a twelve year old….or the Queen B.  But if you’re into headbands, these little lovelies are awesome.  Not your typical flower with a feather.

Cute new letterpress note cards by Linda and Harriett.  I like the story behind their inspiration:

For this card, Liz was inspired by a drawn curtain feature in the opening credits of the movie, Coraline.  What I ended up putting on paper looked more like crystal chandeliers in a fancy ballet theatre – but it still has that draping, theatrical, regal look I was first drawn to in the movie.

I don’t think I can ever get enough of John Robshaw Textiles.  A client and I are looking into getting this set for their guest room.  Ahhh, so peaceful.  Can also be used for the master room: not too masculine, not too feminine.  Just right.

An appropriate post for the first day of fall.  Beautiful knits by Oveja Negra.

I’m all for innovative furniture, but doesn’t this look like something you’d find Jack Bauer using?

I love to read.  I love the smell of dusty, old books, and the feel of pages flipping through your fingers.  I don’t know if there is anything more charming than an antique, European bookstore.

Lovely, inspiring illustrations by artist Freya.  The colors are bold, and I love how she mixes patterns.  Freya, you are one talented girl!

We’re old school when it comes to our concert attendance.  We’ll be going to the state fair and jammin’ out with these fellas tonight.

I LOVE the brick and timber look.  In order to balance out the harsh industrial look; soft, flowy, light-colored linens help contrast the roughness of exposed brick.

Some people have special plates for their kid’s birthday, others might want a dunce plate for when they’re misbehaving.  Although the price is pretty steep to spend on a unruly child.

Maybe it’s the name of the sofa. Maybe it’s softer twist on the classic chesterfield. I don’t know why I like this sofa by Bernhardt. Don’t fear though, I’d change the throw pillows.