GLAMOUR PHOTOGRAFY

. . . beautiful, beautiful past Hermès ads that remind me of traipsing beneath the Paris skies. . .

{other places to visit:}
guest posts, if you haven't had a chance to visit last week
> new posts at {a glamorous little side project}
> a very happy winner will be announced on Monday!

{images - Hermès Spring/Summer 2006 ad campaign; model - Gemma Ward}

A staggering lack of sleep is drawing me to cozy images of antique wrough-iron beds draped in netting and strewn with soft cushions . . .

{image - simon bevan via desire to inspire}

We are excited that the Holiday season is upon us, and we will be sharing some gift-giving ideas with you over the next month. Our first suggestion is perhaps the simplest, because everyone loves it: kai fragrance.
kai made the cut on Oprah's Favorite Things last year with its newly launched Body Butter. This year kai introduces a new product; the Moonlight Candle. It is a 3-wick soy blend candle with a 100% European cotton wick and a stunning hand-blown glass vase. This large slow-burning fragrance candle will fill the room with the aura of kai for about 110 hours! We just received our Moonlight Candle and love, love it!
For those (few) of you who are not familiar with kai, its claim-to-fame is the Perfume Oil which is made from a blend of gardenia and tropical wildflowers. It's a fresh, clean scent that has mass appeal!
Click here for a variety of kai products!

Completely excited to announce this week's give-away: a Hayden-Harnett Havana shoulder bag!

The Havana hobo is New York-based Hayden-Harnett's best-selling style, and was updated from the original launch collection with a new dual pocket front and now holds more of your stylish necessities than before. The Havana is available in rich brown buttery soft leather with fold-over double-flaps. {strap drop 7-11"}

To enter, visit the Hayden-Harnett website to see what's new, then leave a comment below along with your name and e-mail address.

{bonne chance / good luck!}

{Special thanks to Hayden-Harnett, who are regular readers, for contacting me and making this fantastically stylish give-away possible.}

{entries will be accepted until midnight, Sunday, November 30, 2008}

A beautifully busy week here at {this is glamorous}, and along with guest posting and a fun new little side project, there will be a fantastic give-away on Monday . . .

{Do you have any exciting plans?}

Have a lovely, lovely weekend, everyone!
xo

{p.s.}
It's been delightful posting at the design*sponge guest blog -- here's a quick wrap-up of the week 's posts:

Lately have been coming across beautiful "handwritten" words across walls as art, in warm and wonderful messages such as "it's beautiful here" {above} and "And I Love You" {below}, and love the idea of being always inspired by favourite words and phrases . . .

The piece {above} is a neon wall sculpture by Tracey Emin, installed above a photograph by Darren Almond and an incredible glass box filled with gold leaf that sits on the coffee table, from David Gill Galleries.

It's always a fun day when we receive new items from The Lake & Stars! We recently received the 'Antidote' collection, which is a wonderfully fun group of micromesh bras and panties with those signature quirky but cute accents that TLS is known for.
The Antidote pieces will be known as the mesh collection with the little feather accents. The navy/black pieces have a small purple feather accent, and the hot pink/tomato pieces have a bright yellow feather detail. The small feather accents are removable, but we suggest that the only time you take them off is when laundering your items.
What we particularly love are the hi-waisted panties - so, so flattering! We also love the bralette and the garter belt, because these are the items that come with the little feather detailing. I guess you could say that we love the entire group!
You can purchase these new items at our boutique or online here!

Have been amassing quite the collection of inspirational photos -- my favourite fashion editorials, labels, images, trends and styles -- so much so, that they have spilled over to a place of their own, {a glamorous little side project} . . .

{also: at the d*s guest blog}
monday: flowers on windowsills
tuesday: easy chic
wednesday: torn & glossy


{Valentino Spring 2005 Ad Campaign; Photographer: Steven Meisel; Model: Caroline Trentini}

Lovely little work area, part of a collage at {record the day} by Lobster & Swan.

{more lovely collages here}

Once had dinner in an ultra-cool, very modern restaurant with an enormous silver dome lighting fixture above its high-gloss serving bar. Encountered this dramatic lighting once again, last summer, at The Glass House, a beautiful hotel in Edinburgh, where the extravagantly sized fixture hung above a warm and wonderful circular fireplace surrounded by luxurious seating. Discovered the lighting again at another hotel, this time in New York, at The Hudson.

Love the way these pendants look in dining areas, warmed up with soft pillows on banquets, against hints of colour and the grain of wood.

{images: Cottage Living via apartment therapy; Domino via apartment therapy}

Another wonderful Fall week has come and gone . . . Will be certain to stay away from work {at least for a bit} and dance the night away in impossibly high heels . . .

Have a lovely, lovely weekend everyone! xo

{some posts you may have missed and a few extra links:}
> from 10 to 60 years old: one model & plenty of make-up
> a great place to hang your sexy tartan ties
> really adorable photobooth puppies
> designers go green
> lovely, lacy doilies
> the latest happenings at {this is glamorous}
> and finally, would love for you to join me for a series of guest posts at design*sponge next week

{p.s.}
wonderful {i love you} dishware discovered by summer at mudpuppy

It's a dreary, rainy day, perfect for my new wellies and P.'s favourite umbrella, and while it may be nice to be {just hanging out, looking really good}, there are exciting projects to complete and great people to meet . . .

{taking a few moments to catch my breath}

Another busy week, and these peaceful shots feel as if they are glimpses of quiet and fleeting moments caught in time . . .

{images: top - jonny valiant via a little sussy; bottom - christopher wadsworth}

Lots of fun and exciting things going on this week, and have also been trying to get a few administrative things accomplished today:

> thought it might be time to join the facebook blog network, went to sign up and noticed that a lovely reader has already completed a profile for me -- thanks so much for your thoughtfulness. However, as it was not me who set up the account, am unable to log in, and can not set up a new one . . .

> another lovely reader has also set up a profile for {this is glamorous} on bloglovin'

> have installed a new search engine for the site, which you can find in the left sidebar -- it's a great way to find posts you may have seen a while ago and would like to find your way back to once again

> two fun give-aways coming up in the next few weeks

> posting will continue to be irregular and sporadic, so check back if you like . . .

> guest posting at design*sponge for the week of November 17, 2008

That's all for now . . .

Have a lovely, lovely day, everyone!
xo

{image: Natalia Vodianova by Carter Smith}

Adore the inky blues combined with vintage dishware and warm woods in this casually elegant and perfectly cozy dining room . . .

{see also:}
french urns & pheasant feathers

{image: Gourmet via this is love forever}

We thought we would share these images with you. Last night The Lake & Stars Opportunity Trench was featured on Desperate Housewives...the item was purchased at our boutique, and a TLS fan happened to capture the images from the show!
Here's Teri Hatcher wearing the Opportunity Trench in the way it was meant to be worn! Notice the pretty blue silk lining in the last pic - it's a pretty piece!
For more of The Lake & Stars, click here.