4th of july pig roast

4th of july has come and gone - it seems like it was over so quickly and we spent way more time preparing for the pig roast at my mom's house than we had expected.  it was all worth it though.  the party was so, so, soooo much fun!  probably one of my favorite 4th of julys in a while.  we had lots of quick diy's - fabric garlands, painted signs, jar lanterns, and we even used an old bathtub as a cooler!  my sister (and future baker) made a awesome 3 layer cake - red velvet, vanilla, blue velvet with a cream cheese frosting. 

its baking time!

who doesn't love cream cheese frosting?? 

directions

all the plates and cutlery from branch

and then of course, there was the PIG - the star of the party really.

carving and shredding the pig - a man's job for sure

yummy

i don't usually eat pig/pork (mostly just bacon) but since my mom was having the party i decided i'd eat some.  even my sister, who recently started eating meat again, ate some.  we all agreed that it was the BEST.  the pig was raised, butchered, and cooked by my mom's friend - free range AND organic - but my mom did give the instructions that she did not want to see it alive and that the head was to be removed.

my favorite boys

my sister is laughing - i literally just poured half a beer on my head/back.  i don't know how it happened.

cute cake garlands i made

cake, i love you.

the outfit i decided on - t by alexander wang tank, rachel pally bandeau (similar bandeau), jbrand jeans, toms glitters

my sister broke my mom's lifelong rule (not the first time for either of us) and got some sparklers and then there was a thunderstorm and it rained twice, so we weren't scared of causing a major fire with the sparklers since all the brush was damp.  we also had a bonfire and smores (i was too full to participate) and these hoodlums (sisters friends + my bf) decided to throw like 10 sparklers in the fire.  not as exciting as it sounds.  but like i said before the party was so fun.  like really fun.  like so much fun i hope my mom does it every year!  hope you all had as much fun as i did this july 4th!

rachel pally sample sale finds!

i'm bad blogger - i haven't posted in so long!  life has been way to busy... and not in the i have stuff to blog about busy. 

anyway, i went to the rachel pally sample sale this past saturday with my little sister.  such a good selection this time around, and with such great prices it makes it was kinda hard to choose! i literally had my arms full with stuff to try on, as did my sister.  i ended up with three great pieces for spring/summer - the bandage skirt in black garden print, the long full skirt in haze & the bess bandeau in cayenne stripe.

bandage skirt in black garden print worn with a free people sweater, ray-ban sunglasses & dolce vita wedges

the usual jewelry

the long full skirt worn with a rag & bone shirt, t by alexander wang tank, free people bandeau

vintage rings, house of harlow 1960 locket

the bess bandeau worn with a t by alexander wang tank, jbrand shorts, toms wedges

carlos had to make a cameo

rachel was so sweet to give me the bandeau and bandage skirt as a gift!  seriously one of my favorite clients!  thanks rachel!  i'll be shooting more rachel pally pieces next week, and there are some seriously cute things.  check the site for new stuff soon! 

nyfw fall 2011: alexander wang favorites

alexander wang has definitely differentiated his collection from his lower priced lines with his fall 2011 collection: 

i'm a big fan of his T collection, mostly cause its sem-affordable.  and by semi-affordable i mean i once splurged on the classic tank with a pocket.  which is about $80, and definitely more affordable than his rtw. 

anyway - i love the contrast between the soft cozy knits and the shiny satin.  can i get that poncho, please?

all images from style.com