Bring It, 2011!

click on image to enlarge

There are a lot of motivating new year's resolutions, goals and lists floating around out there. Personally, I'm going with the idea of new year mantras. Reminders to live by on a daily basis. Above is my first one for 2011. I plan to post it on my mirror as a morning smack to the brain to remember to think big.

May your 2010 go out on the highest of notes and your 2011 be filled with endless imagination, opportunity and success!

Till next year luvies,
*Mrs E


images via 1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9|10| quote

CHEERS + CIAO TO 2010

Here's wishing you all wonderful New Year's Eve!

I'm taking a brief little vacation until Wednesday! While I'll be spending the majority of it organizing the office (and my life) for 2011, tonight I will be surrounded by friends new and old, with a glass of champagne permanently affixed to my hand until midnight. Much love to you all, and I hope the next year is even better than the last!!

xoxo,
cassandra

WINDING DOWN...

Whew!! Well, here we are darlings. The last of 2010! I'm winding down the next few days (so I can wind up again for the new year!), but before I sign off, I wanted to give a huge thank you to our holiday sponsors here at coco+kelley!

To our fabulous premiere sponsors, some of which I'm sure you're very familiar with, we were so happy to have you for the past two months! If you haven't spend time getting to know them, please hop over to the amazing shops at iomoi (such a fave of mine!), Gorjana (beautiful accessories and jewels), Jules Reid, and The New Traditionalists as well as the inspiring blog, sage & style.

And, if you're up for some extra clicking... more fantastic sponsors! Wardrobe Stationery (beautiful, custom cards)  naomi lynn (a sweet, whimsical paperie!), Clayton Gray (an absolute go-to for all things home), tilly maison (loving her fabulous trays!) Ruby Lane (where I happened to purchase my birthday jewels this year!) Swoon (SUCH pretty little gems!), Panty by Post (a monthly subscription to fantastic unmentionables) Ruby Plaza (she's Ruby Lane's little sis) and Blue Hour Designs.

Thanks to you all for supporting coco+kelley!

New Year's Eve Fashion Fix

Did you, like me, fail to find that perfect frock for a rockin' New Year's Eve? Take heart, all is not lost. You can ring in the new year with statement making style.

Simply pull out your best LBD ( or insert t-shirt + skinny jeans, tank + mini, cashmere sweater + wide leg trousers per your personal fashionista preference) and add an outrageous statement necklace. Any of these from Tom Binns will do quite nicely.




Consider your fashion emergency solved and your NYE look practically perfect. I hope you get your new year off to a fabulous start!

STAYING IN...

While the thought of getting all dolled up for New Years with friends sounds lovely... I'm scheming of a New Years just for two... and a sexy little tabletop to match!

Although ... I'm not sure many of the men I know would be super appreciative of all the effort that would go into putting together such a lavish setting (unless it came with a matching ensemble). Perhaps it would be better suited for a sassy bachelorette night?? Who's getting married? Let's plan a party! 

*photography by amy p. glassware zara home.  dinnerware ralph lauren. feathers z gallerie.

I've Got a Crush {The Best of 2010}

Looking through all of my crushes from the last year, it is evident that I fall often and hard for the lovely things out there in the world. As I tried to pick my faves, I was swooning all over again. At least my taste is consistent!

I did manage to pick some of my very favorites ~ and I discovered reoccuring themes!

Best Crushes of 2010

I've got a crush on eye catching spaces,

On strong looks,

On daily inspiration,



On shoes, shoes and more shoes.

And (perhaps most importantly - though it may be a tie with shoes) on moments in life that make you smile!

Here's to discovering a new set of killer crushes in 2011 luvies!

*Mrs. E

DINING ON SUNSHINE

We're supposedly getting a little sunshine in Seattle this week to ring in the new year, and it couldn't come soon enough as the rain has been falling nonstop! I've been hoarding away images like these sunny little dining areas just to look at while I dream of making a sunny vacation getaway...



If you close your eyes you can almost feel the warmth pouring through those windows... is it spring yet?
*images via french by design

HOW DID YOU KNOW?

Loving these all-occassion thank you cards from stripe & field...

Such a sweetly chic way to express a little gratitude for pretty little gifts or thoughtful acts.

Wedding Wednesday {The Best of 2010}

If you've stopped by here, really...anytime, in the last 365 days, you probably caught on to the fact that this was the year I got married. The process is an exciting, crazy, fun, overwhelming and extremely joyous experience. At least I feel lucky enough to have felt all of those emotions upon getting engaged and suddenly finding myself faced with this "momentous occasion."

But as I've said before, these days weddings can really be anything your heart desires. And for the event planner in me - this was pure heaven! I could not have had more fun dreaming up such a special experience with the man I chose to spend the rest of my life with. Not to mention playing with dresses, shoes, decor, food, paper, photography and everything in between!

So when looking back through the reams and reams of inspiration, the post below is probably my favorite moment in the whole process. When it had all come together, we were about to take off and anticipation was at its peak. It's a feeling I hope to hold onto for a very long time.

Best of Wedding Wednesday 2010
It seems a bride's work, or more accurately, a bride's brainstorming is never done. Even while I'm packing my bags for Mexico I'm still thinking of fun little details to incorporate into the big day.

Things like gorgeous hand calligraphed menus (those are my actual menus!), beautiful varieties of flowers (I ended up ordering polar star roses, ranunculus, alstroemeria and black calla lilies), fabulous shoes and gorgeous hair accessories make the day that much more personal.

1) Our wedding dinner menu, calligraphy by primele, 2) flowers by unknown, 3) manolos by elizabeth messina, 4)Mandizzle hair flower, 5) bouquet unknown and  6) sign by Tanja Lippert via erin ever after

As it has all come together, I've realized that although the wedding details are amazingly fun, what we're really planning is a moment of private commitment and collective joy. It's a special time to bring your nearest and dearest closest to you, turn to the person you love most in the entire world and devote your heart and every lasting friendship to him (or her!). It's an occasion to toast and cheer. It's the moment when you choose your family. Oh, and you get to put on a seriously rockin' dress. Does it get any better than that!? 

Well, I'll let you know in a couple of weeks! Thank you to all of my readers for your suggestions, input, advice and support. It means the world. I promise to share all when I return :) 

*E

Wow, it really was quite a ride that we won't soon forget. As an extra special treat for you, my unbelievably patient readers, here is the very first sneak-peak image of our wedding, shot by the adored Jose Villa!

The rest of the wedding will be revealed at a very special wedding blog very soon. You can also check out our engagement photo session with Jose here. The man does amazing things with a camera!

Finally, I want to say a massive thank you to every reader. Your thoughtful comments, emails, advice and  support meant the world. You were such a huge inspiration and often a huge help to me throughout the planning process and it made the whole experience that much more enjoyable.

So from the bottom of my heart, thank you. Now it's time to start planning the 1-year anniversary celebration! ;)

*Mrs. E

Wedding Dress for Bridesmaid

Apparel industry in particular wedding dress will never be lonely, there's always the latest innovations, whether material or immaterial, model, style and design. So it always comes popping the young designers who are always full of obsession led to a lot of good work, is spectacular and can penetrate the world market, thereby becoming a famous fashion designer. Wedding gowns this time is white with decorative embroidery up to the pelvis, neck shape is made as in the picture, so the impression fashionable, exotic, pampered and modern aura is created out of these gowns.

GREEN LEATHER GETS FRESH

There are very few circumstances in life where the idea of a green leather living room set would be even remotely close to a genius design concept. This is one of them:

Leaving the rest of the space fresh, white and modern makes this incredibly appealing to me! Of course, it helps the the chesterfield sofa and chairs have fantastic style. It reminds me of this ensemble that I blogged about a couple years back...

Still dying to find the just-right vintage green leather jacket to top my white dresses and t's in.

*images via unknown (help!) and the sartorialist 

DRIZZLE DAZZLE

The holiday lookbook over at Intermix right now has some serious new years ensemble inspiration going on. My two favorites for the kind of evening I'll be having...


Just enough casual New Year's Eve dazzle for a quiet dinner party with good friends on what will inevitably be a rainy night in Seattle... I can't wait to relax and enjoy the evening! Will you be going out or staying in this year??

Tasty Tuesdays {The Best of 2010}

Since launching Tasty Tuesdays last summer, I've been thrilled by the response from fellow foodies and I've so enjoyed sharing recipes, gorgeous food photos and the random taste treats I find with you.

Good food plays such a significant role in my daily life and I hoped that talking about food on Apartment 34 might inspire others as well.

So when I looked back to pick my favorite tasty post for 2010, I just had to go to where the inspiration all began ~ the experience of eating decadently through our entire European honeymoon. There are so many meals that I still remember vividly - food memories that I hope will last a lifetime.

I hope you've found some good recipes, kitchen ideas and maybe even a bit of style inspiration from this series. I plan to find and share even more deliciousness in 2011!

Best of Tasty Tuesday 2010

I talk about a lot of different things I love here - fashion, style, design, decor, travel...but one passion I've yet to delve into is...food! I am an out and proud foodie and take this love very very seriously.

It's gotten to the point where I just had to share some of my favorite eats with you. So I give you a new Apartment 34 feature ~ Tasty Tuesdays! Since talking about food could easily overtake everything here, I knew I had to limit it to just one day a week (at least to start!). 

To kick it all off, I thought I'd share a few of my favorite honeymoon meals.

I judge most things by the number of good meals I had, so I made a point to make sure we ate very well throughout our honeymoon travels. Whether it was old Amsterdam cheese, apfelkuchen and beers by the city's canals, or lovely lunches of polenta with squid ink sauce paired with an excellent Valpolicella in Venice we made sure to savor each and every morsel.

1) tortellini in Borghetto 2) traditional Dutch seafood in a modern way at Spelt 3) Venetian cicheri 4) beet risotto at Spelt 5) polenta with black ink sauce 6) Dutch breakfast  at Gartine 7) dessert on the Amsterdam canal 8) black ink spaghetti 9) pumpkin tortellini with amaretti

We tried to sample the local speciality of each city we visited. It ranged from fantastic handmade tortellini outside of Verona, to a beautiful beet risotto (in Amsterdam no less and it was divine!). Feel lucky I didn't take pictures of every gelateria we sampled because those posts would dominate Tasty Tuesdays for weeks.

Now back at home, I'm still hankering for those amazing dinners. I highly recommend my italian speaking readers check out La Cucina, a stunning italian cooking magazine. Every recipe makes me drool all over my keyboard.

Sunday-Supers, the Brooklyn-based cooking school on which I have the biggest foodie crush, also recently held an all italian dinner with delicious recipes. You can check it out here.

Bon appetito luvies!

*Mrs. E 

RESOLUTIONS...

While I'm not usually a big believer in making tons of promises that you know will never be kept... I have to say I'm very into the idea of making some serious resolutions this year...

While most of them have to do with the usual (save more money, lose more weight, and so on) my biggest one is really more about finding a new direction.

In 2009, I took a big leap in taking coco+kelley from a blog to a business, starting with my first interior and event clients. For me, 2010 was about growing and learning and building both personally and professionally. And now, I'm ready for new things in 2011. So many possibilities suddenly lay before me that it can be slightly paralyzing to actually make decisions. Which makes resolution #1 the courage to move myself forward in the next big direction... what will it be? A new city? New job? New passions? New travels? I hope by taking one step, the next will follow and I'll find myself tumbling into new and exciting adventures once again!

And you, my loves?? What are your resolutions for the coming year?? Let's make some promises together!

*necklace by kate spade

A VINTAGE WINTER PALETTE

Nothing keeps me cozier in the winter than dressing my home in colors that exude a feeling of warmth - in this case a very vintage inspired palette of jewel toned ruby, sapphire and emerald accented by soft mauve and a punch of salmon pink...

It has a gypsy-bohemian flavour about it, wouldn't you agree? And the colors lend themselves so well to luxurious fabrics like velvet and satin, they're simply made to wrap yourself in! I could see this palette easily being infused into my little office for the next few months...

*images via unknown, domino mag, toast, and espacio vita

Monday Work Wear {The Best of 2010}

With how quickly this jam-packed year flew by, for the final week fo 2010 I thought I'd look back over the 365+ posts and pick my very favorites. It's interesting to look back and see how perspectives, personal tastes and trends evolve (or stay exactly the same) over the course of 12 months!

Throughout the week I'll be bringing back my top work looks, taste treats, wedding inspiration and crushes. Because when a fresh start presents itself, its wise to remember the old before you start the new.

I hope you enjoy walk down memory lane!

Best of Monday Work Wear 2010
There are definitely some consistencies in my preferred work wardrobe. Menswear, power shoes, a love of Zara, looks that turn heads and makes you feel great at the same time.

But I think the post below, inspired by our honeymoon in Italy, really captures my workwear mantra: make a statement, make a mark, make people stand up and take notice, because really, what's the point of getting up every Monday and going out into the world other than to make your individual impression on it!

spotted on haute design, images by jak & jil

Original post: These looks spotted during men's fashion week in Milan are right up my alley. Giovanna is a classic and those shoes - need I say more?! I think my fashion is going to influenced by Italy for quite some time.

I hope you head into the new year ready to make an indelible mark luvies.

Happy last week of 2010!
*Mrs. E