A Few of my Favorite Things:

I was asked to guest blog for my sister while she is traveling with some of her girlfriends, what an honor.

My background: I am the younger sister of Liz, but only by 20 months. I am an event planner for an Investment Bank and I live in New York City… oh and I love my sister. She is such an important person in my life, I am sure most people reading this are saying, well she is your sister of course you love her. It isn’t just like that; she is one of those people you have in your life that you couldn’t live without…one of those people that you could not see for two days and it feels like a lifetime…that even though you know they won’t always give you the answer you want to hear you ask them anyway. And when you come to them they even know when to say nothing at all. She is one of those people that when she is sad I can’t even begin to describe the hurt I feel inside myself, almost trying to will away the sadness so she doesn’t have to feel it. I could write pages not just about how amazingly talented she is with her work, as you all know, but what wonderful person she is overall. BUT she would KILL ME!

In so many ways I see Liz and I having countless similarities…facial expressions, mannerisms, eyes & smile (both we got from our mother) and are love of just about anything sweet and of SALT (which comes from our Dad) to name a few. But when it comes to the way we live you may consider us complete opposites. Not that we don’t overlap in ways, but let’s just say I hadn’t been to Brooklyn before she moved there. So when thinking of what to write about, I decided since you hear from her each day and John on Fridays, that I should talk about something they normally may not. I was going to go into great restaurants in NYC or about my career (which I could also talk about forever because I love it that much too), but then I realized this wouldn’t be fair to the demographic outside of New York, but for those of you in the NYC area stayed tune for a portion of tomorrow’s post.

So I decided to write on something else I think I know well, along with many other women (& some men) in the world, fashion. And not just any type of fashion (I am not going to sit here and rattle off new and hot designers), but I am going to list a few of my favorite things that I think may change some of your lives… well at least your wardrobe! Okay and I know I am tailoring this to the ladies, but if you are a guy and have a girlfriend/sister etc. you could have some great little/big gift ideas on your hands.

Number 1:
You HAVE to have a great bra. Since I was in high school I just went to Victoria Secret to get my bra and to be “fitted”. BAD IDEA. Until one day, I was like; I think I need a nicer bra. So I went to this great store in NY, http://www.thelittleflirt.com/, and was truly fitted. I will not go into the details of the sizes, but let me tell you this…. I was WAY off. I bought 3 bras right then and there and went home and threw all the others away. Since then I have gone back and picked up a few fun ones too…. But let me tell say you NEED to get a proper fitting, life altering and much better for your posture. Even if you aren’t “top heavy” I serious suggest this. So the basic bra I love to death is http://www.barenecessities.com/Chantelle-Sensua-Underwire-T-Shirt-Bra_product_Chantelle3061_,search,.htm, of course you need to get a proper fitting first because I think you will be surprised of your size! I think you get the point. You may spend a lot on the front end, but it will pay off it the end.

Number 2.
Matchsticks. I am not sure if all of you know of these or you may know, but don’t know just how great they are. They are so wonderful that I carry them with me every day. They are made by Commando, the underwear line. I use them all the time. Working at an Investment Bank I wear a lot of button down shirts. I find when I went to purchase a shirt I need to go up in size because of the fitting that causes a gap at the button, but then the shirt is too big everywhere else so I ended up purchase-free. Now... MATCHSTICKS. You place one of these suckers in between the buttons, press down and you are good to go. They are also great on wrap dresses to help keep them from showing too much J I am such a fan. They are about $10/pack, but you get 50 of them, $.20/stick, I will take it! They hold so well. You can use them on so many things… good-bye safety pins!
http://www.shopintuition.com/product.asp?pid=17868&catid=106&parentid=3&onCategoriesPage=1

Number 3.
Jeans: To be honest if I counted I have at least 50 pairs of designer jeans. Not bragging just backing up my next suggestions on brands I love now. Always J.Brand, they have great dark denim. Genetic denim is great too. I have a great pair that is more casual that I wear with my “rustic” boots I like to say. And Paige: They have been on scene for awhile, but I think they make a great butt, nice pocket placement. I would stay away from the True Religion if you have a butt because these pockets on the back can sometimes make you look wider or flatter and no one needs that. You all know where to find jeans, any major department store or http://www.intermixonline.com/.

Number 4.
A suit: If you ever are in the market for a suit head to Theory (Bloomie’s has a great spread of there things too). I know they are pricey, but let me tell you they last and look so feminine chic. If you don’t need a whole suit then you could always opt for just the pants, which are also amazing, especially if you have some height to you, but you can always shorten them if you don’t:) http://www.theory.com/

Number 5:
Some little tips(you may already know):
Bold BRIGHT colors. Yellow is huge. Headbands: Headbands will be big this spring and summer so look out for some cute ones, but don’t over do it. The only other thing I would say when buying tops, I know that this trapeze look is in, but make sure you are not looking like you are hiding something when you may not be! This top by Dakota Martin, http://www.dakotamartin.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=dakotamartin&Product_Code=natalie_top&Category_Code=tops I recently purchased is very chic. It is loose fitting just enough to give you the flow feel, but doesn’t create the look of extra lovin’ around the mid section, if you will. I got it in the Navy and it looks fabulous with white jeans.

Alright then, until tomorrow… or maybe later today depending on how my day goes!