Miss Dior Chérie

How gorgeous does Natalie Portman look in the new Miss Dior ad? I might love it even more than I loved the original Miss Dior commercial that Sofia Coppola directed a few years ago! The Brigitte Bardot "Moi je joue" was my ringtone forever!

In case you forgot the fantastic commercial....

For the Love of Red Nails

How fun is this movie poster for Woody Allen's "You will meet a tall dark stranger" ? Personally I LOVE the red nail polish, and the illustrated man has a bit of a Mad Men vibe to it! While I generally think Woody Allen movies are odd, the poster alone makes me think it would be fun!

Proust Questionnaire

Do you ever read Vanity Fair magazine? In the back of every issue there is a Proust Questionnaire. I think it's rather interesting, and decided to fill one out myself. I tag Buckhead Belle and Truffles de Vie to share theirs too!

Your favorite qualities in a woman:
Being independent, well mannered and free-thinking

Your chief characteristic:
Being particular

What you appreciate the most in your friends:
Being good listeners (after I tell the same story 100 times and continue to ask for their opinion)

Your idea of happiness
Close friends and family (geographically or otherwise), good food, french champagne, glossy magazines and always having the funds for direct flights home to South Carolina.

Your idea of misery:
Being alone, not by choice. Living somewhere that is never sunny.

If not yourself, who would you be:
A mix of Edie Beale II, Marie Antoinette and any french woman sitting outside of a Cafe eating a macaron.

Where would you like to live:
March- November : Paris

December- February: the warmest place I could find (Tahiti perhaps?)

Your favourite colour and flower.
Favorite color changes... currently its Navy Blue and Hermes Orange. Favorite flower is a tough race between the fabulously fragrant Gardenia and the Peony.

Your favorite heroines in fiction:
Josephine March, Elizabeth Bennet, and Scarlett O'Hara (although I consider that nonfiction!)

Your favorite painters and composers:
Van Gogh, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Bach, Whistler

Your heroes/heroines in real life:

My mother- she is more patient than I will ever be in my life.

What characters in history do you most dislike:
Sherman.

Your favorite food and drink:
The baby greens salad and steak frites from Bistro du Coin in DC and a glass (who am I kidding.. a bottle) of Veuve Clicquot

What I hate the most:
People who are tardy, who are not original, and those without opinions.

World history characters I hate the most:
Again, Sherman. Just sayin.

The military event I admire the most:
As a southerner I am fascinated with the Civil War (still) and my tenure at the Holocaust Museum made me very interested in the military history of WWII.

The natural talent I’d like to be gifted with:
To be able to time travel and the ability to read people’s mind.

What is your present state of mind:

Slightly pessimistic as I am not good with winter weather, yet trying to be optimistic and know that spring will come soon enough.

I'm also a girl who vacuums in heels... and a cocktail dress.

So Excited for SOME 2011

Looking forward to putting on a cocktail dress and attending a fantastic party for a most wonderful cause! Certainly gives me something to look forward to in February! I couldent be more excited to be involved with such a great event! If you live in DC, please buy a ticket! I went last year (in the middle of snowmaggeddon, part 2) and still managed to have a wonderful time!

Christmas in Dixie

A WHITE CHRISTMAS!

I had a wonderful Christmas break at home in South Carolina. Almost 2 weeks off from work was such a blessing and exactly what I needed. I got to spend lots of time with family, and also very importantly I had my first (and quite possibly my only) WHITE CHRISTMAS! Yes, it snowed on Christmas day in Greenville. I was elated!

I had plenty of time to relax around the house, for daytrips to both Arden and Charlotte and do another hardcore clean out of the house. We found some artwork and schoolwork of mine circa 1994... too funny to get rid of and made the cut to be moved (sadly the over 100 beanie babies did not!!)

Christmas Tree- decorated with Charleston ornaments, of course!

MMK enjoying the December 25th snow

Mother never forgets my favorite stocking stuffers...

Maple Sugar Candies and...

Whatchamacallits!!

How I Stay Organized

As much as I love my Blackberry, I really do prefer to write things down in a paper calendar. There is just something about having a physical calendar to carry around and write in with pen that I really enjoy. I cant say enough how much I love Gallery Leather's calendars. I have been using them since I was in college and have always been fond of the pink colors. I really like the amount of space you have to write per day as well as the additional back pages for scribbling notes. I have kept them over the years as sort of diaries... always makes me laugh at the things I would write in my calendar (in addition to all of the exams and papers) I of course noted every mixer, formal and social occasion I attended! Every year I look forward to finding my new planner.

I always choose a bright pink color.

Plenty of space to write down my daily to-dos!

I love how they looked stacked in my bookcase.

4 years is never Enough!

Lately I've been having lots of "I miss college" days in addition to missing my most favorite city in South Carolina, Charleston. I feel so lucky that I got to spend 4 years there for college as well as 2 of the best summers of my life. I wish I could have dragged college out further, although I tried to squeeze as much in as I could with 2 Majors in Historic Preservation & Community Planning and Art History.

I miss days of touring historic homes to research my senior thesis.

(Spoleto Headquarters on George Street)

I miss spending my favorite Summer Holiday (July 4th) on Sullivan's Island at Station 22.

I miss the days of being a Belle for Southern Proper.

I miss bid days on the cistern!

I miss the grey house on Duncan Street that flooded when it rained at high tide.

I miss bid days on the beach with my bestie, SAT.

I miss having a view of where the Ashley and Cooper come together during sunset walks.

I miss this being my classroom. (No joke, one summer a preservation course I took required sketches of historic homes. This day we toured and sketched the Heyward Washington house, where George Washington once visited). The second best part of this class is that it was Maymester and only went from 9 am to 12 pm. My professor was always so patient with my lack of drawing skills too!

I may not live in Charleston anymore, but I am very happy to have pictures this fantastic to remind of me of a dearly loved place (with people I love too)!