I don’t know if this is new but I haven’t seen this commercial until last night.   Was it during Project Runway?   Don’t remember, as I ended up watching 48 hours on WE after that.   But the fact that I had been watching TV when I should have been working on other things is not the reason for this post.  As you probably know Zooey Deschanel is a beloved darling of this corner of blogland and this commercial only reinforces that for me.  Not that this commercial makes me run out and buy cotton but I do covet Zooey’s style!

Oh, so one of the things I was supposed to be working on late last night was a sewing pattern for my little swan friend.  It’s pretty much done but I just want to make sure it’s sound.  It’ll be ready next week!

Have a lovely weekend, sweets.

Perhaps it has to do with all the wedding imagery I’ve been looking at the past couple of months but lace has really grown on me.  I don’t have a lot of lace in my wardrobe; it often seems too prim and Victorian for my taste.  And cheap lace looks, well, cheap.  But as you probably know, my wedding dress ended up being a pretty off-white lace.  It doesn’t have any tiers but it could have!  The pretty combination of frothy, lacy layers is so feminine and decadent.  And in soft colors like blush, mauve and antique cream it’s almost irresistible!   I can imagine myself and a few friends playing dress up in a dusty attic in these pretties….

Vintage-style bolero (above), TopShop.  I love the pretty pale pink and contrasting belt in this Layer Cake dress from ModCloth:

The almost moth-eaten look of this Chai Latte dress (also from ModCloth) is delicious:

This lace cami is almost ghostly, J.Crew:

Really fun 1950s Lace Dress from TimelessVixenVintage:

Gorgeous 1950s lace dress from Caberet Vintage:

Other tiered beauties:

• Wavelet blouse at Anthropologie
• Strapless Ruffle Tiered dress from Forever 21

Oh, and are you wondering how you, a modern girl, can pull off such a look?  One of my most favorite stylish bloggers, Miss Francesca, has the pretty but not fussy lace look down to a t:

(If you haven’t checked out her blog before, you must – prepare to be inspired!)

I’m tempted to dig around my stash for yards and yards of lace trim and create a little vintage-inspired layer cake top or dress of my own.  Just another thing to add to the ever-lasting To Do list!

a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_M5dKBd5_Vfk/R8rx8_M9CEI/AAAAAAAAAI8/fZEdzWYJM8E/s1600-h/penel.jpg”img style=”margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;” src=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_M5dKBd5_Vfk/R8rx8_M9CEI/AAAAAAAAAI8/fZEdzWYJM8E/s400/penel.jpg” alt=”" id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5173213152048646210″ border=”0″ //abr /If you want to see a movie that is funny and sweet AND has adorably wearable costumes , see a href=”http://www.penelopethemovie.com/” target=”_blank”bPenelope/b./abr /br /I stayed home all day trying to get some work done and it was time to trek outside. We haven’t been to a movie in a long while (I missed bSweeney Todd/b, I cry and cry!) so last night it was either a href=”http://www.apple.com/trailers/paramount_vantage/therewillbeblood/” target=”_blank”bThere Will be Blood/b/a or bPenelope/b. Although I admit I have a “non-sexual crush” on Daniel Day Lewis, I have been watching far too many iForensic Files/i (eek) as of late and wanted to see something light-hearted and uplifting.br /br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_M5dKBd5_Vfk/R8r42PM9CII/AAAAAAAAAJc/uKTIQyMuLkM/s1600-h/penelope4.jpg”img style=”margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;” src=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_M5dKBd5_Vfk/R8r42PM9CII/AAAAAAAAAJc/uKTIQyMuLkM/s400/penelope4.jpg” alt=”" id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5173220732665923714″ border=”0″ //abr /With Christina Ricci, Catherine O’Hara and Peter Dinklage I figured it couldn’t be too bad. Oh, it wasn’t – I really liked it. It definitely had some funny moments that even the trailers don’t spoil. (Don’t you hate it when a trailer uses all the best parts of the movie?) The Penelope character is charming and quirky…ok wait, I don’t to give away too much!br /br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_M5dKBd5_Vfk/R8rzqfM9CFI/AAAAAAAAAJE/B0ASvrxK0Sg/s1600-h/penelope1.jpg”img style=”margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;” src=”http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_M5dKBd5_Vfk/R8rzqfM9CFI/AAAAAAAAAJE/B0ASvrxK0Sg/s400/penelope1.jpg” alt=”" id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5173215033244321874″ border=”0″ //aThe clothes. There are plenty of movies with gorgeous costumes but in one like this, the clothes are ones you could actually wear in real life. Think Anthropologie. I imagine though that Penelope makes her own clothes. (That’s what I like to think, how cute would that be?)br /br /The designer put a lot of thought into the details. That may be my favorite things about Colleen Atwood’s costumes – she doesn’t miss a stitch. I’ve looked online but haven’t been able to figure out who the designer is for span style=”font-weight: bold;”Penelope/span – if anyone knows, let me know. I especially love the saturated colors, the 1930′s-’40′s style, interesting tights and Mary Jane shoes.br /br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_M5dKBd5_Vfk/R8r16PM9CGI/AAAAAAAAAJM/EO9B_u3y1qs/s1600-h/penelope2.jpg”img style=”margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;” src=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_M5dKBd5_Vfk/R8r16PM9CGI/AAAAAAAAAJM/EO9B_u3y1qs/s400/penelope2.jpg” alt=”" id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5173217502850517090″ border=”0″ //abr /The production design in general is enchanting, fairytale-like and truly inspiring. I mean, it has made me realize I need more butterflies, moths and terrariums.br /br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_M5dKBd5_Vfk/R8r4vfM9CHI/AAAAAAAAAJU/wM0ZHgg8w0I/s1600-h/penelope3.jpg”img style=”margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;” src=”http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_M5dKBd5_Vfk/R8r4vfM9CHI/AAAAAAAAAJU/wM0ZHgg8w0I/s400/penelope3.jpg” alt=”" id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5173220616701806706″ border=”0″ //abr /And striped knits.

a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_M5dKBd5_Vfk/R12A4o5s-ZI/AAAAAAAAAFc/kIGNniAZYto/s1600-h/apples-skirt.jpg”img style=”margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;” src=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_M5dKBd5_Vfk/R12A4o5s-ZI/AAAAAAAAAFc/kIGNniAZYto/s400/apples-skirt.jpg” alt=”" id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5142408060067445138″ border=”0″ //abr /I continue to go through my closet looking for clothes that I keep but never wear, have never worn, that no longer fit or I just plain don’t like anymore. It’s very liberating. It’s also a good excuse to buy more clothes.br /br /Hannah of a href=”http://www.madewithlovebyhannah.com/” target=”_blank”Made with Love by Hannah/a is one of my favorite DIY designers. I got her a href=”http://madewithlovebyhannah.com/apples.html” target=”_blank”Apple Pickin’ skirt/a (in Red Delicious) while I was living in Texas and it’s one of the most fun skirts I have. (The best part is the little worm peeping out of the apples!) Check out a href=”http://madewithlovebyhannah.com/” target=”_blank”her site/a: it’s all about mushrooms and gnomes, doe-eyed critters and ric rac. It’s like a black forest dream come true.br /br /She has one of those sites that I visit frequently, admiring and drooling but never feeling like I have a legitimate reason to buy another skirt. But after the last 2 visits I thought, who am I kidding? Maybe I should just buy something so I don’t keep coming back here over and over again. Part of the “problem” with the site is that I absolutely cannot decide which skirt to get because they are all so cute! So I didn’t, really. I can buy more than one, can’t I? Early Christmas/Birthday gifts to me, because I’ve been iso/i good this year.br /br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_M5dKBd5_Vfk/R12F7Y5s-aI/AAAAAAAAAFk/9r9ETaiudsk/s1600-h/winterwoods-skirts.jpg”img style=”margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;” src=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_M5dKBd5_Vfk/R12F7Y5s-aI/AAAAAAAAAFk/9r9ETaiudsk/s400/winterwoods-skirts.jpg” alt=”" id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5142413604870224290″ border=”0″ //abr /Most of my skirts are summery and I’ve been feeling like I really want to wear skirts now, even though it has been quite chilly. Hannah’s a href=”http://madewithlovebyhannah.com/winterwoods.html” target”_blank”Winter Woods skirts/a seem to fit the bill. Soft cotton velveteen in deep colors. I got one in charcoal grey — with a little felt skunk brooch! — and one in pine green that comes with a bluebird brooch. Ack! Now I just have to wait patiently for my goodies to arrive.