Craftsy Free Class Day

What are y'all doing this weekend? Or next weekend? Or on a weekend in six months? The great news is with Craftsy, you can register for one of their online classes and view it whenever it fits in your schedule. And you can watch it and print out the class materials as many times as you want or need. In most classes, the instructors are available to answer any questions you have in a timely manner. Today only, Craftsy is offering a free class to all new members who join the Craftsy community! And if they meet their goal of 10,000 new members, they'll donate $5,000 to help fund arts education in public schools! So sign up for your free class today and take it whenever it's convenient for you, all while helping to keep art in public schools!

From Craftsy:

"On May 18th, Craftsy is hosting Free Class Day to benefit DonorsChoose. For one day only, new members can choose one free course from a selection of favorite Craftsy classes, up to a $39.99 value! If you haven't taken a Craftsy class yet, Saturday is your chance to sign up for your first by choosing from classes in quilting, sewing, knitting, cake decorating, and more.

If they meet their goal of giving away 10,000 classes, Craftsy will donate $5,000 to DonorsChoose to fund arts education in public schools across the US. Existing members are not eligible for the free course offer, but will still receive a special treat."

Click here for your free class.

A Room Without Books is Like a Body Without a Soul

We're Just Like You, Only Prettier is a staple in my pool bag. I can read this book (and all of Miss Rivenbark's books) over and over and still laugh so hard that I cry. It's the perfect summer read. Thank you Celia Rivenbark, you keep me sane and happy.

This is like reading a perfectly curated and assembled magazine. It will earn a place, easily within reach, in my office as it's an amazing resource and incredibly inspiring. While Paris Street Style doesn't give you a paint by numbers approach to "effortless chic" it does encourage you embrace your own je ne sais quoi.

Jen Lancaster is another author who makes me laugh and can completely turn my mood around. I identify with the stories and they are short and easy reads.  Perfect for laying by the pool. Bitter is the New Black was her first book and probably my favorite. By her fourth book it kind of feels as though you're reading the same stories over and over (each story is still hilarious though), so I would recommend spreading her books over a length of time and not read them back to back.

Dead Ever After is the final book in the Sookie Stackhouse series. I've read all of the books in the series and while I feel like Ms. Harris stopped really caring about the characters and her quality of writing once True Blood premiered on HBO, I had to know what happened to Sookie. I really wish I hadn't. It was just as awful as books nine through twelve and the ending wasn't satisfying in the least. This is the only book that's been in my pool bag since the pool has opened for the spring that I wouldn't recommend.

Monogrammed Pick of the Week: Pockets

Credit Where Credit is Due

How adorable are these monogrammed pockets from A Prince's Touch?  Too stinking cute! The pockets are available on a variety of coordinating tanks, with the tanks starting at only $20. A Prince's Touch has a variety of chevron fabrics available for the pockets, but the striped pocket above is my idea of summer perfection! I can't wait to order mine and wear it on the lake this summer!

Movie Monday: King Creole

Encore has been showing a different Elvis movie every night this month. Last Sunday I was lucky enough to catch King Creole. Mr. Presley had such a presence and this movie felt a great deal more serious than some more of his later fare. King Creole is said to be Mr. Presley's personal favorite among the many films he started in and I couldn't help but fall in love with his character. 

After watching King Creole, I was left with the desire to work my leather jacket into my wardrobe during these last few evenings of cooler weather. Over dresses, paired with chiffon skirts, and lacy shirts, the options are endless.

 I purchased my Members Only leather jacket a few years back, the leather is gorgeous, but this one is pretty similar in cut (and on sale).

Do movies influence your wardrobe? What does?

When Life Gets the Best of You

It's been a crazy week. Cr-azy. I promise to get back to the regularly scheduled programming next week. Did anyone miss my monogrammed pick of the week?Bueller...Bueller.... I do feel awful that I haven't posted anything since Monday and I'm not really up for cohesion at the moment, so this post is going to be a super random, what's been souping around in my brain (brain soup?) post...

• 3.1 Phillip Lim will be collaborating with Target and the collection will debut on September 15th. Just as I was giving up on Target collaborations, they win be back. Well done Target, well done.
• Is anyone really surprised Abercrombie and Fitch's target market is the ridiculously thin and good looking? Or that the CEO is a bit of an ass? No? Then I don't fully understand why the media is so appalled. Perhaps they should analyze Victoria Secret's target market. Or what really goes on at Vogue. Oh wait, I suppose they did last month.
• Neutrogena's Revitalizing Lip Balm is my new favorite lip product. I might have bought four tubes in the past week. It's got just enough color, makes my lips look great (I would use kissable, but that's a little too much of a cliche, even for me) and keeps them moisturized.
• Chocolate crescents are addictive. In my quest to prepare some amazing ones on Mother's Day, I've tried every single one I can get my mitts on. I need an intervention. This is my waistline's cry for help. 
• I've downloaded The Great Gatsby soundtrack, but I still haven't listened to it all the way through yet. Ok, it's played all the way through, a couple of times, but my attention was elsewhere. I'm a little shocked at the reviews on Amazon. Have these negative reviewers watched a Baz Luhrmann movie? Have they listened to a Jay Z song? What could possibly make them believe the soundtrack would fit the 1920's time period? 
• I finished my undergraduate education. Finally.