fuchsia & lemon; sweet & sour.

While I can predictably gravitate toward neutrals, earth tones, and jewel tones when shopping for an addition to my wardrobe, I have recently done quite the opposite. What a monumental break-through! Convinced that brights would play up my pale ivory skin, I cautiously and purposefully kept my distance and admired the hi-lighter yellows and so-hot-you're-on-fire pinks from a far. I decided a little fuchsia nail polish couldn't hurt, however, and that's when I came across a surprisingly do-able color combo that was begging to be showed off: fuchsia and lemon. My luscious pink nails were on display while I was flipping through my tops hanging in my closet, when all of the sudden I approached the yellow section (consisting of one bright and daring sunshine-yellow top, featured below, sandwiched in between deep mustard and more flattering tones). There was no denying that a daring and playful outfit was about to be in the making. I ended up with the sheer canary yellow bat-wing top paired with my high-waisted dark denim cuffed shorts. Accessories as followed: my daily wrist bling, shiny gold studs, hot pink statement necklace, strappy caramel sandals and to-die-for gold studded bag. What a winning combo it was!

sunflowers & peonies.

Pop-color pieces from Sheridan French. Fuchsia lace as shown on Cupcakes & Cashmere.

The ensemble I established.

A woven textured necklace.

My previous desktop images: a Free People calendar and pattern.

My stunning sister & my wrist ornaments.

My thoughts on fashion.

Stepped outside the box lately? What daring ensemble-encounters have you experienced?

Ciau,
K.René

what is love? (baby don't hurt me...)

Growing up, this was one of the Bible verses that my Mother taught us to live by. When I came across this modern and simplistic layout, I knew I had to share. With such strong words holding such great meaning, this will always be meaningful quote to me.

(Found here.)

Ciau,
K.René

musical mindset.

The Beatles: they have truly influenced the world. More specifically, they've directly influenced my taste in music. I cannot get enough of their classic, catchy, incredibly brilliant tunes. It would be nearly impossible to try to pick a favorite; therefore, I have narrowed my selection down to a top 5. These songs bring back bunches of memories of happy moments.

Our family vacations always had the Beatles for our soundtrack. We had sing-a-longs on the lengthy road trips, helping to minimize the "are we there yet?" persistency by harmonizing to "All You Need is Love."

"Strawberry Fields" instantly relaxes my mind and causes flashbacks of my very first moments as a member of Zeta Tau Alpha, as the theme for Bid Day was "All you need is love... The greatest of all things." Such smile-filled times.

My graphic-design-take on "All My Loving." We ended up using this design for a Valentine's Day party with my sorority.

At the very moment these peculiar notes first graced my eardrums, I knew this song would end up being an ultimate favorite. The funk and mixture of sound effects with unusual chords just makes the whole song an adventure to listen to. The one, the only, "Come Together."

I first realized "A Day in the Life" was sung by The Beatles while it was being performed by Drew Yardis during the Saturday Farmer's Market in Downtown Lake Mary, FL. I was indoors working at Sophie & Trey when I heard the spectacular melody seeping in the doors from outside. After propping open the door to be encompassed by the sound, I heard what was such a dramatic song--transforming from one style to another, to another during the course of the track. The collage of sound makes for an incredible listen.

("Ten Years" poster by Max Dalton, bottom images by Google & Auto Suede.)

Not for a second could I imagine my life without The Beatles in it. Maybe I'm amazed by their talent; maybe I'm amazed by their creativity--hmm, I'll just let it be. Well, it's been a hard day's night, and I should be sleeping like a log! Off to bed I go...

Ciau,
K. René

mark your calendars: do not miss out on MISSONI!

They've really hit the bullseye with this combo: Target & Missoni. Come September 13th-October 22nd, Target will be featuring over 400 items (read: cartfuls and cartfuls) all designed by Missoni for affordable prices. The perfect storm for me betraying my budget! From iPhone cases to kitchenware to luggage to textiles, our lifestyles will be spiced up with the timeless zig zag.

A paparazzi preview of the Target collection.

Some of my preferred designer collection pieces.

Mariana Zois at the M Missoni party photos.

An unmistakably-Missoni advertisement.

Missoni-inspired dress sold exclusively at 4th & Ocean.

I am counting down the days til I will be zig-zagging through the crowd to get my hands on some Missoni plates (and much more!)

Ciau,
K.René

{Images from Life's Obsessions, Missoni, Vogue, and 4th & Ocean.}

click print.

I have discovered a treasure. Despite my daily perusal through the Urban Outfitters site, I had managed to completely ignore (not by choice!) perhaps the most interesting section of all. I recently stumbled upon the "Print Shop." Full of incredible works of art--for incredible prices--this may just be my new go-to gallery! Here are the stunning & intricate pieces that caught my eye...

Think these wall hangings are haute? Wait til you see the laptop and iphone accessories!

I am torn between the two peacock skins. (Surprise, surprise.) The vibrant blues and greens really capture my heart; yet there's something so simple and inspiring about the unexpected colors on the more neutral colored one. Which do you prefer?

Ciau,
K.René

and, that's a wrap!

The headwrap is a very high-maitenance piece. Your hair must be full enough at the bottom to still have volume, yet not too voluminous, ending up with pear-shaped hair. I have, time after time, dabbled in perfecting the look: one time with luscious brushed-out curls, the other with a loosened fishtail braid.

How do you incorporate the wrap into your style--do you go for the glamour or keep it seventies-inspired?

Ciau,
K.René

read, bite & new

After reading page after page of my absolute favorite blog, Cupcakes & Cashmere, I was recently inspired to pick up a pot and pan or two and begin experimenting! It had been a long--yet relaxing--4th of July, consisting of lounging in my bed with natural lighting seeping in my cozy cove of creativity. I retreated from my pile of pillows only when I could no longer ignore my roaring hunger. Feeling adventurous, yet unguided, I peered into the fridge to find a basic ingredient to go off of. What I came across was an oil-based tomato sauce with extracts of garlic (read: pure heaven). Immediately I associated tomato sauce with pizza, but felt inclined to make something more extravagant. What I made was a vegetarian personal pizza, and here's how I did it:

Ingredients:

Bring English Muffin to a suitable temperature in the microwave,
Generously spread sauce onto both halves of the muffin,
Add mozzarella slices,
Thinly slice and quarter tomato,
*Add vegetarian pepperonis for protein,
Sprinkle garlic pepper and spice (I used our family recipe blend of spices, "turbo spice"),
Warm up and make crispy in the oven for 6 minutes or so.

Pair with a salad and refreshingly cold drink. Bon appétit!

Ciau,
K.René

a walk to remember.

In order to make my elated-because-I'm-graduated arrival in NYC as soon as possible, I am taking Principles of Financial Accounting over the summer at the community college conveniently located right by my family's house. Parking is a hassle; so I decided to get some exercise (while avoiding wearing exercise attire) and enjoy the summer heat in small amounts by walking to class. While it is merely a 2 minute stroll door-to-door, it still counts as physical activity in my book! After sitting in a grey-walled and uninspiring room for 1.5 hours, I am always eager to soak up the sunshine on my walk home. Today, while avoiding stepping through high grass AND letting my striped paperbag-waist skirt ride up to an inappropriate length, I was distracted by the stunning bougainvillea that was newly in bloom. The appealing balance of saturated fuchsia and bubblegum pink was a fabulous feminine touch on Mother Nature's part. Since you can usually find me indoors with the air conditioning cranked up, I feel as if I may have a more significant appreciation of the samplings of nature that are artfully scattered about.

A spherical sky.

A frame-worthy sunset.

Ciau,
K.René