30 September 2010

Denise Hajjar's 2010 Fall/Winter Collection


Me and the ladies at the show
Denise Hajjar's fashion show Tuesday night to benefit Dress for Success at the Copley Plaza Hotel was great fun!

This picture doesn't do it justice; the red lace of this dress was gorgeous.  But where to wear it?!  I need an occasion and I think I'd like it above the knee.

Photos: Stuff at Night

I love the tweed of this suit, the ladylike length of the skirt and the shape of the jacket.  I would wear it without the belt, some fun opaque tights and booties to give it a little edge.

29 September 2010

27 September 2010

Family, friends and FOOD!!

I had a fun filled weekend with my mother here from Florida and a bonus visit from my brother, sis in law and the most adorable niece in the world.  For such an occasion, I wanted to do something where we could really spend time together without worrying about being rushed at some restaurant.

Goat cheese, brie and Cotswold

My favorite green, meaty olives and tomato/mozzarella bruschetta
Coppa, mortadella and fennel salami from the Butcher Shop
Chicken Milanese, chicken Parm, salad with lemon/chive/mustard vinaigrette
Trenne pasta with san marzano tomato sauce
To my mother's horror, we zipped to Whole Foods on Beacon Hill to do the shopping (she clearly is not a fan of my highly skilled driving ability).  Lucky for us, we both survived the drive!  One of the big decisions of the shopping trip was what shape pasta to serve.  Since I was squeezing about eight people around my coffee table for dinner, I couldn't go with spaghetti or fusilli as the long twirly pastas tend to be messy.  Instead I opted for trenne which is kind of a triangular ziti. 

I wanted to make sure that I could have all the food ready before everyone arrived since I didn't want to be in the kitchen and miss out on all the fun.  I breaded and fried all the chicken ahead of time, plus I made homemade pasta sauce with a few cans of San Marzano tomatoes in the afternoon.  Then all I had to do was cook the pasta and heat the chicken in the oven and dinner was ready!  I had plenty of time with my family and friends and I have plenty of leftovers to archive in my freezer.

24 September 2010

Brooks Brothers Party to Benefit the BCRF

Please join us at Brooks Brothers on the evening of October 6th for an evening to benefit the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Space is limited so please RSVP to KMinster@bcrfcure.org. Hope to see you there!!


23 September 2010

Back in Black

Brian Atwood Maniac

I was asked recently about where to find a black pump. I immediately thought of the Brian Atwood Maniac that I had posted about here.  And then it dawned on me that not everyone wants to teeter around on such extraordinarily high platforms.

Since every girl needs at least one fabulous pair of black pumps, here are my picks for black pumps in different heights and at different price points.  I personally have been prancing about town in the Louboutin New Simple Pumps and I LOVE them.
The Black PUmp

20 September 2010

More fall wish lists

My wish list is always growing.  Here's what's on it at the moment.

Kate Spade leopard chubbie



As for fall accessories, I would love a rose gold Rolex a la Victoria Beckham but the Michael Kors one below is much more in the realm of what I can afford.  Also I saw the Mulberry studded boots in the store in NYC and they were to die for!!
Accessories


I'm still in search of the perfect camel boots.  Stay tuned.

19 September 2010

Lissy's lemon linguine with shrimp and chives



I had a nice lazy Sunday today which gave me time to shop and cook.  I remember fondly a lemon linguine recipe that I've made before.  It is one of Nigella Lawson's recipes and it was mighty tasty (recipe here).  Since I don't want to derail all the working out I'm doing (cardio this morning, check!) I wanted to lighten it up a bit.  So here's my lemon linguine recipe.
 
Cook up some pasta in generously salted water for as long as you need to for it to be al dente; I made Barilla whole wheat linguine.  Reserve some of the pasta water.



In a skillet saute your shrimp until they are cooked.  Remove them from the pan and then in the same pan, saute a bit of butter (just a pat or two), olive oil (a couple swirls around the pan) and lemon zest (I used a whole lemon's worth of zest) for a couple of minutes.  Add the cooked pasta to the pan with some of the reserved pasta water and squeeze the juice of a half of a lemon.  Sprinkle in some grated cheese (I used pecorino romano).  The combination of the pasta water and cheese makes a nice creamy sauce for the pasta.  Finish it off by tossing in the chopped chives and the sauteed shrimp.


Et voilĂ  dinner is served!

By the way, for anyone that lives in or near the South End, I get all of my fish at Morse Fish Company on Washington Street.  The fish is always fresh, the people there quite friendly and I like to support the small local shops when possible.

H&M Trend Watch

I make regular trips into H&M since I'm forever on the lookout for inexpensive trend items.  On the most recent trip, here's what I found.

Military galore!  But my pick was this jacket that I'm donning below.

H&M Military jacket

And by the way,  saleswomen in both Chanel and in Saks commented on it.  For me, I don't want to spend a lot on something so trendy and this jacket was only $65.

The other good H&M find was a fantastic trench coat.  I had eyed this one back in the spring by RED Valentino.

R.E.D Valentino trench


Here's the H&M version that my gal pal purchased.



 

17 September 2010

Fashionable friends

I love my friends for more reasons than I can say.  But I will tell you that one of the many things we have in common is our love for fashion. 

I love the way Sandi's red shoes give a total pop of color to her outfit.

Sandi in a Talbots dress, Stuart Weitzman shoes and J Crew necklace.  By the way, her legs look a million miles long!

Elisha in an on trend leopard cardigan, belt from her own shop and Talbots skirt that I posted about here.

My outfit of the day...Marc by Marc Jacobs jacket and fabulous necklace scarf from Elisha's shop.