10NE, THE MOST FASHIONABLE INERT GAS (AKA NEON)

Har har, now that I've gotten the dorky science joke out of the way...

For curvy ladies like me, the perfect jean shorts are hard to come by.  The ones you find in stores are either too short or too long, or too tight around the thigh.

A few years ago I discovered how to make the perfect jean shorts: buy a pair of cheap jeans that are about 4 sizes too large for you!  They will sit perfectly at your hips and you can cut them to any length you want:

(Sunnies, YSL; blouse, Akira; shorts, Old Navy; pumps, Style&Co.; earring, Icing; bracelets, Alex+Ani, F21)

I made these shorts years ago and I've never found shorts that fit better!

Speaking of jean shorts, who else is super excited for the new season of Arrested Development?!

Have a great week, Knuckles!

KNUCKLES ON TOP OF THE WORLD

Hello Knuckles!

A few weekends ago we hosted family and school friends at the Chicago Treehouse to celebrate CoStar's 5th birthday.  

Borrowing a friend's idea, this year in lieu of gifts we asked everyone to bring a package of diapers to donate to The Bundle Of Joy diaper bank.  I love this idea!  Not only does it teach sharing and compassion, but it also eliminates the tyranny of more toys (sometimes I'm a little overwhelmed by all our dolls, puzzles, books, ride-on's, blocks and Legos).

Not gonna lie, it took a little convincing but CoStar agreed to the plan.  So last Sunday we took a field trip into the city to drop off the diapers.  Mr. Brass Knuckles and I tried to make it a big deal so she'd know how proud we were.  As promised, we had ice cream afterwards to celebrate.


(I think we ended up donating almost a thousand diapers)

Then we took an impromptu trip to the top of the Willis (nee Sears) Tower.  There was absolutely no line and the whole family enjoyed it.

(Floating!)

Incredibly, that day we had breakfast with my family, dropped of the diapers, ate ice cream cones, toured the tallest building in Chicago, and were back at home eating hot dogs at our kitchen table by 12:30pm.  Ah, sleep -- when will I know ye again?

Have a happy Thursday, Knuckles!   

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO ME

Good morning Knuckles!

Seven years ago today I married the best-looking guy in the room.  We've both grown so much and I am incredibly proud of our marriage.  The whole of Knuckles is much greater than the sum of its parts.

To celebrate, on Saturday night we had dinner at a lovely restaurant downtown and capped the night off with cocktails.

(Coat, Club Monaco; shirt, F21; pants, Chip+Pepper; shoes, Aldo; purse, Elliott Lucca)

Happy Monday!

FABULOUS FRIDAYS: LUCITE HEELS

Good morning Knuckles!

This week's events have been crazy.  Crazy!  At breakfast CoStar asked why anyone would hate our country and want to hurt others and I had no straight answer.  All I could do is remind her that a few "unhappy" individuals should not make us forget that most people are decent and kind. 

Anyhow, a couple of Fridays ago my friend Keesa stopped by my desk and said all Fridays should be Fabulous.  Indeed, they should!  Fabulous like these lucite heels:

I know lucite heels have generally been reserved for stripper shoes, but this season they've been combined with neutrals and they look so fresh and summery.  Here are my selections:

1) Donald Pliner, $298: I love the juxtaposition of cork and lucite/natural and plastic

2) Jeffrey Campbell, $133: This architectural heel is a great way to update the captoe pump

3) Christian Louboutin, $1,195: Mixed textures look awesome on this traditional oxford

4) Valentino, $1,295: Be still, my heart.  All around gorgeousness

5) Stuart Weitzman, $398; The heel adds some excitement to an otherwise plain nude sandal

6) Vogue, $99; Love the pop of color and the lady-like pump silhouette

7) Shindig, $125; The ankle cuff adds a little edge

I did buy a pair of my own but they haven't arrived yet; if they work I'll show them off later.  Please let me know if you're thinking of buying a pair!

Have a wonderful weekend, Knuckles!  Tonight I will raise my martini to goodness of human beings.

GOLD ON THE CEILING

Good morning Knuckles!

I'm loving spring metallics right now (accidentally typed "metallica," ha ha!), including this gold brocade skirt.

(Sunnies, Target; cardigan, Topshop; blouse, H&M; skirt, new, Pim + Larkin; cage sandals, Prada; purse, Dooney and Burke; necklace, Tuleste Market; bracelets, Asos, F21)

The cage sandals were from the Space outlet in Switzerland and I think they were 20 Swiss francs which is like 22 bucks (for Prada!).  The purse was gifted by Dooney years ago.  Back in the day a couple of my fashion school friends and I were picked as Teen Vogue It Girls and as a result got sent to Europe where we reviewed materials and shopped silhouettes with the Dooney team.  Anyhow, I have never once used this purse but I pulled it out in the spirit of Throwback Thursdays.  It reminds me of fashion school, of which I have fond memories of cobbling shoes and constructing box bags and being generally somewhat self-destructive.

The purse is still in good shape but doesn't it look crazy dated?!  Yikes!

Have a happy Thursday, Knuckles!  Just over a day until my favorite moment of the week: 7:25pm on Friday night!  Teen Vogue It Moms you know what I'm talking about!

RE-CREATION TUESDAYS: ENGAGED IN DVF, AND AWASH IN MEMORIES

Good morning Knuckles.

Today's post was supposed to be an ode to Diane Von Furstenberg, and how her clothes are inextricably woven into some of my most meaningful memories.  I wore the dress below on the day Mr. Brass Knuckles proposed to me in Battery Park, under cloud cover and before an impending thunder storm.  I wore DVF to my rehearsal dinner and my dearest cousin K's bridal shower.  I've also worn DVF to countless job interviews, cocktail parties, weddings and funerals. 

But after yesterday's events I'm feeling sad.  Seeing this dress and writing this post is flooding me with a million different memories; it's almost too much.

(Sunnies, Target; dress, DVF; shoes, Gucci; purse, The Sak; necklaces, PersonalizedBoutique, MyNameNecklace, Anna Sheffield for Target; bracelets, Asos, F21)

My dear Knuckles, hold on tightly to the people you love!

YOU'RE YOUR WORST CRITIC, OR, DON'T TALK YOURSELF OUT OF YOUR FAVORITE JEANS

Good afternoon Knuckles!

The Chip and Pepper jeans below are my go-to pair, and I've worn them so much that the hole in the knee is legit.  It's not a fashion hole, it's a fibers-gave-out hole.

Looking through this last set of pictures, however, I started questioning my denim standby.  There is something about the objectivity of photographs that made me look at these jeans in a new way.

I suddenly began thinking Now wait just a darn minute, have I gained weight?  Or have I been wearing wide-looking jeans this whole time?  Are these jeans the sartorial equivalent of an enormous zit on my face?  If only I were 4 inches taller...  

Like most women I probably spend too much time criticizing self-determined flaws, and this thinking is not healthy.  Ladies, let's not get caught up in our own weird body-image traps.  No one even notices the zit.  The damn jeans look fine.  

(Sunnies, Chanel; jacket, Zara; blouse, Tracy Reese; jeans, Chip+Pepper; shoes, Marc by Marc Jacobs; purse, Oryany; necklaces, MyNameNecklace.com, PersonalizedBoutique.com, Monserrat de Lucca; bracelets, Alex+Ani, Target, F21).

Have a great weekend, Knuckles!

PUT A BIRD ON IT

Good morning Knuckles!

I don't have any tattoos but my favorite one of all time is Cat Hartwell's (of Fannypack and Holy Hail fame).  Holy Hail played at the Fur Cups' second album release party and pretty much ever since I've wanted her tattoos: two birds in flight, one on the forearm and one on the bicep (I won't be creepy and post an image but you can see a small photo here).  Alas, tattoos aren't in my future due to a) the pain and b) my job so I'll have to settle for birds on my skirt instead. 

(Sunnies, Target; blazer, Moschino; top, Banana Republic; skirt, F21; belt, H&M; pearl necklace, J.Crew; necklaces, MyNameNecklace.com, PersonalizedBoutique.com; purse, Elliott Lucca; shoes, Fendi; bracelets, F21, Alex+Ani)

The most amazing part of this ancient Moschino blazer is the piping.  It's made of reflective material that glows in direct light (e.g. when the flash went off) like something out of Tron or Jack Donaghy's laid-back future self in 30 Rock:

Anyhow, I am a huge sucker for tattoos.  Lately I've been really into The Voice and I have to say, that Adam Levine is one winsome dude.  Actually he and Mr. Brass Knuckles are long lost twins but one has tats and the other doesn't, and consequently one does not have to hear me waxing poetic about how hot he'd be with some ink, or nagging about mowing the lawn or putting his cups into the dishwasher.  (I'm coming after you, Adam Levine.  ALL DIRTY CUPS MUST BE PLACED IN THE DISHWASHER IN A TIMELY MANNER).

Have a great week, Knuckles!

TAKING STOCK OF YOUR LIFE, IN SHORT SHORTS

Good morning, Knuckles!

Sometimes you know, you're sitting around figuring out what to wear, and the weather is finally getting nice, and you pull out your short shorts and the scandalously tight dress you got for your Las Vegas girls weekend and your fringe boots, and you're like Okay, this is gonna work! 

And you wrap your hair up into a little poofty on the side of your head and put on your Beyonce earrings and you're like Watch out, world!

(Sunnies, Target; dress worn as a top, French Connection; shorts, F21; boots, Pour La Victoire; bag, Elliott Lucca; earrings, Icing; necklaces, MyNameNecklace.com, PersonalizedBoutique.com, Anna Sheffield for Target) 

But then you look at the pictures and common sense prevails and you realize there's no way in a million years you'll feel even remotely comfortable wearing this outfit out and about in the suburbs and so you go back into the house and change into jeans and a zip-up hoodie.

FIN.

(Have a great weekend, Knuckles!).

LIONS AND TIGERS AND BEARS, OH MY!

Good morning Knuckles!

This weekend we took advantage of the warmer weather and took the kids to the Lincoln Park Zoo.

(Sunnies, Target; jacket, Hong Kong high street; skirt, F21; leggings, American Apparel; studded booties, Asos; scarf, a gift)

The zoo is one of Mr. Brass Knuckles' and my favorite places.  We love the fresh air, the beer at the cafeteria, and the fact that the kids can run around like crazy and tire themselves out so when we finally get home they take like a three hour nap.  

The little ones love it too:

I hope you have an energizing week, Knuckles!  Cheers for springtime in Chicago!