RiRi!

There's a new Rihanna video!

I have so many questions. Do you think Rihanna really drives? Was that a real shot? Is she really friends with Avril Lavigne? Does she really have a Super 8 camera? Does Rihanna even HAVE a weekend??? Does she really spend it singing karaoke? Was that Patti LaBelle? "Have you ever seen a (wo)man make a diamond with (her) bare hands?" Man, I want to hang out with her so bad.

Even though that song is so depressingly average (like, even more than California King Bed), I'm a big sucker for anything 'behind-the-scenes'. Also, Rihanna -- I'm still waiting really patiently to see a video for this song.

Additionally, I would like to say that my husband is pretty much the best ever because he found a whole bunch of amazing Rihanna dubstep remixes (Ri-mixes???) for me while I was at the beach getting Tarot card readings all day. He also ordered pizza.

Zigzag Cabinet.

Okay, so remember this cabinet?


Well, the paint thinner didn't work. And then the sander stressed me out so hard (it was so loud and power tool-ish) that I gave up and returned it to Home Depot after an hour. I had to regroup and modify the game plan.

First step of the new game plan, a few coats of white primer:


Next step, go at it with some Martha Stewart Precious Metals in Froth:


The end result: messy metallic zigzags! Yeah!!!


I know zigzags (and triangles and crystals and Navajo anything) are super trendy, but unfortunately that doesn't make me any less into them. So I think giving this cabinet its eighteenth layer of paint is a nice way to incorporate a trend in a non-permanent way. Now I just need something to paint neon pink.

After Ben alerted me to this remix, I tried to play it for Paul and he said: "I've heard this. I read The Fader, too, you know. I'm a Cool Dad."



Anyways, this song is SO GOOD and is going to fit perfectly into a slowed-down, grind-worthy autumn mix. It makes me want to do The Matrix for all 3:46 minutes of the remix.

Happy Birthday, Paul!

This weekend is Paul's birthday! The first time we celebrated his birthday, he was turning 33, and this year he'll be 41. That's nine birthdays together! Paul, since I didn't buy you anything for your birthday this year, I'd like to take you on a romantic walk down the memory lane of all the other birthdays for which I did get you presents:


2003
Our first date was after work on Paul's birthday. I used my fake ID to order the birthday boy (man) a Kettle One Mandarin & soda, while I enjoyed a bright green apple martini. This is the first photo taken of us together, a few months later (right after he finally dumped his girlfriend).




2004
Paul's birthday dinner at N9NE Steakhouse in the Palms. I bought that dress at Bebe for the occasion--it was so short and I wore it with a pair of super pointy white pumps and just remember feeling SMOKIN' HOT that night.




2005
The summer we got engaged! We had dinner at a restaurant with belly dancers, and we are both wasted in this photo. I did a lot of browser history-sleuthing that year and surprised Paul with a particular golf club he really wanted. I also learned an awful lot about his internet usage.




2006
We posed for these shots in a suburban Kmart photo booth specifically so I could use them on our "Save The Date" cards (which I never actually got around to making).




Bonus shot: Here we are on our wedding day and OMG WE'RE SO HAPPY! I'm probably so happy because I have yet to realize my one great regret in life: that I didn't wear Spanx under my wedding dress.




2007
Our first summer as husband and wife, hence our coordinating Ray Bans (right?).




2008
The summer we moved to Chicago; The Whistler hadn't opened yet and we had nothing to do but haaaang. This is from the photo booth at Skylark.




2009
This photo is from my cousin's wedding on Block Island. It's also the debut of "The Shorts Suit," which has been the smash hit of Paul's wardrobe since that day.




2010
Paul's 40th birthday party! I surprised the shit out of him.




2011
Our eighth summer together!
Love you, Bunz.

Making Our House A Home: The Paul & Shelby Edition

Remember that crazy list of home-improvement to-dos I wanted to finish before the end of August? It's actually getting done!!

First things first, Paul and I actually agreed on color choices. Coral Serenade for the kitchen, Cracked Pepper for the dining room, Fashion Gray (ugh, terrible name) for the bathroom, Nocturnal Sea for our bedroom and the most exciting: Martha Stewart Precious Metals Froth (GOLD!!!) for the hallway.


Our dining room was up first, and it really pleases me to brag: it looks AMAZING in here.





The next project is our bathroom, which I painted last night. I wanted to un-paint this vintage cabinet, so I picked up some "safe for indoor use" paint remover and a pair of chemical resistant gloves, put on my safety goggles and went to town. Here is me before I realized that "DIY" is not really something I'm great at:


It did not work at all. And now it smells insane in my apartment, I have a chemical burn on my hand and I'm totally nauseated. I'll probably be dead in an hour, but I hope not because I rented a power sander and Home Depot will keep my $25 deposit if I don't have it back by tomorrow afternoon.


Also, P.S., not really wild about the bathroom color. It's a much warmer/browner gray than I was expecting. But I also don't hate it enough to repaint it (yet).

Thinking Ahead.

As someone who pretty much hates every A-line skirt ever, it's especially surprising to me that I'm so excited by this fall trend:


DENIM SKIRTS!!! Oh god, I love them all so much. While I definitely prefer the pencil silhouette warn by Lauren Santo Domingo and Claudia Schiffer on WhoWhatWear, I can't believe how much I love this '70s-inspired ensemble from Joe Zee! Joe, you have two things going for you here -- I loved you on The City, and I love anything denim-on-denim -- yet I still can't help but be surprised at my attraction to your A-line ensemble. But here I am, and I'm totally loving it.


In a bonus stroke of true genius (Elle.com already used 'jeanius' or believe me, I would have) Zee has also paired two of my all-time favorites: overalls and blazers. So, you can expect to see a lot of this combo from me this fall/winter.


I know I should spend more time being thankful for this short warm-weather season we currently find ourselves in, but I'm just really excited to start layering again.

Tales of the Cocktail

four days in NOLA
bloggers bloggers everywhere
a few good drinks too

'tales' feels like college:
mind-grinding on shit i said
while i was drunk.

erin rose menu
sex on an alligator
irish coffee shake


jeff berry, paul clarke
wayne curtis, david wondrich;
how do i do that?

we had brunch at a
fashionable creole spot
then rode a street car

Life Lessons.

Last weekend I went to Pitchfork, which was my first time at a music festival since This Ain't No Picnic in 2000.

Things I (re)learned:

Wear sunscreen.

Wear real shoes.

Wear a swimsuit so I can do a cannonball into the nearest swimming pool.

Old place new.

Lately I've found myself cruising Craigslist late at night looking for apartments, when what I really need to do is take a closer look at what's around us. Our location is tops, our rent is cheap, our bones are strong -- I just need to put in a little effort. Minimal effort is still effort, so here is a list of things plus some pictures of what those things will look like if and when I ever do them:

Bedroom
Something I've been meaning to do for a long time -- like, since I moved in with Paul -- is decorate our bedroom. For some reason it's been the one area of our home that's always eluded style-inspiration for me. (It's the first door I shut when we have company, it's such an ugly wreck. Ugh.) Don't get me wrong, it's not for lack of trying. I've attempted plenty of looks: I've tried a fluffy mis-matchy Anthropologie-style bed with bleached coral wall art (circa 2006, don't judge); I've tried salon-walls of moody thrift store portraits; I've tried masculine-buffalo check-Pendleton blanket-minimalist-hunting lodge. We're currently sleeping in a monochromatic cube of white down bedding surrounded by even whiter walls. I know your bedroom is supposed to put you to sleep, but BOOORING, right?!

First things first, I'm totally going to rip off Confetti System and make an above-the-headboard installation piece, like this one:

Then I'm going to find some side tables. I like these, from West Elm:

Last, I'll hang some sconces, so I can read Bossypants before I go to bed (even though it made me LOL so much last night that I forgot to fall asleep until two a.m.) They're also from West Elm.


Kitchen
The kitchen should be fairly easy, since there is so little I can change. I'll just find the perfect muted coral and paint the walls, which will instantly transform the room into this perfect mix of pink and butter and black-and-white. Easy! I'd also like to hang a copper pot holder (so I can reclaim some cabinet space) and a pendant lamp, for those special occasions that call for romantic lighting in the kitchen. Like when Ally and I drink multiple bottles of wine and smoke cigarettes on the windowsill while watching Rihanna videos. (Okay, just this video.)


Dining Room
I mean, because Jenna Lyons can do no wrong in my eyes, this photo of her home (RIP Domino) is obviously the inspiration behind my urge to paint every inch of apartment wall with chalkboard paint. Since I'm not quite ready to commit to that much black, I'm going to start with just the dining room. Then I'll hang all those vintage American flags I bought on eBay at three in the morning and finally force myself to find some way to tame our ever growing collection of dusty bourbon bottles (omg seriously, Paul).


Bathroom
I love my girl Dean's bathroom -- especially that color. It's the most perfectly calming medium-gray. (What's that color anyway, Dean?) Plus she's really made me rethink my aversion to houseplants. In fact, I might even line some up on top of the primitive wooden cabinet that I need to sand at least eight layers of paint off of. I bet Dean even has a sander I can borrow.

Even though it's not on my immediate list of things to do, here is a little inspiration for the hallway. It's like a little bit Wilderness Princess, and a little bit seven-hours-of-painters-tape-and-a-level. (So worth it, I bet.)

I'd like to finish all of these things (bonus points for the hallway) by the end of August. Full disclosure, though: I've had this list of home improvements since we moved into this apartment (March of 2010), and I'm pretty much out of town for all of July, so take that deadline as seriously as you'd like. (I wouldn't take it too seriously.)

But it would be really amazing if I did, wouldn't it?

A photo-journal of the best summer vacation I've ever taken:

I should actually title this "A (crappy iPhone) photo-journal of the best summer vacation I've ever taken."We flew there inside of a rainbow.


View on views on views on views. Views for days.


Orange orange whip!


The first cheeseburger I've eaten in, like, two years. (I had two, of course.)


Drinks inside a chandelier.


Hair clouds and a panty shot.


Where to find Ben at the Silver Cilantro.


Post-Binion's Steakhouse, pre-Glitter Gulch.


Sunrise panorama, which made brushing the rat's nest of extensions out of my hair only slightly less painful.

Seriously the most amazing five days.