Life of the Party

This year, I love the classic silhouettes of mini dresses updated with beaded or sequined patterns. My favorite is this Issa Beaded Wool-Felt Dress. I could wear it during the day with ballet flats, at a holiday party, or with a cape and some bright tights for a date out on a chilly night.

~Heidi Merrick Panorama Dress

~Issa Beaded Wool-Felt Dress

~J Crew Icicle Shift Dress

~Kate Spade Mercury Lucinda Dress

~Madewell Piccadilly Pleats Dress

~Theory Sequin V-Neck Dress

~Zara Tulip-Skirt Dress

Lace Handkerchief Stockings

Snow is falling, lights are twinkling, and I’ve been decorated the house with both new adornments and vintage treasures in shades of gold and copper. This year, I made these handkerchief stockings. I found some beautiful lace-trimmed handkerchiefs at the Porte de Vanves flea market in Paris {3 for 1€} and put them to good use for the stocking overhangs. Then, I used standard 16”x16” white cotton handkerchief squares for the bodies.

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La Petite France

Petite France, rue des Moulins, Strasbourg

Blouse: Yves Saint Laurent

Skirt: self-made

Shoes: Repetto

Handbag: Chloé

Strasbourg is a charming town just inside France near the border of Germany. Its Alsatian character blends both French and German culture. In the “Petite France” district, I love to stroll along the bridges spanning the picturesque canals. Then, I usually pop over to one of my favorite restaurants, La Cloche à Fromage, for fondue. After, I head to Les Frères Berthom across the walkway for a Trappistes Rochefort 10 beer. Of course, French pâtisseries from Naegel, filled with everything from light Chantilly cream to decadent salted caramel, are never left out.

Canals, quai des Bateliers

Cathédrale Notre Dame, place de la Cathédrale

La Cloche à Fromage, 32 rue des Tonneliers

Les Frères Berthom, 18 rue des Tonneliers

Naegel {paris brest, millefeuille, caramel macaron, religieuse}, 9 rue des Orfèvres

Other Strasbourg Sights, Shops, and Eats:

Sights

~Cathédrale Notre Dame for a towering view, place de la Cathédrale

~Palais Rohan for museum browsing, 2 place du Château

~Parc de l'Orangerie for an afternoon picnic, avenue de l'Europe

Shops

~Annick Goutal for perfume, 12 rue des Hallebardes

~Flea Market for antique treasures, Wed and Sat 9am-6pm, rue du Vieil Hopital

~Printemps for Sandro and Claudie Pierlot, 1 rue de la Haute Montée

Eats

~Christian for mont blancs and pain au chocolat, 10 rue Merciere

~Jeff de Bruges for chocolates, 19 rue des Orfèvres

~L’Epicerie for lunch, 6 rue du Vieux-Seigle

~Le Tire Bouchon for Alsatian specialties, 5 rue des tailleurs de Pierre

12 Days of Christmas Gift Guide

Now that it's December, I'm gathering all of my holiday gifts for family and friends. For anyone on your list {including you}, here are some ideas for gifts with a fun take on the 12 Days of Christmas.

~12 Drummers Drumming: Listen to legendary jazz drummer Gene Krupa on the Gene Krupa Story CD Box Set

~11 Pipers Piping: Channel a sleeker Sherlock Holmes with this Zara Check Print Cape and this Jonathan Adler This is Not a Pipe Tea Light

~10 Lords a Leaping: Run errands all day with these Repetto BB Vernis Ballet Flats

~9 Ladies Dancing: Dance the night away in this ModCloth The Whole Package Dress by Moon Collection

~8 Maids a Milking: Have your favorite cereal on a lazy Sunday with these Anthropologie Latte Bowls

~7 Swans a Swimming: Steal the show with this Paul & Joe Navy Swan-Print Silk Dress

~6 Geese a Laying: Picture a French woman from the 1900s with this CuriousPrints Vintage French Art Nouveau Advertisement

~5 Golden Rings: Add sparkle to any outfit with this Giles & Brother Braided Necklace

~4 Calling Birds: Spruce up a holiday table with Rosanna Four Calling Birds Dinnerware

~3 French Hens: Serve cocktails on this Simrin Farmyard Round Hen Tray

~2 Turtle Doves: Liven up a living room with a Thomas Paul Doves Pillow

~And a Partridge in a Pear Tree: Send holiday wishes with these byvikINK Partridge Greeting Cards

Roman Traces in Germany

Roman Black Gate in Trier

When the history of cities date back over 2,000 years, it’s pretty extraordinary to still see ruins intermingling with modern life. In Trier, the Porta Nigra {Black Gate}, built in 186 AD, gets its name from the darkened stone. Interestingly, the gate guarding the opposite entrance to the city was named Porta Alba {White Gate}, sort of like an ancient take on good and evil. In Mainz, the support pillars of a Roman aqueduct that was built in 69 AD project from an open field. And in Cologne, a Roman archway that was built in 50 AD stands near the grand cathedral.

Roman Aqueduct in Mainz, photo from Wikimedia Commons

Roman Archway in Cologne

Gingerbread Snowflakes

Now that Christmas is approaching, I love holiday baking with fragrant spices. These gingerbread snowflakes are my favorite holiday cookies. I also give them as gifts every year since they look so lovely decorated with royal icing, white sanding sugar, and silver dragées.

Gingerbread Snowflake Recipe

{Adapted from Martha Stewart}

Cookies

6 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. baking powder

1 cup unsalted butter

1 cup packed dark brown sugar

4 tsp. ground ginger

4 tsp. ground cinnamon

1½ tsp. ground cloves

¾ tsp. black pepper

1½ tsp. salt

2 large eggs

1 cup unsulfured molasses

Sanding sugar or dragées, for decoration

Royal Icing

4 cups confectioners’ sugar

Water

For the cookies, combine flour, baking soda, and baking powder in a bowl; set aside. In a separate bowl, cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add spices, pepper, salt, eggs, and molasses. Mix until combined. Add flour mixture 2 cups at a time, mixing until each addition is incorporated. Wrap dough in plastic, and chill for 1 hour.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Dust surface and rolling pin with flour. Roll dough to ¼ inch thick {so the cookies will stay chewy}. Cut with snowflake cutters, and place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake 8 minutes. Let cool completely.

For the royal icing, in a small bowl, mix confectioners’ sugar and water {about ¼-½ cup} with a spoon to reach desired consistency. Place in pastry bag with a small round tip or fill plastic bag and cut off corner. Pipe edges with thick icing to create a border. Then, add more water to the icing to fill in the center {it should be runny to create a smooth surface}. Sprinkle with sanding sugar or silver dragées. Voilà, cookies almost too good to eat, but you will.

Menswear, Softened

These low slung menswear pants from Asos have a slouchy fit with a feminine coral color. To soften them up a little more, I added some Asos taupe suede heels and an Anne Valerie Hash blouse with beautiful lace trim {that I found at a designer consignment shop}. The ankle length makes the pants great with sky-high heels or even ballet flats for running errands.

Blouse: Anne Valerie Hash

Pants: Asos

Heels: Asos