Crazy About Cuffs

Lately my eyes have skipped right over summery shirtdresses, beachy carry-all totes, color-blocked shifts, blush-colored separates, whimsical maxi skirts, printed tunics, bright bikinis, fun flip-flops, crisp white tees, and denim cutoffs. Come mid July, I always experience a rather sudden disinterest in summer clothes and accessories. It feels too late to buy anything new for warm weather (unless it's a total steal) and it feels too early to think about the promises of fall (fabulous ankle boots, cropped blazers, cozy cardigans, lacy date-night tops, terrific trench coats, multicolored scarves, buttery ballet flats, and flared corduroys).

My rule for shopping in July and August can be summed up in three words: transition pieces only. I only let myself lust after items that can be worn, someway or somehow, until the first dusting of snow blankets the ground in late October.

This usually requires a stern line of questioning (Can I wear these tucked into riding boots? Can I pop a scarf and a sweater over this? Can I get away with wearing tights under this? Can I pair this with shades of burgundy, deep orange, forest green, navy blue, and/or camel brown? Can I layer this over something I already own?)...but when I'm not in the mood to mentally flip through my whole wardrobe and make a case for an iffy clothing purchase, I stick to accessories.

Of course, not all accessories can make a seamless transition from summer into fall...but I've found that cuffs are a pretty safe bet. Here's a look at what I wish was my collection:

Wish List, Mostly Unrealistic

(First row, from left to right)
1. ABS' Turquoise Pave White Resin Cuff
2. Citrine by the Stones' Smoky Topaz Gold-Plated Wire Cuff
3. Blydesign's Purple Agate Shield Cuff
4. Sundance's Tribal Sunflower & Swirls Cuff

(Second row, from left to right)
1. Ben-Amun's Gold Cuff with Turquoise Stones
2. Courtney Lee Collection's Silver Brittany Cuff
3. Melinda Maria's Full Moon Pave Cuff
4. Alkemie Jewelry's Coin Cuff

Wish List, Totally Dreaming

(First row, from left to right)
1. Kenneth Jay Lane's Swarovski Crystal-embellished 22-karat Gold-plated Cuff
2. Aurelie Bidermann's Camden 18-karat Gold-plated Studded Leather Bracelet
3. Milly's Links Enamel Cuff
4. Emilio Pucci's Glass Crystal and Stone-embellished Cuff

(Second row, from left to right)
1. Paige Novick's Lapis Medallion Cuff
2. Oscar de la Renta's Russian Gold Wide Cuff Bracelet
3. Ashley Pittman's Dark Horn and Turquoise Cuff
4. Dannijo's Studded Stingray Cuff

The Icing on the Cake

While my last wish list encompassed everything from a panini maker to a pair of neon bow studs, my current wishlist is much more specific. I seem to be on quite a jewelry kick. Perhaps this is because now that I've found the dress and the shoes (see below) for the wedding coming up next week, it's time to shop for the fun stuff...namely earrings, cuffs, rings, and/or necklaces.

Zappos' Me Too Jeanette in Violet Satin

Yesterday I discovered the jewelry section of the catalog Sundance (which my mom already knew about). Maybe I should give her some more credit...She was swooning over Lululemon months before the worldwide craze over their yoga pants ever began and was gushing over Fresh's sugar lip treatment line long before it got all kinds of publicity.

Or maybe I should just admit that I never like anything new right off the bat. Change is scary. I like to tread very carefully. Unfortunately this squashes my hopes of being a real fashionista. I'm too busy resisting current trends to be bothered with searching for "the next big thing". Case in point: by the time I had wrapped my head around wearing skinny jeans, flares had come back into style.

I'm the least resistant to new jewelry trends. Jewelry doesn't care if you're up 10 pounds or down 30. Jewelry doesn't care if you're having a bad hair day. Jewelry doesn't care if you're incredibly pale. Jewelry doesn't care if you have wide feet. Jewelry doesn't care how old you are.

Check out these jewels:

 Flashy Favorites from Sundance

Pretty in Pink

Another one of the upsides to coming home from college: being able to raid Mom's jewelry box again!

My mom and I both love jewelry, although she isn't wild about bracelets and as I've mentioned before I'm not crazy about rings. Of course her collection is much more expansive than mine (and is overflowing with unique pieces from faraway places like Egypt and Greece), so it's a special treat to be able to shop from the top of her dresser while I'm home again. Her boxes and baskets of treasures lie next to my grandmother's collection of old perfume bottles.

Some of Grandma's Old Perfume Bottles

I often start picking out my outfits by laying out earrings, necklaces, and bracelets first. Then I start rummaging through my closet to find tops and bottoms to complement the accessories that I've pulled. It seems to be sort of a backwards approach (to start something as small as earrings and end with something as large as pants), but it works for me. It's also an effective way to make sure I don't forget about the baubles stuffed way in the back of my jewelry box.

Since I've already hinted that most of the time I live in my running clothes, I can't lie and tell you that I wear beautifully delicate chandelier earrings, long gold pendants, brightly colored semi precious stones, clusters of freshwater pearls, engraved silver cuffs, and heaps of bangles day in and day out.

On a day to day basis, these classy and simple silver studs (thank you Boyfriend!) are my absolute go-to. I may or may not have a pair and a half of them now because I may or may not have lost one earring sophomore year (oops, sorry Boyfriend!). We laugh about how unphotogenic these earrings are - but I promise they are gorgeous in person and inspire many compliments!



I like seeing this box!



Somerset Knot Earrings, from Tiffany & Co.

While we have fistfuls of turquoise and silver jewelry, both my mom and I seem to be seriously lacking pink earrings. This is a problematic because we both wear quite a bit of pink - everything from dusky roses to hot, hot pinks (I warned you about my obsession with neons!). We're always on the look out for pink earrings (of any type) but we haven't been able to find the perfect pair. I'm not even very happy with the ones that I've pulled for the [sloppy] collage below. Do you have any ideas? Help us remedy our lack of pink and round out our combined collection!

Unsatisfactory Pink Earrings Collage

(Top row, from left to right)

1. Shopbop's McInnis Crystal Studs

2. Anthropologie's Accordion Drops

3. J.Crew's Crystal Sunset Earring

(Bottom row, from left to right)

4. Piperlime's Kate Spade Gumdrop Stud

5. Urban Outfitter's Urban Renewal Ciao Baby Earring

6. Alexis Bittar's Rose Gold Large Pink Amethyst Stream Earring

7. Shopbop's Classic Marc Enamel Logo Disk Studs