Now that Stephen's birthday has passed I can share with you this great shirt I found via a link from Design for Mankind. The shirt is titled "Layover" which is so appropriate and best of all he loved it! {image via fullbleed}

In search of stylish black and brown flats for fall. Any suggestions? {image via *Breezy*}

Loving these dining chairs from West Elm. The new store opens here in Charlotte sometime this month which is going to make it so much easier to decide on the quality of these products. My mom has always told me- invest in furniture that get's lots of use; you can skimp on decoration pieces. And of course... what get's more use than dining room chairs?! {images via West Elm}

Whew, September flew by! But it's okay because I love October. For me, it's the start of Fall and the beginning of all my favorite holidays. Here's what I'm looking forward to this month:
- Moving into our condo!
- Finding my way through the corn maize with only a flashlight
- Attending Tiffany and Sean's Halloween party
- Ordering my first ever custom piece of furniture
- Watching jousting at the Renaissance Festival
- Seeing little goblins and ghosts and helping to rot their teeth
- Attending my first ever Nascar race {when in Rome...}

Happy October everyone! {image via arkworld}

This past weekend Stephen got an iPhone. I'm so jealous. I'm typically not big into gadgets- I don't even own an iPod- but man, I want one. I can't even tell you how many times I've needed the GPS or could have used email at my fingertips. My upgrade is eligible on November 11. Can you guess where I'll be headed that day after work? {image via apple}

I don't very often buy things completely sight unseen, but when Jordan at Oh Happy Day offered every month to send subscribers of the pretty little things club something created by her, I jumped. What kind of things you ask? Well that's part of the club-- it's a surprise! But since I've seen her creations in the past, I've no doubt the packages will bring delight!

While perusing the most recent Domino I was reminded that the new book comes out in two weeks! I preordered it today for a mere $20 and cannot wait until it arrives!

Simply put, I adore Mrs. French. She's thoughtful, has an awesome blog, and her excitement about her new Etsy shop is contagious. I think her photography is amazing and absolutely cannot wait to put a few prints up around my home! Congratulations Mrs. French!! {images via blissful images}

You know how sometimes you go to Target and see something but think to yourself, "Do I really need this?" and the answer is no, so you put the item back, then get home later that night and wish you had it? Well, that's what I did with this ceramic horse sculpture. Only I didn't go back the next day because I went on vacation. So, the other day on a whim, after I kept thinking about it, I stopped in at Target and lo-and-behold there were two waiting on the shelf. Just two. Waiting. Imagine that. Exactly the number I wanted. {image via Target}

Moving into our condo is so close I can almost taste it. It's got me thinking decorating, decorating, decorating! I first saw this chair in the September issue of Real Simple and then stumbled upon it again while taking a long look at Ballard Designs. I think it would work perfectly as a desk chair... possibly painted. Which has me thinking- has anyone ever painted furniture and do you have any suggestions?! {image via Ballard Designs}

Remember those gray J. Crew bags I was so wanting? Well, I just couldn't rationalize spending that amount of money. I mean, who knows how long that color is going to be in style. And, it's getting to be fall and there are so many clothes at J. Crew that I want {and need since my autumn wardrobe is slim}! So, I decided to spend my store credit on clothes instead on the bag.

But, my desire for a gray bag still existed. Then, while at the wonderful Target yesterday I stumbled upon this perfect pleated hobo. It's an ideal size, shade and most importantly price! {image via Target}

I've been searching for the perfect ottoman/coffee table and think I've finally found it! Good ole, Ballard Designs comes through again.
Now, if I could only decide on the color! {image via Ballard Designs}

Fall is here so I might as well bite the bullet and start embracing it! Here are two of my favorite looks.
Loving this whole outfit. Honestly, there's not one thing I don't adore!
Dress up, dress down. This dress would go from work to play so easily.{images via J. Crew}

I am so into corduroys this season and want these pants in about four different colors! {image via J. Crew}

Love the vintage feel to these Draper Cabinets. {image via Sundance}

It's only the first day of autumn {which I love} and this beautifully styled story is already making me miss summer... {via frolic!}

We're off to Kill Devil Hills, NC for a much needed beach vacation. I'll be back on the 22nd with posting galore. Have a wonderful week! {image via I forgot- if it's from your Flickr account please let me know so I can give you credit!}

Seeing that yesterday was the anniversary of September 11, I didn't feel it was appropriate to be blogging about fun, materialistic things I covet. And today, we'll I'm just swamped with work and packing so it's not going to happen! :)

But, I did want to report about one thing I found out today. Remember the auctions I blogged about? Well they all together raised over $117,000, the vast majority of it coming from auctions in smallish increments of $50 to $100! I'm so thrilled Design Mom started this grassroots effort to help the Nielson's. Isn't it amazing what the power of the Internet has done?!

I don't very often finish a book and think "wow"! But after I finished Loving Frank, a novel about Frank Lloyd Wright as written by his long-time mistress, Mamah, I just wanted to learn more. It's a very compelling read and if you're interested in the turn-of-the-century history, architecture and design, Frank Lloyd Wright or the determination of the human spirit, I definitely recommend it.