Ladies, start mulling over the perfect polish color for your pedi because these open-toe wonders are going to be all you'll need for your summer styling. As you can see, I favor mostly neutral shoes because they are just so easy and versatile, but a few pairs are turning up the spice with some neon pops, cool textures and metallic shine. I literally could just have these in my closet, and be perfectly happy. I'm one step closer to that goal, since I did just order these because I'm Swedish and I felt I had to represent. Oh ya!

1. Madewell 'The Bazaar' Mini Wedge // 2. Joie A La Plage Sable Two Band Sandals // 3. Reiss Geometric Flat Sandals // 4. Swedish Hasbeens Peep Toe Super High Sandals // 5. J.Crew Elsa Piped Metallic Sandals // 6. Report Metal Bar Sandal // 7. Madewell Lace-Up Gladiator Sandals // 8. J.Crew 'Lillian' Mirrored Silver Low Wedge Sandals // 9. BCBGeneration Fabeena Flat Sandals //10. Madewell Lace-Up High Heel Sandal

Hip hip hooray, I'm super excited to finally spill the deets on the new gig! You're looking at the new e-commerce and social media/pr manager at Maya Star and Co-Star boutiques, thankyouverymuch. So far, I really like it....it's a good blend of creative/tech, so it appeals to my artsy fartsy and OCD nerdy computer geek side. I mean, I take pictures of really cool products from brands like Elizabeth and James, Thierry Lasry, Ya, Free People, Fred Perry, Rivieras, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Parker, Vince, Charlie Jade, and Flying Tomato, edit them to look all purdy, add them to the website so you can snap them up and support the local small businesses that keep our economy afloat, offer up my 2 cents to chatty folks on Twitter/Facebook, keep the Instagram and Pinterest accounts poppin', design marketing materials, author blog posts, work with media- shall I continue or are you bored yet? I think you get the picture...I'll refrain from further embellishment. ;)

Highlight thus far? Coming back from lunch, and spying one of my all-time fave interior designers, Cortney Novogratz, getting her shop on. I geeked out a little bit, I'll admit it. She's just too fab, and I really admire her amazing style.

If you are ever in Austin and find yourself shopping it up on South Congress, be sure to stop in both of these shops - lots of racks full of pretty items that fit any budget while you soak up some well-deserved AC. Or, if you want to help a sistah out, order that shizz online. It'll make me look really good. And you'll look really good too because both stores have uber-cute stuff. Win-win.

Ok, I have basically sucked at this blogging thing for the past month...bear with me as I get in a groove with the new job (which I still need to post about) and find a way to create the perfect work/blog balance. So, in order to make it up to you, I present you with a sweet and tart dessert that basically will light your tastebuds up like the 4th of July. Ladies and gentlemen (ha...all three of you guys), I give you the best key lime pie you will ever have. The ingredients and few and far between, so it's one where freshness and the 'homemade' factor are 100% necessary. No bottled juice shortcuts, or pre-made graham cracker crusts. DIY it up, babes...it's all worth it. Enjoy!

Homemade Key Lime Pie

For crust
1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs from 9 (2.25" x 4.75") crackers (aka one pack)
2 tablespoons sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

For filling
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
4 large egg yolks
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons fresh Key lime juice

For topping
3/4 cup chilled heavy cream
3 tablespoons sugar
dash of vanilla

Directions

Recipe slightly adapted from Epicurious

I pile on bracelets, necklaces, rings.....but my poor ears are usually stuck with the same ol' studs day in and day out. Don't get me wrong - I love my goes-with-everything gold lines and dot studs (literally bee-lined it to Steven Alan to stock up the past two times I visited LA!). My ears are stupidly sensitive, and just cant handle anything that isn't solid gold, heavy, or usually within my budget. I've tried coercing them into submission, but it usually goes something like this:

Oh, ears - you like these and only these??? Yeah, me too....also, we are going to need to rob a bank. Eyeroll.

What do you mean you have a doctor's note that says you shouldn't do any heavy lifting?? You wuss! Ok, well I guess that means these beauties are off the docket....

Yeah, ears....I know these aren't made with real gold, but look at that price tag and the sparkle! I can't walk away from those. What do you mean you'll get red and angry if I put them on? 

These little lobes are totally ruining my swagger. That's why I was ultra psyched when I came across these beautiful earrings from Marida on Uncovet. They had all the makings of my dream pair of everyday casual dangly earrings - simple, lightweight, high-quality material and affordable. I wasn't sure if they could handle gold-filled, but I had to risk it - don't think I've ever gone through the checkout process faster, haha! John calls them my "Noah's Ark earrings", but I majorly love them. And now I want moreeeee. I think I just opened up Pandora's (jewelry) box. Ahhh! Just had to share this fab new line of jewelry since I'm sure I'm not the only gal with finicky high-maintenance ears and isn't dishing about this kind of stuff what girly blogs like this are for???

Marida, my stupidly sensitive ears and my wallet thank you.

Guess what, y'all?! I got a new full-time job - woohoo! Hope that sort of explains the silent streak on the blog recently, and I'll divulge more on that soon...

Anyways, so Father's Day is tomorrow and my pops is a huge fan of key lime anything - especially pie. Nothing says "I love you, Pops" like squeezing 70000000000 key limes, crunching up graham crackers and making what I discovered is quite possibly the easiest pie to make from scratch ever. We're heading to my sister's house tomorrow for a celebration and smorgasbord of deliciousness, so I'll definitely be posting the recipe if it's a winner. 

I had a bit of leftover juice after making the pie, so I decided to make key lime curd. Seriously, guys...it's like crack. SO good. Drizzle it over scones, meringues (more on that later too...can you tell I've been baking like a madwoman today?), or ice cream. I love that it only takes 4 ingredients to make, too. Easy peasy with gourmet flavors. That's my kind of recipe....click the link below for the full how-to!

As I was perusing Pinterest this morning, a pic of the beautiful Hanneli popped up on my feed. At first, it was the gorgeous yellow color of the dress she wore to the CFDAs that caught my eye. Then, I saw it...THE  haircut that I have been searching high and low for. It's not quite a bob, but it's not what I'd call long hair either....a loose and layered "lob," if you will. The ends of my hair are permanent residents of split end city, so chopping some of the length off is a necessity at this point. Bummer since that seriously limits all the braided hairdos I was hoping to rock this summer, but oh well....this cut is pretty darn cute and seems fairly low maintenance.

{Photo by Jamie Beck}

Smithville, Texas. Just an hour drive outside of Austin, but it feels worlds away and of a different era. John and I love finding places like this. A prime spot for weekend antiquing, talking about how vintage graphics really are just that much cooler than their modern day cousins, jumping around empty streets, admiring adorable old cottages with wrap-around porches that beg to be enjoyed with a rocker and glass of ice cold sweet tea, and piningly staring into the windows of an apparently awesome BBQ joint that was c l o s e d when you rolled up with a rumbling belly.

PS Be sure to also check out Bastrop if you are up in that neck of the woods...

Fun fact: John and I met in Florence, Italy.

Another fun fact: That city is ripe with döner kebab stands (pretty much the only thing you can get in Florence that doesn't resemble a pizza, panino or pasta...unless you count that one restaurant that serves imposter "Mexican" food). I ate lots of döner kebabs when I lived there. So much, I could be considered an amateur kebab connoisseur. 

In Italy, it's kebab. In Austin, Texas (and apparently Berlin), it's kebap. Now for the great debate: Is is kebab or kebap? I assume it's like a potato or 'pahtato' type thing, but who the heck says 'pahtato' anyways? Coincidence that the b is an inverse of p? I think not. Anyways, while my brain thinks up some nonsensical conspiracy theory, I'm going to stick with kebap.

Anyways, John and I took a trip down memory lane when I took him to Verts, the home of the döner kebap in Austin.  While it's not TOTALLY the same as the infamous wraps that we came to love so much in Italy, it's pretty similar and tastes darn good. Nostalgia in every bite.