Hello Lovely Readers!

Cath and I got back from New Orleans late Wednesday night and have been playing catch-up with work and friends for the past few days- so apologies for the slight gap in posts. There are still a few more mouth-watering photos from our trip we would love to share, but we’ll make sure to intersperse them with current outfit/fashion posts too!

The photo above is some of the loot I brought back with me: ubiquitous (oh but I love glitter!) Mardi Gras mask, a gorgeous edition of Out of Africa (the cover is a copy of what the first edition looked like), and absinthe candies and an absinthe spoon with Toulouse Lautrec’s initials carved out of the top (art history student swooning). More on absinthe to come.

Hope you all had a lovely, relaxing weekend!

xoxo,

The AsianCajuns (Lauren)

We’ve spent a lot of our days here in New Orleans strolling around the French Quarter. There are definitely some sleezy parts to it (hello, Bourbon Street and your tasty drinks), but there are some really awesome treasures too! 

We hope you guys are enjoying the plethora of New Orleans photos. We know leafing through someone else’s vacay pics can get a little boring, so we’ll keep ’em spiffy and edit so they are just the interesting ones. We want to make sure those of you who have never been to NOLA or Cajun country, get a good taste of it. 

We’d love to know if you guys have been here before and if so, what you loved. Ya-ya!

I hope this doesn’t make you guys sick of iron balconies and chartreuse potato vines, but this is what most of the French Quarter of New Orleans looks like. Pretty gorgeous, non? That first pic is the courtyard right outside of our hotel door. The rest of the photos are from just a few blocks from where we’re staying. 

Me and my big toothy grin at The Court of Two Sisters.

I haven’t had the same luck as Lar with my hair down here. The humidity makes it one giant frizzball and it’s so muggy I can only stand to wear my hair down for about 5 minutes. So a summer dress and my hair up in a ponytail has become my NOLA uniform.

We’ll be posting some more photos from New Orleans shortly, but I have to keep this post short since I promised everyone I’d meet up with them for some bookstore shopping this morning.

UO purse, AA dress, Cassius sunglasses and Nine West shoes.

Just a few beautiful shots of New Orleans for you guys to enjoy! 

We spent the day strolling around the Garden District. Tomorrow, beignets at the Court of Two Sisters– woohooo!

My first bowl of gumbo in New Orleans! Not as good as my mama’s, but pretty tasty none the less.

Followed by this praline sundae.

Wish you guys could join us! Maybe we should do a blogger meet-up here?

First off, sorry for the crappy quality of the photos. I’m at a conference in Milwaukee and didn’t even think to bring a camera – my phone camera will have to do.

I usually try to dress professionally for conferences, but I think I’ve been slightly overdressed for this one – especially my four inch heel pumps. I hate flats, but I’m thinking I should invest in a pair of ballet flats for times like these. Exploring a new city is a little more slow going when I’m trying to (unsuccessfully) power walk in high heels.

H&M dress and BCBG pumps.

I was impressed with the bags that the conference has provided for all the attendees. Usually you get a basic tote or paper bag, but this is a decent messenger bag. I’ve been using it non-stop all weekend.

This is my first time in Milwaukee and although I’m not a fan of Miller (I’ve kept that under wraps here), I’ve been really impressed with the city. It’s very pedestrian friendly, the weather is perfect this time of year, there’s a beautiful river running right down the middle and there is some awesome late 19th century architecture downtown.

Saturday, I took a trek over to a recently redeveloped neighborhood and found some cool shops. I went totally practical and wore comfortable shoes, which is very rare for me!

Hot Pop was one of the best shops I found. It’s a shop/gallery/design space. I bought Lar a scarf there, but I don’t want to show it on the blog until I’ve given it to her.

A lot of the buildings have detailed carvings on the front. These faces are some of my favorite.

 For some reason I just really liked the giant Obey sign and pink doors.

Today I walked up to East Brady Street to check out the historic homes and funky shops. I stopped by a cute coffee shop that smelled like patchouli and incense – not my favorite scent, but it was still fun. Tonight I’ll head over to the lake and check out the art museum. I can’t wait!

Nowadays it’s pretty easy and not uncommon to break the classic fashion rules (i.e. no white after Labor Day, no tights with open-toed shoes, don’t mix black with navy blue or brown, don’t mix patterns). Lauren and I frequently break the no navy blue with black rule. For some reason the tones of black with dark blue seem to work and I have no qualms wearing them side by side:

H&M navy blue wrap dress, Ann Taylor shrug, Nine West sandals.

I wore this outfit to work the other day since I needed to wear practical shoes, which in my case just means a shoe without a heel. Nothing goes better with navy blue than khaki and gold.

I layered these two necklaces all the time. They’re perfect complimentary lengths. I just wish I had two like these in silver. Another classic fashion rule is to take one accessory off before leaving the house. I do the reverse and usually end up with better results.

Cath and I consider ourselves pretty staunch recessionistas. Most of the clothes in our respective closets are not new, and the few items that are new we tend to wear repeatedly (as evidenced on this very blog). For instance, that hat above is from an Urban Outfitter’s sale last year and the flower attached to it was swiped from costume wardrobe for a ballet we were in (not that I condone swiping generally).

But I’m not immune to shiny new purchases. I whimper and drool and if I decide to go for it, I feel a little guilty. Unless. unless, it’s something so versatile and practical that it pays for itself as you unwrap it from its packaging: enter Free People’s Stripped Seamless Tube.

Here are just a few ways to wear it:

 As a tube top.

 Layered under a jumpsuit.

 As a skirt.

Three outfits for a measly $28! Not bad, eh?

Do you have a piece in your closet that does the same? I’m addicted. I need to find more of these chameleon articles of clothing that masquerade as tops, bottoms, slips, under-things and guilt-free consumerism (truly guilt-free would also somehow help others and save humanity in some way- expecting too much?).

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

xoxo,

LL

Lately I’ve become obsessed with, what I like to call, the “Dwell Magazine look”: clean, modern lines, warm woodstains mixed with an indie lifestyle (preferably in Brooklyn). I love the idea of making a modern home feel homey and lived-in, but organized and simple, and Dwell completely captures that.

Well, one look at Pauline Forster and Toby Penrose’s George Tavern and home on The Selby has kicked me out of my modern mood and into a more artsy/fartsey, loose, chaotic sensibility.

This imagine makes me wish I had a turquoise silk robe to putz about my house in.

I don’t think you can get any homier than hanging cups on hooks. Now I’m itching to install a few hooks in my apartment kitchen. If it happens, I’ll post pictures.

The answer to what you do with all of your red and purple shoes you no longer wear.

I think ultimately I’ll find a middle ground between modern clean lines and broken china while I’m decorating my place, but it’s nice to dream every once in a while about living above some crazy London tavern with water-stained walls and original art everywhere. That being said, living in a newish, loft-like apartment just outside of Atlanta is pretty nice too. Once Lar and I finish organizing everything I promise well post photos of our place!

To see the rest of Pauline and Toby’s tavern and home, click here.

CL