August 17, 2009 · 1:02 am

Giveaway! Matt and Nat Vegan Clutch

takumi

I heart this clutch. It could be yours, for free. Poor me, I’ll have to buy it.

It’s from StefaniBags.com, a site with a great collection of the best boutique handbag brands, including Hayden-Harnett, Foley + Corinna, Botkier, Kooba, Jalda, and Matt & Nat. Owner Monica Prestia, whom I e-met through my work with Store Adore, has offered to give away one FREE Matt & Nat Takumi Clutch (regularly priced at $245) to a random Style Carrot reader who signs up for the Stefanibags.com newsletter.

The Takumi Clutch is part of Matt & Nat’s new Japanese Paper Collection. It’s grey (my favorite color for clothing; blah but true), vegan, with tone on tone stitching, 100% recycled grey faux suede lining, antique brass and copper hardware, and Matt & Nat logo bar. There’s a front zipper closure and an open pocket on the back, and the interior has a zip pocket and cell phone and PDA pockets. There are two hand held straps, plus a detachable, adjustable shoulder strap. Pretty much perfect, right?

Email Monica at monica@stefaniBags.com to enter the giveaway and receive the StefaniBags.com newsletter. Type “Style Carrot Clutch” in the subject line and send. You will automatically be entered to win the clutch and signed up for the Stefanibags.com newsletter. Deadline is August 24th.

Good luck and may the most stylish carrot win!

PS – Deal alert: Click here to check out Stefanibags.com on Store Adore for a coupon code to save 25% on all handbags on the site.

Some of my other favorites. . .

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Shopping Guide

Botkier Uma Satchel in aubergine pearl, $595.

Linea Pelle Alyssa Tote in purple dawn, $494.

Kooba Amber Hobo in black, $545.

Treesje Marley Mini Hobo in turquoise, $565.

Foley + Corinna Layla Handheld Tote in glazed ivory, $420.

Linea Pelle Dylan Large Bowler in persimmon, on sale for $449.

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August 16, 2009 · 4:24 pm

Montage: Daybeds al Fresco

Today is hot, hot, hot. And sunny. Why I am not at the beach I am uncertain. Mainly just lazing around, with open windows and no breeze. Kids tossing the football and playing Star Wars (with plenty of fighting in between). Perhaps I’d be more inclined to sit outdoors if I had a set up like some of these. I have a patio, and a lounge or two with cushions, but I like to be ensconced and über comfortable. What I need is a mattress piled with feather pillows and high thread count sheets. Then I could lounge al fresco, in the style to which I am accustomed year round.

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Bolig LivingPhotos: unidentified; TopsyTurvyStyle; Elle Decor; Flickr-marc0047; Flickr-myturtleneck; Flickr-k!mm!e; Mimmi O’Connell; Coastal Living; Living Etc.; Marie Claire Maison; Emma’s Design Blog via Style Files; Domino; Everything LEB; unidentified; House Beautiful; Country Living; Bolig Living.

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August 13, 2009 · 11:01 pm

Nature Trip: Audubon Society in Wellfleet

No time to blog about indoor beauty today.  Too busy trekking through the woods and marsh on a “Seashore Ramble” at the Mass Audubon Society in Wellfleet Bay.  It was a gray and misty day, but the water was warm and the creatures were out and about.  Just call me Nature Girl. Ha.
MassAudubonThe Nature Center and the lovely flower gardens.

treesAlong the trail.

frogFrog on a lily pad.

grassMarsh grasses.

horseshoeHorseshoe crab molt and snails. Would have made a nice addition to the mantle, but not allowed to remove anything from the sanctuary.

boysGone nettin’.

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August 13, 2009 · 2:03 am

Get the Look: Wicker Furnishings & Accessories

These pieces are so much more refined than the wicker chest I had in high school in my Laura Ashley bedroom. (Believe me, it was an improvement over the whole rainbow and unicorn thing I had going on in junior high.) If you’ve been thinking of adding a little texture, these are cute and inexpensive wicker furnishings made from all sorts of often renewable, natural (and a few synthetic) fibers. A word of caution however. If you have a puppy, skip the wicker. Years ago I borrowed a white wicker table from a boyfriend’s mom to use in my sparsely furnished studio apartment. My ten-week-old cocker spaniel ate the entire thing, literally. (He was really cute though.)

GetLook-Wicker

Shopping Guide

Rattan pouf, $88 at Urban Outfitters.

NÄSUM banana fiber chest, $60 at IKEA.

Lighted rattan spheres, $20-$45 at Pottery Barn.

Red synthetic wicker outdoor stacking chair, $70 at Pier 1 Imports.

Woven palm leaves pendant, $199 at West Elm.

Woven seagrass mirror, $149 at West Elm.

HULTÖ peeled rattan chair, $70 at IKEA.

LINUS rattan and steel chair, $40 at IKEA.

Woven jute and metal studded tassel pull, $9 at West Elm

Fat handcrafted rattan stool, $100 at Pier 1 Imports.

Casa rattan table lamp, $70 at CB2.

Whitney Design banana leaves storage bench, $120 at Target.

Wicker cafe conversation collection, $1,160/set of 3 at Target.

Beale rattan and steel lounge chair, $249 at CB2.

Seagrass chair, $159 at Pottery Barn.

Water hyacinth and rattan open weave storage baskets, $7-$15 at CB2.

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August 12, 2009 · 12:25 pm

Montage: Wicker

It’s all about texture. You can’t talk to a designer without he or she singing its praises. Texture adds depth and interest, and can warm up an otherwise sterile space. Wicker is pretty useful for this sort of thing. A longtime fixture on Granny’s front porch, wicker is being pulled inside in various incarnations, from the of-the-moment pouf to simple headboards to Victorianesque fan chairs. And just what does “wicker” mean? It’s actually not a fiber, but a process. Wicker pieces are woven from many a material, including rattan (an über strong vine), willow, reeds, or even synthetic composites. Here is a sampling of rooms with all sorts of wicker pieces.

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aqua vitae design 3Photos: Apartment Therapy; Nate Berkus; Ken Fulk; M. Design; Tom Scheerer; Tom Scheerer; photographer Simon Watson; Tripod Agency; John Loecke; Tom Scheerer; Tom Scheerer; O at Home; C.W. Eisner; Tom Scheerer; Apartment Therapy DC; Apartment Therapy San Francisco; Desire to Inspire; Dave Coote; Mimmi O’Connell; unidentified; unidentified; Ferm Galli; Nate Berkus; Apartment Therapy; House Beautiful; Skona Hem; Nate Berkus; Phoebe Howard; Lynn Morgan Design; Breese Architects; Deborah Timmerman in Country Living; photographer Lisa Cohen; Villa & Vila; Ken Fulk Design; Aqua Vitae Design.

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