First & Ten

OMG OMG!! Only a few days left till SUPERBOWL!!! While I'm disappointed my team (San Diego Chargers!!) won't be there, my second favorite team is hands down The Saints and you can bet I'll be cheering them on! Since it's rainy and winter my wardrobe is predominately black at the moment. However, my jewelry is usually silver. But for these last two weeks, in honor of the Saints going to the Superbowl and in solidarity with my team I have switched it up and repped their gold and black colors (I mean it's not that hard when they have the best most stylish colors in the league!)

If you need some inspiration or need to spruce up your wardrobe let me help you get in the Saints spirit! (If you're a Colts fan I have nothing to offer you save for a tissue to help wipe the tears when we beat you this Sunday)

The basic, most necessary, MUST HAVE...

I mean, lets face it, there is nothing cooler than showing up to a Superbowl party in your teams jersey. However, if the Saints are only your team because you aren't a Colts fan, or if you'd rather show your spirit in a more subtle way just in case (God forbid) the Saints are losing you can slyly switch teams, here are ten spirited options to help you get on your way to a first down...

1. big, bold and beautiful this necklace is a statement begging to be made. Previously $330, Noir Jewelry's "Cosmic Cluster Necklace" is now $231 at shopbop.com and can be worked dressy or casual. I love.

2. Talk about making a statement! This skirt was born to cheer on the Saints! Haute Hippie's "Ombre Skirt" will set you back $365 at shopbop.com but thinking of all the fun parties you could go to together!!

3. Okay so maybe this Alice + Olivia dress is a bit formal for Superbowl Sunday but who knows it might be perfect! It's fun, sparkly and the cut is too cute. You can get it at, where else, shopbop.com

4. So I swear I wasn't lazy and truly did scour the web for the best in black & gold but shopbop.com is just soooo good and happened to be full of everything I could ask for. So, this bracelet isn't gold, but it does have the Saints signature Fluer de Lis and is a totally acceptable and subtle way to support your boys.

5. The most practical of the bunch, this Saints sweatshirt from the NFL shop was refreshingly simple and had such strong graphics that I felt it needed to be given attention as one of the greatest sweatshirts ever! And since it's just the Fluer de Lis it's totally wearable outside football circles and for $51 it's def a cozy fun black basic to have around.

6. CONFESSION: I put black eye shadow under my eyes as eye black for almost every game. However, the powder usually doesn't last all 4 quarters or have quite as dark as an effect as I would like. I contemplated buying pro-status eye black for my weekly ritual but decided that there just weren't enough games in a season to keep that stuff lying around. Smashbox's gel eyeliner available at Sephora seemed like the perfect solution. Heavy texture, can be used on eyes Saturday night and under eyes Sunday morning.

7. Okay, another seemingly overly dressy piece but hear me out. This sequent covered blazer by Torn by Ronny Kobo with a pair of cuffed ripped jeans and a white shirt would be SOOOOOO cute!! ($440 at shopbop.com)

8. More fabulous shopbop.com finds. Fluer de Lis necklace in gold = perfection. $85

9. smaller than the first necklace but still a killer piece, CC Syke's "Devin Necklace" incorporates both the black & the gold! loves! ($195 shopbop.com)

10. For the over the top fan I couldn't help but post this Kathrine Baurmann clutch! Not exactly "practical" but wonderful none the less. This rhinestone encrusted saints helmet purse will set you back a steep 3 grand but if it's your style, who am I to judge, as long as you're rooting for The Saints!

okay so this wasn't a planned part of the post but I'm sitting here with my feet up on the desk (obvi) and was thinking it's about time to take off the pedicure nail polish I got for New Years (gross I know...) and while I'm at it spruce up my chipped finger nails that has been tapping away on my keyboard to create this blog entry, when all of a sudden it hit me! by TOTAL COMPLETE I SWEAR 100% COINCIDENCE I have gold toe nail polish on and black finger nail polish. I'm even a Saints fan in my subconscious! that's hardcore!

Cinderella Style

Sigh, there is really nothing quite like ballet. Tonight I was lucky enough to attend opening night of The Jeoffrey Ballet's Cinderella. And it was MAGICAL! The dancing was beautiful, as were the costumes and sets.

The last ballet I attended didn't have a single tutu and I was heartbroken. Thankfully The Jeoffrey did not disappoint and now I can't stop thinking about tutus, tiaras, and glitter, every little girls dream. I felt as if I was watching a Degas painting come to life.

Next stop Norton Simon Museum to drool over their Degas collection! Especially my all time favorite statue, "Little Dancer." I remember as a little kid being dragged from museum to museum by my artistic parents and being enchanted by Degas from an early age. I mean, what's not to relate about his work. I think "Little Dancer" has been my favorite work of art since I was 4 and ballet class consisted of running in circles in pastel pink leotards.

After tonight, I'm also dying to order Harvey Edwards' prints to hang all over my walls. I remember his famous photographs from when I actually started dancing (ie not skipping in tutus but 1st position, 2nd position, plies and grande jetes) as they were hung all over the studio I danced at.

One year I had his calendar and it was BEAUTIFUL.... must find that and save the prints...

Anyway besides reminding me of all this art I liked, Cinderella also had me craving tutus and pointe shoes.
Sadly, I hung up my pointe shoes (Freed Studios to be exact) almost 5 years ago now so neither new ballet shoes nor tutus are quite practical anymore (although Louboutin heels aren't practical per-say but that didn't stop me... hmmmm)

After hours of exploring sites like Capezio and other dance stores looking for a wearable version of a legit tutu I gave up and wandered over to Bloomindales to see what I could find.

To my pleasant surprise they had quite a few ruffley, pastel and glittery pieces that popped out right away. I really love the first two! Although they look difficult to pull off I just adore how straight out of this version of Cinderella they look! (Well save for the fact that the skirts aren't horizontal but it echos some similar exuberance)

I was also enchanted by Cinderella's white ensemble which just re-ignited my hunt for the perfect white dress, which I have been searching for ever since this song came out a couple years ago... (The girl in the music video is inexplicably not wearing a white dress which boggles my mind, but maybe they had just a hard a time finding the perfect white dress as I've had.... so ignore the girl, it's just the lyrics and the song in general, the music video isn't all that exciting)

However, I feel my luck is about to turn around! Look at these cuties! I want all 3! Especially the Alice + Olivia (center) and the Herve Leger (right)... well actually top choice is def the Alice + Olivia one. Ugh and I love that Shoshanna one too (left)!!! ugh Shopbop just made it so easy, they have an entire "White Dresses" section. Brilliant!

And last but not least, the story of Cinderella wouldn't be the same without shoes!

Since I already own the perfect pair of ballet flats, I thought I'd share them with all of you. It's the Kate Spade Felice in pale blush and it's so chic and sweet. The color is identical to that of ballet shoes but the peep toe and black bow details help prevent you from looking like you've just rushed off stage. And check out those Louboutins!! Now THAT trumps a glass slipper any day! The shine, the sparkle! loves! I die!

Alright, that was a long blog full of tangents and extra thoughts but I hope you enjoyed it! Off to practice arabesques and bourrees (for those of you that don't speak ballet bourrees are shown in the video below and the same user has posted videos for all sorts of ballet moves)