Christmas in London

Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red

888,246 ceramic poppies. Each poppy represent a soldier's life lost during the First World War.

Of course, I waited until the very last minute to visit the poppies at the Tower of London—and I paid the price for it.

A few things: It was über crowded. It was raining. The Lord's Mayor Show was the same day. Public transportation was all jacked-up and diverted, ANDDD on top of everything else, it was the last Saturday of the installation, so EVERYONE and their mother (or just other procrastinators like me) were trying to catch a glimpse—or take a photoshoot—of the amazing Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red installation.

Inside the Streets of Cassis, France

When James' co-worker (a lovely French woman, who holidays in the South of France) told him that we "had to visit Cassis," I basically took it as the word of God and penciled it right in! Of the four days we spent exploring the South of France, Cassis is probably the one place that I wish we had spent more time. All in all, we only had about four or five hours in the area, but apparently that was all we needed to fall in love with this charming little coastal village.

A Madewell Christmas— My Bratty 2014 X-MAS List

You can find ALLLLLLL of these items on Madewell.com.

Anyone who knows me knows that I am utterly obsessed with J-crew's bad-ass sister store, Madewell. SERIOUSLYYY. EVERY. TIME. I think about the fact that I reside on an island that doesn't have a Madewell, I die a little bit inside, but luckily for me—not my husband—Team Starnes is making a trip home for the holidays and I will soon be reunited with my old friend/"spirit-store."

I love everything about Madewell. The denim, the patterns, the fabrics, specifically the outerwear—it's just so damn cool! I would love to cuddle and hoard every. single. last. piece of their 2014 Fall and Winter collection, but with our upcoming move to Scotland, I am tryinggg to be practical. This year, I am looking for warm, wearable and utilitarian pieces. Obviously, there are many options to choose from, but in order to make this post "blog-friendly", I just chose the first things that jumped out at me. 

Creating this post was easy, but I will certainly have a much harder time making selections in the dressing room... I'm so antsy to see all of my old friends again! And I hope they still remember my name!

#myhusbandisveryscared

The Essence of the South of France

J had an opportunity to get away from the office for a few days, so we decided to book a last minute holiday—a 'London-moon', if you will. We considered a couple different places, but the perfect forecast and unusually high temperatures in the South of France solidified our choice.