Photographer Love - Ali Wood Photography

We are always so fortunate to work with some of the most fabulous photographers that this country has to offer and this fall catalog was no exception!
This fall, we worked with several new photographers and have been really delighted with the results. I wanted to share a few pics with you from one of those new photographers - Ali Wood Photography in Dallas, Texas.
These photographs were from some early Summer styles, and it looks like they were really having a lot of fun!

Favorite Things Friday - Green Tea & Glee

Welcome to the first edition of our "Favorite Things Friday" feature. We will be sharing with you every Friday a few of our favorite things for the week. They may be new products we have tried, places we have been, or music we have been listening to. We would love for you to share some of your favorite things with us too!
Please bear in mind that we are not being compensated in any way by the companies behind any of these favorite things. They are included only because we happen to dig them! :)

Favorite drink of the week...

I am sure you all know what big fans we are of Trader Joe's grocery stores. For those of you that don't have access to a Trader Joe's - we are so sad for you. When you happen to visit a town with a Trader Joe's, definitely make a point to stop and stock up on EVERYTHING! ;)
We are completely addicted to Trader Joe's unsweetened green tea. Yummo. Pour into a glass over crushed ice, and garnish with a sprig of mint from your garden like we do. Repeat!

Favorite music of the week...

Okay, I realize I am totally 2 years late for the party, but I just discovered Glee. Maybe discovered isn't the right word, because I knew it existed, but I just hadn't watched it and figured out for myself what all of the fuss was about! I just spent the last week and a half watching the last 2 seasons worth of episodes. Sigh. The show is a little silly most of the time, but the music... ROCKS! I heart it.
So, I tuned into the Glee station on Pandora and am really enjoying listening to it! They play the glee cast versions of songs, and also mix in the original versions too. So much fun to jam out to!

August Customer Special

(click on the image to see it larger!)

Our August Customer Special is valid at trunk shows during the month of August. Can't make it to an August trunk show? Just enter the name of your local consultant online when you order and we will make the adjustments in your order!

A Whole New Way to Shop.

I was trying to "unjunk" my email inbox today when I realized that in addition to all of the true junk emails that are completely unsolicited - I don't need any photo editing from your Chinese company, am pretty sure that I don't have any dead relatives in Uganda who are leaving me millions, and definitely don't want to buy viagra. I also have a ton of email that I subscribed to at some point. Most recently, I have been subscribing to many of the new websites that have popped up designed to save us money in one of 2 ways - 1) shopping at a discount from carefully selected high quality merchandise or 2) discounts for businesses and restaurants (groupon and other groupon-type websites)
I thought I would share some of them with you all.

1. Bag, Borrow, or Steal - is a luxury handbag rental company. So, you can't afford to buy the latest "must-have" bag according to all the Hollywood celebrities? You can rent it!


2. One Kings Lane - described as "The world's top home decor brands and designers at up to 70% off retail. Free membership, new sales daily." Think of this as a way to shop for luxurious home goods. I love it for ideas on decorating that I can duplicate at my local stores too. They even have a $50 and under, "thrifty thrills" section.


3. Zulily - Daily deals for moms, babies and kids - up to 90% off! Really, if you are shopping for kids, you must join this site - their deals are fantastic!


4. Groupon - Get 50 to 90 percent off the best stuff your city has to offer. Hot deals in Chicago, New York, Boston and many other cities. Get your Groupon today. The catch is that they may not have your city. But, if they do, they send you an email about the big deal they are featuring that day. I have purchased some really fantastic groupon deals that gave me discounts at places I already shop! Recent purchases include national brands like Gap and Nordstrom.


5. Living Social - LivingSocial Deals has a deal per day in multiple cities of up to 90% off at restaurants, bars, spas, comedy clubs, sporting events, theaters, classes, and more!


6. Bloomspot - Exceptional offers for weekend getaways and unique local luxury experiences from top-rated merchants. Join BloomSpot today. Their catchphrase is "live life better". All I can say is I kind of like seeing how the richer folks live!


7. Daily Deal from Sign On San Diego - This is our local version of the daily savings type websites like groupon, etc. I have found great deals at local places. I recently bought one for a local restaurant/bowling alley for the kids and I to have some summer fun at a terrific savings!


8. Restaurant.com - Again, one of these websites that isn't in every city yet, but we have been able to buy gift certificates for some of our favorite restaurants at up to 80% off. There is some fine print, so you will want to read it carefully, but the savings is really great! And, with such good savings, we have purchased a few to try at new restaurants too!

Queen Bee Market

We are once again really excited to be taking part of the most fantastic craft market in San Diego - Queen Bee Market!
This is a special edition of the Queen Bee Market to be held at the Hilton Bayside in conjunction with the uber-cool Blogher 11 Convention (which we are also tickled pink to be attending)!
So, if you are in town on Saturday, August 6th, be sure to stop by the Queen Bee Market. The vendors and artists displaying their wares there are just tremendous. We are delighted to be in the company of such creative ladies!

My New Favorite Store - EVER!!

I found the neatest store yesterday - Urban Barn. Swoon! I could have shopped all day. I stopped in yesterday afternoon and since I only had a few minutes, I scooped up a couple of items I knew had to be mine, and told the adorable ladies who run Urban Barn that I would return today to pick up my purchases. I had the best time back again this morning, and bought a couple of really nifty items!

One of them is my new desk chair. How perfect is this chair? It was painted pink (I know!!!) and then painted red and distressed so the pink shows through a tiny bit. And, the best of all - less than $30!!!
Here are a few other fabulous things I saw there... next time I go, I will take more pictures - sadly, I didn't take enough of the really gorgeous displays everywhere I turned!!

How awesome are these sign letters? See the little white coffee table to the right? We bought that to use as a SFV display piece. ($18)

More sign letters - so cool! See the little wagon with the smaller red letters? Yep, that "s" belongs to me and has found a spot on my family room wall!


I loved this vanity stool. The cushions were so shabby chic, and the side has 2 drawers. It was $49, and I was soooo tempted. Don't you think my girls need that stool??

Loved this chandelier made with beautiful, blue Mason Jars. I just know a certain Sydney Walker would love to have that!!

See that large, arched window? I really fell in love with it and just know the perfect spot for it in my living room. I really have to wait to get the OK from Chris before I try hauling that one home, though! ;)


I can't say enough nice things about the ladies that I met who run the Urban Barn. Next time you are in the area, be sure to stop in and enjoy the experience! I bet you can't resist buying lots!!

Hostess Only Design - Your new favorite pants!

Introducing our newest design - the Jennifer pant! These pants will be your favorite new "go-to" pants. They are totally cute and even better - totally comfortable! They are available in all of these fabulous knits!


We promise you will love these pants! They are only available to our fabulous Sweet Funky Vintage hostesses - so sign up to host a show! Contact Sydney for more information about our outstanding hostess benefits and available dates!