Bubblegum Ball Blowout: Part 1

 Bright White Gumball Necklace

Top: L'Amour by Nanette Lepore for JCPenney

Jeans: L'Amour by Nanette Lepore for JCPenney

Camisole: So, Kohl's

Shoes: Venus

Bag: Nine West, Boscov's

Belt: Wet Seal

 Rainbow Pastel Gumball Necklace

Tee: JCPenney

Jeans: City Streets, JCPenney

Shoes: Ami Clubwear

Bag: Candie's, Kohl's

 Pastel Primaries Gumball Necklace

Dress: Lulus

Shoes: Guess, DSW

Bag: Bisou Bisou, JCPenney

Belt: Apt. 9, Kohl's

Red Bow Gumball Necklace

Polka dot top: Wet Seal

Blouse: Candie's, Kohl's

Skirt: Stoosh, Macy's

Shoes: Betseyville, JCPenney

Bag: Candie's, Kohl's

Belt: Candie's, Kohl's

You know how foodies wax poetic about the shape of a pepper or the texture of artisan bread?  Well, that's how I feel about beads.  Which is why I ordered so darn many of them, the ones I posted two weeks ago and made into the neck candy you see here, plus a bunch of other ones that are rolling around on my coffee table even as I type (so much more festive and original than Christmas balls, don't you think?).  I'm having such a good time stringing them that I half considered wrapping them around my Christmas tree.  Of course, that would involve hauling said tree down from the attic, a chore that had been earmarked for today but got lost in the shuffle of reading and laundry and On Demand sitcom catch-up.  And, of course, necklace making.  (Don't ever let it be said that I don't have my priorities in order.)  Necks are just easier (not to mention more fun!) to decorate than houses.  I'm thinking about bringing back that old tradition of putting up the tree on Christmas Eve --you know, to really build the momentum and make time for the truly important holiday activities, which is to say, wrapping presents -- and then maybe leave it up until Martin Luther King Day.  People always say that the presents are the least important part of the holiday season, but that's simply not true.  You can skip the cards and the decorations and the cookies, but if you don't hunt down gifts for your nearest and dearest and present them, nicely wrapped, on the appointed day, then your name is mud.  I know, I know, that's not what they meant.  It's the reason for the season that's key, not the tangible stuff that we bequeath and stockpile year in and year out.  But of all the tangible, secular tokens of Christmas, it's the gifts that rise to the top of everyone's list because of the things that those gifts represent.  Crass consumerism? Well, sometimes.  (Especially if you fall victim to those displays of mystery gadgets and desk accouterments that clutter every department store aisle from mid-November to Christmas Eve and who among us, at some point, hasn't?)  But no, what they represent is that you racked your brain and the very best in doorbuster deal emails to come up with some somethings to make your favorite people smile and say, "You just get me." 

 It doesn't get much more reason for the seasony than that.