Surprise, Surprise, More Cacti Eyes

Skirt: Celebrity Pink, Macy's; Bag: Kate Spade; Shoes: Jessica Simpson Collection, ROSS

Boho Bright Eye Necklace

Barrettes: Zulily; Top: LC Lauren Conrad, Kohl's

Top: INC, Macy's

Top: Byer, Kohl's; Skirt: So, Kohl's; Bag: Olivia Miller, Amazon; Shoes: Katy Perry, Amazon

Sunset Sweetheart Necklace

Headband: Marshalls

Pumpkin: Kohl's

Top and dress: Kohl's; Boots: Penny Loves Kenny, Amazon

Foreboding Bird Necklace

Bag and belt: Apt. 9, Kohl's; Bracelets: Mixit, JCPenney and B Fabulous

Sunglasses: Wild Fable, Target; Bow: Carole, JCPenney

Before you ask when I last posted about cacti eyes, I've got to be straight with you: never.  (And no, I haven't confused cacti with potatoes!)  But I do go on about succulents, and a quick peek in my Etsy shop showed that I have a trio of eye-themed items.  Also, I can't resist a good rhyme.   

Anyhoo, today we've got jeepers creepers peepers necklaces including a lone (evil?) eye and crow skulls with, of course, the eyes poked out.  Also, cacti that may be responsible for said eye poking.  Consider it the stylishly sinister side of the circle of life.  

Less disturbingly, I'm super psyched about my new fally Wild Fable sunglasses and succulent squash  from Kohl's.  Because nothing celebrates a new season like getting new stuff.  Speaking of which witch, tomorrow I haul out my Halloween decorations, so stay tuned for more skulls.

So much for steering clear of disturbing.💀

New Lease Release: The Old Apartment

When I heard that Ashley Poston of The Dead Romantics fame had another book out, I was excited, albeit cautiously.  Because there was no way that The Seven Year Slip could be half as good as its predecessor.  But as I began reading, I knew I was wrong.  I was transfixed.

Clementine West is heartbroken after the death of her beloved, eccentric Aunt Analea.  The two used to travel the world, collecting passport stamps like stickers and embarking on endless adventures.  It was on these trips that Clementine fell in love with painting, illustrating the margins of her guidebooks with dreamy watercolors.  Now nearly thirty, Clementine has inherited her aunt's New York City apartment, a bittersweet gift steeped in pain and memories.  Things become even more complicated when an aspiring chef shows up, claiming that Analea sublet the apartment to him.  Iwan is charismatic and handsome and completely bewitched by food.  He has tattoos of herbs and a whisk and bakes Clementine the best lemon pie she's ever tasted.  Despite the walls she's put up, Clementine finds herself falling.  But resisting Iwan's charms is just the tip of the iceberg lettuce.  Because Iwan is from seven years in the past, back when Analea was alive.

With wry humor and beautiful imagery, Poston takes us on the journey of Clementine's heart.  Time shifts and bends as in any space-time continuum story and that, in and of itself, is fascinating.  But it's Clementine's relationships with her aunt, Iwan, and, ultimately, herself, that propel this hauntingly lovely novel.

And that's what makes it so magical. 

Foodstuff Guff: Fall Feeding Frenzy

Skirt: ModCloth

Bag: Elizabeth and James, Kohl's; Ring: A pumpkin loaf box from last fall

Squirrel Girl Necklace

Top: LC Lauren Conrad, Kohl's

Top: Amazon; Skirt: Wild Fable, Target

Harvest Corn Barrette Brooch

Bag: ModCloth

Shoes: Chase & Chloe, Zuiliy

Top: LC Lauren Conrad, Kohl's; Bag: T-Shirt & Jeans, Amazon; Boots: Apt. 9, Kohl's

Fall Fable Necklace

Comb: Zulily; Scrunchies: So, Kohl's

Skirt: So, Kohl's

If it's a marshmallow world in the winter, then it's a honey mustard one in the fall.  And for once I dove right in, weaving old and new molten yellow finds into an autumnal tapestry.  Which, now that I read it, sounds too sophisticated for someone who stuck her head in a wreath that came straight from the attic.  So musty!  

On an equally juvenile note, I was excited to make the kindergarten-esque Harvest Corn Barrette Brooch.  I meant to get to it last year but was overwhelmed by the idea of cutting out all those kernels (two sets, because I made one for myself).  Yet it turned out to be kind of soothing.  Which, upon further reflection, is probably why it's designed for candy corn-fueled kids.

Note to self: Buy candy corn.  And, while I'm at it, marshmallows. 

When Life's Got You Stressed, Grandmother Knows Best

When Londoner Leena Cotton has a panic attack that causes her to bungle a big work presentation, HR mandates that she take two months vacation.  Meanwhile, her seventy-nine-year-old grandmother Eileen, who lives in Yorkshire, is coming to grips with her husband deserting her for a dance instructor.  What are two such stressed souls to do?  Why, swap houses for two months, of course!  At least that's what happens in Beth O'Leary's The Switch, my most recent book club pick.  

The city mouse/country mouse trope always tugs at my heartstrings, pitting the glamour and excitement of urban life against quieter, pastoral pleasures.  It's a premise more complicated than it seems, as both settings represent what the characters want -- and don't want -- out of life.  This is certainly the case in The Switch.  Because in addition to dealing with their individual dramas, Leena and Eileen are still grieving the loss of their sister and granddaughter Carla.  So to distract themselves -- and also give back -- they set out to improve the lives of their new neighbors.  For Leena, this means chairing the Neighborhood Watch, a group of (mostly) young-at-heart oldsters more concerned with socializing than fighting crime.  Of course, there's one twenty-something member, a strapping single father and teacher who's miles nicer than Leena's sod of a boyfriend.  As for Eileen, meeting a fascinating but lonely elderly woman in Leena's apartment motivates her to organize a seniors group.  But Eileen's not all altruism all the time.  Her London adventure, as she's come to call it, includes online dating, an experiment that nets her a situationship with, among others, a silver fox actor.

Leena's and Eileen's struggles are sometimes funny and sometimes sad, but always relatable.  I could identify with their fish-out-of-water feelings and found Eileen especially delightful.  Her determination and wisdom are at the heart of this feel-good story.  Plus, she really rocks culottes.  When I'm eighty, I can only hope to be half as brave.  Indeed, both Eileen's and Leena's journeys show that sometimes a change of scenery can change so much more. 

So the next time someone asks you to housesit, don't be so quick to come up with an excuse.  

At least not until you've scoped out the neighbors.

Center Stage at any Age: All's Fair in Fall Footwear

Bag: Violet Ray, Kohl's; Shoes: Nine West, Kohl's

Top: Nine West, Kohl's

Southwestern Stranger Necklace

Sunglasses: (the long defunct) Cloud Nine, Ocean City boardwalk

Skirt: So, Kohl's

Skirt: Mossimo, Target; Shoes: Worthington, JCPenney

Bag: Isaac Mizrahi, Marshalls

Barrettes: SHEIN

Pastel Owl Necklace

Top: So, Kohl's

Top: LC Lauren Conrad, Kohl's; Skirt: Vylette, Kohl's; Bag: Current Mood, Dolls Kill

Great Agate Necklace

Sunglasses: Wild Fable, Target

Shoes: Madden Girl, Kohl's

I can hardly believe it, but the sun is beginning to set on sandals.  Which means that the first, ahem, official step into fall fashion is closed-toe footwear.  Now, this can be a little depressing.  So I decided  to turn that frown upside down and bust out a new pair while finishing up my fall jewelry (more on that later).  And with that I present my chunky black Madden Girl T-straps!  

A soon as I saw them, I was transported back to high school, a time when fashion (if not life) was fun.  Still, I hemmed and hawed before getting them.  Was I maybe a little too old for kicks last cool back when I needed a hall pass?

I hope you're laughing because I certainly was as soon as that ridiculous thought crossed my mind.

That said, I'm now the proud owner of these "back-to-school" shoes -- minus gym and geometry.  As they say, getting older has its perks.

Like creating kooky necklaces instead of moldy old still lifes and calling it art class: 

So if the shoe fits your foot but not your age (whatever that means), I say wear it! 

Also, stay in school -- and in school clothes. 😏

Catch as Cat Can: Wild and Crazy Buys

It's no secret that I love bargains and cute crime fiction.  So scoring a cozy mystery called Death of a Coupon Clipper was a real treat.  Not only is this Lee Hollis paperback a thrifty $7.99, but it takes a tongue and cheek look at just how far some people will go to save a buck.

Take heroine Hayley Powell.  The Maine winter has not been kind to this talented but underpaid food and cocktails columnist and single mother.  In the space of one snowy day, she loses her roof, her car, and her furnace.  She's so desperate for cash that she calls her mom to ask for a loan, a decision she instantly regrets.  But then she overhears a couple of nurses say that the reality competition show Wild and Crazy Couponing is coming to Bar Harbor.  Hayley immediately throws her ski cap into the onion ring.  And then, miracle of miracles, she's chosen!  It'll be her and no-nonsense nurse Candace Culpepper facing off in the Shop n' Save for all the world to see.  At least it will be until Candace is stabbed to death with her very own coupon-cutting scissors.  Hayley's bestie Mona is selected to fill the suddenly empty spot -- and leaps to the top of the suspect list.  In an effort to clear her, Hayley launches her own investigation.  Between sleuthing, cat-sitting for an obese bully of a blue Persian, and keeping up with her column, Hayley's schedule is enough to exhaust even the most on-the-go go-getter.  Plus, thanks to her totaled car, she's forced to walk everywhere in the cold.  So much for small towns -- and their murders -- being cozy!  

And yet, that's exactly what Death of a Coupon Clipper is.  Encased in the cocoon of its comforting bubble, you can't help but feel that life is good, everything will work out, and a tasty treat is just a craving away.

Not that that nefarious feline fits in with such warm and fuzzy feels.  

Hayley should've schlepped him to the shelter when she had the chance.

Going Against the Grain: New Retail Terrain

Dress: Nine West, Kohl's

Last Saturday, I surprised the husband by asking, "Do you want to go to Rockler?"  Rockler is a woodworking-supply-slash-hardware store, and the husband had been to the nearest one, which is about an hour away, once.  He said, "Sure, but you may not like it."

So off we went, and once we were there, I started taking pics.  One of the best things about shopping -- and life -- is finding color in the unlikeliest places.  So each time I spotted a patch of rainbow-y products or posters nestled amidst the neutral wood, I snapped it.  As for the husband, he found some odds and ends for his latest projects -- and also graciously photographed me against a backdrop of lumber. 

Needless to say, I wasn't bored.  More like board!  (Sorry, but it was right there.)  Because scoping out stuff, no matter how obscure, is one of my favorite things to do.

Next up, AutoZone.