Ever since day one of the lettering artist series there has been one artist in particular that I wanted to interview, for many, many reasons, one being she seemingly has single-handily created a niche industry by just being herself. Without Betsy Dunlap I don’t know if there would be as many modern calligraphers out there and the world would be a less beautiful place to be sure. I know I for one may not have ever picked up a nib and ink if not for Betsy. Even the great Molly Jacques has credited Betsy with being a huge influence. I am pretty sure that almost everyone that has been bitten by the modern calligraphy bug has been inspired by Ms. Dunlap. I am so thrilled to be able to announce that we will finally have Betsy grace this blog with her interview, it has been a long time coming and I am out of my mind excited to be able to share her answers with you. We have decided that something as momentous as this occasion deserved a week dedicated to it and so we shall oblige. If you have any questions for Betsy leave them in the comments, or just say ‘hello’. All of these artists take time from their busy schedules to do these interviews and it is always welcome to have feedback, we appreciate it and we know the artist do as well!

1/2/3

Every week I have high hopes for blog posts and almost every week I come up short, I am seriously the worse blogger ever. I told Michelle that putting together the capsule wardrobe post was taking forever and yes it still is, this mama is super slow these days. I figured it might be easier to just post what I have found thus far, in case you were waiting with bated breath, you never know, someone out there might be.

First up is that elusive white cable knit sweater, I have found some options, hint I am going to go with this steal, but it’s definitely a wildcard (and maybe a total bomb), but the cut looks nice and the price is insane?! I have been on the hunt for some ivory cords, again this is as elusive as that darn cable knit turtle neck and unicorn!  I got seriously lucky and found them on sale (50% off), I am not sure about sizing since I have never tried this brand on in person, but I’ll keep you posted. I did get these black jeans, they fit incredible are super comfortable and so far have kept their fit, black jeans are one of those items that I really hate spending money on because they wear out so quickly no matter how high the quality and I really like my black jeans to look black. They are comfortable like a legging but are more put together, the price is so right it’s worth giving them a try. I really wanted a motorcycle boot in black and a pair of brown booties, but when I spotted these motorcycle boots in brown, I thought maybe they’d be the best of both world’s, at the price you can’t go wrong. I got them in and they are a really dark brown and I needed to send back to get a full size larger (it was free to exchange and pretty effortless). At first I wasn’t sure if the dark brown was to my liking, but after wearing them for a few days I am pretty happy with my purchase, they are really nice quality for the price, although I do wish I would have gotten them in black, because there is a reason black motorcycle boots are a classic. If you found the ‘zero waste’ wardrobe inspiring (I certainly did), and there isn’t a good resale or consignment store near you, I found this online one that seems to get rave reviews and you can even send them your clothes to re-sell, which is a bonus if you are both trying to pare down and want to make a little extra cash.

What about you? Have you been trying the capsule wardrobe? Any success stories? Any great budget shops that have great silhouettes?

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

I appreciate the serenity and simplicity of minimal living and our home is pared down to be  sure, but I think I’m far too sentimental to be a true minimalist. My great-grandmother’s dining set (she had excellent taste) that needs refinishing, the daybed that I sketched on a napkin and asked my grandfather to make for me when I turned 15 (my 1st design project!), mean more to me than brand new sleek and sexy furniture ever could. However, there’s a time when sentimentality has to fall by the wayside and the need to upgrade cannot be ignored – like when sitting at the computer in one of great grandma’s dining room chairs with a bed pillow stacked on the seat, results in the worst back and neck pain since bruising my tailbone on a ski trip (because when I ski, I spend a lot of time on my rear – or well.. generally splayed out in the snow in some fashion). It was abundantly clear I needed to find some comfortable, good looking (preferably white), easily assembled, not too pricey, real deal office desk chairs ASAP.

After an extensive search (online that is), I came up with some pretty handsome finalists that I thought I’d share in case your back and neck have had it with your current desk chair as well. The winning chairs have been tested for a couple of weeks now, and I can honestly say that our backs/necks/rears couldn’t be happier!

Last fall I got truly inspired by the concept of the capsule wardrobe. In true Tristan fashion, I took to the purging of my wardrobe with such gusto that I was left with just a handful of items to wear. My intention of course was to fill in the gaps of what was missing, but life got in the way and I basically have looked like a hobo since last fall. In fact, my husband was so used to seeing me look like one that when I started to write this post last night he smirked and said, ‘what do you know about fashion?’ not something you want to say to a tired mom with a fork in her hand. I venomously spat out, ‘I did run a bi-coastal fashion PR firm for 15 years, thank you very much’. He nodded, he obviously forgot, because his wife has spent nearly two years looking like a hobo, complete with mysterious stains on her clothes. Now that I am feeling like I should really try an eensy bit harder, I thought I would give it a go again. I put the above board together to see if I could translate this into a more mom friendly version–keep the chic, lose the heels and add the comfort factor (and yes, try to keep it all within a reasonable budget). We’ll see if it can be done (I’ll add this week). I am already finding that the search for the perfect cable knit turtleneck is about as easy as spotting a unicorn. I am thinking loose and comfy on top, more fitted bottoms, some good shoe choices and we’ll be good to go! I am not sure how many pieces this will take, but I am going to try to keep it as minimal as possible, wish me luck!

Have you tried this before? Feel free to let me know where to find that elusive cable knit turtleneck!

If you are interested in learning more about capsule wardrobes and getting some inspiration I collected some resources for you below!

//RESOURCES//

33 piece wardrobe plan, the pros and cons from a master of the capsule

This chic woman only buys 2nd hand and her wardrobe fits in a carry-on!

50 piece capsule wardrobe for the entire year

French girl style starter kit

12 wardrobe essentials

Toddler capsule wardrobe, never to early to start

photos by emerson fry